Top New Games Out On Switch, PS4, Xbox One, And PC This Month — October 2019

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A new month is upon us, and October is loaded with shooters. This episode of New Releases takes a look at Destiny 2‘s newest expansion Shadowkeep, Ghost Recon Breakpoint, and the rebooted Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. Even Obsidian’s RPG The Outer Worlds has plenty of weapons to fire. Fortunately, Nintendo Switch owners looking for something more family-friendly can also play Luigi’s Mansion 3.

Destiny 2 – Shadowkeep — October 1

Available on: PS4, Xbox One, PC

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Shadowkeep is changing everything for Destiny 2. This expansion sends players back to the moon for a new raid called Garden of Salvation, but it also shakes up the game overall. This is the start of Destiny 2’s Year 3 of seasonal content, featuring Armor 2.0, which makes all your Guardian’s stats truly matter. There are plenty of Exotics to acquire too.

More Coverage:

Ghost Recon Breakpoint — October 4

Available on: PS4, Xbox One, PC

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The follow-up to Ghost Recon Wildlands is much more focused on survival. That’s due in part to the fact that your Ghost is infiltrating the island of Auroa alone if you play solo–you’ve got a handful of drones at your disposal, but no AI teammates. Of course, you can always squad up online with your friends and play co-op too. No matter how you approach it, your goal is to stop rogue Ghost Cole Walker, played by Jon Bernthal (The Punisher, The Walking Dead).

More Coverage:

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare — October 25

Available on: PS4, Xbox One, PC

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This isn’t a remaster of the 2007 classic–it’s a full-on reboot. You’ll see familiar characters like Captain Price, but they’re part of a totally new campaign that ties in more closely to the game’s other co-op and multiplayer modes. Speaking of multiplayer, there’s a big emphasis on tactics with this game, including a Realism Mode that shuts off your HUD.

More Coverage:

The Outer Words — October 25

Available on: PS4, Xbox One, PC

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October’s other big shooter is an RPG. The Outer Worlds comes from Obsidian, best known nowadays for Fallout: New Vegas, hence all the “Fallout in space” comparisons the game keeps getting. But The Outer Worlds sets itself apart from Fallout by letting you explore multiple planets, each one dominated by mega-corporations. There’s also a flaw system, which allows your character to actually develop special perks if they keep injuring themselves in various ways.

More Coverage:

Luigi’s Mansion 3 — October 31

Available on: Switch

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Luigi’s Mansion 3 drops on Halloween, the perfect time to explore the Last Resort hotel, where each spooky floor has its own theme. You can play solo or team up with a friend in co-op, where the second player controls a gelatinous version of Luigi named Gooigi. There’s also competitive multiplayer to enjoy with the returning ScareScraper mode and the new ScreamPark mode.

More Coverage:

October has plenty more games to come. Next week, New Releases will take a look at PS4 exclusive Concrete Genie, the revamped arcade cult classic Killer Queen Black, and more.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/top-new-games-out-on-switch-ps4-xbox-one-and-pc-th/1100-6470163/

The Last Of Us 2 Has A Cool Improvement You Might Not Have Noticed

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Naughty Dog has described The Last of Us Part II as one of the most ambitious games it has ever made. One of the major new additions is something that may not be immediately apparent, but will no doubt have a big impact on the game: a new traversal animation system.

Admittedly, “a new traversal animation system” may not sound exciting, but the implications of it certainly do. GameSpot attended a hands-on event for The Last of Us Part II and spoke to co-director Anthony Newman, who highlighted “motion matching” as one of the key new additions to the game.

“It’s this technology for characters moving through a space like running, walking, jumping, and that kind of thing,” Newman explained. “In all our previous games there’s been this really distinct state machine where we say, ‘Play a run animation. Then play a turn left animation. Then play a turn right animation.’ The way motion matching works is it takes this massive bucket of animation, just hundreds and hundreds of animations, and chops them into little tiny bits. When you define the path that a player or an enemy wants to take, rather than saying, ‘Play this and then play that and then play that,’ the system actually looks at the bucket of animations, finds the ones that matches the path that you’re already taking, and blends them together frame-by-frame.”

