Pokemon Go developer Niantic’s Harry Potter mobile game, Wizards Unite, is introducing a series of villains and evil creatures in the new Adversaries update.
This update, which is the “biggest feature release of the year,” adds new evil characters to fight against. These include the bad boy Draco Malfoy and the nefarious Bellatrix Lestrange. The werewolf Fenrir Greyback is also included with the update, along with the Basilisk.
These villains will come to Wizards Unite as part of the game’s new monthly patches. Players can earn rewards like Wizarding and Challenge XP, among other bonuses, for defeating the villains.
The Adversaries update also adds a new Adversaries Registry, which is a compendium of more than 75 collectibles that players can collect. There are more combat lessons also available in this registry.
By now, filmgoers are familiar with many of Marvel’s biggest characters, and a few of the weirdest. When it comes to Spider-Man and his family of characters, though, that sphere of knowledge makes it only as far as Miles Morales and Doctor Octopus for most. It’s a good thing, then, that Jared Leto is here to introduce the latest trailer for the upcoming Spider-Man-adjacent film, Morbius.
Before you dive in, there’s no new footage from the Morbius film in this trailer. What’s new here is Leto’s introduction. The trailer that follows is an abridged version of the trailer we’ve already seen.
“Hello to all you wonderful Marvel fans,” Leto says. “I can’t wait for you to check out my new movie, Morbius, coming your way very soon. In the film, I play a new Marvel character who attempts to cure his lifelong blood disease with an experimental science, in the process turned into a living vampire.”
“It’s an exciting role in an expanding universe,” Leto continues before offering a message to Japanese viewers about theaters being open for moviegoers when the movie debuts in 2021.
Comic book fans will know that Morbius isn’t a new character per se, but the 2021 film will mark the first time the character has appeared in live action. Morbius the Living Vampire first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man #101 in 1971. He was initially a villain, but became an antihero over time. Leto’s description of the character is succinct and accurate. Just as Spider-Man’s powers came from a spider bite, biochemist Michael Morbius gets his powers when injecting himself with modified vampire bat DNA. In other words, he can still eat Italian food and retains any opinions he had about crucifixes before he became a vampire.
Like the previous trailer for Morbius and the information Sony has already released, though, this leaves us with a lot of questions. Leto mentions joining an expanding universe in his intro. We’re not ready to call it and say that Sony’s films are merging with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but when we’re talking about Marvel, the word “universe” definitely has implications. Further complicating this are the casting confirmations and rumors of both the Morbius film and the third MCU-connected Spider-Man film. This trailer, too, includes a cameo of Michael Keaton, presumably reprising his role as the Vulture, as he asks Morbius, “what’s up, doc?” as well as the graffiti of the suit from the Sam Raimi-directed Spider-Man films, which starred Tobey Maguire.
Let’s pile on top of that the confirmed casting for the third Spider-Man film. Jamie Foxx will play a version of Electro, the same character he played in The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (the Andrew Garfield Spider-Man), and just today we learned that Alfred Molina will reprise the role of Doctor Octopus, his character from 2004’s Spider-Man 2. And then there’s that stinger from Spider-Man: Far From Home, which featured J.K. Simmons as internet pundit J. Jonah Jameson ranting about Spider-Man before revealing his secret identity (Rude, JJ.).
Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange is said to play the role of Spidey’s new mentor, and Strange’s sequel is called Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. While Far from Home joked about the idea of a multiverse, 2018’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse was all about the idea, and Spider-Man comics have pushed different Spider-Men into alliances in ways that would make The Flash and other dimension travelers blush with envy. The idea of a multiverse-centric live-action Spider-Man film sounds like a risky move, but it’s far from implausible considering all of this information.
Now, 343 Industries has delved into the game in a new Halo Waypoint update, and there’s news on Craig. Neill Harrison, the director of art management at 343 Industries, has revealed that the Brute will look very different in the final game, and that the version we saw was far from a finished model.
“Firstly, I can confirm that the facial animation on NPCs was not fully implemented in that build, which resulted in Craig’s incredibly deadpan/lifeless look,” Harrison says. “All characters are modelled in a neutral pose, prior to blendshapes & animation being applied. So, poor old Craig was never intended to be seen in that condition which is not something that was evident during the gameplay.”
Craig’s face is actually a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment in the trailer, but the screenshot of his face has become infamous. “It was only later, in the close-up freeze frame of his one bad moment, where it came to light and the legend of Craig was born,” he says.
