Author: Trafficblast

If video game consoles really are going to get more expensive in America due to Trump’s tariffs, it might now take a little longer for it to happen. The United States Trade Representative announced this week that the proposed taxes on some electronics made in China, including video game consoles, is being delayed until December 15.

In a statement, the USTR said it pushed the start date back from September 1 as part of the “public comment and hearing process.” This is typically understood to be a time period when members of the public and experts weigh in on a particular topic.

In this case, it appears the public comment and hearing process resulted in the committee deciding it needed extra time to make a final decision. One significant event related to video games that happened during that time was the joint letter from Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo sent to the US government expressing their mutual opposition for the new taxes.

Other products made in China whose proposed tax increase has also been delayed to December 15 include cell phones, laptops, and computer monitors, as well as some unspecific footwear, clothing, and toys.

The USTR said it now plans to hold an “exclusion process” to determine if the products whose new tax rate have been delayed should be removed entirely from the list. The USTR said it will move quickly to release an official list into the Federal Register for items that will and will not be subject to the increased tariff rates.

Trump’s new tariffs for China, which were first proposed in May, would introduce a 25% take on all imports from the country. The importers pay the tax, so that means Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo would likely need to offset the costs with increased prices passed on to retailers and eventually consumers.

For its part, Nintendo reportedly prepared itself for the tariffs by moving manufacturing out of China ahead of the launch of rumored new Switch models.

Speaking to press today, Trump explained the delay, “We’re doing this for Christmas season, just in case some of the tariffs would have an impact on US customers …”

After Trump’s announcement of the tariff delay, the US market rallied. However, stocks later fell back to Earth.

In the joint letter, Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo pointed out that more than 96% of video game consoles imported to the US were made in China. If the console manufacturers move their production operations to the US or another country, this could cause “significant supply chain disruption” and increase costs “even beyond the cost of the proposed tariffs.”

In other news, Sony recently said it might have to raise the price of PlayStation consoles if the proposed tariffs go through. The topic is especially front-of-mind currently for game consoles, as Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony are all coming out with new hardware relatively soon. Nintendo’s new Switch Lite launches in September, while Microsoft’s Project Scarlett and Sony’s all-but-confirmed PS5 are each expected to debut during Holiday 2020.

Xbox boss Phil Spencer has said the price of the next-generation Scarlett console may depend on what happens with the tariffs. This is an ongoing story, so keep checking back with GameSpot for the latest.

Spelunky 2 won’t make it out of its development cave this year after all. Developer Derek Yu announced on Twitter that the follow-up to the original roguelike is just a little off the mark due to its level of complexity, and as a result the team needs more time to finish it.

“Development is still going well and we’re not far off target, but the density and detail of the game is demanding more time,” Yu said in a series of tweets. “As soon as we have a release date for Spelunky 2, we’ll make sure everyone knows! We can’t wait to show you more, although of course the best way is for you to experience it for yourself at launch. All the crazy stuff we’re adding makes me buzz with excitement.”

In the tweets, Yu also apologized for the recent lack of updates, saying that it’s sometimes hard to strike a balance between communication and development time. He also remarked that the team is adding more detail and contrast to the environmental art in response to feedback from the initial trailer.

Spelunky 2 is an ambitious sequel, introducing new characters and online co-op to the first game’s roguelike exploration. Yu developed the first game almost single-handedly, and he’s still leading the effort for the sequel.

“Neither cooperative nor competitive modes are where Spelunky excels because the core of this game is designed around the exploits of a lone survivor in a hostile world. Spelunky doesn’t extend a helping hand when you’re down,” Tom McShea wrote in GameSpot’s Spelunky review. “It doesn’t have mercy. And that stubbornness is one of the main reasons it’s so hard to pull away from the game. When you finally conquer something that has been hounding you for hours, you feel like the best darn explorer on the planet, and that feeling overshadows all the hardships you overcame down the troubled path you traveled.”

Epic Games recently released a new Pet named Gunner in Fortnite: Battle Royale, and fans quickly pointed out that the little doggo is basically a reskinned version of a previously released dog, Bonesy. Now, Epic has responded to the news, saying it made a mistake in releasing Gunner.

The company will give out refunds to everyone who bought Gunner, and in an attempt to make up for the problem, Epic is also giving players who purchased Gunner 200 free V-bucks. What’s more, Gunner is being erased from Fortnite entirely.

