The Xbox Series X & Xbox Series S: Which One Is Right For You?

Let’s face facts: Microsoft’s last generation of gaming right after the Xbox 360 was, to put it mildly, abysmal. You can chalk it up to either mismanagement of expectations, cancelled exclusives, or a slow marketing campaign. That’s also not mentioning the fact that its competitor PlayStation was really hitting a slew of home runs and goals, or whatever successful scoring sports analogy you want to use, by doing the complete opposite.
Whatever the case, Microsoft has learned its lesson and instead just focused on other key gaming things. Like building an online Game Pass system where players can play a ton of games via a subscription service for a cheap price. Or buying off the competition with the oodles of money they have; they are the world’s biggest and oldest electronics and OS company, you know. During their worst game-making period, they played it smart and just solidified their infrastructure.

Still, they’re not out of the game console-making woods yet, far from it. After recovering from a devastating blow in the previous generation, the house of X is debuting the next-gen consoles of late 2020 and beyond: the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S, out 11th November in select countries. And while the future is still murky for Microsoft and gaming (like Halo Infinite’s recent director trouble) we can safely say that these machines are the step in the right direction; the makings of a comeback king if you will. But it really depends on which path of gaming you’re headed.
We’ll explain further.
Xbox Series X – Power Overwhelming

Words: Jonathan “Mr Toffee” Leo
So we’ve come to a point where the best machines are the ones that loads games fast and make them look crisp and clean. But the most important thing? Having all your games available from the get-go from the first few generations.
The Xbox Series is doing just that with its games library. While the circumstances that led to both the Xbox Series X and Series S were dire, since Xbox lost badly the current-gen battle against the PlayStation 4, the big X at least recovered from their wounds and are starting a new slate. But instead of a flat tablet, we have a giant black monolith and a small white boombox proxy. Let’s talk about the former first.
How It’s Like?
From a physical standpoint, the Xbox Series X is as conventional as you can get. It’s a rectangle; a boxy column that you can either set on its base or horizontally on the intended side (with the four bases at the corner). But with conventional shapes comes practicality: you can store the Xbox Series X on most spaces and surfaces; most likely it’ll stay there all cosy.

Just like the PlayStation 4’s ideal rhombus shape, the Xbox Series X is built to be on anybody’s shelf and just do its thing well. Which is to play games fast, awesome-looking, with easy access, and quietly.
Right off the bat, this console makes full use of 4K resolution features very well. Our available displays for testing are two 4K TVs from Samsung (Series 6) and Sony (X7000G Series). Just keep in mind: not all 4K TVs are made equal. You have to do your research and see if the TV supports up to 4K UHD 120hz and if it has the right HDR options. We’ll do a guide on that in the near future; for now, these will suffice.

We played a bit of Dirt 5, Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla, Gears 5, and Forza Horizon 4 just to see the differences. While the latter two are titles that were previously released for the Xbox One, they are optimized for 4K play here.
Gears 5 is looking really sharp and sweet on 4K with 60fps intact. Playing the game on split-screen, however, was disappointing as it reverted back to 30fps and showed no signs of graphical fidelity. Still, if you’re playing the game by yourself, expect reds and whole chunks of lighting effects to impress in high resolution. Ditto for Forza Horizon 4, also optimized to look as sharp. It ran about 45fps or so, but the graphical up-rez on 4K is clear as day, be it the in-game winter or the autumn.

The true test is 4K detailing for a game meant for 2020; DIRT 5 and Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla are the noteworthy candidates so far, and are the best games to test 4K potential on next-gen consoles. DIRT 5 has both image quality and resolution prioritization modes, which makes testing 4K resolutions all the more thorough. Performance is all about detail, contrast, and fidelity at the cost of framerate drops, while resolution prioritizing keeps the frame rate as high as possible; 60fps and higher in this case.
Both options showcase a lot of differences in 4K; you can see all the highlights and detail on your rally car from the top frames to the detailed grills, the tracks, and the mud puddle reflections better in image quality mode. Resolution mode keeps the framerate stable and at a respectable 60fps and higher. While there are instances of screen tearing and frame rate drops, they only happen once in a while on image quality mode moreso than resolution mode.
As for Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla, I can’t say much due to embargoes, so we’ll just focus on graphics & performance for the first few hours into the adventure. All that “crispy” snow, an overabundance of northern lights, vistas, and the rest of the blood-laden viking-themed visuals? They all look godlike and phenomenal especially when they’re running close to 60fps in 4K.
If you want to show off to your friends the power of 4K gaming on an Xbox Series X, we recommend you use games made for 2020 (and beyond). While we can’t speak for other titles like Yakuza 7 and Watch Dogs: Legion at this point in time, the others we checked out do give a good case for 4K console gaming pushed out of the processing and fan-blowing of the new Xbox.
Also, you can call the machine a next-gen PC minus the PC setup and assembly work, as well as the extra thousands of RMs you have to spend on these things usually. With the power and processing it’s churning out, it’s as close as you can get to getting a pure gaming rig without the hassle and technical issues of one. You can even connect your keyboard and mouse combo, and start typing away (some games do use this function; keep that in mind).
Silent Power

Speaking of which, the Xbox Series X is quiet. Pretty, pretty quiet. There is no noise coming out of the machine’s fan and cooling system. While it’s a wee bit hot after a few hours of use, there wasn’t even a single distracting peep out of the machine while it’s processing high-end games.
It also loads existing and optimized games fast. Really fast. Gears 5 took 8 seconds while Forza Horizon 4 took 30 seconds to get to the in-game bits. On the Xbox One, these games took about a minute and 2 minutes respectively. Mega-huge games like Red Dead Redemption 2 took about 40 seconds or less to load on the Series X; the previous-gen loads about 2 minutes.
Long story short: that’s a helluva difference! Here are the other game load times comparisons between the Xbox Series X and Xbox One (in brackets):

Final Fantasy XV: 13 seconds (1 minute 20 seconds)
The Outer Worlds: 11 seconds (40 seconds)
Resident Evil 3 (2020):
Killer Instinct (2013): >3 seconds (10 seconds)
Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla: 4 to 6 seconds (N/A)
NBA 2K21: 5 seconds
Devil May Cry 5: 5 seconds
The Witcher 3: No fast travel load times

The Xbox Series X and S already have a wealth of games for players to partake and peruse via the Xbox Game Pass initiative they’ve been building since five years ago.
The Resume Play feature is also nifty if you’re the kind of person who wants to just keep playing multiple games and switch them around. All you have to do is pause your current game, press the home button, switch to the next game. When you’re done with that one, you can resume back to the previous game from where you left off.
The only game it didn’t work on was with Gears 5 on 4K. For some reason, it just showed a black screen after the initial 5-6 second loading. Other than that, going from DIRT 5 to Killer Instinct to Battletoads, and then back to Dirt 5 again mid-play is painless.Â  Bottom line: with a few exceptions, you can switch between games on the Xbox Series X with no issue, as long as you keep the numbers to a reasonable rate. We believe the threshold of Resume Play is 6 games. There’s going to be some issues with this mode on 4K, but generally, it should work fine during launch week.
We should address the elephant in the room. Granted, the Xbox Series X is missing a few key franchises and new exclusive games like Halo Infinite, but the Xbox already has exclusives worth playing in 2020. Well, they’re Xbox One exclusives, but they’re optimized to run faster and load quicker on the new machine like Ori and the Will of the Wisps and Gears Tactics. We’ve reviewed these titles and they’re stellar examples of Xbox exclusives doing the brand right. We’ll be sure to judge them and the system as a whole one year later when (or if) any of its exclusives are out and are worth shouting about. For now, eyes on the prize.
Is This A Must Buy?

It really depends. Just like a 90s slogan, Xbox is truly playing with power. Specifically, 4K power.
Everything you want out of 4K gaming and not spending more than RM2,100+ is inside this monolith of a machine. It’s not obnoxious with its design and it fits on most shelves, as well as works horizontally. Meaning you can stack other consoles onto it. Just keep the vents clear and you’re golden.
Features like Resume Play and fast load times work as advertised, and its 4K game experience impresses. It’s all game-dependent, but so far the intended effects are there: awesome colour contrasts, little dips in quality and textures, no noise coming out from the machine at high and intense levels. If you have an Xbox Game Pass already and need to future-proof yourself with an awesome machine, you should get the Xbox Series X.
One possible caveat: if you do not have a game-ready 4K TV and are staying 1080p for your gaming, you may want to reconsider purchasing the Xbox Series X for now. Instead, its smaller white boombox cousin may be a more enticing option instead.
Also, if you’re living outside of Singapore, you may need to parallel import it to your domicile. We heard some of these places are taking orders. Long story short: if you have (or will eventually buy) the 4K tools needed and want a beefy gaming machine with all of its games intact, jump in. It’s what the past successful Xbox generations would have wanted.Â
Final Score: 80/100

Vital Statistics
Price
S$699

Processors
CPU: 8X Cores @ 3.8 GHz (3.6 GHz w/SMT) Custom Zen 2 CPU

GPU: 12 TFLOPS, 52 CUs @1.825 GHz Custom RDNA 2 GPU
SOC Die Size: 360.45 mm

Process: 7nm Enhanced

Memory & Storage

Memory: 16GB GDDR6 w/320 bit-wide bus
Memory Bandwidth: 0GB @ 560 GB/s, 6GB @ 336 GB/s.
Internal Storage: 1TB Custom NVME SSD
I/O Throughput: 2.4 GB/s (Raw), 4.8 GB/s (Compressed, with custom hardware decompression block)
Expandable Storage: Support for 1TB Seagate Expansion Card for Xbox Series X|S matches internal storage exactly (sold separately). Support for USB 3.1 external HDD (sold separately).

Video Capabilities

Performance Target: 4K @ 60FPS, with support for up to 120FPS

High Dynamic Range: Up to 8K HDR
Optical Drive: 4K UHD Blu-Ray

HDMI 2.1 Features: Auto Low Latency Mode. HDMI Variable Refresh Rate. AMD FreeSync.

