It's hard to overstate how much better Destiny 2 has become in the last year. The Forsaken expansion and the smaller, more frequent updates that followed added variety in activities that meant you could earn rewards while playing your favorite content, as well as a huge amount of new, weird lore to sift through, and secrets to uncover. It's not a stretch to say Destiny as a franchise was the best it's ever been in the second year of Destiny 2.The new Shadowkeep expansion builds on those foundations in just about every way. While returning to the moon is a pretty good time in and of itself--the expansion leans hard on the spooky locale, which was part of Destiny 1 but refreshed and enlarged for Destiny 2--it's the smaller improvements to the way the game works that are really the standout. Shadowkeep's content offerings aren't quite as sprawling, varied, or engaging as what we saw in Forsaken, but the expansion builds on the recent tweaks in Destiny 2 to make the moment-to-moment gameplay even stronger.Forsaken made some effort to establish Destiny 2 as a game that's constantly evolving. Instead of dropping a series of big content updates with little happening between them, Destiny 2's second year became a drip-feed of new stuff that helped keep the game compelling, for the most part, month after month. Bungie has said this approach is how it wants to handle the game going forward, and Shadowkeep represents a big step in that direction. That means parts of the expansion feels a bit truncated--it teases more to come, but leaves some of Shadowkeep a bit unsatisfying.Destiny 2 story campaigns have always been a touch lackluster--they usually pack cool individual missions, but they almost always end quickly and rarely amount to more than chasing down some big enemy and putting them in the ground. Shadowkeep's main story is also on the short side, wrapping up in a four or five dedicated hours (and less once you start leveling alternate characters who benefit from the high-level gear you've already procured). It's also clearly the first part of a much larger tale, one that Bungie says will play out over the entire year. As such, it presents something of an unsatisfying journey; it's the first few steps, rather than a complete arc, and you might be a bit surprised when it's suddenly over.Shadowkeep sees the return of a Destiny 1 character, Eris Morn, who was central to two previous expansions: The Dark Below and The Taken King. Here, Eris has learned that the death-worshipping faction, the Hive, has discovered something on the moon that's conjuring up phantoms of past foes and allies, returning deadly facsimiles of them to life. In a way, it's a big reunion tour of the Destiny of old. Eris is back, you return to the D1 location of the moon, which we haven't seen in two years, and you fight slightly watered-down versions of big bad guys you've previously defeated, such as Dark Below raid boss Crota and Destiny 2 vanilla boss Ghaul. It's something of an amped-up nostalgia trip that's a good time, especially if you've got a long history with the Destiny franchise--but we're waiting to reach the long-term endgame content that will wrap up some of these story threads.It is cool, however, to hang out on the moon, especially because its spooky factor has gone up. Lunar tunnels are filled with frightening screams of hidden terrors, there are plenty of tough enemies to dispatch, and the whole place carries an air of haunted mystery. It seems we've only scratched the surface of what's hidden on the moon so far. Destiny is at its best when it's full of secrets for the community to uncover, and the game has already provided a few big, baffling mysteries that have required everyone to band together to work out. Destiny 2 Recent News Destiny 2's Eyes On The Moon: How To Start The Vex Offensive Activity Destiny 2 Shadowkeep Review In Progress - A Giant Leap Destiny 2 Horned Wreath Location: Where To Go For Essence Of Vanity Quest Destiny 2 Captive Cord Location: Where To Go For Essence Of Failure Quest Destiny 2 Shadowkeep: How To Power Above 900 And Get Raid Ready Though it ends a little too quickly, the story campaign has some exciting moments as Guardians band together to attack and infiltrate the new Scarlet Keep location and discover what the Hive is up to. The rest of the expansion's new content is engaging as well. Nightmare Hunts are pretty much mini-Strikes, making them quick and palatable boss fights that help you grab new gear. A new take on Nightfall Strikes, the tougher versions of Destiny 2's three-player Strike activities, are enticing thanks to a ramping difficulty system that gives you challenges at a variety of Power levels. Exploring the moon has a lot to offer as well--though a lot of the location is made up of old areas, they're deep and maze-like, and every trip into their depths feels deliciously dangerous.There's also the Garden of Salvation raid, which became available a few days after launch, to give Destiny 2's highest-level players something to aspire to finishing. Destiny raids are often the best, most inventive content the game has to offer, and Garden of Salvation continues the tradition of including strange and fun mechanics that push your limits of skill and team coordination. It's one of the shorter raids with only four encounters, but includes big, exciting pieces, like a chase through a field exploding with enemy fire and a Gambit-like boss battle that requires teams to split into multiple groups to gather items and defend against team-wiping attacks. Garden of Salvation isn't quite the equal of the massive Forsaken raid, Last Wish, but it's a highlight of Shadowkeep for certain.Vex Offensive, a new six-player wave-based activity that dropped alongside the raid, helps to round out the amount of stuff Shadowkeep gives you to do for its first season. Like last season's Menagerie, it has the feeling of being a lighter, easier raid-like activity that's more accessible for those who aren't quite hardcore enough to take on Garden of Salvation. The activity itself requires a little more teamwork than the usual Destiny 2 event, without being impossible to do if you're matchmaking alone. It's a fun change of pace from Strikes or Crucible, and its huge dump of rewards mean chasing the best rolls for its many guns doesn't feel like a chore.Where Shadowkeep really excels, however, is less in the content to work through and more in the myriad smaller changes Bungie has made to totally revamp Destiny 2. The biggest changes focus on making character builds a more important part of the experience, giving you a chance to experiment with weapons and armor not just to make your character more powerful in general, but more powerful in ways that specifically meet your particular play style and needs.Driving that focus is the new approach to weapon and armor mods, which allows you to mix and match elements that were previously unmovable perks on particular pieces of gear. In the past, you had to spend so much time switching gear in order to make your overall stats go up that more nuanced numbers, like how fast your grenades recharged or how quickly you moved, could generally be ignored. Making sure you had the best rolls on particular gear only really mattered in the game's toughest activities and to the most hardcore members of the community.With Armor 2.0 and the new weapon mod system, you can move those perks (now as individual mods) between armor sets to build a few pieces of gear with exactly the capabilities you want. You're also no longer penalized for experimenting since mods aren't consumed on use. It means that once you start to get some pieces of armor and weapons that work really well for you, it's possible to continually tweak them to fit how you want to play the game and your particular role on a team.Shadowkeep's tweaks to higher-level enemy encounters, like adding enemies that require specific mods to defeat, provide excellent opportunities to experiment with character builds and loadouts. Especially in Garden of Salvation, I found myself stopping to try different equipment combinations to help me deal with tough enemies or specific situations. The system provides a lot of opportunities to think about and develop character builds; more than I've been doing through most of the five years I've played Destiny. It's an improvement that makes the game's core loop of constantly chasing new gear feel like it matters to how you play the game--and it's one Destiny desperately needed.The early leveling system has been improved significantly as well, making the climb to the endgame a lot more reasonable. Leveling up your character is (mostly) gone in favor of constantly chasing gear with better Power numbers. Up to the soft Power level cap, every drop is a useful one--giving you a chance to try out a host of different weapons and armor in various circumstances before you get to Shadowkeep's toughest content. Shadowkeep's change to move experience points from a needless character-leveling system to a battle pass and new Seasonal Artifact item also helps a major ongoing Destiny problem of running out of things to do as you approach maximum level. Everything earns you experience to advance your battle pass and artifact, and the latter of which contributes to your characters' overall Power level, so there's a lot less wasted time chasing useless rewards.Much of the experience of live service games like Destiny 2 is in the continued chase after better gear and more power in the endgame. While things slow down significantly during the post-soft cap climb, progress feels steady through the game's decent variety of activities, especially with the addition of Vex Offensive. Bungie's changes to the system strike a nice balance between the issues of Year Two, when so many activities started to feel like chores, and the problems of the past, when progressing was a much slower grind. Pushing hard through a week's worth of Powerful gear drops can get you raid-ready in a hurry, but with a number of new guns to chase and new activities to master, there's still a lot for top-tier players to focus on beyond trying to raise their Power level through the roof. The new Seasonal Artifact also helps balance the grind by continually awarding additional Power points regardless of the numbers on your gear. As a result, you never feel stalled, no matter what part of the game you're playing.Shadowkeep represents a shift in the fundamentals of Destiny 2, and that has only improved the game. Returning to the moon is full of spooky fun, and while Shadowkeep might not be as huge as Forsaken, it still provides some impressive additions to the world that will take time to fully explore. More meaningful choices in Shadowkeep are pushing me to think beyond just packing my most powerful guns and shooting everything in my path. These are improvements that represent a giant leap forward for Destiny 2.Info from Gamespot.com

