We learned a wealth of new details about Switch's upcoming Pokemon Sword and Shield games during the latest Pokemon Direct broadcast, from the pair's release date to their new Dynamax mechanic and more. One topic the presentation didn't touch on was your Pokedex, but we've now gotten our first details about that as well thanks to the official Pokemon Sword and Shield website.Just as in Pokemon Sun and Moon, your Pokedex in Sword and Shield contains a Rotom, a Ghost/Electric Pokemon that is capable of inhabiting electronics. However, rather than being its own dedicated device, it appears your Pokedex this time will be part of your character's smartphone, which is fittingly dubbed the Rotom Phone. You can see how it looks below. Interestingly, it appears the Rotom Phone has more functions than simply logging the Pokemon you encounter. According to the website, you'll also be able to attach it to your bicycle, which will allow you to move faster and even cross water. During the games' latest trailer, we can briefly see the player character pedaling across a lake using a water bike. It wasn't clear if that bike was a separate item you needed to acquire or if it worked similarly to Sun/Moon's Poke Ride feature, but the website makes it seem it's a form your regular bicycle can take thanks to the Rotom Phone.If that's indeed the case, then it appears the Rotom Phone will effectively replace HMs, the special moves you needed to teach Pokemon in the past to navigate the region. Recent titles have been doing away with HMs, and it appears Sword and Shield will be continuing that trend. One of the new Gen 8 Pokemon, Corviknight, acts as a sort of taxi service and can ferry players back to towns they've previously visiting, much like the old Fly HM did.Pokemon Sword and Shield launch for Nintendo Switch on November 15. You can catch up on all the other big news about the games in our Pokemon Direct recap. For more, be sure to check out our Pokemon Sword and Shield pre-order guide.Info from Gamespot.com

Just ahead of E3, publisher THQ Nordic has promised a series of three game announcements over the next few days. The first of these has been revealed, with the company announcing SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom - Rehydrated is coming to Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC at some point in the future.The brief 20-second trailer doesn't give away much of anything, but we do know this is a remake of a cult classic platformer originally released back in October of 2003. Purple Lamp Studios--who previously developed The Guild 3--is handling development, and the game's official description has revealed there will be an all-new multiplayer mode beyond the single-player hijinks of SpongeBob, Patrick, and Sandy.The announcement goes on to say, "The cult classic is back, faithfully remade in spongetastic splendor! Play as SpongeBob, Patrick and Sandy and show the evil Plankton that crime pays even less than Mr. Krabs. Want to save Bikini Bottom from lots of rampant robots? Of course you do! Want to underpants bungee jump? Why wouldn't you! Want to join forces in a brand new multiplayer mode? The battle is on!"This is the first of three new game announcements THQ Nordic has promised for this week. The second will be unveiled June 6 at 11 AM PT / 2 PM ET / 7 PM BST, while the third will arrive on June 7 at 11 AM PT / 2 PM ET / 7 PM BST.Rumours have been swirling after an e-mail sent to press regarding E3 appointments gave away some scarce details that point to the possibility of new games in the Destroy All Humans and Darksiders franchises. An E3 panel certainly seems to point to the latter, with Darksiders: Action Adventure Evolved set to discuss "the inception of the Darksiders universe and where it's headed next."Info from Gamespot.com

Microsoft is preparing for its E3 2019 presentation and has promised to "go big" for Xbox this year. The company has added another intriguing teaser to the mix, although it's so open-ended it could mean just about anything.In a tweet from the official Xbox account, the company said, "We invited something new to #XboxE3 this year." Of course E3 presentations are often full of new announcements, but this one was conspicuous. This something seems bigger than most E3 surprises, and the mention of an invitation could imply it is bringing in something from outside its own company.So what could it all mean? The curious wording could hint at something big--in which case, it might be teasing the reveal of its next-gen Xbox, Scarlett. While that isn't expected to launch until next year at the earliest, Sony has already been talking a great deal about the still-unnamed PS5, so Microsoft may want to follow suit and outline its vision for next-generation hardware.Beyond that, we know Microsoft will be talking about its xCloud streaming service coming later this year. It has also been hinting at expanding Xbox services to other platforms, including the recent announcement of Xbox Game Pass on PC. It is also planning to show off 14 Xbox Studios games, including some from its spate of new acquisitions.Altogether, this could be anything ranging from a surprising partnership to new hardware or services. We'll have to watch the Xbox E3 press conference to be sure. That will begin on June 9 at 1 PM PT / 4 PM ET / 9 PM BST (6 AM AET on June 10). Be sure to check our full press conference schedule for more dates and times.Info from Gamespot.com

