The PvE Storm Rising story mission for Overwatch is ready to go live starting April 16, and a story trailer sets the stage for the conflict. In it we see the strike team composed of Tracer, Winston, Mercy, and Genji going after the dangerous Talon criminal Maximilien. We also get the closest look yet at Max himself, who suggests that everyone and everything has a price.

In the lead-up to the Storm Rising event, Blizzard has regularly been revealing the new cosmetic skins you can earn. Some, like Talon Baptiste or Formal 76, are clearly story-inspired outfits informed by the lore of the world and its characters. Others, like Hammond’s High Roller Wrecking Ball or Racer Zarya, seem more light-hearted.

The story of this mission is anything but light, however. The Overwatch team has been dispatched to bring in the notoriously elusive Max before he can use the cover of an impending storm to escape yet again. The narration in the new story trailer suggests that opportunities to capture him don’t often appear, so the team has one chance to get it right. “No pressure, then!” Tracer chirps.

The Overwatch Archives series of events feature PvE co-op missions with an emphasis on story material. They often focus on younger iterations of the characters before Overwatch (the organization, not the game) was forced to disband. Alongside Storm Rising, the past Archives missions Uprising and Retribution will be playable. The event will run April 16-May 6.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/overwatch-storm-rising-trailer-shows-the-team-in-a/1100-6466256/

Seemingly confirming the long-running rumours and reports, images of the supposed “All-Digital” Xbox One that has no disc drive have emerged online. The German website WinFuture.de obtained the images, which appear to be from a European retailer.

The supposed box art seems to suggest that Minecraft, Sea of Thieves, and Forza Horizon 3 may come pre-installed on this console. The box art also shows a 1 TB hard drive. Pricing details are unconfirmed at this stage. Also bear in mind that this may only be one version of an all-digital Xbox One SKU that Microsoft is planning. Bundles historically vary by region.

Whatever the case, given that what appear to be official images for the console are showing up online, it might not be long until Microsoft officially announces it. As it happens, Microsoft’s next Inside Xbox event is coming up on April 16. In addition to news about Microsoft’s plans for E3, the company might announce this console during the show.

Microsoft is also reportedly planning a “disc-to-digital” campaign where you can bring a disc game to a retailer and get a download code. Additionally, there are rumours of a new Xbox Live + Xbox Game Pass bundle offering for $15 USD/month, so that could be another one of the announcements coming for the Inside Xbox stream this week.

Pre-orders for the All-Digital Xbox One console are said to open in April, with the system then scheduled to go on sale in May around the world.

The disc-free Xbox One might not be the last console Microsoft announces in the coming months. Microsoft is rumoured to reveal at least one next-gen console at E3 in June. And importantly, if Microsoft does make a disc-free Xbox One, it doesn’t necessarily mean the company will stop making Xbox One consoles with disc drives. Internet availability and speed vary by region, and all-digital consoles won’t work everywhere at this stage. It appears Microsoft will be providing the option to go all-digital for those who want to.

Would you be interested in a disc-free Xbox One? Let us know in the comments below!

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/xbox-one-leak-reveals-the-all-digital-xbox-one-wit/1100-6466247/

Despite its commercial and critical success, Sony’s PlayStation 4 action game God of War will not receive an expansion. This much has already been confirmed. And now game director Cory Barlog confirmed it again.

“There is no DLC coming for the game. Sorry,” Barlog said on Twitter. His tweet came in response to another tweet where he seemingly teased something new for God of War. But as it stands, he was only referring to more reveals coming this week for God of War’s anniversary celebration.

We already know about the free dynamic theme and avatar set, and Barlog teased that even more is coming. But it won’t be an announcement of God of War DLC.

In January this year, Barlog talked about pitching an idea for God of War DLC. However, it was “too ambitious,” and people told him the idea was crazy, so it got scrapped.

“I had a really fun idea for a DLC that I only regret because I would love to have done that,” Barlog told Kinda Funny. “But it was too ambitious.”

It would have been similar to The Last of Us 1‘s Left Behind or Uncharted Lost Legacy releases, which were big enough to warrant their own standalone releases. “It would [have] ended up being its own thing,” Barlog said of the God of War expansion we’ll never see. “Rightfully so, everybody said, ‘Dude, this is crazy, this isn’t DLC, this is a little too big.”

In other news, Barlog joked on Twitter that the next God of War game will be exclusive to the Epic Store.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/god-of-war-no-dlc-is-coming-director-confirms-agai/1100-6466241/

Mortal Kombat 11 developer NetherRealm has clarified its stance on microtransactions and loot boxes in the soon-to-launch fighting game. As was already confirmed, the game does not feature any loot boxes, but like with many other AAA games, Mortal Kombat 11 will feature optional microtransactions that players can use to buy cosmetic items.

In the latest Kombat Kast, producer Shaun Himmerick confirmed that Mortal Kombat 11 will have Time Crystals as its form of virtual currency. Players can spend these Crystals to acquire various cosmetic items such as skins, intros, easy fatalities, and gear, among other things. There is “nothing pay-to-win” with Mortal Kombat 11’s microtransactions, Himmerick said. Regarding the gear, Himmerick said NetherRealm learned from Injustice 2–which let you buy gear with stats that impacted gameplay–and it won’t repeat that with Mortal Kombat 11. The gear you can buy with real money has no gameplay impact on its own. Players will need to acquire stat augments from gameplay to improve their gearsets.

Nothing in Mortal Kombat 11 requires Time Crystals, Himmerick said. “We don’t want to have any competitive advantage for money,” he said. Himmerick went on to say that NetherRealm will give players allotments of Time Crystals in the game as a means to give players a look at some of the content they can buy should they decide to spend real money.

NetherRealm has yet to provide any details on specific price points for Mortal Kombat 11’s microtransactions, but those details should become available soon as they game’s launch is right around the corner.

Regarding loot boxes, Ed Boon already confirmed Mortal Kombat 11 will not have them, and Himmerick offered more details. “There’s no loot boxes. We don’t want that. We’ve heard the community doesn’t want that. We’ve seen the reaction to other games that have it. We don’t want that reaction. There are no loot boxes in this game whatsoever,” he said.

Mortal Kombat 11 launches on April 23 for PS4, Xbox One, PC, and Nintendo Switch. You can see all of GameSpot’s written and video coverage here.

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from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/mortal-kombat-11-has-microtransactions-but-no-loot/1100-6466239/