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Finally, it’s time for Stanley to pay the price for the murders he’s committed. Let’s just say he gets what he deserves and joins the Freak Show as its newest member.

With or without Stanley (aka Richard), Elsa is determined to leave Florida for Hollywood, CA. She believes she will become the star that she’s always dreamed of. But first, she needs to sell off the Freak Show. She does so and Chester Creb becomes the new owner.

But Chester has a few problems of his own. He’s gone a bit crazy following his return from the war and we soon find out that he’s no magician at all. He commits a horrible accident during a practice run with the Goldin’s Sawing Box.

Dandy returns to turn the Tattler twins against Chester by exposing his dark past but we all know Dandy has ulterior motives as well. The twins tip Elsa off that the rest of the group wants her dead, and before they can track her down, she runs off.

With Elsa and Chester no longer in the picture, Dandy becomes new owner of the Cabinet of Curiosities for a mere $10,000. Something tells us Dandy isn’t going to be a nice boss.

Paris Games Week 2020 will not go ahead, the event’s organizers have announced. The event, which was planned for October 23-27, would have marked the week’s 10th anniversary.

“It is with great emotion that we have made the difficult decision to cancel Paris Games Week,” the announcement reads. “The current context and the necessary anticipation of both the technical and logistical complexities of an event such as Paris Games Week have led us to cancel this edition.”

While COVID-19 is not explicitly mentioned, it is undoubtedly responsible for this decision. “This year should have been special, with a line-up full of new releases, and an anniversary edition which we were thrilled to celebrate with you,” the announcement continues.

Paris Games Week is one of the major game trade show events in Europe, and it’s one of many 2020 events cancelled–E3 will not happen this year, and GDC will be digital only. An event this late in the year, though, could have given attendees a look at Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 games, so it’s unfortunate that it cannot go ahead.

Some major reveals have occurred at Paris Games Week in the past–for instance, Sony used it to unveil a huge and brutal The Last of Us Part II trailer back in 2017.

Hopefully Paris Games Week will be able to resume in 2021.

GameSpot may get a commission from retail offers.

GameSpot may get a commission from retail offers.

New Zealand has begun to allow some film and TV productions to resume shooting after the Coronavirus lockdowns, setting up a path for Amazon’s The Lord of the Rings series and James Cameron’s Avatar sequels to kick back into gear.

Deadline reports that some movie and TV productions have already begun again, and the Lord of the Rings series and the Avatar sequels may follow, the site said.

The live-action shoots for the Avatar sequels were filming in New Zealand. After the Coronvirus pandemic broke out, filming stopped, but work continued on the visual effects.

The New Zealand Film Commission told Deadline that all local productions must register with New Zealand’s health and safety group, ScreenSafe, to assist the country’s Ministry of Health in tracking the virus.

New Zealand, which has some of the strictest border protection and lockdown rules in the world, has recorded around 1,100 cases of COVID-19 and 21 deaths. For comparison, the state of California alone recently surpassed 60,000 cases and more than 2,000 deaths.

New Zealand continues to limit international travel and still has bans on large gatherings of people, preventing or impacting large-scale productions like the Avatar sequels and the Lord of the Rings series from resuming. Deadline reports that New Zealand is expected to relax its social-distancing rules later this month to allow for groups of up to 100 people to gather, though international travel may still be restricted or limited for some time, which could impact talent flying into the country for filming.

The first Avatar sequel hits theaters on December 17, 2021. Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, and Stephen Lang will reprise their roles from the first movie, and will be joined by Kate Winslet, Vin Diesel, Michelle Yeoh, and Jemaine Clement.

There are also another three Avatar movies scheduled for 2023, 2025, and 2027 releases. However, Cameron has previously stated that the latter two films depend on the box office performance of the first sequel. The first Avatar held the record for the biggest movie of all time for nearly a decade, before it was finally beaten by Avengers: Endgame last year.

As for the Lord of the Rings series, Amazon has not yet announced a release date. The network is clearly enthusiastic about the series, however, as it’s already announced Season 2.

Nintendo had a lot to celebrate in its latest financial report and call to investors, as the system has achieved 55 million sales, and the recently released Animal Crossing: New Horizons has sold incredibly well. With this in mind, Nintendo is sticking to its guns and continuing support of the Switch as the next generation of consoles rolls in.

During their call to investors, which was live-tweeted (and translated) by Astris Advisory Japan KK’s Dave Gibson, Nintendo stated that that system is “barely in the middle” of its cycle. The system came out three years ago, which means we’re looking at least another three years before we might expect to see Nintendo announce or release a successor.

If the Switch is supported for six years, it’ll roughly match the life cycle of the Wii. There is, historically, some fluctuation in how long Nintendo consoles have been supported–the Wii U was closer to four and a half years–but the gap between console releases is generally around six years. There has been some suggestion from Nintendo that the Switch’s life cycle might be longer than usual, though–so it could stretch well past six years.

Whether or not the Switch will match the Wii’s total sales figures (101.63 million) remains to be seen, but it’s currently tracking to overtake that figure and become Nintendo’s best-selling console of all time.

