Crysis Remastered is coming to Switch on July 23, and considering that the original 2007 game famously required a very powerful PC to run, many players are curious about how it will translate to Nintendo’s hybrid console. Now, a new (very short) gameplay clip gives us some indication of how it will handle.
The three-second clip below, recorded directly from a Switch, shows off the Remastered edition’s improved environment destruction and vegetation bending. There’s a few other details to glean from it too–like the impressive draw distance–but three seconds isn’t much to work with. Still, it confirms that the Switch iteration of the game seeks to improve on the 2007 powerhouse, when often Switch ports are more basic.
While the Switch version is launching this month, the PC, Xbox One, and PS4 versions have been delayed, and we’ll have to wait to see what further tweaks or improvements they introduce. In a follow-up tweet, the official Crysis account has promised that more news on the other versions will be coming soon.
This is the first time the Crysis series has appeared on a Nintendo console. The Switch port is being handled by Saber Interactive, the studio behind the console’s version of The Witcher 3.
Hopefully Crysis Remastered on Switch will be another strong port.
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In a bit of good news, Ubisoft has confirmed it’s added a new data center in Australia to help players in the Oceania region have a smoother experience playing the game. The tweet also confirms that players don’t need to do anything to access the Oceania servers–local players will be automatically added to them for matches.
We’ve heard the feedback from our Oceania players loud and clear- we have added a new data center in Australia. Server is up now, and games are already running. No need to do anything extra on your side, besides go for the Crown!
Ubisoft has also confirmed that Hyper Scape has introduced new items, including the Javi Rebel skin and the matching Harpy and Pod skins. You can see these in the video below.
The Hyper Scape open beta includes four modes: squad and solo versions of the signature Crown Rush battle royale mode, as well as two limited-time modes, Hack Runner Squad and Turbo Mode Squad. An in-game shop is also available; it sells cosmetic items that you can purchase with Bitcrowns you’ve accrued. You can read more about the Hyper Scape open beta on Ubisoft’s website.
New items are available in Hyper Scape. Get the all-new Javi Rebel skin, along with the matching Harpy and Pod skins now!
Items will be available for purchase in-game until tomorrow at 5PM PT / 8PM ET. pic.twitter.com/BQ0cTmE66g
The Hyper Scape beta is available now for free on PC, but there is no word on if it will come to PS4 and Xbox One. Hyper Scape does not yet have a final release date, but it’s expected to release this summer.
There’s a new pack of free Fortnite cosmetics on offer for PS4 players, provided you’re a PS Plus subscriber. The bundle includes a new glider, a contrail, and an emote. Epic has offered similar free PS4-exclusive Fortnite packs in the past, most recently in April.
The relationship between Sony and Fortnite developer Epic Games reportedly deepened last week, with Sony investing $250 million to purchase a minority stake in Epic. According to a Gamesbeat report, one of the focuses of the new partnership will be Epic’s Unreal Engine 5, which will likely provide the backbone for many next-gen games on Sony’s upcoming PS5.
Additionally, Epic Games confirmed that the terms of the deal do not prevent the company from publishing on other platforms. Sony isn’t the only big player in the games industry to purchase a slice of Epic: Tencent reportedly paid $330 million to buy a 40% stake in the company pack in 2013.
The last time we saw Platinum Games’ action-adventure title Babylon’s Fall was during a somewhat-brief gameplay trailer unveiled in a December 2019 State of Play livestream. Now, after seven months of silence, the studio is back to confirm that development on the game is “continuing to progress well.”
“Thank you to all the fans who’ve been following along for updates on Babylon’s Fall,” Platinum Games said. “While we hoped to reveal more about the game this summer, we can share that development on Babylon’s Fall is continuing to progress well, with the team working safely from home. Square Enix and Platinum Games are committed to delivering an exhilarating experience and we look forward to showcasing much more on Babylon’s Fall to you as soon as we can.”
Platinum Games provided no other information about Babylon’s Fall, such as a release window or if PC and PlayStation 4 remain the intended launch platforms with the release of PlayStation 5 inching over the horizon. The studio also didn’t specify when we’ll get another look at Babylon’s Fall. However, according to a statement, the team plans to showcase “much more on Babylon’s Fall to you as soon as we can.”
Babylon’s Fall is an action-adventure game developed by Platinum Games (the studio responsible for other character-action titles like the Bayonetta series and Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance) and published by Square Enix. It features some similarities to another Platinum Games-Square Enix collaboration, Nier: Automata, as well as the recently revealed Bandai Namco game Scarlet Nexus. Your character in Babylon’s Fall, like the other games mentioned, uses a sword and has access to various ephemeral weapons that swirl around and do epic-looking, screen-shaking attacks.
It remains unclear if Babylon’s Fall’s protagonist is a fixed character or if the action-adventure game features character customization. Other details, like story structure and more, have also not be divulged yet.
