Half-Life: Alyx, a new VR game in the Half-Life series, has officially been announced. The new title is described in a tweet as Valve's "flagship" VR title, and will be unveiled on Thursday November 20 at 10am Pacific Time. This has been rumored for some time now, and it appears those rumors are true. Thankfully, we won't have to wait long to find out more.We’re excited to unveil Half-Life: Alyx, our flagship VR game, this Thursday at 10am Pacific Time.Can’t wait to share it with all of you! pic.twitter.com/BupFCxSrTw — Valve (@valvesoftware) November 18, 2019It's been over twelve years since the last Half-Life title, Half-Life 2 Episode 2, which ended on a cliffhanger. We know that a third episode (or possibly Half-Life 3) was in development, but with the series long dormant and Valve seemingly having moved on, it was unclear whether we would ever see Half-Life again. It's possible that Half-Life: Alyx will be exclusive to the Valve Index VR headset, but we won't know for sure until Valve shows their new game off on November 20.Half-Life 2, the last full release in the series, received a 9.2/10 in our review (it came out in 2004, long ago enough that GameSpot had not yet abandoned decimal places.) It's often regarded as one of the best games of all time. Developing...Info from Gamespot.com

This year, Black Friday 2019 is stacked with deals on pretty much every video game released in 2019, including some of the best that have released in the last month. That includes Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, the latest entry in the popular first-person shooter series, which sees quite a few discounts from different retailers.The best deal for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare comes from Walmart, which has the game for $38. Walmart kicks off its online sale for Black Friday on November 27 at 7 PM PT / 10 PM ET. The deals will also be made available in stores starting at 6 PM local time on November 28.Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | $38 ($60) See at Walmart See at Best Buy -- $40See Target -- $45Modern Warfare received a score of 7/10 in our Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare review. GameSpot's Kallie Plagge was disappointed by its lackluster Spec Ops mode but still enjoyed Modern Warfare's exciting campaign and new multiplayer modes, including the 2v2 Gunfight mode."The pitfalls of Spec Ops don't detract from what Modern Warfare does well, though," she wrote. "Realism mode is an excellent addition to the slate, and although not all the new multiplayer modes are great, Gunfight and the Night Vision playlist are refreshing standouts. And while the campaign ends up playing it safe in the end, it's still a memorable one, and it lays a strong foundation for where the Modern Warfare series could go from here." Black Friday 2019 Deals & News Black Friday 2019 Start Times, Store Hours: GameStop, Best Buy, Target, And More Black Friday 2019: The Best Xbox One Deals So Far Black Friday 2019: The Best PS4 Deals So Far Best Buy Black Friday 2019 Ad: Best Gaming, Tech, And Entertainment Deals Black Friday 2019: When Does It Start, Deals To Expect, And More Target Black Friday 2019 Ad: Best Gaming, Tech, And Entertainment Deals At Target Info from Gamespot.com

Dragon Quest Builders 2 is coming to PC on December 10, bringing the popular Dragon Quest spin-off to PC for the first time. The game, which mixes Minecraft-style building and crafting with a JRPG structure, is available now to pre-purchase on Steam, and carries a price tag of $59.99 / £49.99 / AUD$89.95.Preordering the game will nab you several bonuses, which will be available in-game once it releases:Medicinal Herb Decoration: a recipe for a decorative Medicinal HerbDragon Quest Logo Decoration: a recipe for the famous DRAGON QUEST logo.Chimaera Wing Decoration: a recipe for an ornamental Chimaera WingSigil Blocks: five recipes for blocks which have either a Sun, Moon, Star, Water drop or Heart symbolLo-Res Luminary Recipes: a set of recipes for building the Scions of ErdrickLegendary Line Art Recipe: a recipe for a painting of the Scions of ErdrickAll content made available to PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch owners who purchased the Season Pass will also be available for PC users at no additional charge. This includes:Designer's SunglassesHotto Stuff Pack: includes over 40 new recipes to design structures in the style the Hotto Steppe resting area and access to an all-new island with new materials.Aquarium Pack: Unlock the fishing rod, plus access to a fishing island where you can catch 40 different fish.Modernist Pack: Includes over 70 recipes for modern-looking structures, hairstyles and clothing.The PC version will also likely feature the epilogue that was added to console iterations of the game post-launch. If you want to test the game out and have one of the consoles it's available on, there's a jumbo demo available that lets you play through the first few hours on both PS4 and Switch. We gave Dragon Quest Builders 2 an 8/10 in our review, and critic Heidi Kemps stated that "Dragon Quest Builders 2 is a great game, combining exploration, sandbox-building, questing, and town-management into a delightful package that will gladly suck up your time and put a big smile on your face."Info from Gamespot.com

Half-Life: Alyx was officially announced on November 18 as Valve's "flagship VR game," with the promise of more information on Thursday, November 21 at 10 AM PT.The news comes just a few days after Half-Life 2's 15th birthday and 12 whole years after the last real Half-Life game in Half-Life 2: Episode Two. The series has since been long dormant, its iconic cliffhanger ending fueling over a decade's worth of Half-Life 3 rumors, jokes, mods, and more. In 2017, retired Valve designer and former lead writer of the Half-Life series Marc Laidlaw published details on what would have allegedly been the plot of Half-Life 2: Episode Three. Countless user-created mods and even a fan-made remaster called Black Mesa have filled the void for Half-Life fans over the years, but no Half-Life 3.But now, new rumors and the subsequent announcement from Valve has finally brought Half-Life back into the spotlight. Details are still scarce, but here's everything we know about Half-Life: Alyx so far.Table of Contents [hide]Is The Half-Life VR Game Real?When Will We Know More About Half-Life: Alyx?Where Did These Latest Rumors Start?Valve's History With VR Is The Half-Life VR Game Real?Yes, Half-Life: Alyx was officially announced by Valve.We’re excited to unveil Half-Life: Alyx, our flagship VR game, this Thursday at 10am Pacific Time.Can’t wait to share it with all of