One of the many awesome things about working in tech is that there are tons of interesting (and high-paying) jobs you can do in the industry which don’t require an expensive college diploma. Instead, what really matters is that you have the skills to do the work. And, if you’re looking for an area of those in-demand skillsets to learn, product design might just be the perfect one for you: Especially since the average annual salary for a Product Designer in the US is over $110k.
So, where do you start learning those tech skills, without college? The answer is with a top-rated course of eBooks, which you can learn from at your own pace, and from anywhere. Even better, right now this Fundamentals of Product Design eBook Bundle by O’Reilly is on sale for just $19.99 – that’s an 88% discount off the regular price of $178. With five different eBooks included in this mega bundle, that works out to less than $4 a book.
This bundle of highly-rated ebooks will teach you all the basics you need to know to design and create successful products, including lessons on improving user experience, UX research, design fundamentals, and more.
For example, you’ll become a design decision-making pro with the 4.2/5 Amazon-rated book Designing with Data: Improving the User Experience with A/B Testing, which will show you how to create data-driven testing that will help you make successful decisions on everything from small site edits to large-scale UX concepts.
Then, in UX Research: Practical Techniques for Designing Better Products, which has an impressive 4.7/5 stars on Amazon from previous readers, you’ll learn all you need to know when it comes to common languages and tools which will help you carry out UX research in the most productive way possible.
A double XP and double weapon XP weekend is now live in Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War and Call of Duty: Warzone in celebration of the launch of Season 5 in both games, which went live last week.
The double XP weekend is live now and runs until Monday, August 23 at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET. Season 5 of Black Ops Cold War included a brand-new mode, Double Agent. This mode is an Among Us-style mode, where Double Agents are tasked with sabotaging a match, by either eliminating all other players or setting off dirty bombs located around the map.
Activision also said that all purchases made in Modern Warfare, Black Ops Cold War, and Vanguard will work in Warzone, even after the new map launches. All of these announcements came amidst Activision Blizzard being sued by the state of California for discrimination.
Marvel’s upcoming Armor Wars series has landed comedian Yassir Lester as head writer, which was reported by Deadline. Lester has writing credits for Adult Swim’s animated Black Dynamite series, Duncanville as well as acting credits on Brooklyn Nine-Nine and Black-Ish.
Armor Wars was initially announced during an investor’s presentation in December 2020. The limited series will star Don Cheadle, who will reprise his role as James Rhodes, also known as Warmachine, in a plot where Tony Stark’s technology falls into the wrong hands. Despite Armor Wars having yet to find its director, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige will continue to be the producer of the series which is reportedly still in early stages of development.
Lester and Cheadle are not strangers. Armor Wars will be the second time the pair have worked together following their previous work on the Showtime series Black Monday.
Although Lester’s background is primarily in comedy writing, his pitch for Armor Wars excited both Cheadle and Marvel execs about the direction Lester would take the show, according to Deadline.
Armor Wars is yet another Marvel Disney+ live-action show, alongside current hits like Wandavision, Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and Loki, and upcoming projects like Hawkeye and Ms. Marvel.
Ghost of Tsushima‘s Iki Island expansion introduces a new side-activity called Deer Sanctuaries, which are centered around playing a flute mini-game to charm local deer and create an animal safe haven. Below, we’ve compiled a guide detailing where to find them all.
Completing one Deer Sanctuary earns you the Charm of Sugaru’s Sight. This ranged charm allows you to shoot up to three arrows at once with your bows–so long as you’ve got enough ammo, of course. It also gives you the ability to lock onto multiple foes. The more Deer Sanctuaries you unlock, the faster the charm’s lock-on capability gets.
For more about Ghost of Tsushima’s Iki Island expansion, be sure to read our full review. Otherwise, be sure to check out our other Iki Island guides and our guides for the base game.
South Of Sly Hunter’s Forest
Gallery
This one is likely to be the first Deer Sanctuary you’ll find on Iki Island. It’s not far off from where you start the expansion, with it being located directly south of Sly Hunter’s Forest in a beautiful little grove filled with blue flowers.
South Of Zasho River
Gallery
This Deer Sanctuary is directly south of Zasho River, smack dab in the middle of a Mongol camp. It only opens up after you liberate the camp of its Mongol presence. Once that’s done, you’ll be able to make the Zasho River Crossing a true sanctuary for its local deer population.
Old Gambler’s Wood Cliffside
Gallery
You’ll find this Deer Sanctuary at the Old Gambler’s Wood on the western side of Iki Island. It’s on a cliffside overlooking the Shattered Cliffs.
Pokemon Unite is a new, fast-paced MOBA that’s just landed on Nintendo Switch, giving Pokemon fans another strong game to check out on the popular platform. For those new to the Pokemon franchise, or anyone looking for more monster-battling and monster-catching action, there are plenty of great Pokemon games on Nintendo Switch spanning multiple genres. From free-to-play spin-offs through to full RPG adventures, Switch owners are spoilt for choice when it comes to the widely-adored franchise.
To help you find your next adventure with Pikachu and the gang, we’ve listed every Pokemon game on Nintendo Switch available right now. This list will only grow in the coming months, with Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl coming later this year and open-world adventure Pokemon Legends: Arceus launching in January, both of which will release on Nintendo Switch.
