Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Season 3 launches on April 8 on PS4, Xbox One, and PC, and it’s bringing a bunch of new content to both Modern Warfare itself and the free-to-play, standalone Warzone. You can learn the fine details in the video above.
In broad strokes, Season 3 adds new Operator Alex, who’s one of Modern Warfare’s main protagonists. He arrives alongside three new multiplayer maps: Talsik Backlot, Hovec Sawmill, and Aniyah Incursion. Meanwhile, Warzone is adding a Quads game mode.
With the start of The Old Ways event, Respawn added Duos to Apex Legends, the first permanent mode to come to the battle royale game since the addition of Ranked in Season 2: Battle Charge. Both Solos and Duos have appeared in Apex Legends as limited-time modes before, though Respawn says that the former is unlikely to be permanently added to the game like Duos has.
“When we introduced Solos as a limited-time mode last year we saw it actually negatively impacted the game, especially when it came to new player retention,” Respawn writes in The Old Ways update patch notes. “We’ve also purposely designed legends and their abilities to compliment teamplay and squad composition, but when played solo some legend abilities become useless.”
That said, Respawn added that the team hasn’t completely given up on the idea of a single-player mode and will continue “exploring ways to allow a solo experience.” No further details were provided.
The Old Ways update adds several other permanent features to Apex Legends as well, including a map rotation system. Though Ranked mode will remain on one map at a time (in this case, it’s currently on Season 2 Kings Canyon following Season 4: Assimilation’s ranked series split), the Play Apex playlist will rotate through several different maps. For now, Play Apex (in both Trios and Duos mode) will rotate between Season 2 Kings Canyon, After Dark Kings Canyon, and Season 4 World’s Edge.
The map rotations occur every 90 minutes, though Respawn writes it will be “tweaking” the pace as the developer studies the data. Additionally, Respawn will be “introducing other versions of previously released Kings Canyon and World’s Edge maps into the rotation from time to time to keep it fresh.” Currently, the missing maps are pre-season Kings Canyon, Season 1 Kings Canyon, Fight or Fright Kings Canyon, Season 3 World’s Edge, and Holo-Day Bash World’s Edge though Respawn hasn’t revealed which–if any–of these maps will ultimately be added to the Play Apex rotation.
The Old Ways makes several adjustments to characters too–most notably giving Revenant a terrifyingly large buff and making Lifeline into a more supportive teammate–as well as adding new epic and legendary cosmetics and a Bloodhound-themed town takeover to World’s Edge.
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It can be tough being stuck inside, but video games are a great way to pass the time. However, you may not have the best screen to play or you may just need some extra storage to keep all your games installed on. If you’re looking for a good deal on memory cards, external hard drives, or even a brand spankin’ new gaming laptop, then there are some great offers on Google Shopping right now. The deals are on products from Best Buy and trusted online retailer Antonline and are all available until April 13 or while supplies last.
If you’re interested in games to put on your new hard drive or play on your new monitor, then be sure to check out all of the free games you can claim right now as well as the best games, TV, and movies for self-isolation and social distancing.
More Spring Sales
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The AW2518HF is a deluxe 1080p gaming monitor, boasting a 24.5-inch TN display, a 240Hz refresh rate, and 1ms response time. It also features FreeSync, which lets you turn off V-Sync for a smoother, tearless experience.
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If you’re looking to play at a 1440p resolution, then Google Shopping has a great deal on this Dell gaming monitor. It comes equipped with a 165Hz refresh rate, 1ms response time, and G-Sync, which works with your Nvidia graphics card to sync your display with your gameplay, resulting in an extremely smooth experience.
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If you need some extra storage for all of your PS4, Xbox One, or PC games, then Google Shopping has three great external hard drives that will work great with your consoles. Seagate’s green 2TB hard drive is $81, while two WD Easystore options are also available at 4TB for $100 and 12TB for $180.
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Three years after the Nintendo Switch’s launch, and there are a lot of games. If you need to upgrade the amount of storage you have in your Switch, and this is an excellent chance to do so. Google Shopping has a 128GB microSDXC card for $33 and a 256GB card for $50.
The Xbox Series X is due at the end of 2020, and although Microsoft has revealed a lot about the new console, many things remain mysterious about it too. The new console is unlikely to radically reinvent the user interface offered by the Xbox One–in fact, all signs indicate that it will essentially be the same.
According to The Verge, Microsoft will make some further tweaks to the Xbox One interface soon, improving the “Guide” functionality on the dashboard and allowing you to customize the order of your navigation tabs. A new “Parties & chats” tab will correlate social features, and a few other parts have been streamlined and simplified.
