The first new addition to Apex Legends‘ character roster is here along with its first season and its first battle pass. There are a lot of cool things coming with the battle pass, but the biggest change to the game is Octane, its newest character. Octane changes up the game with a focus on adrenaline–he’s a character who benefits from moving fast, sacrificing health for speed. He can also change up the battlefield by getting characters into places they couldn’t previously reach, and when facing him, expect to be looking up, since he can help enemy players descend on you from above.

Octane is an aggressive character, so if you’re going to use him, expect to be in the fight a lot. He should operate similarly to Wraith, Bangalore, and Mirage, allowing you to close distance quickly with his speed abilities. It sounds like while Wraith and Mirage are positioned more as flanking characters who distract enemies, Octane operates more like Bangalore as a front-line fighter. His abilities should make him tougher to hit, and when you do take damage, you’ll likely be able to deal with it more easily.

Like other characters, Octane packs three abilities: one passive, one activated by a button push, and one ultimate that takes a long time to charge up. Octane’s active ability lets him boost his speed at the cost of his health, increasing his movement speed by 30% for six seconds. That allows you to jet around the battlefield, drawing fire or flanking enemies while being much tougher to hit. To counteract the fact that Octane is the only character who sacrifices his own health for his abilities, his passive ability slowly regenerates at a rate of one health point every two seconds. That should also help in tough battle situations if you’re able to hide or get to safety, but you’re short on healing items.

For an ultimate, Octane’s ability should change a lot of battles. He can drop a launch pad on the ground that springs players through the air, allowing you to send your teammates flying in on enemy positions, or giving you a chance to bounce out of the battle and back to safety. The verticality is going to mean players will need to get used to looking up more when Octane is on the battlefield, since you never know when death might be descending from above.

We’ll have more coverage of Octane coming soon, including a full guide on how to use him most effectively. Until then, check out our other character guides, as well as our Apex Legends pro tips and a rundown of things the game doesn’t tell you.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/apex-legends-new-character-octane-is-live-heres-wh/1100-6465681/

Anthem‘s launch had its share of issues, from crash bugs to weapon balance bugs and more. Now BioWare general manager Casey Hudson has conceded to the launch issues while also recommitting to long-term support.

In a post-launch update on the BioWare Blog, Hudson says it was a “rougher launch than expected,” and says that the studio was “ready for the possibility that unexpected issues might arise.” In a broader sense, he said that the degree of the problems didn’t become apparent until the scale of players had increased, and that the studio shares in the community’s disappointment at these issues.

“It makes me sad to hear about any issues that would hold someone back from fully enjoying the game,” Hudson said. “I take that very personally, and it’s been our top priority to get improvements out to you in the fastest, safest way.”

He then transitioned to plans for the future, explaining that improvements are coming to endgame loot, game flow, and stability. This is in addition to adding more world events and story content, as outlined in its roadmap.

“But we understand there is skepticism out there,” he continued. “We hear the criticisms and doubts. But we’ll keep going anyway, working hard every day on Anthem – an ever-changing world, constantly improving and growing, and supported well into the future by our team of passionate developers.”

Anthem’s rocky launch has included crashing PS4 consoles that forced Sony to issue refunds, an update inadvertently broke the game, and mediocre reviews. At one point a bug made Legendary and Masterwork items more common, and BioWare irked players by fixing it. The studio later issued a patch that adjusted drop rates more intentionally.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/anthem-launch-rougher-than-expected-bioware-still-/1100-6465678/

You know what’s good? A nice freebie. Luckily, you can get a pretty cool freebie today if you’re a Spotify Premium for Family subscriber in the UK.

If you are, you can claim a free Google Home Mini. The offer works for both new subscribers and existing ones, but only until stocks last, so be quick. Also note that standard Spotify Premium members do not qualify for the deal–you must be a Premium for Family subscriber, which is an extra £5 per month and allows you to add up to five family members onto your plan. Claim your device here.

Spotify ran this promotion in the US last year, but has now decided to bring it to the UK. Google Home Mini launched in 2018 as Google’s answer to Amazon’s Echo Dot. They typically sell for £49 at retail, so getting one at no extra cost with a monthly £15 Spotify Premium for Family subscription is not too shabby.

GameSpot sister site Cnet said Google’s miniature device “stands tall as one of the best affordable smart speakers out there, along with the Amazon Echo Dot, but it doesn’t do enough to supplant the Dot at the top of the list.” Read more in Cnet’s 8.4/10 Google Home Mini review.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/get-a-free-google-home-mini-with-spotify-uk/1100-6465671/