GreedFall: An Unknown World That You Will Shape With Diplomacy
At Gamescom 2019, the CEO of Spiders Jehanne Rousseau discussed more details of GreedFall, the upcoming action-RPG that will be released on September 10, 2019, on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC.
Speaking to IGN’s Brian Altano and Max Scoville, Rousseau talked about how a big part of GreedFall is about diplomacy, and revealed more about character customization, companions, factions, natives and the language created for them by Spiders, and so much more.
GreedFall is set in a world that is heavily inspired by 17th century Europe, but with a heavy influence of fantasy, magic and fantastical creatures. The Old World is plagued with a deadly, incurable disease called Malichor, but a remote and hidden island called Teer Fradee has been discovered that has been spared from it and may hold the key to curing the world of it.
Destiny 2 Cross-Save Is Great, If You Can Get It Working
The much-anticipated ability to move your Destiny 2 progress between multiple platforms has finally arrived. Destiny 2 cross-save launched a couple of hours later than originally scheduled, but it is here–and it really does work as promised, provided you can get through the setup process in the first place.
Cross-save’s launch coincided with maintenance to Bungie.net. Bungie was forced to delay the launch several hours due to maintenance, which is still ongoing at the time of this writing. Despite that, it is possible to get things working now.
As detailed in Bungie’s cross-save guide, you’ll have to connect each of your accounts and then authenticate them as truly being yours. This appears to be the stage at which most people are being tripped up. Several of us here at GameSpot found that authenticating one platform caused another to become undone. Repeatedly authenticating ultimately worked for me and allowed me to proceed–all platforms have to be authenticated before continuing–but others are still stuck on this step and are sometimes presented with “500” errors when authenticating.
Today’s maintenance has been extended as we investigate an issue with account authentication on https://t.co/4ucwiEYycJ, resulting in “500” errors for some players. Stand by for updates.
If you encounter any other issues, please report to the Help forum: https://t.co/cOAIctERNC— Bungie Help (@BungieHelp) August 21, 2019
Bungie has said it’s aware of these errors and is thus continuing the maintenance period. There’s no word on how soon this might be resolved, but more players continue to get in and presumably this is a temporary hitch that will soon be forgotten.
And that’s good news, because cross-save seems genuinely great. While it would have been nice to get cross-play (meaning you could play with those on other platforms regardless of you being on PS4, Xbox One, or PC), this is the next best thing. And this is arguably a superior option, setting aside the issue of needing to own content on each platform. As a longtime console player, moving to the PC version almost feels like playing a completely new game. As great as the game looks on an Xbox One X, the 60+ FPS framerate on PC is a sight to behold, and the speed with which Pursuits and other menu screens load is a massive quality-of-life improvement. And luckily, from what I’ve been able to experience so far, progress does seem to transfer seamlessly. I earned some gear and completed a bounty on PC and was then able to boot up my Xbox One and cash in that bounty and dismantle the gear with no apparent delay.
To its credit, Bungie tries to make it clear what you own on each platform
The one key downside to cross-save is that it requires you to own the game on every platform you want to be able to play on–and it makes things rather complicated. Things will change a bit later this year, as Bungie will be releasing Destiny 2: New Light, a free-to-play version that includes the base game and its early DLC expansion. Additionally, Destiny 2: Shadowkeep will launch as a standalone expansion, so you could in theory just buy that on your secondary platforms and play that new content. But going with New Light or Shadowkeep would preclude you from accessing, say, Forsaken’s Raid or Black Armory’s Forges–though gear you earned from those activities on your main platform(s) is still usable. Further complicating matters is that the PC version of Destiny is moving from Blizzard’s Battle.net to Steam later this year. If you want to dive into Destiny 2 cross-save without any restrictions right now, your only option is to buy a bundle of all currently available content on Battle.net, and then transition to Steam later. Furthermore, you can only spend Silver–the game’s premium currency–on the system you purchased it on.
Confusion over what you can access aside, there are sure to be some quirks that pop up. For instance, a friend of mine found that he was able to claim certain bounties on Xbox One before jumping over to PC, where he doesn’t own Forsaken, and also claim replacement bounties. That’s hardly going to upend the balance of the game, though it remains to be seen if players discover any more impactful loopholes.
