Author: Trafficblast

Saints Row 3, the hit 2011 open-world crime/comedy action-adventure, is being remastered for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. It will be released on May 22 under the name Saints Row: The Third Remastered. Check out the trailer above, which shows some side-by-side comparisons between the original version and the remaster.

Saints Row 3 is arguably the most beloved in the long-running crime-and-mayhem franchise, in which you, as the head of the Third Street Saints gang in Stilwater, have built an empire. Naturally, there are challengers to the Saints’ throne, and chaos ensues. You’ll jump out of airplanes, ride in convertibles with hungry tigers, appear on life-threatening reality TV shows, and more. Here’s what we thought of Saints Row: The Third when it originally released.

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The remaster will include 30+ pieces of DLC, and the game world has been given a visual upgrade. New weapon models, car models, lighting, and more headline the improvements on offer here.

Saints Row: The Third Remastered is being developed by Spearsoft under the direction of the original development team at Volition. We recently got a demo of Saints Row 3 Remastered. Take a look at what we thought.

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Ryan McCaffrey is IGN’s Executive Editor of Previews. Follow him on Twitter at @DMC_Ryan, catch him on Unlocked, and drop-ship him Taylor Ham sandwiches from New Jersey whenever possible.

In the debate over which Saints Row game is the best, Saints Row 2 or Saints Row: The Third, it’s clear where developer Volition and publisher THQ stand: they’ve chosen the third entry in the open-world comedic crime sandbox to get the remaster treatment. I for one, am with them on that: Saints Row 3 pushed the series further out into self-aware absurdity while still keeping one foot firmly planted in reality – something that’s been lost in the franchise since then. And I’m all for bringing this 2011 game up to current-gen standards, but unfortunately the framerate will be sticking to last-gen norms.

Yes, Saints Row 3 Remastered will only run at 30 frames per second, even on a PS4 Pro or Xbox One X. Only the PC version will allow you to go north of that. That’s extremely disappointing, particularly given that this isn’t a full-blown remake but instead an upgrade on the nine-year-old core game. That aside, there are some notable improvements worth keeping an eye out for, even if this update won’t be melting your console’s GPU anytime soon.

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The most obvious upgrade in Saints Row 3 is to the lighting. Global illumination, enhanced fog, physics-based rendering – the buzzwords are all here, and you can see that they look pretty good on screen. Meanwhile, Volition art director Mark Fisher told me that virtually all of the visual effects in the game have been reworked. The gun models are all completely redone, and what should be even more noticeable than that are the vehicle models – they too have been rebuilt from the ground up.

I haven’t played Saints Row 3 Remastered yet, but I did review the Switch port of Saints 3 last year, so I can at least say that, in my opinion, running wild in the fictional city of Stilwater holds up pretty damn well despite the core experience being almost a decade old. This was an incredibly fun game at the time, and it still is.

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Saints Row: The Third Remastered includes over 30 pieces of DLC and will be out on May 22 for Xbox One, PS4, and PC. Volition says there is no next-gen version planned for PS5 or Xbox Series X at this time. On a side note, it’s worth noting that this remaster is being handled by Spearsoft, which means the full Volition team is likely prepping something new for next-gen. Is it a Saints Row reboot or a new Red Faction? Time will tell, but until then, at least we can play the hilarious-as-ever Insurance Fraud mode one more time…

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Ryan McCaffrey is IGN’s Executive Editor of Previews. Follow him on Twitter at @DMC_Ryan, catch him on Unlocked, and drop-ship him Taylor Ham sandwiches from New Jersey whenever possible.

2020 has turned out to be kind of a bust as far as new movie releases go, but we’re still hopeful we’ll see Black Widow arrive in theaters at some point later this year. After waiting so long for Natasha Romanov’s first solo MCU movie, what’s another few months?