Unlike Apex Legends Season 2's Iron Crown event, Season 3's upcoming Fight or Fright event will, from the start, allow you to just buy any of its limited-time items. If you're planning on unlocking them all, it's cheaper to earn them via the random lottery of Apex Packs, though.Fight or Fright adds 33 items to Apex Legends, including a new heirloom for Lifeline. Eight of the items can only be earned through completing challenges--these include a new music pack, three badges, a rare weapon skin, an epic Octane skin, and two legendary weapon skins. The remaining 25 are the items you can buy. 12 are an assortment of epic items, 12 are an assortment of legendary items, and the final item is the Lifeline heirloom; which can be unlocked via several different methods.Of the 24 items you can buy, you can either earn them through direct purchase, crafting, or Apex Packs. The first two methods are ideal if you're looking to only unlock a few items, while the third method is the most cost-effective for unlocking all 24. We've included a cost breakdown below.Direct PurchaseLegendaries - 1,800 Apex CoinsEpics - 1,000 Apex CoinsCraftingLegendaries - 2,400 Crafting MetalsEpics - 800 Crafting MetalsEvent Apex Packs700 Apex CoinsNew items aren't all that's coming in Fight or Fright. For one, Kings Canyon is returning, but with a spooky, nighttime makeover in a limited-time mode called Shadowfall. In Shadowfall, you solo drop into Kings Canyon alongside 34 other people. If killed in Shadowfall, your loot box will spawn killer spiders and you'll rise from the dead as a zombie-like creature that can run faster, climb higher, and punch harder. In this zombie state, you have unlimited respawns.Your endgame goal is dependent on whether you're still alive or a part of the walking dead. When there are only 10 living characters left, the survivors must work together to combat the horde of 25 trying to kill them. The 10 living Legends win if they can make it to an evac ship while the 25 zombies win if they prevent the survivors from escaping.Fight or Fright begins October 15 and continues through to November 5.Info from Gamespot.com

Apex Legends' Lifeline is the third character to receive an heirloom, a special item that gives them a unique melee animation. According to dataminers, the heirloom is a pair of taser drumsticks--which does fit Lifeline very well--but Respawn has not officially revealed what the heirloom looks like. The developer has, however, revealed how you can earn the legendary item.In comparison to the first two heirlooms, Lifeline's is probably the easiest to acquire. It's still expensive though. Like previous heirlooms, you can just randomly get it from Apex Packs. However, during Apex Legends' upcoming limited-time Halloween-themed event, Fight or Fright, you can earn the heirloom for free if you unlock all 24 event items--12 of which are epic and 12 of which are legendary.There are three ways to unlock these items. The fastest is through direct purchase, but you can also craft each item or acquire them in the Fight or Fright's limited-time event Apex Packs. The direct purchase route is going to cost you, as will the crafting route if you haven't been hoarding the Crafting Metals you've earned from Apex Packs. We suggest using those routes if you only want a few, specific items from the event. If you're going for the heirloom, the less expensive path is through the event Apex Packs (as you're guaranteed one event item in each one with no duplicates), but that will still set you back 16,800 Apex Coins--about $160 USD.The breakdown of how much each item costs is listed below.Direct PurchaseLegendaries - 1,800 Apex CoinsEpics - 1,000 Apex CoinsCraftingLegendaries - 2,400 Crafting MetalsEpics - 800 Crafting MetalsEvent Apex Packs700 Apex CoinsAs expensive as the Lifeline heirloom is, it's actually cheaper than Bloodhound's heirloom (which cost 18,900 Apex Coins during the Iron Crown event; about $180 USD) and costs significantly less than Wraith's heirloom (which never had an event associated to it and has always cost about $500 USD). Once Fight or Fright is over, Lifeline's heirloom will be added to the pool of normal Apex Packs, making the legendary item as rare as Wraith's.This is not our way of saying, "Go out and buy Apex Packs." $160 is very expensive for a cosmetic item. We're just providing context. If you desperately want the Lifeline heirloom then, like the Bloodhound heirloom before it, it is more cost-effective to purchase the item during its corresponding event. Once Fight or Fright is over, you'll need to drop about half a grand or be very lucky.Fight or Fright begins October 15 and continues through to November 5. From October 25-28, you'll earn double experience for placing in the top five or winning, making it easier to rank up in the battle pass to earn additional Apex Coins and Crafting Metals--both of which will help alleviate the overall cost of Lifeline's heirloom.Info from Gamespot.com

One popular and enduring Breaking Bad theory is that Walter White (Bryan Cranston) somehow survived the series finale. With the new movie, El Camino, picking up after the events of Breaking Bad, many fans are wondering if Walter White might show up in the new film.Nothing is confirmed at this stage, but Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan has now confirmed whether or not Walter White is alive. Read on below to find out what he had to say.Gilligan told Rich Eisen that White is indeed dead. "Yeah, I'm gonna give you that one, Rich, because I love you so much. Yes, Walter White is dead. Yes," Gilligan said.In the Breaking Bad series finale, Walter goes on a killing spree. After poisoning Lydia with ricin, he storms Jack's compound and kills Jack and his crew with an improvised machine gun. Walter is wounded in the firefight, and he is shown in Breaking Bad's final shot seemingly succumbing to his wounds.Since then, fans speculated that Walter survived somehow, but now Gilligan has confirmed that Walter indeed is dead. That being said, Gilligan was asked if Cranston will come back in El Camino to play Walter in a flashback or dream sequence of some kind. Gilligan squirmed in his seat and wouldn't confirm one way or the other.If Walter does return in El Camino, he might not be the only character who died on Breaking Bad to show up in the film. It was previously confirmed that the character Mike Ehrmantraut--who was killed by Walter in Season 5--is coming back in El Camino (presumably in a flashback).According to a report, one of the returning characters in El Camino is so secretive that the producers flew them to set on a private jet to avoid detection. If Walter White is indeed coming back, he would certainly fit the bill of a massive surprise cameo that the producers would want to keep a secret.El Camino comes to Netflix and select theatres on October 11.Everything We Know About Netflix's Breaking Bad Movie, El CaminoInfo from Gamespot.com

Ghost Recon Breakpoint is uneven and conflicted. On one hand it's a natural sequel to 2017's Ghost Recon Wildlands, offering a near-identical core gameplay loop of open-world espionage and shooting. On the other hand, Breakpoint is a messy hodgepodge of disparate ideas, pulling various aspects from other Ubisoft games and shoehorning them in, half-baked and out of place. Ghost Recon's identity as a tactical shooter has evaporated and been replaced by a confused patchwork of elements and mechanics from other, better games. Its defining characteristic boils down to just how generic and stale the whole thing is.The addition of loot and an ever-increasing gear score fits into the standard template of Ubisoft's recent open-world games, whether it's The Division 2, Assassin's Creed Odyssey, or even Far Cry New Dawn. Breakpoint fulfills its quota by including these light RPG mechanics, but the implementation of its loot grind feels like a severe afterthought. There are numerous pieces of armor to find and equip as you explore the fictional island of Auroa. The numbers attached to each one will raise or lower your gear score, but the effect this has on gameplay is entirely inconsequential. Rare loot might include small buffs like a 2% increase in stamina or a 1% increase to movement speed, yet the effects of these buffs are negligible, and armor doesn't affect your damage resistance in any perceivable way. A level 5 beanie offers as much protection as a level 75 helmet, so these numbers only exist to raise a gear score that's nothing more than a flimsy representation of your progress. You're supposed to feel good about that number rising, but it's difficult to care when there are no tangible benefits to picking one piece of armor over another. You just end up opting for whatever has the higher rating without any meaningful consideration.Choosing which weapon to roll with requires slightly more deliberation, although this is mainly due to your preference for specific weapon types as