Month: May 2020

Ubisoft has rolled out an unscheduled patch for Rainbow Six Siege on PC following the feedback in regards to Ying’s overpowered Candelas. The patch also fixes a MMR rollback bug and places a restriction on XP gains in Training Grounds.

Back in April, Ubisoft brought about major reforms to several Operators, including Ying. Before this update, Ying was in desperate need of buffing. Unfortunately, it seems that Ubisoft gave Ying too much of a buff and has decided to reel back her Candelas from four to three. Currently, Ying players are experiencing a reign of terror online, but that’s all about to end with this update.

The Candela charge gave the character a big edge in wiping out a defending teams’ anti-grenade gadgets, with enough explosive power left over to finish off everyone on the site as well.

A restriction has been placed on the daily amount that can be gained from the Training Grounds, preventing players from grinding as a prevention tactic to make Ranked requirements less accessible for illegitimate accounts. This should hopefully prevent players from grinding smurf accounts quickly and re-entering the ranked scene.

The MMR bug, which was a popup that would notify players of an MMR rollback after a cheater had been banned, was displaying the wrong values. This has been fixed in the patch.

The update will be rolling out on the PC edition at 9AM EDT/1PM UTC today. The servers will be down for 20 minutes during this time.

Assassin’s Creed Valhalla‘s main character, Eivor, can be a man or a woman, which requires Ubisoft to hire two different performers to record their voice lines and more. Following the game’s announcement, the actors who play the title role have now been confirmed.

The male version of Eivor is performed by Danish actor Magnus Bruun, who played Cnut on the medieval Netflix show The Last Kingdom. Bruun describes himself as a viking in his Instagram bio, and a quick look at this page shows that he seems to be a great fit for the role of Eivor.

The female Eivor is portrayed by Danish actress Cecilie Stenspil, who is known for her theatre, TV, and movie work.

2018’s Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey allowed you to choose to play as siblings Kassandra or Alexios, and their stories wove together in a very interesting way. According to Ubisoft, Kassandra was the canon character in the wider fiction, but not necessarily in the game.

For Valhalla, narrative director Darby McDevitt said on Twitter that both choices are canon, and he teased that the studio pulled off a trick to allow this to make sense. “We’re not going to spoil how we managed that trick until you play the game,” he said.

Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is set to release in Holiday 2020 for Xbox Series X, PS5, Xbox One, PS4, Stadia, and on PC exclusively through the Epic Games Store. It will also be available as part of the UPlay+ subscription service.

For more on the game, read our in-depth interview with Assassin’s Creed Valhalla’s lead writer.

Today’s spotlight deal is a whopping 50% off the NEOGEO Mini International Arcade, which comes preloaded with 40 of SNK’s most popular classic titles. The Oculus Quest is also finally available at Gamestop, but not for long. Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla went up for preorder today and you can still score 40% off a PS Plus membership.

50% Off SNK’s Official NEOGEO Mini International Arcade for $29.99

Own a piece of gaming history at a ridiculously good price. This is a fantastic deal considering it sells for $60 or more everywhere else. This mini arcade includes 40 preloaded masterpieces, including Metal Slug, King of Fighters, Samurai Showdown, Fatal Fury, King of Monsters, and more. The arcade itself is small enough to fit in the palm of your hand and yet still houses a 3.5″ display and joystick controls. For a more traditional style of play, it also includes an HDMI port for playing on your TV and two external controller ports.

• Get it on Amazon for $29.99

Oculus Quest VR Headset Back in Stock at Gamestop (Compatible with Half-Life: Alyx)

Gamestop has both the 64GB model (with case bundle) and 128GB for preorder, They’ll ship out on May 22. These VR headsets have been extremely hard to find and a May ship date is actually surprisingly soon. There are many reasons why the Quest is the best VR headset to get right now. It’s completely untethered with no external sensors to set up, it’s powerful enough to play games like Half-Life: Alyx, Beat Saber (the best VR game of 2019), Vader Immortal, and Pistol Whip, and it’s far less expensive than all the other newer generation VR headsets that have been released. The Oculus Link software which allows you to connect the Quest to a PC using a Type C cable and use it like a regular VR headset powered by your gaming PC. You can purchase the official cable for $79. If you want to try your luck, there are reports that many generic USB Type C Gen 1 or Gen 2 cables will work like this $18 cable.

