Death Stranding Guide: The Hidden Preppers That You Might Have Missed

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Death Stranding is a game about forming bonds with many characters across the ruins of North America. As Sam Porter Bridges, you’ll deliver various cargo to survivors to expand a communication network that will restore the United Cities of America, and reconnect its isolated citizens. It can be a daunting task, and you’ll no doubt meet countless survivors–known as preppers–throughout your journey. However, there are a few hidden off the beaten path that can be easy to overlook. So if you’re looking to connect every strand in the game, you’ll need to know where to look to these well-hidden preppers.

In this quick guide, we’ll point out a set of interesting preppers that can be easy to miss on your expedition. As you’re delivering cargo to specific people, there’s still plenty of opportunities to explore and take in the sights. If you don’t take the time to explore, it’s possible to complete the game without ever meeting characters like The Collector or the First Prepper in your playthrough. One clue to observe in certain areas is lost cargo directing to places you’re unfamiliar with. This is a solid indication that new preppers are nearby, and you’ll often need to bring them some lost cargo in order to initiate a conversation with them. So with that in mind, here’s where to find the hidden preppers in Death Stranding. If you’re in need of more info on some more tips, check out our guides focusing on combating the MULEs, BT encounters, and how to effectively walk around in the world.

Ludens Fan

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One of the more well-known preppers is the Ludens Fan, who’s played by former games journalist Geoff Keighley. Though he’s something of an oddball, he’s a prepper you’ll want to get to know early on. To find the Ludens Fan, you’ll need to travel northeast from Distribution Center West of Capital Knot City in the Eastern Region. His shelter is located past BT territory and up a steep hill, so you’ll need to tread carefully. In the area, you’ll see lost cargo for the Ludens Fan, so be sure to pick them up to begin your dialog with him. Building a relationship with the Ludens Fan earns you a unique holographic sign in the form of a Luden–the Kojima Productions mascot–albeit a more cartoonish take on it.

The Musician

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Aside from the Ludens Fan, here is another prepper hidden in the Eastern Region that’s worth paying a visit. Just southwest of the Distribution Center West of Capital Knot City, and beyond the MULE camp, you’ll find a shelter for the Musician by following the river down to the waterfall. Once you get inside, examine the terminal and take on the order, which will take you back outside to pick up some stray items floating in the river. Forming a bond with this prepper earns Sam a harmonica, which he can play while resting to earn some likes from BB. Sam’s companion will even start to dance when Sam plays long enough.

The Collector

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Once you’re in the Central Region during Episode 3, you’ll encounter a staggering amount of preppers across the expansive map. To find one of the first hidden preppers in the central region, known as the Collector, you’ll need to head west to the MULEs camp south of the Engineer. Near the MULE camp on the western side of their territory, you’ll see a pathway leading down into the ravine below. The Collector is one of the trickier preppers to reach, as you’ll need to keep an eye out for the signs of where the shelter is located. By observing the cliff-face, you’ll see a sign of a cartoon mascot–which is a reference to the Famitsu magazine. Once you see it, take out a ladder–or use one that’s there–to climb up. After strengthening your bond with the Collector, he’ll give Sam a backpack cover, which protects cargo stored inside his backpack from the effects of Timefall.

Veteran Porter

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Another challenging prepper to find in Chapter 3 is the Veteran Porter. Just north of the Timefall Farm in the central region map is the Veteran Porter’s shelter located in the mountains. Though you can make it on foot, you can also reach him with a truck or reverse trike. What makes the Veteran Porter different from other preppers is that he can be particularly challenging to form a bond with. You can find various cargo tagged with his name in the area to start things off, but the best way to improve your social bond with him come from orders you get from preppers later on. Regardless, once you strengthen the relationship up to rank four, you’re given a trinket for your backpack that allows Sam to spot MULEs and fellow porters out in the wild easier.

The Novelist’s Son

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In Episode 5, you’ll travel west and head into the marshland on the furthest edge of the Central Region. After making it to the Distribution Center North of Mountain Knot City, make a detour southwest towards the cliffs. Eventually, you’ll find the shelter of the Novelist’s Son. Rank up your standing enough with the Novelist’s Son, and you’ll eventually acquire a new strain of Cryptobiotes, which are far more potent than the average ones and will restore more of Sam’s blood count.