The effect of this is, as Naughty Dog says, much smoother, more natural movement to characters. “It’s this totally new way of doing traversal,” Newman continued. “I think, as you play the game, you must have noticed just how fluid the player feels. With every foot plant, every turn, there’s as little blending as possible. That’s applied to our NPCs. That’s applied to the horses. That’s applied to the dogs. We even have these dogs and horses and mocap suits running around getting the data that we needed for this really intricate system.”

A new gameplay video for The Last of Us Part II was shown during Sony’s recent State of Play event. The video provides fleeting glimpses at some of the action scenes where this kind of movement will become most evident. More importantly, however, the trailer confirmed a release date for The Last of Us Part II.

We also learned that The Last of Us Part II will come on two discs, which is something of a rarity for PlayStation 4 titles. If you splash out for one of the special editions of the game, you’ll get a note from co-director Neil Druckmann. You can read the heartfelt message from The Last of Us Part II’s director in advance, however.

For more on the game, read our hands-on impressions for The Last of Us Part II.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/the-last-of-us-2-has-a-cool-improvement-you-might-/1100-6470118/

Minecraft: Dungeons – Opening Cinematic and Minecon 2019 gameplay

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Minecraft: Dungeons - Opening Cinematic and Minecon 2019 gameplay

Check out more for this upcoming Diablo-like dungeon crawler.

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The Last Of Us 2 Wants To Solve The Problem Of Companions Being Ignored By Enemies

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Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us Part II is looking to solve one of the original’s biggest problems: immersion-breaking AI-controlled companions. If you’ve played the first game, then you should be familiar with how its enemy AI often ignored Ellie, even when she was right in front of them. While this was ultimately implemented for our convenience, it allowed for plenty of immersion-breaking moments.

We got the chance to ask about this issue in a recent interview with The Last of Us Part II co-director Anthony Newman. In our brief discussion, he acknowledged the problems with the original’s companion-AI is something that the team is fully aware of and are hoping to address with the sequel.

“[Companion AI is] actually one of the few really significant technical achievements we’ve been able to make on the game,” said Newman. “[In the original] there is a mode the AI can be in–which is their default mode when you’re in stealth–where they will just never be seen. They’re almost better than the player can be at being stealthy.

“There’s a tricky balance there because [Ellie] could then just hang way, way back and just never be seen, but then you don’t feel like you have an ally with you, [so] you feel lonely. So there’s a really interesting line we’ve been walking but I can definitely say that that aspect of the game has been dramatically improved, I would say.”

Developing companion-AI is a difficult process, but Naughty Dog hopes the changes it’s making will better The Last of Us Part II as a whole. However, it’s not the only way that Newman and his team are iterating upon companion AI. They’re also improving how their actions impact moment-to-moment combat. “One other thing that’s also interesting is that in the past, [in] almost all of our games, the allies have done fake damage where you’ll see them shoot enemies and it’s a little bit theatrical where their bullets are clearly doing way less damage than yours,” said Newman.

“What I’m really excited about is that with a lot of effort and some clever AI tricks, every time you see your ally shoot an enemy, their bullets do exactly as much damage as yours do. Which is just another way that players are able to make predictions and think two or three steps ahead. When they see Dina take a couple of shots and then they realize, ‘I only need one more shot to finish off that enemy because I saw that happen.’ I think it’s great that players can now count on that and make those types of plans interacting with their allies.”

If all this talk about The Last of Us Part II has you excited, then you won’t have to wait too long: The Last of Us Part 2 releases on February 21, 2020 for PS4. You can read our preview of The Last of Us Part II to see what we thought of the game after a hands-on with it.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/the-last-of-us-2-wants-to-solve-the-problem-of-com/1100-6470121/

The Bradwell Conspiracy Is A Bizarre Thriller That Encourages You To Be Social

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Coming from Bossa Studios and developer A Brave Plan, The Bradwell Conspiracy takes a surprisingly social approach to the familiar narrative-driven adventure. Placing you in a facility built by people with far too much money and free time on their hands, you’ll gradually learn more about the isolated locale and its creators, revealing inconvenient truths about its key players and their impact on the world over. We recently got to play the opening hour of the game and learned just what was in store for this alluring jaunt into the weird.