As this article point out, in preview videos for the Xbox Series X, the interface looks identical to this; it’s likely that these changes will carry over exactly to the new system. On Twitter, a member of the Xbox support team circa 2013, Missy Quarry, has explained that this makes a lot of sense. “One of the biggest user problems was getting used to an entirely new UI and they begged for the 360 dash,” she says.
I worked as Xbox support during the One launch. One of the biggest user problems was getting used to an entirely new UI and they begged for the 360 dash. I think this is a smart move on their part, tbh.
— Missy Quarry (@MSEdgeMissy) April 7, 2020
This makes sense, as we know that Microsoft wants to have multiple Xbox consoles on the market at once, all representing the same experiences–Series X might even not be the only Xbox releasing this year. The Xbox One UI was not received well at launch, and had to be tweaked extensively. We also know that the Series X won’t launch with next-gen exclusives, with games like Halo: Infinite also coming to Xbox One.
Xbox Series X is on track to release by holiday 2020. Here are the system specs that have been unveiled so far.
April 7 is a special day in The Lord of the Rings cinema history. On this day in the year 2000, New Line Cinema released the first trailer for the series, giving people a first look at what Peter Jackson’s epic fantasy trilogy would look like. Lord of the Rings fansite TheOneRing.net recirculated the trailer for the anniversary, and it’s a sight to behold twenty years later.
The first-look video was released six months into the production of the films, and it showcases Jackson speaking about the enormous undertaking of bringing J.R.R. Tolkien’s work to the big screen and revealed an early look (at the time) of the visual effects, costumes, and settings of the series.
The trailer was released before the streaming era, when people had to download videos. According to the site, it racked up the most downloads ever for a movie trailer, surpassing 1999’s Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace.
Remember this iconic trailer released 7 April 2000? It broke the internet with the most downloads of any video EVER surpassing Star Wars Episode 1 trailers! pic.twitter.com/KKE3PqD4oK
— TheOneRing.net (@theoneringnet) April 6, 2020
Also presumably to celebrate the milestone, Weta Digital recently released the visual effects reels for The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King–you can watch them here.
The Lord of the Rings movies were box office juggernauts and they each won multiple Oscars. The Return of the King did especially well, winning 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture.
Jackson went on to direct The Hobbit trilogy, which earned 7 Oscar nominations across the three movies, but it didn’t win any. The franchise was a box office juggernaut, bringing in nearly $3 billion at the global box office.
The Lord of the Rings series continues with a new TV show from Amazon that was filming in New Zealand until concerns around COVID-19 shut down the production. A new Lord of the Rings MMO from Amazon is also in development, alongside a game focused on Gollum.
Disney executive chairman Bob Iger revealed that consumers should expect to see the company push more content (and earlier) to their digital platforms like Disney+ in light of the current global crisis. Iger’s comments come just days after the studio announced it had scrapped plans to release Artemis Fowl theatrically, opting to debut the film on Disney+ instead.
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“There are some we’ve decided to put on Disney+. We already announced one, Artemis Fowl, that would have been released in theaters. Others we’ve simply delayed,” Iger informed Barron’s.
“In terms of movies going ahead after Artemis, there may be a few more that we end up putting directly onto Disney+, but for the most part, a lot of the big tentpole Disney films, we’ll simply wait for slots. In some cases, we’ve announced new ones already, but later on in the calendar.”
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Iger’s emphasis on non-tentpole films shifting to Disney+ probably doesn’t bode well for the likes of former Fox titles The New Mutants, The Personal History of David Copperfield, Antlers, and The Woman in the Window.
None of those films were given new theatrical release dates in Disney’s recent announcement, leading to speculation that they could end up on Disney-owned streaming platforms such as Disney+ or Hulu. All four films had initially been slated to open in theaters.
Gears Tactics has gone gold ahead of its release on PC later this month, Microsoft has announced. This means that the game is effectively finished, and is in a state where it can be released. Xbox Wire has announced that the team has “begun down the path for the Xbox console version,” which is due to release at an unspecified point later this year.
To celebrate, a new piece of art by Gears artist Luke Preece, featuring the skull of Tactics protagonist Gabe Diaz, has been released. You can see it below.
Gears Tactics was built with PC users in mind, and it’s the first game in the series to debut first on PC. Thanks to a partnership between The Coalition and Intel, anyone who purchases an Intel Core i5 or higher processor will receive a free copy of Gears Tactics. Although the exact terms and conditions of this deal are not clear, expect Gears Tactics to appear as a bonus included with processors following its release.
The game is also available on Xbox Game Pass, in both its PC and Ultimate forms. The eventual Xbox One version will appear on Xbox Game Pass for console, too–as will any eventual Xbox Series X version that might or might not release (nothing has been confirmed).
