Author: Trafficblast

For one day only, Best Buy is offering Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 on PS4, Xbox One, and PC for just $20, which is the lowest price we’ve yet seen for the 2018 entry in Activision’s long-running first-person shooter franchise. With Prime Day 2019 coming up on Monday, there are going to be deals everywhere in the near future, but that assumes we’ll live through the weekend, so seize the day and head over to Best Buy if duty calls to you. It’s a great time to get the game, since the developers just released a big content update that adds a new multiplayer mode, specialist, and more.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 — $20

Black Ops 4 breaks from previous entries in the series by not having a traditional, single-player campaign mode, instead focusing on multiplayer. The narrative component lives in solo missions, set between the events of Black Ops 2 and 3, that serve as tutorials for each of the game’s specialists, many of whom are returning characters from previous entries. Gameplay is broadly divided into traditional multiplayer, the series’ signature co-op zombie mode, and a new battle royale mode called Blackout, which GameSpot’s Kallie Plagge thought was particularly well-executed in her Black Ops 4 review.

Frugal gamers have a lot to look forward to in the coming week with Prime Day, as well as all of the competing sales from other retailers like Dell, Ebay, and GameStop. The Amazon-owned Twitch is also getting in on it this year, with various streaming events as well as in-game goodies in Apex Legends and FIFA 19 for Prime subscribers.

After numerous reports, Nintendo finally confirmed the existence of a smaller Nintendo Switch model, dubbed the Nintendo Switch Lite. This iteration of the console differs from the flagship Switch in numerous ways, most notably by being tailored for handheld play, with no detachable Joy-Con controllers or television support. It also has a slightly different button layout, including a true D-pad, but don’t expect that to be added to the base Nintendo Switch model.

Speaking to CNET, Nintendo of America president Doug Bowser confirmed that Nintendo currently has no plans to update the base Switch’s Joy-Cons with a proper D-pad like the one featured on the Switch Lite. “There are no plans, or nothing to announce, in terms of further variations of Joy-Con,” Bowser said.

The lack of a true D-pad has been a common complaint about Switch’s Joy-Con controllers, but while Nintendo doesn’t appear to be rectifying that anytime soon, third-party manufacturers have stepped in to offer their own alternatives. Hori sells a variety of left Joy-Cons that replace the standard directional buttons with a more traditional D-pad, although the controllers have some limitations–namely, they can only be used while attached to the system in handheld mode. The D-pad Joy-Cons come in Mario, Zelda, and Pokemon designs.

That isn’t the only way the Switch Lite differs from the base model. The system is lighter and boasts a smaller screen. It also has an estimated 20-30% better battery life than the standard Switch, but it lacks some features such as rumble and the IR sensor. Being tailored for portable play means the system won’t be compatible with all Switch software–only titles that support handheld mode. That means you’ll need to own a pair of Joy-Con controllers in order to play certain games like 1-2-Switch or Super Mario Party. Nintendo has also said it is planning a transfer feature that will allow you to move between the Switch and Switch Lite, although the company hasn’t shared any details on how that will work yet.

The Switch Lite launches on September 20 for $200 USD. The system will be available in three different colors at launch: yellow, turquoise, and grey. Nintendo is also releasing a special edition Pokemon Nintendo Switch Lite on November 8, just ahead of the release of Pokemon Sword and Shield. That version of the system has a light grey body, cyan and magenta buttons, and illustrations of the games’ two cover monsters, Zacian and Zamazenta, on the back.

Every recent Nintendo handheld has come out with a variety of special models with paint jobs that pay homage to Nintendo’s biggest games and franchises. The Nintendo Switch Lite–a new handheld-only model of the Switch coming this fall–is no exception. The first such model will celebrate Pokemon Sword and Shield.

The “Zacian and Zamazenta Edition” is named after the two Legendary Pokemon that represent the titular Sword and Shield aspects of each game. It’s a light gray tone with blue and magenta face buttons, and artwork of the two creatures gracing the back. It will release on November 8 for $200, the same price as the other Nintendo Switch Lite models.

The other three Switch Lite models, in yellow, gray, and turquoise, are coming on September 20. That means if you want the Pokemon version you’ll have to wait a little while. It launches just a week before Pokemon Sword and Shield, but the games will have to be purchased separately.

The Nintendo Switch Lite is a new model of Nintendo Switch with a lighter body and some removed features, along with the budget price. It can’t use docked mode to attach to a TV, and this model no longer has detachable Joy-Con controllers. That also means the rumble and IR camera have both been removed. It does replace the face buttons on the left side with a proper D-pad, however.

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With the announcement of the Nintendo Switch Lite, many are likely considering adding a second Switch to their life, whether that be as an option for friends and family, or as a dedicated handheld to take out and about. However, a key question is whether content that has been purchased can be transferred from one device to another painlessly. And the same question exists for save files.

When it comes to licenses and the accessibility of content on multiple devices, Nintendo’s platforms don’t have a history of being particularly user-friendly. However, speaking to CNET, Nintendo of America president Doug Bowser said that the company is working on features that will make it easier to move between a Switch and Switch Lite, and vice versa.

“Yes, you will have the ability to transfer between devices, your gameplay experiences,” he said. However, Bowser stopped short of actually providing concrete details on how that would work and when the functionality will be available. “More to come there, but that is the intention,” he added.

