Author: Trafficblast

Escape From Tarkov update 12.9 is dropping on December 24 and will add both the Woods expansion and initiate a character wipe for all players. Developer Battlestate Games dropped the news early Wednesday morning following a livestream. You can read full patch notes for the update, which also introduces new weapons and ammo, minor character customization elements, and more, on the Escape From Tarkov forums.

Wipes are a major, recurring part of Tarkov in its closed beta phase, occurring every few months and usually preceding a substantial update. All players will have their level, trader rep, stash, and other progress reset.

The other biggest change coming in patch 12.9 is the rework of the Woods map, which is expected to nearly double in size. We knew the Woods expansion would be arriving before the highly anticipated Streets of Tarkov map, which is at this point looking like a 2021 release–though there is still no official launch date.

Update 12.9 also adds a few new weapons, including the KRISS Vector SMG (9×19 and .45), SIG MCX assault rifle, UMP SMG, and a handful of new mods and ammo. New character customization options allow players to slightly distinguish their PMC from others with new heads and voices, which will be locked in and only adjustable after a wipe or profile reset.

For more from the new Escape From Tarkov update, check out the full patch notes below or on the Escape From Tarkov forums.

Escape From Tarkov Update 12.9 Patch Notes

THERE WILL BE A WIPE

Added and changed:

• “Woods” expansion.
• Reworked PMC initial gear sets.
• Added customization of head and voice when creating character: for now it’s only two new heads for each faction added. You can’t change head and voice after the character is created. You will be able to do it only after profile reset or wipe.
• Added skill “Immunity”.
• Reworked “Metabolism”.
• Reduced the volume of steps and interaction with vegetation.
• Added chance to cause bleedings to the ammunition. Now some ammo can cause heavy or light bleeding more often than other rounds.
• Now some face shields and glasses will reduce the time of blindness effect from flashbang rounds and grenades.
• Players will be receiving letters with a supply package for the first 7 days of playing.
• Added “All” button in the purchasing menu when buying from dealers via Flea market. Now you can select all available items with a single click.
• Filters in the W-List tab are now modified separately and do not affect other Flea market tabs.
• “Enter” button now confirms the action in most dialogue windows.
• Slot highlighting when dragging items in your inventory can now be turned off.
• Equipped armbands are now unlootable and can’t be lost upon death.
• The letter with the reward for the exit in cooperation with the scav will now come with a slight delay.
• Containers will apply restriction filters to mods installed on the transported object. I.e., putting a mount with a thermal sight installed on it into a secured container is no longer allowed.
• New equipment and clothing is added: PMC tops and bottoms, body armor, rigs, Smoke balaclava, and tops for the Scavs.
• Changed the characteristics of a large number of weapon mods.
• Simplified the Jaeger quests.
• Updated some quests: changed execution conditions, starting conditions, rewards.
• Reduced bonus of recoil reduction from the recoil control skill and weapon mastering.
• Now character overweight starts at 35 kg. Used to be 40.
• Increased purchase limits for some ammo from dealers.

New weapons and ammunition:

• KRISS Vector SMG in both 9х19 and .45.
• SIG MCX Assault rifle in .300 Blackout.
• UMP SMG in .45.
• Mk-18 mod 1 Mjölnir DMR in .338 LM.
• .300 blk, .338 Lapua Magnum ammunition.
• Various new weapon mods.

AI:

• Fixed bots hanging behind stationary weapons.
• Fixed a bug where Killa could not hear the enemies approaching from behind.
• Other various bot fixes and optimizations.

Optimization:

• Animation optimizations for interfaces.
• Optimizations of sounds in RAM.
• Server optimizations.

