Play Predator: Hunting Grounds Trial Mode This Weekend – Here’s How

To be the hunter or the prey; the choice is yours when Predator: Hunting Grounds’ Trial Weekend kicks off from March 27 to March 29, this Friday at 2pm GMT+8.
According to developers Illfonic, the Trial Weekend will be available to both PlayStation Plus members and PC gamers via the Epic Games Store. The game is an asymmetrical multiplayer experience, where players can either go at it alone as the Predator or form a Fireteam with three other players.
Aside from watching out for the titular Predator, the Fireteam will be given a mission to complete and have to face “lots” of AI opponents. Luckily, they’ll have a “state-of-the-art arsenal and gear that lets you feel like you can take down an army, and you will”.
Interestingly, the Fireteam can also make use of the environment and AI opponents to deal with the Predator, according to the PlayStation blog post.
Update (24/3/2020): IllFonics recently put up the usual “play our trial this weekend” post. Here’s an overview of what you’ll be checking out if you’re into some hot asymmetrical action.
Map

Nestled deep in the South American mountains lies Overgrowth. As you enter the map you will feel the claustrophobic environment of the dense jungle. It will make you feel a bit lost as you try to make your way on the jungle ground or up in the trees, depending on which character you are playing as.
This hot, remote jungle location harbours a significant presence of hostile guerrilla forces and operatives from the rogue Project Stargazer, a former government program now attempting to gain financially from discovering alien tech. Both Fireteam and Predator players will have to contend against these dangerous enemies while facing each other.
The occupation of this hidden valley has uncovered a wealth of hidden ancient ruins surrounding a winding river. Something about this location seems to allow temperatures to climb higher than just about anywhere else in these mountainsâ€¦ a perfect place for the Predator to hunt.

Fighting The Predator
If you choose to play as a member of the Fireteam, know this isnâ€™t your average group of soldiers. This group is elite and extremely deadly. While taking on the Predator one on one is very difficult, as a group you can work together to turn the tables on the hunter, or to complete the mission and escape. Each time you enter the jungle, one of a number of missions is randomly selected to present a constantly shifting gameplay experience. Each mission consists of multiple smaller objectives that must be completed in order to get to the chopper.

In one mission, you and your team are asked to cut off fuel to the local guerrillas, who are buying massive fuel shipments from an elusive black market contact. Youâ€™re being sent in to find the fuel stores and destroy them, disrupting operations in the area for the foreseeable future. Once the fuel has been dealt with, you will need to find the black market operative and take them off the board. In addition to this mission, and hunting the Predator if you choose, you could be asked to accomplish multiple other random missions like sabotage an expensive solar array in enemy camps, destroy dangerous weapon stores, set fire to narcotics, clean up contaminated water sources, and many more.
There are four Fireteam classes in Predator: Hunting Grounds, and during this trial weekend we will be showcasing three: Assault, Scout and Support. The Assault class is a well-rounded specialist with an affinity for leading the mission. If staying light on your feet is important, choose Scout, a quick, agile soldier that can cover the combat areas at great speed. Lastly, you can choose to play as Support, this is the Fireteam member they call in to really soak up the damage with their extra health and damage resistance.
In addition to choosing your Fireteam class, you can choose from a wide range of weapons providing different tactical options. During the trial weekend, you can choose from a selection from each weapon type category, eg. shotgun, assault rifle, sniper, etc.
Hunt As The Predator

Now, if you decide you want to jump into the jungle as the Predator, there is a lot happening for you in-game as well. You are the hunter, but do not forget you can be hunted too. Your mission in our game is to hunt for the best trophies. And by trophies, I mean the skulls of your prey. You want to take out the best of the best.
In Predator: Hunting Grounds there are three classes of Predator: Hunter, Berserker, and Scout. Every class of Predator has its strengths and weaknesses. During the trial weekend, you will be able to navigate across treetops as the Hunter class. This Predator class is well-balanced and an adaptive warrior capable of taking on a number of situations with ease. Players will be able to choose between the Female and Male Hunter and even select different armour to customize their own look.
As the deadliest hunter in the universe, you have access to a plethora of off-world tech and weaponry. The classic arsenal will be the foundation of each Predator loadout. The Plasma Caster for ranged combat, the wrist blades for close encounters, infrared vision mode to track down your prey, and advanced cloaking for staying stealthy. Other weapons, perks, and gear will be available for unlock as players level up, such as the Smart Disc, Combistick, and more.

And, not to worry, if the Fireteam bands together and gives you a run for your money, you have one last chance to end their efforts, by using your self-destruct.


Check Out The Guilty Gear Strive Tier List From Japan’s Finest

We have a pretty solid Guilty Gear Strive tier list from Southeast Asia’s best Guilty Gear players, but what about from the country that made the game and has its slew of experts and pro players? Well, we’ve got you covered.
Top Japanese fighting game players Go1, KojiKOG, Dogura, and Kyamei have revealed their personal tier lists for Guilty Gear Strive on a recent fighting game discussion stream (via NOZO| Aletheia). It seems that they share a common opinion: both Sol Badguy and Chipp Zanuff are considered S Tier characters and have huge advantages over the rest of the cast.
For Sol, it’s his main character status: beginner players will gravitate towards him because of his kit and all-rounder playstyle, though pro players see this as a means to break the game thanks to his standing S that’s perfect for fishing counters. Chipp may have the lowest health among all the cast, but his rushdown and mixups are second to none. Few players have the best defense against the ninja’s onslaught in the hands of a professional.
As for troublemakers like May and Ramlethal, they’re usually in the A or B tier list. Anji and Faust are the most common picks for the lower tiers. These two cater to a specific playstyle that may be hard for a damage-heavy fighting system like Guilty Gear Strive.
It’s only been two weeks since the game is officially out, so don’t take these tier lists to heart; think of them as guidelines on what to expect in the game’s ever-evolving meta. Full tier list below:
KojiKOG

S Tier
Chipp
A Tier
Sol Badguy, May, Millia, Ramlethal, Giovanna
B Tier
Potemkin, Nagoriyuki, Ky Kiske, I-No, Faust
C Tier
Anji
No Idea Tier
Zato-1, Leo, Axl
Go1

S Tier
Sol Badguy
A Tier
Chipp, May, Leo
B Tier
Ramlethal, Giovanna, Millia, Zato-1, Axl
C Tier
I-No, Ky Kiske, Nagoriyuki, Potemkin, Anji, Faust
Dogura

S Tier
Sol Badguy, Chipp
A Tier
Ramlethal, Giovanna, May, Millia, Zato-1
B Tier
Leo, Axl, Potemkin, I-No, Nagoriyuki, Ky Kiske, Anji, Faust
Kyamei
S Tier
Sol Badguy, Chipp, Zato-1
A Tier
Ramlethal, May, Millia, Giovanna, Leo
B Tier
Potemkin, Ky Kiske, Axl
C Tier
Faust, Nagoriyuki, I-No, Anji

So KojiKOG, GO1, Dogura and Kyamei had a talk and made some tier listshttps://t.co/fKcd2BaBWR pic.twitter.com/CRjEWKJ0a1
— Aletheia (@TheAletheia_) June 22, 2021

For more on Guilty Gear Strive, check out our review of the game.


Scavengers Guide: How To Survive This Latest PC Battle Royale

The multiplayer online shooter Scavengers is out now and is in Early Access for PC (via Steam). Right now, it’s looking like a potential hit even in its current state. To recap, Scavengers is a battle royale third-person shooter that’s similar to Fortnite, except:

You’re in a snowy wasteland.
You win games by scavenging a lot of loot and escaping with it. Kills help, but you get more points from, well, being a scavenger.
The game is similar to multiplayer modes in the Far Cry series, but with more than 4 players. You’ll be in teams of 3 with 60 other players (20/20/20).

In other words, you need to adjust to Scavengers mechanics and change up your playstyle if you’re totally in the K/D ratio-perfecting mindset. Fortunately, we’re here to help.
Don’t Focus On PvP K/D Ratios
Like we said, this isn’t a “kill on sight” kind of battle royale. You’re gunning for the most data, not the most kills. True, killing enemies will help as you do not want to have obstructions in your way, but avoiding firefights is key. If you have a choice between breaking down the enemy fort’s front door or finding data without being compromised, you should focus on the latter.
With 60 players per match made up of teams of three, you’re definitely going to bump into other players, so fighting the urge to engage immediately isn’t easy. If you spot another team, consider how much time is left in the match, how much salvage you need (if any) to jump up the leaderboard, and choose whether an engagement is worth losing half your data or not.
If you’re desperate, go for it. If your team is sitting on a healthy pile of the stuff, just play defensively.

Survival Is Always Better
Getting out with salvage and data is its own reward. Clean out NPC camps and clean up data objectives and a salvage packet will drop sooner or later. Get off the planet alive and you’ll get to unpack your rewards in the crafting menu. It’ll drop an assortment of materials to go towards unlocking new weapons, items, and skill modifiers for every explorer. The drops are randomized, so keep that in mind.
It’s basically a progression system that opens up new kit options for tweaking your playstyle and team comp. So even if you end up dead last on the leaderboard, as long as you get off with some salvage, that’s a win.
Keep Track Of Your Cold & Stamina Meter
Speaking of survival, you’ll need to figure out your main survival meters: Cold and Stamina.
Stay out in the open long enough and you’ll get cold, noted by a meter near your health bar. As your cold status bar depletes, you’ll build up a freezing status faster. Winter storms accelerate the process, so stay out of them if you can, or find cover and wait them out. Enter a freezing status and ice will begin to eat up your health bar. If it covers the whole thing, you’re dead.
Counter freezing by gathering near sources of warmth, like fires and torches, or find some thermal pads to stave off the cold for a bit wherever you are.
The yellow bar is your stamina, and it drains when performing melee attacks, sprinting, dodging, or jumping. Deplete your stamina bar and it’ll chip away at your total available stamina, meaning you’ll have a lower capacity overall for physical exertion.
Keep an eye on it to avoid early exhaustion, and be sure to carry food or rations with you in order to replenish your max stamina. If you can’t find any rations through salvage, hunting wildlife is a good go-to source for food.
Use Slide To Get Around
You have to conserve energy for running and meleeing surprise enemies when ambushed. However, crouchslides do not use up stamina. Crouch out of a sprint and you can slide as long as you gathered momentum from your sprint.
This also means you can cover more ground by sliding down a hill, picking up speed along the way. The best part? If you slide off a slope and land, you don’t get any fall damage. So if you want to be styling and do a cool jump, go ahead consequence-free.
Crouch To Stay Hidden
Just like in the Halo series, being sneaky helps. If you crouch, you won’t show up on anyone’s minimap. Players within around 100 meters of you will ping red on the minimap if they’re moving quickly, so stay low to sneak by or set up a perfect ambush. Avoid the red.
Dodgeroll If You’re Getting Melee’d
Click the middle mouse button and you’ll dodgeroll. This move has some generous invincibility frames, so if you are having trouble with a melee-savvy NPC or creature (like a bear), you can use this to throw enemies off-guard.