opposed to the number attached to each. Breakpoint features the usual assortment of assault rifles, SMGs, shotguns, and sniper rifles, and these firearms function similarly to armour, with rare weapons receiving miniscule buffs to aspects like reload speed and recoil reduction. Again, the impact these stats have on gameplay is paltry at best, especially because shooting in Breakpoint is still geared towards landing headshots for an instant kill. This is a holdover from Wildlands and the series' early beginnings as a somewhat "authentic" tactical shooter. The most heavily armored grunts in Breakpoint take two shots to the head to kill--one to take off their helmet, and another to finish the job--but every other enemy can be extinguished with a single bullet.Weapons feel impactful as a result of this, successfully capturing the rush of being an elite special ops soldier that can take out four or five enemy combatants in a matter of seconds. But this also means the rarity of weapons and the gear score attached to them is ultimately meaningless. You can wander into an area recommended for players with a gear score of 140 with a significantly lower score and still kill every enemy without breaking a sweat. This amount of freedom would be commendable if it didn't shine a derisive light on how shallow the RPG mechanics are.The only enemies in the game that require a specific gear score to defeat are the killer drones dotted across the island. Encounters with these unmanned killing machines are few and far between, but because they don't have heads and aren't made of flesh and blood, they can be bullet sponges. Facing off against one of these drones is the only time the number next to your weapon actually matters, and even then they're easier to destroy by using the rocket launchers, grenades, and mines found in your inventory, which don't even have numbers attached to them. It's another example of how Breakpoint isn't a coherent match with Ghost Recon's sensibilities, which are still reflected in the way headshots function, and the trivial impact that loot has on gameplay makes the constant switching and dismantling of each piece of gear an unnecessary timesink.Breakpoint's paper-thin survival mechanics are similarly underdeveloped, hinting at a tense experience that never comes to fruition. You carry a flask that you can refill in lakes, rivers, and even in someone's backyard swimming pool for that sweet tasty chlorine. Water is used to replenish any lost stamina you've misplaced by over-exerting--usually by rolling down a hillside because Auroa is nearly bereft of flat ground. The island consists of diverse biomes including verdant woodlands, snow-capped mountain tops, and muggy swamps, but the common throughline in each environment is the presence of craggy cliffs and hillsides.As a result, traversing on foot revolves around spending a lot of time sliding down undulating slopes. This quickly drains your stamina, sending you into an uncontrollable roll that inflicts damage with each nick and bump. Health regenerates over time, but if you suffer either a minor or major injury and don't want to hobble everywhere, you need to use a syringe for instant pain relief or spend longer wrapping yourself up in bandages. Syringes are finite, yet you have an infinite supply of bandages that almost make the mechanic moot. There are never any anxious moments of desperation as you find yourself hindered with an empty medicine box. It's easy enough to wrap yourself up after a tumble, and injuries in combat are rare enough that having to find a safe spot to pause is not something you have to consider very often. There are also bivouacs spread out across the map that are used as fast travel points and rest areas where you can apply specific buffs by eating, drinking, or aiming your gun at the sky to somehow improve its accuracy. You don't have to gather food because it's always available, and there's some light crafting on the docket if you have the materials to restock your supply of explosives and gadgets.Much like the loot, these light survival mechanics aren't fleshed out enough to warrant any engagement beyond the limited amount you're forced into. The story revolves around your character being stranded alone, trapped deep behind enemy lines. You're outmanned and outgunned against an elite force equipped with a stolen fleet of devastating, unmanned killing machines. Stealth is encouraged, so much so that when you're prone you can cover yourself in mud and foliage to blend into the environment and remain undetected. Each of these elements places an emphasis on survival, but Breakpoint constantly skirts around the edges, never committing to mechanics that would extend beyond the feeble survival aspects already included. The plane-like Azraël drone occasionally flies overhead, ready and raring to rain fiery destruction down upon your helpless human body. Yet all this means is that you'll sometimes have to lie down and wait for it to pass before you can continue with what you were originally doing. You can see the inkling of some interesting ideas here, but Breakpoint never capitalizes on these and is ultimately a generic pastiche of what's come before.The gameplay loop is almost identical to Wildlands': You send a drone into the sky, survey an enemy base, and mark targets before infiltrating in whichever manner you see fit. Navigating through a heavily fortified compound without being seen is still inherently satisfying. Each one is usually designed in a way so there are a number of enemies obscured from your drone's vision. You might be able to pick off a handful of guards from a distance using a silenced sniper rifle, but at some point you'll have to enter and find the rest. The only thing impeding your stealthy espionage is the fact you can't move sideways while prone. Instead, you end up with these awkward animations because you can only turn at right angles. Taking cover is overly cumbersome, too. You do it automatically, but what the game deems as cover is inconsistent from one low wall to the next, and even if you do manage to get behind an object, whether you can shoot over it or not is another question. Though this would be a bigger problem if the AI were the least bit competent.Enemies in Breakpoint are mind-numbingly dumb to the point where playing on the highest difficulty doesn't present a significantly harder challenge. Their reaction to a buddy getting shot in front of them is often one of confusion; they'll stand still in the open instead of scurrying for cover. They don't fare much better in the midst of combat, either, running between the same two pieces of cover without engaging you or seemingly forgetting you exist. Occasionally they might try to flank your blindside, but more often than not their strategy boils down to charging directly at you, making it incredibly easy to line up your shots and dispatch a few in a row. Bottlenecks like corridors and doorways are by far their worst enemy, though. Sit down one end of a straight corridor and it doesn't take long for the bodies to pile up. You can even shoot the ground at the entrance to a base and kill each enemy who comes to investigate. Factor in the disappointing fact that enemies don't so much as flinch when getting shot in the body, and none of this is conducive to enjoyable combat.If you can get some like-minded friends together, there's definitely some fun to be had in Breakpoint's four-person co-op. Silently clearing a base of its enemies is more gratifying with four people. You can plan ahead, simultaneously approach the compound through different entrances, and time sync shots together. It's more chaotic with strangers but you can jump into matches with random players if you fancy a taste of open-world chaos.There is, however, some dissonance between co-op and the story painting you as a lone soldier, although this is much more egregious in Breakpoint's social hub. You can play the whole game solo, but mission givers all hang out in this homely cave where you'll also find 50 or so other players. Your character is literally called Nomad, and yet you're in a space with a bunch of other Nomads, all standing around the same NPC like it's an MMO. And the story's not great either way. Jon Bernthal elevates every scene he's in, chewing up the scenery to deliver simmering monologues befitting a villain with a dubious moral code. The writing is mostly cheesy, though, with some flat voice acting and predictable twists. The inventor of the island's killer drones develops a minor Oppenheimer complex when he realises his creations can be used to kill innocent people, but this aspect isn't explored beyond surface level, and that applies to the rest of the narrative too.Much like the loot, the light survival mechanics aren't fleshed out enough to warrant any engagement beyond the limited amount you're forced into.The presence of the social hub and the effect it has on diminishing the story would've been worse if the story were better. As it is, the social hub seems to exist to guide players towards Breakpoint's myriad microtransactions. Maybe that's an overly cynical viewpoint, but why else would you gather players in an open space other than to encourage them to show off by purchasing fancy new cosmetics? You can buy tattoos, shirts, masks, hats, weapons, vehicles, and more. Purchasing in-game money also comes in denominations that ensure you're always spending more than you need. You don't have to engage with any of this stuff, and it's easy enough to ignore, but this microtransaction structure is predatory by design.It would make sense if the addition of loot were in service of guiding people to spend real money on better guns, but even then the stats are so meaningless it would take a lot of convincing. There's some surprising fun to be had stealthily infiltrating enemy compounds and playing with friends, but Breakpoint is still a generic and distinctly sub-par game. It's essentially every Ubisoft open-world game rolled into one, failing to excel in any one area or establish its own identity. Breakpoint is a messy, confused game and a ghost of the series' former self.Editor's note: We will be finalizing this review once we've tested PvP. Stay tuned for the final review in the coming days. [Update 10/7/19: We are still working to test out PvP.]Info from Gamespot.com