you! pic.twitter.com/BupFCxSrTw — Valve (@valvesoftware) November 18, 2019There have been a lot of rumors, jokes, and memes around the idea of a new Half-Life game over the last decade, but this one's coming from Valve itself. It isn't Half-Life 3, but it's still new Half-Life.When Will We Know More About Half-Life: Alyx?The full reveal of Half-Life: Alyx will happen later this week: Thursday, November 21 at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET. Check back here for updates once we know more.Where Did These Latest Rumors Start?The most recent rumors, which eventually culminated in Valve's official announcement of Half-Life: Alyx, started because of an alleged interview transcript between Geoff Keighley (supposedly) and Valve representatives. The now-deleted transcript suggested a December reveal at The Game Awards and a March 2020 release window. While Half-Life: Alyx is real, the rest of the information has not been confirmed by Valve.Valve's History With VRHalf-Life: Alyx isn't the first time rumors or even official information from Valve on a Half-Life VR game have circulated. In March 2015, Valve programmer Jeep Barnett told Kotaku that Valve was not saying "no" to the possibility of Half-Life in VR."...we don't know what the right thing is [yet]," Barnett told Kotaku. "Our most precious resource is time, and we don't have enough time for people to do everything. Would we like to make all of our franchises in VR? Absolutely. But we don't have enough time or people. So we have to figure out what's the best fit, what plays to the strengths of VR."This was the same year Valve unveiled its Portal VR demo, which shipped with its first Vive dev kits that same year. In 2016, Valve released the HTC Vive to the public. Info from Gamespot.com

Chun-Li, a mainstay of the Street Fighter series, has joined the Power Rangers. She's not part of the TV series, or included in the upcoming movie sequel that has been rumored, though--instead she's joined the mobile game Power Rangers: Legacy Wars to battle against the villain M. Bison. You can see her in her Power Rangers garb, and see how her moves translate to the game, in the video below.The video description sums up the plot for this new Chun-Li episode within the game: "As Chun-Li’s allies fended off M. Bison’s army of Evil Rangers, she faced him one on one. With her courage, determination, and teamwork, she was able to retrieve the Phoenix Power Coin and save her newfound friends."The mobile fighting game developed by nWay pits characters from the TV show against each other, and this is not the first time it has crossed over with Street Fighter. The Street Fighter Showdown event introduced Ryu, Chun-Li, Guile, Akuma, M. Bison and Cammy to the game in 2018, but they didn't get the full Power Rangers suit treatment as Chun-Li has now. Her moveset has been faithfully carried across from the Street Fighter series (which continues to grow with the recent announcement of Street Fighter V: Champion Edition.) Power Rangers: Legacy Wars is an online tag-team fighting game based on the massively popular franchise. It features series antagonist Rita Repulsa as a major villain, and is free-to-play. As of March 2019, it had been downloaded over 50 million times.Info from Gamespot.com

With each new Pokemon game comes a new set of Pokemon, mechanics, and a region to discover, and Sword and Shield are no exception. The vibrant Galar region is a consistent delight to explore, incentivizing and rewarding collecting and battling in equal measure, and grandiose battles add an exciting dimension to the familiar Gym formula to deliver an engaging adventure beginning to end. But most notably, Sword and Shield cut down on the tedious and protracted elements from previous games in favor of amplifying what makes Pokemon great in the first place. This is the most balanced a Pokemon game has felt in a long time, and with that, Sword and Shield mark the best new generation of Pokemon games in years.The games waste no time in getting you a starter Pokemon and off on your way to becoming the Champion. You can even skip some of the hand-holding you'd get in previous games, including the "how to catch Pokemon" tutorial, which hasn't been done since 2001's Pokemon Crystal; if you simply catch some Pokemon right away, the character who would have taught you acknowledges that you're already good to go instead. You can reach the new Wild Area, an open-world expanse filled with all kinds of Pokemon of all levels, within an hour or so of starting your adventure.And the Wild Area is the show-stopping feature of this generation. Pokemon roam the fields and lakes, changing with the day's weather. They pop up as you walk by, and you can even identify Pokemon out of your direct line of vision by their cries. It's all too easy to set out for one destination only to be distracted by a Pokemon you haven't caught yet, an item glittering on the ground in the distance, or even an evolved form of a Pokemon that you didn't realize you could catch in the wild. There's constantly something new to do or discover, and it's there to engage you right out of the gate.Both in the Wild Area and outside of it, the Galar region is stunning. Locales from industrial city centers to rolling hills in shades of green and gold are vivid and beautiful, and small details, like Wooloo playing in a field, add a lot of charm. The United Kingdom-inspired motif includes both crumbling medieval castles and booming football-inspired stadiums, punk musicians and posh snobs--though Galar is still surprising to explore, not adhering so close to theme as to be totally predictable. I even found myself pushing ahead to the next town hoping to find a boutique with new clothes and accessories, on top of everything else waiting to be discovered in each locale, because the UK-inspired plaids and streetwear looks are cute.You're given much more freedom to explore than in previous generations. Sword and Shield go even further than Sun and Moon did in banishing HMs for good; you can fast travel to locations you've visited before from anywhere outside starting quite early in the game, and you have a bike that can later convert to a water vehicle to replace Surf. All other roadblocks, like trees in your path you need to Cut or large stones you need to move with Strength, are relics of the past. There are still hooligans that will artificially block your path at certain points in the story, but the actual hurdles to movement are completely gone.Random encounters are also gone, and instead, you see Pokemon roaming all of Galar--even in the traditional routes and caves--which helps distinguish one area from the next. There are