Category: Games

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Apex Legends Season 6 May See World’s Edge Map Changes

Respawn has possibly started teasing upcoming content for Apex Legends Season 6, which I’d wager is scheduled to begin on August 11–provided the battle royale game sticks to the established pattern of new seasons immediately beginning when the previous one ends. Based on its battle pass, Season 5: Fortune’s Favor is scheduled to end on August 11 at 10 AM PT.

The new teaser is the recent addition of familiar-looking Hammond construction signs on World’s Edge. As noticed by Reddit user FrozenFroh, the signs specifically outline Drill Site as well as the small area just outside The Dome.

Similar signs first appeared on World’s Edge in the final weeks of Season 3: Meltdown, hinting at the construction of new structures at the start of Season 4: Assimilation. These new signs seem to imply that Season 6 will see Drill Site undergo some sort of transformation, as well as the placement of a brand-new landmark between The Dome and Sorting Factory.

However, in classic Apex Legends storytelling fashion, this teaser for Season 6 contradicts an implied hint that the upcoming season would see the addition of a third map to the battle royale game, not new changes to existing maps. Classic Respawn and its love of misdirection.

You see, prior to Season 4, a tweet hinted that the Apex Games would be moving to Olympus, a city on Octane and Lifeline’s home planet, Psamathe. The epilogue of Season 5’s Quest further supports this tease, with both Octane and Lifeline discussing how the Apex Games are moving to Olympus.

So will Season 6 see a third map added to Apex Legends or will World’s Edge get an updated layout? One of the teasers could be for content coming later down the line, like maybe the World’s Edge map changes won’t happen until mid-way through Season 6 or not until the start of Season 7. Or perhaps, we’re getting a new World’s Edge and brand-new third map at the start of Season 6.

If Season 6 introduces a third map, it will be interesting to see how Respawn plans on reconstructing its Ranked playlist. Starting in Season 4, Ranked has been divided into two halves, with one half of the season only taking place on Kings Canyon and the other on World’s Edge. So would a third map divide the next Ranked series into thirds or would one of the maps just not be included in Ranked for the season? Only time will tell.

For now, the only concrete information that Respawn has revealed about the upcoming season is that Season 6 will handle storytelling differently than Season 5 did.

Now Playing: Apex Legends Director On Switch Port, Crossplay, And Stance On Skill Based Matchmaking

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Metal Slug 2, SNK 40th Anniversary Edition, Tons More SNK Games Free With Twitch Prime

One of the secret-best benefits of having an Amazon Prime account, one I feel we don’t talk about enough, is how it automatically enrolls you in Twitch Prime. The best part of that membership, in my opinion, are the free games and in-game bonuses you get for being a member.

Right now, if you’re a Twitch Prime member, you can add a huge collection of classic SNK games to your library at no extra cost. And if you’re not an Amazon Prime member, you can sign up for a 30-day free trial to get a feel for it.

Amazon Prime Free Trial

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Here are the latest SNK games added to Twitch Prime:

  • Metal Slug 2
  • SNK 40th Anniversary Collection
  • Shock Troopers: 2nd Squad
  • Baseball Stars 2
  • Sengoku 3
  • Ironclad
  • King of the Monsters

The SNK 40th Anniversary Collection is a compilation of SNK game pre-dated its Neo Geo days, so you can add an additional 14 games to that list (and check out our SNK 40th Anniversary Collection review, too):

  • Alpha Mission
  • Athena
  • Crystalis
  • Guerrilla War
  • Ikari Warriors
  • Ikari Warriors II: Victory Road
  • Ikari III: The Rescue
  • Iron Tank
  • P.O.W.
  • Prehistoric Isle
  • Psycho Soldier
  • Street Smart
  • TNKIII
  • Vanguard

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Those games are on top of the following SNK games, which can still be claimed by Twitch Prime members:

  • Art of Fighting 2
  • Blazing Star
  • Fatal Fury Special
  • The King of Fighters 2000
  • The King of Fighters 2002
  • Pulstar
  • Samurai Shodown II

To claim the games, visit the Twitch Prime loot page and select the games you want (if you’re like me, you picked them all).

