Halo Infinite has added a second composer. Developer 343 Industries confirmed as part of the game’s big showing that Ori and the Blind Forest‘s Gareth Coker has come aboard to co-compose the music for Halo Infinite alongside Curtis Schweitzer.
“We’re huge fans of Gareth, known most recently for his work on the Ori soundtracks,” Halo boss Chris Lee said in a blog post. “Gareth’s work can be heard throughout the campaign including one of my personal favorites we refer to internally as ‘Escharum’s theme.'”
Escharum is the new villain in Halo Infinite–he is the leader of the Banished. According to Microsoft, Escharum will be “one of the most formidable foes the Master Chief has ever faced.”
Music has always been a huge part of the Halo series, from the very beginning with the iconic score that Martin O’Donnell wrote at Bungie. The new score for Halo Infinite, at least going off what was in the eight-minute gameplay demo, appears to be carrying forward this legacy.
Coker and Schweitzer will work alongside Halo Infinite music supervisor Joel Yarger on the project.
Halo Infinite is scheduled for release this holiday as a launch title for the Xbox Series X. The game will also come to the regular Xbox One as well as PC. Launch will be just the beginning for Halo Infinite, as 343 sees it as a platform that will be supported for 10 years.
Back at E3 2018, Microsoft announced an ambitious beta-testing program for Halo Infinite that would see developer 343 Industries invite people to test the game ahead of launch and give feedback to the studio. Now, the developer is scaling back some of those plans.
In a blog post, 343 boss Chris Lee said the studio remains “committed to building the game in partnership with our community,” but the company is making some changes.
“Given the unprecedented challenges of this year, we’re not quite where we expected to be in terms of broader public flighting,” Lee said. “While not the full program we had envisioned, we have been working very closely with the community on nearly every facet of the project.”
Some of the challenges that Lee is referring to here including the shift to a work-from-home setup for 343 and its development partners. Additionally, Lee said 343 has been impacted by the social justice movements taking place around the US and the world, with its team members taking time to come together and take a stand against racism.
Although 343 is scaling back its beta-testing plans for Halo Infinite, Lee mentioned that 343 worked with “confidential groups of community representatives” since the beginning of the game’s development to gather feedback around the game’s art style and story, while the studio also brought in community members to playtest the game.
While 343 can no longer commit to offering public beta tests for Halo Infinite, Lee said 343 is “assessing options for broader hands-on opportunities before launch.”
Lee also mentioned that there may be beta tests after launch given how 343 plans to grow and evolve Halo Infinite over time. “In fact, in many ways, feedback and community flighting will be even more important after launch as we partner together to continually evolve and update the game into the future,” Lee said.
343 sees Halo Infinite as a platform instead of game, and one that the studio plans to support until 2030 or later. Halo Infinite is scheduled for release this holiday as a launch title for the Xbox Series X. The game will also come to the regular Xbox One as well as PC.
9 Monkeys Of Shaolin | Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Despite being just two and a half levels long–with the half being a tutorial introducing the controls and story–I found myself growing a little bored during the 9 Monkeys of Shaolin demo. Developed by Sobaka Studio, the Russian team behind the underrated isometric twin-stick brawler Redeemer, 9 Monkeys of Shaolin has this staunch air of familiarity to it: The story–in which Japanese pirates invade and pillage a remote Chinese country–echoes a similar set-up to Ghost of Tsushima and the control scheme is eerily reminiscent of (yet surprisingly simpler than) Redeemer’s. Even the enemy types and environmental backgrounds are familiar and generic.
And yet, after finishing the short demo and re-watching the 2018 announcement trailer, I was still intrigued by the RPG elements and excited for what’s to come.
9 Monkeys of Shaolin is a side-scrolling beat-em-up that put me in control of the fisherman Wei Cheng. The combat is simple yet fluid, with the controller’s face buttons performing one of four actions: kicks, slashing strikes, thrusts, and dodges. Every action can be canceled into another–for example, the three different attack types can be combined together or immediately interrupted by a parry move–which allows me to remain aggressive and reactive when surrounded by multiple enemies. Though the arsenal was limited, the short demo seemingly belies the depth 9 Monkeys of Shaolin has buried within it. There’s also online and offline co-operative play, which should make the combat even more chaotic during later levels, especially when you acquire new moves and better gear and magical spells.
