PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds might be one of the world's biggest games, but its parent company, Tencent, has decided to discontinue the game in China. Despite the country being a huge market--70 million Chinese customers played PUBG Mobile every day--Tencent has shut down the game and replaced it with a more patriotic alternative.Tencent's reasoning is the Chinese government's refusal to allow in-app purchases in PUBG Mobile. In response, the replacement, Game for Peace, has been given a socialist makeover to meet the strict government regulations. According to Reuters, Tencent described Game for Peace as a tactical shooting game that "pays tribute to the blue sky warriors that guard our country's airspace," in reference to the Chinese air force.Changes include the absence of gore and blood in Game for Peace, and characters sit up and wave goodbye when they're killed. However, analyst Cui Chenyu said Game for Peace is otherwise "almost exactly the same" as PUBG. "The gameplay, the background, the graphic design, and the characters, they're almost the same," she said. In addition, players have reported their progress has carried over from PUBG to Game for Peace.Tencent, on the other hand, says the two games belong to "very different genres." The issue is complicated further because although Tencent owns a stake in PUBG's publisher, Krafton (formerly known as Bluehole), and holds the exclusive license to publish PUBG in China, it does not own the PUBG brand outright. A spokesperson for Krafton told Reuters the publisher was looking into PUBG's status in China and declined to comment further.PUBG Mobile launched in the west in 2018, and it will soon be joined by another huge battle royale game: EA announced just recently that Apex Legends is coming to mobile.Info from Gamespot.com

Rainbow Six Siege has long had a problem with team-killing, but developer Ubisoft has a new solution going live soon to help alleviate the issue. Reverse friendly fire, as it's called, has been in testing for a while and arrives on public PS4, Xbox One, and PC servers on May 8.Essentially, the system is designed to punish griefers by dealing the damage to them, rather than the poor teammate being hit. Offenders will get a brief grace period--accidents happen, after all--after which any further damage dealt will be reversed, meaning the innocent player receives no damage and the guilty party will be injured themselves.The system applies to all primary and secondary weapons, as well as direct hits from most unique Operator gadgets. Some explosive items are exempt--some by design, and some because of a bug Ubisoft says it will fix in a future update.The developer says the method as it stands "is not our final version of the system," which will continue to be tweaked according to data and player feedback. It has already announced changes to the system coming during Siege's Year 4, Season 2: "We will introduce situations where the system will activate for the whole squad," the company said. "How gadgets will react and behave under Reverse Friendly Fire will also be fine-tuned." Read the full patch notes for reverse friendly fire's current iteration below, via Ubisoft.Rainbow Six Siege Reverse Friendly Fire UpdateWhen a player abuses the friendly fire mechanic to grief their teammates, this system is activated. We believe that this first version will be a positive step forward in our fight against team killing while maintaining the same intensity and high stakes gameplay that is core to the Rainbow Six Siege experience.The Y4S1 release of RFF is not our final version of the system. Future iterations and improvements will continue based off data and player feedback.Community feedback so far has been invaluable and allowed us to make early iterations to the system. For example, RFF can now activate based on total friendly damage. In these cases, there is no validation screen for the offending player's teammates. We are also striving to make it clearer how operators and gadgets will react to this system. We have consolidated some guidelines below for your reference.Effect Of Reverse Friendly FireOn Weapons And Thrown ObjectsImpacts:Primary/secondary weaponsDirect hits from thrown unique gadgetsExothermic-S Torch (Maverick)SK 4-12 (Buck)Mounted LMG (Tachanka; regardless of who's using the turret)M120 CREM (Ash) when the breaching round directly hits someoneKS79 Lifeline (Zofia)Airjab Launcher (Nomad)Pest Launcher (Mozzie)Before RFF activation:Can cause damage to teammatesWill count towards activating RFFAfter RFF activation:Teammates will not receive damageWill reverse damage dealtOn ExplosivesImpacts:Generic gadgets (frag grenade, C4, breach charge) that results in an explosion*Gas Grenade (Smoke)TAC MKO asphyxiating bolts (Capitão)M120 CREM (Ash) when the breaching round explodesCluster Charge (Fuze)*Explosive gadgets that do not do damage (i.e. stun grenades, Ying's Candela) will not be affected by RFF in any wayBefore RFF activation:Can cause damage to teammatesWill count towards activating RFFAfter RFF activation:Can cause damage to teammatesDoes not reverse damage dealt**Explosives currently will continue to damage teammates even under RFF. This is not intended and will be fixed in Season 2.Exceptions*:ClaymoreEntry Denial Device (Kapkan)X-Kairos pellets (Hibana)Exothermic Charge (Thermite)*These explosives do not trigger RFF. While under RFF, these also do not reverse damage dealt and can continue to damage teammates. This can change in the future with feedback and further game design considerations.On Drones And Operator CamerasImpacts:Evil Eye (Maestro)Shock Drone (Twitch and Mozzie)Before RFF activation:Can cause damage to teammatesWill count towards activating RFFAfter RFF activation:Teammates will not receive damageWill reverse damage dealt (onto the drone/camera)More To ComeFurther changes for Reverse Friendly Fire will come during Year 4 Season 2. We will introduce situations where the system will activate for the whole squad. How gadgets will react and behave under Reverse Friendly Fire will also be fine-tuned based on data and feedback. We look forward to sharing future developments with you.We welcome any additional feedback on the Rainbow Six subreddit!Info from Gamespot.com