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Best Deals on PS4 Games Right Now

The PS4 is hard to find. Supply chain disruptions, mixed with the upcoming PS5, have made it an extremely elusive console in any form, whether you’re looking for a PS4 Slim or a PS4 Pro. But while you might not be able to score a deal on a console, loads of PlayStation games and accessories are on sale right now. Check out the PS4 deals below to start saving money now.

Best PlayStation Plus Deals

While the hardware might be tough to find, scoring a deal on PS Plus is easy. Just hit up Daily Steals and enter promo code IGNPSN at checkout to get a year’s subscription for $34.99. [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=daily-steals-subscription-deals”] [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=amazon-playstation-subscription-deals”] [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=playstation-store-subscription-deals”] [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=best-buy-playstation-subscription-deals”] [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=gamestop-playstation-subscription-deals”] [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=walmart-playstation-subscription-deals”]

Best PlayStation Game Deals

You don’t have to look far to find discounts on PS4 games. Here’s a selection of all the best PS4 game deals available now. [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=amazon-playstation-game-deals”] [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=best-buy-playstation-game-deals”] [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=gamestop-playstation-game-deals”] [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=walmart-playstation-game-deals”] [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=playstation-store-game-deals”]

Best PlayStation Accessory Deals

As with the consoles themselves, most PS4 accessories are not on sale right now, either. Even so, we dug up a few deals below. [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=amazon-playstation-accessories-deals”] [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=best-buy-playstation-accessories-deals”] [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=gamestop-playstation-accessories-deals”] [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=walmart-playstation-accessories-deals”] [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=playstation-store-accessories-deals”]

Best PS4 External Storage Deals

If you own a handful of games, it’s no secret that the PS4’s onboard storage can run out fast, particularly if you download the monthly free games from PlayStation Plus. Plug in one of the discounted external hard drives below, and you’ll be able to keep more games at the ready. [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=amazon-external-hard-drive-deals”] [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=best-buy-external-hard-drive-deals”] [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=newegg-external-drive-deals”] [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=walmart-external-drive-deals”]

PS4 Console Deals

For several years there, PS4 console deals were easy to come by. Not so in 2020. While you may be able to find a new PS4 or PS4 Pro at MSRP, we’re not seeing any actual discounts at the moment. If that changes in the future, we’ll drop them here. As for when we expect the PS4 hardware to come back into stock, it’s hard to say. [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=amazon-playstation-console-deals”] [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=best-buy-playstation-console-deals”] [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=gamestop-playstation-console-deals”] [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=playstation-store-console-deals”] [poilib element=”commerceDeal” parameters=”slug=walmart-playstation-console-deals”]

How Marvel’s Avengers Builds a World to Fit Each Hero – IGN First

Marvel’s Avengers offers a globetrotting – and as we’ve seen in some trailers, off-globe – adventure that will send Earth’s mightiest heroes out to any number of locations at launch and in the future. Built to last, Avengers will introduce new locations for free to players as post-launch content is introduced, but the campaign and launch War Zone missions will let players have a chance to dive into this new take on the Marvel team.

With that new take on a beloved team came the opportunity to explore familiar and new settings, and as part of our IGN First coverage, developer Crystal Dynamics ran us through some of the decisions the team made in order to make a world worthy of its heroes.

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West Coast Avengers…Sort Of

While The Avengers are primarily associated with New York City, Marvel’s Avengers sees the team expanding to the west coast of the United States, with a new San Francisco HQ. Rather than being a riff on the West Coast Avengers team of the comics, Creative Director Shaun Escayg explained how this new home reflects the current state of this Avengers team.

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“We wanted to have the Avengers start at their peak. Arrogant. Overzealous. This expansion was a symbol to their commitment to a world protected by heroes. Terrigen was the new energy source that powered the Chimera and an energy source that could change the world for the better,” he explained. “They were even willing to risk displaying this untested technology despite not knowing enough about Terrigen and its source, to reaffirm this commitment. This was their mistake and it cost them everything; their good name, and their Captain.”