There's nothing quite like the bright, beautiful, and sometimes distraught world of Indivisible. It's one that wears its Southeast/South Asian influences on its sleeve, and pulls you into places you want to be in with characters you want to be around. Developer Lab Zero blends several genre elements to create a system of combat and platforming that flows seamlessly between Indivisible's seemingly disparate parts. It has so much going for it that it's disappointing when heartfelt exchanges and pivotal moments lack the gravitas they deserve or are simply glossed over. While Indivisible has trouble following through narratively, I can't shake its enjoyable moments and the sense of cultural visibility it gives a region I'm connected to.Your journey across Indivisible's world revolves around Ajna, the hard-headed but full-hearted protagonist who perpetually stumbles into revelations about her true nature. She makes new friends along the way who either have mutual goals in mind or don't need much convincing to join her cause. Other than brief surprise, no one seems to bat an eye at the fact that they get physically absorbed into Ajna's consciousness--a separate plane of existence that acts as a sort of hub area--only to be summoned in battle or in conversation. You'll have to concede having deeper explanations other than Ajna's supernatural powers and third-eye chakra which are connected to the ominous villain Kala, goddess of destruction and creation.A diverse cast of characters and a creative combat system make Indivisible's fights stand out.Although a handful of key characters are central to the story, you assemble a party of four from a large and varied roster that's built up rather quickly. You assign a party member to a position in combat that corresponds with a face button; this is how you actively send them in to deal damage in real-time during an offensive phase and have them individually defend when enemies initiate attacks. Getting the hang of Indivisible's hybrid of turn-based and real-time mechanics opens you up to inventive ways of combining different characters' movesets and timing their specific attacks at the right time. It's easy to see how Lab Zero channels elements of its previous game, Skullgirls--there's a slight fighting game touch with combos, directional attacks, guard breaks, perfect blocks, and air juggling attacks. You also build up a meter, called Iddhi, which represents Ajna and friends' ability to go into overdrive for executing powerful special attacks. Battles tend to move fast, and this layered combat system makes you eager to get into the next fight.It's not necessary to learn every character as it's viable to stick with a handful of your favorites to cycle between for certain situations (they all level alongside Ajna so no one gets left behind). But as great as combat can be, you'll be disappointed to know that its wonderful complexities are squandered by a lack of challenge towards the end of the game. Your party becomes so powerful that simple button mashing will get you by most, if not all, enemies and bosses. You'll continually recruit new members in the late-game, too, but with little reason to get in tune with their mechanics. Combat's biggest enemy is the lack of difficulty right when the stakes should be the highest.Fighting is only half of Indivisible, gameplay-wise, though--it's partly a 2D side-scrolling adventure that draws from Metroidvania-style exploration. As you accumulate new tools and powers, so too does your means of traversal. Ajna starts with an axe that she uses to propel herself upward to higher ledges, but she'll soon be pole-vaulting, pogo-sticking, and monkey-swinging with a spear to avoid hazards and reach new areas. Her own superpowers eventually let you dash across wide gaps, jump to greater heights, and break through walls. What makes all these mechanics fun to use is that you face a variety of obstacles that force you to think about the clever ways you need to string together your toolset and abilities to overcome these platforming challenges.Unlike combat, platforming steadily ramps up to a satisfying difficulty towards the end, but it's never frustrating since you only face light punishment for death. Rather than loading a previous save, you get brought back to a generously placed checkpoint should you fail a sequence. What's more, a number of boss battles merge the two gameplay styles and test you to juggle both at a rapid pace. That could sound like the game biting off more than it can chew, but the pace at which you transition between the two phases keep things moving seamlessly.From one location to another, Indivisible's imaginative art style gives you an unmistakable sense of where you are and the things that happen there. I'm still thinking about the rough streets of Tai Krung City, which come to life through neon signage, quirky apartment setups, lavish clubs, and sketchy alleyways. Even the grimy, oppressive Iron Kingdom clearly communicates a hardship among the common folk who inhabit the cobblestone roads, and you feel the bustle of the markets that occupy the colorful seaside town of Port Maerifa. That rich sense of style extends to each of the characters, who are beautifully realized in expressive, hand-drawn artwork. It's an evolution of the imaginative style and designs from Skullgirls, and it helps distinguish each member of the wide, diverse cast.Excellent platforming scenarios challenge you to use all your tools and powers.Indivisible's sensational soundtrack tops off the joy of exploration and complements the feelings you get from soaking in the beautiful visuals. The infectious tunes solidify the personality of Indivisible's locations, a favorite among the tracks being the song that plays in Tai Krung City--its steel drums and upstroke guitar riffs hook you, but its somber melody reflects the town's dreary side. And the energetic tempo and horn section of the club area's song propels you to keep going, especially when it doubles as the battle theme. The Pacific Islander-influenced region of Kaanul features a theme with catchy woodwind instrumentation and a solemn string section. Indivisible's soundtrack is very much part of the atmosphere it aims to build, and it's one that's worth listening to on its own.I want to love Indivisible unconditionally; it has so many great pieces, and it's a special thing to feel seen. I'm happy to have a game that's distinctly Southeast Asian, giving some earnest representation to a part of the world I belong to and one I'm even more curious about now.Indivisible roots itself in broad-reaching concepts from Southeast/South Asian mythologies and history. Every in-game region's introduction is written in Sanskrit. Mount Sumeru, the critical location for which Indivisible starts and concludes, is derived from the sacred mountain in Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain mythology that harnesses all things physical and spiritual. An important character, Thorani, who treats Ajna as one of her own, calls her luksao, the Thai word for daughter. You can also spot smaller pop culture references, too--special shout out to the Jollibee reference in Tai Krung City, and a charming wannabe-Kamen Rider stand-in. Even down to character names, there are so many more connections to draw. While Indivisible doesn't necessarily explore these cultures in any particular depth or in more meaningful ways, it gives the stage to a diverse region to tell a simple story of personal growth, self-acceptance, and sacrifice.I wonder how the three-piece chickenjoy and halo-halo are at Jolly Katydid.With that said, while Indivisible has the foundation to portray something powerful it doesn't exactly follow through. Many of Indivisible's major story beats lack the necessary impact they need to stick with you and get you fully invested in Ajna's fight to save the world. While there's an assortment of likeable personalities and quips between characters, and the voice acting performances shine, many dialogue sequences don't reflect the gravity of the situations that unfold. For example, Ajna internalizes life-altering events in ways that frame them as frustrations to her rather than tragedies. And when she inadvertently causes destruction, it's largely brushed off as an accident with consequences that aren't communicated. Characters are quick to change their minds about things without portraying the process through which they came to their conclusions, undermining possible emotional stakes.There are key moments when other characters push back and confront others to think harder about what they're doing. Whether it's characters who open themselves up to feel any sort of positive emotion, go through a sincere redemption arc, or provide unquestioning support, you can identify the times Indivisible gets it right. I can't help but wish that the story contained these highlights more often than not.I want to love Indivisible unconditionally; it has so many great pieces, and it's a special thing to feel seen. I'm happy to have a game that's distinctly Southeast Asian, giving some earnest representation to a part of the world I belong to and one I'm even more curious about now. As a whole, it sometimes doesn't come together; it's missing weight to its narrative and the challenges necessary to flex its wonderful combat system. But it stands out as an RPG that's doing something genuinely different, and it brings joy to its clever platforming with the tune of an infectious soundtrack. For all its faults, Indivisible has its heart in the right place.Info from Gamespot.com

