Category: Games

In a big change for E3, Sony has backed out of the show this year. Microsoft and Nintendo are still attending as representatives of “The Big Three,” but Microsoft’s broadcast is the only live show of the bunch. Nintendo’s is a pre-recorded Nintendo Direct. Xbox executive Phil Spencer talked about this unique setup today on the latest episode of Inside Xbox.

He said he and his team understand the “responsibility” of being the only one of The Big Three to have a live stage show presence as it relates to representing the gaming industry at a time when all eyes on the gaming business.

“This is going to be an interesting one,” he said. “We are the [only] platform-holder that has a live stage show. It’s kind of just us this year. I feel the responsibility of that. I want to represent gaming. I think it’s an important time where the larger community–news [organisations] and other things–are looking at the gaming industry at E3.

“I think it’s a time where we kind of pop above a lot of the noise that’s out there. The whole team, we’re taking the responsibility of being out there representing gaming and wanting to do a good job of that.”

Microsoft is rumoured to announce at least one next-generation console at E3 this year, while the company is also expected to discuss Halo Infinite–or at least its engine–at the event. We also recently learned that Microsoft will show off never-before-seen games from some of the studios it acquired recently during the show. There will of course also be surprises.

Microsoft’s E3 2019 briefing takes place on Sunday, June 9, at 1 PM PT.

While Sony won’t be at E3 2019, that doesn’t mean the company has no announcements to make. Just this week, executive Mark Cerny shared the first details about the PlayStation 5, and you can bet the company will talk more about the console at some point in the future.

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The latest update for the mobile version of PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds adds a new zombie mode. The update also revamps PUBG Mobile’s existing zombie mode, Survive Till Dawn.

The new mode, Darkest Night, sees you or your team facing off against waves of zombie hordes and emerging poison gas. In Darkest Night, you spawn in a random spot on the map. Every player is given a passive ability to help them and others survive, and you choose whether to work together or operate solo. There is no final victor in Darkest Night. Anyone still alive at the end of every wave is a winner.

Survive Till Dawn 2 remakes the PUBG Mobile and Resident Evil 2 crossover event from last year. New enemy types and weapons have been introduced, tweaking the strategies you’ll need to survive the changing day and night cycle. The full changes are outlined below.

Survive Till Dawn Changes

• Stun Grenades now also stun zombies
• Added Liquid Nitrogen Grenades to freeze enemies and reduce their movement speed
• Added jumping zombies and zombie dogs
• Some zombies can now climb over low walls or onto roofs
• Added RPG-7 and Jungle Style Magazines
• Flamethrowers now deal more damage
• M134 handling has been tuned
• Players will gain affixes that grant certain buffs
• Zombies now move slower after being hit by firearms
• Added Survive Till Dawn quick chat messages to Default and Classic voice packs
• Daily missions can now be completed in Survive Till Dawn

In Survive Till Dawn, 60 players face off in a 30-minute battle royale match divided into three days and two nights. Zombies roam the world as well, but become much more active at night when it’s almost impossible to see. To make matters worse, certain Resident Evil 2 enemies like William Birkin and Tyrant patrol the world as unbeatable foes. Birkin guards the loot-heavy police station, while Tyrant randomly appears around air drops and pursues those who try to claim items from them.

The full patch notes detail additional changes to PUBG Mobile as well, such as crosshair modifications. PUBG Mobile is available on the App Store and Google Play.

Gears 5 is expected to be one of Microsoft’s biggest new releases for 2019, and the game’s multiplayer mode will be revealed in June during an all-new eSports TV show. Microsoft has announced a partnership with Eleague for the Eleague Gears Summer Series: The Bonds and Betrayals of Brotherhood. A six-part “event series” that also features live tournament gameplay, the show will focus on professional Gears players.

The show debuts Friday, June 14 at 11 PM ET on TBS. It’ll serve as the world premiere of Gears 5 versus multiplayer, and people will compete up until the final, called The Invitational. Eight players from around the world will compete for the title. The final will be streamed live on Twitch and through the B/R streaming service on July 13 and 14.

“The Bonds and Betrayals of Brotherhood will provide an unprecedented look into the uniquely passionate world of Gears Esports through the lens of six of the most well-known professional players. Over the six episodes, the series will explore each player’s intense connection to the game as they navigate the transition between Gears of War 4 and Gears 5, balancing the untapped potential of new opportunities with the fallout from past decisions,” Microsoft said.

Eleague is the eSports organization run by Turner Broadcasting and WME/IMG. The organization has hosted other tournaments in the past for titles like Counter-Strike, Overwatch, Black Ops 4, Street Fighter V, Rocket League, and many others.

During Inside Xbox, Rod Fergusson also teased that The Coalition is working on a lot related to Gears and indicated that the Gears Tactics, a game that was announced during E3 2018, will also be shown soon. He stopped short of saying exactly when, however.

Gears 5 launches on Xbox One and PC later this year. Given that this multiplayer reveal is happening after E3, it seems Microsoft may focus on the game’s single-player that will feature Kait Diaz in the lead role.

For more from today’s Inside Xbox stream, check out the stories linked below.

Confirming earlier reports and leaks, Microsoft has officially announced an all-digital Xbox One console that has no disc drive. The Xbox One S All-Digital Edition, as it’s called, launches on May 7 and it’s priced at $250 USD.

According to Xbox executive Jeff Gattis, the consumer demand for digital content is “stronger today than ever before,” and the new, all-digital Xbox One is a response to that.