If you’ve ever wanted to try a MOBA but found the likes of League of Legends or Dota 2 too tricky to get into, Pokemon Unite on Nintendo Switch is a great starting point. Unite is set on Aeos Island, where Pokemon participate in competitive matches where two teams of five face off to score the most points by slam-dunking accumulated Aeos energy into the opposing team’s zones. In swift 10-minute matches, you select from a roster of Pokemon–including fan-favorites like Pikachu and Charmander–battling wild Pokemon and opposition players in an arm-wrestle for territory dominance. Although Pokemon Unite includes series staples such as leveling up and evolving, matchups between Pokemon types go out the window; the focus is instead placed on real-time skill attack execution. With new content already on the way, plus a mobile version including cross-platform play, we’re expecting Pokemon Unite to grow even bigger.
Another free-to-play spin-off for the Nintendo Switch and mobile devices, Pokemon Quest transforms the original 151 Pokemon from the Kanto region into adorable cube-shaped versions of the characters, befitting the setting of Tumblecube Island. An action-adventure game that plays out in real-time, Pokemon Quest tasks you with going on expeditions to find loot, upgrade your camp, and befriend other blocky Pokemon. It’s up to you to choose a party of Pokemon to venture forth, after which they move automatically, leaving you to time attacks strategically to defeat opponents encountered along the way. There’s also a bit of strategy involved, too; Pokemon learn new moves through gaining experience and equipping Power Stones, augmenting their stats to suit different playstyles. Also, Pokemon Quest has a wonderful method of recruiting new Pokemon friends: you cook dishes for them on the campfire using ingredients found on expeditions. It’s an extremely cute game to play alongside the main Pokemon RPGs.
Pokemon Cafe Mix
Pokemon Cafe Mix
Pokemon Cafe Mix is another in a long list of adorable free-to-play spin-off games on the Nintendo Switch. As the owner of a cafe, you recruit Pokemon to serve as staff while cooking all sorts of Poke-themed culinary delights, created by solving puzzles. Everything about Pokemon Cafe Mix is wonderfully endearing, especially your cute Pokemon companions who wear matching cafe outfits highlighted by a gorgeous hand-drawn art style. Lucario wearing a little cafe apron is quite the sight! Even Pokemon Cafe Mix’s puzzles mimic the act of stirring a drink, requiring you to swirl a circle of matching Pokemon icons around the ingredients to complete the order. Different Pokemon have unique abilities to help solve puzzles, making team composition just as important as your puzzle-solving skills. Pokemon Cafe Mix is a pleasant puzzler to visit when it’s time to chill out.
Pokemon Sword and Shield
Pokemon Sword and Shield
The first mainline Pokemon RPG on the Nintendo Switch, Pokemon Sword and Shield impressed us with various new features to the series, including the Wild Area, adding open-world exploration elements to the Pokemon formula. Co-op raid battles, Dynamax transformations, and the ability to make delicious curries round out the other major additions Pokemon Sword and Shield introduced. Additionally, Pokemon Sword and Shield mark the first games in the main RPG series to receive expansion passes, containing substantial DLC add-ons in the form of The Isle of Armor and The Crown Tundra. Make sure to download Pokemon Home as well so you can import your Pokemon Go collection, too. With so many Pokemon to catch and beautiful places to explore, Pokemon Sword and Shield are among the best in the series.
More than 20 years passed between the original Pokemon Snap on Nintendo 64 and its Nintendo Switch follow-up, New Pokemon Snap. It was absolutely worth the wait. Based on the same premise as its predecessor, New Pokemon Snap places you in the role of a photographer snapping pictures of Pokemon in their natural habitat for research purposes. It’s essentially a non-violent, wholesome first-person shooter on rails with plenty of cute critters to enjoy. In addition to many photogenic subjects, New Pokemon Snap weaves in several mystery elements that provide ways of discovering Pokemon engaging in unexpected behavior. In a world full of combat-centric games, it’s refreshing to relax and enjoy the positive vibes of New Pokemon Snap while taking copious amounts of Instagram-worthy photos.
A blend of conventional RPG and Pokemon Go gameplay, Pokemon: Let’s Go, Pikachu and Let’s Go, Eevee on the Nintendo Switch introduced a new generation of Pokemon trainers to the Kanto region, with stylish reimagining of the original Pokemon Red, Blue, and Yellow Game Boy games. Instead of randomly encountering Pokemon in tall grass, you can see potential companions wandering around in the wild, making it easier to complete your Pokedex. Another significant change to the series’ norm is the focus on (sometimes unwieldy) motion controls for catching Pokemon. You can either emulate the act of throwing a Poke Ball using a Joy-Con or tilt the Nintendo Switch in handheld to aim your throw, using the same circle timing system seen in Pokemon Go. Above all else, Pokemon: Let’s Go, Pikachu and Let’s Go, Eevee are a lovely way to experience Kanto, where it all began.
Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX–a Nintendo Switch remake of Blue Rescue Team on Nintendo DS and Red Rescue Team on Game Boy Advance–poses the question: What would you do if you woke up one morning as a Pokemon? This dungeon-crawling RPG assigns you a Pokemon based on the results of a cute personality test, and after waking up in the Pokemon world, you soon meet up with other Pokemon to form a rescue team, going on missions and helping those in need. As you’ve been unknowingly transformed into a Pokemon, you can now understand and converse with your kind beyond the standard repetition of Pokemon names humans hear. Rescue Team DX also has a great story at its core as you slowly unravel the mystery of why you became a Pokemon in the first place. Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX gives the original games one heck of a glow-up with a vivid new painterly style that pops beautifully. A heartwarming story and new coat of paint make Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX a worthy entry for Pokemon fanatics.