The First Prepper

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Without a doubt, The First Prepper in the Central Region is the most difficult person to find in the game. What makes this prepper such a challenge to get to is that they’re located at one of the world’s highest points in the game. In addition to having to climb sheer cliffs, you’ll also have to contend with heavy Timefall snow, which is far more corrosive than normal Timefall.

Before you proceed to this prepper, make sure you come prepared with container repair sprays, an exoskeleton, and a fresh pair of boots. There will be lots of climbing to reach the First Prepper. From the Spiritualist’s shelter, head south up into the mountains. No matter where you approach, you’ll, unfortunately, have a steep climb ahead of you. Use your compass to help guide (by holding L1), as it will pick up the location of the shelter as you get closer to it. When you’ve made it to the top fo the mountain, you’ll eventually come to the First Prepper’s shelter. Deliver any spare cargo you may have picked up from before and send it their way.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/death-stranding-guide-the-hidden-preppers-that-you/1100-6471361/

Reverse-Horror Monster Game Carrion Is Coming To Xbox One As Well As PC Next Year

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Carrion, a reverse-horror game where you play as the monster, was first shown at GDC 2018 and is due to release in 2020. The game was announced as a PC release, and will be made available on Steam at launch. It casts you as a many-tentacled monster that smashes its way through the facility it was born in, killing the scientists that created you and destroying as much of the building as you can.

Now the game has been announced for Xbox One as well, ahead of a playable demo being available at X019 in London from November 14-16. The game will launch alongside the PC version, although neither release has a specific launch date yet beyond ‘2020’. A short trailer has been released alongside the announcement, although it does not reveal anything new about the game.

We also know, thanks to a tweet by Xbox Game Pass (embedded below), that some new titles will be announced for Microsoft’s subscription service during X019–although it seems unlikely that Carrion will be one of them, since publisher Devolver Digital’s co-founder Graeme Struthers is wary of game subscriptions.

A sneak-peek demo was available for a limited time over Halloween. It’s no longer available, but you can check out 15 minutes of gameplay footage we snagged from it.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/reverse-horror-monster-game-carrion-is-coming-to-x/1100-6471364/

Anthem’s Upcoming Icetide Event Will Blanket The Planet In Snow

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Anthem, BioWare’s beleaguered shared-world squad shooter for PC, PS4, and Xbox One, will celebrate the holiday season with a new winter-themed event. During Icetide, the world of Anthem will be blanketed in snow and ice, as everything freezes over for winter. There will be celebrations and festivities, but also unique challenges for players to deal with over this period.

A preview of the upcoming event ran over the Public Test Server for PC players over the past weekend, ending on November 11. During the preview period, the Tyrant Mine Stronghold was available to players, giving them a taste of the new missions offered up by the limited-time seasonal change. In freeplay, players also encountered more outlaws to fight, Snow Globe Storms to deal with, and an all-new time trial event. Fort Tarsis and the Launch Bay were also kitted out in decorations for the festive season, which will return when Icetide is made available for all players. It’s unclear when Icetide will be available in Anthem, but it’s fair to assume that we’ll see it before Christmas.

BioWare’s game recently added Mass Effect armor to celebrate N7 Day, and made major changes to how content will be released for the game in the future. It’s also faced setbacks as major figureheads leave the project: lead producer Ben Irving left the studio in August, followed by head of live service Chad Robertson earlier this month. Hopefully Icetide will reward fans who have stuck with the game during its difficult first year.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/anthems-upcoming-icetide-event-will-blanket-the-pl/1100-6471362/

Ray Tracing Explained: What It Means For PS5 And Scarlett

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With a new generation of consoles on the horizon, curiosity definitely strikes when thinking about what they’re going to bring to the table in terms of graphical power. Will they deliver a transformative jump for next-gen? Will they do native 4K with better textures and higher frame rates? Or is there a feature cooking in the background that we don’t know about yet? We can count on one graphical capability that’ll be new to the console world when PlayStation 5 and Xbox Scarlett ship late next year: ray tracing.

What Is Ray Tracing?

Ray tracing is an advanced method of illuminating 3D environments. With ray tracing, light sources cast out linear rays of light which then bounce off the surface it hits to another and to another until it reaches your eye, or the camera view in that 3D environment. Another factor ray tracing accounts for is the fact that different surfaces (like glass or water) will reflect, refract, and absorb light differently. These calculations lead to a more accurate representation of how light works in the real world.