• Get the 64GB model with case bundle at Gamestop for $439
• Get the 128GB model for $499

40% Off 1 Year of PS Plus Membership, Now $36.99

Use code “DSPLYMBR”

PS Plus membership discounts only happen a few times a year so grab this deal when you can. This membership lets you play games online (absolutely necessary for games like NBA 2K20, Madden NFL 20, FIFA 20, Overwatch, Rocket League, and more). You’ll also get PS Plus exclusive discounts at the PlayStation Store as well as new free games every month. For example, right now PS Plus members get the outstanding Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End and Dirt Rally 2.0 for free. Best of all, it’s email delivery so you’ll get your code within 24 hours.

• Use code “DSPLYMBR” to get it at DailySteals for $36.99

Up for Preorder: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla

The newest Assassin’s Creed game is up for preorder today. More details have emerged and you can read all about it here. Preorder it on Amazon and you won’t be charged until the game actually ships out. Also your price is automatically adjusted  every time a price drop that might occur without you having to do anything.

• Preorder it for PS4 for $59.99
• Preorder it for Xbox One for $59.99

Only 2 Days Left to Get TIDAL 4-Month HiFi Music Streaming Plan for $4

Pay $1/month for four months (the normal cost of the HiFi plan is $19.99/mo). TIDAL is a music streaming service that offers 60+ million tracks and 250,000+ videos with premium quality audio. The HiFi plan upgrades the audio to lossless high-fidelity.

• Sign Up for Four Months of TIDAL for Only $4

HP OMEN Obelisk Intel Core i5-9600K RTX 2080 Ti Gaming PC for $1682.99

I’ve never seen a prebuilt gaming PC with an RTX 2080 Ti (the fastest video card out right now) for this price. This PC is customizable on HP’s website, but buying the base config has its merits. In terms of gaming, upgrading from an Intel Core i5-9600K to an Intel Core i7 is a waste… performance-wise they are identical. Also, by upgrading the RAM and storage on your own, you can save alot of money and pick your own, better parts at the same time.

• Click Here
• Select Graphics Card – NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Ti (+$450)
• At cart, apply code “10GAMERSPRING“
• Price should show up as $1682.99

HP OMEN 15″ 4K 3840×2160 Intel Core i7-9750H Gaming Laptop with RTX 2080 for $1826.10

It’s hard enough to find an RTX 2080-equipped gaming laptop for under $2000, but this one doesn’t skip on any other spec either. In fact, you get a true 4K 3840×2160 display, a 9th gen Intel Core i7 processor, and plenty of RAM and SSD storage.

• Click Here
• Select Processor and Graphics – i7-9750H + RTX 2080 (+$630)
• Select Display – 15.6″ 4K IPS (+$150)
• Proceed to shopping cart
• At cart, apply code “10GAMERSPRING“
• Price should show up as $1826.10

HP OMEN 15″ 1080p 144Hz Intel Core i7-9750H Gaming Laptop with RTX 2070 for $1430.99

This laptop is every bit as good for gaming but you’ll save about $350 compared to the above config. The RTX 2070 video card is almost as powerful as the previous generation’s GTX 1080, which used to be the most powerful mobile GPU. It should be more than enough handle any game on the 15″ 1080p display, even at 144Hz refresh rate. If you want to, you can upgrade to 12GB RAM and 512GB SSD for $180.

• Click Here
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• Select Display – 15.6″ FHD 144Hz IPS (+$70)
• Proceed to shopping cart
• At cart, apply code “10GAMERSPRING“
• Price should show up as $1430.99

Alienware m15 15″ 4K Ultra HD 3840×2160 OLED 1ms Intel Core i7-9750H RTX 2070 Gaming Laptop with Dual 512GB SSD for $1877.40

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Upgrade to a very rare and very awesome 4K Ultra HD 3840×2160 display for only $200. We reviewed a very similar OLED equipped model less than a year ago (with inferior specs) with a price tag of $2800 and we LOVED it.

