If you're an Apex Legends fan you'll no doubt know that Season 3 has officially begun. If you fire up the game you'll be prompted to download the Meltdown patch and, once you've got it, you'll be treated to a whole lot of new content. This includes a new character called Crypto and also a new map. Respawn has released the official patch notes, so we can dig into what else the update has to offer.There's a significant amount of tweaks and changes to the way Apex Legends plays. Existing characters have had their functionalities fiddled with, and the way various weapons and items perform have also been altered to create a balanced gameplay experience. Interestingly, there have also been some more drastic changes, with new hop-ups being added and one fairly recent addition being removed.Of course, there's also a bunch of quality of life improvements and bug fixes. You can take a look at the patch notes below. The new character Crypto, meanwhile, has a drone which can be used for recon, among other things. You can learn about what he's capable of in our full Apex Legends Crypto breakdown.Apex Legends Season 3 Update Patch NotesLegend MetaAll LegendsExecutioner Perk: Previously, the Gold Armor perk, “Executioner”, gave a full shield recharge on successful completion of a finisher. In Season 3, all Legends will have this perk meaning--finishers will fully recharge your shields regardless if you have Gold Armor equipped or not. Gold Armor will now have a Guardian Angel perk that is detailed below in the Loot/Meta Changes section.GibraltarDome ShieldPlayers in the Dome Shield use healing items 25% faster.Increased the throw distance by 60%.Increased cooldown. 20 seconds -> 30 seconds.Defensive BombardmentDecreased cooldown. 4.5 minutes -> 3 minutes.Decreased duration 8 seconds -> 6 seconds.Increased throw distance by 36%.BloodhoundEye of the AllfatherReduced the animation time to activate by 33%.Now immediately tells you how many targets have been pinged.Beast of the HuntFixed an issue with FoV scaling messing up ADS aim sensitivity.Reduced animation time to activate by 30%.Increased movement speed bonus 25% -> 30%BangaloreRolling ThunderIncreased damage 20 -> 40OctaneAdrenaline JunkieFixed an issue with FoV scaling messing up ADS aim sensitivity.Wraith [Designer notes: We’ve pulled back additional nerfs for further testing, but Wraith’s power balance is definitely on our radar.]Dimensional RiftNo longer deploys if you are downed before placing it.PathfinderGrappleReduced the grapple projectile velocity by 33%, meaning it takes a fraction of a second longer to connect the grapple to the wall. The behavior once you are connected remains the same.ZiplineIncreased cooldown 90 seconds -> 120 seconds.Weapon And Loot MetaHop-ups: [Designer notes: We think the number of hop-up types in the game is about as high as we want to go right now when we consider loot dilution and the likelihood of finding a desired hop-up. Going forward, we intend to rotate hop-ups each season -- some may be removed from the loot pool to make room for new or returning ones. Below are the changes we’ll be making to hop-ups for Season 3.]REMOVED: Disruptor RoundsREMOVED: Skullpiercer RiflingWingman: Was 2.0 base / 2.25 with Skullpiercer. Is now 2.15 base.DMR: Was 2.0 base / 2.5 with Skullpiercer. Is now 2.15 base.The base headshot damage multipliers of the DMR and Wingman have been increased slightly.NEW HOP-UP: Anvil ReceiverAttaches to: Flatline and R-301.Rarity: level 4 (gold).This hop-up empowers semi-auto mode; it offers highly increased damage, but at the cost of reduced rate of fire and double ammo per shot.NEW HOP-UP: Double Tap TriggerAttaches to: G7 Scout and EVA-8 Auto.Rarity: level 3 (purple).This hop-up makes each trigger pull fire a quick two round burst.ConsumablesUltimate Accelerants 20% -> 35%.Ultimate charge restored increasedReduced the amount in the world by around 40%.Gold Gear ChangesGold BackpackThe gold backpack has a new perk, “Guardian Angel”. With Guardian Angel, you will revive downed teammates with bonus health and shields (if they have armor).Gold Armor: The gold armor will now have "Fast Use" (consumable items take half as long to use), which was previously on the gold backpack. Now, you will be able to tell when an opponent has the ability to heal faster by seeing the gold armor damage numbers.Weapons[Designer Notes: For Season 3 weapon changes, our goals were to encourage and improve longer range gunfights and reduce power on some of the weapons that have been dominating lately. We will of course be closely watching data and player feedback on these during the season.]R-99Base mag size reduction Before: 18/22/26/30After: 18/20/23/27Added some recoil randomness to patterns.PDW ProwlerAdded some slight recoil randomness while maintaining the same pattern when fired in full-auto mode.Longbow DMRReduced rate of fire 1.6 -> 1.3Reduced leg damage multiplier 0.9 -> 0.8G7 ScoutIncreased base damage 30 -> 34HemlokIncreased base damage 18 -> 22Slight decrease to rate of fire to both fire modes.R-301Reduced damage 14 -> 13MozambiqueDecreased pattern spreadMozambique will now reset from recoil faster, which should make it easier to track targets and see where shots land. L-STARSubstantial reduction to horizontal recoil.Now comes equipped with 1x Digital Threat optic.Reduced damage 21 -> 19 New Kitted Gold WeaponsWe’ve swapped out the previous set of Gold Weapons with some fresh new ones for Season 3. Keep an eye out for these fully kitted beasts that all include tier 3 versions of all compatible attachments, hop-up, and the following optics: Flatline Includes 1x-2x opticsEVA-8 Includes 1x threat scopeTripleTake 4x-10x Threat scopeG7 Scout 2x-4x opticsCharge Rifle 4x-10x threat scopeQuality Of Life Added a “random” option for customizing your unlocked loadscreens.Expanded the Ping Wheel so that you can now equip your unlocked Intro and Kill quips. Equip up to 8 intro or kill quips in the lobbyNearby enemies can hear quips when activatedPress Y while ping wheel is up to access (controller) or F1 (default keyboard binding -- you may need to set this manually as it won’t auto-bind)."Celebrate" quickchat is now the 1st option in the quip wheel (Previously down on dpad).New Legend battle chatter - Legends now have voice lines that will call out when your squad is being third-partied. This is triggered if you take damage when recently damaged by another living squadYou can now equip multiple skydive emotes (if you have multiple available on a character) - Hold A while skydiving to open the menu to select the skydive emote you want to use.Daily challenges should only give you, at most, 1 challenge for a Legend you don't own.No dupe character daily challenges (e.g. you should never get 2 Gibraltar dailies in the same day).Fixes for slowdown/performance drops at the start of a match.Mirage - decoys will now go where directed when deploying them during the drop if Mirage isn’t the Jumpmaster.Lifeline - D.O.C. Healing Drone will no longer float away after being deployed on Supply ShipsFixed issue where Legends could show up as locked instead of selected when joining a match late.Small improvements across UI to make fonts and other elements more readable.When swapping weapons with one on the ground, attachments will now attempt to transfer to your stowed weapon in addition to the weapon you are about to pick up. Bug Fixes Octane - fixed a bug where sometimes mantling while using a tactical stopped players from being able to perform any other actions until the tactical is finished.Wattson - fixed bug where sometimes the visual FX from her fences would not show up after being deployed.Pathfinder - Fixed a bug with Insider Knowledge passive where Survey Beacon locations would disappear from the full map after activating them.Fixed bug where players could sometimes receive additional Battle Pass rewards by leveling up two games in a row.Fixed an exploit that allowed players to spam fire with the Peacekeeper.Fixed bug where looting Lifeline’s Care Packages would not count towards the “Loot X amount of Care Packages” in the Battle Pass challenges.Fixed a bug where sometimes the smoke visual FX from Gibraltar, Bangalore, and Caustic Ultimates would show up on scopes when swapping weapons rapidly.PC - Fixed bug where model settings would be forced to “high” regardless of what setting was selected.Fixed a bug where players could sometimes skip the landing animation after a long fall.Fixed bug where sometimes map fog visual FX would disappear while looting a deathbox.Rebalanced audio to address issues with footsteps, ziplines, and jump jets. Ranked League Series 2You can check out the full details for Series 2 and learnings we got from Series 1 in our Ranked Blog here. Some highlights of the changes we’re making below. Rewards for your placement in Ranked Leagues Series 1 will be available to you after downloading the update for Season 3.We’ve adjusted the scoring for Series 2 that allows for more granularity for future improvements.At the launch of Series 2 on 10/1 we’ll be doing a soft reset on everyone Ranked Position from Series 1. The reset will be 1.5 tiers. That means if you ended Series 1 in Gold II, you’ll be reset to Silver IV. Players in Platinum IV will be reset to Silver II, and Apex Predators will be reset to Platinum II.Assists have been added to your overall score.New HUD elements have been added to help players keep track of their in-match RP gains or losses.Info from Gamespot.com

