Apex Legends, the new battle royale game from Titanfall developer Respawn, is doing very well less than a month after release, but it hasn't been entirely smooth sailing for the free-to-play title. One recurring complaint from fans is about the game's hitboxes. Specifically, people are upset that the hitboxes--that is, the invisible area on a character that registers shots--appear to vary by character.A Respawn community manager said on Reddit (via PC Gamer) that the studio is "definitely aware of" these concerns. "We were actually discussing it today. I can't say anything more for now but we hear you guys."A YouTube video from SookieSpy shows that Apex Legends' hitboxes are generally very good; in some cases, you're able to shoot between legs and through Bloodhound's feathers without registering a hit. However, the robot Legend, Pathfinder, registers hits that appear to be outside of what would be reasonably considered the hitbox. In essence, he's much easier to hit, which is seemingly a problem that Respawn may look to address in a future update.In other news, Apex Legends recently released a brand-new gun called Havoc. Unlike other weapons, Havoc has multiple hop-up attachments and the ability to function as an automatic rifle or a sniper.Apex Legends reached 25 million players after its first week, hitting more than 2 million peak concurrent players. It's set in the Titanfall universe, but it doesn't feature the franchise's trademark giant mechs or wall-running mechanics. Still, many people are enjoying the game, including here at GameSpot.In GameSpot's Apex Legends review, critic Phil Hornshaw awarded the game 9/10. "Apex Legends is a mix of smart shooter ideas that makes for a competitive, team-based game that gets at all the best parts of battle royale while addressing a lot of the weaknesses," he said. "Respawn's intense focus on team play makes Apex more than just a worthy addition to the genre; it's an indicator of where battle royale should go in the future." Info from Gamespot.com

After Bungie split off of Microsoft, the Halo series was at something of a crossroads. Veteran Microsoft developer Bonnie Ross recalls in a fascinating new interview that at this time, some at Microsoft questioned whether or not the series would live on."When we spun Bungie out, the future of Halo was uncertain," Ross said in an interview with IGN. "We weren't actually sure [if] Halo 3 was going to be the last game."As fans may recall, Halo 3's story ended in ambiguous fashion. Master Chief could have been dead. He wasn't of course, and his story would go on to be continued in Halo 4 and Halo 5. Those games were developed by 343 Industries, Microsoft's internal Halo development studio that Ross founded.She recalled pitching the idea for an internal Halo development studio, and the reaction wasn't entirely positive. Ross said she remembers then-Xbox boss Shane Kim advising against it. He warned her that people at Microsoft might try to convince her to do things with the franchise that aren't right for it. Another former Xbox boss, Robbie Bach, also said it might not be a smart move to continue the Halo series with Bungie out of the picture, Ross said."Robbie Bach and Shane Kim were like, 'Hey, Halo's great, Bungie doesn't want to do it anymore.' Robbie and Shane were not people who were thinking just for the money but it was basically like, 'Hey, I think it's maybe good for another game or two and [then] let's just cut our losses and tell another story.'"So the idea became to potentially tell a four-game series of Master Chief-focused Halo games and then "wrap it up," Ross said. With that in mind, Microsoft considered potentially bringing on an outside studio to make potentially "one or two other [Halo] games" after Halo: Reach and Halo 3: ODST. Those titles, which were developed by Bungie and published by Microsoft after the split, do not feature Master Chief as the main character. But the new titles presumably would.The leading name to take on the job was Gearbox, the studio behind Borderlands. The studio has a history with Halo, as it developed the PC edition of Halo: Combat Evolved. However, Ross said she thought it was "blasphemy" to have an outside studio make a Halo game.As for why Ross believed in Halo as a franchise so much, she pointed out that the entirety of Halo 1-3's story takes place in only three months of time, fictionally, so there are many more stories to be told. Indeed, the story of Halo 4 and Halo 5: Guardians went in new directions. The next Halo game, Halo Infinite, puts more of an emphasis on Chief than Halo 5, but nothing else is known about the story. A recent report from Brad Sams claims Halo Infinite will be a launch title for a new Xbox releasing in 2020.Ross was recently inducted into the AIAS Hall of Fame. The first woman in the AIAS Hall of Fame, Ross joins other industry legends like Bethesda's Todd Howard, along with Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto, Metal Gear designer Hideo Kojima, and Valve founder Gabe Newell.Info from Gamespot.com

