Author: Trafficblast

Three prominent Activision Blizzard developers have left the company in the wake of a bombshell sexual harassment lawsuit filed by California state.

Diablo IV game director Luis Barriga, Blizzard lead level designer Jesse McCree (who’s also the namesake for Overwatch’s cowboy hero), and World of Warcraft designer Jonathan LeCraft’s names are no longer displayed on Blizzard’s employee directory or company Slack, according to Kotaku.

The publication’s sources said Activision Blizzard didn’t specify why the three developers were ousted from their positions. However, these departures arrive after a lawsuit California filed against the gaming giant alleged that the company fostered a culture of widespread sexual harassment and discrimination.

Jesse McCree is of particular mention, as he was one of many current and former developers seen in the now infamous “Cosby Suite” photo that made its rounds in late July. Jonathan LeCraft also appears in this photo, as does Blizzard lead game designer Cory Stockton. According to Kotaku, Stockton was placed on leave earlier this month but remains at Blizzard.

It’s unclear if McCree’s name will be removed from Overwatch, although Blizzard’s World of Warcraft team recently vowed to remove “not appropriate” references from its game.

Earlier this month, Activision Blizzard said employees regardless of position or tenure will be “held accountable” in the wake of the lawsuit, saying “decisive action” will be taken against those workers who impede on the company’s integrity.

GameSpot has reached out to Activision Blizzard for comment and will report back with anything it shares.

EA Play subscribers can nab a weapon charm for Apex Legends based on one of EA’s upcoming adventures games, Lost in Random. The charm features Dicey, the cute little sentiment dice creature that accompanies the main character, Even.

This isn’t the only perk that EA Play members can receive this month. Subscribers can also access Madden NFL 22’s Early Access trial on August 12, as well as claim the Volta Squad Boost and 3,500 Volta Coins in FIFA 21. Knockout City players can also earn 500% extra experience for every KO finish from Overcharged Shots with each Orange Overcharge brawlers drink.

Lost in Random is the latest title releasing under the EA Originals brand. It follows Even as she journeys through the Kingdom of Random to rescue her sister, Odd. Along the way, she meets Dicey, who helps her understand the world around her. The game releases on September 10 for PC, PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S.

In other Apex Legends news, its newest character, Seer, is going to be nerfed in an upcoming patch next week, following a patch (that’s now live) that nerfs the Prowler and L-Star weapons. Cross-progression for the game is also scheduled for 2022. Apex Legends is available on PC, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, iOS, and Android. The game is also backwards compatible with PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. Additionally, Apex Legends is included on Xbox Game Pass for Ultimate tier subscribers.

Like an annual Call of Duty game or the eventual heat death of the sun, Team Fortress 2‘s popularity on PC is a constant truth. However, the game is starting to age, especially as things like ray tracing and 4K resolutions become more common. To help the game stave off old age just a bit longer, a team of modders are recreating the game in Valve’s new Source 2 engine.

The modding team, Amper Software, is “a passionate team that loves Team Fortress 2.” The team started toying with the idea of recreating TF2 after another game, s&box, began releasing tools for the engine. While it’s not clear if players will be able to play this new version of TF2, the team is dead set on recreating “the Team Fortress 2 experience in Source 2 using s&box, with many improvements to the base game, as well as creating a truly new unique Team fortress experience.”

To that end, Amper Software’s team of 23 volunteers has been reworking every part of the classic team-based shooter, from its lighting and assets to its UI. So far, the team’s results are impressive, remaking many of the game’s iconic weapons with modern textures and lighting. Of particular note are the Soldier’s rockets, which now light up the space around them as they zoom towards impact.

Team Fortress 2 is currently in somewhat of a renaissance. While Valve hasn’t provided the game with any meaningful updates recently, that hasn’t stopped it from slowly amassing a sizable player base. Just this past June, Team Fortress 2 had over 150,000 concurrent players on PC, although it’s not clear how many of those players were actually bots.