Pokken Tournament was something of a revelation upon its initial Wii U and arcade release, a fighting game where you have full control of a Pokemon’s movement and attacks in real time. Pokken Tournament DX is a Nintendo Switch upgrade of the original, complete with a padded-out roster of Pokemon to duke it out with. From the fighting game experts at Bandai Namco–known for working on the Tekken series–Pokken Tournament DX is a strong fighter in its own right. Its fighting mechanics are deep, and powerful attacks pack a mighty impact with spectacular visuals reminiscent of the classic Pokemon Stadium games. Pokken Tournament is for anyone who’s ever wanted an unprecedented level of control over their characters as well as fighting game aficionados.
It’s been a lovely year for indie top-down Zelda-likes, with recent games like Chicory and Death’s Door offering dramatic yet artistic tonal shifts to a genre that still feels fresh after decades. Just when I thought I might need a break from this particular style of game, my eye was captured by the whimsical GameBoy-esque pixel art, adorable fruit characters, and cheerful demeanor of Garden Story from developer Picogram. To my delight, Garden Story does something of an about-face from other games like it, shifting a typical “save the world from evil” plot inward to a more poignant focus on what it actually looks like to be a hero to others in a world that’s actively falling apart.
Garden Story is a top-down adventure game with a bit of a retro Zelda look and bent. You play as sentient grape Concord, the fledgling “Guardian” of The Grove — a community that’s been suffering for years under an encroaching “Rot” that’s actively destroying infrastructure and making everyday activities dangerous for its inhabitants. With most of their fellow Guardians MIA, Concord emerges from their isolated home armed at first with only a little pickaxe and the encouragement of their friends as weapons against the Rot, undertaking a journey to protect their community against continued decay.
What sets Picogram’s little adventure apart from its genre compatriots is that Garden Story is less about obliterating some ancient evil, and more about one small person doing their small part to help the larger whole. Concord’s journey is not one of conquest or heroism, but one of responsibility. They’re invited early on to live closer to their community both because the community needs their support, but because they recognize that Concord needs the help of others as well.
While directly fighting the Rot is a component of their job — and includes the occasional dungeon crawl and boss fight, too! — so is cleaning up litter, fixing fences, donating materials to the community storage, and building infrastructure. But you’ll also see your fellow citizens doing their parts. For instance, I was able to help out a neighbor named Maraschino early on, and my aid freed them up to help me patrol and keep Rot out of a certain section of the neighborhood each night, improving community safety.
Pico, the game’s developer, tells me they started working on Garden Story when they had a full-time job working the graveyard shift at care homes, meaning they didn’t have much of a social life. Garden Story is their first major game, and though they do consider themselves a solo developer, they add that they had a “huge amount of support” from members of their community over the three-and-a-half years it took to make the game.
Their experiences working in care homes and being supported by those around them as they made games inspired a lot of Garden Story’s themes. Pico says that instead of making a bunch of separate video game towns that all bled together, they wanted to create a community full of diverse perspectives and links between characters. Their goal was “just making people feel connected and wanting one another,” a thought that was also sparked by their Filipino background and their years growing up in Hawaii and surrounded by Hawaiian culture.
“The idea of doing labor for people you care about was something I really wanted to bring into games, making a connection between being the hero and also supporting your community,” they tell me. “I think that the idea of a hero going out to a world unknown maybe isn’t as representative of the kind of heroism I want to see in games. I want people to elevate those in their community and make role models out of people who just want to contribute to those around them.”
I want people to elevate those in their community and make role models out of people who contribute to those around them.
Pico hopes that players will walk away from Garden Story feeling empowered and encouraged to become leaders in their own communities. They describe Concord as a “little squirt” who doesn’t know anything when they start out, but nonetheless becomes a hero to their neighbors and friends.
The framing of Garden Story as a story of building and participating in a community rather than some sort of solo, heroic effort offers a new and delightful perspective on the kind of top-down adventure it’s inspired by. With little consequences, few meaningful time limits, a colorful aesthetic, pleasant music, and charming nature-inspired character, Garden Story nestles perfectly into the growing roster of “cozy” games that have been gaining ever increasing popularity on the heels of Animal Crossing and Stardew Valley. I’m looking forward to spending more time with Concord and their friends in The Grove, and seeing how their community blossoms when we all work together to make it better.
Rebekah Valentine is a news reporter for IGN. You can find her on Twitter @duckvalentine.
Call of Duty: Vanguard has finally been revealed as a World War II-based first-person shooter. The game is expected to be a juggernaut this holiday season and it is predicted to be the best-selling game of 2021.
Vanguard is developer Sledgehammer Games’ second title that takes place during WWII, however this game is leaning on Call of Duty: Modern Warfare in more ways than one. Vanguard will be running on an updated version of the Modern Warfare engine–which Warzone also runs on–and the campaign will focus on the early iterations of special forces. The campaign follows four different characters, each fighting in battles where a small group or single person turned the tide.
Click To Unmute
Size:
Want us to remember this setting for all your devices?
Now Playing: Call of Duty Vanguard – Everything We Know
The official reveal for Vanguard comes in the wake of the state of California filing a discrimination lawsuit against Activision Blizzard. The lawsuit alleges that Activision Blizzard has a “frat boy” culture where women and people of color are discriminated against.