Craig, who is just doing his best.
“There’s been further work done on the material fidelity and more variety added for Brute faces, we’re also working to add some hairdos and beards which was something we hadn’t gotten to in July,” Harrison continues. “So, whilst we have come to love our dear old Craig, he’s certainly undergoing a significant makeover.”
All models have seen similar improvements, and the game is certainly looking a lot better now. Still, we wouldn’t be surprised if Craig appears somewhere in the game as an Easter egg.
Yes, Your Grace, a small game about making decisions on how to run a kingdom, recently released on Xbox Game Pass after hitting PCs and consoles earlier this year. In its first five days on the service, the game–which features Xbox Series X/S enhancements–has done extremely well, the publisher has now revealed.
Mike Rose, head of indie publisher No More Robots, has shared news of the game’s success. In its first day, the game added 10,000 new players, and over the four days that followed it continued to add that many new players every day.
“Around 250,000 people have now played Yes, Your Grace,” Rose revealed–a high number for a game like this.
Wow, an *incredible* first day for Yes, Your Grace on Game Pass 10,000s of downloads within the first 24 hours, and around 3,000 concurrent players 😮😮😮 Optimizing the game for Series X|S seems to be encouraging people to try it out! pic.twitter.com/Tf8KAJsgcb
Updated stats! 5 days after Game Pass launch, and nearly 100,000 people have played Yes, Your Grace on Game Pass — 10,000s every single day, with concurrents still at around 2,000 players Around 250,000 people have now played Yes, Your Grace 👑👑👑 pic.twitter.com/sXkFGEMB9k
If this pace continues, then Yes, Your Grace will roughly double its player base within two weeks–a fantastic result. Rose says that optimizing the game for the new Xbox consoles seems to have had an impact.
Rose has been very open about sales figures for No More Robots’ games in the past, and has been a fascinating resource for figures and observations. Descenders, in particular, has been covered extensively as it has hit new platforms. Here’s some further coverage of how these games have performed on Xbox, PS4, and Switch.
343 Industries has revealed that Halo Infinite will be delayed to Fall 2021. The news comes from a blog post, which also goes into how Halo Infinite and its free-to-play multiplayer will handle microtransactions.
“Yes, being free-to-play does mean that there will be some premium cosmetics, but players will still obtain tons of customization content through things like playing campaign, challenges, skill, special events, legacy rewards–such as the Halo 5 SR 152 reward–the progress system, and more,” Halo Infinite lead progression designer Christopher Blohm said.
Blohm added that the team wants players to feel like they’re being properly rewarded for time spent in the game. So players who don’t spend any additional cash won’t be penalized, they’ll still be able to unlock “items across multitude of different customization types.” Microtransactions will only be tied to premium cosmetics, and it’s a one-and-done purchase. “No loot boxes,” Blohm clarifies. “No randomness or items that influence the sandbox and gameplay.”
If you’re in love with the Spartan you’ve already built in Halo: The Master Chief Collection, 343 Industries wants you to be able to recreate them in Halo Infinite. Much like MCC, every armor cosmetic is planned to release in Infinite eventually.
“We want everyone to build their dream Spartan,” Halo Infinite design director Ryan Paradis said. “We are always looking for more ways to customize in-game personas and give the players options. My team knows that our long-term players have favorites that they love and may have for two decades. We want to make sure that Halo Infinite players will be able to get their old favorites, as well as find new favorites at launch and as we expand over the months post-launch.”
Halo Infinite is scheduled to launch for Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.
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Halo Infinite developer 343 Industries has provided an update on the project, revealing a new release window, talking about microtransactions, and showcasing the first multiplayer map in a post on the Halo Waypoint. Alongside all of this, the company supplied a number of new images, which fans of Microsoft’s iconic first-person shooter franchise are sure to poreover in the coming days.
The images include environments from the game, weapon models, and a close look at some of the Spartan armors that will be available when the game launches. Much of the discussion around Halo Infinite when the first gameplay was shown was about its somewhat questionable visual fidelity and this is something acknowledged by 343 Industries.
“The primary goal for the Campaign demo in July was showing Halo Infinite gameplay for the first time. While that aspect generally landed as we wanted, the reality is that the art and visuals weren’t at the bar we hold for Halo – even in a work-in-progress state.
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“Much of the feedback we heard from the community aligned with our own views and work we were already committed to doing around things like indirect lighting, material response, foliage and tree rendering, clouds, level-of-detail transitions, and character fidelity. Still, the feedback was humbling, and it also pushed us to look at additional opportunities for improvement.”
