Author: Trafficblast

Souls-like action game Mortal Shell was designed to punish players with its deliberate and challenging combat, and if you can’t wait to play the full game, you can try out a slice with the beta on Epic Games Store right now. If you’re skilled, you can get through it in an hour, but Cold Symmetry and publisher Playstack warn that it can take much longer for everyone else.

The big hook in Mortal Shell are the titular shells, which are bodies you can possess in order to gain their powers and arsenal. The beta contains two shells called Harros and Tiel, giving you a chance to shake up the combat to best serve your situation. We also discovered two shells during our time previewing the game.

The beta is spoiler-free and you can only access a small portion of the Fallgrim area in order to stop you from getting too far off-track. The deliberate and brutal battles should keep you plenty busy anyway, and if you’re struggling, you’ll want to carefully learn enemies’ attacks in order to create your own strategy. You can also use a “harden” ability mid-fight in order to take a non-damaging attack.

Mortal Shell is planned to release on Epic Games Store, PS4, and Xbox One later this year with a Steam release to follow in 2021. It was developed by a tiny team at Cold Symmetry but it looks to be a worthwhile addition to the genre.

Ubisoft’s vice president of editorial Maxime Béland has resigned following abuse and misconduct allegations made against the previous creative director on Splinter Cell Conviction and Splinter Cell Blacklist.

As reported by Gamasutra, Ubisoft also announced that Ubisoft vice president of editorial Tommy François was “placed on disciplinary leave pending the outcome of an investigation.”

Béland and François, who both worked out of the Ubisoft Toronto office, were both placed on administrative leave last week alongside several other employees.

Ubisoft also confirmed that another unnamed individual from its Toronto office was fired for “engaging in behaviours that do not align with what is expected of Ubisoft employees.”

The full statement from Ubisoft to Gamasutra is as follows;

Hi – I’m providing an update following the internal letter sent by Yves Guillemot yesterday, which outlined a series of initiatives aimed at improving the way in which Ubisoft operates.

Maxime Beland, Vice President Editorial, has resigned from his role at Ubisoft, effective immediately. Despite his resignation, we continue to investigate the allegations made against him. Additionally, effective as of yesterday, Tommy François, Vice President Editorial & Creative Services, has been placed on disciplinary leave pending the outcome of an investigation. One other individual in our Toronto studio has been terminated for engaging in behaviors that do not align with what is expected of Ubisoft employees. Other investigations are ongoing and will be conducted rigorously.

Ubisoft will not tolerate workplace misconduct and will continue taking disciplinary actions against anyone who engages in harassment, discrimination and other behaviors that infringe on our Code of Fair Conduct.

These moves follow Ubisoft’s CEO Yves Guillemot comments and promises that he would “personally follow” each of these recent reports of sexual misconduct at the company.

Change had already begun at Ubisoft, as Assassin’s Creed Valhalla’s creative director Ashraf Ismail stepped down in late June following impropriety allegations.

[poilib element=”accentDivider”]

Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to [email protected].

Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

July is here, and it’s shaping up to be another busy month for Pokemon Go. On top of all the in-game events Niantic has lined up over the next few weeks, a new batch of Field Research tasks is now live, and if you complete enough of them, you’ll earn a new Research Breakthrough reward: Larvitar.

Each time you achieve a Research Breakthrough in July, your reward will be an encounter with Larvitar, the base form of the powerful Tyranitar. There’s also a chance that the Larvitar you encounter will be Shiny, so there’s a good incentive to complete as much Field Research as you can this month.

As a refresher, Field Research tasks are distributed via Poke Stops. The first one you complete each day will net you a stamp, and collecting seven stamps will lead to a Research Breakthrough. You can see the full list of July’s Field Research tasks, as compiled by The Silph Road, below.

There’s a lot going on in Pokemon Go this month. Pokemon Go Fest 2020 takes place on July 25 and 26, and before then, Niantic is holding a series of weekly challenges that players can complete to unlock additional Pokemon during Go Fest weekend. The Legendary Kyurem is also making its debut in Pokemon Go this month, and Gastly is headlining July’s Community Day.

