Guacamelee! 2: New Character Skins and Challenge Level Enter the Fray

Guacamelee! 2 is available now on PlayStation 4 and PC, and is receiving two new DLC packs over the next couple of weeks featuring additional playable character skins as well as a new challenge level.

Revealed through the PlayStation Blog, Guacamelee! 2 will add the Three Enemigos character pack for $3 tomorrow, which gives you the chance to play as the bosses El Muñeco, Uay Pek, and Jaguar Javier instead of hero Juan. The characters are designed to change how you approach the game as a whole, with their own strengths and weaknesses, and come with additional trophies.

Continue reading…

SpongeBob SquarePants Creator Stephen Hillenburg Dies

Creator of the ever-popular SpongeBob SquarePants cartoon series, Stephen Hillenburg, died on Monday at the age of 57, according to a tweet from Nickelodeon.

The cause of Hillenburg’s death was ALS, which he announced he had been diagnosed with last year.

Screen Shot 2018-11-27 at 11.58.11 AM

Nickelodeon released a statement about Hillenburg’s passing, saying, “We are incredibly saddened by the news that Steve Hillenburg has passed away following a battle with ALS.”

Continue reading…

Walking Dead Characters Ranked By How Much We Care

Warning: Spoilers follow for AMC’s The Walking Dead through Season 9’s midseason finale, “Evolution.”

Even with the multitude of characters it’s killed off over the years – the mounds and mountains of bodies that have piled up – The Walking Dead still has the largest ensemble on TV. As we regroup after Season 9’s midseason finale, “Evolution,” the show still has two dozen names and faces to juggle. And our feelings about most of them, a solid 75 percent of them, range from intolerance to indifference.

Continue reading…

Fallout 76 Dev Acknowledges “Frustrating Issues;” New Updates Planned For Years To Come

While Fallout 76 might not have gone over so well with critics, the game has already reached “millions” of players, Bethesda announced today. The title hasn’t necessarily sold that many copies, but it’s still a notable achievement. What’s more, those who are playing are playing “a lot,” Bethesda stated in a blog post in which it also outlined plans to support the title in the future.

The developer said it’s been following the feedback surrounding Fallout 76, and acknowledged that players are experiencing “a number of frustrating issues.” In response to this, Bethesda said it plans to releases fixes and add new features “on a regular basis,” while changes based on player feedback will also be implemented down the road.

Additionally, Bethesda said it has an “incredible list” of updates planned for Fallout 76, some of which will comprise new quests and events, as well as more Vaults, a faction-based PvP system, and more. “We’re confident, with your support, we can make Fallout 76 an incredible experience for years to come,” Bethesda said.

Previously, Bethesda boss Pete Hines said he expects Fallout 76’s servers to stay online until the sun burns out and humankind is swept into dust.

The first of Fallout 76’s major post-release updates will arrive on December 4. This update will increase the game’s Stash limit, while also delivering new performance and stability improvements, as well as balance changes and some bug fixes. The full patch notes are coming later, but for now you can read a summary of the main points below, as written by Bethesda.

December 4 Patch Highlights

  • Stash Limit Increased: We know many of you have been asking for an adjustment to the Stash storage limit, and we’re happy to share that we’re increasing it from 400 to 600. While this is somewhat conservative, we plan to increase the storage cap further once we verify that this change will not negatively impact the stability of the game.
  • Boss Loot: Players should correctly receive two to three items after taking down a boss, depending on the creature’s difficulty and level.
  • Cryolator Effects: Players hit with the Cryolator are now Chilled, Frosted, or Frozen depending on how many times they are hit. The duration of movement speed reductions applied by these effects have also been decreased from 2 hours to 30 seconds.
  • Respawning When Overencumbered: We’ve resolved an issue affecting players who die while overencumbered that only allowed them to Respawn at Vault 76. Now, overencumbered players will be able to respawn at the nearest discovered Map Marker.
  • Stuck in Power Armor: We’ve addressed an issue in this patch that could cause players to become stuck inside Power Armor. We’re also aware that there are some additional cases where this can occur, and we are actively investigating them.

A week later on December 11, Bethesda will release the next Fallout 76 update that will include even more bug fixes, as well as new features like the ability respec your SPECIAL and push-to-talk voice chat on PC. What’s more, a bulldozer will be added to Camp that lets you remove trees, rocks, and other obstacles in your way.

December 11 Patch Highlights

  • PC Additions: A Push-to-Talk setting for Voice Chat, 21:9 resolution support, and a Field of View setting are all being implemented on PC with this update.
  • SPECIAL Respec: After level 50, you’ll be able to choose between a new Perk Card, or moving a SPECIAL point you had previously allocated.
  • C.A.M.P. Placement on Login: Your C.A.M.P. will no longer be automatically blueprinted and stored if someone is occupying your location when you log into a server. Instead, you’ll receive a notification that your space is occupied. If you decide to find a new home for your C.A.M.P. on that server, it will be free to do so. However, if you don’t attempt to place down your C.A.M.P., you will be able to switch to a new server where that spot is vacant and your C.A.M.P. will be fully assembled and waiting for you.
  • Bulldozer: This is a new C.A.M.P. feature that will allow you to remove small trees, rocks, and other obstructions so it’s easier to create and place your C.A.M.P. when and where you want it. You can also “Bulldoze” to clear these items from the surrounding area to make your C.A.M.P. feel more like home!

Also in the blog post, Bethesda acknowledged the concerns people had about the first patch for Fallout 76 that was more than 40 GB in size on some platforms. Future patches should be smaller, Bethesda said, though the developer shared no details on the degree to which they may be smaller. The developer also warned that the updates could get delayed based on a number of factors.