• Use code “LCS10OFF” to get it at Dell for $1877.40

ComiXology Free Trial Extended to 60 Days

The ComiXology trial period is normally 30 days.  ComiXology is Amazon’s digital comic platform and is the largest digital retailer of American comics. The site hosts 20,000 digital comics, graphic novels, and manga from DC, Marvel, Image, Dark Horse, and more. Here’s your chance to access all of it, totally free, for 30 60 days. If you’re an avid comic reader, you might want to consider continuing on afterwards, since it’s only $5.99/month. You can even sign in with your Amazon account.

• Get a 60-Day Free Trial to ComiXology

Alienware Aurora R8 Intel Core i7-9700 RTX 2080 SUPER Gaming PC with 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD, and 2TB HDD for $1593

Use code “LCS10OFF”

This gaming PC boasts a 9th gen Intel Core i7 processor and the newest RTX 2080 SUPER video card. It’s about 10% more powerful than the non-SUPER model and considerably more powerful than the GTX 1080 Ti.  For those of you who would rather have a PC preinstalled with all the RAM and storage you’ll ever need, this model has 16GB RAM and dual drive storage.

• Use code “LCS10OFF” to get it at Dell for $1593

Alienware Aurora R8 Intel Core i7-9700 RTX 2080 SUPER Gaming PC for $1404

Use code “LCS10OFF”

If you want upgrade the RAM and hard drive yourself, you can save alot of money compared to adding pre-configured upgrades. Like the new R9 chassis, the R8 features easy toolless entry. Swapping components doesn’t void the warranty.

• Use code “LCS10OFF” to get it at Dell for $1404

New Alienware Aurora R9 AMD Ryzen 7 3700X AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT Gaming Desktop PC for $1089

Use code “LCS10OFF”

For those of you who haven’t been keeping up with the Intel vs AMD CPU war, AMD has been giving Intel a run for its money with its flagship processors. The new AMD Ryzen 7 3700X 8-core processor is comparable to the Intel Core i7-9700, both in terms of gaming and workstation performance. It’s paired with an RX 5700 XT video card, which is on par with the RTX 2070. If you want to upgrade the RAM or hard drive, I’d suggest doing it on your own. You’ll save money, and the Aurora R9 allows for toolless access without voiding your warranty.

• Use code “LCS10OFF” to get it at Dell for $1089

Save 73% Off 1-Year IPVanish VPN Plan

IPVanish is offering  73% off its 1 year VPN plan, dropping the price to $39. That’s only $3.25 a month for a service that provides some great benefits. VPN is the first and easiest step to making your internet activity a bit more anonymous. VPN is also a great way to “trick” a host site into thinking you’re in another part of the world. That’s great for watching region-locked content from streaming services like Netflix. IPVanish boasts a very user-friendly interface, doesn’t hog resources, and has a zero-log policy. We also gave it a great review.

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Online Learning Course Bundles from Stack Social

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3 Months of Amazon Music Unlimited for Free

This deal only works for new Amazon Music Unlimited subscribers, but you don’t have to be a Prime member. Normally you’d be paying $9.99/month for this service (or $7.99/mo for Prime members). Amazon Music Unlimited works alot like the paid ad-free versions of Spotify or Pandora. Get access to millions of songs and playlists that you can stream anywhere.

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Eric Song is IGN’s deal curator and spends 25% of his pay on stuff he posts.

Warning: this review contains full spoilers for Star Wars: The Clone Wars – Season 7, Episode 11. If you need a refresher on where we left off, here’s our review for Season 7, Episode 10.

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The Clone Wars is coming off of its best episode ever. And while it was never realistic to expect “Shattered” to maintain that exact level of quality, it’s not that far off. It’s to this episode’s credit that it doesn’t attempt to give fans more of the same, but instead shifts this climactic storyline into new and even darker territory. Even though The Siege of Mandalore feels like a feature film divided into four parts, each part is different enough in tone and focus to justify those breaks.