Use Upload Stations To Bank Data
If you’re eliminated, you lose half your data, and if you don’t make it off on the dropship, well, you’re going home pretty much empty-handed. Banking data gives your spot on the boards a foundation, and something to take back after the match even if you don’t make it home.
Prepare & Plan When The Dropship Appears
When the Dropship arrives, it won’t take off for 5 minutes. If you are high on the scoreboard, you have to play conservatively because EVERYONE is going to gather at perfect camping spots to ambush anyone with the highest data.
You only need to escape to lock in your data score, so find a nearby outpost to hide in and survey from. Sprint in at the last minute and pop some protection abilities to seal the deal. If others are creeping up the leaderboard while you wait, jump into the mess a bit earlier and see if you can pick off one or two players.
If you’re low on the scoreboard, you have to be a true scavenger and crouch/hide nearby to ambush anyone foolish enough to rush to the Dropship. Swoop in to clean up the scraps, because there’s going to be a lot of people killing each other in this phase.
Sign In Now To Get Free 1,500 Chips
The game’s in Early Access now and comes with a nice sign-up bonus: free 1,500 Chips. This is more than enough to purchase an extra explorer beyond the three you’re first given, so definitely take a look at which explorer could be your new favourite, or save your resources for research grinding or other cosmetics.


Xenoblade Chronicles 3: Future Redeemed Is The Ultimate Send-Off For 2022’s Best JRPG

Platform: Nintendo Switch
Genre: Capstone DLC of a JRPG sequel that ties everything together. Kind of.
Monolithsoft game director and producer Tetsuya Takahashi has finally realized his Xeno epic saga in physical and playable form since his planned-out course back in the late 90s. Stemming from Xenoblade Chronicles for the Wii back in 2010, he has launched a new DLC for the third game (fourth if you count Xenoblade X) that links every Xeno piece of game together, including some allusions to Xenogears and the Xenosaga games.
The DLC, dubbed Future Redeemed, starts out innocently enough. Billed as a prequel to the events leading up to Xenoblade Chronicles 3, the game pits you as vagabond Matthew as he is searching for his sister while also fighting Mobius oppressors. He starts out the journey alongside a female warrior named A who happens to brandish a sword similar to the ones in earlier Xenoblade entries. The plot thickens as the duo take two ex-Kevesi and Agni soldiers -Nikol and Glimmer- under their wing, and soon they end up joining the rank of liberators led by Shulk and Rex, both of whom are from Xenoblade Chronicles 1 and 2 respectively. And unlike their previous versions, they’re much older and jacked up now.
Star Of Tears

If you’re hoping to see a ton of callbacks to past games, Xenoblade Chronicles 3: Future Redeemed will sort you out and then some. The DLC throws everything at you from references to past games (via hotspots called Affinity Events that reward you for reminiscing the past) to even main plot tidbits that detail how everything gets tied together, and even allusions to the aforementioned Xeno titles with the mechas and space stuff further on. The whole plot is close to going off the rails, but it’s very engrossing, to say the least.
The game’s real-time combat system and exploration mechanics also get a bit of an upgrade, so it’s not all total fanservice. Replacing Ouroboros attacks are Unity Attacks and Fusion attacks. Unity Attacks let you pair two characters to do a special hard-hitting attack with various results, and fills up on a separate meter. Fusion Attacks are powerful versions of Arts; they are a combination of two Arts fused into one attack that comes with a neat JoJo Stand-like effect as a follow-up. Still, they’re not major combat changes since you still need to rely on Chain Attacks, now with sauced up Unity Attacks to capstone them, to deal massive damage to enemies. A’s Vision art also comes in handy here as it protects the party from all forms of attacks for a few seconds at the cost of being in limited supply.
As some boss fights in Future Redeemed come with massive one-hit kill attacks, this Vision skill is imperative as A is core to the team. It would be nice if some of these enemy attacks came with better telegraphs and actual timers so that you don’t waste your one-time only Vision especially since it’s your first time in these battles.
Exploration-wise, you don’t need to press a button to hear conversations that open up quests. Rather, you have a bulletin board to get some simple fetch quests and bounties, go to iconic locations on the map and activate the aforementioned Affinity Events, and talk to a bunch of people to gain Affinity. In fact, you gain Affinity Points that you can distribute among your party members to open up new passive skills and moves, provided you do your best to keep tabs on people you meet and complete their requests and questlines. All for the greater good, right?
Small Two Of Pieces

To say that Xenoblade Chronicle 3’s final DLC is a loving tribute to the franchise is an understatement. It’s Tetsuya Takahashi’s legacy in full fruition, jam-packed into a 10 to 12 hour bookend to last year’s great JRPG for Nintendo Switch that isn’t a remake. And as a final cherry on top of a magnificent JRPG sundae loaded with flavour, Monolithsoft brought back Joanne Hogg to sing the game’s ending theme.
Yes, THE same Joanne Hogg who sang the touching and emotional ending song for Tetsuya Takahashi’s first JRPG epic Xenogears back in 1997. That is one hell of a throwback, and a recurring theme that the Xeno series will never, ever leave Takahashi’s side. Hell, even the DLC’s main character is the 2023 version of Xenogear’s martial arts lead Fei Fong Wong, right down to the movement and idle animations.
In other words, if you’re a “terpaling” Xenoblade fan, why the hell aren’t you playing this DLC? It’s worth your 10-12 hours just for its prequel tale, its eventual conclusion, and its numerous references alone, not to mention some sweet and small additions to the already-fun combat. If you’re still halfway through Xenoblade Chronicles 3 or if part 3 is your first game in the series, this DLC is not for you because the majority of your enjoyment for it relies on the callbacks and past nods of previous Xeno titles.
And yes, there’s a huge nod to Xenoblade Chronicles X but I won’t say where; you’ll have to find it yourself. It’s worth the US$30 Season Pass asking price; trust me on this.

Final Score: 80/100


Tales Of Luminaria Will Be Out This November

The next Tales Of game for mobile phones and devices will be out sooner than you think.
After the onslaught of gameplay videos and soundtrack teasers, Bandai Namco has shared the launch dates of Tales of Luminaria for both Japan and English-speaking markets: 3rd November for the former and 4th November for the latter.

???Launch Date Notice???#TalesOfLuminaria launches 11/4 (PDT)!
Just one week left until you can explore the world of Luminaria. Get hyped!
Pre-register here:??https://t.co/t74hdz9bwE pic.twitter.com/QESbDtY4FF
— Tales of Luminaria (@to_luminaria_en) October 28, 2021

The English worldwide version of Tales of Luminaria will not be getting the Japanese dub due to licensing hurdles, according to a recent developer Q&A session. Depending on fan demand, Bandai Namco may revisit this and opt for a Japanese dub for the worldwide version in the future.

Bandai Namco also revealed the system requirements for running Tales of Luminaria on your respective iPhone/Android device:

iOS: OS 13 or later (iPhone 8+ or iPhone X or later, 3GB RAM)
Android: OS 8.0 or later, min. 3GB RAM (Galaxy S9 or later, 4GB RAM)

Tales of Luminaria will be out for Malaysia, Singapore, The Philippines, Thailand, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Indonesia, as far as SEA and Asian countries are concerned. In the meantime, you can preregister for the game here.


Need A Faster 4X Game To Timesink With? Then Play Age Of Wonders: Planetfall

If you’re into fast-paced 4X games with tactical turn-based XCOM-style combat, you may want to give Age of Wonders: Planetfall a shot. The Age of Wonders series is from Triumph Studios who usually take the spreadsheet aspects of a 4X genre title and turn it upside its head. In this case, they’ve succeeded by using a sci-fi coat of paint and more.
If this is your first time playing an Age of Wonders game, just think of it like Civilization series: you land your dropship and establish your first city, research new technologies, explore and inhabit the surrounding areas, and fortify your military so that you can protect yourself. Or conquer. Win conditions include either eliminating other factions via war or complete a world-altering achievement.

Play the game a little longer, and you’ll see this game is similar to classic turn-based strategy title Heroes of Might & Magic where you have unique heroes and armies who grow with you as you play the game.

They learn new skills and can even be upgraded to use new weapons on the battlefield. Said heroes are all from different factions that offer different playstyles. Heck, if you don’t plan ahead, you may be stuck with a bad decision and an inefficient build for hundreds of hours.
And that’s the beauty of Age of Wonders: Planetfall; it gives you a lot to work with that will make you think for hours on end. You get your pick between six races ranging from the dwarf-like earth-savvy Dvar to the insectoid Kir’ko that can control the opposition’s minds with their psionic powers. Whether you’re into assimilating the corpses of your foes like the Assembly or straight-up aggressive with your approach like the Vanguard, your choice of race will complement and affect your playstyle to a tee. When you set up your city, you also need to factor in secret tech research like biological warfare and teleportation. And also your on-map hero’s perks that either help you in combat or give you passive resource bonuses.
Taking Turns Hitting Each Other

Remember when we said X-COM style combat early on? Conflict is resolved with a turn-based system where your main hero and his/her army attack and/or defend whatever enemies they come across. You can have your commander deal the brunt of the damage while using your Dvar Trenchers to build a protective barrier for a defensive backline. But keep in mind that area-of-effect attacks can deal friendly fire, so positioning matters. You’ll have to earn your victories with some deft use of your units and commander abilities because these fights can get tough if you go into them without so much as a plan.
When you get deeper into your campaign, you will be introduced to a huge number of variables to shake combat up. These include special units that can resurrect units or straight-up wreck weaker infantry, or game-turning Operations that act like the game’s equivalent to spellsÂ  (ala past Age of Wonders titles).

All in all, the combat aspect of the game can be the most fun whether you’re attacking or defending.

Lots To Do
When you’re playing games like Civilization VI, you usually wait for your turn moving your scouts around, or just wait until your 10-turns-to-build structure or research tree is developed while everyone else is moving their scouts. While there is that going on in Age of Wonders: Planetfall, the cadences of building and researching are reduced, and there are a number of side quests you can complete when moving your commander and scouts around the map that net you extra resources. Whether you’re exploring an old ruin filled with Assembly units to kill or a diplomatic mission, you’ll be reaping in the rewards to speed up your building and end goal by a bit.