Here are the top ten best selling titles on the system to date–unsurprisingly, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe holds the top spot.

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“I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe,” begins Roy Batty’s dying monologue in Blade Runner. In the nearly 40 years since Ridley Scott’s film established a visual aesthetic for what would become known as cyberpunk, we’ve seen these things many times now. Cloudpunk is a complex and uneven narrative-heavy adventure game that trades heavily in cyberpunk cliche. Familiar tropes are rejuvenated with mostly smart writing and consistently striking art direction, but there are also opportunities missed thanks to undernourished, by-the-numbers design.

Nivalis is the last city, or at least that’s what people say. Towering neon spires thrust out of the climate-ravaged ocean and, eventually, emerge through the clouds; at the top live the privileged few, the self-dubbed CEOs secluded in their stratified penthouses, while underneath everybody else ekes out a living in the dense urban sprawl where every city block has a noodle stand, night is permanent and it’s almost always raining. You’ve seen it all before, of course, yet this well-worn set dressing is rendered in such singular fashion it remains striking throughout.

Simply put, Cloudpunk is a stunningly gorgeous game. Nivalis is constructed out of voxels, big chunky bricks of solid colour that give the urban landscape the feel of an enormous, elaborate Lego diorama. Terrific use is made of contrast and lighting. Skyscrapers almost recede into negative space, their facades composed of hundreds of tiny boxes of light, alternating in lurid pinks, yellows and blues. When you’re flying through the city in your hover car, each turn delivers a spectacular view, each ascension over a row of high-rises greeted with a dazzling neon-drenched vista. To be honest, this review took longer than it should have because I had to pause every few seconds to snap off another screenshot.

Yet it’s even better when you get out of your hover car and traverse the city on foot. Here, the camera is locked to a certain view, typically showing a side-on vantage that takes in the street you’re running along, with your character often rendered with no more than a tiny handful of voxels in the middle. At first the lack of camera control feels restrictive, but soon the intended purpose becomes clear. Relying on a predefined camera perspective means every shot is designed to best showcase the frequently jaw-dropping environment, with the scale working hand in hand to make you feel even more in awe of it all looming over you. Occasionally the camera zooms in, usually when you venture down a narrow alley, thus replicating the claustrophobic press of the surrounding structures. Other times it’ll drop to ground level and tilt up to cinematically frame an event happening in the distance or maybe just to point out–once again–how amazing the city looks. Cloudpunk is constantly tapping you on the shoulder to say, hey, check this out, and at least in terms of postcard material it never fails to disappoint.

Inevitably, the reason why you’re exploring Nivalis and able to enjoy such breathtaking scenery must suffer from the comparison, so perhaps it’s sensible that the character you play is given a prosaic profession. Rania is a courier for Cloudpunk, an illicit delivery company that takes the jobs others refuse. A recent arrival in Nivalis, Rania is working the gig economy in an attempt to shake the Debt Corps. It sounds like a terrible idea to my 2020 ears, as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to expose the precarity of all labor–especially freelancers–in a capitalist world, but Cloudpunk (the company) seems enlightened to an implausible degree. Rania might have to pay for her hovercar’s own gas, but she doesn’t have to rely on tips, and if her vehicle is stolen Cloudpunk will replace it at no cost. Not to mention she can somehow afford a spacious studio apartment before she’s even worked a day in the job.

That job consists of getting a call from Control, the Cloudpunk handler, being assigned a waypoint, and piloting to the required destination. As a cloud city, Nivalis has some worryingly lax “road” rules. Rania is free to fly her hover car almost anywhere, weaving through residential complexes and swooping over business parks before touching down on the designated parking zones in each district. Narrow highways get you to her destination faster, but I preferred to take the scenic route.

The primary story is told through these jobs, as Rania stumbles into a mystery concerning who or what controls Nivalis, and why it is so clearly falling apart at the seams–literally, in some instances, as another skyscraper collapses, tumbling into the ocean to a collective shrug from a downtrodden population resigned to its fate. As Rania interacts with her handler and Camus, her AI companion (who once embodied a robot dog but now resides in her car, yet still behaves like a dog), and speaks to clients and eventually passengers, you don’t get to choose her dialogue options. Conversations are set in stone. Early on, Rania would prefer to keep her head down and not get involved. She just wants to do the job and pay off her debts. Her compassion comes to the fore, though, her wariness subsides, and she develops into a strong voice over the course of the game. I didn’t always agree with what she had to say, but it’s a credit to the overall calibre of the dialogue that I wanted to keep hearing it and add to my understanding of her take on the world.

Even if there aren’t choices to be made in dialogue, Rania is presented with a number of binary decisions during certain jobs. These tend to arise from Rania discussing events with Camus and realising there’s an alternative to the task she’s been given; however, they’re not all executed to the same standard. Some feel logical and you totally get why she might think this is a better solution, and some feel suitably urgent as they burden you with newfound dramatic weight. Yet others come across as contrived, as if they’re choices for the sake of choices. Regardless, the consequences of all these decisions never match the setup, their underwhelming conclusions usually predictable, though sometimes maddeningly vague, and occasionally downright silly.

