The issue was brought up in Steam community forums a number of times, with one player complaining that the free version wasn’t accessible to anyone who has ever given money to Square Enix, and another warning that the free trial was not comparable to the free-to-play model seen on other MMOs.
A Square Enix representative confirmed this was the case, telling GameSpot “if anyone has purchased any version of FFXIV in the past, they cannot participate in the free trial with that account.” So while a free trial account can be converted to a paying account, a paying account can’t be reverted back to a free trial. These restrictions also apply to accounts that participated in the FFXIV beta over seven years ago.
In simple terms: you either need to commit to free play and its restrictions for the long term, or buy the game and keep up the monthly subscription fee. If you’ve bought the game and you let your subscription expire, you won’t be able to revert to free play.
Square Enix did say that free trial accounts created when the level cap was at 35 will automatically convert to the new free trial version, however, but previous free trial users should make sure they have the right client. While trial players and full accounts play on the same servers, the two versions use different clients, with twodifferent Steam pages. “If somebody is trying to reboot up their free trial account, they need to make sure they are using that client,” Square Enix specified.
Accounts for the Final Fantasy MMO have always been a little confusing–while the game can be purchased through Steam or through Square Enix directly, any expansions will have to be purchased through the same storefront or the game won’t work correctly. The full version of the game also requires a monthly subscription to play.
Though the free trial now includes more of the game, it still restricts players from a number of game functions such as trades, the Market Board, Free Companies, microtransactions, and more, as well as a limit on the amount of in-game currency they can acquire. The FFXIV Starter Edition–which allows access to the same game areas as the free trial, but with these restrictions removed–retails for $20.
Forbes has posted its annual list of the highest-paid actors, and there are few surprises.
According to the site, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson ranked No. 1 overall, making $87.5 million in 2020. He is estimated to have made $23.5 million for the upcoming Netflix movie Red Notice, while some of his other earnings came from his various business endeavors, such as his Under Armour clothing line, Project Rock. The Rock was also the highest-paid actor in 2019.
Ryan Reynolds was second with $71.5 million after earning $20 million each for the Netflix movies Six Underground and Red Notice. Some of the other highest-paid actors in 2019 included Mark Wahlberg ($58 million), Ben Affleck ($55 million), Vin Diesel ($54 million), and Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar ($48.5 million).
Lin-Manuel Miranda ($45.5 million) landed on the list for the first time in 2020 thanks in part to the $75 million deal with Disney to bring Hamilton to Disney Plus. Also notable is that Jackie Chan landed at No. 10 with $40 million, which he made from movies, endorsements, and licensing deals. Chan has been acting since the 1960s.
You can see the full Top 10 list below. The earnings numbers are estimates pulled from sources like Nielsen, ComScore, Box Office Mojo, and IMDB, in addition to “interviews with industry insiders.” The numbers are pre-tax, and they do not include fees paid to agents, managers, and lawyers. The reporting period was June 1, 2019 to June 1, 2020.
Forbes said it will publish a list of the highest-paid actresses in September.
As picked up by Gamebyte, a listing for Lead Environment Modeler seeks someone to “help us breathe life into a new and fantastical world.” The wording suggests the new Bioshock won’t be returning to either Rapture or Columbia for the new installment, and like Bioshock: Infinite will create its own world.
The listings describe Cloud Chamber as “a collaborative team of inspired minds who create games together.” After a reminder that the studio is creating the next Bioshock game, it adds, “our passion and love for this iconic franchise is what brought us together. The thrill and responsibility of creating the next iteration of such a beloved game is what keeps us going.”
Other details picked up by @MauroNL3 on Twitter include that the game is being developed in Unreal Engine 4, and is slated for next-gen–not surprising given the game’s announcement warned it was still several years away.
New details on the next Bioshock game developed by the new studio Cloud Chamber Studios. Several job listings point to experience in Unreal Engine 4, one job list says “we use UE4”. It is also slated for ‘next-gen’, which is no surprise with it being ‘several years away’.
Cloud Chamber is also looking for a principle combat designer who likes “pushing boundaries and trying risky experiments that haven’t been seen before,” a cinematic artist with “Wes Anderson like precision and panache,” and a world designer who will help “create a “living” world that offers players variety at every step of the game.”
It looks like the burgeoning studio is still at the earliest stages of development on the next Bioshock game, but it’ll be interesting to see what they create with a team of both Bioshock veterans and new hires.
Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne HD Remaster will feature Dante from the Devil May Cry series via paid DLC.