Bungie is planning Destiny 2 to be a live game for the foreseeable future, including making it free-to-play. But the free "New Light" introduction isn't just taking you through the main campaign of Destiny 2 vanilla. Instead, it starts totally fresh by recontextualizing the very first Destiny mission.When you begin New Light, you'll play through the first mission from the original Destiny. It's slightly different this time around, with minor changes to aspects like Ghost's dialogue. (Ghost was voiced by actor Peter Dinklage in the first game, but was changed to Nolan North in The Taken King expansion.) And upon completing the mission, you're taken to the new Tower as seen in Destiny 2. You can watch it above.The change makes a more natural introduction to the world of Destiny, as the second game's intro was presented as an invasion against battle-tested Guardians. If you want to go back and replay older campaign missions, you'll just need to find Amanda Holliday at the Tower. The patch notes mention that freshly made characters will be given a "New Light" quest to lead through "most ritual activities, Year 1 seasonal content, and Year 1 destinations." Destiny 2 Recent News Destiny 2 Shadowkeep Battle Pass: New Exotics, Weapons, And Armor You Can Earn Destiny 2 Shadowkeep Patch Notes: Super Nerfs, Weapon Buffs, And Tons Of Other Stuff Destiny 2 Shadowkeep: Servers At Capacity, Patch Notes, And Known Issues Destiny 2 Shadowkeep: All The Known Issues And Important Details At Launch Destiny 2 Servers At Capacity, Wait Times, And Other Shadowkeep Release Issues If you do jump into New Light, you'll get a massive chunk of content for free. It starts you at a Power Level of 750 and you can take on any Free Roam mission right from the start. You'll also be able to obtain all exotics from Year 1, and can complete missions from The Red War, Curse of Osiris, and Warmind, and Year 1 Nightfall Strikes. The ranks and rewards for seasonal events are up for grabs too.If you're planning to take on the new Shadowkeep content, you may need a refresher on the complex lore of the Hive. But Shadowkeep has its perks, like a new exotic weapon that's yours right from the start. The servers seem to be under a bit of strain from the launch demand, though, so you may need to be patient and persistent to get in.Info from Gamespot.com

We're constantly on the lookout for the best deals, but while there are quite a few big sales events throughout the year, such as Prime Day and Steam's Summer Sale, nothing compares to the whirlwind of blowout sales that is Black Friday and Cyber Monday. From consoles and games to accessories and tech, there's no better time of year to spend money on the hottest products. While Black Friday 2019 is still a ways off, the holidays will be here faster than you think, and whether you have a long list of loved ones to buy for or a personal wishlist (hey, we're not judging), it's best to have a plan when Black Friday and Cyber Monday roll around this year.When is Black Friday 2019?Well, it's tricky. Black Friday is technically the day after Thanksgiving, of course, which falls on November 29 this year. But if what you're really asking is when do the deals start, the answer is that they'll likely roll out gradually over the month of November and ramp up significantly on Thanksgiving. Black Friday itself will be the biggest day for deals, but expect to see sales through that entire weekend and into Cyber Monday.While the week of Thanksgiving and Black Friday will be the key time to pay attention to retailer offers, some stores will offer "Black November" sales that span the entire month. We'll update this piece with the latest info as soon as Black Friday-related sales start to appear.The biggest Black Friday sales to watch forPractically anything you might need to buy will get a discount during Black Friday and Cyber Monday, but if you're mainly on the hunt for consoles, games, tech, and other types of entertainment media this shopping season, there are a few specific stores to keep your eyes on. Amazon, of course, will be a major player in the shopping frenzy, but other key retailers include Walmart, Best Buy, GameStop, Target, Newegg, Ebay, and Google Express. The latter three stores, in particular, offered some of the best console bundles and game deals around during Prime Day this year, so we expect they'll have more surprising deals to offer come Black Friday and Cyber Monday.While the holiday shopping season tends to emphasize tech and hardware--those shiny things people shove their way through crowds to grab--it'll also be worth checking out sales at digital game stores, like the Nintendo Eshop, PlayStation Store, Microsoft Store, Steam, Fanatical, Green Man Gaming, and more. Digital games tend to stay at a higher price range than physical discs, so if you prefer owning games digitally, this is a great opportunity to snag any games on your wishlist.The best Black Friday deals to expectWhen it comes to gaming, it's always hard to predict exactly what deals will be available during Black Friday and Cyber Monday--but we'll take our shot in the dark.GamesYou'll be able to find a good discount on nearly any game from the past few years, including some early 2019 releases like Resident Evil 2, Kingdom Hearts 3, The Division 2, and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. We'd expect to see those as low as $15 to $30. During Black Friday 2018, for instance, the critically acclaimed God of War could be found for $17; it released that April. If you've had your eye on a game released within the past few months, like Fire Emblem: Three Houses, Gears 5, Borderlands 3, or Zelda: Link's Awakening, those newer games may fall to $30 or $40 (although steep discounts are more likely for PS4 and Xbox One titles than Nintendo Switch ones).ConsolesWith newer Switch models finally on the market--the new Switch with better battery life and the smaller, handheld-only Switch Lite--we're sure to see discounts on the launch model Switch, likely around $250 or even less. If you like playing the Switch docked and don't have an issue with slightly less battery life, that'll be an excellent discount on the hottest console of 2019. If you're holding out for one of the newer Switch models, however, it's less likely there will be significant discounts, but we'd bet on some good console bundles hitting stores around Black Friday. If you're buying a new Switch or Switch Lite for yourself or a loved one this holiday season, those game bundles will be one thing to look out for.Meanwhile, this will likely be the last big holiday season for the PS4 and Xbox One consoles, as anticipation is building for Sony and Microsoft to reveal their next-generation consoles. Microsoft has already confirmed that Xbox's next iteration, codenamed Project Scarlett, is slated to arrive in Holiday 2020. We know less about the PS5, but while there's no release date, we're sure to hear about the next generation of PlayStation hardware in 2020.So what does that mean for Black Friday 2019? Well, PS4 and Xbox One discounts are becoming a dime a dozen these days, and we expect to see the consoles hit their lowest prices yet this holiday season. If you (like me) still have a launch-edition PS4 or Xbox One and are starting to see performance issues on newer games like Control, this might be a good time to trade in that old console and get the PS4 Pro or Xbox One X at its lowest price yet. After all, the next-gen consoles are still at least a year away. During Black Friday 2018 as well as Prime Day 2019, we saw the PS4 Pro drop to $320, so we'll likely see it on sale