“Shattered” is certainly much smaller in scope than its predecessors, and even downright claustrophobic at times. While it’s a little disappointing the series seems to be finished exploring the state of Mandalore itself, there’s a lot to be said for the steady, brisk pace this final story arc is taking. And whether or not a return to Mandalore is in the cards for the finale, we can probably count on future seasons of The Mandalorian to fill in some of the gaps as the world shifts from one occupying force to another. This episode is all about narrowing the focus and mining the greatest possible impact out of the disaster to come.

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It certainly doesn’t hurt that “Shattered” finally delivers one of the moments fans have been waiting to see since 2008 – Order 66. Sure we saw numerous Jedi meet their end in Revenge of the Sith, but that movie never made much effort to flesh out the clones themselves or explore how they actually felt about bring ordered to betray their Jedi comrades. But from the very beginning, this series has devoted itself to giving the clones names and identities of their own. This iconic and very tragic Star Wars moment takes on a whole new tone when seen from the perspective of Ahsoka and Commander Rex.

The early scenes hit especially hard, with the show really playing on our knowledge of what’s coming as it steadily builds tension leading up to the commencement of Order 66. Even before the actual order comes in, Ahsoka suddenly seems alone and unwelcome among a group of soldiers who so recently pledged their lives to her cause. Through it all, we know what’s coming, and we know there’s no stopping in, so it’s just a question of how bad the fallout will be. Ahsoka sensing the climactic battle on Coruscant and hearing the familiar voices of Anakin, Palpatine and Mace Windu (the film actors, no less) further adds to the dread.

It’s also worth highlighting the score here, with composer Kevin Kiner seemingly riffing on that haunting music from Episode III where Anakin wrestles over whether to leave Palpatine to his fate or intervene. The end result is something that sounds as much like Blade Runner as it does Star Wars, but it definitely complements and enhances the unnerving tone.

The big moment doesn’t disappoint, either. It’s fitting that Rex himself becomes the focal point as Palpatine’s order ripples across the galaxy. No clone has developed into a more fully realized character over the course of seven seasons, and no one stands a better chance of fighting against the inhibitor chip controlling his actions. But as we see, even Rex’s deep love and respect for Ahsoka can’t stop him from obeying his orders. All he can do is try to drop hints and give Ahsoka a fighting chance.

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With that extreme tension given release, this episode veers in a more action-packed direction as Ahsoka makes an unlikely ally out of Maul and fights to save Rex from himself. The Maul scenes in particular are a nice palate cleanser from everything that comes before. It’s actually kind of fun watching a lightsaber-less Maul go to town on the clones, especially now that they’re more the villains of this story than he. His escape is also a telling commentary on Ahsoka’s state of mind. She’s rapidly developing that survivor mentality. No longer the high-minded Jedi she worked so hard to become, she’s not above unleashing a monster like Maul if it creates the distraction she needs.

There’s plenty more tension to go around as “Shattered” draws to a close. The confined setting and the overwhelming numbers eventually take their toll, with even Ahsoka fighting a losing battle against overwhelming numbers and a ticking clock. And it all pays off nicely in the scene where a recuperated Rex chooses Ahsoka over his men. No doubt we’ll see more of the emotional fallout of that act in the finale. But even with only the three of of the four episodes released so far, this arc has fully lived up to its promise. It’s enhanced the events of the movie and paid off on characters arcs that have been more than a decade in the making. Now there’s just one final tale to be told before the war is truly over.

Xbox boss Phil Spencer has commented on the impact of COVID-19 on Microsoft’s plans to launch the Xbox Series X and new games on schedule.

Speaking to CNBC, Spencer said he feels confident that the Xbox Series X hardware will be able to launch on time this Holiday period. He said there was “some impact to schedules” for the hardware, but his team has been able to overcome those. Overall, Spencer said Microsoft is in line with its expectations for where it would be at this point in the year as it relates to the Xbox Series X hardware.

As for games, however, that’s a different story. Spencer said the nature of large-scale game development means that the work-from-home setup may lead to production slowdown.

