Cyberpunk 2077 might wind up with a New Game Plus mode, but CD Projekt Red is still figuring out what it might be. That’s contrary to a previous report that a post-game replay mode was in the works.

“What I can tell you is we are looking into a suitable idea for implementing New Game Plus,” producer Richard Borzymowski told GameSpot at Gamescom. If and how has yet to be seen and talked about.”

Borzymowski went on to explain that the most important thing about adding a New Game Plus mode to Cyberpunk is making sure it’s the right implementation of the idea for the game. CD Projekt’s upcoming open-world sci-fi RPG will likely have some means of encouraging you to play beyond the end of the story, Borzymowski said, but the developer hasn’t decided what form it’ll take.

In Cyberpunk, much of what you experience depends on the character you create–their backstory and upbringing dictates some conversation choices, for instance, and the skills you develop dictate which paths you can take through missions. That means the character you make through the course of the game determines what portions of the game you see and what portions you don’t.

“Let’s go with the two most basic approaches to New Game Plus, or whatever,” he said. “Complete example: either you finish the story and you’re left in the open world, or you can start a new game with the character you’ve previously developed. With the first approach, in our case, the benefit of replaying or playing more is that there are many, many activities. I presume that most players will first finish the story rather than do everything there is because that’s pretty time-consuming. The other approach basically funnels you into one of the playstyles, right? So we’re looking for a way to ensure that you’re able to keep your progression, but are you still able to take a different path in order to see one of those parts that was hidden behind one of those actual choices. And we will probably get to something, but it’s too early to talk exactly how, because we want to make sure that it fits [Cyberpunk]. Everything we want to do, we want to fit.”

Reports previously suggested Cyberpunk 2077 would have a New Game Plus mode, but that it might not be ready for the game’s launch in April 2020. CD Projekt added a New Game Plus mode to The Witcher 3 after its launch as a free update.

More on this topic:

• CD Projekt Red Still “Exploring” Cyberpunk 2077 Multiplayer, Hints At Post-Launch Expansions
• Cyberpunk 2077 Has A New Game Plus Mode In The Works
• Cyberpunk 2077 Coming To Google Stadia
• Cyberpunk 2077 Dev CD Projekt Red Enlists Multiplayer Studio To Help In Some Way
• Cyberpunk 2077 Has Multiplayer (2013)
• Cyberpunk 2077 Is A “True RPG,” Definitely Not A Multiplayer Shooter(2014)

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/cyberpunk-2077-new-game-plus-cd-projekt-looking-fo/1100-6469267/

Viz Media has announced the third and final title that’s being made in partnership with Rose City Games. Called Garden Story, the upcoming game is a pixel graphic adventure that stars a sentient grape who’s also an aspiring knight. It looks so cute.

The announcement of Garden Story was accompanied by the release of a new trailer that showed some of the gameplay and quirky characters. From a top-down perspective, you explore a variety of environments, such as quiet towns and dangerous-looking caves. In combat, you have a wooden pick that acts like a sword. You also have access to a backpack full of the items you collect, such as a dowsing rod. You’re able to break certain items in the environment to gather resources as well, and it appears that Garden Story will have at least a few dungeon puzzles to solve too.

“In Garden Story, players take on the role of Concord, the newly appointed village guardian,” Viz Media wrote in a press release. “There’s lots to keep this helpful adventurer busy; not only do your neighbors need assistance, but a mysterious Rot has also seeped into the foundations of the once flourishing island. Fortunately, Concord won’t be working at this alone. Help your friends with their struggles, and they’ll help you through yours. Balance caring for the environment, exploring new regions, and fostering new friendships as you solve puzzles and help restore the Grove to glory.”

Viz Media has had a long history of existing on the fringes of the games industry, publishing well-received manga about popular video game series like The Legend of Zelda and Pokemon. In February 2018, Viz Media announced a partnership with Rose City Games to create three manga-styled games. The first, visual-novel-meet-puzzle-battle-game The World Next Door, released in March 2019 while the second, dungeon crawler Cat Lady, is scheduled to release later this year. Currently, Garden Story has a planned release of Spring 2020 for PC.

In GameSpot’s The World Next Door review, I wrote, “The cast of characters is genuinely funny at times, and getting to know them has its benefits, but the story ends before most have a chance to really grow and mature. Worse, an interesting plot point that Liza introduces into the story near the game’s end is never satisfyingly resolved. The combat portion has similar shortcomings. Though the puzzle battles are frantic bouts of fast-paced fun, the most interesting enemies and bosses are introduced in the latter half of the game, leaving combat in the first two dungeons too simple. Ultimately, there’s enjoyment to be had with The World Next Door, but the game takes too long to start leaning into its strengths.”