And as we’ve seen from the A-Day intro to the game, Captain America seemingly meets his end in a massive explosion that also causes an end to the Avengers, at least for now. Years pass and the team disbands, giving way to a world that George Tarleton, aka MODOK, and the scientists at AIM seek to rule and keep order over using science, rather than a team of heroes.

The Aims of AIM

Those years between A-Day and where the rest of Marvel’s Avengers story picks up allows AIM to proliferate its reach over the world. Crystal Dynamics wanted to offer a unique look to these AIM facilities.

“AIM facilities are based on a brutalist approach to architecture, featuring the contrast of simple material surfaces and intricate mechanical components. We adopted the idea of the AIM hex icon from the idea of a hive mentality, using bees and their uniform honeycomb structures as a jumping off point,” Art Director Brenoch Adams explained.

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“The hex pattern, as well as a dominating percentage of the color yellow, is often used as a theme throughout the architecture in terms of layout and identification. Whether in dense forests or sprawling cities, AIM makes a visual statement with their palette and bold presence in the world.”

And that presence is something players will be fighting against, either alone or with friends, across the globe, accessing new missions from the Helicarrier that will serve as a hub both during the main game and in the future.

Around the World

Because the Helicarrier’s mission structure allows for Crystal Dynamics to essentially make any location around the world a possible level, there’s plenty of variety the developers can instill in this adventure.

As Adams explained to us, though, particularly when it comes to authored, campaign missions, the team strived to make sure that every level worked well for the hero or heroes that would be present in those missions.

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“Each space, interior and exterior, was designed for all heroes to utilize their specific skill sets. With a character as large as Hulk, the sets need to remain open and able to accommodate his larger than life moves, and still let heroes such as Black Widow or Ms Marvel use their combat and traversal mechanics appropriately,” Adams said.

And with War Zone missions, where players can choose whichever hero they want to play as, that both means the team needed to make spaces that allowed for every hero to shine, but were also still fun regardless of what hero a player chooses.

“Having enough open space for the heroes to move comes with its difficulties. Environment sets must have a size and shape that balances plausibility, and character metrics, which was a substantial challenge. We never want to restrict any of the heroes from feeling mighty and powerful, so the environment designs are built for brutal destruction, and lend players the opportunity to fulfill the fantasy of being their favorite hero no matter the location.”

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The variety of locations also stems from a few opportunities the team seized on — namely, integrating both a host of real-world and fictional Marvel locations, as well as wanting to explore the juxtaposition of rural and urban settings to allow for a host of different levels.

“One of the things we explored in this title was the contrast of rural and urban settings, and how they provide the feeling of variety and global stakes throughout the narrative. There are a number of important Marvel landmarks nested in real world locations that were must-haves,” Adams said.

“Some of these locations have been augmented to fit the world state in our story. In New York, Avengers tower is reclaimed by AIM after the catastrophic events of A-day. In Jersey City, we have a location that Kamala Kahn fans will most certainly recognize. In San Francisco, Avengers West Coast Headquarters dominates the city skyline on Treasure Island. There are many more landmarks to discover and players must keep sharp, because while some of these landmarks are larger than life, many are hidden and require an attention to detail.”

For more on our IGN First Marvel’s Avengers coverage, check out our combat explainer for the playable Avengers, read up on how Marvel and Crystal Dynamics assembled for Marvel’s Avengers, and check out the Avengers beta dates to know when you’ll get to jump into the game’s pre-launch beta.

Pokemon Go Fest 2020 Was Pretty Good Given The Circumstances

Pokemon Go Fest has become an annual tradition for Niantic and Pokemon fans, but this year’s event, which took place on July 25 and 26, faced some unique hurdles. With the COVID-19 pandemic still surging in many parts of the world, particularly throughout the US, Niantic had to reconfigure the event–traditionally held in-person at Chicago’s Grant Park and other live venues–into a digital experience that players could participate in without leaving home.

