Author: Trafficblast

Creative Assembly’s new strategy game Total War: Three Kingdoms is off to a hot start. The game sold more than 1 million copies in its first week to become the studio’s fastest-selling strategy game ever. The game is the current No. 1 strategy game on Steam in terms of concurrent players with more than 160,000 peak concurrent players today.

Creative Assembly’s chief product officer Rob Bartholomew said in a statement that the response to Three Kingdoms “exceeded all expectations”

“We’re seeing a lot of ‘best Total War ever’ comments out there. We’re very proud,” he added.

Three Kingdoms is the first Total War game set in China; it takes place in 190 CE. The game was originally scheduled to launch in March, but Creative Assembly delayed it to May to fix bugs, add polish, and make sure the localization was done right.

GameSpot’s Total War: Three Kingdoms review scored the game an 8/10.

“This is the most ambitious that Total War has ever been, from the variety of different ways that you can enjoy the game to the sheer scope of the stories that they’ve weaved around each unique character’s playable experience,” reviewer Ginny Woo said. “Three Kingdoms feels like the rightful evolution of the series, pulling from its roots in historical military tactics to come up with an engrossing modern strategy game that is always a delight, even in its less well-oiled moments.”

In a corner of Disneyland far, far away.

With Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge about to open to the public at Disneyland, fans planning to visit the planet of Batuu are also likely planning to part ways with a lot of their money. Galaxy’s Edge is loaded with new and exclusive merchandise that you won’t be able to find anywhere else (much of which you can take a peek at in our image gallery from visiting the park), ranging in price from a few dollars to a few hundred–and beyond, as we’re about to explain.

For those with plenty of cash to burn, there are some very high-end items for you to browse. During a media preview event, GameSpot found the most expensive piece of merchandise for sale in the new land. For the low, low price of only $25,000, you can have your own custom R-series droid.

Whether you want a perfect replica of R2-D2 or some splashes of color, the design of the droid is up to you, if you’re willing to pay enough. You can customize the droid’s paint job and parts–to an extent that wasn’t clear yet during our sneak peek. You can even choose whether your droid will appear scuffed up and used, or shiny like it just arrived from the factory. The droid is functional, including sounds and lights, and controllable via remote. If you decide to pony up, it will be about 90 days from the time of order to your custom droid arriving at your front door, according to Disney.

Of course, there are also options for those that don’t want to spend quite that much.

You can also build your own smaller droids for $100, or purchase one that’s been pre-built, with the price depending on the droid in question. Speaking to GameSpot, Disneyland Resort Merchandise Strategy Manager Summer Bloomfield said that prices on droids start at $10.

Honestly, though, everyone should get the $25,000 option and then R2 units can rule the galaxy. Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge opens at Disneyland on May 31, with Walt Disney World’s arriving on August 29.

As it’s a first-person shooter, it’s not hard to imagine Blood and Truth working without VR. But the ways it reinvigorates some of the genre’s mechanics also wouldn’t be possible without it. Its first-person shooter action is still beholden to some of the inaccuracies and annoyances with PSVR and its less-than-precise tracking. But it also uses these forms of input to give you a satisfying amount of control over each firefight and the various activities between them. Whether it’s tearing off grenade pins with your teeth or hanging from scaffolding while returning fire, Blood and Truth does an admirable job expanding on familiar shooter concepts while maintaining a comfortable VR experience.

Blood and Truth can only be played with two Move controllers. You’re explicitly told to play from a seated position, and you’re given numerous points around your torso to interact with. Putting a hand to your chest, for example, will let you grab stored ammunition for reloading, while you can find handgun holsters on both your hips and slings for larger weapons behind your shoulders. Blood and Truth makes you move to reach the weapons you need at the moment you need them, while also making these movements easy and natural to remember.

There’s a slightly long calibration process that helps make each of these motions smooth and accurate. A lot of care is taken to ensure that you’re being tracked correctly at all times, which helps when you’re flung into some fast-paced shootouts. The accurate tracking produces one of the most comfortable experiences I’ve ever had using PSVR. Although Blood and Truth doesn’t completely eradicate some tracking issues (which are more hardware related), it entirely sidesteps common issues such as camera drifting and annoyingly erratic motion-tracking losses.

That isn’t to say issues aren’t frustrating when they do crop up. It’s common to wrestle with a two-handed assault rifle and its attached scope while the game struggles to determine the angle that you’re trying to aim at. This leads to numerous frustrating deaths when the situation demands more dexterity than the hardware is capable of providing you, deflating otherwise challenging encounters with failures that feel out of your control.

Blood and Truth almost successfully distracts you from this by giving you much more to do with your hands, enhancing its otherwise rote first-person shooting. Weapons such as a pump-action shotgun feel more satisfying to use when you’re grasping the pump handle with your free hand and actively pulling back to reload after every shot, while a silenced pistol has tangibly more accuracy after you rest your free hand over to the side of it for added stability. Blood and Truth lets you get ridiculous with how you approach combat, too, allowing you to wield a powerful assault rifle in one hand and a sawed-off shotgun in the other at the expense of accuracy.

Your movement in Blood and Truth is limited, but that helps the action flow smoothly. Blood and Truth only ever has you facing in a direction it determines, giving you the control to move to predetermined areas in front of your or strafe to the side at the press of a button. There are no confusing segmented rotations to grapple with, so you’re free to focus on how to navigate your way forward and use what cover is available in effective ways.