Last year, Bandai Namco delayed Code Vein to "ensure that the final product delivers on the expectations set amongst media and fans," but the developer didn't explain what changes were planned. So at a preview event, we asked Code Vein producer Keita Iizuka about the delay, and what Bandai Namco has changed in preparation for the Souls-like game's new scheduled release in 2019."After the dev team really came together and discussed--we felt that the appeal of Code Vein and what was really good about Code Vein was just not there, not enough," Iizuka said. "So we really wanted to brush up those elements so that the users can really get immersed and really feel what's so good and unique about the aspects of Code Vein a lot deeper, a lot stronger. So that's why we took some extra time to deliver."In Code Vein, you play as a Revenant, a chosen undead born into a world defined by blood. Revenants defend themselves from the Lost, the husk-like remnants of Revenants who lost sight of who they were and succumbed to their bloodlust. In order to survive, you arm yourself with powerful weapons and supernatural Gifts--the latter of which allows you to harness the blood you take from enemies to perform spell-like attacks. Combat is entirely stamina-focused, limiting how often you can attack, defend, parry, and dodge.Code Vein is--both thematically and mechanically--very similar to From Software's Soulsborne games. Where Code Vein aims to differentiate itself is in its Blood Codes and buddy system.Blood Codes are items that change the stats of your character, allowing you to more easily wield specific weapons and equip certain Gifts. The melee-focused Fighter Blood Code, for example, raises your strength and dexterity stats--allowing you to more easily wield massive two-handed swords and axes. As a Fighter, you're able to equip Gifts that unlock slow, but devastating close-range attacks, and also buff your overall damage output. If brute force isn't working, you can switch to the spell casting-focused Caster Blood Code, parry-focused Prometheus Blood Code, or long-range Hunter Blood Code before jumping back into the fray. There are eight Blood Codes in total in Code Vein, and each allows you to equip up to eight Gifts at once for a variety of playstyles."This aspect of being able to freely create your playstyle and the flexibility of playstyles--this is something that was already in the works since the initial stages, but we wanted to focus on that aspect--to enhance it and brush it up a lot--so that the player can have more freedom and flexibility in how they play the game," Iizuka said."We really wanted to expand the Gift variations and how you develop [your Revenant]," he continued. "[For example], there's a Gift called Phantom Assault where you can vanish and instantly appear right where the enemy is and dish out your attack. So that's one aspect of it, and we have other Gifts that you can sort of build around that as well. And so, I think that's one of the ways we sort of added to the game to make it more [complete]."Being able to completely respec your character into a brand-new class within seconds--as opposed to travelling to a certain location and paying an NPC to do it like in Dark Souls--is an intriguing concept, but it was difficult to discern how such a strategy works in practice based on Code Vein's opening hour. We started out with three Blood Codes (Fighter, Ranger, and Caster) and a few of their respective Gifts unlocked, but there weren't enough different enemy types to fight or weapons to find to take full advantage of what makes each Code unique. The opening area hides mostly swords and axes--implying melee builds are the way to go--so there doesn't seem to be any point in investing in the Ranger and Caster Blood Codes early on. Perhaps later areas offer more reason to switch to bayonet rifles and blood magic, though it remains to be seen.Code Vein's other major feature, its buddy system, hasn't seen much change since the game's delay. In Code Vein, you meet other Revenants who each have their own questlines and stories. You can choose who joins you in combat, and they'll help you fight and revive you if you happen to fall in the midst of a challenging battle. Bandai Namco designed the buddy system in order to make Code Vein's difficult Souls-like combat more accessible for players new to these types of games."So the core concept of [Code Vein] is all about dying and trying again, kind of like [Dark Souls] and [Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice]," Iizuka said. "With that sort of difficulty level set, you have that sense of achievement, that sense of accomplishment when you finally beat that stage or beat that level. So that's something we do value in this game, and that's why we set the difficulty at where it is. However, the development staff really focused on how to motivate the player once they've failed, whether on a boss or stage. So, maybe you die once, and then we want the player to think 'Maybe if I did this again, I could do it better next time around.' So that's where we put the