Given that Nintendo’s Online service has the ability to create groups and families, it could be that the solution involves adding multiple Switch devices to accounts, but that remains to be seen. Nintendo Switch Lite launches on September 20 for $200, and it’s likely further information about how multi-device transfers will work will be provided ahead of the launch.

Nintendo has detailed the Switch Lite price, specs, release date, and more. Much of it doesn’t come as a surprise, but the lack of detachable Joy-Cons has some interesting implications on multiplayer.

The Nintendo Switch Lite has officially been announced. Its a smaller, cheaper version of the existing Nintendo Switch that will be attractive to those who want to live a handheld-only gaming life, or have a second Switch at their disposal. Of course, to hit that $200 price point Nintendo has had to make some sacrifices and one of them is the Joy-Cons.

The Joy-Con controllers are a key piece of the portable, social-friendly gaming experience that the Nintendo Switch enables. They are small, lightweight controllers that can be detached from the Switch and given to others for multiplayer fun.

However, for the Switch Lite, Nintendo has opted for a dedicated, always-attached input method akin to its previous handheld devices such as the Nintendo 3DS. The upside of this is traditional directional inputs will make playing a variety of games more comfortable and intuitive.

Although this aligns with the company’s vision of the Switch Lite being a purely handheld device, the decision to eliminate detachable Joy-Cons doesn’t preclude the Switch Lite enabling multiplayer entirely as Joy-Cons can still be connected to it. Nevertheless, multiplayer will be a little trickier as the Switch Lite cannot output to TVs and with a smaller screen (5.5-inch instead 6.2-inch), players will need to crowd around. The Switch Lite also lacks a kickstand, which means positioning it is going to be a bit difficult.

The Switch Lite also loses the rumble functionality, which means you won’t be getting any force feedback when you’re playing games. Conversely, one of the new features the Switch Lite has–which could be an improvement depending on your perspective–is a more traditional d-pad, instead of the Joy-Con’s four small buttons for up, down, left, and right. Nintendo does not currently have plans to introduce this d-pad to Joy-Cons for the original Switch.

For $200, the Switch Lite certainly still has a fair share of features and use cases that make it appealing. Speaking to CNET, Nintendo of America president Doug Bowser said he could see the Switch Lite “fitting into a household where there are multiple players … and one flagship Nintendo Switch.”

Nintendo has revealed further Switch Lite details, including its release date, battery life changes, and more. Prior to this announcement, reports suggested a more powerful Nintendo Switch targeted at hardcore players would is in production.

Disney’s new Lion King opens in theatres on July 19 in the United States, but one of the first screenings was tonight in Hollywood. Some of the people in attendance have shared their thoughts, and the reactions are overwhelmingly positive.

GameSpot’s own Chris Hayner says Timon (Billy Eichner) and Pumbaa (Seth Rogen) steal the show. Despite some missteps, it’s overall a “really fun flick,” Hayner said. You can see a rundown of Twitter reactions to The Lion King below, while we’ll have more on the movie coming up soon.

Donald Glover voices Simba, while James Earl Jones returns to play Mufasa. Chiwetel Ejiofor voices the evil lion Scar, while John Oliver portrays the overbearing bird Zazu. Beyonce voices Nala, and she released a brand-new single from the movie called “Spirit” today. Listen here.

The Lion King is directed by Jon Favreau. It is called a “live-action” movie because it was filmed using live-action production techniques, even though the movie actually depicts its characters through (eerily lifelike) computer-generated images.

The Lion King First Reactions

The ambitious space game No Man’s Sky was released in 2016, and the game sputtered at launch. Developer Hello Games stayed silent for a while after release, and while this might have been a challenging thing to do, it was the right call, according to studio head Sean Murray. Speaking at the Develop conference recently, Murray talked about how “it just doesn’t really work” to talk to fans and try to “placate” them after a launch gone wrong.

“There have been a number of games that have since come out, had a polarising launch,and that explosive mix of loads of people playing it but also problems,” he said, as reported by Games Radar. “And I can see EA, Microsoft, or Bethesda try to placate players by just talking to them, but for right or wrong, it just doesn’t really work. You see this all the time when a big publisher will talk to the community and try to solve the problem and then get embroiled, taking up more and more of its head space.”

He didn’t mention any titles by name, but EA recently had a rough launch with BioWare’s Anthem, while Microsoft’s Sea of Thieves didn’t explode in popularity like it might have hoped for, and Bethesda’s Fallout 76 also had a difficult launch.

Murray went on to say that Hello Games spent about two years not talking to press, and months not connecting with fans about the state of No Man’s Sky.

“That was really hard. I sat down so many times and wrote the perfect blog post that was going to explain everything about the game’s development, and the road map going ahead. But I could see that it didn’t hold credibility with regards to where we were at,” he said.

According to GI.biz, Murray said it was “probably” the right thing to do to stay quiet for so long.

For No Man’s Sky, it seems the strategy worked out–even if it was difficult. The game’s huge “Next” update in 2018 was very well received, and GameSpot praised the game overall for its slow, disciplined approach to getting back on track. The general sentiment around No Man’s Sky appears to have changed to be more positive overall.

It’ll be interesting to see if games like Anthem, Sea of Thieves, and Fallout 76 can tell their own redemption stories. The developers of each game continue to support their games.