However, the studio added that the team has been “heads down working on everything from lighting to fog to wear-and-tear on Spartan armor.” It continued, “July was indeed a very much work-in-progress slice of the technology, and a reasonable set of key features from global illumination and dynamic time of day, to GPU-driven rendering and variable rate shading were all in active development.
“Much of the graphics team’s capacity, along with that of some key technical artists, was focused on achieving high resolution and performance leading up to the demo, which meant several of these features didn’t quite get the level of polish and bug fixing that was warranted.
“Visual fidelity is a very important goal for Halo Infinite, and the graphics and art teams have been continually aspiring, and working closely with each other, to create the best-looking Halo game ever. I definitely want to acknowledge the input that we got from the Halo community and our fanbase; staying open to critical feedback and looking at areas where we can learn and do better is an inherent part of our culture at 343.”
How that looks in motion remains to be seen, and it may be some time before we get another look at Halo Infinite gameplay, but the images do look significantly improved. The environments and models look sharp, detailed, and vibrant, while also sticking close to the Halo aesthetic fans know and love.
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According to Joseph Staten, a longtime Halo developer that returned to the franchise to work on Halo Infinite, the game is now expected to release in Fall 2021. As part of the same Halo Waypoint update, 343i revealed the interiors of an as of yet unnamed multiplayer map. It is believed the final game will have a mixture of interior and exterior locations, as has been the case with most Halo games.
As previously confirmed, the multiplayer component of Halo, which is usually incredibly popular and enduring, will be free for the first time in the franchise’s history. Halo Infinite’s free multiplayer mode will also run at 120fps. GameSpot’s Eddie Makuch discussed why this will be such a boon for Microsoft, which you can read for further insight into the potential ramifications of the decision.
Immortals Fenyx Rising might have only launched less than a week ago, but if you decided to wait a little on Ubisoft’s latest IP you can now enjoy it at a steeply discounted price.
Amazon is selling Immortals Fenyx Rising on Xbox One and PS4 for $40, down from $60. To get the full discount, you have to click the coupon on the store page. This deal only applies to the physical versions of each, but both are still eligible for the free Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and PlayStation 5 upgrades, as long as you have the disc inserted into the console.
Unfortunately, the deal doesn’t extend to Immortals’ other launch platforms, Nintendo Switch and PC, as well as any digital versions of any platform. The Switch version is currently on sale for $50, while the PC version is full price at $60.
Immortals Fenyx Rising might share a lot of visual and gameplay similarities to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, but its many engaging puzzles and methods of solving them make it a worthwhile journey in its own right. In our Immortals Fenyx Rising review, critic Suriel Vazquez wrote, “But even as it lives in the shadow of better games, its puzzles, combat, and open-world loop come together often enough for me to not only see it through for a few dozen hours, but also want to keep filling out its almighty checklist, even if it led me by the nose most of the way through.”
We’re just weeks away from the release of the highly anticipated Wonder Woman 1984. As we’ve seen with other major releases in this very bizarre year, you won’t need to head to your local theater to watch the latest live-action film in the DC universe. Wonder Woman 1984 releases on December 25 on HBO Max, HBO’s streaming service that launched earlier this year. While it will also be available in theaters on Christmas Day, the decision by Warner Bros. allows fans to see the heroine’s new adventure from the comfort of their own homes.
To watch Wonder Woman 1984 at home on release day, you’ll have to sign up for HBO Max. Those with active HBO subscriptions from their cable provider already have access to the streaming service. HBO Max costs $15 per month, and unfortunately there isn’t a free trial to take advantage of. That said, if you’re watching it at home with family, paying $15 for a one-month subscription is likely significantly cheaper than the theater experience. And, of course, you can watch Wonder Woman 1984 as many times as you want on HBO Max.
HBO Max is available to stream on a myriad of platforms, including Fire TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, mobile, and video game consoles such as the PS4, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X. It’s not currently available on PS5, unfortunately, and to watch on Roku devices you need to use Apple AirPlay.
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Wonder Woman 1984 New Trailer Breakdown – 12 Things To Know
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While reviews for Wonder Woman 1984 aren’t out yet, early reception from critics who have seen it has been positive. GameSpot’s managing editor of entertainment Michael Rougeau said the film is an “absolutely delightful and wonderful movie for this moment in time.”