Considering how challenging it must have been to adjust a game so dependent upon being outside around these extenuating circumstances, Pokemon Go Fest 2020 turned out to be a solid alternative to a traditional live event. Niantic did a commendable job of translating the usual Go Fest activities into a digital experience, even if there were a few hitches along the way.

Day 1 of the event featured the most compelling new feature: virtual habitats. To simulate the feeling of wandering into a new environment, Niantic rotated through different “habitats” every hour. Each of these brought out certain kinds of Pokemon; Grass types, for instance, appeared more frequently when the grass habitat was active, while Dragon types were more common in the battle habitat. This added a nice element of surprise, and it was fun to check in throughout the day and see what Pokemon were popping up.

For Day 2, Niantic took a different tack. In what has become a Go Fest tradition of its own, Team Go Rocket launched a “takeover” of the event, and the rotating virtual habitats of the first day were replaced by increased Team Rocket spawns. This offered its own benefits; considering how rare it can be to encounter a Team Go Rocket leader under normal circumstances, the Rocket takeover provided numerous opportunities to battle Cliff, Arlo, and Sierra and rescue their Shadow Pokemon. That said, Pokemon Go’s battle mechanics have never been particularly compelling, and the heavy emphasis on battling Team Rocket made Day 2 feel much more repetitive than Day 1, even though the ultimate reward–a chance to catch the debuting Mythical Pokemon Victini–was enticing.

And that ultimately brings us back to the biggest issue that faced this year’s event: there’s only so long you can play Pokemon Go while sitting at home. Although Niantic has been quick in adjusting the game in the face of the coronavirus pandemic, introducing a host of welcome changes and tweaks over the past few months to make it more enjoyable to play from a personal setting, Pokemon Go has always been at its best when it can be experienced outdoors and with friends–something that was out of the question this year. Niantic took steps to replicate that communal feeling by hosting a “virtual” trainer lounge online and streaming developer interviews and event updates throughout the weekend, and those were nice touches that helped elevate Pokemon Go Fest above other in-game events. Even so, they never felt like a true substitute for playing the game in-person with friends, which would have gone a long way in masking the repetition of the Go Fest challenges.

On top of that, many players on social media reported technical issues during the event. My experience was generally smooth, although I did encounter a couple of hitches as well; more than once, I would try to remotely join a Raid, only for the other players in the lobby to be abruptly dropped as the Raid began, leaving me on my own. This certainly wasn’t enough to ruin the experience, however, and I otherwise had no real difficulty connecting to the game and playing normally throughout Go Fest.

As a first attempt at translating Pokemon Go’s premiere live gathering into a virtual event, Pokemon Go Fest 2020 was an enjoyable experience. Whether or not it offered enough to do to justify the $15 USD price tag of a ticket is open to debate, but the event employed some smart features that helped make up for the inability to play outdoors. Niantic is likely hoping to return to a live venue for next year’s Go Fest, circumstances permitting, but it would be nice to see the developer retain some of these global elements for future events even when things return to normal.

GameSpot was provided a complimentary ticket for Pokemon Go Fest 2020 by the developer.

Rainbow Six Siege Patch Delayed Right Before Release

release sometime before the end of March, 2021

The latest patch for Rainbow Six Siege, Y5S2.3, has been delayed, right before it was supposed to go live. The patch makes changes to Oryx, Fuze, and Gridlock, and was previously scheduled to go live on all platforms this week.

Ubisoft has not explained why the delay happened, saying in a Twitter update that the delay is due to “unforeseen circumstances.” The company said it will share updated maintenance times in the future.

Patch Y5S2.3 allows Oryx to dash through softwalls without using all of his dash charges, gives Fuze an additional charge for a total of four, and lowers deployment time for Gridlock’s caltrop. You can read the full patch notes below or on Rainbow Six Siege’s official website.

Y5S2.3 PATCH NOTES

UPDATES

IN-GAME NOTIFICATIONS

  • Some updates to the notifications system to help make future popups less spammy.