Death Stranding: Geoff Keighely Discusses Mysterious Online Multiplayer
At Gamescom, Hideo Kojima gave us the best look at Death Stranding so far. Maybe too good a look. Now, Opening Night Live host Geoff Keighley spoke about what players can expect from Death Stranding when it is released, including some details about the mysterious multiplayer.
Speaking with IGN at Gamescom, Keighley talked about the multiplayer portion of Death Stranding that Kojima hasn’t spoken too much about just yet. According to Keighley, the multiplayer portion really exemplifies the themes of “connection” that Kojima has talked about whenever discussing Death Stranding. Watch the interview in the video above.
“What he’s doing with the online aspects of it, I think people aren’t quite fully ready for what he’s doing.”
Netflix’s Cannon Busters: Season 1 Review
Cannon Busters is a bit of an odd beast. An adaptation of the short-running 2000s comic of the same name (with the comic’s author, LeSean Thomas, serving as the showrunner), it is nonetheless animated by a Japanese anime studio. This makes it the newest of Netflix’s ever-growing pantheon of shows that blur the line between “anime” and “cartoon.” The result is something that absolutely feels like an anime — though, interestingly, an anime from the late ‘90s rather than today.
Cannon Busters takes the “everything but the kitchen sink” approach to its world-building. Technology, androids, mecha, and other sci-fi trappings? Check. Magic, demi-humans, monsters, and other fantasy elements? Got those too. Ninjas? Yep. Cowboy bounty hunters? Sure. A pink Cadillac that turns into a giant robot with a bull’s head and runs on quarters? Do you even have to ask?
Empire of Sin Is XCOM Meets Boardwalk Empire, and It Looks Brilliant
After playing the first half-hour or so of Empire of Sin, I could easily have stayed where I was and played the rest of the day. While it’s still in a pre-beta state, Empire of Sin feels polished, with deep systems that beg for more probing. After all, this is essentially Boardwalk Empire crossed with XCOM – what’s not to find completely intriguing?
Empire of Sin is set in prohibition-Era Chicago. As one of 14 bosses with different interests (speakeasies, union protection, or casinos), you’re tasked with building an empire built on Chicago’s most precious currency: alcohol. You can get your alcohol that’s produced in breweries, you can get if from your allies, or you can occasionally get it from missions. “So alcohol is the number one currency of Prohibition-era Chicago,” says Game Director Brenda Romero. “So we make it, we consume it in our rackets, without alcohol your businesses aren’t going very far.”
Minecraft RTX Trailer Highlights a Shiny Makeover
Nvidia has revealed Minecraft awash in a coat of new pretty paint, with a new trailer on Monday that shows the before and after effects of Nvidia’s raytracing capabilities, with thoughts on the update by Minecraft’s development team.
Watch the trailer above to see all sorts of locales get the RTX treatment on Windows 10, including vibrant homes, glistening lakes, darkened tunnels full of glowing lava, and expansive caves with light filtering in from cracks above. We went hands-on to experience the improvements with Minecraft using RTX, and felt that it looks like an entirely new game. You can hear more of IGN’s thoughts in the video below.
The raytracing will include enhanced lighting, reflections, and shadows across the world, putting more depth and quality into the classic blocks that retain the same assets, but with better looking textures all around. Nvidia also mentioned that everything will be moddable to benefit players, which is a spot of good news after it was announced that the Super Duper Graphics Pack has been cancelled.
Marvel’s Avengers Aims to Balance Comics History and Originality
With Marvel’s Avengers, developer Crystal Dynamics had the difficult task of balancing the old with the new. Marvel Comics is celebrating its 80th anniversary in 2019, giving the developer a rich history of character and story to draw from. But, according to Crystal Dynamics studio head Scot Amos, the development team wasn’t interested in simply retelling old tales: With encouragement from Marvel, Crystal is blending that history with original storylines, costumes, and abilities.