With this in mind, it’s comforting that enemies can’t find themselves in inaccessible spaces behind you, and you have enough choices in a firefight to keep it dynamic rather than simply on rails. Transitioning to new cover and the freedom you’re given to make slight adjustments to your firing angles with strafing are smooth and responsive, letting you satisfyingly flank enemies with ease. There are some sparse stealth sections to break up the sometimes unrelenting action, giving you options to navigate through cramped office spaces or derelict apartments and pick off enemies with silenced weapons. It is exhilarating to string together a number of silent kills before being spotted, again highlighting how much space Blood and Truth gives you to work with despite being so restrictive with your movement.

When you’re not poking your head out in between gunshots, you’re doing anything from picking locks to shimmying your way across construction supports and crawling through open vents. Each of these actions (and more) make good use of the Move controllers, making your movements feel more intimate than they ever could with a standard controller. Lock picking, for example, tasks you with rotating one Move controller slowly and then using the other to quickly lock the pin in place when in the right position. It feels both precise and natural, and goes a long way to making the otherwise mundane action of unlocking a door surprisingly engaging.

Although Blood and Truth doesn’t completely eradicate some tracking issues (which are more hardware related), it entirely sidesteps common issues such as camera drifting and annoyingly erratic motion-tracking losses.

The same can be said for the many ways in which Blood and Truth lets you climb around its many environments. You’ll have to reach out to grab overhead bars or protruding rebar pieces from walls to gracefully pull yourself upwards, carefully making sure not to unclench both hands when you’re dangling over a deadly plunge. Some set-pieces make use of this to create some memorable shootouts, as you hang for your life using one arm and frantically return fire with the other. Having to physically grip to hold on, while remaining aware of where your hands are positioned, makes these actions feel all the more natural and satisfying.

With some strong action and creative uses of VR, it’s a shame that Blood and Truth fails to encapsulate all of this into a story that doesn’t feel as disjointed and hokey as it does. Following the escapades of a London-based crime family under threat, Blood and Truth flicks through every gangster story cliche in the book. Moments of gravitas are undone by stilted voice acting and poor writing, while others can’t decide whether they’re trying to be a grounded crime tale or a globe-trotting James Bond imitation. Blood and Truth never settles on a consistent tone that helps move its story along, which make its narrative-focused stages (that feature no action) drawn-out and dull.

Blood and Truth is uneven, especially when it’s determined to get you to focus on an uninteresting story while you’re putting up with the shortcomings of VR. But the beauty of Blood and Truth is that it also does marvelous things with the platform. The addition of motion control make familiar and mundane mechanics engaging, while also breaking up the smartly designed first-person shooting and establishing a great rhythm to the six-or-so-hour campaign. Blood and Truth doesn’t manage to stick the landing in all aspects, but it’s definitely a step forward for PSVR shooters.

The upcoming expansion to Square Enix’s MMORPG Final Fantasy XIV, called Shadowbringers, will introduce a wide variety of changes to the core gameplay as well as a slew of new content. And one of the most intriguing additions will be an entire raid dedicated to Nier Automata. It’s called YoRHa: Dark Apocalypse, and it’ll be a lot more than the typical crossover event, although not much has been detailed yet.

However, I had a chance to speak with FFXIV director and lead producer Naoki Yoshida during a preview event for Shadowbringers, and asked about where the idea came from, if there are any details he could tease, and how much Nier’s creator Yoko Taro is involved in the raid’s creation.

Key art for the upcoming Nier Automata crossover raid in Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers.

Yoshida-san stated that the crossover was driven by player feedback, and elaborated, “When Nier Automata was released, a lot of people were saying, ‘We want 9S or 2B gear in FFXIV!’ Of course, if we’re just simply having attire or an outfit implemented into FFXIV, it’s simple, it’s quick, but I’m sure it wouldn’t be fun from a gameplay perspective.”

I think it leans more towards Nier’s gameplay rather than FFXIV’s battle mechanics. – Naoki Yoshida

He continued, “Why not have Yoko-san come on board and create content that sort of meshes FFXIV and Nier together? And as a reward, you can get the gear and costumes. I feel that it would make for a lot more interesting gameplay, had we had his participation. We approached Yoko-san and asked him, ‘Would you be interested in doing such a project?’ He was happy to be on board.”

Yoko-san’s involvement is very significant, as if he is creating a whole game. Over the course of the next two years, we will continue to work with him and the team to bring content. – Naoki Yoshida

In terms of information on the content, Yoshida-san mentioned that he can’t give many details. But he did say that this raid will have a unique Nier Automata flavor, more so than you might expect.

“We do feel that it’s going to be very much in line with a Nier game and it’ll bring out Yoko-san’s sort of tastes very well. As well as the battle mechanics, I think it leans more towards Nier’s gameplay rather than FFXIV’s battle mechanics. He is writing the text and scenario script, and provided us with ideas for the boss design. And once we do come up with the visual sketches, he would review and check each piece that we bring to him.”

Final Fantasy XIV director and lead producer Naoki Yoshida.

“Yoko-san’s involvement is very significant, as if he is creating a whole game. Over the course of the next two years, we will continue to work with him and the team to bring content. We’re really looking forward to continuing this relationship.”

If you’re not familiar with what raids are in MMORPGs, they’re usually long, continuous PvE multiplayer missions with larger parties and varied challenges like difficult multi-step boss battles interspersed with high-stakes puzzles. YoRHa: Dark Apocalypse isn’t expected to be available at the launch of Shadowbringers, as raids are typically rolled out through subsequent updates post-release over a year or two (as mentioned by Yoshida-san above) and require players to be at max level with high-level gear.