The game also improves a number of things in 4X games, like late-game speed-up and tweaks that let other opponent AI combat go by like a quick breeze, or a simple-yet-effective diplomacy setting that doesn’t lead to random180 degree personality turns from the opposition. It would be nice if the game had a decent interface to work with since; it’s not the worst but it could be a bit more in-your-face and less unwieldy at times. Though to be fair, it doesn’t get in the way of the rest of the game’s aesthetics and detailing.
And while the rest of the game can get overwhelming, Age of Wonders: Planetfall at least introduces its main mechanics step by step while also speeding things up with its new approach to 4X gameplay. Its Civ-Meets-X-COM plus sci-fi formula completely works and is a joy to play and experience for fans of the genre.
Pros

In-depth and expansive 4X gameplay
Breathtaking sci-fi setting & aesthetics
Fun story campaign
A plethora of customization options

Cons

Can be overwhelming from the get-go
UI elements need a bit of work

FINAL SCORE: 80/100


Fishbowl is a Game About the Impact of Grief

Games about difficult feelings, such as grief, are not difficult to find within the games space – especially now, with the global pandemic having effectively robbed the majority of us of so much. As a form of art, it isn’t uncommon to find people making games as a means of expressing ourselves, especially during these times.
The two-person studio imissmyfriends are gearing up for the release of Fishbowl, dealing with exactly the above. We had the opportunity to interview the India-based team on Fishbowl’s inspirations, and what it’s been like developing their first game.

Can you summarise Fishbowl in one sentence?

In Fishbowl, twenty-one-year-old Alo gets her first job in a new city and is living by herself while grieving her grandma’s death. The choices she makes each day in figuring out life will lead to a unique journey of self-discovery.
You unpack puzzles to rediscover childhood memories, video call loved ones, work from home while taking care of yourself and chores, get to know yourself better, one day at a time.

What were some of the main inspirations behind Fishbowl?
The idea of Fishbowl is closely inspired by our mindset during the pandemic. Through this time, we were reflecting on our lives in isolation, what it meant to support our loved ones long distance, and to take care of ourselves.
Grief from losing a loved one is a central theme in Fishbowl and is rooted in our experience of grief, what it means and how it impacts people differently.
Balancing life and our dreams and nurturing relationships is something we have wanted in our lives and is a relatable quest for most people. That is an integral part of Fishbowl as well.
To the Moon was one of our biggest inspirations starting out. We loved every part of that game, the story, the tears and how deeply a work of love can impact us as players. Since then, we have really enjoyed the chill vibes in Coffee Talk, the simple yet profound experience of playing A Mortician’s Tale and the characters who truly felt like friends in Night in the Woods.

Fishbowl is your team’s first game! What were some of the things you did to learn about the game development process?
Yes! Developing Fishbowl has felt like being in school with a vast, exciting and sometimes intimidating curriculum.
We have learnt all the different aspects of game development while making Fishbowl, which engine to build our game on, marketing & building a community and the business side of things in terms of publishers and funding.
Being part of Discord communities has been super helpful for us to find our way. We’ve been learning so much from the generosity of game devs like Rami Ismail, Victoria Tran, Tanya X Short, Yadu Rajiv, Meghna Jayanth, Callum Underwood, Chris Zukowski, Gwendelyn Foster, and so many more who share their knowledge through talks, blog posts and newsletters.

How did the two of you meet?
We met in college and became friends when we were randomly put in the same group for an assignment. Slowly, as we talked about games, someday building them together became our dream.
For ten years, we’ve been pursuing completely different careers, Rhea as a fashion & fine art photographer and consultant in the sustainable fashion space and Prateek as a developer & UX designer at a non-profit. But we were always making notes of game ideas which we would eventually get to, someday.
Now that we have started making games part-time, we hope we can bring our unique experience, stories and lots of heart to the games we make.

What do you hope the audience will take away from playing Fishbowl upon release?
We hope people enjoy getting to know our diverse cast of characters and see some part of themselves in the game. Growing up we never got to play as brown or dark skinned characters, we love to see that changing.
We are excited to show players the beauty of Indian handicraft, artefacts, fashion and food through Fishbowl, for those who know about it, to have fun spotting the little details, and for those who don’t, to get a little slice of urban India through our eyes.
We are focusing on making Fishbowl accessible and continually learning more about it so everyone can enjoy playing our game.
We hope players can come out with a sense of hope and comfort and a reminder to live with love and to keep loved ones close, always.

Final Words?
We are excited to bring Fishbowl to the world and we’re pouring our all into every pixel, chord and word in the game. If anybody reading would like to support us and Fishbowl, please follow us on Twitter and sign up to our newsletter! We will be making some exciting announcements soon!


[Rumour] Sony To Properly Reboot Silent Hill

There’s going to be a slew of Silent Hill reboots and revivals happening, and nope, they’re not of the pachinko kind.
Earlier this year, we heard that Konami previously reached out to developers a couple of years ago to get pitches to revive the survival horror franchise, with a high chance of these concepts being revealed this year after some time in development. Guess someone answered the call: Sony.
According to multiple sources like Dusk Golem, a Silent Hill series reboot and Silent Hills revival are in the works from the company. The reboot will be helmed by the former members of Team Silent and Project Siren members (from the PS2 Siren games), featuring luminaries such as Keiichiro Toyama (director, writer), Masahiro Ito, and Akira Yamaoka (composer). The game has been in the works for about a year.
The Silent Hills revival is being worked out, as Sony is in the midst of patching up the relationship between Kojima Productions and Konami in order to resurrect the game. After all, the P.T. demo has garnered a ton of buzz to the point where clever people are recreating it in some shape or form since you can’t officially download it anymore.


The Kingdom Hearts Franchise Is Coming To PC Next Month

Square Enix has announced that they will release Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 Remix,Â Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue,Â Kingdom Hearts III + Re Mind, andÂ Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory for PC exclusively via the Epic Games Store on 30 March 2021.
Kingdom Hearts producer Ichiro Hazama said:
â€œIt is truly a great pleasure to bring so manyÂ Kingdom Hearts adventures to PC gamers around the world.
Our collaboration with Epic Games is one that stretches back to the development of Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue, and as part of this ongoing relationship, the team at Epic Games have been incredibly supportive in helping us make this a reality.
Iâ€™m incredibly excited for so many new players to discover and enjoy the action, magic and friendship ofÂ Kingdom HeartsÂ on PC.â€
Each title (listed below) is also currently available for PS4 and Xbox One. Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory is the only game in the franchise that is also available on the Nintendo Switch.
There are technically four different “titles” you can purchase (though two of them contains multiple games in one each); check out their Epic Games Store pages below:

Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 Remix
Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 RemixÂ is an HD remastered collection is an essential collection, featuring:

Kingdom Hearts Final Mix
Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories
Kingdom Hearts 358/2 DaysÂ (HD Remastered cinematics)
Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix
Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Final Mix
Kingdom Hearts Re:codedÂ (HD Remastered cinematics)

Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8: Final Chapter Prologue

Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance HDÂ â€“ A full-HD remaster. Sora and Riku take on the Mark of Mastery exam in preparation for their coming showdown with Master Xehanort.
Kingdom Hearts Ï‡ Back CoverÂ (movie) â€“ A new HD movie that tells the mysterious story of the Foretellers from the seriesâ€™ origins
Kingdom Hearts 0.2 Birth by Sleep â€“ A fragmentary passage â€“Â â€“ A brand new episode that links toÂ Kingdom Hearts III.

Kingdom Hearts III + Re Mind
This one comes complete with the Re Mind DLC. In the meantime, check out my review of the game here.
Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory
The first (and only) rhythm game in the franchise so far. In the meantime, check out my review of the game here.
You can also head on over here my thoughts discussing the future of the franchise post-Kingdom Hearts 3,Â or check out my ranking of all the Kingdom Hearts games here (sans Melody Of Memory).


All The Games From Nintendo Direct Mini Partner Showcase September 2020

The last Nintendo Direct Mini took place just last month, but now weâ€™ve finally received a new one. The presentation showcased a lot of exciting stuff for Nintendo Switch owners to look forward to.
Check out my full recap and roundup of the Nintendo Direct Mini Partner Showcase September 2020 below:
Monster Hunter Rise

Monster Hunter Rise is a brand new take on the Monster Hunter experience, with new monsters, fresh gameplay twists and more.
Monster Hunter Rise is slated to launch for the Nintendo Switch on 26 March 2021. We have more details here.

Monster Hunter Stories 2 Wings Of Ruin

Monster Hunter Stories 2 Wings Of Ruin is a story-driven RPG set in the world of Monster Hunter, and a sequel to 2017’s Monster Hunter Stories.
Monster Hunter Stories 2 Wings Of Ruin is slated to launch for the Nintendo Switch sometime in summer 2021.

Fitness Boxing 2 Rhythm & Exercise

Developer Imagineer have announced Fitness Boxing 2: Rhythm & Exercise for the Nintendo Switch.
Fitness Boxing 2: Rhythm & Exercise is coming to the Nintendo Switch on 4 December 2020.

Disgaea 6 Defiance Of Destiny

Nippon Ichi Software has announced Disgaea 6 Defiance Of Destiny for the Nintendo Switch, which is slated to launch sometime in summer 2021.
It is the first new Disgaea game in six years. Players assume the role of Zed, a zombie that has risen above them all except one; a God of Destruction! Features such as Super Reincarnation, 3D visuals (a first for this series), and adjustable gameplay settings make this the perfect game for both new and old Disgaea fans.
Empire Of Sin

Publisher Paradox Interactive and developer Romero Games have announced that 1920s Chicago-set character-driven strategy game Empire of Sin will launch for PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC and Mac via Steam on 1 December 2020.

Sniper Elite 4

Developed by Rebellion Developments, Sniper Elite 4 is a third-person tactical shooter stealth game coming to the Nintendo Switch sometime in holiday 2020.
The Long Dark

The Long Dark is a first-person survival video game developed and published by Hinterland Studio. It is coming to the Nintendo Switch later today.
PGA Tour 2K21

PGA Tour 2K21 is a golf simulator game developed by HB Studios. The physical version of the game will be available on 25 September 2020.
In the meantime, check out our review of the game here.
Hades

Developed by Supergiant Games, Hades is an isometric action RPG roguelike based on Greek mythology. It’s coming to the Nintendo Switch later today.
In the meantime, check out our review of the PC version here.
Balan Wonderworld

Balan Wonderworld is an all-new 3D action platformer created by the legendary creators Yuji Naka and Naoto Ohshima, under Square Enix’s new Balan Company.
Twelve different tales await players in the bizarre and imaginary land of Wonderworld. As the star of the show, you can use powers from 80 different costumes while exploring labyrinth stages, filled with a myriad of tricks and traps to get to the heart of each story.
As you journey through this land between fantasy and reality, you must find a way to bring balance to others and yourself.
It is slated to release for the PS5, Xbox Series X, PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam on 26 March 2021.
Rune Factory 5

Rune Factory 5 is an upcoming RPG simulation game developed by Marvelous. It is the first entry in the Rune Factory series since 2012’s Rune Factory 4.
After losing their memory, the hero lands in a small town blessed by nature. There, they are recruited into a band of peacekeeping rangers, and their new life begins.
In addition to their normal duties, the hero can farm the land, cast a line into the nearby river, and so much more. Team up with townsfolk to battle monsters and unleash powerful combination attacks; just one of the features new to the series.
It is slated to release for the Nintendo Switch sometime in 2021.

