This Avengers: Endgame Clip Reveals Why Captain Marvel Didn’t Show Up Sooner

The wait for The Avengers: Endgame is killing all of us. So what better way than Disney and Marvel to dripfeed more early clips of the show, especially with one scene where Carol “Captain Marvel” Danvers explains why she didn’t arrive sooner.

Despite her debut film being a bit average, I admit that I like Carol’s quick response and confidence in heading over to Thanos & taking his stuff. She also answered Rhodey’s question as to why she hasn’t been helping out the Avengers in their previous battles.

“There are a lot of other planets in the universe. And unfortunately, they didn’t have you guys.”

For a super-powered woman who shoots cosmic energy, flies, and punches real hard, Carol sure can be diplomatic. Avengers: Endgame is out in Southeast Asia on 24 April.


Superman & Lois Is Potentially The Supes Series We’ve Been Waiting For

Superman. Truth, Justice and the American way. Anyone who says Superman is boring has clearly never read a comic book. He’s not as perfect as everyone thinks he is, but he never stops striving to save everyone and anyone he can. Sometimes by literally saving them from a disaster or getting attacked by supervillains, but most of the time, he saves us by inspiring us with hope and trying to be the best we can be.
The best Superman stories in any medium often reflect those ideas, like Grant Morrison’s All-Star Superman, Alan Moore’s For The Man Who Has Everything or if we’re talking about adaptations; the first two movies directed by Richard Donner and starring the late legendary Christopher Reeves.
Does Superman & Lois stand up to all that? Is it worthy enough to enter the legacy and canon of great Superman stories? After only one episode, it’s simply too early to say, but it definitely has the potential to do so.
Super Sons

First, while Superman & Lois is technically a spinoff series of Supergirl and the rest of the CW Arrowverse DC shows, you don’t really need to have watched them all in order to understand what’s going on. Showrunner Todd Helbing has opted for a brand new beginning tone to the plot, so this first episode brings you up to speed on Superman’s origin and what he’s been up to in the first several minutes of the episode.
Unfortunately, Arrowverse fans will probably be disappointed due to the lack of easter eggs or references to the wider Arrowverse. Still, it’s worth pointing out that this is just the very first episode. We still have time to expand and explore deeper into the Arrowverse in coming episodes.
That said, Superman & Lois looks incredible for a CW show. It’s clear that the CW has funnelled a lot more money and resources into this show compared to Supergirl or the other DC shows. The production value is very high for a TV series, and the visual effects look pretty decent as well. This show won’t get the same criticisms as Supergirl (horrible CGI), that’s for sure. The cinematography looks cinematic and Superman’s suit is gorgeous.

Superman & Lois very much explores the relationship between Clark Kent AKA Superman (Tyler Hoechlin) and his family, which consists of his wife Lois Lane (Elizabeth Tulloch) and his twin sons; Jonathan Kent (Jordan Elsass) and Jordan Kent (Alex Garfin). It puts an emphasis on how Clark has to juggle his responsibilities as Superman while dealing with his family.
I was initially afraid that the show would drown itself in stereotypes and tropes. While it does look that way at first (with Jonathan Kent as the popular, outgoing jock and Jordan Kent as the brainy, awkward loner), these characters have more depth as they develop throughout the episode. The main cast delivers great performances all-around with some heartfelt drama and not too much teenage angst. However, it’s still the CW so I’ll have to warn you to still expect some cheese and cringe-worthy teen shenanigans.
I’m very much excited for more episodes of Superman & Lois. Superman fans should rest easy and enjoy the ride; this might finally be the Superman series we’ve been waiting for.
FINAL SCORE: 80/100
We received an early access screener of the first episode courtesy of Warner Media.
Oh, I’m not done yet. Let’s delve into some easter eggs that I discovered in Superman & Lois Season 1 Episode 1 ‘Pilot’ below. Before that, I’m going to have to slap a few spoiler warnings first.

Action Comics #1

Earlier in the episode, we see a homage to the iconic cover of Superman’s first-ever debut in history; Action Comics #1, which was first published in 1938. It’s not exactly the same, but it’s close enough.

Jonathan Kent Superboy Reference

In one of the more emotional scenes (when the twins finally learn their father is Superman), Jordan cynically refers to his twin Jonathan as Superboy.
That’s clearly an easter egg to the fact that in the comics right now, Superman only has one son and his name is Jonathan Kent, who also goes by the name Superboy.

Captain Luthor Might Be An Established Villain From The Comics

Captain Luthor might actually be Alexander Luthor Jr. from Earth-Three in the comics. They both hail from a different Earth which was destroyed by the events of Crisis On Infinite Earths.
In Infinite Crisis, he plotted to bring back the Multiverse by manipulating events in the main DC Universe at the time. Perhaps this Captain Luthor has the same idea? We’ll have to wait and see.


Death Stranding Is A Pretty Package That Kojima Ultimately Fails To Deliver

[Review originally published on 1st November, 2019]
Platform: PS4
Genre: FedEx deliveryman simulator with babysitting and half-baked stealth plus combat.

I really wanted to like Death Stranding.
From the day the game was revealed at E3 2016 up until the very day I received my review code, there was a consistent feeling of wanting to see Hideo Kojima prove to all his detractors, especially those at Konami, that he could produce something brilliant beyond the Metal Gear Solid series. Personally speaking, I believe that Kojima started losing his edge beginning from Metal Gear Solid 4. There was a clear indication of exhaustion.
Each new MGS game would always end up retconning something established by previous games and MGS4 did it so much that it pretty much ruined the entire series for me.
It took me a while but it was after MGS4 did I realise that Kojima just couldn’t really write coherent stories. He depends too much on the few great cinematic moments that stick in people’s minds. It’s why the first Metal Gear Solid remains my favourite game in the series. It was chock-full of those moments and there’s very few downtime between those moments.
Death Stranding appears to be Kojima’s attempt in translating those cinematic moments into actual gameplay. In my almost 50-hour playthrough of the game, I felt that intent in my core being very early into the game.

Alas, he has failed miserably in that dubious task. I simply didn’t enjoy the core gameplay of Death Stranding nor did I find its story to be impressive.

Job Simulator On Steroids

The biggest appeal of Death Stranding to potential buyers is the mystery that surrounds it. Even after watching all the trailers and gameplay demos, most people don’t really get what the game is about. Of course, this is what Kojima wants. Confusion generates discussion and discussion will generate sales.
I’m here to tell you not to buy into the confusion. Get a clear picture of the game before you decide to buy it.
Here’s my attempt at giving you a clear picture: At its heart, Death Stranding is a deliveryman simulator through and through. You take orders from one place and then you walk, run, bike, or drive to wherever your order needs to be delivered.
True, there are some diversions along the way but you’ll be spending 80% of your time just traversing the environment. The rest is spent on dealing with those diversions and watching cutscenes.

Traversal in itself isn’t a straightforward business. There will be times where you’ll have to cross rivers, descent down or climb up slopes and deep fissures, and even brave through harsh terrain such as knee-deep snow.

If you’re feeling lazy, pressing triangle will auto-arrange your cargo according to what the computer thinks will give you the best balance.
Aside from carrying cargo, you’ll also be able to fabricate and bring along tools such as ladders, ropes, and portable chiral constructors (PCC) which are basically 3D printers that can be used to build structures such as bridges, road pavers, electrical generators, and more. With a weight and capacity limit in place, this does introduce an interesting gameplay aspect which will encourage players to plan their inventory before heading out for a delivery.
Some of the aforementioned diversions will come in the form of rogue cargo bandits called MULEs. These guys will try to steal any cargo you have the moment you’re detected within their area of operation. Killing them is not an option -I’ll explain why later because it’s tied to the story- so your only options are either sneaking past them or incapacitating them with melee or non-lethal ranged weapons.
The other common diversion you’ll come across is the ghost-like creatures you’ve seen in the trailers called “Beached Things” or BTs. Once you enter an area that has BTs, your shoulder-mounted Odradek scanner will indicate the direction of the BT closest to you. The closer you are to a BT, the more erratic the Odradek behaves.
The stealth aspect of this game is basically hiding in tall grass or behind cover so that MULEs don’t see you. Against BTs, stealth is just about holding your breath and avoiding them.
BTs can’t see any human beings and that includes our main character Sam Bridges (Norman Reedus) but they can hear us. When you get too close to a BT, the Odradek will emit an orange light and you’ll be prompted to hold your breath.
How long you can hold your breath is determined by how much stamina you have left. If you start breathing again after almost running out of breath, Sam will inhale very loudly so you’ll need to keep an eye on the gauge.
Bridge Baby, or simply BB, is more than just a character to make audiences go “What the hell?”. It’s what you need to detect BTs. Sam’s Odradek can’t locate any BTs if he’s not connected to a BB. So you’ll need to take care of the BB and by take care, I mean monitor its stress level.
If the BB gets stressed out due to Sam being attacked or falling down a cliff, it will cry. This can make it easier for BTs and MULEs to detect you.
As shown in some of the demos, you’ll have to rock the BB GENTLY to soothe it.
As some of you probably know by watching some gameplay demos, being detected and caught by a BT will flood the area around you in tar. There will then be at least one large hostile BTs that will try to kill and consume Sam. In these situations, you can use a wide range of weaponry including grenades, assault rifles, and even rocket launchers to defeat the BTs. If Sam gets killed or consumed, you will trigger something called a Voidout.
When a Voidout happens, the entire area that was flooded in tar will be absolutely destroyed and you’ll be left with a gigantic crater. Voidouts are caused by the contacting of matter in human beings and antimatter in BTs. The same rule applies to dead human beings as well, which is why we can’t kill MULEs.
If you do end up causing a Voidout, the resulting crater will become a permanent part of the world for the rest of your playthrough. Any structures built within the area of the Voidout will also be destroyed.

