After a relatively quiet couple of weeks, the Microsoft Store is back with a huge offering of deals for Xbox One owners, including two publisher sales from Capcom and Activision Blizzard, respectively, and a spring add-on sale with discounts on a wide range of DLC. Here’s an overview of what’s available:

Some of Capcom’s best games are marked down, including new releases like Devil May Cry 5 and Resident Evil 2, both of which are selling for $20 cheaper at $40.19. The 2001 samurai adventure Onimusha: Warlords has been remastered for Xbox One and other consoles with high-definition graphics, improved controls, and a brand-new soundtrack; you can grab it now for $15.

Other acclaimed games from recent years are selling at record-low prices, including Monster Hunter: World for just $16.50 and Resident Evil 7: Biohazard for $15.

Activision Blizzard has a small sale of its own going on, and it includes markdowns on Call of Duty, Spyro, and Diablo. Spyro Reignited Trilogy, which released in November, is $10 off–you can claim it for $30 this week. Meanwhile, both Diablo III: Eternal Collection and Overwatch: Legendary Edition are over $40 off, each selling for only $19.79.

Call of Duty fans, you can also pick up Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 – Digital Deluxe Edition for $70 (marked down from $100) and the enhanced Digital Deluxe Edition for $97.49 (originally $130). Call of Duty: WWII – Gold Edition is also discounted to $24 from $60.

If you’ve been holding out on certain DLC, be sure to browse Microsoft’s spring add-on sale, which has over 300 season passes, upgrades, and other expansion packs discounted. The sale includes Assassin’s Creed Odyssey‘s season pass for $22, Call of Duty: Black Ops 4‘s Black Ops Pass for $40, The Elder Scrolls Online‘s Summerset Upgrade for $12, and Dragon Ball FighterZ‘s FighterZ Pass for $17.50.

As a reminder, you can also get three months of Xbox Game Pass and one month of Xbox Live Gold for $1 each right now–both of those deals end May 13. Plus, you can get a free $10 gift card when you buy $50 in Xbox gift cards at the Microsoft Store, and over at Newegg, you can get a $100 Xbox gift card for $88.88 for a limited time.

SHOP MICROSOFT’S XBOX GAME DEALS »

As usual, these weekly Xbox One game deals will be available through next Monday, May 13. Browse the full offering of discounts at the Microsoft Store and see some of our picks below.

• Assassin’s Creed Odyssey – Season Pass — $22
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 – Black Ops Pass — $40
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 – Digital Deluxe Edition — $70
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 – Digital Deluxe Edition Enhanced — $97.49
• Call of Duty: WWII – Gold Edition — $24
• The Crew 2 – Season Pass — $26
• Dead Rising — $8
• Devil May Cry 5 — $40.19
• Devil May Cry 5 – Deluxe Edition — $49
• Devil May Cry HD Collection — $21
• Diablo III: Eternal Collection — $19.79
• Diablo III: Rise of the Necromancer — $9
• DmC Devil May Cry: Definitive Edition — $9.89
• Dragon Ball FighterZ – FighterZ Pass — $17.50
• The Elder Scrolls Online – Summerset Upgrade — $12
• Fallout 4 – Season Pass — $16.50
• Grand Theft Auto Online – Criminal Enterprise Starter Pack — $19.49
• Hitman 2 – Expansion Pass — $20
• Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite — $16
• Mega Man – 30th Anniversary Bundle — $48
• Monster Hunter: World — $16.50
• Onimusha: Warlords — $15
• Overwatch – Legendary Edition — $19.79
• Resident Evil 2 — $40.19
• Resident Evil 5 — $8
• Resident Evil 6 — $8
• Resident Evil 7: Biohazard — $15
• Resident Evil Revelations — $8
• Shadow of the Tomb Raider – Season Pass — $18
• Spyro Reignited Trilogy — $30

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/xbox-one-sale-its-a-huge-week-for-deals-at-the-mic/1100-6466699/

Sony’s PS4 exclusive Days Gone has topped the UK physical sales chart once again, according to sales monitor Chart-Track. The zombie freaker survival game was No.1 in its debut week and claims that spot for the second time running for the week ending May 4.