Sound Capabilities

Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS 5.1, Dolby TrueHD with Atmos, Up to 7.1 L-PCM

Ports & Connectivity

HDMI: 1x HDMI 2.1 port

USB: 3x USB 3.1 Gen 1 ports
Wireless: 802.11ac dual band
Ethernet: 802.3 10/100/1000

Accessories radio: Dedicated dual band Xbox Wireless radio.

Design
Dimensions: 15.1cm x 15.1cm x 30.1cm
Weight: 9.8lbs (4.4kg)
Next: Xbox Series S


All You Need To Know About Marvel’s Latest Cosmic Event

Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Marvel postponed its massive annual crossover event for 2020, but now it’s finally here. This year that crossover is Empyre;Â the first issue of the grand and epic cosmic event has arrived to give fans a taste of what to expect from the Marvel Universe in the near future.
The best part of Empyre is that the Fantastic Four once again joins a Marvel crossover for the first time since 2015’s Secret Wars. It’s frankly getting tiresome of seeing the same Avengers-centric or X-Men-focused events for the past five years. It’s time that we shine the spotlight on Marvel’s First Family again.

Who Is The Creative Team Behind Empyre?
Al Ewing is Marvelâ€™s current cosmic king (and the natural successors to previous cosmic masters like the late Jack Kirby, Jim Starlin, and Dan Abnett). Anyone whoâ€™s been reading his ongoing Immortal Hulk run will know how great of a writer he is. Joining him on writing duties is current Fantastic Four and Iron Man writer Dan Slott (whom you might know from his previous decade-long stint on The Amazing Spider-Man).
The brilliant out-of-this-world art comes from Valerio Schiti and colourist Marte Gracia, and let’s not forget letterer Joe Caramanga who makes the dialogue pop from the pages, lending even more epicness.
What Is Empyre About?
The main premise of Empyre is simple at heart, as the Avengers and Fantastic Four go head-to-head against an invading force consisting of the Kree and the Skrulls, who have united to wipe out the Cotati, another alien race long-thought extinct in the Marvel Universe. The Kree, in particular, has a long and bloody history with the Cotati, as they were the ones who committed genocide and tried to eradicate the Cotati millennia ago.
Fast-forward to today, and the Avengers and the Fantastic Four shockingly find themselves face-to-face in deep space with Teddy Altman AKA Hulking; half-Kree, half-Skrull, and former Young Avenger. He embraced his birthright or “destiny” as leader of the new Kree and Skrull alliance in order to stop the war between them once and for all (or so he thinks.
Oh, and he’s also gay, as well as supposed to be in a loving relationship with Billy Kaplan AKA Wiccan, who is not only the son of the Scarlet Witch but one of the most powerful beings in the Marvel Universe (he can manipulate reality at will).
However, Hulking is now Emperor Dorrek VIII, and he is here with a Kree-Skrull fleet ready to decimate the Cotati and maybe even Earth with it.

The Cotati are now living on the moon (yes, our moon), which is why the Kree-Skrull armada has arrived. However, Tony Stark AKA Iron Man received visions from a member of the Cotati and he (along with the Avengers) have pledged to help protect the “seemingly” defenceless sentient plant race.

AD

What Is Required Reading For Empyre?
As with pretty much any Marvel crossover, there are a lot of recent comics that have been building up to Empyre, not to mention the older comics which form the basis of existing lore. This is a story that’s pretty much a continuation of the original Kree-Skrull War crossover by Roy Thomas all the way back in 1971/1972, which means that there have been almost four decades of history and comics leading to Empyre.
Don’t worry though, you don’t really need to read all of those older comics to understand and enjoy Empyre. However, those who do or have done so (in particular, existing and long-time comic book readers) will find the comic so much more rewarding.
That said, you could get definitely benefit from having a little more context on the wider conflict by reading The Avengers: Kree-Skrull War comic, which is available on Comixology.

Next, you could also check out the Young Avengers comics to learn more about Hulking, who is at the heart of the new Kree-Skrull alliance. There’s the original run by Allan Heinberg and Jim Cheung (available here), and the most recent run by Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie (available here). It’s currently unclear if the rest of the Young Avengers will be involved in Empyre, but at least you’ll know more about Hulking.

Last but not least, you should probably read Avengers: The Complete Celestial Madonna Saga, written by Steve Englehart, Jim Starlin and Roy Thomas. It explains the role of the Celestial Madonna and Celestial Messiah, which is heavily featured in Empyre as it directly pertains with the Cotati. It’s available on Comixology here.

Sure, there’s a lot more comics you have to read to get the full picture; it’s 40 years of comics after all. However, I think the comics that I listed are basically more than enough for you to understand all the major players and plot points in Empyre.
Is Empyre Worth Reading (So Far)?
Yes, it is. I can’t say much about the plot without spoiling it, especially the game-changing twist at the end of the very first issue. Like I mentioned in my tweet, Empyre provides a grand scale that remains unique to comics as a medium, the likes of which the movie adaptations have yet to be able to replicate so far (yes, even Avengers Infinity War and Avengers Endgame).

Grand epic cosmic events like #Empyre are one of the biggest reasons why I love comics so much & it’s something the movies (MCU, DCEU, etc.) have yet to fully replicate.
Thanks, @Al_Ewing, @DanSlott & @ValerioSchiti!
Looking forward to more! @Marvel pic.twitter.com/t4NiF4F1cJ
â€” Alleef The Comics Lord (@ComicsLord) July 15, 2020

The Best Single Page From Empyre #1

Yes, that’s Ghost Rider turning the Avengers Quinjet into a flaming spaceship. If that doesn’t make you want to read Empyre, I don’t know what will.
In the meantime, check out the trailer to Empyre below (yes, Marvel Comics made an actual trailer).
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zr4rQG9uuLM&w=560&h=315]


Echo Fox Is No More

The last time we wrote about Echo Fox was to report on Rick Fox’s departure from the company. At that time, it became an unspoken truth that the company was already heading towards its demise. Recent news has reveal that that is now confirmed.
In an exclusive interview with WIN.gg, an Echo Fox investor spokesperson confirmed that the company is no longer operating. Despite what appearances may have suggested, it seems that Echo Fox was struggling financially and they finally reached the point of non-sustainability.

“There is no Echo Fox. It’s gone. All the players were let go. The staff was terminated. The logo and uniform, they’re now a collector’s item.”
– Echo Fox investor spokesperson.
There’s no denying that Rick Fox was a great PR guy for the organisation and esports as a whole but it seems that some of his decisions weren’t really making the company profitable. The spokesperson explained that the organisation was paying half a million dollars in operating costs each month to pay players and staff despite not having any money to their name.
It all started to go downhill after the controversy surrounding a display of racism between an Echo Fox investor and founder. The lawsuit that came as a result of that controversy has been dropped and Rick Fox basically doesn’t have a job anymore.
There’s no telling what the future holds for Echo Fox and its players. Their League of Legends team disbanded after the controversy and their fighting game players will have to find new organisations to work with.
To read the full WIN.gg interview, click here.


Gamescom 2022: All The Announcements & News

Update (25/8/2022): Added games from Wednesday.
Gamescom 2022 is live this week, and there are a ton of new video game announcements and surprises in store from today until this weekend.
Here are all the news and announcements, collected under one big feature. We’ll be sure to update this hub page with all the biggest Gamescom reveals big and small since the event is still ongoing.
Destiny 2: Lightfall Reveal

Not quite a Gamescom 2022 reveal, but it happened an hour before the Gamescom 2022 Geoff Keighley show, so it kinda counts. Destiny 2’s big story expansion is getting a new level (Neptune’s lost neon city), new enemies (purple Cabals & Tormentors), and new Darkness powers called Strands which lets you grapple hook your way through the game.

Everywhere

A scifi- open-world third-person action adventure game with “creative elements”. Keep in mind this title is made by ex-Rockstar Games lead developer Leslie Benzies.

The Callisto Protocol

How to make a Dead Space game without calling it Dead Space, from the creator of Dead Space back in the late 2000s. This sci-fi survival action game features dismemberment and on-the-fly mutation to make fights more tense and tough.

Dune: Awakening MMORPG From Funcom

The spice must flow! Funcom (Secret World) will be making a new MMORPG with survival elements based on the Dune novel/film franchise Why else would Paul Atreides look like Timothée Chalamet in the trailer?

Sonic Frontiers

Sonic Frontiers has a release date: 8th November 2022. We knew about this a while ago, but it’s now made official.
Return To Monkey Island

The upcoming adventure game from a team led by original Monkey Island creator Ron Gilbert has a release date: 19th September. That’s when International Talk Like A Pirate Day is happening!

New Tales From The Borderlands

As mentioned earlier, New Tales From The Borderlands will be out on 21 October for PC and consoles. The new story takes place in Promethea and you determine the fate of three underdogs: scientist Anu, streetwise poser Octavio, and the cyber-wheelchair-bound frogurt-flinger Fran.

Friends Vs Friends

A gorgeous-looking colourful trailer showing off a PvP(?) style first-person shooter with deck-building mechanics between furries.

The Lords Of The Fallen

What was supposed to be Lords of the Fallen 2 ends up being a reboot with no sequel number attached. Fair enough, since it’s been 9 years since the first game. For those not in the know, this one’s a dark fantasy Soulslike action RPG game.

Lies Of P

Gamescom 2022 Opening Night Live unveiled a new gameplay trailer from Neowiz’s upcoming hardcore action RPG title which retells the story of wooden lying boy Pinnochio. Only instead of gusto and a cricket, he now fights with giant sharp swords and spells in a steampunk-esque fantasy landscape.

Homeworld 3

The long-awaited sequel to the Homeworld franchise (big epic space battles + colony-building) is coming soon, in the first half of 2023.

Blacktail

An indie game where you can play as either a good witch or a bad one. The two conflicting VO style in the trailer seems to allude that amidst the first-person action, survival, and archery.

Killer Klowns From Outer Space: The Game

The cult classic 80s B-movie horror film is getting an asymmetrical multiplayer PvP game from the creators of the Friday the 13th game. Out in early 2023.

Moonbreaker

The makers of Subnautica are switching up genres from survival games to a turn-based miniatures-painting-and-assembling strategy title.

Goat Simulator 3

Here’s a gameplay trailer from the anticipated sequel to the first game, which somehow skipped a number for comedy’s sake.

