Category: Games

Game of Thrones Season 8 finally reached its much-anticipated third episode “The Long Night” last weekend, and gave us the epic Battle of Winterfell. While the episode caused a mixed response amongst fans and critics, it delivered a number of dramatic moments as the forces of the living took on the Night King and the White Walkers. Now showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss have made an intriguing comment about the remaining episodes. Warning, major spoilers ahead!

Fans will know that in the episode, Arya Stark (Maisie Williams) killed the Night King, ending the war against the White Walkers. There was no suggestion in the show that he wasn’t dead–he shattered into glass and his army was destroyed. However, when Benioff and Weiss were asked on Jimmy Kimmel Live if that was the last we are to see of White Walkers, they gave a particularly cryptic answer.

“Yeah, we’re not going to answer that,” Benioff told Kimmel. Which certainly isn’t the conclusive reply you might expect. Of course, they could just be playing it safe and simply refusing to say anything about the episodes that are left. However, bearing in mind the Night King’s supernatural powers and his own ability to raise the dead, perhaps we will actually see the White Walkers again. Remember, there are still three very long episodes of the show to go.

“The Long Night” smashed previous Game of Thrones viewing figures, delivering 17.8 million viewers. This figure includes replays and streaming; in terms of on-air viewing, the episode drew an audience of 12 million across two airings on Sunday night. The previous record was held by Episode 1 of Season 8, which was watched by a total of 17.4 million viewers earlier this month.

For more on the latest episode of Game of Thrones, check out our look at the Night King’s true goal, what happened to Rhaegal and Ghost, and all the Easter Eggs and references you probably missed.

The popular competitive esport Rocket League has become the latest victim of review bombing, following news that developer Psyonix is being acquired by Epic Games. Concerns that the acquisition would mean the game will be pulled from Steam led to a flurry of negative reviews on the platform, before Steam’s new anti-bombing tool was deployed to stop it.

Steam reviews recently dipped from “Very Positive” down to “Mixed.” That prompted Steam to implement its tool that excludes periods of “off-topic review activity” from the aggregate score. The negative reviews are still visible, and they almost universally reference the Epic acquisition, but they’re no longer counted in the average.

Concerns about the game’s exclusivity stemmed from a statement (via The Verge) that mentioned the game will be coming to the Epic Games Store later this year. It said “in the meantime” it will still be available for purchase on Steam, and that “thereafter” it will continue to be supported–reportedly through the release of patches and DLC.

That gave the impression that once it appears on the Epic Store it will be pulled from the Steam storefront, though no formal announcement has been made. The official Rocket League Twitter account issued a vague statement that stresses the game “remains available on Steam” and that current players can “look forward to continued support,” but didn’t necessarily rule out pulling it off the store at some future date.

Epic Games has made a habit of securing exclusives on its emerging Steam competitor, even recently issuing an ultimatum to Steam aimed at improving developer revenue splits. This has led to similar controversies over games like Metro Exodus and The Division 2–but in both of those cases, the switch was formally announced, rather than inferred by fans.

Though Valve has expressed its dissatisfaction with Epic’s aggressive moves against its store, it has been stopping users from review-bombing over the rivalry. This is the second high-profile case of the tool being implemented in the last month, the first being when Valve stopped the review-bombing against several past Borderlands games upon news that Borderlands 3 will be a timed exclusive on the Epic Games Store.

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If you like your consoles extremely textured and spiky, you’re in luck: Microsoft has announced a promotion for the upcoming film Godzilla: King of the Monsters, with four custom-themed Xbox One X consoles as the prizes. Each one is modeled after an iconic creature from Godzilla lore, including the King of the Monsters itself.

You can enter the sweepstakes by retweeting the promotional Xbox tweet by June 7. You have to be age 14 or over, and minors need a parent or guardian’s permission. If you win you’ll be notified via Twitter direct message. Four winners will get one of the specialized Xbox One X consoles.

Those consoles are modeled after Mothra, Rodan, Ghidorah, and of course, Godzilla. The film, which releases on May 31, refers to this collection of monsters as “Titans” and has them brawl for monster supremacy. It’s directed by Michael Dougherty and stars Millie Bobby Brown (Stranger Things), Vera Farmiga (The Departed), and Charles Dance (Game of Thrones).

These consoles are all the Xbox One X, the more powerful revision of the original Xbox One. Microsoft also offers the Xbox One S, a revision to the Xbox One size that doesn’t boost its power. It also recently introduced the Xbox One S All Digital Edition, which is similar to the standard S model except it lacks any disc drive.