Today, the US Senate introduced a new bill protecting developers’ rights and challenging Apple and Google’s current app store policies.

As spotted first by CNBC, the Open App Markets Act would ban app stores from mandating that developers use their own store’s payment systems. This means developers would have the freedom to use their own payment systems. The proposed legislation would also forbid companies from reprimanding developers that offer more competitive pricing on a different app store or through a developer’s own payment system.

If it sounds familiar, both Apple and Google are currently in a lawsuit with Fortnite developer Epic Games, which challenged both tech giant’s app store models. Last August, Apple and Google removed the popular battle royale game from its digital storefronts after Epic added a direct payment mechanism into Fortnite.

If the bill was to be passed, it would allow developers like Fortnite to offer more affordable items to purchase via microtransactions. This is something Epic Games tried to do in August when it made its virtual currency, V-Bucks more affordable if you purchased it directly through the Fortnite app.

The Epic Games vs. Apple case was argued in May, and a federal judge is currently reviewing the case to determine whether Apple’s app store policies violated antitrust law. Similar legal action was taken against Google in July when 36 states plus the District of Columbia filed a lawsuit regarding the company’s app store model.

This is not the first time the Senate has come after Apple and Google’s app store policies; in April, the Senate Judiciary subcommittee on Competition Policy, Antitrust, and Consumer Rights asked representatives from companies including Spotify and Tile to elaborate on how both Apple and Google’s app store impact its businesses.

Taylor is the Associate Tech Editor at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.

Fortnite dataminers are always digging up exciting details for those who don’t mind the spoilers, and a recent find in the game’s files has the Fortnite community wondering if something big is in store. Labeled the “Saturn_Test” within the game’s PC files, dataminers have surfaced what may be our first look at a new game mode in Fortnite, including what looks like a revised art style for the cartoonish game. It’s worth keeping in mind that while the hyperactive Fortnite dataminers are very reliable, content discovered from their efforts is never guaranteed to be used in-game.

First picked up by iFireMonkey, two partial images, which when conjoined form a nearly full picture, indicate that Epic is at least toying with a reimagining of its ever-popular character skins. The “Saturn_Test” artwork depicts fan favorites such as Jonesy, Cuddle Team Leader, Fishstick, and Peely with a smaller stature, narrower shoulders, but maybe most importantly, character classes.

Cuddle Team Leader appears to be the group’s archer, Peely looks like a mage of some sort, Fishstick may be the squad’s warrior, while Jonesy may be the rogue. The massive statue behind them is an unfamiliar asset too, so while one may think it’s just a leak of forthcoming battle royale content, the special weapons in their hands suggest this could be an entirely new mode.

The suggestion of a standalone RPG has been making the rounds partly because of the way the apparent character classes fit the genre, and partly because of a previous leak from the Epic versus Apple court documents. Those revealed Epic is–or at least was–working on some kind of open-world sandbox mode.

There’s not a lot to go on besides that right now, but it appears Epic was hoping this particular image would sneak by the dataminers. Not long after it was discovered, it was removed from the game entirely. Test complete, it seems.

Dataminers like iFireMonkey and others have also indicated that next week’s 17.40 patch has been tested over 700 times by Epic, which is an exorbitantly high number and suggests some major content update is on the way. For comparison, the 17.30 patch, which included the Rift Tour, was tested about 400 times.

The high number of tests for the next patch may be a hint that a season finale event is on the way, which would fit the story too, as the aliens have been proving to be unstoppable lately and the Mothership continues to threaten an attack. We’re not far from the start of Fortnite Season 8, so it stands to reason that the island will soon be host to another major event.

In short, there’s a lot up in the air right now. What do these new images depict? If it’s a new mode or standalone game, when can we expect it? Why is next week’s patch such a focus at Epic? Are all of these things related? We should get some answers within the next few days, but don’t expect them all so soon.

For now, settle for things we know for sure, like how to get all Week 10 challenges done and how to get all Week 10 Alien Artifacts.