There's no denying that Death Stranding looks like Hideo Kojima's typical brand of perplexing. While it has elements of modern game design, what we've seen from the game doesn't seem to fit into any one specific genre. According to Kojima himself, that's because he has invented something new with this one.The Japanese auteur took to Twitter to break down exactly what he's set out to do with the new PS4 exclusive. Death Stranding is an action game, as evidenced by the release date trailer above, but Kojima says the game is creating a hybrid of something entirely new. He calls Death Stranding an "action game/strand game(social strand system)," a project that's not quite a stealth game but not quite a first-person shooter either.As I'm getting similar questions so I shall re-post. DS is not a stealth game. Could move subjectively but not a FPS shooting game either. By incorporating with the concept of connection(strand), it's totally brand new genre called action game/strand game(social strand system). pic.twitter.com/1KaQUVH9zL — HIDEO_KOJIMA (@HIDEO_KOJIMA_EN) June 5, 2019There are elements of both featured in Death Stranding, with protagonist Sam Porter Bridges (portrayed by The Walking Dead actor Norman Reedus) shooting and stealthing his way through the dilapidated world Kojima has conjured up, but Kojima seems more interested in the "strand" part of Death Stranding. He says the game is "incorporating the concept of connection(strand)" to create a "totally brand new genre."Genre creation isn't new for the prolific developer. With the Metal Gear Solid HD Collection, Kojima coined the term transfarring, a portmanteau of transfer and sharing in which a save file could be moved between the PSP, PS Vita, PS3, or PS4, allowing for seamless, continuous play. The Tactical Espionage Action of the Metal Gear franchise also falls into Kojima's genre-blending/creation ethos.Kojima managed to get some big name actors to appear in Death Stranding. Along with longtime collaborators Guillermo del Toro and Norman Reedus, Death Stranding will star Lea Seydoux (The Lobster, Spectre), Lindsay Wagner (Grey's Anatomy, The Bionic Woman), Mads Mikkelsen (Doctor Strange, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story), Margaret Qualley (Death Note, The Leftovers), director Nicolas Winding Refn (Drive, Valhalla Rising), Tommie Earl Jenkins (The Bourne Identity, Gambit), and Troy Baker (Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, The Last of Us).Death Stranding releases for PS4 on November 8.Info from Gamespot.com

Lots of zombie games have pockets of survivors, but Dying Light 2 is aiming to make a richer experience surrounding them. The survivor camps that largely manifest around the safety of rooftops play into your gameplay, as your decisions will be reflected in the communities. A new piece of concept art shows a rooftop farm.As described by Techland, your choices will help uncover new areas and impact how they thrive. The studio suggests that helping survivors will often come at some personal cost, so you'll need to choose between putting your own needs or those of the community first. The studio promises that each player's city will be a reflection of their own personality and choices."You will be shaping the world around you using resources you collect and steps you choose to take," creative director Adrian Ciszewski said. "The path to achieving your goal will at times take unexpected turns, but you can always get back on track, at a certain cost. The thriving rooftops are visible proof of a path once taken by the protagonist--the more he helps the survivors, putting his own needs aside, the more life and hope can spread throughout the city. Players will have their own cities that entirely reflect them in Dying Light 2."Dying Light 2 was confirmed in 2018, but got a shot in the arm recently with the announcement that Square Enix is partnering with Techland to distribute the game. It will be a part of Square Enix's E3 2019 press conference, which is scheduled to take place on Monday, June 10 at 6 PM ET / 9 PM PT. Other games appearing at that event will be Marvel's Avengers, new game Outriders, and very likely the remake of Final Fantasy VII.For more on Dying Light 2, check out what we know and what we'd like to see.Info from Gamespot.com