This week’s Gamescom provided the closest look at Marvel’s Avengers yet; Crystal allowed attendees to go hands on with the Marvel superhero game, in addition to releasing a 19-minute Avengers gameplay demo. During the show, IGN sat down with Amos to discuss the aforementioned balancing act, hero customization, games as a service, and more. You can watch the full interview above.
Pokemon Go Jirachi Guide: How To Complete Thousand-Year Slumber Special Research
Pokemon Go‘s Ultra Bonus rewards have been revealed, and there are a lot of exciting things coming to the game over the next few weeks. Not only will players soon have their first opportunity to capture Gen 5 Pokemon, the Mythical Jirachi is also making its official debut in Go through the new Special Research questline called “A Thousand-Year Slumber.”
To catch the Mythical Pokemon, you’ll first need to complete a variety of Research tasks. There are seven sets of tasks in total, and many of them revolve around Pokemon that hail from the Hoenn region. A few of the quests, however, will require you to do some battling, so you’ll need to put in a lot of work to complete the entire line. Once you’ve cleared all of the Special Research tasks, you’ll earn the chance to capture Jirachi.
You can check out the full list of Thousand-Year Slumber quests below. This questline was previously available at this year’s Pokemon Go Fests; if you completed it while at one of those events, then you’ll earn extra Jirachi Candies instead. All players who complete the questline will also receive a special Jirachi shirt for their avatar.
Thousand-Year Slumber Quests
Step 1
- Catch 25 Pokemon — 1,000 XP
- Spin 10 PokeStops or Gyms — Jigglypuff encounter
- Make 3 new friends — Feebas encounter
Rewards: Glacial Lure, Mossy Lure, and Magnetic Lure
Step 2
- Catch 3 Whismur — 10 Whismur Candies
- Evolve a Feebas — 1,500 XP
- Catch 90 Pokemon in the Hoenn Pokedex — 1,500 XP
Rewards: 2,000 Stardust, 10 Poke Balls, 3 Incense
Step 3
- Take a snapshot of Loudred — Snorlax encounter
- Make 3 Great throws in a row — 2,000 XP
- Earn 3 Candies walking with your buddy — 2,000 XP
Rewards: 20 Silver Pinap Berries, 3 Star Pieces, 2,000 Stardust
Step 4
- Catch 50 Psychic- or Steel-type Pokemon — 2,500 XP
- Power up Pokemon 10 times — 2,500 XP
- Send 10 gifts to friends — 2,500 XP
Rewards: Fast TM, Charge TM, Premium Raid Pass
Step 5
- Battle a team leader 3 times — Kricketune encounter
- Win against another trainer 7 times — 3,000 XP
- Win 5 Raids — 3,000 XP
Rewards: 3 Rare Candies, 20 Ultra Balls, 3,000 Stardust
Step 6
- Take 5 photos of Steel or Psychic Pokemon — Chimecho encounter
- Make 3 Excellent curveball throws — Bronzong encounter
- Spin a PokeStop 7 days in a row — 4,000 XP
Rewards: 10 Silver Pinap Berries, 10 Star Pieces, 5,000 Stardust
Step 7
Reward: Jirachi encounter
Pokemon Go Ultra Bonuses
The Thousand-Year Slumber questline isn’t the only Ultra Bonus reward that Niantic is offering. Beginning September 2, the developer will be making a variety of other bonuses and special Pokemon available in the game for a limited time. There will be a new set of bonuses each week between September 2 and 23, and they include the appearance of new Shiny Pokemon as well as the first Gen 5 monsters. You can see all of the bonuses below.