Free Guy is a new movie starring Ryan Reynolds that’s set to open this week exclusively in theaters. It’s comedy about a bank teller, played by Reynolds, who discovers that he’s an NPC (non-playable character) in a video game. Worse yet, the game he’s in, Free City, is scheduled to go offline soon. That amounts to a looming apocalyptic event for him, so he breaks free of his programming and tries to save the city.

We live in a strange age for movies, so it might not be entirely clear how you can watch Free Guy. We have the answers to all of your viewing questions, so keep on reading.

Where to Watch Free Guy

Unlike many movies released during the pandemic, Free Guy is not arriving on streaming services the same day it’s released in the theaters. Instead, you’ll have to leave the house to view this one. You can check showtimes below.

• Check at Fandango
• Check at Atom Tickets
• Check at Movie Tickets

When Does Free Guy Release?

Free Guy officially releases in theaters on Friday, August 13, but some theaters will begin showings on Thursday, August 12.

Free Guy Trailer

What Is Free Guy About?

Free Guy is about a bank teller named Guy, played by Ryan Reynolds, who lives in a city in which madcap action is constantly happening. People fire rocket launchers in the streets. Stores get robbed constantly. Think Grand Theft Auto. This is just life as normal for Guy — until a woman named Millie/Mologov Girl, played by Jodie Comer, enters the bank one day to set him free.

Millie hands Guy glasses that, when he puts them on, show the HUD for the video game he’s living in. Unfortunately for Guy, the creator of the game, played by Taika Waititi, is planning to shut it down for good, which would effectively end the lives of Guy and everyone else in the city. It’s up to Guy and Millie to rally the rest of the NPC citizens and save the day.

What is Free Guy Rated?

Free Guy is rated PG-13 by the MPAA.

Is Free Guy Any Good?

Free Guy has gotten moderately good reviews. Our critic gave it a 7, saying, “Ryan Reynolds delivers riotously rollicking fun in an eye-popping, imaginative environment that treats gaming like the wonderland it is.” Read our Free Guy review or watch the video version above for more details.

Call of Duty’s Season 5 now officially begins on August 13, but Treyarch released the patch notes ahead of the Black Ops Cold War’s Season 5 update that will go live on August 12 at 9 PM PT / 12 AM ET on August 13. Season 5’s update includes weapon balancing for multiplayer, new maps, modes, and more Zombies content.

Multiplayer

As previously revealed by Call of Duty’s Season 5 roadmap, Black Ops Cold War‘s new season will launch with new multiplayer maps. This includes the new 6v6 Echelon map, the return of the popular 6v6 map Slums from Black Ops 2, and the 2v2 Showroom Gunfight map.

One major highlight of Season 5 is Cold War’s new Double Agent mode, which is similar to Among Us and Trouble in Terrorist Town. Double Agent is an investigative objective mode where a Double Agent character must try to sabotage a mission and stay undetected. Other players in the match must work to reveal the identity of the saboteur.

Season 5 also introduces a new Flamethrower scorestreak, which is a low-cost scorestreak meant to serve as a deadly close-range streak.

The patch notes also reveal a bit of weapon tuning is coming to Cold War’s arsenal. Several assault rifles, two submachine guns, and all dual wield pistols will be getting a tuning pass. This includes popular weapons like the XM4 and QBZ-83 assault rifles, and the LC10 submachine gun.

Zombies

In addition to a new Outbreak region and transportation methods, the patch notes announce new weapon unlock challenges coming to Zombies at the start of Season 5 for weapons like the C58 assault rifle and MG 82 light machine guns, so this provides another opportunity to earn them for players who missed their chance in the Season 4 battle pass.

New Dark Aether storyline intel is also being added for players to collect, which Treyarch reveal will offer more details about Cold War’s next round-based map.

You can see the full patch notes for Black Ops Cold War’s Season 5 update below, as shared by Treyarch.