The Outlast Trials

Poor hapless souls go through the trials based on the last few Outlast horror games. The game’s closed beta trials will last from 28th October to 1st November.

Where Winds Meet

Chinese Wuxia meets Ghost of Tsushima. No release date yet, but this Chinese-made action adventure game looks promising.

A Pokemon x MINI Collaboration Featuring An Electric Car

Of course one of the biggest video game companies making digital pocket monster RPGs will be teaming up with a renowned car company to make a game-centric version of its electric-powered MINI Concept Aceman car.

Wrydsong

An open-world RPG from Bethesda and Obsidian veterans.

Phantom Hellcat

Theater and stageplay-style backdrops plus Nier Automata-style action RPG combat equals a rollicking fun time with this new game title.

Atlas Fallen

Action RPG plus loads of sand to surf on equals a new title from longtime devs Deck 13.

Gotham Knights

We get to see the villains you fight in the upcoming No-Batman-but-Bat-Family action title from Warner Bros.

Dead Island 2

The biggest surprise of Gamescom 2022 Opening Night Live. This long-forgotten and delayed game is coming out early next year in February. Check out the gorey gameplay above; it’s open-world zombie-killing in first-person set in a hellscape Los Angeles with a tone that’s mimicking pulp action films of the 70s and 80s.

Forspoken

Square Enix released a 10-minute video featuring the open-world game’s combat and environments. Despite the recent ad campaign, Forspoken looks like a lot of fun when the main character shuts her mouth.

The Gap

Not a clothing store, but a sci-fi first-person thriller game.

God Of Rock

A music rhythm fighting game.

The Dark Pictures Anthology: The Devil In Me

The Dark Pictures Anthology The Devil In Me opens its doors to a whole new cast and terrifying story. This trailer gives a short but disturbing tour of what’s to come for its unsuspecting cast.

Snaccoon

A stealth game where you play as a raccoon.
The Last Case of Benedict Fox

A fantastical Lovecraftian Metroidvania title set for PC, Xbox Series, and Xbox Game Pass.


EVO 2020 Is Cancelled

The COVID-19 pandemic has claimed yet more event plans this week. The latest is the international fighting game tournament EVO 2020.
According to an official post from the organizers, EVO 2020 at the Mandalay Bay is cancelled. Tickets will be refunded.
However, the EVO team are planning on hosting online events this summer, with more details to follow on a later date.
https://www.facebook.com/EvoChampionshipSeries/posts/10158210543579383?__cft__[0]=AZWtYhCzw7YFTL–yw4SK84ky97G9G86UZxcGN5VTTWOf715Tip7IhnB3EMG9IDRceUf05eZp86u2IL5Mi4zZGrY9CWekR8kHEBGN9XKjx6EO4wYWMTU919XumnUkzpQp_GWzPuo-S7eIH3grMqFc8u2rCLMOQTczW7WHg0hQGrRZw&__tn__=%2CO%2CP-R
This is sad news, but at least event organizers are prioritizing health and safety over everything else. To see our coverage of EVO 2019, head here.Â


The Best Final Fantasy Entry Gets The Polished Remaster It Deserves

Platform(s): PC (version reviewed), iOS, Android
Genre: Pixel remaster of beloved 90s JRPG
It’s no secret that Final Fantasy VI is the most beloved Final Fantasy entry out there. But to receive a respectful remaster while preserving its 16-bit SNES aesthetics? That’s new, considering Square Enix loves to whore out its old games in not-so-pleasant ways.
Still, the past is the past and the company is moving a few steps ahead with its Pixel Remaster series of old FF games, with part 6 clearly being the best of the lot.
A New COAT OF PIXEL PAINT
Don’t get me wrong: all the Final Fantasy Pixel Remasters from parts 1 to 5 are great and worthy of your time and money, whether you own a PC or a mobile phone to run one of these. But after checking out all of these in the past year and early this year, with Final Fantasy VI Pixel Remaster being the latest to come out early this year, it’s clear as day that Yoshinori Kitase’s baby girl before FFVII gets the best treatment out of the lot.
For those who don’t know: Final Fantasy VI starts off with the ex-Emperor magic-powered soldier Terra being free and finding out her past, while being embroiled in a rebel’s cause and joining heroes like the thief Locke and the brothers Figaro (Edgar and Sabin), which then escalates to the world rediscovering the long lost art of magic and the consequences therein. Simply put, FFVI has the best story among all the mothership titles bar none, with its focus on many of its cast members and the second half of the game where you’re free to tackle the endgame however you want. FFVI also boasts one of the best villains in the gaming medium, who starts out as a literal court jester to the most menacing character who gets things done and raises the stakes to near-catastrophic heights. Story-wise, Final Fantasy VI is peerless and untouchable even up to now.

The remaster does a great job in not only preserving the gravitas of the story, but also amplifies key scenes in the game. Chief of this is the game’s soundtrack which is now using full orchestras, the 2D aesthetics that are completely redone with new colour shades and detailing from past Square Enix artists who used to work on the original, and key scenes like the Opera section being redone and given added vocal work. The game as well gets a sort of rebalancing and tweaking, so your old tricks in the SNES and Game Boy Advance versions will not work here. Conversely, the game gets some much-needed quality-of-life additions. You can now run faster in the overworld, and the autosave option is welcome especially since this version of the game is arguably tougher than before. Some heroes like Cyan’s abilities too get a much-needed retooling, making them just as useful as the rest of the party unlike last time. Additionally, Sabin’s Blitz combos are easier to pull off. There’s just a lot that’s improved that justifies its price tag and your hours.
The elephant in the room is of course the jarring font used for the text. Amidst the lovingly-crafted and remastered sprite work and backdrops, the new font really stands out. But when you think about it, if the only thing worth complaining about a faithful remaster of a classic JRPG is something as nitpickey as a font choice, that says a lot about the quality of this Square Enix remaster. The Final Fantasy VI Pixel Remaster is a masterclass on how a company should handle its JRPG legacy, especially if it’s a game as monumental as this.
On that note, Square Enix, can you please release these remasters on other consoles and platforms, as well as in a physical limited edition collection? It’s rather odd that the game is limited to just PC and mobile devices.
Final Score: 90/100


V Rising Is Getting Free Expansion Early This Year; Overhauls Magic & Jewel System

Action RPG survival game V Rising, where you play as vampires surviving against all odds, will be getting bigger in a few months.
V Rising’s major free expansion will be out earlier this year in May and will focus on a number of additions and alterations, according to developer Stunlock. This includes the jewels system, which will be tweaked to be less restrictive for players. Jewels will fit into each spell; while they’re equipped, you won’t drop them when you die. However, you only get to use one jewel per ability.
“[The original jewels system] discouraged vampires from being adaptive and from exploring all of the deadly possibilities afforded to them. It’s important to us that this system offers more freedom in spell choice and variety to satisfy your dark desires.”

Spells too will get a reworking, giving each of the five prime schools of magic a stronger subdivision identity and better cohesion. This is done by adding effects that stack with each other. Stunlock says it wishes to encourage leaning into individual magic archetypes without making it overly beneficial, thus encouraging players to mix and match spells.

Stunlock is also upgrading blood magic with automatic leech effects; you are playing a vampire 100% of the time in V Rising, after all. The full magic rundown is below:
Blood Magic

Blood Magic has become the centre of vampiric healing and represents a Vampire controlling raw life essence. Blood spells now inflict a leech effect on your enemies, allowing you to attack an afflicted foe and replenish your life force much like, well, a leech. Blood has acquired a little gift from the Unholy branch. The “area of effect” spell Purgatory, which sets down an explosive magic circle to heal your allies and harm your enemies, is now exactly where it belongs.
Unholy Magic

We haven’t forgotten about the necromancers, of which there are many. More ways to summon an army of the undead is a frequent request, and we’re happy to deliver. The unique debuff for Unholy inflicts an effect that amplifies damage on the target but also has a ghoulish secondary effect. If an enemy dies under the effect of the Unholy amplify, a skeleton will rise from its corpse to aid you in battle for a short time. Unholy will be all about striking down bloodied enemies using their remains to serve you.
There will be other ways to get the most out of your undead army using the Jewel system, such as exploding skeletal minions or summoning up some of those aim-hacking skeletal mages.
Unholy emphasizes its summoning nature by conjuring up a trick from the Illusion school. Our favourite spinny fellow, the Spectral Assassin, has found a new home as the unholy Death Knight.
Chaos Magic

Where else would you expect to dish out colossal damage than the home of our beloved friend, the Chaos Bolt? Chaos magic will be all about aggression, damage, and wreckage. The familiar ignite debuff is making a comeback as a staple of this branch of arcana, and some of the more supportive spells are going to be tweaked to focus on offensive stats instead of defensive ones.
There will be more focus on causing damage to large groups and increasing your ability to put enemies in a position to take a hit. For example, the area of effect spell Void no longer pushes enemies away but instead draws them towards the centre.
Illusion Magic

Illusions are more elusive than ever, being reimagined to let you fulfil your fantasy of being a slippery trickster. This is the magical technique of support and defence and the only spell type so far imbued with two unique mechanics. This speciality will inflict a weakening effect on foes, making them deal less damage with their attacks.
Casting an Illusion won’t just cause a debuff. It will also provide a buff to the caster. The ‘Phantasm’ buff will stack with each cast. With each stack, it will increase your chance to bypass your standard spell cooldowns and give the user a free ability cast. This is similar to a benefit currently available from the scholar blood type. Upon getting this free cast, your Phantasm stacks will clear and begin the process again.
With Phantasm, your dedicated illusionist makes up for their defensive nature by casting more often, so don’t think that you’ll have it easy just because you’ve run into a “support” themed Vampire. There will also be some new crowd control abilities, like a fear effect to scramble and punish an overly aggressive opponent.
In addition to these changes, Illusion has proven its playful nature by stealing not one but two spells from other specialities. Unholy’s Mosquito and Blood’s Crimson Aegis have been reworked to fit their new shrouded siblings.
Frost Magic

The spell school we all love to hate is being horrifically petrified by Frost Magic. There have been major changes to how the chilling debuff works, which no longer freezes outright. If you think you’ve escaped the freeze, think again! There will be methods of consuming the chilled debuff to freeze your foes; it will just require a bit of specialization with spell jewels.
Chill effects also now affect V Blood units, making the effect much stronger in boss fights.
V Rising will only be complete in 2024. You can play the Early Access version right now on Steam.