for at least $300 during Black Friday 2019. While the Xbox One X hung around $400 last holiday season, we saw it as low as $314 at Google Express during Prime Day, so we'll go out on a limb and predict it also hits $300 at some point during Black Friday.Other dealsOf course, Black Friday is an excellent time to save on subscriptions, accessories, and practically anything on your wishlist or holiday shopping list. You'll likely see markdowns on memberships like PlayStation Plus, Xbox Game Pass, and Nintendo Switch Online. Controllers, headsets, memory cards, and more will also see discounts.How to get the best Black Friday dealsIt's all about speed, baby. Black Friday is like Prime Day on steroids, with almost every retailer throwing their hat into the ring and competing to offer the best deals. Your best bet is to follow retailers and brands you're interested in on Twitter or Facebook and pay attention to their ads and posts in the weeks leading up to Black Friday. And as our sister brand CNET points out, there are various sites that hunt down and post "leaked" Black Friday ads from retailers ahead of the event, revealing what products will be on sale during the shopping bonanza. In 2018, those leaked ads started popping up as early as the end of October. Finally, if you see a product at an incredible price during Black Friday or Cyber Monday, don't wait to buy it. The best deals will be gone in a flash.Of course, you'll also want to stay tuned to GameSpot as we highlight the best deals on games, electronics, and entertainment leading up to and during Black Friday. Be sure to follow GameSpot Deals on Twitter so you don't miss the hottest discounts.Info from Gamespot.com

Niantic has announced another round of Legendary Raid Hour events for Pokemon Go. As usual, the events will occur every Wednesday evening throughout October, and fittingly, this month will feature some "spooky" Legendaries.For one hour each week, a greater number of five-star Raids will occur at Gyms around the world, giving you more chances to catch a Legendary Pokemon. Each Raid Hour will take place from 6-7 PM local time. On October 2, 9, and 16, the featured monster will be Pokemon Go's current Legendary, Altered Forme Giratina, which returned to the game late last month.Altered Forme Giratina is scheduled to leave Raids again on October 17, and the remaining Raid Hour events in October--on October 23 and 30--will feature an as-yet unannounced Legendary. You can see October's full Legendary Raid Hour schedule below, while more details about the events can be found on the official Pokemon Go website. Pokemon Go News Pokemon Go Teasing New Team Rocket Characters Pokemon Go Finally Adds Mime Jr. As Part Of A New Event Pokemon Go Giratina Guide - Counters, Shiny Giratina, And How To Catch Tips Pokemon Go October 2019 Community Day Announced, Features Trapinch Pokemon Go: How To Get Unova Stones And Evolve Gen 5 Pokemon Pokemon Go's October Community Day, meanwhile, takes place next Saturday, October 12. The featured Pokemon during this month's event will be Trapinch, the first form of the Ground/Dragon Pokemon Flygon. You'll have your first chance to catch a Shiny Trapinch during this month's Community Day, and you'll earn triple the normal amount of XP for each Pokemon you catch during the event.In other Pokemon Go news, Niantic has teased some new Team Rocket characters. The official Pokemon Go Twitter account recently shared distorted images showing the profiles of three unfamiliar characters, and each had Team Rocket's iconic R symbol next to their pictures, suggesting they could be high-level members of the villainous team.Pokemon Go October Legendary Raid Hour ScheduleOctober 2, October 9, October 16Altered Forme Giratina6-7 PM local timeOctober 23, October 30To be announced6-7 PM local timeInfo from Gamespot.com

If you were wondering how to play Call of Duty: Mobile with a controller, it seems it won't be possible after a recent update. Following a bumpy launch earlier today, an Activision Support representative replied to a Twitter user that controller support "is no longer supported," which has caused some confusion among the community.Hello there, thank you for contacting Spec Ops support. Unfortunately, this is no longer supported after the most recent update. I would be more than happy to help. Thank you. ^RN — Activision Support (@ATVIAssist) October 1, 2019The menu option for "Controller" has also been replaced with a blank "Other" screen.It is not clear whether or not the CoD Mobile controller support update is temporary or permanent. GameSpot has reached out to Activision for clarification.In the meantime, fans who are less inclined to use the free-to-play shooter's touch controls have taken to Reddit to lament the change.Call of Duty: Mobile is a free-to-play shooter based on the popular Call of Duty franchise and developed by Tencent Games and Timi Studios. It launched this morning on iOS and Android after some initial server issues had players stuck at the start screen.Info from Gamespot.com

The new comic book movie Joker has generated lots of buzz and controversy since its premiere at the Venice Film Festival in July. Now, star Joaquin Phoenix has weighed in on the debate and discussion surrounding one of his most talked-about films, while the movie's director, Todd Phillips, spoke about what he sees as "woke" Hollywood culture.He told Vanity Fair that he "didn't imagine that it would be smooth sailing" as it relates to the reaction by press to Joker. "It's a difficult film. In some ways, it's good that people are having a strong reaction to it."Phoenix went on to say that he sees both sides of the coin as it relates to how people may interpret Arthur Fleck/Joker and his motivations."There's so many different ways of looking at it," he said. "You can either say here's somebody who, like everybody, needed to be heard and understood and to have a voice. Or you can say this is somebody that disproportionately needs a large quantity of people to be fixated on him. His satisfaction comes as he stands in amongst the madness." Joker Coverage Joker Review: The Antihero Comic Book Movies Need Joker Movie Director Responds To Criticisms -- "Outrage Is A Commodity" Warner Bros. Addresses Joker Controversy With Gun Violence Statement Before this, Phillips reacted to the controversy surrounding the movie. He said he was "surprised" to see some negative reactions to a film that is getting people to talk about gun violence and other important, relevant issues. The director went on to talk about why he thinks people are eager to pile on to Joker."I think it's because outrage is a commodity," he said. "I think it's something that has been a commodity for a while. What's outstanding to me in this discourse in this movie is how easily the far left can sound like the far right when it suits their agenda. It's really been eye opening for me."In the same Vanity Fair story, Phillips spoke about his own personal pivot from making comedies (he directed The Hangover trilogy, Old School, and Road Trip) to more drama-focused stories like Joker and his 2016 film War Dogs.He said he's less inclined to try to make comedies today because of the "woke" culture in Hollywood. Making Joker was in direct response to this. He said he wanted to make an irreverent movie outside of the comedy space, and that's where the idea for Joker came from."Go try to be funny nowadays with this woke culture," he said. "There were articles written about why comedies don't work anymore--I'll tell you why, because all the f**king funny guys are like, ‘F**k this shit, because I don't want to offend you.' It's hard to argue with 30 million people on Twitter. You just can't do it, right? So you just go, 'I'm out.' I'm out, and you know what? With all my comedies--I think that what comedies in general all have in common--is they’re irreverent. So I go, ‘How do I do something irreverent, but f**k comedy? Oh I know, let's take the comic book movie universe and turn it on its head with this.’ And so that's really where that came from."Earlier this month, the families of victims killed in the 2012 Aurora, Colorado movie theatre shooting reached out to Warner Bros. to ask the film studio to help use their influence to make safer communities with fewer guns. The shooting took place during a screening of The Dark Knight Rises.In response, Warner Bros. said, "Gun violence in our society is a critical issue, and we extend our deepest sympathy to all victims and families impacted by these tragedies. Our company has a long history of donating to victims of violence, including Aurora, and in recent weeks, our parent company joined other business leaders to call on policymakers to enact bi-partisan legislation to address this epidemic."Warner Bros. stands by Joker, and added that it does not endorse violence of any kind."Warner Bros. believes that one of the functions of storytelling is to provoke difficult conversations around complex issues," thew statement said. "Make no mistake: neither the fictional character Joker, nor the film, is an endorsement of real-world violence of any kind. It is not the intention of the film, the filmmakers or the studio to hold this character up as a hero."Joker premieres on October 4. For more, check out GameSpot's Joker review, which awarded the film a 10/10 rating.Info from Gamespot.com