GLOBAL

Battle Pass

• Season Five
  • New 100-Tier Battle Pass available.
• Operators
  • Kitsune
    • New ‘Kitsune” Operator available at Tier 0 in the Season Five Battle Pass.
    • “Kyubi” Operator Skin for Kitsune included with Battle Pass Bundle purchase before August 31, 2021.
• Weapons
  • EM2
    • EM2 assault rifle available for free at Tier 15 of the Battle Pass System.
  • TEC-9
    • TEC-9 SMG available for free at Tier 31 of the Battle Pass System.
• War Tracks
  • Four Treyarch music tracks available for the Music Player in the free “World at War Mixtape” War Tracks in the Battle Pass System:
    • “Black Cats”
    • “Dog Fire”
    • “Hell’s Gate”
    • “Wild Card”

Weapon Unlock Challenges

• Cane
  • New Cane melee weapon available via in-game challenge in Multiplayer or Zombies, or via unique Blueprint version in the Store at the start of Season Five.
• C58
  • Unlock Challenge available for the C58 assault rifle in Multiplayer and Zombies.
• MG 82
  • Unlock Challenge available for the MG 82 LMG in Multiplayer and Zombies.

Features

• Challenge Tracker

Operator Missions

• New Season Five Operator Missions available in Multiplayer and Zombies.

Challenges

• Addressed an issue where previous season Weapon Unlock Challenges could stop progressing.
• Addressed an issue where certain hacked Field Upgrades would not contribute to Season Challenges.
• Addressed an issue where previously unlocked Weapon Challenges would continue to display in the Challenges section of the After-Action Report.

Prestige Levels and Rewards

• Added four new Prestige Levels (20-23) and Prestige Rewards:
  • Level 50: New Prestige, Emblem, Prestige Key, Weapon Blueprint, and Battle Pass Tier Skip
  • Level 100: New Prestige, Emblem, Prestige Key, and Battle Pass Tier Skip
  • Level 150: New Prestige, Emblem, Prestige Key, and Battle Pass Tier Skip
  • Level 190: All Season Challenges Available
  • Level 200: New Prestige, Emblem, Prestige Key, Battle Pass Tier Skip, Master Prestige Calling Card
  • Levels 250 – 1,000: New Prestige Key every 50 levels

Prestige Shop

• New “Dream Crasher” Pistol Weapon Blueprint added to the Prestige Shop.
• New Legacy Calling Cards added to the Prestige Shop, including the Level 50 Animated Calling Card from Black Ops 4.

Barracks

• Added information to unlocked Calling Cards and Emblems in the Player Identity section of the Barracks that lets players know how the item was unlocked.

Main Lobby

• Updated main lobby theming for Season Five.

PC

• Addressed an issue where PlayStation 5 controller haptics would not be disabled when setting Trigger Haptics to Disabled on PC.

Weapon Tuning

• New Season Five weapon tuning includes changes for a selection of assault rifles, SMGs, and Dual Wield pistols. Starting with assault rifles, we’ve reduced Suppressor attachment Bullet Velocity penalties for all ARs to better focus on their potential for damage at long ranges.

• Assault Rifles (All)
  • Reduced Bullet Velocity penalty on Agency Suppressor attachment from -30% to -15%.
  • Reduced Bullet Velocity penalty on Suppressor attachment from -15% to -8%.

The XM4 is getting several new adjustments to assist with its handling, as well as a unique attachment. As one of our more popular weapons, the XM4 sees plenty of usage from experts and less experienced players alike, so we’ve made changes to specific attachments to appeal to players of all skill levels. Players may want to experiment with new attachment combinations after this update to find the sweet spot that works for them.