It’s an effective way of reminding players that their recklessness and lack of preparation will have lasting consequences.

This is one of the Voidout craters shown in the game’s cutscenes. You’ll form a similar one if you end up dying to BTs.
Speaking of preparation, you’ll also need to add weapons into the list of things that you want Sam to carry on each delivery. You never know when you’ll bump into MULEs and BTs so that’s another aspect that you will need to consider before heading out to make a delivery.
Rain Rain, Go Away

In the world of Death Stranding, terms like “rain”, “rainwater”, and “rainfall” are almost never used by its characters. The only word you need to know is timefall. It’s basically rain but instead of just making you wet, the water will accelerate the ageing of anything it touches, including your cargo.
Sam himself is pretty much unaffected by timefall thanks to his porter suit having an automatic hoodie that deploys whenever it happens.

The important thing is to monitor the damage that timefall does to your cargo. Stay in timefall too long and you risk failing your delivery by ruining your cargo.

Staying in timefall in itself isn’t going to be easy anyway. Whenever and wherever this occurs, it’s almost guaranteed that BTs will be in the area as well. So not only do you have to haul ass out of the timefall zone but you usually also have to do it stealthily.
See that? That’s a BT. I’m going to poke it with my Odradek.
Early on in the game, I found these segments pretty exciting. However, the formula remains the same all the way until the end of the game. Every time it happened, all I had to do was crouch and keep walking towards my destination while avoiding BTs.

I don’t remember a single instance where I had to anything differently in going through timefall. After the first few hours, every timefall occurrence felt like a chore more than anything else.

Kojima’s “Strand” Genre
You can leave signs for yourself and other players. Some have status boost effects such as replenishing your stamina and making you BB happy.
An extremely important mechanic in the game is the integration of online play and how it affects the game’s overall enjoyment. If you have an internet connection, your experience with the game will be so different compared to players who can only play offline.
I would dare say that offline players simply wouldn’t be able to experience the game the way that Kojima planned for it to be played.
Playing online, you won’t ever see another player in the flesh. What you see are the signs and structures they’ve decided to put down in their worlds. A lot of my deliveries were made easy thanks to other players’ paving roads for me to use with my trikes (three-wheel bikes) and trucks, and building safehouses that I used to restore health, stamina and other parameters.
If you’re attacked by MULEs or BTs and you drop non-essential cargo including tools, weapons, and materials for building or fabrication, there’s a good chance they will pop up in other players’ worlds and they can help send those items to nearby settlements or Distribution Centers. They will be rewarded with Likes if they do so. Same goes to you and other players’ dropped cargo.
Picking up other players’ tools and weapons means that you can use them as well. In my experience, I found a decent number of chiral printers, ladders, and handguns scattered throughout the environment, most probably dropped by players who were being chased by MULEs or attacked by BTs. They’re really helpful whenever I decide not to carry my own tools and weapons.
I laid down the foundation of a bridge and later came back to find that it was completed thanks to other players contributing materials to my foundation.
Oh yeah, I haven’t touched on Likes. So this game doesn’t really have a currency system. Instead, almost everything good you do in the game is rewarded with Likes. NPCs in the game will give you Likes for completing deliveries and you can get extra Likes by fulfilling bonus conditions like ensuring the cargo isn’t damaged beyond a certain percentage or completing the delivery within a set amount of time.

If you play online, you can also get Likes from other players when they use the tools and structures you put in the world. Vice versa, you can also give Likes to other players whose tools and structures appear in your world.

As far as I’m concerned, there’s only one noteworthy benefit of getting lots of Likes. The Likes from NPCs will determine your “connectivity” level with their settlement. A higher connectivity level translates to more materials being deposited at the settlement. The materials are used to fabricate tools and weapons as well as to build certain structures like roads and bridges.
Sometimes you’ll even find vehicles left behind by other players which you can use. Super helpful.
The Likes you get from other players don’t seem to affect your game in any significant way. I only found that I felt somewhat happy knowing that the stuff I put into the world was helpful to other reviewers.
In combat situations against BTs, mannequin-like figures bearing the usernames of other players will occasionally appear and throw weapons and blood bags (for health restoration) your way. I found this to be the most helpful aspect of Death Stranding’s online integration.
It’s super helpful whenever you run out of ammo and blood bags. Unfortunately, it also makes the game too easy. At some points as I could lighten my cargo by not carrying any weapons and just depend on help from other players.
Here you see me resting under a timefall shelter built by a Mr. Raiden 97. Notice the handprints of a BT circling the structure. Get caught by it and you’ll be dragged into a pool of tar.
If this idea of a shared world and sense of community through purely indirect cooperation is what Kojima meant by his establishment of a new “strand” genre, then I’ll admit that he managed to create an interesting experience but it’s not worthy of being called a new genre.
As a big fan of the Souls game, it seems to me that Kojima’s idea is merely an extrapolation of the online system found in Souls games. The major problem here is that it’s an essential part of the game. Bad news for anyone without internet connection.
An Experience, But Nothing More

Now that I’ve given you the most basic overview of Death Stranding‘s core gameplay, I can finally start to talk about why I didn’t enjoy playing this game.
But bear with me, this is the most anticipated game of the year, if not the decade. So a lot of detailing and context is needed before getting to the game’s core problem.
Death Stranding is boring.
When it all boils down to it, Kojima has successfully made an over-glorified walking simulator. Imagine that out of the 50 hours I spent playing this game, most of that time was used to simply push the left analog stick forward while occasionally pressing R1 to scan for nearby cargo, structures, and enemies.
As I played through the game, I was expecting the formula to change up a bit and introduce something fresh. The presence of MULEs and BTs did that but only for the first few encounters. I bumped into more MULEs and BTs dozens and dozens of times as I progressed through the campaign and the encounters never change.
The MULEs kept using the same weapons and tactics while the BTs were so easy to sneak past that I can count with less than 10 fingers how many times I had to fight them.
They might look menacing but all it takes is a few grenades and a few hundred bullets to take them down. Their attacks are also really easy to dodge despite the game not even having a dodge button.
I kept hoping that the combat would provide the “highs” of the gameplay during the “lows” of just walking across the continent. Not only were combat encounters far and few in-between but they were so primitively simple that I started considering them another chore. MULEs were easily dispatched using sneak attacks and Bola guns while BTs could be defeated in mere minutes by using assault rifles and grenades which didn’t cost much to fabricate.
On a more positive note, I definitely enjoyed playing online and seeing how my world was becoming better thanks to the contributions of other players. I remember placing a road paver one night and the next morning I found that not only was my road completed but it was also extended into a highway that connected multiple settlements.
Observing something like that truly made me feel something special inside. Since I never meet any other players in my own world, it created this paradoxical feeling of being alone, but not really.
Perhaps that’s what Kojima meant by the “strand” genre; building meaningful connections in a disconnected world. That’s commendable, at the very least.
Baby Blues

As mentioned in the start, Kojima manages to disappoint me yet again through his inability to write coherent stories that are sensibly paced throughout a video game that will take you at least 20 hours to beat. I know for a fact that a lot of people are interested in Death Stranding for the story alone. Admittedly, the premise is extremely interesting so I can’t fault anyone for feeling that way.
Without spoiling anything, all I can say is that Kojima doesn’t do anything mindblowing this time and all of the plot twists carry shock value but make very little sense.
However, I do believe that there’s a big possibility that I’m one of the people who simply can’t comprehend the lessons and messages of Death Stranding similar to how I couldn’t find the appeal of Nier: Automata’s philosophical themes. I suppose it’s just one of those stories you have to experience and piece together yourself.