Now that cooler heads have prevailed and Spider-Man is firmly back in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the details on how exactly Disney Studios and Sony Pictures reconciled are being revealed. As it turns out, Spider-Man really is the hero of this story.Disney CEO Bob Iger appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live to promote his new book--which we read and found to be packed with strange stories about the MCU and Star Wars--and revealed precisely how Tom Holland, who plays the world's favorite web-slinger, had a crucial role in bringing Spidey back to the MCU. It all started at Disney's D23 convention when Holland appeared to promote the upcoming animated film Onward and thanked MCU fans for supporting him as Spider-Man. After that, Holland sprung into action."After D23, Tom reached out to folks that work for me and said, 'Can I please have Bob's email address or phone number,'" Iger said during his Kimmel interview. After getting the CEO's phone number, he made a call."He cried on the phone. No, not really," Iger joked. "It was clear that he cared so much and we care a lot about him. And he's a great Spider-Man, isn't he?"Between Holland's call and fans continuing to clamor for some resolution, Iger said he decided to give it one last shot."So after I got off the phone with him, I made a couple of phone calls to our team at Disney Studios," he recalled. "And then I decided to call the head of Sony, and I said, 'We've got to figure out a way to get this done. For Tom and for the fans.' And we did."For Iger, Holland's call and the fans seem to have reminded him about a vital piece of the puzzle that was overlooked. "Sometimes, you know, companies when they negotiate or people when they're negotiating with one another, they kind of forget there are other folks out there that actually matter," he said.With the deal now closed, it's been announced that Spider-Man will appear in at least one more MCU movie, with executive producer Kevin Feige continuing to work on Sony's Spider-Man films for the remainder of the new deal. Of course, they could always strike yet another deal when this one ends.For now, we know the next time we'll see Spider-Man on the big screen is when the currently untitled third film in the Spidey franchise opens on July 16, 2021. That is unless Marvel decides to sneak the character into one of the upcoming Phase 4 films already announced.Info from Gamespot.com

Overwatch quickly became one of Blizzard Entertainment's most recognizable brands following its debut in 2016, fueling the current obsession with multiplayer games known as hero-shooters. It's unsurprising then that, following the success of the fantastic Switch release of Diablo 3: Eternal Collection, Overwatch became one of the more requested Switch ports from fans. This sentiment turned out to be a relief for the developers at Blizzard, which, as it turns out, was already working on bringing the online hero-shooter to the Nintendo Switch.Ahead of its release on October 15, I spent some time playing the new version of the game, while speaking with director Jeff Kaplan and lead producer Matthew Hawley about its development. Co-developed with Iron Galaxy, Overwatch on Switch has been over a year in the making. It not only keeps its fast-paced team-oriented competitive gameplay intact, but it also includes some new features that you can only find on the portable console.One of the reasons why the Switch has been a great destination for ports is because it allows players to re-examine games in a new light thanks to the console's portability and flexible playstyle. On Switch, you can still play Overwatch on a monitor with a standard controller like its counterparts, but getting to play the game in the handheld mode made the shooter feel a bit more laid-back. What's also new to Overwatch are the gyroscopic motion-controls via Joy-Cons, which can be used in tandem with the traditional set-up. This new style was something that took some getting used to, but I eventually took to it after a few rounds. In a way, I felt more drawn into the game when playing in handheld mode and with the gyroscope controls. This relaxed and immediately responsive playstyle makes Overwatch on the Switch feels especially distinct. Speaking with game director Jeff Kaplan, he reflected on his first time holding the Switch, which made him realize that Overwatch was a great fit."It's been a project of passion. I actually waited in line to buy a Switch the day it came out, that's how much the platform meant to me," said the game director. "I remember getting my hands on it and going, 'Oh my God, we need to be here.' It's just a great platform. We've worked on this for over a year now, and after getting Diablo 3 out there last year and seeing that excitement, we're now launching Overwatch for the Switch. This has been the end result of that first excitement we had for the Switch back then."At launch, Overwatch on Switch will have all existing heroes and content from the PC and console versions. Unlike the release of Diablo 3, however, there aren't any plans as of this time to include any Nintendo-exclusive items. The Switch version is an impressive port, but it was clear that some clear concessions had to be made to get it running on the more modest hardware. For starters, the Switch version runs at a mostly firm 30 FPS. When docked, the resolution is set at 900p, while undocked brings it down to 720p--with some slight moments of frame rate dips during heavy engagements. Kaplan stated that they're aiming to release new updates at the same time with other versions, however, unlike Diablo 3: Eternal Collection, the Switch release won't feature cross-progression, meaning players will have to start fresh within the new ecosystem.This has been the end result of that first excitement we had for the Switch back then. -- Jeff Kaplan, game director.One of the more unique aspects of Overwatch's outing on the Switch is the gyroscopic controls. Like Splatoon 2, which lead producer Matthew Hawley said was a source of inspiration from the team, you can use the Joy-Cons or Pro controller's motion-sensors to move the camera and line up your shots. In the options menu, I noticed that there were several options that could be tweaked to fit your preferences, which include enabling or disabling motion-aiming while using the camera control stick and adjusting the sensitivity of your aim. Of course, if you prefer to stick with the game's traditional set-up, you're free to disable motion controls entirely. According to the devs, gyroscopic controls was something they wanted to include in the port, and they collaborated with Nintendo to get it working just right."We actually have a designer on our team who is a big Splatoon fan and he really likes gyroscopic aiming," said the lead producer. "He detaches the joy-cons and kind of points one at the screen, in Wiimote style, and his level of precision just blows me away. It's pretty cool. There's no other platform that we currently have Overwatch on that has that kind of motion control, and Nintendo was really excited for us to try and implement it for Switch. There's a whole world of people that have never played Overwatch before because they only play on Nintendo platforms, so bringing in a Nintendo audience into Overwatch is really, really exciting for us."In the dozen or so games I played, any concerns I felt about the game's technical shortcomings went away when getting into the thick of it. I anticipate it'll be tough for some players who are into the more competitive side of Overwatch to adjust to the scaled-back format, putting it in noticeable contrast to the high-resolution and 60fps gameplay from the other releases. In my experience, I didn't really mind the change. If anything, the relaxed set-up that the Switch offered made it all the more easy to get back into. Overwatch on Switch is just as colorful and hectic as its PS4, Xbox One, and PC counterparts, and I really enjoyed myself playing it.As the Switch is seeing more ports of online-centric games, the arrival of Overwatch--which is a more accessible team-based shooter--is especially welcome. Still, I can't deny that it's disappointing that cross-progression isn't possible on the Switch. The newest release doesn't totally deviate from the original, yet, the more flexible and responsive playstyle, along with the opportunity to bring Overwatch with you anywhere makes it feel especially novel in comparison to other versions. With its release on October 15, I foresee this port being a great way for players, new and lapsed alike, to revisit the game in a more fresh and laid back way.Info from Gamespot.com