“Gaming and technology have changed quite a bit since the first Xbox debuted in 2001. During this time, we’ve seen a digital transformation across gaming, music, TV, and movies,” Gattis said. “The Xbox One S All-Digital Edition was created for those who prefer to find and play their games digitally and are looking for the most affordable way to play Xbox games.”

The All-Digital Edition comes with Minecraft, Forza Horizon 3, and Sea of Thieves, all of which are developed or published by Microsoft. They’re meant to showcase titles that are more family-friendly. Additionally, the console comes with a “special offer” for Xbox Game Pass, which is Microsoft’s all-you-can-play Xbox game subscription service.

The box for the Xbox One S All Digital Edition.

The lack of a disc drive means the console doesn’t support DVDs or Blu-ray discs, but Microsoft says people can still experience 4K content through Netflix, Amazon, and other destinations. The form factor is the same, and the all-digital Xbox One has the same functionality as the standard Xbox One S. It just cannot play game discs or disc-based media.

“It shares the same dimensions as an Xbox One S to help maintain the most affordable price point in the Xbox One family of devices, especially since changes that affect the form of a console can be complex and costly,” Gattis says.

In terms of specs, the Xbox One S All-Digital Edition is in-line with the Xbox One S, which means that while it cannot handle native 4K resolutions for games like the Xbox One X, it is capable of displaying games with HDR support. Take a look at the specs below:

• 1TB HDD
• 8-core Custom Jaguar CPU @ 1.75GHz
• Custom GPU @ 914 MHz
• 12 CUs
• 1.4 TFLOPS
• 8 GB DDR3 @ 68 GB/s
• 32 MB ESRAM @ 218 GB/s

Regarding the $250 USD price point, Microsoft pointed out that it’s $50 USD less than the standard Xbox One S. That is true, but that console is almost always on sale. For example, Best Buy has the 1 TB Xbox One S with a copy of The Division 2 for $250 USD right now. Some were expecting the all-digital Xbox One to start at $200.

Whatever the case, Microsoft said it expects to maintain at least a $50 price difference between the all-digital Xbox One S and standard Xbox One S going forward. There is no word yet on if Microsoft will ever offer an all-digital Xbox One X.

“The Xbox One S All-Digital Edition is designed to make console gaming more accessible to more people, especially for new customers that don’t already own a console and want access to the complete Xbox experience without investing in one of our other options, Xbox One X or Xbox One S,” Gattis says.

The all-digital Xbox One S is a big deal. It is believed that Microsoft considered launching the Xbox One without a disc drive back in 2013, but that never happened. The new model is Microsoft’s first gaming console without a disc drive, and one of the first across the entire industry to lack one. Sony launched the all-digital PSP Go in 2009 but discontinued it just two years later.

Importantly, the all-digital Xbox One S is just one console in the Xbox One family of devices. Due to internet availability and speed, this console won’t be feasible for some people. Microsoft will keep making Xbox One consoles with disc drives, and the company is rumored to announce its next-generation systems at E3 in June.

“The benefits of the Xbox One S All-Digital Edition is that it offers value and choice to customers that prefer the conveniences of an all-digital library,” Gattis says. “Given this is the first product of its kind, it will teach us things we don’t already know about customer preferences around digital and will allow us to refine those experiences in the future. We see this as a step forward in extending our offerings beyond the core console gamer and continuing our journey to reach more than 2 billion gamers worldwide.”

Part of the appeal of having a disc, apart from the way it feels to physically hold and own something, is that it has some amount of trade-in value. In an all-digital future, trade-ins do not exist. The retailer GameStop, for example, historically has relied on pre-owned sales to drive its business, so it’ll be interesting to see how that store responds.

Gattis says retailers like GameStop and others “play a critical role” in the overall gaming ecosystem. “We work closely with retailers to ensure that our products are mutually beneficial for our business and theirs and in general, retailer reception to the Xbox One S All-Digital Edition has been positive so we’re pleased to be able to provide a variety of choice to meet our customers’ needs, whether they’re looking to purchase this new all-digital console or digital content cards at a physical retail store,” Gattis says.

Are you interested in this disc-free Xbox One S? Let us know in the comments below!

Although the first trailer for the upcoming reboot of the classic ’80s horror Child’s Play was released back in February, there was one thing missing–footage of Chucky himself. Last month it was revealed that Star Wars and Batman legend Mark Hamill will be providing the voice of Chucky, and now the first full image of the iconic killer doll has been released.

Chucky is shrouded in darkness, but it’s an effective image. There isn’t a huge difference between the new Chucky and the classic version familiar to fans of the long-running series; this one is perhaps a bit more sinister-looking, and is even a little reminiscent of Michael Myers’ mask from the Halloween movies. But it’s unmistakably Chucky and he’s carrying a very large knife. Check it out below.

Child’s Play hits theaters on June 21 and stars Aubrey Plaza (Legion) and Brian Tyree Henry (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse), plus Gabriel Bateman (Light’s Out) as the kid who ends up in possession of the evil doll. It’s directed by Lars Klevberg, who has also helmed the upcoming horror Polaroid. Hamill’s role as Chucky was revealed at the WonderCon convention, where fans also got a look at some more footage from the movie.

Confusingly for fans, there’s also an unconnected Child’s Play TV show being developed for SyFy, simply titled Chucky. It’s produced by series creator Don Mancini, and follows on from the 2017 movie The Cult of Chucky.

The franchise kicked off in 1988 with Child’s Play, which was followed by two direct sequels in 1990 and 1991. The series took a more overt comic turn with 1998’s The Bride of Chucky and three subsequent films. Mancini wrote every film in the series until that point and directed the last three, but has nothing to do with the new movie.