Wonder Woman 1984 is far from the only Warner Bros. film that will premiere on HBO Max alongside a theatrical release. Warner Bros. recently announced that every film it releases throughout 2021 will be available to stream for the first month of release on HBO Max. This will include upcoming films such as The Matrix 4, Dune, The Suicide Squad, Mortal Kombat, and Space Jam: A New Legacy. The Warner Bros. 2021 library alone arguably makes an HBO Max subscription worth it. We’ve been impressed by HBO Max since launch, and it earned a spot on our list of best streaming services.
Ubisoft has delayed Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake from its originally scheduled January 21, 2021 release date. The upcoming remake of the platforming classic will now launch on March 18, 2021 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.
Ubisoft’s Prince of Persia Twitter account announced the news, with the development team saying, “We are excited to put this game in your hands, as we retell the story of the Prince and Farah in a reimagined 11th century Persia. However, 2020 has been a year like no other. Today we wanted to let you know that we are taking additional time to work on the game. With that, the release date of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake has been moved to March 18, 2021. We believe this is the right call to ensure we will deliver a game you will enjoy.
“Thank you for your patience and continued support for Prince of Persia and we hope you stay safe and healthy this holiday season.”
The remake of the beloved 2003 platformer was announced earlier this year during the Ubisoft Forward presentation. While fans were excited about Prince of Persia’s return, many were left dissatisfied by its character models. Ubisoft later explained the decision behind its visual style.
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake will retail for $40 when it launches in March, and includes the original 1989 Prince of Persia as an unlockable bonus. Those who preorder the Sands of Time Remake will also receive the “Back to the Origins” bonus set, which comes with The Original Prince outfit from The Sands of Time, The Prince’s Original Weapons set, and a Classic Filter that will make players feel like they’re playing on a retro screen.
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The rather chaotic 2020 is coming to a close, which means the GameSpot staff is sporadically taking breaks from the regular day-to-day coverage to look back on the year that was and discuss the games we liked the most. In the following article, we detail our five favorite Xbox games for 2020–so any game that released for Xbox One or Xbox Series X|S this year.
All said and done, 2020 was a pretty good year for Xbox. No standout first-party exclusives like PlayStation, but plenty of third-party games look great on Xbox One X, and they look even better (and load a lot faster) on Xbox Series X|S. So yeah, you can find all of the games on this list on other platforms, but that doesn’t detract that they all look and play very well on Xbox platforms. Three of the five are on Xbox Game Pass, too. So if you’re curious about trying Ori and the Will of the Wisps, Spiritfarer, or Doom Eternal, you should consider investing in the best deal in gaming. Doing so will also net you the somewhat niche but impressive line-up of Xbox console exclusives that were released this year, like Call of the Sea and Tetris Effect: Connected.
Ori And The Will Of The Wisps
Developer Moon Studios’ Ori and the Will of the Wisps takes a more action-oriented focus than its predecessor, giving brand-new combat abilities to the titular Ori in order to help them overcome nightmarish enemies and monstrous bosses. But it’s in the platforming segments where Will of the Wisps truly shines–the game leans on its floaty jumps but tight controls to curate challenging gauntlets that encourage you to dash about the world with fast, fleeting movements. The charmingly colorful visuals and beautifully somber orchestral score only improves the experience, creating a sensation that Ori is dancing, not jumping, through the air. Will of the Wisps doesn’t quite reach the highs of Ori and the Blind Forest‘s Ginso Tree escape, but it makes up for it with a memorable story that’s sure to shed a few tears.
In GameSpot’s Ori and the Will of the Wisps updated review for Xbox Series X|S, Mike Epstein gives the game a 9/10, writing “[Ori and the Will of the Wisps] was always an impressive visual showpiece, despite the technical flaws that initially held it back. It’s more straightforward, combat-heavy flow may still put off die-hard fans of the original Ori, but that’s a small nitpick for a game that retains its identity while finding a new flow. Most importantly for the Series X and S upgrades, next-gen hardware turns one of Will of the Wisps’ original weaknesses into a point of pride, and that’s worth celebrating.”
Yakuza: Like A Dragon
Kiryu’s adventures are a bit difficult to get into. The first few games have begun to show their age to those who haven’t yet bought into the franchise. His later games are far better, but understanding and appreciating their stories rely upon playing the first few games. That’s why Yakuza: Like a Dragon is such a welcome sight. The game builds upon the winning formula of heartwarming storytelling and rambunctious mission structure that’s been refined throughout Kiryu’s games, while also switching things up and introducing a brand-new protagonist and cast of lovable characters. It’s the best way for newcomers to finally see why Yakuza fans won’t stop talking about this series, and it’s also just really, freakin’ good.