With being a small, vertical slice of the final game, the 9 Monkeys of Shaolin demo is by no means indicative of how the game will look and play when it drops on Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. But the demo does make the case that, if anything, 9 Monkeys of Shaolin will be an enjoyable action romp when played with a friend. — Jeremy Winslow
Watch out The Office and Scrubs, there’s a new show with a retrospective podcast on the way. Saved by the Bell is going to get the episodic breakdown in a new podcast called Zack to the Future and it’ll be hosted by none other than Zack Morris himself, Mark-Paul Gosselaar.
The news comes from Variety, which reveals Gosselaar hasn’t actually seen the show since he finished filming it over 20 years ago. Now, he’ll be rewatching the first season to break it all down. He’ll be teaming with co-host Dashiell Driscoll, creator of the web series Zack Morris is Trash.
In a statement, Gosselaar said, “For years I have been asked by the dedicated fans of Saved by the Bell to revisit the show. I couldn’t wrap my head around an idea that would keep the audience entertained and celebrate the beloved series we created over 30 years ago, mostly because I can’t remember a thing about making it, and I am thrilled to say I have found the answer.”
As for Driscoll, he seemingly could be more thrilled to make a podcast about Zack Morris with Zack Morris. “I’ve been told there are other TV shows besides Saved by the Bell, and someday I hope to watch one of them–they sound fantastic,” he said. “But until then, I’m so excited to return to Bayside and introduce Mark-Paul Gosselaar to Zack Morris, and to do so with [producer] Cadence13.”
The news of this podcast comes as Gosselaar is preparing to return to his Saved by the Bell roots. He’s been confirmed to be appearing on the upcoming reboot for NBCUniversal’s Peacock streaming service, in which viewers will learn Zack has become governor of California.
The first episode of Zack to the Future will debut July 29 on all podcast platforms.
In case you’re worried about whether Season 2 will be the last you see of Amazon Prime Video’s The Boys, there’s some good news coming your way. The streaming service announced at Comic-Con@Home that the show has already been renewed! That’s right, Season 3 is in the works, before Season 2 even begins streaming. What’s more, work on it has already begun.
“Amazon, in a bold and historic push to expand their ‘weirdo’ demographic, has greenlit Season 3 of The Boys! The writers and I are hard at work in the (virtual) writer’s room and we’re sad to say, the world has given us way too much material,” showrunner Eric Kriokke said in a press release. “We hope to be shooting in early 2021, but that’s up to a microscopic virus.”
It was also announced during the panel that Season 2 would see the debut of an aftershow for The Boys, titled, Prime Rewind: Inside The Boys. The series is set to be hosted by Aisha Tyler (Archer) and will feature members of the cast and crew of The Boys. According to Kripke, Inside the Boys–which he assures fans is a double entendre–is “a deep dive into how we make this insane thing.”
In a statement, Tyler said, “The Boys is one of the smartest, most irreverent, unapologetically badass shows streaming. I became a fan during Season 1 and this season I’m stoked to be flying fans into the heart of the show as host of Prime Rewind: Inside The Boys. Season 2 is bigger, badder, and more audacious than ever before, so join me after every episode as we dig through the rubble pile of our feelings. I promise, we’ll get through it like The Boys–dysfunctional, but together.”
During the panel, the cast discussed the upcoming Season 2, which starts with the Boys themselves on the run, Homelander out of control, and Starlight “trapped” in her current situation within the Seven. Showrunner Eric Kripke spoke to the show’s biting social commentary, and teased that Season 2 will tackle white supremacy, white nationalism, and systemic racism.