most effort and focus in development, and one of the ways that we motivate the player to [immediately] retry a stage is the buddy system."One other player can join you and your NPC partner as well, though Code Vein is an entirely supportive experience. There are no PvP aspects "at this time," Iizuka said.Code Vein's buddy system certainly makes things easier, but never to the point where the game felt actually easy. The game's opening area is comprised of large open rooms connected by winding hallways and staircases, most of which have blind corners. So it was nice to have someone walk with you who points out hidden items you missed, warns of potential ambushes, and can take some of the heat off you when you need to heal. Being able to sacrifice your own health for each other is also a fun risk vs. reward mechanic, especially when you both can choose to lose almost all your health to bring the other one back to life. It's easier to explore and try out new weapons knowing that one of you dying doesn't necessarily mean the end and getting kicked back to the last checkpoint. Through the buddy system, death changes from a punishment into a learning experience.In terms of a new release date, Code Vein's fate is still a bit up in the air. However, the game remains scheduled for this year. "We are focusing on development for PS4, Steam, and Xbox One," Iizuka said. "But as far as the possibility of porting to Switch or [the Epic Games Store], there might be a possibility down the line. We can't really say for sure at this point."Info from Gamespot.com

Ubisoft appears to be preparing for a big Ghost Recon reveal, with a world premiere event being streamed on Thursday, May 9. If you want to see what's next, you can watch it all go down right here.The event teaser was light on details, but it doesn't appear to be tied to Ghost Recon Wildlands. That game launched in 2017, and it has been supported with a steady stream of downloadable content and live events ever since. In fact, Wildlands just received another dose of content last week. That piece of content centered on Major Cole D. Walker, a character played by Punisher actor Jonathan Bernthal. According to a retail leak, he'll be a major part of the sequel, purportedly called Breakpoint.The timing of this event is conspicuously close to E3, where Ubisoft has a press conference scheduled for Monday, June 10. Scheduling a reveal event now could either set the stage for a more in-depth look at E3, or just give the company more time to focus on other parts of its lineup.Wildlands received a mixed reception at launch but has fostered a devoted following through continued support. Ubisoft has shifted toward long-term support for many of its games, including multiplayer titles like Rainbow Six Siege and For Honor along with single-player games like Assassin's Creed Odyssey."As only the second open world game in the Clancyverse, Ghost Recon: Wildlands is a middlingly safe tactical shooter and a slightly wasted opportunity given the ambitious scope of its seemingly boundless map," Miguel Concepcion wrote in GameSpot's review. "While its main strength is its mission diversity, it doesn’t take long to lose the motivation after reaching El Sueno's doorstep. Even with a foursome of highly trained friends, Wildlands eventually reveals its diminishing returns. The feeling of positive immediacy and dopamine hits begin to wane sooner than you expected from a game with such a large and diverse world."Ghost Recon World Premiere Start Times11:30 AM PT2:30 PM ET7:30 PM BST4:30 AM (Friday May 10) AETInfo from Gamespot.com

Sony has announced another State of Play livestream event this week, with a few announcements planned. The brief presentation will only last about 10 minutes, and that time will give more details on the PS4 remake of MediEvil and an unannounced new game. You can watch it right here as it happens.This is the second State of Play, and Sony's approach to these announcement streams has been very similar to Nintendo Direct presentations. The first State of Play in March was a good deal longer, and included announcements or new glimpses of eight games. That included several PSVR reveals, including the announcement of Iron Man VR and No Man Sky's upcoming VR update.Sony State of Play Stream Start Times3 PM PT6 PM ET11 PM BST8 AM (Friday, May 10) AESTIn giving word about this presentation, Sony also took a moment to announce something that won't be shown. It won't house any new information about the next PlayStation--presumably to be named the PlayStation 5. These individual State of Play streams may be where we hear most of Sony's announcements this year, as the company has dropped out of E3. SIE Worldwide Studios head Shawn Layden explained that the company feels the event hasn't necessarily kept up with the changing needs of the industry.Though it won't be at E3, though, it has already started sharing its plans for the next generation, making it the first company to the starting gate. Those plans include backwards compatibility with PS4 games and a re-commitment to support PSVR. Read up on everything we know about PS5.Info from Gamespot.com