Set in 2026, you play as an unnamed protagonist visiting the Stonehenge Museum owned by the philanthropic mega-corporation Bradwell Electronics. Following a catastrophic attack on the facility that leaves them mute and isolated from the outside world, you’ll discover a massive laboratory underneath Stonehenge housing some bizarre experiments. Eventually, you’ll meet with another survivor named Amber, and an American scientist looking for a way out as well. After acquiring a talking set of smart glasses, along with a portable 3D printing device, you start to uncover shocking details about the mega-corporation.

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The game’s world-building can often hit close to home, detailing the growing threat of inequality and encroaching natural disasters. However, The Bradwell Conspiracy often strikes a light-hearted tone. In a similar vein to first-person narrative-driven games like Everybody’s Gone To Rapture or Firewatch, you’re given the run of the place in order to piece together the larger story at your own pace. There was something quite alluring about exploring the hidden facility underneath Stonehenge in the opening act. With your Bradwell smart glasses, you’ll be able to scan objects and snap photos of everything in the environment. These photos not only allow you to send clues to Amber, who can remotely open doors or help with puzzles; they also serve as the primary way to instigate communications with her. While this kind of back and forth is similar to the approach Firewatch took, it’s far more frequent here, which means more chances to learn neat facts or to have tender moments when you least expect it.

What makes The Bradwell Conspiracy’s approach to narrative especially interesting is that while you’re unraveling the larger mystery of the game’s story, you’re also actively forming a bond with another character based on your actions. Though this is a somewhat one-sided pairing, given that your character has lost their speech, it still gives way to some surprisingly compassionate moments in your excursion. Depending on your level of willingness to share details about the environment, you’ll hear more from Amber, who will start sharing information on the company and even cracking the occasional joke to lighten the mood.

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During our talk with game director Georg Backer, he spoke about how bonding with Amber is an essential part of the adventure and will offer up some of the game’s more nuanced details.

“We wanted to make sure that the player feels like they’re in this together with Amber throughout the game,” said Backer. “Given your choices in how you interact with her, people will experience the character in different ways. You can uncover these little side-stories with the character and the environment by engaging with her at certain points as well. However, if you want to forgo a lot of those moments in favor of sticking with the game’s main plot, then be our guest. But from a narrative design angle, if you want to discover more about the world, together, it’s worth examining further what’s around you. […] There’s well over 4,000 lines of dialog, so you’ll get to experience a lot from the game’s main plot.”

The game encourages a constant sense of curiosity throughout, and even examining simple items like table stationery can offer up some fun anecdotes from Amber. Unlike games like Bioshock, which intertwines passive-storytelling with gory action and body horror, the crux of The Bradwell Conspiracy is about uncovering strange details about the company with your fellow survivor. Considering how isolating the game can feel when exploring the ruins of the Bradwell lab, it can be easy to forget that you’re not alone in your journey. In some ways, this social element is one of The Bradwell Conspiracy’s most intriguing elements.

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Set for release later this year on PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Switch, The Bradwell Conspiracy certainly has a lot of compelling ideas at play. Given its approach to being more socially active with your only ally, it made the strange journey feel a bit less lonely. Given its oddball humor and penchant for a sudden joke from your partner, it’ll be interesting to see how unusual this adventure into uncovering a corporation’s shady dealings can get.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/the-bradwell-conspiracy-is-a-bizarre-thriller-that/1100-6470173/

Destiny 2’s Recluse, Other Best Guns Are Getting Nerfed In Shadowkeep

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Bungie’s latest blog post gave a final look at changes and alterations coming with the release of Destiny 2‘s Shadowkeep expansion, and it contained a whole lot of information. Easily missed, however, was the fact that a bunch of Destiny 2 guns are getting their power nerfed a bit–although not directly. Bungie is changing the effectiveness of certain weapon perks that can stack up to increase damage. Chief among the weapons affected is The Recluse, a pinnacle submachine gun that has become one of the most useful, and most used, guns in the game.