Areas obstructed by objects and blocked from light rays are properly darkened as a result (meaning proper shadows) and a scene’s illumination looks more realistic. Ambient light can also affect the darkness of shadows and ray tracing accounts for this, too–not every shadow is pitch black due to varied environmental illumination. Light will behave and react accordingly with mirrors, glass, and liquid as well. Scenes are able to represent changes to lighting conditions since rays are being cast and calculated in real time, making for realistic and dynamic environments.

It’s much more clear when you see it for yourself, and Nvidia has an in-depth walkthrough of ray tracing in action:

Since light sources can cast thousands of rays and can bounce off multiple objects and surfaces with varying properties, it becomes a burdensome rendering technique for graphics processors. These are all calculations that your hardware has to process in real time and considering just how complex and intense ray tracing is, it’s unreasonably difficult for current consoles to do it.

What It Takes To Do Ray Tracing

Ray tracing is currently making waves in the PC hardware space and first hit the consumer market last year with the launch of Nvidia’s RTX family of video cards. These graphics cards are built with Nvidia’s Turing GPU architecture which include dedicated processing cores–called RT Cores–to solely focus on ray tracing and work alongside the main GPU cores. Currently there are 8 video cards in the Nvidia RTX lineup equipped to handle ray tracing in PC games:

Ray tracing is also on a spectrum; Nvidia allows games with RTX ray tracing features to control how many rays can be cast in order to perform ray tracing. This means previous generation graphics cards can at least toy around with the tech, but it’s largely inadvisable since you can take drastic hits to your framerate.

The interesting aspect to next-generation consoles aiming for ray tracing is the fact that hardware manufacturer AMD will be building the graphics processors for both Xbox Scarlett and PS5. Currently, AMD does not have a GPU on the market specifically built for ray tracing and has only said that it has plans to dedicate the shader cores on its video cards to do ray tracing in the near future. Of course, future console hardware will be much different than what’s currently available for PCs, so we’ll have to wait until we get more details on how next-gen platforms will handle it.

But Why, Though?

You might be wondering, how is that any different from how light and shadows work in games without ray tracing? By comparison, the more common method, called rasterization, is a quicker way of doing lighting and shadows though it is more crude. But it doesn’t account for the constant bouncing of light rays since it doesn’t include real-time calculations. Nvidia has a more detailed explanation rasterization.

When it comes to how ray tracing actually affects a scene of a game, I often think about Nvidia’s presentation of how ray tracing looks with Metro Exodus’ global illumination. Without ray tracing, the inside of cabins are fairly lit, albeit flat and not entirely accurate in terms of how it would be in the real world. With ray tracing enabled, light that shines through the windows bounce around and illuminate the areas of the cabin properly, leaving certain corners darker in the players view:

Animated films, such as Pixar movies, have been using ray tracing for years. But of course, these are not interactive experiences that need to be rendered in real time, and film studios also have access to powerful machines that can render these scenes efficiently. But gaming hardware is slowly getting there. Sharper shadows, better ambient occlusion, and proper global illumination are all the benefits that animation and games get out of ray tracing.

Many high-profile games have included Nvidia’s RTX ray tracing tech and there will be more to come. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare is the latest release to use the tech and next year’s highly-anticipated Cyberpunk 2077 will take advantage of it, too. Developers typically work alongside Nvidia to implement it properly, and so far, here are a few of the big games:

The term ray tracing is increasingly getting thrown around in discussions about the next generation of gaming hardware, and if you haven’t been keeping up with the PC hardware then you may be lost; hopefully we’ve at least provided a fundamental understanding of it. To put it simply, ray tracing is a graphical rendering technique that has light sources casting rays that behaving as they would in the real world to provide more realistic looking shadows, reflections, and overall illumination–however, it’s hardware-intensive.

We don’t know much about how next-gen consoles will be handling ray tracing, but don’t expect every PS5 and Scarlett game to include it or run the full gamut of ray tracing features. The tech is still in its early days and only a handful of PC games have it implemented today. If you want to get into the weeds of ray tracing, you can check out this Nvidia developer blog that explains the heavy technical details.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/ray-tracing-explained-what-it-means-for-ps5-and-sc/1100-6471353/

Hearthstone Battlegrounds – A Gentle Intro To Auto-Battlers For Hearthstone Fans

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Blizzard has been steadily releasing Hearthstone updates and expansions for years, but it’s fair to say at this point that the card game, once an explosive and surprise success, is now catering to its most loyal audience. Changes that feel massive within the community, like the recent trend of bringing in special or retired cards between expansions to mix up the meta, haven’t done much to reach outside its established player base.

