Call of Duty: Modern Warfare released on October 25, meaning that some players have had a chance to put serious time into multiplayer and unlock Officer ranks. Officer ranks replace the prestige system from past games in the Call of Duty series, and allow you to chase a new XP target every season, unlocking new Seasonal Ribbons, Season Emblems, and Weapon Blueprints as you move between the 100 ranks available. Players are now be able to gain XP faster in Officer ranks by completing seasonal trials, now available on the main multiplayer screen.

Developer Infinity Ward has announced that Trials have officially come to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, describing how they work on Reddit. Once you level up enough to hit Officer ranks you’ll start to earn tickets, which can be spent on Trials. One ticket grants you three attempts at one Trial, and you’ll be judged on your performance at completion with a star rating between zero and three stars. Tickets unlock as you level up, but they also reset when the season ends, so it’s best to use them as you earn them rather than hoarding.

For a zero star performance in a Trial, you’ll get 0XP. One star nets you 5000 XP, two stars gets you 7500 XP, and three stars earns 10,000XP. Performing well in Trials will help you climb up the Officer ranks faster and earn more rewards each season.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare is also getting a battle pass next month in lieu of a season pass, which will let you unlock new items by completing additional challenges. Infinity Ward is working hard: the 725 shotgun has received a few updates in patches already, while the game has also received new maps and modes since launch. The game received a 7/10 in our review, saying that the multiplayer is “up to par, with a variety of game types for different kinds of players.”

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/call-of-duty-modern-warfare-now-has-trials-with-xp/1100-6471391/

Calling all Death Stranding fans! This is your chance to take home a free PlayStation 4 Pro and set out on an adventure to put America back together again.

Hideo Kojima’s latest game launched on November 8 and we have a full Death Stranding review. We’ve also got very handy guides to help you throughout your adventure, which you can check out in our in-depth complete Death Stranding coverage hub.

The grand prize package includes a custom 1TB PS4 Pro system and a custom DualShock wireless controller inspired by the game, as well as a copy of the Death Stranding on Blu-ray disc. But that’s not all, we’ll also award a first prize winner a Death Stranding collector’s edition bundle that comes with the full game, a steelbook case, a full-sized BB pod statue, a Ludens keychain, and a Bridges cargo case.

To enter the giveaway read the official rules found in the form below, accept the terms and conditions, and then proceed to fill out the form. You also have the option of increasing your chances of winning by doing extra actions like following us across social media.

Remember to check your email and junk mail on November 21 because we will be emailing the winners after 12 pm PT. Head over to the comment section and tell us what was the first thing that got you excited about Death Stranding. Good luck, everyone!

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/win-a-limited-edition-death-stranding-ps4-pro/1100-6471382/

Diablo IV might have been announced at BlizzCon 2019, but Blizzard is far from done with Diablo III. Seven and a half years after release, the latest patch for Diablo III has launched season 19, which will give returning players a new way to play. Major changes have also come in this update for the Crusader and Monk classes, as new class sets are now available for the game’s two holiest classes. These changes, which we’ve got the patch notes for, have arrived on the PC, Switch, PS4 and Xbox One versions of the game.

The notes for Patch 2.6.7. explain the new season in full. As they point out, Season 18‘s buff displeased some players, as the Triune bonus didn’t stick with their adventuring characters. Blizzard is doing things a little differently for the 19th season with the new Pandemonium buff, which introduces “new mechanics to add an element of both chaos and power to the battlefield”. This buff focuses on kill streaks, giving you different rewards as your consecutive kill count rises higher and higher.

Here are the notes for Pandemonium:

• For the duration of the Season, all players will have a stacking buff that that persists as long as you have hit or killed a monster within the last 5 seconds
• Each stack gives .005 movement speed and .001% bonus damage. This bonus caps at 50% movement and 100% damage (1000 stacks)
• In addition, after reaching a certain number of kills in a row, a power is unleashed, dealing an amount of scaling damage based on player level and difficulty or Greater Rift level:
  • 15 Kills: Exploding Chickens seek and destroy
  • 30 Kills: A wide Frost Nova freezes enemies
  • 50 Kills: Corpses rain from the sky
  • 100 Kills: Five massive energy twisters are unleashed
  • 150 Kills: Dark Geysers form beneath enemies
  • 200 Kills: Treasure chests fall from the sky
  • 300 Kills: A ring of fire engulfs everything
  • 400 Kills: Meteors hail from above
  • 500 Kills: Angels descend upon the battlefield to fight for your cause (Angels should no longer one-shot Rift Guardians).
  • 1000 Kills: ?????

Because powers are being tracked at a group level, only one can be active at a time, regardless of how many players you’re rolling with, and it’ll be interesting to see what happens when a player manages to stack 1000 kills. Two new rewards are available to players who complete the season, too: the Valor Portrait Frame and the Angelic Treasure Goblin pet.