Fallout 76 was heavily discounted on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, which suggests the game might not be performing so well commercially, but that’s just speculation.

Red Dead 2 Online Co-Op Missions, Story, And Honor System Detailed

Red Dead Online launched today, with Red Dead Redemption 2 Ultimate Edition owners being the first wave of players given access to the multiplayer mode. But what awaits them when they take their gunslinging ways online? Rockstar has addressed that question, delivering details on what players can expect.

Rockstar describes Red Dead Online as a “continually expanding experience” and, as such, it intends to make additions and updates throughout the beta period. However, beginning right away, players will be able to form a Posse, establish a camp, and take on story-based cooperative missions. There are also strangers awaiting them in the open-world, free roaming challenges, activities such as fishing, and some good old-fashioned exploration.

As players undertake these activities they’ll rack up experience that contributes towards rank and bonuses. Over time, items can be unlocked and character attributes can be improved. There are also 12 categories that players can earn distinctions in, such as combat, hunting, sharpshooting, and survivalist.

Red Dead Online begins in Sisika Penitentiary, where players will first get a horse, set up camp, find treasure, equip an Ability Card and, according to Rockstar, “meet some fateful characters with a larger story to tell; one that involves chasing truth, revenge, and honor.”

The action-based honor system from the main game is also present in Red Dead Online, with your decisions and behaviour shaping how the world views your character. Depending on your alignment, the world around you will respond differently and Rockstar says “the nature of certain missions will reveal themselves to you based on your current honor states.”

Rockstar has also provided details on the various Red Dead Online modes you can expect to see right away. The lineup includes one PvP mode that sounds a lot like battle royale.

As previously revealed, the Red Dead Online beta is now available for those that have the Ultimate Edition. After that there’s a gradual rollout, with anyone that played Red Dead Redemption 2 on its launch day given access to the beta from November 28. Those that played Red Dead Redemption 2 at any point between launch and October 29 will be able to jump into the beta from November 29. And then anyone who owns the game can check it out from November 30. This gradual rollout, Rockstar says, will help it “ease into the beta and to mitigate major issues.”

Jordan Peele Confirmed for Candyman Remake, Nia DaCosta to Direct

Clive Barker’s 1992 horror hit Candyman is getting the reboot treatment, and Get Out creator Jordan Peele will be producing the film with Nia DaCosta in the director’s chair.

Metro Goldwyn Mayer Pictures made the announcement today, confirming earlier rumors that Jordan Peele would produce a Candyman reboot. The film will serve as a “spiritual sequel” to the original film, also taking place in the Chicago-based Cabrini-Green housing project – or at least what is left of it after gentrification.

Jordan Peele, who is producing alongside Win Rosenfeld, made the jump from the sketch comedy of Key & Peele to politically-minded horror with Get Out, and is also going to host the upcoming Twilight Zone revival.

Continue reading…

Game of Thrones Security Heavily Increased for Season 8

David Nutter, who directed half of Game of Thrones’ final six episodes, said the security on set was increased to the highest level for Season 8, to keep any secrets sealed shut.

In an interview with Huffington Post, Nutter said, “Well, sometimes there were paparazzi in amazing places ― on construction cranes and all kinds of crazy places, to try to get a point of view of things. They were all over, everywhere, trying to get in on what was happening.”

“But it was definitely a situation where there was no paper on the set,

type of thing,” he continued. “

Continue reading…

Assassin’s Creed Odyssey: Legacy of the First Blade DLC Focuses on a Key Assassin

Assassin’s Creed Odyssey’s first major story-driven DLC, Legacy of the First Blade, has received a launch trailer, showing off a highly-important assassin.

With Episode 1: Hunted releasing on December 4, Legacy of the First Blade follows the first assassin to wield a hidden blade: Darius I, son of Xerxes I. Though Darius had long passed since the events of Assassin’s Creed 2, Ezio went on to explore a tomb dedicated to Darius. Though the real-world history on the matter is uncertain, many believe that Darius committed patricide and murdered Xerxes.

The DLC will be divided into three episodes, with the first focusing on Kassandra or Alexios meeting Darius. A new Persian enemy group appears in the trailer: they are seen pillaging villages, wearing black masks and are hunting the “tainted ones,” which includes the player character.

Continue reading…

Fortnite Has Invaded the Modern American Classroom Like No Other Game

Kids have been bringing video games and other distractions into schools for decades. For me, it was my Game Boy. But everything from the ‘90s surge of Tamagotchi to Magic the Gathering and Pokémon cards has had their moment in the spotlight in middle schools and high schools alike. Kids in high school these days, however, have grown up with games on smartphones, and those games follow them into class in ways my Game Boy never could have.

Fortnite is huge in a way few games have been, and its audience talks about it and plays it in a way that’s different from almost any other game community. You can carry Fortnite – along with your profile and all your records and purchased content – with you just about anywhere you can go. That includes the classroom.

Continue reading…

Amazon Is Having a Massive Sale on Boardgames

If you buy something through this post, IGN may get a share of the sale. For more, read our Terms of Use.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday are behind us, and there were a staggering number of deals and chances to save money. Board game discounts were pretty light, but with the biggest shopping days of the year in the past, Amazon has dropped the prices on tons of amazing board games, including one of my personal favorites, Star Wars: X-Wing Miniatures.

If you’re a tabletop gamer, or thinking of getting into it, now is a great time. Here are some of the best deals on the best games around today at Amazon.

Continue reading…