Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered Announced, Releases In November

Developer Criterion Games, in collaboration with Burnout Paradise Remastered co-developer Stellar Entertainment, announced that Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit will be remastered for Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered drops this November.

More specifically, Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered launches on November 6 for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One and November 13 for Nintendo Switch. Criterion shared a reveal trailer alongside the announcement and some gameplay, which you can see below. You can also check out our Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered preview for more details.

Among the many improvements made to the game, Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered comes packaged with newly enhanced visuals, all the main DLC that adds six more hours of gameplay and over 30 challenges, and cross-play multiplayer support powered by Hot Pursuit’s social networking technology Autolog. Through Autolog, players can compete against each other in asynchronous multiplayer, as well as share their experiences, pictures, challenge competition lists, and stats with other players across the world on any current-generation platform.

There currently doesn’t seem to be any plans by Criterion to bring Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered to PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series S/Series X, although it should be playable on those consoles via backwards compatibility.

Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered is an enhanced, overhauled version of the 2010 game of the same name by Criterion. It is not a remaster of 1998’s Need for Speed III: Hot Pursuit.

We gave the original 2010 game an 8.5/10 in our Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit review, saying, “Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit is one of the most thrilling racing games around.”

Now Playing: 10 Minutes Of Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered Gameplay

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Microsoft Boasts About Xbox’s Big Year Ahead Of Xbox Series X And Series S

Right now all eyes are on the next generation of Xbox, Series X and Series S. But before those new consoles arrive in force, Microsoft took a moment to pat itself on the back for the last year of games on its current-gen system, Xbox One.

An Xbox Wire post from Microsoft’s Aaron Greenberg outlined a few milestones from this year on Xbox. Among those, the company set a new record for first-party games with 15 Xbox Game Studios games launched this year, 10 of which were entirely new games. He also boasted that players have put 1.66 billion hours into Xbox Game Studios games this year.

Greenberg also gave a few notes on particular games. Microsoft Flight Simulator and Ori and the Will of the Wisps both received 90+ ratings on GameSpot sister site Metacritic, and Wasteland 3 came in not far behind with an 86 and won Best RPG at Gamescom. Grounded has hit more than 1 million players while Sea of Thieves has surpassed 15 million to date.

Finally, the company shared a few fun stats about some of its biggest games. Microsoft Flight Simulator has logged 26 million flights and more than a billion miles flown, which is 15 times the number of actual daily flights taken in 2019. Minecraft Dungeons has had 6.9 million multiplayer sessions in the last two months, and 2/3 of those were couch co-op. And Grounded players have squashed 500 million bugs, but that only represents a tiny fraction (0.000000000005%) of bugs in the game.

Of course, the new generation is backward compatible with the old one, so all of these games (except Flight Simulator, which is PC-only for now) will run even better on Xbox Series X and Series S. Our Xbox Series X hands-on impressions found that the faster loading times and Quick Resume features are big quality-of-life improvements, even if the new gen isn’t coming with big weird ideas.

Both Xbox Series X and Xbox Series X are coming on November 10. Preorders have been snatched up quickly whenever they become available, so if you’re still looking for one keep an eye on our Xbox Series X and Series S preorder guides.

Now Playing: Xbox Series X And Series S Prototype Impressions

Fall Guys Season 2 Exclusive: New Level Knight Fever Revealed

IGN is delighted to exclusively reveal Knight Fever, a brand new level coming to Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout Season 2.

Designed as an episode-opening race, ideally featuring 60 players, of which 75% will qualify, Knight Fever is a long, crowded gauntlet through a selection of Season 2’s new medieval-themed obstacles. You can check out a video of Knight Fever in action below:

[ignvideo url=”https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/10/05/fall-guys-season-2-exclusive-knight-fever-level-reveal”]

Like other races, Knight Fever is split into distinct sections, each with different obstacles to overcome (and you can check out concept art of the full level below). In turn, those obstacles are:

  • Two uphill sections outfitted with spinning blades and holes in the floor
  • Two sets of spinning logs covered in patterns of spikes
  • A downhill slime slide, also covered in spinning blades
  • A stretch of ground with holes on the floor and swinging, spike-covered logs
  • Three sets of drawbridges that open and close erratically
  • The finish line!
Knight Fever full stage concept art.
Knight Fever concept art.

Knight Fever’s been designed as something of a “skill check” for players who’ve mastered Fall Guys over the last 2 months since release – don’t go in feeling too confident, essentially. You’ll be able to learn a lot more about Knight Fever tomorrow, as we have a full making-of the level with two of the game’s designers coming up.

Knight Fever is just one of a number new minigames coming in the medieval-themed Fall Guys Season 2. The update will also add medieval and fantasy-themed costumes, nameplates and titles, and be a little more generous with the crowns it doles out.

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Joe Skrebels is IGN’s Executive Editor of News. Follow him on Twitter. Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to [email protected].

