Author: Trafficblast

The thiefly multiplayer game Hood: Outlaws & Legends received a new patch recently, and it makes some minor but significant changes to the game. These shifts include assassination behavior, how stunlocking and staggers work, as well as several bug fixes.

First, Patch 1.4 nerfs the assassin pretty significantly. Assassinations can now be interrupted if players manage to do damage to the assassin above a certain threshold. According to the patch notes, most basic attacks meet that threshold, so assassins need to be a bit stealthier if they want to get that backstab.

Similarly, players can avoid getting staggered more consistently by dodging and blocking now. Seems the developers felt that there were too many situations where players were getting stunlocked to oblivion, so this change should help alleviate that.

Additionally, “The Ballad Unfolds” and “The Ballad Ends” Trophies should be working now, though players who already fulfilled their requirements won’t have it automatically unlocked. According to the patch notes, that fix will be coming in the next update. Also, Epic Game Store players can now invite Steam players to their play groups.

Hood: Outlaws & Legends 1.4 Patch Notes

Balancing

• Assassinations can now be interrupted if damage to assassin exceeds a certain threshold (read more here) TLDR: most basic attacks interrupt it now.

Combat

• Players can now exit stagger/stun more consistently through dodging/blocking, to reduce situations where players would get stunlocked

Matchmaking

• Players on EGS can now invite players on Steam to their group.
• After the end of a match, players are moved back to the hideout, but remain in their squads. This should reduce matchmaking times because before, players were leaving the automatic queue in order to return to the hideout, which had a negative impact on queue times.
• Rank is no longer displayed in the lobby.

Winch

• Improved ability to interact with winch when standing close to it
• Added feedback alert for when an enemy team reaches a new winching notch

Trophies

• “…The Ballad Unfolds” and “…The Ballad Ends” trophies can now be unlocked. It won’t be automatically unlocked for those who already fulfilled the requirements. This fix is coming in the next update.

Challenges

• Fixed challenges that involve tagging

Voice Chat

• [Xbox One, Xbox Series] Fixed mute not applying when a user had been muted via their gamercard during gameplay.

UI

• Fixed Ctrl appearing when trying to bind a key to Right Shift or Alt Gr
• Added missing home spawn icon on Citadel for both teams
• Tweaked some texts in the post-match screen for clarity
• Fixed the respawn timer sometimes appearing blurred as if in the background

Other Bug Fixes

• Fixed the tag not being removed for enemy players when a Marianne used her ability after getting tagged by an AI
• Fixed collision pushing mechanic forcing characters to rotate in certain instances
• Fixed visual effect of Gold coins falling out of chest when it was dropped
• [Xbox One, Xbox Series] Fixed black screen when returning to Hideout
• Fixed Tooke’s weapon disappearing if he used his ability right after climbing down a rope

Sidebar Games, the developer of Golf Story and the upcoming Sports Story, has provided a very brief update on the upcoming RPG. Sidebar Games put out two tweets, the first one stating “Sports Story Update: Everything is coming together now. Please look forward to more updates going forward, we have much to share!”

The second tweet has a screenshot of what appears to be an in-game tennis training game, where the player hits a tennis ball off a brick wall with the caption “Everybody wants to know the first step to turning pro. Wall Bounders is that first step.”

Sports Story was originally announced as a 2020 title but was delayed due to it becoming “more ambitious” than the developer had originally planned. Sidebar Games did not give a new release window when it made the delay and has not announced when it intends to release the game. However, Sidebar Games publicly stating that the game is coming together the week before E3 makes it seem like an announcement may be imminent. Considering that Golf Story was an indie darling on the Nintendo Switch when it launched in 2017, it is possible that Sports Story could appear at Nintendo’s E3 Direct presentation on June 15.

Sports Story was one of GameSpot’s most anticipated titles of 2020 (back when we thought its release was imminent following its announcement) and while we don’t yet know when the game will release, we do know that Sidebar Games is making good progress.

Over the last few years, sports teams have taken an increasing interest in esports, and many have created or bought esports teams. Today, the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens have announced its own esports initiative, called the Ravens Gaming League.

According to a press release, the Ravens Gaming League sounds like a combination of a tournament series and an esports community. It will hold frequent competitions and provide rewards; the first tournament scheduled is in Fortnite, and the winner will receive $500 in cash and a “Ravens VIP home game experience” that includes hotel, transportation, gear, and tickets to a Ravens home game. Registration for the tournament is open to the public.

The Ravens organization has partnered with Esports Gaming League (EGL), an established company in the esports industry that provides a platform for holding competitions and facilitating audience interactivity. Although this is the first NFL partnership for the EGL, it’s not the first time that an NFL team has launched a similar initiative. Back in December, the Philadelphia Eagles announced a tournament series of its own in partnership with the Esports Entertainment Group.

As esports have grown in popularity, established sports teams have taken notice and branched into the industry. One of the most high-profile examples is the Overwatch League, which includes teams owned by the organizations that also own the New England Patriots, Philadelphia Flyers, Arsenal Football Club, and Los Angeles Rams, among others.