It’s in this environment that Blizzard has developed and prepared an all-new mode that seems aimed at reaching outside the traditional Hearthstone audience. Hearthstone Battlegrounds is the studio’s take on the popular auto-battler genre, all within the familiar framework of the CCG mechanics. But while it could be a familiar and friendly introduction to auto-chess for Hearthstone veterans, it may not reach outside the core audience.

Auto-battlers, sometimes referred to as auto-chess, have exploded in popularity over the last year, starting with the advent of the Dota 2 Auto-Chess mod. It’s fundamentally a genre that’s about investment, as you plan your purchases of armies to take part in automated battles. The strategy takes place entirely in the periods between the actual battle rounds, but the complexity of buying strategies and positioning can be daunting in high-level play.

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Hearthstone made its name on being an accessible, easy-to-learn collectible card game. The mechanics and UI were all clearly signposted, and after a lifetime of being CCG-curious, I finally found one that gently introduced me to the genre. Years later, the game has become second nature. Mechanics have stacked and built upon themselves, but I’ve been there since the foundation, and so it all makes sense. Battlegrounds appears primed to do the same for auto-battlers, and like CCGs I’ve been interested in learning the ropes of the emerging genre.

Blizzard has a way of making clear and simple UI and that talent is on full display in Battlegrounds. Even watching the debut presentation at BlizzCon felt daunting, with a messy hodgepodge of keywords and mechanics that I simply had no point of reference for. The in-game experience, on the other hand, is perfectly friendly. After a brief tutorial explaining the rhythm of a match, I felt perfectly equipped to jump into a live game against human opponents.

Like any auto-battler, Battlegrounds is a value game, as you buy and sell minions or upgrade your tavern using in-game currency to maximize your strength on the board. Just as Hearthstone capped Mana cost at 10, Battlegrounds keeps the number of coins in play and available tavern upgrades manageably low. You’ll never be managing an ebb and flow of more than 10 Gold in any given purchasing round.

You’re pitted against seven other opponents, each doing the same, and rounds consist of your minions fighting the other side until only one team has any minions left. Whichever side breaks through does damage to the opponent, and then everyone heads back to the store to try it again. This repeats until only one of the eight players remains. This rhythm makes the focus less on play-order or deciding whether to attack an opponent’s face as in traditional Hearthstone, and more about minion placement and purchase strategy.

For the time being, the meta feels relatively limited. There are 24 heroes to choose from, but most of them have similar powers–namely, some method to buff a particular minion tribe. Those tribes, too, are limited. Right now there are only a handful of minions in the Mech, Beast, Demon, and Murloc tribes, and after a handful of games you’ll learn how to maximize your synergy for each. Already there are almost foolproof strategies emerging, especially around Mech synergy. Other heroes encourage aggressive buying and selling, and any hero can be viable–but some are obvious favorites and nerfs seem inevitable.

In beta, at least, the Battlegrounds mode doesn’t have much of an incentive structure–as opposed to the other non-standard mode, Arena, which requires an entry fee and offers potentially big rewards for great performance. Battlegrounds has no such entry fee, and simply offers you a rank that raises or lowers after each match. Blizzard hasn’t detailed if it will offer rewards at all. That makes the mode feel slight, like playing a Tavern Brawl after you’ve already claimed your weekly reward. Since the heroes don’t count as class selections, they’re ineligible for daily quest completion too.

The reward structure may change after the beta period. At least for now, the experience is slightly enhanced by having purchased packs from the latest expansion (for the beta, this is counted as the upcoming expansion Descent of Dragons). You could get detailed stat tracking, a selection of three heroes instead of two, and emotes depending on the number of packs purchased, but none of these features feel strictly necessary.