The news was revealed on the Atlus blog earlier today. Dante makes his return in the remaster thanks to the ‘Maniax Pack’ DLC which players will be able to purchase for 980 yen (roughly £7 or $9 USD).
A trailer for the Maniax Pack arrived alongside the announcement, revealing that the DLC will be available at launch on October 29th in Japan, and those who own the Maniax Pack will be able to select “NEW GAME -Maniax-” in the start menu to add Dante to the game.
A western release for the Maniax Pack has not yet been revealed, but it seems likely. Famously, a sticker saying “Featuring Dante from the Devil May Cry series” sticker was put on the box to help sell the original game in the west, despite the character’s very brief appearance in the game.
The Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne HD Remaster is based on the Chronicle Edition of the game, which normally features a character called Kuzunoha Raido from the Devil Summoner series in Dante’s place. If purchased, this DLC will let players reskin the game to the Maniax version, depending on their preference.
Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne HD Remaster’s Western launch is currently slated for Spring 2021, landing on PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch.
Screenwriting, also known as scriptwriting, is the art and craft of writing scripts for mass media, such as feature films, television productions, or video games. More often than not, screenwriters have a significant role to play in shaping the story behind creative projects for those mediums. So, if you’ve ever wanted to tell a story that others can experience and enjoy with mass media, then you’ll want to know how to write a screenplay from scratch.
The Screenwriting Made Easy: 2020 Beginner Course helps you complete your first draft with two hours of instructional video content on movie script planning, creating characters, scriptwriting, and more. You can pick up the class on sale today for $28.99 and save 85% off its original cost of $199.
This course helps you learn the fundamentals of screenwriting with a step-by-step approach to completing your first draft. Over the course of 38 bite-sized lessons, you cover all the basics needed for planning your movie script, including structure, characters, scriptwriting, screenplay format, and what to do after writing your first draft. In other words, the course helps you generate screenwriting story ideas, teaches you how to flesh out those story ideas in ways that will resonate with an audience, and instructs you on the biggest mistakes to avoid when writing a screenplay for the first time. By the time you finish up with this course, you’ll maximize your chances of screenwriting success without needing to invest the time and money associated with a film school.
Better yet, you learn how to write your first screenplay from an award-winning screenwriter. Pamela Kay, winner of the Nicholl Fellowship in Screenwriting from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, has had Academy Award-winning actors attached to her screenwriting projects and consistently reads over 450 screenplays a year from both amateurs and professionals. Her life revolves around writing and reading screenplays, making her a perfect instructor for those just starting with this creative discipline. And best of all, students who enroll in this class have the opportunity to get feedback on their finished screenplay by the instructor herself.
The Screenwriting Made Easy: 2020 Beginner Course helps you complete the first draft of your movie screenplay with step-by-step guidance from an expert instructor. Get the class on sale today for only $28.99.
Updating one’s resume, a far cry from the fun of gaming for a few hours, often is a frustrating process for a couple of reasons. It takes a considerable amount of time to ensure your work history and experience accurately reflect what you’ve done in life. What’s more, there’s also that sinking suspicion that any resume you submit online will get lost in a sea of thousands of other applications. While that may be the case for the majority of people these days, it doesn’t have to be you.
Resoume Resumé Creator is an easy-to-use software that helps you stand out and get closer to the job you want by making it simple to build beautiful, ATS-aligned resumes, CVs, and portfolios. You can get a lifetime subscription to this software-as-a-service on sale today for $34.99, which is 63% off its regular price tag of $95.
Resoume takes the hard work out of making incredible resumes. First off, this software empowers you to import your up-to-date profile from LinkedIn. So, rather than spending hours copy-pasting all of the information you want to include on your resume, you click one button and the software takes care of the rest. On top of that, Resoume scans the content of your resume to see if it has the necessary keywords and formatting to get you past a company’s Applicant Tracking System (ATS). These days, most companies use ATS to help their hiring managers and HR specialists sift through the sea of applications they receive for any job opening. So, it’s crucial to create an ATS-friendly resume so that you actually have a shot of hearing back from the employer.
Alongside those benefits, Resoume also helps you stand out and stay organized throughout the entire application process. For example, you can change the colors, themes, and fonts of your resume to make a strong first impression. Even cooler, the software has a built-in tracking system so that you can stay on top of your interviews, offers, applications, and more.
Last but not least, Resoume goes above and beyond its namesake. Meaning, you can also create online CVs and portfolios with the software while easily sharing them with others. In other words, Resoume makes the process of landing a new job easier no matter what the employer expects you to submit with an application.