Blizzard's popular hero shooter Overwatch comes to Nintendo Switch on October 15. It's the first new platform for the title since its release across PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC back in 2016. It's also a new challenge of sorts for Blizzard, as Nintendo's hybrid system is relatively less powerful than the other hardwareAhead of the launch of Overwatch for Switch, GameSpot spoke with the title's principal producer, Wes Yanagi, about a variety of topics related to the game, including the internal playtest that convinced Blizzard that bringing Overwatch to Switch was a good idea."Working closely with a set of developers on the Overwatch team, we eventually got to a first fully playable version of the game. The game was still in a buggy state and we had work to do on performance, but at the end of that playtest, everyone had an excited look on their face," Yanagi said. "It was at that playtest where we all concluded, 'Wow, this is amazing, and we have to make this happen.'" Also in the interview, Yanagi spoke about the technical challenges of bringing Overwatch to Switch (the game runs at 900p docked/720p undocked with 30FPS in both situations), what players can expect from the gyro-aiming feature, and how it would be rad for Overwatch characters to come to Nintendo's Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Yanagi also talked about Blizzard's relationship with Overwatch on Switch's developer, Iron Galaxy, which is the same studio that developed Diablo III's Switch version.Outside of those topics, Yanagi also told GameSpot that Blizzard is thinking about how to potentially bring cross-play to Overwatch, though it sounds like it won't happen soon. "The truth is that implementing cross-play for Overwatch is more difficult than people realise," he said.Finally, Yanagi spoke briefly about the possibility of Overwatch coming to mobile platforms down the road. You can read GameSpot's full interview below.What was the reaction internally when you got Overwatch running on Switch? At what point did you decide you wanted to pursue it beyond an internal test? What convinced you?Our team started discussions to bring Overwatch to the Nintendo Switch a little over a year ago as the Switch version of Diablo III was getting ready to launch. The developer, Iron Galaxy, did such an amazing job on the Diablo III port, and being huge fans of the Switch, we decided to reach out to them and go through the evaluation process of what it would take to bring Overwatch to the Switch.Working closely with a set of developers on the Overwatch team, we eventually got to a first fully playable version of the game. The game was still in a buggy state and we had work to do on performance, but at the end of that playtest everyone had an excited look on their face. It was at that playtest where we all concluded, 'Wow, this is amazing, and we have to make this happen.” Will Overwatch for Switch have all the same heroes, maps, modes, and updates as the other versions?That is absolutely our goal. We want to bring the authentic Overwatch experience to the Nintendo Switch. All 31 heroes, 28 maps, game modes, etc. will be on the Switch. The one caveat is we are not enabling Competitive Play until the start of Season 19. This will allow time for players to migrate into their natural skill bracket for more even matches.What resolution and frame rate can players expect from Overwatch on Switch for docked versus tablet?Resolution for this version is 900p docked and 720p undocked, with both running at 30 FPS.What were some of the technical challenges of bringing the game to Switch, given the console's relatively lower power and feature profile compared to Xbox One, PS4, and most PCs.We spent a lot of time working on getting performance to a solid place where players would feel like they were playing Overwatch. Most people think of graphics when talking about performance, but there are a lot of other systems like audio, physics, hero abilities, and animation that contribute to the overall frame rate. We spent a lot of effort profiling and optimising all those areas to make Overwatch perform smoothly on the Switch."The truth is that implementing cross-play for Overwatch is more difficult than people realise." -- YanagiCan you talk about your working relationship with the developer, Iron Galaxy? Why did you choose them and how involved is Blizzard in the game's production?Iron Galaxy has been an awesome partner to work with on this project. They have a group of super talented developers with lots of Switch dev experience. Overwatch connects to many different systems like the game servers, Battle.net, and Nintendo servers, so we have a core group of Overwatch devs that were involved with the game’s development to help with those efforts.Are you using the Nintendo Switch's dedicated app for voice chat?All versions of Overwatch are using the same voice chat system that runs through Blizzard servers. If you have a headset with a microphone, you can just plug it into your Switch and start chatting.Will the Nintendo Switch version have any exclusive content or Nintendo-themed content?There’s nothing exclusive to the Nintendo Switch version. We want to keep the core features the same between all the versions of Overwatch, but I’ve seen some amazing fan art and movies produced by the community in the last few weeks.The Switch version of Overwatch has gyro-aiming; can you talk about what this is and how it works? Will players using gyro aiming play against those with traditional inputs?First of all, gyro-aiming is completely optional, but I think if you dedicate a couple of hours to learning it, you might find you prefer it. One way to use gyro-aiming is to primarily use the right stick to aim and slightly nudge your aim to get a more accurate shot. Most players will probably use this method. You can also use it in detached Joy-con mode, where you point the Joy-con at the screen like a laser pointer. In this mode, some players are able to crank up the sensitivity and get almost mouse like aim. I’m excited to see what really good players can achieve with this.What are your thoughts on cross-play and cross-saves? With the Switch version, it seems like this could be particularly helpful for people to be able to play wherever they want.Cross-play is something that would definitely be compelling for players, and as a player, I would love to see it happen. The truth is that implementing cross-play for Overwatch is more difficult than people realise. We are exploring how to bring this to Overwatch, but do not have anything to share at this time. With the Switch version, Overwatch is now a mobile game of sorts, but have you thought about adapting the game for smartphones and tablets, too?Briefly, but my brain exploded when thinking about how to map all the controls to the touch screen. It sounds like a fun idea, but a very challenging one for Overwatch.Now that Overwatch is coming to Switch, people will surely begin to speculate about Overwatch characters in Smash Bros. What do you think about that?As a player and big fan of the game, I think that would be awesome. It would be an honour if Nintendo chose to bring one of our characters into Smash Bros.Overwatch launches for Nintendo Switch on October 15. The boxed version will include a download code for the game as well as a three-month subscription for the Nintendo Switch Online service. Those who pick up and log into the Switch version by December 31 will receive a Golden Loot Box that contains at least one guaranteed Legendary item.Info from Gamespot.com