Ultimately, Battlegrounds did help introduce me to auto-battlers. I feel more capable and prepared to try others with the foundation this one has built. But I can’t help but wonder if that experience would be the same for someone less familiar with Hearthstone. The mode introduces a handful of new units that are custom-built for the mode, but for the most part it relies on minions and mechanics that longtime Hearthstone players understand at a glance. If someone entered without that foundation, I’m concerned that trying to read and grasp each unit’s information while under strict time constraints could be frustrating. If so, Battlegrounds may be another move that pleasantly caters to the Hearthstone community, without reaching very far outside of it.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/hearthstone-battlegrounds-a-gentle-intro-to-auto-b/1100-6471351/

Pokemon Sword And Shield Freebie Available This Weekend

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Pokemon Sword and Shield finally arrive on Nintendo Switch this week, and The Pokemon Company is offering a few freebies for early adopters. Not only can you claim a Meowth capable of Gigantamaxing if you pick up a copy of either title by January 15, those in the US can also receive a free outfit for their trainers.

From November 16-25, you’ll be able to claim a free download code for a track suit trainer outfit at a participating Walmart location. To get the code, you’ll first need to download and install the Pokemon Pass app on your smartphone. Once you have the app, you’ll need to head to a Walmart and use the app to scan a QR code that’s on display at the store.

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After you’ve gotten a download code, you’ll need to follow the steps below to input that into your game and download the outfit:

  • Launch your copy of Pokemon Sword or Shield
  • Select Mystery Gift from the menu
  • Select Get a Mystery Gift
  • Select Get with Code/Password and follow the prompts to connect online
  • Input your download code
  • Visit the fitting room in a boutique to access the outfit

If you’re eager to pick up Sword and Shield this weekend, you’ll want to head to Walmart anyway, as the retailer is offering the games for $49.94 each on launch day. This promotion is in-store only, so if you want to take advantage of the deal, you can kill two birds with one stone and get the free download code as well. For more early deals and pre-order bonuses, be sure to check out our Pokemon Sword and Shield pre-order guide.

As previously mentioned, you can get a free Pokemon in Sword and Shield as well. If you purchase a game by January 15, you’ll be able to receive a free Gigantamax-capable Meowth via Mystery Gift. If you have save data of either Let’s Go Pikachu or Eevee on your Switch, you’ll also receive a Gigantamax-capable Pikachu or Eevee within the games.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/pokemon-sword-and-shield-freebie-available-this-we/1100-6471350/

Here’s Google Stadia’s Launch Lineup And 2019 Games

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Google Stadia is launching in just over a week, and the company has been quiet on which games will be available right out of the box when the first customers get to log in on November 19. Now it has broken that silence, outlining the full launch lineup as well as another batch of games to come online throughout the rest of the year.

In the announcement, Google says it will start with 12 “carefully chosen” games, with an additional 14 more coming by the end of the year. The launch lineup does notably include two fighting games, Mortal Kombat 11 and Samurai Shodown, along with the rhythm games Thumper and Just Dance 2020. Those all seem aimed at addressing latency concerns right out of the gate.

They join other big console releases like Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, the rebooted Tomb Raider series, and Red Dead Redemption 2. The lineup also includes Destiny 2, which is included with a Stadia Pro subscription. Given that Stadia Pro is part of the Founder’s Edition, and those will be the only people playing on day one, that means everyone playing will get it.

Check out the full listing of both launch day games and others coming throughout the rest of the year.

Google Stadia Launch Lineup

  • Assassin’s Creed Odyssey
  • Destiny 2
  • Gylt
  • Just Dance 2020
  • Kine
  • Mortal Kombat 11
  • Red Dead Redemption 2
  • Thumper
  • Tomb Raider
  • Rise of the Tomb Raider
  • Shadow of the Tomb Raider
  • Samurai Shodown

Google Stadia 2019 Lineup

  • Attack on Titan 2: Final Battle
  • Borderlands 3
  • Darksiders Genesis
  • Dragonball Xenoverse 2
  • Farming Simulator 19
  • Final Fantasy XV
  • Football Manager 2020
  • Ghost Recon Breakpoint
  • Grid
  • Metro Exodus
  • NBA 2K20
  • Rage 2
  • Trials Rising
  • Wolfenstein Youngblood

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/heres-google-stadias-launch-lineup-and-2019-games/1100-6471349/

Black Friday’s Best Nintendo Switch Game Deals: Super Mario Odyssey, Breath Of The Wild, And More

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You never know what you’re going to get with Nintendo on Black Friday. Unlike the PS4 and Xbox One, super great Switch deals aren’t guaranteed, even when it comes to games. But based on the Black Friday ads that have released so far from Best Buy and Target, Black Friday 2019 will buck that trend. A wide selection of great Nintendo Switch games will be on sale, including excellent first-party exclusives for some truly awesome prices.