The Xbox One has been around since 2013, which is, scarily, six years ago. With console cycles typically lasting between five and seven years, that means we should be due a new Xbox pretty soon. However, there's the complicating factor that this generation included mid-cycle upgrades, the PS4 Pro and the Xbox One X.Regardless, we know Microsoft is working on the next Xbox console, and there've been a fair few reports surrounding what to expect. Without further ado, let's dig into everything we know about the next Xbox.Table of Contents [hide]What is the new Xbox?When is the new Xbox's release date likely to be?What about E3 2019?Do we know the new Xbox console specs and price?What is the new Xbox?Microsoft might not have unveiled its new Xbox just yet, but it is definitely working on it. The company confirmed as such during E3 last year. In fact, it could even be multiple consoles on the way. Xbox boss Phil Spencer said in June 2018 that Microsoft is "deep into architecting the next Xbox consoles where we will once again deliver on our commitment to set the benchmark for console gaming."Of course, the pluralizing of 'console' could mean Spencer was referring in part to the Xbox One S All-Digital Edition, which was announced just recently. However, the latter half of his quote--about setting the benchmark for console gaming--surely refers to a new generation, where it sounds as if Microsoft wants to come out swinging with the most powerful console available, just as it did with the Xbox One X.Reports from Thurrott suggest the new Xbox consoles are being developed under the umbrella codename Scarlett. Two consoles are in the works, say the reports: one is a high-power machine codenamed Anaconda that will be approximately the same price as the PS5, while the other is a budget-orientated machine known as Lockhart. The latter is potentially a streaming-centric device that does not boast much processing power itself; rather, it will ostensibly utilize Microsoft's nascent xCloud technology to play games via the cloud.When is the new Xbox's release date likely to be?Microsoft hasn't spoken about its timeline for the new Xbox consoles' release date(s). However, the consoles are not expected to launch until Fall 2020. For comparison's sake, we don't precisely know when the PS5 will launch either, but in May 2018 the then-head of PlayStation, John Kodera, said that the PS5 was "three years" away. However, plans change, and it's also possible Kodera was merely trying to keep a lid on the rumors that were flying around at the time which were saying the PS5 would be released as soon as 2019.What about E3 2019?Of course, E3 2019 is just around the corner, so can we expect to hear more about the new Xbox consoles at the convention? The answer, according to a report from Jeux Video, is yes. The site states Microsoft plans to reveal its new Xbox consoles during its E3 2019 press conference. Of course, this is all conjecture for now, but Xbox boss Phil Spencer has stated the company intends to be "as big at E3" as it's ever been.Do we know the new Xbox console specs and price?Unlike Sony, Microsoft has so far kept quiet about the internal specifications of its new consoles. However, all the reports point to both Anaconda and Lockhart ditching hard drives in favor of the quicker solid state storage option--a move the PS5 is also making. Of course, if those reports are proven accurate and Lockhart is essentially a streaming box, it's likely the console will eschew a disc drive and state-of-the-art specs, relying instead on Microsoft's xCloud streaming service for its playing power. Jeux Video has reported the following specs for the two Scarlett consoles: Xbox LockhartXbox AnacondaCPUCustom eight coreCustom eight coreGPUCustom NAVI 4+ teraflopsCustom NAVI 12+ teraflopsRAM12 GB, GDDR616 GB, GDDR6Storage1 TB SSD, 1 + GB / s1 TB SSD, 1 + GB / sThe site also reports the Anaconda price will be around $500, which is the same price the Xbox One X launched with in 2017. Unverified rumors from Reddit place Lockhart, meanwhile, at around $250, which would put it at the same price point as the newly-launched Xbox One S All-Digital Edition, which also forgoes a disc drive. These are yet to be substantiated by any reputable source, however.Info from Gamespot.com

Fortnite Season 8 is just about over, which means developer Epic Game will soon begin the transition to Season 9. If you've been here for previous seasonal shifts, you'll know that it's an exciting time. Not only does a new season usher in changes to the island map where the action takes place, but there's a fresh Battle Pass that comes replete with new cosmetic items and skins (some of which we've already gotten a glimpse at) to work toward unlocking.Below you'll find a comprehensive guide on what we know about Fortnite Season 9 thus far. When the new season becomes available, we'll have plenty of new articles on what's new, galleries where you'll be able to see every new item Epic has added to the Battle Pass, and guides for the first batch of Season 9's weekly challenges, so make sure to check back regularly for updates.When Does Fortnite Season 9 Start?The Future is Unknown. 5.9.2019 #FortniteSeason9 pic.twitter.com/OugJ6Y54G9 — Fortnite (@FortniteGame) May 6, 2019Epic Games posted a teaser for Fortnite Season 9 on Twitter and confirmed that it will begin on PS4, Xbox One, PC, Switch, and mobile on Thursday, May 9. We also know have an exact time for when downtime begins. We don't know how long the process will take, but you can expect the game to come back online with new content within a few hours:Season 9 Downtime:1 AM PT4 AM ET9 AM BST6 PM AETSeason 9 Teasers And SkinsThe first teaser tweet reads, "The Future is Unknown," indicating that the theme for Season 9 may be futuristic. The accompanying image of what looks like a demonic android ninja skin certainly lends weight to this idea.Since the initial Twitter tease, Epic has released more teaser images. The second, showed that these teasers seem to be forming a word. The first teaser had the letter "N" in it, while the second had an "E." This time around, however, the accompanying text reads, "The future is bright." There's also a little peek