Let me try to give you guys a synopsis of Death Stranding’s premise. *deep breath*
Many years before the beginning of the game, a cataclysmic event called the Death Stranding caused a gigantic Voidout in one of America’s major cities, killing millions of people. Shortly afterwards, millions more died as more Voidouts happened throughout America. This large scale destruction was what began the process of cities and states in America becoming disconnected from each other.
As if things weren’t bad enough, timefall and BTs were now becoming common elements throughout America. As people began to understand what they were facing, they began to retreat into cities with towering walls to protect themselves from the outside world. The destruction of infrastructures such as roads and extreme pollution of the skies caused by a material known as chirallium further reinforced the disconnect between the scattered populations of America.
The walled cities don’t have infinite resources so there was still a need to trade and deal with other cities and settlements for food and other necessities. This was when people started depending on porters like Sam.
Sam’s sister, Amelie (Lindsay Wagner), tasks him with reconnecting all the cities in America and rescuing her.
Playing as Sam, our main goal is to reconnect America. We do that by making deliveries and linking up the cities to something called the chiral network. When a city joins the United Cities of America (UCA) through the chiral network, it will be able to use chiral printing and access the rich database that the UCA possesses.
Connecting cities and settlement to the chiral network also brings gameplay benefits. Some structures can only be built once the local settlement is connected to the chiral network. It will also open up the option for other players to contribute materials to your structures and vice versa. Also, most of the other players’ structures only pop up in your world once the local settlement is connected.
Another motivation for Sam to travel from east to west (we start the game in the eastern side of America) is that his sister Amelie is being held hostage at a city situated on the western edge of the country. Terrorists known for intentionally causing Voidouts to blow up cities are trying to get their hands on her for some big menacing plan. These bad guys are the Homo Demens.
Fragile (Lea Seydoux) is also a porter. She works for her father’s courier service, Fragile Express. She’s got the ability to teleport and it’s through her that we unlock the fast travel system later on in the game.
So yeah, that’s basically it, jargons and all. There’s ton more that I haven’t touched on, but I have to be super-cautious because there’s so much of this story that might be ruined by even just giving hints and small details.
And as for the baby? It’s just used to detect BTs. That’s for the gameplay side of things and that’s all you need to know if you plan on playing this game yourself.
Again, I want to put it out there that none of the plot twists and story beats were satisfying.

I walked away from this game, without a shout of a doubt, that Hideo Kojima cannot write a good story, even when given creative freedom, nigh-unlimited budget, and a star-studded cast.

Dead Last

I don’t think it’s necessary for me to go into Death Stranding’s presentation. The Decima engine is able to render painfully beautiful environments and extremely realistic character models. It’s a gorgeous game that never fails to impress with how detailed and wonderful everything looks. Anyone who tells me this game looks bad is either blind or a liar.
Kudos to Kojima for choosing a collection of great songs from the band Low Roar. The soundtrack is mostly made up of songs from them and I’ll admit that they are beautifully integrated into some of the game’s best moments.
I vividly recall a Low Roar song that started playing the moment I saw a settlement that took me almost half an hour to reach. That moment was so poetic it felt like a reward on its own.

In the end, however, Death Stranding has to be judged as a game, not as a movie. Gameplay forms the majority of the experience and unfortunately, it just isn’t all that fun.

I should stress again: I sincerely wanted Death Stranding to be mind-blowing. Instead, it’s the biggest disappointment in my history of playing video games.

Kojima doesn’t need to worry. I’m 100% confident that Death Stranding will still sell millions of copies. Most people will probably love it and call it one of the most brilliant games to ever come out. To me, it will serve as proof that Kojima should just take up filmmaking already instead of continuing to make games. It’s always been his dream, right?
Pros

Brilliant integration of multiplayer without players directly meeting each other.
Beautiful and detailed visuals for the environment and characters.
Great soundtrack that makes many of the game’s moments more memorable.
Interesting premise.

Cons

Yawn-inducing gameplay.
Unrewarding storyline that doesn’t make sense.
Likes System feels pointless.
Requires online connection for the “strand” experience.

FINAL SCORE: 40/100


Does Doom Eternal Deserve The Best Shooter Of 2020 Award?

Platform: PC, PS4, Xbox One
Genre: Hellscape Remodeling Simulation Using Guns & Grit
Some people say that having too much of a good thing can instil nausea & repetition, like how you can’t eat too much chocolate cake or Famous Amos cookies. Clearly these people need to try out Doom Eternal, because it’s shoving a lot of good things from the first Doom with jacked-up and improved bells and whistles.
The crazy thing is that the sequel to the rebooted first-person shooter franchise does not come off as incredibly excessive. It’s like as if the company behind making the game is disciplined enough to not bloat it with so much while keeping true to the formula that worked back in 2016.
Guns Akimbo
Doom (2016) was a heckuva surprise from id Software: an arcade shooter where your Doomguy/DoomSlayer runs amuck with the speed of a jackrabbit murdering Hell’s demons on a Mars outpost with shotguns, rocket launchers, and Gore Kills that replenishes his health whenever he staggers an enemy. It came with multiplayer, but nobody cared: the 8-hour adrenaline-pumping campaign mode was where it truly mattered. Given its development hell, I’m surprised it turned out the way it did.
In Doom Eternal, you still do the same thing. Except you get to travel through different dimensions and areas with impressive id Software-crafted vistas and hellscapes. And you get new movement options and weapons. And a streamlined equipment system so that you’re using everything at your disposal. And the game is an extra 4 to 5 hours longer. And you also have platforming and puzzle-solving segments to break the monotony of the shooting bits.
Somehow or other, all of these additions don’t come off as bloated padding unless you really, REALLY can’t stand anything getting in-between your arena shooting. And even so, the intensity and challenge dished out in the action portions will thrill you to no end.

Levels like the Super Gore Nest enclosed sections to the monkey bars littered in the castle wall-laden arenas are purposefully added so you can make use against the relenting AI demon horde. And there’s a lot to keep track off. Apart from mainstays like the Imp and floating Cacodemon, there are some noteworthy enemy additions.
The Pain Elemental is a big-bodied Lost Soul chucker that will hound you to no end from the skies. The Doom Hunter flies around slowly shooting missiles at you on its tank appendage. The Whiplash demon slithers so fast and hits so hard it resorts to hit-and-run tactics; you’ll need a lock-on mod to get this guy off your back.
Doom 2’s Arch-Vile also makes a comeback most vilified, with its resurrection ability and flame wall/flame carpet attacks making your battles intense. The Marauder? Yeah, I’ll get to that jerkwad later.
Speed Kills. Gear Too…

Thankfully, the upgrades system can make your fights more manageable on any of the settings. Need that lock-on for your Rocket Launcher? You got it! Need a wide horizontal-hitting add-on for your Arbalest against groups of foes? That works. Need to add flames to your Super Shotgun meathook grapple? Just complete the gun’s mastery challenge and it’s yours.
Speaking of fire, the game adds in a few twists and turns to the core experience. Because ammo and armour pickups on the ground get rarer with each passing stage, you have some tools to keep your health and ammo in check: the Chainsaw and the Flame Belcher. While the former was from the 2016 Doom and was a reliable way to get ammo from fodder enemies, the Chainsaw by default now regenerates up to one bar of fuel automatically so that you’re not caught with your pants down without ammo most of the time.
The Flame Belcher is the game’s alternate way of padding yourself up with armour. Once you set enemies on fire with it, you can shoot them to get armour pieces. Trust me; you’ll need to practice this against big groups and on instinct if you want to survive the harder difficulties. Armour is scarce, but you’ll need it as that layer of protection will go down quicker than usual.
You’ll also have access to your grenades that come in two flavours: damage-dealing frag and move-freezing ice. And your melee gets an upgrade with the Blood Punch; Gore Kill enough enemies to build up its meter, then launch a shockwave-inducing punch that generates more health and murders everything around its radius. Later in the game, you’ll get a significant limited one-hit kill weapon called the Crucible Blade that will help in the later segments where big-bodied Barons of Hell and Doom Hunters are the norm.
With the aforementioned baddies attacking you from all angles, you’ll need to use and master all of these tools of destruction to get ahead. Coupled with your newfound acrobatics (double-jump and air dashes ala Mega Man X series), each battle arena becomes a playground for you to get creative.
I never had much fun unloading super shotgun blasts and meat hook grapples onto arachnotrons and imps, while following up my keepaway game against Hell Knights and Prowlers with lock-on rockets and mini-missiles from my heavy machine gun. Levels-wise, you have your monkey bar and teleporter-laden crawlspaces to your open-air vertical-savvy stages where you need to keep in the air unless you like getting killed by ground hazards.
For the most parts, you need to juggle your tactics and adapt on the fly whenever you’re fighting the demon hordes in the game’s varied locales. You’ll be tested, but you’ll feel damn good overcoming your challenges, sorting out the correct weapon(s) for the situation, and playing the game the right way.

Doom Eternal’s blend of speed-laced shooting, mad dash defensive plays, and tight controls/weapons-switching is tweaked to perfection by id Software. Truly, no other shooter this year, or even last year, can top this frenetic jolt of gore-making ecstasy.

A Heckuva Package?

This awesomesauce of shooter heaven is topped with a plethora of secrets and extra challenges, along with some goofy nonsensical lore that thankfully doesn’t get in your face. Find Slayer Keys to destroy secret Slayer Rooms to get one of the six special keys to unlock a pretty neat turbo plasma gun called the Unmakyr.
Finished the game but want to see some over-the-top nonsense? Then find a cheat code disk in the game, then activate it to see how crazy the game can get with unlimited Onslaught powerup mode or having a QuakeCon crowd cheer your cool moves! Or shift the game’s UI and perspective so that it’s classic Doom; weapon at the centre and all that. Need a challenge? Then play the Master levels to fight brand new enemy spawns in familiar arenas and playgrounds.
Aesthetics-wise, I must say: Doom Eternal is f***ing gorgeous. Hellscapes like the ruined cities of Earth and planes of Hell itself are damnation-filled eye candy, but the game’s other ethereal locations should be lauded for their detail and design.

