Earth Day is quickly approaching–it’s next Monday, April 22, in case you didn’t know–and in the spirit of reuse and avoiding waste, Amazon is offering 20% off used PS4, Switch, and Xbox One games, consoles like the Nintendo Switch, wireless controllers, PC gaming accessories, and more this week. Because they’re used, many of these products are already discounted, so there are some pretty decent deals with the additional markdown.

The 20% off discount will be applied automatically during checkout–you’ll be able to see the reduction when you get to the Shipping & Payment portion. And if you have Prime, you’ll get free two-day shipping as usual. While used, the products are all in “good,” “very good,” or “like new” condition and are shipped and sold by Amazon, so you can rest assured the deals are legit.

It’s a good time to pick up a Nintendo Switch, as you can grab one here for around $210. There’s an excellent price on the HTC VIVE VR system, which generally sells for $500 but is available here for $338. Used Xbox wireless controllers are available for well under $40 in multiple colors, with the white version selling for just $27. Meanwhile, you can pick up a black DualShock 4 wireless controller for only $34.

There are quite a few used games to pick from in this sale, but the highlights include a Bayonetta 2 + Bayonetta bundle for Switch for about $33, Kingdom Hearts III for $26 on PS4 and $28 for Xbox One, Pokemon: Let’s Go, Eevee for $34 and Let’s Go, Pikachu for $38, God of War for $21, and Fallout 76 for the record-low price of $15.37 on PS4.

The Amazon Warehouse Earth Week sale is running now through April 22.

Shop Amazon Warehouse Earth Week gaming deals »

See some of our gaming-related picks from the sale below–we’ve already calculated the 20% off discount for you so you can see the price that will show up at checkout.

Consoles / Systems:

• HTC VIVE Virtual Reality System — $338.45
• NES Classic (“Like New” condition) — $59.07
• New Nintendo 3DS XL (Black) — $115.39
• Nintendo Switch (Red and Blue Joy-Con) — $210.54
• Nintendo Switch (Gray Joy-Con) — $209.41
• PlayStation Vita — $112.15

Games:

• Assassin’s Creed Origins (PS4) — $14.86
• Assassin’s Creed Origins (Xbox One) — $13.58
• Bayonetta 2 (physical) + Bayonetta (digital) (Switch) — $33.13
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 (PS4) — $21.94
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 (Xbox One) — $21.94
• Call of Duty: WWII (PS4) — $8.94
• Fallout 76 (PS4) — $15.37
• Fallout 76 (Xbox One) — $20.12
• Final Fantasy XV (PS4) — $9.94
• God of War (PS4) — $21.11
• Halo 5: Guardians – Limited Edition (Xbox One) — $15.74
• Kingdom Hearts III (PS4) — $26.29
• Kingdom Hearts III (Xbox One) — $28.07
• Metro Exodus – Aurora Limited Edition (PS4) — $42.49
• Metro Exodus – Aurora Limited Edition (Xbox One) — $42.49
• Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor – Game of the Year Edition (PS4) — $12.69
• Nier: Automata – Game of the Yorha Edition (PS4) — $21.12
• Pokemon: Let’s Go, Eevee (Switch) — $33.97
• Pokemon: Let’s Go, Pikachu (Switch) — $37.74

Accessories:

• DualShock 4 Wireless Controller for PS4 (Black) — $34.18
• HyperX Cloud Stinger Gaming Headset — $26.11
• Razer Cynosa Chroma Gaming Keyboard — $30.27
• Razer Kraken Pro V2 Gaming Headset — $31.39
• Seagate 2TB Game Drive for Xbox One, Xbox 360 — $59.51
• SteelSeries Rival 600 Gaming Mouse — $37.30
• Turtle Beach Recon 50X Gaming Headset (Xbox One) — $21.79
• Turtle Beach Recon 50X Gaming Headset (PS4) — $21.09
• Xbox Elite Wireless Controller (“Like New” condition) — $85.85
• Xbox One Controller Charging Station — $21.22
• Xbox Wireless Controller (Red) — $34.77
• Xbox Wireless Controller (Phantom Black Special Edition) — $39.87
• Xbox Wireless Controller (White) — $27.48

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/get-a-used-nintendo-switch-for-210-and-more-gaming/1100-6466339/

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate‘s big 3.0 update wasn’t the only Smash news Nintendo had to share this week. The company has also announced that a trio of new Amiibo figures are on the way, and they’re slated to hit stores this summer.