Pokemon Go's Adventure Week event is now underway, but that isn't all that's happening in the Pokemon mobile game this week. The next Pokemon Go Community Day is also just around the corner. Niantic is hosting this month's event on Saturday, June 8 (just ahead of E3 2019), giving players another chance to capture a rare Pokemon and earn other in-game bonuses.Pokemon Go Community Days typically only run for three hours, although the specifics of each event--such as what the featured Pokemon will be and what time it'll begin--tend to vary month by month. To help you prepare, we've rounded up all of the most important details about June's Community Day below, from its start time to its featured Pokemon and special event-exclusive move.What Is The Featured Pokemon?Each Community Day, Niantic designates one "featured" Pokemon, which will appear in the wild much more frequently than normal throughout the event. This month, the featured Pokemon is Slakoth, the adorable sloth from Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire versions. During the Community Day, there will be increased Slakoth spawns, and if you're lucky, you may also even encounter a Shiny Slakoth for the first time.What Is The Event Move?On top of appearing more frequently in the wild, each month's featured Pokemon is also capable of learning a special move that it otherwise couldn't obtain in Pokemon Go. In order to learn this move, players will typically need to evolve the featured Pokemon into its final form by the time the Community Day ends. Since evolution requires a lot of Candy, you'll need to catch as many of the featured Pokemon as possible in order to stock up the required amount.That's also the case with Slakoth. If you're able to evolve it into its final form, Slaking, during this month's Community Day, it'll automatically learn the powerful Normal-type move Body Slam. You'll have up to an hour after the event ends to obtain the special move, and any Slaking you evolve is capable of learning it so long as it evolves during the designated time frame, even if you captured its previous forms outside of the event.What Time Does It Start?In the past, Niantic hosted each Community Day during a specific window of time, which varied depending upon what region you lived in; North America's event, for instance, would always run from 11 AM - 2 PM PT, while Europe's Community Day would take place from 10 AM - 1 PM UTC.Beginning this past March, however, Niantic changed the Community Day schedule. Now, rather than holding the event during a different window of time in each region, the Community Day will take place everywhere from 3-6 PM local time. This should make it much easier to remember when the event is happening in your area, as you no longer need to convert the event hours to your local time zone.What Other Bonuses Are There?In addition to increased Pokemon spawns, Niantic offers a few other incentives to participate in Community Day. This month, Pokemon Eggs will hatch at a quarter of their usual distance during the event, allowing you to hatch Pokemon more quickly than normal. On top of that, any Lure Modules you use will last three hours, rather than their usual 30 minutes.Info from Gamespot.com

Earlier this year, Nintendo announced a remake of The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening is coming to Nintendo Switch. While we don't have a release date yet, that info will likely be revealed during Nintendo's E3 2019 press conference on June 11, as the game is confirmed to release this year.The Link's Awakening remake looks stunning, with vibrant, colorful visuals that retain the top-down perspective of the original. The last time Nintendo released a new game inspired by a classic Zelda adventure--looking at you, A Link Between Worlds--the end result was fantastic, so we have high hopes for Link's Awakening, which will be the first top-down Zelda title on the Switch.If you've never played Link's Awakening, which initially released in 1993 for the Game Boy Color, you're in for even more of a treat, as you'll get to experience the story for the first time. As you might have gathered from the announcement trailer (which you can watch above), the story begins with Link sailing into a giant storm that leaves him shipwrecked on Koholint Island, which is guarded by a giant sleeping Wind Fish. Throughout the course of the game, you'll control Link as he solves puzzles and fights monsters to gather eight magical instruments that will wake the Wind Fish, the only one who can help him leave the island. Link's Awakening shakes up the traditional Zelda formula a bit, as it doesn't involve Princess Zelda, the Triforce, or Hyrule at all.Link's Awakening is already available to pre-order at a few different retailers, and we imagine more listings will go live when the release date is officially revealed. As of right now, no pre-order bonuses have been announced. We'll update this story when we know more, but for now, here's where you can pre-order Link's Awakening for Nintendo Switch.Pre-order The Legend of Zelda: Link's AwakeningThe base game is currently listed at $60, but we'll see if that remains true after more info is shared on June 11. If you pre-order now and the price later drops, you should only be charged the lower amount when the game actually ships.Get it at Best Buy -- $60Get it at GameStop -- $60Get it at Walmart -- $60Info from Gamespot.com