• XM4
  • Increased Reload Quickness from 2.6 sec to 2.5 sec.
  • Increased Vertical Recoil Control bonus on Infantry Compensator from +12% to +15%.
  • Reduced Horizontal Recoil Control penalty on Infantry Compensator from -8% to -5%.
  • Increased Reload Quickness on Jungle-Style Mag from +20% to +30%.
  • Removed ADS Time penalty from 40 Rnd Speed Mag.
  • Reduced extra ammo of 40 Rnd Speed Mag from +10 to +5.
  • Changed Salvo 50 Rnd Fast Mag attachment to 45 Rnd Fast Mag.
  • Reduced ADS Time penalty on 45 Rnd Fast Mag from -25% to -12%.
  • Replaced SAS Mag Clamp with unique “B-Ops Mini Clamp” attachment. This attachment increases Reload Quickness by 50%, improves ADS Time by 10%, and provides an additional starting magazine, but reduces magazine ammo from 30 to 25.

Though the QBZ-83 is a solid performer, it’s been underused compared to the rest of its class. We’ve reduced its recoil to help more players explore this weapon, develop a feel for it, and find success with it in-game.

• QBZ-83
  • Reduced vertical recoil by 10%.

As the fastest-firing AR, the FFAR 1 should be serviceable in a more aggressive, close-quarters play style. To accomplish this, we’ve given the weapon additional high-damage potential at short range while retaining its original damage values for mid- to long-range combat. Hip fire has also been improved to help with short-range encounters. As a result, several of its Barrel attachments have also been adjusted. These changes allow a skilled player to leverage the FFAR 1’s shorter-range capabilities for a more versatile play style.

• FFAR 1
  • Now deals 30 damage out to 12.7 meters for higher damage at short range.
  • Increased Hip Fire Accuracy by 14%.
  • Reduced Sprint to Fire Time penalty on Tiger Team Spotlight from -10% to -5%.
  • Reduced Aim Walking Movement Speed penalty on 21.2” Ranger Barrel from -20% to -5%.
  • Reduced Effective Damage Range bonus on 19.5” Reinforced Heavy Barrel from +100% to +40%.
  • Reduced Effective Damage Range bonus on 19.5” Task Force Barrel from +50% to +20%.
  • Reduced Effective Damage Range bonus on 20.3” Takedown Barrel from +150% to +80%.

With the Groza, handling speed is key. We’ve made visual improvements to help players take better advantage of this weapon’s quick handling, as well as attachment changes to lean into the Groza’s unique personality as a bullpup AR.

• Groza
  • Reduced vertical recoil by 15%.
  • Reduced weapon movement when walking in ADS.
  • Moved Iron Sights view farther away from the player camera.
  • Increased Horizontal Recoil Control bonus on Spetsnaz Grip from +17% to +25%.
  • Increased Vertical Recoil Control bonus on Spetsnaz Grip from +7% to +15%.
  • Increased ADS Time bonus on Spetsnaz Field Grip from +15% to +30%.
  • Reduced Flinch Resistance mitigation on Spetsnaz Field Grip from +80% to +70%.
  • Increased Sprint to Fire Time bonus on KGB Pad from +30% to +50%.
  • Reduced Hip Fire Accuracy penalty on KGB Pad from -30% to -20%.

Mid- and long-range combat are important factors for the FARA 83. Currently boasting the best range of any AR as well as a fast fire rate, this weapon requires consistency for success. As such, we’ve improved recoil and visibility while firing. While this AR was originally concepted to fill more a marksman-like role on larger maps, it has proven to be reliable in most game modes. Developing a sense for controlled firing will lead to even more success with this weapon.

• FARA 83
  • Reduced initial recoil when firing the weapon.
  • Moved Iron Sights view farther away from the player camera.

While the C58 is a powerful weapon in capable hands, some of its handling characteristics initially created a high barrier for proficiency. We’ve addressed this by improving the recoil, feel, and visibility while firing the weapon. The C58 isn’t recommended for close quarters, but with proper ammo management, this weapon can perform much like an LMG with the handling of an AR.

• C58
  • Overhauled recoil system.
  • Improved weapon visibility when initially firing.
  • Increased Effective Damage Range from 25.4m to 30.48m.
  • Reduced Effective Damage Range penalty on Suppressor attachment from -15% to -8%.

