Can AMC’s The Walking Dead survive without Rick Grimes? The ratings aren’t encouraging, to say the least.
It’s very common for any hit TV show to shed viewers over the years, especially if that show is serialized. For procedurals – like your NCISes and SVUs – it’s a little easier to weather the storm of time and hold steady. The cases and crimes are the true draw, and the inertia can be comforting if you’re looking for something to only half-pay attention to.
But shows that specialize in intense serialization – and not those serialized-procedural types, like The X-Files and Supernatural – tend to peak in the middle and wane toward the end. Certainly, there are exceptions. There are fully serialized shows that actually grow and grow, going out with a bang and getting their best ratings ever during their endgame, like Breaking Bad and (assumedly) Game of Thrones. But those stories were always building towards an ending. Walter White had to come crashing down. Someone has to win this “game” of thrones.
The Kirby Cafe recently opened in Tokyo, and it’s perhaps the cutest restaurant in the world.
Set within the Whispy Woods, the pop-up restaurants offers a range of themed dishes from the Kirby burger, complete with fluffy pink bun, to a Caprese salad that Kirby can’t help but inhale.
If you want to see each of the ridiculously well-constructed dishes, swipe through the gallery below which contains the entire menu…
But there’s more to experience in the cafe than the food alone. Alongside the cafe is an extensive shop selling custom cutlery, confectionery, and of course, Kirby pasta. Take in the entire range of merch in the gallery below…
The Kirby cafe in open until February 17, 2019. If you want to visit, it’s definitely advisable to book your table in advance by visiting KirbyCafe.Jp.
Bethesda’s Pete Hines has some strong, bold words for where he wants to see games go in the future. During a PAX Aus panel today, Hines said he believes the gaming industry would benefit from moving away from the idea of platform exclusives. No one buys physical media like a DVD or Blu-ray and worries about having the necessary hardware to play it, and Hines would like to see that model in games.
“I think you’re going to see platforms get more homogenised,” he said. “Because truthfully, there’s really not a reason for [competing consoles] to be different. You don’t buy a DVD and then worry about which DVD player you have. You just buy a DVD and anything that plays DVDs works. And I think games are going to start to move closer and closer to that.”
Hines said he sees a future where you buy a game and play it on whatever platform you want.
“You might decide to play it on the Sony machine or the Microsoft machine or use the Google [streaming] service, but it will start–I think–to look more like it really doesn’t matter what you choose to play it on,” he said. “You just want to play this game on the thing you choose to play your games on whether that’s because where your friends are or whatever. Things like cross-platform play, cross-platform progression, all of that stuff.”
“We as an industry need to start to move to not be so beholden to, ‘I only make a thing for that machine and not this one.,'” he added. “The faster we get to that the better it’ll be for developers, the better it’ll be for games. I think we as an industry–because we need to–are going to move less toward differentiation–‘Why is a thing better on one platform than another’–and more toward I just want to make a thing that everybody can play. Because that’s ultimately what’s going to get you the most players; that’s what’s going to get devs the most money and reach the most fans.”
Hines’ comments seem to fall in line with the rumours about new consoles like the Xbox Scarlett system and others placing more of an emphasis on streaming. In the movie, TV, and music business–which is now dominated by digital and streaming–the content you purchase generally is able to move with you to whatever new piece of hardware from any supplier that you buy. There are those in gaming who believe game streaming–the “Netflix of games”–is going to be a very big deal very soon. Sony already operates in that space with PlayStation Now, while Microsoft is working on a game-streaming service of its own. EA is also working on a game-streaming network.
Platform-exclusives like God of War for PS4 an Forza Horizon 4 on Xbox One are largely marketing vehicles to help sell consoles. If you want to play God of War, you need to buy a PS4. There is no other way to play it. But if streaming picks up and platform-holders relax their policies, that could result in major changes in where and how people play games. Google’s Project Cloud streaming service is already showing with Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey that you don’t need a console to play the newest, best-looking games.
Hines has already teased that he knows something about new consoles, so he very well might have been alluding to the capabilities of those systems, though nothing is confirmed. Intriguingly, the CEO of Take-Two, Strauss Zelnick, has made very similar comments to what Hines said today. During a presentation recently, Zelnick talked about how the “closed system walls” that exist between Microsoft, Sony, and others need to come down. He didn’t mention new consoles by name, but it makes sense that he is among those who would be briefed on new hardware before it’s announced.
“The closed system walls are coming down, and they have to,” he said. “Streaming is going to accelerate those walls coming down. We’re all here for the consumers. If you’re going to create rules that don’t benefit the consumers but somehow you think benefit your enterprise, you’re mistaken. Consumers will go elsewhere. You have to pay attention to what the consumer wants.”
What do you think about the future of gaming as it relates to streaming and being able to play anywhere you want? Let us know in the comments below!
Black Friday and Cyber Monday will likely be the biggest shopping days of 2018. Here’s everything you need to know, early Black Friday deals and how to get your hands on the best deals.
