Lost Blade Runner Adventure Game Is Now Available On GOG

Back in 1997, classic game developer Westwood Studios released Blade Runner, a video game adaptation of the classic Harrison Ford-helmed cyberpunk film. Upon release, the game was a critical and commercial success, and it quickly found its way to being a classic in the genre that nailed the atmosphere and vibe of its source material. But as time went on, legal disputes and rapidly growing changes in technology kept the game firmly in the past, making it difficult to play on new platforms. But now, the digital distribution platform GOG has brought the game back to the market.

Over 22 years since its release, Westwood Studios’ Blade Runner is now available on modern PCs via GOG. Just revealed during the digital distribution platform’s winter sale, the cyberpunk adventure game is now playable, DRM-free, on GOG for the low price of $10. Thanks to the winter sale, that price drops to $9 for a limited time.

No Caption ProvidedGallery image 1Gallery image 2Gallery image 3Gallery image 4Gallery image 5

Set before and during the events of the 1982 movie, you play as Ray McCoy, a blade runner who is searching for rogue replicants hiding out in alternate-2019 Los Angeles (yes, the game and the film were set in 2019, now making them period-pieces). Telling an original story, you explore many of the same locales while rubbing shoulders with returning characters as you uncover a vast conspiracy involving replicants and the corporations. With over 10 different endings, many of your choices and interactions with other characters will lead to different paths for McCoy to follow.

What’s notable about this adaptation is that it brought back several actors and other creatives from the film. In particular, Sean Young, Joe Turkel, and William Sanderson all returned to reprise their roles as Rachel, Edwin Tyrell, and J.F. Sebastian, respectively. Since its release, it’s become something of a lost game due to being stuck in legal limbo and outdated software.

The only way to have played Blade Runner today was by having the original game discs or running it through heavily modified emulated game files. Fans of classic adventure games online banded together to build a modified engine known as ScummVM, allowing newer PCs to run Blade Runner and other games in that style from the past. In a press release, a GOG representative stated that this port wouldn’t have been possible without the ScummVM community.

For more on what’s available on GOG’s winter sale, including a discount on Cyberpunk 2077, be sure to check out our roundup of games.

GameSpot may get a commission from retail offers.

Pokemon Go Adding New Buddy Adventure Feature

Pokemon Go will kick off the new year with a big new gameplay feature. Niantic shared the first details on Buddy Adventure, a new feature that is rolling out around the world by 2020 and gives you more ways to interact and strengthen your bond with your Buddy Pokemon.

Just as you can increase your friendship level with other players, you’ll be able to raise your Buddy Level with your Pokemon once the Buddy Adventure feature goes live. After feeding your Buddy Pokemon a berry from the new Buddy Pokemon profile page, you’ll become Good Buddies, and you’ll be able to see your Buddy Pokemon following along behind you on the overworld screen. You can further increase your Buddy Level to Great, Ultra, and Best Buddies by playing with your Pokemon, using it in battle, and taking snapshots of it.

Each Buddy Level also opens up different bonuses; you can see what each friendship tier unlocks below, courtesy of the official Pokemon Go website:

  • Good Buddy: Your buddy can join you on your map view! You’ll also see how your buddy feels on the Buddy profile page.
  • Great Buddy: Having a hard time catching a Pokemon? Your buddy may help you out in Pokemon encounters! It can also bring you items that can help you in your Pokemon Go journey.
  • Ultra Buddy: Your buddy will help you explore the world around you by letting you know about interesting places nearby! Your buddy will also bring you Souvenirs, which you can keep track of on the buddy profile page.
  • Best Buddy: Become Best Buddies, and your buddy will sport a Best Buddy Ribbon to show off to everyone just how close you two are! Pokemon that you’re Best Buddies with can get a CP boost in combat as long as they’re still assigned as your Buddy Pokémon.

On top of that, the new Buddy profile page will let you see your Pokemon’s mood, its progress toward finding Candy, and a list of daily activities to complete that will earn you hearts and, in turn, improve your Buddy Pokemon’s mood. Once your buddy’s mood is maxed out, it’ll be able to find Candy at half the distance it normally takes. On top of that, the Buddy Adventure update will make it so that changing Buddy Pokemon will no longer reset that Pokemon’s progress toward finding Candy.