Nier Automata producer Yosuke Saito (left) and director Yoko Taro (right) during the crossover announcement.

FFXIV has already incorporated crossover events with Monster Hunter–which flipped the script on game mechanics to align closer with that series–and Final Fantasy XV that involved a questline starring Noctis. Another new raid called Eden is designed by longtime game designer and Kingdom Hearts director Tetsuya Nomura. And it seems like the MMORPG is going to great lengths to do even more for Nier Automata in the near future.

As for the new expansion, I did a breakdown of the biggest changes and additions coming to FFXIV with Shadowbringers and 5.0 update, which involves many gameplay overhauls along with new Jobs and Races. Shadowbringers launches for PC and PlayStation 4 on July 2, 2019.

BioWare has patched in a new update for Anthem, its multiplayer-focused, loot shooter game. This new update, Update 1.2.0, implements several quality-of-life changes in Anthem and also begins to set things up for the game’s upcoming major content drop: the Cataclysm.

Speaking of the Cataclysm, according to a blog post, publisher EA will be providing a “first look” at what the event entails during a livestream on May 30 at 1 PM PT / 4 PM ET / 9 PM BST. EA did not provide exact details about what will be shown during the livestream. You can watch the show on either Twitch or Mixer.

Most of Update 1.2.0 is geared towards quality-of-life changes and bug fixes. However, the update makes improvements to Anthem’s features, creatures, and javelins. The feature changes are minor. Three Emerald Abyss Legendary missions have been added for, for example, and you can now fast travel to striders while in Freeplay. For enemies, Dominion Storm, Frost Brutes, Scar Hunters, and Scar Grenadiers have all been nerfed or made slightly easier to identify and kill. Javelins see updates across the board, with the base damage of a dozen different Ranger, Colossus, Interceptor, and Storm Gears all getting damage boosts.

The full patch notes for Update 1.2.0 can be found on EA’s website. Below, we’ve outlined all the bug fixes coming to the game. There are quite a few. Anthem is available on Xbox One, PS4, and PC. In our Anthem review, Kallie Plagge wrote, “Anthem has good ideas, but it struggles significantly with the execution. It’s a co-op game that works best with no one talking; it buries genuinely interesting character moments and puts its most incomprehensible story bits at the forefront; its combat is exciting until you get to the boss fights and find your wings have been clipped. Even the simple, exhilarating act of flying is frequently interrupted by the limitations of your javelin, and you never quite shake that feeling of disappointment–of knowing, throughout the good parts of Anthem, that you’ll inevitably come crashing back down.”

Anthem Update 1.2.0 Bug Fixes

General

• Fixed a bug where multiple status effects applied to creatures were not able to be detonated for combos.
• Inventory slot count at End of Expedition now matches the Forge and Vault
• Cortex Menu – Various bugs with navigation and opening/closing the cortex have been fixed.
• Cortex Menu – Fixed issues where some entries could not be ‘mark as read’ or would be become unread
• New items gained from an expedition will now properly show the new item icon
• Reduced frequency and intensity of several weapon muzzle flashes and gear effects.
• Colossus Components Reinforced Hull and Colossal Stock Augment have had several issues with their text descriptions fixed.
• Fixed an issue where the Javelin’s lower body would twist oddly when strafing and swapping weapons.
• Resolved errors with the Conductive Lattice Interceptor Component not always providing correct stat bonuses.
• The Recommended Power values were unintentionally reverted to their original values and have been fixed. The values should now read 425 for GM1, 575 for GM2, and 675 for GM3.

Strongholds

• General – Fixed various issues where players could get stuck, get outside of the environment, and other art-related issues.
• Heart of Rage – Fixed an issue where the Monitor’s glaive would rotate oddly during his final animation.
• Heart of Rage – Fixed an issue where you couldn’t replay the Heart of Rage after selecting to play another mission at the end of expedition screen.
• Heart of Rage – Fixed an issue where the door closed prematurely preventing players from progressing to the arena.
• Heart of Rage – Fixed an issue where a player could be party gathered if hovering too close to the door of the second arena.
• Heart of Rage – Fixed an issue where you would receive no loot if your entire party was downed during the final phase of the titan fight.
• Heart of Rage – Fixed an issue where the Monitor encounter would break if too much damage was done before the final phase.
• Sunken Cell – Fixed an issue where the Fury sometimes would collide with rotating pillar on entering the arena.
• Sunken Cell – Fixed some issues where creatures were unable to path to the player correctly.
• Sunken Cell – Fixed an issue where the flight suppression progress wasn’t showing for some members of a squad.
• Sunken Cell – Fixed an issue where Ash Brutes would be able to move while frozen.
• Sunken Cell – Fixed some issues with the Spanish voice over conversations.
• Temple of Scar – Fixed an issue where the player could stand inside the shield bubble of the final boss.
• Temple of Scar – Fixed an issue where the player could be knocked into a cage and trapped in the boss arena.
• Temple of Scar – Fixed an issue where rejoining a session at the final boss arena would cause the player to spawn outside of the arena and then get party gathered into the arena.
• Tyrant Mine – Fixed an issue where the icon would appear twice on the Expedition map.
• Tyrant Mine – Fixed an issue with text missing on the objective.