Plague Inc. Sales Skyrocket Thanks To Recent China Coronavirus Outbreak

Good news for UK studio Ndemic Creations: the company has recently seen rising sales in its game Plague Inc., a real-time strategy that lets you destroy the world with an ever-evolving pathogen. This is clearly coinciding with the recent Coronavirus outbreak that killed 26 people in China so far.
Most of the sales are from China, where players are using the game to get a better understanding of how diseases spread. However, game creator James Vaughn has put out a public statement to seek out local and global health authorities for information on the Coronavirus instead of using Plague Inc. as a learning tool.
You know, from actual experts of the field. Vaughn’s statement is below.

“The Coronavirus outbreak in China is deeply concerning and we’ve received a lot of questions from players and the media.
Plague Inc. has been out for eight years now and whenever there is an outbreak of disease we see an increase in players, as people seek to find out more about how diseases spread and to understand the complexities of viral outbreaks.
We specifically designed the game to be realistic and informative, while not sensationalising serious real-world issues. This has been recognised by the CDC and other leading medical organisations around the world.
However, please remember that Plague Inc. is a game, not a scientific model and that the Coronavirus is a very real situation which is impacting a huge number of people. We would always recommend that players get their information directly from local and global health authorities.”


Codashop Partners With Mobile Legends For Lunar New Year Deals & Giveaways

Codashop is welcoming gamers to join in for a roaring Lunar New Year celebration. In partnership with the popular multiplayer online game, Mobile Legends Bang Bang (MLBB), Codashop will be putting together exciting giveaways, top-up deals and live streaming events that will keep you entertained all through the festive season.Â
Lunar New Year is synonymous with family reunion dinners, multiple rounds of Lo Hei and red angpow packets. Along with gala dinners, this is also a great time to disconnect from work, take a break and indulge in activities we enjoy. For those of us who enjoy the virtual world of avatars and battles, Codashop is sweetening the pot this Lunar New Year with exciting deals on their payment platform for gaming enthusiasts.
The online payments platform has partnered up with MLBB to offer incredible gaming credits for anyone looking to top-up their Diamonds via the Codashop platform.

Narishvin Sukumaran, Regional Manager – Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand & Myanmar, said:
â€œAt Codashop, we are dedicated to take gaming to the next level by enabling gamers to pay and play seamlessly. As this is the first Lunar New Year celebration with the lockdown eased, we want to bring more â€˜ongâ€™ to Codashoppers.
We have pulled out all the stops with our partner, MLBB. Codashoppers can enjoy giveaways, special live streaming events and great top-up deals. On behalf of the Codashop family, we would like to wish you Gong Xi Fa Cai.”
Throughout the month of February, gamers can expect to receive up to 8,888 Diamonds on their purchases with Codashop. All they need to do is simply top-up a minimum of RM20 for MLBB Diamonds on Codashop and submit their entries via the registration page to win extra gaming credits. Users can use either their e-wallets such as ShopeePay, TnG for direct and convenient top-ups or bank transfers through FPX channels to purchase in-game credits.Â
The Codashop Lunar New Year top-up deal is however not only restricted to winning Diamonds. Every 100th entry also stands a chance to win a special or starlight limited skin in addition to Diamonds for their online gaming set.
Along with exciting giveaways on the platform, Codashop will also be organizing multiple play-off live streams through February with popular MLBB streamers. This includes the likes of Soloz, DaddyHood, MakDi, Gemini X, Nessarose and Ombong Haha, to name a few. During the stream, players will giveaway special Codacash red packets worth RM8 or RM88 to members in the audience that can be later redeemed on the Codashop platform for any of their preferred game credits.Â
Whether you are a beginner or a veteran player, the extra Diamonds can help you to unlock several key milestones in the Mobile Legends battle arena. So, get roaring with Codashop this Lunar New Year! Stay tuned to Codashopâ€™s social channels for more updates.Â


TikTok Company’s Martial Arts Games Is A Hit In Japan

As it turns out, TikTok isn’t the only popular app ByteDance has in Japan.
As reported by the South China Morning Post, data from mobile analytics company App Annie showed that the martial arts game Combat of Hero, published in Japan by ByteDance-owned Ohayoo, was the most downloaded free iOS app in the country for four straight days starting from March.
At the time of writing, the PeakX Games-made app has dropped to fourth place on the list but is still ahead of other free games. Brain Test: Tricky Puzzles is a fairly close second at #7, but the third most popular free iOS game in Japan is Mario Kart Tour at #23. That’s a pretty big gap.
On the Google Play Store, Combat of HeroÂ is currently placed seventh in Japan, with a game called Park Master ahead of it at #1.
SCMP also noted that the martial arts gameÂ had made it into the top ten in countries like South Korea and China at the time, although that was no longer the case when this article was written.

Combat of Hero is a 2D side-scroller where your chibi silhouette dukes it out with other chibi silhouettes. From the videos I’ve seen, you can either smack enemies silly with good old hand-to-hand combat or swing a hefty sword at them. You can also unlock buffs like increased damage and healing boosts.
I didn’t understand the craze when I first saw the sword gameplay, but the hand-to-hand stuff does look pretty cool. The controls are simple too. Pressing the directional arrows will move you towards the corresponding location and make an attack at the same time.
You’re basically just pressing one of two arrows and beating up scores of enemies at the same time, and it feels pretty satisfying despite the simplicity. Imagine One Finger Death Punch but without the “miss” penalty.Â  It’s a good thing I’m not into mobile games, or I’d probably be sucked into the game already.


Ace Combat 7 First Story DLC Taking Off This Fall

Bandai Namco has released a new trailer for the first of three post-launch additional missions as part of the Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown Season Pass. The first story DLC for the latest installment in the long-running arcade flight sim franchise is officially dubbed, “Operation Sighthound.”
We still don’t have the exact details for the new mission but what we do know is that Operation Sighthound will chronologically take place between Mission 13: Bunker Buster and Mission 14: Cape Rainy Assault in the game’s story.
It seems that the player will have to destroy what looks like a new submarine, which is still at rest in a docking position. Players will presumably have to join a mission to destroy the submarine, though it doesn’t exactly look like a threat (yet) in the trailer.
Operation Sighthound is set to release sometime in fall 2019. If Bandai Namco wanted to go meta, it’s possible that the mission will become available for players on 4 September 2019; the same date on which the mission takes place in the fictionalized Strangereal region.
In the meantime, check out my review of Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown here, and watch the trailer for Operation Sighthound below.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LW_-hiBDBAA&w=560&h=315]


Spy x Family Manga Infiltrates Anime Medium Next Year

Production studios Clover Works and Wit Studio just announced an anime adaptation of Shonen Jump+’s top-selling digital manga: Spy x Family.Â
The anime adaptation will start airing in 2022. Spy x Family is an action-comedy about a bunch of hitmen pretending to be a family, created by Tatsuya Endo. The twist? The main hitman Loid Forger who enacted this plan does not know that his fake wife and daughter are actually trained assassins too.
Takuya Eguchi (IDOLiSH7 My Love Story!!) will voice the main character Loid Forger. The anime will be directed by Kazuhiro Furuhashi (Hunter x Hunter) while its character designs will be worked on by Kazuaki Shimada (Yama no Susume). The show’s music will be composed by (K)now name.


Brawlhalla Adds Castlevania Characters To Its Roster

Ubisoft’s free-to-play Smash Bros-style fighting game is getting two new additions from Konami.
Brawlhalla, the 2D fighting game that’s still around and entertaining everyone of all ages, is adding Simon Belmont and Alucard as new characters.

These two characters will be out for the game on 19th October; a few weeks before Halloween. They will be joining the huge slew of crossover characters in Brawlhalla, ranging from Shovel Knight to WWE wrestlers like John Cena and Xavier Woods.
Check out both Simon and Alucard in action below:


Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 SDCC 2023 Panel To Focus On Major Villain

It looks like fans of Insomniac Games’ upcoming Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 will be happy to learn that there will be a special panel for the game at the upcoming San Diego Comic-Con 2023.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 will have its own panel at Hall H on Thursday, 20 July 2023, which is when fans can hear more about the game in a presentation titled “Symbiotic Relationships”. No other details have been revealed, but voice actors from the game will attend the panel and it will focus on Venom, which is set to be one of several main antagonists in the upcoming game.
Perhaps we can expect a new trailer or some new juicy details at the panel. Stay tuned for our coverage.

Let’s get symbiotic! We’re thrilled to announce Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 will be at San Diego Comic Con 2023. Catch our panel, "Symbiotic Relationships", featuring Insomniacs and actors from the game in Hall H on Thursday, July 20th. #SpiderMan2PS5 #BeGreaterTogether pic.twitter.com/nE4K1si6XY
— Insomniac Games (@insomniacgames) July 6, 2023

In other related news, last month, Geoff Keighley hosted the Game Awards 10-Year Concert in Los Angeles, a one-night event featuring live video game music from the last decade. The concert played music from many games, including the first public performance of the main theme from the upcoming Marvel’s Spider-Man 2.
The track, ‘Greater Together’, made its debut during the live event, but you can now listen to the song via Spotify.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 will launch for the PS5 on 20 October 2023.


Sifu To Get Physical Version This May, & Chinese Localization After Launch

Sifu is out now as an Early Access title, with its real release date being 8th February. As such, SloClap should be celebrating for a job well done with a tough nut of a kungfu game.
SloClap’s work is not done, however. The company will be releasing a physical version of the game and Chinese localization, meaning all that dialogue and cutscenes will be in Chinese. As to whether it’s Mandarin or Cantonese, or another dialect, the company hasn’t said.
SloClap’s physical release of Sifu will be out in May 2022 for PS4 and PS5, and this is a result of the company’s partnership with Microids. A limited edition physical version of the game will also be available on the same date; more information will be ready in early February.

We're delighted to finally be able to reveal that #Sifu  will have a physical release in May! ??The pre-orders for the Vengeance Edition are now available :  https://t.co/ENdEfeyd8R#sifugame pic.twitter.com/immCAKbWSR
— SifuGame (@SifuGame) February 4, 2022

For more on Sifu, check out our review and guide.