Following the release of Buddy Adventure, Niantic teases that you’ll be able to meet other players’ Buddy Pokemon in a new “Shared AR Experience” mode. This feature will allow you to sync with up to two other players and take group photos with your Buddy Pokemon. You can read more about the feature on the Pokemon Go website.

In the meantime, there are still a lot of events in store for Pokemon Go this month. The Legendary Gen 5 Pokemon, Virizion, is making its debut in Raid Battles today, December 17, while Ho-Oh and Lugia are returning for a special Raid Weekend from December 20-23. Pokemon Go’s annual holiday event will follow beginning December 24 and will introduce a handful of new Gen 5 Ice Pokemon to the game. You can catch up on other recent Pokemon Go news below.

GameSpot may get a commission from retail offers.

The Witcher: Creating the ‘Elder Speech’ Language for the Netflix Series

We’re rolling out sneak peeks for Netflix’s The Witcher all month long as part of our IGN First exclusive set visit. Keep it locked right here for never-before-seen interviews and behind the scenes footage of the White Wolf, Ciri, and Yennefer. And be sure to check out The Witcher when it premieres on Netflix on Friday, December 20, 2019. For more, check out Henry Cavill discussing the common misconceptions about Geralt, Anya Chalotra breaking down Yennefer’s incredible transformation, and Freya Allan on how Ciri fits into the Season 1 storyline.  

Continue reading…

How Xbox One X Empowered Microsoft To Create Xbox Series X

Iterating on the Xbox One allowed Microsoft to solidify its vision for the Xbox Series X, the next-generation console revealed by Phil Spencer at The Game Awards. Speaking to GameSpot, Spencer recalled a showcase in 2016, when he indicated that the console could become upgradable and how that was originally one piece of a larger Xbox Series X picture.

“What was that the showcase event we did here like four years ago down in San Francisco where I went on my confusing rant about hardware upgrades?” he said in our interview. “We were working on both Xbox One S and Xbox One X, I don’t think we had announced either one at the time. One of the stepping stones for us getting here [to Xbox Series X] was Xbox One X, a box that was 100% compatible with Xbox One S but faster.

“We created Xbox One S, created Xbox One X, took a lot of feedback from fans, tried to make that feedback loop from both customers and developers pretty critical to who we are, and that’s been a pretty important part of our journey and we said we want to make that a core foundation of Project Scarlett.”

For Spencer and the Xbox team, the seamless compatibility between Xbox One S and the considerably more powerful Xbox One X speaks to the ethos Microsoft has for its gaming ecosystem, particularly for Xbox Series X.

“This idea that … there’s no boost mode, there’s nothing you need to like query, you can play your Xbox One games on an Xbox One X and they play better … That was a stepping stone in our learning to say, ‘Hey, well, how do we then take games to a new architecture but ensure that we get the benefits of that architecture with the game,'” Spencer said. “Because we didn’t want to slow everything down so that you don’t see all the benefits of what the new hardware gives you.

“I think on Xbox One X today, I can honestly say for almost all of the 360 games that run there, the best place to play them is no longer the Xbox 360. They actually play better on the Xbox One X and I want the same to be true here [with Xbox Series X]. And that kind of [goes] full-circle back to why the name is what it is, because this is the Xbox. This is where your Xbox games play.”

Microsoft has not yet announced when Xbox Series X will launch other than Holiday 2020, but it did say that it expects to have an exciting E3 2020. You may be wondering why it chose to reveal the new console at The Game Awards, and Spencer discussed this, along with other things, in our interview. Make sure to read our full exclusive Xbox Series X feature for more on the console and what Xbox has in store for us in the future.

Now Playing: Xbox Series X – Exclusive Details On Microsoft’s Next-Gen Console

GOG’s Massive Winter Sale Includes A Fantastic Cyberpunk 2077 Deal

It’s a good time to be a PC gamer, as every digital store seems to be launching its winter sale right now. Steam’s winter sale will reportedly launch this Thursday, December 19, and you can already find excellent deals at other stores like Fanatical and Green Man Gaming. But digital storefront GOG has some interesting game deals of its own as part of its winter sale, which is live now through January 2.