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The new Horizon merch includes three pieces of apparel, each of which will ship in mid-August from the UK (so be prepared to pay international shipping). The first is a “Nora Brown” corduroy jacket with subtle stitched details that allude to the game, including Aloy’s Seeker symbol in the front. Both male and female sizing is available. The jacket costs $95 USD / £85 and ships to the US, Europe, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
The Horizon collection includes another understated piece of apparel, this beanie that comes with a special pin representing Aloy’s Focus. It’s a one-size-fits-all beanie and sells for $32 USD / £28. Am I going to run around wearing this, touching my Focus pin and pretending I’m scanning the environment for intel? Maybe.
These striped tees spotlight one of Forbidden West’s new machines, the elephant-like Tremortusk, which Guerrilla has described as “part combat-class machine, part lumbering fortress.” The T-shirt has an embroidered patch featuring the Tremortusk in a “chibi style,” making it look much more adorable than the giant machine you’ll actually encounter in Forbidden West. It’s available for $27 USD / £24.
Horizon Zero Dawn comics
Horizon Zero Dawn’s story was arguably the best part of the game, and if you’re craving more of it, the upcoming comic book series will tell an original story set in the world of Horizon. Published by Titan Comics, the Horizon Zero Dawn comics take place after the events of the first game and follows Carja hunter Talanah, a close friend of Aloy’s. Issue #1 is out on August 5, but there will also be a free issue in comic book stores on July 22 to celebrate Free Comic Book Day. Digital copies will cost $4, while physical copies go for $8.
Horizon Zero Dawn board game
The Kickstarter campaign for Horizon Zero Dawn: The Board Game kicked off in 2018 and was successfully funded in less than two hours. The campaign is coming to an end as the board game nears completion, but you can still place a limited edition all-in pledge that gets you the core game, all 10 expansion packs, and the Kickstarter-exclusive miniatures. Get ready to shell out, though, as the whole bundle costs $360 USD / £280. Pre-orders are only available for the next few days, ending July 16 at 4 PM PT / 7 PM ET / midnight BST. The core game will ship this November, with the additional items shipping in July 2021.
Horizon Zero Dawn vinyl soundtrack
Horizon Zero Dawn’s award-winning soundtrack is being re-released on vinyl to celebrate the game’s upcoming release on PC. The four-disc vinyl is back up for pre-order for $62 USD / £50, and this white edition is strictly limited to 500 copies. The box set ships August 21. Note that you’ll have to pay international shipping if you’re outside the UK–for me, that was $38.50, bringing the total cost up to $100. Different color variations will also be available at select retailers later this year.
If you’re looking forward to new music in Horizon Forbidden West, the track from the game’s reveal trailer, “Promise of the West,” is available to stream on Spotify or purchase now.
If you’re in the market for a new gaming laptop, monitor, or components for your gaming PC, you’ll want to check out Newegg’s FantasTech sale this week. The annual sale runs through July 16, offering a bevy of discounts on gaming and PC tech, from MSI and Asus laptops to hard drives and processors. Newegg is bundling Death Stranding with all GeForce RTX PCs and Assassin’s Creed Valhalla (pre-order) with AMD processors during the sale, too. You can browse the hundreds of deals at Newegg and see a handful of highlights below.
MSI’s GS75 Stealth-1074 is a high-end gaming laptop with superb specs. It has an Intel Core i7 processor with a 2.6GHz clock speed, a GeForce RTX 2080 Max-Q graphics card–one of the best Nvidia GPUs–32GB of RAM, and a 1TB solid-state drive. For a 17.3-inch laptop with an IPS display, it’s fairly compact, and the keyboard has backlit, multi-colored keys to give it the look of a traditional gaming keyboard. While it’s $600 off during the sale, if you complete a mail-in-rebate, you’ll save an additional $200. You’re also getting Death Stranding, which releases this week on PC, for free with your purchase.
Asus manufactures some of the best gaming laptops around, and if you want to dive into PC gaming without breaking the bank, the mid-range Asus Rog Strix G is a solid gaming laptop that’s $300 off right now. Equipped with a 9th generation Intel Core i5 processor and a GeForce GTX 1660 Ti GPU, the Rog Strix is capable of running modern games at medium settings. It’s also fitted with 8GB of RAM and a 512GB solid-state drive. The 15.6-inch IPS display has a 120Hz refresh rate, and the keyboard has RGB backlighting.
The $70 discount on this great AMD Ryzen 7 processor is enough to make it enticing, but remember, you’re also getting Assassin’s Creed Valhalla for free, which costs $60 and releases November 17. If you’re looking for a new CPU for your gaming PC, the 8-core Ryzen 7 boasts a 3.6GHz clock speed that is capable of boosting up to 4.4GHz. This Ryzen 7 isn’t the fastest AMD processor out there–it isn’t even the fastest in the Ryzen 7 series–but it offers enough speed for the average user and hobbyist gamer.