Starting July 26, players will be able to pick up the Pichu, Pokemon Trainer, and Isabelle Super Smash Bros. Amiibo at retailers. Nintendo hasn’t specified how much these new figures will cost, but previous Smash Ultimate Amiibo have run for $16 USD each. You can take a look at images of the new figures below.

Nintendo has released nine other Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Amiibo thus far, with even more on the way this year. The most recent batch, which consisted of Young Link, Daisy, and Ken, arrived earlier this month. Figures of Squirtle, Ivysaur, Snake, and Simon Belmont are also slated to release sometime in 2019.

In the meantime, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate’s 3.0 update arrives today, April 17. The biggest addition is undoubtedly Persona 5’s Joker, who is joining the roster as a playable character. Joker arrives alongside a new stage, Mementos, as well as an assortment of music tracks taken from the Persona series. The whole Joker pack is available for $6 / £4.49, or as part of the $25 Fighters Pass.

In addition to Joker, the 3.0 update introduces a Stage Builder to the game, allowing players to create and share their own levels. Additionally, the Nintendo Switch Online phone app is receiving an update that adds the previously announced Smash World hub, which lets players view user-created videos and stages. Finally, the update adds a new assortment of Persona and Sonic Mii Fighter costumes to purchase.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/smash-bros-ultimates-pichu-pokemon-trainer-and-isa/1100-6466338/

The historic Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris caught flame Monday evening, collapsing its spire and severely damaging parts of the building including its roof. Now as the government looks toward restoration, it may tap an unexpected source: Assassin’s Creed Unity.

CBS News reports that restorers may need to utilize the expertise of a Vassar College architecture historian and the artist team for Ubisoft’s 2014 video game. The detailed models could help provide a functional understanding of the building’s measurements and specifications that isn’t possible with still photographs.

Unity is set during the French Revolution, and was noted for its accurate rendering of 1700s Paris. The Verge reports that level artist Caroline Miousse spent roughly two years modeling Notre Dame Cathedral, saying about 80% of her work on the game was that landmark alone.

Notre Dame is a cathedral that has undergone multiple expansions and restorations over the centuries, and Miousse’s recreation is modeled as closely as possible to the structure as it was at the time–at least, for the most part. The team found that playtesters missed the spires, so Miousse added them to the cathedral despite the fact that they weren’t actually added until later.

For its part, Ubisoft said on Twitter it is not currently involved in any reconstruction efforts, but is “more than happy to lend our expertise in any way we can.” The company is helping out in another way, however. It has committed more than $500,000 to reconstruction efforts, and made Assassin’s Creed Unity free for a limited time in honor of the cathedral.

“Video games can enable us to explore places in ways we never could have otherwise imagined,” the company said. “We hope, with this small gesture, we can provide everyone an opportunity to appreciate our virtual homage to this monumental piece of architecture.”

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/assassins-creed-unity-could-aid-in-notre-dame-rest/1100-6466337/

The puzzle gem BoxBoy is coming to Nintendo Switch next week, with a newly cooperative adventure called BoxBoy + BoxGirl. If you’re new or just want to brush up on your boxing skills before the release, you can now try a demo for the game.

The demo includes both single- and multiplayer modes, showing you the ropes of the game mechanics and a handful of early puzzles. The “Tale for Two” multiplayer mode is recommended for two players, but you can take on the challenges solo if you wish by swapping back and forth between Qbby and Qucy.

BoxBoy + BoxGirl also introduces another new playable character, Qudy. The rectangular hero creates boxes that are extra-long or tall, which adds a new layer of complexity to the challenges. As usual, efficient puzzle solving will earn you medals you can use to unlock outfits, items, and accessories. The game also introduces a new timed balloon challenge mode.