some Pokemon that remain hidden in the tall grass, denoted by an exclamation point, but you have to run toward the rustling grass to actually initiate the fight, so you're never caught totally by surprise. Some Pokemon can only be found this way; this further encourages you to explore each locale thoroughly while making return trips painless, free of constant interruptions by wild Pokemon or stopping to use Repels to keep them away.For wild Pokemon, battles are true to the established formula, but for big battles, Sword and Shield strip out Mega Evolution and Z-moves in favor of a new battle mechanic, Dynamaxing, which is sort of a combination of the two and can only be activated in certain locations. A Dynamaxed Pokemon grows to a massive size and is stronger overall, and its moves convert to superpowered ones based on type. It's much more bombastic than Mega Evolution or even Z-moves, but functionally, it's simpler--and that's refreshing. After years of using both Mega Evolution and Z-moves in high-level battles, Dynamaxing is a welcome reset that also feels like a natural evolution of the increasingly high-octane battle mechanics of recent games. Any Pokemon can Dynamax, too; you're just limited by location rather than an item, so it's a more flexible way to battle that works for relaxed and competitive battles alike.Dynamaxing is a fixture of the new Max Raids, in which you and three other people or NPCs take on a giant Pokemon at certain locations in the Wild Area. Raid Pokemon can vary from run-of-the-mill, easy-to-catch Pokemon to ones that are incredibly hard to find in the wild, but regardless, the rewards are fantastic; completing a raid, even if the Pokemon escapes and you fail to catch it, nets you tons of rare and important items. Plus, the Pokemon you get from raids are guaranteed to have some perfect stats, so even duplicate Pokemon are worth catching again.At the lower levels, the raids are pretty easy, and you'll likely have no trouble taking them on with only NPCs in tow. But the four- and five-star raids are challenging to the point where I couldn't even complete some of them without the help of other human players. This is a welcome level of difficulty in the post-game, and communicating locally to get a raid group together is seamless--all you have to do is put out a call for raid partners (or people to trade or battle with in general), and nearby players will get a notification and have the option to join you from the social menu. It's a great alternative to traditional competitive play after you've beaten the game, and while it does feed into competitive battling in both the item rewards and the caliber of Pokemon you're catching, it's satisfying just to overcome the challenge with friends.The new Pokemon themselves are fantastic as a set. Quite a few of them seem geared for competitive play, with abilities and moves that inspire interesting strategies. Galarian Weezing, for example, has an ability that neutralizes opponents' abilities; because many battle strategies involve use of abilities like Intimidate or Sand Stream to set up the battlefield to your advantage, Weezing could be a serious threat. There are also the aesthetically-inclined Pokemon, like the incredibly goth Corviknight or the adorable electric corgi Yamper, to inspire collectors. Throughout my journey, I was consistently delighted to discover each new Gen 8 Pokemon and the Galarian forms of older ones.The starters, sadly, are among the worst of the new Pokemon; while they're cute at first, their final evolutions are all not great. Each fits the British theme in a clever way and has a unique move to go with it, but on a purely visual level, all three are awkward with no clear winner among them. I still feel guilty confining my starter to the Pokemon Box, but it at least freed up a spot in my party to try out the new Pokemon I do like.The Pokedex features a healthy mix of old Pokemon from each previous generation as well. There are certainly surprising omissions, but like with the new Pokemon, the list includes both fun Pokemon and competitive ones, plus an even spread of types. Sword and Shield might not have every Pokemon in existence, but what's here is balanced exquisitely for battle, cuteness factor, and type. And because there are items that give Pokemon experience points now--and because you can access your Pokemon boxes almost anywhere--you can easily change up your team on the fly without having to stop and grind just to get a new Pokemon caught up in level. I experimented with different Pokemon more during Shield's main story than I ever did in a previous Pokemon game, and it made me appreciate the Gen 8 Pokemon even more.It also makes for a more digestible experience. The Wild Area is expansive, and because the available Pokemon change with the weather, it can look very different from one day to the next. There are enough Pokemon to keep things dynamic and surprising as you explore each day, but with some consistency across each biome so you know at least what kinds of Pokemon to expect. Even after 55 hours, there are still Pokemon I have no idea how to find, and uncovering the Wild Area's secrets bit by bit has been a treat.If anything, the constant draw of the Wild Area made the pacing of the story a bit choppy. I wandered and explored for five hours before challenging my first Gym, then defeated the next two in quick succession before breaking again to revisit the Wild Area. That said, I also was never too over- or underpowered for each Gym, and I was eager to explore in between them regardless. You can also do more in the Wild Area than just battle and catch Pokemon--you can camp out and make curry with your Pokemon, and that ended up being a lovely distraction. Making curry and playing with my Pokemon was a great way to break up longer excursions, plus a convenient way to heal everybody at once, and it's really just an adorable way to spend a few minutes.The Gyms themselves are a refinement on the longstanding formula in which you would have to go through a maze or solve a little puzzle to reach the Gym Leader. Similarly, each has a Gym Challenge, but they vary from herding Wooloo to competing with NPC trainers to catch a Pokemon, and this keeps things from getting stale. Dynamaxing combines with anime-style drama to make the Gym battles themselves appropriately exciting, too, as your opponents tend to put on quite the show when they enter the stadium. While the Gym and other story battles are largely pretty simple, some of the later ones do take more thought (and a few revives, in my case).For competitive battles, small but significant quality-of-life tweaks greatly reduce the remaining barriers