EA Sports has released a big new content update for NHL 20 that makes a series of changes and bug fixes across the professional hockey game's various modes, and more.Starting with gameplay changes, the patch notes confirm that NHL 20 has added the real-world NHL rule change for the 2019-2020 season for when the puck goes out of bounds. The rule change states that when the attacking team sends the puck out of bounds in the attacking zones, the ensuing face-off will take place in one of the two dots in the attacking zone. This should now happen in NHL 20.Additionally, the NHL 20 patch fixes an issue where the skaters in some situations were unable to pick up the puck after a penalty shot in Threes mode. Outside of these changes, the new update makes some physics fixes, one of which eliminates a gruesome-sounding bug that could cause players to get their limbs stuck in the net. Ouch. There were also instances of when the puck could magically move through the goalie's pads, but that bug has also been fixed.There are also AI improvements in the newest update, including defenders making smarter plays on odd-man rushes. Additionally, the new NHL 20 update makes goalies smarter by improving and expanding on goalie animations.Elsewhere, the social hub--World of Chel--has been updated with reduced requirements for the weekly challenge card, while a number of new jerseys for multiple teams have been added. You can see the full patch notes below, as written by EA Sports.EA typically releases a tuning update around this time, but that isn't happening this year because the baseline gameplay is "in a good place," EA said in a blog post. That being said, EA is still looking into a few areas and asking players for advice on how to improve them. These include:Interceptions from behindInconsistency of low relative speed hits from console to consolePuck loss when pivoting at high speedNHL 20 was originally released in September for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. GameSpot's NHL 20 review scored the game a 9/10. NHL 20 October 1 Patch Notes:GameplayGeneralAdded NHL 2019-2020 season rule change for puck out of boundsWhen the attacking team is responsible for the puck going out of play in the attacking zone, in all instances, the face-off will be conducted at one of the two face-off dots in the attacking zoneFixed a case where the player is sometimes unable to pick up the puck after a penalty shot in ThreesPhysicsFixed a case where players could get their limbs stuck in the netFixed multiple cases where the puck could go through the goalie’s padImproved cases where slap shots would be missed when taken near the boardsAIImproved a case where the weakside defender would overcommit on an odd man rush allowing the puck carrier a breakawayFixed a case where AI players would start to accelerate when passed to without player inputGoalieVarious goalie animation fixesFixed cases where goalies were sometimes trying to perform controlled/redirect saves when the puck had a high chance of being deflected and would leave them more vulnerable than they should beImproved goalie tracking when the puck is behind the netShootingImprovements to shot angle selection logic for some rare casesImproved cases where players on loose pucks would perform a snap shot when a slap shot would be expectedFixed rare cases where one-timers would miss the puck completelyPresentationAdded ability to preview the play-of-the-period replays in action trackerVarious environment camera clipping fixesPlayer lineup animation and camera improvementsPlay-of-the-period/game animation and camera improvementsVarious Play of the Game/Play of the Period selection logic fixesMultiplayer hug improvementsFixed cases where penalty replays in EASHL don’t show the penalty being takenFranchise ModeAdded the season standings to the calendar screenAdded Auto Staff Setting that allows the CPU to assign scouts for the user teamFixed an issue where Alumni Player’s Ages don’t show correctly in a fantasy draft in Franchise ModeFixed an issue where the PP and PK columns in Hire staff were reversedMisc stability improvementsArtNHLUpdated Nashville Predators ScoreboardCenter Ice ChangesUpdated the following Center Ice layoutsAHLBinghamton SenatorsCanadian Hockey LeagueLondon KnightsCape Breton EaglesUniformsThe following uniforms have been added to NHL 20:NHLBuffalo Sabres AlternateChicago Blackhawks Home and AwayEdmonton Oilers AlternateCarolina Hurricanes AwayCanadian Hockey LeagueLondon Knights Home and AwayTri-City Americans Home and AwayCape Breton Eagles Home and AwaySHLFarjestad BK Home and AwayHV71 Home and AwayRogle BK Home and AwayLiigaMikkelin Jukurit Home and AwayLahti Pelicans Home, Away and AlternateTappara Tampere Home, Away and AlternateEBELDornbirn Bulldogs Home and AwayEC Panaceo VSV Home and AwayEC-KAC Home and AwayEC Red Bull Salzburg Home and AwayEHC Liwest Blackwings Linz Home and AwayHydro Fehervar AV19 Home and AwayHC TWK Innsbruck Home and AwayGraz 99ers Home and AwaySPUSU Vienna Capitals Home and AwayHUTGeneralFixed a desync issue which was causing the opening faceoff to loop in some Online GamesFixed an issue where players could see their opponent’s PSN ID/Gamertag before loading into a Competitive Seasons/HUT Champs gamesFixed an issue where Goalie Mask items may have become invisible when navigating the Apply Consumable screenFixed some issues where items may have not been properly revealed in Choice PacksSquad BattlesSave last-used difficulty as default (complete games only)Now display ‘Possible Points’ for each opponent as difficulty is selectedWorld of CHELImprovementsHaving heard the community feedback, we are reducing the requirements for the World of Chel weekly challenge card. Now, user will only need to complete a reduced number of the 5 columns to earn that week’s Special Reward.Added a link to Edit Player from the Recent Items screen so the user doesn’t have to manually back out and enter the flow from the WoC HUBAdded the ability to have EA Custom Stock Team Branding uniforms be equipped by clubs. Stay tuned throughout the year for future uniform releases that can be earned by clubs through hockey bags.Bug FixesFixed an issue where the current leader in Ones was not displaying correctly after the user has won the final Ones Eliminator roundFixed an issue where we display the wrong error message if a club is in a Threes Eliminator dressing room, and the session falls below the minimum usersReskinned the “Waiting for All Users to Resume” screen that comes after the pause menu so that the text is more legibleFixed various clipping issues and enabled several additional goalie intro animations that previously had clipping issuesFixed a failed to retrieve data issue that could occur when trying to enter any Dressing Room without the Lead ProfileFixed an issue where a user could crash upon another user closing the game while loading into gameplayFixed a timing issue where desnyc’s could occur when a Player Class Tuning file or a Gameplay Tuner Set upload happens while games are about to get underway from the Dressing RoomFixed an issue where very long club names could overlap each other in the dressing room after matching up in a clubs gameInfo from Gamespot.com

With the 2018-2019 NHL season begging this week, EA Sports has released the results of its annual simulation of the season using the latest NHL video game. The results of the NHL 20 simulation predict that the Boston Bruins will return to the Stanley Cup Finals for a second year in a row. But instead of ending their season in a crushing Game 7 loss to the Blues, the Bruins will defeat the Las Vegas Golden Knights in six games to claim their first Cup since 2011.Bruins winger Brad Marchand will win the Conn Smythe trophy for being the MVP of the Playoffs with 32 points in 25 games, according to the simulation.The Bruins will defeat Leafs, the Lightning, and the Capitals before advancing to the Stanley Cup Finals where they beat the Knights to win the Cup, the prediction says.The #NHL20 Simulation has spoken...The @NHLBruins are your 2020 Stanley Cup Champions! They defeat the @GoldenKnights in 6 games for their first Stanley Cup since 2011! Brad Marchand takes home the Conn Smythe Trophy with 32 points in 25 games. #NHL20Sim pic.twitter.com/1trq9FMC3b — #NHL20 (@EASPORTSNHL) October 1, 2019EA's Stanley Cup predictions have been incorrect for a few years in a row. Last year, the simulation predicted the Toronto Maple Leafs would win the Cup, but that didn't happen. In 2017, EA's simulation stated that the Winnipeg Jets would defeat the Boston Bruins in the Stanley Cup Final, but in reality both teams were eliminated in earlier rounds.The NHL 20 simulation also predicted