In GameSpot’s Yakuza: Like A Dragon review, Michael Higham gave the game a 9/10, writing “For RGG Studio’s first crack at an RPG, [Yakuza: Like a Dragon] is a damn fine result. It delivers what I love most about Yakuza and introduces new ideas that largely pay off. Ichiban isn’t doing it alone, either. He has friends and mentors, ones who’ve helped him fight and overcome personal tragedies. It was an absolute thrill to watch him grow, and that’s what’s most important for a game so focused on its characters. Yakuza: Like a Dragon is a passing of the torch, and a fantastic entry in a beloved franchise that proves that it’s in good hands with Kasuga Ichiban.”
Spiritfarer
If you’ve ever played one of the Animal Crossing games and thought to yourself, “Ya know, this formula would be vastly improved if an overall narrative acting as a throughline pulled me through the grind of daily tasks,” then Spiritfarer is the game for you. This cute management sim sees you care for your sentient animal neighbors, each of whom needs your help in building them homes, as well as personal services to improve buildings and the tasks you’re able to do. But here’s the catch: you’re basically the new Charon, a spiritfarer designated with helping your neighbors–who are really spirits–work through their grief, regrets, and hangups in order to assist in their transition to the afterlife.
In GameSpot’s Spiritfarer review, Hope Corrigan gave the game a 9/10, writing, “Spiritfarer is somehow a game with no risk but all reward. There’s no death, no pain, no rush on any task, and yet I don’t think I’ve ever felt this complete. You’re allowed to totally take your time, play on your own terms, and even though your tasks are easy, they are incredibly fulfilling. If the game had kept giving me quests, I feel as if I would have kept doing them for eternity, just because I wanted to. All of Spiritfarer’s novel mechanical variations kept potentially repetitive actions from ever growing old. Its gleeful little islands got more exciting to explore as new platforming abilities were unlocked. The characters, even small ones with funny little quips of dialogue that you encounter, were friends that I cherished. I absolutely adored existing in Spiritfarer’s beautifully animated, compassionate world so much that it genuinely came to feel like home.”
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2
The original Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater and its sequel were released in 1999 and 2000, respectively. That’s 20 years ago, and for many folks in their early to mid twenties (like me), that means they didn’t get a chance to play them. We were babies when those games first came out. But along comes Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 and suddenly, two of some of the best skateboard video games ever made are easily acquirable for a whole new generation. Revamping the levels and skaters from the first two games and building upon the original games’ already solid trick system foundation with the improvements introduced in later entries, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 creates an experience that’s approachable for new players while still offering what made those early games so appealing to the now veteran crowd.
In GameSpot’s Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 review, Mat Paget gave the game a 9/10, writing, “Because it nails so much about that original Tony Hawk experience, it’s really hard to be mad at Pro Skater 1 + 2 for any of its downsides. The load times aren’t enough to keep you away from the plethora of satisfying combos, and the lack of level goals for every skater isn’t enough to keep you from jumping back in with a new character. Playing through the newly remade levels is immensely enjoyable, and that on its own is enough to call Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 a success. However, smart additions and an engaging challenge system make it an experience that’s more than just a brief skate through Tony Hawk’s past.”
Doom Eternal
Doom Eternal is like the opposite of Ori and the Will of the Wisps. Instead of being a sequel to a platformer that adds more combat elements, Doom Eternal is a follow-up to a combat-heavy game that adds platforming elements. While that remains a contentious addition among fans, Doom Eternal still manages to deliver fast-paced, satisfyingly tight shooting mechanics that shine in its more self-contained, linear levels. Ya gotta love a game that knows what worked with its predecessor–big guns, bigger baddies, enough frantic blood and gore to satisfy any budding sociopath–and just doubles down, creating another great first-person shooter experience.
In GameSpot’s Doom Eternal review, Phil Hornshaw gave the game an 8/10, writing, “Though it can take a bit to get the hang of it, the intricacies of Doom Eternal’s combat, combined with its enhanced mobility and option-heavy level design, create a ton of white-knuckle moments that elevate everything that made Doom 2016 work so well. Its combat is just as quick and chaotic, but requires you to constantly analyze everything that’s happening in order to come out victorious. Once you get the hang of the rhythm of Doom Eternal, it’ll make you feel like a demon-slaying savant.”