“We should not have released the Gunner Pet and apologize for doing so. Within the next couple of days, all purchases of Gunner will be refunded for the full amount of 1000 V-bucks as well as an additional 200 V-bucks and the Pet will be removed from the Locker,” Epic said in a statement.

Players who purchased Gunner and use Fortnite’s in-game refund tools to get a refund will receive the 200 free V-bucks and an extra refund token.

As comparison images show, Gunner was merely a simple reskin of Bonesy with a lighter shade of fur and some minor tweaks like a skull logo on his scarf. Adding to the controversy, Bonesy was originally exclusive to the Season 6 Battle Pass; Epic had pledged that items in Battle Passes would never be sold separately. So when Epic started selling Gunner, the Bonesy clone, people got upset that Epic seemed to be going back on its promise.

Fortnite Season X Coverage

• Fortnite Season 10 Battle Pass: Skins, Price, How It Works, And More
• Fortnite Season 10 Battle Pass Rewards: Skins, Emotes, Back Bling, Pets, And More
• Fortnite Season 10 Update Notes: BRUTE Mech, Rift Zones, And More
• Fortnite Season 10: Big Changes To How Daily & Weekly Challenges Work
• Fortnite Season 10 Map Changes: Rift Zones, Comet, Skeleton, And More
• Fortnite 10.00 Content Update: Titled Town, Automatic Sniper Rifle, And More

Epic has rolled out another new update for Fortnite: Battle Royale. Following a slight delay, patch 10.10 is now live across PS4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch, and mobile devices, and it brings back another classic area of the island and makes some welcome changes to the game’s overpowered mech suits. Here are the patch notes.

First, a Rift Zone has caused Mega Mall to revert to Retail Row. This time, however, the shopping center is overrun by zombie-like Fiends, making it a dangerous place to visit. This is the second area of the island to be transformed by a Rift Zone this season thus far; last week, Neo Tilted was turned into the Wild West-themed Tilted Town.

In addition to Retail Row’s return, Epic is kicking off a new limited-time mode called World Run. This Squads mode divides 16 players up into four teams, and the group that collects 30 coins the fastest will be declared the winner. Meanwhile, the legendary Infinity Blade has been unvaulted for the Sword Fight Squads and Duos LTM, although this time its environmental damage has been significantly reduced.

Finally, Epic has made an assortment of balance tweaks, most notably to the new B.R.U.T.E mechs, which fans have criticized as being overpowered since they were introduced at the start of the season. Now, a targeting laser has been added, giving both teammates and opponents a much clearer idea of where the mech is aiming. The mechs will also spawn less frequently in certain modes.

You can read what else has changed in Fortnite’s Battle Royale mode below, while the full patch notes can be found on Epic’s website.

Fortnite: Battle Royale v10.10 Patch Notes

What’s New?

Retail Row

A Rift Zone has turned Mega Mall back into Retail Row, and prices have dropped significantly. These discounts come at the cost of increased danger — bargain-crazed Fiends are spawning in the Rift Zone, and they want the shopping center all to themselves.

Limited-Time Modes

World Run LTM

Team Type: Squads | Respawning: On

• 16 Players.
• 4 Teams.
• The team to collect 30 coins fastest wins.
  • In the event that two teams collect the same amount of coins, the team that was faster will win.