Pokemon Go July 2020 Field Research Tasks

Catching Tasks

Field Research Task	Rewards
Catch 5 Pokemon with Weather boost	Poliwag or Vulpix encounter; 200 Stardust, 3 Razz Berries, 1 Pinap Berry, or 5 Poke Balls
Catch 10 Pokemon with Weather boost	500 Stardust, 6 Razz Berries, 2 Pinap Berries, or 5 Great Balls
Catch 5 different species of Pokemon	1 Rare Candy
Catch 3 Pokemon with Weather boost	Alolan Geodude encounter
Catch 3 Rock-type Pokemon	Graveler encounter
Catch 10 Pokemon	Magikarp encounter; 200 Stardust, 3 Razz Berries, 1 Pinap Berry, or 5 Poke Balls
Catch 10 Normal-type Pokemon	500 Stardust, 6 Razz Berries, 2 Pinap Berries, or 5 Great Balls
Use 5 Berries to help catch Pokemon	Nosepass encounter; 500 Stardust, 6 Razz Berries, 2 Pinap Berries, or 5 Great Balls
Catch a Dragon-type Pokemon	Dratini encounter; 1,500 Stardust, 3 Rare Candies, 2 Gold Razz Berries, or 10 Ultra Balls
Catch a Ditto	1,500 Stardust, 3 Rare Candies, 2 Gold Razz Berries, or 10 Ultra Balls

Battling Tasks

Field Research Tasks	Rewards
Win a Raid	Lileep encounter
Win 5 Raids	Aerodactyl encounter
Win a level 3 or higher Raid	Kabuto or Omanyte encounter
Win in the Go Battle League	Anorith encounter

Throwing Tasks

Field Research Task	Rewards
Make 3 Great throws	Gastly, Anorith, or Lileep encounter; 200 Stardust, 3 Razz Berries, 1 Pinap Berry, or 5 Poke Balls
Make 5 Nice throws	Voltorb encounter; 200 Stardust, 3 Razz Berries, 1 Pinap Berry, or 5 Poke Balls
Make 3 Nice throws in a row	500 Stardust, 2 Pinap Berries, 5 Great Balls, or 2 Ultra Balls
Make 3 Great throws in a row	Onix encounter; 1,000 Stardust, 1 Rare Candy, 9 Razz Berries, 3 Pinap Berries, 10 Poke Balls, or 5 Ultra Balls
Make 3 Great curveball throws	1,000 Stardust, 1 Rare Candy, 9 Razz Berries, 3 Pinap Berries, 10 Poke Balls, or 5 Ultra Balls
Make 3 Great curveball throws in a row	1,500 Stardust, 3 Rare Candies, 2 Gold Razz Berries, or 10 Ultra Balls
Make 5 Great curveball throws in a row	Spinda encounter
Make an Excellent throw	500 Stardust, 2 Pinap Berries, 5 Great Balls, or 2 Ultra Balls
Make 3 Excellent throws in a row	Larvitar encounter
Make 5 curveball throws in a row	500 Stardust, 6 Razz Berries, 2 Pinap Berries, or 5 Great Balls
Make 2 Nice curveball throws in a row	200 Stardust, 3 Razz Berries, 1 Pinap Berry, or 5 Poke Balls

Hatching Tasks

Field Research Task	Rewards
Hatch an Egg	Aerodactyl encounter

Misc. Tasks

Field Research Task	Rewards
Transfer 3 Pokemon	Aron encounter
Trade a Pokemon	Onix encounter
Evolve a Pokemon	Eevee or Rhydon encounter
Power up Pokemon 5 times	Bulbasaur, Charmander, or Squirtle encounter
Send 3 Gifts to friends	Dwebble encounter
Take a Snapshot of a Rock-type Pokemon	Shuckle encounter
Spin 10 PokeStops or Gyms	200 Stardust, 3 Razz Berries, 1 Pinap Berry, or 5 Poke Balls

Buddy Tasks

Field Research Task	Rewards
Earn 5 Hearts with your Buddy	2 Silver Pinap Berries
Give your Buddy 3 treats	Sudowoodo encounter
Earn 3 Candies walking with your Buddy	Stunfisk encounter

Diablo III’s Season 21 content is now live for all regions and platforms, bringing with it new class sets, item and skill changes, and season journey rewards. You’ll be able to get cosmetic rewards previously available from Season 9 as part of the content update, but there are a couple of new additions, as well.

