Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey, the new title from Assassin’s Creed creator Patrice Desilets, now has a release date. The title will launch on PC on August 27, with a release on console for PS4 and Xbox One coming in December. The PC version is exclusive to the Epic Games Store for its first year.
Ancestors is the first title from Desilets’ new studio, Panache Digital Games. The studio was founded in 2014, so it’s been a while to see the first title from the independent team.
“Our goal for Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey is to provide an experience no player has ever lived before,” Desilets said in a statement. “Our small team is creating an ambitious and immersive game with a unique setting that will captivate gamers of all types, and we look forward to players exploring our world later this year.”
Ancestors is published by Private Division, which is the independent games label run by Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead parent publisher Take-Two Interactive.
A single-player, third-person exploration survival game, your journey in Ancestors begins as a hominid in Neogene Africa some 10 million years ago. Over time, you grow and literally evolve to the Australopithecus popularly known as Lucy. On your way to becoming Lucy, you’ll learn new skills and abilities as you take the form of the next subspecies of hominid that would eventually become the human form of today. It is quite an ambitious concept to say the least.
You can check out the latest trailer for Ancestors in the embed above.
Funny or Die’s absolutely absurd, low-budget fake interview show featuring Zach Galifianakis as its host, Between Two Ferns, is being made into a movie for Netflix. The film will be released on September 20 this year, so thankfully fans don’t have very long to wait.
It’s being written by Galifianakis and Scott Aukerman, who wrote the original web show, with Aukerman directing. Caitlin Daley and Mike Farah of Funny or Die are producing alongside Aukerman and Galifianakis.
Here is the silly synopsis:
“Zach Galifianakis dreamed of becoming a star. But when Will Ferrell discovered his public access TV show “Between Two Ferns” and uploaded it to Funny or Die, Zach became a viral laughing stock.
“Zach and his crew are taking a road trip to complete a series of high-profile celebrity interviews and restore his reputation. Directed by Scott Aukerman, Between Two Ferns: The Movie is a laugh-out-loud comedy that gives new insight into the curmudgeonly, beloved outsider Zach Galifianakis has created over the years.”
Between Two Ferns has welcome some huge names in the past, including Hilary Clinton, Barack Obama, Justin Bieber, Bradley Cooper, Bruce Willis, Ben Stiller, Jerry Seinfeld, Steve Carell, and many others.
The interviews are cringe-worthy and very awkward, and they usually end in calamity or worse. They proved to be immensely popular on YouTube, so it is no surprise that a new version of the show is now being made.
Lucasfilm might be developing a movie based on the 2003 BioWare RPG Knights of the Old Republic. According to BuzzFeed, Lucasfilm has hired Altered Carbon creator, Laeta Kalogridis–who also wrote the scripts for Shutter Island and Alita: Battle Angle–to pen the script. Kalogridis also produced the box office juggernaut Avatar, which is the highest-grossing movie in history.
Knights of the Old Republic takes place 4,000 years before the events of the first Star Wars movie, A New Hope.
News that Lucasfilm is developing a Knights of the Old Republic movie is not a surprise. At Star Wars Celebration in April, Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy confirmed that the studio talks about making a Knights of the Old Republic movie “all the time.” Kennedy straight-up confirmed at the time that a Knights of the Old Republic film would be made or at least considered. “Yes, we are developing something to look at,” she told MTV News at the time.
According to BuzzFeed, Kalogridis is “close” to finishing the initial draft of her script for Knights of the Old Republic, which could be a trilogy. Three anonymous sources told this to BuzzFeed.
Kalogridis would become the first woman to script a Star Wars movie since 1980’s The Empire Strikes Back, which was co-written by Leigh Brackett.
If the Knights of the Old Republic movie is indeed real, it is not coming anytime soon. The next Star Wars movie is 2022’s film from Game of Thrones creators D.B. Weiss and David Benioff. BuzzFeed’s report notes that Kalogridis has not yet submitted the Knights of the Old Republic movie script’s first draft, so it could be a very long time before the movie gets made (if it ever does). There is no word as of yet regarding who will direct or star in the film, or when it may be released.
Whatever the case, Knights of the Old Republic is a fan-favorite Star Wars game rich with storytelling opportunities, so it’s exciting to think about what could happen.
The next Star Wars film is this December’s The Rise of Skywalker, which concludes the new trilogy that began with 2015’s The Force Awakens. It also wraps up the entire Skywalker Saga that started back in 1977, so it is truly the end of an era. The first images from the film recently emerged, and they showcase some brand-new characters.