Launching upward off a jungle floor and bursting through a thick canopy of trees, bobbing and weaving your way under a waterfall as you take in the lush landscape below you, is one of the highlights of Anthem. Flight, in these moments, is freeing, serene and exhilarating all at once. But you will eventually have to come back down to earth. When you don't have a means to cool down in the air, you have to interrupt your flight to cool off on the ground--or else your suit will overheat and send you careening downward much more violently. This is what Anthem is like as a whole: a game where promising moments are bookended by frustration, where good ideas are undone before they can be fully realized.It can take a while to warm up to Anthem in the first place. In its intro mission, you are a rookie Freelancer--a hero type who battles threats to humanity in mechanized combat suits called javelins. But that brief mission ends in failure, and after a two-year time skip, you're now an experienced Freelancer. As a result, everyone talks to you as if you know everything about the world, even though much of the game's space-fantasy jargon is explained only in codex entries. "Shapers," "Arcanists," to "silence" this or that "relic"--all the dialogue is structured as if you already know what all these things are, so there's not even an element of mystery to it. It's just hard to follow.The story and overall worldbuilding do a great disservice to the characters, which have elements of what you might think of as BioWare's pedigree. The main cast is well-acted and genuine, with complicated emotions and motivations that might have been interesting had they been given time to grow. Two characters are mad at you for the events of the tutorial, even though it's never quite clear why; that bad blood spills over into your relationship with your current partner-in-Freelancing, Owen, and there's enough believable awkwardness there to make you almost feel bad for him. But because the narrative is so poorly set up, the drama feels unearned, the "emotional" reveals robbed of their impact, and any connection you might have had to the characters just out of reach.Exacerbating all of this is Anthem's loot game core, which is simple on paper. After every mission, you return to your base of operations, Fort Tarsis, to talk to people, get new missions, and tinker with your javelins using the loot you picked up from the previous mission. Missions themselves almost universally involve some quick narrative setup followed by flying, completing routine tasks, and plenty of combat (with more brief plot-related stuff thrown in via radio chatter).But this general structure doesn't work well in practice. You're told up front that playing Anthem with others is the best way to play and that you'll get better rewards in a group, but this means asking your friends to be quiet every few minutes so you can hear a bit of dialogue or to wait patiently while you tweak your loadout. Playing solo is better if you want to take your time and talk to different characters, but doing so can make missions more difficult or tedious. Matchmaking with random people is the best option, since you'll have people with you for grindy parts but will leave you alone for the story--but even then, it's easy to lose track of what's going on, especially if someone in your team is ahead of you and triggering dialogue early.And no matter what, you'll have to return to Fort Tarsis after each expedition, which makes for choppy pacing in both the story and the gameplay. There's no way to change your loadout on the go and no way to just continue on to another mission right away, and there are currently a number of loading screens in between leaving and returning to Fort Tarsis. It's hard to really get into any kind of flow.When I finally took the time to talk to NPCs in between missions, I found endearing characters and brief but interesting bits of story spread between them. There's one girl who just loves animals no matter how dangerous, and she'll happily tell you all about them; there's the oldest man in Fort Tarsis, who admits to doing some shady things to earn that title; there's an old woman whose daughter has been missing for years and might just need some kindness. Though it took some patience to do it, I was glad I stopped to listen to them.Throughout all of this, combat is the main thing keeping Anthem afloat. There are four types of javelins--Ranger, Storm, Interceptor, and Colossus--that are essentially a soldier, mage, assassin, and tank, respectively. Each plays differently, with a different pool of abilities, and you aren't locked into the one you start with; you unlock them as you level up. That, combined with a handful of new weapons and abilities after each mission, means that you're almost always experimenting with new loadouts and playstyles.I initially picked the Ranger, thinking it would be a good all-around class while I was learning the basics. But the guns alone aren't enough to make Anthem combat's exciting; I found a lot of the weapons, especially shotguns, to feel ineffectual. The Ranger's abilities are pretty straightforward, too--you get grenades and missiles and the like--which left me largely unimpressed with combat in the beginning. But then I unlocked the speedy Interceptor, whose gymnastic jumps and swift melee strikes are incredibly satisfying, and I started to get excited about trying new things in each successive mission.The Storm javelin became my favorite, though, because it both has interesting elemental abilities and can hover for minutes, not seconds, at a time before overheating. Its assortment of powers lends itself well to getting combos, which result in a satisfying explosion of sorts and a more chaotic battlefield. But more importantly, it's the only javelin that doesn't require frequent stops on the ground, and as a result it provides the most dynamic combat--you can go from shooting basic enemies in a hallway to floating above the battlefield, raining down lightning to wipe out five at once while scoping out the area for your team.Generally, all of the javelins can easily jet out of sticky situations in a pinch or briefly hover in the air to gain the upper hand, and combining movement with