Karl Urban, who plays fan favorite Butcher, teased his Season 2 storyline. “The end of [Season 1] was a complete game changer for Butcher,” he said. “It was a real paradigm shift. It changes everything going forward for him, you know–his objective through Season 2 is to really find Rebecca and rescue her, to get his wife back. And so if Season 1 was Butcher really focused on blind revenge for the perceived death of his wife, Season 2 really becomes about getting her and saving her, and the moral questions that arise from that.”
The Boys follows a team of misfits who want to expose corrupt superheroes, primarily the group known as The Seven. In the world of the show, they’re essentially the Justice League, but run by the world’s greediest corporation. The series stars Karl Urban, Jack Quaid, Laz Alonso, Tomer Capon, and Karen Fukuhara, among many others. Season 2 premieres on September 4.
Call of Duty: Warzone is full of awesome, hilarious, and big-brain moments- sometimes all at once. This is our roundup of the top 5 Call of Duty: Warzone Moments of the week.
In our first clip, Reddit user KuzushiKavanagh makes a seemingly impossible save. After his friend FeedtheP0ny is downed on top of stadium, the only way he can pick his friend up is by letting him fall down. FeedtheP0ny plummets down to his friend in this hilarious mid-air revive.
In our second clip, Reddit user Releasethesnacken finds himself surrounded by an entire enemy squad…only they don’t even know it. He’s able to hide behind three other enemies on the back of a pickup truck and go entirely unnoticed. That is until he wipes them all out using his R9-0 shotgun.
Clip number 3 features Twitter user Fhoowd in quite the pickle. Surrounded by two riot-shielding enemies, Fhoowd attempts to take them head-on. Unfortunately, the two enemies aren’t letting up and are making their way closer for the kill. Low on ammo, Fhoowd thinks quickly and drops his ammunitions box, which when fired at can be used much like a claymore explosive. As the shielders move in for the kill, Fhoowd drops the box and fires on it, killing both enemies at once. This incredibly risky move proved worthwhile for Fhoowd as he takes a few seconds for a victory tea-bagging.
Clip 4 is a terrifying look at what a glitchy operator skin can look like. If you want to pick up the Earth Expeditionary Force pack you’ve been warned. To round off our list, clip 5 comes from a Playstation Network user by the name of Pete_392. Pete is separated from his team when he comes across two enemies within inches of his position. Luckily, with the help of his riot shield, he’s able to go unnoticed in a corner for nearly a minute. Shocking still is that he manages to stealthily take down both enemies as they still have no idea he’s even in the same building as he is.
Paramount has shifted the release of both A Quiet Place: Part II and Top Gun: Maverick to 2021.
A Quiet Place: Part II was scheduled to arrive in September but has been moved to April 23, 2021. Top Gun: Maverick was set for launch on December 25, 2020 but it’s been grounded for another six months; it’s now slated for July 2, 2021.
Paramount has also nudged 2021’s Jackass a couple of months, from July 2, 2021 to September 3, 2021.
Both films were initially postponed in April but have been pushed back again as uncertainly surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic continues.
“We truly believe that there is no movie-viewing experience like the one enjoyed in theatres,” said Paramount’s President of Domestic Distribution Chris Aronson and President of International Theatrical Distribution Mark Viane in a joint statement provided alongside the delay confirmations. “We are committed to the theatrical experience and our exhibition partners, and want to stress that we are confident that, when the time comes, audiences everywhere will once again enjoy the singular joy of seeing Paramount films on the big screen.”
Max Payne is 19 years old as of July 23, 2020, and the much-loved shooter is well-remembered for its slow-time, Matrix-inspired shooting, its great, melancholy script, and the scrunched-up face that Max wears throughout the game. Sam Lake, who is still with developer Remedy, is responsible for those last two–he was the game’s writer and the model for Max’s face.
Now, to celebrate the game’s birthday, Lake has taken to Twitter to fulfill a frequent fan request and, once again, “do the face.”
You can see the face below, and speculate on how Max might look if we ever get a Max Payne 4 with Remedy at the helm.
For comparison, here’s Max’s face from the 2001 classic.
Lake was recently a credited writer and worked on the concept for Control. He also wrote Alan Wake, which will crossover with Control in an upcoming DLC.