Below Days Gone, the chart paints a familiar picture. Mortal Kombat 11 keeps its place at No.2, and FIFA 19 remains at No.3. Red Dead Redemption 2 continues to chart well and stays at No.4, while fellow Rockstar game Grand Theft Auto V rounds out the top five.

Only one new release makes the top 40 this week: Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age re-enters the chart at No.15 thanks to a new Nintendo Switch version.

You can read the full top 10 sales chart for this week below, courtesy of UKIE and GfK Chart-Track. Note this table does not include digital sales data, and so should not be considered representative of all UK game sales.

1. Days Gone
2. Mortal Kombat 11
3. FIFA 19
4. Red Dead Redemption 2
5. Grand Theft Auto
6. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
7. New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe
8. The Division 2
9. Forza Horizon 4
10. Anthem

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/top-10-uk-games-chart-ps4s-days-gone-is-no1-again/1100-6466702/

EA Access is expanding to PlayStation 4 this summer. Starting in July, PS4 owners will be able to take part in the same console subscription service previously exclusive to Microsoft’s Xbox One.

“As we continue to invest in digital and subscription services, bringing our games to even more people across both consoles is an exciting opportunity for everyone,” EA executive VP of strategic growth Matt Bilbey said in a press release. “Our goal is to give players more choice to try and play our games wherever and however they choose and we’re happy to bring the service to PlayStation 4.”

On PS4, you will be able to pay for a monthly $5 / £4 or annual $30 / £20 USD subscription to EA Access. With a subscription, you get access to a vault of free EA titles, such as Titanfall 2, Star Wars: Battlefront II, and FIFA 18. Subscribers also get a 10 percent discount on all digital EA games, as well as their respective expansions and in-game purchases. Perhaps most notable is EA Access’ Play First Trials, which typically gives you 10 hours of early access to all new EA titles prior to their official release.

For now, the only upcoming title scheduled to come to EA Access via Play First Trials is Madden NFL 20. That said, there are a few other games releasing in the near future, all of which most likely will be made available on EA Access at some point. Respawn is releasing Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order this November, a story-focused game set during the aftermath of Revenge of the Sith. The developer has Titanfall-related projects in the works as well. There are also the annual EA Sports games, such as NHL, NBA Live, and FIFA, all of which will most likely get sequels. New EA Originals are bound to make it onto the subscription service too.

Though EA has experienced some troublesome drama in recent years, ranging from Battlefront II’s microtransaction controversy to the lackluster receptions of Mass Effect: Andromeda and Anthem, EA Access is a positive step for the company. The service is a good deal for anyone looking to save on the combined retail price of the company’s vast library of titles. Last year, we listed EA Access as one of the major plusses for Xbox One. PC already has a version of EA Access called Origin Access.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/ea-access-coming-to-ps4-this-july/1100-6466686/

David Eddings, the original voice actor for Claptrap from the Borderlands series who isn’t returning for Borderlands 3, has shared some new insight into the situation–and it is dramatic. After Randy Pitchford, the CEO of Borderlands developer Gearbox Software, called him “bitter and disgruntled,” Eddings spoke up again today. He shared his side of the story, which includes a claim that Pitchford physically assaulted him in a hotel lobby at the Game Developers Conference in 2017.

“I was fine moving on after Gearbox,” he said. “But when my former boss starts mouthing off about various aspects of my employment, including ‘how highly compensated’ I was and how ‘generous’ he is, I feel obligated to correct the record.”

In the Twitter thread, Eddings said he had “mixed feelings” when Gearbox asked him in 2018 if he would come back to voice Claptrap for Borderlands 3. He said he was willing to “put differences aside and do something cool for Borderlands fans with my friends at Gearbox.”

Eddings said he offered to do the Borderlands 3 voicework for “free” in exchange for Gearbox paying him past royalties for his work doing the voice of Claptrap in the previous Borderlands titles. As reported previously, Eddings did the voicework for Claptrap on Borderlands 1 and 2 when he was an employee at Gearbox, so he did not draw any additional payment.

Eddings also brought up a significant claim against Pitchford: that Pitchford assaulted him in 2017. Eddings said Pitchford “physically assaulted me” in a hotel lobby during GDC 2017. The alleged misconduct reportedly took place at the Marriott Marquis hotel in downtown San Francisco. The situation surrounding the alleged assault is unclear, and Eddings did not say if he filed a police report. Whatever the case, Eddings said he offered to do the voicework for Claptrap in Borderlands 3 if Gearbox gave him the requested backpay and an apology for the reported assault. It appears that didn’t happen.