BoxBoy was first introduced in 2015 by HAL Laboratories on the Nintendo 3DS. It was designed to look simple and monochromatic, similar to a Game Boy game. This is the series’ first entry on the Nintendo Switch, and the first time the cast of characters has come into their own as playable. It will be available on April 26 for $10.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/boxboy-boxgirl-demo-now-available-for-nintendo-swi/1100-6466334/

PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds has received a new PC patch on its test server, and it adds a feature that will be familiar to anyone who’s played Rainbow Six Siege. Update 28, as developer PUBG Corp. calls it, introduces weapon charms as part of a wider weapon progression system that will be making its way to live servers “very soon.”

The progression system, which is called Weapon Mastery, allows players to level up weapons by doing well with each gun. You can level up each weapon individually to a maximum rank of 100. Weapon XP is awarded for dealing damage, getting headshots, and, of course, killing opponents. Extra XP will be gained if your kill counts as a Defeat, a new term PUBG Corp. says includes “knockdowns, killing the last member of a team, and killing solo players.” The amount of XP awarded will also scale depending on how late in a match you performed the action.

Leveling up a weapon can grant you three reward types that cannot be obtained through any other avenue. The first is the aforementioned charms, which appear to work in a very similar way to Rainbow Six Siege’s equivalents. “Charms are keychain-like trinkets that attach to the left side on the barrel of each weapon,” PUBG Corp. says. “You can equip and see which charms you have unlocked from inside the Mastery tab. We’re launching with 20 unique charms that must be earned on a per weapon basis and it’s a safe bet that there are more on the way.”

The second type of reward is emblems, which you’ll gain when you rank a gun up to level 10, 20, 30, and so on up to 100. While these don’t appear to do much at present, PUBG Corp. says it “will be exploring ways for you to show off your emblems to other players” over the next few months.

Weapon Mastery’s final reward type is medals, a “way of highlighting the awesome accomplishments you perform.” Examples include one called Double, which is awarded when you kill two enemies in quick succession, and another named Frenzy that you’ll get when you get five kills with the same weapon in a single match.

You can read more about Weapon Mastery, which is separate to the battle pass system, on PUBG Corp.’s blog. Alternatively, check out the full list of patch notes for update 28 below, via PUBG Corp.

PUBG Update 28 Patch Notes

New Feature: Weapon Mastery

Weapon Mastery has been added, a new feature that allows players to check their gun stats and earn rewards based on their skills!

• New Progression System
  • Weapon Mastery is a new progression system where players can increase levels by gaining weapon XP based on players’ weapon use.
  • It operates all the time without being affected by seasons.
  • Weapon Mastery offers 100 levels for players to achieve per weapon.
  • In the lobby, players can check their weapon use information, last match results, and the rewards they acquired thus far through the newly created Mastery tab.
• Weapon Mastery Rewards
  • There are three types of Weapon Mastery rewards. These rewards can only be acquired through Mastery achievement.
    • Charms
    • Charms are accessories that can be equipped to weapons.
    • New charm can achieved at every five levels of progression per weapon.
    • Charms can be used with any weapon skins.
      • Acquired charms can be equipped/unlocked in the rewards page. Equipped charms can be seen in-game.
    • Charms cannot be traded, sold, or exchanged for BP.
  • Medals
    • Medals highlight awesome accomplishments players perform with their weapons.
    • Each medal can be earned multiple times. There is even a counter that tracks how many medals have been achieved.
  • Tier Emblems
    • Players can earn emblems equivalent to their level brackets achieved per each weapon.
    • Up to 10 tiers can be achieved.
• How to earn Weapon XP
  • Weapon XP for is earned when one or more of the following elements is satisfied during a match.
    • Damage
    • Headshots
    • Defeats
      • Defeats is a new term used for tracking actions that includes knockdowns, killing the last member of a team and killing solo players.
      • You can acquire extra weapon XP based on distance of defeats.
    • When earning Weapon XP, the amount received will increase based on how long you survived.
  • Defeats follow the existing judgment rules for DBNO/Kills currently used in the game.
    • Additional information:
    • Weapon Mastery does not count friendly fire/team damage.
    • Weapon Mastery does not count downs caused by road kills or environmental factors (blue zone, red zone, fall damage, or drowning).
    • Weapon Mastery does not count throwables or melee damage.
  • There is a maximum limit on each weapon that can be getting weapon XP.