Apex Legends fans can discover new information and admire the captivating art in the newly announced The Art of Apex Legends book from Respawn Entertainment. The book is a collection of art ranging from legendary skins to weapons, and even the arenas of the much-loved FPS battle royale game from the world of Titanfall.

$24 (was $40)

The Art of Apex Legends preorder is available now for $24 at Amazon ahead of its November 9 release. As always with Amazon preorders, you’ll get the cheapest price offered between the time you order and release.

A month after the game’s release in 2019, Todd Sue, the previous Apex Legends Art Director from Respawn Entertainment, shared a blog post on ArtStation Magazine. The blog post displayed a handful of art deriving from a variety of talents in their Art Department. However, the upcoming art book is a hefty 192-pages.

Earlier this year, Dark Horse published a lore and art book called Pathfinder’s Quest. It followed the story of Pathfinder, a robot character from the game, as he interviewed several Legends on his journey to find his creator.

Apex Legends is free-to-play on PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series.

A modder named Krollywood has recreated almost all of GoldenEye 007’s single-player campaign in Far Cry 5. Krollywood’s map-by-map approach includes every core level in the era-defining N64 shooter, with the exception of the two bonus levels.

Krollywood told Kotaku that the process took about 1,400 hours over the period of nearly three years. While Krollywood says that they’re a fan of both games, they prefer Far Cry 5’s level editor because of its ease of use compared to other games. It also includes many assets and objects from other Ubisoft games like Assassin’s Creed and Watch Dogs, which made it easier to recreate the environments from Goldeneye 007.

If you’d like to see more of Krollywood’s fan remake, you can check out their YouTube page for more info. In other Far Cry news, Ubisoft recently revealed that Far Cry 6 will be coming out on Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PC, Stadia, PS4, and PS5 on October 6. Unfortunately for Krollywood, Far Cry 6 will not feature a level editor. We do know for a fact that Far Cry 6 will be at Ubisoft’s E3 show, so check it out if you’re interested. Then again, they told Kotaku that they plan to play “other games” now that they’ve completed their project, so good for them.

Gearbox Software has announced plans for E3 2021, and it includes a 30-minute broadcast that could be where the studio’s rumored Wonderlands game is shown off. The Borderlands studio, which also operates a publishing division, announced its plans on Monday.

How To Watch

The Texas-based studio behind the Borderlands series announced that a “segment” of Saturday’s E3 2021 broadcast will be dedicated to Gearbox. During this presentation, Gearbox will share “everything that Gearbox has been busy getting its hands into.” The broadcast begins at 2 PM PT / 5 PM ET on June 12, and you can see more stream times below. Like E3’s other programming, the broadcast will be available on YouTube, Twitch, and other streaming sources, including here at GameSpot.

Start Time

• 2 PM PT
• 5 PM ET
• 10 PM BST
• 7 AM AEST (Sunday, June 13)

What To Expect

According to a tweet from Gearbox, the event will be hosted by Gearbox boss Randy Pitchford. The executive has recently been spending time in Budapest for the Borderlands movie. One of the biggest rumors about Gearbox is that the studio is developing a Borderlands spin-off based around Tiny Tina and called Wonderlands, but whether or not it’s shown off during the event remains to be seen.

Geoff Keighley’s Summer Game Fest Kick Off showcase on June 10 will contain at least one reveal from Gearbox ahead of the Gearbox presentation itself two days later.

Gearbox is now owned by Embracer Group. As part of the sale, Gearbox has said it may be working on a new IP that could shake things up like Borderlands did years ago. Gearbox is also known for franchises like Brothers in Arms and Duke Nukem, though nothing so far has suggested new entries in those franchises might be revealed at E3.

Outside of its own game development, Gearbox runs a publishing division that puts out games in the Homeworld franchise, among others, so there is no telling what the company might have in store for E3.

For more, check out GameSpot’s E3 2021 schedule overview that covers everything you need to know about the show and all of its press conferences.

An 8-year-old boy was devastated to learn that his 4-month-old puppy needed an expensive medical treatment to survive, so he sold his Pokemon cards on his front lawn to help pay for the procedure. But as the Washington Post reported, Bryson Kliemann’s neighbors and friends were so moved by his concern for his dog Bruce that they donated more than $400 to the effort, sometimes without even buying the cards.

Bruce was diagnosed with a contagious virus known as parvo, which can be lethal. The Kliemann family knew that the procedure would be a minimum of $655, plus additional expenses for future treatment. When Bryson overheard his two parents discussing how they could not afford to pay the cost of the procedure, he decided to sell his Pokemon cards to help fund it, a decision that caused his mother Kimberly Woodruff to cry.

Thanks to people in his community of Lebanon, VA, as well as online donors to the family’s GoFundMe, Bryson ended up raising a lot more money than was needed for Bruce’s procedure. As such, the family donated the rest of the funds to support other sick pets in their area. Additionally, an employee at The Pokemon Company sent Bryson a package of rare cards after hearing about his selflessness. Currently, Bruce is recovering from the procedure, but all signs are positive.