“The bigger unknown is probably the game production, just being honest,” Spencer said. “Game production is a large-scale entertainment activity now. You have hundreds of people coming together, building assets, working through creative [decisions].”

Spencer said Microsoft still has a positive feeling about its game development roadmap, but he stressed that the health and safety of its developers is Microsoft’s top concern right now.

“We’re learning every day. We still feel good about it, but I also need to make sure the security and the safety of the teams is the most important thing, and not unduly push when things just aren’t ready,” he said.

This is at least the second time that Spencer has spoken publicly about the impact of COVID-19. He previously spoke about how the Xbox development teams are feeling “stretched” with the new work-from-home policies.

“We have nothing right now that says we’re not going to make the dates that we’ve been planning, but I’ll also say this is real-time stuff. I’m gonna put the safety and security of our teams at the top, along with a quality product. I don’t want to rush a product out if it’s not ready,” he said.

Spencer confirmed that Microsoft has no “plan B” in place right now for what could happen if COVID-19 crisis continues for an extended period of time. That being said, Spencer said he does not want to launch the Xbox Series X on a staggered basis as it did with the Xbox One. In Japan, for example, the Xbox One launched a full nine months after the system arrived in other parts of the world. Spencer said he wants the Xbox Series X to have a global simultaneous rollout.

This brings up an interesting scenario with Halo Infinite. Spencer said Microsoft “won’t hold the launch of the platform for any individual game.” Based on this comment, it sounds like Microsoft will ship the Xbox Series X this holiday even if Halo Infinite–or any other marquee first-party game–is delayed. No matter what happens, Spencer said Microsoft plans to be “very transparent” with people about their plans.

Halo Infinite being delayed would be a big loss for the Xbox Series X, as Microsoft hasn’t launched a new Xbox console with Halo as a launch title since the original Xbox back in 2001. For its part, Halo Infinite developer 343 Industries has said the COVID-19 crisis “may get worse before it gets better.”

For what it’s worth, Microsoft has said there will be multiple pre-release beta tests for Halo Infinite, and Microsoft has never said if the Holiday 2020 release date for the game is for the full release or its beta tests.

Microsoft will show off Xbox Series X games as part of a livestream event on May 7. These will be third-party games, including Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, so fans shouldn’t get their hopes up to see Halo Infinite. Microsoft is planning a separate, later event to show off first-party games.

Within the wave of news amid the official announcement of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, developers at Ubisoft did their own breakdown of the reveal trailer. The four-minute cinematic trailer showcases the game’s Viking era setting, story premise, and what’s to come from gameplay. However, there are plenty of key details that the trailer doesn’t spell out.

In the video below, you can watch creative director Ashraf Ismail and narrative director Darby McDevitt talking through the trailer with Ubisoft news editor Youssef Maguid. They gave broader context for specific scenes and spoke about the approach for depicting Vikings with their culture and history in mind, and how the trailer also contains gameplay details. There’s also a hint as to how the new protagonist Eivor might be connected to the Assassins.

We have this next game in the storied franchise covered from all angles; be sure to read our own interview with Assassin’s Creed Valhalla narrative director Darby McDevitt for an even deeper dive into the game’s story. While a male protagonist is portrayed in the trailer, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla will let players choose between a male and female lead. There are also a few details on how Assassin’s Creed Valhalla uses next-gen console features.

Below is an annotation of Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed Valhalla trailer breakdown.

Story Setup And The Viking Age

The first shot they breakdown shows a settlement in Norway. Ismail says that the theme of home and settling other lands are important for the story and Eivor, the main protagonist.

Shortly after, there’s a shot of a large statue of Odin, the Norse god. McDevitt detailed that in Norse culture, people give offerings to gods in return for favors, usually before important events. You can see this ritual taking place. A sacrifice is made to Odin, and Eivor gets marked on the face with what looks like blood. The people are about to leave Norway and lead a raid to establish a settlement in England. Ismail said that these scenes tease the idea that the journey starts in Norway and eventually leads to England.