at another new skin. You can take a look at the second teaser tweet below.The Future is Bright.5.9.2019 #FortniteSeason9 pic.twitter.com/Nvm7TiMq2I — Fortnite (@FortniteGame) May 7, 2019On May 8, the third teaser arrived. "The future is Tilted," reads the message. Again, there's an up-close shot of a new character skin. Thus far, the teasers seem to be spelling "NEO," though it's unclear if that's the clue in its entirety or whether there's more to come. Epic could be spelling out "NEON," which would make sense given the vivid colours used in the teaser images. Either way, we'll find out soon enough.The Future is Tilted.5.9.2019 #FortniteSeason9 pic.twitter.com/vJXgh30FdQ — Fortnite (@FortniteGame) May 8, 2019What's Changing In Fortnite?One of the major changes happening for Fortnite Season 9 has actually already happened. Recently an in-game event called "The Unvaulting." During this, players gathered around Loot Lake and then jumped into the mysterious vault at its center. While in there, they freed the Tommy Gun and made it available in the game. However, when players were returned to the island, the volcano that appeared for Season 8 erupted, spewing lava and firing rocks across the island. As part of this, Tilted Towers was destroyed, and this is interesting because the third teaser tweet Epic posted says, "The future is Tilted."Sadly, The Unvaulting event had some issues and some players that were in-game hoping to see it were instead left out. In response, Epic Games has offered players the chance to rewatch it. Additionally, those that were affected by the bug are being gifted the Arcana Glider. Anyone that already purchased the Arcana Glider using V-Bucks will be refunded the 1200 V-Bucks they spent on it, although Epic has noted it's encountered some issues with this process that it's still ironing out.Info from Gamespot.com

Thomas Was Alone and Volume developer Mike Bithell has announced his studio Bithell Games' next game, and it's a "fast-paced, action-oriented" strategy game based on the John Wick movie series. John Wick Hex is coming to unspecified consoles as well as PC; it'll be exclusive to the Epic Games Store on PC and Mac at launch.John Wick Hex is described as "fight-choreographed chess brought to life as a video game." The game, which was developed in cooperation with the minds behind the film series, aims to "captur[e] the series' signature gun-fu style while expanding its story universe."Here is more from the game's official description: "Players must choose every action and attack they make, while considering their immediate cost and consequences. Every move in John Wick Hex feels like a scene from the movies, and every fight contributes to your progress on the job and requires precise strategic thinking."Hex features an original story separate from the film series. As players progress they will unlock more weapons, as well as new suits for John Wick and more locations to explore. Regarding the gunplay, a press release mentions that players will need to strategically consider the weapon they use for the specific battle in front of them. Not only that, "ammo is finite and realistically simulated, so time your reloads and make the most of weapons you scavenge on the job," the developers say.Regarding the art style, Hex aims to offer a "unique graphic noir art design." The game also features the voices of John Wick actors Ian McShane and Lance Reddick; more cast members will be announced later. It's unclear if Keanu Reeves, who plays Wick in the movies, will be involved.Check out the Hex announcement trailer embedded above to see the first gameplay and more. No release date was announced.The announcement of Hex comes just days before the third John Wick movie, John Wick: Parabellum, comes to theatres on May 15. This is not the first John Wick game, as a VR game--John Wick Chronicles--was released last year. It also doesn't mark the only expansion of the universe, as we know a John Wick TV series is in the works, with Reeves onboard as executive producer. Info from Gamespot.com

US Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) announced he is introducing a bill that would potentially bar the sale of loot boxes in certain video games. If enacted, Hawley's bill, called The Protecting Children from Abusive Games Act, would ban loot boxes and "pay-to-win" microtransactions in titles targeted at or popular among minors, likening the business model to addiction."Social media and video games prey on user addiction, siphoning our kids' attention from the real world and extracting profits from fostering compulsive habits," Senator Hawley said in a statement. "No matter this business model's advantages to the tech industry, one thing is clear: there is no excuse for exploiting children through such practices. When a game is designed for kids, game developers shouldn't be allowed to monetize addiction. Game developers who knowingly exploit children should face legal consequences."Hawley cites the popular mobile title Candy Crush Saga as an example, as it allows players to purchase a $150 "Luscious Bundle" to make the game easier, though it is certainly far from the only title to offer these kinds of spending options. A large number of mobile games are designed to encourage microtransactions, and many of today's most popular PC and console games, including PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, Rocket League, and Overwatch, give players the option to purchase loot boxes that contain a randomized assortment of cosmetic items.Hawley's bill will first need to pass the Senate and then the House of Representatives before potentially becoming a law, but this isn't the