the following events from the 2018-2019 season:Jack Hughes records 87 points in his rookie season to win the Calder Trophy (best rookie)Nathan Mackinnon wins the Art Ross and Hart Trophy with 119 points to lead the leagueAlexander Ovechkin scores 55 goals to lead the NHL and win the Rocket Richard TrophyErik Karlsson records 85 points to lead the league's defenseman and takes home the Norris Trophy for a third timeThe Tampa Bay Lightning end the regular season with 109 points to lead the leagueWith a staggering 87 points in his rookie season, @jackhughes43 takes home the Calder Trophy in the #NHL20Sim as the top rookie! #NHL20 pic.twitter.com/DgmntzEaTT — #NHL20 (@EASPORTSNHL) October 1, 2019The Art Ross and Hart Trophy belong to @mackinnon9! His 119 points led the league in #NHL20! #NHL20Sim pic.twitter.com/LqvYvk7IkW — #NHL20 (@EASPORTSNHL) October 1, 2019The Great 8 @ovi8 is your Rocket Richard Trophy Winner with 55 goals in the #NHL20 Simulation! #NHL20Sim pic.twitter.com/ccz558aEa9 — #NHL20 (@EASPORTSNHL) October 1, 2019A healthy @ErikKarlsson65 leads defensemen in scoring and also earns his 3rd Norris Trophy! #NHL20 #NHL20Sim pic.twitter.com/vpSWCt83BF — #NHL20 (@EASPORTSNHL) October 1, 2019The #NHL20 Regular Season Simulation has the @TBLightning taking home yet another Presidents' Trophy 👀 #NHL20Sim pic.twitter.com/iNMxEIM7tC — #NHL20 (@EASPORTSNHL) October 1, 2019In other news, NHL 20 released a big new update this week that makes a raft of changes, improvements, and tweaks to the hockey game. Check out the full patch notes here. Info from Gamespot.com

Amid the launch of Destiny 2 Shadowkeep and Destiny New Light, Bungie pulled down Destiny 2's servers to complete a round of "emergency maintenance." That maintenance, which lasted multiple hours, is now complete. While the servers are back up, Bungie told fans that they may have to wait in a server queue before playing. Server queues are normal for online games, and are meant to help ease the strain on servers that could cause other network-related problems."Emergency maintenance on Destiny 1 and Destiny 2 is now complete. Players may encounter a sign-in queue as the population returns," Bungie wrote on Twitter.The Destiny downtime came on the launch day for Shadowkeep and New Light. Despite the issues, Destiny 2 was able to reach an impressive 217,845 peak concurrent players on Steam. Big numbers were expected given New Light is free and Shadowkeep is a much-anticipated expansion. Destiny 2 Recent News Destiny 2 Shadowkeep Battle Pass: New Exotics, Weapons, And Armor You Can Earn Destiny 2 Shadowkeep Patch Notes: Super Nerfs, Weapon Buffs, And Tons Of Other Stuff Destiny 2 Shadowkeep: Servers At Capacity, Patch Notes, And Known Issues Destiny 2 Shadowkeep: All The Known Issues And Important Details At Launch Destiny 2 Servers At Capacity, Wait Times, And Other Shadowkeep Release Issues Info from Gamespot.com

Popular battle royale games Fortnite and PUBG have cross-play support, and Activision's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare will introduce it as well at release later this month. But what about Blizzard's hero shooter Overwatch? Principal producer Wes Yanagi told GameSpot that cross-play is "definitely compelling," but it's not likely to happen for Overwatch anytime soon."Cross-play is something that would definitely be compelling for players, and as a player, I would love to see it happen. The truth is that implementing cross-play for Overwatch is more difficult than people realise," Yanagi said.That being said, Yanagi went on to say that Blizzard is currently looking into cross-play support for Overwatch. "We are exploring how to bring this to Overwatch, but do not have anything to share at this time," he said.The issue doesn't appear to be political or specific to Nintendo, as Nintendo already allows cross-play on Switch with other titles such as Fortnite and Rocket League. Additionally, Phoenix Labs' upcoming game Dauntless will support cross-play on Switch with PS4, Xbox One, and PC. No version of Overwatch currently supports cross-play, meaning those on PS4, Xbox One, PC, and Switch can only play with other members of the same community.Earlier this year, Blizzard spoke about how the company was "excited about the potential" for cross-play support with Overwatch. However, the company said in a statement to Engadget, "There's still a lot of work to do on both our side and the platforms' side to determine whether this is something that makes sense for Overwatch, and we're keeping an eye on how cross-play systems and technology develop."Overwatch's Legendary Edition launches on October 15 for Nintendo Switch. It includes all 31 heroes and 28 maps from the other versions of the game, and voice chat won't be limited to Nintendo's own app. For lots more, check out GameSpot's interview linked below, in which Yanagi talks about the origins of Overwatch on Switch, the possibility of Overwatch characters coming to Smash Bros., and lots more.Overwatch Dev Talks Origins Of Switch Version, Technical Challenges, Cross-Play, And MoreOverwatch On Switch Runs At 30 FPS, No Amiibo Support Planned Info from Gamespot.com

Code Vein establishes its own identity from the outset. It may latch onto a Dark Souls formula that has come to define a generation of action-RPGs, but Bandai Namco's latest manages to set itself apart from the rest by presenting a post-apocalyptic world filled with what are essentially anime vampires. Interesting concepts and mechanics filter out from this central blood-soaked idea, resulting in a game that feels familiar yet wildly different from its inspiration. Yet it's the parts that are most recognisable, such as its combat, where Code Vein stumbles.After an apocalyptic cataclysm ravages the world, those who died are brought back to life as immortal beings called Revenants. The only price they have to pay for reincarnation is an insatiable thirst for blood. There's no neck biting, disintegrating in sunlight, or anything else you would usually associate with traditional vampires here. If a Revenant goes for too long without satisfying its thirst for blood, however, they lose their humanity and transform into grotesque creatures known as the Lost. Fortunately, Revenants don't have to feed on the last remaining humans to survive. Blood Beads grow on plants throughout the world and function as suitable substitutes for human blood, nourishing a Revenant's bloodlust in much the same way. The problem is, Blood Beads are becoming increasingly scarce, so you have to find the source and hopefully attain a steady supply. That's the basic plot, anyway, but it doesn't take long to deviate into other areas and introduce world-ending stakes.In stereotypical protagonist fashion, you begin the game by waking up with amnesia before finding out you're the chosen one. You see, each Revenant in Code Vein has a class known as a Blood Code. Your created character is special due to the fact they're not confined to a single Blood Code like everyone else is. This malleability allows you to swap between various classes whenever you feel like it, with your arsenal of available Blood Codes expanding the further you progress through the game.Blood Codes are tailored to a specific style of play that often fits into a typical RPG class template--think warrior or mage. Gifts are Code Vein's version of abilities, granting you access to a wide range of passive and active skills that are tied but not limited to each Blood Code. You're able to mix and match Gifts to a certain degree, with the most exciting ones letting you unleash flashy special attacks in melee combat. That's not all they're capable of, however, as others allow you to fire projectiles of piercing Ichor, boost your attack power, temporarily add a stun effect to your weapon, and many more. The character creator is already comprehensive enough, but Code Vein provides a plethora of options when it comes to finding a playstyle that suits you.Killing enemies earns Haze that can be spent on levelling up your character, purchasing weapon and armor upgrades, or attaining various items like poison cures and throwing daggers. When you die, you lose all of the Haze you had accrued up to that point unless you can return to the location of your demise and pick it back up. Haze is relatively easy to accumulate, though, so walking around with pockets full of the stuff never feels as stressful as it maybe should. Levelling up your character is also simplistic to a fault because it doesn’t let you min-max your stats. Everything