to entry. There are now items that allow you to change a Pokemon's nature, which was the main missing piece in getting Pokemon battle-ready without hours and hours of tedious breeding and soft-resetting. You can also leave two Pokemon of the same species in the Daycare together, and one can pass Egg Moves to the other, meaning you don't have to re-breed a Pokemon just because you forgot to put one Egg Move on it or changed your strategy a bit. The post-game Battle Tower also includes rental teams right off the bat to introduce you to some basic strategies, which also means you can start climbing the ranks without scrambling to prepare a slipshod team of your own first. All of this gets you battling at a competitive level much more quickly than was possible before, which is the whole point.In collecting, battling, and exploring, Sword and Shield cut out the bloat and focus on what makes these pillars of the Pokemon games so captivating in the first place. You're not held back by overly complicated back-end systems or hoops to jump through; from the outset, you can start wandering the Galar region, seeing its new Pokemon, and trying out its new battle strategies with very little in your way. This leaves you free to enjoy what Pokemon is all about, and that makes for an incredibly strong showing for the series' proper debut on Switch.Info from Gamespot.com

Pretty much every Star Wars game with RPG elements has allowed you to customize the color of your lightsaber's blade--from Knights of the Old Republic to The Force Unleashed. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is no different, though you'll have to play through a majority of the game's campaign in order to unlock additional kyber crystals to customize your blade.In Fallen Order, there are eight different lightsaber blade colors: blue, green, orange, purple, yellow, cyan, magenta, and indigo. That's pretty much every color used by a Jedi. If you were hoping to make Cal's lightsaber the same crimson red as the Imperial Inquisitors and Sith or the neutral colors of white or black, you're out of luck. Those colors aren't available in Fallen Order.Spoiler warning: most of these colors are unlocked simply by completing Fallen Order's story. If you want to know exactly how to unlock each color and you don't mind being spoiled, however, then keep reading.The two easiest colors to unlock are the ones you start out with: blue and green. You don't have to do anything but boot up the game to unlock these colors. The default color of Cal's lightsaber is blue--if you prefer green, just walk up to a workbench and adjust the color. These workbenches are scattered throughout the planets that you'll discover and explore in Fallen Order. Many have BD-1 and lightsaber upgrades on them--three of them allow you to upgrade your single-bladed lightsaber into a double-bladed one. For easy access, there's a workbench in The Mantis, which you'll unlock as a hub area as soon as you complete Fallen Order's tutorial level on Bracca.The orange kyber crystal is also a color you can start out with, but only if you pre-ordered Fallen Order. If you pre-ordered a physical copy of the game, then you should have a code to unlock the orange blade. Digital versions of Fallen Order should just include the orange kyber crystal from the start. If you didn't pre-order Fallen Order, then, unfortunately, you're out of luck. Maybe Respawn or EA will add the orange saber as post-launch DLC but, if not, then this saber color is no longer available for you to unlock.You unlock all the remaining colors at the same time. Here's where the article goes into story spoilers. This is your last chance to turn back if you don't want to be spoiled.After unlocking the Jedi Flip ability on your second trip to Kashyyyk--the one where you'll face off against Ninth Sister--you'll be able to make it past the far jump on Dathomir; it's the one just past the robed figure who warns you that you shouldn't keep exploring the planet. Making it past the jump pushes Dathomir's story forward, allowing you to learn more about the last surviving Nightsister, Mirren, the mysterious robed figure, Taron Malicos, and the bat-like guardian of the planet, Gorgara. Kill Gorgara and reach the temple on Dathomir--Cal will experience a vision that ultimately causes him, in a PTSD panic, to destroy his lightsaber. Upon your return to The Mantis, Cere will impart some wisdom and then send you to Ilos to find a new kyber crystal and rebuild your lightsaber--one that utilizes the parts of Cal's existing saber and Cere's old lightsaber.At the end of the mission on Ilos, Cal will discover a kyber crystal that can be molded to be blue, green, purple, yellow, cyan, magenta, or indigo. Don't worry, once you've made your pick, you'll still unlock all the remaining colors in the customization menu whenever you go to a workbench. This pick is purely for the cinematic spectacle of the next cutscene. Upon selecting your desired color, Cal will create a new and improved lightsaber--a double-bladed variant with a hilt that can be split, giving him the option of wielding two lightsabers at once. You'll need it for the fight ahead.Info from Gamespot.com

Though nothing has been officially announced, something seems to be going on with In the Valley of Gods, the sophomore effort of Campo Santo. Several prominent members of the Campo Santo team have changed their Twitter bios to imply they are no longer working on the game, and In the Valley of Gods has been removed from the studio's official website.Twitter user Tyler McVicker noticed that In the Valley of Gods environmental artist Jane Ng, art director Claire Hummel, and designer Jake Rodkin all changed their Twitter bios on November 17, 2019. The changes can be seen in the tweet below.What is going on with In the Valley of Gods? pic.twitter.com/KBr9ndoAM5 — Tyler McVicker (@ValveNewsNetwor) November 17, 2019The homepage of the official Campo Santo website has also been altered. Previously, the website listed In the Valley of Gods as Campo Santo's current project. That has since been removed--Campo Sampo's debut, Firewatch, is currently the only game listed on the website's homepage. All that said, the official website for In the Valley of Gods still exists.Campo Santo first announced In the Valley of Gods during The Game Awards 2017. Like Firewatch, In the Valley of Gods is a single-player, first-person adventure game. Campo Santo's new game, however, is set in 1920s Egypt, stars an explorer turned filmmaker, and sees you accompanied by an AI-controlled partner. In April 2018, Campo Santo announced it had been acquired by Valve, transitioning In the Valley of Gods from an independent game to a Valve one. Since then, there hasn't been news about In the Valley of Gods--though that hasn't stopped us from pining for it.Info from Gamespot.com