Ghost Of Tsushima 1.1 Update, Free Legends Multiplayer Mode Out Next Week

Ghost of Tsushima‘s 1.1 update arrives next Friday, October 16, developer Sucker Punch has announced. The free update introduces a wealth of new content to the open-world action game, including the previously announced Legends multiplayer mode, a New Game+ option, and more.

Sucker Punch shared more details about the incoming content in a PlayStation Blog post. The aforementioned Ghost of Tsushima: Legends is a co-op mode that features two-player story missions as well as a four-player survival missions, with a Raid game type coming “in the weeks following launch.”

Once you’ve installed Ghost of Tsushima’s 1.1 update, you’ll need to download the Legends unlock from the PlayStation Store. You’ll also need to have an active PlayStation Plus subscription to play it with others.

As previously announced, Legends is inspired by Japanese mythology. Unlike the main game, it does not feature Jin, but rather a character of your own making. Your character can be one of four different classes: samurai, hunter, ronin, and assassin. You’ll choose one of these classes when you first begin Legends, unlocking the remaining ones as you progress through the mode.

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Sucker Punch says Legends is “packed with new cosmetics.” All of these will be earned through gameplay, so the studio assures there won’t be any microtransactions. You’ll unlock rarer and more powerful gear as you complete more difficult challenges, and new techniques will be earned as you gain experience with each of the classes. Sucker Punch also says Legends will arrive with its own set of Trophies to unlock; these will be listed separately from the main game’s Trophies and won’t count toward its Platinum.

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In addition to Legends, Ghost of Tsushima’s 1.1 update introduces a New Game+ mode that will let you play through the entire adventure again with all of the techniques, gear, and other items you’ve earned in your previous playthrough. You’ll also discover some new elements in New Game+, including a special horse that boasts “a vibrant red mane and unique saddle,” as well as new charms and a new type of flower called Ghost Flowers. You can exchange these flowers for more elaborate armor dyes.

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How Xbox Series X Makes The Falconeer Look And Perform Better

The Falconeer is one of the games that will accompany Microsoft’s Xbox Series X and Series S when it launches on November 10, optimized for that next-gen consoles to create a more graphically rich experience. An open-world air combat game that also allows for deep exploration, The Falconeer will use Xbox Series X technology to make its ocean world of Ursee more detailed and vibrant.

“Over the last few days I’ve been adding more and more ships to the harbors with absolutely no impact on the game’s performance, and that’s the sort of thing you can do with this new generation – richer worlds, with more detail and life,” developer Tomas Sala said to Xbox Wire. “The extra performance on the next-generation Xbox and a high-end PC means developers can make worlds feel more alive.”

Two other aspects of The Falconeer that Sala focused on were the frame rate and resolution of the game, which runs at 4K and 60 FPS on Xbox Series X. At that frame rate and resolution, Sala said that The Falconeer achieves a level of graphical clarity akin to gazing at fine art in your living room.

The Falconeer
The Falconeer

“In my opinion I believe 60fps should be a foundational feature of the next generation,” Sala said. “As a maker I don’t accept that 30fps is sufficient for action games with high-intensity gameplay, like you experience during dogfights in The Falconeer. Achieving 60fps on previous generations required compromises and sacrifices you won’t have to make next-generation – sacrifices to AI, to visuals, to background simulation, to the scale of your open world, to levels of detail. 60fps is a must, and a huge benefit to players.”

“But if I run a game at 6K or 8K I can pause the game and it’s like having a piece of art in your living room. It’s so crisp! The other one is 4K… but also 6K and 8K! It’s funny, because when you look at a television, you can always tell you’re looking at a TV, because even on high-quality screens you can see pixels and jagged lines and stuff. But if I run a game at 6K or 8K I can pause the game and it’s like having a piece of art in your living room. It’s so crisp! I think that’s wonderful, and I think players will be blown away by the clarity and crispness of games at higher and higher resolutions.”

The Falconeer will be one of several launch games for the Xbox Series X and the Series S. If you’re curious to know more about the console, you can check out GameSpot’s hands-on impressions with a preview build of the Series X.

Now Playing: Arcade Style Air Combat On A Bird | The Falconeer Gameplay PAX East 2020

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The Witcher Gets New Armor For Season 2 Of Netflix Series

It’s been 10 months since Netflix released Season 1 of The Witcher, starring Henry Cavill, and now, production is underway for Season 2. And with a new season of the show based on the video game series, the titular monster hunter will be getting some brand-new armor.

Production is currently underway in the UK, and Geralt’s new armor is pretty metal. Check it out below.

Cavill as Geralt
Cavill as Geralt

Looks like we’ll be getting to see Kaer Morhen in the upcoming season. “Convinced Yennefer’s life was lost at the Battle of Sodden, Geralt of Rivia brings Princess Cirilla to the safest place he knows, his childhood home of Kaer Morhen,” reads the official description for the show. “While the Continent’s kings, elves, humans and demons strive for supremacy outside its walls, he must protect the girl from something far more dangerous: the mysterious power she possesses inside.”