Fixed:

• Aiming a GL40 with Reflex sights.
• The position of the character’s body when blind firing was not reset after opening the inventory.
• Blinding was imposed even if the player used a thermal imager.
• The stationary machine gun was removed from its mount if the player used it while in the blindfiring position.
• It was possible to use the tops and bottoms of the opposite faction.
• The nickname could not be changed if the new nickname was 15 characters long.
• The range value of the sight did not change immediately after alignment if the weapon had two sights on it.
• A duplicate weapon could hang behind the player’s back for a few seconds after changing weapons.
• Some pants had the equipped gun hanging outside the holster during the fitting on the Ragman service screen.
• The observer did not see the player checking the fire mode on his weapon.

Weapon presets:

• It was impossible to delete the overwritten preset.
• Wrong mods were installed on the weapon if the build was initiated during a save process.

• Failed to redeem all available items in the lot if the player attempted to purchase items over the limit.
• Failed to interact with the inventory in a raid if the player had previously disassembled the weapon via the context menu.
• When reactivating the exit with the hermetic door at the location Reserve, the siren stopped working earlier than it should have.
• The sensitivity while aiming down sights changed when putting and removing sights from the weapon.
• A character was performing a light grenade throw only by double-pressing the RMB.
• Uninformative message about the lack of space in the stash when transferring items from the letter on “Receive all”.
• The “Found in raid” status for the weapon would not update if you would put non-found in raid weapon mod on the gun.
• Incorrect information about the level of mastering in the weapon inspector.
• The price of 1 item decreased by 1 ruble if a player bought several of the same items from a dealer.
• The azimuth was missing if the player opened the pause menu with a compass in his hands.
• The camera could go through the body of another player.
• Missing messages in group chat.
• Various server errors.
• Various minor fixes.
• Various localization fixes.
• Various location fixes.

Universal Studios Japan has released an area map for its forthcoming Super Nintendo World area, themed around characters from the Mario games and their universe of spinoffs. Starting today, the park has been inviting selected Club Universal members and annual pass holders to experience the new area firsthand ahead of its February 4 2021 opening.

Super Nintendo World is the most complex area at USJ to date. We had already seen glimpses of the Mario Kart: Koopa’s Challenge and Yoshi’s Adventure rides (and IGN Japan previously published a video showing the inside of Bowser’s Castle); now USJ has shared some details of the menu at the Kinopio Cafe (Kinopio is the Japanese name for Toad), which includes a Bacon & Cheese Mario Burger, Piranha Plant Caprese and Question Block Tiramisu. Merchandise to be sold at the 1Up Factory Shop includes Mario themed hoodies, moustachioed glasses and gloves, as well as the cute Tokotoko Mario toy shown off by Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto during his video tour of the park released last weekend. Check out images of some of the food dishes and merchandise below.

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* Images provided by Universal Studios Japan, ©Nintendo

In addition to the large-scale facilities and attractions, there will be activities where guests can collect virtual coins and play against enemy characters using a Power Up Band (3,200 yen including tax, or about $31/£23) that can be linked to a smartphone app. These will include activities and challenges whose Japanese names translate to “Aim! Koopa Troopa POW Block Punch” and “Stop! Piranha Plant Alarm Panic”.

There will also be a Meet & Greet photo spot, where visitors can meet Mario and Luigi, take photos together with them and even engage them in conversation.

Japanese superstar YouTuber Hikakin was appointed a partner of USJ, and he has published a sponsored video of his experience at Super Nintendo World on his channel that shows a little more detail.

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Universal Studios Japan is located in Osaka, Japan. Super Mario World was originally slated to open last summer, but was delayed to its current February 4 2021 opening date in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Japan is currently not granting entry to foreign tourists until further notice, so Nintendo fans outside of Japan will have to wait before they can visit – though a Super Nintendo World area will eventually be added to Universal Studios theme parks in Hollywood, Florida and Singapore.

For more on USJ’s collaboration with Nintendo, check out our report from the Mario Cafe & Store in the main area of the park, which is already open, selling specially designed exclusive snacks and goods themed on Mario and friends; and a look around Bowser’s Castle and a sneak peek at the Mario Kart: Koopa’s Challenge ride.