The announcement and trailers have revealed a ton of new information about Call of Duty: Vanguard.
Announcement And Trailers
The reveal trailer for Vanguard shows off the four areas where the campaign will take place: North Africa, the Eastern Front, the Western Front, and the Pacific. The trailer also offered glimpses of the four main characters you will be playing as on each front.
The four main characters are:
Private Lucas Riggs, 20th Battalion, Australian 9th Infantry Division, British Eighth Army.
Sergeant Arthur Kingsley of the 9th Parachute Battalion, British Army.
Lieutenant Wade Jackson, Scouting Squadron Six, United States Navy.
Lieutenant Polina Petrova of the 138th Rifle Division, Red Army.
Vanguard got its full reveal with an in-game event for Call of Duty: Warzone. The event, which led into the reveal trailer, involved a cooperative mission to take down a train.
Release Date
Call of Duty: Vanguard is releasing on Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, PS5, and PC on November 5. Vanguard will also have a beta sometime prior to release, although Activision has not yet announced specifics.
How Do I Preorder?
Call of Duty: Vanguard is now available for preorder both physically and digitally across all platforms. There are three editions of the game available, each containing different bonuses. The standard version costs $60 USD and is available on Xbox One, PS4, and PC.
The Cross-Gen bundle costs $70 and contains both the last-gen and current-gen versions of the game plus five hours of double weapon XP. The Ultimate Edition costs $100 and comes with both gen versions of the game in addition to the Vanguard Battle Pass Bundle and Task Force One Pack.
All three versions feature preorder bonuses, including access to the multiplayer beta. The other pre-order bonuses, which appear to be exclusive to the digital versions of Vanguard, are the Frontline Weapons Pack, Mastercraft Blueprint for Black Ops Cold War and Warzone, and Operator Arthur Kingsley in Cold War and Warzone. For more information, check out our Call of Duty: Vanguard preorder guide.
Beta
It has been confirmed that Vanguard will have an open beta, however no other details have been confirmed. According to a purported leak, Vanguard will have an alpha test from August 27-29 on PlayStation, a beta from September 10-12 on PlayStation, and an open beta on all platforms September 16-20, according to a leak. While none of those dates have been confirmed, Activision is expected to make an official announcement soon.
Who’s Developing It?
Call of Duty: Vanguard is being primarily developed by Sledgehammer Games, the lead developer on Call of Duty: WWII. A number of other Activision Blizzard studios are also assisting with the development of Vanguard. Treyarch, Beenox, Raven, and High Moon Studios are all confirmed to be assisting.
While most of the other studios are assisting in unspecified ways, Treyarch is confirmed to be working on a Zombies mode for Vanguard that will serve as a prequel story to the one told in Black Ops Cold War.
Multiplayer
The multiplayer for Call of Duty: Vanguard seems poised to come out of the gate swinging. While no multiplayer gameplay has been revealed, it has been announced that Vanguard will launch with 20 multiplayer maps; 16 for core multiplayer and 4 for the new Champion Hill mode.
The Champion Hill mode is described as “the next generation” of the 2v2 Gunfight mode in both Modern Warfare and Black Ops Cold War. It sounds like Champion Hill will feature eight teams of two, all fighting in head-to-head matchups until one team is declared the Champions. Vanguard will also share battle pass and season-level progression with Modern Warfare, Black Ops Cold War, and Warzone.
Sledgehammer also said it will have three multiplayer archetypes that will all have different play styles. The more “tactical” modes will be slower, more methodical modes where players will need to make every bullet count. “Blitz” game modes will put as many players as possible into a single match, creating chaotic matches that are fast-paced. The game will also feature the more “standard” modes Call of Duty players have come to expect from the series.
Zombies
Zombies mode is returning in Call of Duty: Vanguard and will be developed by Treyarch, the studio behind the Black Ops games. Very little has been announced about Vanguard’s Zombies, except that it will be in the same universe as Black Ops Cold War’s Zombies, serving as a prequel to the storyline. Activision has said that it plans to share a detailed preview “as All Hallows Eve approaches.” In other words, we’ll hear more around October 31, aka Halloween.
Campaign
Gallery
The Vanguard campaign is split between four battlefronts and characters, all working towards discovering what “Project Phoenix” is. Each character is from a different country, fighting to turn the tides of war in different areas of the world before coming together for a joint mission in Berlin. The campaign makes some changes from Sledgehammer’s last outing, Call of Duty WWII, like removing health packs in favor of regenerating health.
The campaign is meant for players to feel like hammers, using fully automatic weapons and force to take down their enemies. In GameSpot’s preview of Vanguard, we were shown an early mission featuring Sgt. Arthur Kingsley, one of the playable characters and eventual squad leader. The mission follows Kingsley during Operation Tonga, where soldiers parachuted into Normandy the night before D-Day. Kingsley has a rough landing and loses his rifle, forcing him to sneak around German soldiers before he finds a weapon. After that was a mixture of some stealth gameplay mixed with close-range combat, where Kinglsey needed to defend himself from being overwhelmed by enemy forces.
A brand-new Call of Duty game also means new updates and features are coming to Warzone. Activision has announced that a new map and new anti-cheat system on PC will launch later this year, probably around the release of Vanguard on November 5. The new map will run on the upgraded Modern Warfare engine, the same one used in Call of Duty: Vanguard.