Splatoon 3 Sold Over 3 Million Copies In 3 Days

Nintendo has released a blog post stating that domestic sales for Splatoon 3 for the Nintendo Switch have surpassed 3.45 million units in the first three days since its launch on 9 September.
This makes Splatoon 3 the highest domestic sales level for any Nintendo Switch game within the first three days.
In the Splatoon series of action-shooting games, players play as Inklings which are squid-like characters that can also take on a humanoid form. Nintendo launched the Splatoon game for the Wii U system in May 2015, and the Splatoon 2 game for Nintendo Switch in July 2017. Splatoon 3 is the latest addition to the series, in which players face off against each other in two teams of four players, claiming territory by covering it in ink in Turf War battles. Building on the series’ foundation, Splatoon 3 adds new weapons, special weapons, and action to the game.

In Splatsville, a chaotic city crowded with various elements, players can enjoy a large variety of battles: not only Turf War battles but also the Story Mode in which players can battle and discover a mysterious place called Alterna on their own; and Salmon Run, where up to four players can work together and fend off powerful bosses. In addition, Nintendo will add more weapons and stages through updates for two years after launch, and hold events such as Splatfests, where players split into three teams to claim turf and overall victory. Players can connect with others around the globe online, as well as play together locally, each with their own Nintendo Switch system.


MapleStory 2 Closed Beta Sign-Up Starts Now; Is MapleSEA 2 Gonna Be A Thing?

Remember that old-school 2D RPG MapleStory from AsiaSoft? Of course you do; you’re probably still playing it right now as we speak. That game’s been around since god-knows-how-long; probably just as long as Ragnarok Online.
Well, it’s about time the series is getting a 3D sequel. Check out the Nexon trailer below:

MapleStory 2 will feature a lot of customization options, from outfits to even house-building. Just like the first game, you can still choose between a variety of classes. Obviously not as many as before, because this sequel’s brand new. Give it 10 years; they’ll catch up.
The beta will start 9th May. You can sign up for the closed beta here. You may need to pick a different country though; there does not seem to be a choice for any Southeast Asian country present. Most likely it may be AsiaSoft, the original IP holders of MapleStory in SEA, working their licensing magic and maybe, just maybe, creating an SEA server for part 2.
Update: According to MMO Culture, there’s a good chance that this version of MapleStory 2 will implement an IP block.Â If you are from Asia, your country might most probably be blocked from accessing this English version under Nexon America,Â especially Southeast Asia. Rumour has it that Garena’s publishing rights for MapleStory 2 SEA have not expired; there is no word if the company plans on launching the game.
But that’s just speculation on our part (and MMO Culture’s too). In the meantime, do check out the screenshots and key art below.


We Now Know The Real Reason Behind Sony’s Fortnite Crossover Issues

Last week, Sony PlayStation came under flak for their refusal to allow cross-play of Epic Games’ highly popular Battle Royale title, Fortnite: Battle Royale. Players who tried to link their Epic Games account when signing in on the Nintendo Switch were barred from doing so if they already linked their account to their PlayStation Network account earlier.
While those unfamiliar with the game would ask “What’s the big deal? Fortnite’s free anyway!” – well here’s the thing; while Epic Games’ Battle Royale mode for Fortnite is free to download, many players have spent considerable amount of real money to purchase in-game cosmetic items. Many would call this move by Sony irrational but former Online Entertainment Head at Sony (and current head of Amazon Game Studios) has clarified our suspicion all along; it was all about the money.
In a since-deleted tweet, Smedley posted the following:

Our take? In the grander scheme of things, we believe allowing cross-play between consoles would benefit everyone, with Epic Games being the biggest winner of the lot. The more the merrier, right?Â  However, this is business and you have to understand that it looks mighty different from the view of the current leaders in home consoles, the folks at PlayStation.
While PlayStation 4 is clearly the worldwide leader when it comes to present-gen home gaming consoles, they are still neck and neck with Xbox One in North America and with Fortnite being widely played there, Sony’s move of opening doors to cross-play would somehow be akin to throwing their competitors a lifeline they so desperately need.
But we have a middle-ground solution to all this kerfuffle; perhaps Sony could at least allow the cross-play feature with the Nintendo Switch? The Vita is clearly out of the picture when it comes to portable consoles market and doing so might just win them some points back from the gaming community, right?
What do you think of this cross-play issue? Do you agree with what Sony has been up to, or do you think they should be a bit more lenient with their policies? Sound off in the comments section below as usual.


Bethesda Release Gameplay & Story Trailer For Starfield

Bethesda just dropped a fresh glimpse of what Starfield has in store for us. Brace yourselves as you embark on an epic journey through the vastness of the galaxy, hunting for valuable artifacts and uncovering the mind-boggling secrets that lie within the universe itself.
Mark your calendars because Starfield is set to hit the gaming scene on September 6, and it’ll be available for Xbox and PC players alike. So, get those spacesuits ready and prepare to blast off into a whole new gaming adventure!


Star Wars The Bad Batch Is Assembling In Hot Toys Form

Disney Plus animated series Star Wars The Bad Batch is slated to premiere with its 70-minute first episode on 4 May 2021, which is also known as the annual Star Wars Day for fans of the franchise. Ahead of its premiere, Hot Toys has announced that members of the Bad Batch are getting 1/6th scale figure collections on its official Facebook account.
However, no other details have been revealed as of yet. We’ll probably get all members of the team, including Echo himself.
https://www.facebook.com/hottoys/posts/10157990040122344
Star Wars The Bad Batch


Developers Behind System Shock & Deus Ex Are Forming A New Studio

The folks behind two iconic RPGs, System Shock and Deus Ex are banding together to make their own development studio named OtherSide Entertainment.
The studio was founded by industry veterans Paul Neurath and Warren Spector, with a new game in development led by Spector. Spector is known for pioneering System Shock and Deus Ex way back when and his newest title is described as â€œan immersive simulation based on a completely new intellectual property developed by OtherSide.â€

Spector went on to say that it feels great to be working with a talented team on a new title and new IP, which fans can expect to be an immersive world and engaging narrative that players will directly impact through their choices and playstyles similar to his previous works. The unnamed project is still in early development but more information on it will be shared soon when itâ€™s ready, leaving us with a piece of artwork for the new game. From what we see, there are a lot of similarities to the covers of the Discworld book series so perhaps it could be something like that.
OtherSide Entertainment also announced the appointment of Jeff Goodsill, a veteran gaming executive who previously served as a strategic advisor to the firm for six months, as general manager. His previous consist of production and executive roles at Ensemble Studios, Papyrus Design Group, Iron Lore Entertainment, and Tencent Boston, where he worked on franchises such as Age of Empires, Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War, Titan Quest, and NASCAR Racing. Goodsill will be responsible for the growth of the studio and oversee the production of upcoming next-generation console and PC titles, including Spectorâ€™s new title.
In similar news, have a look at the job listings hinting at the development of Bioshock 4, which could feature an open world.


Here’s Your First Look At S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2’s In-Game Engine

GSC Game World has released a bit of gameplay of its upcoming shooter title S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 (via IGN). And it looks pretty, pretty sweet!

Granted, it’s just a quick showcase of the game’s environments and world, and it may ring shades of the Metro 2033 games. But S.T.A.L.K.E.R. was first and, unlike the Metro games, sticks true to its non-linear approach with its branching paths and multiple endings. It was the first of its kind; let’s hope part 2 amplifies that adage further.
There’s no release date for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, but we know it’s coming out for Xbox Series and PC.


Windjammers 2 Beta Launches Tomorrow

The long-awaited sequel to the best fighting game sports title, Windjammers, is getting a beta this week.
Starting 11th August at 9pm GMT+8, players will get to try out the Windjammers 2 beta for PC, PS4, and PS5. The beta will end on 22nd August.
Here’s what players both old and new can expect:
“Athletes can face off in online ranked play across courts spanning a sandy beach, roaring stadium, rowdy ring, or a towering rooftop complete with shot-deflecting bumpers.
The open beta allows PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4 owners to go head to head, while Steam users can battle to conquer their own league. Score goals through unpredictable play, unleash special moves for an upper hand, and climb the open betaâ€™s leaderboards to become an undisputable champion.”
The beta will feature four stages: Beach, Ring, Stadium, and Rooftop. The characters you get to use are Steve Miller, Gary Scott, Loris Biaggi, and Sophie de Lys. Here’s the lowdown for each character:

Steve MillerÂ (United Kingdom)
Clever and agile, Steve excels at executing split-second reversals and tricky curved shots.

Gary ScottÂ (United States)
The American heavyweight may be slow, but heâ€™s one of the gameâ€™s most powerful characters.

Loris BiaggiÂ (Italy)
Swift, strong, versatileâ€¦this well-balanced champion hasnâ€™t lost a step.

Sophie De LysÂ (France)
We just had to add a French character, right? But attention: sheâ€™s fastÂ andÂ furious.

If you need a quick tutorial for Windjammers 2, this video below will sort you out. The sequel will be out later in 2021 for PC, PS4, PS5, and Nintendo Switch.


Lady Gaga In Talks To Play Harley Quinn In Joker 2

Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker won’t be alone when he returns in Joker 2. According to a report by The Hollywood Reporter, Lady Gaga is in talks to join Joker 2 as none other than Harley Quinn.
The same report also claims that Joker 2 will be a musical, which would give credibility to Lady Gaga’s casting, since she’s already a professional singer and a great actor to boot (2018’s A Star Is Born is proof enough). A Joker 2 musical with Lady Gaga as Harley Quinn could definitely work, but we’ll have to wait and see if the casting becomes official in the near future.
If confirmed, this will be the second live-action version of Harley Quinn after Margot Robbie’s famous portrayal of the character in 2016’s Suicide Squad and 2021’s The Suicide Squad.
It was only last week that director Todd Phillips confirmed Joker 2 and its official title, Joker Folie à Deux. In the meantime, check out our review of Joker here, or head on over here to check out all the easter eggs we discovered in the movie.