The PlayStation 5 is coming, with the next-generation Sony console currently being planned for a Holiday 2020 release. This means that the system is still at least a year away, but we're starting to get some idea of what the console will be like. Now a new patent for the PlayStation 5 controller has appeared on the website for the Japanese patent office, and it's giving us a glimpse of the rough shape of the PlayStation 5 controller. At first glance it looks very much like the Dual Shock 4, but there are some big changes that have been made.AS VGC notes, the images in the patent point towards a few changes, such as smaller sticks, larger triggers, a USB-C charging port, and no light bar. While this is by no means the definitive final version of the PlayStation 5 controller (the infamous PlayStation 3 "boomerang" controller was abandoned before the system's launch), odds are that many of these changes will appear on the final design. The touchpad remains in place, and the general shape appears very similar to the Dual Shock 4.Sony has previously discussed their new controller, revealing that haptics will replace the standard rumble, allowing for a "broader range of feedback" that will allow for a more nuanced approach to how the controller vibrates (much like the Switch's "HD Rumble"). The L2/R2 triggers on the PS4 controller will be replaced with adaptive triggers, so developers can program for added resistance--the R2 button might be harder to press if a character is pushing something heavy, for instance, or you might feel resistance when pulling back the string on a bow. The controller is reportedly being developed to give players a stronger sense of place within their environments, and to give developers new options in the experiences they can replicate.We also know that the PlayStation 5 will still require games to be installed from discs, and that Sony is hoping that the system will be adopted by players quickly. We're also starting to see games announced for it, including numerous Ubisoft titles and Path of Exile 2. PlayStation 5 News PlayStation Controllers Explained, And What Could Be Next For PS5 "Big" PS5 Game Coming From Dev Behind Uncharted, Shadow Of The Colossus Remasters PS5 Officially Announced, Release Window Set For 2020 PlayStation 5 Gets New Controller Details, But Don't Call It DualShock 5 (Yet) Info from Gamespot.com

Star Wars games often feel estranged from the franchise that spawned them. Video games have gotten very good at capturing the aesthetic of Star Wars--the cold metallic angles of Imperial architecture, the powerful hum of a lightsaber, the electric snap of a blaster bolt hitting home--but can struggle to get beneath the surface. It's the rare Star Wars game that reaches beyond how Star Wars looks to explore what Star Wars is really about.Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, the latest game in the canon, is one of the better offerings specifically because it tries to look beyond the trappings of Star Wars. It's not just another Jedi power fantasy, although wielding the Force with skill and resolve will certainly make you feel powerful. Like the best Star Wars games, it's one that adds to the ideas of the films and other material, exploring new corners of the galaxy while focusing on the core themes of the franchise: knowing yourself, fighting your own darkness, and braving adversity with the help of friends.Friendship has always been one of the main drives of Star Wars, especially in the original film trilogy, and it's the core of what makes Jedi: Fallen Order work in both story and gameplay. The primary relationship of the game is between Cal Kestis, a Jedi padawan in hiding in the aftermath of the Jedi Purge that took place in Revenge of the Sith, and BD-1, a droid entrusted with a secret mission by the Jedi Master that previously owned it. Once Cal and BD-1 meet, they become inseparable, working together as partners to solve puzzles in forgotten ruins, navigate alien environments, and beat back the Empire.The pair work throughout the game to complete a scavenger hunt created by BD's last companion, Master Cordova. Before he vanished, Cordova locked away a list of Force-sensitive children throughout the galaxy that could be used to resuscitate the destroyed Jedi Order and challenge the Empire. He left clues to how to retrieve that list hidden in BD, requiring Cal and the droid to travel to various worlds, following in Cordova's footsteps to free up BD's encrypted memories.Functionally, BD is Cal's constant companion as he rides around on the Jedi's back, and Cal regularly talks with the droid as they explore Fallen Order's planets. BD also serves several support functions in gameplay. Most importantly, BD provides Cal with "stims" that allow him to heal himself in the middle of Fallen Order's often-oppressive combat. He can also function as a zipline, unlock doors, and hack certain droid enemies to turn the tides of battle. BD is just enough a part of any given fight or puzzle that you're always aware of his presence and his help, but it's Cal's constant interactions with the little droid that really build out their relationship.You definitely need BD's help and the upgrades you find for him throughout your journey, because Fallen Order can be punishing. It lifts a number of gameplay ideas directly from the Soulsborne genre; enemies are often tough-as-nails and can deal big damage if you're complacent, whether they're Imperial stormtroopers taking potshots or two-foot rats leaping out of burrows to snap at Cal's throat. Fighting isn't just about wailing on everyone with your lightsaber, but rather relies heavily on blocking and carefully timed parries if you mean to stay alive against even the most run-of-the-mill foes. You and your enemies also have a stamina meter to manage, which dictates how many blows you can defend against before you stagger, and adds a strategic element to duels. To win a battle, you need to whittle down an enemy's stamina while blocking, parrying, and dodging to manage your own. Since every blow you sustain can be devastating, combat becomes an exciting, cerebral exercise in pretty much every case. You'll spend a lot of time not only honing your parrying skills, but also making quick battlefield decisions about how you can isolate dangerous enemies or use your Force powers to even up the odds.You can only heal from a limited number of stims or by resting at periodic meditation points, similar to Dark Souls' bonfires, and using them respawns all the enemies