While we continue waiting for Black Widow, we thought it might be fun to revisit an old but still very popular theory. While we know Taskmaster is making his MCU debut in Black Widow, is it possible he’s not the only major Avengers villain on tap? Could Black Widow be introducing the deadly android known as the Super-Adaptoid? Read on to see the evidence Taskmaster is just the tip of the iceberg.

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What Is the Super-Adaptoid?

While it’s gone by several names over the years (including just “The Adaptoid” in its earliest appearances), the basics remain the same. The Super-Adaptoid is an android empowered by shards of the Cosmic Cube (or Tesseract, as it’s known in the MCU) and designed to replicate the powers of the Avengers, from Hawkeye’s marksmanship to Thor’s lightning to Hulk’s incredible strength. Most versions of the Super-Adaptoid have been created by the super-science organization A.I.M.

Given its knack for turning its opponents strengths against them, the Super-Adaptoid is a tough foe to beat in a direct fight. Generally, defeating the Super-Adaptoid requires a lot of outside-the-box thinking and a willingness to exploit its inability to understand the human mind. For instance, the X-Men managed to destroy the Super-Adaptoid when it tried to replicate Mimic’s mutant copycat power, resulting in an endless feedback loop that overwhelmed the android. Another version was destroyed when it tried to copy The Sentry and wound up inheriting that hero’s psychological demons.

While often depicted as a faceless robot wearing elements of multiple Avengers costumes, some versions of the Super-Adaptoid can pass for human. Hydra has even perfected the technology to implant Adaptoid tech inside human bodies. That’s where the Black Widow movie comes in.

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How the Super-Adaptoid Connects to Yelena Belova and Taskmaster

Fans have long been speculating the Super-Adaptoid could appear in Black Widow, largely because Florence Pugh’s character Yelena Belova is one of those humans transformed into an Adaptoid cyborg. Hydra transformed Yelena from a simple spy into a superhuman powerhouse with the powers of Iron Man, Luke Cage, Wolverine, Spider-Man and more. Even if that transformation doesn’t happen in this movie, it seems very likely we’ll see the MCU draw on that plot element sooner or later.

One possibility is that Black Widow will end with Natasha believing Yelena to be dead, only for Yelena to be resurrected as a deadly android in a post-credits sequence. Given that we see Nat wearing Yelena’s green vest in Avengers: Infinity War (which takes place after Black Widow), many fans have logically assumed she’s wearing it in tribute to a fallen friend. Whatever the case, clearly there’s a lot of ground to cover in between the events of Civil War and Infinity War. Yelena becoming the Super-Adaptoid could be a way of giving her a much more prominent role in the MCU and including an iconic Avengers villain, while also giving that villain a more human face.

As for Taskmaster, while he has no connection to the Super-Adaptoid in the comics, there’s certainly a comparison to be drawn between an assassin who can copy the fighting style of anyone he observes and an android who can replicate the powers of anyone it fights. We don’t know how closely the movie is drawing from the comics where Taskmaster is concerned, but we could see a scenario where his copycat abilities are the result of cybernetic enhancements. Those enhancements, in turn, could be the prototype for the Super-Adaptoid, perhaps with the Red Room harnessing old Hydra tech or discarded Ultron drones to create their unstoppable android. Taskmaster may be merely a taste of what’s come from the Red Room.

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The MCU’s Strange Supervillain History

If the past 12 years’ worth of MCU movies have taught us anything, it’s to always expect a twist where the villains are concerned. Marvel has an established history of keeping its cards close to the vest in that regard, often keeping the real villain shrouded in secrecy until release. For instance, remember how Ben Kingsley’s “Mandarin” turned out to be a goofy, out-of-work actor named Trevor Slattery? Watching the trailers for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 or Spider-Man: Far From Home, there’s no reason to assume Kurt Russell’s Ego or Jake Gyllenhaal’s Mysterio are the bad guys unless you’re familiar with the comics.

