Death Stranding is out next month, at which point the internet will burst open with a deluge of divisive opinions we might not all survive. Before then, however, visionary Mad Max director George Miller has shared his thoughts on Hideo Kojima’s latest work.

In a recent video from IGN, Miller explains why he thinks Death Stranding is significant, not just as a video game, but as a cultural moment. “There is no cultural evolution unless it is renewed–unless new ideas are offered up,” the Australian filmmaker says. “Often, they’re provocative. Often, they shift the norm to some degree, but there is no evolution unless that happens. If we’re just doing the same old safe work all the time, that’s almost a certain way to fail anyway.

“In films, you see the same ideas, the same tropes–something that, a few years ago, might have been groundbreaking, has now become cliche.” Miller then mentions Kojima specifically, and how he thinks the game director has the creative courage to push boundaries that others wouldn’t. “The skill that I see in great filmmakers, I see in Kojima-san’s work,” he explains. “All of the visual languages, the syntax, the compelling imagery, it’s all there, all in the service of giving the audience an intense experience.

“The risk is that people just don’t accept it.”

At a time when legendary film directors like Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola are extending beyond their niches to criticise the MCU films, claiming they’re “not cinema”–or worse– it’s refreshing to see a director like George Miller step outside of his comfort zone and thoughtfully embrace something new and weird.

Death Stranding is set to launch November 8 on PlayStation 4.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/mad-max-director-george-miller-sees-the-skill-of-a/1100-6470891/

The annual Destiny 2 Halloween event Festival of the Lost begins next week, but ahead of the event Bungie has issued a few warnings about how to claim your tricks and treats safely. The two event rewards, Candy and Chocolate Strange Coins, should be handled with care.

“While we await the festival’s return, we’d like to forewarn players about earning and deleting Candy and Chocolate Strange Coins,” reads a note in Bungie’s weekly update. “In order to earn these currencies, players must wear the Masquerader’s Helmet, purchasable from Eva Levante for 100 Glimmer. If players defeat enemies and complete activities without this helmet equipped, they will not earn Candy or Chocolate Strange Coins.

“Furthermore, players should be cautious when dismantling any items in their Consumables inventory. Any instance of dismantling Candy or Chocolate Strange Coins, intentional or otherwise, will delete the entire stack.”

The event will start on October 29 and includes special activities and rewards. You can take on the returning Haunted Forest–a spooky version of Mercury’s Infinite Forest–to get as far as you can in 15 minutes, face off against super-tough Terror enemies, and complete special bounties. Those activities will earn you Chocolate Strange Coins that you can trade for masks, which this year manifest as helmet ornaments. The event will also offer special Eververse rewards, like spooky glow-skeletons, and clearing out the Haunted Forest will earn you a Braytech Werewolf auto rifle.

Festival of the Lost will be open to all players, including those jumping in to the new free-to-play First Light edition of the game. The same day will also see the introduction of a new Exotic quest.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/destiny-2-festival-of-the-lost-psa-be-careful-with/1100-6470887/

Due to “unprecedented demand,” London’s new pop-up Pokemon Center has been forced to take new measures to cope with the tidal wave of people looking to purchase a plush bowler-hat wearing Pikachu, among other London-themed Pokemon items.

The store, which is located at the Westfield London shopping centre, has reduced shop opening hours from 10 AM-10 PM to 10 AM-6 PM (Sunday 12 PM-6 PM), as well as tightening its limits on purchases. A week after the store opened, queue times still range somewhere between four and five hours on a typical weekday, according to the Pokemon Center London Updates Twitter account. Yesterday, queues were closed as early as 2pm to prevent them from growing even larger.

GameSpot was sent the following image of people queueing up outside Westfield London at 9am this morning.

Arriving early is key to getting into the store it seems, with some even opting to camp overnight to book their place at the front of the queue. However, Westfield has said that physically setting up camp is not permitted. “Customers wishing to queue overnight may have to wait outside,” the shopping centre said. “You will not be permitted to bring camping bags or tents. Please make yourself known to a member of the security team upon your arrival.”

The London Pikachu range has been limited to one item per customer since the Pokemon Center opened, but purchase limits throughout the rest of the store now extend to just six items. An FAQ thread from the official Twitter account says that this was done because it can no longer guarantee stock will be available until the store closes for good.

