Author: Trafficblast

Epic Games–the creators behind the popular shooter Fortnite: Battle Royale–has announced the opening of a new studio in Cologne, Germany. The newest studio to fall under Epic’s umbrella is imaginatively titled Epic Games Cologne and will be led by the former founders of Factor 5, creators of the Turrican and Star Wars: Rogue Squadron franchises.

Prior to joining Epic, the Factor 5 team–including Epic Games Director of Online Technology Julian Eggebrecht and Cologne Studio Director Achim Moller–were working on media delivery with Netflix, Amazon, and Hulu, as well as serving as technology partners for both Nintendo and Sony. It doesn’t sound like Epic Games Cologne will deviate too far from this focus, as Epic says the new studio will “[serve] as part of the company’s expanding focus on emerging forms of interactive media and streaming technologies.”

“At the core of Epic’s success are highly-skilled and passionate individuals,” Eggebrecht says in the company’s press release. “Germany is a nation at the forefront of technology and we look forward to extending our local presence as we fill newly created roles and hire exceptional talent.”

Eggebrecht and Moller both joined Epic earlier this year and previously headed Factor 5 before the studio’s closure in 2009. It’s exciting to imagine a future where a new Rogue Squadron game could feasibly exist, but it doesn’t sound like Epic Games Cologne will be developing games of its own. Maybe we’ll see some kind of cross-media Fortnite content, or a streaming platform to rival Twitch and Mixer. Epic Games has already taken on Steam with the Epic Games Store, so anything is possible, but this is all pure speculation at this point.

Perhaps we’ll discover more next week when the gaming industry shifts its focus to Cologne for Gamescom 2019.

Although Bray Wyatt’s new persona, “The Fiend,” didn’t have a sanctioned match until August 11’s Summerslam, you will be able to play as him in WWE 2K20 in the first Originals pack titled “Bump in the Night.” The new addition to the wrestling game series mashes horror and wrestling.

While WWE 2K20 Originals Mode was mentioned in the first press release for the upcoming October game, everything about the new mode was cryptic, until now. The game will have its traditional Showcase Mode–this time focusing on the Four Horsewomen–and the first originals pack will bring a creative element to the series, combining WWE Superstars with famous monsters to create stories you would never see on weekly WWE television.

Those who pre-order WWE 2K20 will get the WWE Originals pack titled “Bump in the Night.” If you don’t pre-order the game, the first Originals pack will be available to purchase for $15.

There is a lot of content coming with the first WWE Originals pack. The main focus is the Showcase Mode, with an original story revolving around Bray Wyatt and Finn Balor. Bray Wyatt is “The Swampfather” and has become incredibly powerful and the embodiment of the swamp itself. Wyatt tries to recruit Finn Balor into his family, but Balor has to fight his way out.

Aside from the aforementioned “The Fiend,” one of the highlighted characters for this mode is Braun Strowman. He may not have his own story or 2K Tower, but he’ll be one of the monsters you’ll have to battle.

“You have a chance to play as Braun Strowman and his character is done like Frankenstein, Frankenstrowman,” Strowman told GameSpot. “And it’s going to allow you to cause even more destruction than you’ve been able to cause with me, the Monster Among Men, in the past. It’s a new feature in the game that isn’t the normal wrestling that you’d seen so many times. WWE 2K has been able to deliver special features for more content, more playability, doing different things in the game, so there’s so many evolutions of everything in our sports industry that we’re staying ahead of the curve and bringing more to the table than anybody else does in this business.”

For the Bump in the Night pack, aside from this horrific Showcase Mode, Towers returns to WWE 2K20. This time around, Bump in the Night will feature numerous Towers revolving around horrific versions of WWE Superstars battling their way to victory. There are five story towers being introduced in this first pack, and in total, there will be 10 playable horror-themed characters–in addition to “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt. Bump in the Night will also deliver new arenas and parts for Create-a-Wrestler Mode. Check out all the content for the pack below.

Bump in the Night pre-order content:

Showcase content:

• Play as Demon Finn Balor taking on “Swampfather” Bray Wyatt, as the Wyatt Family tries to recruit Balor.

Story Towers:

• The Fiend: Play as Bray Wyatt’s darker side.
• All Fed Up: “Fed Up” Sheamus takes on WWE Superstars who have all become zombies.
• Nowhere to Run: “Twisted” Nikki Cross looks to play a game with other Superstars.
• One of the Family: “Swampfather” Bray Wyatt takes on his past recruit, Daniel Bryan.
• Nowhere to Hide: “Survivor” Mandy Rose puts an end to Nikki Cross’ games.

Playable characters:

• “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt

Playable horror-themed characters:

• “Demon King” Finn Bálor
• “The Swampfather” Bray Wyatt
• FrankenStrowman
• “Wicked” Aleister Black
• “Unleashed Apex Predator” Randy Orton
• “Fed-Up” Sheamus
• “Twisted” Nikki Cross
• “Survivor” Mandy Rose
• +2 mystery versions of WWE Superstars

Extras:

• Wyatt Swamp Arena
• Cemetery Brawl Arena
• Horror themed Create-a-Wrestler and arena parts

WWE 2K20 hits stores on October 22 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. The Bump in the Night pack will be included with those who pre-order the game at participating retailers. All four WWE Original packs will be included in the Deluxe Edition ($90) and the SmackDown 20th Anniversary Edition ($130). The WWE 2K20 Backstage Pass will be available for purchase for $30 and will give access to Packs 2-4.