In its This Week at Bungie post ahead of Shadowkeep, the studio detailed how damage-dealing will change in Shadowkeep. As director Luke Smith previously noted in his Director’s Cut blog posts, weapon damage in the second year of Destiny 2 has become something of a runaway train. It’s possible to stack perks and buffs together to get massive damage boosts in ways Bungie didn’t expect, and some guns have become more or less essential for various activities–putting people who don’t have them at a disadvantage.

“Legendary weapons have become too powerful overall,” Bungie wrote. “In many cases, they even outclass Exotic Primary weapons, so we’re walking them all back a bit. All the way back in original Destiny, we had a perk named Crowd Control, which was Rampage’s predecessor. Crowd Control capped out at a bonus of +15% extra damage. At this point in Destiny 2, Rampage caps out at about +67%. That’s a 447% increase from the original iteration. Legendary damage perks have become so powerful, they simply invalidate non-damage related perks.”

Perks Getting Reduced Effectiveness in Shadowkeep

  • Rampage
  • Kill Clip
  • Swashbuckler
  • Multikill Clip
  • Desperado
  • Surrounded
  • Master of Arms
  • Onslaught

Several of those perks appear on a variety of guns, but three of them are specific to a few of the top guns in the game. The “Master of Arms” perk is exclusive to The Recluse, giving you a big damage boost on the submachine gun for any kill you make with any weapon. That has made it one of the best guns in the game up to now. Also on the list are Desperado, a unique perk on the Redrix’s Broadsword pinnacle pulse rifle, and Onslaught, the perk specific to the Breakneck pinnacle auto rifle.

The TWAB post also includes a few details about how it’s changing the perks, although there’s not much information. Bungie writes that all the perks being changed will “use the same damage multipliers for PvE that they did in PvP.” The Rampage change doesn’t affect The Huckleberry, an Exotic submachine gun; Onslaught and Desperado will now change bullet impact values in PvE activities; and Surrounded no longer multiples precision damage over base damage, since that was making it more effective on some weapon types than others.

Bungie also detailed how it’s doing away with pinnacle weapons altogether, changing them instead to easier-to-obtain but way-less-overpowered “ritual weapons” in Shadowkeep. So this change sounds like it’s right in line with Bungie’s thinking on those guns–but it’s still a bummer that the mega-powerful Recluse is getting taken down a peg. Still, we know Bungie wants to keep lots of different weapon sets viable in Destiny 2, and when one gun becomes dominant, nerfs are never far behind.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/destiny-2s-recluse-other-best-guns-are-getting-ner/1100-6470172/

Apex Legends Season 3’s New Map Revealed In Trailer

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Though a cinematic video, the Apex Legends Season 3 trailer does confirm that the battle royale game is getting a new map. You can see the Legends battle it out on the new map in the trailer, which is embedded below, alongside newcomer Crypto–who develops a friendly rivalry with Mirage.

“Welcome to World’s Edge, a new Apex Legends map where molten heat and chemical ice collide,” the trailer’s description reads. “Join our cast of Legends–including the newest Legend, Crypto–on the dropship as they’re whisked from Planet Solace towards World’s Edge on Planet Talos.”

World’s Edge was initially teased via Crypto’s first in-game appearance during Season 2, in which he invaded Kings Canyon to hack the computers in Singh Labs. Upon being discovered, the hacker flees, but not before the computer he’s been working on reveals he’s trying to find a way to visit a location only known as “World’s Edge.”

In the trailer, we see the Legends contending with both ice and fire environmental hazards, although Octane manages to use some water geysers to launch himself up into the air. We also see a city-like, urban area and a moving train. Whether all these elements make it into the actual game remains to be seen, as Respawn has advertised actions in Apex Legends’ cinematic trailers that you can’t actually achieve in-game.

Regardless, a new map is huge for Apex Legends. The battle royale game has been limited to one map since its launch–although, admittedly, it’s an exceptionally well-structured battlefield–so World’s Edge presents a drastic change. Based on the trailer, it seems like the Legends have been moved to this map while the Syndicate finishes fixing Kings Canyon (Crypto destroyed a portion of it at the start of Season 2), so World’s Edge may be the only map you can play in Season 3. We’ll have to wait and see.