After releasing the first details of his plan to go after loot boxes and pay-to-win mechanics in video games, Republican US Senator Josh Hawley today officially released the full text of his bill. Not only that, but Hawley revealed two co-sponsors, and they are both of the rival Democratic party.
“It’s pretty simple. Video game companies shouldn’t put casinos targeted at kids in their games. Proud of this bipartisan effort,” Hawley said on Twitter.
The two co-sponsors of the bill, which is called Protecting Children from Abusive Games Act, are Democratic Senators Richard Blumenthal (Connecticut) and Ed Markey (Massachusetts).
The bill asks Congress to regulate some pay-to-win microtransactions in video games, while it also seeks a ban on loot boxes for games that are designed to appeal to people under the age of 18. Specifically, the full wording of the bill states that it would become illegal for a publisher to release a “minor-oriented” game that features pay-to-win microtransactions or loot boxes, while it also seeks to previously released games from receiving updates that add such mechanics.
Key to this bill is how pay-to-win and loot boxes are defined. The bill states that a pay-to-win mechanic is one that “eases a user’s progression through content otherwise available within the game without the purchase of such transaction,” as well as one that “assists a user in accomplishing an achievement within the game that can otherwise be accomplished without the purchase of such transaction.
It is also defined as something that “assists a user in receiving an award associated with the game that is otherwise available in association with the game without the purchase of such transaction.” And finally, the bill states that pay-to-win also means a purchase that “permits a user to continue to access content of the game that had previously been accessible to the user but has been made inaccessible after the expiration of a timer or a number of gameplay attempts.”
Exclusions include difficulty modes, cosmetic items that do not affect gameplay, and add-on content like DLC packs and expansions.
As for loot boxes, the bill defines a loot box as a “randomized or partly randomized” item that unlocks a feature of the product or adds to or enhances the entertainment value of the product without disclosing what the actual content is until after the purchase of the loot box.
The bill defines a “minor-oriented” game as one that is targeted at people under the age of 18 as judged by the subject matter, the visual content, and the music or audio content, among other things. No examples of what a “minor-oriented” game are were provided. The bill’s language also does not say if Hawley will work with the United States’ ratings organization the ESRB on this bill. That group is owned and operated by the Entertainment Software Association, which opposes this bill, so that could be one reason why.
Hawley’s bill says he’s able to ask for this ban under the Federal Trade Commission’s Unfair or Deceptive Acts or Practices act.
In addition to the ban on some loot boxes and pay-to-win mechanics, the bill is asking for a study to be conducted on the effect of pay-to-win and loot boxes that would be commissioned not later than two years after the act is enacted.
Hawley and his co-sponsors are asking for the study to analyze the psychological effects of pay-to-win microtransactions and loot boxes on users and also to study game development practices related to pay-to-win microtransactions and loot boxes, among other things. It’s not clear why Hawley is asking for these studies to be held after his bill is theoretically enacted and not before it.
The Protecting Children from Abusive Games Act’s co-sponsors released statements in support of the bill to The Verge. Markey said, “Inherently manipulative game features that take advantage of kids and turn play time into pay time should be out of bounds.” Blumenthal commented, “Congress must send a clear warning to app developers and tech companies: Children are not cash cows to exploit for profit.”
For its part, the ESA has said it opposes Hawley’s bill. The trade group, which represents the video game industry’s interests in Washington D.C. and also runs E3 every year, is in business to protect and support its members. A lawmaker from Hawaii who also targeted loot boxes told GameSpot that the ESA sent lobbyists to Hawaii to try to kill his bill. In response to Hawley’s bill, the ESA said in a statement to PC Gamer that countries like Ireland, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom have also determined that “loot boxes do not constitute gambling.”
“We look forward to sharing with the senator the tools and information the industry already provides that keeps the control of in-game spending in parents’ hands. Parents already have the ability to limit or prohibit in-game purchases with easy to use parental controls,” the ESA said.
An Uphill Battle
Research firm Cowen & Company released a note to investors about Hawley’s proposal. The overwhelming majority of bills that are proposed never pass in US Congress, and Cowen & Company said Hawley’s bill is no exception in that it faces an uphill battle.
Analyst Doug Creutz says Hawley’s bill represents a “far more serious, existential-level threat” to gaming, and specifically mobile gaming, because it also focuses on pay-to-win mechanics in addition to loot boxes.
As for why Hawley’s bill might run into trouble, Cowen & Company acknowledged that Hawley is an outlier among Republicans in that most Republicans are pro-business and regularly oppose regulation on technology companies. Not only that, but Congress is “barely functioning” in 2019, with lawmakers focusing more on “must-pass legislation” that keeps the government open.
“Loot boxes have very little mind share in Congress,” Cowen & Company said.