From ancient castles to space stations close next to Mars, the Doomguy road tour is one crazy roadtrip accompanied with the most metal gaming soundtrack Mick Gordon has produced.

Part tribute to Doom 2‘s OST, part new ballads of guitar-shredding, part deep metal choirs, topped with awesome gun sounds and hell screams. All of this culminates to the composer & audio engineer’s best work to date.
Some Fixing Needed On This Paved Hell Road
Only a couple of gripes sour the otherwise sublime shooter experience. One: the addition of the Marauder. You see, he basically nullifies all your attacks and doesn’t let you hit it unless it flashes green to do a mid-ranged axe attack. He’s a defensive powerhouse; a turtler. His attacks come out wicked fast and his shield is always up; no exceptions.
You can only damage him in that green-flashing quick window. In a game where you blaze through and be on the move killing and trying to gain health and ammo, he’s the literal wall that blocks your progress. Oh, and he does take quite a lot of hits to boot.

When I fought him as a boss, he’s manageable because bosses are supposed to test your reflexes & endurance. When he starts appearing as a regular big enemy later in the game, he becomes the sole reason I sacrifice all my extra lives just to extinguish him. Now imagine having other annoying bads like the Whiplash demons and Cyber-Knights while he’s chucking red plasma in your face. Those aforementioned demons are bad enough as it is.
In fighting game terms, you’re fighting A.I-controlled Guile in original Street Fighter 2. Any seasoned arcade player can tell you how much of a nightmare that is. And I’m just playing on the regular difficulty. God forbid if I’m replaying Doom: Eternal in Ultra Nightmare and dealing with this idiot with all the other demons in play.

My advice to id Software when they’re getting the eventual complaints about the Marauder? Just lower his health for all the difficulties and give a slower telegraph for his red plasma attack. His defense game is already OP as it is.

Second: there’s only one multiplayer mode available, and it’s an asymmetrical 2v1 mode where two players who use demons fight against a Doom Slayer, weapons and all. I wish I could tell you how promising this mode is, but at this point in time, it’s hard to find players to fight against. It could be Bethesda’s network issues, but until that’s sorted this week, we’ll have to grade the rest of the game.
On that note, I’m pretty disappointed that there’s no pure old-school deathmatch mode involving groups of Doom Slayers killing each other for points or last man standing status. For a series that prides itself with revolutionizing fast-paced multiplayer shooting, id Software dropped the ball here.
Eternally Yours To Play

In an attempt to expand its universe like how Universal did with the Fast & Furious series, id Software never forget why people played Doom back in 2016 in the first place: because you want to play an arcade shooter that’s challenging, fast, frenetic, and fun. Doom: Eternal hits all of these pillars and then some.
After playing this sequel, it’s really hard to go back to any other arcade-like shooter. Heck, it’s really hard to go back to ANY single-player campaign shooter. Doom Eternal raised the bar to unfair heights, at least from a gameplay standpoint.
Presentation and execution-wise, this is as metal & awesomely goofy as it can get with an R rating plastered all over its spilling guts and gallons of bloodletting. And personally, I wouldn’t have it any other way.
And to answer the headline on this love letter to id Software’s latest? Undoubtedly.
Pros

Great arena shooter gameplay with loads of challenges.
New & meaningful arsenal & movement additions.
Great level design, puzzles & all.
Loads of bonuses & secrets to uncover.
Looks & sounds stellar.

Cons

Marauders are game-breakers.
Multiplayer offerings are slim…
…assuming you can even find people to play with.

FINAL SCORE: 90/100


Final Fantasy XV’s Royal Edition Is Pretty Much Trolling The Game’s Early Adopters

Missed out on Final Fantasy XV the first time around yet still want to get a taste of what it feels like road-trippin with your fellow boyband-mates, fishing, power-sliding chocobos and pretending you’re ordering roti canai from your nearby mamak? Well good for you! Your patience paid off, and you’re in luck as Sony Interactive Entertainment Asia recently announced the Final Fantasy Royal Edition for the PS4, set to drop March 6th 2018 which is a terrific deal for your wallet.
However, for those who bought the game at launch … uh, there’s something for you as well, in the form of feeling kicked multiple times in the teeth, gut punched and being at the receiving end of a Sharpshooter.
According to official press release, the Royal Edition will come with the base game, along with sixÂ add-on contents that have already been launched. Like a kicks to the teeth for everyone who bought the game at launch, this somewhat GOTY edition will be packed with several new features, such as new enemies and side quests, including an expanded map for the Insomnia City Ruins and a â€œfirst person modeâ€ that will allow players to see the world from the perspective of Prince Noctis.
So what’s in these six add-ons you’ll get? Here they are.

Expanded Map: Insomnia City Ruins
Armiger Unleashed
A fully-controllable Royal Vessel boat
The first-person mode
Archive
Quest to obtain and strengthen Regalia Type-D

Also along with these additions come new trophies for you trophy hunters out there.
Remember that gut punch we spoke of earlier? Cuz here it comes. The Royal Edition will be priced atÂ MYR 219 (physical) and MYR 209 (Digital). That’s much cheaper than the price of the standard game at its official launch. Ouch.
And here comes the Sharpshooter. Already have the base game yet still want to experience all these new features? Well, be ready to splash another MYR 66 for the FFXV Royal Pack which will also be sold separately. Yes. Sixty-six.

While it is great for them to release this special version at a very competitive price, especially for those who are yet to play the game, it feels like a betrayal to their legion of hardcore fans and early adopters of the game.Â  The least Square Enix and/or SIE could do is to make these content available for free, or at least much cheaper than the MYR 66 to anyone who purchased the game at launch. How hard could it be? The system would have logged a player’s progress and why can’t they make all the six add-ons free as a gesture of good faith?
Anyways, both the Final Fantasy XV Royal Edition and Final Fantasy XV Royal Pack will drop both physically and digitally come March 6th 2018.


HBO GO & Cartoon Network Celebrates Harry Potter’s 20th Anniversary With Movies & Merch

Break out your wands and ready your best spells, charms and potions as Cartoon Network andÂ HBO GOÂ mark the 20th anniversary of the filmÂ Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.
For the very first time, the first four of theÂ Harry Potter 8-movieÂ seriesÂ will air onÂ Cartoon Network (Astro Channel 615) every other weekend, starting with the one that started it all onÂ Saturday, November 13Â atÂ 8pm.Â Mark these dates to follow the amazing tale of The Boy Who Lived and his battles against Voldemort:

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, on 13 November 2021
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, 27 November 2021
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, 11 December 2021
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, 25 December 2021

All movies are also available to stream onÂ HBO GO. The final four titles will debut on Cartoon Network in early 2022.

And if thatâ€™s not enough magic for you, check out the brand-new Wizarding World competition event,Â Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses, whichÂ streams onÂ Monday, 29 November 2021, exclusively onÂ HBO GO.
The show, hosted by Academy Award-winning actressÂ Helen Mirren, continues the Wizarding World spirit showcasing ultimate fan glory on a never-before-seen scale. Featuring hundreds of trivia questions and special guest surprises, this unforgettable event of a lifetime will unveil which fans know the vast, intricately detailed universe like the back of their hand as they compete to take home the Tournament of Houses championship trophy.

				Shoot ID 1050048, Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses, Helen Mirren

				Shoot ID 1050048, Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses, Helen Mirren

				Shoot ID 1050048, Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses, Helen Mirren

				Shoot ID 1050048, Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses, Helen Mirren

				Shoot ID 1050048, Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses, Helen Mirren

				Shoot ID 1050048, Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses, Helen Mirren

				Shoot ID 1050048, Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses, Helen Mirren

				Shoot ID 1050048, Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses, Helen Mirren

				Shoot ID 1050048, Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses, Helen Mirren

				Shoot ID 1050048, Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses, Helen Mirren

Here’s what else fans can look forward to before the end of the year and remember to follow and share all the excitement on social media withÂ #20YearsofMovieMagic.
Discover More Magic Online

Fans are also invited to visitÂ HarryPotterMovie20.com,Â and unpack exclusive content from the most iconic moments of the movie that started this global theatrical phenomenon.
Reminisce from the first film, test your knowledge with a host of quizzes, catch a glimpse of the work behind the scenes and learn more about everyoneâ€™s favourite boy wizard and his friends, fantastic beasts, magical items and so much more. Packed with fascinating facts and features, the site will make you fall in love with the Wizarding World all over again!
Fans will also be able to see if theyâ€™ve got the skills to be a seeker by trying out the new â€œCatch the Snitchâ€Â Wizarding WorldÂ Instagram filter.
[videopress 7ngpr7ix]
Top Up Your Hogwarts Trunk

Also, donâ€™t miss the chance to grab some canâ€™t miss collectibles, together with toys, accessories and DIY kits to transform your home and bring the Wizarding World to life, in your own special way.
In Malaysia, get ready for spellbinding adventures with Spin Master this year-end by checking out its Wizarding World collection of wands, playsets and dolls launching in November.
If you are looking for activities to spend with your loved ones, Mattel has launched its special edition board games – Harry Potter Scrabble and Harry Potter Pictionary Air.
For more details and information, head on over here.