Even when these movies are straightforward about which characters are the antagonists, they tend to change up the source material in significant ways. Thor: Ragnarok’s Hela and Black Panther’s Killmonger were rewritten to become relatives of their respective enemies. Thanos and Karl Mordo are quintessential examples of MCU villains who believe they have the moral high ground. Where Ultron was created by Hank Pym in the comics, in the MCU he’s instead the brainchild of Tony Stark and Bruce Banner.

Bearing all that in mind, we’re expecting Black Widow to deliver a significant twist on the villain front. Consider the fact that we still don’t even know who’s playing Taskmaster. That strongly suggests Marvel is keeping the actor a secret so as not to spoil a major plot twist. We fully expect Taskmaster will turn out to be someone close to Natasha, possibly either Yelena Belova or Rachel Weisz’s Melina Vostokov. After all, both of those characters are generally portrayed as villains in the comics. Why should we expect anything less here?

One of the big challenges with the MCU is finding new ways to up the ante and always go bigger and more ambitious with the conflicts. Marvel may be hard-pressed to do that with Black Widow if the conflict hinges on a battle between two people who fight really well. But if Taskmaster is merely a preamble to the Super-Adaptoid, then it’s a whole different story. Then the film culminates with a life-or-death battle between elite assassins and an android with the powers of the Avengers. That would be one way to cap off what may very well be Scarlett Johansson’s final MCU adventure.

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For more on the next big MCU epic, check out the latest series of Black Widow posters and find out whether Black Widow’s delay will impact the MCU timeline.

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Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.

The developer and publisher for Cooking Mama: Cookstar have moved to quash speculation that the game allows for background cryptocurrency mining when running on Switch.

Last week, IGN reported on the confusing release and provenance of the new Cooking Mama game, which has seen the digital version pulled from Nintendo eShop, while making its way to select stores as a boxed game. Subsequently, a tweet including a supposed screenshot from Discord chat about the game began circulating.

That screenshot alleged that, while running, the game is “Usiing your system to mine Crypto Currency and potentially handig your personal info as well [sp]“. Cryptocurrency mining (a.k.a. cryptomining) is a process of authenticating cryptocurrency payments, earning a small payment in the process – if true, this would mean your Switch hardware was being used to earn money for a third party. A reply to that original message includes a series of follow-up details, some of which are drawn from IGN’s report, and several of which are provably false.

We looked at these options as a means to allow players to trade in-game assets. However, we only explored the theory behind the concept, not the implementation. Cooking Mama: Cookstar, nor any of our other titles in the past or near future will utilize crypto technology.

— Cooking Mama: Cookstar (@CookstarMama) April 6, 2020

Following that tweet, both developer 1st Playable and publisher Planet Entertainment (through the Cookstar Twitter account) have refuted the allegation. Tweeting for the first time since 2017, 1st Playable explained: “As the developers we can say with certainty there is no cryptocurrency or data collection or blockchain or anything else shady in the code. The Nintendo Switch is a very safe platform, with none of the data and privacy issues associated with some mobile and PC games.”

The Cookstar Twitter account echoed the same point, and referred to a much-discussed 2019 press release that indicated publisher Planet Entertainment did aim to add blockchain technology to its games, including Cooking Mama – a goal it says never came to fruition.

“We looked at these options as a means to allow players to trade in-game assets”, reads a follow-up tweet. “However, we only explored the theory behind the concept, not the implementation. Cooking Mama: Cookstar, nor any of our other titles in the past or near future will utilize crypto technology.”

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Independent sources have supported the developer and publisher’s statements. Several Twitter users that reverse engineer games have reported that the game contains no code related to blockchain or cryptomining. IGN has verified with players that do own the game that claims of it causing the Switch to overheat also appear to be false, although battery drain does seem to be an issue (this could be down to any number of factors, however). Cookstar can also be played offline, contrary to claims that it was an always-online game to allow for background cryptomining.

