Category: Games

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For one day only, Best Buy is offering Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 on PS4, Xbox One, and PC for just $20, which is the lowest price we’ve yet seen for the 2018 entry in Activision’s long-running first-person shooter franchise. With Prime Day 2019 coming up on Monday, there are going to be deals everywhere in the near future, but that assumes we’ll live through the weekend, so seize the day and head over to Best Buy if duty calls to you. It’s a great time to get the game, since the developers just released a big content update that adds a new multiplayer mode, specialist, and more.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 — $20

Black Ops 4 breaks from previous entries in the series by not having a traditional, single-player campaign mode, instead focusing on multiplayer. The narrative component lives in solo missions, set between the events of Black Ops 2 and 3, that serve as tutorials for each of the game’s specialists, many of whom are returning characters from previous entries. Gameplay is broadly divided into traditional multiplayer, the series’ signature co-op zombie mode, and a new battle royale mode called Blackout, which GameSpot’s Kallie Plagge thought was particularly well-executed in her Black Ops 4 review.

Frugal gamers have a lot to look forward to in the coming week with Prime Day, as well as all of the competing sales from other retailers like Dell, Ebay, and GameStop. The Amazon-owned Twitch is also getting in on it this year, with various streaming events as well as in-game goodies in Apex Legends and FIFA 19 for Prime subscribers.

After numerous reports, Nintendo finally confirmed the existence of a smaller Nintendo Switch model, dubbed the Nintendo Switch Lite. This iteration of the console differs from the flagship Switch in numerous ways, most notably by being tailored for handheld play, with no detachable Joy-Con controllers or television support. It also has a slightly different button layout, including a true D-pad, but don’t expect that to be added to the base Nintendo Switch model.

Speaking to CNET, Nintendo of America president Doug Bowser confirmed that Nintendo currently has no plans to update the base Switch’s Joy-Cons with a proper D-pad like the one featured on the Switch Lite. “There are no plans, or nothing to announce, in terms of further variations of Joy-Con,” Bowser said.

The lack of a true D-pad has been a common complaint about Switch’s Joy-Con controllers, but while Nintendo doesn’t appear to be rectifying that anytime soon, third-party manufacturers have stepped in to offer their own alternatives. Hori sells a variety of left Joy-Cons that replace the standard directional buttons with a more traditional D-pad, although the controllers have some limitations–namely, they can only be used while attached to the system in handheld mode. The D-pad Joy-Cons come in Mario, Zelda, and Pokemon designs.

That isn’t the only way the Switch Lite differs from the base model. The system is lighter and boasts a smaller screen. It also has an estimated 20-30% better battery life than the standard Switch, but it lacks some features such as rumble and the IR sensor. Being tailored for portable play means the system won’t be compatible with all Switch software–only titles that support handheld mode. That means you’ll need to own a pair of Joy-Con controllers in order to play certain games like 1-2-Switch or Super Mario Party. Nintendo has also said it is planning a transfer feature that will allow you to move between the Switch and Switch Lite, although the company hasn’t shared any details on how that will work yet.

The Switch Lite launches on September 20 for $200 USD. The system will be available in three different colors at launch: yellow, turquoise, and grey. Nintendo is also releasing a special edition Pokemon Nintendo Switch Lite on November 8, just ahead of the release of Pokemon Sword and Shield. That version of the system has a light grey body, cyan and magenta buttons, and illustrations of the games’ two cover monsters, Zacian and Zamazenta, on the back.

Every recent Nintendo handheld has come out with a variety of special models with paint jobs that pay homage to Nintendo’s biggest games and franchises. The Nintendo Switch Lite–a new handheld-only model of the Switch coming this fall–is no exception. The first such model will celebrate Pokemon Sword and Shield.

The “Zacian and Zamazenta Edition” is named after the two Legendary Pokemon that represent the titular Sword and Shield aspects of each game. It’s a light gray tone with blue and magenta face buttons, and artwork of the two creatures gracing the back. It will release on November 8 for $200, the same price as the other Nintendo Switch Lite models.

The other three Switch Lite models, in yellow, gray, and turquoise, are coming on September 20. That means if you want the Pokemon version you’ll have to wait a little while. It launches just a week before Pokemon Sword and Shield, but the games will have to be purchased separately.

The Nintendo Switch Lite is a new model of Nintendo Switch with a lighter body and some removed features, along with the budget price. It can’t use docked mode to attach to a TV, and this model no longer has detachable Joy-Con controllers. That also means the rumble and IR camera have both been removed. It does replace the face buttons on the left side with a proper D-pad, however.

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With the announcement of the Nintendo Switch Lite, many are likely considering adding a second Switch to their life, whether that be as an option for friends and family, or as a dedicated handheld to take out and about. However, a key question is whether content that has been purchased can be transferred from one device to another painlessly. And the same question exists for save files.

When it comes to licenses and the accessibility of content on multiple devices, Nintendo’s platforms don’t have a history of being particularly user-friendly. However, speaking to CNET, Nintendo of America president Doug Bowser said that the company is working on features that will make it easier to move between a Switch and Switch Lite, and vice versa.

“Yes, you will have the ability to transfer between devices, your gameplay experiences,” he said. However, Bowser stopped short of actually providing concrete details on how that would work and when the functionality will be available. “More to come there, but that is the intention,” he added.

Given that Nintendo’s Online service has the ability to create groups and families, it could be that the solution involves adding multiple Switch devices to accounts, but that remains to be seen. Nintendo Switch Lite launches on September 20 for $200, and it’s likely further information about how multi-device transfers will work will be provided ahead of the launch.

Nintendo has detailed the Switch Lite price, specs, release date, and more. Much of it doesn’t come as a surprise, but the lack of detachable Joy-Cons has some interesting implications on multiplayer.