Season 21’s theme is Trials of Tempests, and during the season your character will occasionally channel an elemental power that you can utilize for a short time. You can crush enemies with snowballs, breathe lightning, rain meteors, conjure a flame wall, or even cast tornadoes.

Those who complete the season’s journey in the Trial of Tempests will get the Stupendous Contraption pet and the Industrial Portrait frame. This is in addition to the Season 9 items that are also available for completing it.

A new Demon Hunter set is available with the season: Gears of Dreadlands. With a two-piece set bonus, you’ll gain four seconds of Momentum when attacking with a primary skill and will see increased damage with your primary skills during its duration. With a four-piece bonus, casting Strafe will also automatically shoot your last-used primary skill and offer damage reduction and increased movement speed during Momentum.

Necromancers also get a new set: Masquerade of the Burning Carnival. Its two-piece bonus means Simulacrums no longer take damage and it also gains all runes and has its cooldown refreshed upon your death. For four-piece sets, all damage is reduced by half when you have a Simulacrum and all damage you do take is split with your Simulacrums.

Diablo III continues to get new content as we approach the still-undated release of Diablo 4. The game will feature open-world multiplayer locations and a return to the darker tone seen in the second game. It will also make use of in-engine cutscenes so your character will sport the same equipment they have during gameplay.

These are the class sets granted for completing chapters 2, 3, and 4 of the season journey:

• Barbarian – Might of the Earth
• Crusader – Thorns of the Invoker
• Demon Hunter – The Shadow’s Mantle
• Monk – Monkey King’s Garb
• Witch Doctor – Raiment of the Jade Harvester
• Wizard – Firebird’s Finery
• Necromancer – Grace of Inarius

And these are the season journey rewards granted for completing certain challenges:

• Guardian of Sanctuary: Finish a level 70 Nephalem Rift on Torment XIII difficulty within 5 minutes.
• Gem of My Life: Level three Legendary Gems to level 55.
• All I Do is Win: Complete 2 Conquests this Season.
• Lose Yourself: Kill the Skeleton King at level 70 in under 30 seconds on Torment XIII difficulty.
• Money Ain’t a Thang: Slay Green on Torment XIII difficulty.
• Take U There: Reach Greater Rift Level 60 Solo.
• Power Amplication: Use Kanai’s Cube to augment an Ancient Legendary item with a level 50+ gem.
• Cubic Reconfiguration: Use Kanai’s Cube to reforge a Legendary item.

Following MCU star Anthony Mackie’s criticism of Marvel movies for lack of diversity, and his desire to use his status as the co-lead of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier to push for more diverse representation on Marvel Studios’ projects, Tessa Thompson, who will reprise her role as Valkyrie in Thor: Love and Thunder, thinks that Phase 4 will more fully embrace those ideals.

As part of Variety’s Actors on Actors series, Thompson and Ramy’s Ramy Youssef spoke about the topic and why it’s so important to the fandom at large. “I think in this next phase of Marvel, we’re really talking about what representation looks like in those spaces,” Thompson explained. “Because the truth is these movies travel globally in such huge ways and if you can represent people that are of color, if you can represent people with disabilities, if you can represent the LGBTQIA community inside of these films, it’s a pretty big deal.”

[widget path=”global/article/imagegallery” parameters=”albumSlug=endgame-where-the-hell-were-these-characters-when-the-avengers-needed-them&captions=true”]

“There’s millions and millions of people, particularly young people, that show up to the cinema,” Thompson continued. “And I think if you can show them something that looks like them, they feel valued. Particularly inside of these narratives of the comic books, that’s what it’s all about. It’s that our differences make us special.”