Ford Motor Company wants to “step up its involvement in gaming” and esports in the immediate future, with a booth at this year’s Gamescom set to announce exactly what this entails for the car manufacturer.

“Ford will at Gamescom next week announce significant news regarding the company’s entry into esports,” the company’s press release states. Ford has become a regular fixture at Gamescom over the past few years, becoming the first auto manufacturer to reveal a new vehicle at the show in 2018. Its only foray into competitive gaming also occurred at Gamescom, when it partnered with Microsoft in 2017 to offer players who recorded the fastest virtual laps in Forza Motorsport 7 the opportunity to drive real-life “hot laps” in a Ford Focus RS around the famous Spa-Francorchamps circuit in Belgium.

Ford put up a job posting for an esports-focused marketing position a few months ago, seeking a candidate who “will lead the strategic direction, negotiation and ownership of partnerships with gaming and esports companies.” The most pertinent qualifications concern the applicant’s ability to “build senior-level relationships with global and regional gaming and esports partners e.g. Riot Games, Activision Blizzard, Epic, Stadia and esports teams, players, leagues, promoters etc.”

Brands such as Coca-Cola, Red Bull, McDonald’s, Audi, and Mercedes-Benz have sponsored esports teams, with more using the rapidly growing sport to advertise their products. Even professional soccer teams have got in on the act, as the likes of Paris Saint-Germain, Schalke 04, and West Ham United each have their own esports teams. Not to mention the fact Drake now co-owns an esports brand.

Ford might be looking to make its mark on esports, too, be it through sponsorship, advertising, or establishing its own team. We’ll find out what the company has in mind next week when Gamescom kicks off on August 20.

Forza Motorsport 6 is currently available at no additional charge on Xbox Games With Gold, but if you want to get every single expansion and car available for the game, you can pick up every last piece of DLC at a massively reduced price too – but make sure you act quickly, because this is a limited time sale.

The Forza Motorsport 6 Complete Add-Ons Collection is currently available at a 95% discount. If you’re in the US, that takes the price down from $99.99 to just $4.99, but the same discount is available in all other regions as well. This discount will be available for the next 4 days, so if you’re interested, get on it fast. It bundles together every single piece of DLC available for the game, including every single car, track and career mode that was released post-launch.

The Complete Add-Ons Collection includes both major expansions, the NASCAR and Porsche packs, which contain unique campaigns alongside additional tracks and cars. Also included is the Car Pass, over 50 additional car packs, and the VIP pass that doubles your race earnings (and contains even more cars). This is a significant amount of content if you’re looking to get the most out of Forza Motorsport 6, and it’ll make progression through the game easier. These pieces of DLC are not available at individual discounts, so you’ll need to make sure that you specifically purchase the Complete Add-Ons Collection for the discount.

Forza Motorsport 6 was originally released in 2015, and was received warmly. In his 8/10 review, Miguel Concepcion called the game “yet another great reason to get back in the driver’s seat.” The series is taking a break this year, making 2019 the first year without a new Forza game since 2010.

The Dota 2 International is happening next week, bringing together the best Dota 2 players to share in an enormous prize pool – the biggest that any esport tournament has ever offered.

The International has been held every year since 2011, and started with a prize pool of just $1.6 million. Now, with ten days of fundraising still remaining, The International 2019 has raised $33,009,045 for its prize pool, averaging $317,263 every day. The event, hosted by Valve, brings together the world’s best Dota 2 players, and this year the competition is happening in Shanghai at the Mercedes-Benz arena. 25% of proceeds from the sale of Dota 2 battle passes is currently being put towards the pool, adding up to an enormous total.

The International runs from August 20 to 25, and can be watched through either Twitch or SteamTV. Last year’s winner was the European team OG, which took home $11,234,158. As it currently stands, the winner of the 2019 International will take home $15,019,115, but that number is likely to rise as more money comes in.

The International also broke a record last year for having the most money up for grabs, which was then overtaken by the Fortnite World Cup just last month. The 2019 International has overtaken Fortnite’s $30 million pool, though, to once again present the largest sum ever for an esports tournament. Whatever the end figure ends up being, it’s going to be enormous.

The summer may be a slower time for new releases, but there is definitely no shortage of sales. Steam and Humble Bundle’s summer promotions are behind us, but we’ve still got some time on the calendar for more. The latest comes from Fanatical, which has a bunch of awesome Steam games (and a 10-game mystery bundle) discounted in its Summer Sale, with an offer for an extra 10% off with coupon code FANATICAL10.