in the area, which makes being a smart combatant even more critical. Killing enemies and finding collectibles nets you experience, which accumulates into Skill Points you can spend on new abilities for Cal. But dying costs all the experience you earned since your last Skill Point unless you can find and damage the enemy who bested you.Though the elements of Fallen Order are Souls-like--it's probably most closely comparable to Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, in fact--on most difficulty settings, it's far less brutal than From Software's games. Fallen Order might be considered Soulsborne-lite, making use of the same elements but to a different effect. It's tough, even occasionally frustrating, but not nearly so much as the games from which it draws its inspirations. That balance achieves something that feels essential to Fallen Order's identity: It makes you a powerful Jedi Knight, without turning you into an unstoppable Force-wielding superhero. Ratcheting back on the Jedi powers (and forcing you to unlock them as you work through the story and deal with Cal's past) helps Fallen Order's take on the Star Wars universe feel grounded and believable--a place where people could actually live.Your lack of overwhelming power also helps make the ever-looming Empire a frightening threat, even as individual soldiers comedically call out their own ineptitude in pretty much every battle. Cal spends the entire game hunted by the Inquisition, a subset of the Empire's forces specifically tasked with exterminating Jedi. Because every fight is potentially deadly, running into the game's specially trained Purge Troopers is always an event, and you're forced not only test your lightsaber skills and timing, but to consider all the abilities at your disposal to make it out alive.The rest of the game often has to do with clambering around the environment and solving puzzles, not unlike Tomb Raider, God of War, or Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. Navigating the world is as much about using observation and problem-solving skills as your Force tools. Respawn's Souls-inspired map design allows you to explore off the beaten path without ever really getting lost, and each planet is richly realized and fascinating to explore. The intricate pathways encourage you to wander off and visit each planet's varied environments to see what you might uncover, and Fallen Order always make sure you're rewarded with a bit of story, a cosmetic item, or even an optional miniboss fight.When you're between missions on planets, you're spending time with Fallen Order's two other major characters, Cere and Greez. They're the pair who manage to save Cal in the early hours of the game when his Jedi nature is discovered by the Empire, and they put him on the quest to find the list of Force-sensitives before the Inquisitors can get their hands on it. Though the story is a little rough in the early going as Cal is thrown directly into the quest with little lead-up or explanation, Fallen Order's story starts to excel around the halfway point as his relationships with BD, Cere, and Greez really start to develop. Once Fallen Order starts to invest in the interpersonal dynamics and deepening friendships of its cast, it really hits a stride--and its quest feels less like an elaborate series of tasks to fetch a MacGuffin, and more like an essential addition to the ongoing Star Wars saga.It does take Fallen Order a while to get there, though. The first few planets are a bit on the dull side, rushing to get Cal on his quest through the galaxy without really establishing why you should really care. Until it starts to click later in the game as you unlock more Force powers, combat can be a hassle, especially at certain boss battles or chokepoints, when your last meditation point is some distance away and you have to navigate through the same chunks of the map over and over. And while parrying is an essential part of the game, at higher difficulties, the timing can feel finicky and unreliable.The game also loves to throw handfuls of enemies at you all at once, which can be overwhelming, and combat against lower-tier enemies is built to lock you into finisher animations in a lot of cases. Instead of making you feel like a cool, well-trained warrior, these usually just leave you open to some Imperial dork wandering up with an electrobaton and clocking you in the head. It's only after you get enough Force powers to effectively control the crowds that these moments become more exciting than irritating. But throughout the game, there are always times when an enemy you couldn't see because of the game's tight targeting lock system gets in a cheap hit, forcing you to replay a fair stretch of its large, interweaving maps.But especially as it wears on, Fallen Order becomes perhaps the strongest conception of what playing as a Jedi Knight ought to really be like. It's true that Fallen Order borrows liberally from other action games, but those elements work together with Respawn's combat and environment design, and a story that finds humanity in the Force and in its characters, to hone in on what makes the world of Star Wars worthy of revisiting again and again. Even with some rough edges, Fallen Order represents one of the most compelling game additions to the Star Wars franchise in years. Info from Gamespot.com

As part of wide-ranging and fascinating conversation at ExileCon 2019 today, the creators of the Diablo franchise--Max Schaefer, Erich Schaefer, and David Brevik--shared a number of stories about the series that popularized the action role-playing genre. One of the more intriguing stories came about when the moderator asked the panel to recall a scary moment in Diablo's development.There was one story in particular that sounds like a developer's nightmare. Erich and Max Schaefer recalled that in the 11th hour of Diablo II's development, the entire backup of the game's source code and assets was lost. "Not just our code, but all of our assets. Irrevocably, fatally corrupted," Max Schaefer said.His brother Erich added, "It's all gone. We were supposed to have a backup but neglected it. We spent a day or two in sheer panic."The team at Blizzard North was thankfully able to reconstruct a lot of the code and assets from the version of Diablo II that developers took home to play. However, the root code and assets were apparently lost, which means Blizzard would have a tough time making a Diablo II Remaster today."