Ori And The Will Of The Wisps

Ori And The Will Of The Wisps is coming to the Nintendo Switch later today. It is playable in 60FPS.
The developer has also announced the Ori And The Will Of The Wisps Limited Collectors Edition. The Collectors Edition will be available for Xbox, PC and Nintendo Switch, and will be shipping in December 2020.
In the meantime, check out our review of the Xbox One & PC versions here. It’s one of this year’s best action-adventure games out there.
You can watch the entire 15-minute presentation below.


Street Fighter’s Yoshinori Ono Joins Delightworks

Yoshinori Ono has been appointed as the new president and chief operating officer (COO) at Japanese developer Delightworks as of 1 May 2021.
Ono is a legend in the fighting game community, having been a producer on Capcom’s Street Fighter franchise since 1998. He was even instrumental in the development of Street Fighter IV and Street Fighter V, effectively reviving the series for a modern generation.
He previously shocked the games industry by announcing that he would leave Capcom after three decades back in August 2020. After several months, we now know where Ono has gone. According to the Delightworks press release, Delightworks founder and former president Akihito Shouji stepped down and has assumed the role ofÂ chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) after Ono’s appointment.
Delightworks is best known for developing the popular mobile game Fate/Grand Order (also known simply as F/GO) and an upcoming game Melty Blood: Type Lumina for the PS4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch.

Ono himself also tweeted about his new job and position at Delightworks earlier today.
He said:
On May 1, I will be appointed President and Representative Director of Delightworks Co., Ltd.
It will be a challenge to a new position and a new field.
We look forward to working with you in the future.
I would like to thank all the people who have taken care of me in the past and the game community I have been involved in in the future.

5?1??????????????? ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? pic.twitter.com/XmA4qiThDU
— Yoshinori Ono (@Yoshi_OnoChin) April 27, 2021


Why Do Video Game Movies Suck So Bad?

PokÃ©mon: Detective Pikachu is an anomaly of sorts: it’s one of the few successful video game movie adaptations out there. And if you’ve seen our previous feature, there are a ton of stinkers and mediocre fares out there.
Here’s a list of directors and screenwriters talking about why it’s hard to make a great video game movie adaptation. Some of these excerpts may even make you laugh, considering that these auteurs and filmmakers’ work tried its hardest to break the video game movie curse.

John Wells (producer, Doom)
“Video game adaptations donâ€™t have the best rep…
John Wells:Â A lot of them have really sucked.
You took the words right out of my mouth! For every Tomb Raider, thereâ€™s a House Of The Dead or an Alone In The Dark. Have you felt the weight of scepticism while making Doom?
John: “Sure. I think itâ€™s well-deserved skepticism, because there have been a lot of video game pictures that none of us really wanted to go see. Particularly with this kind of title, which so many people remember fondly as a game, the danger is that you disappoint a lot of people.
Thatâ€™s why we spent a lot of time making sure that the script was really good and brought in a lot of financial support from Universal, so it wasnâ€™t done on the cheap. Weâ€™ve got a lot of great visual material on the screen and a terrific cast.”Â (via Slasherama)
Dwight H. Little (director, Tekken)
“There are a lot of movies that have suffered from just trying to be a visceral experience. That is fine for a short film or a video game. But to make a narrative movie and keep an audience involved for an hour and a half, you really need to have them invest in the characters. The director needs to have the audience care about the people they are watching.” (via AXS)
Avi Arad (producer, Spider-Man & a bunch of MCU films)
“Sometimes I would find that video games lacked one particular component: the definition of the hero of the game. And thatâ€™s because you are that character – especially with the first-person shooters.” (via IFC)
Justin Kurzel (director, Assassin’s Creed)
“I think itâ€™s always tricky adapting from a source material at times which might not have enough behind it to sustain a compelling narrative.

Fortunately, Assassinâ€™s Creed has a world behind it with big ideas, visually unique and compelling ideologies. Itâ€™s just great material for a film, so hopefully, it can be something for fans and also those that are not familiar with this universe.” (via Reddit)

Aleksander Bach (director, Hitman: Agent 47)
“I think to make this successful, if you do game adaptation, what you need first of all â€“ it doesnâ€™t matter if itâ€™s a video game or not â€“ you need a great story, and you need great characters, and you need great actors to bring it to life. When you have this and you combine it with great action and something which feels fresh, then you have a chance to put the puzzle together in a very nice way and that you create something which feels right.
I think thatâ€™s the most important thing that you have great characters that you care for. When itâ€™s based on this game, on Hitman, and you have this cold assassin Agent 47, you also need to care for this guy. When heâ€™s just too cold, it doesnâ€™t work.” (via Cinemovie)
David Goyer (screenwriter, Man of Steel)
“I think the reason is actually pretty simple: most good video games are about immersive environments. If itâ€™s a first-person shooter you are the character. Most games, and this is changing, tend not to have strong characters. If you think about video games you think about how cool that level was, I did this or I did that.
You realize that if youâ€™re adapting an environment or a milieu for film, a video game actually does a better job of it. A film will never do as good a job or immersive a job as the video game.” (via Digital Spy)

Duncan Jones (director, Warcraft)
“I think a lot of people, who are kind of brought into these [movie projects] who donâ€™t really know about the game, try too hard to bring in what they think the game is and maybe sometimes miss … the experience that the players of the games are craving to see in a movie.” (via Business Insider)
Roger Avary (screenwriter, Silent Hill)
“I think that one of the greatest frustrations between games and cinema is that game designers have been attempting to fall into passive entertainment. Youâ€™re playing an interactive game and then suddenly you stop and youâ€™re sitting there watching a cinematic.
Itâ€™s like â€˜well hold on a minute, this is a game and Iâ€™m not an active participantâ€™. So I actually think that eventually game designers will realise that trying to make movies out of their games is not the key, and that itâ€™s instead creating an interactive experience full of consequence that drives the story along without stopping. Movies, by design, are passive entertainment, which is not to say that thatâ€™s any worse or lesser than gaming.

Maybe the question is: will Silent Hill make game designers more comfortable? Guys like Uwe Boll have done a lot of damage, and I donâ€™t know that one good game adaptation will undo all of it.”

(via Silent Hill Memories)
To offset these depressive sets of answers, here’s a trailer of the very first game-to-movie adaptation that nailed it: Clue. Granted it’s a board game, but we take what we can get.


Unleash Your Rage With This Nier Automata A2 Figure From Square Enix

Nier Automata’s other protagonist, A2, will be joining 2B and 9S as the latest Play Arts Kai action figure from Square Enix, anger issues and all.
You can pre-order the game’s hothead android in both Standard and DX editions right now; they ship in July 2021. The Standard version costs US$160 and includes the base figure, four interchangeable hand parts, and the Typ-40 Sword as her weapon. She measures 255 x 71.8Â  x 49.5mm.

The DX edition will go for US$210. It will include everything from the standard version and will have extras like a few more parts (additional heads & face plates) and a ring effect to keep the weapons together.

If this sounds like your cup of tea, you can order them now on Square Enix’s e-Store.


Overwatch League: Mangachu, Adam Signs With the NYXL Organization

Ex-Renegades and Team Canada’s World Cup team player, DPS expert LiamÂ “Mangachu”Â Campbell along with Ex-Cloud9 and Team USA’s World Cup player, support main AdamÂ “Adam”Â Eckel have signed with the NYXL organization. But hold on to your horses for now, as they won’t be playing for the main team. Instead, both will be spearheading the New York Excelsior’s Overwatch Contenders team, XL2.

We come to conquer. Introducing your XL2 Academy squad.#Overwatch pic.twitter.com/SEuk6pzVLF
â€” XL2 Academy (@XL2) February 21, 2018
The move was confirmed via the team’s official Twitter account (see above) and both players will be joined by seasoned pros including –

Yeon-kwan “Nenne” Jeong – ex- LW Blue
MikeÂ “Midnight”Â Ryan – ex-Rise Nation
James “Cloneman16” D’Arcangelo – ex-Kelvin and the Chipmunks
AnthonyÂ “Goliath”Â Pietro – ex-Envision esports

XL2 will be competing in Overwatch Contenders against the likes of other ‘Overwatch League academy teams’ such as (Philadelphia) Fusion University and (Los Angeles) Gladiators Legion in the Contenders North America circuit. A glaring omission from the XL2 roster is Korean superstar hitscan player, Yeon-ohÂ “Fl0w3R”Â Hwang, whom many assumed would be joining NYXL’s academy team since he’s not yet eligible to play in the Overwatch League.
The Overwatch Contenders is the developmental league for the Overwatch League, a scene where aspiring players, or those who fail to land a spot in the big stage compete in an organized, professional setup.
For a better understanding of the progression a.k.a Path to Pro, we have it covered here.


The King’s Man Is A Fun But Bizarre Kingsman Cocktail

Mark Millar’s works have made for some great comic book movie adaptations, including 2008’s Wanted, the Kick-Ass franchise, and Captain America Civil War if you want to count that (he wrote the original comic book storyline). However, his most successful thus far is undeniably the Kingsman franchise. 2021’s The King’s Man is the third instalment in the series, although it’s a prequel to 2014’s Kingsman The Secret Service and 2017’s Kingsman The Golden Circle.
Manners Maketh Man

How does The King’s Man compare to its predecessors? Well, it’s actually very different, despite having the same director, Matthew Vaughn, but I’m getting ahead of myself. The King’s Man takes place near the start of World War 1. That’s an interesting setting ripe with potential for further exploration, not everything has to be set in World War 2. We’ve seen recent movies and games set in the era (like 2016’s Battlefield 1 and 2017’s Wonder Woman), but as a history fan, it’s nice to see the Great War getting more depictions in pop culture.
In that regard, The King’s Man is speculative fiction or revisionist history, giving us insight into the war about how or why it happened but with fictional events that happen differently from how they did in real life. However, the movie is more than that, as it seems like The King’s Man is not just a historical fiction war film, but it’s also a spy flick and a father-son drama. That’s three movies in one, and it results in tone inconsistency.
Yes, The King’s Man is an origin for the Kingsman agency featured in the first two movies, but there’s a lot of stuff happening in the movie. There’s the father and son drama between Orlando Oxford (Ralph Fiennes) and his son, Conrad (Harris Dickinson), which populates much of the movie’s screentime. The rest is related to the World War 1 revisionist content and that leaves most of the action relegated to the third act of the movie.