Horror Anthology Series Folklore Season 2 Premieres Next Month On HBO GO

HBO Asia Original horror anthology seriesÂ Folklore, which features deeply-rooted superstitions and myths across Asia,Â ramps up the fear factor with the return of a second season. The new six-episode season premieres on 14 November 2021 at 10pm exclusively on HBO GO and HBO (Astro Channel 411).
A new episode will debut every Sunday at the same time, with a seventh episode from Malaysia airing at a later date, following pandemic-related filming delays.
Folklore Season 2Â continues to dive intoÂ Asiaâ€™s myriad of traditions and beliefs. Set in six different Asian territories â€“ Taiwan, Japan, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia and Singapore, the series examines the human condition when exposed to supernatural phenomena in a mind-bending race against oneself with each story providing a different take and perspective. Each episode is directed by a local director from that territory.

Directors for this season include Shih-Han Liao from Taiwan, Seiko Matsuda from Japan, Sittisiri Mongkolsiri from Thailand, Erik Matti from the Philippines, Billy Christian from Indonesia and Nicole Midori Woodford from Singapore. Singaporeâ€™s award-winning filmmaker Eric Khoo returns as the showrunner.
Highlighting female directors from the region, Japanese pop superstar Seiko Matsuda makes her directorial debut, drawing from personal experience to presentÂ an original concept featuring a haunted Japanese idol, while Singaporean director Nicole Midori Woodfordâ€™s episode speaks to dealing with family trauma.
Folklore Season 2Â also features an ensemble cast from all over Asia. The stellar line-up includesÂ Vivian SungÂ Yun-HwaÂ (â€œOur Timesâ€,Â â€œLost Romanceâ€),Â Wu Kang-RenÂ (HBO Asia Original seriesÂ â€œThe World Between Usâ€,Â â€œA Touch of Greenâ€),Â Win MorisakiÂ (â€œReady Player Oneâ€, â€œHonki No Shirushiâ€Â (The Real Thing)),Â Jennis OprasertÂ (â€œWhere We Belongâ€),Â Dolly de LeonÂ (â€œVerdictâ€, â€œMidnight in a Perfect Worldâ€),Â Lydia KandoÂ (â€œBoneka Dari Indianaâ€ (Doll from Indiana), â€œKejarlah Jodoh Kau Kutangkapâ€)Â andÂ Mindee OngÂ (â€œ881â€,Â â€œThe Transcendâ€) in leading roles in the respective episodes.
Produced with the support ofÂ the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA),Â FolkloreÂ is HBO Asiaâ€™s very first horror anthology original series.Â Various episodes ofÂ Folklore Season 1Â were screened at numerous major international film festivals including Toronto International Film Festival (Toronto, Canada), SITGES International Fantastic Film Festival of Catalonia (Barcelona, Spain), Fantastic Fest (Texas, USA), Scream Fest (Singapore), Five Flavours Asian Film Festival (Warsaw, Poland), Asian World Film Fest (California, USA), Geneva International Film Festival (Geneva Switzerland), Trieste Science+Fiction Festival (Trieste, Italy), Philadelphia Asian Film Festival (Philadelphia, USA), San Diego Asian Film Festival (San Diego, USA), CinemAsia International Festival (Amsterdam, Netherlands), Festival Series Mania (Lille, France), Tokyo International Film Festival (Tokyo, Japan), and Ehime International Film Festival (Ehime, Japan).
Episode Guide forÂ Folklore Season 2:
Folklore S2:Â The Rope
Debut date: Sunday, November 14 at 10pm onÂ HBO GOÂ and HBO (Astro Ch 411)
Directed by:Â Shih-Han Liao (Taiwan)
Cast: Vivian Sung (Sung Yun-Hwa),Â Wu Kang-Ren

A newly-wed woman is walking home alone after a joyous wedding ceremony when she gets caught in a purification ritual performed for suicide victims. The ritual officers warn her that she will need to follow the ritual, or she will be cursed. However, she runs away despite their warning. Her life is turned upside down with strange phenomena and disturbing hauntings. Fearing that she has been cursed, she seeks aid from the Master of the purification ritual who confirms her worst fears. However, thereâ€™s more to the situation than meets the eye and she needs to get to the bottom of the mystery before it destroys her completely.
Folklore S2:Â The Day the Wind Blew
Debut date: Sunday, November 21 at 10pm onÂ HBO GOÂ and HBO (Astro Ch 411)
Directed by:Â Seiko Matsuda (Japan)
Cast:Â Win Morisaki, Haori Takahashi

Mika is a schoolgirl who meets the man of her dreams – Ken, her favourite singer. As she takes her seat at Kenâ€™s concert, nothing could be more perfect. Not only is she witness to a performance that is everything sheâ€™s expected and more, it seems heâ€™s actually taken an interest in her. But something seems amiss. Ever since the day of the concert, a cold wind has stalked the womanâ€™s path as her dream encounter is marred by a bone-chilling presence. What appears to be the beginning of a fairy tale love can only be described as a fable destined for a hellish end.
Folklore S2:Â Broker Of Death
Debut date: Sunday, November 28 at 10pm onÂ HBO GOÂ and HBO (Astro Ch 411)
Directed by:Â Sittisiri Mongkolsiri (Thailand)
Cast: Natee Ngamnaewprom (Ton), Jennis Oprasert

Manop is a 45-year-old single father who owns an amulet shop. It doesnâ€™t pay him well, especially when he has to pay for his daughterâ€™s exorbitant medical bills. In fact, his main source of income comes from being a â€œBroker of Deathâ€ – someone who trades in corpses. One day, he is told to pick up a dead body. TheÂ corpse is to be a part of the ritual so that a wealthy politician can have more power. Manop has to choose between two frightening options â€“ ghost haunting or poverty.
Folklore S2:Â 7 Days Of Hell
Debut date: Sunday, December 5 at 10pm onÂ HBO GOÂ and HBO (Astro Ch 411)
Directed by:Â Erik Matti (Philippines)
Cast: Dolly de Leon, Roshson Barman

A righteous policewoman and mother races against time to save her son when he falls dangerously ill from an unknown cause. When her son is given only a few weeks to live, she discovers that his illness is of supernatural origin and that a powerful sorcerer has cursed him. The only way for her son to survive is for him to apologise and make amends to the sorcerer. As the clock ticks, she is sent on a desperate quest to save her son.
Folklore S2:Â Grandmaâ€™s Kiss
Debut date: Sunday, December 12 at 10pm onÂ HBO GOÂ and HBO (Astro Ch 411)
Directed by:Â Billy Christian (Indonesia)
Cast:Â Lydia Kandou, Ken Zuraida

Marni is a new resident at a nursing home, having been left there by her daughter. She feels abandoned and longs for her old life. She suspects that her roommate Ningsih might be a supernatural being – a Palasik – haunting the home and able to make any wish come true if caught. Will Marni use the Palasik to get what she desires – her old life back?
Folklore S2:Â The Excursion
Debut date: Sunday, December 19 at 10pm onÂ HBO GOÂ and HBO (Astro Ch 411)
Directed by:Â Nicole Midori Woodford (Singapore)
Cast: Mindee Ong, Ethan Ng, Darren Lim

A troubled mother is depressed and suffering from insomnia. Her husband is never at home and her son talks to an imaginary friend Under immense stress, she starts to see a ghostly, somehow familiar figure in her house. Her sonâ€™s erratic behaviour becomes dangerous and life-threatening. Can she save her son and her family before itâ€™s too late?
You can also watch the entirety of Folklore Season 1Â onÂ HBO GO now.
You can subscribe to HBO GOÂ onlineÂ atÂ https://www.hbogoasia.my/Â or the mobile appÂ via theÂ App StoreÂ orÂ Play StoreÂ forÂ as low as RM23.30/month. Or accessÂ HBO GOÂ via Astro. HBO GO is also available on Android TV, Apple TV, LG TV and Samsung Smart TV – and comes with AirPlay and Google Cast functionality.


Capcom Reveals New Monster Hunter Game… For Mobile

Capcom has announced yet another Monster Hunter game for (*shudder*) mobile platforms. Monster Hunter Riders is a new Monster Hunter RPG title coming to Android and iOS sometime this winter in Japan. It will be a free-to-play title with item-based in-app purchases.
According to the official website (translated via Gematsu), Monster Hunter Riders is set on the continent of Felgia, where humans and monsters live side-by-side. As the leader of the Riders Guild special agency ‘Dispatch Observation Party’, players will command both monsters and riders to solve the mystery of the evil Dark Riders.
The gameplay is similar to Atlus’ Shin Megami Tensei Persona franchise, where players can gather, raise, and combine familiar monsters from the Monster Hunter franchise who will fight alongside their own unique party of Riders.
Combat is described as featuring a command battle system, which sounds like it could be turn-based. Confirmed monsters to appear include the likes of Rathalos, Zinogre, Nargacuga, and Glavenus, but more monsters will be added in future updates.
Pre-registration is now open on the Android Google Play Store and iOS App Store. The official synopsis for the game reads:

“A great calamity once attacked this land,
10 dragon rider knights, later called â€œThe Ten Great Dragon Knights,â€ saved the land from the great calamity,
A new connection was formed between humans and monsters, and several hundred years passedâ€¦
But this continent of Felgia, where humans and monsters live in union, is about to once again become engulfed by a dark malice.”