This controversy has also has helped clear up some of the previous confusion around Cooking Mama: Cookstar, primarily who made the game, and its connection to blockchain technology. However, aside from acknowledging “distribution issues”, neither developer or publisher has addressed why the game was pulled from Nintendo eShop in the first place. IGN has, once again, reached out for comment.

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Nintendo has reduced the number of “some eggs” players will find in Animal Crossing: New Horizon’s Bunny Day event – seemingly responding to public outcry about how many freaking eggs there are right now.

The news was revealed in a set of patch notes from Nintendo, which detailed changes coming to the game as part of Version 1.1.4. “During the Easter event, the appearance rate of some eggs has been adjusted until April 11, 2020,” the patch notes read. Below, it mentions that the rate of eggs will increase again on April 12th to commemorate Easter Sunday.

It’s not immediately clear which egg types have seen the reduction in numbers, although it seems likely that eggs caught while fishing would be a target.

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If you’ve been playing Animal Crossing: New Horizons recently you will have been forced into the Bunny Day event, where Zipper the ‘rabbit’ has infected the island with countless eggs, replacing many of the normal resources players are trying to collect on their daily adventures.

Despite the fact that Zipper is objectively terrifying, this eggstravaganza has caused chaos for players who don’t care much for the Bunny Day exclusive crafting items, which include an absurd variety of egg-infused furniture, and outfits that turn your islander into an egg. You can check out the full list of Bunny Day DIY Recipes here. Many players have turned to social media to address the issue, putting Zipper in the firing line.

아니…공포게임 동물의숲 pic.twitter.com/gRayrRiJHP

— 산개 (@SUPERMAGlCPlG) March 31, 2020

It’s a lot to deal with and can be overwhelming for those players who just want to go about their day fishing for Sea Bass. Water Eggs have replaced some of the fish in the water, meaning you can waste precious tools reeling fish-shaped, bait nibbling eggs out of a pond. Here’s every egg type currently in the game – It’s a nightmare.

Here’s all the fish coming to N. Hemisphere Animal Crossing players this month:

– Water Egg
– Water Egg
– Water Egg
– Water Egg
– Water Egg
– Water Egg
– Water Egg
– Water Egg
– Water Egg
– Water Egg
– Water Egg
– Water Egg
– Water Egg
– Water Egg
– Water Egg
– Water Egg

— Ben Bertoli™ (@SuperBentendo) April 2, 2020

The same can be said for Sky Eggs, which replace the gifts attached to balloons you can shoot down with your slingshot. You can’t even whack a rock for iron without receiving Stone Eggs.

Luckily, Nintendo has seemingly listened to the fans on this occasion and quickly issued a fix to address the distaste towards Zipper and his insane eggpocalypse.

If you’re still striving to attain a 3 Star Town Rating amidst this egg-onomic crisis, check out our guide to help summon K.K. Slider sooner rather than later.

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Jordan Oloman is a freelance writer for IGN who loved Zipper in Silent Hill 3. Follow him on Twitter.

Apex Legends is one of the biggest and best battle royale games out there, but it’s missing what many consider an important or essential feature–console crossplay, which would allow PS4 and Xbox One players to team up or fight against each other. In a new interview with Game Informer magazine (as relayed by GameSpot sister site Comicbook.com), general manager Dusty Welch and director Chad Grenier have talked about wanting to include this feature.

Welch told the magazine that they saw how crossplay is now “something that is kind of expected in the industry and is important to a game like ours.” He says that he and Grenier personally play on different systems at home, and wish they could team up.

“On a personal level, yes, we’d love to do that and party up on the weekends,” Welch says. “I think it’s an important thing to get to.”

Crossplay was teased for Apex Legends at the time of its launch, too. It’s a difficult feature to implement, of course, which is why only a few major titles–like Fortnite and Destiny 2–have it as a feature. The Call of Duty franchise also has crossplay as of Modern Warfare and Warzone.

Apex Legends is adding map rotation as part of the game’s next event, so you’ll be able to pick between both maps for the first time.