[We] finally rebuilt a lot of it through what people had at their homes," Erich Schaefer said. "I had a big chunk of it. Went home, pulled out the hard drive or whatever we did back then. Spent a few days reconstructing it, which ended up working fine, except that we lost all the history. We lost a lot of the assets, art assets. It would make it very difficult for Blizzard to do a Diablo 2 Remaster because all the assets we used are pretty much gone. They'd have to make them from scratch."One of the pre-BlizzCon 2019 rumours was that Blizzard was planning to announce a Diablo II Remaster, but that did not materialise. The company did, however, announce Diablo IV to much celebration from fans following the tepid reception to the Diablo Immortal announcement a year prior.The Schaefer brothers and Brevik developed the original Diablo at their independent studio, Condor, which Blizzard acquired just before the release of the original Diablo in 1996. Erich Schaefer said the buyout couldn't have come at a better time because Condor was in dire financial straits. He recalled that the studio was just scraping by, and apparently didn't have enough money to pay some of its taxes."We never paid our payroll taxes. These are taxes we withhold from the salaries of our guys, and we're supposed to mail them to the government. We never mailed it to the government," Erich Schaefer said. "We were pretty much out of money. We come in one morning and there's a notice on our day that's like 'Three days to pay or you're going to jail.' It was rough. It was really scary. We scrounged up some money [to pay the taxes], and luckily the deal that turned us into Blizzard came around right at the right time to save our butts."Also during the panel, Max Schaefer revealed that Condor signed to make the original Diablo for $300,000, which was "woefully insufficient." He said the studio, at the time, was "always completely out of money," which was very stressful. No doubt the financial security that an acquisition by Blizzard could offer was attractive to the team, which eventually went on to make Diablo II as well.The original Diablo exceeded all expectations. The Schaefer brothers said they envisioned the game selling 20,000 copies, which would be enough to make a sequel. The game of course sold many more copies than that, and it helped establish the ARPG genre that is immensely popular today.The Schaefers and Brevik left Blizzard after Diablo II, and went on to create new studios and work on new projects. Brevik held a number of positions at different studios in his post-Blizzard career. Among his most notable new positions was head of Gazillion Entertainment, which made Marvel Heroes. He then started his own studio, Graybeard Games, which is currently working on an ARPG called It Lurks Below. Just this week, the game was announced for Xbox One, in addition to PC.Max Schaefer now heads up Echtra Games, which is making the recently delayed Torchlight Frontiers, while Erich Schaefer went on to create Double Damage Games, which released Rebel Galaxy in 2018.Brevik said he sees the ARPG genre as one that still has lots of room to grow and evolve over time. He said he can foresee elements from MMOs and ARPGs coming together to form a new kind of game that is more socially inspired, with players working together to take on raid-style bosses and other cooperative elements. He said Gazillion tried to achieve some of this with Marvel Heroes, but unfortunately that game was shut down at the end of 2017.Path Of Exile 2, New Expansion, Mobile Game, And All The Other Big ExileCon RevealsDisclosure: Grinding Gear Games is paying for GameSpot's flight and accommodation in Auckland, New Zealand to attend ExileCon. Info from Gamespot.com

Rage 2 has received its second major expansion, TerrorMania, which transports you to the "twisted and cursed alternate reality" of the Deadlands to battle a skeleton army. This DLC brings new lands to explore, new enemies, and a sword weapon, the Sword of Transitus. Protagonist Ranger Walker must head into this alternate dimension and look for a way to close the gateway into it before the skeleton armies encroach on the Wasteland from the main game to mess it up even more. The pack will take areas from the main game, like Wellspring and Overgrown City, and present new, warped versions of them, but it'll also feature entirely new areas, such as the Floating Islands and a hospital location.This is the second of the two major expansions promised for Rage 2, following on from Rise of the Ghosts and a major free update that added New Game+. No further DLC has been announced at this time. This DLC can only be accessed through the in-game store, and costs 500 RAGE coins ($5). There's also a deluxe edition, which comes with the Cult of the Death God mission, the Reaper Assault Rifle weapon skin, the Wasteland Celebrity Phoenix vehicle skin, and the Mutant Monster Truck vehicle skin. This costs 1750 RAGE coins ($17.50). Rage 2 recently came to Xbox Game Pass, meaning that it's now in the hands of many more Xbox players. We gave Rage 2 a 6/10 in our review. Reviewer Michael Higham wrote: "Rage 2 is at its best when you're given the chance to keep up a gratifying momentum in combat, but struggles to setup the scenarios its combat deserves. It's satisfying in the way clearing out an open-world checklist is, especially because powers are such a joy to use. The disappointment comes from the fact that those activities are rudimentary in nature and the decent ones end well before you get your fill."Info from Gamespot.com

New Releases breaks down the hottest games launching each week, and this episode is all over the globe. It starts in the east, where Shenmue 3 continues Ryo Hazuki's story in China and Sniper: Ghost Warrior Contracts drops you into Siberia. Meanwhile, Civilization 6 is coming to PS4 and Xbox One, letting you conquer the rest of the world. There are also some fantasy and sci-fi adventures to be had, thanks to Munchkin: Quacked Quest and Black Future '88.Shenmue 3 -- November 19Available on: PS4, PCShenmue 3 isn't the end of Ryo Hazuki's story, but fans of the Sega Dreamcast classic have been waiting a long time for the next chapter nonetheless. The third game picks up in a small fishing village in China, where Ryo continues to track down his father's killer. Expect the usual dose of mini-games and intriguing characters as you explore the open world.More Coverage:Shenmue 3 Is Nearly Here After An 18 Year Wait--Here's The Launch TrailerShenmue 3 PS4 Collector's Edition Comes With Dreamcast CaseMunchkin: Quacked Quest -- November 19Available on: PC, SwitchQuacked Quest is based on the Munchkin card game, which is not just about fighting monsters and scoring loot--backstabbing your friends is just as important. This procedurally generated dungeon-crawler operates the same way. You can fight your way through castles and