However, Monster Hunter Riders isn’t the first Monster Hunter mobile game. That distinction goes to 2016/2017’s Monster Hunter Stories, which played more like Pokemon and even received an anime adaptation. In the meantime, check out the trailer below.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4VxxXLQLSk&w=560&h=315]


Bungie Breaks Up With Activision, Keeps Destiny

In an unexpected turn of events, Bungie has announced that it’s ending its publishing partnership with Activision but will retain the rights to Destiny. The contract with Activision originally began in 2010 when Bungie became an independent developer (breaking off from Microsoft) and was looking to publish their first new IP after the Halo franchise.
According to a post on the developer’s official website, Bungie is ready to publish independently backed by the full support of its “remarkable Destiny community.” Meanwhile, it was also stated that Activision will be focusing on their own IP projects from now on.
While the post didn’t mention how Bungie will move forward with the franchise, this move will definitely be well-received by fans of Destiny. Both Destiny and Destiny 2 have been criticized for its development issues and intrusive microtransactions, amongst other problems.
Some fans have blamed these issues on Activision, with the publisher having publicly announced in the past that Destiny 2 has been a commercial disappointment. This is the opposite of what Bungie believes, as a response by Destiny 2 director Luke Smith stated that “we set out to build a game that Destiny players would love, and at Bungie, we love it too.”
Clearly, there has been years of tension between the former power couple.Â The split from Activision might spark a return to form for Bungie, with perhaps more Halo-quality games from the developer in the future. Not being restricted or controlled by a publisher would also mean more creative freedom, which would only spell better games for gamers in the future.
The games industry and media chip in about the split; some positive, some cautious and realistic.

Looking forward to a very bright future working with one of my favorite independent studios on one of my favorite franchises. Excited to see how they continue to grow and evolve Destiny.
— Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) January 10, 2019

https://twitter.com/therealcliffyb/status/1083482573106495488

Some of my fondest memories of working on Destiny include the amazing adventures we’ve had with Activision at events all around the world. To my friends at that company, thank you for working with us to bring together this amazing community that we will continue to serve.
— DeeJ (@DJDague) January 10, 2019

Here's @DeeJ_BNG reminding us that Bungie's independence comes not just with huge new opportunities, but also with huge new challenges. It is probably a tumultuous time for the studio coming up, and I wish them all the best of luck with the transition! https://t.co/R5q35G2JWp
— Rami Ismail (????) (@tha_rami) January 10, 2019

Self-publishing a game at this (or any!) scale is HARD. It’s not a switch you flip. Bungie will have to learn a lot, grow in new ways, and they may stumble. We did and still do. But when they come out the other side, the game and its players will see a huge benefit.
— Nick Chester (@nickchester) January 10, 2019

As for Activision? It’s currently facing a rough time as it went through an executive shake-up and cut corners in its Blizzard Entertainment subsidiary.Â


Hot Toys Boba Fett Comes With His Own Throne

The Book Of Boba Fett is slated to premiere in December 2021. We haven’t received a new look at the upcoming series since the end of The Mandalorian Season 2, but at least we have Hot Toys releasing a new figure to tide us over until then.
Hot Toy has announced the Star Wars: The Mandalorian – 1/6th scale Boba Fett (Repaint Armor) and Throne Collectible Set.
With his customized Mandalorian armour, deadly weaponry, and silent demeanour, Boba Fett was one of the most feared bounty hunters in the galaxy. Over the course of his career, which included contracts for the Empire and the criminal underworld, he became a legend, but many thought he met his end when he fell in the horrific Sarlacc pit on Tatooine. After making a surprise return in The Mandalorian and regained his armour, he set his eyes to dispose of Bib Fortuna and took the throne.
The figure features a meticulously crafted Mandalorian helmet and armour with exceptional paint application, Bobaâ€™s iconic jetpack, skillfully tailored outfit, a flamethrower effect, a fibre cord whip, a blaster, a rifle, and a display base. This collectible set will specially feature a newly painted head sculpt with an astonishing likeness and a highly detailed throne for Boba Fett. A Special Edition available only in selected markets will specially include hologram figures of Razor Crest and Boba Fettâ€™s Star Ship as bonus accessories.
What’s interesting is that the Star Wars: The Mandalorian – 1/6th scale Boba Fett (Repaint Armor) and Throne Collectible Set also teases a Hot Toys of the assassin and bounty hunter Fennec Shand (see below), which has yet to be officially revealed. In the series, Shand is played by actress Ming-Na Wen.

You canÂ head on over hereÂ for our analysis ofÂ The MandalorianÂ Season 2 ending and post-credits scene, as well as what the future might hold for the series moving forward.
Check out the Star Wars: The Mandalorian – 1/6th scale Boba Fett (Repaint Armor) and Throne Collectible Set in all its glory below:


Far Cry 6 Endings Explained

As fun as it is to blow stuff up in the name of a fictional country revolution in Far Cry 6, it has to end at some point. True to past titles, there are a couple of endings in part 6, but not as numerous as the previous entries.
Here’s how Far Cry 6 ends. Spoilers, obviously.

Far Cry 6 Regular Ending

This is what you’ll get when you, Dani Rojas, play through the last few Libertad missions, once you’ve reached Rank 11 or so and once you’ve recruited each of the three major factions: the family Monteros, the Maximas Matanzas rap group/young rebel group, and the La Moral/The Legends of ’67 wombo combo.
Once that’s done, you’ll have to go through a few missions where you have to rescue Libertad leader Clara from Anton Castillo’s secret villa after she agreed to a parlay. It’s a tough mission, but you’ll pull through once you figure out the lay of the mansion. Turns out that for all the cancer-preventing Virillo the country is making, it stopped working six months prior.
Anton himself is in a high stage of cancer (that is Viviro-proof) and needs Diego to see through his work. Your guerilla buddy-slash-ex-CIA guy Juan (the one who sells you the Supremos and Resolvers) is hiding on top somewhere to get a clear shot at Anton, but he ends up wanting to shoot Diego instead.
The jig is up, and Clara ends up getting killed by Anton, then he and Diego ran off. After a kill-all-enemies mission, your character ends up being the leader of Libertad and eventually gathering your allies to take down Esperanza and Anton’s last line of defence. Plus, you get a pretty awesome 4-star armour set that helps protect you and deal more damage.

During the final stand, Anton chooses not to let himself or Diego get captured by guerillas, so after a short monologue, he shoots his own son and slits his own throat. The final boss basically killed himself in this action-packed game featuring enemy tanks and helicopters.
Once that’s over and done with, Dani gets to choose whether she or La Moral’s Yelena becomes Yara’s El Presidente. But you don’t get to choose: Dani automatically says “no” and instead becomes the de facto leader of Libertad.
Far Cry 6 Special Ending
Unlike in Far Cry 4 and Far Cry 5 where you can get the ending in the first few minutes of the game, you can only access this a few hours after you’re done with the Isla Santuario bit and established Libertad HQ. After a cutscene about staying or leaving, you get to continue the fight.
Or just hop on a boat and sail West to America. No kidding; that is a choice you can pull off after the Isla Santuario bit. Take the boat and sail west until you see a “leaving Yara” message pop up. The secret ending reveals Dani lying on a beach chillaxing in Miami three months later. She hears via radio that Anton has destroyed the Libertad movement and killed Clara.
Technically it’s the right ending for Dani since she didn’t even want to do this guerilla nonsense in the first place. But that’s up to you, really. You did pay a bunch of money for an epic virtual guerilla experience, right?

Far Cry 6 Post-Credit Scene
After you finish Far Cry 6 for real, and after all the credits (which you can speed through because holy s*** it’s long and even has a developer’s pets section), you come across quite a post-credit scene that hints at the series’ future. The screen is black with the Far Cry 6 logo remaining, then you hear two people speaking: Juan your arms dealer and a Smuggler who sounds an awful lot like Vaas from Far Cry 3. You can check it out on this link.
That post-game dialogue alludes to the following:

Far Cry 6 might be a prequel to Far Cry 3. That Smuggler is definitely Vaas.
The Far Cry 6 season pass content may be delving into many of the villain’s backstories, with Vaas being the first one. The second and third characters are Pagan Min and Joseph Seed.


Malaysian Esports Federation Fail To Send Representatives To IESF World Championship 2022 [Update]

Update [29/12/2022]: Weeks after the event transpired, The Malaysia Esports Federation (MESF) has made the following statement, stating that the posts mentioned in the original story were due to “clear breach of protocol and clarity on individuals involved in making statements […] without MESF’s approval”.