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/cute-zelda-looking-game-where-youre-a-sentient-gra/1100-6469257/

Since Pokemon Black and White on the DS, competitive Pokemon players have been able to take part in online competitions and view their rankings via the Pokemon Global Link. While the website has served as the online battling hub for all subsequent Pokemon games, The Pokemon Company has confirmed the upcoming Sword and Shield for Switch will not be utilizing it.

According to a statement posted during Gamescom 2019, Sword and Shield will not support the Pokemon Global Link website. This is because most of Global Link’s functionality is being folded into the games’ themselves via the Battle Stadium, which will allow players to participate in regular online competitions and take part in Ranked battles.

“For Pokemon Sword and Pokemon Shield, services equivalent to the current Rating Battle and Online Competitions are planned to be supported. However, PGL will not support Pokemon Sword and Pokemon Shield,” the statement reads. “These battles and Online Competitions can be enjoyed in Pokemon Sword and Pokemon Shield using just the connectivity features of Nintendo Switch.”

Other Global Link functions, like the ability to view your ranking, will also be implemented in Pokemon Home, an upcoming cloud storage service that will allow players to store monsters from Pokemon Bank, Pokemon Go, Pokemon Let’s Go, and Pokemon Sword and Shield. Pokemon Home is expected to launch for Nintendo Switch and mobile devices in early 2020.

Pokemon Sword and Shield, meanwhile, release for the hybrid console on November 15. Players will need to have a Nintendo Switch Online subscription in order to make use of the aforementioned online features. The Pokemon Home service will presumably also require a subscription, although it hasn’t yet been announced if this will be included as part of NSO or will be offered separately.

In addition to the Global Link news, The Pokemon Company shared a new gameplay clip of Pokemon Sword and Shield. The video shows off one of the quaint towns players will visit on their adventure across the Galar region. We also recently learned about some new Pokemon Abilities and held items being introduced in the titles.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/pokemon-sword-and-shield-wont-use-pokemon-global-l/1100-6469256/

Another update has arrived for Fortnite. Content update 10.10 is now live across PS4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch, and mobile devices, and it adds a new throwable item to the popular battle royale game, along with a new type of consumable. Here are the patch notes.

First up is the Junk Rift, a new Epic rarity item. When thrown, it’ll create a Rift in the sky that will rain cars, statues, and other large debris down on opponents, damaging players and destroying objects caught in its path. The Junk Rift drops in stacks of two and can be found as floor loot or in chests, supply drops, and supply llamas.

On top of that, this week’s content update introduces Glitched Consumables, which have begun appearing after the Rift Beacon at the Rec Center exploded. These items can be found near the explosion site and randomly change into different foraged consumables, such as apples, coconuts, and mushrooms.

The Glitched Consumables are also capable of turning into some previously vaulted items, such as Season 4’s Hop Rocks and Season 6’s Shadow Stones. However, the latter have been temporarily disabled in the game due to an issue.

You can see all of the other changes in this week’s content update for Fortnite’s Battle Royale mode below, while the full patch notes can be found on Epic’s website.

Fortnite: Battle Royale 10.10 Content Update Patch Notes

Weapons & Items

• Junk Rift
  • A throwable item that breaks on contact and spawns a large object in the sky that plummets to the ground.
    • The plummeting object:
      • Damages players and destroys everything in its path.
      • Creates a small shockwave upon landing that damages players and destroys everything in its radius.
    • Damage:
      • Direct hit: 200
        • Direct hits slightly knock players back.
      • Shockwave hit: 100
      • Both hits immediately destroy vehicles and destructible objects on impact.
  • Drops in stacks of 2.
  • Max stack size: 4
  • Epic Rarity.
  • Available from Floor Loot, Chests, Supply Drops, and Llamas.
• Glitched Consumables
  • Glitched Consumables are at the explosion site. These randomly switch between different forageable items from the past.
    • Apples
      • Grant 5 Health.
    • Mushrooms
      • Grant 5 Shield.
    • Coconuts
      • Grant 5 Effective Health (sum of a player’s Health + Shield).
    • Peppers
      • Increases player movement speed for a short duration.
    • Hop Rocks
      • Decreases player gravity for a short duration.

Gameplay

• The map has changed! The Rift Beacon at the Rec Center malfunctioned, causing an explosion that left a giant crater and created the Glitched Consumables.
  • Glitched Consumables can only be found at the crater.

Art & Animation

The Green Toy Wrap has been updated.

• Because of this, owners of the Toy Soldiers Wraps bundle have been given the option to refund the bundle without the use of a Refund Token.
  • NOTE: Players have 30 days from their next login to redeem this refund.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/fortnite-1010-content-update-patch-notes-junk-rift/1100-6469249/