first time US lawmakers have taken aim at the practice. Last February, Hawaii state representative Chris Lee put forward a bill seeking to limit the sale of video games with "gambling-like mechanisms" to people under the age of 21. Other countries have also undertaken investigations into whether or not loot boxes constituted gambling.Follow Hawley's announcement, the Entertainment Software Association released a statement in response to the proposed legislation. "Numerous countries, including Ireland, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom, determined that loot boxes do not constitute gambling. We look forward to sharing with the senator the tools and information the industry already provides that keeps the control of in-game spending in parents' hands. Parents already have the ability to limit or prohibit in-game purchases with easy to use parental controls."Loot boxes have been a point of controversy in the industry for many years. 2017's Star Wars Battlefront II, for instance, garnered a lot of criticism and backlash for the way it initially incorporated microtransactions, effectively tying them to your progression. In response, publisher EA removed all loot boxes from the game just prior to launch, but that didn't help stem the push for anti-loot box legislation.Info from Gamespot.com

The Souls-like Code Vein will have a free network test. If you sign-up, you'll be able to try out the game prior to its launch. Bandai Namco hasn't yet announced when exactly the test will occur, but it will probably occur before the end of May.Code Vein is releasing on Xbox One, PS4, and PC, but the network test for the game is only going live on consoles. As it's a network test, the multiplayer features will be live, allowing you to play with a friend. The test only covers Chapter 1 of the game, which is Code Vein's character creator, tutorial, and first area. Chapter 1 ends with a boss fight, the reveal of Code Vein's first major NPC buddy, and the introduction of the game's hub area.If you want to know exactly what Chapter 1 entails, we played through it at a preview event. Our battles through the game's opening area and first boss can be seen in the video embedded above. A Souls-like game, Code Vein takes inspiration--both mechanically and thematically--from both Dark Souls and Bloodborne. However, the game does differentiate itself with its Blood Codes. These encourage you to regularly respec your character's stats and adapt your playstyle on the fly. Unfortunately, the game seems predisposed towards melee-focused builds. That said, you can specialize your character in the use of blood magic or rifles.In Code Vein, you can equip one of eight different Blood Codes to boost your stats in different ways. Each Blood Code also allows you to equip up to eight different Gifts as well, most of which allow you to pull off a supernatural, vampiric-like ability. Specific Gifts and weapons can only be equipped with certain Blood Codes, creating many unique playstyles. The Fighter Blood Code specializes in slow but powerful melee combat, for example, while Prometheus transforms you into a fast rogue-like character who utilizes dodges and parries. Not all Blood Codes are tied to combat either. The Mercury Blood Code, for instance, is ideal for exploring the world, as it gives you balanced stats for journeying through any type of environment and extra stamina so you can quickly run everywhere.After delaying Code Vein, Bandai Namco did not reveal a new release date for the game. Currently, Code Vein is scheduled to launch sometime in 2019.Info from Gamespot.com

At long last, we have finally gotten a look at HBO's upcoming adaptation of the Watchmen comics. Though the series won't debut until this fall, the first trailer has arrived for Watchmen, giving a peek into the world the series will be set in.While the trailer is brief, it sets up a story that seems to be set after the events of the Watchmen graphic novel. Based on what little we see, a group clearly inspired by masked vigilante Rorschach are preparing to take up arms. "We are no one, we are everyone," the leader of the masked clan says. "And we are invisible."It could certainly be the way the trailer is cut together, but it seems like this group the vigilantes are coming up against are the police. "We convinced ourselves they were gone," a senior officer played by Don Johnson tells his fellow cops, in reference to the vigilantes. "But they were just hibernating."What remains to be seen is how the story will play out. It's possible HBO's take on Watchmen will largely tell the tale of vigilantes vs. police. However, the trailer also sees the character played by Regina King suiting up in a vigilante costume or her own, the centerpiece of which is a police badge.The teaser also gives us the first look at Jeremy Irons as an older version of Ozymandias, the villainous figure central to the graphic novel. Additionally, yet another masked character is seen, though not identified.Sadly, the official series description, released in conjunction with the trailer, doesn't give any more hints as to what the series is about. It reads, "Set in an alternate history where 'superheroes' are treated as outlaws, this drama series from executive producer Damon Lindelof embraces the nostalgia of the original groundbreaking graphic novel of the same name while attempting to break new ground of its own."So you're just going to have to wait for plot details. At the very least, though, we know who will appear in Watchmen. In addition to King, Johnson, and Irons, the series stars, Jean Smart, Tim Blake Nelson, Louis Gossett Jr., Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Hong Chau, Andrew Howard, Tom Mison, Frances Fisher, Jacob Ming-Trent, Sara Vickers, Dylan Schombing, and James Wolk.Watchmen premieres in the fall on HBO.Info from Gamespot.com