Geralt's sweet sword
Geralt’s sweet sword

Netflix wants to make The Witcher its next big franchise. There is already a live-action prequel series in in the works taking place 1,200 years in the past called The Witcher: Blood Origin. Additionally, there is a The Witcher anime coming in the near future as well.

As for Season 2 of The Witcher, there isn’t a set release date at this time. It’s set for 2021, but considering the show is still in production, we may be close to a year before we see the next season.

Cyberpunk 2077 Has Gone Gold

Cyberpunk 2077 has reached a production milestone, as CD Projekt Red announced that the game has “gone gold.” The studio took to Twitter to mark the occasion, with a promo image showing Keanu Reeves’ character Johnny Silverhand holding a gold Cyberpunk disc.

Going “gold” is an industry term to describe finalizing and certifying the game code that is pressed to retail discs. It usually comes shortly before a game’s release date, to allow for production time, but it signifies that official work on the base game is completed. The work doesn’t end there, though, as many modern games also come with day-one patches that may squash some remaining bugs or add quality-of-life fixes and tweaks. Going gold also makes the possibility of another delay pretty low, given that it’s already been delayed several times.

For CD Projekt Red, that last stretch has come under scrutiny recently, following reports that the studio had instituted mandatory extra work. CDPR studio head Adam Badowski referenced the game nearing completion in his statement confirming the crunch period.

“These last 6 weeks are our final sprint on a project we’ve all spent much of our lives on,” Badowski wrote. “Something we care for deeply. The majority of the team understands that push, especially in light of the fact that we’ve just sent the game to cert and every day brings us visibly closer to shipping a game we want to be proud of.”

CDPR hasn’t outlined what to expect in a day-one patch, but those details will likely come closer to launch. Cyberpunk 2077 is coming on November 19 to PC, PS4, and Xbox One. Though it will be playable on Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X, and PlayStation 5, it won’t be native to those consoles. CDPR has promised free upgrades coming to the next generation, but has not set a release target for those versions. For more details, check out our Cyberpunk 2077 preorder guide.

Now Playing: The Districts Of Night City In 2077 | Cyberpunk 2077 Lore

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Ryan Reynolds Plays The Hero In New Free Guy Trailer

The second trailer for the Ryan Reynolds comedy Free Guy has arrived.The first teaser dropped last December with an original release date in July, but was pushed back like several movies of the year. Free Guy is now tentatively scheduled for December 11. Check out the new trailer below.

Reynolds plays Guy, a bank teller NPC in a video game that looks like a mix between Fortnite and Grand Theft Auto. In the trailer, we see that thanks to programmers Milly (Julie Comer) and Keys (Joe Keery), Guy becomes aware of his world being a video game, and takes steps to make himself the hero for once. The game’s publisher, Antoine (Waititi) now wants to shut down the game as it’s causing chaos.

Free Guy had been in development at Fox before its acquisition by Disney, and is one of the first Fox films to continue production under Disney ownership, as well as under the studio’s new name 20th Century Studios.

Despite the new premiere weekend, that could move or be null and void as theater chains like Regal have temporarily shut down. However, some movies are making a more seamless transition to streaming such as the remake of The Witches that will be hitting HBO Max later in October.

How Call Of Duty: Warzone’s New Armored Royale Mode Works

Call of Duty: Warzone Season 6 has kicked off with a new limited-time game mode, called Recon: Armored Royale. In it, several squads comprised of four players each will be dropped onto the Verdansk map with an armored vehicle and armed only with a pistol.

The vehicle itself is more heavily armored than a regular cargo truck, comes equipped with a fortified gun turret located above the driver’s cabin, and a custom buy station that will allow for repairs and upgrades.

The trucks are also capable of reviving downed teammates, provided that it is still operational and is within a safe area for an operator to respawn into, as the Gulag will not be around in this mode. Respawns will also be disabled after the sixth circle collapse and should your truck be destroyed you’ll also lose the ability to cheat death.

Call of Duty: Warzone
Call of Duty: Warzone

While players won’t need their truck to survive along with them, the upgrades that can be purchased for it makes the vehicle a tactical advantage in this last team standing mode. The turret can be upgraded to deal more damage, more armor can be purchased for the truck, and a UAV upgrade adds a radar sensor that will reveal enemy positions nearby.

Recon: Armored Royale isn’t the only new content coming to Call of Duty: Warzone. Players who reach battle pass tier 18 will receive the Edward Finishing Move, a sneak attack that allows them to summon a vampire bat to bite attack an enemy.

In other Call of Duty news, Activision recently detailed the Zombies mode for Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War ahead of its launch on November 13 for PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X and Series S. For more on this year’s latest Call of Duty game, check out our preorder guide to learn about the bonuses and editions that will be available.

Now Playing: Call Of Duty Warzone Season 6: Everything You Need To Know In Under 3 Minutes

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