Japanese Scientist Gets Approval For Human-Animal Embryo Experiment

How’s this for some sci-fi anime tropes turning to reality? Specifically one involving human-animal chimera hybrids?
In March 2019, the Japanese Science Ministry lifted the ban for the growth of animal embryos containing human cells beyond 14 days. Stem-cell biologist Hiromitsu Nakauchi will be leading the first government-approved human-animal embryo experiment in Japan.
His end goal? To produce human organs in animals so that they can be transplanted into people who need them.
According to Nature, Nakauchi has already experimented on rats and mice. In 2017, the biologist worked together with a few colleagues to produce a mouse pancreas in a rat. They basically injected mouse cells into the embryo of a rat. The rat then formed a pancreas made entirely of mouse cells and the pancreas was transplanted into a mouse that had diabetes. The new organ successfully cured the mouse of diabetes.
A rat embryo. Credit: Science Pictures ltd/SPL
For his human-animal experiment, Nakauchi and his team will be carrying out something similar to the rat-mouse experiment. They will attempt to grow human cells in mouse and rat embryos and then transplant those embryos into surrogate animals.
It’s hard for me to write about all the scientific aspect of this undertaking because honestly, I don’t really understand it all that well myself.

The more pressing concern is the debate on whether or not this is an ethical thing to do. Some bioethicists are worried that the human cells might go beyond simply developing the intended organs and travel to the developing animal’s brain, potentially affecting its mental capabilities.

By the way, bioethicists are academic professionals whose job is to determine if a practice or development in biology and medicine are ethical or unethical. Issues like this are why we need them.
On the positive side, this could be an amazing way of preparing new organs for people who need them. On the very scary and not-so-positive side, we might get animals asking us to play with them with actual words instead of just making animal noises.
Actually, that’s really far-fetched but hey, it’s still really scary.


Satisfy Your Ramen Cravings With These Cup Noodle HyperX Headphones

Cup Noodles maker Nissin and gaming peripherals giant HyperX are teaming up to bring you a limited edition pair of headphones (via GeekCulture). However, these aren’t just any garden-variety headphones. They literally look like two cups of Nissin ramen stuck on both sides of your head.
The joke doesn’t end there, folks. To push their noodle cup theme even further, the HyperX Cup MIX-Ins headphones even come attached with a microphone that looks like one of those plastic forks you find in, you guessed it, cup noodles.
Nissin dubs it the ‘microphork’, which (according to them) will “cancel out all Cup Noodle slurping sounds while still delivering crystal-clear sound qualityâ€¦ the patent-pending Noodletteâ„¢ ear pads woven together with noodle fibers deliver the silky soft caress of ramen noodles for your ears.”
We’re not making any of this up. The HyperX Cup MIX-Ins headphones will be released on 1 April 2019 (no, it’s not an April Fools’ joke, we promise) on the official online Nissin Fan Store.
Feast your eyes on the HyperX Cup MIX-Ins headphones below.

This isn’t the first time that Nissin is venturing into gaming, with the company recently working with Bandai Namco to make Jump Force-themed Cup Noodles. They’re also no strangers to esports. NissinÂ partnered with Evo 2018 last year, sponsoring the tournament and had a booth at the event.


Overwatch 2’s Junker Queen Could Be Extremely Broken; Here’s Why

Overwatch 2 isn’t even out yet and we’re already receiving another new addition to our already expanding arsenal in Junker Queen.
We were first introduced to Junker Queen through the Wastlander cinematic that was released last week. We were provided an insight into what kind of character she is and how she will roughly fit into the lore.

From the cinematic alone, she seems like an easy going person who doesn’t take things to seriously but we couldn’t be more wrong. In stark contrast, we realise that she’s burning with passion to prove herself and to claim the throne of Junkertown.
In-game, she’s classified as a tank, but with her kit and a couple of tweaks here and there, she could be flexed into the DPS role. Junker Queen’s playstyle and kit is very reminiscent of pre-existing Overwatch lore. The devs over at Blizzard wanted to her playstyle and abilities to match her tough and brutal personality that was conveyed in the cinematic.
Adrenaline Rush & Scattergun
Let’s start with her passive ability, Adrenline Rush. This ability heals her from all damage over time dealt by wounds. Many of her abilities apply wounds that cause enemies to slowly drain health. This life-steal passive adds to her survivability and aggression. Pushing the boundaries of brawling, Junker Queen feels more like a berserker tank whose survivability is directly connected to how many enemies she’s wounding.

All of Junker Queen’s abilities encourage her to get up-close and personal with her enemies, so we equipped her with a primary fire that fits her playstyle. Scattergun is a pump-action shotgun with a small spread that makes it extra scary at short range. Adrenaline Rush and Scattergun enable her to play into enemies while giving her the survivability she needs to make space for her team and fulfil her tank role.
Carnage
With her iconic axe at the centre of Junker Queen’s design process, Carnage consists of a big, sweeping swing that wounds all enemies in front of her, dealing damage to them over time and activating Adrenaline Rush. Junker Queen also refers to her axe as “Carnage”.

The devs initially wanted to make Carnage her primary weapon but historically, making a melee hero in Overwatch has come with its own set of challenges. For example, Genji’s Dragon Blade used to be his primary weapon, but didn’t translate well in-game; in the end, it was transformed into the powerful Ultimate players know today. Hence it just wouldn’t have made sense for the developers to go down that route again.
The original iteration of Carnage let her throw her axe following the initial swing before recalling it back to herself with her magnetic gauntlet; however, when implemented, the practice of throwing her axe felt wrong. It led to a rigid playstyle that didn’t allow for the use of other axe-based abilities while her weapon was out-of-hand, so the throw was swapped to a slash with a wound effect. The concept of throwing and recalling her weapon eventually led to her next ability: Jagged Blade.
Jagged Blade
Jagged Blade is Junker Queen’s secondary fire and comes with both active and passive abilities. The active ability triggers when you press secondary fire, causing her to throw the knife in her off-hand. Her knife, which the Queen calls “Gracie,” applies a wound that causes damage over time if she lands a direct hit on an enemy. Her magnetic gauntlet can recall the knife by re-activating secondary fire. Recalling Gracie will pull any enemy that’s been directly hit, so be wary of your surroundings—if you’re struck by Gracie, you’re heading straight for the Queen.

This is extremely reminiscent of Roadhog’s hook, and in the gameplay trailer below, you can see it being used on Illios – very well I might add.
What makes her even more intimidating up close is that Jagged Blade’s passive ability wounds enemies when using Quick Melee when the knife is in her hands. These abilities that apply wounds all serve her life-leech passive, Adrenaline Rush.
Commanding Shout
Commanding Shout heightens the Queen’s own survivability along with buffing her teammates as it increasing the health and movement speed of both herself and any nearby allies.

As the first team movement speed buff since Lúcio, Commanding Shout helps Junker Queen close the gap between her and the enemy team. Her ability to close distance was intentionally designed as a movement speed buff, rather than something sneaky like a short dash or teleport, because this helps reinforce her nature as someone who sprints head first into battle. She brute forces her way through her opposition with a relentless aggression that demands space. It furthers her effectiveness to take charge and lead her team into battle through tight choke points or to cut off flanking enemies.
Like Commanding Shout, Junker Queen’s ultimate ability charges her into the fray.
Rampage
Rampage is Junker Queen’s Ultimate. It charges her forward, grievously wounds enemies, and prevents them from healing. It’s the first ability since Ana’s Biotic Grenade to apply an anti-heal. Paired with Adrenaline Rush, Rampage is one of Junker Queen’s strongest survivability assets; it applies a deadly wound to anyone in its path, giving her the potential to restore a significant amount of health with Adrenaline Rush depending on the number of wounds she manages to apply.

Initially, her Ultimate was a spinning whirlwind-type ability, but we wanted to incorporate her magnetic gauntlet into her Ultimate ability. We didn’t want it to feel elegant or magic-influenced, either, because it didn’t align well conceptually with character, so we tried to push her magnetic gauntlet to its limits. Rampage charges her gauntlet and creates a cloud with her knife and axe around her while she charges into the enemy team—it’s a display of the raw, visceral power she possesses as Queen.
A new Queen, born to rule
Junker Queen was built for Overwatch 2’s 5v5 playing field. She has an unparalleled ability to claim space, and she is terrifying to deal with up close. She’s brawly, toeing the line of a berserker tank, and we were cognizant of that in this new tank paradigm. Tanks play more aggressively in Overwatch 2, and Junker Queen is certainly no exception—in fact, she’d consider herself the rule.

Personal Thoughts
Honestly, Junker Queen’s kit looks incredibly fun to play but I can imagine that there will be a lot to take away in terms of balancing her kit during the second beta. Taking into consideration the drastic importance of having a shield tank in 5v5, I can only see the Queen being used on a team with extremely good healing. As there won’t be a shield, I just cannot see her being in any defensive compositions especially at the competitive level.
We already know there’s people out there who will want to be Junker Queen one-trick ponies but the highlight clips that can come from them will be phenomenal. But like any character, when an extremely mechanically gifted player gets their hands on her, I know for a fact I do not want to be in that lobby.
And if you’re one of the aforementioned one-trick pony wannabes then you’ll be able to play her in the second Overwatch 2 beta that’s coming up really soon, so look forward to then.


Othercide is A New XCOM-Like Game With A Horror Twist

Developer Lightbulb Crew and publisher Focus Home Interactive have announced a new turn-based tactical RPG, Othercide. Unlike XCOM or Phoenix Point (which both feature aliens and science fiction), this upcoming game will feature unique horror elements and aesthetics.
Set in a world where the Daughters are in a war with the Others, the combat in Othercide is described as an intricate dance between spectacular actions and counters. The playable Daughters (each of which occupies three different archetypes or classes: Blademaster, Soulslinger, and Shieldbearer) are graced with a unique set of skills and can make use of Othercide‘s Dynamic Timeline System.
This mechanic enables players to do things like interrupt an enemy attack, plan delayed actions to be triggered later in the timeline, or use reaction skills to respond to any threat.