The best desk designed purely for gaming is the Arozzi Arena, but you can get a desk with a built-in cup holder like the Atlantic gaming desk, or just a minimalist gaming desk like the Soges 55-inch Computer Desk.
GameSpot Theatre returns to PAX Australia in Melbourne this year, with a swath of panels to inform and entertain. We’ve got panels featuring Hitman 2, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and Pete Hines from Bethesda, and more!
If you’re in Melbourne, come visit us! The theatre is located by the main entrance on Level 1, next to the Take This AFK Room.
If you’re not lucky enough to be at PAX Aus in person, you’ll be able to watch all the action via livestream and on-demand video right here on GameSpot, so stay tuned after the show!
Super Smash Bros. started off as a crazy experiment by Nintendo that morphed into a game of enormous scope—insanely spanning more than 30 game franchises and featuring third-party characters. With Super Smash Bros. Ultimate due out in December, join us as we rummage through Smash’s history, look at how it’s revived dead franchises, discuss what we want to see in the upcoming game, talk about how it has become a popular competitive fighting game, and learn a few tips from the pros.
PANELISTS: David Johnson [Publication Director, Zelda Universe], Shona Johnson [Project Manager, Zelda Universe], Cody Davies [Community Manager, Zelda Universe], Jack “Pudge” Gorman [Smash Tournament Organiser, Couch Warriors], Joshua “Sora” Lyras [Pro Melee player, ORDER], Nick “Extra” McKenzie [Pro Smash 4 player, Dark Sided]
1:00 PM – Let’s Hack A Video Game!
Have you ever wondered how you might go about breaking into a video game, and twisting its gross, hidden insides to your will? Join Lance McDonald (Warpchair), known for cracking open hidden Bloodborne and Dark Souls secrets, as he performs a live hack of PS1 horror classic Silent Hill using only cutting edge technology from 1999. We’ll show processes, talk methods, and answer your questions about video game hacking!
When it comes to building memorable characters in a game, what you see on screen is only part of the story. So what goes into creating an entire character with just your voice? We grill the experts on the voice acting process and put them through their paces recreating their favourite characters (and maybe a few new ones) live on stage.
PANELISTS: Claire Reilly [Senior Editor, CNET], Cissy Jones [Voice Actor, The Walking Dead, Firewatch], Courtenay Taylor [Voice Actor, Regular Show, Fallout 4]
4:00 PM – Hitman 2: Six Million Ways to Die…Choose One
Join IO Interactive’s Eskil Møhl for an hour of creative, murderous hijinks as he goes hands-on with Hitman 2. And he wants you, the PAX audience, to be an accessory!
5:30 PM – Zelda Universe Presents: Ocarina of Time, 20 Years Later
2018 marks the 20th anniversary of Ocarina of Time, a game that not only influenced the Legend of Zelda series for decades but also quite literally changed the video game landscape. We return to the polygons of the past and discuss how it shaped the industry, whether the game still deserves its accolades, whether it’s still relevant today, and if it’s been surpassed by more recent titles. There will be trivia with prizes for correct answers, so brush up on your knowledge of the game.
PANELISTS: Shona Johnson [Project Manager, Zelda Universe], David Johnson [Publication Director, Zelda Universe], Cody Davies [Community Manager, Zelda Universe], Sebastian Wilkinson [Contributor, Zelda Universe]
Saturday, October 27(All Times Are AEDT)
10:30 AM – What?! Pokémon is Evolving!
Join a group of six Pokémon community leaders and competitive players, as they come together to talk about how the series has evolved since Red and Blue first fired upon our GameBoys. From how Pokémon GO helped revive the franchise to taking the next steps with Pokémon Let’s Go, Pikachu! & Let’s Go, Eevee!, to picking up some pro tips from actual champs on your road to competitive Pokémon Mastery, to maybe a few extra surprises, there’s no better place for Pokémaniacs to be this weekend.
PANELISTS: Emma Williams, Sam Pandelis, Russell Peters, Tiffany Keane, Alfredo Cheng-Gonzalez, Jesse Wilsone
12:00 PM – Lee Carvallo’s Simpsons Game Reviewing Challenge
You’ve seen plenty of reviews of real Simpsons games, but what about the fictional games of The Simpsons? How DO you Escape From Grandma’s House? What’s the best way to win Triangle Wars? Our panel of Simpsons Superfriends review the best Simpsons games that absolutely don’t exist… except in our cromulent imaginations. As they say in Bonestorm, “Come to this panel or go to hell!”
PANELISTS: Claire Reilly [Senior Editor, CNET], Lucy O’Brien [Games & Entertainment Editor, IGN], Mark Serrels [AU Editor, CNET], Edmond Tran [AU Editor/Senior Producer, GameSpot], David Milner [Editor, Game Informer Australia]
1:30 PM – This Year’s Indie Game-Changer
The Nintendo Switch hasn’t just revolutionised the way we play games, but also the games we’re open to playing. Indie games are seeing a lot of success on the hybrid console, so join a panel of Aussie independent game developers as they share their stories about how the Switch has changed the landscape, and share their favourite Nindies.