The issue pertaining to statements made against MESF had been brought to our attention and we had looked into the matter. Further to our investigation, we identified clear breach of protocol and clarity on individuals involved in making statements or post without MESF’s approval. It is unfortunate that the Tekken 7 and Dota 2 athletes were not present at the recent IESF tournament in Bali.

 We would like to emphasize that MESF did not have any malicious intentions on neglecting the Fighting Games Community (FGC) & DOTA 2 Community and have always supported in any manner possible.

Secondly, we regret that our investigation to the matter had taken time to respond during which time we have met with all parties concerned including Mr Mohd Aliffa of Fighting Games Community to address the misunderstanding and resolved the matter.

Moving forward, we will continue our open dialogue to enrich the athletes experience for future tournaments. MESF will continue to support and encourage athletes’ development by following our guidelines/procedures by sending esports athletes to international tournaments that is within our jurisdiction and capacity.

Lastly, from our secretariat as the Secretary General, we will strive to ensure that such incidents are avoided in the future and improve the future of Esports in Malaysia.

Should you have any further queries, please do not hesitate to contact or email us at the undersigned.

Yours Sincerely,

Rajasekaran Teagarajan,
Secretary-General, MESF,
Malaysia ESports Federation.

Original story
It has come to light that the Malaysian Esports Federation (MESF) has failed to send the Malaysian representatives for Tekken 7 and Dota 2 to Bali for the 2022 IESF World Championship.
Following their qualification, the Malaysian representatives for the aforementioned games were expected to attend the Championship in neighbouring Indonesia. However, they were only notified that they won’t be participating at the very last minute. This fact was made worse that only the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang and eFootball 2023 contingents will be flying to Bali.
From what we were told, there was a serious lack of communication between the federation and the Tekken representative, Abdul “Fate” Rahim with him only receiving one update from them leading up to the Championship notifying him that he couldn’t go.
We’re unsure as to the exact reason but it is believed to be due to the fact that the MESF were financially incapable to send him. Another reason that seems less likely could have been visa issues. In spite of all these questions, MESF has yet to make a statement regarding the situation.
Fate wasn’t the only representative that MESF failed to send either. The Dota 2 team Atlantis were also unable to attend the Championship in Bali for the same reasons.
Fans of the representatives have been extremely vocal regarding their frustrations with the organization as it is believed to be due to the lack of finances that the representatives were unable to attend. Leading to further frustrations, even if the representatives did attend the Championship, they would have allegedly had to declare 30% of their prize money earned as tax. The real issue is that as the national body of esports, there should have at least been a budget allocated for competitions like this, and even if not, the federation has many sponsors backing them so it shouldn’t have been hard to acquire such funds.
Who Is To Blame?
This isn’t the first time Malaysian esports representatives have failed to attend a high-profile event. In 2018, the Malaysian Overwatch World Cup team had to withdraw from the World Cup due to its failure to secure funds to send the team to participate in the United States. Granted, it was to fly about ten players halfway across the globe. The more recent inability of the MESF to send Malaysian representatives to compete in Indonesia is inexcusable.
Frustrated by MESF’s silence, people have gone as far as to contact the federation directly just to get an explanation for a couple of weeks now. Focus has now shifted to the Malaysian Ministry of Youth and Sports Minister and Deputy Minister Hannah Yeoh and Adam Adli respectively. However, considering both of the Ministers were only recently appointed, the microscope should be directed at the previous administration and their failure to provide long-term support for the esports scene.
https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=199932372562606&id=100076375323169
To rub salt in the wound, the official MESF Facebook page promoted a post that presented the Tekken 7 schedule, knowing well that they haven’t addressed the situation at all. The comments are entertaining, to say the least, if you know the context.
https://www.facebook.com/malaysiaesportsfederation/posts/pfbid0NQTPixPvsymB9zN1wGJb1CD8HVbbNZP9x7Q8LMgDNiWyDidpKmcgZvRzb4UXTp57l
This is still a developing story. As we mentioned before, MESF has still yet to make a statement regarding this entire debacle, so if and/or when they do, Kakuchopurei will be sure to cover it.
Disclaimer: Kakuchopurei Founder, Kenn Leandre was the General Manager of Team Malaysia for the 2018 Overwatch World Cup.


Xbox Cloud Gaming Arrives On Xbox One & Xbox Series Consoles

Microsoft has announced that Xbox Game Pass users can now play Xbox Game Pass games from the cloud on Xbox Series X/S and Xbox One consoles.
It will be available in 25 countries (check out the list here).
Xbox Cloud Gaming originally launched for mobile devices in September 2020 following a beta since November 2019 and later for PC in June 2021 following a beta period since April 2021.
For Xbox One users, cloud gaming also allows you to play some next-gen games on the Xbox One console you already own. This means select games that are currently only playable on Xbox Series X/S, like Recompile, The Medium, and The Riftbreaker, are now playable on your Xbox One with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and cloud gaming.
The company has also promised that more titles will be added to the cloud game library to include more next-gen games like Microsoft Flight Simulator in early 2022.
You can find the full list of cloud games by heading over here.


Diablo Immortal Is Not “Pay To Win” According To Its Creator

There’s a lot of talk going on about Diablo Immortal. No, not so much its fun mobile action RPG gameplay, but rather the endgame cost that’s potentially worth thousands of dollars.
Which is why the game’s director had to speak up about the game’s negativity focused on “misinformation”. Cheng did say months earlier that there is no way for players to acquire or rank up gear using money. However, some players have labelled his comments as “disingenuous” due to players using real money in a bid to acquire Legendary Gems. There are claims right now stating that fully upgrading a post-game character would cost up to US$110,000 worth of gems.
Cheng was asked on Twitter over what has changed since his pre-release comment about players not being able to buy gear. Not much, it seems.

What happened in 4 months? Or are the gems not considered gear? pic.twitter.com/d39rnQadk9
— Zizaran (@Zizaran) June 4, 2022

"You can only upgrade your gear with $$$ once you reach the free quota of the day. […]it's currently almost $12 to just simply even try to upgrade one piece of gear as the "failure rate" is 50/50. " I think it's pretty clear with the game out that this was not the case.
— Wyatt Cheng (@candlesan) June 4, 2022

He was also asked why he responded to the arguments over the weekend. The short answer? To set the record straight.
“I don’t like it if information is misleading. There’s a difference between players liking or not liking a game based on it’s merits (which I can accept, not every game is for everybody) vs. liking or not liking a game based on misinformation surrounding it.”

<3 thanks for asking.
I don't like it if information is misleading. There's a difference between players liking or not liking a game based on it's merits (which I can accept, not every game is for everybody) vs. liking or not liking a game based on misinformation surrounding it.
— Wyatt Cheng (@candlesan) June 4, 2022

What Say Us?

It’s a matter of choice, when you think about it.
Yes, you can choose to play through the game and finish it for free at max level 60, which you can. But you can choose to max out your character and get the best possible buffs and setup, at the cost of paying money for Legendary Gem rolls.
It’s always been about choice. No one is forcing you to max level out your character and paying money for the Legendary Gem rolls. The same way you’re not obligated to pay for Primogems for character gachas in Genshin Impact. Provided the game has their rate drops stated by law, it’s up to you, the player, to make that choice. Yes, there are games where their advertising of gacha and similar mechanics are pretty aggressive and all in at your face (like War of the Visions), but so far Diablo Immortal has been pretty tame about it from my experience. Or maybe I just tapped the screen too fast and quick to avoid these blips and ad rolls.
Plus, there’s no energy meter that needs refilling and no “watch a video for 10 seconds to continue” ad nonsense that disrupts the flow of the game. There are worst examples of this in other F2P games; Diablo Immortal seems less egregious by comparison. Sure, I do wish the game had a fairer microtransaction system ala Path of Exile, but to each their own.
The worst thing that could happen to you with Diablo Immortal is you stop playing the game after 20 hours of playing without spending a dime. And if you feel a bit butthurt about Diablo going down this F2P path, you can always go back to Diablo 3 (or even Diablo 2: Resurrected). That’s still available, people are still playing it, and it’s only US$30 for everything it has to offer, power-leveling and max-leveling included. Or if you rather not support Activision Blizzard because of this (among other s*** they did), there are other action RPGs like the aforementioned Path of Exile and Grim Dawn you can play instead.
There’s always a choice.


Jason Momoa Unveils His Two Costumes In Aquaman 2

Ahead of DC FanDome 2021, Jason Momoa has unveiled the two new suits that he will be wearing in the upcoming Aquaman And The Lost Kingdom.
There’s no explanation given in his post on Instagram, but one is clearly an improved and upgraded version of the iconic comics-accurate gold costume he wore in the first movie.
Meanwhile, the other seems to be a generic-looking black stealth suit of some sort, and it looks like Arthur Curry has taken a page from his nemesis, Black Manta’s look.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Jason Momoa (@prideofgypsies)

Aquaman And The Lost Kingdom is slated to premiere on 22 December 2022. Maybe we’ll learn about these new suits at DC FanDome 2021, which you can get more details about by heading over here.


Award-Winning RPG Disco Elysium Is Getting A TV Series Adaptation

Developer ZA/UM‘s award-winning hit detective RPG game Disco Elysium is getting a TV series adaptation from production company dj2 Entertainment, the same producers behind the Sonic The Hedgehog movie earlier this year (which was decent but still not a terribly good video game movie).
Based on the universe introduced in Robert Kurvitzâ€™s 2013 novel Sacred And Terrible Air, Disco Elysium follows a veteran detective with a mysterious past who must solve a crime that threatens to set powerful political factions into civil war. It won multiple awards at The Game Awards 2019, and we (at Kakuchopurei) even named it one of our best games of 2019.
Speaking with Variety, ZA/UM lead writer Helen Hindpere said:

â€œWeâ€™re so gratified at the response â€˜Disco Elysiumâ€™ has received, and very happy to be teaming with dj2 to expand the franchise for other media and new audiences.â€

It looks like we might be getting a video game movie boom in the near future, as Hollywood snaps up more rights to video game adaptations in an attempt to share in the spoils of the booming games industry, which is now worth more than the movie and music industries combined.
Oh, and Disco Elysium is also currently 25 percent off in the Steam Summer Sale 2020.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UWWA1jnI5N4&w=560&h=315]


PES Has Been Rebranded, And Is Now Free-to-Play

Say goodbye to PES. It’s no more. Well, in name, at least.
Just like how football clubs shuffle their players in order to gain that sliver of an edge over their rivals, so has Konami with the rebranding of their long-standing, annual football simulation release. In a story first broken by IGN, PES will henceforth be known as eFootball.
On top of that, it will become a fully digital, free-to-play game for the PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One and PC. Both iOS and Android versions will be released later although Konami didn’t mention anything in regards to PES eFootball’s Nintendo Switch version.
Konami also clarified that all versions of the game will feature cross-play with mobile players requiring controllers to play against their console and PC opponents.
This nomenclature shift is in line with Konami’s move of ditching the FOX Engine to a custom-built new engine created using Unreal 4. With the game being made free-to-play, we are quite curious on how they aim to profit from it, moreover with their recent move of signing an exclusive player deal with Neymar.

So excited to announce that I’ve partnered with KONAMI as an Official Ambassador for #PES2021 and beyond. We’ll have an iconic PES moment soon, so come and play!https://t.co/gk9NTSNDwr#PES2021 #IconicMomentSeries @officialpes#ad pic.twitter.com/aIocsGrZNV
— Neymar Jr (@neymarjr) July 20, 2021

Series producer Seitaro Kimura told IGN that eFootball is “aiming to take a ‘platform’ approach with regular updates â€“ there will no longer be annual paid releases of eFootball, but the platform will get free, yearly updates for new seasons.” With annual sports games being merely roster updates with minimal technological and gameplay advancement, we welcome this move as it allows the devs to create an ever-evolving title not-bogged by the shackles of an annual title release. Definitely a winning move ala Geggenpress while its main competitor, EA Sports’ FIFA is still bogged down Route-One football.

Like most free-to-play titles, eFootball will launch with the bare minimum of exhibition matches mode with an initial list of 9 clubs to play with.Â  Konami has released a roadmap showing what other modes are coming down the road, which hopefully allows players to pick and choose which modes they want to play.

Having played all iterations of PES since its ISS Pro days, we welcome this move as it gives the power back to the consumer when it comes to keeping up-to-date with the game they love. No more starting everything from zero come a new installment and best of all, the ability to selectively purchase the modes they want to play. 1-0 to Konami here. Your move, EA Sports.


Amazon’s Utopia Conspiracy Series Premieres Next Month

Amazon Prime Video has unveiled the first trailer for its upcoming conspiracy dramaÂ Utopia, which is an American remake of a British TV series of the same name that aired from 2013 to 2014.
The official synopsis for Utopia reads:
â€œUtopiaÂ centers on a group of comic fans who meet online and bond over their obsession of a seemingly fictional comic called â€˜Utopia.â€™Together, Ian (Dan Byrd), Becky (Ashleigh LaThrop), Samantha (Jessica Rothe), Wilson Wilson (Desmin Borges), and Grant (Javon â€œWannaâ€ Walton) unearth hidden meanings cloaked within the pages of â€˜Utopia,â€™ predicting threats to humanity.They realize these are not just the makings of a conspiracy; they are very real dangers coming alive right now in their world.â€
Fun fact:Â UtopiaÂ was created by Gillian Flynn, the author ofÂ Gone GirlÂ andÂ Sharp Objects, both of which have also been adapted into a critically-acclaimed movie and TV series, respectively.
Additional actors joining the Utopia cast are John Cusack, Sasha Lane, Farrah Mackenzie, Christopher Denham and Cory Michael Smith.
All eight episodes are slated to premiere on 25 September 2020. In the meantime, check out the trailer below:


Gearbox Co-Founder Passes Away

Gearbox Software co-founder Landon Montgomery has passed away, the studio announced on Twitter.

In Memoriam pic.twitter.com/IYo8hMbpYH
— GearboxOfficial (@GearboxOfficial) March 25, 2020

“We are heartbroken after learning today of the passing of one of our co-founders, Landon Montgomery,” they wrote.
“In our earliest years, Landon played a big role in helping to set our path. We will always be thankful and remember him for being a part of our lives. During this trying time, our thoughts, support, and affection are with those who were closest to him.”
Montgomery oversaw the day-to-day operations at Gearbox for over a decade, and was involved in franchises like Half-Life, Halo, and James Bond and games like Half-Life: Opposing Force, James Bond: Nightfire, and Brothers in Arms. He left the company in 2010. In 2016, he joined Daybreak Game Company where he worked as its general manager, and became a producer at Nvidia in November 2019.
Our thoughts are with his family and friends.


PlayStation Now Owns Bluepoint Games

One of this year’s worst-kept secrets is now out in the open. Bluepoint Games, a longtime partner of PlayStation Studios, is now acquired by the Sony gaming studio. Bluepoint Games is officially part of the PlayStation Studios family alongside Insomniac, Sucker Punch Production, Santa Monica Studio, Guerilla Games, and that one studio that made the pretty divisive Last of Us sequel.
Bluepoint Games is known for creating pretty awesome remakes like Demon’s Souls for PS5 and Shadow of the Colossus for PS4. The company also made remasters like Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection. Hopefully, with this new acquisition, the team will be making new IPs and hopefully not become a cog in the giant PlayStation wheel, solely helping out other older game studios with completing their games.
Here’s the official statement from Bluepoint Games president Marco Thrush on Sony PlayStation’s blog.
“Weâ€™re thrilled to have officially joined PlayStation Studios!
Austin, Texas has been home base for Bluepoint from when we first founded the studio back in 2006 and weâ€™re now a team of close to 70 super-talented creatives and growing. While the studio has certainly grown over the past 15 years, our cultural beliefs have remained the same- to always push the envelope and create the highest-quality games possible all while having fun doing it.Â  The focus on culture has been instrumental to our success and weâ€™re excited that PlayStation Studios shares a similar culture and vision.
PlayStation has such an iconic gaming catalog and for us thereâ€™s been nothing better than to bring some of gamingâ€™s masterpieces to new players. Becoming a part of PlayStation Studios, empowers our team to raise the quality-bar even further and create even more impactful experiences for the PlayStation community.
Thanks to everyone whoâ€™s supported us throughout the years â€“ we canâ€™t wait to bring you more amazing games in this next chapter for Bluepoint Games!”


Someone Has Penetrated Capcom’s Defenses

It looks like another major video game company has gotten hacked, after Ubisoft’s recent Watch Dogs Legion debacle. This time it’s Japanese giants Capcom, who found themselves experiencing a security breach earlier this week.
According to Capcom themselves, a nefarious third party gained unauthorized access to some files, emails and systems owned by the company on 2 November 2020.
At the time of writing, the perpetrator of this cyber crime remains unidentified, or undisclosed by Capcom.
In a statement (via the official website), they said:
“Beginning in the early morning hours of November 2, 2020 some of the Capcom Group networks experienced issues that affected access to certain systems, including email and file servers. The company has confirmed that this was due to unauthorized access carried out by a third party, and that it has halted some operations of its internal networks as of November 2. Capcom expressed its deepest regret for any inconvenience this may cause to its various stakeholders. Further, it stated that at present there is no indication that any customer information was breached. This incident has not affected connections for playing the company’s games online or access to its various websites.Presently, Capcom is consulting with the police as well as other related authorities while both carrying out an investigation and taking measures to restore its systems. The company will continue to offer relevant updates as the facts become clear, via its websites and other means.”


Arknight Anime Shows More Footage In Second Teaser

Yostar and Yostar Pictures just showed off more Arknights anime goodness.
Arknights [Prelude To Dawn], an anime based on the popular Arknights tower defense RPG mobile game on iOS and Android, just showcased a new second teaser. It’s a little longer and features more close-ups of the cast like the game’s mascot Amiya and tutorial whipping girl Jessica, so check it out below.

No release date for the anime has been announced as of yet.
The anime feature is directed by Yuki Watanabe with assistance from Masaki Nishikawa. As a bonus, Yostar will be selling official merchandise from 29 July like couple sets pairing wine and juice with branded glassware.