As the game progresses, Daughters will level up, acquire new skills, and can utilise the memories of slain Suffering in order to access additional stat-boosting bonuses. Players can somehow even kill their own Daughters to ‘heal’ or ‘boost other stats’. That’s pretty dark, but I guess that’s where the horror aspect comes in.
We still haven’t seen much actual gameplay from Othercide, but perhaps we’ll have more when it becomes playable at PAX East, which runs from 27 February to 1 March 2020.
Othercide is slated to release for the PS4, Xbox One, and PC sometime in summer 2020. In the meantime, check out the trailer below.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IIKBaclOT2I&w=560&h=315]


What Else Can You Expect From A New Shaun The Sheep Movie About Aliens?

A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon is a Shaun The Sheep episode stretched out to a feature-length film made by the folks from Aardman Animations. The original TV show features slice-of-life comedy featuring smart-but-naughty sheep, a loyal but irritable sheepdog Bitzer who acts as the sheep’s comedic foil, and the oblivious Farmer. Expect more of these shenanigans and an overarching plot in Farmageddon, but with a budget to make everything look nicer yet authentic.
Baad Reputation
The story revolves around Shaun and the flock encountering a cute alien with telepathic and voice mimicry powers who crash lands near the Mossy Bottom Farm. It’s up to Shaun to help the alien get home before it gets captured by the Ministry for Alien Detection who are led by a Woman In Black-type agent, shades and all. Along the way, Shaun learns a valuable lesson in taking responsibility for his shenanigans and actions.
That’s the only moral lesson that exists in the film, and that crops up at the last bits of the film. Everything else is visual gag after visual gag, and they mostly work. Standout moments include a shopping centre incident and anything involving Bitzer and his “space” quest to help his master’s plans in getting money for a new harvester.

Since there’s no actual dialogue in the film -just grunts, barks, and short VO adlibs- the film relies heavily on its visual slapstick comedy, and it’s reminiscent of a Warner Bros. 50s short if it had British countryside sensibilities and tone. It really works, as I did get a couple of giggles out of the comedy and pop-culture references (for both kids and adults), while also appreciating the little bits of camaraderie happening between Shaun and his new alien friend.
Sheepish Fun
Beyond that, there’s nothing else to expect from this standard kid film. It has a short run time so at least the rest of us won’t feel like we’re trapped with our nephews and/or children as they get their jollies from seeing a bunch of sheep attempt to build a space-themed carnival for their owner, right down to them donning yellow safety helmets.
To sum up this review: it’s a Shaun The Sheep extended episode with a bigger budget and a slightly longer runtime. If you expect anything more than kid-level slapstick humour, a few sappy moments that usually pop up at the end of the film’s second act, and overall quaint harmless fun, then you’ll be sorely disappointed.
Final Score: 60/100


Veteran Dead Or Alive Director Leaves Koei Tecmo

Another veteran developer has left another Japanese company, but this time around it’s not Sony. In a tweet on his personal account, Yohei Shimbori has announced that he has officially left Koei Tecmo.
Shimbori is best known for directing many Dead Or Alive games since 2004. In his tweet, he wrote (translated by Gematsu):
â€œAs of today, I have left Koei Tecmo Games.
I worked onÂ Dead or AliveÂ for 16 years, and while there were times I was pleased, there were also times I was unable to live up to expectations.
I would like to take this opportunity to express my utmost gratitude to the many people who have supported and taken care of me.
Thank you very much.â€

?????????????????????????????????DOA??16????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
— ???? (@shimbori_x) March 31, 2021

Shimboriâ€™s credits on theÂ Dead or Alive franchise include:

Dead or Alive UltimateÂ (2004) â€“ Planner
Dead or Alive 4Â (2005) â€“ Game Designer
Dead or Alive Xtreme 2Â (2006) â€“ Game Designer
Dead or Alive ParadiseÂ (2010) â€“ Director
Dead or Alive DimensionsÂ (2011) â€“ Director
Dead or Alive 5Â (2012) â€“ Director
Dead or Alive 5 UltimateÂ (2013) â€“ Director
Dead or Alive 5 Last RoundÂ (2015) â€“ Director
Dead or Alive 6Â (2019) â€“ Producer and Director

Dead Or Alive 6 remains the last game in the franchise to date. You can check out our review of that game by heading over here.


Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty Gets Trashed On Steam For Poor Port Job

The new action RPG from Team Ninja, Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, is getting rave reviews from critics for its tough combat and gameplay. However, it’s getting a lot of negative reviews on the PC version.
At least on the Steam platform. The game received 3,748 reviews with mostly negative feedback since its launch yesterday, at this point in writing. This is because the PC version has terrible performance and mouse-and-keyboard controls that are broken at launch. The game features lag, crashes, and frame rate dips.
Here’s a quote from a number of popular review:
“A good game buried deep beneath the biggest catastrophe of a PC port that I have ever seen.”
“Camera control with mouse is insufferable with horrendous deadzone and weird inertia.”
“So basically Wild Hearts level of optimization.”

If you have a console that can run Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, go play those versions instead of the PC port. There’s currently no word from Koei Tecmo in regards to an update to fix these PC issues.


You Can Finally Get Your Hands On An Adorable Life-Sized Detective Pikachu Doll

Detective Pikachu was a pretty decent PokÃ©monÂ movie. To me, the main attracting feature of the movie was the real-life renditions of each PokÃ©mon, especially the fuzzy-wuzzy adorable main character Detective Pikachu himself. I just want to hug him so bad.
And now, that dream isn’t impossible anymore because Bandai is stepping in to fill in that fantasy with a life-sized version doll of the cute little detective.

The cutesy littleÂ PokÃ©mon detective is posable, meaning you can adjust his arms,Â ears, and tailÂ to make him look extra adorable or just in his Sherlock thinking mode.

You can pick up the cuddliest character through the Premium Bandai website here for 21,780 yen (RM834), and is expected to be shipped around December, so you’ll have plenty of time to save up for it.
Image credit: Premium Bandai


Overwatch League Playoffs: Fusion & Gladiators Draw First Blood Amid Fissure’s Absence

The first day of the Overwatch League playoffs was as expected, filled with stories on and off the competition floor. Philadelphia Fusion and Los Angeles Gladiators were victorious in their first day of playoff competition however the big focus was the absence of LAG’s main tank, Fissure from the starting lineup. Before we delve any deeper on that, let’s get on to the action first:
Â Fusion Strikes First
As we predicted, the Fusion were dominant in their first match, defeating the Boston Uprising 3-1.Â  They started the game strong with a convincing win on Dorado. With Carpe winning the Widowmaker battle, the Fusion’s overall decisiveness and a better performance from their DPS ensured that they started on the right foot. The Uprising caught up with a 2-1 win on Oasis before the Fusion regained the upperhand following a timebank win on Eichenwalde.
In the fourth decisive match, the Fusion defeated the Uprising convincingly on Volskaya – a map which the boys in blue were unbeaten on to secure a 1-0 lead in the playoffs, and a step closer to the semi-finals.
No Fissure, No Problem
The news of Fissure’s absence from the starting lineup dropped about two hours prior to the match Gladiators – Spitfire which sent Twitch chat to meltdown. Regarded by many as the team’s talisman following their change of fortunes since his recruitment in Stage 2, Fissure almost single-handedly lifted the Gladiators out of their disappointing Stage 1 performances. According to self-proclaimed ‘Rank 1 esports consultant, insider and competitive gaming leader’, Rod ‘Slasher’ Breslau, it wasn’t all rosy on the Gladiators’ side as we all were led to believe.

LA Gladiators Fissure is not playing tonight. Source: Fissure was unhappy with players on the team not trying hard enough in scrims as preparation for the playoffs and stopped communicating in the scrims. Gladiators chose to play iRemiix instead.
â€” Rod Breslau (@Slasher) July 12, 2018

Source: Fissure has been unhappy on the Gladiators since joining and his own commitment/practice to the team has waned going into playoffs, prompting his benching by LAG not that his teammates arenâ€™t trying. Wants out of LAG to an all-Korean team.https://t.co/S0DZ26Y1j7
â€” Rod Breslau (@Slasher) July 12, 2018
Filling in for Fissure was iRemiix who proved that even without the allegedly troublesome Korean, the Gladiators are still a force to be reckoned with as they crushed the team that traded out Fissure, London Spitfire 3-0.
Responding to the whole drama, Fissure went live a couple hours ago stating that Ã‰veryone’s good’ and that the story reported by Slasher as ‘F****ng rumor’.

https://t.co/eGjJYG8JgL
â€” rA9 (@munchiescc) July 12, 2018
Oh the drama.
The Overwatch League playoffs resume this Saturday with the Philadelphia Fusion again going against Boston Uprising aiming to secure a spot in the semi-finals.


The DreamWorks Channel Is Now On Astro Malaysia

NBCUniversal International Networks & Direct-to-Consumer (NBCUIN & DTC) has announced a deal with Astro, Malaysia’s leading content and entertainment company, to launch DreamWorks – the 24-hour channel dedicated to kids and family entertainment. Available from 1 February 2023, on Channel 612, DreamWorks will be offered in English, Bahasa Melayu, and Chinese language options, as part of the Kids Pack.
DreamWorks will provide kids and families with hours of entertainment, featuring award-winning, original television series such as Kung Fu Panda: The Paws of Destiny, Trolls: The Beat Goes On!, and The Boss Baby: Back in Business. The channel also presents a daily morning preschool block, DreamWorks Junior, for two to five-year-olds featuring favourites such as Noddy Toyland Detective and Dragons: Rescue Riders.
Also available on Unifi in Malaysia, the launch of DreamWorks on Astro marks a significant expansion and demand for the brand in the region, with DreamWorks reaching more than 50 million households across 100 countries to date.
To celebrate the launch of DreamWorks on Astro, the pay-TV service is offering a 15-day preview of DreamWorks (on Channel 622) to all eligible Astro customers from 15 to 31 January 2023. DreamWorks will move to Channel 612 on 1 February 2023.
In the meantime, check out our review of Puss In Boots The Last Wish here.