it tied to Blood Codes so it’s unclear why information such as your character's strength and dexterity is even surfaced.Either way, incorporating Gifts amid regular attacks makes for some satisfying combos, and there's a gratifying heft behind each slash and crunch of Code Vein's melee combat. Defeating enemies is based on rationing light and heavy attacks, and you have access to a decent array of weaponry, too, cycling through the usual assortment of broadswords, halberds, giant hammers, and spears. Most of them are ludicrously large in typical anime fashion as well. There's not a lot of variety between each moveset within a weapon's specific class, but bouncing around between weapon types offers some tangible deviation.Each Gift consumes from a pool of Ichor that's replenished by simply defeating enemies or refilled in larger doses by performing drain attacks, parries, and backstabs. This incentivizes you to use Gifts regularly, approaching each enemy with an offensive mindset to unleash a bevy of special attacks and then quickly regain any lost Ichor. You need to pick the right moment to use a drain attack because of its lengthy windup, but backstabs are relatively easy to pull off, while parries require precise timing.Wailing on enemies is satisfying, and Gifts spruce up each fight with their inherent flexibility, yet combat is a disappointingly by-the-numbers affair because of the AI's shortcomings. There's an adequate variety of enemy types, but this variety generally only applies to their visual design as opposed to their behavior and movesets. They're surprisingly static, spending most of their time simply idling instead of reacting to your attacks. Each weapon you wield is usually able to stagger enemies on the first or second hit, allowing you to dispatch each foe with almost no resistance, and this remains true throughout the entirety of the game. There are a few enemies that break away from this mould, requiring you to actually dodge and make use of your Gifts, but they're an anomaly amid a sea of one-sided slugfests. Bosses aren't quite as easy to take down, but they're not far from it. There's no need to learn patterns or delicate back-and-forths that require you to engage with every aspect of Code Vein's combat. It's simple enough to beat each boss on your first or second attempt by simply manoeuvring behind them. This only deviates as you approach the end credits and bosses receive a sudden difficulty spike as they rely on powerful area of effect attacks and homing projectiles.Code Vein doesn't have to adhere to Dark Souls' challenging difficulty, but it also misses the mark by never forcing you to learn or deepen your understanding of the game to progress. Combat devolves into a mindless task where the only thing you need to watch out for is enemy placement and quantity. Difficulty is contrived by throwing numerous enemies at you at once which feeds into a focus on cooperative play. You can traverse through Code Vein's world with another player or by using one of its many AI companions. The latter can more than hold their own in a fight, proving especially useful when you're overwhelmed by multiple enemies--though their presence against singular opponents doesn't do much to quell the simplistic routine of defeating them.Exploring each environment is engaging, at least. The level design has a tendency to wrap in and around itself, offering secret paths and capturing the elation that's derived from opening a shortcut or discovering a new checkpoint to rest at and spend the Haze you just acquired. One sprawling area even borrows Anor Londo's distinct Il Duomo-inspired aesthetic, reimagining the pearly white castle as a labyrinthine maze. It's just a shame the visual design is regularly pedestrian. You spend the vast majority of your time traversing through bland post-apocalyptic streets and damp caves where rubble is Code Vein's most distinguishing feature. The addition of fire and sand shakes up the typical dilapidated cityscape, but it's not nearly enough to shake the feeling that you've seen it all before. There's even a late area that adopts the Anor Londo aesthetic for a second time, with the only difference being that it's now inside and slightly darker. Evoking memories of Dark Souls' most memorable location doesn't do it any favours.Code Vein adopts the Souls-like formula in its structure, presenting a familiar cycle of progression and basic combat similarities, and there are some interesting ideas here, too, built around the use of various Blood Codes and their distinct Gifts. You can see the fragments of a fantastic game hidden within these systems and its meaty combat feedback, but the mundanity of its enemies and the effect they have on nullifying the combat's enjoyment prevent Code Vein from ever realizing its potential.Info from Gamespot.com

To venture around the globe on the whim of a wager is an exciting premise, but it is truly the stories you uncover along the way, rather than the end goal that make 80 Days a delight to play. It's a narrative adventure where you take the role of Passepartout, the devoted French manservant of one Phileas Fogg--the character who famously circumnavigated the globe in 80 days in the classic Jules Verne novel descriptively titled Around The World in 80 Days. Verne named the character after the real-world adventurer Wiliam Perry Fogg, however, as we come to learn in this reimagining perhaps his servant should have been the one to inherit the famous name.There is no dallying as you are informed through lines of text that your master has taken on quite the wager and you are to travel the globe. Immediately you are introduced to most of the central mechanics. You're instructed to pack your bags, giving you a look at the item management system which presents itself in a grid-based format, fitting things into as many suitcases as you can currently afford to carry. Then stretches of paths are presented to you with lines that extend across a globe, though the first one is the brief journey from your starting point in London to the first stop in Paris. It's in France where you are given your first introduction to story and its branching choices--you can choose to explore or tend to your master, but the main goal is to try to uncover more routes to continue your journey. What makes the game interesting are the adventures and stories you'll find along the way. You quickly discover the great Phileas Fogg, while not necessarily a bad man, is a financier rather than an adventurer. The choices are all yours, and Fogg is more something to manage in the background. Keeping him happy and safe is a metric, and while you might come to care for him, it's clear very early on that this is your adventure, not his.In the early game, you are eased into the process of selecting and embarking on routes and taught the benefits of items, such as being able to haggle for an earlier departure time thanks to your dapper dress. The icons are all clear and intuitive and I never felt lost for what to do thanks to this simple introduction, but I did notice that some of the game's later intricacies were left for me to figure out on my own. It was ultimately rewarding, though did make me wonder about previous missed opportunities.Despite conveying most of its information in plain text, 80 Days uses its words to paint a vivid picture of a bustling steampunk world where art and fashion mix with wild technologies. Everything is written from the perspective of Passepartout's diary explaining the events, and sometimes he'll even make reference to writing those very words. You can choose how the story unfolds or alter his perspective on some things, but his character still holds firm throughout. It's a delicate mix of maintaining a sense of ownership and agency while not working with a blank slate, and the game ultimately balances the two sides well. The further and more broadly you travel, the more you can learn about this world, the politics, the wars, the technology, and perhaps most importantly, the people through his memoirs.The one downside to the stylish yet simplistic presentation was that finding my place on the in-game map was sometimes quite tricky. When you are looking to travel, you are presented with your location on a globe and every path you've unlocked from that point. However, it was easy to get turned around or not be sure which direction I needed to head next. This was in part because the seas and the lands are a similar color, and in less familiar parts of the world, I wouldn't be sure what I was