Gameplay

A second round of Erangel loot rebalances has been made, as well as improvements to some sounds and effects related to gameplay.

Erangel 2nd Loot Rebalance

As we have spoken previously in our Dev Letter: Erangel Loot Rebalance, we are constantly analyzing player feedback, play patterns and other data. With this update, we’re implementing a second round of changes to improve the player looting experience on Erangel.

• The total amount of items spawned in Erangel has been increased by approximately 28%.
• Increased the overall amount of items spawned, especially the spawn rates of those higher priority items.
  • Spawn rate of AR has been increased by approx 64%.
  • Spawn rate of DMR has been increased by approx 114%.
  • Spawn rate of SR has been increased by approx 177%.
  • Spawn rates of equipment and armor have been slightly increased, especially level 2.
  • Spawn rates of healing items have been slightly increased.

Erangel Blue Zone Rebalance Test (Test Server Only)

• During this test server phase, we’ll be testing some changes to the blue zone on Erangel. At this stage, these changes are purely experimental and we’re looking for feedback to understand how players feel about the direction of the changes.
• There is no expected date or certainty that these changes will come to live servers, but we greatly appreciate and are looking forward to your feedback as we experiment with the blue zone changes specifically on the test server this week.

SR Damage Multiplier Changes

• Decreased the damage modifier of SR shots to the torso from 150% to 130%.
• Decreased the base damage of the AWM from 120 to 105.
  • The AWM will no-longer kill full health players wearing a level 2 vest in one shot with these changes.

Sound Improvements

• We’ve now added more sounds for item interactions.
  • Previously items were looted, dropped, equipped and unequipped, some items had the same sound effects regardless of the characteristics of each item. Sounds will now vary more between items.
• Added vehicle suspension sounds.
  • Sounds of moving vehicles’ suspension working can now be heard.
  • Different sounds will be played in different situations. Vehicles moving on rough terrain or when landing from a jump will make unique sounds.
  • Suspension sound volume is different between TPP and FPP.

Smoke Grenade Improvement

• Smoke grenades are now more accurately synchronized across all players and observers.
  • Previously, smoke grenade duration for the viewer would start when coming into viewable range (1 km) of the smoke grenade. Smoke grenade plumes will now end at the same time for all players/observers.

Vehicles Effects Improvement

• Added vehicle lighting effects.
  • Vehicle headlights, tail lights and dashboard are turned on when the vehicle’s engine starts.
  • The lights are only local visual effects and will not illuminate the surrounding areas.

Open/Close Doors Animation Improvement

• Improved the algorithm to determine when vehicles are blocking doors, preventing them from opening or closing.

Survivor Pass 3: Wild Card

After the launch of the Survivor Pass 3: Wild Card, we’ve been continuously collecting and analyzing mission result data. Additionally, we’ve been actively reviewing players feedback regarding specific mission difficulty. We have chosen to adjust and remove some missions which players found too difficult to complete.

• Daily Missions: Decreased the difficulty of 16 missions and deleted 4 missions which were too difficult.
• Weekly Missions: Decreased the difficulty of 16 missions and deleted 6 missions which were too difficult.
• Challenge Missions: Decreased the difficulty of 5 missions.

UI/UX

Store UI Overhaul

• Added Zoom in/out feature to item previews.
  • Use mouse scroll to zoom in/out of the part where the mouse cursor is pointing.
  • When zooming on the character, character UI is shown on the bottom right.
    • You can zoom in to 4 different parts (Head, Torso, Lower body, Feet).
    • Zoomed in parts are highlighted in the character UI.
    • Click on different parts of the character model to select a view of that part (Head, Torso, Lower body, Feet).
  • Horizontal rotations are now enabled in weapon and equipment previews.
  • Release the mouse button during weapon or equipment preview to reset the camera view.

Team UI Overhaul

• Teammates boost gauges are now in the team UI visible while playing to enhance team play.