Moving onto SMGs: the KSP 45 has recently overperformed at ranges we feel are better suited for other weapons. We’ve made slight adjustments to its burst fire speed and effective damage range to alter the feel of the weapon just enough that focused players won’t feel much of a difference, but others won’t feel as “lucky” with this weapon.

• KSP 45
  • Reduced Effective Damage Range from 25.4m to 22.86m.
  • Slowed burst fire delay from 0.066 to 0.083.

In the weapon lore of Black Ops Cold War, the LC10 is an SMG created by a sniper rifle manufacturer. Accuracy – specifically at range – is part of its personality. The LC10 also features very little damage drop off to create a very consistent time to kill over a large distance. With the launch of Season Five, we’re making slight adjustments to recoil and range to raise the skill level required for success.

• LC10
  • Reduced medium damage range from 50.8m to 45.72m.
  • Increased recoil on the first and 12th bullets.

Dual wielding pistols now has a slight movement speed penalty. While not being able to aim down sights is a sizeable trade-off, movement speed has always been a top factor for success with short-range weapons. Lowering the movement speed while dual wielding creates more of a liability regarding range and positioning.

• Pistols (All)
  • Dual Wield
    • Reduced movement speed by 5%.
    • Reduced strafe speed by 5%.

MULTIPLAYER

Maps

• Echelon (6v6)
  • New map added to Multiplayer rotation in 6v6 modes.
• Slums (6v6)
  • New map added to Multiplayer rotation in 6v6 modes.
• Showroom (2v2, 3v3)
  • New map added to Multiplayer rotation in Gunfight and Face Off modes.

Modes

• Double Agent
  • New mode added to Multiplayer.
  • Operatives and the Investigator must find clues and eliminate all Double Agents to win. Double Agents must eliminate all Operatives and the Investigator, or detonate all bombs to win.
• Gunfight
  • Addressed an issue where health could show as 0 for all players while spectating.
• Search & Destroy
  • Addressed an issue where the player could not consistently plant the bomb.
• Multi-Team: Elimination
  • The party host can now bring their party back to the lobby if the team has been eliminated from the match.

Scorestreaks

• Flamethrower
  • New Scorestreak available in Multiplayer.

Season Challenges

• 20 new Multiplayer Season Challenges available to be revealed and unlocked with exclusive Calling Card and XP rewards.
• Reveal a new Challenge every 10 Season Levels. Complete all 20 Season Challenges to unlock the Season Five Multiplayer Master Animated Calling Card.

Vehicles

• Dirt Bike
  • Wheelie mechanic added in Combined Arms and Multi-Team modes.

Best Play

• Fade to black before Best Plays will now only occur in Multi-Team modes.

Featured Playlists

• Double Agent [NEW]
• Echelon 24/7 [NEW]
• Showroom Gunfight [NEW]
• NukeJacked 24/7
• Gunfight (Now includes Showroom)
• Face Off 6v6 (Now includes Showroom)
• Snipers Only Moshpit
• Party Games
• Multi-Team

LEAGUE PLAY

UI

• Map and mode will now only be shown once all players have been found and the lobby has been locked in. Our intention is to show the map and mode that you will be playing and not to provide this info earlier to allow for “lobby shopping.”

ZOMBIES

Perks

• Death Perception
  • New upgradeable Perk now available in the Der Wunderfizz machine in all round-based maps and Outbreak.
  • Obscured enemies are keylined.
    • Skill Tier I – Mini-map update rate is increased.
    • Skill Tier II – Enemies give danger indicators when behind the player.
    • Skill Tier III – Gain 20% more looted Salvage and High-Grade Salvage.
    • Skill Tier IV – Increase armor penetration damage by 25%.
    • Skill Tier V – Nearby chests, resources, and item drops are keylined through walls.
• Tombstone
  • Players now take 25% less damage in shadow form.
  • Cost has been removed from the Tombstone stash.