caverns in co-op, but there are lots of opportunities to turn on the party and steal all the gold for yourself.Black Future '88 -- November 21Available on: PC, SwitchMunchkin isn't the only procedurally generated adventure dropping this week. Black Future '88 is set in a tower, and the layout changes each time you take another run to the top. Along the way, you'll dodge lasers and fight bosses until you reach the architect on the highest floor. You can make a vertical run in local co-op too.More Coverage:Cyberpunk Meets Roguelikes In Black Future '88Black Future '88 Side Scrolling GameplaySniper: Ghost Warrior Contracts -- November 22Available on: PS4, Xbox One, PCThe latest in the Sniper: Ghost Warrior series drops you in Siberia, where you'll have to take out targets in the concrete cities, snowy mountains, and deep forests. You can carry out your missions in a variety of ways, and the new AR mask opens up even more possibilities. You can use it to scan the environment, identifying weak points and objects of interest.More Coverage:Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts Trailer Shows New MechanicsSniper Ghost Warrior Contracts Sets Its Sights On A November 22 Release DateCivilization 6 -- November 22Available on: PS4, Xbox OneCiv 6 has already made its way to mobile and Nintendo Switch, but now PS4 and Xbox One players are getting a chance to lead their nation to military, technological, and cultural victories. PS4 players even get three Scenario Packs thrown in for free. That's on top of the 18 nations you can choose in the base game.More Coverage:Civilization 6 Review Civilization 6 Is Coming To PS4 And Xbox One This NovemberNovember isn't over yet, and there are still more video games on the way. Next week, we'll talk about the Five Nights at Freddy's series and the narrative indie title Where The Water Tastes Like Wine, both coming to Switch.Info from Gamespot.com

The "#ReleaseTheSnyderCut" fans, who seek an official release of Zack Snyder's cut of Justice League from Warner Bros., have today received support from three of the film's stars on the two year anniversary of the film's cinema release. Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman), Ben Affleck (Batman), and Ray Fisher (Cyborg) have all tweeted today using the "#ReleaseTheSnyderCut" hashtag, indicating that they would also like the film's original director's final cut to be released.#ReleaseTheSnyderCut pic.twitter.com/wssMmlPqEK — Gal Gadot (@GalGadot) November 17, 2019Two Years. #releasethesnydercut pic.twitter.com/0hxRdzsH4b — Ray Fisher (@rehsifyar) November 17, 2019#ReleaseTheSnyderCut — Ben Affleck (@BenAffleck) November 17, 2019The tweets from Gadot and Affleck have been retweeted by Zack Snyder himself, along with the comments "This ancient Amazonian can’t be wrong" and "Neither can Batman." Snyder has previously thrown shade at the CGI work in the final version of Justice League, and spoken about why his version of Batman kills people. This is the first major sign we've gotten that Snyder himself wants to see the release of his own final cut of the film--he has previously confirmed its existence, but has not been vocal over the cut's release. "#ReleaseTheSnyderCut" stems from the fact that Snyder stepped away from the film's post-production in May 2017 following a family tragedy. Joss Whedon was brought in to finish the film, which involved shooting new scenes and making some tweaks to its structure and story. Since the film's release fans have wanted to see a version of Justice League that was entirely in line with Snyder's plan and vision for it. At the time of release, star Ben Affleck said that the movie represented "Snyder's DNA."In July 2018, Warner Bros. stated that they had no intention of releasing a Snyder cut of the movie. Snyder also directed DC movies Man of Steel and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and is still the sole credited director on Justice League, with Whedon receiving a screenwriting credit. Stars Henry Cavill (Superman) and Ezra Miller (The Flash) have not commented on the Snyder Cut, but Jason Momoa (Aquaman) posted the hashtag on Instagram a week ago. He has also previously claimed to have seen the cut. View this post on Instagram#releasethesyndercut 😜😜aloha jA post shared by Jason Momoa (@prideofgypsies) on Nov 8, 2019 at 3:55pm PSTDespite all of this, there's no definitive sign that the Snyder Cut of Justice League will actually release. The film's original release ended with a disappointing worldwide box office take of $657,924,295; by comparison, the most recent DC film, Joker, has just passed the $1 billion mark, as did Aquaman.Info from Gamespot.com

Google Stadia is right around the corner, with the system launching on November 19. Google recently announced the system's launch titles, along with the other games coming in 2019. It was a thin list, with only one console exclusive (Gylt), which had some potential customers concerned. Thankfully for early adopters of the new machine, the launch line-up has been expanded, with many titles that were due at some point in 2019 now arriving on day one.The news was announced by Google vice president Phil Harrison, who thanked the developers and publishers who worked to prepare their games for the system's release.Excited to announce that we are INCREASING the Day One launch line-up of titles for @GoogleStadia - we now have TWENTY TWO games launching with the platform on Tuesday. Huge thank you to our game developer and publisher partners for bringing more titles #stadia — Phil Harrison (@MrPhilHarrison) November 18, 2019These are the 12 games initially announced for the Stadia launch, which are still coming on day one:Assassin's Creed OdysseyDestiny 2GyltJust Dance 2020KineMortal Kombat 11Red Dead Redemption 2ThumperTomb RaiderRise of the Tomb RaiderShadow of the Tomb RaiderSamurai ShodownAnd now, here are ten more games that will now release on November 19 alongside the new system:Attack on Titan: Final Battle 2Farming Simulator 2019Final Fantasy XVFootball Manager 2020Grid 2019Metro ExodusNBA 2K20Rage 2Trials RisingWolfenstein: YoungbloodBorderlands 3, Ghost Recon: Breakpoint, Dragon Ball: Xenoverse 2 and Darksiders Genesis are also due before the end of the year. Darksiders Genesis will release on December 5, the same day as the PC version, making it a console exclusive to Stadia for about three months (it launches on PS4, Xbox One and Switch on February 14, 2020.)To find out more about what to expect from Google Stadia's impending launch, be sure to check out our unboxing of the new system. We know that it'll launch with several missing features that will be added over time.Info from Gamespot.com