In episode three of True Fiction, we're delving into the realm of dreams and nightmares to look at the origins of a beloved horror movie franchise: Nightmare on Elm Street. The series introduced Freddy Kruger--now an iconic horror movie villain--into pop culture, but the birth of the character--and the horrors he inflicted--are rooted in tragedies that occurred in the real world.As you can imagine, exploring the subject matter that inspired the movie series and charting its transformation into a pop culture entertainment is tricky. And that's what host and writer Kurt Indovina discusses below. You can check out True Fiction episode three below and on the GameSpot Universe YouTube channel, where new episodes will be released every Sunday.Kurt: While making True Fiction I was faced with a lot of challenges I hadn’t dealt with in previous projects. Challenges like, 'How do I tell the history of hundreds of Hmong refugees who escaped a mass genocide after the crippling end of the Vietnam War only to die in their sleep after thinking they had finally reached salvation' in a way that is respectful, but also entertaining, fun, and charming viewing experience for you.Sure, movies aren't real--Freddy Krueger, Godzilla, and Twin Peaks are, to us, just things of make-believe. But as I peeled back the layers, and found their inspirations, the results are, well, not the most uplifting stories.So for this episode, I wanted to push the team to tell this miserably sad real story in the most captivating and cinematic way possible. A way that was tasteful to the real history, while also paying homage to the movie it inspired.But along with those ambitions came other challenges that I, again, hadn't been graced with before. One being our filming location. To match the Nightmare on Elm Street vibe, we wanted a boiler room--something gross, dark, and scary. And oh, did we find the right place. In the basement of an old abandoned restaurant was a maze of concrete halls, dark corners, and yes, a massive and rusty boiler room.It was exactly what we wanted--maybe too much so. Covering the concrete floors were dozens, if not hundreds of dead cockroaches and indistinguishable liquids. There’s one particular shot where the camera follows me down a corridor while I sporadically move my eyebrows around my forehead and deliver my lines. But beneath my feet, with every step, I felt and heard the crunch of cockroaches being crushed under the soles of my shoes. It was vile and remains the most vivid sensation from the shoot. And the best part is that we did that take over and over again, and every time stepping all over crushed cockroaches.Also, our producer Adam Mason (bless his heart), endured an eye injury when a spec of an unknown substance fell from the ceiling and directly into his eye, putting him out of commission for several hours. Oh, and on the second day of shooting, when we filmed in a hotel room fit to look like a sleeping clinic, we set the fire alarm off by using too much smoke from a fog machine. (Frankly, I ignorantly didn't believe that'd set it off. But, now I know: don't use a fog machine in hotel rooms--you’ll cause a great panic.)At the end of it all, I'm very proud of this episode. And despite the dark source material, I think we managed to fulfill the expectation of making something fun and engaging to watch. Info from Gamespot.com

What do you do when a cage match simply isn't extreme enough? That's where Hell in a Cell comes in. WWE's signature demonic structure if back for the 2019 Hell in a Cell pay-per-view, which will see two championship matches happening inside of the steel menace.Of course, that's not all you'll see at Hell in a Cell. Thus far, eight matches have been announced for the show. The notable absence is a Cruiserweight Championship match. However, it has already been confirmed that the Cruiserweight Championship will be on the line on the next episode of NXT on USA. It's also worth noting neither show's men's Tag Team Championships, nor the United States or Intercontinental titles are currently scheduled to be defended. You can see the announced match card below.Seth Rollins (c) vs. "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt--Hell in a Cell match for the Universal ChampionshipBecky Lynch (c) vs. Sasha Banks--Hell in a Cell match for the Raw Women's ChampionshipBayley (c) vs. Charlotte Flair--SmackDown Women's ChampionshipRoman Reigns & Daniel Bryan vs. Erick Rowan & Luke HarperAlexa Bliss & Nikki Cross (c) vs. The Kabuki Warriors--Women's Tag Team ChampionshipChad Gable vs. King CorbinThe Vikings Raiders and Braun Strowman vs. The OCNatalya vs. Lacey Evans--Kickoff show matchHell in a Cell begins at 7 PM ET, with the kickoff show launching one hour earlier at 6 PM ET. The show will be available via traditional pay-per-view, as well as on the WWE Network. You can also follow along as GameSpot tracks the winners and losers of each match below. Make sure to join us for the start of Hell in a Cell Kickoff at 6 PM ET.KickoffNatalya vs. Lacey EvansWinner: Natalya at 9:21 by pinfall.Main showBecky Lynch (c) vs. Sasha Banks--Hell in a Cell match for the Raw Women's ChampionshipWinner: Becky Lynch by submission at 21:23Roman Reigns & Daniel Bryan vs. Erick Rowan & Luke HarperWinners: Roman Reigns & Daniel Bryan by pinfall at 16:45.Randy Orton vs. AliWinner: Randy Orton by pinfall at 11:55.Alexa Bliss & Nikki Cross (c) vs. The Kabuki Warriors--Women's Tag Team ChampionshipWinners: The Kabuki Warriors by pinfall at 10:25.The Vikings Raiders and Braun Strowman vs. The OCWinners: The Viking Raiders and Braun Strowman by disqualification at 7:56.Chad Gable vs. King CorbinWinner: Chad Gable by pinfall at 12:33.Bayley (c) vs. Charlotte Flair--SmackDown Women's ChampionshipWinner: Charlotte Flair by submission at 10:13.Seth Rollins (c) vs. "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt--Hell in a Cell match for the Universal ChampionshipMatch is in progress...Info from Gamespot.com

This might be the first episode of New Releases containing zero full-priced games, so your wallet won't hurt as much if you decide to pick up a few of this week's big games. Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible lair is mixing things up with a different style of gameplay, while Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince is a return to form for the series. Killer Queen Black is a revamped version of the arcade cult classic, and Indivisible is combining action-RPG mechanics with platforming. Meanwhile, PS4 gets an exclusive this week with Concrete Genie.Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair -- October 8Available on: PS4, Xbox One, PC, Switch2017's Yooka-Laylee was a 3D platformer inspired by the Banjo-Kazooie series, featuring many of the same developers. The sequel, however, is more like Donkey Kong Country, with 2.5D levels to conquer. They're all connected by an overworld with its own set of puzzles to solve and secrets to uncover.More Coverage:Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair - 2D Platforming Gameplay | PAX West 2019E3 2019: New Yooka-Laylee Game Has A Donkey Kong Country VibeConcrete Genie -- October 8Available on: PS4Concrete Genie sees you playing as Ash, a young boy whose town has been taken over by a force called the Darkness. To take it back, you'll use your graffiti skills to create artsy monsters that actually come to life as "genies." You can also freely paint to your heart's content in PlayStation VR.More Coverage:PS4 Puzzle-Adventure Concrete Genie Is About Creating Art In A Perilous PlaceConcrete Genie Makes A Dark World Your Canvas | E3 2018Indivisible -- October 8Available on: PS4, Xbox One, PC, SwitchIndivisible might remind you of Skullgirls, and that's because it's made by the same team, using its signature hand-drawn art. The world of Indivisible is inspired by multiple cultures and mythologies, and it combines platforming with strategic RPG battles. How you arrange your party is key to winning each fight.More Coverage:Skullgirls Studio's Upcoming Anime-Like RPG Gets A Kill La Kill-Looking TrailerSkullgirls Dev's New Action-RPG, Indivisible, Shows Promising Fighter-RPG FusionTrine 4: The Nightmare Prince -- October 8Available on: PS4, Xbox One, PC, SwitchTrine 3 took the series into a full 3D world, but the fourth game is a return to 2.5D form. Pontius the Knight, Amadeus the Wizard, and Zoya the Thief are back, each with new skill trees full of special abilities. You'll have to use them all to solve puzzles, fight bosses, and complete each stage. You can play through them solo or with friends in co-op.More Coverage:Trine 4 Is A Return For The SeriesTrine 4: 13 Minutes Of Single-Player And Co-Op Gameplay | E3 2019Killer Queen Black -- October 11Available on: PC, SwitchThis is the home version of the arcade cult classic, where two teams compete for victory in one of three ways. You can win by collecting enough berries, riding the snail to the goal, or killing the enemy queen enough times. For the first time, you can take the competition online.More Coverage:Killer Queen Black - Nintendo Switch Release Date TrailerNintendo Switch Gets A Beloved Multiplayer Game Next MonthOctober has more video games on the way. Next week, New Releases will take a look at The Witcher 3 and Overwatch on Switch, plus the return of an old favorite with Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville.Info from Gamespot.com

It's easy to love Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair when you start. The platformer is bursting with bright, saturated hues at every turn, with a whimsical soundtrack that's as catchy as it is cheery. It's a delightful veneer that quickly gives way to an otherwise predictable and unremarkable platformer. Despite changing its formula from full 3D to 2.5D, Yooka-Laylee is still too firmly rooted in a bygone era for platformers.This shortcoming is hard to see at first, especially with Impossible Lair's intriguing setup. In theory, the Impossible Lair is an endgame challenge you can attempt in the opening moments of the game. It's a gauntlet of spike traps and moving platforms, populated to the brim with enemies ready to chew you up and spit you back out. Each stage outside of the Lair is meant to help you with this. You’re rewarded with a bee when you complete a stage, each acting as an additional hit point when you attempt the Lair once more. Gathering as many bees as you can lets you push further in while affording you more mistakes. This entices you to check back in with the Impossible Lair from time to time, seeing how well your new health pool holds up and if that (combined with your improving platforming skills) are enough to best it.In practice, though, you're going to need pretty much every bee Yooka and Laylee can find, mostly due to how ridiculously difficult the Impossible Lair is compared to the rest of the game. It lives up to its name almost too closely, with no checkpoints throughout and long stretches of deadly chasms that will reset your progress significantly should you fall. It's completely different from the rest of the game's stages, which are