Activision also announced that Warzone, Vanguard, Black Ops Cold War, and Modern Warfare will have a unified progress system and battle pass, meaning players can level in any game and keep that level across games. Activision also said that it will be honoring all prior purchases in Warzone moving forward. This means that items, weapon blueprints, and operators purchased in Vanguard, Black Ops Cold War, or Modern Warfare will all work in Warzone.
The PlayStation game library, whether you’re gaming on PS5 or PS4, is full of excellent titles across a wide variety of genres. And despite the fact that many of the most talked-about games each year are aimed at older audiences, there are still plenty of kid-friendly games on PS5 and PS4. If you’re looking for some age-appropriate games to pick up for your kids, we’ve rounded up 25 of the best PS4 games for kids that are both fun and family-friendly. Almost every game on this list is playable on both PS4 and PS5 thanks to backwards-compatibility, and we’ve only included two PS5 exclusives. We’ve also noted games that have PS5 versions or free upgrades.
Astro’s Playroom is a PS5 pack-in game that shows off the DualSense’s haptic feedback and adaptive triggers. A follow-up to the PSVR game Astro Bot: Rescue Mission, Astro’s Playroom is a joyous platformer starring a tiny robot. It’s set up much like 3D Mario games with contained levels filled with well-designed platforming sequences, enemies, and cool bosses. Astro’s Playroom is also loaded with PlayStation-themed collectibles and Easter Eggs. While a lot of the references may not be familiar to kids, the adventure is thoroughly entertaining and ideal for youngsters. Astro’s Playroom’s use of the DualSense controller to provide immersive feedback is genuinely magical. While it’s not a long game by any means, Astro’s Playroom is free and also happens to be a must-play experience.
Bugsnax is a charming and rather silly adventure game set on Snaktooth Island. As the title suggests, the island is inhabited by creatures who happen to be part-bug, part-snack. This first-person adventure places you in the role of a journalist tracing the steps of an explorer who discovered the curious island. Bugsnax has colorful, cartoonish graphics and a vibrant cast of whimsical characters. Gameplay-wise, it’s not overly complex, as most of the time you’re on the hunt for various Bugsnax. But the game does a great job of making each search different, turning hunts into clever puzzles that are unique to each creature. Though it was a PS5 launch game, Bugsnax is also available for PS4.
Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time brings the classic platforming series to a new generation. While It’s About Time retains the same platforming formula of its predecessors, it features greatly improved visuals, more inventive level design, and new mechanics that make the platformer feel decidedly modern. It’s About Time can be challenging at times, so youngsters may need some help getting through particularly tricky sections, but it has a lighthearted tone that encourages players to learn the game’s tricks. It’s About Time is also highly replayable thanks to collectibles, time trials, and mirrored levels. Though it’s available on both current PlayStation platforms, the PS5 version offers 4K visuals and 60fps for a smoother experience.
It’s no Mario Kart, but Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled is an inspired kart racer in its own right. Nitro-Fueled is an expanded remake of the PlayStation classic, complete with extra tracks from Crash Nitro Kart. All of the tracks have been lovingly rebuilt from the ground up to have a modern look. Although it plays like the Crash Team Racing parents will remember, karts have better handles, and there’s more customization. Crash Team Racing is great whether you play solo or with family and friends, as it has a full-fledged Adventure mode, battle mode, and a few other modes that keep the kart racing fresh for a long time. Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled is playable on PS4 and PS5.
Dragon Quest Builders 2 is a delightful spin-off that combines multiple genres to great success. While it’s ostensibly an action-RPG set in a large open world, Dragon Quest Builders 2 is also a sandbox and tower defense game. The “builders” aspect is arguably the coolest part, as you have the freedom to design your own thriving village. Going out on quests and defeating monsters feeds the city-building by replenishing your resources. While there are a lot of mechanics at play in Dragon Quest Builders 2, the combat is straightforward and the building mechanics are intuitive. If your child likes Minecraft but wants more structure and lighthearted combat, Dragon Quest Builders 2 is a great choice. It has colorful visuals, an inviting atmosphere, and a lengthy mainline quest filled with varied activities.
Media Molecule’s Dreams is one of the most ambitious PS4 exclusives. Dreams will appeal to kids who have an interest in designing their own games. The game-building software has a suite of premade assets that can be dragged and dropped to create your own games. Hobbyist game developers have made some truly impressive stuff in Dreams, including remakes of classic games. You can download games from the server to play, but keep in mind that not all of them will necessarily be appropriate for children. Dreams also has a fun campaign created by Media Molecule that is worth the price of admission alone. We’d recommend Dreams for pre-teens and teens, mainly because the design tools can get fairly complex.
For years, the most popular battle royale games were shooters, but Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout changed that with an adorable and hilarious platforming experience when it launched last year. Developed by Mediatonic, Fall Guys drops 60 players, who look like waddling jelly beans, onto zany maps to compete in obstacle courses, tag, and other lighthearted games. As the rounds go on, more players are eliminated until a winner is decided. Fall Guys is quite funny thanks to its hapless characters and ridiculous maps that tend to create surprising and chaotic moments.