“We receive daily deliveries and endeavour to replenish stock as quickly as possible. However, due to unprecedented demand, some products may sell out before the end of the day,” the shop now says. “Our team are working hard to restock daily. However, as interest in the store has been unprecedented, some products may sell out before the shop’s closure on Friday 15th November.”

There’s clearly a demand for a permanent Pokemon Center in London, even if you look beyond the effect the store’s limited lifespan has on heightening people’s clamour to get in. There’s already a petition to make the store a permanent fixture, and it makes sense when you consider the online US store doesn’t even ship worldwide. If London can accommodate a three-story tall M&M store that actually makes money, a Pokemon Center shouldn’t be too far behind.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/londons-pokemon-center-store-has-five-hour-long-qu/1100-6470884/

Earlier this year, Capcom announced that Monster Hunter World: Iceborne would be coming to PC in January, five months after it was initially released on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. That timeframe has now been narrowed down to a specific date: January 9, 2020.

A new trailer showcases what PC players can expect from the Nergigante-sized expansion to the critically-acclaimed Monster Hunter World. The PC version will include high-resolution texture pack support, 4K and an uncapped framerate, support for ultra-wide screens, DirectX 12 support, and improved mouse and keyboard controls. Those who pre-order the game on Steam will also receive a Yukomo layered armor set, while the deluxe digital edition includes gestures, sticker sets, a Silver Knight layered armor set, and more.

The trailer does an excellent job showing off all the visual enhancements available on PC. The extra time was clearly put to good use. Back in September, Ginny Woo praised the expansion in GameSpot’s Monster Hunter World: Iceborne review, saying “There’s no more fussing about with new systems or worrying about ruffling the feathers of hardcore fans with a direction change in the series; those teething problems have already come and gone. Iceborne is a confident step into the future of the franchise, and it’s hard not to think about what might come next.”

You can preorder Iceborne on Steam now ahead of its release on January 9.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/monster-hunter-world-iceborne-has-a-release-date-o/1100-6470880/

With Pokemon Sword and Shield less than a month away, developer Game Freak has been openly talking about the project in more depth. Several outlets recently interviewed lead producer Junichi Masuda and series director Shigeru Ohmori, and the topic of Sword and Shield’s controversial lack of a National Pokedex inevitably came up.

Not every single Pokemon throughout the series’ long history will be in Sword and Shield, which has caused quite the furore among a vocal section of the Pokemon fan base. “You see these sort of negative comments and it does, as a developer, make you feel a bit down about certain things,” Masuda told Eurogamer when asked about the uproar. “But at the same time, you have to take criticism. For example with Pokemon Let’s Go, early on there were a lot of comments that it was too easy, or it was kind of a bit too ‘kid-focused’ and that sort of thing. That sort of comment is something you see, and you take on board, and really try and base improvements in the next game on the feedback you received from the last one.

“So, with regards to the Pokedex issue in particular that you’ve mentioned, that was something that was a really hard decision internally, there were a lot of discussions about which direction we should take that in, and ultimately we felt that, for the overall game, focusing on creating the richest experience we could within that game, leaving the Pokedex as we did was the best solution overall.”

“For example, when we add new moves and abilities we create a deeper experience for everyone to enjoy. This time around we can also give people a greater attachment to the Pokemon that are in the game, which is something we think is very important. So we definitely–we don’t have regrets about what we’ve done.

“In terms of having Pokemon that you had in previous games,” Masuda continued, “we do have Pokemon Home that’s coming out–and that’s another place where everyone can gather all their Pokemon from previous games and enjoy a different way of playing with them there.”

Masuda expanded on this point, and the introduction of Pokemon Home, in another interview with Polygon. “I mean, from my perspective, it’s always been in the back of my mind that at some point we were going to have to not include all the Pokemon,” he said. “One of the things we’ve tried to do this time around, and we don’t have a lot of details to share, but we’re introducing a cloud service called Pokemon Home and we really want to use that to kind of expand the Pokemon world, provide a place for players to be able to gather all of their Pokemon in one spot, do fun things, and also use it as a launching pad for different adventures and different games.”

Pokemon Sword and Shield is set to launch November 15 for Nintendo Switch.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/pokemon-swordshield-creators-talk-about-the-nation/1100-6470878/