your abilities is consistently a good time. But when fighting titans and certain other bosses, there's a catch; a lot of them use fire attacks that overheat your suit and ground you instantly, robbing the fight of much of what makes combat interesting. You can still use your abilities, but they don't do much in these fights, and they fall flat compared to the often bombastic impact they have on regular enemies. This extends to the final fight, which is especially underwhelming.The endgame thus far is to complete high numbers of the various mission types, which amounts to repeating many individual missions. The draw is better gear, but without compelling high-level fights, you don't have anything to build toward with all that grinding. A post-credits cutscene has the most intriguing plot point in the game and serves as a preview of what might come later on--but right now it's just a promise, rather than a true incentive to keep going.It's worth noting that the early access period saw a number of technical hiccups. Dropped audio, server issues, long loading times, missions not registering as complete--I didn't have a single session without some sort of problem. A day-one patch aims to iron much of this out, but overall, the poor structure and pacing are a more frustrating problem. [Editor's note: We have now tried Anthem on PS4 Pro, Xbox One, and Xbox One X. The Pro and X versions generally run decently, with some technical hiccups and occasional frame rate drops, while we encountered more stuttering and strain on the standard Xbox One.]Anthem has good ideas, but it struggles significantly with the execution. It's a co-op game that works best with no one talking; it buries genuinely interesting character moments and puts its most incomprehensible story bits at the forefront; its combat is exciting until you get to the boss fights and find your wings have been clipped. Even the simple, exhilarating act of flying is frequently interrupted by the limitations of your javelin, and you never quite shake that feeling of disappointment--of knowing, throughout the good parts of Anthem, that you'll inevitably come crashing back down.Info from Gamespot.com

Trials Rising is a sequel to a franchise that has a lot of things figured out. After multiple entries that have helped refine gameplay that was already good to start off with, Rising doesn't veer too far off the track. It still has a wonderfully diverse set of destinations to visit, each with their own over-the-top track design and goofy finish line antics. Each course still encourages you to repeat it nearly obsessively in the pursuit of that next perfect run to show off online. Trials Rising has the same engrossing gameplay the series is known for, but it offers no new surprises.Trials Rising is no more complicated to pick up and play than any of its predecessors. You only need to worry about your throttle, brakes, and the pitch of your motorcycle as you race across Rising's many 2D tracks, set in anything from a Russian missile silo to a tomato festival in the Italian countryside. This simplicity in control is complemented by a deep learning curve, challenging you to understand how Trials' physics work. They're not realistic by any stretch, but they do adhere to a set of rules that you'll need to become comfortable with to beat its most challenging courses.The balance of your motorcycle is the first hurdle. Although you're only given access to three during the lengthy campaign (more can be unlocked using either in-game currency or real money), each of them handles in very different ways. One gives you more thrust from a stationary start but limits your rotational speed in the air, while another has a frame so light that you need to be cautious of applying too much throttle on a straight and having your front wheel fly into the air above you. Trials Rising gives you suggestions on which motorcycles are best for certain courses, and it is fun moving from one extreme to the other in between events and learning to adjust accordingly.Controlling your motorcycle consists of shifting weight either backwards or forwards, determining whether you're going to gently roll over a hill at the end of a steep climb or see your wheels bounce away from the platform before you hurtle towards failure. It doesn't take long for basic maneuvers to start feeling like second nature. Small actions--such as leaning back to embrace a landing or shifting forward to go down a steep ascent--start blending together to create a tangible flow to Rising's earlier courses.These levels are less challenging and more instructive, giving you ample room to experiment with Rising's mechanics while also rewarding you well for less-than-perfect finishes. Later courses start increasing the difficulty significantly. Tracks require careful consideration over throttle control and feature more gruelling skills tests, which punish even the slightest miscalculation. You have a large number of events between these two extremes, though, which makes each new challenge feel like an appropriate test of your skills rather than a jarring spike in difficulty.However, even the most carefully executed runs through a course can become undone by obstacles that rely on seemingly random outcomes instead of skill to overcome. Catapults, exploding platforms, and more add an unpredictable nature to later courses that often feels more frustrating than exciting. A small variation on where you stop on a catapult before it fires you into the air can lead to wildly different outcomes, for example. It's one thing to fail a course and identify where you can get better, but it's another to be having the