Battletech Guide: How To Battlemech To Victory

Update (11 May): Added in more tips on building & loading out mechs.Â
We had a taste of the new Battletech PC strategy game recently, and it is glorious! It looks great, and it plays like a dream if you’re into managing a mercenary group of four Battlemech pilots trying to scrounge up cash doing the odd mercenary job or two while helping a royal faction gain prominence.
Yep, micromanaging a group while also dealing with repairs and employment hazards can be tough in the world of Battletech. Let us lend you a hand with these quick tips for survival.

Know What The Heck Heat, Armour, & Stability Are
Knowing about your Battlemech’s hit points isn’t enough – that’s represented by the orange squares. You need to keep track of a mech’s armour points (white squares), heat levels (red bar), and stability level (yellow bar). The golden rule here is: structural damage is very bad and is expensive to repair/replace.
Attacking all of them is an exercise in futility, so you need to have Battlemechs who are specialized in taking down an aspect of an enemy mech as quickly as possible. At the same time, you need to be wary of the heat levels and stability of your mech. Continuous firing of your weapon (among other factors) overheat your mech; if the red bar is at max, your mech shuts down and is prone to attacks.
You will also need to keep your mech’s stability in check; focused fire on a mech’s legs and melee attacks can affect a mech’s stability. If you perform death-from-above moves, your mech’s stability gets affected too. When a mech topples, it’s also prone to attacks and precision shots. So don’t fall down.

Deal With Buffs Like Evasion, Guarded, & Entrenched
Just like any other strategy RPG, stats and buffs matter in the long run. For example, your mech will get Evasion stacks if it’s on the move every single turn. This means that it’s harder to hit with ranged weapons, and you’ll need tools like Sensor Lock or plain old melee attacks to circumvent it. But here’s the kicker: even when you miss a shot, you still shave off a stack of a mech’s Evasion buff. This means that you can use lighter faster mechs to deal with mechs with huge evasion buffs, and then set them up for a heavier blast from another heavy mech you own.
When your mech braces, it gains the Guarded and Entrenched buff. Guarded halves incoming damage from the front and sides while Entrenched reduces stability damage. To deal with the former, use melee attacks. To deal with the latter, don’t go for the legs and just deal with other parts of an enemy mech.
Salvage, Salvage, Salvage
Much like Xenoblade Chronicles 2, salvaging means bonuses galore. Unlike that awesome JRPG though, you use these to build Battlemechs. After every battle, you get to divvy up your rewards with either cash, salvaging rights, or faction reputation. While having money is good, salvaging is also useful because you can acquire gear like lasers and jumpjet for free, or even get three pieces of a particular type to net yourself a brand new mech in your merc roster.
Finishing the set means that you get access to the mech with its basic loadout. This means that strategies like sniping pilots off of mechs for better salvaging opportunities are viable.

Plan Your Training. And Your Repair Time
Pilots in Battletech earn XP which can be invested in four paths: Gunnery, Piloting, Guts, and Tactics. While you can max out all four paths, you can only acquire the first special abilities from two trees and the second special ability from one. The latter selection determines your pilot’s final class.
For those starting out right now, we suggest you start out with either Piloting or Guts, then pair either one with one other path. Go for something like Piloting and Tactics – which allows a pilot to master using fast mechs and apply Sensor Locks on important targets. Or Guts and Tactics, which allows you to be a happy camper on a hill, firing long-range artillery while hidden and Guarded/Entrenched. If you’re feeling ballsy, go for Piloting and Guts: this is perfect for melee-focused pilots.

Reserve Function: Use It
Opting to Reserve means that you can act and wait for your opponent Battlemechs to move first while also preserving your initiative (ie your turn order screen). Even though taking the first turn can give you an advantage, this also means that the AI will react to your strategies. It’s best to just react to how your opponent moves in the long run. So use that Reserve option whenever you can so that you can have your Light and Medium Battlemechs react.
Steel Yourself For Concentrated Fire
The AI in this game can be merciless; they will concentrate fire on the weakest Battlemech you own or the most wounded. Yes, this is a route your team will take, but you only have four Battlemechs at your disposal. Your opponent has more than that, plus static defences and so forth.
Just be mindful of the AI when it pulls off concentrated fire stunts on your weakest link. Pay attention to the line of sight and scanner range on the map. General rule: if you can scan your opponent, the opponent can do the same. Kill scouts and spotters while breaking their line of sight when you can. If somehow their spotters see three of your Battlemechs all at full health, the AI will mostly divvy up its forces.
Mostly. Battletech’s AI can be a bit spotty, but at least it is consistent with its focus fire tactics.

Get Inspired…
…by your Inspiration abilities. Basically, you can use these abilities if you have enough morale points built up by just fighting and doing well. You get to use either Precision Shot and Vigilance – these are useful if you feel like the odds are against you.
Precision Shot lets you take a called shot against an opponent who hasnt’ been knocked down. Not only can you pick off opponent Battlemech legs and weapons, you also knock them back a slot in the initiative order. This means that you can push back a heavy mech back to the initiative order while your light/medium Battlemechs dish out the pain further and further without much repercussion.
Vigilance gives a Battlemech the Guarded and Entrenched buff regardless of what they’re doing while also putting them ahead in the initiative order. It also removes stability damage so this Inspiration ability can grant your Battlemech team a huge comeback factor. This can be incredibly life-saving if your mech platoon is full of Heavy mechs and they’re on the brink of falling down: saving up your morale points for this ability can turn a dire situation atop its head.
Get Into Position
No joke about it: mech orientation matters. If your mech’s left armour is all gone, orientate your mech so that its right side is facing the opposition. As we said before, true damage is a pain to repair compared to armour repair. After repositioning yourself, take a brace action. You may not be counter-attacking, but at least you’re buying yourself time before your Battlemech partners pick up the firing and shooting slack.

Some Tips On Building Mechs
(via Delta Assault)
The thing you need to know is that every Mech comes standard with 10 heat sinks built into its engine. That means itâ€™ll dissipate 30 heat a turn by default. Thus, what you should try for is to use one hot weapon that can take advantage of this dissipation, and then a cool weapon to balance it out.
For example, a loadout with a PPC and an AC5, or a PPC and a large LRM. Or an AC5 and lots of MLs. This will give you much better results than simply using all your tonnage to mount all ACs, or all PPCs.
(via MaxZero)

Bulwark/Sensor lock mechs with SRMs in front. They can Sensor Lock, can tank, and can provide LOS up front.
Multi-target and Bulwark LRM mechs behind.
Basically, you want builds that can take a lot of missiles. Examples include Centurion, Catapult, and Orion.
Missiles are strong at the start and just get stronger later on.

(via FieserMoep)

Go full-on with SRM6 and M Lasers.
Add a full complement of Jump Jets.
Add Heat Sinks to balance out the heat generation.
Tweak your armour.

(via pm_me_yer_collarbone)

Specialization has been working for me. 2 brawlers, one ballistic sniper, one artillery SPG.
My early squad was twoÂ Shadowhawks, oneÂ Blackjack, and oneÂ Centurion. Used a Vindicator before I got the second Shadowhawk, Enforcer is also a nice holdover for Dekker.
Brawlers occupy the front line, tank hits and provide sensor locks. Don’t need to concern yourself with heat much on these ones as SHD use melee as often as weapons, and melee doesn’t generate heat, but it’s nice to be able to alpha twice in a row.
The ballistic sniper is simple: cannons and ammo, stay back and shoot stuff. Same goes for the artillery, but those don’t even have to have direct line o sight. These don’t need much armour and you’re limited only by hardpoints, but on vacuum and desert maps the artillery will eventually have to shut down one and later two of its LRMs if firing continuously. But by this time you’re mopping up the last mech and it wouldn’t make any difference.
Generally, look for hardpoints and when you get a new mech, play around in the refit screen to see if it fits anything good. You’ll get the hang of it eventually.
One thing to point out is that my sniper and artillery are specced in bulwark, so if I’m getting overrun with ‘reinforcements’, the SHD’s can fall back and have the backline tank some hits while they’re flanking, surrounding the enemy lance. That’s why there’s so much armour in place of a few more heatsinks on the artillery, for example. Another is that this build has a lot of stability damage – every single mech deals it. Knocking down mechs and using Precision Strike is very powerful, as you get to control the initiative scale. Usually, if an enemy mech gets knocked down, it doesn’t get up again, unless it’s a barely-armed light mech in a lance of strong mediums.


Arcane League Of Legends Gets Epic Final Trailer Ahead Of Premiere

Arcane League Of Legends is almost here, and Netflix has released the final trailer for the upcoming animated series based on Riot Games’ popular MOBA.
Arcane dives into the delicate balance between the rich city of Piltover and the seedy underbelly of Zaun. Tensions between these city-states boil over with the creation of hextech – a way for any person to control magical energy – in Piltover; and in Zuan, a new drug called shimmer that transforms humans into monsters.

Arcane brings life to the relationships that shape some of League Of Legends’ famous champions including Vi, Jinx, Caitlyn, Jayce and Viktor. Based on the world behind the game League Of Legends, the animated event series features a complex world filled with moral decisions, breathtaking animation and suspenseful storytelling.
Arcane Premiere Dates

Act One – Sunday, 6 November 2021 at 10am GMT+8 (episodes 1-3).
Act Two – Saturday, 13 November 2021 at 3pm GMT+8 (episodes 4-6).
Act Three – Saturday, 20 November 2021 at 3pm GMT+8 (episodes 7-9).

In the meantime, check out the final Arcane trailer below:


All The Smashing Good Stuff From Today’s Nintendo Direct

Nintendo yet again surprised us with another 30-minute Nintendo Direct video segment this early morning at 5am. The main highlight is, of course, Super Smash Bros. for the Nintendo Switch (finally).
Sadly there’s no news on Metroid Prime 4 or anything Metroid-related, but there’s a ton more stuff if you want more ports for your Nintendo Switch. Check out our full recap of the show.
Super Smash Bros. For Nintendo Switch

Yep, after months of speculating, Nintendo officially announced it. And there’s likely going to be Squid Girl/Boy as a playable fighter. Exciting stuff for the tiny Smash Bros. community in Southeast Asia.
Wario Ware Gold Announced, Along With A Bunch Of DS Remakes
More minigame madness. 300 of them, in fact. Out August 3.
Square Enix’s 2D-In-3D Multi-Protagonist RPG OctopathÂ Traveller Is Out July 13

The game now features a dual job system. You can have a Merchant class hero like Tressa dual class into a Dancer job, which opens up new skills in battle.
There’s also a special edition of the game which features a pop-up book that showcases the eight characters and theirÂ place of origin, a music CD, a map, and a coin replica.

As the lone JRPG expert in Kakuchopurei, I am phenomenally excited, especially with that sweet pop-up book. The demo was great; do check it out if you haven’t!
Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes Is Out This Year

…and it’s a top-down co-op action game where Travis Touchdown and some guy named Badman team up to take down a bunch of bad guys and assassins. Also there’s an old-school adventure game tucked in here because this is a Suda 51 game. Logic sometimes doesn’t run often in any of his titles.
The Original Okami Is Now Portable! In HD Too! On Switch!

The paintbrush strokes you have to pull off will feel much more natural when you use your finger(s) on the Nintendo Switch touchscreen. Using your JoyCons to do strokes might feel natural too. You’ll get to find out if it works in practice later in the Summer when this port is out.
Splatoon 2 Gets A Bunch Of Octo Updates This Summer

Nintendo really, REALLY loves their sole Nintendo Switch first-party shooter title. Apart from a bunch of cool new American football gear and a Rank X for elite players to clamour towards to, Splatoon 2 is getting a paid expansion featuring a new Octoling agent and 80 levels all interconnected within an underground subway system.
Once you complete this single-player mode, you get to play as an Octoling in multiplayer. The Octo expansion will cost US$20.
Here are the rest of the updates:

Dark Souls Remastered for Switch is getting a Solaire of AstoraÂ amiibo toy that’s in the “Praise The Sun” pose.

There’s more detail about Mario Tennis Aces. That’s cool, I guess. Out June 22.
South Park: The Fractured But Whole Is Coming To Switch this April 24.
The original Luigi’s Mansion for GameCube is getting a 3DS remake.
Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker is coming out for Nintendo Switch this July 13.
Undertale is also announced for the Nintendo Switch.
Remember that supposed PS4 exclusive Crash Bandicoot N-Sane Trilogy? That’s coming out to the Switch this July 10.
Little Nightmares will be out on Switch this May 18. It’s a platformer with that Tim Burton goth horror PG aesthetics and vibe as its selling hook.

Check out the whole pre-recorded livestream here.


Check Out The Final Action-Packed Trailer Of The Legend Of Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom

Nintendo just released the final trailer for The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, and it looks divine. It’s probably the best one yet, and doesn’t have much raw gameplay of Link walking on open fields.
It’s got it all: action, your old friends from Breath of the Wild teaming up with you, parries, the power-ups from the last showcase put to use, Zelda, and Ganon. Check it out below.

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom will be out for Nintendo Switch on 12th May.


KKP Best Of 2020: Game #27

Head here for the rest of our 2020 games of the year. Numbers 30, 29, and 28 are here.Â
#27. Nioh 2 (PS4)

https://www.youtube.com/embed/WecbPjqclX8

I was never really one to play Soulsborne games if it came to preference. Sekiro Shadows Die Twice didn’t do it for me, but Nioh 2 was the one that finally hooked me to this genre.
Nioh 2 is ultimately more accessible than other Soulsborne games. That doesn’t mean to say that the latest game by Team Ninja is easy in any way. It’s still hard as hell, but the sheer amount of gameplay options make it so compelling to keep playing over and over.
There are eleven types of weapons to wield in Nioh 2, ranging from traditional katana and spears to complex weapons like chain-hook kusarigama or the transforming switchglaive, which is my personal favourite.
In the spirit of Team Ninja’s fighting roots (they also develop the Dead Or Alive franchise), the latest DLC expansion also introduced a fist weapon that allows players to pull off combos like they’re in a fighting game. Best of all, it doesn’t even feel out of place in an action RPG like this.
That’s not even mentioning the different stances for each weapon, the ranged weapons, and the Spirit Guardians that you can collect like PokÃ©mon.

The story may be forgettable, but the thrilling gameplay more than makes up for it. Nioh 2 might be the most polished and refined Soulsborne game yet, and that’s no exaggeration.

Plus, this is as close to a new Onimusha game we’re ever getting in the near future. That is, unless Capcom finally announces a new one, and that doesn’t seem like it’s happening anytime soon.


Acend Ascends To Become The First-Ever Valorant World Champions

The inaugural season of the VALORANT Champions Tour concluded with Acend defeating Gambit Esports in the tournament finals to earn the title ofÂ  VALORANT World Champion. A record-setting one million concurrent viewers tuned into the match, which saw the European Acend take the series three games to two and secure the Champions Trophy.
Led by strong performances by CNed and StarXo, Acend entered the finals without dropping a single game during the initial stages of the tournament.
Kasra Jafroodi, Global Strategy Lead for VALORANT Esports, said:
â€œWe were thrilled with the success of Champions! This tournament demonstrated the globalÂ  resonance of VALORANT as a sport and that any team, from any region, can step up to be a contender for the Champions Trophy.
Seeing the level of competition rise around the world is an incredible signÂ  of the continued growth of our game as we head into our next season in February.â€
Sixteen teams from North America, South America, Europe, and Asia qualified for the event and competed for the title of the first-ever VALORANT World Champion. More than eighty players descended on Berlin to compete during the course of the past two weeks across the group and knockout stages.
BERLIN, GERMANY – DECEMBER 12: Team Acend poses with the Champions Trophy in hand after victory at the VALORANT Champions Finals on December 12, 2021 in Berlin, Germany. (Photo by Michal Konkol/Riot Games)
While Acend won the finals, the underdogs from Latin America, KRÃœ Esports,Â stole the hearts of fans around the world with their cinderella run into the semifinals. Although they fell to the finalist Gambit Esports, the semifinal match between the two teams went into five overtimes before a winner could be declared. Team Liquid, featuring the Benrlitom brothers,Â  also made a convincing berth that was eventually put to a stop by the eventual champions, Acend.
In addition to the US$1 Million prize pool, each of the sixteen teams was awarded with an equal split of 50 percent of the net proceeds of the VALORANT Champions bundle, a cosmetic skin sold worldwide within the VALORANT game. As of the last update, total contributions to participating teams was tracking at over US$7.5 million in aggregate, approximately $500,000Â  per each participating team.Â Â
The Finals kicked off with an Opening Ceremony on December 12th that featured performances by Zedd, Rezz, PVRIS, and Grabbitz. To celebrate the event Riot Games and Grabbitz collaborated on a brand new track, â€œDie For Youâ€ which debuted ahead of the event. During theÂ  Finals Opening Ceremony, Zedd and Grabbitz performed a new remix of â€œDie for Youâ€ created specifically for the show.Â
More than one million concurrent viewers tuned in around the world to watch the Finals on platforms like Twitch, YouTube, Afreeca, and Trovo which was broadcast in more than twenty different languages. Additionally, for Champions, Riot Games expanded the Watch Party program to include more than 150 content creators around the world. Watch Parties allow prominent members of the gaming community to overlay their commentary on top of the official stream and distribute it across their channels, drawing their respective communities into the event.
Champions was the final event of the VALORANT Champions Tour, which began this pastÂ  January. During the course of the season, more than 10,000 teams attempted to qualify for the final event across regional Challenger events and international Masters events. The next season of the VALORANT Champions Tour will begin in February and will feature the return of international competitions, a new tournament series during the offseason, and a new globalÂ  Game Changers event that will showcase the best womenâ€™s teams from around the world.


Overwatch Teases New Doomfist, Moira Skins for Halloween Terror Event

Doomfist and Moira mains rejoice!
We are a few days away from Overwatch’s annual Halloween Terror event and so far, we have two confirmed, brand new Legendary-Level skins set to be available during that limited period. Two heroes who are in desperate need of new skins, Doomfist and Moira, are getting new looks as Swamp Monster Doomfist a.k.a Doomfish and Banshee Moira. These skins will be dropping in next week.
Doomfist’s new skin reminds us a lot of Abe Sapien from Guillermo Del Toro’s Hellboy movies …

Just keep swimming.
Make a splash as SWAMP MONSTER DOOMFIST (Legendary)!
Overwatch Halloween Terror begins Oct 9! pic.twitter.com/aR4EC7Jmn7
â€” Overwatch (@PlayOverwatch) October 3, 2018

…while Moira’s new skin is possibly the scariest Halloween-inspired skin to date…

An ominous portent.
Haunt down your enemies as BANSHEE MOIRA (Legendary)!
Overwatch Halloween Terror begins Oct 9! pic.twitter.com/wqVYQHd64P
â€” Overwatch (@PlayOverwatch) October 4, 2018

Both skins are Legendary-tier so should cost you about 3000 coins each.
Expect more announcements to drop this weekend as we expect to see a new Pharah skin join the list. Not just cosmetic additions; we are anticipating that the Halloween update file comes alongside the new patch sporting Torbjorn’s new ultimate as well as Pharah’s nett nerf.
The Overwatch Halloween Terror event drops on the 9th of October 2018.


The Final Episode for Assassin’s Creed: Origins’ Epic DLC Is Now Available

Bloodline, Ubisoft’s latest announcement, is the final episode of the first post-launch story arc of Assassinâ€™s Creed Odyssey Legacy of the First Blade. It is now available on the PlayStation 4, the Xbox One family of devices including Xbox One X and Windows PC.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3UelofeYP4&feature=youtu.be]
In the final episode of Legacy of the First Blade, our hero would finally face the mysterious villain who has been playing puppet master throughout the story arc. After a brutal attack, players will try to protect the Assassinâ€™s legacy by fighting against those who are trying to eradicate the Tainted Ones.
Each episode of Legacy of the First BladeÂ features a new ability for each branch of the skill trees: Hunter, Warrior and Assassin. The first episode introduced Assassin abilities while the second brought Hunter abilities. This episode will introduce the new Warrior ability, Fury of the Bloodline. It will allow players to unleash a series of devastating blows with the Spear of Leonidas, increasing the number of attacks with each level.

There are a few requirements to access Bloodline. Players must have:

completed Hunted and Shadow Heritage,
the first and second episodes of Legacy of the First Blade,
and the Naxos questline in Chapter 7 of the main story of the game and must have reached character level 28 or above.

The Assassin’s Creed Odyssey post-launch plan is the most ambitious plan in the franchise. LegacyÂ of the First Blade is just the beginning for players seeking to progress further with new content in Ancient Greece. Season pass owners will access two major episodic storylines, Legacy of the First Blade and The Fate of Atlantis.
Players can expect to experience new episodes as the release, or go on an epic adventure when all episodes are available. The season pass also includes extra goodies in the form of Assassinâ€™s Creed III Remastered and the spinoff, Assassinâ€™s Creed III Liberation Remastered.
The season pass will feature two story arcs and costs EUR39.99 (RM184) while purchasing Legacy of the First Blade separately will set you back at EUR24.99 (RM138).
The full story arc of Legacy of the First Blade is now available for players who already own the season pass or the Gold Edition of the game. We’ll expect to see the first episode of the second story arc, The Fate of Atlantis, in late April.


Diablo 4 Players Who Hit Level 100 In Hardcore Permadeath Mode Will Get A Prize

After so many years, Diablo is getting a new sequel. Diablo 4 will be out this 6th June (or 2nd June if you bought the special edition for that early access flavour), and to celebrate this occasion, Blizzard has arranged for something special.
The first 1,000 players who reach Level 100 in Hardcore Mode will have their names immortalized (read: carved) onto a special Diablo 4 Lilith statue. Hardcore Mode is the game’s permadeath mode: if your character dies at any time while in Hardcore Mode, they’re wiped out from the game forever. So you can imagine the stress you’ll feel as you play this mode.
Of course, a good number of people are bickering about the fact that people who got early access to the game for review (like us) may pose an unfair advantage due to their having knowledge of the game before everyone else. Well, that problem’s been circumvented because (a) those review accounts and progress are wiped out already and (b) the fine print in the contest states that those who participated in the pre-release review version of the game during May 2023 are not eligible for entry. So yeah, I’m definitely ineligible for this even if I’m remotely interested.  Still, having your name immortalized as a top-tier player on a haunting statue is a helluva prize.

Those who participated in the pre-release review version of the game during the month of May 2023 are not eligible for entry.
Full rules: https://t.co/TLWxZwG0aQ
— Diablo (@Diablo) May 29, 2023

Diablo 4’s early access will start on 2nd June at 7am. If you bought the standard version, the game will only be available on 6th June. In the meantime, here’s our glowing review of the new action RPG.


Justin Wong To Sponsor Five Players For CEO 2019

When you’re a renowned fighting game pro for the past decade or so, there’s only one other way to go beyond just winning and placing high in tournaments: help out your local scene and give them a chance to fly. Metaphorically speaking, unless this is a Dragon Ball FighterZ fight we’re talking about.
Veteran Justin Wong is using his FGC influence and earnings to send five players to upcoming fighting game tournament CEO 2019 (via his Twitter). They will be competing across different games and will sport the tag JWONG for the event. These youngbloods are:

LostSoul
Princess Slim
taji256
Waz
Zaferino

Helping these 5 to get to CEO @Lost_Relic @Princess_Slim96 @tajh256 @Wazminator @Zaferino1
Show them some love and check out their platforms and this will be TEAM JWONG for @CEOGaming
I’m glad I can help the FGC and hope to surprise you guys with the @EVO lineup after CEO
? pic.twitter.com/x6NCYtDbG8
— Justin Wong (@JWonggg) June 11, 2019

You may not know of some of these names, but rest assured that they’re chosen by the US’ top player so that they have a bigger platform to prove themselves. This also shows that for every executive out there trying to cash in on esports in the short term, there are others out there who really want to improve the scene by chipping in their own funding.
Good one, Justin Wong; we hope this helps influence other long-term FGC favourites to help out their fellow man or woman from a financial standpoint.
CEO starts from 29th June to 1st July in GMT+8 in case you want to see some crazy fighting game action.
Top image credit: GameSpot


Doom Eternal Composer Cites Unpaid Wages & Abuse For Why He Left id Software Two Years Ago

Doom Eternal composer Mick Gordon parted ways with Doom developer id Software back in 2020. After two years, Gordon is finally speaking out and giving his side of the controversy.
In a lengthy post on Medium, Gordon gives his full statement on the matter, in which he claims that id Software Studio Director Marty Stratton lied about the circumstances of his leaving over two years ago. The gist of it is that he was not paid or compensated for his work and was forced to engage in crunch to complete his work.
He also said that he only discovered after the game was released that id Software had used nearly all the music he produced throughout development, almost five hours worth, while only paying for half of it.
Gordon ends his lengthy post by saying:
Marty Stratton has put me in a position where the only step I can take to repair my reputation is with a public response. It is a defence, not an unprovoked attack, published as a last resort and with extreme reluctance only after every other avenue to reach a mutually agreeable resolution has failed.
I have given Marty ample opportunity to correct the false accusations he made against me, and all I’ve asked for is the truth and to be paid for my work. Stubborn refusal to address his Reddit post, out of fear for his image, has crippled Marty’s ability to offer anything but a gag order.
Marty seems to think so little of me that I’d give up my right to tell the truth and willingly accept the long-term mental health implications of publicly taking the blame for the situation in exchange for money. I can’t agree to protect him from the reality of what happened. The truth is more important, and signing a gag order would remove my ability to defend myself with the facts.
The only thing left to do is issue this public response.
I never quit DOOM. I quit a toxic client.


Latest PokÃ©mon Movie To Premiere On Netflix Next Month

Netflix has announced that the next PokÃ©mon animated movie (the 23rd in the franchise), PokÃ©mon The Movie Secrets Of The Jungle, will premiere exclusively on the streaming platform on 8 October 2021 worldwide.
The synopsis reads:
Deep in the jungle, far from any human settlement, youâ€™ll find the Forest of Okoyaâ€”a PokÃ©mon paradise forbidden to outsiders. In this jungle lives Koko, a human boy who has been raised as a PokÃ©mon by the Mythical PokÃ©mon Zarude. Koko has grown up never doubting that he is a PokÃ©mon. But one day, a chance meeting with Ash and Pikachu leaves Koko with his first human friend. Is he truly a PokÃ©mon? Or is he, in fact, a human?
To further celebrate the announcement, The PokÃ©mon Company International is planning special in-game activations that will tie into the upcoming film.
Starting from today, trainers will be able to receive the alternate form of Zarude that is featured in the movie, as well as Shiny Celebi, in their PokÃ©mon Sword or PokÃ©mon Shield video games by signing up for PokÃ©mon Trainer Club email notifications by 25 September 2021. Trainers who register in this way will receive a PokÃ©mon Trainer Club email containing a distribution code for both on 7 October 2021.

In the meantime, check out the trailer below:


Sifu Is Coming To Xbox & Steam Next Year

After being on Epic Games, PlayStation consoles, and Nintendo Switch, the action game Sifu will assault the Xbox and Steam platform next.
Sifu will be released for Xbox consoles and made available on Steam next March 2023 according to publisher and developer Sloclap. The game’s Xbox and Steam release will also go alongside the launch of a new Arenas mode; this will be a free update for all versions of the game. Here’s a brief description (via IGN):
“Successfully completing the arenas will progressively unlock a massive new modifiers batch, which doubles the current game’s amount and notably brings alternative moves to the kung-fu palette of our main character.”


PS Plus Game Catalog July 2022 Adds Stray, FFVII Remake Intergrade & More

Sony Interactive Entertainment has revealed the inaugural PS Plus Game Catalog lineup for the all-new PlayStation Plus, which will be available to play for Extra and Premium members starting from 19 July 2022. It’s headlined by the much-anticipated feline adventure Stray, which makes its debut as part of the catalog.
Also featuring in this month’s Game Catalog lineup are Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade, Marvel’s Avengers, five Assassin’s Creed titles, and two Saints Row titles.
Check out the full list below:

Stray | PS4, PS5
Lost, alone and separated from family, a stray cat must untangle an ancient mystery to escape a long-forgotten cybercity and find the way home. Stray is a third-person cat adventure game set amidst the detailed neon-lit alleys of a decaying cybercity and the murky environments of its seedy underbelly.  See the world through the eyes of a stray and interact with the environment in playful ways, as this lost feline adventurer untangles an ancient mystery to escape and find a way home.

Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade | PS5
This expanded version of Final Fantasy VII Remake has been enhanced for PS5, offering extra immersion with the DualSense controller, improved visuals, and comes bundled with FF7R Episode INTERmission, an exhilarating new story as Wutai ninja Yuffie Kisaragi infiltrates Midgar to steal the ultimate materia.
Final Fantasy VII Remake is also available as part of this month’s Game Catalog for PS4 owners.

Marvel’s Avengers | PS4, PS5
Marvel’s Avengers is an epic, third-person, action-adventure game that combines an original, cinematic story with single-player and co-operative gameplay. Assemble into a team of up to four players online, master extraordinary abilities, customize a growing roster of Heroes, and defend the Earth from escalating threats.
Also available on July 19 are:

Assassin’s Creed Unity | PS4
Assassin’s Creed IV Black Flag | PS4
Assassin’s Creed Rogue Remastered | PS4
Assassin’s Creed Freedom Cry | PS4
Assassin’s Creed: The Ezio Collection | PS4
Saints Row IV: Re-Elected | PS4
Saints Row Gat out of Hell | PS4
Spirit of the North: Enhanced Edition | PS5
Ice Age: Scrat’s Nutty Adventure | PS4
Jumanji The Video Game | PS4
Paw Patrol on a Roll! | PS4
ReadySet Heroes | PS4

Classics Catalog lineup for PlayStation Plus Premium members

No Heroes Allowed! (PSP)
LocoRoco Midnight Carnival (PSP)


Activision Blizzard CEO Under Fire For Being Paid Too Much For Achieving Little

It’s good to know that even during trying times, common sense can prevail.
Activision Blizzard is under fire from some of its own shareholders who argue that CEO Bobby Kotick is receiving too much of a compensation. According to a GamesIndustry.biz report, two proxy advisory service firms suggest that the company shareholders vote against a proposal to remunerate Kotick in-line with previous years.

“Despite repeated low approval votes from shareholders, Activision Blizzard maintains multiple, overlapping opportunities for its CEO to earn outsize equity awards, even when performance-related vesting thresholds have not been met.

So how much does Bobby Kotick gets paid? He receives close to US$100 million each year in combined stock options and equity since 2016.
A friggin’ US$100 million; Jesus! For comparison’s sake, Nintendo’s CEO earns close to US$10 million yearly.
And as extra icing on this s*** news cake, Activision Blizzard employees typically earn less than one-third of 1% of the CEO’s earnings. Just think how many games can be made and happily-compensated game developers & programmers can be generated with just that yearly salary alone.
Here are more statements from the filing, which explains that Kotick fails to meet certain targets and needs his rewards curbed before Activision Blizzard gets into more operational problems.

“Disclosure surrounding the strategic objectives portion is severely lacking and merely cites ‘attracting, retaining and motivating top talent; cultivating new business opportunities and expanding existing ones; delivering production and development milestones; and increasing productivity.
We note that three of these objectives are clearly related to human capital management, and that Kotick’s apparent failure to achieve more than half of the targeted performance strongly suggests that Activision Blizzard’s skewed approach to human capital management – lavishing multi-million dollar rewards on the CEO as employees face layoffs – needs to be addressed before it manifests in deeper operational problems.”

Long story short, I’m surprised it took people this long to sort out this mess. Did it take Activision Blizzard’s recent politically-related kerfuffles for the past two years to wake shareholders up? Whatever the case, better late than never.


Diablo 4 Will Let You Rebind Your Left Mouse Button, Play Couch Co-Op, & More

One of Blizzard’s money-making IPs will be getting a slight overhaul thanks to feedback from last year. No, I’m not talking about the Warcraft series, but about Diablo 4.
Blizzard gave its fans an updateregarding its next mothership hack-and-slash action RPG lootfest title. Here are the highlights:
Rebind Your Left Mouse Button
We know darn well that the Diablo series is the clickiest game around, so for the first time you can now separate the move and primary attack button to two different inputs. Previously, you can do both on the left mouse button depending on the circumstances.
Now you can separate them to have more control over your character. So instead of mistakingly attacking when you actually want to run away, you can just, well, escape!
Play On A Controller
Yes, you can now play the PC version of Diablo 4 with any controller you want. Don’t judge; those trigger and shoulder buttons are better hotkeys than you give them credit for.

The Skill Bar Now Goes To The Centre

During our preview, our freelancers noticed that the skill bar in the Blizzcon 2019 build was on the left. The devs are now keeping it in the centre just like in the previous games.
Two-Player Couch Co-Op Confirmed

Because people loved Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls’ co-op mode, the Blizzard team will just keep Diablo 4’s same-screen multiplayer just for two players. They will improve the experience and set up core progression UI screens so that they can be opened independently or at the same time.
New Monster Family Info
Diablo 4’s enemies will be divided into families, like the tribal Fallen (ie those imps in past Diablo titles) and the shore-wandering Drowned. The next family Blizzard is introducing is the Cannibal family: human enemies who come in various sizes who most likely want to eat you.

You can read up more on thegame’s updates here. Check out our preview of Diablo 4 here. So far, there’s no release date for this action RPG just yet.


SNK Madness & Neo Geo World Tour To Power Up Your Weekend

This news is brought to you by the Retro DNA folks as a way to celebrate SNK’s 40th anniversary. Check out the tied-in features here.Â
We bet most of you are planning a weekend trip to Singapore for this year’s biggest fighting game tournament in our humble region: the South East Asia Major 2018. Did you also know that there will be a lot of SNK love in that same venue?
Do pay tribute to the folks who made the 90s arcade scene legendary by checking out the following at the GameStart Asia 2018 expo on 13th and 14th October at Suntec City Convention Centre. We’ll do a breakdown on what you should focus on:
Retro DNA SNK Demonstration

Trust the Retro DNA folks from Singapore to put on a showstopper of a display. The group’s past efforts in GameStart Asia 2014 onwards have been nothing but impressive even among the most jaded of collectors and gamers.
This year’s booth should not be any less impressive. For SNK’s 40th anniversary, the group will make every single SNK and Neo Geo game playable for the whole weekend. That’s right: it’s not just these top 15 titles on this here feature. Retro DNA has all the SNK games; just ask them and they’ll gladly sort you out.
Not only that, there will also be NG:DEV.TEAM games on display and playable for the public. For those not in the know, the NG:DEV.TEAM games are awesome SNK-powered titles made way after the demise of the Neo Geo consoles.

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Neo Geo World Tour 2

Need some competitive edge in your life this weekend? Then sign up for the Neo Geo World Tour 2 during the weekend. For two days, you can compete in The King of Fighters XIV, The King of Fighters ’98, Metal Slug (score challenge), and Blazing Star (score challenge). You can sign up here,Â but expect no quarter: SEA’s retro gamers are as hardcore as they can get.
Are you game? Of course you are. So head on down to Suntec this weekend and get your SNK Mega-Shock on!


E3 2019: A Decent Showing For Ubisoft Despite The Missing Assassin In The Room

Ubisoft’s E3 press conferences are often fun to spectate and comes with a decent lineup, and this year’s occasion is no exception. They started strong with the official announcement of Watch Dogs Legion (which made the largest impression) and a bunch of other shooter pew-pew games, but nothing else stood out in their E3 2019 press conference.
This is especially so with this year’s event missing such what is usually a mainstay and the highlight of any Ubisoft’s E3 press conference; the highly-anticipated reveal of a new Assassin’s Creed game. Unfortunately, the show ended with nary a peep of a follow-up to 2018’s Assassin’s Creed Odyssey.
Still, what we ended up was solid. Here’s a breakdown.
Ass-Kicking Grannies In Post-Brexit London

That phrase perfectly encapsulates what was an unexpectedly great start to Ubisoft’s E3 2019 press conference, with the official reveal of Watch Dogs Legion. Despite being leaked ahead of the event, no one expected a game with ex-assassin old ladies and what seems to be a noticeable upgrade in production value over previous entries in the franchise.
While Watch Dogs 2 may have flown under everyone’s radar when it quietly launched several years ago, there’s no doubt that Watch Dogs Legion has certainly grabbed our attention.
Tom Clancy Overload

Ubisoft showcased a bunch of its upcoming Tom Clancy-based titles. The first was Ghost Recon Breakpoint, during which actor Jon Bernthal (of Netflix’s The Punisher fame) appeared on-stage with a good boy (doggo) of his own. They surely missed an opportunity not to bring in more good boys on-stage during the Watch Dogs Legion reveal instead.
Then we have Rainbow Six Quarantine, a 3-player co-op shooter with a horror/zombie twist, and a *shudder* mobile game titled Tom Clancy’s Elite Squad. Poor Tom Clancy must be rolling in his grave right about now due to the blatant and rampant use of his name being slapped on a generic mobile game of all things.
A Rocket League Rival And Zelda Clone

While the rest of Ubisoft’s presentation focused mostly on updates for existing games like For Honor and Brawlhalla, there were two brand new IPs that looked interesting. The first was the publisher’s answer to Psyonix’s Rocket League, in the form of Roller Champions where, instead of soccer with cars, it’s sort of like basketball with roller skates.

The other new IP was announced at the very end of the press conference; a new game from the developer of Assassin’s Creed Odyssey. I initially thought that their last game to be revealed would be Assassin’s Creed-related, but I was wrong. Instead, it turned out to beÂ Gods & Monsters, an action adventure game based on Greek mythology clearly inspired by The Legend of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild.
Venturing Into Other Media

Amidst all the games, Ubisoft found the time and space to announce their non-gaming endeavors, which includes a TV series and news for a long-gestating movie adaptation. Rob McElhenney, best known for Itâ€™s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, is making a new comedy about game development titled Mythic Quest: Raven’s Banquet.
Besides that, the publisher also confirmed that the Tom Clancy’s The Division movie is still on track with stars Jake Gyllenhaal and Jessica Chastain and that it will now be debuting on Netflix instead. More details will likely be revealed in the near future.
While Ubisoft definitely won’t be winning E3 2019 with its press conference, it was still miles better than Bethesda‘s forced show, at least in my opinion. It went without a hitch and gamers are likely leaving with a stark impression of Watch Dogs Legion on their minds.


Check Out 2020’s Animaniacs In Motion

It’s been a while since we’ve seen cartoons just being, well, wacky and meta without being too mean-spirited. Which is why we’re glad that 2020’s Animaniacs reboot (of sorts) is making headway this November.
Here’s a clip from the upcoming series courtesy of Hulu, featuring the original voice cast (Rob Paulsen, Jess Harnell, Tress MacNeille) voicing Yakko, Wakko, & Dot. It sure as heck looks like a return to form, especially with the still-timely reference of a 90s film juggernaut classic.

Animaniacs premieres on Hulu this 20th November.


Star Wars Republic Commando Drops On PS4 & Switch This April

Aspyr Media has announced that they will launch the classic FPS tactical shooter Star Wars Republic Commando for PS4, PS5 and the Nintendo Switch on 6 April 2021.
Star Wars Republic Commando originally launched for Xbox in February 2005 and PC in March 2005. The PC version is also now available via Steam,Â GOG, andÂ Origin.
Aspyr Media co-founder Ted Staloch said:
â€œSince its original launch in 2005,Â Republic CommandoÂ continues to be a fan-favoriteÂ Star Wars game.
Weâ€™re honored to be able work with Lucasfilm Games to bring back this beloved moment in franchise history.â€
The game is 16 years old but remains a cult classic amongst Star Wars fans. It’s important to note that the upcoming revival by Aspyr Media is a single-player only experience with modernized controls, so there won’t be any multiplayer support.
Youâ€™ll play as Delta Squad leader RC-1138, AKA Delta Three-Eight, AKA â€œBoss,â€ but no clone is alone. The squad is your weapon, especially when you call the shots with manoeuvres and tactical commands.
Delta Squad comes from Star Wars The Clone Wars in the episode â€œWitches From The Mist”, and Delta Squad leader Delta Three-Eight is voiced by Temuera Morrison, who recently reprised the role of Boba Fett in The Mandalorian Season 2.


Ubisoft’s Just Dance Crosses Over With Tencent’s Peacekeeper Elite

Ubisoft and Tencent are working together on an official collaboration, with the Chinese version of Just Dance on Nintendo Switch crossing over with battle royale game Peacekeeper Elite (which is only available in China).
According to video games industry analyst Daniel Ahmad on Twitter, this is an example of how Tencent is trying to integrate its IP with those on the Nintendo Switch console. The collaboration includes elements from Peacekeeper Elite and its second-anniversary song being featured in Ubisoft’s Just Dance game.

Ubisoft and Tencent are collaborating in Just Dance China ver. this month.
The Switch game will have a crossover with Peacekeeper Elite (Tencent's battle royale game).
An example of how Tencent, which distributes the Switch in China, is integrating its IP with the console pic.twitter.com/0j7xxaZPBI
— Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) April 29, 2021

In addition, there will also be a Nintendo Switch Just Dance bundle to promote this collaboration between Ubisoft and Tencent’s game franchises. What’s interesting is that this bundle includes a Joycon strap in the form of a frying pan, which comes from the fact that Peacekeeper Elite is basically China’s version of PUBG Mobile. The frying pan is essentially a mascot of its own for the PUBG franchise by now.


Fantasy Console, Real Games: Meet The PICO-8

Games are not only an art, but also a technology – and technology is constantly evolving in unexpected ways. One of the ways that games are evolving is the creation of more consoles and means of development – so what are your thoughts on a ‘fantasy’ console, but with a very real way to develop for it?
Mee the PICO-8.
A Fantasy Console?
Yes, the virtual fantasy console, the PICO-8.
Created by Lexaloffle Games and first released in 2015, the PICO-8 has been a way to develop ‘console games’ without actually needing the actual hardware. According to the FAQ, the Pico-8 is as much a console as any other, following specific guidelines for development and output.
“PICO-8 has everything else that makes a console a console: machine specifications and display format, development tools, design culture, distribution platform, community and playership. It is similar to a retro game emulator, but for a machine that never existed. […] Instead of physical cartridges, programs made for PICO-8 are distributed on .png images that look like cartridges, complete with labels and a fixed 32k data capacity.”

Games developed for the PICO-8 are, as a result, incredibly lightweight. They can be exported to be played on Windows, Mac, Linux devices, as well as uploaded and embedded on webpages – they are distributed on .png images, after all. Developing with such heavy limitations as well – fixed display format and rigid development tools, but often with such limitations, creativity can flow freely. You can learn more about making games with the engine from this neat zine created by and for the community, before dropping by Lexaloffle’s itch.io to purchase the ‘devkit’ for US$14.99 (that’s about MYR 64 after conversion).
So What Can I Play On This Virtual Console?
You can play a lot of games! There have been several PICO-8 demakes of popular games, and some games have been straight-up made in the PICO-8 then later remade into larger releases (looking at you, Celeste). There’s also a treasure trove of interesting games you can check out online, either from the PICO-8 website’s player, or you can check on forums or itch.io.
That being said, here are some game recommendations for you to check out!
Celeste Classic

Yeah, Celeste! You know the one! The original PICO-8 build was made in 4 days and it’s playable online, in your web browser! It’s really interesting to see what elements of the PICO-8 build made it into the version we now know today – especially the elements of “hardcore platforming.”
POOM

POOM is exactly what it says on the tin – it’s a DOOM remake in the PICO-8 engine. Even though it’s only one level, that doesn’t stop it from being extremely impressive. Shoot your way through the level and traverse a vast landscape, and make it to the end. What’s especially interesting is that the developer has also created a relatively long developer’s diary on how POOM came to be, especially since in their own words, “[…] Poom should not have existed.”
Just One Boss

If there’s any one PICO-8 game you should play, like just to start of, this one should be it. Just One Boss is such an incredibly clean package – the gameplay is simple and easy to replay; it’s literally just one boss fight that switches things up in stages. The character design is cute and the music has a fun jaunty feel to it. It’s such a wonderful introduction to the capabilities of the PICO-8 console.
The Lost Night

The Lost Night follows the player waking up alone in the middle of a spooky town, trying to navigate their way out. The game is highly atmospheric – it has this sort of cute-creepy Halloween aesthetic, and everything ties together quite nicely. Definitely worth a try.
Trial of the Sorcerer

Trial of the Sorcerer is a lot of things that you wouldn’t think would be possible on the PICO-8 console; it features procedurally generated levels, it’s 3D, and it features some kind of level editor. However, it manages to do all of those things with its own flair, and ultimately, with a lot of fun. Definitely recommended if you’re a fan of Wolfenstein 3D, which was also one of the game’s inspirations.


Here’s Why Chun-Li Deserves The Strongest Female Fighter Title

It’s the 1st of March, which means that it’s Chun-Li’s birthday as stated by her creator Capcom. Here’s why she’s the strongest and best female fighting game female there is.
She Started The Female “Fighting F*** Toy” Trend

None of the renowned fighting games prior to Street Fighter II wouldn’t have a female Fighter were it not for Chun-Li’s existence. Part of the title is a derogatory term from renowned feminist Anita Sarkeesian, possibly alluding (since the video has yet to be published or created) to how female fighters like Chun-Li are drawn and created for the male gaze and for a subculture predominated by males who like keeping the FGC real.
While I would argue that Chun-Li isn’t catering to any fetishes on purpose (it’s more ethnic stereotyping than anything really), she does have a point stating the unconventional dress sense of these characters.
In Chun-Li’s case, her iconic look with her traditional cheongsam garb and her hairbuns lean towards the Chinese girl stereotype; let me remind you that this is from a company who made a Brazilian savage and an Indian curry-loving mystic for its roster.
Heck, it may not even be ideal if she’s fighting out in Siberia. But the blue colour makes her stand out among the other World Warriors’ colour palette. Someone needed to be blue, why not the strongest female fighter ever? And besides, she has her Alpha garb which is slick, matches her grace, and is practical in a street fight.

Still, we adore her and her legion of inspirations for her other qualities like her personality, her motivations, and above all her repertoire to beat off the other guys.
Wait that came out wrong…
She Has Iconic Moves

Speaking of which, she has quite the skillset in her job as an Interpol agent. Lightning legs/Hyakuretsukyaku. Kikoken. Hop kick. Her lightning-fast Tenshin Shuu Kyaku/flip kick. Her leg variant of the dragon punch. And most importantly, her spinning bird kick.

They’re all hers, they all came from her kung-fu moves (in Street Fighter’s zany lore featuring ki as energy bolts), and they gave her the “rushdown & mixup” style she’s renowned for up to this day. Just look up Street Fighter III: Third Strike’s most-played character list: she’s in the top 5 alongside Ken, Yun, Makoto, and Urien.

Heck, her spinning bird kick is getting more practical in usage with each game iteration. Point is, if you replace her moves, you don’t get a Chun-Li in your fighting game. If you put those moves in your female fighter in whatever game you’re making, you’ve just made someone who’s imitating Chun-Li. Her moves are her own, and these make her unique, and she put her foot first in being a pioneer.
She Fights For Honour & Has Her Own Sense of “Girl Power”

She fights to avenge her dead father while also trying to crack down on Shadaloo and the Illuminati. She also can raise kids without any help from a man. Hell, in a time when women in games were either being rescued or need a guy as motivation, Chun-Li was one of the first few ladies in games (next to Samus Aran) to not be in a game’s story for silly and trivial reasons.
That’s enough to influence a lot of game developers to create their own strong female characters. Heck, thanks to her, a lot of female gamers have an iconic fighting game character to look up to and be inspired by, much like how Sonya Blade inspired Ronda Rousey to kick ass in MMA. I’m sure there’s some girl out there who trained her legs to fend off thugs and rapists.

I highly doubt Nicki Minaj wouldn’t be singing that one song and dressed up the way she did in that music video if she didn’t pick that particular World Warrior in whatever version of Street Fighter she played.
Her Standout Themes
While we’re on the subject of music, her Street Fighter II theme by Yoko Shimomura is damn iconic. It sounds like it’s from China, it matches her graceful fighting technique, and goes well with the colour blue. It’s so good, it’s been remixed time and again in other Street Fighter games and spin-offs.

Her other themes in Street Fighter III: Third Strike and Street Fighter EX ain’t half-bad, with the former being a close successor following Third Strike’s music stylings, and the latter being pretty underrated.

She’s Been Portrayed By The Great Ming-Na Wen

Be honest: if it weren’t for that awful-yet-awesome Street Fighter film and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D, not many of us geeks would recognize Ming-Na Wen. Oh, and Mulan as well. Let’s not forget that film. She was a badass who wore red just great then and made her mark as one of Hollywood’s pioneer Asian actresses. And she’s still a badass now thank to Marvel and TV.
She Started The FGC Waifu Movement

Related to point 1. You have Cammy, Morrigan, Sakura, Laura, and Menat: prime candidates for waifu debates among fans. You have Chun-Li and Capcom’s inventive mind for creating a rival of sorts (in the form of an amnesiac killing machine who likes one-piece outfits) so that guys back then can use them as playground arguments and watercooler conversation pieces.

And I haven’t even gone to the other fighting games outside of Capcom. Mai Shiranui. Blue Mary. Vice and Mature.Â Our dumb-as-heck Dead or Alive listicle wouldn’t exist were it not for Chun-Li’s sex appeal and thunder thighs.
And Then There’s That Scene In The Street Fighter II Anime

’nuff said. I’m not referring to the early parts, you perv. The entire fight between Shadaloo general Vega/Balrog/Claws; it’s a visceral thing of beauty.
So that’s it for our ode to fighting game’s first lady. Let us know if she was truly the first female World Warrior or your favourite moments with Chun-Li, either on this post or on Facebook.Â


Ninja Ditches Twitch For Mixer In Epic Twist

Tyler â€˜Ninjaâ€™ BlevinsÂ is one of the most popular streamers in the world, and the streaming platforms are fighting over him like a pack of rabid dogs over a piece of meat. Kudos to Microsoft then, as the famous Fortnite streamer has ditched Twitch and signed on with Mixer in an exclusive deal.
The news was announced by Ninja himself, via his Twitter account in a post that simply reads “The Next Chapter”, with a link to his Mixer page and a hilarious video.

The next chapter,https://t.co/lvn9KBjEYq pic.twitter.com/tljVgyM3bG
â€” Ninja (@Ninja) August 1, 2019
In a follow-up tweet, he posted another video to voice out his sentiments and make things clear, saying:

â€œI have been holding on to this for quite some time and Iâ€™m just super excited to let everyone know.
Iâ€™ll be streaming on Mixer full-time now and Iâ€™m honestly at a loss for words. Iâ€™m freaking out in the best ways.
I feel like Iâ€™m going to get back to the streaming roots.â€

A little more! pic.twitter.com/SMQEygjNiE
â€” Ninja (@Ninja) August 1, 2019
While the terms of the agreement between Ninja and Mixer have yet to be officially revealed (like how much Mixer is actually paying Ninja, it’s probably quite a lot), this is a lucrative deal for both parties, but especially so for Mixer. Owned by Microsoft, Mixer has always been several steps behind streaming leaders Twitch and YouTube.
However, this exclusive deal with Ninja will probably change that, as fans of the streamer start to flock and migrate to Mixer. Almost immediately after the announcement was made, Ninja’s verified status on Twitch disappeared.

We all know of the console wars, but is this the beginning of a new streaming war? Maybe we should start asking streamers: which side are you on?


Spider-Man No Way Home Webs Third Best Opening Weekend Of All Time

Spider-Man No Way Home has broken records yet again, as it manages to garner a global box office total of US$587.2 million. That’s the third-biggest opening weekend of all time, followed by Avengers Endgame (US$1.2 billion) and Avengers Infinity War (US$640 million).
Tom Rothman, Sonyâ€™s Motion Picture Group chairman and CEO, said (via Deadline):
â€œThis weekendâ€™s historic Spider-Man No Way Home results, from all over the world and in the face of many challenges, reaffirm the unmatched cultural impact that exclusive theatrical films can have when they are made and marketed with vision and resolve.
All of us at Sony Pictures, are deeply grateful to the fabulous talent, both in front of and behind the camera, that produced such a landmark film. Thanks to their brilliant work, this Christmas everyone can enjoy the big screen gift of 2021â€™s mightiest Super Hero â€” your friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man.â€
Meanwhile, in Malaysia, the movie managed to grab a big chunk of the Malaysian box office on its first day (16 December 2021) with RM4.1 Million, the highest collection in a single trading day since March 2020. In just under two days, an estimated half a million Malaysians flocked to catch Spider-Man No Way Home in cinemas.
If youâ€™re looking for a non-spoiler review, you canÂ head on over here. If you’ve watched the movie or don’t mind spoilers, check out my Spider-Man No Way Home breakdown and post-credits explanation article here.


Saw Sequel Spiral Gets Creepy New Trailer

Lionsgate has released a brand new trailer for the upcoming Spiral From The Book Of Saw, which is slated to premiere on 14 May 2021. This is actually the ninth entry in the Saw film franchise, the last movie of which was 2017’s Jigsaw.
Directed by Darren Lynn Bousman, the synopsis for the movie reads:
A criminal mastermind unleashes a twisted form of justice in Spiral, the terrifying new chapter from the book of Saw.
Working in the shadow of his father, an esteemed police veteran (Samuel L. Jackson), brash Detective Ezekiel â€œZekeâ€ Banks (Chris Rock) and his rookie partner (Max Minghella) take charge of a grisly investigation into murders that are eerily reminiscent of the cityâ€™s gruesome past.
Unwittingly entrapped in a deepening mystery, Zeke finds himself at the center of the killerâ€™s morbid game.
Spiral From The Book Of Saw stars Chris Rock, Max Minghella, Marisol Nichols, and Samuel L. Jackson. It is produced by the original Saw team of Mark Burg and Oren Koules, as well as written by Josh Stolberg & Pete Goldfinger.
Director Darren Lynn Bousman also previously directed 2005’s Saw II, 2006’s Saw III, and 2007’s Saw IV. As such, he’s no stranger to the long-running horror franchise. Fans can probably expect a lot of easter eggs and callbacks to past entries in Spiral.
In the meantime, check out the new trailer below:


Godzilla Vs Kong Trailer Teases Epic Clash Of The Monsters

Warner Bros. and Legendary have finally released the first full trailer for the highly-anticipated Godzilla Vs. Kong.
The Godzilla Vs. Kong trailer gives us our first look at a much larger and older Kong (who was last seen in 2017’s Kong Skull Island). We last saw Godzilla in 2019’s Godzilla King Of The Monsters (check out my full review of the movie here) where he defeated a bunch of other kaiju, including the alien monster King Ghidorah.
Legends collide in Godzilla Vs. Kong as these mythic adversaries meet in a spectacular battle for the ages, with the fate of the world hanging in the balance. Kong and his protectors undertake a perilous journey to find his true home, and with them is Jia, a young orphaned girl with whom he has formed a unique and powerful bond. But they unexpectedly find themselves in the path of an enraged Godzilla, cutting a swath of destruction across the globe.
The epic clash between the two titansâ€”instigated by unseen forcesâ€”is only the beginning of the mystery that lies deep within the core of the Earth. This movie is part of Legendaryâ€™s cinematic Monsterverse.
The film stars Alexander SkarsgÃ¥rd, Millie Bobby Brown, Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry, Shun Oguri, Eiza GonzÃ¡lez, Julian Dennison, with Kyle Chandler and DemiÃ¡n Bichir. Directed by Adam Wingard (â€œThe Guest,â€ â€œYouâ€™re Nextâ€) directed from a screenplay by Eric Pearson (â€œThor: Ragnarokâ€) and Max Borenstein (â€œGodzilla: King of the Monsters,â€ â€œKong: Skull Islandâ€), story by Terry Rossio (â€œPirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Talesâ€) and Michael Dougherty & Zach Shields (â€œGodzilla: King of the Monstersâ€).
Godzilla Vs. Kong is slated to premiere on 26 March 2021 in cinemas and HBO Max streaming service.
In the meantime, check out the epic clash of the titans in the awesome trailer below:


Valorant Champions Tour 2022: North American Last Chance Qualifier – Underdogs 100 Thieves Win LCQ

In an amazing cinderella story, 100 Thieves take down The Guard and book themselves their ticket to Valorant Champions in Istanbul, Turkey.
The roster that will be attending the event in September will be Peter “Asuna” Mazuryk, Derrek “Derrek” Ha, Brenden “stellar“ McGrath, William “Will” Cheng and Sean “bang” Bezerra on loan from TSM. Joining them will be their coaches Sean “sgares” Gares and Michael “Mikes” Hockom.

Leading up to this event, 100 Thieves were a massive question mark in a lot of people’s books. This is because they recently overhauled their entire roster, only keeping Asuna from their championship-winning iteration, taking a risk with a mostly rookie roster. So going into this tournament, calling 100 Thieves “underdogs” would be generous.
They started off the tournament hot by defeating the likes of NRG in Round 1 of the upper bracket. They would go on to face FaZe Clan next where they would suffer a loss and be sent down into the lower bracket.
The main talking point of the event was Sentinels with their addition of Michael “shroud” Grzesiek and Jordan “Zellsis” Montemurro. Unfortunately, that hype would be short-lived as they would be sent home after losing 1–2 to 100 Thieves.
100T would then take down Cloud9 2–0 where they would be pitted against FaZe once more. This time around the series would favour 100T as they sweep FaZe 3–0, securing their spot in the Grand Finals where they would play The Guard.
The Guard looked dominant throughout this entire tournament and because of this, many analysts and fans thought that The Guard would definitely qualify. But if esports has taught us anything it’s that anything can happen. 100 Thieves took Game 1, Icebox and Game 2, Fracture pretty convincingly with scorelines of 13–7 and 13–6 respectively. Game 3 was a little bit closer but the momentum favoured 100T and they inevitably closed out the Haven 13–9. And with that 100 Thieves claim the last North American spot at Champions, joining OpTic Gaming and XSET.


Spoilers Abound For This LEGO Star Wars The Bad Batch Set

Disney+ Hotstar animated series Star Wars The Bad Batch premiered with its 70-minute first episode on 4 May 2021, and will release its second episode today on 7 May 2021 (with subsequent episodes releasing every Friday). We’re already getting a Hot Toys figure of Star Wars The Bad Batch‘s Echo, but now a newly-revealed LEGO set may have unveiled a major spoiler.
As usual, spoiler warnings beforehand:

The LEGO The Bad Batch Attack Shuttle includes all five members of the team known as Clone Force 99. However, what’s interesting is that the teamâ€™s sniper, Crosshair, is decked in an Imperial suit instead of his usual Clone suit.
If you’ve watched the first episode of the series, you’ll know that Crosshair does betray his teammates and swear loyalty to the Empire. Thanks to this new LEGO set, we now know that he’ll be getting a brand new suit that’s aptly dark to signify his turn to the Dark Side.
Check it out for yourselves below. According to the official website, the LEGO The Bad Batch Attack Shuttle costs Â£89.99 (around RM515+) and will be released on 1 August 2021.
Crosshair is second from left.


Netflix March 2020: Highlights And Recommendations

Iâ€™m sure you donâ€™t want to waste time sifting through Netflix’s extensive catalogue of shows and movies just to decide on what to watch. The streaming giant updates its site every day, week, and month with new content, so Iâ€™m here to save your precious time.
Here are my personal recommendations and highlights for what you should watch out of Netflix Malaysia’s upcoming March 2020 lineup:
Castlevania Season 3 (5 March 2020)

Netflix promises â€œmore mystery, murder, mayhem, and vampires than everâ€ for Castlevania Season 3. The synopsis reads:

Belmont and Sypha settle into a village with sinister secrets, Alucard mentors a pair of admirers, and Isaac embarks on a quest to locate Hector.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYNGDUIBUhE&w=560&h=315]
The Protector Season 3 (6 March 2020)

Netflixâ€™s The Protector impressed me with its first and second season, immersing me in an exotic world with a unique language, culture, and setting. The Turkish fantasy series is reinforced by a compelling cast of characters, albeit with a generic plot structure and suffering from typical Netflix bloat.
However, it’s not every day that you see a series set in the ancient city of Istanbul. I’m looking forward to seeing where Hakan goes next in his quest as The Protector.
The synopsis reads:

While a new threat takes over Istanbul, Hakan faces a formidable Immortal who seeks to possess the key to destroying the city.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uk6wo9cE3hE&w=560&h=315]
Kingdom Season 2 (13 March 2020)

The new season of Kingdom will arrive after the revelation of a new twist from the season one finale; the zombies are no longer going back to sleep during the day, which means that theyâ€™re more dangerous than ever.
Meanwhile, the royals are getting more embroiled in politics, amidst the chaos of the zombie horde. The synopsis reads:

The outbreak leaves no one safe.
But the infected are not the only monsters in Prince Chang’s way as he fights to protect the kingdom.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3vfgGYtZtc&w=560&h=315]
Bloodride (13 March 2020)

Bloodride is a new Norwegian anthology series that blends horror with dark Scandinavian humour. The first season will contain six episodes, each with a distinct setting and story in its own realistic yet weird universe.
It sounds like Black Mirror or The Twilight Zone with a unique Norwegian twist. Fans of anthology series and horror shouldn’t miss this for the world. There might just be hidden gems.
Beastars (13 March 2020)

I don’t usually watch much anime stuff, Beastars stands out from the rest of the typical anime fare in that it features a world where beasts of all kinds coexist. The protagonist is a gentle wolf named Legoshi who awakens to his own predatory urges as his school Cherryton Academy deals with a mysterious murder within its midst.
It sounds like a high school anime version of Zootopia, though obviously, it’s not as kid-friendly as the Disney animated movie.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bgo9dJB_icw&w=560&h=315]
Altered Carbon: Resleeved (19 March 2020)

Barely one month after Altered Carbon Season 2 premieres on 27 February 2020, fans of the science-fiction series can already look forward to an anime spinoff. Developed by Dai Sato, the creative mind behind legendary anime Cowboy Bebop, this is a must-watch for sci-fi and anime fans alike.

Those are just several selected highlights from next monthâ€™s offerings of new TV series and movies on Netflix. Now you can plan your Netflix binge-fest for March 2020.


A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles CGI Reboot Is Coming From Seth Rogen

Nickelodeon has announced that it is rebooting Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for the big screen. The producers will be Point Grey Picturesâ€™ Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg and James Weaver, with Jeff Rowe (of Gravity Falls and the upcoming Sony Pictures Animation’s Connected fame) as director.
According to Deadline, Brendan Oâ€™Brien (Neighbors: Sorority Rising, Mike And Dave Need Wedding Dates) will write the screenplay, while Paramount will distribute the movie worldwide.
The new TMNT movie reboot will be a CGI animated movie. It will be Nickelodeon Animation Studioâ€™s first-ever CG theatrical production. The last two movies in 2014 and 2016 were live-action, but were not well-received. The last animated movie in the franchise was Warner Bros.â€™ TMNT back in 2007.
Nickelodeon recently brought the franchise to life again in 2012 with the CGI animated series Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and the new 2D animated series Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles last year.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKhsipWFank&w=560&h=315]
No release date has been announced as of yet. It’s good to hear that Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is still getting movie adaptations and the like, despite Michael Bay’s attempts at ‘destroying’ the franchise. 2007’s TMNT wasn’t perfect, but it was pretty great, so let’s see if this new one can top that.


Forspoken DLC Will Be Out Later On May

Square Enix is still set on releasing more content for its action-adventure title Forspoken, despite the rest of the world not giving two craps about it.
Forspoken DLC “In Tanta We Trust” will be out on 26 May and will be a prequel to Forspoken’s storyline. Set 25 years before the events of Forspoken, you still play as Frey as she gets transported to the Purge of the Rheddig event from long ago.
“Accompanied by Tanta Cinta and a new set of magical abilities, Frey must uncover the answers and save Athia once more—and attempt to save herself. In the Forspoken “In Tanta We Trust” downloadable content, players will battle alongside Tanta Cinta using Frey’s newfound magical ability to unlock new combat strategies and coordinate devastating attack combos against the invading Rheddig forces. Scale to new heights in unique, vertically-designed environments with Frey’s honed magic-enhanced parkour skills.”
For more on Forspoken, check out our “glowing” review of the game. The game was so mid, it basically made its developer Luminous be absorbed into Square Enix to forever just do the game’s third-party assets and other menial labour befitting of an asset company.


House Of The Dragon Is A More Focused Return To The World Of Game Of Thrones

Four years after the end of Game Of Thrones’ infamous Season 8, HBO’s biggest franchise has finally returned with its first spin-off in the form of the prequel series, House Of The Dragon. We’ve been waiting for the next Game Of Thrones, and in the four years, no series has truly managed to reach the same heights. Is House Of The Dragon that series?
Dragon-On-Dragon Action

House Of The Dragon takes place around 200 years before Game Of Thrones, so first and foremost, it’s important to note that there are no returning characters. This is the age when House Targaryen still reigned and dragons still roamed the lands of Westeros. The main plot of this series follows the issue of the succession to the Iron Throne, but this time, it mostly revolves around the Targaryen royal family and those near them.
Game Of Thrones was famous for its simultaneous multiple complex narratives and different locations that shifted focus between each of them in real-time (for example, between the Lannisters, Starks, and Daenerys Targaryen, not to mention all the other characters in between),. However, House Of The Dragon has opted for a more focused internal storyline focusing on the Targaryens in and around King’s Landing, only occasionally visiting other new and familiar places in the Game Of Thrones canon.

I was given access to the first six episodes of House Of The Dragon, courtesy of HBO Asia. The pilot episode starts really strong, with an episode that feels a lot like the best of Game Of Thrones, featuring ample sex and violence. Just like the pilot episode of Game of Thrones, something happens in the first episode of House Of The Dragon that’s just as disturbing and shocking, but of course, I can’t spoil what it is. From there, the series gradually gets more complicated in the next few episodes, even featuring several significant time jumps that propel both the plot and characters forward.
Unfortunately, after an exciting and epic start, House Of The Dragon starts to meander near the middle, where things seem to be going nowhere in particular. The pacing of the series plods near the middle, but it starts to pick up again in the early beginning of the second half of the first season. The intrigue and complexity of the series do increase every few episodes with each time jump. Each time jump also introduces new characters and changes the status quo. I reckon that this is how House Of The Dragon aims to shake things up and make things interesting, as a replacement for the simultaneous multiple complex narratives and different locations in Game Of Thrones (which are absent in House Of The Dragon).

If the story of Game Of Thrones was set within one generation, the complexity behind House Of The Dragon is that it is a multi-generational story. Despite featuring a comparatively simpler narrative in that it’s focused on only the Targaryens in mostly one place (instead of following simultaneous multiple complex narratives and different locations like in Game Of Thrones), House Of The Dragon is ambitious in its own way, attempting to tell a story that spans several generations of Targaryens.
Without spoiling anything specific, there’s a huge change in the status quo in House Of The Dragon halfway through the first season’s 10 episodes. HBO Asia gave us six episodes to watch and for good reason, the shakeup is a major one for the series, with the introduction of several potential new protagonists or antagonists in the making. It looks like HBO has long-term plans for this series, and there’s potential for it to be just as big as Game Of Thrones. Game Of Thrones also grew bigger and better with each season (up until a certain point), so House Of The Dragon definitely has room to grow even more.

Out of all the characters in House Of The Dragon, Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy) can be considered the main protagonist. For Game Of Thrones fans, the best way to describe her is that she reminds me a lot of Arya Stark, with a little bit of Arya Stark thrown in. She’s one of the primary candidates for the succession to the Iron Throne, but no one wants a woman as the queen of the realm. This is where heavier elements of feminism and rising against the patriarchy play a heavier role in the narrative of House Of The Dragon.
Most of the cast members give great performances, but the highlight of the series so far (and potential fan-favourites) is Prince Daemon Targaryen (in what is likely Matt Smith’s best role since Doctor Who). As I’ve previously mentioned, the plot revolves around the Targaryen family so the supporting cast doesn’t really get fleshed out as much as they did in Game Of Thrones. The majority of the screen time is devoted to both of the Targaryens I’ve mentioned in addition to King Viserys Targaryen himself (Paddy Considine with an amazing performance). The rest of the cast is just there for now, but other standouts include Rhys Ifan as Otto Hightower, the Hand of the king.

Viewers should temper their expectations when it comes to actual dragons. Yes, House Of The Dragon does feature significantly more dragons than Game Of Thrones, and at least one appears or shows up in every single episode, even for a brief scene or two just flying around. However, House Of The Dragon remains very much a TV series with a limited budget (albeit one with an HBO-level budget), so don’t expect dragons to play too much of a huge role in every single episode. That might sound disappointing but don’t be; the dragons still make an impact and will still add epicness simply by showing up, just like the dragons in Game Of Thrones.
Dracarys

No series will probably reach the level of peak Game Of Thrones ever again, and that applies to House Of The Dragon as well. That said, House Of The Dragon is quite good on its own merit, but we’ll have to wait until the end of the first season before we can even start truly making comparisons. In case anyone forgot, Game Of Thrones only truly broke into mainstream popular culture thanks to its iconic Season 1 finale, which legendarily killed off who we assumed to be its own main protagonist up until that point in time.
I’m still waiting for House Of The Dragon to get its own moment before it can cement its position as a successor to Game Of Thrones. Though after the disaster that was Game Of Thrones Season 8, anything can seem better.
FINAL SCORE: 80/100
We received an early screener of House Of The Dragon courtesy of HBO Asia. House Of The Dragon is slated to premiere on 22 August 2022 on HBO and HBO GO.


The Next Sonic The Hedgehog Movie Has A Release Date

Following the success of the Sonic The Hedgehog 2 movie this year, Sega and Paramount will be teaming up again for a third movie.
The official Twitter page has mentioned the date for Sonic The Hedgehog 3: 20th December, 2024. That’s two years from now and close to Christmas, possibly setting up to be the de facto holiday movie of that year.

Running faster, flying higher, and punching harder. #SonicMovie3 hits theatres on December 20, 2024. pic.twitter.com/DcFGbaKUao
— Sonic the Hedgehog (@SonicMovie) August 9, 2022

Sonic The Hedgehog 2 came out in April 2022 and came out to roaring fanfare and success. The film has gone past US$400 million at the global box office, making it one of the most successful video game movie adaptations of all time. We liked it for delivering what people wanted out of a film like this: more Sonic & his buddies fighting Dr Robotnik and fewer human scenes, though to be fair, James Marsden’s Tom is alright.
At the very least, we do know that Shadow The Hedgehog will be in part 3.


Resident Evil 2’s Replayability Needs To Be An Industry Standard

Right after finishing my second run with Leon in the Resident Evil 2 remake, I was given a bunch of choices.
#1: The option to either play it in Hardcore mode where the regular zombies suddenly have black hole properties of sucking you in for a hug from a good distance.
#2: the choice to play the game again where I start off with Leon and play the second run with Claire, with the added incentive of playing through the game under 3 hours.
#3: The decision to just play Claire’s first run again but in under 3 hours.
So many choices, so little time. That’s the quintessential experience back in the 90s and in the 2000 era of gaming where games are complete, they’re packed, and their single-player runs have rewards depending on how fast you’ve done things. This was what the first Metroid introduced back in the late 80s albeit with an aesthetic change in the end. Gamers want more than that, and they got it thanks to the mentality of game-making back then. And it’s a good thing Capcom is in the mood to bring it back again for this current generation, because I sure as hell welcome it.
X Time’s A Charm

To really get the grasp of this Resident Evil 2 remake and understand why this game deserves its praise, you need to look at the game’s framework. It’s part short story between two characters trying to get out of Raccoon City (if you’re new), part well-designed survival horror with some emphasis on action & equipment management (if you want a new survival horror experience), and part challenge mode for the veterans who want to take a stab at this version of the 1998 classic.
Just like a remake, it still retains the RE2 essence and suspense back in 1998 but with revamped aesthetics, arguably better controls that still retain that sense of gameplay tension, and an amplified sense of dread gameplay-wise since you’re locked into a 3rd person view and don’t usually watch your 6 half the time. Everything’s in your face when you least expect it. And let’s not forget Mr.X and his tendency to be 2019’s version of RE3’s Nemesis where he hunts you down relentlessly during your first and second run.
And once you’re done with either Claire or Leon’s first story, there’s the second story for the other character you didn’t pick early on which fleshes out the full RE2 narrative and reveals the true ending. And then there’s the new difficulty that gives you a chance to finish the game in the fastest time possible with the least amount of saves.
The prize? A bunch of awesome weapons with unlimited ammo for your next playthrough so you can shove rockets and bullets up Mr. X’s bum for all those times he tormented and haunted you during your previous playthroughs. Man, those faint footsteps still bring chills down my spine time and again. Some hardcore players who want a challenge would want to do this without the rewards. Me? I just want that infinite ammo SMG and Samurai Eagle, so I better hop to it.
The Old Way Still Works

Point is, I do hope Capcom and other game companies have this train of thought in mind and realize the importance of “New Game+” modes or revamped versions of single-player modes you’ve played through for replayability’s sake. Having these modes and “non-arbitrary and non-attrition-based” difficulty modes – where enemy placements and items are different the next time around- can help train your skills to be better at other games.
You can test your reflexes further, as well as your patience, in any of the Devil May Cry’s Dante Must Die mode or Bayonetta’s Infinity Climax mode. The latter is special because it takes out the game’s Witch Time mechanic and makes you rely on your other skills: combo-chaining/opportunities to deal extra damage, weapons-switching, real-time dodging, defence, and spacing.
The mentality and design of these action games, survival horror games, and remakes need to be a norm in today’s pretty easygoing style of gaming. Sure, I’m fine having story-heavy games with some semblance of challenging gameplay, but RE2 Remake should be the wake-up call. The game has shipped a ton and probably sold a lot of copies, not just because it’s a well-made remake. It’s because it didn’t cave into today’s trends of microtransactions and live services; it relies on its old-school approach that worked then and worked now to ensure people keep on playing and hopefully challenge themselves to do better.
In some meta way, it’s a way to tell game devs and producers to, well, do better. Challenge themselves to make better games not reliant on squeezing out people’s money. Voluntarily jump into that Dante Must Die pit; the proverbial Infinity Climax mode if you will. They’ll die trying, but that failure is temporary. Legacies and success last forever.


You Can Dress Virtua Fighter 5 Characters Up In Yakuza Gear Soon

Sega has announced that it’ll be releasing new DLC for Virtua Fighter 5: Ultimate Showdown involving the Yakuza/Ryu ga Gotoku franchise.
The DLC is dubbed Yakuza Series Collaboration Pack and will be out on 8th December. The pack includes the following:

Character customization items (approx. 650).
Character costume types (19 in total).
YakuzaÂ series character costumes (19 in total).
YakuzaÂ series background music (20 tracks in total).
Virtua Fighter 3Â arrangement background music (20 tracks in total).
Spectator stickers (40 in total).

Sadly, there are no new characters from the series coming into the fray like Kiryu Kazuma and Ichiban Kasuga, but you can at least dress Akira and Brad Bird up like them. Trailer’s below if you want to see them in action.


Overwatch World Cup: Competing Nations Committees Finalized

TheÂ nations’ competition committee for the 2018 Overwatch World Cup has been finally revealed with some interesting names in the mix including popular YouTubers, content creators, an Overwatch League team coaches and even a pro team manager. Following the appointment of these committee members, the participating teams will move to its formation by selecting its roster.

Determined by players in the respective participating countries, notable YouTube personalities involved in the Overwatch World Cup includeÂ Oasis “Oasis” Nip (Australia), Nathan “KarQ” Chan (Canada) andÂ Philip “ChipSa” Graham (UK) as their respective country’s Community Lead. The highly popular YouTuber-turned RunAway manager and co-owner,Â Hyuna “Flowervin” Lee will be the Community Lead for South Korea.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n4dh4nVdtt0&w=560&h=315]
On the coaching side, the top 150 players in the competing nations determine the head coach to lead them and unsurprisingly, a number of Overwatch League coaches were elected to take part in the Overwatch World Cup including New York Excelsior coach, Hyeon-sang “Pavane” Yu (S.Korea), Dallas Fuel’sÂ Aaron “Aero” Atkins (USA), Los Angeles Valiant’sÂ Julien “daemoN” Ducros (France) and Philadelphia Fusion’sÂ Elliott “Hayes” Hayes (UK).
Unlike the two earlier categories, the General Manager of the participating nations are picked by Blizzard and a notable inclusion to this list is former ‘British Consultant’ for the London Spitfire,Â Tom â€œStylosaâ€ Stewart who was selected as the UK team’s General Manager for the Overwatch World Cup.
Over from the Southeast Asia side, we have Thailand and…er… that’s about it. GG, Singapore & the rest of Southeast Asia for this year. Thailand’s General Manager isÂ Manoo “Zynnlol” Hayashi while the coach isÂ Jirawat “HeadHawk” Kalumpanun. The Community Lead isÂ Ampaipak “Ravee” Sanongkun. They’re basically responsible for finding the next Mickie. Or Mickies. No pressure, right?
https://www.facebook.com/OverwatchThai/posts/848397678679713
Here’s the full lowdown (via here), because we’re such nice people.
Australia
GM: Andrew â€œrqtâ€ Haws
Coach: Jordan â€œGunbaâ€ Graham
Community Lead: Oasis â€œOasisâ€ Nip
Austria
GM: Patrik Tondl
Coach: Paul â€œub3rb1ng0â€ Pachner
Community Lead: Christopher â€œSe7enSinsâ€ Knauseder
Brazil
GM: Vinicius â€œpOkizâ€ Zanquetta Costa
Coach: Jhonathan â€œTMATTEIâ€ Mattei
Community Lead: Lucas â€œLIONâ€ Ramos
Canada
GM: Andrew â€œid_â€ Trulli
Coach: Justin â€œJayneâ€ Conroy
Community Lead: Nathan â€œKarQâ€ Chan
China
GM: Qiong â€œTutuâ€ Li
Coach: Xingrui â€œRUIâ€ Wang
Community Lead: Tsungyu â€œXiaoguiâ€ Huang
Chinese Taipei
GM: Yi-Hui “FuChan” Lin
Coach: Liou â€œnitorâ€ Yen-Ruei
Community Lead: Liu “AlayKeru” Zhi-Ying
Denmark
GM: Frederik â€œHuggosâ€ Kragh Christensen
Coach: Martin “Mono” Madsen
Community Lead: Lene â€œXperianaâ€ Gaardmand
Finland
GM: Petri â€œProcyhâ€ HÃ¤mÃ¤lÃ¤
Coach: Joni â€œSeitaâ€ Paavola
Community Lead: Nasim â€œNasseâ€ Haque
France
GM: Philippe â€œLanf3ustâ€ Rivain
Coach: Julien ‘daemoN’ Ducros
Community Lead: Mathias â€œTromaâ€ Szanto
Germany
GM: Ysabel “Noukky” MÃ¼ller
Coach: Christian â€œ’radioboiiiâ€ Gutzelnig
Community Lead: Sascha â€œHighscoreHroâ€ Wegner
Hong Kong
GM: Derek Cheung
Coach: Kang-chuen â€œPandarenâ€ Lee
Community Lead: Derek â€œMimicOmnicâ€ Kwok
Italy
GM: Nicholas â€œcrYstalgecKoâ€ Pietrosanti
Coach: Alessio â€œSharPPPâ€ Mameli
Community Lead: Thomas â€œHALâ€ Avallone
Japan
GM: Jae-pil â€œJerophilipâ€ Ha
Coach: Hibiki â€œ’XQQâ€ Motoyama
Community Lead: Masumi â€œmizuiroâ€ Fukuda
Netherlands
GM: Mathijs â€œjoinvoiceplsâ€ Kool
Coach: Thomas â€œMorteâ€ Kerbusch
Community Lead: Erik â€œTwoEasyâ€ van Hoorn
Norway
GM: Stein â€œWilmannâ€ Wilmann
Coach: Mikael â€œmkLâ€ SkjÃ¸nhaug
Community Lead: Jonas â€œAverageJonasâ€ Navarsete
Poland
GM: Pawel Slomka
Coach: MichaÅ‚ â€œWarchawkâ€ WarchaÅ‚
Community Lead: Wojciech â€œTheoâ€ Buda
Russia
GM: Ruben â€œRubikonâ€ Zurabyan
Coach: Dmitry â€œDikkerâ€ Borisenkov
Community Lead: Andrey “Goose” Bakhrakh
Spain
GM: Thibaut â€œTibixâ€ Durand
Coach: Sergi â€œParanoidxzâ€ Carrasco MarsiÃ±ach
Community Lead: Beatriz â€œkaqukaâ€ Alonso
Sweden
GM: Emily â€œQueenEâ€ Krumlinde
Coach: Vytis â€œMineralâ€ Lasaitis
Community Lead: Tilda â€œTreanâ€ Wilhelmsson
Switzerland
GM: Sandro â€œSharperâ€ Nowoczin
Coach: Maxime â€œshnâ€ Delavy
Community Lead: Andreas â€œBeFroz3nâ€ DÃ¼rler
South Korea
GM: Kyu-hyung “YongBongTang” Hwang
Coach: Hyeon-sang â€œPavaneâ€ Yu
Community Lead: Hyuna â€œFlowervinâ€ Lee
Thailand
GM: Manoo “Zynnlol” Hayashi
Coach: Jirawat â€œHeadHawkâ€ Kalumpanun
Community Lead: Ampaipak â€œRaveeâ€ Sanongkun
United Kingdom
GM: Tom â€œStylosaâ€ Stewart
Coach: Elliott â€œHayesâ€ Hayes
Community Lead: Philip â€œChipSaâ€ Graham
USA
GM: Scott â€œBearhandsâ€ Tester
Coach: Aaron â€œAeroâ€ Atkins
Community Lead: Analynn â€œAnalynnâ€ Dang


EA Donates US$1 Million To Black Community Charities

Many game publishers are making their stances heard during the Black Lives Matter protests in the US of A. Some, like EA, are donating multiple charities and outreach endeavours to support the Black community, showing that they’re making a change outside their homestead.
First up, EA is donating US$1 million to organizations dedicated to the fight for racial justice in the US. The company will also double match any funds that people are donating to local organisations via the YourCause program during the month of June.
EA is also launching a new program to give everyone in its company an additional paid day each year to apply to volunteer work in their communities. Furthermore on 9th June, EA is holding a Community Conversation open to the entire company to hear about its employees’ thoughts and issues about what’s been happening the past few days. Check out the full spiel by CEO/Human Fistbump Andrew Wilson on this link.
Personally, EA is doing its best to play the good guy role here and we should commend them for that. Despite the many anti-consumerism things and other nonsense they’ve pulled off in the past (like the screencap below), they’re trying.


EVO 2023 Lineup Announced; Features Street Fighter 6

The biggest fighting game tournament of the year has its lineup of games announced.
During the Evolution Championship Series 2023 announcement show on Twitch, hosts IFC Yipes and Ryan Hart (of Tekken and Street Fighter UK fame) presented the lineup of games for the tournament which will run from 5-7 August GMT+8 at the Mandalay Bay resort in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.
EVO 2023 Main Stage Lineup

Street Fighter 6
Guilty Gear Strive
Dragon Ball FighterZ
Tekken 7
The King of Fighters XV
Melty Blood: Type Lumina
Mortal Kombat 11: Ultimate
Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3

Once again, Super Smash Bros Ultimate and Melee aren’t on the main stage lineup. However, Marvel vs. Capcom is back. The list of games for EVO 2023 seem standard, as Street Fighter 6 should already be out by 2nd June, meaning a lot of players would have already prepared for it by August.
More info on the event and registration can be found here.


PokÃ©mon Celebrated Its 23rd Anniversary; Here’s How It All Started

A moment ago, we heard the announcement of a new PokÃ©monÂ game. However, the 27th of February marks a special date for the company as it is their anniversary. Their 23rd anniversary to be exact.
It all began 23 years ago with the introduction of PokÃ©monÂ Red & GreenÂ in Japan.

It’s common to see ‘collection booms’ in Japan, where back in the 90s, the fans collect Kamen Rider cards or Yu Gi Oh decks and such. But the biggest is yet to come: the PokÃ©mon boom.
Gotta Catch ‘Em All
The creator of PokÃ©mon, Satoshi Tajiri, established Game Freak in 1989. Their first game wast Mendel Palace for Namco in the same year Nintendo released the original Game Boy, which was 1989.
Nintendo’s portable device was ideal for puzzle and action games at the time, so those games were the trend at the time. However, after seeing the success of Squareâ€™s Game Boy title, Makai Toushi SaÂ·Ga, or The Final Fantasy Legend, Tajiri realized he can pursue something that wasnâ€™t action-based for the portable device.
Tajiri focused on the communication aspect of the Game Boy, which sparked the idea of a game based on ‘trading’. Tajiri was also a big fan ofÂ Ultra Seven, and after getting inspiration from its ‘capsule kaiju’, he penned down the idea of an RPG called ‘Capsule Monster’.
Tajiri had ideas of monsters in capsule-like cases that could be traded over the Game Link Cable. After presenting his plan to Nintendo, they quickly decided to help fund its development cost and get things started.

The original title, Capsule Monsters, would eventually be changed due to trademark reasons, and the abbreviated name ‘Capu-mon’ sounded too awkward. So, they came up with ‘Pokemon‘, for ‘Pocket Monsters’, and the rest is history.
Pokemon Red & Green was released in Japan for the Game Boy on 27 February 1996. For more news on the latest game for Nintendo Switch, head here.