While Knack may never come back, Knack 2 is an action-platformer that’s definitely worth playing. The series has caught some flack, mainly because of the uninspired original that launched alongside the PS4, but Knack 2 is a genuinely solid game that’s ideal for kids. Knack 2 has a beautiful world that’s filled with clever platforming sequences and puzzles. Knack’s various size-changing abilities are put to far better use in the sequel. Though it does get repetitive at times, Knack 2 doesn’t overstay its welcome. It should be noted that Knack 2 is better when playing cooperatively, so this is a good choice for those looking for a game to play with their kids.
The Lego series from Traveller’s Tales has offered a wholesome and fun introduction to action games for more than 15 years. There are plenty of different crossovers to choose from, from Star Wars and Marvel to Harry Potter, Indiana Jones, and more. Picking the right game for your kid is a matter of their particular pop culture interests, but for the best value we’d recommend Lego Marvel Collection. This compilation comes with three Lego games: Lego Marvel Super Heroes, Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2, and Lego Marvel’s Avengers. The Marvel Super Heroes games are stellar. While Lego Marvel’s Avengers isn’t quite as good, kids who have seen the Avengers movies will likely find it enjoyable. Lego Marvel Collection can be played solo, but these games shine in local split-screen co-op. With intuitive combat systems, clever puzzles, and a relaxing tone, Lego Marvel Collection is an excellent choice for the whole family.
The LittleBigPlanet franchise has become Sony’s family-friendly platformer, similar to Super Mario for Nintendo. And LittleBigPlanet 3 has even more features than ever before. Along with a lengthy campaign filled with interesting puzzles, cool gadgets, set pieces, and platforming sequences, LittleBigPlanet 3 has a robust level editor and a plethora of customization options for Sackboy. It’s also a wonderful game to play cooperatively on the couch. LittleBigPlanet 3 released way back in 2014, but it holds up well. For a side-scrolling platformer that looks like something out of a child’s imagination, it doesn’t get much more pleasant and joyous than LittleBigPlanet 3.
Insomniac Games created arguably the best superhero game ever with Marvel’s Spider-Man. While there have been numerous solid Spider-Man games, none of them made the sensation of swinging across the New York City skyline feel nearly as good as Marvel’s Spider-Man. Rather than tell an origin story, Marvel’s Spider-Man focuses on a college-age Peter Parker, which helps it strike a great balance between the hero’s two very different identities. With free-flowing combat that rewards experimentation, a bevy of cool gadgets, and varied missions, Marvel’s Spider-Man is a consistently rewarding experience. Its follow-up, Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, uses the foundation already in place to deliver another great tale starring the young Miles Morales.
PS5 and PS4 users can play both games. We’re highlighting the Ultimate Edition for PS5 here, as it comes with Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered and Miles Morales. PS4 users can purchase Marvel’s Spider-Man: Game of the Year edition and Miles Morales individually. Marvel’s Spider-Man is rated Teen by the ESRB, but if you let your kids watch Marvel movies, it’s no more “mature” than the films.
Minecraft is the best-selling game of all time, so we’d imagine your kids (and probably you) have heard of it. The sandbox game heavily relies on your own imagination, making it a perfect choice for kids, especially those who like building things. Minecraft allows you to build your own world one piece at a time, which makes it a sandbox game that never really ends. There’s always something to do in Minecraft, and we think every kid should check it out. Along with being a fun game, Minecraft has some educational value, too.
Minecraft Dungeons is a spin-off that adds more structure to Minecraft. Though it retains a similar visual style, Minecraft Dungeons doesn’t revolve around building your own worlds. This is an action-RPG played from an isometric perspective that can be aptly compared to Diablo. Each of the levels are filled with baddies to conquer and loot to uncover. Minecraft Dungeons has intuitive mechanics and is an excellent couch co-op experience. It could serve as a great introduction to the genre, and you don’t even need to be a Minecraft fan to enjoy it.
Overcooked is a frantic cooking simulator that’s made for cooperative and competitive play. You play as adorable chefs who serve some very demanding customers by preparing dishes as quickly as possible. Overcooked can get quite chaotic, as kitchens shift over the course of each round and zany obstacles stand in your way. To get the job done, you and your teammates need to work together, communicating constantly to find the best and most efficient way to get the food ready in time. Overcooked: All You Can Eat offers a tremendous value, as it contains Overcooked and Overcooked 2 as well as a bunch of DLC. Both games are well worth playing, and the more the merrier. Overcooked truly excels when you have four chefs working together, so it’s a great pick for family game night. Overcooked: All You Can Eat has PS5 and PS4 versions.
Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville is a great entry-point to multiplayer shooters. As the third entry in the spin-off series, Battle for Neighborville features more cooperative and competitive content than ever before. Neighborville’s gameplay mechanics are easy to grasp, but there’s a lot of smart depth to be found thanks to unique character designs and a bunch of match types. Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville, at the end of the day, is a third-person shooter starring comical zombies and sentient plants set in a colorful world. It’s great whether you play split-screen or online with friends.
If you don’t have a PS5 in your house, you can’t play the latest Ratchet & Clank game (and next entry on this list), but you can still enjoy one of the franchise’s awesome action-platformers. Ratchet & Clank, a reimagining of the first game in the series, is an example of an updated version of a classic done right. While it retains the basic story and overall progression of the original, it implements a variety of mechanics found in subsequent entries to create a more modern experience. It’s a gorgeous game with plenty of high-octane action sequences and comedic moments provided by the cast of lovable characters.
Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart is arguably the most impressive game for PS5 thus far from a visual standpoint. Rift Apart makes superb use of the PS5’s power with its central concept: rifts. Throughout the adventure, you travel through portals to wholly different worlds instantaneously; this is especially awe-inspiring in some of the cutscenes and scripted sequences. Rift Apart very much feels like a Ratchet game, but it also introduces a new playable character, a female Lombax named Rivet. Ratchet and Rivet complement each other well, and their unique storylines help keep the gameplay fresh throughout. The game also makes great use of the DualSense’s haptic feedback and adaptive triggers, providing a more immersive combat experience. The whole package is impressive, from the stunning visuals and refined gameplay to the emotional story, soundtrack, and more. If you’re looking for one PS5 exclusive for your kids, we’d recommend Rift Apart over anything else.
Rayman Legends is one of the best side-scrolling platformers on PS4. Rayman has always been an underrated mascot, and the limbless hero’s lengthy adventure in Legends is his best outing yet. Rayman Legends features more than 120 levels, and there really isn’t a dud to be found here. Great level design paired with a cast of unique playable characters makes Rayman Legends’ great platforming gameplay even better. Rayman Legends is playable solo or cooperatively on the same screen with up to three other players.
Rocket League is a free-to-play multiplayer game that basically boils down to “soccer but with cars.” Rocket League is great for many reasons, but it’s particularly inviting to newcomers and casual gamers. Its pick-up-and-play mentality allows players to jump into the action easily thanks to its straightforward premise. That said, Rocket League still has a lot of depth to be unearthed amidst the chaotic pace of matches, which winds up giving it lasting replay value. Rocket League shines the brightest when played online, but you can also play split-screen offline.
Sackboy: A Big Adventure is essentially PlayStation’s Super Mario 3D World. A spin-off of the LittleBigPlanet series, Sackboy drops the iconic character into 3D platforming levels. At its heart, Sackboy has the style and general gameplay mechanics of the mainline series, but the move to 3D adds new wrinkles to the formula. Inventive level design, loads of customization features, and a truly incredible soundtrack make Sackboy a simply delightful platformer. Sackboy is a great choice to play cooperatively with your kids, and it’s breezy enough to be their “first” platformer. Sackboy: A Big Adventure has PS5 and PS4 versions, and the PS4 edition comes with a free upgrade to PS5.
If you want to introduce your kids to the games you played growing up, Sonic Mania Plus could be a great option. Sonic Mania Plus is basically a remixed “greatest hits” of Sonic’s heyday. Eight of the 12 zones feature updated versions of classic Sonic levels, and the new content is quite good, too. Sonic Mania Plus has retro visuals to match the Sega Genesis classics, but it has a smoother feel thanks to overall quality-of-life improvements. Sonic Mania Plus has five playable characters, supports co-op for two players, and has a competition mode for racing for the fastest times.
Spyro Reignited Trilogy compiles three platforming classics in one stellar package: Spyro the Dragon, Ripto’s Rage, and Year of the Dragon. Despite being nearly two decades old, the Spyro series holds up pretty well. Significantly overhauled visuals and quality-of-life improvements make the colorful worlds more vibrant and enjoyable to explore than ever before. That said, Spyro Reignited Trilogy remains true to the originals. These games are still collectathons with breezy gameplay mechanics and fairly simplistic puzzles, which make them ideal platformers for youngsters. Plus, you’re getting three games here, each of which has a lot of content.
Stardew Valley is the best alternative to Animal Crossing: New Horizons if you don’t have a Nintendo Switch. Stardew Valley is a country-life simulation game set in a small rural town. As a farming sim, you tend to crops, fish, and manage resources. You can also explore the mines, converse with the colorful cast of locals, and slowly build up your cozy plot of land into something you’re truly proud of. Stardew Valley has a time restriction on each in-game day, which could wind up as a good internal clock for limiting screen time (if needed). Stardew Valley also supports cooperative multiplayer, so you can join up as a farmhand and get to work alongside your kids.
Because Media Molecule’s Tearaway released on the PlayStation Vita, it didn’t receive the audience it deserved. Thankfully, Tearaway Unfolded came along, remedying that situation by bringing the inventive platform-adventure game to a much wider audience. Tearaway Unfolded stars a messenger who needs to bring a letter to a sky portal. The world is utterly charming and resembles a paper-crafted storybook. Throughout the adventure, you manipulate environments to solve puzzles, including using the DualShock 4’s touchpad to create unique objects and motion controls to shift platforms. Tearaway Unfolded is an imaginative platformer that is easy to recommend for kids of all ages.
Who doesn’t want to experience the world from the perspective of an annoying goose? Untitled Goose Game provides that exact dream-like opportunity, and it is every bit as funny and mischievous as it sounds. Let’s face it: No one likes geese. That said, it’s hilarious to embody one and mess with people who are just trying to go about their days. Untitled Goose Game does have a main campaign, which tasks players with solving puzzles by interacting with objects and messing with people. Admittedly, some of the puzzles are obtuse and may be hard to solve for those without much gaming experience. But it’s fun to simply run around and honk at people. You can even chase people into locking themselves inside a phone booth.
If absolutely nothing else, be grateful to Naraka Bladepoint for being one of a scant few battle royale titles where getting one-shotted by someone hiding in a shrub three football fields away isn’t a danger. That by itself makes it welcoming in a way the genre tends to ignore. But lurking beneath that relative ease and approachability is a shrewd game of wuxia-inspired combat that demandsfar more steelfrom its players–and we’re not just talking about swords and spears.