best run yet only to fail right at the end and not understand how you could've avoided it.Rising has an incredibly useful training school that has new courses unlock as you progress through the campaign. These events teach you new techniques that give you a deeper understanding of how to control your motorcycle while also providing challenging proving grounds to test how much you've learned. These provide some of the toughest challenges Rising has to offer, but without the stress of needing to finish first in a race or worry about how many times you fail.New to Rising are contract objectives from in-game "sponsors," which offer an additional level of challenge and extra rewards. With sponsors, courses you've already participated in can be replayed with some additional objectives. Anything from pulling off flips to limiting the number of faults you can have is on the table, tasking you with reprogramming your muscle memory and coming up with new routines on familiar tracks. Some of the most difficult sponsors will require you to finish first across several events; make a mistake along the way and you might as well start over. These are the least interesting of the bunch by virtue of feeling too unforgiving (even by Trials standards), but they're thankfully not required to unlock new events.Rising's more stunt-focused events are less rewarding. If the rest of Trials Rising only has one toe dipped into a pool of absurdity, these events have the whole leg. You can use the ragdoll physics of your rider to steer balls into a basketball hoop or aim for exploding barrels to try and bounce yourself along a never-ending track. None of these events really test your understanding of Trials' main mechanics and are instead just positioned as quick palate cleansers for in-between events. None of them are precise in the way that other events are, making them less engaging to learn and a slog to play.All events in Rising contribute to an overall player level, which you increase in order to access to events and unlock gear to customize both your rider and their motorcycles. Customization items are obfuscated in crates that randomly spit out three items at a time, with duplicates becoming a frequent occurrence just a few hours in. Frustratingly, these duplicates aren't immediately turned into in-game currency to save you the effort, instead forcing you to dive into multiple menus for each category of gear and sell them individually. The gear itself isn't varied or visually appealing enough to justify this headache, and it was easy to forget about it entirely after just a few minutes of wrestling with it.Trials Rising also features a suite of multiplayer options, ranging from public and private multiplayer matches to more intimate--and hilarious--local multiplayer modes. Online multiplayer is straightforward; you join lobbies with up to seven other racers and compete across three courses, with points awarded based on your finishes. Trials plays better in a local multiplayer setting, and Rising's Party mode lets you organize up to eight courses into a single playlist with custom rules that up to four players can compete in. A new tandem motorcycle makes things even sillier. Two players control a single motorcycle through a course, making smooth course runs nigh impossible as you struggle to maintain control. It's a fun distraction that can be played for brief laughs.Trials Rising isn't a reinvention of the franchise--it's an invitation to lose more hours to new exhilarating, technical, and ridiculous Trials courses.Rising still lets you create brand-new courses from scratch, and race on any that other players have uploaded, but its tools for construction are still ridiculously complicated to grasp. The course editor has no tutorials on how to get up and running and no templates which you can build upon to make editing slightly quicker. The confusing menus, overwhelming taskbar at the bottom of the screen, and unintuitive movement within the editor make trying to create even just a simple track a needlessly difficult chore.Trials Rising maintains the engrossing, challenging, and occasionally slapstick gameplay from past entries in the series, building upon it in small ways with a smartly implemented school to teach fundamental skills and modifiers to make events worth revisiting. But it also doesn't fix issues from the past, either. Its track editor remains uninviting to learn, and the more outrageous stunt events and course obstacles frustratingly lean more into random luck than calculated skill. Trials Rising isn't a reinvention of the franchise--it's an invitation to lose more hours to new exhilarating, technical, and ridiculous Trials courses. Info from Gamespot.com

BioWare has detailed current and upcoming changes for Anthem, its loot driven shooter that officially released on PS4, Xbox One, and PC today. A post on the game's Reddit page opens by stating that the developer is able to make some fixes without the need for a patch, but notes that others will require players to download an update.In the former category, BioWare has already addressed a number of issues that were reported by the community, including a bug that displayed and rewarded the incorrect amount of Coin for some activities, and another that was causing rain to fall more often than intended. There has also been tweaks to the kind of items that chests drop, as well as how the shield performs, among other things.BioWare is also working on some other fixes which, as mentioned above, will require the player to download an update. These include an issue that would result in the final boss in the game's Heart of Rage stronghold