“Personally, I think Randy’s been on the tilt the last few years. He’s not the victim he portrays himself to be. I even blocked him a couple years ago for stalking me on social media. Enough is enough,” Eddings said.

He went on to mention again the reported $12 million that Pitchford is alleged in a lawsuit to have received as a secret bonus paid to him instead of going to the Gearbox development team’s bonus pool. Eddings said it was “conspicuous” that Pitchford would talk about Edding’s salary but not mention the alleged $12 million payment that, in Eddings’ words, Pitchford “siphoned away from the employee royalty pool.” Eddings added, “Gearbox employees are asked to take lower salaries with the promise of royalty shares.”

2K Games, the publisher of Borderlands 3, has not publicly commented on the lawsuit in question, which was filed by a former Gearbox lawyer at the tail end of 2018. 2K Games is owned by Take-Two Interactive, which handles the legal matters for its subsidiaries.

Here is Eddings’ full Twitter thread on the subject:

Eddings was a decade-plus executive veteran at Gearbox before he left in 2017 to take a job at Rooster Teeth, where he currently serves as Head of Game Publishing. According to Pitchford, Eddings was terminated, but the specifics surrounding his departure from Gearbox are unclear. Whatever the case, Eddings appears to be directing his misgivings solely at Pitchford. He says Gearbox is “full of amazingly talented game developers,” adding that it’s unfair to blame the developers “for the actions of one person.”

According to Pitchford, Eddings was paid “handsomely” during his time at Gearbox. And regarding the invitation to return as Claptrap in Borderlands 3, Pitchord said Gearbox offered him two times the standard union voice acting rate, which Eddings refused for the reasons mentioned above.

Pitchford has yet to respond to Eddings’ comments today. GameSpot has contacted 2K Games in an attempt to get more details. Keep checking back with GameSpot for the latest.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/borderlands-3-original-claptrap-voice-actor-makes-/1100-6466695/

A new Minecraft game is in the works, it appears, and it might not be what you expect. The company today posted a teaser video for what looks like a Minecraft augmented reality game.

The brief teaser video shows some kind of Minecraft AR game similar to Pokemon Go or Harry Potter: Wizards Unite with its blending of real and virtual world elements. Whatever it is, it looks like it’ll be announced on the Minecraft website on May 17. Check out the teaser below, and yes, the man (who looks strikingly like Xbox pioneer J. Allard) does not appear to give the woman back her phone. We don’t know why.

At E3 2015, Microsoft showcased a stunning Minecraft experience for the company’s AR HoloLens headset. But given that the new teaser video doesn’t show anyone wearing an AR headset, it looks like the Minecraft AR game could be more akin to the aforementioned Niantic games in its headset-free blending of the real and digital worlds.

According to noted Microsoft insider Brad Sams, who has accurately reported on unannounced Microsoft stories before, the Minecraft AR game is code-named “Genoa.”

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella told The New York Times in 2015 that one of the reasons Microsoft spent $2.5 billion to acquire Minecraft and developer Mojang was due to the potential benefits of marrying Minecraft and augmented reality. “Let’s have a game that, in fact, will fundamentally help us change new categories,” Nadella said. “HoloLens was very much in the works [when Microsoft announced the deal in 2015], and we knew it.”

The May 17 reveal date for the new Minecraft AR game is not random. It presumably aligns with the Minecraft 10-year anniversary celebration scheduled for the same day. Minecraft’s creator, Markus “Notch” Persson, is being excluded from the event over his “comments and opinions.”

The official Minecraft Twitter account cheekily reacted to the Minecraft AR news today with the thinking face emoji.

In addition to the rumored new Minecraft AR game, Microsoft is working on a Minecraft dungeon-crawler called Minecraft Dungeons. The title, which doesn’t have a release date, appears to take a more linear approach rather than the open-ended sandbox nature of the mainline game.

Minecraft remains one of the most popular games on Earth. By Microsoft’s latest count, it had 91 million monthly players, which is many millions more than Fortnite has.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/a-minecraft-ar-game-is-in-the-works-it-seems/1100-6466691/