Apex Legends is availble on Xbox One, PS4, and PC.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/apex-legends-season-3s-new-map-revealed-in-trailer/1100-6470169/

Pokemon Go Making Battle Changes And Adding New Attacks

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Niantic is making another round of gameplay tweaks to Pokemon Go. In a new post on its official website, the developer details some of the adjustments that are coming soon to trainer battles, as well as some new attacks that will be added to the game.

First, Niantic says it’s refining the train battle system to make encounters “more intuitive and responsive.” In particular, the developer is improving the timing of damage dealt and energy charged. Additionally, a Pokemon’s health bar will now pulse when hit by an attack, making it easier to tell when a monster sustains damage.

A handful of moves are also receiving various tweaks. Bubble Beam will now reliably lower the opponent’s attack stat, while Psychic will dish out more damage and be usable quicker. On top of that, Psychic will have a chance of lowering an opponent’s defense stat. According to Niantic, these changes are “intended to make Psychic a more viable Psychic-type attack in both raids and Trainer Battles.”

Finally, Niantic is introducing two new attacks to the game: Thunder Fang and Ice Fang. A handful of Pokemon will also be able to learn attacks they initially couldn’t in Pokemon Go. You can see some of those below:

  • Alolan Raichu – Thundershock
  • Alolan Sandshrew – Ice Punch
  • Alolan Ninetales – Charm
  • Golduck – Bubble Beam, Synchronoise, Cross Chop
  • Alolan Marowak – Fire Spin, Flame Wheel
  • Mantine – Bubble Beam
  • Mawile – Fire Fang, Ice Fang, Power-Up Punch
  • Weavile – Snarl

These changes will be implemented “over the next few weeks.” In the meantime, Pokemon Go players have a lot to do. The Legendary Giratina recently returned to five-star Raid Battles. The long-awaited Mime Jr. was also added to the game earlier this week as part of a new special event. October’s Community Day is also set for October 12, and it’ll feature the Gen 3 Pokemon Trapinch.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/pokemon-go-making-battle-changes-and-adding-new-at/1100-6470166/

How The Last Of Us 2 Adds A New Dimension To Stealth

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We recently got hands-on with the much anticipated PlayStation 4 exclusive The Last Of Us Part II. One element that’s making a significant change to how gameplay will flow in the sequel is the inclusion of enemy dogs. These canine foes will make stealth much more challenging and involved this time around.

GameSpot editor Phil Hornshaw spoke to the game’s co-director Anthony Newman, and Phil noted that–during his gameplay session–he couldn’t just watch enemies for their patrol routes and take them out safely because they’re a lot more proactive. But that’s not the only reason why stealth is tougher.

Newman noted, “In stealth gameplay, in almost every stealth game you’ve ever played, the goal is to just stay out of sight. If you just stay out of sight, if you just hang back, you’ll be fine. What I’m really excited about with attack dogs is that not only do they create an interesting melee challenge, an interesting aiming challenge where they’re so fast and low to the ground it can be really difficult to aim at them, but by sniffing out your trail, you can’t do that anymore. You can’t just hang back.”

From Phil’s experience, enemy dogs force you to be more mobile, but you can distract them by throwing objects to make noise or keep moving to break your scent trail. Newman continued, “You can’t just remain unseen because now there’s this new dimension of perception that you’ve never had to deal with before. You’ve always had to try to stay quiet; always had to try to stay out of sight. Now you actually have to worry about the sense of smell of your enemies as well. I’m really excited about that new dimension that’s opened up.”

We have the game covered from every angle; be sure to read our in-depth The Last Of Us Part II preview and watch our hands-on impressions from the preview event. Sony’s recent State of Play livestream showed new gameplay from The Last of Us Part II which also hinted at the involvement and roles of some very important returning characters.

This is going to be a big game, and it was revealed that The Last of Us Part II will come on two discs, a rarity for PS4 games. Special editions of the game are flying off shelves, and if you manage to get one, you’ll get a heartfelt note from co-director Neil Druckmann. The Last Of Us Part II launches on February 21, 2020 exclusively for PS4.

If you still want to hear more about The Last of Us Part II, check out the latest episode of the GameSpot After Dark podcast.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/how-the-last-of-us-2-adds-a-new-dimension-to-steal/1100-6470117/