Max Payne, unfortunately, dropped this face after the first game–and the character looked very different by the Rockstar-developed Max Payne 3.
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The Sonic the Hedgehog sequel now has a release date. Film studio Paramount has announced that the untitled sequel will come to theatres on April 8, 2022.
The announcement of the release date came as part of a wider shake-up at Paramount. Top Gun: Maverick has been delayed by around six months from December 23, 2020 to July 2, 2021. Additionally, John Krasinski’s A Quiet Place II moved from September 4, 2020 to April 23, 2021. On top of that, the new Jackass movie has shifted from July 2, 2021 to September 3, 2021.
Sonic the Hedgehog was a big success when it released back in theatres in February, just before many closed due to the pandemic. The sequel was revealed in May, with both director Jeff Fowler and writers Pat Casey and Josh Miller reportedly set to return.
The Sonic cast includes James Marsden, Ben Schwartz, and Jim Carrey, but it’s unknown if they will be reprising their roles. The Sonic movie ended with a post-credits stinger teasing the arrival of another beloved character from the video game franchise, Tails, so it’s assumed he will be in the sequel.
Paramount Pictures is a subsidiary of GameSpot’s parent company, ViacomCBS.
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Overwatch has been patched for July 23, 2020, and some changes have been introduced across the game, including in Experimental Mode. A few tweaks have been made to several characters across the game, some bug fixes have been made, and Moira is seeing some big changes in Experimental.
First up, newest character Echo is getting two changes, as the developers try to give the android the right level of sound so that players can hear her coming but aren’t given too much notice that she’s around the corner. Here are the notes for audio adjustments to Echo:
Audio volume and distance have been reduced for an enemy Echo’s passive hover sound
Audio directionality improvements have been made for an enemy Echo’s hover and tri-shot weapon fire sounds
Experimental Mode is currently using a 2-2-2 Role Queue ruleset, and it has introduced balance changes to Genji and Moira. The Genji update tones down his most recent buff, while Moira is getting a more significant update to rebalance her. Here’s the complete list.
Genji
Shuriken
(General) Damage decreased from 30 to 28
(Secondary Fire) Recovery increased from 0.65 to 0.75
Moira
Biotic Grasp
Attach angle reduced by 37%
Biotic Orb (Damage Orb Only)
Damage radius reduced from 4 meters to 3 meters
Projectile slow amount after a target is found increased from -72.5% to -80%
Damage-per-second now scales based on how close the target(s) are to the Biotic Orb
Between 0 – 1 meter: It will deal 150 damage per second
Between 1 meter – 3 meters : Scales linearly down from 150 to 25 damage per second
Note: The normal damage orb on live is always 50 damage per second
The total potential damage the Biotic Orb can deal is unchanged: 200 damage total
Fade
Now phases out all allies within 6 meters (and self) for 1 second after exiting Fade
Phasing makes a hero immune to all damage and effects. It will work exactly like Reaper’s Wraith Form or Moira’s own Fade effect in this regard
Finally, here’s a short list of bug fixes introduced in the update, including changes to Brigitte and Wrecking Ball to counter issues players have been facing.
Overwatch July 23 2020 Update Bug Fixes
General
Fixed a bug that displayed player presence as being in the Arcade while playing a Competitive Open Queue match
Fixed a bug with the end of match and end of season UI displaying incorrect values for your career high SR
Fixed a bug in custom games that caused forward spawn rooms to be active for players on Deathmatch maps such as Temple of Anubis, Hanamura and Volskaya
Heroes
Brigitte
Fixed a bug that could cause continuous armor decay for heroes with inherent armor when receiving multiple Repair Pack charges
Wrecking Ball
Fixed a bug where Wrecking Ball could hit an enemy much faster than intended with Roll Damage
Overwatch recently patched out McCree’s noose spray and replaced it with a horseshoe and the text “Bad Luck”. Updates for the game are rolling in at a slower rate now that Overwatch 2 is in the works, but the good news is that once the sequel launches the original game will receive every new character and map introduced for the next game.
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