The next step for Hawley’s bill would be to head to a Congressional hearing. No hearing is currently scheduled, which may not bode well for the bill. However, Cowen & Company noted that Markey and Blumenthal coming on as co-sponsors gives the bill more chances at getting a hearing. Hawley, a freshman Senator and the youngest US Senator at age 39, sits on the Judiciary Committee and he might ask chairman Lindsey Graham for a hearing, Cowen & Company said.
Another issue at play is that the FTC already announced it is holding a hearing on August 7 to dig into loot boxes. Democratic lawmaker Maggie Hassan (New Hampshire) requested this hearing, though despite that, she did not become a co-sponsor of Hawley’s bill.
This year’s mainline Call of Duty title is rumored to be Modern Warfare 4, but it’s not the only new Call of Duty game coming this year. Activision is releasing Call of Duty Mobile, and the company has now revealed the title’s Battle Royale mode. In a blog post, Activision said the mode is similar in structure to Black Ops 4‘s Blackout mode and other battle royale games in that players are dropped onto a “colossal map” and must fight until only one player–or one team–remains alive.
It does share some similarities with Blackout, but it stands alone with its own unique elements as well, Activision said. The high points are as following:
Up to 100 players supported
Solo, Duo, and four-player teams are being tested currently
There are six classes, each with their own unique ability and skill
You can revive teammates, who drop back into the map from a cargo plane after healing
You can play in first- or third-person, though this is locked in before a match begins, and players will be matched together with those using the same camera perspective.
The map features locations from past CoD games including Modern Warfare, Modern Warfare 2, Black Ops, and Black Ops II.
Vehicles are supported, including ATV, Light Helicopter, SUV, and Tactical Raft.
Call of Duty Mobile is only still in the “early” stages of development and testing, so things could change. That being said, Activision released some work-in-progress images; see them in the gallery below.
Defender: With the ability to place a deformable Transform Shield, this class also is Reinforced, raising resistance to all damage except bullets.
Mechanic: Able to call an EMP Drone to create electro-magnetic interference on hostile forces, this class also features the Engineer ability, granting augmented sight to vehicles, hostile traps, and other equipment.
Scout: Utilizing the Sensor Dart that can view hostile positions in the immediate area of the radar map, this class also benefits from the Tracker ability; allowing you to see fresh footprints of hostiles.
Clown: A master of distraction and friend of the undead, this class has a Toy Bomb to detonate, summoning zombies that only attack hostiles near to them; due in part to the Clown having the Anti-Zombieability, which reduces the zombies’ aggression distance.
Medic: This class can place a Medical Station that continuously heals the Medic and associated allies in the immediate vicinity. In addition, the Master Healer ability allows a Medic to heal more quickly, and reduces the time it takes to revive teammates.
Ninja: Lastly, this clandestine class has a Grapple Gun that fires a hook, allowing you to propel yourself up and onto target buildings or across the landscape at speed. Movement is quiet too, due to this class having the Dead Silence ability.
In terms of reviving, players who die drop a dog tag. Players can pick up the dog tag and press a button to revive their fallen teammate. It takes some time, and it must be completed fully before a player gets respawned via a cargo plane drop.
The full blog post has all the important details you need to know, so head to Activision’s website to read all about Call of Duty Mobile’s battle royale mode.
Call of Duty Mobile is developed by Tencent’s Timi studio. It will release around the world, and the first, small-scale beta recently began in India. Another beta is coming to Australia “soon,” with more regions to be supported later on.
E3 2019 is right around the corner. One of the biggest games at the show is Halo: Infinite, which is Microsoft’s ambitious new instalment in its long-running sci-fi blockbuster series.
It’s been almost four years since the release of Halo 5: Guardians, so it is high time that Microsoft begins to talk about and show off the next entry in the popular shooter series. Here’s what we know about the Xbox One and PC game, as well as what we’d hope to see from an E3 reveal.
What We Know So Far
Halo Infinite was officially announced a year ago at Microsoft’s E3 2018 briefing. Microsoft showcased an impressing-looking trailer not for the game itself, but rather, its brand-new engine, Slipspace. While it didn’t contain any gameplay, and we know nothing about the story, the trailer got Halo fans hyped for the long-awaited sequel to 2015’s Halo 5: Guardians.
While story details are being kept under wraps for now, Microsoft did confirm that Halo Infinite will tell a story that focuses more on Master Chief than Halo 5 did. As fans may recall, that title strayed from the franchise’s hero with a storyline that touched on another character, Agent Locke, and even had players fight as him for some parts of the campaign.