The big hitters in this sale include Monster Hunter World for $26.45, Mortal Kombat 11 for $48.59, and Resident Evil 2 for $30.77, in addition to Devil May Cry 5 for $30.77, Borderlands: The Handsome Collection for $5.38, and Civilization 6 for $13.49. Other notable deals include discounts on Yakuza 0 ($13.49), Yakuza Kiwami ($12.59), and Yakuza Kiwami 2 ($23.75), as well as Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night for only $31.67, Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen for $8.09, and Dark Souls Remastered for $21.59.

The Summer Mystery Bundle costs $7 USD and comes with 10 mystery games. This bundle is, unfortunately, excluded from the coupon code, but with the number of games you’re getting, you’re already saving some money. Fanatical says it’s “jam-packed with a huge roster of AAA and indie Steam games” and adds that while each game in one bundle will be unique from each other, subsequent bundle purchases may result in duplicates. In the name of science, I purchased a bundle to see some of the possible gets.

The 10 games I received are The Flame in the Flood, Farm Mania 2, The Little Acre, White Noise Online, Twilight City: Love as a Cure, Northern Tale 2, Book of Demons, Forest Legends: The Call of Love Collector’s Edition, Smoke and Sacrifice, and Chronology. I didn’t get anything I’m particularly interested in, so it’s worth noting you might have a similar experience. Unfortunately, that’s the risk with random-chance bundles.

See the full offering of PC game deals at Fanatical, and check out some of our favourite deals below. Prices shown below reflect the full discount with promo code FANATICAL10 applied at checkout.

See all PC game deals at Fanatical

Since its launch in Summer 2016, Pokemon Go has been gradually introducing more and more Pokemon to collect. Most recently, developer Niantic implemented monsters from the series’ Gen 4 games, Diamond and Pearl, and the studio has begun dropping hints that Gen 5 Pokemon–those that originally debuted in Pokemon Black and White on the DS–are on the horizon as well.

One of the most beloved and unique Pokemon in the series is Eevee. While a fairly common sight in Pokemon Go, what makes Eevee special is that it’s capable of evolving into a variety of different forms. Normally, which Eevee evolution you get is up to luck, but there are a few tricks to ensure you get the evolution of your choice. If you’re hoping for a particular one, read on for tips on how to get any Eevee evolution.

How Many Eevee Evolutions Are There?

Eevee is categorized as the Evolution Pokemon, and fittingly, it can evolve into eight possible forms–more than any other monster in the series. The most recent Eevee evolution, Sylveon, was introduced in Pokemon X and Y for 3DS, and while it is not yet attainable in Pokemon Go, it will inevitably be added to the game at some point in the future. In the meantime, here are all the possible forms Eevee can evolve into in Pokemon Go:

• Vaporeon — Water-type
• Jolteon — Electric-type
• Flareon — Fire-type
• Espeon — Psychic-type
• Umbreon — Dark-type
• Leafeon — Grass-type
• Glaceon — Ice-type

How To Choose Eevee Evolutions

Eevee requires 25 Eevee Candies to evolve, which is fairly cheap by the game’s standards, so you shouldn’t have much trouble amassing the required amount of Candy to evolve it. Normally, the form it turns into will be determined randomly, but you can influence its evolution by giving it a specific nickname, guaranteeing it will evolve into a certain form. However, this nicknaming trick can only be used once per evolution. Here’s the full list of nicknames and the evolutions they’ll produce:

• Vaporeon — Rainer
• Jolteon — Sparky
• Flareon — Pyro
• Espeon — Sakura
• Umbreon — Tamao
• Leafeon — Linnea
• Glaceon — Rea

Once you change Eevee’s nickname to one of the aforementioned options, you’ll see the silhouette of the corresponding Pokemon appear on the Evolve button, signaling that you’ve done everything right. As previously mentioned, however, you can only use this trick once for each form; if you’ve already obtained a Jolteon by nicknaming it Sparky, you won’t be able to get another one using the same method, so think carefully before evolving an Eevee.

Other Eevee Evolution Tricks

In addition to the above nicknaming trick, there’s another method to guarantee which form your Eevee will evolve into, specifically if you want Espeon, Umbreon, Leafeon, or Glaceon. However, this will require a little more work.

Espeon / Umbreon

Set Eevee as your Buddy Pokemon, then walk 10 kilometers with it. Once you’ve traveled the required distance together and earned two Candies, evolve Eevee (while it’s still set as your Buddy Pokemon) during the day to get Espeon, or at night (between 8 PM – 8 AM local time) to get Umbreon.

Leafeon / Glaceon

To guarantee Eevee evolves into Leafeon or Glaceon, you’ll need to have either a Mossy Lure or a Glacial Lure–two new types of Lure Modules recently introduced in the game. You can purchase either of these through the in-game item shop for 200 coins.

Once you’ve gotten your hands on a Mossy Lure, set it in a PokeStop, then spin its Photo Disc and evolve Eevee to receive Leafeon. Set a Glacial Lure instead and the Evolution Pokemon will turn into Glaceon. You can read more about the process in our guide on how to get Leafeon and Glaceon in Pokemon Go.

Pokemon Go Guides

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