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Daniel Robson is Chief Editor at IGN Japan. Follow him on Twitter for all your Japan gaming theme park tokotoko needs.

Following years of teases and a significant delay, Super Meat Boy Forever has arrived just in time for the holidays. The sequel to the wildly popular 2010 indie platformer is available on PC via the Epic Games Store and Nintendo Switch, with PlayStation and Xbox ports planned for early 2021. Super Meat Boy Forever costs $20, but there’s a way to snag it for only 10 bucks right now.

As part of the Epic Games Store’s Holiday Sale, you can get unlimited $10 off coupons to use on games priced $15 or more. To get your first coupon, you simply need to sign into your Epic account (or create one for free). Each time you make an eligible purchase, a new coupon will be deposited into your account. With the coupon applied, you’ll save 50% on the brand-new release. You can take advantage of this deal until Epic’s Holiday Sale ends on January 11.

A mobile follow-up to Super Meat Boy was originally announced in 2014. Throughout development, the sequel morphed into a traditional PC/console release and became quite ambitious in the process. Super Meat Boy Forever’s plot revolves around Meat Boy and Bandage Girl’s quest to save their daughter Nugget from Dr. Fetus.

While it’s still a challenging 2D side-scroller like the original, Super Meat Boy Forever is an auto-runner. The way you progress through the game is a huge departure from its predecessor, too. Team Meat created thousands of levels for Super Meat Boy Forever. Each time you play through the campaign, you’ll encounter new levels and secrets. The studio claims that you can complete the game “several times before ever seeing a duplicate level.”

Fortnite has had no shortage of superhero guests in 2020, including everyone from Deadpool to Aquaman, and it’s adding one more hero before the year is up. The legendary archer Green Arrow will arrive in the game on December 31 exclusively for Fortnite Crew members.

Green Arrow’s look in the game is based on his appearance from The CW’s Arrow series, so he may appear a little bit different than the one featured in the comics or in games like Injustice 2. Along with the character skin, you can also get a Tactical Quiver back bling and the Style and Boxing Glove pickaxe.

The pack will be available on December 31 at 4 PM PT / 7 PM ET. You have until then to subscribe to Fortnite Crew and get December’s pack, Galaxia. There have been a number of franchises represented in this season, with its “worlds collide” concept giving us everyone from Kratos to Master Chief. Black Panther and Captain Marvel were also added this week.

Fortnite Crew memberships cost $12 per month and give you access to a monthly pack, 1000 V-Bucks, and access to the latest Battle Pass. The V-Bucks become available the day you subscribe, then exactly one month later every month for the duration of your membership.

Last month, Silent Hill creator Keiichiro Toyama announced he had founded a new company called Bokeh Game Studio with veteran developers from games like Gravity Rush and The Last Guardian. Now, we have learned more about Toyama’s first project, and it should appeal to Silent Hill fans.

In an interview with IGN Japan, Toyama said his new game would be an action-adventure game rather than a standard survival-horror experience. However, he said it would “appeal to fans of [his] previous work,” quite clearly referencing Silent Hill. That series has been on ice for several years now, with Hideo Kojima and Guillermo del Toro’s collaborative Silent Hills project being canceled in 2015. The demo, PT, was deleted from the PlayStation Store, and PS4 consoles that have it installed have become valuable.

“If anything, this will be more of a horror-oriented game,” Toyama added. “But we will focus on making this a broader entertainment experience rather than a hardcore horror game.”

The game isn’t expected until around 2023, with it just recently entering the prototyping development stage. It will be a multi-platform game, so expect to play it at least on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.

We’ve heard rumors about a Silent Hill revival at Konami, as well, but thus far there has been nothing concrete. The company shot down claims that a revival was in the works earlier this year, and we’ve heard little else since. With Kojima no longer at Konami, it’s very unlikely it would be any sort of Silent Hills or PT reboot, but we’re certainly ready to enter that terrifying town again.