well-paced with checkpoints and feature options to skip entire segments if you just can't get them right. The shift from accessible, pleasant platforming to a poorly balanced test of skill isn't an inviting one, and it sullies the otherwise interesting idea of having the Impossible Lair accessible at all times.Outside of the Lair itself, this half-sequel, half-reinvention splits up into two distinctly different types of games. Individual stages are standard 2.5D platforming fare, tasking you with moving from start to finish, while a handful revolve around hunting down collectible items for completion. You navigate through spike traps, swinging ropes, rotating platforms, and dangerous cannons; everything feels familiar enough if you've played a platformer before. Enemies come in different varieties--some will hop in the air, others will charge at you on sight, and still others will simply move between ledges--but their designs aren't visually exciting enough to be memorable.As familiar as they are, it's not long before stages start to feel like chores. Part of the problem is the merely serviceable platforming at its core. Yooka and his companion Laylee don't feel bad to control per se, but there's nothing exceptional about their move set either. Jumps feel a little floaty and it's annoying that your only attack is mapped to the same button as your roll (any hint of directional movement initiates the latter, and there's no way to change the control scheme), but outside of that there's really nothing remarkably good or bad about making your way through stages. It just feels far too routine, which quickly becomes boring no matter how varied the stages get as you progress.There are technically 20 distinct stages, but in practice it's double that. Each stage can be manipulated in the hub world to alter both their makeup and challenge. For example, one level entrance on land can be submerged in water, flooding it and making new routes accessible via swimming. The changes are sometimes substantial, like introducing massive gusts of wind to help you float through the air or lasers that chase you through a route that was otherwise safe before. There are routes you'll see on your first run through a stage that are clearly meant for your inevitable return visit under different circumstances, which is a nice touch to their overall design.Outside of these stages, the game transforms into an isometric 3D platformer, which lets you navigate through a relatively large world as you hop between individual stages. This area is more than just a hub for the real platforming awaiting; it's a self-contained stage unto itself, filled with its own puzzles, secret areas to uncover, and characters to interact with. Each part of the map is themed--there's one with large sentient fans that block paths with gusts of wind and an arid desert with a winding pipe system encroaching on its sparse wilderness, for example--which keeps things fresh as you travel between them.Solving puzzles in this hub world rewards you with some additional bees for the Impossible Lair, but also with quills and tonics. You collect thousands of quills throughout your time in the game, using them to unlock the abilities that tonics offer, which can be incredibly useful in some tricky stages. One will force Laylee to stick around longer after getting hit, giving you more time to recover her and regain both her abilities and an additional hit point. Others let you glide for longer after a jump or lets Laylee emit a sonar pulse to reveal nearby collectibles. Others are just cosmetic. You can drench the screen in a variety of filters using FX tonics, or marvel at what a modern platformer would look like in a 4:3 aspect ratio before switching it back. They're good for a giggle or two, but not much beyond that.Finding tonics is more fun than messing around with the abilities they offer. Secret paths are obscured slightly with the fixed camera angle, which makes picking apart your surroundings and uncovering them a treat. Others require some lightly skilled platforming to reach entrances to small caves (which themselves are sometimes locked away behind rocks you need to demolish or prickly shrubs you need to burn away) or the deciphering of clues from other characters to find keys to locked chests. It gives you more reasons to interact with the hub world behind just shepherding yourself from one stage to the next and lets you tackle them in your own time.The Impossible Lair is definitely a better attempt at capturing the magic of platformers than Yooka-Laylee's first crack at it, but it's still not remarkable.What isn't as engrossing is the progression system that governs how you move between each part of the hub world. Gates, jokingly referred to as paywalls, are erected throughout the world, and each requires T.W.I.T coins to unlock. There are five T.W.I.T coins in each stage, hidden in shrewdly obscured rooms or located at the end of particularly challenging platforming routes, both of which are satisfying. Initially it's pretty easy to get by using the few you find naturally through playing. But the high requirement for later gates means replaying stages you've already completed is unavoidable, which quickly introduces an unpleasant pattern of repetition. It's a slog to have to slowly comb through levels you've finished to find one or two coins at a time just so that you can continue on the game's main path.Having to backtrack through stages to eventually reach and tackle the Impossible Lair would be more tolerable if the final encounter wasn't such a steep difficulty spike, but in truth it's likely you'll tire of its routine platforming well before that disappointment sets in. The Impossible Lair is definitely a better attempt at capturing the magic of platformers than Yooka-Laylee's first crack at it, but it's still not remarkable. If you're itching to return to a bygone era, then The Impossible Lair might scratch it. Just don't expect much beyond that.Info from Gamespot.com

Even before its release, the standalone Joker movie was a lightning rod for controversy. There were those who loved it and those who loathed it, whether any of them had seen the film or not. Now, after its first night of release, the controversy has already escalated. Thursday night, October 3, a movie theater in Huntington Beach, Ca. was forced to close after a threat was received that police deemed credible.The news comes from the LA Times, which reported all screenings after 4:45 PM PT at the Century Huntington Beach and XD theater were called off. This was in response to a threat that was reported to law enforcement. Police have not disclosed where the threat came from or what the nature of it was.As of Friday, the theater has reopened, though there is scheduled to be a law enforcement "presence" in the area, per the LA Times. "We took the threat seriously, and we’re investigating," Officer Angela Bennett told the newspaper. Joker Coverage Does Joker Have A Post-Credits Scene? Joker Movie: 17 Easter Eggs And References You Might Have Missed Joker Review: The Antihero Comic Book Movies Need Joker Spoiler Review & Breakdown Why Joker Feels Dangerous Since it first started being shown to critics, a debate has been ongoing about just how the kind of movie Joker is. GameSpot's own Michael Rougeau and Meg Downey had a conversation about Joker and how "dangerous" it is, while Warner Bros. released a statement ahead of release to denounce gun violence, while standing by the film.Joker is in theaters now.Info from Gamespot.com

There are countless reasons why the Joker movie has proved so controversial, from the baggage the character itself carries to the inflammatory statements director Todd Phillips has been making to the press. The movie's ending adds fuel to the fire in spectacular ways, so let's break it down and try to figure out exactly what it's all about--and why it's so contentious.Here's your last warning--there are Joker spoilers ahead!In Joker's final act, Arthur Fleck, having been forced off his meds and finding validation in the rush of violence, evades detectives Garrity and Burke and makes it to the Murray Franklin show for his special appearance. An earlier scene suggested Fleck planned to kill himself on the show as the punchline to a joke, but instead, Fleck--energized by the crowd's reaction and the unrest he's inspired throughout Gotham--shoots Franklin point blank after a lengthy rant about society.It's a shocking moment that serves as the climax to the film--the scene where Fleck finally becomes the Joker we've been waiting the whole movie to see.At some point afterward, Fleck is arrested. However, a renegade ambulance hijacked by mask-wearing protesters t-bones the police car, and Fleck is dragged from the wreckage by his worshippers. He awakes and rises up on the hood of the car, dancing and reveling in the cheers of his fanatics, who appear to have taken over the city.In the end, he's back at Arkham, where he laughs to himself about a joke no one else understands, and apparently murders a social worker before the credits roll.Joker doesn't have a post-credits scene, so that's it. However, the movie's final act raises plenty of questions.How much of that was real?Throughout Joker, Arthur Fleck proves to be an extremely unreliable perspective character. There are plenty of scenes that are either completely imagined--like Fleck's first appearance on the Murray Franklin show--or embellished in Fleck's imagination, like his attempt at stand-up comedy, not to mention almost every scene featuring Sophie (Zazie Beetz).Are elements of the movie's ending, from Fleck's murder of Robert De Niro's character to his rebirth from the wreckage, also imagined, embellished, or straight up hallucinated? It's never exactly clear. However, that could completely change what the ending means. It's troubling to see a mob of people rise up in adoration of a mentally ill murderer, especially when you