PANELISTS: Joe Park [Harmonious Games], Ash Ringrose [SMG Studios], Henrik Pettersson [The Voxel Agents], Matthew Rowland [League of Geeks], Eugenia Woo [Switch Focus], Edmond Tran [GameSpot]
3:00 PM – Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Let’s Play
Let’s keep this friendly! The biggest ever Smash Bros. game is coming soon. Very soon. So soon that we’re getting a whole theatre in on the training for its arrival! A Nintendo exclusive, come and check out panel teams take on Smash and the audience on the big screen!
Some of the most impressive board games and RPGs today bring us amazing miniatures. If you want to help bring your tabletop adventures to life but don’t know where to begin, start here and step into the world of miniature painting! Join us as we show you how to get started on your miniature painting journey, and take you through the simple steps to go from a bare model to your very first miniature masterpiece.
PANELISTS: Marc Chee [Marc Chee], Natalie Szymczak [Eva Studios]
12:00 PM – Why The Mainstream Media’s Reporting On Fortnite Is Dumb And Harmful
The mainstream media’s coverage of the popular battle royale game Fortnite has been discouraging. Over-the-top, sensational, and unsubstantiated stories are hurting gaming’s perception for the mainstream audience. Come watch a panel of experts discuss why that’s happening and what can be done about it.
PANELISTS: Alice Clarke [Herald Sun], Tim Biggs [Sydney Morning Herald], Chris Ferguson [Stetson Univesity], Raelene Knowles [IGEA], Eddie Makuch [Gamespot]
1:30 PM – Video Games, Ya Baw Bag
Can you guess what video game the angry Scottish man is talking about in his beguiling Scottish brogue? We challenge a host of Australia’s best games journalists. Can you understand a single word of what this guy is saying?
PANELISTS: Mark Serrels [CNET], Claire Reilly [CNET], Joab Gilroy [Red Bull], Jess McDonell [GameSpot], Dan Crowd [IGN]
3:00 PM – The Great Port Resurgence
Ports, remasters, and remakes of games are getting increasingly common. But how does a new version of a game change the way we see it and play it? We talk about the value and apprehension behind HD re-releases and Nintendo Switch ports, and try to come to a definitive conclusion of what works and what doesn’t.
PANELISTS: Pete Hines [Bethesda], Lee May [Defiant Development], Dean Woodward [League of Geeks], Jess McDonell [GameSpot], Edmond Tran [GameSpot]
4:30 PM – One Perfect Game’s Mario Tennis Invitational 2018
It’s time to lace up the Dunlop Volleys, string up the rackets and step on the court. Eight of Australia’s best and brightest streamers, podcasters and presenters will duke it out in a highly prestigious Mario Tennis Aces tournament in what is sure to be a smash hit. Come and help cheer your favourite gaming personality to glory!
Bethesda has been one of the highest-profile major publishers throwing its weight behind the Nintendo Switch, but this won’t extend to Fallout 76. During a panel at PAX Aus today, Bethesda marketing executive Pete Hines stated that Fallout 76 on Nintendo’s console “wasn’t doable.”
That being said, Hines said every Bethesda studio considers the Nintendo Switch for its new products, but whether or not it works out depends on a number of factors. Hines said Bethesda management allows the individual teams to decide what’s best for their games. Management at Bethesda never gives studios mandates, and this includes the platforms it chooses to support.
“The Switch is something I can say with certainty that it’s a part of every conversation with every dev we have now about what we’re doing going forward because we consider it to be a viable platform,” he said. “If the game will work on it, we want it to be on every platform possible. Fallout 76 is not because it just wasn’t doable. But honestly, there is no game in development that we haven’t had a conversation about [bringing it to Switch]. ‘Does this work on the Switch, do you have a plan for the Switch?’ It’s not a mandate. Everything we do has to be developer-led, but it’s something we want to make sure is on folks’ radar.
“I enjoy us being seen as the third-party leader in terms of supporting Switch,” he added. “People go, ‘Hey, you’ve got a lot more stuff [on Switch] than this publisher or that publisher.’ That’s what I want Bethesda to be known as. We’re guys who will take some risks.”
Hines also made it clear that another one of Bethesda’s pursuits is to make money. Bethesda is launching games on Switch because it believes it’ll end up being a smart commercial decision. “You go where the money is because that’s how you stay in business,” he said. “What we have seen compels us to say, ‘[Switch] is a viable platform for the kind of things we do going forward.'”
During the panel, Hines teased that “the next Wolfenstein” game is also coming to Switch. That’s intriguing because the new standalone game Wolfenstein: Youngblood is only confirmed for PS4, Xbox One, and PC. There is also a third major Wolfenstein coming, but no platforms have been announced yet. It appears Hines was referring to one or both of these games.