Where to find the best Nintendo Switch game deals

This year, retailers like Amazon, Target, Best Buy, GameStop, and Walmart will have some of the most popular Switch games for 33% off, dropping the price on games like Mario Tennis Aces, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and Super Mario Odyssey from $60 to $40. The exception here is Target, which will have those three games for $30 each in a limited-time doorbuster deal on Thanksgiving before the price returns to $40 for the rest of the weekend.

Those five major retailers will likely account for the vast majority of deals on Switch games. That said, if you prefer to buy digitally, the Nintendo Eshop usually has its own sale on games, so you’ll want to check those out during Black Friday weekend too. At this time, Best Buy and Target have released their Black Friday ads. We’ll continue updating our list of the best Switch game deals below as more retailers drop their Black Friday ads.

For more Black Friday Switch deals, check out our guide to the best Switch console and accessory deals, which includes a familiar Switch bundle and discounts on multiple Switch controllers.

Black Friday 2019: Best Nintendo Switch game deals

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/black-fridays-best-nintendo-switch-game-deals-supe/1100-6471331/

Pokemon Sword & Shield’s Final Pre-Launch Trailer Reveals Two New Pokemon

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We’re only a few days away from the release of Pokemon Sword and Shield. The Gen 8 Pokemon games arrive on Nintendo Switch this Friday, November 15, and ahead of their launch, The Pokemon Company has shared one final pre-release trailer that gives us another quick look at the titles–as well as a couple of new Pokemon.

The trailer, which you can watch below, has only been released in Japanese, but it primarily showcases some of the new Gen 8 Pokemon that have been revealed since Sword and Shield were first announced, such as the Electric-type corgi Yamper and Obstagoon, a Galar-exclusive addition to the Zigzagoon line.

Interestingly, the trailer also shows off two as-yet unrevealed Pokemon: the first appears to be made up out of runes, while the second appears to be a Galar-exclusive evolution of Mr. Mime, according to leaks that have been circulating online. You can take a look at the two new Pokemon beneath the trailer below.

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Beyond the new Pokemon, the trailer also gives us another look at some of the Gym Leaders you’ll encounter on your journey across the Galar region, as well as some Pokemon that are capable of Gigantamaxing, such as Charizard and Butterfree. You’ll have a chance to add the latter to your team; from November 15 to early January, Gigantamax Butterfree will be more likely to appear in Max Raid Battles. During that same time frame, Sword players will also be more likely to encounter Gigantamax Drednaw, while Shield players will have a better chance of finding Gigantamax Corviknight.

Pokemon Sword and Shield release on Nintendo Switch on November 15, and the games will be $10 off at Walmart stores on launch day. Early adopters will also be able to get a few free Pokemon. Those who pick up a game by January 15, 2020 will be able to receive a free Gigantamax-capable Meowth, and players with save data of Let’s Go Pikachu or Eevee on their systems will get a free Gigantamax-capable Pikachu or Eevee. You can read more in our Pokemon Sword and Shield pre-order guide.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/pokemon-sword-and-shields-final-pre-launch-trailer/1100-6471347/

Katamari Creator’s New Game, Wattam, Gets Release Date And New Trailer

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Wattam, the latest game from Katamari Damacy director Keita Takahashi, has finally set a release date. It will come to PS4 and PC via the Epic Game Store on December 17. It is also planned for release on Steam, but that storefront has not updated with a release date yet. The game will cost $20, but it’s offering a pre-order discount of 15%.

The release date trailer shows a cute art style reminiscent of the one found in the Katamari games and Takahashi’s follow-up, Noby Noby Boy. In Wattam, you play as a lonely little character named Mayor who has lost his memories and his friends. The game revolves around him reuniting with his friends and finding the joy in exploring together, as he builds stacks and chains with the colorful cast of characters. The announcement promises a cast of 100 characters to interact with.

Wattam has been a long time coming, having first debuted at E3 2015. Takahashi’s last major release was Noby Noby Boy, which was similarly about building connections with other characters–albeit in an experimental, online way.

“I think each game has different themes,” he said in an interview on the PlayStation Blog. “I just have been wanting to make something new and fun, and that is more important than the themes.”

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/katamari-creators-new-game-wattam-gets-release-dat/1100-6471346/