APAC 2SV

GAMEPLAY UPDATES

BALANCING

GRIDLOCK

If you’ve ever stepped on a Lego…this hurts worse.

By making her gadget a bit more enjoyable to use, we’re looking to make Gridlock players’ lives a bit easier.

  • Lowered Gridlock’s Caltrop deployment time to 9s (down from 13s).
  • Lowered the individual Caltrops deployment time to 0.45s (down from 0.7s).
  • Lowered the range of random deploy variation to 0.05s (down from 0.1s).
  • Added a delay of 0.45s before the deployment sequence starts (previously no delay).

ORYX

The Rainbow 🐐 has goat to dash.

We want to let Oryx make more use of his dash, and added mobility and durability will hopefully make him a bit more fun to play.

  • Using his dash through a soft wall will not deplete all the dash charges.
  • Increased Dash refresh time to 12s (up from 8s).
  • Dash recovery time for all dashes is now 0.5s. (Previous recovery times: soft wall = 1s, enemy = 0.7s).

FUZE

Hide the hostages!

Giving Fuze a bit more presence and utility with an additional charge.

  • Increased the number of cluster charges to 4 (up from 3)

GAMEPLAY

PUSHBACK MECHANICS

To maintain consistency with softwall interactions, we’re giving enemies that are pushed through walls the same feedback as when Oryx dashes through them.

  • When pushed through a wall by Nomad’s airjabs or Oryx’s dash, players will receive the same feedback and rtake the same damage (5 hp) as when Oryx dashes through a soft wall.

BUG FIXES

  • FIXED – Missing anchoring decals from Ace’s SELMA.
  • FIXED – Ace’s SELMA can get stuck when thrown in a certain way at some beams, becoming unrecoverable.
  • FIXED – While grappling through a window or hatch, Amaru can aim faster with her LMG if she times her sprint and ADS buttons just prior to landing.
  • FIXED – IQ’s gadget will not display the outline and distance of Melusi’s Banshees.
  • FIXED – Zofia’s concussion grenades are impacted by external explosions and can bounce away from the target location.
  • FIXED – Flattening the doorframes and windows on all maps.
  • FIXED – Floating and indestructible wooden squares after destroying some walls on Yacht.
  • FIXED – Gunshot sounds are muffled when shooting from inside 1F Technical Seating of Plane.
  • FIXED – Various menu/UI fixes.
  • FIXED – Various cosmetics fixes.
  • FIXED – Various Lighting issues on maps.
  • FIXED – Various shop visual and cosmetic fixes.
  • FIXED – (PvE) Interaction between Ace’s gadget and AI.

The next game in the series, Rainbow Six Quarantine is currently on track to release sometime before the end of March, 2021. The game has been previously delayed after Ghost Recon Breakpoint performed poorly last year.

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PlayStation 5 “Activities” Feature That Starts Individual Game Features Detailed

We may have a much better idea of one of the PlayStation 5‘s key features. System architect Mark Cerny has briefly mentioned a feature that would let you load into key parts of games directly from the PS5 interface, and a new report shares more details on that along with a name: Activities.

The article first appeared on Gamereactor. It was quickly pulled, but not before being archived for posterity (via Eurogamer). According to the report, the feature will let you load into individual game modes, like skipping straight to a race in WRC9 and bypassing the menus entirely.

Cerny had previously explained this feature in an interview with Wired, but hadn’t shared such specific details.

“Even though it will be fairly fast to boot games, we don’t want the player to have to boot the game, see what’s up, boot the game, see what’s up,” Cerny said. “Multiplayer game servers will provide the console with the set of joinable activities in real time. Single-player games will provide information like what missions you could do and what rewards you might receive for completing them–and all of those choices will be visible in the UI. As a player you just jump right into whatever you like.”

While this may provide a name, the article has been pulled and Sony hasn’t given any official word about “Activities.” We expect the company will outline this and any other new hardware features sometime soon, ahead of the planned fall console launch.