The basic premise of Naraka Bladepoint involves a secret island where warring gods once battled to their deaths, and warriors now battle for the smallest part of the gods’ power. But that story all but evaporates after the tutorial stage, aside from some skimpy lore cards for each character unlocked after reaching a certain XP level. All you really need to know is you’re on an island of abandoned villages, scattered weapon caches, and an undulating purple wall of death that ushers 60 brave warriors closer and closer together. Your sole mission is to be the last person standing, by any and all means necessary.
Click To Unmute
Size:
Want us to remember this setting for all your devices?
Now Playing: Naraka: Bladepoint – 11 Minutes of Gameplay
Survival means combat, but instead of the usual pistols/shotguns/assault rifles, you’re primarily looking at melee weapons. Ranged options do exist, from crossbows and slow-firing muskets to environmental hazards that can be triggered by the right slice or shot at the right time. You also have a grappling hook that not only allows you to zip across the map and onto higher ground, but also harpoon and fly at opponents Attack on Titan-style.Aside from the hook, each ranged option exists to merely soften up opponents from a distance as they close in. Getting the big fat kill involves getting up close and personal with something sharp, and here, showdowns with opponents have more in common with Dynasty Warriors and SoulCalibur than Fortnite.
Each weapon has a number of melee combos, fancy uppercuts, charge maneuvers, and parries, which is augmented by power-up shards of jade you can either find or purchase while out in the field. While button-mashing the first enemy you see works when you’re starting out (there are currently bots thrown in with actual players to ease you in at first) your first encounter with a player who knows what they’re doing will teach you some brutal lessons.
You start learning that your parry has a Sekiro-like margin of success, and even that’s predicated on a poorly-explained color system that tells you if your character has the ability to parry a specific attack altogether. Dodges are effective, but can be easily adjusted for by a smart, forward-thinking player. You’ll even run into the dreaded mechanic of weapons and armor degradation, which sounds like the dealbreaker on paper. However, repair items are widespread, and the push and pull of every player–regardless of how skilled they are–needing to find respite in order to be successful creates a rather nice tension to every match. You’re dealing with all of this while also wondering if the next warrior to finish you off hasn’t been waiting in the trees for you the whole time. Everyone is vulnerable here, as long as you catch them at the right moment.
Viper Ning is one of many characters you will get to play as in Naraka Bladepoint.
Gallery
That’s a solid and exciting foundation to build a battle royale game onto, but like most games of the sort there’s a lot of overhead room to grow. There are a few nitpicks with the game as a set of mechanics. The control scheme, in particular, occupies an awkward middle ground where actual combat is best with a controller, but equipping/switching items and managing your loadout damn near requires a mouse and keyboard. And switching back and forth effectively feels awkward, no matter how you decide to configure the layout.There are only a few game modes at the moment: a typical Battle Royale Mode, with an option for Apex Legends-style Trio matches included, and a free-for-all Deathmatch mode. That’s typically fine for a game that has more going on mechanically or narratively to keep you engaged, but that’s just not where the game is at right now, and the grind can get a little rote as a result.
Right now, the game’s biggest issue is one of personality. The world of Morus Island is absolutely gorgeous, a place of sun-kissed golden valleys, haunting shipwrecks, and derelict temples.There are more than a few moments so painterly, and evocative of Chinese mythology and ancient art I had to stop in my tracks to appreciate them, which typically resulted in someone I didn’t see deciding to try and snag a free hit. The environment of the game is very much on point as far as immersion goes.However, characters are a different case. With only two exceptions–the blind swordswoman Viper Ning, and the possessed witch Yoto Hime–the warriors of Morus Island are rather generic martial artists whose personalities don’t shine through, visually or mechanically. Each does have their own set of special moves and an Ultimate ability, but many of them are unwieldy in a hectic fight, at least until you’ve stuck it out with them enough to unlock the far more effective enhanced versions of those moves. There is some level of skin customization, where you can adjust a hero’s face and costumes to an extent, but because there isn’t really a reason to care about these people, you’re stuck making flimsy cosmetic changes. Most of the options for those changes are locked behind–you guessed it–a loot system, where there are multiple currencies, none of which are fully explained, and the most effective way to earn them comes from spending real money.
The world of Naraka Bladepoint pulls from folklore and ancient myths, which gives its environment a mystic and otherworldly aesthetic.
Gallery
Naraka Bladepoint’s UI is already a cluttered mess of things you don’t and shouldn’t worry yourself about until you’ve put several hours into the game, but once you’ve put in the time to try and understand, you realize just how much of the information boils down to “here are ways to spend coins, and you’ll need a lot of them.” The good news is that this doesn’t apply to anything that would make winning matches any easier, as you get XP no matter what, and leveling up to unlock each character’s alternate moves is fairly quick. The bad news is having to wade through all the other noise to do so.
There are issues for sure, but this early in, Naraka Bladepoint has room to grow and iron out its kinks. You can see the potential more than the problems when you’re in the thick of it, grappling from rooftop to rooftop, clanging swords with enemies, drums and wind instruments filling the air as you consider the best way to move in for the kill.There’s a forethought and shrewdness required to be successful here that gives it a very different feel than any other battle royale title that’s out there at the moment, and the ancient Chinese aesthetic is a dazzling one. If nothing else, it’s enough to want to see what the game looks and feels like in the months to come.