Indeed, the quality of writing varies wildly across the board. As you’d expect, the central mystery receives most of the attention, though some of the minor characters you can run into throughout the city open up side stories worth investigating. Given Rania’s outsider status, issues of cultural memory and appropriation are handled with a deft touch while the core examination of how technology both diminishes and enhances our humanity thankfully goes beyond the basic question of whether robot is human. The writing is at its best when it’s focused on people whose situations connect with the wider themes at play in its critique of capitalism. Story threads about corporations automating their labour to endlessly replicate capital to the sole benefit of shareholders, or the drug company releasing a new strain of virus so it can sell the cure it’s manufactured, are delivered with a grim wit that transcends cliche.

Cloudpunk is at its weakest when inserting knowing references to contemporary culture–Rania’s encounter with a “Debate Me” dude has its heart in the right place, but it’s simply too on-the-nose and fails to find anything relevant or interesting to say beyond the fact that “Debate Me” dudes suck. The best-written side character is unfortunately also the one whose questline progress is locked behind the baffling inclusion of collectibles. On balance, though, the good outweighs the bad here, and the real disappointment is that it’s such a close call.

If the inconsistent writing hints that Cloudpunk isn’t entirely sure what type of narrative experience it wants to be, then the addition of a light economic layer betrays a lack of confidence. Money earned from successful jobs must be spent on the odd trip to the gas station to refuel, and can also be put towards a couple of non-essential handling upgrades and cosmetic tweaks to the hover car. Food and drink can be purchased and consumed to give Rania a slight speed boost while a handful of drugs can be bought to make the screen go blurry and little else. There’s even a thin trading game where you can buy low and sell high between vendors to maximise profits. But it’s all so unnecessary, the impact of any part of this economy so trivial that you’re left confused as to why it’s there at all. It doesn’t actively harm the experience, but it’s a distraction you’re much better off ignoring completely.

Cloudpunk is a game with a single core strength so powerful it alone is sufficient to make it an easy game to recommend. Thanks to the rare beauty and rich atmosphere of its voxel-driven cityscape, Cloudpunk is a constant joy to explore. Whether soaring through the neon-plastered clouds or darting across vertiginous walkways dangling a hundred storeys in the air, the desire remains to keep pushing forward because the next view might be even better. And it usually is. It’s not a straightforward case of style over substance, because in Rania and in much of the story there’s no lack of substance, but it can feel that way when the style is so disproportionately stellar.

Microsoft’s latest Inside Xbox stream revealed a slew of third-party games coming to its next-generation console, Xbox Series X. Among them is Yakuza: Like a Dragon, which is now confirmed to release on Series X as well as Xbox One, PS4, and PC later this year (it released in Japan back in January). While we don’t have a set release date for Yakuza: Like a Dragon yet, we know it will be a launch title for Xbox Series X, and it’s available to pre-order now if you want to secure your copy early.

Like a Dragon supports Xbox Smart Delivery, which means buying the game on Xbox One will get you the Series X version automatically. The game also has cross-save support, so if you start playing on Xbox One, your progress will transfer over to Series X.

While Yakuza has traditionally been a PlayStation-exclusive series, there’s been no mention of a PS5 version just yet.

Yakuza: Like a Dragon is the eighth mainline title in the Yakuza series and the first one that won’t follow Kazuma Kiryu as the protagonist. Instead, you’ll play as Ichiban Kasuga, a low-ranking yakuza grunt who goes to prison for a crime he didn’t commit to make himself a hero in his clan–only to be released 18 years later and find that no one is waiting for him. Kasuga realizes he’s been betrayed by the man he trusted the most and sets off on a journey to discover the truth behind the behind his family’s betrayal and take his life back.

Unlike previous games in the Yakuza series, which feature beat ’em up battle mechanics, Like a Dragon introduces turn-based RPG-style combat with a four-person team. However, you’ll still take on side quests and enjoy side activities like “Dragon Kart,” a Mario Kart-style racing game. Check out our full Yakuza: Like a Dragon preview for more information on what to expect from the game.

Below, we’ve rounded up everywhere you can currently pre-order Yakuza: Like a Dragon. So far, the only available edition is the Day One Edition.

Yakuza: Like a Dragon pre-order bonuses

No pre-order bonuses have been announced so far for Yakuza: Like a Dragon, but we expect they’ll be announced as we get closer to the game’s release.

Pre-order Yakuza: Like a Dragon | $60

As of right now, the physical Day One Edition is available to pre-order, and it costs $60. You’ll also get any pre-order bonuses that are announced later. Right now, Amazon and Best Buy both have placeholder box art for the game, but it may look similar to Japan’s (shown above).

PS4

Xbox One / Series X

PC

Now Playing: Yakuza: Like A Dragon Xbox Series X Trailer | Inside Xbox

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