Battlefield V is getting lots more content this year, including four new maps coming to the game with the Chapter 4: Defying the Odds update that launches on June 27. These maps, like all the ones released already, are completely free as part of Battlefield V's free expansion campaign. More details on all the new maps are coming at E3 2019 this weekend.The first of the new maps is Al Sundan, which is based on the Under No Flag single-player mission. It's set in the North African desert, and it's a large-scale map supporting 64 players. Next up is the 64-player Marita map, which launches in July. It's the second map set in Greece, following Mercury that was released at the end of May."Marita transports players to a gorgeous mountainside with cobblestone roads overlooking a river, and features infantry-focused combat where Allied forces are making a last stand to halt the Axis army," reads its description.The other two maps, Lofoten Island and Provence, are smaller in scale; they're designed around close-quarters combat. Both of these maps will be released sometime in summer. Moving ahead, DICE will launch a new map called Operation Underground in October. The map is inspired by Battlefield 3's Operation Metro map, and it features a number of different areas such as streets, courtyards, and train platforms. You can see a glimpse of all the new maps in the video embedded above. All of the new maps for Battlefield V will be shown off during publisher Electronic Arts' EA Play event this weekend in Los Angeles.Battlefield V launched in October 2018 and it sold more than 7 million copies in under two months; that was below EA's commercial expectations. Info from Gamespot.com

Microsoft has confirmed the general runtime of its Xbox E3 2019 briefing--and it's about the same as last year. Xbox marketing boss Aaron Greenberg said on Twitter that the show is under two hours long. Last year's briefing ran for 1 hour and 38 minutes."We are actually under 2 hours," Greenberg said on Twitter. "[The] team put together a high quality show. Excited to share with our fans and see the reactions!"Microsoft is packing in a lot in under two hours. The company is showing off 14 titles from Xbox studios, including Halo Infinite and Gears 5, in addition to whatever the company has to share from third-party developers. On top of games, Microsoft is expected to announce one or two next-generation consoles, and also share more details about its game-streaming service, xCloud.In terms of rumored reveals, Microsoft is said to reveal a next-generation Fable game from Forza Horizon developer Playground, while the Microsoft-owned Ninja Theory is rumored to announce its sci-fi game, Bleeding Edge, during the show.The Xbox E3 2019 briefing is scheduled for Sunday, June 9, beginning at 1 PM PT / 4 PM ET. That's 9 PM BST in the UK, while gamers in Australia can watch the show beginning at 6 AM ET on June 10. For more, check out GameSpot's rundown of how to watch and everything to expect from the Xbox E3 2019 briefing. Info from Gamespot.com

Warner Bros Entertainment surprised fans today with the confirmation, via Wonder Woman's director Patty Jenkins on Twitter, that the company will be skipping San Diego Comic-Con this year. With no Hall H presence, this means that highly anticipated movies like Wonder Woman 84 and the star-studded Dune reboot will not be featured at the convention at all.But never fear, Jenkins gave the bad news with a spoonful of sugar by tweeting out a brand-new poster for Wonder Woman 84, featuring an all-new look for Diana in all its technicolor, golden glory. Jenkins also teased that the promotional campaign for WW84 will begin in earnest later this year in December--so don't expect teasers or trailers for a while longer. The poster showcases a familiar comic book inspired look for Diana, known officially as the "Gold Armor" from the alternate-reality miniseries, Kingdom Come. It was designed to be a ceremonial armor crafted by Pallas, an Amazonian armorer, for Diana specifically, and imbued with supernatural durability. The comic book version of the armor even included wings which allowed Diana to fly--but they seem to be missing from the live action incarnation. Though, with the poster as highly stylized as it is, it's too soon to say if they've just been swallowed up in the rainbow effects. Given Diana's permanent exile from Themyscria in the live-action universe, it will be interesting to see where the costume ends up coming from and who winds up making it, or if we've got a homecoming for the Amazonian princess on the horizon.Wonder Woman 84 was recently delayed from November of this year to 2020, making it unlikely that the movie will have any major North American convention presence at all before release. It was, however, briefly featured in last year's WB Comic-Con panel, where fans were treated to a short clip of Diana fighting a mugger in an extremely 80s-flavored shopping mall.Wonder Woman 84 is set to release on June 5, 2020, and stars Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Kristen Wiig, Robin Wright, and Pedro Pascal. Info from Gamespot.com