Field Upgrades

• Tesla Storm
  • New Field Upgrade now available in all round-based maps and Outbreak.
  • For 10 seconds, lightning connects to other players, stunning and damaging normal enemies.
    • Skill Tier I – Double the damage dealt to enemies stunned by Tesla Storm.
    • Skill Tier II – Increase the duration to 15 seconds.
    • Skill Tier III – Special enemies can be stunned and damaged by Tesla Storm.
    • Skill Tier IV – Players generating a field gain 25% increased movement speed.
    • Skill Tier V – Elite enemies can be stunned and damaged by Tesla Storm.

Support

• Flamethrower
  • New Flamethrower Support Weapon available in all round-based maps and Outbreak.

Outbreak

• Regions
  • Collateral Region now available.
• Objectives
  • Transport Objective added.
• Vehicles
  • Tank vehicle added to several Regions.
• Equipment
  • Grapple Gun added as new Equipment available at the Crafting Table.
• Enemies
  • Disciple added to Outbreak.
  • Addressed an issue where fire FX were not being applied to Special enemies when using Napalm Burst.
  • Addressed an issue where the Mimic could appear to have two overlapping heads.
• Intel
  • New Season Five story Intel added throughout Outbreak.
• Gameplay
  • Omega Helicopter added.
• Playlists
  • Endless
    • Standard Outbreak experience with the option to Warp or Exfil in all Regions.
  • 3 Region
    • New playlist added. The first two Regions only have the option to Warp, while the third Region will only have the Exfil option.

Round-Based Maps

• “Mauer Der Toten”
  • Gameplay
    • Added a couple of hidden surprises. 😉
  • Main Quest
    • Addressed an issue where the boss could become stuck when players quickly moved to the next arena during the Main Quest boss fight.
    • Closed an exploit that allowed infinitely charging and activating the Field Upgrade for the canister during the Main Quest.
  • Support
    • Addressed an issue where the screen was too dark when using the Cruise Missile Support, making it difficult to aim.
  • Stability
    • Fixed various stability issues related to Klaus, the Main Quest, and Ammo Caches.
  • PC
    • Addressed an issue where the dials on the safe were not legible when playing at Low or Lowest texture quality settings on PC.
• General
  • Reduced max Essence for respawning players in round-based maps to 25,000. This will now cap out at Round 25 instead of Round 50.

Dead Ops Arcade 3

• Bonus Map
  • Added Ikari EggXit bonus map to The Wild.

Onslaught (PlayStation)

• Maps
  • Echelon added to Onslaught map rotation.
• Intel
  • Added new Dark Aether story Intel to discover in Onslaught.
• Modes
  • Onslaught maps can now be selected when playing in Local.

Season Challenges

• 20 new Zombies Season Challenges available to be revealed and unlocked with exclusive Calling Card and XP rewards.
• Reveal a new Challenge every 10 Season Levels. Complete all 20 Season Challenges to unlock the Season Five Zombies Master Animated Calling Card.

Blueprints

• Addressed an issue where applying a Blueprint to a weapon that had been Pack-a-Punched to Tier II or III would reset it to Pack-a-Punch Tier I camo.
• Addressed an issue where Blueprint weapon skins were not retained when warping to the next Region in Outbreak.
• Addressed an issue where attachments were being removed from weapons when applying Blueprints with Mule Kick.

Featured Playlists

• Outbreak (Endless and 3 Region) [NEW]
• Mauer der Toten
• Firebase Z
• Die Maschine
• Dead Ops Arcade: First Person
• Dead Ops Arcade
• Onslaught (PlayStation)
• Onslaught Echelon (PlayStation) [NEW]
• Onslaught Accelerated (PlayStation)
• Onslaught Containment (PlayStation)

Motorsport Games has announced NASCAR 21: Ignition will be released on October 28, 2021. NASCAR 21: Ignition is headed to PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC via Steam, and Motorsport Games has promised a free upgrade path for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S will follow post-launch.

The studio has released the first trailer for NASCAR 21 alongside the news, giving racing fans a first glimpse at the Unreal Engine-powered 2021 reboot of this stalwart sim series.