Putting more of an emphasis on Master Chief is the smart call by Microsoft, demonstrating a commitment to getting the story right this time around with Halo Infinite. Microsoft has acknowledged that Halo 5’s story was a letdown, so fans will be eager to see how the story grows and improves this time. For what it’s worth, Microsoft is telling fans to think of Halo Infinite as Halo 6 instead of some other kind of spin-off or other form of franchise extension beyond the main storyline. It is a “spiritual reboot” of the franchise, according to 343 studio boss Bonnie Ross.
Halo is best known for its multiplayer mode, but unfortunately no details are available at this stage beyond the news from years ago that it will feature local split-screen (huzzah!). Microsoft has said the new Slipspace Engine is capable of supporting numerous different modes, including battle royale (though that mode is not currently in development). You can expect Halo Infinite to bring back its classic team-based multiplayer, but with the Halo franchise generally understood to not as popular or strong as it once was, Microsoft will need to deliver something new and compelling in the multiplayer department to reignite interest in the aging series. Halo 5’s massive-scale, MOBA-style Warzone mode was a refreshing take on the Halo formula, and fans will be looking to see Halo Infinite innovate even further on the multiplayer side.
Another big thing to know about Halo Infinite is that it is coming to Xbox One (or the Xbox One family of consoles; more on that later) as well as PC. That’s notable because the Halo FPS series hasn’t been on PC since 2004’s Halo 2. Halo: The Master Chief Collection is coming this year to PC, so PC players are getting a double-dose of Halo goodness after all the years.
It is also worth noting that Halo Infinite isn’t being developed by 343 Industries alone. The studio has recruited SkyBox labs to help; the Vancouver-based studio also worked on Halo 5: Forge for Windows 10 and did the work on Halo 5’s Xbox One X enhancements.
Last year’s trailer for the Slipspace Engine was an exciting first look at what Halo Infinite could be, but Microsoft has yet to share any details on what the game actually is or what it looks like. It is time, at E3 2019, for Microsoft to release new details and gameplay footage for Halo Infinite. What’s the story going to be? What will multiplayer offer? How will the team expand on Forge? What is the big new hook to get people excited to return to the aging sci-fi series? We are hoping Microsoft answers these questions and more, even if the company is only willing to talk at a high level.
There is also the matter of the rumored next-generation Xbox and what Halo’s place is on it. The latest rumor is that Halo Infinite will be a launch title for the new Xbox in 2020, while also supporting the current model as well as a cross-generation title. No Halo game since Halo 1 has released as a launch title for a new Xbox, so it would be a big deal, and it makes sense for Microsoft to release Halo Infinite as a launch title for the next Xbox to help sales start strong.
Diminished as its role in the industry might have become, the Electronic Entertainment Expo–better known as E3–remains a major showcase for the games industry. It’s undeniably in a state of upheaval, as an increasing number of companies either have distanced themselves from it (such as Electronic Arts, which opts to hold its EA Play event nearby in the days leading up to E3 proper) or removed themselves entirely (such as Sony, which will seemingly go without any kind of big event or press conference this June). Nevertheless, E3 2019 will still have a number of major press conferences from companies like Microsoft and Bethesda, and the show floor remains home to many major publishers. But how did we get to this point?
In the ’90s, gaming was without a major event of its own; in place of such a thing, developers had a presence at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES). But May 1995 saw the debut of gaming’s own industry trade show in the form of E3. It was held at the Los Angeles Convention Center, a site that has served as the home for the vast majority of the show’s existence. Until recent years, E3 has been closed completely to the public, serving instead as a meeting place for members of the industry and press, along with retailers. That distinction was reflected in its attendance: Even at its peak, E3 paled in comparison to the sheer size of something like Germany’s Gamescom, which is open to the public.
Press conferences held in the days prior to E3 have long served as the preeminent place for making announcements and revealing games. E3 has been home to the unveiling of major games and hardware over the past two decades. Despite the existence of other major events, like Gamescom and the Tokyo Game Show, it’s traditionally been E3 that publishers save their biggest news for.
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But the last decade-plus has proven to be challenging, as the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), the industry’s trade association that organizes E3, tries to figure out exactly what the show should be. From 2007-2008, it downsized the event significantly to what was known as the E3 Media and Business Summit. 2009 saw the event revert back to something closer to its former self, and more recent years have seen an increasing amount of access granted to members of the public, who had previously been unable to attend. To some degree, it’s muddled the purpose of the show; E3 is in something of an awkward middle ground now where it’s expected to simultaneously fulfill its prior role and serve as a fan event. Whereas a show like Gamescom has a day open only to industry members and the press, E3 does not. Instead, it has a few hours during the first two of its three days where the doors are not open to the public. Meanwhile, for members of the public that do attend, the reality often amounts to standing in very long lines and watching the press conferences online like those at home. It’s not really ideal for anyone.