Sarah Schachner will return to the Call of Duty series to do the music for 2019'ss Call of Duty: Modern Warfare reboot. Schachner said on Twitter that she "couldn't be more thankful" to work on the game, and contribute again to the Call of Duty series.Schachner also did the music for Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare, the 2016 entry in the series which, like Modern Warfare, was developed by Infinity Ward. Outside of the Call of Duty series, she also scored Assassin's Creed Origins and Anthem. She's also contributed to huge movies like Iron Man 3 and The Expendables 2.Well I guess it’s public now...I’m scoring Modern Warfare and couldn’t be more thankful to get to work with Infinity Ward again on such an amazing project. It’s def been hard to keep this one secret 😄 #CallofDutyModernWarfare pic.twitter.com/nJvVJ3A0AS — Sarah Schachner (@SarahSchachner) June 2, 2019This year's game is not a continuation of the Modern Warfare trilogy but rather a reboot of sorts of the 2007 game Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. Captain Price is back as a main character, with some of the storylines involving Russia and the Middle East."The world we live in right now is more complex than the world was in 2007, or 2009, or even 2011," narrative director Taylor Kurosaki said. "Even now the world that we live in, the battlefield is less defined than it's ever been, and because it's less defined and because enemies no longer really wear uniforms a lot of the time, that means that civilian collateral damage is a greater part of the equation more so now than it's ever been.""So what does that mean? It means we're creating circumstances where, as storytellers, we are taking these characters, and we are putting them into complex situations with a lot of pressure on them, and how they respond to that pressure reveals their true nature."In other news, it's been confirmed that the new Modern Warfare supports cross-play and that it will not have a season pass. For lots more, check out the story linked below.Everything We Know About Call Of Duty: Modern WarfareInfo from Gamespot.com

Daniel Craig is playing James Bond for a fifth and presumably final time with 2020's James Bond 25, but who will take over once Craig says goodbye?A number of names have been mentioned, one of which is Thor actor Chris Hemsworth. Speaking to Variety, Hemsworth said he's open to the idea of playing the super-spy in a future movie. He also likes another actor for the role: Idris Elba."My vote would be Idris [Elba]," he said. "I think he'd give it a different sort of swagger, too, and each time someone new comes into the role, I think you've got to offer up something different."In 2016, Elba said he thought he was "too old" to play James Bond, also stating that no one from the production team had approached him. But in 2018, Training Day director Antoine Fuqua said he spoke with Bond series producer Barbara Broccoli about the possibility of a non-white actor playing 007. Broccoli told him that "it is time" for a more progressive casting decision, and that it "will happen eventually." Fuqua also said Elba was a frontrunner for the role. "Idris could do it if he was in shape," Fuqua said. "You need a guy with physically strong presence. Idris has that."Other actors besides Hemsworth and Elba whose names have come up in the discussion about playing Bond after Craig include Tom Hiddleston and Richard Madden.James Bond 25, or whatever it ends up being called, hits theatres in April 2020. Craig recently suffered an ankle injury and needed surgery to repair it. Despite that, the movie is not delayed.In addition to Craig, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, and Lea Seydoux will all reprise their roles for the 25th James Bond movie. Jeffrey Wright and Ben Whishaw also return.Actors new to the series for Bond 25 include Rami Malek, Billy Magnussen, Ana De Armas, David Dencik, Lashana Lynch, and Dali Benssalah. Malek will seemingly play the film's villain, as he said he's looking forward to make sure "Bond does not have an easy ride."Bond 25's story begins with Bond no longer on active service but instead enjoying himself in Jamaica. "His peace is short-lived when his old friend Felix Leiter from the CIA turns up asking for help," reads a lin efrom the description. "The mission to rescue a kidnapped scientist turns out to be far more treacherous than expected, leading Bond onto the trail of a mysterious villain armed with dangerous new technology."The movie was initially going to be directed by Danny Boyle, but he left due to "creative differences." True Detective's Cary Fukunaga replaced Boyle before the film was delayed first from October 2019 to February 2020 and then again to April 3, 2020.Info from Gamespot.com

The Netflix drama Dead to Me starring Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini is coming back for a second season. The dark comedy/drama's second season is on the way but the network did not announce a premiere date or any other details about Season 2 apart from that it will continue the storylines of Jen (Applegate) and Judy (Cardellini).The show was created by Liz Feldman, and she's returning as well to continue to be its showrunner and executive producer.Dead to Me Season 1 premiered on May 3, so the renewal order came after just one month.Dead to Me is produced by GameSpot parent company CBS Corp.'s CBS Television division. Gary Sanchez Productions and Gloria Sanchez Productions are executive producing with Jessica Elbaum, Will Ferrell, Adam McKay, and Christie Smith.These two. Season 2. Coming soon. ✌️ pic.twitter.com/oXN2zCMFkV — Dead To Me (@deadtome) June 4, 2019✌🏼🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉 https://t.co/MPrTb2DbbM — Linda Cardellini (@lindacardellini) June 4, 2019 Info from Gamespot.com