“I never in a million years would have thought something that my 8-year-old did in a small community would have such an impact,” Woodruff told the Post. “It truly has been incredible.”

The first image of Jensen Ackles in the upcoming The Boys Season 3 has been released. The actor will play the fan-favorite character Soldier Boy in the third season of Amazon’s dark superhero comedy.

Soldier Boy is the “original” superhero, who claims to have fought in World War II, and in the The Boys comic books, he is the leader of the superhero team Payback. He wears a superpowered suit that was designed by Laura Jean Shannon and Greg Hopwood. Check the image out below:

In a statement, Shannon described the inspiration behind the suit’s design. “Soldier Boy is the original bad ass,” she said. “Our goal was to highlight a bygone era of overt masculinity and grit. With that pedigree we dove headfirst into baking in an all-American quality grounded in a military soldier’s practicality with a heavy dose of old school cowboy swagger. We knew that the actor had to have Steve McQueen looks and chops with a John Wayne attitude, luckily Jensen Ackles embodies all of that.”

Ackles is best known for the long-running lead role of Dean Winchester in Supernatural, as well as for roles in Smallville and Dawson’s Creek. He also voiced Bruce Wayne in the new two-part animated DC movie Batman: The Long Halloween.

The Boys Season 3 doesn’t have a release date yet. However, showrunner Eric Kripke previously revealed that the comics story arc known as “Herogasm” will be adapted in the new season. This story involves the “supes” in The Seven traveling to a resort to engage in a week-long superhero orgy.

For more, check out GameSpot’s guide to everything we know about The Boys Season 3.

Ahead of Ubisoft Forward and E3 2021 this coming weekend, Ubisoft has begun to set expectations–and this includes informing fans that there won’t be news about The Division.

The statement posted on The Division’s Twitter page plainly states, “We won’t be at Ubisoft Forward this year.” That might come as a surprise to some given that a new free-to-play spin-off game, The Division: Heartland, was just recently announced, while the developer is also making new content for The Division 2.

That content remains on track to launch this year, the statement said, but there won’t be any news about it at E3. As for Heartland, Ubisoft said it will host more tests for the game, but it didn’t say when or how you might be able to get in.

A mobile game based on The Division is also in the works, but the statement didn’t include any mention of this. A Netflix movie with Jake Gyllenhaal and Jessica Chastain is coming, too, along with a new novel.

The Division developer Massive is also making an open-world Star Wars game and a new title based on James Cameron’s Avatar franchise. Whether or not these titles will show up at E3 remains to be seen.

Ubisoft also recently confirmed that its Ubisoft Forward event at E3 2021 will not have any news on Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time remake.

Ubisoft Forward takes place on Saturday, June 12. The event will showcase Rainbow Six: Extraction, which is the new name of Rainbow Six Quarantine. The event will also show more of Far Cry 6, Riders Republic, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, and other Ubisoft titles. As usual, there could be some surprises as well.

Check out GameSpot’s rundown of the Ubisoft Forward schedule to learn more about how to watch and what to expect.

Apple has formally revealed iOS 15 at WWDC 2021, the next annual update for iPhones that is set to launch later this year. The update is set to introduce many new features to existing apps such as FaceTime, Messages, and more, some of which will certainly help if you’re still spending a lot of time indoors and at home.

First and foremost are additions to FaceTime, which now links into many apps and media features of your iPhone. Similar to in-app options in Netflix, FaceTime will now let you share video with anyone on the call, with the stream synced up with all participants. Apple says this will work with both Apple services and third-party ones, including Disney+ and Twitch. This will also work on non-Apple devices, too, with Apple announcing FaceTime support for Android and PCs using web browsers and shared links.

Another big update concerns notifications, and several groups that you can collect them into. Apple calls this Focus, allowing you to define groups for your morning routine, work, personal time, do not disturb time, and more. Changing between these states can organize notifications and apps accordingly, either with user-defined parameters or with iOS intelligently learning what apps you’re using and when. Pages on your home screen can also be changed to reflect what Focus state you’re in, while you can allow and block notifications for certain apps and contacts, too.

Other Apple users will now also be able to see if you’re in Do Not Disturb mode, and also mark a message as urgent to break through your notification block. Many of these features are designed to help you separate the apps and contacts you need during the day, with Apple saying it wants it users to be put in control of what information they’re served and when. That might be useful if the lines between work and personal time have blurred lately, especially with working from home.

Apple also introduced Live Text, a take on Google Lens. This allows you to extract raw text from photos throughout iOS, whether it’s in your own library or on an image in Google search. This might be helpful in converting the text from a business card or grocery list photo into something more useable in notes or messages. Having it integrated on the OS-level is great, too, as other apps will be able to utilize it where useful.

Apple also revealed smaller changes to its Weather and Maps apps, as well as an expansion to Apple Wallet to include support for Driver’s Licenses and IDs in select US states. These will start rolling out near the end of the year, with iOS 15 expected to launch later this year with Apple’s next iPhones.