“I’m really excited that we’re able to continue to push the bounds of that and that I’m able to do that with Valkyrie, because there’s so many cool queer characters in the comic books and they should have a place on-screen.”

Since the onset of COVID-19, the MCU’s Phase 4 schedule has been reshuffled a few times. The latest iteration has Thor: Love and Thunder opening February 11, 2022. Ragnarok director Taika Waititi will return for the film and has promised to “double down” on the craziness.

Thor: Love and Thunder will feature Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster as Thor and Christian Bale as a yet-to-be-revealed villain.

[ignvideo url=”https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/04/13/thor-love-and-thunder-breaking-down-taika-waititis-crazy-clues-ign-now”]

[poilib element=”accentDivider”]

Matt Fowler is a writer for IGN and a member of the Television Critics Association. Follow him on Twitter at @TheMattFowler and Facebook at Facebook.com/MattBFowler.

HBO Max has swapped out the theatrical cut of Zack Snyder’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice for the three-hour Ultimate Edition.

In an Instagram post, the streaming service posted: “The full 3-hour Ultimate Edition of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is now streaming exclusively on HBO Max. Put that long weekend to good use.”

The jam-packed Ultimate Edition of Dawn of Justice includes a ton of axed story moments and character beats. Lois Lane becomes a more pivotal character when Lex Luthor’s plot to frame Superman in explored more thoroughly. We see Superman asking Gotham citizens about Batman, Lex communicating with Steppenwolf, Jena Malone’s Jenet Klyburn, and learn that Lois’ “camera man,” who met his gruesome end in Africa, was Jimmy Olsen.

[widget path=”global/article/imagegallery” parameters=”albumSlug=best-superhero-directors-cuts-you-can-stream-now&captions=true”]

HBO Max was going to pull Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, Justice League, Wonder Woman, Suicide Squad, and more DC films from its rotation on July 1, but after blowback from fans the company has expanded these films’ run through December 2020.

It was recently announced that Zack Snyder’s “Snyder Cut” of Justice League will finally be completed in order to air on HBO Max in 2021.

[widget path=”global/article/imagegallery” parameters=”albumSlug=everything-coming-to-hbo-max&captions=true”]

[poilib element=”accentDivider”]

Matt Fowler is a writer for IGN and a member of the Television Critics Association. Follow him on Twitter at @TheMattFowler and Facebook at Facebook.com/MattBFowler.

July 3 marks the first wave of Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ summer update, and with it comes a whole bunch of new features, including swimming and diving, a new category of critter to find, new visitor interactions, and a new DIY recipe set. Here’s everything new to Animal Crossing this week and how to dive in.

Swimming And Diving

The biggest new feature from the update is the ability to swim and dive in the ocean around your island. We have a full guide on how to get a wetsuit and swim, so check it out to get started.

Catching New Sea Creatures

Swimming and diving on your island opens up a new world of wildlife to find and collect. There are 40 sea creatures you can catch, all categorized in their own “sea creature” label in your Critterpedia. You can also donate them to Blathers at the museum.

Pascal Is Here!

Pascal is a new visitor you can meet while swimming around your island. He’ll trade you DIY recipes for scallops and sometimes reward you with pearls, a rare crafting item.

Mermaid DIY And Clothing Recipe Set

There’s a new mermaid-themed DIY recipe set you can collect and craft. Pascal will trade you recipes for scallops and sometimes give you pearls, which you can use to craft the recipes. Other crafting materials required for the set include shells and other items you can find along your beach, like coral.

New Gulliver Interactions

According to Nintendo, there’s a new Gulliver interaction. Gulliver will now sometimes appear on your shore wearing pirate-themed clothing. Nintendo’s press release states, “Offer him a helping him and he’ll send a special reward to how his gratitude.” We’ll let you know what this is once we find out.

The next summer update hits Animal Crossing: New Horizons this August.