Notably, GOG is offering an excellent bundle with Cyberpunk 2077, the upcoming game by CD Projekt Red (which also owns GOG). For $87.77, you’ll secure a pre-order of Cyberpunk 2077, which releases April 16, and all of the Witcher games:

If you already own one of the above games, you’ll receive a redeem code via email that you can share with a friend. Be sure to check out our Cyberpunk 2077 pre-order guide for more info on the game’s special editions, if you know it’s a definite purchase for you. It’s worth noting that you’ll get additional pre-order bonuses if you pre-order Cyberpunk 2077 from GOG, including print-quality posters, an exclusive digital booklet, and more.

GOG’s winter sale includes some other great game bundles. One such collection is the Paradox Strategy Bundle, which gets you five great games for $70.56, down from a total value of $199.95. That bundle includes Stellaris, Battletech, and Surviving Mars as well as two 2019 releases: Age of Wonders: Planetfall and Imperator: Rome.

There are plenty of discounted games to grab as well, including critically acclaimed titles like What Remains of Edith Finch, Dead Cells, A Plague Tale: Innocence, and more. Check out our picks from the GOG winter sale below, and browse all the games currently discounted at GOG.

Best game deals at GOG

*includes VR edition

Now Playing: PC’s 5 Best Games Of 2019

PS4 Controller Gets Back Buttons Peripheral

The PS4‘s DualShock 4 controller is getting an optional upgrade, with the announcement of a new Back Button Attachment. The dongle slides onto the existing charging port of your DualShock, and adds two programmable buttons to the back. It’s coming in on January 23 for $30.

The teaser video shows the device clipping on, in which the two buttons are divided by a larger circular button. That central button is clickable to switch between three profiles, and also serves as an OLED screen to display button assignments and player profiles. The bottom of the device has a stereo headset jack.

Recently we’ve seen possible designs for the next-generation PlayStation controller, which have looked very similar to the existing DualShock 4. That controller patent had no back button functionality, but this add-on may indicate Sony is planning for future functionality if the next controller will follow suit. This adds functionality similar to the back buttons on the Xbox One Elite controller, and third-party controllers have added similar functions.

Meanwhile, both Microsoft and Sony have been slowly detailing their next-gen plans. For more detail on what Sony has in store, check out our wrap-up of everything we know about the PlayStation 5.

Gallery image 1Gallery image 2Gallery image 3

Now Playing: Playstation 4 – New Fall Dualshock 4 Wireless Controller Colors Trailer

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker First Reactions

Members of the press, celebrities, and lucky others attended the world premiere of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker ahead of its theatrical debut on December 20, 2019, and their first impressions were mostly positive.

Many claim that they will need a lot of time to digest everything that fills this final chapter of the Skywalker Saga.

Here’s our roundup of the first reactions to Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.

IGN’s Jim Vejvoda said “I’m still processing my thoughts on #StarWars #TheRiseOfSkywalker but overall I would say I liked it but had some big problems with it. Can’t say I loved it but there’s still a lot to unpack.”

Continue reading…

The Ni No Kuni Anime Movie Is Coming To Netflix In January

Level 5’s well-liked RPG series, Ni No Kuni, received an anime film spin-off in Japan earlier this year. It’ll soon be available in the west, but it’s skipping cinemas. The film is part of Netflix’s January 2020 plan, and will be available on January 16.

The Ni No Kuni movie is not directly connected to either game but features a similar premise;it follows two high-schoolers who are transported from our world to a fantasy one with some strange parallels. You can watch the Japanese trailer below–it’s not clear if Netflix will provide a dub. The film is directed by Yoshiyuki Momose, who also designed the characters.

The first Ni No Kuni famously featured animated cutscenes by Studio Ghibli, Hayao Miyazaki’s celebrated anime studio that has produced classics like My Neighbor Totoro, Spirited Away, and Grave of the Fireflies. Momose previously worked for the studio as a key animator. Studio Ghibli is not involved in the Ni No Kuni movie, though; it was produced by OLM, Inc. The studio is best known for animating the Pokemon anime series and movies.

Ni No Kuni is not the only new anime coming to the service during the month; Scissor Seven will be added on January 10 and Saint Seiya: Knights of the Zodiac: season 1 part 2 is coming on January 23.

The original Ni No Kuni game was released for the PS3 (and the Nintendo DS in Japan,) and was recently re-released for Switch, PS4, and PC.

Now Playing: Ni No Kuni II Video Review

GameSpot may get a commission from retail offers.