Further complicating the purpose of E3 have been various shifts in how the industry works. Free-to-play games, games as a service, and longer console generations, combined with companies’ ability to showcase their wares through events like PlayStation Experience and Nintendo Direct, have called into question whether an event like E3, conceived during a much different era of video games, continues to be the best use of resources.
Case in point: Sony, which has typically had one of the largest presences at E3 and was responsible for one of its most significant press conferences, has opted out of E3 2019 entirely. This move comes after Sony’s atypical 2018 showing, which was criticized by some for the fact that it focused almost exclusively on four upcoming PS4 games, rather than the much wider slate we’d usually see.
Explaining the rationale behind its decision not to attend E3 2019, Sony told GameSpot last year, “As the industry evolves, Sony Interactive Entertainment continues to look for inventive opportunities to engage the community. PlayStation fans mean the world to us and we always want to innovate, think differently and experiment with new ways to delight gamers. As a result, we have decided not to participate in E3 in 2019. We are exploring new and familiar ways to engage our community in 2019 and can’t wait to share our plans with you.”
Subsequently, Sony Worldwide Studios head Shawn Layden expanded even further on the diminished role E3 serves. “Now we have an event in February called Destination PlayStation, where we bring all retailers and third-party partners to come hear the story for the year,” he said. “They’re making purchasing discussions in February. June, now, is just too late to have a Christmas holiday discussion with retailers. So retail has really dropped off. And journalists now, with the internet and the fact that 24/7 there is game news, it’s lost its impact around that.”
“So the trade show became a trade show without a lot of trade activity. The world has changed, but E3 hasn’t necessarily changed with it,” he added.
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It remains to be seen what Sony’s plans for “new and familiar ways to engage” fans will look like. While it’s unusual for one of the three console manufacturers to not be at E3, some of the industry’s major publishers already sit it out. Rockstar doesn’t attend E3 in a public capacity, only having a presence during Microsoft or Sony press conferences when it has a game to showcase. Activision has already pulled out of E3 2019, though we do know that this year’s Call of Duty game will be discussed at the E3 Coliseum. This is a series of panels and discussions hosted by Geoff Keighley that anyone at E3 can attend. While it’s by no means equivalent to the various publishers’ press conferences, the Coliseum is home to some reveals and–as it’s open to fans at the show–feels like E3 continuing to try to figure out what it is in the modern day.
It’s not as if all of the major players have dropped out, however. Microsoft has pledged to “go big” at E3 2019. Nintendo will also be in there in a similar capacity to recent years, although it continues to use pre-recorded Nintendo Direct events rather than the live press conference it held in the past. Microsoft continues to go the live route, while EA has exited E3 and launched an event that takes place in the days prior. Other companies–including Bethesda and Square Enix–have stepped in to fill that gap with their own E3 briefings, alongside smaller publishers like Devolver. There’s also the possibility for Google, which is entering the industry with Stadia, to have an EA Play-style showcase around the time of E3, although it doesn’t appear that will come during E3 proper.
We don’t yet know what the future of E3 looks like. The ESA has faced its own issues, as detailed in a recent Variety report. Since that story was published, the group has named a new CEO, Stanley Pierre-Louis, who has spoken enthusiastically about E3. But he’ll be faced with addressing questions of whether the group that lobbies on behalf of the games industry in Washington should also be in charge of organizing a continually evolving trade show.
E3 could have been facing a significant change as soon as next year; E3 2019 had been the last show confirmed for the LACC, but that deal has since been extended to 2023, so we won’t see it moving to a different venue or city for at least a few more years. In the meantime, more companies could decide to drop out, as they decide the cost and trouble isn’t worth it–keep in mind, it’s not cheap to put on an E3 show, not to mention the impact it has on development as studios are forced to divert resources toward creating demos, trailers, and so on. And there are now more options than ever for sharing news, including the annual PSX and The Game Awards; Sony and Microsoft testing the waters with their own Nintendo Direct-style broadcasts throughout the year; and a new show in August from The Game Awards organizers called Gamescom: Opening Night Live. As a result, companies have more flexibility than ever to showcase their games when they’re ready to do so, rather than forcing an E3 demo or trailer out the door in June, regardless of when it would make the most sense to do so.
Only time will tell what future E3s will look like or how long it will continue to exist, but in the meantime, stick around GameSpot for in-depth coverage of whatever this year’s show brings, and check out the video above for a deep dive into the history of E3.