Overall, Resoume Resumé Creator helps you stand out and get closer to the job you want. Grab a lifetime subscription on sale today for only $34.99.
Dell is having a great run of deals on their Alienware, G-Series, and XPS gaming PCs, but this particular run is about to end soon. The hottest deal right now is an Alienware m15 15″ RTX 2070 laptop with all the bells and whistles (like a 240Hz display and 32GB of memory) for only $1450. For those of you who are looking for a desktop instead, Alienware’s newest generation Aurora gaming PC is also on sale, and close to the lowest price we’ve ever seen.
______________________________ Eric Song is IGN’s deal curator and spends roughly 1/4 of his income on stuff he posts. Check out his latest Daily Deals Article and subscribe to his IGN Deals Newsletter.
Games Done Quick’s annual summer event had to be first postponed, and later moved online due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but despite the many obstacles the charity marathon event will be going ahead from this Sunday, August 16.
The event runs 24 hours a day for a full week from the 16th to the 23rd, with all proceeds going to Doctors Without Borders, a charity GDQ has raised millions for in the past. This year, due to the delay on the summer event, GDQ added an extra event in April to raise money for coronavirus relief.
While the event no longer has a physical presence, for most viewers at home the experience will be the same. Summer Games Done Quick will stream throughout the length of the event on its Twitch channel, with videos also available after the fact on YouTube.
With all participants streaming from home, the online-only SGDQ has been able to include some interesting games that require more unique set-ups. You can view the full schedule in your local time here, but some highlights to watch out for include:
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt–9:47 PM PT, August 17
Any% Old Patch, 2:12:00
The Last Of Us–9:55 PM PT, August 19
Grounded mode, Glitchless, New Game, 3:00:00
Half Life: Alyx–6:27 PM PT, August 20
Bonus Game 4 (and potentially the first VR game to be included in GDQ)
Any% No Spin, 0:40:00
Star Wars: Knights Of The Old Republic–1:15 AM PT, August 21
Any %, 0:51:00
Crypt of the NecroDancer: AMPLIFIED–8:15 PM PT August 21
Coda, All Zones, 0:20:00
Pump It Up!–8:41 PM PT August 21
Bonus Game 5, Showcase, Arcade Cabinet
Final Fantasy VII Remake–9:51 AM PT August 22
Any% Normal, 7:20:00
Smash Bros 64, Break the Target–12:25 PM PT, August 22
It’s surprising that the video game industry doesn’t have very many high quality documentaries that chronicle its fascinating history. There have been a few commercial gems, including The King of Kong and Indie Game: The Movie. Recent developer-created making-ofs for games like God of War and Broken Age offer compelling looks at the process of creating a single game. And YouTube channels such as Noclip have regular long-form stories about the development of games both large and small. But there hasn’t been a really great documentary that tells the story of gaming’s formative years–until now. High Score, a new Netflix limited series streaming August 19, is easily the most impressive video game documentary to date.
High Score covers a lot of ground in its roughly 4.5 hour runtime spread across six distinct episodes. From arcade culture and Atari to Nintendo, Sega, and specific genres like role-playing and fighting games, High Score methodically moves through the late ’70s through early ’90s, telling the vibrant stories behind the most popular games of the time and the people who created them. The result is a crash course on the golden age of gaming filled with insightful interviews, brilliant writing, and most importantly, an inspiring and inclusive message.
Video game documentaries, even some of the decent ones–Chasing Ghosts, Ecstasy of Order: The Tetris Masters–have routinely been plagued by low production values. High Score is as well-produced as any Netflix doc, with interviews and scenes set globally, a treasure trove of classic footage, and most charmingly, animated scenes that are used alongside anecdotes told by those involved with gaming’s rich history.
High Score also has a stellar narrator in Charles Martinet, the voice of Super Mario. Martinet serves as the tour guide for this trip through gaming’s pivotal years, while the huge cast of interview subjects–who speak directly to the camera–fill in the details, providing behind-the-scenes stories of what it was really like to be part of the gaming boom. It’s directed by William Acks, France Costrel, and Sam LaCroix, all of whom worked on Showtime’s doc series about technology and the dark web, Dark Net.