Folks who pre-order either the standard or “Champions” edition of NASCAR 21 digitally will get access to the game two days early. Champions Edition purchasers will also unlock 1988 Winston Cup champ and 16-time winner of NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver Award Bill Elliot as a playable racer. The Champions Edition will also include NASCAR 21’s season pass, which will provide access to a further three NASCAR legends down the track.

NASCAR 21 will come with the official drivers, teams, and tracks from the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series. This means it won’t be as broad as NASCAR Heat 5, but Motorsport Games has explained the decision to focus exclusively on the Cup series for the first instalment of this new series meant it could dedicate all its resources to ensuring the core NASCAR experience was “as close to perfect as we could be.”

“We definitely knew that people would be wondering, ‘Hey, you lost trucks, you lost Xfinity, you lost the fantasy dirt series,’” Motorsport Games’ George Holmquist tells IGN. “It’s really difficult to make all of those work correctly.”

“We also know from our player data that most people, probably 90% of our users or even higher, played just Cup, and the second-highest being Xfinity. So starting over we wanted to make sure the core of the game… was perfect, or as close to perfect as we could be. This doesn’t mean you’ll never see the trucks or Xfinity again; it’s just for this new game – the first rendition of it – we wanted to make sure that the core experience, the Cup experience, had a lot of attention to it and we weren’t dividing resources to create the feeder series.

Starting over we wanted to make sure the core of the game… was perfect, or as close to perfect as we could be.

“What we didn’t want to have, if you’re a player of Heat, is that they all kind of feel the same; it’s just that they’re a different car model. Arguably the dirt series felt a little different because you’re on a dirt track, but it wasn’t like you were driving a truck versus an Xfinity car versus a Cup car. And they’re actually very, very different.”

Powered by Unreal Engine and rFactor 2’s widely-acclaimed driving physics, NASCAR 21 will feature a full career mode, 40-player online races, and a new paint booth the studio promises will offer “unparalleled levels of customisation to create NASCAR paint schemes.”

“Motorsport Games is thrilled to offer our most true-to-life simulation of NASCAR to date with NASCAR 21: Ignition,” said Motorsport Games CEO Dmitry Kozko. “We’ve designed this game with our fans and players in mind, bringing them features, modes and options they have long clamoured for. NASCAR 21: Ignition captures the atmosphere, pageantry, and fierce competition of the NASCAR Cup Series, while offering authenticity, competition and accessibility through the game’s core foundations.”

Confirmation that Motorsport Games would be releasing the first game in a new NASCAR series later this year arrived last month, shortly before the studio also confirmed it had partnered with IndyCar for a new racing series expected to launch in 2023 (the first standalone IndyCar game since 2004). Motorsport Games is also building a game based on the British Touring Car Championship.

Luke is Games Editor at IGN’s Sydney office. You can find him on Twitter every few days @MrLukeReilly.

Halo Infinite‘s game engine is a “Mystical Beast,” according to one of the developers at 343 Industries. In an employee spotlight, senior software engineer Leonard Holman talked about working with Halo Infinite’s SlipSpace engine and how it marries the series’ classic gameplay with modern technology.

“SlipSpace really is a mystical beast; it walks this fine line of intimidating futuristic technology married to little gems of classic gameplay and subtly authentic legacy behaviors,” Holman said. “I love that the Engineering team has embraced the modern features of the C++ language. It’s an exciting time to be a C++ developer, at least I think so.”

The developers at 343 Industries have previously said that the SlipSpace engine, which was developed for Halo Infinite, allows the team to do things not possible on previous engines. One of the biggest improvements that came from the new engine was the ability to implement and test new ideas much faster than before. Holman also touched on finding old aspects of the Halo CE engine and implementing them into the new technology.

Fans got a taste of the SlipStream engine during the Halo Infinite Technical test in late July. While the performance was lacking on last-gen hardware, it performed well on the Xbox Series X|S. Performance aside, the Halo Infinite tech test was impressive and has made some of us more excited for its full release Holiday 2021 on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC.