Author: Trafficblast

If you’re having a bit of a rough time playing Fortnite on PS4, PC, and Xbox One, it’s because the game is going through a spell of login, matchmaking, and social connection issues, according to the game’s official Twitter page. These began as a result of a big influx of new players and, in response, developer Epic Games has scaled up to accommodate the new traffic.

Epic has since said login and matchmaking services have recovered, but is monitoring the situation to ensure full recovery. The troubles aren’t completely remedied as of yet, based on reports from players, but it’s expected that things will smooth fully out soon.

The new influx of players could be due to the launch of the Fortnite Mobile test. Invites for the portable version of the game, which connects to other platforms, have gone out on to iOS users. Epic has promised the mobile version delivers the full Battle Royale experience with cross-play.

It could also be because there’s a greater interest in the game as a result of the recent stream in which rapper Drake played Fortnite with Twitch streamer Ninja. The stream proved to be incredibly popular, reaching more than 600,000 concurrent viewers at one point. This smashes the previous record of 400,000 for an individual stream. Drake revealed that he played Fortnite a lot while in the studio.

The 1990s was a decade of amazing growth for the gaming industry. However, 1998 in particular pushed the medium further than it had gone before. From the rich competitive experiences of StarCraft to the revolutionary storytelling of Metal Gear Solid, several games–some of which became watershed moments for the industry–would go on to set the standard for what games could be. In many ways, 1998 was the year video games had finally evolved into something more.

In this gallery, the GameSpot staff will be taking a look back at the biggest games of 1998 that made their way to the Western market, and the impact they left on us in the 20 years since their respective releases. This includes the likes of Xenogears, Resident Evil 2, and the original Half-Life, and our Game of the Year of 1998, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.

Here’s a selection of games–in order of their respective releases–that made 1998 an amazing year. And if you want to see the biggest games that turned 10 this year–and for last year as well–be sure to check out our respective features for both.

Like its predecessor, Warhammer: Vermintide 2 for PC bears tons of similarities to Left 4 Dead. They’re both games about holding off hordes of foul enemies while you head to safety. Survival is the name of the game for you and your party, and the game will throw all sorts of surprises at you to make that goal hard to achieve. But Vermintide 2 is more than a clone of Left 4 Dead; it goes the extra mile to make sure you are always on the edge of seat and that is a very good thing. Check out why in the video above.

Vermintide 2 even looks like Left 4 Dead 2 at times, with its same starting camera angles and chatter between characters. But Vermintide 2 is much less predictable; its AI does its best to continually throw new strategies at you. There is no sense of safety, making winning far more satisfying. Tomes and grimoires, which are rewards for risking rat-induced peril and exploring levels, also change the game considerably, adding extra layers of strategy and difficulty. Meanwhile, the diverse class system adds a huge layer of replayability that keeps things fun and varied.

Vermintide 2 takes place during Warhammer’s apocalyptic End Times. Your heroes hack, slash, and shoot their way through 13 levels as you take on the combined forces of the Skaven army and the barbaric Chaos faction. You’re given your choice of five characters for each level, and the game allows you to choose four to take with you into battle. Each of your heroes has three careers to choose from, with each career providing them with a set of passive and active abilities, along with a talent tree to advance your characters’ abilities.

The game came out on PC just last week, and already the game has hit a high level of popularity. On March 12, just four days after its release, it had sold 500,000 units, according to developer Fatshark. The game has already received its first patch, fixing several bugs and performance issues, and Fatshark has announced PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions are on their way later this year. To see more rat hack-and-slash action, check out our latest gameplay livestream of Warhammer: Vermintide 2.

Despite ending their Resident Evil 7 playthrough on a note of uncertainty, Mary and Mike are back with Resident Kinevil.

Following the first-person mechanics of the series’ most recent entry, Code: Veronica marks a return to fixed cameras and tank controls for Mary. It also proves to be one of the more challenging Resident Evil games, especially in the first several minutes. Let’s just say: things don’t exactly go according to plan.

To get up to date on Mary and Mike’s playthrough of the Resident Evil games, you can visit the show page here, or its YouTube channel here. It’s been a long road, and as of now, there’s no end in sight. Don’t say you didn’t ask for this.