Missions and Legendary Missions

• General: Fixed an issue where the Legendary Missions did not unlock after completing Return to the Heart of Rage.
• General: Fixed an issue where a player could launch a legendary mission that was no longer available on the schedule and would spawn in with no content.
• General: Fixed an issue where Legendary Missions would be locked until the next mission was available if you started a mission and didn’t complete it.
• Finding Old Friends – Legendary: Fixed an issue where disconnecting during the mission would cause the mission objectives to disappear and prevent the mission from progressing.
• Finding Old Friends – Legendary: Fixed an issue where two objective markers were present at the same time.
• Finding Old Friends (Original and Legendary): Fixed an issue where dying on the “Go to Strider” objective, the player would be respawned across the map.
• Finding Old Friends: Fixed an issue where dialog wasn’t playing for some players in a squad.
• Finding Old Friends: Added missing summary text in the Journal entry for completed mission.
• Finding Old Friends – Legendary: Fixed an issue where players that did not bring both pieces of Ursix meat to gain entry to see Princess Zhim stopped the mission from progressing.
• Fortress of Dawn: Fixed an issue where players were able to control their EXO during the cinematics.
• Incursion (Original and Legendary): Fixed an issue with party gather after leaving the interior of the cave.
• Incursion (Original and Legendary): Fixed an issue with multiple objective markers appearing.
• Legion of Dawn: Added missing outcome text in the Journal entry for completed mission.
• Lost Arcanist – Legendary: Fixed an issue where the objective marker was using an incorrect icon.
• Rescue Haluk – Legendary: Fixed an issue where the mission didn’t progress until all party members arrived at the beginning location.
• Rescue Haluk – Legendary: Fixed an issue where the move to the lower courtyard objective didn’t appear until all party members reached a specific point.
• Rescue Haluk: Fixed an issue where the summary did not appear in the Journal after completing the mission.
• Matthias Contract – Arcanist Runes: Fixed an issue where no enemies were spawning on the last objective.
• Yarrow – Tempting Target: Fixed an issue where the objective marker was missing.
• Yarrow – Imposter: Fixed an issue with the text in the Journal when this mission was completed.

Fort Tarsis

• Fixed an issue where Forge UI appeared during cinematic for Crafting the Dawn Shield.
• Clarified the objective text for building and equipping the Dawn Shield.
• Fixed visual issues with the curtains at the entrance to the bar in Fort Tarsis.
• Adjusted the conversation with Sev in the introduction to the Sunken Cell stronghold to reflect that you’ve spoken with Sev previously.

Environment

• Fixed various issues where players could get stuck, get outside of the environment, and other art-related issues.

Freeplay/World Events

• Fixed an issue where scar hatches would sometimes appear and be enabled to enter in the middle of a world event instead of at the end.
• Reputation rewards – Fixed an issue where reputation points were not being awarded for the Freelancer in Need world event and added reputation points for discovering caves you can enter.
• Fixed issues with the Arcanist Korox Study world event where dying and respawning was sometimes causing the world event to break and not be able to complete.

Hideo Kojima’s new PS4 game Death Stranding has added another celebrity to its cast. Nicolas Winding Refn, the Danish director of the Ryan Gosling movies Only God Forgives and Drive, will appear in Death Stranding as a character named “Heartman.”

Winding Refn had his head, body, and facial expressions 3D-scanned into the game. He doesn’t voice the character, however, as a different performer did that. That’s the same for the Death Stranding character placed by Pan’s Labyrinth director Guillermo del Toro.

The newest trailer for Death Stranding shows off what appears to be the final cast for the game. This includes Walking Dead actor Norman Reedus as Sam, James Bond actors Lea Seydoux and Madds Mikkelsen as Fragile and Cliff, respectively; The Leftovers actress Margaret Qualley plays Mama, while The Last of Us actor Troy Baker portrays Higgs. The Bionic Woman actress Lindsay Wagner plays Amelie, while del Toro plays Deadman.

Death Stranding launches for PS4 on November 8. Sony is publishing the game, and the company released a new synopsis today. It states:

“Death Stranding is a completely new type of action game, where the goal of the player is to reconnect isolated cities and a fragmented society. It is created so that all elements, including the story and gameplay, are bound together by the theme of the ‘Strand’ or connection.

“As Sam Porter Bridges, you will attempt to bridge the divides in society, and in doing create new bonds or ‘Strands’ with other players around the globe. Through your experience playing the game, I hope you’ll come to understand the true importance of forging connections with others.”

A recent report said Death Stranding could come to PS5, but that has not yet been announced. For now, it will be coming to PS4 only on November 8. Pre-orders are now live, and the game’s various special editions–including a $200 collector’s edition–has been unveiled

E3 2019 is coming up quickly. The long-running event is set to be a different show this year, as an increasing number of companies try new approaches. In maybe the most significant change, Sony won’t be attending the show, which means there’s no press conference devoted to PlayStation or new PS4 games (though Death Stranding is getting some visibility before E3 begins). Even so, there’s a lot to look forward to, as E3 is sure to still bring tons of game reveals and news.

But what’s actually going to happen? The rumor mill has already begun, and things have started to leak (even if we’ve yet to get something on par with last year’s Walmart Canada leak). Beyond that, publishers are largely keeping their lips sealed, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have some guesses. Below, you’ll find our predictions for what we think we’ll get to see, including some exciting game reveals and ports, along with the announcement of new hardware.

New From Software Game Revealed During Microsoft’s Press Conference

A Song of Ice and Fire author George R.R. Martin recently announced that he’s been consulting with a Japanese developer on an upcoming game for a while now. Rumors point to the developer in question being From Software, the studio known for Dark Souls, Bloodborne, and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. A recent Gematsu report cites a source–someone described as “familiar” with what’s going on at From Software–who says the rumors are true and that the game will be announced at E3 2019 during Microsoft’s press conference.