A Halo TV show is on the way with Orange is the New Black actor Pablo Schreiber as Master Chief, and Microsoft has bold ambitions for it. 343 Industries transmedia boss Kiki Wolfkill said recently that the Halo show is aiming to be similar to Game of Thrones in some ways."It's hard to find an analog. We talk about Game of Thrones a lot in terms of scope and scale and complexity of relationships," she said in the latest episode of The AIAS Game Maker's Notebook podcast with Insomniac Games CEO Ted Price.Wolfkill pointed out that, like Game of Thrones, the Halo series is steeped in politics."A lot of the background of Halo is this sort of political drama. It's something that [is touched on] really lightly in the games and you see more of in some of the other mediums," she said. "Some of that [Game of Thrones-style] complexity is interesting."Unlike Game of Thrones, however, the Halo TV show will not feature incest. "No incest planned at all for this show, I'll say that. If you're looking for that, you won't find it here," Wolfkill said.Wolfkill went on to say that she was personally impressed with the first seasons of Game of Thrones that followed the narrative of the books closely. When there was a shift from the writing in George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series, this change felt deserved and you can understand why changes were made, Wolfkill said.This is something 343 aspires to with the Halo show.Wolfkill also spoke about how she gets bothered when people say it's impossible to make a video game translate to a good TV show or movie. Just because it hasn't been done before, or rarely, that doesn't mean it cannot be done, she said."It's not because you can't, it's because it's a really hard challenge, and everyone is still trying to figure it out," she said. "There isn't something inherent in the format of video games that makes it impossible to adapt; it's just a hard challenge. Literally day to day we are making decisions on what can change, what shouldn't change, what we can we bend."Another hugely important part of making the Halo TV show shine is 343 humbling itself and recognizing that the team at Showtime knows more about TV than 343 does."We are putting a lot of our trust in our TV partners. You have to be humble and recognize the expertise you're bringing is different from the expertise that they have," she said. "And you have to be able to take that leap of faith and trust that the things they want and are lobbying for and need are the right things. That's probably the hardest part; that leap of faith."343 has been working with Showtime for 5 years already. It hasn't been all fun. The experience has "really been a struggle at times," Wolfkill said, referring to 343 and Showtime coming to terms on contracts, as well as key talent dropping out.When the Halo TV show is finally released, no matter how it's received, Wolfkill said she and her team will be proud about going about it in the right way. She also believes no matter what the Halo TV show will have moved the medium forward in some way.For his part, Price chimed in to say part of the reason many video game movies and TV shows have been mediocre or worse is because people from gaming assume they know how to make a good TV show or movie.The entire podcast is incredibly fascinating, and you should listen to it here.The Halo TV show is now being directed by Otto Bathurst, who directed the shocking Black Mirror series premiere.The show is scheduled to begin production later in 2019, and Showtime has ordered 10 hour-long episodes of Halo for its first season.As for the Halo series, Halo Infinite is reportedly set for a big showing at E3 2019 this month. Additionally, Halo: Reach and the entire Master Chief Collection is coming to PC.Showtime and GameSpot are subsidiaries of CBS Corp. Info from Gamespot.com

Sony might not be attending this year's E3, but it still has plenty going on to share with players around the world. After recently offering a fresh look at Death Stranding, the company has now detailed some upcoming changes to the PS4's party system, and it sounds intriguing. Here's what to expect from the forthcoming system update.In a post on the PlayStation Blog, social media director Sid Shuman revealed Sony is currently testing enhanced chat audio quality, improved network connectivity, and the ability to create and participate in parties of up to 16 people, up from the current limit of eight.The new features are part of the next PS4 update preview program, which gives beta access to select users for new updates. North American players will be able to test a couple of extra features, too: the PS4 Second Screen mobile app will allow you to enter text which will then be spoken aloud to other party members. Additionally, the app can transcribe the incoming chat audio from your friends. Sony says these app-focused updates are available to US- and Canada-based users only for the time being, and only in English.Sign-ups for the upcoming beta update are now live in North America and are coming "soon" in Europe. Note, however, that if you participate in the preview program, you'll only be able to join parties that contain other members of the program. If you are successfully selected for the beta, however, Sony will allow you to share your access code with 20 friends, meaning you can all test the update together.In other PlayStation news, the PS4 exclusive Blood & Truth became the first ever VR-only game to top the UK sales chart last week. The shooter launched just a few days ago, and we awarded it a 7/10 in our Blood & Truth review.Info from Gamespot.com