Unlike previous games in the series, Gears Tactics will be single-player only, with no multiplayer modes. Here’s everything else you need to know about it.
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Season 2 has been officially confirmed. Star Trek: Picard was renewed for a second season before the first season even premiered. During his promotional tour for Picard, Patrick Stewart visited The View and invited View co-host Whoopi Goldberg to be part of Season 2. Goldberg played Guinan on The Next Generation. Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) will be back, and another Star Trek: Voyager actor may make an appearance.
We have some big questions left over from Picard Season 1 going into the new season – Will other TNG characters appear? Will the show link to Star Trek Discovery? Will Lore return? Where is Narek? What will happen to the XB’s and the Artifact Borg cube? In the video above, Greg and Chastity provide their theories and predictions.
Disclosure: ViacomCBS is GameSpot’s parent company.
As part of the April Inside Xbox briefing, Microsoft announced the next free update for its swashbuckling adventure game Sea of Thieves, and it includes new job titles, cats, and more.
With the new Ships of Fortune update–due out on April 22 for Xbox One and PC–players can take on special roles and become Emissaries for the Gold Hoarders, Merchant Alliance, Order of Souls, or the Athena’s Fortune groups. Players can join one of the groups by visiting the Outposts and inspecting the table for the faction they want to join.
Once you’ve joined a group, there are five ranks, or “grades,” to achieve. The higher grade you achieve, the bigger rewards you can receive. At the same time, other players will see your Emissary status and might choose to attack to try to steal your loot. Microsoft also announced that you’ll be able to personalize your character and your ship with cosmetic items reflecting your group.
The Ships of Fortune update arrives April 22nd and introduces new PvP Trading Company The Reaper’s Bones, the rewarding but risky Emissary system, an increased reputation cap for most Trading Companies, crew reviving, Arena 2.0 and, most im-paw-tantly, CATS! 🐱 pic.twitter.com/TETtA5SU4q
— SeaOfThieves (@SeaOfThieves) April 7, 2020
Additionally, the Ships of Fortune update introduces a “mysterious” company called The Reaper’s Bones. This new “glory-hungry” faction is after your loot, and Microsoft says they’ll send their own emissaries out to attack you. You can also choose to join The Reaper’s Bones to become a less-than-honorable pirate on the high seas.
Outside of the changes to the main Sea of Thieves game, the multiplayer Arena mode is being updated to become more competitive. “Old treasure maps have been replaced by a single chest marked by a Sea Dog Beacon, with just one cash-in location to ensure a furious battle for victory,” Microsoft said.
Additionally, the total match time is being reduced to 15 minutes, which should help pick up the pace of play. What’s more, players who are downed now have a “brief window” during which their teammates can revive them.
Finally, and most importantly, the new Sea of Thieves update is adding cats as a new pat, following on from parrots and monkeys that were added earlier. The Pirate Emporium store is now stocked with three different breeds of cat: Wildcat, Ragamuffin, and Mau. You can choose the color of your cat and you can dress it up with special clothing. The Emporium has also added a Night Wulf Ship Collection and “crabby” new emotes to buy.
The Ships of Fortune update arrives for Sea of Thieves on April 22 for Xbox One and PC.
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Season 3 of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare kicks off tomorrow, April 8, and it introduces a slate of new content to the game, including three additional maps right on day one and a Quads mode for Warzone, among other things. A new season also means there will be a new battle pass, and Activision has detailed what that gets you, including two free weapons.
On its official blog, Activision reveals that you’ll receive two free weapons as part of the Season 3 battle pass: the Renetti handgun and SKS marksman rifle. The former is unlocked at Tier 15, while the latter becomes available at Tier 31.
Activision describes the Renetti as “a well-rounded semi-auto 9mm pistol” that “excels in close-range combat.” The SKS marksman rifle, on the other hand, is a “hard hitting and agile Soviet-style marksman rifle [that] focuses on utility over accuracy.” Both guns can be customized with a variety of Gunsmith configurations, the publisher says.
In addition to the aforementioned weapon, battle pass holders will unlock Season 3’s new Operator from the outset. You’ll be able to play as the new Operator right away when you purchase a battle pass or battle pass bundle, which includes 20 free tier skips. The battle pass also includes a new shirtless skin for Yegor.
As before, you’ll be able to level up the battle pass and unlock more rewards as you play throughout the season, including Call of Duty points, Operator skins, weapon blueprints, and more. The battle pass costs 1,000 Call of Duty points, while the bundle will set you back 2,400 points. You can read more about it on Activision’s website.
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