Weapons & Items

• Unvaulted only in the Sword Fight Squads and Duos LTMs:
  • Infinity Blade
    • Reduced the environmental damage from 10000 to 600.
• Increased the number of resource stacks contained in Chests in Tilted Town from 1 to 3.
• B.R.U.T.E. updates:
  • Added a targeting laser that appears as players load and fire missiles.
    • In addition to the B.R.U.T.E.’s gunner, this laser is visible to opponents and teammates.
    • This is to help give clarity to all players on where a gunner is aiming their rockets before they’re fired.
  • Improved visual and audio feedback during the self-destruct sequence.
  • B.R.U.T.E.s can now be entered directly from glider mode.
  • Updated B.R.U.T.E. spawn logic for large team respawn game modes.
    • B.R.U.T.Es will now spawn intermittently throughout the match instead of waiting for Storm phases to end.
  • B.R.U.T.E.s abandoned in the Storm will self-destruct after 30 seconds.
  • B.R.U.T.E.s will reappear on the minimap after 15 seconds if no player is in either seat.
• On Saturday, August 10, we lowered the spawn rates of the B.R.U.T.E. per Storm circle in Arena and Tournament playlists. We will continue to monitor the impact of this change in advance of next weekend’s Champion Series event.
  • Beginning of Match
    • 21.5% chance that between 1-3 B.R.U.T.Es will spawn
      • Previously was 100% chance that between 2-4 B.R.U.T.Es would spawn
  • Storm 1
    • 44% chance that between 1-4 B.R.U.T.Es will spawn
      • Previously was 100% chance that between 2-4 B.R.U.T.Es would spawn
  • Storm 2
    • 40% chance that between 1-2 B.R.U.T.Es will spawn
      • Previously was 100% chance that between 1-3 B.R.U.T.Es would spawn
  • Storm 3
    • 40% chance that between 1-2 B.R.U.T.Es will spawn
      • Previously was 66% chance that 2 B.R.U.T.Es would spawn
  • Storm 4
    • 10% chance that 1 B.R.U.T.E will spawn
      • Previously was 50% chance that 1 B.R.U.T.E would spawn
  • Storm 5
    • 3% chance that 1 B.R.U.T.E will spawn
      • Previously was 10% chance that 1 B.R.U.T.E would spawn

Bug Fixes

• Fixed an issue in which opponents’ B.R.U.T.E.s would sometimes not be visible.
• B.R.U.T.E.s can no longer be used to traverse the map faster than intended.
• The turn rate of B.R.U.T.E.’s turret is no longer framerate-dependent.

Gameplay

• Retail Row
  • A Rift Zone has replaced the Mega Mall POI with Retail Row.
    • Retail Row now spawns hordes of Fiends who charge at players.
      • Fiends may drop a weapon, consumable, or ammo upon being eliminated.
      • Fiends cannot go outside the Retail Row Rift Zone.
• Chests and ammo containers will now open when destroyed.
  • Known issue: Destroying a Chest or ammo container by destroying the object it is placed on will not open it.
    • We plan to have this issue resolved in the v10.20 update.

Bug Fixes

• The Week 1 and Week 2 Hidden Battle Stars can now be collected.
• Fixed an issue in which the Bush would reset its displayed equip timer if the player tried to activate it multiple times. (Players would still be able to equip the Bush at the intended time, but the displayed timer would be incorrect.)
• Fixed an issue in which Supply Drop smoke would not appear if the box was not in sight.
• Trees no longer turn into different kinds of trees upon being damaged.
  • This includes snow-covered trees no longer turning into non-snow-covered trees.
• Fixed an issue in which Chests would sometimes already be broken or opened at the start of a match.
• The “Welcome to Tilted Town” message no longer loops when players enter/exit Titled Town. It also no longer overlaps Storm warnings.
• Walking over in-motion Bottle/Fancy Flip Toys no longer causes a camera issue.

Events

• Pushed a fix on August 5 to address an Arena matchmaking issue causing players to be matched within a wider Hype range than intended.
  • Because players are now matched within a narrower Hype range, some players may experience longer queue times. This is to ensure higher-quality matches.

VGC analysis suggests that around half of the core team that worked on Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, the last mainline entry in the series, is still working at Retro Studios today.

Around 50 developers worked full-time on the 2007 Wii shooter, of which around 27 still remain according to LinkedIn.

This includes four contractors that were given permanent roles and five of Metroid Prime 3’s 11 designers. In an announcement earlier this year, Nintendo said it had decided to “restart development from the beginning” on Metroid Prime 4. The sequel was revealed at E3 2017 but has been quiet ever since. Producer Kensuke Tanabe called in Retro to take over development on the project from its original, unannounced developer–rumoured to be Bandai Namco–so it’s safe to assume former Metroid Prime alums will be working on the new game.

Most of the lead creators from the series have moved on, however. Mark Pacini, the lead designer for all three Metroid Prime games, left Retro in 2008 to found Armature Studio. The developer put out ReCore in 2016, and has since collaborated with Epic Games in providing development support for Fortnite: Save the World. A further seven creators departed Retro to join Bluepoint Games, which has developed the recent remake of Shadow of the Colossus, and also released remastered bundles such as Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection and the Metal Gear Solid HD Collection.

Retro has been hiring for Metroid Prime 4 ever since Nintendo announced the studio’s work on the project.