This patch also sees some new class sets roll out for the Crusader and Monk, including some new and returning Legendary powers. The new Crusader set, Aegis of Valor, brings in Heaven’s Fury as the development team believes that it “matches the theme and adds more gameplay complexity.” Here are the notes for the Crusader set:

• 2-Piece Bonus: Attacking with Fist of the Heavens empowers you, allowing Heaven’s Fury to deal 100% increased damage for 5 seconds. Stacks up to 3 times (multiplicative).
• 4-Piece Bonus: Hitting with Fist of the Heavens generates 5 Wrath and reduces damage taken by 1% for 5 seconds. Stacks up to 50 times
• 6-Piece Bonus: Increase the damage of Fist of the Heavens and Heaven’s Fury by 20,000%

The new Monk Set, Patterns of Justice, seeks to incorporate extra damage reduction and better integration of the Temple Rush skill.

• 2-Piece Bonus: Sweeping Wind gains the effect of every rune and movement speed is increased by 5% for each stack of Sweeping Wind.
• 4-Piece Bonus: Attacking with Tempest Rush reduces your damage taken by 50% and increases Spirit Regeneration by 50.
• 6-Piece Bonus: Hitting with Tempest Rush while Sweeping Wind is active will temporarily increase the size of Sweeping Wind after hitting over 30 times within a short period. Sweeping Wind damage is increased by 15,000%

Further changes and bug fixes have been made in this patch, and they’re detailed in the full notes. It’s been promised that the other classes will receive similar treatment in future updates, with new sets being planned for all of them. Blizzard has also promised more themed seasons in the game’s future, and Diablo IV is still a long way away, so expect plenty more seasons and updates for Diablo III.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/diablo-3-patch-starts-season-19-adds-new-sets/1100-6471387/

Paramount Pictures has finally revealed Sonic the Hedgehog’s new look–and fans are enjoying it much more than the original design. As it turns out, Paramount enlisted the help of a Sonic game developer veteran to help create a revised look for the film.

Tyson Hesse, an American animator who worked on Sonic Mania and various Sonic comics, announced that he was brought on board to lead the design effort for the new look. Hesse said he worked with director Jeff Fowler and the various production departments across the world to make Sonic closer to the source material. The work he did with his team seemed to have worked, as fans are much more enthusiastic about Sonic’s new look.

Fowler, who earned an Oscar nomination for his animated movie Gopher Broke, said in his own tweet that he is thankful to the fans for their “patience and support.”

In May 2019, when Paramount announced it would delay the movie to create a new look for Sonic, some worried that the production team would have to work overly long hours to get the job done. Fowler, however, said “no VFX artists were harmed in the making of this movie.”

The VFX team seems to have gone the extra mile with the new Sonic movie, as one of the new scenes shows Sonic doing his ledge animation from the game series.

Sonic the Hedgehog’s new release date is February 14, 2020–Valentine’s Day. It is produced by Deadpool director Tim Miller, who also earned an Oscar nomination for his work on Gopher Broke.

The movie, which blends CG and live-action, features the voice of Ben Schwartz as Sonic. James Marsden plays the sheriff of Green Hills, Montana who becomes friends with Sonic. Dr. Robotnik, the bad guy, is played by Jim Carrey.

For more, check out GameSpot’s guide to the biggest upcoming movies in the rest of 2019.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/sonics-new-movie-look-was-led-by-a-sonic-franchise/1100-6471385/

A new limited-time event for Overwatch lets you earn your doctorate. The Mercy’s Recall Challenge event runs from November 12 through December 2 and ties in with the short story Valkyrie, which Blizzard released this week. Participating in the event can earn you some cosmetic rewards, including a legendary “Dr. Ziegler” skin for Mercy.

This isn’t a surprise, as the Dr. Ziegler skin was showcased at the end of the short story itself. It features the familiar support character with a lab coat and stethoscope, but still sporting her futuristic Valkyrie boots.

To earn the new skin, you just have to win a set number of games during the event period, which will also earn you sprays. For even more rewards, you can also watch Twitch streamers during the event period to get more sprays. Check out the rewards breakdown below.

Notably, this story is about Mercy struggling with the decision of whether or not to answer Winston’s call and rejoin the fight. We know from the Overwatch 2 trailer that debuted at BlizzCon that the group joining forces again is a major part of the story, so we may see more events laying the groundwork for that in the coming months. We’ll also see redesigned heroes and some new faces in Overwatch 2.

Overwatch Mercy’s Recall Challenge Rewards

• Win 3 Games | 1 Player Icon
• Win 6 Games | 2 New Sprays
• Win 9 Games | New legendary skin: Dr. Ziegler skin

• Watch 2 Hours | 1 New Spray
• Watch 4 Hours | 2 New Sprays
• Watch 6 Hours | 3 New Sprays

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/overwatch-limited-time-mercy-story-event-gives-you/1100-6471370/