An Elder Scrolls tabletop RPG scenario has been pulled following accusations of plagiarism. The "Elsweyr" adventure, released as a promotion for The Elder Scrolls Online's upcoming expansion of the same name, shared striking similarities with a Dungeons & Dragons adventure titled "The Black Road." That adventure was published in 2016, written by Paige Leitman and Ben Heisler.Ars Technica reports that Bethesda posted the adventure citing work from Bethesda Netherlands. It was quickly criticized by the community, and even gained the attention of Leitman herself. She posted a Facebook thread (which has since been pulled) highlighting the similarities between the texts. Bethesda pulled the scenario in light of the accusations."We have pulled a previously shared ESO tabletop RPG adventure while we investigate the source," a Bethesda rep told GameSpot. "Thank you to those who reached out with concerns."The two scenarios are changed slightly with synonyms or flavor changes, but are otherwise almost identical. For example, take this passage from D&D's The Black Road:"There's nothing like the desert to make people feel small and insignificant. In every direction, huge dunes roll across the landscape, and an even bigger sky looms above. The oasis of Vuerthyl is a motley collection of sun-bleached tents in the vast Anauroch desert."Then compare it to the corresponding paragraph from Elseweyr:"Nothing beats the desert to make people feel small and unimportant. In every direction enormous dunes roll across the landscape, and an even larger empty air skies above it. The oasis on the border between Cyrodiil and Elsweyr is a colorful collection of sun-drenched tents in the vast desert of Elsweyr."Bethesda has faced similar criticism before. In 2016, a Fallout New Vegas modder claimed Bethesda had lifted their content for a scenario in Fallout 4's Far Harbor DLC. The tabletop RPG scenario is to promote the Elseweyr expansion, which launches on June 4. That will kick off the Season of the Dragon, with four DLCs launching throughout 2019. True to its name, the reveal trailer showed dragons once again occupying the world of Tamriel.Info from Gamespot.com

J. R. R. Tolkien is one of the most important authors of the 20th century, and his overwhelming influence on the fantasy genre is still felt today across books, movies, TV, video games, and beyond. Capturing the author's early years in the biopic Tolkien, which follows him from childhood through his time at the University of Oxford and into World War I, was no easy task for director Dome Karukoski.There are plenty of challenges inherent in attempting to portray a person's real life in a way that's narratively compelling as well as true to who they really were. Tolkien's life presented even more difficulties beyond the standard ones, but Karukoski told GameSpot he worked hard to capture the "emotional truth" of who Tolkien was."There has been this one rule that I have learned, which is: Always uphold emotional truths," the director, who's worked on several other biopics in the past, said. "I know a lot of people can be very nitpicky about factual events and factual years, but if you lean too much on factual years or factual events, and the emotional truth does not come out of the characters, then it is not emotional--it's usually a worse film."Karukoski said he always starts with the facts, but is willing to "dramatize" events whenever it makes the story better. For example, in the movie, Tolkien (Nicholas Hoult) marries his wife Edith Bratt (Lily Collins) after returning from the war, while in real life they married before he shipped off. "I think that the emotion is stronger in this version, but it is still the same emotion," Karukoski explained.Creative liberties like that may have something to do with the Tolkien estate's recent, very public disavowment of the film. But the director has remained firm in his insistence that not working with the author's estate was a creative blessing that allowed him to take more liberties, in turn making Tolkien a better movie."It is really difficult for people who do not write films to understand how the structure and the form work," the director said. "Everything has to be done so it is the best possible film emotionally, so that people can enjoy and love the film, I hope. And it is done with respect toward [Tolkien], and emotionally, I want to be very true to him."Karukoski said the research into Tolkien's life was expansive, from studying the author's letters and illustrations to reading existing biographies and meeting with experts. Through that research, the director said he and the movie's writers, David Gleeson and Stephen Beresford, began to picture Tolkien as two distinct characters--one before The Hobbit's publication, and one after. That led to the decision to focus entirely on the former, since according to Karukoski, "Those times, as you saw, were the most surprising and cinematic.""The writers and I felt like that is the dividing moment of his life," Karukoski said. "It is such a different life post-publishing The Hobbit, when he actually gets published and he becomes more like an author than the younger Tolkien."The director identified reflections between Tolkien's early life and his own early life, when he first discovered The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings books. "When I read about his younger times, maybe he is about the same age [as I was], he is also the outsider, he is also growing up without a father, he is