Changes in Display Mode Settings

• When using full screen mode, the window mode will be changed to full screen (windowed) while in the lobby to prevent specific crashing caused by typing. In-game will remain full screen.
  • Full screen: In-game: Full screen / Lobby: Full screen(windowed).
  • Full screen (Windowed): In-game: full screen (windowed) / Lobby: Full screen (windowed).
  • Windowed: In-game: Windowed / Lobby: Windowed.

Survivor Title Season 3 Overview UI Improvements

• Season reward chart now shows 4 stages of rewards instead of 3.
• Additional UI has been added which shows points required for the next title.

Performance

• Optimized performance to decrease the time it takes to load into matches.

Custom match

Observer Feature Improvements

• Kill message improvements
  • To prevent confusion and distinguish individual messages from team messages, the existing individual multi-kill messages (RAMPAGE / EXECUTIONER / MASTERFUL / CONQUERING) have been removed to focus on the number of kills.
  • Team Multi-kill messages will remain the same.
  • The images for team multi-kill messages are now each shown with a separate image.

Added timer UI for Smoke Grenades

• To show the remaining time for the smoke grenades, each smoke will now have a timer UI showing the remaining smoke plume duration.
• The smoke timer lasts for about 40 seconds starting from the moment the smoke grenade plumes.
• When the timer hits approx. 20% remaining, the UI turns red and the icon shakes.
  • When the timer hits 10% remaining, the icon shakes x2 as hard.
• The timer UI disappears when the spectator is farther than 100 m.
• The transparency of the UI changes depending on the distance.

Restored Kick Player Function

• Observers can find the KICK button by right-clicking a player’s name on the player list. Click the left mouse on kick button to remove the player from the game.
  • Players can be kicked in the middle of a game.

Replay System

• In the replay feature, click right mouse button to toggle the REPORT button. Click the left mouse button again to report a player.
• The replay feature version has been updated. Existing replays recorded prior to this update are no longer playable.

Skins & Items

• The PUBG 2nd Anniversary Cap will no longer be available after April 24th (KST) / April 23th(PDT).
  • This is a free 2nd anniversary item, so don’t forget to redeem it within the availability period!
• Item sales for FACEIT Global Summit Hoodies and Mask will end on April 24th( KST) / April 23th (PDT).
  • 25% of the item’s revenue goes to the teams participating in FACEIT Global Summit, support the teams by purchasing these items!

Bug Fixes

World

• Fixed an issue with some barbed wire fences blocking bullets.
• Fixed an issue where players are unable to pick up items that are placed under broken barbed wire fences.

General

• Fixed the issue with center screen DBNO and kill messages being delayed.
• Fixed the issue with interaction UI remaining in spectator screen when is killed during interaction UI activated.
• Fixed the issue with certain maneuver could prevent motorcycles from flipping.
• Fixed the issue which a vehicle could constantly move when system menu was opened.
• Fixed an issue with different UAZ model variants having different maximum speeds.
• Fixed the awkward character movement when using an emote and rotating the mouse in FPP view.
• Fixed the issue with a frag grenade ground burn mark textures overlapping the player character’s model
• Fixed an issue where only one side of footsteps is output in certain situations.
• Fixed an issue which would remove player’s hair completely when equipping caps.
• Fixed a visual issue when punk knuckle gloves were equipped.
• Fixed a visual issue preventing belts from being visible when wearing a fur coat.
• Fixed an issue where character’s hair and face overlap when a female character equips specific hair styles and caps.
• Fixed a visual issue with shadows displaying incorrectly when swimming in FPP.
• Fixed a replay issue causing explosion effects to continue when moving through the timeline.
• Fixed an issue where players are unable to revive their teammates if casting UI freezes at 0 while reviving.
• Fixed an issue when using a scope and the character moves backward, the scope shakes.
• Fixed certain limb animations not playing while vaulting.
• Fixed an issue preventing the correct crosshair from being displayed after holstering a sidearm.
• Fixed an issue with Shirt (Plaid) icon not matching the in-game asset.
• Fixed a bug which prevented footsteps from being heard while walking over mud or water while wearing Harley Quinn Daddy’s Lil’ Monster Outfit

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/big-pubg-update-adds-rainbow-six-siege-style-weapo/1100-6466329/