Gigabyte’s AORUS KD25F gaming monitor combines a great look with next-level performance. This frameless 25-inch 1080p resolution monitor is “eSports grade,” and that’s probably an accurate description considering the fact that it has a ridiculous 240Hz refresh rate to keep the action on screen humming without a hitch. Couple the fast refresh rate with just a 0.5ms response time, and you’re in for a consistently smooth experience. The monitor supports G-SYNC and AMD FreeSync technology and comes with an adjustable ergonomic stand.
While not a new trend, AAA games tend to have massive install sizes, and online multiplayer games with frequent updates (such as Call of Duty: Modern Warfare) get exponentially larger as time goes on. If you often find yourself running out of space on your gaming PC, Western Digital’s Element 6TB hard drive is available at a steep discount. This USB 3.0 desktop hard drive is practically 50% off right now.
While San Diego Comic-Con is an entirely digital event this year, plenty of companies are still offering up exclusive collectibles timed to Comic-Con@Home. That includes Mattel, which will be revealing several new geek-worthy toys in the days ahead.
First up is a new Star Wars-themed Hot Wheels vehicle, depicting Luke Skywalker’s iconic X-Wing from The Empire Strikes Back. This toy features movie-accurate detailing, right down to the tangle of weeds and mud from the Dagobah swamp.
Get a closer look at the Hot Wheels X-Wing in the slideshow gallery below, and keep checking back all week as we update the gallery with new Mattel reveals.
The Hot Wheels X-Wing is priced at $25 and will go on sale on Thursday, July 23 at Mattel Creations.
Mattel previously revealed a Comic-Con-exclusive Jurassic Park figure we expect to be one of the most desirable toys of the summer. The Barbasol Dennis Nedry figure is an homage to one of the more iconic moments from the original movie. It features a Nedry figure encased inside a replica shaving cream container that even includes light-up effects and sound clips.
We may be halfway through the year already, but a whole lot of PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch games are slated for release during the back half of 2020. And that’s not even counting the games coming out for PS5 and Xbox Series X, both of which are scheduled to launch this fall. To help you keep track of the deluge, we’re maintaining the following list of major video game release dates across all consoles. If you’re ready to lock in a preorder for any of the titles you see, click the buy links.
Click the shortcuts below to hop to your system of choice.
July is a big one for PS4 owners. Not only do those of us with a PSVR headset get to don the iron suit and soar the skies, but everyone can grab Ghost of Tsushima and sneak around murdering enemies, samurai-style.
Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 – TBA – Buy It
Yakuza: Like a Dragon – TBA
Upcoming Nintendo Switch Games
The big Switch game this month is Paper Mario: The Origami King, which lands on the hybrid device on July 17, the same day PS4 owners get a chance to tackle Ghost of Tsushima.
Today there’s a great deal on a full decked out 2020 Alienware Aurora gaming PC, complete with an unlocked 10th gen Intel Core i7 processor and RTX 2080 video card. The new Bowflex SelectTech Curl Bar is also finally available for order, and it’s even $50 off only at Amazon. Check them out and more.
With Star Wars: The Clone Wars recently ending its seven-season run, Lucasfilm is developing a new spinoff series called Star Wars: The Bad Batch. The new series will focus on the titular team previously introduced in the opening storyline from The Clone Wars: Season 7.
Star Wars: The Bad Batch will premiere on Disney+ at some point in 2021.
First appearing in the Season 7 premiere “The Bad Batch,” these characters are a group of elite Clonetroopers who are more genetically unique than their clone brothers, allowing them to carry out unusually dangerous and challenging missions. This spinoff series will take place shortly after the end of the Clone Wars, with the quartet eking out a living as mercenaries and struggling to find a new purpose.
“Giving new and existing fans the final chapter of ‘Star Wars: The Clone Wars’ has been our honor at Disney+, and we are overjoyed by the global response to this landmark series,” said Disney+ SVP of Content Agnes Chu in a statement. “While the Clone Wars may have come to its conclusion, our partnership with the groundbreaking storytellers and artists at Lucasfilm Animation is only beginning. We are thrilled to bring Dave Filoni’s vision to life through the next adventures of the Bad Batch.”
The series will be helmed by a number of Star Wars veterans, including executive producers Dave Filoni, Athena Portillo, Brad Rau and Jennifer Corbett, co-executive producer Carrie Beck and producer Josh Rimes. Rau will also serve as supervising director and Corbett will be head writer on the series.
While no voice actors were named in Lucasfilm’s press release, it seems safe to assume Dee Bradley Baker will reprise his role as all five members of Bad Batch – Hunter, Crosshair, Tech, Wrecker and Echo. The time period also offers clues as to other iconic Star Wars characters who might appear, such as Ahsoka Tano, Captain Rex or a young Kanan Jarrus.