Even if neither From Software nor Martin have stepped forward to confirm the rumors, I’m inclined to believe they’re true. From Software’s Soulsborne games are dark fantasies that regularly kill off important characters and weave together convoluted, but well-written narratives, much like Martin’s novels. It seems like a match made in heaven. Plus, From Software director Hidetaka Miyazaki has already confirmed the developer has two more games on the way.

According to Gematsu’s report, From Software’s new game will be open world, allow you to travel by horse, and features multiple kingdoms to explore. Killing the leaders of each kingdom allows you to unlock new, powerful abilities. You can read more about it in our E3 2019 rumor roundup. — Jordan Ramée

Halo TV Series First Trailer And Details

After many false starts, the small-screen adaptation of Halo finally appears to be gathering momentum. After losing its director last year, we’ve seen steadily seen more signs of life over the last several months. In February, Showtime announced that Black Mirror director Otto Bathurst would serve as director and executive producer. In March it reportedly added a second showrunner. And most recently, in April, the show announced its star: Pablo Schreiber as Master Chief.

With development speeding up, the time is right for 343 to start giving more concrete details–and where better to do that than a stage show packed with Halo fans, and hundreds of thousands more watching at home? It’s a golden opportunity we don’t think Microsoft will allow to pass it by. A teaser trailer followed by a premiere date, possibly with 343 head Bonnie Hunt or transmedia director Kiki Wolfkill peppering in some intriguing details, would hit the spot. — Steve Watts

Metroid Prime Trilogy Announced For Nintendo Switch

We may not yet know what Nintendo plans to showcase during its E3 2019 presentation, but one game we can safely say is still a long way off is Metroid Prime 4. Earlier this year, Nintendo made the shocking announcement that development on the game had effectively restarted, this time with original Metroid Prime developer Retro Studios at the helm, which means it’ll likely be some time before the title is ready to be shown off, let alone released. But while the new Metroid Prime game may still be a few years away, that doesn’t mean the series will be absent from E3 entirely, and what better way to ease the sting of Metroid Prime 4’s delay than by unveiling a Nintendo Switch version of Metroid Prime Trilogy.

Rumors that the collection is getting ported to the hybrid console have been cropping up consistently over the past few months. Shortly after the news of Metroid Prime 4’s delay, Game Informer editor Imran Khan claimed that a Switch port of Metroid Prime Trilogy was already complete, but Nintendo was sitting on it until the opportune moment. If that wasn’t enough, listings for the game have popped up at various retailers, most recently in Best Buy’s employee system last month. With Metroid Prime 4 still a way off, this would be a perfect opportunity to unveil Metroid Prime Trilogy for Switch. Not only would it tide Metroid fans over until there’s more news to share about Metroid Prime 4, but it would also introduce a new generation of players to one of the greatest trilogies in gaming. — Kevin Knezevic

Xbox Game Pass / xCloud Integration

Microsoft has made some bold moves with its Xbox Game Pass, most notably promising day-one releases for all first-party games and regularly securing day-one releases for indies on its platform. With the impending announcement of its xCloud streaming platform, it could make a big splash all over again, and in the process help define the future of gaming.

Google Stadia showed off some impressive-looking tech, but the lingering question was left: how will this be monetized? Microsoft xCloud, or whatever the company eventually calls it, will likely face similar questions. The company could get ahead of the speculation, and win over hearts and minds, by announcing integration between xCloud and Xbox Game Pass. A streaming platform naturally lends itself to an all-you-can-eat model a la Netflix, so consumers already understand the model. And with recent suggestions that Microsoft is eyeing other platforms for its streaming tech, this synergy would tee up Microsoft to be ubiquitous in video games, on all platforms. — Steve Watts

Cyberpunk 2077 Gets A Release Date

CD Project Red has already confirmed that Cyberpunk 2077 will be at E3 2019, even if the game won’t be playable during the event. The developer plans on showcasing new gameplay during the show, and releasing additional details about the upcoming RPG.

I think one of those details will be a launch date. It’s about time CD Projekt Red provides some sort of timetable for the game they’ve been teasing since 2013, even if it’s just confirmation for which year we can expect to see the game release. In August 2018, Cyberpunk 2077 producer Richard Borzymowski revealed the game is already playable from start to finish, so a release in 2019 or 2020 seems plausible. If the former, it makes even more sense that we’d get a release date during E3.

Of course, CD Projekt Red could easily decide to keep those details close to the chest for a little while longer. The developer is known for revealing new information slowly. If no release date gets announced, perhaps CD Projekt Red will at least take advantage of E3 to explain why it enlisted multiplayer-focused studio Digital Scapes. — Jordan Ramée

Rocksteady’s Next Game Revealed

Bucking the long-time stigma that licensed superhero games were doomed to fail, developerRocksteady Games made a name for themselves with the Batman Arkham series–which are arguably the greatest Batman games ever made. 2015’sBatman Arkham Knight was the concluding chapter to the series focusing on the Dark Knight’s struggles to maintain control of Gotham City from The Joker and other supervillains. With a rather definite ending, there didn’t seem much room to continue with just another sequel.

Aside from the release of Batman Arkham VR, we haven’t seen another Batman game since the release of Arkham Knight. WB Montreal, who produced the often overlooked Batman Arkham Origins, has also kept quiet. According to Rocksteady co-founder and creative director Sefton Hill, the developers have been at work on their next title since 2016. With E3 2019 approaching, now seems like an opportune time to finally reveal the developer’s next project. So far, the only specific info we have is that the next game will likely have an online component of some form, as the developers recently had open positions for multiplayer designers.