looking at until I zoomed out and got my bearings. Locations tended to bleed together, and it's difficult to get a real hold of where you are in the world if you're not familiar with the names of the particular cities you happen to be visiting.It also took away slightly from the brilliance of the different cities, as many felt like a completely unknown quantity until entered and then were easily forgotten in the blur of travel. The game's most memorable cities, however, feel like lovingly crafted interpretations with a mix of true-to-life inspiration and often fantastical elements. I often found myself eager to move on to new places I was familiar with in the real world just to discover what kind of take this universe had on them. I experienced the wonders of the vibrant and technologically advanced Haiti, the secret self-dependent city at the North Pole, and ventured into the depths of the walking city of Agra.The methods of transportation can be equally stunning. Due to the largely text-based nature of 80 Days you only get silhouettes of these conveyances, but these paired with Passepartout's notes are enough to open the mind to wonder. Sometimes travel was fairly standard, by ship or train. Others I'd find myself riding a giant mechanical elephant powered by some sort of inscribed crystal or the aforementioned city itself. I found myself approaching most things with a sense of awe.You can alter the mindset of Passepartout's character to some extent as well, be it a somewhat stoic Frenchman who looks down at his nose at all other cultures or a man filled with romance and fascination. I chose the latter, and choosing to follow my heart often presented me with more choices to further my journey through additional sojurns, so having an adventurous spirit tended to pay off.Frequently you are presented with these side adventures in which you can choose to divert your travels to help others or merely have a brief affair during a long airship ride. These aren't all good for you and your master, but they don't tend to be too punishing either. Once, I was captured by some sort of bandit tribe, but thankfully the woman in charge seemed to take a liking to Fogg's gentlemanly charms and set us free. Another time I was on an expedition to the North Pole where we were met with sabotage. For days we were stuck in the blistering snow as I tried to keep my master alive. The music, usually cheerfully adventurous, if repetitive, turned off to make way for the bleak sound of whirling icy winds. It seemed we would die there. Thankfully, in my suitcase was a bottle of gin which helped get us a few extra days of life before we were rescued and managed to complete our travels. In retrospect however, I'm not convinced that we would have plain died without it--just opened up another path that ensured our miraculous survival.Thanks to the lack of true danger, you're encouraged to explore these side missions at every opportunity. That feeling of safety meant I was happier to take risks and less worried when risks decided to take me. It evokes that sense of adventure that comes with a film where you're fairly sure all the characters will be fine, even if they do incredibly reckless things. It also tended to be during travel where the most interesting stories would occur. You may still need to seek some of them out, as there's always the choice to merely stay in your room while traveling by mass transit (though you can still potentially be abducted by bandits or affected by serious accidents) but the multiple days of journeying also allow for longer, more intricate branching trails. There's no chance of wasting time while you wait for your vehicle to reach the next city, so tackling these side stories while traveling alleviates the tough choice of diverting to explore versus trying to hit your 80-day mark back to London.Thankfully, though, even that doesn't matter too much. In my first few playthroughs I felt pressured to try to return in good time and easily made it back at around the 60-day mark. Thanks to the wonders of the strange transportation in 80 Days, there isn't much challenge in achieving this primary goal though racing against the slow-moving clock isn’t what I found most enjoyable anyway--it was the stories and little goals I’d set myself to uncover new adventures. I’ll never forget my one night of magic with the enchanting emerald-eyed former slave, Octave, where amidst the romance I learned about his decision to return to his father who was also his former slaver, to work once again for the family that indentured him. Nor the days I spent in transport trying to keep two atrociously flirtatious women from corrupting my master in their competition for his affections to often slapstick comedic effect.80 Days can also be relatively short, depending on how you play. I found most playthroughs to be around three hours; however, it's alluring to replay and take different paths, discover new cities or modes of travel, so it's almost best to think of 80 Days as a run-based game.What is certain is that no matter your objective or playtime, you'll have an adventure worth writing home about. It's the stories you' uncover that makes 80 Days a joy to play. There's a constant sense of wonder in visiting these glorious cities and meeting interesting characters, and I'm eager to jump back in and see what kind of trouble I can get Passepartout into. Phileas Fogg is just going to have to damn well like it. Info from Gamespot.com

With Destiny 2's Shadowkeep expansion launching this week and years of content for the game already mapped out, it's clear the MMO shooter franchise is very much the backbone of Bungie's plans moving forward. However, it appears the studio's ambitions are not just limited to Destiny--Bungie is also looking to release at least one other IP in the next several years.In an interview with IGN, Bungie CEO Pete Parsons discussed the developer's plans to become one of the industry's "best entertainment companies" by 2025, and part of that vision involves not just continuing to redefine Destiny 2, but also establishing other franchises."So, by 2025 we have a pretty specific path to make sure we transform Destiny and that we have other franchises within the marketplace," Parsons said. "We need to build our publishing group, but part of our vision is also to become a multi-franchise entertainment company."Parsons didn't share any details about Bungie's potential non-Destiny franchise(s), but the studio has planned to branch out from the MMO series for some time now. In 2018, Bungie received $100 million from Chinese internet giant NetEase, part of which would help it establish one or more separate internal teams beyond the one currently working on Destiny.In the meantime, Bungie continues to make big changes to Destiny. The studio is releasing a free-to-play version of the game called New Light, while the aforementioned Shadowkeep expansion arrives tomorrow, October 1. Ahead of Shadowkeep's release, Destiny 2 has gone offline until the expansion launches at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET. You can read more in our Destiny 2: Shadowkeep pre-order guide.Info from Gamespot.com

Ubisoft has opened a new studio in Da Nang, Vietnam, to bolster its mobile development efforts in Asia. The new studio will focus on games using HTML5 for social media platforms, as well as collaborating with other studios working on their own mobile games. The company plans to recruit roughly 100 employees to work at the Da Nang studio over the next three years.To bolster the effort, Ubisoft is in discussion with institutions and universities in and around Vietnam. This joins the company's existing studios in China and India. It is also starting its recruitment drive to begin operations within a few weeks."Da Nang is a vibrant city which offers great quality of life and promising opportunities thanks to its fast-growing tech ecosystem," said new studio manager Aurélien Palasse, in the announcement. "With this opening, Ubisoft will benefit from the local expertise pool while welcoming international new talents in the region to enhance its creative strength and meet the increasing demand for mobile gaming."While Ubisoft is most known for its big-budget PC and console games franchises, the company has a tendency to diversify and quickly experiment with new technologies like the upcoming Google Stadia. Currently the company is preparing to launch Ghost Recon Breakpoint, the first new game to be included in its new Uplay+ subscription service.Info from Gamespot.com