If you’re a fan of the first two Kingsman movies, then I can tell you without spoiling anything that only the third act and climax of the film really feels like a Kingsman movie. That’s where all the slick action that the franchise is known for resides. With the movie being more than two hours long, the pacing is dragged down by the father-son drama and revisionist history stuff.
If you don’t mind the mixing of tones and different genres, there’s still a lot to like here. Like I previously mentioned, Matthew Vaugh can still direct slick and exciting action scenes, though the ones here aren’t as outrageous or over-the-top as the ones in the first two Kingsman movies. However, there are still some weird comedic choices, like bizarrely homoerotic and sexual scenes featuring Rasputin (there were quite a few sex-tinged jokes in the first two movies as well, including the first movie’s infamous ‘anal’ scene).
Don’t get me wrong. The father-son drama, revisionist World War 1 stuff and spy action scenes are done well enough individually, but it makes for a weird complete movie to watch. The highlight of the movie is definitely Ralph Fiennes and the ensemble cast. Fiennes carries the movie with his charming and emotional performance, while Gemma Arterton as Polly Wilkins and Djimon Hounsou as Shola are great companions who can kick some ass of their own. Oh, and I have to mention Rhys Ifan as a Grigori Rasputin who’s more eccentric than scary, in a good way (I think).
The movie doesn’t lack star power, that’s for sure, as Charles Dance, Daniel BrÃ¼hl, and more grace the screens.
Gentlemen

Ultimately, The King’s Man has the elements of a Kingsman movie. It has slick action and comedy, but it also has emotional father-son drama and some revisionist World War 1 exploration. It’s like a cocktail of different tasty concoctions, but the end result has a weird taste that’s still somewhat enjoyable. However, and most importantly, don’t expect a conventional Kingsman movie and you’ll probably have a good time.
Oh, and don’t forget for a while once the credits start rolling; there’s a mid-credits scene you won’t want to miss, especially if you’re invested in the Kingsman franchise.
Final Score: 60/100
We attended an early screener of The King’s Man courtesy of The Walt Disney Company (Malaysia). The King’s Man is slated to premiere on 30 December 2021.


The Avengers Project Site Updated: Announcement Teased for the Game Awards?

Remember Square Enix‘s The Avengers Project? Not much has been revealed about the ambitious Marvel game since it was initially announced in early 2017.
However, the game now has a page and description on co-developer Crystal Dynamics‘ official website, which was added in a recent update.
The page opens with a press release that confirms several details about The Avengers Project. These include:

Marvel Entertainment and Square Enix have confirmed that The Avengers Project will only be the beginning of a “multi-year, multi-game licensing agreement to develop and publish original games based on beloved Marvel Super Heroes.”
The Avengers Project will be developed by both Crystal Dynamics and Eidos Montreal.
The upcoming game will feature a “completely original story” and introduce a “universe” of its own.

Besides that, two Marvel Games employees have recently tweeted that their work has been great and they can’t wait to share some news with everyone. That definitely sounds like they’re teasing an announcement. Check out the tweets below. (Interestingly, Eric Monacelli is the former Project Lead for Insomniac’s Spider-Man and the current one for The Avengers Project)

Work today was amazing. Canâ€™t wait until we can share this with the world. #MarvelGames
â€” Eric Monacelli (@ermonacelli) November 10, 2018

Job-wise, today’s been a freaking badass day. So many crazy-awesome things coming from amazingly talented people across the game industry. So proud to have them in the @MarvelGames family & can’t wait to share them with y’all! #MarvelGames #gaminglife #myjobisntajob pic.twitter.com/wlgaoju1Rq
â€” ðš‹ðšŽðšŒðš”ðšŠ ðš–ðšŒðš’ðš—ðšðš˜ðšœðš‘ (@beckasmash) November 9, 2018
Let’s rewind a bit and look at the description of The Avengers Project Announcement Trailer, which stated that “more details on The Avengers project and other games will be announced in 2018.” It’s already near the end of 2018 and this is the first update we’ve received for the game thus far.
However, we still have about two months left to go before 2018 ends and 2019 begins. It can’t be a coincidence that those two Marvel Games employees tweeted near-identical posts on the same day. The Game Awards 2018 is coming up soon, and it’s already promising the “biggest lineup of new game announcements yet.”
That would probably be the most opportune time for an official first look at The Avengers Project, especially with the event slated to stream live on approximately 40 global video platforms.
Let’s see what happens when December 6 arrives. In the meantime, you can re-watch The Avengers Project Announcement Trailer. Stay tuned on Kakuchopurei!
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rq_V6WHSmQs&w=560&h=315]


Axiata Game Hero Tournament To Pit Best Free Fire Players In Southeast Asia

Axiata will be launching its first-ever esports tournament with the upcoming Axiata Game Hero tournament, which will pit the best Free Fire Battlegrounds players in Southeast Asia for the chance to win RM500,000 in grand prize money.
It will involve participants from four countries in Southeast Asia, including Malaysia, Cambodia, Indonesia, and Bangladesh. For those unfamiliar with the game, Free Fire Battlegrounds is a mobile battle royale game developed by Garena, where a total of 50 players will play to the last man standing in 10-minute matches.

The tournament trials will be held from now until October 2019, which is when the National Championship in each respective country will begin. The final 12 squads from all four countries will then meet at the Grand Championship in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in November 2019.
The Axiata Game Hero tournament is open to all Axiata or Celcom subscribers (Prepaid or Postpaid) in Malaysia with a minimal weekly fee of RM4. Those interested can register individually at the official website here. However, the servers may be temporarily down at the moment.
In the meantime, you can head on over to the Free Fire official website here for now.


Is Gamescom Asia A Good Idea, Especially In This Generation?

Update: Gamescom Asia got back to us; we’ve made some additions to the current piece to set some records straight.Â
Singapore has recently scored a win of sorts; it will host the first-ever Asian edition of Gamescom in 2020; the conference is from 15-16 October 2020, while the exhibition is from 16-18 of the same month.
In case you’ve been in hiding for a good amount of years, Gamescom a pretty big deal of a gaming festival that takes place in Cologne, Germany since 2009. Think of it as a consumer-friendly version of E3, except with more European games you can have a hands-on first from your CD Projekt blockbuster to the “RPG Eurojanks” courtesy of Pirahna Bytes.
And who will be advising the Gamescom team to pull this off? The GameStart Asia folks, or rather game event organizers/marketing firm Eliphant.
So what happens to GameStart Asia then? Well, Gamescom Asia will be replacing GameStart Asia, which means the latter’s 2019 self-titled event coming in mid-October will be the last-ever GameStart Asia.
Personally, this could be the jumpstart and new beginning the company needs, assuming it doesn’t somehow fudge it up along the way. But even if they sort their stuff out, this also brings up another question concerning these high-budgeted multi-publisher gaming events and expos, particular in Asia.

Are they even needed anymore, especially in a time when most of the highlights of these events can be streamed live and presented in a more cost-effective fashion?

Let’s answer one question at a time.
How Much Control Will GameStart Asia Have In Influencing Gamescom Asia?

One could argue that Gamescom organizers Koelnmesse defaulted to the only functional group in Singapore as consultants, slim pickings and all especially in light of the German group’s partnership with the Singapore Tourism Board. On the other hand, their events turn out mostly fine, so having them on-board would be sound.
If you were to ask me if the GameStart Asia crew from 2014-2016 can pull it off together with the Gamescom folks, then it’s a definite “yes”, at least while their proverbial anvil is still good enough to temper metaphoric steel of offline event gaming goodness. However, based on the outcome and tepid response of their last two events,Â  there’s a slight cause for worry.
The 2014-2016 iterations was a time where you don’t feel like you’re missing shows like Tokyo Game Show and Penny Arcade Expo. GameStart Asia scratched that particular itch with its plethora of gaming hands-on experiences, community and cosplay showings, and relevant stage shows. You know deep down what niche it’s trying to fill and what it’s trying to do: entertain the casual and hardcore gamers who are keen on trying out new digital things that they can’t afford to fly out to.
But for the past few iterations, namely GameStart 2017 and GameStart 2018, its identity feels a bit all over the place. Was it catering just for fighting game fans with SEA Major? Was it catering for triple-A enthusiasts? Was it primarily for tabletop players thanks to the new analog gaming section and the then-current D&D craze? Its focus was stretched too thin and catered to current gaming fads at the time. Your event may have jumped the shark if it caved to hosting a makeshift tournament for PUBG.
The recent GameStart Asia saw the first time it received a number of negative reviews on its public page.

Part of the blame can be attributed to the lack of content most publishers are allowed to share in Asia. So as an events company it’ll be tough to secure some demos and notable draws for an October event, or even get certain permissions and clearances for demos done on time and without stepping on toes.
To which I say hat’s off to the team for at least getting that balance sorted. We should cut organizers and expo holders some slack when they have an off-year for at least one show out of the many good ones they’ve churned out.
On a consistency level, the South East Asia Major tournaments have found a place in GameStart Asia since 2016. In fact, that’s arguably the only reason most people visit the Singapore show for. The public perception seems to prove that the event is riding on the coattails of the Asian-focused fighting game event featuring high-level world warriors & veterans like Justin Wong and Tokido.

Which is why this Gamescom news comes at a serendipitous time when the team can rely on the brand name, and possibly a lot of manpower, to start anew.

A representative of Gamescom Asia got back to us regarding their choice on using Eliphant.

“Eliphant has been organizing a leading B2C gaming event for the Singapore market for the past 6 years, but GameStart will exit the market and make way for gamescom asia. Working with GameStart will give gamescom asia a headstart by building on an existing community, but gamescom asia will add to this with a true B2B event, gaming industry conference, international audience, and fresh content.”

At the end of the day, they’ve still proven themselves to be capable game event managers based in Singapore, at least where it counts.
Are Multi-Publisher Gaming Events Relevant?

I’m not going to count tech expos like CES and Computex here because they cover all facets of technology and hardware to justify their extravagant costs. Gaming expos are their own special breed, from your be-all-end-alls like Tokyo Game Show that morphed to a more mobile-savvy exhibition to your community-savvy ones like The Philippines’ ESGS.

Other than a proverbial circlejerk for the parties involved, what need is there for an Asian version of an offshoot gaming expo from Europe?

If folks like PlayStation can choose to forgo E3 and host their own PlayStation Experience event(s) where their new games and tech can debut, what’s to stop other bigwigs? Or even host their own videos like Nintendo’s many Nintendo Direct announcements? Are event brand names like E3 and Gamescom still strong enough to carry weight?
This is a really tricky question to answer. On the surface, it’s easy for first-party folks to just sort out the logistics for their own branded event; they just need to figure out a great date and a reliable logistics crew to work it out.
But behind the scenes, most publishers have established long-term ties with event folks and game organizations like the ESA. To just throw all that away is foolhardy, so naturally, there’s a need to keep supporting these events in some way or form even if it may arguably be costly. Hell, without saying much, that’s how most game industry folks run things these days; through mutual friendships and partnerships.
Half the time, this gets abused to the point where publishers get goaded to fork over extravagant amounts of money just for public branding’s sake, and they can’t do anything about it because of co-working obligations and fear of burning bridges. And if you noticed, there were more publishers like Microsoft, Blizzard, and 2K Games willing to host a booth in GameStart Asia’s early heydays before they stopped doing so in recent years.
And let’s not forget about the not-so-big game developers and publishers who want an umbrella of an expo to showcase their upcoming indie and smaller titles. Digital marketing and online showcases aren’t enough; having a physical space and showing a physical presence is still as important as ever in a world ruled by easy internet access and insane smartphone usage.
At the very least, this is what Gamescom Asia has to say in regards to European and overseas vendors showing up:

“European publishers who are serious about Asia will make use of Gamescom Asia to explore and understand this market, as well as to develop their business, connect to the industry here, and localise their content.
There is a lot of untapped potential in Southeast Asia â€“ currently the fastest growing market in the world – and the local audience is hungry for new content. We are expecting a healthy mix of Western and Asian participation at the event, with publishers from Europe, but of course also from China, Japan, etc. Besides, there are many leading games companies and developers who hold offices in Singapore as well.”

In the end, it’s really up to what the public wants. If they want an Asian iteration of an existing public event brand, they’ll happily attend it regardless of which country it’s in. As long as it features the games the mass market in Asia wants, more mobile F2P offerings rather than console triple-A experiences, then perhaps they’ll get the traffic they want.
Is Singapore The Best Place For Gamescom’s Asia Debut?
Image credit: Az Samad
Having it in Singapore means it has to rely a lot on overseas folks visiting because the country operates on a different level and mindset when it comes to public shows. Outside of fealty to the GameStart and Gamescom brand, perhaps in unhealthy levels, your average gaming Singaporean may not want to go out of his/her way for this unless there’s a sale going on or if the internet is down.

It also boils down to how willing nearby Southeast Asian participants and gamers are in booking a flight ticket for the inaugural event.

As a debut event and a one-time flight-and-room commitment, it’s not unreasonable. But as a yearly event, it’s a huge commitment given that there are other alternative gaming events in less expensive countries.
The Gamescom brand sure can bring in the right amount of overseas publishers for new hands-on titles, at least for the first show. If we’re talking return visits and booths, that will be a tricky prospect. Like I mentioned before, bigger publishers did make their mark in GameStart Asia a while back but stopped due to little to no return of investment.
Still, Gamescom Asia is confident in its approach, according to their reply to us:

“Singapore â€“ with its thriving gaming ecosystem, excellent infrastructure, accessibility, and positioned as an established business hub for the region – is the perfect location for this. Singapore fulfils many characteristics of a metropolitan city and will serve to bring the region together with gamescom asia as an international destination.
Currently, neighbouring events seek to serve a more domestic market and local audience. We believe that the region lacks a global Tier 1 gaming event that expands on both B2B and B2C components despite the populace difference and this should entice and encourage neighbouring markets and gaming communities alike to invest in Singapore.”

Events Horizon
Image credit: Gamescom 2018
Don’t get me wrong: I’m glad this is happening. Folks who cannot make their way to Germany can now look forward to Gamescom 2020 where it will hopefully showcase a lot of digital game-related previews and hands-on for the crowd while also maintaining the business-slash-public functions of its brand.
Much like the earlier GameStart Asia events during its heyday, or even other SEA expos like ESGS, you need an event that brings in gaming communities and gaming businesses together, to celebrate the hobby we all love.
However, other factors come into play here and are justifiable concerns. How capable will Eliphant be as consultants to Koelnmesse? Should Gamescom organizers Koelnmesse hedge their bets on an apathetic Singapore market? Will the rest of Southeast Asia be able and ready to book a flight ticket in 2020 for this premium event when there are other cheaper and community-savvy Asian events involved?
The prestige of the Gamescom name is one thing, but if there aren’t that many people willing to fly down to one of this generation’s most expensive countries even for a few days, what’s the point, really?
These are obviously hypotheticals, but they need to be asked and hopefully answered closer to the 2020 dates since a lot is riding on this Asian event. I do hope the trifecta that is the Singapore Tourism Board, Koelnmesse, and the GameStart Asia folks can pull it off not just once, but at least a few more of these with consistent quality, for their sake and ours.
We certainly can’t wait for gamescon. I mean gamescom Asia.


Hideo Kojima Creeps His Way Into Remedy’s Control

If you haven’t bought Control, you should. It’s a beautiful game with a great story and crazy gameplay that lets you become a Jedi and throw things around among other abilities… and it even has Hideo Kojima in it.
There’s a side mission in the game called Dr. Yoshimi Tokui’s Guided Imagery Experience which starts after you pick up one of the game’s collectibles, a tape recording.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZFeU29sB7Q&w=560&h=315]
I don’t want to spoil the mission for those of you who haven’t played it so basically, you step into a machine and enter a simulated reality while being guided by the voice of a person named Dr. Yoshimi Tokui. He speaks in Japanese and has an English interpreter to help you understand what he’s saying.
Any fan of the Metal Gear Solid creator will instantly recognise that Dr. Yoshimi Tokui is voiced by none other than Hideo Kojima himself. His interpreter? That’s Aki Saito, the communications manager for Kojima Productions. They both appeared side by side at the Gamescom 2019 Opening Night Live.

Okay, now that tweet about Kojima doing voice acting for “other Sam” finally makes sense. That was referring to Remedy Entertainment creative director Sam Lake, famously known for being the man Max Payne‘s face is based on.

He managed to do some voice recording for the other SamðŸ˜‰ (not for DS) https://t.co/Pq6pYLNR6f
â€” Ayako (Touchy!) (@Kaizerkunkun) March 19, 2019

Control is currently available for PC (Epic Games Store), PS4 and Xbox One. If you’re on the fence about getting the game, you’ll surely want to get it after reading our review.


Resident Evil 4 Remake Out On March 2023

Capcom has announced the release date of the Resident Evil 4 remake: 24th March 2023.
The game, which is a remake of Resident Evil 4 back on 11th January 2005, will feature brand new graphics, some new gameplay elements especially when dealing with the infected villagers (like using your handgun to block a chainsaw attack and that sweet new roundhouse kick), and a few more tweaks and additions to the original story involving Leon’s rescue target Ashley.
Resident Evil Check out the trailer and gameplay below. The game is slated for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series, and PC.


Galactus Is Descending Into Fortnite This December

Fortnite Season 4 has seen the Marvel Universe crossing over into battle royale game via the Nexus War event since August 2020. All that epicness will culminate in the arrival of none other than iconic Marvel supervillain, Galactus.
According to Epic Games, Galactus will arrive in Fortnite on 2 December 2020 at 5am GMT+8. All you need to do to ensure that you’ll experience Galactus’ coming is to have the latest Fortnite 14.60 update downloaded on your platform of choice.
However, no further details were revealed. It’s possible to expect that Galactus will likely come and destroy the current Fortnite Season 4 map, thus heralding the beginning of Fortnite Season 5, whatever that turns out to be.

On the officialÂ This Week in Marvel podcast, Epic Games Worldwide Creative Director head Donald Mustard said about Galactus and the Fortnite Nexus War event:
“The reason we called this season Nexus War is that this is just the start of lots of stuff we have planned for many years of Marvel integration.This is not the end, this is the beginning. We thought a really good POV-style character which could set this up [earlier this year] was Deadpool, kind of fourth-wall-breaking. And then Cap in July, building up to this momentâ€¦We had this moment in Fortnite which happened around a year ago whereâ€¦ the Zero Point reorganised all the matter around the island and kind of created this new island.That’s the moment that attracted Galactus. [He] felt this re-organising of reality and was like ‘huh, there’s this energy source at the centre of everything and if I can consume that, I can consume not just the Marvel reality but I can consume everything.'”


Gamescom 2019: Yakuza Remastered Collection Announced For PS4

When Yakuza Kiwami 2 was released for the PS4 in 2017, it signified that more than half of the Yakuza series was now available in English for PS4 owners. By June 2019, the other half was released for the PS4 but only in Japan. A recent announcement from Ryu Ga Gotoku (RGG) Studio confirms that English-speaking fans will be getting what they’ve been waiting for.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOmIABX2RP8&w=560&h=315]
At Gamescom 2019, RGG Studio announced the Yakuza Remastered Collection for the PS4. It will include 1080p 60fps remasters of Yakuza 3, 4, and 5. This means that the PS4 will be the first console to have all the main Yakuza games in its roster. The collection is sold at the usual price of US$60. You can purchase the collection now on the Malaysian Playstation Store for RM239.
Buying the collection means you’ll be able to play Yakuza 3 Remastered only for now. The remastered versions of Yakuza 4 and Yakuza 5 will be unlocked on 30 October 2019 and 12 February 2020 respectively. Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be the option of buying each game individually but getting three full-fledged Yakuza games for that price is still a good deal.
If you’re a collector or simply prefer physical copies of games, then you should wait a bit longer so that you can get the physical bundle instead which will be released alongside Yakuza 5 Remastered in February 2020. The day one edition of the bundle will even come with an empty PS3 Yakuza 5 case to allow fans to complete their collection of the PS3 Yakuza games.

The Yakuza Remastered Collection can be purchased right now on the Playstation Store, subsequent games in the collection will be unlocked at the dates mentioned above.


Kakuchopurei’s Best Of 2018 Awards: Day Five

Welcome to Kakuchopurei’s Best of 2018 feature, where we rank our favourite and not-so-favourite gaming things of 2018. We’ve done four of these so far, so it’s now down to the wire; the big one.
Here are Days One to Four, linked here for your reading convenience:
Day One
Day Two
Day Three
Day Four
Now let’s end this. Are you ready to find out the best of the best? Well, scroll on through for the winners right after these intermission pics of the Malaysian cinematic classic, Bujang Lapok.

Let’s end this shiznit!
Best Ongoing Game
Warframe

This category’s dedicated to the games that are older than two years and are still being updated and kept alive and kicking.
Overwatch is great and all, but really no game can be as everlasting and as persevering as Warframe, perhaps the only game earning Digital Extremes money right now. The game just released its mega-huge Fortuna update and added new warframes. They also adhere to its really fair F2P style of things with incremental updates. Best of all, the game’s community is growing, going so far as to have yearly conventions in Canada dedicated to the game and developer Digital Extremes’ efforts.
Last I heard, Blizzard’s the only ones who can do game-specific conventions of a particular scale and fan fervour. That’s a great benchmark for your game to be based on; Warframe and its 5-year ongoing gaming streak will keep on going if it continues placating its fans with the updates they want.
Runner-Up: Overwatch, League of Legends.
Best Spider-Man Suit From Marvel’s Spider-Man
Vintage Comic Book (From The Comics/60s Animated Series)

Let’s not mince words here: Kakuchopurei is run by Spider-Man fans. So it’s only natural all of us went ga-ga over Marvel’s Spider-Man. Look at the features we did in case you don’t believe us.
But the most important debate to settle here is not whether Captain Yuri Watanabe is bae material or not (she is; end of discussion). It’s about which of the 30+ Spidey suits in the game kicks the most ass in a fashion & practical sense.
It was an arduous battle; moreso than for GOTY further down on today’s list. In the end though, we went for the obvious choice: Vintage Comic Book Suit. It stands out jarringly and humorously in the game, it comes with the dumbest yet funniest Suit Power ever, and it’s obvious nostalgia bait. And we love every second we spend swinging in digital New York in the outfit.
Runner-Up: Iron Spider Suit (Avengers: Infinity War), MK IV suit.
Best Ensemble
Red Dead Redemption 2/Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Torna ~ The Golden Age

You know a game’s main and supporting cast is good when you start feeling for them even if you know their fates long before you even loaded the game onto your consoles. Both Red Dead Redemption 2 and Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Torna ~ The Golden Age are prequels, meaning that you already know the final fates of certain characters at the back of your mind.
Which is why we’re going to cop out here and give two games this coveted spot since they share a few key things. They both delve into the past and with characters who help shape their respective prequels into a grand narrative. And they also take long-ass hours to complete.
What RDR2 and Xenoblade 2: Torna pulled off here is pretty awesome: you gave a damn about all of them even if you already know ahead of time what’s going to happen to half of them. Whether it’s Arthur Morgan, Hosea, Dutch, and the Van der Linde gang, or the JRPGing motley crew led by Lora and Jin, both camps have well-written characters that play out as you would expect in their dire situations.
Runner-Up: Marvel’s Spider-Man, Dragon Quest XI,Â
Worst Game Of 2018
Fallout 76

It’s not every day a game so reviled and so disappointing can exist in the same year and earn complementary dubious honours. Except for Mass Effect: Andromeda last year; lord knows which idiot publications would throw away all their credibility to give this game full accolades.
Let’s not mince words: Fallout 76 is not just a huge disappointment that’s waiting to happen, but it’s also a pretty broken and dull experience that does not do its franchise name justice. The game has little to no story, the combat and exploration mechanics are basic, the graphics aren’t even that impressive, and the online gets unstable.
You have to try really, REALLY hard to mess this up so bad for your audience. In that regard, Bethesda passed with flying frickin’ colours.
Runners-Up: Agony, Metal Gear Survive, The Quiet Man, Super Seducer, Extinction.
Best Game Of 2018
Before we reveal our winner, let’s start with the Runners-Up of this category, because the following games deserve to be in your library.
God of War: Our first 10/10 game and with good reason – it’s an amped-up action-adventure game that makes a father-son outing more epic than it should have any right to be.
Dead Cells: The best Dark Souls/Metroidvania hybrid you can find that offers that “one more playthrough” addictive factor.
Assassin’s Creed -Odyssey: It’s a bit too big for its own good, but traversing around ancient Greece and action-RPGing your way as a badass mercenary has its perks.
Red Dead Redemption 2: Best cowboy simulator that’s marred by the second half of the story and its GTA controls. However, it excels at taking its time, uncovering its gameplay & open-world layers.
Monster Hunter World: The best iteration of the hardcore giant-slaying classic that caters to everyone who loves action games, yet tough enough for purists. Plus, indentured cat servants and cat chefs!
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate:Â The best casual/hardcore-tailored fighting game featuring a bunch of Nintendo characters you didn’t hear about eons ago.
Dragon Ball FighterZ: The quintessential tribute to all the zany fights in the shonen manga that jumpstarted the shonen trope.
Dragon Quest XI: The quintessential JRPG 100+ experience of 2018, even if parts of it seem a bit too old-school for its own good.
Return of the Obra Dinn: A clever “whodunnit?” adventure game with a very unique monochromatic art style.
And now, our GOTY of 2018…
…..
…
..
.

Marvel’s Spider-Man

Again, this site is run by Spider-Man maniacs, so you shouldn’t be too surprised at this clear GOTY pick. And it’s not to say the nominees here are slouches and also-rans: God of War, Dead Cells, Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey, Red Dead Redemption 2, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Return of the Obra Dinn, and Dragon Ball FighterZ are stellar games you should add onto your shopping list.
But as far as stellar gaming experiences go, Marvel’s Spider-Man takes the top honour because it makes superheroic web-slinging fun. Really, really fun. The cast of characters here is cool and energetic, especially the banter between newcomer Yuri Watanabe and the web-headed wizard. Everything about this game is both an ode to comic book-reading Spider-Man fans and even gamers who want more than a decent Spider-Man game that makes do with an awesome open world.
It’s a really tough choice, but we have to give Insomniac Games for a job well done. They went above and beyond to make this game spectacular. Or amazing. Or sensational. Pick your favourite Spider-Man comic book header; they all work within this context in recognizing this game’s qualities for this gaming year.

Thanks for making it this far and indulging us, dear readers! We’ll be taking a few days off before we jump back into the fray in full force.
Stay tuned to Kakuchopurei when we return on 7 January (at the latest). Until then, have yourself a Happy New Year and may all your gaming prophecies and wishes for 2019 come true.


Hank Azaria Will No Longer Voice The Simpson’s Apu

The Simpsons voice actor Hank Azaria said on Slashfilm that he will no longer be voicing the Indian Kwik-E-Mart owner Apu Nahasapeemapetilon. This is due to the showrunners & producers facing years of controversy and accusations of racism regarding South Asians.
He told the publication the following:

“All we know there is I wonâ€™t be doing the voice anymore unless thereâ€™s some way to transition it or something.
We all made the decision together … We all agreed on it. We all feel like itâ€™s the right thing and good about it.”

The Indian store clerk/owner Apu made his debut in the first season episode “The Telltale Head” where he is known for his series catchphrase “thank you, come again.”

While it wasn’t really a big deal at first, the discussion was brought back again thanks to a 2017 documentary called The Problem With Apu. The show pointed out the fact that Apu was a problematic stereotype of South Asians. The Simpsons creator Matt Groening had this to say about the criticisms within that period:

“I’m proud of what we do on the show. And I think itâ€™s a time in our culture where people love to pretend theyâ€™re offended.”

Hank Azaria will still lend his voice to bartender Moe Szyslak, Chief Wiggum, and Comic Book Guy. Stay tuned to Kakuchopurei as we will get ready a top 10 Apu moments in Simpsons history because it’s a Sunday as I publish this.


She-Hulk Episode 8 Breakdown & Easter Eggs

The eighth episode of She-Hulk Attorney At Law is now streaming on Disney+ Hotstar Malaysia. I’ll be discussing heavy spoilers so if you haven’t seen it or want to avoid spoilers, now’s your chance to stop reading.
Check out my spoiler-free review of She-Hulk here.
The synopsis reads:
In Marvel Studios’ “She-Hulk: Attorney at Law,” Jennifer Walters (Tatiana Maslany)—an attorney specializing in superhuman-oriented legal cases must navigate the complicated life of a single, 30-something who also happens to be a green 6-foot-7-inch superpowered hulk. The nine-episode comedy series welcomes a host of MCU vets, including Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner/Hulk, Tim Roth as Emil Blonsky/Abomination, and Benedict Wong as Wong, as well as Jameela Jamil, Josh Segarra, Ginger Gonzaga, Jon Bass and Renée Elise Goldsberry.
The series is directed by Kat Coiro (Episodes 1, 2, 3, 4, 8, 9) and Anu Valia (Episodes 5, 6, 7) with Jessica Gao as head writer. Executive producers are Kevin Feige, Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Brad Winderbaum, Coiro and Gao.
Courtesy of Disney+ Hotstar, we were given the opportunity to interview She-Hulk head writer, executive producer and showrunner, Jessica Gao. She is also best known for winning an Emmy Award for writing the famous Pickle Rick episode on the Rick And Morty animated series.

In the meantime, Jessica Gao also recently revealed that She-Hulk scrapped plans to include meta comic book text boxes in our coverage of the recent press conference.
Check out my breakdown of She-Hulk Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 6 and Episode 7 here.
Check out my breakdown of Ms. Marvel Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5 and Episode 6 here.
Also, check out my breakdowns of Moon Knight Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5 and Episode 6 here.
You can check out my previous breakdowns of Hawkeye Episodes 1 and 2 here, Episode 3 here, Episode 4 here and Episode 5. and Episode 6 here.
In addition, you can check out my previous breakdowns of Marvel’s What If? Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 6, Episode 7, Episode 8 and Episode 9 here.
If you haven’t, you can check out my previous breakdowns and easter egg articles for WandaVision Episode 1 and 2, Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 6, Episode 7, Episode 8 and Episode 9.
For The Falcon And The Winter Soldier, you can check out my previous breakdowns for Episode 1, Episode 2 and Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5 and Episode 6.
For previous breakdowns of Loki episodes, check out Episode 1 here, Episode 2 here, Episode 3 here, Episode 4 here, Episode 5 here and Episode 6 here.

Leapfrog Makes His MCU Debut

She-Hulk represents Leapfrog in this episode.
In the comics, Leapfrog is not a hero but a villain. He wears a frog suit containing electrical coils on the soles of each of the two flippers which allow the wearer to leap great distances up to 18 m high or 30 m long. The first Leapfrog (Vincent Patillo) appeared in Daredevil #25-26 (Feb to March 1967) and was created by Stan Lee, Gene Colan, and Frank Giacoia. The second Leap-Frog (Buford Lange) debuted in Daredevil Vol. 2 #16 and was created by Brian Michael Bendis and David W. Mack.
The MCU version is named Mr. Patilio.
She-Hulk Vs Matt Murdock AKA Daredevil

Matt Murdock represents Luke Jacobson, the man who designed the costume for She-Hulk, Daredevil and Leapfrog.
This is the first time that Charlie Cox is reprising his role since 2021’s Spider-Man No Way Home.
Matt Murdock Confirms That The Sokovia Accords Has Been Repealed And Is No Longer Enforced

No wonder the superheroes are running around freely in the MCU now.
The Sokovia Accords were originally introduced back in 2016’s Captain America Civil War, and they’re a set of legal documents designed to control and regulate the activities of enhanced individuals, including members of government agencies such as S.H.I.E.L.D. or private organizations such as the Avengers.
Todd Has A Wakandan War Spear

Those same spears used by the Dora Milaje from Black Panther.
She-Hulk Suits Up For The First Time And It’s Against Daredevil

She’s wearing her costume for the first time and it’s like a mix of several of her past costume in the comics.
See below:

The Netflix Daredevil Theme Can Be Heard Playing In The Background

The Netflix Daredevil theme can be heard after the 16th-minute mark.
Plus, Daredevil’s costume is definitely inspired by his original yellow costume, though not as bright.