also alone, and he also wants to find friends and communities and a place of belonging," Karukoski said. "There was a feeling of destiny, of how instrumental he has been to me, and what is the era that should be told in his life."That all makes sense, but the decision to focus on Tolkien's life before The Hobbit also created a unique problem: The movie includes very few explicit references to Lord of the Rings, which may leave some viewers scratching their heads, given the subject matter. One way Karukoski got around that is by crafting "visions" that he imagined Tolkien might have had at pivotal moments in his life.Karukoski described how Tolkien's journey from orphan to student to soldier might have changed these visions--things that may have sparked ideas or provided inspiration later, like a hallucination of evil creatures roaming a World War I battlefield. The director imagined these visions gradually transforming from light to dark throughout the course of Tolkien's life. If the author first envisioned great heroes, how would those ideas become twisted by the horrors of war?"When his mind gets corrupted [by] all the bloodshed during war, and that vision becomes like a dark fallen knight, then that becomes an internal battle between good and evil within him," Karukoski said. "Then I can imagine that he later uses that idea, you know? If a person gets corrupted, does that not become a Ringwraith--kind of a corrupted fallen king?"The fantastical and terrifying visions Tolkien sees in the film bring various elements of Lord of the Rings to mind without explicitly referencing them. It's a clever way of imagining how iconic characters and creatures may have formed over time in the author's imagination."A Nazgûl is not a Nazgûl yet [when Tolkien imagines it on the battlefield]," the director explained. "It is an image, a vision of something, he does not yet know what--but his mind is building."Clearly Tolkien's writers and directors took plenty of creative liberties with the author's story. If you want to know whether it paid off, check out our reviews round-up to find out what critics are saying.Tolkien hits theaters May 10. Info from Gamespot.com

It's official. Batwoman is coming to The CW with a new standalone series set in the Arrow-verse. The series, which stars Ruby Rose as Kane Kate, who masquerades as the titular masked vigilante. doesn't have a premiere date yet. However, the first teaser has arrived.It doesn't give away much beyond a look at the character standing on top of a building in Gotham City--and a quick shot of the bat signal--but Arrow-verse fans have already met this take on Batwoman. Rose appeared in the Elseworlds crossover event as Batwoman, which introduced not only the characters but The CW's version of Gotham City.It's unclear how much of the Gotham we saw in Elseworlds will play out on the Batwoman, but among the Easter eggs hidden in the crossover were references to Riddler, Penguin, Clayface, Poison Ivy, Scarecrow, Bane, and Mr. Freeze. What we know for sure is that Batwoman's primary villain, Alice, will be played on the show by Rachel Skarsten (Birds of Prey, Imposters).Joining Rose and Skarsten in Batwoman are Meagan Tandy (Teen Wolf), Camrus Johnson (Luke Cage), and Nicole Kang (You). Additionally, Dougray Scott will appear in the series as Jacob Kane, Kate's father and leader of a private security firm.Batwoman will premiere either this fall or spring 2020 on The CW. Regardless of when the show debuts, though, chances are you'll see Rose suit up as Batwoman once again in the upcoming Arrow-verse "Crisis on Infinite Earths" crossover event.Info from Gamespot.com

Overwatch fans rejoice! We partnered with Fun.com to give away an incredible prize package that comes with a trio of Funko figures including D.Va & Meka, Mercy, Widowmaker, and a mini faux leather backpack by Loungefly.To enter the giveaway you have to be following @GameSpot and @Fun.com on Instagram but you also have to complete at least one of the following actions:Like the Instagram post about the giveaway.Post on your Instagram account using the hashtag #GameSpotGiveaway (one post per participant).⁣Tag up to five friends in separate comments. This is important because if you don’t post in separate comments, it will only count as one entry.Sharing a post on your Instagram account using the hashtag #GameSpotGiveaway. View this post on Instagram🔥GIVEAWAY🔥 You won’t want ⁣to miss your chance to win* this Overwatch prize bundle! Three lucky followers will take home a mini faux leather backpack, and a trio of Funko figures including D.VA & Mekka, Mercy , and Widowmaker provided by @fundotcom_. Good luck!â € ------⁣⠀ You must be following @GameSpot and @fundotcom_ to enter and complete at least one of the actions below:⁣⠀ 1. Like this post⁣⠀ 2. Post on Instagram using the hashtag #GameSpotGiveaway (1 post per participant)⁣⠀ 3. Tag your friends in SEPARATE comments below using #GameSpotGiveaway (Max 5 friends)⁣⠀ ------⁣⠀ *Keep in mind that every action gets you an entry and you can get up to seven (7) total entries to increase your chances of winning. No purchase necessary. This giveaway ends on Friday, May 10th. Three (3) winners chosen. USA, Canada, and Puerto Rico only, void where prohibited. Read the rules by hitting the link in our bio or here --> â € ------⁣⠀ #GameSpotGiveaway #GameSpot #Giveaway #Giveaways #Sweepstakes #VideoGames #free #swag #Funko #gaming #Overwatch #mercy #DVA #meka #Funko #winA post shared by GameSpot (@gamespot) on May 8, 2019 at 12:36pm PDT Remember that our giveaways are open to the US, Puerto Rico or Canada and don't forget to check the official rules.Good luck!Info from Gamespot.com