Fallout 76 Is A Literal Wasteland & A Game for Masochists

Platform: PS4, Xbox One, PC
Genre: Open-World, Action RPG, Online Multiplayer
Fallout 76 is definitely one of the worst games I have ever played. The moment I emerged from Vault 76, I experienced perhaps 5 seconds of being awestruck with my surroundings before killing my first robotic enemy.
Little did I realize then how lethargic and monotonous my journey through the Appalachian wasteland would be, descending and spiralling into a twisted cycle of ennui and utter boredom.
What Is It Good For? Absolutely Nothing

There’s literally almost nothing good I can say about Fallout 76. I am not exaggerating, nor am I senselessly nitpicking or hating this game. There’s always something to enjoy in most games, where that certain gameplay mechanic or only good thing that elevates it from being a bad game to at least halfway decent and fun.
Fallout 76 has none and is not enjoyable at the very least. What is a game if it’s not remotely fun? What is a game like if it truly has neither clear purpose nor ambition? Maybe if you like wandering around aimlessly in an empty open-world devoid of meaningful interaction, then this could be the game for you.

Fallout 76 is as barebones as a Fallout game can be. It doesn’t have witty and smart writing like Fallout: New Vegas did, nor does it feature any compelling human or non-human NPCs. All we have left are emotionless robots and audio files left by humans who presumably left the Appalachian wasteland to escape with their sanity intact.

Where’s The Story?

The game forces players to sift through texts on in-game computer monitors and audio recordings that attempt to fill in the gaps of the narrative.
If you skipped all this content (which would otherwise be largely optional in other RPG games), you would be left with nothing. Nada. Zilch.

I started the game following the trails of Vault 76’s former Overseer who left because… I have no idea, and frankly, I don’t care enough about the overall narrative to keep track of the game’s main story (whatever it is).
In The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, I meandered from the main plot and played hundreds of hours with even furthering the main campaign’s story because that’s just how great the side content (and by extension the world at large) was in that game.
Repeating The Same Vicious Cycle

Meanwhile, Fallout 76 has me doing menial tasks and sidequests like going to this and that area, clearing out the enemies (which usually consisted of zombie-like ghouls), and retrieve the object or information from bland computer terminals. Since the game puts so much emphasis on loot and hoarding stuff to scrap and make even more stuff, I still don’t understand why Fallout 76 gives players so little inventory space to work with.
It seems like they want players to work smart and manage what they have. But instead, it just annoys me to no end when I have to stop and scrap (or throw away in the absence of reachable work benches) after every mission or group of enemies I encounter.

The game then turns into this hellish cycle of busywork, which perfectly encapsulates Fallout 76 in a nutshell. Complete a sidequest, loot, scrap/throw away, build stuff, rinse and repeat. Does that appeal to you? Not to me, it doesn’t.

I’m used to my open-world RPGs filled with great narrative and world, which is what motivates me to grind in the first place. However, remove all that, and I have no reason whatsoever to continue playing. What about the online multiplayer aspect, you ask?
Single-Player Doesn’t Work

Sure, if you have like-minded friends to form a team with and explore the wastelands together, it would be serviceably fun. Wanna nuke stuff up with your friends? Fallout 76 is meant to cater to that demographic, and that’s what it should do.

What shouldn’t have happened is Bethesda confusing gamers by insisting that the game could somehow still work for those looking for a single-player experience. It simply doesn’t work, playing alone in Fallout 76 is a miserable experience.

The biggest problem is that the open-world is so massive that players are spread around very sparsely, which means that the odds of meeting another human player are very low. Even during the few occasions that I did meet other players, my interactions consisted of a simple emote greeting and a few seconds of staring each other before finally awkwardly going our own way.
Outdated Visuals

The graphics in Fallout 76 look marginally better than the eight-year-old Fallout New Vegas but worse than the relatively-recent Fallout 4. Visuals have never been the franchise’s strong suit, but considering that it left behind all the good things (like the writing and narrative), the graphics could have been its one and only advantage.

Alas, it wasn’t meant to be. The environments and character models look ripped from previous Fallout games, looking drab and uninspired. If there’s one element that does look good in Fallout 76, I’d have to say that it’s rare moments when the sunlight shines through the treeline, making it look current-gen for that one moment.
I have to wonder why Bethesda still opted to add a Photo Mode feature to the game. It doesn’t look remotely like God of War, Horizon Zero Dawn, or any recent technical powerhouses. I guess it’s still good for the occasional funny and ridiculous shot.
What Happens When There’s No Internet Connection

Why the heck does the game require two 50GB updates in the span of two weeks since launch? I’m thankful that I have access to an Internet connection with decent speeds, but I’m sure there are many out there who can’t say the same.

Even with a stable Internet connection, be prepared to face many unexpected server crashes while playing the game. With no Internet, I’m afraid that the game won’t even be playable. So that’s another wrench for players looking for a single-player experience.

While I didn’t encounter any game-breaking bugs in the game, I wasn’t surprised to see minor bugs occurring during gameplay. This is a Bethesda game, after all, and that means bugs are part of the game, whether you like it or not.
A Literal Wasteland

Fallout 76 is ultimately a hollow experience with nothing new to offer. Want to play Fallout? I suggest replaying Fallout New Vegas, which remains phenomenal even today. Fallout 76 is a Fallout game in name alone.

The only decent Bethesda Fallout game was Fallout 3, and that was over 10 years ago. My, how far the franchise has fallen since then.

Pros:

“Fun” with friends

Cons:

Barebones Fallout experience
Doesn’t work as a singleplayer game
Non-existent story/narrative
Hollow, empty gameplay
Drab visuals

FINAL RATING: 20/100
Fallout 76 was reviewed on the PlayStation 4 Pro.


An Emotional Diana Saves A Messy Wonder Woman 1984

So, here we are with the only surviving superhero blockbuster movie of 2020. If you don’t count Sony Pictures’ Bloodshot from earlier this year, there hasn’t been any Marvel Studios films in 2020. Wonder Woman 1984 seeks to fill that void.
Does it succeed? Is it a worthy sequel to the widely-praised 2017’s Wonder Woman? Unfortunately, Wonder Woman 1984 is a mess of a movie, saved only by the emotional performances of its cast and its enjoyable over-the-top action scenes.
A Step Towards Wonder

Wonder Woman 1984 is both a sequel and a prequel, as it takes place before 2016’s Batman V Superman Dawn Of Justice and 2017’s Justice League, but after 2017’s Wonder Woman. Due to that reason, the movie is already at a disadvantage from the start, bound by certain narrative restrictions.
Those narrative restrictions are probably why the main story in Wonder Woman 1984 ultimately doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of the DCEU as a whole. Instead, it simply serves as character development for Diana Prince AKA Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot), adding more depth to the character.
It’s a necessary stepping stone for the character’s growth. Wonder Woman 1984 depicts Diana as a tragic figure of sorts, injecting her with much-needed humanity. This shows that Wonder Woman is not just a powerful demi-goddess, making her much more relatable as someone who is just as human as the rest of us.
Gadot herself manages to convey the complex feelings that Diana feels at this moment in time. Inside the demi-goddess exterior lies a very human heart, and that makes Diana’s plight resonate with any viewer who has ever experienced loss in their lives.
If you’ve ever wondered why Diana stayed after the events of 2017’s Wonder Woman to keep watch over humans, this movie finally provides a well-deserved justification for that. Her motivation, if you will. That’s all I can say without spoiling the movie.
What A Mess

Too bad the rest of the movie can’t keep up. To its detriment, Wonder Woman 1984 is over a whopping two-and-a-half hours long. As a result, the contrived plot (that relies on a ridiculous MacGuffin) suffers even more due to its weak pacing that’s all over the place. It’s frankly a mess, with clunky exposition and convenient plot devices that made me groan throughout the movie.
Pedro Pascal is unsurprisingly brilliant as the antagonist Maxwell Lord. Despite doing his best, the character’s motivations are ill-defined and vague. It’s easy to sympathise with the villain due to his relationship with his son, but that’s all there is to it. Wonder Woman 1984‘s Maxwell Lord also loses points for straying from the comic book version. If you’re looking for accuracy, I’m sorry to disappoint you.
Another highlight of the movie is Chris Pine’s return as Steve Trevor. Obviously, I can’t say much about his character to avoid spoiling the movie, but once again, Pine proves to be irresistibly charming as always. It’s amusing and adorable to see him marvelling at 80s technology with all the glee of an enthusiastic kid.
Kristen Wiig’s turn as Barbara Minerva AKA Cheetah gave me mixed feelings. Just like the rest of the cast, Wiig’s performance is actually quite amazing and praise-worthy. Seeing her transform from the meek Barbara to the more aggressive and assertive Cheetah is a wonder.
That is the reason why it is so disappointing when she does finally complete her transformation into the Cheetah. Her long-awaited confrontation with Diana in the third act of the movie is anti-climactic. If you’ve seen part of that scene in the trailers, I’m here to tell you that you’re not getting much more of that. It’s too brief and it ends with a whimper, much to my dismay.
Action Comics

One big aspect that will prove to be divisive amongst viewers is the action choreography in Wonder Woman 1984. It’s more over-the-top and shot in a more exaggerated and corny way. Every shot fluidly focuses on Diana’s every move, slide, jump, and more.
Diana uses her Lasso Of Truth in more dynamic and interesting ways than ever before. Some of it may make you cringe from its sheer cheesiness (such as lassoing a freaking bullet shot from a gun), but they generally feel like they popped out of the comics.
Besides that, the CGI is generally okay, but there are some parts that look spotty and unfinished. Case in point, Cheetah’s final form looks underwhelming and disappointingly-bad, and the bad lighting contributed to that. Plus, Diana and Cheetah’s fight was shot in the dark for some reason, probably to hide the bad CGI in the first place.
Last but not least, comic book fans will at least appreciate some of the more subtle easter eggs and references. They’re mostly relegated to background stuff since the movie isn’t really in a position to connect to the wider DCEU much (due to its unique setting, which I previously mentioned above).
Not So Wonder-ful

Overall, Wonder Woman 1984 isn’t a particularly bad movie, but it’s certainly a disappointing outing for the iconic DC Comics character. Diana Prince and Gal Gadot both deserve better than this messy sequel.

Is it better than 2017’s Wonder Woman? It’s hard to say, but the potential that this movie had was mostly squandered. Gal Gadot’s Diana Prince is the only reason you would want to watch Wonder Woman 1984, and nothing much else.
FINAL SCORE: 60/100
Wonder Woman 1984 is now showing in selected Malaysian cinemas.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/I_MG6fklovc