She-Hulk Smashes Daredevil

Nuff said.
Red Hulk Reference

Jen mentions that a big twist is coming and asks whether it’ll be the kind of twist where “there’s another Hulk, but this one’s red.”
What’s funny is that in the comics, there is a Red Hulk and it’s General Thunderbolt Ross. The Red Hulk literally gets hotter as he gets angrier. In the comics, the Intelligencia is responsible for the creation of the Red Hulk. Will that happen in the MCU as well?

The Intelligencia Sabotages The Lawyer Gala, She-Hulk Loses Control And The Department Of Damage Control Has Arrived

This is not good news for She-Hulk.
Next week is the She-Hulk Season 1 finale and it will be interesting to see how it all ends.
Also, there is no post-credits scene. Until then, excelsior!


Control Is Now Free On The Epic Games Store

Remedy Entertainment’s Control is available for free on the Epic Games Store for one week from now until 11pm GMT+8 on 18 June 2021. All you need is an Epic Games account to claim your copy of the game free of charge.
ControlÂ originally launched for PS4, Xbox One, and PC via the Epic Games Store in August 2019, followed by PC via Steam in August 2020. We namedÂ ControlÂ one of the best games of 2019. You can also check outÂ our review of the game here.


Our Favourite Ninjas In Video Game History

In honour of Sekiro’s One-Armed Wolf, a shinobi/ninja with a grappling hook and the ability to resurrect when needed, let’s talk about video games’ plethora of silent killers, one-man powerhouses, and black/white-clad sword-wielding shuriken-chucking heroes: the video game ninja.

Unlike the real-life variant, most video game ninjas attack their enemies out in the open, have power-ups that make them insanely powerful, and have a buttload of shurikens that can maim the common foe with one hit. Because all of that covert operation and recon is pretty boring and frustrating to design in a game unless you’re Klei or Kojima Productions.
So here are our favourite assassins-slash-commandos-with-swords-and-kunais, whether they’re fighting game characters or remorseless killing machines.
Kage (1986)

With infinite shurikens and the ability to jump up high like those Chinese martial art warriors in Hong Kong-produced serials, Kage is on a never-ending quest to rescue the token princess from a buttload of rogue ninjas, firebreathing monks, and a high-flying daimyo.
We’re not kidding about the never-ending bit; the game is truly over when you’re dead since it’s one of those 80s high score-racking arcade titles.
Feats of Awesomeness: Superjumping, unlimited shurikens, no draft in-between his legs despite possible cold weather in feudal Japan.
Joe Musashi (1987)

This brown-haired ninja was a busy guy back in the 80s. He rescued children while his face is exposed for all bad guys to see. He changed his black garment to white and went head-to-head with trains and teams up with his dog Yamato.
He also gained a few health blocks and has to travel the world to rescue his betrothed from an organization led by a long-haired ex-kabuki dancer. He also gets to go toe-to-toe against clones of Rambo, Spider-Man, Batman, The Terminator, and Godzilla, though it depends on which version of Revenge of Shinobi you’re playing. All while having his exploits chronicled by video game music godsend Yuzo Koshiro.

Feats of Awesomeness: Destroyed countless evil ninja-themed organizations, fought robot dinosaurs, combated the aforementioned copyright infringements, commits hara-kiri as a special screen-clearing move.
Guy (1989)

His fighting style is ninjutsu, so he gets the ninja card. Plus, he’s the only one who dares wear orange in broad daylight and dons sneakers. See, he’s pretty darn fast so if you see him, it’s already too late as you end up eating his slide tackle or Bushin Flip mixups.
His repertoire wasn’t that impressive back in ’89. But over time and thanks to the Street Fighter canon, he’s got a lotta moves to make him one of the best aggressive fast-paced characters in the game.
Feats of awesomeness: Beats sense into his friend Cody, saves fortuneteller Rose from certain death, lets his friend Haggar and ninja colleague Maki save his fiance while he’s off training. Wait, that last one is quite a dick move.
Strider Hiryu (1989)

How about a ninja from the future? Strider Hiryu is exactly that, but he’s more international assassin than stealth masterclass hero. He makes a scene and starts slicing every bad guy with his iconic cypher blade. He sics robo panthers and Urobolos satellites onto his enemies. And he can even fight off the X-Men, The Avengers, and the Street Fighter cast in hyper fighting combat. Talk about an impressive resume!
Feats of awesomeness: Took down Russia’s elite guard by himself, took down an intergalactic mafia group by himself, fought “mecha King Kong”, survived being tarnished by a U.S Gold “sequel”, became a key component in Marvel vs Capcom 2/3 high-tier teams.
Ryu Hayabusa (1989)

This blue-clad ninja is old-school personified. When he’s not dueling his father to the death in a boss fight, this ninja kills a ton of rogue ninjas, thugs dressed as football players, and a ton of aerial and grounded wildlife to stop evil forces from resurrecting the dark god Jaquio. He also helps out a hot CIA agent in doing so. The things our 80s hero does to get some ninja lovin’…
With his array of Castlevania-inspired ninja spells, he can endure even the most dangerous bits in a 2D platform game that loves to throw everything and the kitchen sink at him.
Feats of Awesomeness: climb walls with the grace of a cat, summon mirror images that copy his moves, falcon exterminator, dates a CIA agent, saves the world numerous times.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1989)

Wow, ’89 is a ripe time for ninja fever! Yes, we know the Ninja Turtles are cartoon characters, but they had a huge video game presence courtesy of Konami when they weren’t #fuckKonami. You pretty much know them: Leonardo leads, Donatello does machines, Raphael is cool/crude, and Michaelangelo parties hard. But in the games, everyone picks Donnie and Leonardo first because of their weapon length and attack strings.
Feats of Awesomeness: C’mon, they’re the fuckin’ Turtles. They traveled back & forward in time, fought a bunch of mutants and aliens from Dimension X, can wolf down pizzas and not get the runs, and team up with Usagi Yojimbo, Vanilla Ice, The Power Rangers, Batman, and Archie Andrews. We have proof of the latter below.

Scorpion & Sub-Zero (1992)

Mortal Kombat wouldn’t be in its 11th iteration were it not for the fire-and-ice ninja duo on the cover and promo art. We’re referring to Scorpion and Sub-Zero, who started off as mortal enemies to actual heroes with excess baggage.
Scorpion’s a wraith from hell who seeks vengeance, but sorta becomes an anti-hero with each sequel. The original Sub-Zero was an evil assassin, replaced by his younger brother because he was a douche. For a fighting game, MK has surprisingly consistent lore.
Feats of awesomeness: New and inventive ways to murder opponents in a cruel and comical fashion, creative ways to use unorthodox fighting skills with harpoons and ice balls, make yellow and blue viable fighting game outfits.
Hattori Hanzo (1993)

He’s the first ninja in video games to perform the awesome-looking Izuna drop, where he grapples his opponent, perform a super jump, then suplexes his hapless foe head-first to the ground. With explosions for added effect.

Feats of awesomeness: the Izuna drop above, dresses snazzy, plays with fire very well.
Ibuki (1997)

Once a cheap character with infinites in the original SFIII, now she’s a schoolgirl ninja in the latest Street Fighter V. And she’s a tournament favourite. When not pining for boys, she flies around in her glider and throws bombs as V-Trigger moves when opponents least expect it.
Feats of awesomeness:Â Infinite shurikens (which need reloading), tamed a racoon and gave it a name, glides like a pro, has really annoying mixups and a far-reaching HK and overhead.
Kasumi, Ayane (1998)

We’re not doing a ninja list unless we include these ass-kicking kunoichis who have been with the Dead or Alive series since the first game. From being regular fighting game females to pin-up dolls to realistic-looking (kinda) anime-esque fighters, they have a few tricks up their metaphorical sleeves to take on the many opponents throughout their journey.
They take a break from their ninja duties to play volleyball and bask in the sun with nothing more than a few pieces of clothing. Hey, girl ninjas need to have some R&R once in a while.
Feats of awesomeness: Fast and hard-hitting ninja moves, has ninpo on the fly, defy gravity (depending on which version of the game).
Raiden (2001)

From regular stealth operative to cyberninja, Raiden has quite a history of being a divisive character in the Metal Gear fanbase. He was hated in his debut in MGS2 because people wanted to play Solid Snake instead of being subjected to developer Hideo Kojima’s brand of trolling. When he got an upgrade in MGS4 however, people loved the way he kicked ass.
This all came full circle when fans get to play as the new-and-improved Raiden in Platinum Games’ Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance. Stealth is optional, but do you really want to play covertly in an action game?
Feats of awesomeness: Took down a Metal Gear by himself, went from wet blanket to badass thanks to cybernetics, participated in the best final boss battle in video game history where he fights a US senator.
Ryu Hayabusa (2003)

This black-clad ninja is badass personified. When he’s not humouring pin-up dolls in a Dead or Alive tournament, this ninja kills a ton of rogue shinobis, the undead, and special ops agents in order to get his clan’s Dragon Sword back. Or help out a hot CIA agent. The things one does to get some ninja lovin’…
With his array of weapons, he’s also prone to dismembering foes so that they’re less of a bother and also block even the most impactful of magic nuclear blasts with his arms and sword.
Feats of awesomeness: Runs onto walls with the grace of a cat, summons ninpo to destroy everything on sight, werewolf exterminator, (possibly) dates a CIA agent, saved the world numerous times. Wait, this sounds familiar…
Ken Ogawa (2010)

The star of Ninja Blade should not be left out, considering his spiritual successor is now out in the fold. Let us not forget the awesomeness of Ken as he grapples his way fighting bugs, monsters, and even bigger bugs while out in the night sky.
Feats of awesomeness: rips off Ryu Hayabusa’s schtick and somehow has some original ideas or two.
The Ninja from Mark of the Ninja (2012)

Revealing this guy’s identity is spoiler material, so we’ll just say this: this is as close as you can get to a video game ninja acting like an actual shinobi. Silent kills, stealth, and gadgets to aid in said killing and sneaking: this nameless ninja has it all. And he has a female ninja spirit guide to walk him through the deathtraps of his corporate and well-to-do enemies.
Feats of awesomeness: behaves like a true ninja, stealth and all.
Phew! That’s a lotta ninjas to talk about, and we’ve only scratched the surface! Who’s your favourite ninja in video games? Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook.Â


The Ghost Trick Phantom Detective Demo Is Out Now

During the Capcom Showcase 2023, Capcom announced that the Ghost Trick Phantom Detective demo is now available on all available platforms.
The announcement featured original game director and Ace Attorney creator, Shu Takumi, announcing the Ghost Trick Phantom Detective demo. Those who pre-order the full game will receive bonus content, including four side banner backgrounds and two additional background music tracks; “Missile~ A Courageous Little Animal” and “Chicken Paradise”.
Ghost Trick Phantom Detective is slated to release for the PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and PC via Steam on 30 June 2023.
Check out the trailer below: