Happy New Year: Here Are All The Games Of 2018 (So Far)

2017 is done and over with. Let’s celebrate this lovely new year with, what else, a list of games confirmed for 2018. Or at least, the ones we know of since the past few months.
We’ll break it down into quarters so that it’s easier for us to refer to. As for games that don’t have anything more than a “2018” stamp on it, we’ll just take a guess on which season it’ll most likely be out on.
If you want the video version of this feature, check out the sweet montage below. For now, this 2018 games list is as comprehensive as it can get.

January, February, March
Dragon Ball FighterZ (PS4, Xbox One, PC)

It’s got a silly name, even for Dragon Ball standards. But this 2D fighting game based on the most influential shonen manga out there is sure to turn heads with its frenetic 3vs3 gameplay, its colourful cast, and its gorgeous 2.5D cel-shaded graphics. Out January 26.
God of War (PS4)

The next action adventure game in the God of War series focuses on a wiser and older Kratos going through a Norse-influenced world and teaching his son Atreus the ropes. The game will be drastically different and reworked this time around: no multiplayer, no morality choices, and no QTE sex minigames. Sony said it’ll be out in a few months, give or take.
Crackdown 3 (Xbox One)

The original open world super-powered protagonist action game that paved the way to titles like inFamous and Prototype will be making a huge comeback. Let’s hope its multitude of delays makes this worth the wait. Out Spring 2018.
Tunic (PC)

It’s a Zelda-inspired adventure game featuring pixelated blocky polygons and a fox as the main hero. What’s not to love?
Lost Sphear (PS4, PC)

The spiritual sequel to I Am Setsuna, this Tokyo Factory-developed RPG will hit all the old-school RPGing notes: turn-based combat with team-up attacks, short-but-sweet game that goes straight to the point, and charming top-down aesthetics. Out January 23.
Kingdom Come (PC, PS4, Xbox One)

Want an open-world RPG but without all that fantasy and Elder Scrolls nonsense? Then this medieval knights-versus-knights life simulator is for you! Serf’s upÂ on February 13.
Yakuza 6: The Song Of Life (PS4)

The next instalment in the Yakuza series focuses on an older Kiryu Kazuma as he finds out what’s going on since his incarceration. Expect gripping drama, lots of fisticuffs, and a ton of unnecessary-but-fun minigames and karaoke sessions. Oh and there’s also selfies-taking and Beat Takeshi for some reason. Out March 20.
Extinction (PC)

Remember Iron Galaxy Games, the folks who did Divekick and the latter half of the awesome Killer Instinct reboot? This time, the team is taking a stab at a Monster Hunter-style game. Out March 31.
Monster Hunter: World (PS4, Xbox One)

Speaking of which, Capcom’s real deal moneymaker is on home consoles and is looking pretty and meaty gameplay-wise. This entry might be the friendliest of all for newcomers, though that remains to be seen and playtested. Out on January 26.
Battletech (PC)

Battletech creator Jordan Weisman is leading a team to create a turn-based strategy game featuring a ton of mechs from the franchise. It’s been a while since we’ve played a new Front Mission-style game, eh?
Far Cry 5 (PS4, Xbox One, PC)

The sixth Far Cry game (we’re counting Blood Dragon too) is set in rural Montana where a giant church group is toting guns and weapons of mass destruction. You have to sort them out with firepower too, but at least you have the option of co-op and an AI-controlled dog at your side. Out March 27.
Red Dead Redemption 2 (PS4, Xbox One)

Remember Grand Theft Auto V? Now imagine that scenario but in the Wild West. The first Red Dead Redemption was an awesome open world game with a compelling story about a father figure offing his former gang. This sequel takes place years before all that when the Dutch gang was alive and kicking.
Attack On Titan 2 (PS4, Xbox One, PC)

The sequel to the Tecmo Koei Attack On Titan game (from the in-house studio who did them Dynasty Warrior beat-em-ups) will feature a bigger story and more titans to kill.
A Way Out (PS4, Xbox One, PC)

From the guys who did Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons comes this co-op required affair about two convicts doing a prison break and are on a lam. Also, the director of this game is a rather outspoken individual. Out March 23.
Kirby Star Allies (Nintendo Switch)

It’s been ages since we’ve had a mothership Kirby title. This one features 4-player platforming and co-op action; should be fun on the party-savvy Switch. Out in Spring 2018.
Knights And Bikes (PS4, PC)

This imaginative puzzle game has quite a pedigree team behind it. Developer Foam Sword is made up of ex-Media Molecule members, so it’s no surprise that the game’s unique aesthetic will be its major selling point.
Sea of Thieves (Xbox One)

Yaaar matey! This Rare-developed game lets you live out your dreams of being a pirate, teaming up with your crew as you search for awesome treasure and sink a ton of rogue pirates. Out March 20.
Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom (PS4, PC)

Ni no Kuni has a sequel, and so far it looks glorious. We’re not sure how the story goes now, since we don’t have a person from Earth entering the fantasy world to learn a huge moral lesson. Still, with Ghibli character designer Yoshiyuke Momose and composer Joe Hisaishi back for part 2, the game’s aesthetics will be the main highlight in this Level-5 designed RPG. Out March 23.
Metro: Exodus (PS4, Xbox One, PC)

Basically the sequel to Metro: Last Light. The heroes from the last game leave Moscow to explore new, and possibly dangerous, territories to expand and continue surviving.
Fe (PC, Xbox One, PS4)

A pretty indie game from EA and developer Zoink. According to the game’s description, you climb, glide and dig your way through a dark Nordic forest and explore its living, breathing ecosystem filled with secrets, side quests and mystical creatures. Might be this year’s Journey or Ico. Out early 2018.
Fist Of The North Star/ Hokuto Ga Gotoku (PS4)

The Sega team that developed the Yakuza games will be taking the helm in this action adventure based on the hit 80s post-apocalyptic anime/manga about a badass named Kenshiro and his exploits. Much like the Yakuza games, they’ll also be ass-kicking and minigames aplenty. Out March 8 in Japan, so it may be out later this year in English.
April, May, June
Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4)

The turn-based pseudo-World War II steampunk series is going back to its roots following the left turn Valkyria Revolution took last year. You control Squad E, led by captain Claude Wallace, as you pull off Operation Northern Cross to end the Second Europan War. The squad will be waylaid by snow and harsh weather conditions, which should add some interesting gameplay mechanics to challenge and/or help players.
Darksiders 3 (PS4, Xbox One, PC)

Yes, we need more action-adventure Legend of Zelda clones with edgy 90s aesthetics, please! The next Darksiders game features Fury, sister to War and Death, as she is tasked with taking down the Seven Deadly Sins using her magic and her sword whip.
We Happy Few (Xbox One, PC, PS4)

This indie survival and exploration-focused adventure game takes place in a dystopian 1960s era where the whole world’s gone mad with a drug called Joy. It’s currently on early access, and it’ll officially be out on April 13.
Jurassic World Evolution (PC, Xbox One, PS4)

It’s Theme Park plus SimCity meets dinosaurs. Build up your perfect Jurassic World theme park complete with labs, breeding centres, and randomly-generated hazards most likely involving pteranodons and other giant reptiles. Out around the same time as that new Jurassic Park film.
Metal Gear Survive (PS4, PC)

This action game will be the first Metal Gear title to be published without Hideo Kojima following the messy divorce that happened a while back in 2015. This co-op survival shooter takes place in an alternate reality where Big Boss’ military group for MGSV fight against crystallized zombie things in an unknown wasteland.
Mineko’s Night Market (PC)

An adventure game about crafting and cats. But really, you’re going to be here for the lovely-looking arts-and-crafts aesthetics and the kittehs.
Vampyr (PS4, Xbox One, PC)

Developer Dontnod Entertainment is delving into action RPG horror and the 1910s period of London as players control a doctor who is turned into a vampire, hence the creatively-spelt title. You’re presented with tough decisions as you swing back and forth between your newfound bloodlust and your Hippocratic oath.
Let’s just hope the devs learned their action gaming mistakes from Remember Me and put on a much better experience.Â Out by Q2 of this year at the latest.
July, August, September
Spider-Man (PS4)

Insomniac is going to take that awesome Sunset Overdrive game engine and make a Spider-Man game out of it. This game will also have its own in-line-with-the-comics continuity and a ton of swinging-and-parkour-and-web-slinging action. We’re guessing it’ll be out in the second half of the year.
Dreams (PS4)

Media Molecule, the folks behind the LittleBigPlanet series, will be back with their own brand of user-generated content spiel in this new adventure game. Follow an imp as he solves puzzles, traverses ephemeral landscapes, and possess various characters.
The game’s real kicker will be its community-created levels. Hopefully no phallic-shaped ones.
Another FIFA Title (PS4, Xbox One)

EA’s definitely going to release a new FIFA game, probably with new minute features, a new single-player bit, and a ton more Ultimate Team action.
Mechwarrior 5: Mercenaries (PC)

The team behind Mechwarrior Online will be creating a brand new single-player campaign. Features four-player co-op mode and tons of mechs from the Battletech franchise.
October, November, December (And The Rest)
Mega Man 11 (PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch)

Here’s a lovely surprise: a new Mega Man 2D platformer from Capcom. Features 2.5D graphics and gameplay, a slew of new Robot Masters, and game design work from Mega Man devs Koji Oda and Kazuhiro Tsuchiya. Hopefully, it won’t make you cry like an anime fan on prom night.
Anthem (PS4, Xbox One, PC)

EA and Bioware are attempting an action-adventure shooter with RPG and loot-hoarding mechanics set in a far future alien world(s). Only in this instance, they’re using the power armour hook. We’re pretty sure it’ll come out at the tail end of the year with the other triple-A blockbuster games out there.
The Last Of Us Part 2 (PS4)

Set five years after the original, this game will be played from the perspective of the first game’s heroine Ellie. Naturally, we don’t know much about the rest of the story but we can expect the same stealth-based gameplay and violent action sections from the first game.
Yoshi (Nintendo Switch)

Yoshi’s Wooly World for the Wii U was an adorable and deceptively tough platformer; a pity no one gave two effs about the console. Hopefully, with the Nintendo Switch’s success worldwide (at least outside of Southeast Asian regions), this sequel will get the love and adoration it deserves.
Catherine: Full Body (PS4)

Atlus’ puzzle game that features sheep, immoral choices and classical music remixes is getting a remastering. The devs are adding a new third character: Rin, who may or may not be a transgender if the trailer and internet reactions are any indication. Out Winter 2018.
Call Of Cthulu (PC, PS4, Xbox One)

What happens when you combine L.A Noire with In The Mountains of Madness? You get this open-world adventure game set in one of H.P. Lovecraft’s novels. With games like Resident Evil 7 and The Evil Within 2 representing the best of horror games last year, it’s high time we got some Cthulu action going.
Days Gone (PS4)

We’re not sure if we really need a new zombie-killing action game, but we do know that it looks decent so far. Plus it’s from the devs who were responsible for the Syphon Filter games.
Kingdom Hearts III (PS4, Xbox One)

Yeah, we’re pretty confident that this long-awaited action RPG featuring the Magical Kingdom and Square Enix’s universe to be out this year. With brand-new worlds and universes like Big Hero 6, Tangled, Toy Story, and Monsters Inc., this Disney & Square Enix mashup is sure to please fans who have been waiting since god-knows-how-long.
One Piece: World Seeker (PS4, Xbox One, PC)

The pirate-filled story of One Piece will finally have its first open-world action adventure game, with Luffy being the main character. Should be fun for shonen anime fans out there.
My Hero Academia: One Justice (PS4, Nintendo Switch)

As if Naruto fighting games weren’t enough, out comes this title based on the hit superhero manga/anime series about a boy trying to make it big in a superhero school without powers of his own.
Skull and Bones (PS4, Xbox One, PC)

Well, the Ubisoft Singapore team HAD to do something with that awesome naval combat engine from Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag and Assassin’s Creed: Origins, right? Point is, any new IP dealing with pirates and swashbuckling is welcome in our books. This may also be a turning point for Ubisoft Singapore if this game does well. Out late 2018.
System Shock (PC, Xbox One, PS4)

We’re not sure if we really need a System Shock remake since there are already a huge number of games that follow and improve on that template set by Doug Church, Warren Spector, & co. Still, if it means more people appreciating that classic, then go ahead.
SoulCalibur VI (PS4, Xbox One, PC)

The tale of souls, eternally retold, now told again to make amends for the fifth game. Bandai Namco is taking another stab (or slice, heh) at its 3D swords-filled fighting game franchise by going back to the past; Mitsurugi and Sophitia in that end-of-year trailer did look like their Soul Edge counterparts, don’t you think?
Also, can you guys bring back the awesome Chronicles of the Sword single-player mode from the past titles?
Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes (Nintendo Switch)

Welcome back, Travis Touchdown. We’ve missed you. The beam katana action adventure meta-narrative game is back for the third time. And if that trailer last year is of any indication, we’re in for an insane ride once more into the mind of creator Suda 51.
Phoenix Point (PC)

The team behind the original XCOM games (ie the one with Julian Gollop) will be returning to form in this new turn-based alien-killing strategy game. This game will feature adapting alien AI that also mutates into bigger aliens, as well as potential large-scale combat. As if the new XCOM games we’ve been playing weren’t emasculating enough…
BioMutant (PC, PS4, Xbox One)

An open-world action adventure game featuring kung-fu anthropomorphic animals that mutate in the environment and robots to pilot & fight? From ex-Avalanche Studios members, the same folks who did the awesome Just Cause series? Where do I sign up?
Left Alive (PS4, PC)

This Square Enix shooter features art and concepts from Metal Gear artist Yoji Shinkawa. Apart from a lot of shooting, a sci-fi world, and mechs, that’s pretty much all we know so far.
Project Octopath Traveler (Nintendo Switch)

The folks who did the Bravely Default series is turning heads with this new RPG. Featuring 2D sprites with a stylized 3D perspective and eight protagonists with their own stories and gameplay mechanics, this one is for the RPG fans who yearn for an experience akin to the SaGa games.


This MMO App Will Help You With Your World of Warcraft: Shadowlands Questing

Need an app to help keep track of your World of Warcraft questing habits? Get a helping hand from Singapore-made app QuestHog, now supporting World of Warcraft: Shadowlands.
QuestHog is a simple app/site that identifies activities for character progression in World of Warcraft. All the important stuff and notes will be in the app itself, so no need to scour the internet; it’s all conveniently in there. The app is free, though you can support the Patreon page to get an upgraded version of the app that features the following:

Discord benefits
The option to track up to 5 characters
No ads
Auto-syncs and updates as you play WoW.

The app/site will support other games like Genshin Impact in the future. For now, its key focus is on WoW and its current expansion.


The DuckTales’ Moon Theme Makes A Major Appearance In The Recent Animated Series

Remember the really awesome Moon Theme in that 1989 NES Capcom-made DuckTales game? Who didn’t, really? It’s an awesome and cheerful ditty composed by Hiroshige Tonomura using a 6502 assembly language using his colleague Yoshihiro Sakaguchi’s sound driver.
Here’s a reminder:

Here’s a bunch of guys who made awesome covers out of said theme:

And now in 2019, we have Disney using the theme in one of the episodes of the DuckTales animated series. It’s now officially called “Della’s Moon Lullaby”. It has lyrics and it’s sung during a key moment by Della Duck (voiced by actress Paget Brewster), who is the mother of Huey, Dewey, and Louie.

The scene is from the latest DuckTales episode “Whatever Happened To Della Duck?” which aired on the Disney Channel yesterday. The tune was written by Jake Kaufman, Mark Mueller, and John Smith. Jake is renowned for his many, MANY chiptune and music works, specifically for the Shantae and Mighty Switch Force series. And also the rearranging of the DuckTales NES game tunes in a remake back in 2014.
You can also hear it in the majority of the episode as Della Duck attempts to build a rocket to get out of the moon.
https://www.facebook.com/kakuchopurei/videos/617216805404751/


Apex Legends Genesis Collection Event Brings Back OG Map, Iconic Locations & New Heirloom For Revenant

The Apex Legends Genesis Collection Event kicks off on 29 June 2021 and will run until 13 July 2021.
Players can conquer the classic Kings Canyon and Worldâ€™s Edge maps in Battle Royale or fight for glory on the Skull Town Arenas map. They can also earn free rewards throughout the event, or check out event-limited offer bundles, with 24 unique cosmetics paying homage to the history of Valkyrie and the other Legends.
If you collect them all, you can get your hands curled around Revenantâ€™s new heirloom: â€œDead Manâ€™s Curveâ€.

ORIGINAL KINGS CANYON AND WORLDâ€™S EDGE RETURN

Head back to where it all started with the Legacy Maps Apex Takeover. Season 0 Kings Canyon and Season 3 Worldâ€™s Edge return for a limited time, taking over the normal Trios and Duos queues in 1-hour rotations.

Hot drop in Kings Canyon atÂ Skull TownÂ (we know you will) andÂ Thunderdome.Â Grab that sweet loot on the moving train as it barrels through a pristineÂ Capital CityÂ in the era before the Harvester landed in Worldâ€™s Edge. Show your new Apex friends the terror of rotating throughÂ BridgesÂ or the epic multi-team throwdowns inÂ Fuel Depot.
SKULL TOWN COMES TO ARENAS

This original Apex hot zone has seen a lot of combat through the years, but this is the first time we can say it hosts a fair fight. Circle the towers as Valkyrie & Pathfinder or trap up the bottom floors as Caustic & Wattson. This location offers a wide variety of tactics and plenty of mayhem.
Skull Town will be added to the Arenas rotation in one-hour increments during the Genesis Collection Event. Get in there and break some bones.
REAP SOULS WITH REVENANTâ€™S HEIRLOOM
[videopress FW4QWMuO]
Everyoneâ€™s favourite spooky murder robot has a new toy. And good golly is it sharp.

After the Genesis Collection Event ends, the Revenant Heirloom will become available via heirloom crafting.
For more details and patch notes, head on over here.


Crysis Remastered Trilogy Is Out Now

Crytek has announced that Crysis Remastered Trilogy, featuring the single-player remasters of Crysis, Crysis 2, and Crysis 3, launches today. Each legendary game in this excellent value all-in-one collection has been optimized and enhanced to play faster and better than ever before. Following the launch of Crysis Remastered last year, gamers can also buy Crysis 2 Remastered and Crysis 3 Remastered individually.
Crysis Remastered Trilogy is available for PS4 and PS5 from the PlayStation Store, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S from the Microsoft Store, Nintendo Switch from the eShop and PC from the Epic Games Store, priced at US$49.99.
Crysis 2 Remastered and Crysis 3 Remastered Launch Details
Crysis 2 Remastered and Crysis 3 Remastered are also available for individual purchase on the Epic Games Store, the PlayStation Store, the Microsoft Store, and the Nintendo Switch eShop for Nintendo Switch for US$29.99 each.
A physical retail release for Crysis 2 Remastered and Crysis 3 Remastered on Nintendo Switch will follow.
Crysis Remastered Trilogy features all the famous action-packed gameplay and thrilling battles in sandbox levels updated with improved lighting and visually enhanced characters, weapons, and environments, plus high-definition textures for crystal clear images. The remasters are optimized towards PC and next-generation consoles for substantial performance gains. For instance, the original games played at an average of 720p resolution and up to 30 FPS. The remasters for PC, Xbox Series X, and PlayStation 5 play between 1080p and 4K at up to 60 FPS for beautiful, crisp gameplay.
Crysis Remastered Trilogy includes:
Crysis Remastered:
A simple rescue mission turns into an all-out war as alien invaders swarm over the Lingshan Islands. Playing as super-soldier Nomad, you are armed with a powerful Nanosuit equipped with Speed, Strength, Armor, and Cloaking abilities. Use a vast arsenal of modular weaponry and adapt your tactics and gear to dominate enemies in an enormous sandbox world.
Crysis 2 Remastered:
Aliens have returned to a world ravaged by climate disasters. As the invaders lay waste to New York and begin an assault that threatens the total annihilation of humankind, only you have the technology to lead the fightback. Equipped with the upgraded Nanosuit 2.0, customize your suit and weapons in real-time and unlock powerful abilities in the battle for humanity’s survival.
Crysis 3 Remastered:
New York City has been transformed into a sprawling urban rainforest sheltered by a giant nanodome. Fight through seven distinct districts against human and alien forces, using the Nanosuit’s superior technology to deploy brute force or opting for stealth to achieve your goals. Equipped with a deadly Predator Bow, there’s no wrong way to save the world.


New Boundary Trailer Shows Off Some Astronaut Warfare

I remember being incredibly disappointed by Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare‘s multiplayer reveal, thinking that it was essentially a Black Ops 3 reskin. Boundary, with its zero-g FPS combat, looks like the better Call-of-Duty-in-space multiplayer experience.

I can’t say that for sure until I’ve tried it myself (it’s PS4-exclusive though, so I guess it’ll never happen), but Boundary, with its new Orbital Security Detail trailer, does look fun with its zero-g movement. Floating outside Talos 1 in Prey was quite the experience, and I assume that Boundary deliver a similar high, albeit in aÂ multiplayer environment and with more guns.
The “Space Shooter” will be out on PS4 sometime in 2020. Interestingly, it’s made by a Chinese indie studio.


Want To See A Celeste Speed Run Using Dance Pads? Check Out Awesome Games Done Quick 2021

Speedrunning for charity returns in 2021, and we’ve got quite a doozy of games and features for next year’s Awesome Games Done Quick marathon.
The livestream event is taking place from 3rd to 10th January PST. Highlights from the upcoming event include:

A Celeste speedrun by PeekingBoo using a dance pad. We’re dead serious; that is going to happen.
A Hades all weapons run.
All-goals-and-golds 20-minute run of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2.Â
Beat Saber Expert+ Showcase, the game every Malaysian streamer is messing around with.
A 25-minute BPM: Bullets Per Minute run.
A Dishonored 2 35-minute run with Corvo and another 35-minutes with Emily.
A trio of Ghostbusters (Megadrive) individual character runs with Ray, Peter, and Egon.
Two Ori and the Will of the Wisps 1-hour+ speedruns.

There’s a lot more; I’m sure you’ll find a favourite or two here. Since this is done for charity, do make it a priority to donate while these awesome folks are finishing games super-quick for your entertainment.


Yep, That Is The Abomination Fighting Wong In The Shang-Chi Trailer

Marvel chief Kevin Feige talked a bit about the Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings trailer on a Rotten Tomatoes interview. He confirmed that in the last bits of the trailer, Hulk’s The Abomination is fighting against Dr. Strange’s Wong.

Feige talked about how much he loved bringing back Abomination from 2008’s The Incredible Hulk film, which was part of the MCU in case you forget.
“[It’s] a fun thing to have a character that we havenâ€™t had on screen in over a decade show up again in the MCU. And to see fans on that little tag of the trailer recognize that and embrace that is great fun.”
In MCU lore, The Abomination is a mutated Captain Emil Blonsky who was given a variant of the Super Soldier Serum and a last-minute dose of Hulk’s blood. Guess he didn’t die in the Hulk film after all.
Feige also talked about MCU Phase 1 and the addition of the Ten Rings organization in the Shang-Chi film.
“[G]oing back to Iron Man: Weâ€™ve been talking about that when we do bring this character to the screen, [we] only wanted to do it when we felt we could do it supreme justice and really showcase the complexity of this character, which frankly we couldnâ€™t do in an Iron Man movie because an Iron Man movie is about Iron Man; an Iron Man movie is about Tony Stark.
So [Iron Man 3 director] Shane Black, in his film and his script that he co-wrote, came up with this fun twist that we love to this day, and it turned out to be Trevor Slattery. Just because that version wasnâ€™t real didnâ€™t mean thereâ€™s not a leader of the Ten Rings organization, and that is who we meet for the first time in Shang-Chi.”
So why is Abomination fighting Wong in a cage match? We’ll find out in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings later this September in theaters.


Check Out These Brutal Discounts On The Steam Quakecon Sale

It’s that time of the year where PC gamers bring their own computers to Texas for Quakecon. The four-day convention will consists of tournaments, keynote presentations, and more. In conjunction with the event, Steam is having a Quakecon sale that’s full of great games at great prices.
Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus

Price: RM78.20
No other game franchise does Nazi-killing better than Wolfenstein and The New Colossus is one of the best Nazi-killing games out there. This time, you fight on American soil. Step once more into the shoes of BJ Blackowicz to rally the resistance and liberate America from the clutches of the Nazis. Often hailed as one of the best shooters of 2017, The New Colossus will not disappoint you as you stab, shoot, and kill Nazis with its impressive array of weapons.
Dishonored

Price: RM7.90
I’m a big fan of stealth games and when I got to play Dishonored, it was like meeting an old friend. The level design and wide selection of weapons, tools, and skills made the game one of the best games I ever played in 2012. Summon a horde of rats to eat away at your enemies, blink between corners to stay out of sight, use whale oil to set fires as either distractions or traps. If you love having the freedom of carrying a mission however you want, Dishonored is the game for you.
Doom

Price: RM26.07
It’s simple really. A portal to Hell has opened. Demons are pouring out and if nobody stops them, they’ll kill everyone and everything.Â  You are the lone DOOM Marine activated for one purpose and one purpose only – kill all demons.
This is one of those no-fluff-just-fun games, in my opinion. You enter a level, kill all the demons, and then get yourself a keycard or whatever so that you can proceed to the next level. The gunplay and fast movement make this more than just a “rinse and repeat” shooter. As some fans would say: It’s like a metal album come to life.
Fallout New Vegas – Ultimate Edition

Price: RM9.50
Forget Fallout 3 and Fallout 4. If you want an actually good modern Fallout RPG, this is it. Your stats and choices actually matter. Decided to sacrifice most of your combat abilities to be a smooth-talker charismatic type? No worries, you can persuade people to get better quest rewards which includes better gear.
The game puts you in the shoes of an unnamed courier. You’re basically a nobody. For an RPG fan like myself, that’s exactly what I want. It allows you to make your own backstory and actually roleplay as a character that you want to be. The shooting mechanics are a bit wonky at times but overall, this is a great RPG.
And There’s More…
Prey – RM23.70
TESV Skyrim: Special Edition – RM52.14
The Evil Within 2 – RM59.24
Fallout 4 GOTY – RM59.24
The Elder Scrolls Online – RM39.49


Grammarian Ltd Will Make You Realize You Have Bad Grammar In A Grammar Nazi World

Grammarian Ltd is a game that could humble most people who thought they had a perfect grasp on grammar. Although its premise is really bizarre and specific, seriously niche doesn’t even cut it for this game, it does a pretty respectable job at educating despite the boring gameplay loop.
Grammarian Ltd is set in a fictional world where the grammar-n*zis have won and society is entirely obsessed with perfect grammar. Thanks to a system that a revolutionary professor created, society has apparently flourished through grammar validation agencies. Your player character, barely scraping by, manages to land a job at the professor’s agency and that’s where the game starts off.
Watch Your Words
What you’ll be doing mostly is completing assignments for the day in your cubicle, tasked with correcting and sprucing up emails from random people. You’ll go from folks talking about cats and dogs to people discussing lawsuits and offshore accounts.
How the core gameplay works is by clicking on words for the given assignment. Sometimes they’ll have you look for nouns, which can evolve into looking for and correcting irregular nouns, compound nouns, collective nouns and more. And that’s just for nouns alone. The core gameplay loop trickles down to just clicking on the words you’re looking for and sometimes having to choose the right correction.

For example, when looking for nouns you’ll simply click on the many words like cat, dog, etc. with the game telling you how many more you’re missing. Sometimes you’ll have to correct pronouns, turning an incorrect him to a her because misgendering isn’t cool, man.
This can get extremely tedious pretty quickly, not to mention the boatload of grammar concepts the game throws at you makes things get overwhelming sometimes. You have a manual with all the concepts taught you can pull up at any time but each explanation is a full textbook’s page. There will be a lot of text to read through, both in game and for the tutorials, but most of it are concepts that you probably already know and use on a daily basis. It still doesn’t change how much of a slog the game is though, so it’s best to play this title in short spurts.
I have to give the game some credit though: some portions of the game were tough and had me feeling pretty embarrassed at my own grammar. You learn something new every day, it seems.
Get That Bread
When you’re not clicking on words, the game turns into a life sim when you clock out, taking you to your room. From here you’ll be able to customize your dingy apartment into something fancier as you progress, with the game’s main motivation in getting better stuff for your home. Many of these items have additional bonuses that can help you work better. Coffee machines and beds allow you to recharge more energy when you sleep, or decorations and furniture that increase your mood.

Grammar validation is apparently a competitive field and you’ll have to battle other candidates in promotion battles. This event all comes down to the same gameplay loop, just now you have an AI racing against you. Win the duel and you get a promotion with a hefty raise, which you’ll need to survive in this totalitarian police state. I mean seriously, things in this game are hilariously overpriced. It costs $85 for a murtabak.

Heard You Had A Bad Day
This brings us to the Mood System the game implements. The game has a meter you’ll need to keep topped up, which is your Mood. It’s signified by five smiley faces and dictates how productive you are. Turn those smiles into frowns and your player character runs the risk of procrastinating, which is an event that can trigger randomly when your mood is low enough.
This event makes your timer meter drop rapidly, and you’ll be given a funny prompt telling you you’ve been doom scrolling on your phone for 2 hours or something. This means you have less time to finish your tasks for the day and can be a pretty pressuring albeit cheap way of providing challenge.
Every misclick reduces your mood and this incentivizes the player to not simply spam click on everything to get by, unless you run the risk of procrastinating. You’ll need to rely on items such as food and your home decor to improve your mood and keep you at a top productive state. Factors such as how you commute come into play as well, as walking may be free but will use 25% of your energy and reduce your mood.

Your character’s having a bad day? Why not take the train so you don’t tire out and improve your mood. Feeling grumpy? Go scoff down some murtabak you’ll feel better. Sure, you’ll have to spend some money but sometimes you gotta treat yourself. The game makes you juggle many things in this way and although it feels menial, I have to say it’s endearingly realistic.
Although the game had my eyes glazed over from boredom, at least I know my whos and my whoms now. This game won’t get people away from Elden Ring but I’m sure there’s a linguist or some language enthusiast out there that is bound to get a kick outta this. Grammarian Ltd. will be out on 20th April for PC (Steam).


Indonesia Game Companies Need To Register With Local Government [Update]: Steam, Epic Games, PayPal Banned In Country

[Updated August 2 2022]
Game services such as Steam, Epic Games and PayPal are now accessible in Indonesia, according to the Indonesian Ministry of Communication and Information (Kominfo) through an announcement on its Twitter account.

Halo SobatKom! Berikut ini update status terkini mengenai Pendaftaran Penyelenggara Sistem Elektronik (PSE) pada beberapa PSE Lingkup Privat meliputi PayPal, Valve Corp, dan Yahoo.#BersamaKominfo #KitaMakinTahu #PSE pic.twitter.com/h6formwHsR
— Kementerian Kominfo (@kemkominfo) August 2, 2022

At time of writing, the following services; PayPal, Valve and Yahoo! are now accessible to its users. However, at time of writing, no news on Epic Games’ return. We’ll keep a lookout on that one.
[Original report below]
Game companies in Indonesia and internet services companies like Steam, Epic Games, and PayPal will need to go through additional legal hurdles to stay operational in the country.
Now, they have to formally register with the government to do business in the country according to a Niko Partners report. Game companies registered in Indonesia need to adhere to the Private Electronic System Providers regulation set by the government (Penyelenggara Sistem Elektronik Swasta, or PSE). These include PC games, console games, and mobile games. Ditto for international companies that have services in Indonesia.
All these companies will need to register on the PSE website, otherwise, the companies will have their access terminated in the country. Anyone trying to access their online services will be met with this friendly red message:

Already at this point in time, the Indonesian government are starting to block access to Steam, Epic Games, and PayPal (among others) who failed to register into the Electronic Services Operator registry before 29 July 2022 (thanks Toge Productions’ Kris Antoni & Niko Partners Daniel Ahmad).

As of today, Indonesian government has started blocking access to @Steam, @EpicGames, @Paypal, and other internet services that failed to register into their “Electronic Services Operator” registry before 29 July 2022 pic.twitter.com/CemMZI5tQw
— Kris Antoni – Toge Productions (@kerissakti) July 29, 2022

Companies that failed to register with Kominfo are now being blocked in Indonesia.
This includes services such as Steam, Epic Games, Paypal etc…
Will update when there is a greater clarity from these platforms or the govt on next steps https://t.co/vtxWjDCC57
— Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) July 29, 2022

Is This Good Or Bad?
It might be a double-edged sword. On one hand, these companies need to hand over user information to the Indonesian Government, which could mean companies can get lawsuits thrown at them if they’re found to be disturbing public order within Indonesia. However, there isn’t any content-screening of any kind from the PSE. The move can also see more fair taxation of foreign entities in the country.
Indonesia is arguably the biggest market for gaming, with titles like Mobile Legends and Free Fire being the top games being played in the country. This is because they’re free and are readily available on mobile with little barrier to entry. This PSE move is pulled off so that the local government can regulate these companies properly and keep tabs on them, and also get some tax money on the side.
[Update: 30/7/2022] It’s really bad, as the ban just happened without warning to international developers and game portals who aren’t aware. This is detrimental for game publishers and developers who have already registered with the Indonesian government and have games coming out in the next week or so. Indonesian content creators (esports, media, and so forth) who rely on PayPal for their earnings are also getting screwed.

We just announced two of our games coming to Steam yesterday, and today @kemkominfo blocked all access to game portals, saying it has "negative content" that goes against Indonesia's regulations. https://t.co/HEBiAT4RTi
— Sarah Johana ? Wishlist @VanarisTactics! (@sarahhana) July 30, 2022

I am beyond disappointed by how stupid indo gov is. Not only they blocked Steam, they also blocked Paypal. We’re going to release 2 games next week and they blocked the whole industry off. My friends who are relying on Paypal to receive their payment are greatly affected by this.
— Lala ? (@syahlalala_) July 30, 2022

Kris Antoni from Toge Productions told Kakuchopurei that the company is currently connecting Valve with the Indonesian government, and hopes that the situation can be resolved soon.
[Update: 31/7/2022]: The Indonesian government has confirmed that Valve is in the process of submitting its registration. The government body Komifo has apologized to the many impacted by the block in the country, but stated that the move was forced due to non-compliance. As of right now, PayPal will be unblocked for 5 days to allow people to manage and withdraw their money.

Indonesian gov official says that Valve (Steam, CSGO, Dota2) is in the process of submitting their registration.https://t.co/pUgUzR8pKb
— Kris Antoni – Toge Productions (@kerissakti) July 31, 2022

This story is still in development…


[Rumour] Street Fighter 6 Delayed Due To Yoshinori Ono’s Bad Decisions

It’s nice to know that Street Fighter 5 is still going strong and is getting one final seasonal push. But there seems to be rumours that
According to insider Dusk Golem (via Twitter), the Season V pass for SF5 was considered an unexpected development and was introduced at the “last minute” as a way to buy additional time for Street Fighter 6’s development. See, Street Fighter 6 was supposed to release next year to capitalize on next-gen consoles. However, it wasn’t received well internally by designers and testers. The game had too much focus on its new team mechanic, which wasn’t the point of a Street Fighter title.
Since this decision was made by Capcom producer Yoshinori Ono, it was essentially his fault and was demoted and was replaced by a new producer named Midora Yuasa. She was reportedly well-known in the fighting game community and has some great ideas to fix Street Fighter 6.
You can read the entire Twitter thread here, with even popular fighting game content creator Maximillian chiming in. Long story short: Street Fighter 6 won’t be out for a while, Street Fighter 5’s Season V is goingto be the highlight for next year, and Yoshinori Ono is paying for this delay.
Again, take this with a pinch of salt since it’s still part of the Capcom rumour mill. But then again, a lot of things in Street Fighter 5’s tumultuous start are beginning to make a lot of sense. Hopefully, Capcom’s fighting game division is in better hands.


Netflix 2023 Chinese New Year Collection Features Malaysian Artist’s Papercut Artwork

In the spirit of togetherness and to mark the launch of Netflix’s 2023 Lunar New Year collection, Malaysian paper-cutting artist Eten Teo has created an intricate piece highlighting a family’s Chinese New Year celebrations.
Teo’s papercut piece marks the first time a physical artwork is digitised to be featured on a local moment on Netflix — a specially-curated collection of titles that celebrates seasonal moments or social events that are important to local audiences. In addition to Malaysia, Teo’s artwork will also be spotlighted on the Netflix platform in Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Vietnam.
Spot the children writing couplets while watching their favourite show on Netflix, mum trying to balance her tray as she tries to stop the lion kitty from lunging at the TV, and more familiar CNY celebration scenes in the artwork.

The piece, which took Teo a week to complete, revolves around the word ? (fú, meaning “fortune” or “good luck”) and is meant to represent the blessings and happiness surrounding the festivities. He also put some of his fondest memories onto paper with his latest work, as some of the scenes are directly inspired by his personal childhood experiences celebrating Chinese New Year with his family.
“Every CNY, the adults at home will be busy with the required preparations, and children will write couplets to decorate the home. As a child, I was the one helping to decorate and arrange the decorations. Although my family can be a bit chaotic, it is actually a very warm scene. Getting together for the new year is a very happy occasion for me,” he said.
Teo also considers the piece as a milestone in his craft, as it is “different from (his) previous style of work”. Further elaborating on his process, he said, “It is not the most neat and perfect in terms of technical aspects, but it shows the different movements and expressions of each character. When it’s placed in the context of paper-cutting art, it’s a relatively new art style.”
Curious to see how the delicate piece came together? Check out this behind-the-scenes look at how the paper-cutting sifu created his highly-detailed artwork on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and Twitter.
Teo’s creation serves as the centrepiece for Netflix’s 2023 Lunar New Year slate, which showcases a curated and diverse collection of classic and new titles to the theme of A Time for Togetherness. From laugh-out-loud comedies and heartwarming family fare to action-packed blockbusters and award-winning hits, there is sure to be something for everyone.
You can head over to www.netflix.com/888 for the collection of CNY classics and fan-favourite blockbusters.

The Post-Truth World

Joseph Chang — who was nominated for Best Actor in the recent Golden Horse Awards for his role in this film — plays Liu Li-min, a floundering media personality who finds himself taken hostage by Chang Cheng-yi (Edward Chen), a former rising sports star who was jailed for murdering his girlfriend seven years ago, to escape from prison.
As public attention on Chang’s case continues to heighten, Liu takes advantage of his 15 minutes of fame to re-investigate the case, once again thrusting him into the spotlight. However, the deeper he goes into the rabbit hole, Liu soon discovers more dark secrets surrounding the case that may also involve those closest to him.
The Post-Truth World is set to premiere on 21 January.

 Warriors of Future

A passion project for Louis Koo, who stars in and is an executive producer for the movie, Warriors of Future is a rare foray into the sci-fi genre and sets a new benchmark for Hong Kong cinema with its cutting-edge special effects.
The post-apocalyptic blockbuster, which also stars Sean Lau and Carina Lau, pits man against nature when a meteorite carrying a destructive plant crashes down on an already-barren Earth. To protect their city, an elite suicide squad is deployed to destroy the plant… only to uncover a bigger conspiracy.

Wish Dragon

Colourful and quirky, Wish Dragon is a charming and feel-good pick that will delight both the young and old.
The animated feature follows Din, a working-class college student with big dreams but small means, and Long, a cynical but all-powerful dragon capable of granting wishes, who set off on a hilarious adventure through modern-day Shanghai in pursuit of Din’s long-lost childhood friend, Lina. Their journey forces them to answer some of life’s biggest questions — because when you can wish for anything, you have to decide what really matters.
Produced by Jackie Chan, who also voices Long in the Mandarin dub, Wish Dragon features the voices of Jimmy Wong, Constance Wu, John Cho, Jimmy O. Yang, Ronny Chieng, and more.

Over the Moon

A human-bunny team-up for the Year of the Rabbit? We love to see it!
A resourceful and ambitious Fei Fei (voiced by Cathy Ang) takes her pet rabbit Bungee on a ride to space when she builds a rocket to the moon, where she ends up on an unexpected quest and discovers a whimsical land of fantastical creatures. Directed by animation legend Glen Keane in his feature directorial debut, the Oscar-nominated musical adventure also stars the voices of Phillipa Soo, Ken Jeong, John Cho, Ruthie Ann Miles, Margaret Cho, and Sandra Oh.

Love Between Fairy and Devil

Fantasy romance series Love Between Fairy and Devil is inarguably the buzziest C-drama of 2022, with all the makings of a drama lover’s dream — forbidden romance and body swap hijinks with a dash of reincarnation lore.
Based on the novel of the same name, the series centres on a low-ranked fairy (Esther Yu) and a powerful demon (Dylan Wu) whose fates become cosmically entangled when she accidentally frees him from a magical tower that he has been cursed and imprisoned in for thousands of years.
Much praise has been heaped upon the series’ artistic achievements, namely the ethereal landscapes, intricate costumes, and jaw-dropping visual effects. Fans were also mightily impressed with leading lady Esther Yu for displaying incredible range by portraying three characters in the series.

Nice View

Heartwarming and inspiring, Nice View will likely bring some tears to your eyes.
Directed by Wen Muye, who won two Golden Horse Awards for his feature film debut Dying to Survive in 2018, the comedy-drama follows young cell phone repairman Jing Hao (played by Jackson Yee) who takes part in a risky business venture in hopes of raising funds to pay for his sister’s expensive surgery. However, an unexpected setback leads to little to no way out for Jing Hao and with the clock ticking against his sister’s favour, he decides to take one last desperate gamble to turn things around.

Mom, Don’t Do That!

In this refreshing and cheeky take of mother-daughter relationships and life after the loss of a loved one, acclaimed Taiwanese entertainer Billie Wang plays Wang Mei-mei, a 60-something widow who decides to venture into the exciting world of online dating, much to the horror of her two adult daughters, who are both dealing with their own romantic woes.
Plus, here’s a fun fact — the dramedy series is based on the popular Taiwanese novel ‘My Mother’s Exotic Marriage’, which in turn is inspired by a true story!

Fat Choi Spirit

A CNY watchlist would not be complete without a movie centred around a quintessential festive activity — mahjong!
In this ‘00s classic, Andy Lau stars as a compulsive mahjong player who was disowned by his family for racking up debts due to his gambling habit. In the years since, he’s seemingly enjoying a string of good luck and became rather well off after meeting his girlfriend (Gigi Leung) i.e. his good luck charm. Seeing a chance to win back his family’s trust, he offers to take care of his financially-strapped brother (Louis Koo) and ageing mother. Little did he know, trouble brews ahead when his brother gets involved with a devious mahjong player (Sean Lau).


Netflix’s Resident Evil Infinite Darkness Announces Voice Cast

Leon S. Kennedy will be voiced by Nick Apostolides, and Claire Redfield will be voiced by Stephanie Panisello, well known to fans as the voice actors from the Resident Evil 2 Remake from 2019 (check out my review here).
Known as the gold standard of survival horror games with over 100 million units shipped worldwide, Resident Evil is coming to Netflix for the year of its 25th anniversary. The original CG anime series, Resident Evil Infinite Darkness, will launch exclusively on Netflix later this year.Â
The new anime series will be produced and supervised by Capcom’s Hiroyuki Kobayashi, who has been responsible for bringing numerous titles in the Resident Evil series to life. TMS Entertainment, which has birthed various anime series like Lupin The 3rd and Detective Conan, is leading production, with Quebico, led by Kei Miyamoto (Resident Evil Vendetta), in charge of 3DCG animation.Â
In the new teaser art, Leon S. Kennedy is pictured in a suit, a first for the Resident Evil series, holding a gun with a serious expression. Meanwhile, Claire Redfield is searching for something with a flashlight in one hand. This teaser art gives a glimpse of Leon and Claire in action, while a horde of zombies are headed towards one of the major sites of the series: the White House.

The new stills of Leon and Claire show their coincidental reunion at the White House.

In 2006, there were traces of improper access to secret Presidential files found in the White Houseâ€™s network. American federal agent Leon S. Kennedy is among the group invited to the White House to investigate this incident, but when the lights suddenly go out, Leon and the SWAT team are forced to take down a horde of mysterious zombies.Â
Meanwhile, TerraSave staff member Claire Redfield encounters a mysterious image drawn by a youth in a country she visited, while providing support to refugees. Haunted by this drawing, which appears to be a victim of viral infection, Claire starts her own investigation. The next morning, Claire visits the White House to request the construction of a welfare facility. There, she has a chance reunion with Leon and uses the opportunity to show him the boyâ€™s drawing. Leon seems to realise some sort of connection between the zombie outbreak at the White House and the strange drawing, but he tells Claire that there is no relation and leaves. In time, these two zombie outbreaks in distant countries lead to events that shake the nation to its very core.


Control Is Getting Photo Mode & Motion Blur Toggle In Future Updates

Remedy Entertainment has revealed their post-launch content plans for Control in a recent community news post. The next Control update is now slated to arrive sometime in mid or late September.
The next Control update will add a motion blur and film grain toggle, which will allow players to turn off the motion blur and film grain effects if they so choose. This will arrive on all platforms.
In future updates, Remedy plans to fix the map loading issue, which prevents the map from loading properly and often causes the game to lag horribly when viewing the map on-screen during gameplay.
In addition, many players have suffered from performance problems on the PS4 and Xbox One, especially when the action gets frantic in combat. The developer is looking to address the issue, and will seek to improve console optimization in future updates, but admits that it will take some time.
Remedy also confirms that the game will not feature the option for HDR visuals, due partly to limited resources and the fact that they want to focus on other free content like a Photo Mode in Control.
As you can see, Remedy plans to support the game well into the future. That’s good news, seeing as Control is one of the best gaming experiences in 2019 so far, and potentially even a GOTY candidate.
In the meantime, check out our review of Control here to find out why the game is so well-praised.Â Control is now available for the PC (exclusively via the Epic Games Store), PS4, and Xbox One.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PT5yMfC9LQM&w=560&h=315]


The Catchy Chiptunes Behind Shantae & WayForward’s Platformers

Happy birthday, Shantae for the Game Boy Color!
On this episode of music video mixtape feature SoundScape, we check out the synth works of composer Jake “virt” Kaufman, known for his soundtracks for WayForward titles and indie platformers.

If you love the samples & mixtape content here, you’ll love what he has in store on his Bandcamp page.


What To Expect From This Year’s Game Awards Show

Remember the Game Awards with former Game Trailers host and Hideo Kojima best bud Geoff Keighley? Well, his annual Game Awards show’s making this year’s round on 6 December.
This time, the show boasts the following:

It’ll be live-streamed on 40 global video platforms on the date.
It will feature the “largest lineup of new game announcements in show history”, which translates to “we now have a lot of ad revenue for our show”.
Not that we’re complaining: new trailers and game announcements are nice.

Worlds Will Change. Will You? #TheGameAwards will stream live on 40 global video platforms on Thursday, December 6. Watch it everyone, with the largest lineup of new game announcements in show history. pic.twitter.com/At1nWSA6xm
— The Game Awards (@thegameawards) November 9, 2018

Expect pre-show leaks and more Hideo Kojima/Death Stranding back-patting for this show, because we don’t know what else is in store. And now, let’s fill up the rest of the article with…
The Best Game Awards Moments So Far
Thanks for the memories, Geoff Keighley! Let’s start off with the most recent one: Josef Fares goes off the rails and has some colourful things to say about the Oscars.

And then there’s that orchestra just before the GOTY announcement that combines the leit motifs for all of the nominees. “Jump Up, Superstar” never sounded so alluring…

When the new Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild DLC was announced, director Eiji Aonuma came down, took out the Master Sword from the stone, and swung it like a boss.

If you want to see last year’s “highlights”, look no further than TeraJK’s supercut.

There’s that Doom OST performance by Mick Gordon. God bless his shredding skills.

There was also that one time in the Game Awards 2015 that Konami banned Hideo Kojima from receiving any awards for Metal Gear Solid V: Phantom Pain. The audience did not take this lightly.

What were your favourite moments? Are you looking forward to this year’s Game Awards showcase?


Overwatch Is Free to Play This Weekend

Calling prospective Agents of Overwatch.
The Overwatch Free Weekend event returns this weekend, from the 16th-19th February 2018 for all platforms (PC, Xbox One, PS4) in all regions.
So what’s in store? Well – the whole game, essentially. Those who does not own the game will be able to try out the whole shebang with access to all modes, characters and progression which will carry forward in case they decide to purchase the game following the weekend trial.
So let’s get down to the details:
When?
Folks in the Asian region will get to play the game from 3am on 17th of February 2018.
What’s in Store?
The whole thing. It’s basically free access to the whole game for the duration of the weekend for anyone who hasn’t yet owned it.
How do I get it?Â
PC: Download the Blizzard app, sign in and download the game from the 16th onwards (17th for Asia) Feb and you are good to go!
PS4: Search for Overwatch in the search menu and click on the “Overwatch Free Weekend”. Pre-loading is available starting today
Xbox One: Search for Overwatch and click on the “Free Trial” button. Same like for the PS4, pre-loading is available starting today.
All progress, achievements, trophies and most importantly, lootbox items will carry on if you so decide to purchase the full game. It’s a great time to hop in as well, since you stand to get awesome Year of the Dog Lunar Event skins during the duration of the free weekend.
Free trial ends on the 20th Feb 2018 7:59am (Feb 19 11:59pm PT).
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwFu8kEsUW4&w=560&h=315]
Overwatch is a team-based, hero shooter where players battle each other to complete specific objectives across 16 different maps. There are currently 26 heroes to choose from, each unique with their own personalities, traits and abilities. Developed by Blizzard, Overwatch is what came out of the failed ‘Project Titan’ and takes inspiration from classic team-based shooters in the past, most notably Team Fortress.
Full details here at Blizzard’s official site.


Will Samurai Shodown Have A Landmark Showing In EVO 2019?

As with any game starting out its esports journey, you can’t help but feel skeptical for a competitive title you love even if it’s the best thing out there. I feel the same way with the 2019 iteration of Samurai Shodown.
Sure, its single-player features are basic, but its core fighting mechanic is simple-yet-satisfying, rewarding players with swift & quick wins with well-timed counters and big damage. The game’s aesthetics and “simplified” inputs help matters too.
So What’s The Problem?
With all of that, you would think that having main stage presence at EVO 2019, arguably the biggest fighting game tournament on the planet, would cement the game for further recognition for months and years to come. That may not be the case if the top 8 of the tournament looks like this tweet:

SAMURAI SHODOWN – SNK Official Tournament1.@panpi_na (Genjuro)2.Pugera @pgr_pgr_ (Genjuro)3.@senaru865583 (Yoshitora)3.MakoKujira @G_Coba (Genjuro)5.@harumy0410 (Genjuro)5.@kazunoko0215 (Haohmaru)5.KASHIYAMA eda (Genjuro)5.@Mjima1022 (Genjuro) pic.twitter.com/kTqXQxOTmT
— HiFight(??????) (@HiFightTH) July 27, 2019

As you can tell, your top 8 is filled up mostly with one character: Genjuro. As it stands, he’s a top-tier character with a set of great moves, mixups, and decent damage output for a guy of his stature. Sure, other characters like Yoshitora, Haohmaru, Tam Tam, Galford, and Charlotte are also on the list, but you can’t deny the prevalence of the red-haired samurai being exploited by top players.
Compared to other titles like Tekken and Street Fighter, Samurai Shodown is not as recognizable to the mainstream audience. If the top 8 for EVO 2019 is filled with mirror matches of Genjuro, people will get bored of it. Professionals and commentators will also bring up the lack of balance in the fighting game.
What Can Be Done?
This is a grand finals I’d rather see…
SNK will need to release major updates in the near future to make the roster more balanced for one. Since it’s too late to do any major tournament updates leading to EVO, this is the best they can do. Colour commentary can help in hyping up the game and its methodical-yet-tense pacing. If we have an expert from the SSV Special side of things paired up with an FGC all-rounder commentator like James Chen, we can get a mix of insight and hype in the grand finals.
Of course, let’s also factor in that EVO 2019 will be attended by every single pro player on the planet. That means Samurai Shodown will have a slew of Japanese, Korean, European, and American players who have studied and played through the roster while sticking to their mains. At this point in time, players should be accustomed to the game’s plethora of defence options like parries, dodging, and even weapon-catching if they’re unarmed.
Compared to other fighting game titles, Samurai Shodown lets you take huge risks for huge rewards if you know how to read your opponent. The best players will show viewers what a high-level 2D weapons-based fighting game is like; footsies-oriented, well-timed blows and blocks, and quick turnarounds and comebacks.
Yes, we will still be seeing high-level Genjuro players, but at least pros like Justin Wong and Momochi will make the top 8 fights varied and colourful with Tam Tam’s horses*** spacing and Galford’s dog-and-ninja cross-up shenanigans respectively. So all hope is not lost.

I’m truly excited to see Samurai Shodown taking the main stage in EVO 2019; I really am. But SNK’s latest is stacked against other heavyweights with proven legacies and is a title fresh out of the water. Let’s hope we get to see more footsies and a diverse set of playstyles instead of a top 8 filled with random Houyoku Jins and Hanafuda card projectiles.


Sony & Marvel Delays Spider-Man 3, Doctor Strange 2, Spider-Verse 2 & More

Sony Pictures and Disney have announced yet more movie delays due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. The sequel to 2019’s Spider-Man: Far From Home has been pushed to 5 November 2021 from its original 16 July 2021 release date, while Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness has been delayed to 25 March 2022, instead of 5 November 2021.
Meanwhile, the sequel to 2018’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is now opening on 7 October 2022 instead of 8 April 2022. Thor: Love and Thunder will now be releasing a week earlier on 11 February 2022.
Other Sony movies that have been delayed include (via Deadline):

Sony Pictures Animation’s Connected – 23 October 2020 (Original Release Date: 18 September 2020)
Escape Room 2 – 1 January 2021 (Original Release Date: 30 December 2020)
Fatherhood – 2 April 2 2021 (Original Release Date: 23 October 2020)
Sony Pictures Animationâ€™s Vivo – 4 June 2021 (Original Release Date: 16 April 2021)
Tom Holland pic Uncharted – 16 July 2021 (Original Release Date: 8 October 2021)
Hotel Transylvania 4 – 6 August 2021 (Original Release Date: 22 December 2021)
Man From Toronto – 17 September 2021 (Original Release Date: 20 November 2020)
The Nightingale – TBD (Original Release Date: 25 December 2020)


Activision Blizzard Lifts COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate

According to reports by Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier and ABK Worker’s Alliance’s Jessica Gonzalez, Activision Blizzard Chief Administrative Officer Brian Bulatao has informed all employees of the company that they are removing the mandate for employees to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, and wants them to start working at the office again soon.
What this means is that those who work at Activision Blizzard will no longer have to be vaccinated to be able to work at the office. This translates to a big health hazard for everyone working there, especially since Activision Blizzard now apparently wants them to stop working remotely and start working at the office again.

The email also suggests that most Activision Blizzard employees will soon be asked to return to their offices on a regular basis, although I'm aware of several who have made arrangements to permanently work from their homes so the company is making exceptions
— Jason Schreier (@jasonschreier) March 31, 2022

LEAKED: Brian Bulatao emailed all of ABK to talk returning to office in June. They will not be enforcing proof of vaccination. I’m sure the ‘benefits’ of in person collaboration is actually so employees organizing can be followed and monitored closely. Do not die for this company pic.twitter.com/MSOwWVYBR3
— Jessica Gonzalez??? (@_TechJess) March 31, 2022

Check out the full email sent by Activision Blizzard Chief Administrative Officer Brian Bulatao to all employees below:
March 31, 2022
Bcc: U.S. employees
Everyone, As conditions improve and we prepare to welcome more of you back to our offices, I’d like to share an update regarding our vaccine policy. Effective immediately, we are lifting our vaccine mandate for all U.S. employees. This means that employees no longer need to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 in order to return to the office.
Over the past several weeks, we’ve seen businesses and other indoor venues across the U.S. lift vaccine requirements, and we feel it is important to align our site protocols with local guidance. While this change in policy addresses our current state in the pandemic, we know the situation is ever-evolving and we will continue to monitor the risks for COVID-19 in all areas where we operate. I encourage you to review these FAQs, which should help answer your questions.
Although proof of vaccination is no longer required to return to the office, we ask that you continue to confirm your vaccination status in Workday by following this link. Having this information readily available will allow us to act quickly – and pivot if necessary – if we see a future spike in cases.
We recognize that returning to the office looks different across our business units and even within our business units. We also recognize that different sites are in various stages of return. While this change may not have an immediate impact on those who are still working remotely, we wanted to communicate this now so that you have sufficient time to prepare.
Over the next few weeks, you’ll receive additional updates on what returning to the office looks like from your Business Unit or Site Leader. While we look forward to your return, we recognize you may have personal circumstances you’d like to discuss with your manager and HRBP.
As we define what the future of work looks like, I want to remind us all of the benefits of in-person collaboration. In order to ensure we all have a safe workspace where we can gather with colleagues and innovate together, it is essential we stay committed to protecting ourselves and others.
Thank you for your continued patience and understanding during this time.


Remember The Amalur: THQ Nordic Picks Up Kingdoms of Amalur IP

Good news for you Kingdoms of Amalur fans out there, especially our guest podcaster Nadine from the Philippines.
THQ Nordic, the guys who have the Darksiders and Timesplitters license, has purchased the rights to Kingdoms of Amalur and the cancelled MMO Project Copernicus from developer 38 Studios.Â And yes, there’s a chance that there might be a sequel as THQ Nordic will be evaluating its viability for “sequels and new content”.
You guys & gals remember Kingdom of Amalur, right? That 2012 action RPG from 38 Studios and Big Huge Games? Personally, I thought it was a huge bag of loot-hoarding fun since it put a nice spin in the Diablo action RPG-esque formula. And goddamn the chakram-tossing never gets old.
Problem was, despite the favourable reviews, the studio declared itself bankrupt after it missed a loan payment that dragged the company into a lengthy legal battle with the state of Rhode Island. Yes, an entire American state. Wasn’t game news fun 6 years ago?
In any case, let’s hope THQ Nordic finds the best action RPG devs money can find to give Amalur fans the sequel they deserve. And hopefully not put another state in a financial deficit with its production & marketing costs.


PUBG MOBILE Meets KL Gangster In Trailer Featuring Aaron Aziz & Syamsul Yusof

PUBG MOBILE has released the full trailer video of its exciting collaboration with KL Gangster, the Malaysian blockbuster film franchise. This is PUBG MOBILE’s first official collaboration with a Malaysian film.
Filmed in Petaling Street, the action-packed video stars veteran actors Syamsul Yusof and Dato’ Aaron Aziz reprising their roles as Shark and Malek. The video begins with the iconic PUBG Man taking cover behind an empty stall in the middle of a shootout against Shark’s gang.
Just as he runs out of bullets, Shark appears and challenges him to a fistfight instead. PUBG Man drops his gun, emerges from his cover and reveals he is teamed up with Malek, or as Shark says “Lengchai sudah mari maaa!”. Shark and Malek confront each other in one last showdown – perang kasi habis.
The PUBG MOBILE x KL Gangster collaboration drops on 15 July 2022 and from the looks of the trailer video, fans can anticipate that the in-game features will be just as exhilarating. Are you ready for the final showdown? Stay tuned for the full details of the collaboration soon!
For more information, visit PUBG MOBILE’s official social media pages:

Facebook: PUBG MOBILE Malaysia
Facebook: PUBG MOBILE Esports Malaysia
YouTube: PUBG MOBILE Malaysia
Instagram: @pubgmobilemyofficial

Check out the live-action trailer below with Aaron Aziz and more:


Even A Month Later, We’re Still Not Done With Tears of the Kingdom

Platform: Nintendo Switch
Genre: Nintendo-Branded Action-Adventure with Garry’s Mod
To those who played The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild back in 2017, it’s hard to imagine any other game being able to replicate the same level of immersion and freedom that the first title brought to its players. Fast forward six years later, its sequel is somehow more expansive and creative than its predecessor in almost every way.
At the point of writing this, we are 80 hours deep into The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. Having just completed the Rito and Gerudo main quests and revealed about half of the map, we feel like there’s no better place to press pause and share our thoughts so far.
In many ways, Tears of the Kingdom is exactly like Breath of the Wild — just more. The game takes place on the same map as the first game, but with a new story and unique mechanics that invites players to view this familiar world through fresh lens. The game walks the line between nostalgia and novelty masterfully; many moments bring us back to the experience of picking up Breath of the Wild for the first time, while presenting enough new discoveries and encounters to keep me excited to explore.
Three weeks down the line, we’re still finding new things to enjoy about Tears of the Kingdom every time we play it. If you’re still considering whether to get the game yourself, here are a few reasons why you should — or shouldn’t.
Its Mechanics Are Classic Nintendo Ingenuity At Its Finest

Compared to the combat-heavy Sheikah Slate abilities in Breath of the Wild, the new set of abilities takes a more tactical and crafting-heavy approach; answering the demands of many players who were already exploiting the mechanics to the fullest in the first game. The Ultrahand ability is the biggest game changer, giving players the power to combine materials and machine parts to build virtually anything into existence.
That’s where your experience with the game begins to evolve. If you’re a creative player, there is no end to the number of hours you can sink into Tears of the Kingdom. The game gives you the freedom to bring your wildest ideas to life, whether it is building an enormous laser cage or recreating a literal Metal Gear in game.
However, the game still works no matter what level of complexity you prefer. As the type of gamer who avoids sandbox and creative modes like the plague, we found ourselves pleasantly surprised by its user-friendly and intuitive design. Each ability is simple enough to pick up, but has a seemingly endless number of applications; adding layers upon layers of depth that outclasses the first game’s abilities by a long shot.
At this point, it is worth noting that Tears of the Kingdom caters to a specific type of player more than others. Those who embrace a sense of wonder and creativity will get the most out of their experience, especially considering the game is known for its flexibility and lack of linear solutions. But if you’re the type of player that prefers to stick to the straight and narrow, the game can turn into a grind-fest pretty quickly.
It’s the simple give and take of this franchise: Granting players the power to control their playthrough to this level of flexibility, also means that players can limit themselves as much as they want to. In this case, Tears of the Kingdom is nothing if you don’t ask the question, “what if?”
A Bigger Experience, Three Times To Be Precise
Although the new abilities are the shining star of the game, the addition of two new areas comes in at a close second. The Skies above the clouds and The Depths underground add whole new dimensions to gameplay, offering different types of challenges that we don’t get to experience on The Surface.
The Skies are the most sparsely populated of the three, but it pushes our engineering skills to the limit. Travelling from one Sky Island to the next is impossible using your hang glider alone, and you’ll need to build everything from vehicles to floating platforms to get to your next destination. With the threat of gravity at your feet, quite literally, this is the most exciting place to experiment with new vehicle designs.
The Depths are intimidating in scale and challenge, essentially adding a dungeon-crawling element to Tears of the Kingdom. Not only is everything pitch black down there, but damage taken is also permanent until cleansed. This area is especially unforgiving in the early portions of the game, but provides valuable resources that will help with boss fights down the line.
Having said all that, The Surface isn’t the same as we left it in Breath of the Wild either. There is plenty to be explored in the form of shrines, caves, labyrinths, and new boss fights. Although the biggest quality of life upgrade is the addition of a home base, where players can sleep, shop, cook, and upgrade Link before heading out into the wilds again.
Amidst the baffling amount of new ground to cover, Tears of the Kingdom still captures the pure joy in exploration that made its predecessor so special. Players will never run out of moments where you’ll ask yourself, “what is that in the distance?” To fans of the open-world genre, there’s no greater feeling than this.
Outgrowing The Machine It’s On

Ironically, the biggest problem we had with Tears of the Kingdom is the Nintendo Switch itself. The hardware limitations of 720P and 30FPS are hard to ignore, especially compared to the standards set by other AAA games in the market. Even with the game locked at 30FPS in both handheld and docked mode, there were multiple sections of the game where the frame rate began stuttering — most annoyingly during combat sequences.
Tears of the Kingdom is just like Breath of the Wild, but better. The sequel adds more than enough to be a completely new experience, but familiar enough to feel like coming back to an old friend. The new abilities are an absolute technical feat, adding countless hours of creativity and innovation unlike any other title in this genre — even if the hardware constraints of the Nintendo Switch leave room for improvement.

Final Score: 90/100
Full review on The Magic Rain.


Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin Adds In New Monsties This September & October

It’s the end of the month of September, which means that Capcom’s free update for its RPG spinoff game is due.
Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin will be getting free DLC in the form of new monsties for our heroes and their annoying talking cat to recruit: Molten Tigrex and Dreadking Rathalos. The DLC also brings in new co-op quests and subquests. Molten Tigrex will be available on 30th September while Dreadking Rathalos will be out on 7th October.

Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin is available now. It’s really good fun if you’re into solid JRPGs with some level of customization and party management.


DNF Duel’s Latest Patch Nerfs Swift Master Hard

Arc System Works and Neople just published the patch notes of DNF Duel’s upcoming 1.06 update. If you main Swift Master, you may want to sit down.
The update seems to be leaning towards curbing the power levels of some characters; it’s basically a bunch of nerfs at the top four most-played and most cheesed-out characters: the aforementioned Swift Master, Striker, Grappler, and Hitman. Swift Master has his kit toned down significantly, Striker’s anti-air is nerfed so that it has reduced guard stun, and the Grappler’s supposed infinite is removed. The Hitman’s Awakened passive, which is the strongest in the game since it allows for monumental comebacks, has some of its most-used moves nerfed.
Check out the DNF Duel patch notes and nerfs below:

Striker
• Rising Fist:
– Reduced guard stun after 2nd strike.

Grappler
• Magnumsault:
– Reduced time unable to tech during the Charged Effect version.

Hitman
• Bill Drill:
– Reduced guard stun after final strike.
– Increased guard pushback after final strike

Swift Master
• MP regeneration:
– Decreased MP regeneration rate.
• Wind Twist:
– Increased time needed to start MP regeneration.
– Reduced duration time.
– Increased stun time.
– Disappears when Guard Break is inflicted upon Swift Master.
• Wind Orb:
– Increased time needed to start MP regeneration.
• Storm Quaker:
– Increased time needed to start MP regeneration.
– Reduced guaranteed minimum damage
– Reduced guard gauge reduction amount.
• Storm Strike:
– Reduced guaranteed minimum damage.
• Vortex Hurricane:
– Reduced guaranteed minimum damage.
• Wind Blaster:
– Reduced guard gauge reduction amount.
– Reduced guard stun time.
– Reduced damage.
• Sonic Move:
– Reduced guard gauge reduction amount.
– Reduced white damage against opponents when guarded.
– Guard stun decreased when triggered in down-forward direction.

Expect the game’s meta to change in the coming months, meaning we won’t be seeing one-sided victories like the vid below:


F1 2021 Driver Ratings Revealed

Codemasters has announced the driver ratings for their upcoming F1 2021 game.
The ratings were calculated according to five real-world metrics:
1. ExperienceÂ – Based on the number of races a driver has competed in during their career
2. RacecraftÂ – Based on positions gained or lost in a race, compared to the average for a given grid slot
3. AwarenessÂ – A measure of the driverâ€™s ability to avoid incidents and penalties in a race
4. PaceÂ – A measure of a driverâ€™s best lap times â€“ the closer they are to the fastest lap in a race, the higher the score
5. OverallÂ – Which takes into account all of the above, calculated with a weighted average
For instance, seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton and his 2021 title rival Max Verstappen are both an incredible 95.
Check out the cards below:

Looks like Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton come out on top this season. F1 2021Â for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, Xbox One, and PC (Steam) will launch on 16 July 2021. AÂ Digital Deluxe EditionÂ is also coming earlier on 13 July 2021 with additional drivers.


Amazon Prime Video Expands Presence In Malaysia With More Local Content

Amazon Prime Video has announced its first local content slate and a localized user experience for customers in Malaysia. The new local content slate includes two Amazon Originals, That Cover Girl and Budak Flat, which will be launching later this year. The announcement underlines Prime Video’s commitment to invest in Malaysia and the creative community across Southeast Asia.
For RM25 per month, after a seven-day promotional trial, customers in Malaysia can sign-up for Prime Video and enjoy a great selection of entertainment, from local Originals and local licensed titles to global Amazon Original movies and TV series such as the critically acclaimed film AIR from Ben Affleck and the action-packed spy-thriller Citadel starring Richard Madden and Priyanka Chopra Jonas that come with Bahasa Melayu subtitles and dub.
Prime Video customers also have access to Korean content such as Tale of the Nine Tailed 1938, and Jinny’s Kitchen; anime hits such as Demon Slayer and Mashle; Bollywood Amazon Originals hits such as Mirzapur, Made in Heaven, and Farzi; and many more popular titles from Hollywood. Prime Video customers can stream, download, and watch anytime, anywhere with localized user experience available in Bahasa Melayu. Customers who prefer to enjoy their Prime Video experience in their national language can opt to switch their user interface to Bahasa Melayu from the Language option in the ‘Settings’ on their Prime Video app on compatible mobile devices, tablets, Smart TVs, or online at PrimeVideo.com.
Amazon Prime Video is also home to some of the biggest TV shows in the world, including Invincible, The Boys and The Lord Of The Rings The Rings Of Power.
David Simonsen, director Prime Video, Southeast Asia, said:
“We’re excited to bring more local content to entertain our customers in Malaysia and across Southeast Asia. With a slate of curated local content tailored for Malaysian viewers, we are committed to providing the best possible entertainment experience to local Prime Video customers.
We are delighted to bring Malaysian films and shows to not just audiences in Malaysia, but customers across the region and worldwide, and we’re always on the lookout to work with the best talent to create entertaining content that is relevant to our local audience’s diverse tastes.”
Aside from That Cover Girl and Budak Flat, coming later this year, the local content slate is supported by top titles from 2022 and 2023 Malaysian box office hits, including:

Abang Long Fadil 3 (streaming today).
Juang (streaming today).
Coast Guard Malaysia: Ops Helang (launching June 8).
Imaginur, a romance and sci-fi film featuring Beto Kusyairy and Diana Danielle (launching July 13).

Other notable titles joining the local content slate is the award-winning Woo Ming Jin’s Stone Turtle (July 27), which won the FIPRESCI Prize Award at the 2022 Locarno International Film Festival; Headhunter (launching June 29), an epic Iban movie; a family comedy movie Kelab Rojak (streaming today) with Ellya Keesha as the lead role; and Entitled (launching later this year), a drama-thriller series directed by Jason Chong. Prime video customers will also find ever-popular local Malaysian favourites such as KL Gangster, Misteri Dilaila, Leftenan Adnan, Kolumpo, Suatu Ketika, and Munafik, as well as Upin & Ipin movies and BoBoiBoy movies.
The first local Amazon Original series, That Cover Girl, is a romantic drama series about a dynamic businesswoman running a fashion empire who tries to keep her modest fashion business from being destroyed. That Cover Girl is produced by Creative Stew and directed by Kabir Bhatia, and stars Siti Saleha, Hisyam Hamid, Alicia Amin, and Aiman Hakim.
Abid Hussain, That Cover Girls’ creator and founder of Creative Stew, said:
“We’re proud to bring our original Malaysian story on strong and inspiring female characters to audiences around the world on Prime Video. Set against the backdrop of Paris and Kuala Lumpur, we want to inspire our audiences across the world on an emotional roller-coaster journey with our Malaysian heroine, as she discovers her passion, heartbreak, and self-worth.”
Budak Flat, the first local Amazon Original action film, advised by Syafiq Yusof, is directed by Eugene Lim, Woo Ming Jin, and Faizal Ishak, and produced by Skop Production, which stars Pablo Amirul, Zahiril Adzim, Nabila Huda, Aaron Aziz, Balan Kash and Yung Raja.
Producer Shamin Yusof said:
“The film explores the rivalry between two criminal brothers who find their relationship tested to a deadly conclusion when a murder triggers a gang war in their flat. It’s a uniquely Malaysian action film that we hope will find audiences across the globe on Prime Video.”
Both That Cover Girl and Budak Flat will launch on Prime Video in Malaysia and in selected territories around the world later this year. For more updates, follow Prime Video Malaysia on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, and YouTube.
You can stream anywhere, anytime at primevideo.com or download the Prime Video app on Google Play, Apple Store, and Microsoft.


This Is When Thor 4 Takes Place In The MCU

If you followed our San Diego Comic Con 2019 coverage, you’ll notice that there was a clear absence of any news concerning the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy film. Don’t worry, we didn’t overlook it. The next Guardians movie will not be in Phase Four. However, GotG Vol. 3 director James Gunn has confirmed that Thor: Love and Thunder takes place before the third GotG movie.
A few days ago, James had uploaded a picture in celebration of Avengers: Endgame becoming the highest-grossing film of all time. A fan commented on the picture and asked the following:

Seeing as how Love and Thunder will be the last film in Phase Four of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it now makes sense why we didn’t get to see Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 on that huge MCU Phase Four timeline image. I’m hoping GotG Vol. 3 will be the first movie of Phase Five.
Endgame ended with Thor following the Guardians, which is where we’re getting the “Asguardians” jokes. If the next Thor movie happens before the next Guardians movie, it would be sensible to theorize that Thor splits up with the Guardians thus allowing the Guardians to have their own movie without having Thor steal their thunder (pun intended).
The Guardian’s current biggest problem is that they need to reconcile with a Gamora that doesn’t recognize them. The new (old? wait no, past?) Gamora comes from a time where she was still loyal to Thanos and so there’s going to be a lot that she has to catch up to.


8 Years Later, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning Is Getting A Remaster

The 2012 action RPG Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning may have had a tumultuous behind-the-scenes story, but the actual game is pretty fun. 12 years later, it’s making a comeback in the form of a remaster this August.
THQ Nordic will be publishing Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning (heh) according to a listing on the Microsoft Store. This remaster will feature “stunning visuals and refined gameplay”, all of the DLC, and an 11th August release date. The remastering will be Kaiko, the studio who is also behind the Darksiders remasters and Legend of Kay: Anniversary Edition.

Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning was published by EA back in 2012, months before its developer 38 Studios folded and went bankrupt. The studio was also working on an MMO project set in the same universe before the series was bought off by THQ Nordic in 2018. Oh, and the studio’s founder Curt Schilling took out a US$75 million loan from the State of Rhode Island and saw repercussions from there on out; it’s quite a tale.
Check out the game in action below in case you need a reminder.


Warhammer 40000 Chaos Gate Daemonhunters Is As Brutal As XCOM, But…

Platform(s): PC
Genre: XCOM-Like, Turn-Based Tactical Strategy, RPG
This year seems to be the year of major Warhammer games, what with the release of Total War Warhammer 3 earlier this year, and now, Warhammer 40000 Chaos Gate Daemonhunters (now that’s a mouthful!).  As someone with more than a hundred hours of experience playing the XCOM games, this latest game set in the Warhammer 40K universe plays a lot similarly, albeit with its own twists and differences.
When They Say “Chaos”, They Mean Chaos

The biggest question on everyone’s minds, especially XCOM veterans, will probably be how hard this game is. After all, XCOM is notorious for its punishingly hardcore difficulty. Well, Warhammer 40000 Chaos Gate Daemonhunters definitely lives up to being an XCOM-like. Even at Standard (normal) difficulty, the game is freaking hard, and you’ll be save scumming your way to surviving the disgusting hordes of the Chaos God Nurgle.
However, Warhammer 40000 Chaos Gate Daemonhunters is only almost as hard as XCOM. Why? Unlike XCOM, there is no RNG in this game. You don’t need to pray to the RNG gods and hope that your attack with a 99 percent hit rate doesn’t miss. In Warhammer 40000 Chaos Gate Daemonhunters, your attacks will always hit, unless the enemy is behind some cover or out of range. Also, this game is less punishing when it comes to perma-deaths. In XCOM, your soldier dies in a mission, boom, he’s gone forever. In Warhammer 40000 Chaos Gate Daemonhunters, each Grey Knight you send into battle can die at least three times (but not without negative debuffs each time) before permanently dying.
Critical melee strikes target specific body parts for different benefits.
Besides that, there’s a lot of similarities here, right down to how game progression works. If you’re an XCOM veteran as well, you’ll jump into this quick, despite there being an overwhelming number of mechanics to keep track of from the very beginning. Just like you’re in charge of a mobile HQ in XCOM, this time you’re the commander of a battleship called the Baleful Edict. It works in pretty much the same way. Each sub-menu represents a different section of the ship, each of which has a different function and a different person in charge who you interact with. For instance, Inquisitor Vakir leads the Libris Malleus, which is where you start new research on Grimoires (which takes in-game time and specific resources to complete), each of which comes with their own perks and benefits.
You’re also in charge of moving the Baleful Edict across the galaxy to different planets where missions will pop up. However, you’ll have to choose and pick carefully, as the ones you don’t get to in time will get increasingly corrupted by the Bloom (Nurgle’s plague). This feels similar to country panic levels in XCOM Enemy Unknown/Within or the Advent Avatar Project timer in XCOM 2. You simply can’t save everything all at once, so it’s all a balancing act. Some planets will get increasingly infected by the Bloom if you ignore them, and missions on them will only increase in difficulty with each infection level.
The galactic map.
During battle, your Grey Knights can perform Melee or Ranged attacks, perform Overwatch to automatically attack enemies who come near them (which works in a similar way to XCOM), increase defenses to brace for attacks using the Aegis Shield, and other abilities. Unique mechanics in Warhammer 40000 Chaos Gate Daemonhunters include the Warp Surge during missions, and Willpower. Every Knight has Willpower resource that can be spent on psychic abilities like more damage during attacks or healing team members.
However, using Willpower has its drawback, because every time you use Willpower, it makes the Warp Surge meter build up faster. Despite not having RNG elements, the Warp Surge makes battles in Warhammer 40000 Chaos Gate Daemonhunters a lot more frustrating than they actually are. Once the Warp Surge meter fills up, a random negative event will happen, including spawning enemy reinforcements from a rift portal, giving debuffs to your Grey Knights, giving buffs to the enemies (like goddamn 5+ armour or increased attack), and more nasty stuff. The worst part of it all is that the Warp Surge meter will immediately start filling up again after it has completely filled up. This means that you won’t be able to stop worrying about the Warp Surges and you’ll be pressured to finish the mission as fast as possible without using too much Willpower.
Grey Knights? More Like Green Knights

All of that leads to what is perhaps the single biggest problem and issue in Warhammer 40000 Chaos Gate Daemonhunters; the balance. Juggling everything and planning your strategy is hard enough, but it’s annoying when the game increases the difficulty by resorting to overwhelming the player with hordes of enemies. Look, it becomes ridiculous when suddenly 50 more enemy reinforcements spawn out of nowhere via the Warp Surge. That’s not challenging; that’s just unfair. It makes planning or strategizing redundant when enemies could just call in reinforcements out of the blue. It’s not fun when you have to scrape by every mission and failing because of random circumstances, especially so when one mission can take as long as 45 minutes to an hour to finish (and that’s early game!)
As hard as XCOM can be, Warhammer 40000 Chaos Gate Daemonhunters starts off by leaving you off the side of a cliff. Balancing is way off. The difficulty curve is extremely high from the beginning, and it only gets harder when you have to put a band-aid on everything. Many Warhammer fans are complaining about how lore-breaking it is that the Grey Knights feel so weak in this game, and as someone who’s a Warhammer noob, I can attest to that. These hulking brutes with Jean Grey psychic powers can’t withstand a few shots from a disease-plagued zombie? That’s immersion-breaking right there. Also, it apparently takes forever for a Grey Knight to completely heal from a “light wound” (getting damaged in missions will lead to Grey Knights suffering from debuffs or unusable in battle, depending on the amount of damage and what status that results in).
Your waifu Inquisitor.
Last but not least, the game also suffers from performance issues. My laptop has decent specs and it quickly overheats when playing this game. That’s weird, especially when I can run more demanding games without any problems. I’m not the only one with performance issues either, as many players have reported experiencing the same FPS drops and CPU overheating despite having powerful rigs.
Lots Of Potential, By The Emperor

Yet, despite all these problems and issues, I still had a blast and enjoyed my time with Warhammer 40000 Chaos Gate Daemonhunters. Most of the issues I mentioned can be fixed with future updates and patches, so they’re really only a big deal right now if the developer doesn’t do anything to change them. If you like XCOM and other turn-based tactical strategy games, then Warhammer 40000 Chaos Gate Daemonhunters is still recommended. The gameplay is solid, the visuals are awesome, and it’s accessible even if you’re not familiar with Warhammer 40K lore.
I appreciate the little details, like random events and dialogues with the characters in the game’s story. Plus, the combat looks cinematic and stylish as hell. I never get tired of seeing the camera zoom in to one of my Grey Knights performing a melee execution on an enemy. Even just throwing a grenade can look epic. One of the game’s highlights is customizing my team of Grey Knights to look as badass as they can before starting a mission (you’ll know how thrilling this feels like if you’ve played a lot of XCOM). The developer nailed on how the game looks and feels; the aesthetics and ambience of it all.
Just one advice before you start playing the game; start at the easiest difficulty for your first playthrough. Trust me, you don’t want to have to abandon an entire campaign after already spending hours and hours with it (like I did for this review).
PROS

Plays a lot like XCOM, with many familiar mechanics of the genre.
Combat looks cinematic and stylish in action.
Accessible even to anyone not well-versed in Warhammer 40K lore.

CONS

Punishing difficulty, as expected from an XCOM-like.
Frustrating balancing issues and mechanics that make the game harder that it actually is.
Performance issues.

FINAL SCORE: 70/100
Review copy provided by Frontier Foundry. Played on PC. Warhammer 40000 Chaos Gate Daemonhunters is now available on PC via Steam.


These 11 Soundtracks Are Expensive As Heck

In our latest SoundScape video, we talk about the priciest soundtracks on the market today. Special thanks to our pals from RetroDNA and Discog for digging these up, price tags and all.

Stay tuned later this month for a special SoundScape episode; it’s going to be a big one.


New Tenet Trailer Debuts On Fortnite, Teases Epic Action & Time Travel

Update (22 May 2020):
The new trailer for Christopher Nolanâ€™s new science fiction film Tenet has been released and… it’s confusing as heck, which is expected from the same brilliant director that gave us similarly-twisty films, 2000’s Memento and 2011’s Inception, amongst others.
Tenet is described as an “action epic evolving from the world of international espionage”. We still know next to nothing about the details of the plot or characters, but the movie will heavily involve what seems to be complex (or convoluted) time travel mechanics. Written and directed by Christopher Nolan himself, the movie was filmed on location across seven countries.
The movie stars John David Washington, Robert Pattinson, Elizabeth Debicki, Dimple Kapadia, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, ClÃ©mence PoÃ©sy, Michael Caine and Kenneth Branagh.
The score for Tenet is composed by Ludwig GÃ¶ransson, best known for composing the music in Star Wars’ The Mandalorian, Marvel Studios’ Black Panther and the Community TV series.
According to the description below the trailer on YouTube, the release date for Tenet remains 17 July 2020. In the meantime, check out the epic new trailer below.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3pk_TBkihU&w=560&h=315]

Fortniteâ€™s new Party Royale island will play host to the unveiling of a new trailer for none other than Christopher Nolanâ€™s new science fiction film Tenet later at 8pm ET on 21 May 2020 (or 8am GMT+8 on 22 May 2020 for Southeast Asian countries like Malaysia).

Grab a front row seat in Party Royale for a world premiere!
Catch the latest trailer for Christopher Nolanâ€™s @TENETFilm at the top of every hour on the big screen starting at 8 PM ET.
Ê‡nO suná´š ÇÉ¯Ä±âŠ¥ ÇÉ¹oÉŸÇq Ê‡Ä± ÇÇS pic.twitter.com/ZiNfxaRQ7U
â€” Fortnite (@FortniteGame) May 21, 2020
The trailer will apparently air once every hour in Fortnite, though itâ€™s not clear how long itâ€™ll be available, or if it will immediately be launching on other platforms like YouTube at the same time.
This isnâ€™t the first time that the wider entertainment world of film and TV has come to Fortnite. The battle royale game has previously featured the premiere for Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker and more recently, streaming service Quibiâ€™s reboot of Punkâ€™d.
However, the new Tenet trailer will receive the honour of being the first-ever feature on the brand new Fortnite Party Royale island, which functions as an “ever-evolving” social space and has already hosted two live music concerts featuring Diplo and Deadmau5.
Christopher Nolan’s Tenet is tentatively slated to release on 17 July 2020. In the meantime, rewatch the old trailer below. We’ll update this article with the new one when it premieres.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdOM0x0XDMo&w=560&h=315]