Episode 1, “Boom & Bust,” revisits Space Invaders and Pac-Man and features in-depth interviews with both creators as well as the challenging transition from arcades to home consoles. Some of the most interesting interviews in “Boom & Bust” tell lesser known stories, like how Ms. Pac-Man came to be and the actual developer behind the tech that led to cartridge-based games. And it addresses the “Bust” part of the episode title as well by dissecting Atari’s downfall, complete with a humorous interview with the creator of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial—notoriously considered the worst game ever made.
Setting the tone for High Score as a whole, “Boom & Bust” offers a humanizing look at those who both fell in love with making games and those who excelled at them, stressing along the way that games are meant to be for anyone and everyone.
Nintendo rose from the ashes left by Atari, so it’s fitting that High Score heads in that direction next. For longtime Nintendo fans, much of the story might be familiar, like how Donkey Kong and Super Mario came to be. However, Episode 2, “Comeback Kid,” also focuses on an endearing aspect of the studio’s history: Nintendo Game Play Counselors. In fact, the star of the episode is Shaun Bloom, a former Game Play Counselor, who has a ton of on-the-job stories that are simply delightful. With old Nintendo training videos, news footage, gameplay videos, and cartoon scenes galore, “Comeback Kid” has a startling amount of variety across its 45-minute runtime.
For RPG fans, the third episode looks back at the origins of the hugely influential genre. Featuring interviews with the duo behind the first PC adventure game with graphics and the man responsible for bringing choice-based consequences to games, “Role Players” is utterly absorbing. Most critically, it delves into the appeal of the genre for many: the ability to become anyone they want on screen. To this effect, it features one of the most inspiring interviews in the series with the creator of the 1992 LGBTQ RPG, GayBlade.
Anyone who has read Blake Harris’s Console Wars will recognize many of the beats in the episode dedicated to Sega, with key contributors such as Sega of America CEO Tom Kalinske and Sonic the Hedgehog gameplay designer Hirokazu Yasuhara telling the story of Sega’s path to relevance. It really hones in on how Sega cleverly managed to wrangle away some of Nintendo’s astronomically high market share, providing a keen perspective on how marketing can be the most important aspect of any product. Part of Sega’s plan involved sports games and the complex journey to bring 11v11 football to life with John Madden Football, including a story from a very persistent developer who changed the game for the better with Madden NFL ’95.
Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat are the foundation for the episode dedicated to fighting games. Revealing interviews with Street Fighter II designers Akira Nishitani and Akira Yasuda and Mortal Kombat co-designer John Tobias explore the beginnings of gaming’s path toward serious competition. The episode also details the first major (comical) outcry about video game violence, which contains some lesser known facts about the 1993 congressional hearings and their lasting effects on the industry at large.
Every episode of High Score is superb, but Episode 6, “Level Up,” has a few of the best anecdotes and insider stories about the pivotal jump from 2D to 3D. Of course, id Software is heavily featured, and John Romero has plenty of amazing tales to tell. Jumping back and forth from America to Japan, Level Up also discusses Nintendo’s decidedly different but equally compelling approach to the revolution that was 3D gaming.
All told, High Score is the most comprehensive video game documentary to date. It has a large scope but manages to tell intimate, relatable stories about people who fell in love with games and decided to dedicate themselves to what has become one of the most ubiquitous entertainment mediums in the world. It’s also fiercely determined to shine a light on the stories surrounding games that have been lost over the years, lifting up those who have sadly lived on the margins of both the industry and society. For that, High Score delivers an important and hopeful message.
If ever there was a film franchise perfectly positioned for a modern video game adaptation, it’s Fast & Furious. For a medium so regularly adept at putting us in high-speed pursuits and shoving us through sweeping action sequences, it’s almost baffling that in nearly two decades this series has never spawned a truly top-notch, dedicated tie-in (at least beyond 2015’s small but free Fast & Furious-themed spin-off experience for Forza Horizon 2).
Unfortunately, it still hasn’t. Fast & Furious Crossroads is short, shallow, and surprisingly simple, and it’s nothing less than a crashing disappointment in virtually every department.
The Fast & Furious film saga’s rise from low-fi Point Break rehash to six-billion-dollar box office brute is the bane of film snobs, but I love it. A high-octane hodgepodge of spy movie madness and telenovela tropes, these films may be dumber than a box of hair but they have oodles of heart – and I am unironically and unequivocally invested in them. I’ve got all the Blu-rays; I’ve got way more of the Hot Wheels than my wife knows about. I assure you; I am all in.
I’m telling you this because I need you to know I’m not punching down here. In fact, I was nearly punching the air when Crossroads was finally confirmed after years of rumours. A Fast & Furious game from the talented team behind Need for Speed Shift and Project CARS, and Vin Diesel is involved? On paper that’s a supremely promising combo. But somehow all of that promise resulted in this bland and bafflingly basic game that barely lasts four hours – and that’s including the cutscenes. Not that I especially wanted to keep playing longer than that.
Ejecto Seato, Cuz
Crossroads pits the Fast family against an ancient group of highway robbers who’ve since transitioned to international terrorism: the Tadakhul. That sounds entirely on-brand for a modern Fast & Furious tale and, for the most part, it works well enough. The vehicle selection is strong, with many plucked directly from the films, although the ones with harpoon guns and gaming routers bolted to their roofs can look a little goofy.
Things don’t get off to a particularly promising start, though, and with the opening mission dropping you directly into the action without any introduction, the overly-manufactured VO here between franchise stalwarts Dom and Letty feels like a jury-rigged solution for Kurt Russell’s Mr. Nobody being off the table for a proper intro. It’s like walking into a movie 10 minutes late.
Crossroads quickly pivots to a trio of fresh faces – two ex-Miami street racers and an off-brand Spanish Liam Hemsworth – but despite their efforts, Sonequa Martin-Green and Asia Kate-Dillon’s Vienna and Cam aren’t very compelling characters. Martin-Green’s Vienna is largely written as a slightly crankier Letty and her sliver of backstory is basically left to the campaign’s closing lines of dialogue. Kate-Dillon seems to be having fun chewing the scenery as the non-binary Cam – who fits snugly in the Fast universe, which has been quietly and effortlessly nailing diverse ensembles for nearly 20 years – but they’re not given any particularly funny material. It was a welcome respite when Tyrese Gibson’s Roman finally showed up to inject some mild comic relief into proceedings.
Alas, the game itself is no deeper than the new characters.
The handling is clearly tuned for maximum arcade accessibility and there definitely isn’t a shred of simulator about it; cornering is sticky on the front end but almost entirely disconnected at the rear, and pinballing off walls and obstacles carries little punishment. Ultimately I found it twitchy and unsatisfying, and it’s certainly not assisted by the fact the only view available is a far too closely-cropped chase camera that unhelpfully lurches in and out.
Crossroads may look like a Need for Speed-style experience spiked with a hefty dose of official Fast & Furious features but it’s really nothing of the sort. There are no open worlds to explore and almost no actual racing to speak of. The single-player campaign is rather a scripted series of completely linear segments of action-driving, so to speak. As such, Crossroads has more in common with, say, SpyHunter than any Need for Speed – or, at least, those obligatory car missions in old James Bond shooters.
[poilib element=”quoteBox” parameters=”excerpt=Most%20of%20Crossroads%E2%80%99%20missions%20lack%20spark%20or%20challenge”]That wouldn’t have necessarily been a bad thing, but most of Crossroads’ missions lack spark or challenge. The car-on-car combat initially seems to have a pleasant Burnout taste to it but it quickly becomes entirely one-note. There’s a whiff of Bond to the vehicle gadgets, but I never felt like I was aiming for anything; just clicking through button prompts and quick time events. Combat missions often feature the ability to switch between heroes but it’s generally only something you do when Crossroads instructs you to, and only to go through the motions with the required processes; hack the guns, yank the guns off, rinse, repeat. Avoiding an avalanche or fleeing a collapsing mine may sound thrilling, but here you just mash the throttle and bounce your way to a straightforward escape. Dragging what’s basically a high-tech wrecking ball across the deck of an aircraft carrier looks like a hoot, but the path is so forgiving and the task is so simple I didn’t really feel like I’d achieved anything.
There are a pair of chapters towards the end that are more dynamic and fleshed-out – the quarry mission pumps up the amount of environmental hazards and the last mission pleasingly dials up the scale of the task at hand to proportions even the film franchise might balk at – but then it’s over. There’s really no reason to go back; the missions play the same way every time. Icons for smashables and jumps throughout each mission seem to hint at some kind of Stuntman-inspired scoring system for encouraging cinematic driving that never materialises. Hit the crates or don’t; Crossroads doesn’t seem to care.
Outside of the brief campaign there’s online multiplayer, dubbed Online Ops. These appear to be a nine-player contest between three teams of three – heroes, villains, and cops. However, I can’t say how it works because I can’t start a match; any time I try I appear to be the only person in the world playing it. It’s a problem that so many cars and unlockables are tied to ranking up in Online Ops when I can’t actually play them.