Call of Duty is one of the biggest video game series around. Black Ops 4‘s popularity is still going strong, even with the next Call of Duty game on the horizon. And although the series was huge from the very beginning, it owes a decent proportion of its success to the groundbreaking game that was Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare.

CoD4’s multiplayer modes completely changed the series–and the shooter genre–and its popularity continued into the sequels Modern Warfare 2 and Modern Warfare 3. If rumors are to be believed, the next Call of Duty will be Modern Warfare 4 and will no doubt leverage the franchise’s legacy. But how much can you remember of the first game in the subseries?

To test your knowledge, we’re asking you to name all 20 of the game’s multiplayer maps, just by glancing at images of their respective loading screens. We’ve also given you the teams that fight on the map in question to help you out. However, you’ve only got five minutes, so you’ll need to be quick. Let us know your score in the comments below, and be sure to share the quiz with your friends and family to see who has the superior gaming knowledge. For more quizzes, check out our previous brain-teasers below.

• Can You Name Every Game Of Thrones Death?
• Can You Name All 25 Super Smash Bros. Melee Characters?

Can You Name All 20 Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Maps?

Click the images to enlarge.

Warning: Spoilers head.

John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum is the latest movie in the hit action series, in which Keanu Reeves stars as a former assassin reluctantly brought back into action. It hits theaters later this month, but some critics have already seen the movie, and their first reactions are rolling in via social media.

The movie is directed by Chad Stahelski, who helmed John Wick: Chapter 2 and co-directed the first movie. It also stars Ian McShane, Laurence Fishburne, Halle Berry, Lance Reddick, Asia Kate Dillon, Anjelica Huston, Jason Mantzoukas, and Mark Dacascos.

The reactions on Twitter so far are very positive. Unsurprisingly, many critics have highlighted the action sequences, which go beyond anything seen in the series so far in terms of their scale and invention. There is also praise for the way the movie broadens the mythology of its hitman underworld, plus the performances from Reeves, Berry, and Dillon.

Check below for a roundup of reactions. John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum releases on May 17. For more, check out the latest trailer and this tense first clip.

The Strong Museum has announced the 2019 round of inductees into its World Video Game Hall of Fame. This year’s inductees include Windows Solitaire, Mortal Kombat, Super Mario Kart, and Colossal Cave Adventure.

They were selected by a panel of experts from a pool that also included Centipede, Dance Dance Revolution, Half-Life, Myst, NBA 2K, Sid Meier’s Civilzation, Candy Crush Saga, and Super Smash Bros. Melee. Those titles will have a chance to enter the Hall next year.

In a statement, the museum said this year’s four inductees have all “significantly affected the video game industry, popular culture, and society in general.”

The World Video Game Hall of Fame opened at the Strong Museum in Rochester, New York in 2015 with the aim of honoring the best, most influential games ever. To enter the Hall of Fame, a game must have “enjoyed popularity over a sustained period and have exerted influence on the video game industry or on popular culture and society in general.”

Microsoft released a celebratory video to mark Solitaire’s inclusion in the World Video Game Hall of Fame. Microsoft Casual Games boss Paul Jansen said Solitaire getting inducted into the Hall of Fame is a “historic day” for what he said is one of the most-played games ever. Windows Solitaire launched in 1990 as a tool to teach users how to use a mouse.

Mortal Kombat series creator Ed Boon said on Twitter that NetherRealm is “very honored” for Mortal Kombat to be added to the Hall of Fame.

Some of the previous Hall of Fame inductees include classics like Donkey Kong, Halo: Combat Evolved, The Legend of Zelda, Pokemon Red & Green, and World of Warcraft, among others. The inductees are on display permanently at The Strong Museum.

2018 World Video Game Hall Of Fame Inductees

• Microsoft Windows Solitaire
• Mortal Kombat
• Super Mario Kart
• Colossal Cave Adventure

Previous World Video Game Hall Of Fame Inductees

• Donkey Kong
• Doom
• Final Fantasy VII
• Grand Theft Auto III
• Halo: Combat Evolved
• John Madden Football
• The Legend of Zelda
• The Oregon Trail
• Pac-Man
• Pokemon Red and Green
• Pong
• The Sims
• Sonic the Hedgehog
• Space Invaders
• Spacewar!
• Street Fighter II
• Super Mario Bros.
• Tetris
• Tomb Raider
• World of Warcraft