Following the Arkham series, there’s been a noticeable uptick in the quality of superhero games, and with Marvel’s Spider-man showing that other stellar games in the genre can exist too, it’s time for WB and Rocksteady to follow-up with their next project. Whether it’s a new Batman game, or something branching out into the broader DC comics universe, Rocksteady’s next big game will be something that many fans will want to see sooner rather than later. — Alessandro Fillari

Halo Infinite Release Date And New Details

It’s finally going to happen: Microsoft will announce Halo Infinite’s release date and talk more about the ambitious sci-fi shooter at its E3 2019 briefing. It’s been a long time coming. Halo 5: Guardians was released almost four years ago, so fans have been waiting a long time for news about the next mainline instalment in the classic series. At E3 2019, Microsoft will finally tell us when Halo Infinite is releasing and also what kind of game it actually is.

So far all we’ve seen is a mood piece for the game’s brand-new engine, Slipspace. That’s all well and good (the engine looks very impressive), but it is finally time for Microsoft to pull back the curtain and tell us just what the hell Halo Infinite is and when we can play it. The company has talked about letting fans play early through betas, and it could be a huge win for Microsoft to be able to say, “Play the beta later this year” or even early 2020. The Halo franchise has fallen out of prominence, and a big showing at E3 2019 could be just what the series needs. — Eddie Makuch

Mother 3 Releases On Nintendo Switch, Today!

It may be a pipedream, but Nintendo would be remiss to go another year at E3 without announcing the western release of Mother 3. E3 2019 would serve as a perfect venue for Nintendo to finally lift the veil over an official Mother 3 localization and release. And better yet: I believe it’ll release the game the very same day! It handled the series’ debut–titled Earthbound Beginnings–the very same way, after all–in addition to several other games throughout the years. My guess is that Mother 3 will be available shortly after the Direct showcase as an Eshop exclusive.

While such a reveal would spark massive excitement, I admit that it would be even greater if Nintendo one-upped our expectations by announcing at E3 that it’s committing to a full-on Mario & Luigi-style Mother 3 remake with new mechanics and remastered visuals. Given how badly fans have wanted the game, a remake would seem the proper way to bring Mother 3 to western audiences. Though, if this turns out to be the case, it would be great to have the GBA original included as a bonus somehow.

Nintendo has kept quiet about a potential Mother 3 western release in the past year, but it does know the desire for it. Former Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime has repeatedly mentioned this awareness. However, Game Informer editor Imran Khan claimed in an ResetEra post circulated that Nintendo’s effort to localize Mother 3 had allegedly ended due to characters and scenes deemed too controversial for the company.

It’s difficult to say what might become of Mother 3 in the west, but I’m crossing my fingers that it’s still on Nintendo’s radar. The company is known for its E3 surprises, so this year’s big show could be the one where we finally hear the Mother 3 announcement we’ve been waiting over a decade for now. — Matt Espineli

Next-Gen Fable

The Fable series is not as popular or front-of-mind as it used to be when Peter Molyneux was leading the RPG series. Not only is Molyneux long gone, but Microsoft closed developer Lionhead. But Fable is a very important franchise for Microsoft, and at E3 this year we will finally hear about Microsoft’s plans to bring it back–with a new studio. Microsoft’s newly acquired studio Playground, of Forza Horizon fame, recently moved to a massive new studio and announced plans to staff up big time for an unannounced AAA role-playing game.

That game is Fable 4, and we are excited to see the look and direction for the esteemed RPG series. With Microsoft also tipped to announce a next-generation Xbox (or two!) at E3, the company could wow Fable fans with an impressive demo for what the new Fable game will look like and the depth it will offer thanks to the power of the new machines. After the unfortunate closing of Lionhead and cancellation of Fable Legends, the Fable franchise could return stronger than ever. — Eddie Makuch

Ninja Theory’s New Game, Bleeding Edge, Gets Announced

The developers at Ninja Theory have kept quiet about their next project ever since last year’s announcement that Microsoft acquired the studio. During E3 2018, Xbox head Phil Spencer went into detail about Microsoft’s plans to focus more on first-party content with a new studio named The Initiative–and Ninja Theory was among many other developers set to produce a new exclusive game for the company. It also happens to mark the first time in 12 years that Ninja Theory will develop a new first-party exclusive game, with the first being the PS3’s Heavenly Sword.

With E3 2019 approaching, and Microsoft planning to pull out all the stops for their June 9 presentation, now is the best time for Ninja Theory to reveal their next big project. Recently, International Business Times reported that Ninja Theory filed a trademark for the name Bleeding Edge, which may be its next title. Aside from the name, not much is known about the game. But given the studio’s pedigree for blending action with strong storytelling, it seems like a given that next title will focus on that.

It’s been exciting to see Ninja Theory hone its craft and particular style over the years. The studio’s breakout hit Heavenly Sword showed a lot of promise, but it was clear the developers still had some growing to do in order get to where they needed to be. They would eventually hit those marks with games like DmC: Devil May Cry and Hellblade–both of which showed stellar craft for action-gameplay and storytelling respectively. Though we’ll likely never get the proposed DmC sequel that Capcom and NT had plans to work on, this new game could be the next best thing. I predict that Ninja Theory’s next big game will make an appearance at this year’s E3, and if it can match the quality of their last two games, then we’re in for something captivating. — Alessandro Fillari

Microsoft Will Announce Another Studio Acquisition

Over the years, Microsoft has been criticized for not having the same level of first-party developers as Sony and Nintendo. Halo, Gears, and Forza games are often great, but what else could Microsoft offer? Last year saw the company take some significant steps to address those complaints, announcing the acquisition of a variety of studios, including Obsidian Entertainment (of Fallout: New Vegas and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2 fame) and Ninja Theory (DMC: Devil May Cry, Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice).

They may not all be ready to show off what they’ve been working on for Microsoft, but I’m expecting to both get a look at some of those games and to hear that Microsoft has acquired another studio or two. While there were some big names among last year’s group, I could see Microsoft now going in the other direction and acquiring some quality small studios. Perhaps it could even target some of the developers to release their games at launch through Xbox Game Pass. — Chris Pereira

Ubisoft Reveals The Next Assassin’s Creed, And It’s Called Ragnarok

Sure, the leaked images and assets for Assassin’s Creed Ragnarok were confirmed to be fake. But that doesn’t mean that Ubisoft isn’t creating something similar with the next installment of Assassin’s Creed, reportedly (according to Kotaku) referred to as “Kingdom.”

All we know for sure is that Kingdom takes the Assassin’s Creed franchise to the Age of Vikings and is scheduled to release in 2020. If Ubisoft sticks to its traditional pattern, that means a teaser trailer and name drop during E3 this year, and Ragnarok could be a likely candidate for a name. Not only is the term tied to Viking culture (it’s the name of a cataclysmic event in Norse mythology), but the themes behind the word could apply to Kingdom’s story.

In Norse mythology, Ragnarok is the destruction of the gods, an end to the old conflicts, and the rebirth of the world with two remaining humans (Líf and Lífþrasir) leading humanity into a new age. Ubisoft’s past two Assassin’s Creed titles, Origins and Odyssey, dealt with the secret war between the Order of Ancients and the Hidden Ones. Assassin’s Creed Ragnarok could be a symbolic title, one that references how the game’s events ultimately destroy this old conflict, only to give rise to a new one between the two groups that define humanity going forward: the Templar Order and Assassin Brotherhood. The Age of Vikings does roughly last from 793 to 1066 AD, after all, ending just over a century before the events of the original Assassin’s Creed. — Jordan Ramée

Splatoon 2 Is Getting A 5.0 Update And Another Year Of Splatfests

The original Splatoon was a remarkable success considering it was a new, untested property that debuted toward the tail end of Nintendo’s poorest-performing home console. However, its Switch follow-up, Splatoon 2, transformed the burgeoning series into one of Nintendo’s most popular franchises. Since its launch back in 2017, the game has sold close to nine million copies worldwide and remains one of the preeminent reasons to subscribe to the Nintendo Switch Online service. Given the runaway success Splatoon 2 has had thus far, it would only make sense for Nintendo to announce another big update for the game at E3 2019.

Before Splatoon 2’s release, Nintendo said it would support the title with a full year of free post-launch updates, while its Splatfest competitions would be held monthly for two years. That two-year mark is approaching this July and Nintendo has not indicated that its plans have changed, which is why it would be such a great surprise to see the company announce that not only is a major 5.0 update on the way, but Splatfests will be extended for another full year. The Switch is still very much in the early years of its life, and Splatoon 2 has proven to be one of the console’s best-selling titles, so it wouldn’t make business sense to undercut its success by prematurely stopping support. Moreover, Nintendo is hosting another Splatoon 2 World Championships tournament ahead of its E3 presentation, which is indicative of how important the game is. That would be the perfect venue to announce that more Splatoon content is on the way. — Kevin Knezevic

Xbox Game Pass Announced For PC With Play Anywhere Support

Recent years have seen Microsoft’s gaming efforts increasingly focus on ubiquity–hence why we’ve seen something like Xbox Live support in the Nintendo Switch version of Cuphead. Predicting an expansion for Xbox Game Pass, Microsoft’s Netflix-style subscription service, isn’t exactly bold; CEO Satya Nadella said last year that Game Pass is coming to PC. But I think we’ll see not just the official announcement of this at E3, but also some other welcome news.

First, I expect that Game Pass on PC will be a built-in part of the existing Game Pass subscription; you won’t be expected to pay for a separate service, as is the case with EA Access and Origin Access. Whether you want to download and play something on your Xbox One or PC, you’ll be free to do so with that single subscription.

Further blurring the lines between those platforms, I think Game Pass will combine with Play Anywhere to let you seamlessly move back and forth between PC and console versions of a game. It could even tie into xCloud, as Steve predicted above, but I think Microsoft will use Game Pass to continue eliminating barriers we’ve dealt with for years. — Chris Pereira

There have been so many movies about the drama and trauma of high school that it’s a wonder we haven’t abolished it yet. Ma is another, focusing on the cruelty of kids and the pain of being an outsider, and the scare-infused comeuppance that stems from them. If you’ve seen the trailers for Ma, you already know that Octavia Spencer spends much of the movie menacing some teens, and that’s pretty much the gist of it.

Though it’s treading familiar ground, Ma is self-aware enough to make these well-worn high school paths fun ones–although its focus on being a story about high schoolers seems misplaced in the end. One expects new girl at school Maggie (Diane Silvers) to struggle to fit in and face off against your usual array of mean popular kids, but that never happens. Instead, Maggie gets approached by the typical teenage friend group, comprising: one jock boy (Gianni Paolo), one flirty party girl (McKaley Miller), one cute and sensitive love interest boy (Corey Fogelmanis), and one Black boy (Dante Brown). In the sadly typical fashion, additional character traits are not forthcoming. The kids instantly embrace Maggie and invite her to come to a party. It all goes pretty well.

When the party falls through, though, the kids hit a typical teenager fallback plan: procure booze; drink booze. Being 16, nobody can actually buy for themselves, so the kids stand in front of a shockingly accommodating liquor store, tempting passers-by to rip them off. Eventually, Sue Ann (Octavia Spencer) happens past, takes pity on the kids, and gets them what they ask for. Almost immediately, Maggie–being the only kid in the area with a brain–has a bad feeling, but teens gonna teen.

Even after everything goes okay, Sue Ann just keeps, uh, showing up, using the internet to gather info on the kids and their parents, and slowly worming her way into their lives. The next time Maggie and her pals need booze, she not only provides it, she invites them to hang out in her unused basement rather than drive around after drinking. It quickly becomes the local teen hangout spot and everyone becomes pals with Ma, as Sue Ann is dubbed. Ma is a bit clingy, sure, but the kids appreciate a place to drink (that also provides pizza rolls!), and for the most part, it seems like Sue Ann is lonely and just needs some friends.

But while Maggie and her friends ignore Ma’s general weirdness, the movie opens things up by digging into their parents’ past. Turns out, Maggie’s mom Erica (a solid but underused Juliette Lewis) is originally from this dinky town, having reluctantly returned after an escape to California and a recent divorce. Her new job as a casino waitress brings her into proximity of Mercedes (Missi Pyle) and Ben (Luke Evans), the jerk popular kids she went to high school with. Ben is the father of Maggie’s would-be boyfriend Andy (Fogelmanis), and while Maggie’s pals are pretty cool to each other, Ben and Mercedes are still the popular jerks from an ’80s teen comedy. For Erica–and Sue Ann, who was at school with the same set of clowns, it turns out–the pain and tribulations of high school are still a big part of their lives. Neither has managed much progress; in Sue Ann’s case, she almost literally regresses, hanging out with the teens for a second chance at being a cool kid.

All that history has to go somewhere, and Ma unwinds it slowly to lay a foundation of what’s going on in the present, becoming a mix of something like Carrie, Flatliners, The Gift, and the recently released Greta. And at times, it’s about as clunky as you’d expect that combination to be.

But it works because of Spencer undergirding the entire contraption, and the movie is at its best, spookiest, and most fun when director Tate Taylor lets her run with the character. She goes from charming and fun to believably dangerous and shockingly violent in a snap, and executes those shifts perfectly throughout the movie to give Sue Ann a boiling menace; she’s your friend, but you wouldn’t want to piss her off. When the movie focuses on the kids, it devolves into semi-dull slow-burn teen spookfest, complete with a few misdirecting jump scares. Whenever it trains back on Sue Ann, Ma takes on a great deal more depth and texture thanks to Spencer, who’s capable of making Sue Ann a sympathetic figure and a simmering psychopath, often at the same time.

Sue Ann’s unhinged nature works well enough to make the proceedings a lot of fun, especially toward the end of the movie as all the threads start to come together and the dread ratchets up. Evans, Pyle, and a surprising Allison Janney add some delightful despicability, and Spencer perfectly toes the camp line, keeping things fun and threatening. While it makes gestures that Ma might have more to say about what generations pass down to one another or how cruelty begets cruelty, the movie never commits, and just when you might be a little too close to rooting for Sue Ann, Ma goes out of its way to release some of that building pressure. As a result, it’s mostly the safe kind of scary experience, one you don’t need to think too hard about.

And as a fun thriller, Ma works very well. Its moving parts are competent and its characters relatable enough to keep the stakes up as things start getting dangerous. But it’s all thanks to Spencer keeping the movie going. One wonders what Ma could have been with a little more effort put into other aspects, like spending more time with Sue Ann’s generation, developing Maggie’s friends a bit more, or expanding on some later additions to Sue Ann’s personality. But for a movie that’s ostensibly about wondering just when Octavia Spencer is going to lose it, and how drastically, Ma keeps you wanting to go back to the party, against your better judgment, because it really is a lot of fun.

Sony may be skipping E3 this year, but the company isn’t ignoring the nearly 100 million PS4 owners out there. With the company officially announcing its annual Days of Play sale–starting on June 7 and ending on June 17–the only thing that could sweeten the pie is free games, and now Sony has announced June’s free titles for PS Plus subscribers.

SCEE blog manager Fred Dutton took to the PlayStation blog to give the announcement. Beginning on June 4, PS Plus members can download both Borderlands: The Handsome Collection and Sonic Mania for the low price of free. You can check out the announcement trailer above. These games will be available to claim until July 2.

May’s free PS Plus games–Overcooked and What Remains of Edith Finch–are available to download until the new games arrive. There’s still time to add them to your ever-growing backlog before they’re replaced on June 4.

In our Borderlands: The Handsome Collection review, we said, “Even considering issues presented by Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, The Handsome Collection is still a great compilation, allowing you to witness not only Jack’s tale, but play a major role in shaping the history of Pandora itself, along with its lonely moon.”

In our Sonic Mania review, we said that “Sonic Mania methodically uses its sentimental appeal to great effect, but in the process, it heals the wounds inflicted by its most disappointing predecessors and surpasses the series’ best with its smart and interpretive design.”

June 2019 PlayStation Plus Games For PS4

• Borderlands: The Handsome Collection (June 4 – July 2)
• Sonic Mania (June 4 – July 2)