September 2-9
- Entei, Raikou, Suicune, and other Johto Pokemon will appear in Raid Battles
- Unown U, L, T, R, and A may hatch from 10 km Pokemon eggs
- Shiny Sentret and Shiny Gligar will appear in the wild
September 9-16
- Farfetch’d, Kangaskhan, Mr. Mime, and Tauros may hatch from 7 km eggs. You may also hatch their Shiny forms
- All four forms of Deoxys will appear in five-star Raid Battles
- Pokemon effective against Deoxys will appear in other tier Raids
September 16-23
- Klink and Shiny Klink will appear in Raid Battles
- Shiny Patrat and Shiny Lillipup will appear in the wild
- Mewtwo that know Psystrike will appear in five-star Raids, as will Shiny Mewtwo
WWE’s Braun Strowman Loves To Flip Stuff And Be A Goof On TV
WWE’s Braun Strowman is a complex character, believe it or not. Sure, on his surface, he’s a monster who flips things over and destroys everything in his path. But there’s another side to Strowman, a man who is constantly involved in comedic segments and hilarious storylines–and he doesn’t get enough credit for it.
This more comedic version of Strowman surfaced in April 2017, when the Monster Among Men flipped over an ambulance on Raw. It was a shocking segment meant to show off the power of the character, but in reality, it was goofy in an entertaining way, and fans wanted more of that. In the two years since that over-the-top moment, Strowman has flipped other vehicles, been crushed inside both an ambulance he didn’t flip and a garbage truck, come to the ring as his smarter twin brother “Brains Strowman,” won the Raw Tag Team Championship with a 10-year-old boy at Wrestlemania, and played a stand-up bass like a guitar, breaking all the strings during a performance. Strowman’s career, so far, is littered with exceptionally entertaining and memorable moments.
But how does Strowman feel about this? There’s always the question lingering in the back of fans’ minds as to whether or not these WWE superstars take themselves too seriously to be involved with comedy bits. In the case of Strowman, is that a reflection of who he truly is, outside of WWE? “Oh absolutely,” Strowman told GameSpot while promoting WWE 2K20‘s Bump in the Night DLC. “When you guys see the ha-ha stuff that Braun does, that’s my real life persona coming out. I’m a giant kid-man. I live life like there’s no tomorrow, and I look forward to everyday with the opportunities to travel around the world. And it’s really cool when I get to mix in a little bit of that comedic relief and show the world the range and personality that I actually have as a human being, and that I’m not just this monster that rips people in half and eats their souls or whatever people think.
“It’s fun to throw the comedic stuff in there because it helps with people being able to connect with my character. Because before, when I was just this cold, calculated killer, it was hard to relate to me, being the size that I am. Let’s face it. I’m larger than nature intended, and there’s not a lot of people walking around on this earth that know what it’s like to walk a mile in my shoes. So I think with the adding the little bit of comedy in there shows a little more of a human side, and it allows my fans to engage with me even more and know that I have traits that everyone else does. That I’m yeah, not just this giant that does whatever he wants to do, that I have personality.”
Strowman’s finishing move during his WWE battles is the Running Powerslam; however, if you ask most fans, he’s just as well known for flipping over things. From tables to cars to even a semi, Strowman has been seen on WWE television performing superhuman feats of strength. And this begs the question, what could Strowman flip over next? “I’ve pitched a couple of times in battle royales where I come out of nowhere and lift up the ring and dump everybody out of the ring before, so that I think would be a fun one,” explained Strowman. “I don’t think there’s much left to flip unless I ripped a whole roof off the stadium or something like that. I think I’ve destroyed about everything they’ve put in front of me. And Lord knows I’m glad I don’t have to pay for all the stuff that I break.”
One of his most talked about moments came from Wrestlemania 34, where he picked a kid from the audience to be his partner for the Raw Tag Team Championship match. Strowman and his partner, Nicholas, ended up being victorious. But will the two ever reunite to battle for the titles they were forced to vacate? “Right now, Nicholas is doing Nicholas. He’s been taking karate classes, staying in school, and doing his schoolwork, which I told him is the most important. He’s got his whole adult career to come back and wrestle if he wants to wrestle. Right now, he needs to worry about being a kid and having fun and continuing to ride that high of winning those tag titles a couple of years ago with me in New Orleans and enjoying life. But you never know man, at WWE we like to keep you on your toes, and you never know what’s going to happen.”
You can see Strowman turned into the horrific monster FrankenStrowman in the first WWE Originals DLC pack titled “Bump in the Night” this October in WWE 2K20, which will be available on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC. This year’s game should have an incredibly large roster, and here is who is confirmed so far.