consider the real world connotations relating to mass shooters. However, it's much easier to digest if you consider the whole thing a fantasy playing out in Fleck's mind.One argument in favor of the ending being real is the fact that for the rest of the movie leading up to it, it's always clear when Arthur is imagining things--whether it's made clear in the moment, as in his warm interaction with the talk show host, or after the fact, like in the case of his interactions with Sophie. With the ending, however, there's nothing explicit to communicate to the audience that it was all in Arthur's head. During a Q&A after a recent screening of the movie in Los Angeles, director Todd Phillips addressed the question of whether the ending is real. However, his answer didn't exactly close the case."I don't want to say whether it's real or not, because I think [that's] part of the fun," he explained. "I've shown it to many, many different people, and they all have a different reaction. Some of them say, 'Oh, I get it. The last line in the movie is, 'You wouldn't get it,' to a joke he's telling. Well, is the joke the movie?' And the idea is, you don't want to answer those questions, because it's nice to see the different things people take away from it. I have my own theories on it."Phillips also said he enjoyed toying with the audience by making Fleck's perspective unreliable. "It's really kind of fun when you make a movie with an unreliable narrator," the director said. "There's no greater unreliable narrator than Joker. He's an unreliable narrator, and he's Joker. So it's sort of a double whammy. I think that lends to people's reaction to the movie, and I like that people don't really know what happened."You can absolutely view Joker's ending literally--what you see is what happened. However, there's an alternate reading that Fleck was in Arkham the whole time, which would suggest that most or all of the movie is entirely imagined. The social worker he apparently kills in the final scene resembles the woman he interacted with earlier in the movie, and there's also a brief flash early on of him bashing his head against a door in a white room, indicating he's been institutionalized before.Phillips acknowledged these similarities and the ambiguity of it all, without giving the answers away. "There are certain things if you see it again," he said. "On a second viewing, you'll notice about that kind of white room at the end, that kind of picks up at the beginning, that you go, 'Oh, wait a minute. That's interesting.'" Joker Coverage Does Joker Have A Post-Credits Scene? Joker Movie: 17 Easter Eggs And References You Might Have Missed Joker Review: The Antihero Comic Book Movies Need Joker Spoiler Review & Breakdown Why Joker Feels Dangerous Joaquin Phoenix, who was also present at the Q&A, added that they didn't want anything in the movie to be too definitive, from the exact ailments afflicting Fleck, to the specifics of what was real and what was imagined."In some ways, as much as there was very thorough research and answers for a lot of these things, we also, whenever we got to the point where we felt like we were coming up with a definitive reason for anything, we backed away from it," Phoenix said. "We found a way to circumnavigate a little bit.""He hates logic," Phillips replied playfully."I don't think we necessarily want to answer those things for ourselves, or for anyone else," Phoenix continued. "Part of the joy of this movie is how the audience interacts with the film and what they think about the character."What's your interpretation of Joker's ending, and the rest of the movie? Let us know in the comments below.Joker is in theaters now. Info from Gamespot.com

Following its debut, Overwatch quickly became one of Blizzard Entertainment's most recognizable brands, fueling the current obsession with multiplayer games known as hero-shooters. It's unsurprising then that, following the success of the fantastic Switch release of Diablo 3: Eternal Collection, Overwatch became one of the more requested Switch ports from fans. This sentiment turned out to be a relief for the developers at Blizzard, which, as it turns out, was already working on bringing the online hero-shooter to the Nintendo Switch.Ahead of its release on October 15, I spent some time playing the new version of the game, while speaking with director Jeff Kaplan and lead producer Matthew Hawley about its development. Co-developed with Iron Galaxy, Overwatch on Switch has been over a year in the making. It not only keeps its fast-paced team-oriented competitive gameplay intact, but it also includes some new features that you can only find on the portable console.One of the reasons why the Switch has been a great destination for ports is because it allows players to re-examine games in a new light thanks to the console's portability and flexible playstyle. On Switch, you can still play Overwatch on a monitor with a standard controller like its counterparts, but getting to play the game in the handheld mode made the shooter feel a bit more laid-back. What's also new to Overwatch are the gyroscopic motion-controls via Joy-Cons, which can be used in tandem with the traditional set-up. This new style was something that took some getting used to, but I eventually took to it after a few rounds. In a way, I felt more drawn into the game when playing in handheld mode and with the gyroscope controls. This relaxed and immediately responsive playstyle makes Overwatch on the Switch feels especially distinct. Speaking with game director Jeff Kaplan, he reflected on his first time holding the Switch, which made him realize that Overwatch was a great fit."It's been a project of passion. I actually waited in line to buy a Switch the day it came out, that's how much the platform meant to me," said the game director. "I remember getting my hands on it and going, 'Oh my God, we need to be here.' It's just a great platform. We've worked on this for over a year now, and after getting Diablo 3 out there last year and seeing that excitement, we're now launching Overwatch for the Switch. This has been the end result of that first excitement we had for the Switch back then."At launch, Overwatch on Switch will have all existing heroes and content from the PC and console versions. Unlike the release of Diablo 3, however, there aren't any plans as of this time to include any Nintendo-exclusive items. The Switch version is an impressive port, but it was clear that some clear concessions had to be made to get it running on the more modest hardware. For starters, the Switch version runs at a mostly firm 30 FPS. When docked, the resolution is set at 900p, while undocked brings it down to 720p--with some slight moments of frame rate dips during heavy engagements. Kaplan stated that they're aiming to release new updates at the same time with other versions, however, unlike Diablo 3: Eternal Collection, the Switch release won't feature cross-progression, meaning players will have to start fresh within the new ecosystem.This has been the end result of that first excitement we had for the Switch back then. -- Jeff Kaplan, game director.One of the more unique aspects of Overwatch's outing on the Switch is the gyroscopic controls. Like Splatoon 2, which lead producer Matthew Hawley said was a source of inspiration from the team, you can use the Joy-Cons or Pro controller's motion-sensors to move the camera and line up your shots. In the options menu, I noticed that there were several options that could be tweaked to fit your preferences, which include enabling or disabling motion-aiming while using the camera control stick and adjusting the sensitivity of your aim. Of course, if you prefer to stick with the game's traditional set-up, you're free to disable motion controls entirely. According to the devs, gyroscopic controls was something they wanted to include in the port, and they collaborated with Nintendo to get it working just right."We actually have a designer on our team who is a big Splatoon fan and he really likes gyroscopic aiming," said the lead producer. "He detaches the joy-cons and kind of points one at the screen, in Wiimote style, and his level of precision just blows me away. It's pretty cool. There's no other platform that we currently have Overwatch on that has that kind of motion control, and Nintendo was really excited for us to try and implement it for Switch. There's a whole world of people that have never played Overwatch before because they only play on Nintendo platforms, so bringing in a Nintendo audience into Overwatch is really, really exciting for us."In the dozen or so games I played, any concerns I felt about the game's technical shortcomings went away when getting into the thick of it. I anticipate it'll be tough for some players who are into the more competitive side of Overwatch to adjust to the scaled-back format, putting it in noticeable contrast to the high-resolution and 60fps gameplay from the other releases. In my experience, I didn't really mind the change. If anything, the relaxed set-up that the Switch offered made it all the more easy to get back into. Overwatch on Switch is just as colorful and hectic as its PS4, Xbox One, and PC counterparts, and I really enjoyed myself playing it.As the Switch is seeing more ports of online-centric games, the arrival of Overwatch--which is a more accessible team-based shooter--is especially welcome. Still, I can't deny that it's disappointing that cross-progression isn't possible on the Switch. The newest release doesn't totally deviate from the original, yet, the more flexible and responsive playstyle, along with the opportunity to bring Overwatch with you anywhere makes it feel especially novel in comparison to other versions. With its release on October 15, I foresee this port being a great way for players, new and lapsed alike, to revisit the game in a more fresh and laid back way.Info from Gamespot.com