During the following scene of a raid, Eivor and his companion turn the corner and avoid attacking a woman and her children. All the while, the backing narration from an English King who mentions that the Vikings murder and kill blindly like savages, sparing no one–which creates a sort of dissonance. McDevitt brings up that much of Viking history comes from those they raided (the English) and that accounts are brutal. However, while the English (or Saxons) kept many records and writings to recount its history, there are other sources necessary to get the full picture. McDevitt says they want to show a complete story of an entire culture.

McDevitt went into more detail; the Viking Era began at the end of the 8th century with the attack on the “Holy Island” of Lindisfarne. When Valhalla takes place (beginning in 873 AD), there’s more of a focus on settling than raiding–people of Norway and Denmark coming to England. Around that time, settling and cultural assimilation happened fairly quickly and easily because of similarities between the two cultures. Valhalla doesn’t just depict the brutality of the era, but also the culture, alliances that formed, and the places the Vikings settled.

The next scene shows the nighttime raid seamlessly transition to a bright sunny day on the countryside, depicting the Vikings actually settling the lands. Ismail says that these Vikings left Norway and have to build a community and integrate in the local society. They were also farmers, traders, which Ismail said are also gameplay elements; you’ll play a role in building settlements and communities and make choices as a leader in the game.

McDevitt gave more historical context, and said that the evidence of how successful Norse people were in settling England can be found in the number of towns with names ending in -thorpe or -by.

So, the main story begins in 873 AD during the Viking era and at a time when England was several lands but not a unified country–there are multiple fractured kingdoms. In the game, you see King Alfred (aka Alfred the Great), who is the voice over in the first half of the trailer. Alfred is the King of Wessex, the southern-most kingdom (among three others: Mercia, Northumbria, and East Anglia). Wessex was known for having the strongest and fiercest opposition to Viking settlement.

Gameplay Hints Within The Trailer

The next scene they look at features Viking longships, which will play a major role in the game. Longships were unique to Vikings and allowed them to cover vast waters swiftly while carrying cargo and people. These were agile ships that allowed Vikings to get behind enemy lines fast for hit-and-run style raids.

You then see a depiction of a full on battle. These instances are said to be separate from smaller-scale raids where you plunder for resources, hinting that these are two different styles of combat encounters that are core to the gameplay loop. Large-scale battles can take place on fields and in fortifications, and the one in the trailer showcases some of the things you’ll be working with in Valhalla’s combat system. You can mix axes and shields, dual-wield axes, use a throwing axe, or even dual-wield shields. Dual-wielding is said to be a big part of the combat system.

Now, we see a bit more about Eivor and the intersection between Norse mythology and Assassin’s Creed lore. Eivor spots a hooded figure in the distance and a raven flying off as a thunderstorm begins, giving him the will to keep fighting. This could be a physical manifestation of Odin returning the favor of the ritual’s sacrifice shown earlier in the trailer. In the Norse mythos, huginn and muninn are two of Odin’s ravens named after their words for thought and memory, and it could Eivor’s interpretation that empowers him in the chaos of battle, as Ubisoft is going for a “more grounded” approach this time around.

Eivor is shown fighting a very strong foe, who will be a particular enemy type in Valhalla’s gameplay. This enemy is said to be a leader on the battlefield with unique abilities, heavy armor, and very few weakpoints (which sounds similar to Brutes and Enforcers in Odyssey).

The Viking-Assassin Connection And The Hidden Blade

Eivor looks to be defeated but escapes death by using the series’ iconic Hidden Blade at the last minute to kill the enemy. A small detail is that Eivor has the blade mounted atop the arm, unlike previous Assassins (except for Darius from Odyssey’s Legacy of the First Blade DLC).

Ismail and McDevitt spoke to how Valhalla mixes Viking fantasy with the Assassin’s Creed world. In the story, Eivor meets with the Assassins at some point, but doesn’t necessarily know what they’re all about–what’s important is that the Vikings and Assassins have common ground and end up working with each other. Eivor gets the hidden blade at some point early on in the story, though no further details were given as to how or why.