not appearing, problems with HDR on PS4 and Xbox One, and game crashes. You can see the full list of live and upcoming changes below.Live ChangesCoin changes for daily/weekly -- We have fixed an issue that displayed and rewarded the incorrect amount of Coin from various activitiesStronghold matchmaking -- We have extended the timer that allows for matchmaking in a stronghold. This should allow groups to fill easier when matchmakingNon-stop rain -- We have fixed an issue that was causing it to rain in game more than intendedFusion proc bonuses on weapons -- Weapons were incorrectly applying infusion proc/bonuses from being equipped when they should only have been applying bonuses from the weapon that was in the active slotChests found in missions changes -- Chests found in missions now have less of a chance to drop higher tiered itemsEmotes not properly saving -- We have fixed the issue that was causing emotes not to save properly when boundShield fix -- We corrected an issue that was allowing players who still have shields active to be one shot by high damaging attacksUpcoming ChangesThe final boss in the Heart of Rage stronghold isn't appearing if the group wipes before engagingHDR is currently disabled on consoles (Xbox One and PS4)Some players are encountering issues that are causing them to crashBioWare has detailed Anthem's day one patch, which is significant and covers everything from loading times and server disconnects to tweaks for Strongholds, challenges, gear, weapons, and more.Anthem became available to play on Friday, February 15 for those with EA Access subscriptions on Xbox One or Origin Access membership on PC. Both versions offered a 10-hour trial, and Origin Access Premier granted unlimited access. The game's general release is today, and if you're diving in, be sure to check out our Anthem combo guide.GameSpot's Anthem review awarded it 6/10. "Anthem has good ideas, but it struggles significantly with the execution," said Kallie Plagge. "It's a co-op game that works best with no one talking; it buries genuinely interesting character moments and puts its most incomprehensible story bits at the forefront; its combat is exciting until you get to the boss fights and find your wings have been clipped. Even the simple, exhilarating act of flying is frequently interrupted by the limitations of your javelin, and you never quite shake that feeling of disappointment--of knowing, throughout the good parts of Anthem, that you'll inevitably come crashing back down."Info from Gamespot.com

Civilization VI told a straightforward story of the consequences of your actions. Fail to keep your people happy and they would put down their hammers and raise pitchforks. Be rude to the other leaders and they would soon refuse to deal with you. Beyond that, however, you could go about building your empire mostly unconcerned with any repercussions to your decisions. Last year's Rise and Fall expansion added some complexity to the tale with the introduction of its Loyalty mechanic. Operating in isolation was no longer possible. Settlements on the fringes of an empire could, if they liked what they saw across the border, decide to rebel. Players who took their citizens' loyalty for granted would find themselves leading no one.This kind of accountability is extended in multiple directions with Gathering Storm, the second major expansion for Civ VI. Through the institution of a World Congress, Gathering Storm lets leaders reward and punish each other for certain actions, allow them to pass sweeping resolutions that affect every civilization, and ultimately secure their diplomatic favor. And with its new World Climate system, Gathering Storm makes you accountable to the world itself by hitting you--sometimes painfully hard--with the calamitous consequences of exploiting the map's rich resources.Your path to victory in Civ VI was predictable once you'd established the foundation of your empire by the Modern Era, but the new World Congress and World Climate systems add enough dynamism to keep you working right up to the new Future Era. Gathering Storm encourages you to “play the map," taking advantage of the surrounding resources, and then adapt the repercussions of your decisions reflected on that map. As an expansion focused on consequences, however, it can take some time for the new stuff to make its presence felt.The World Climate system is the most meaningful change, but it doesn't really kick in until you've started extracting strategic resources like coal and oil. Early on you'll encounter floods, hurricanes, blizzards, and endure the odd drought or volcanic eruption. These weather events pass in a couple of turns, potentially reducing your population, injuring units and pillaging improvements, but they can also fertilize tiles to reward you with greater yields in future.But weather is not climate. Once you start burning coal and oil to fuel both the power plants in your industrial districts and the battleships and tanks that comprise your military force, you start pumping carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. As those emissions rise, tallied by the new World Climate report that tracks the cumulative contributions of each civ and resource, the world will progress through up to seven phases of climate change. Sea levels will rise, at first flooding coastal tiles and eventually leaving many of them completely underwater. Weather events will increase in both frequency and severity, simultaneously desiccating your farmlands through drought and ravaging your cities with tornadoes.The choices you're forced to make here are difficult and meaningful. Resources like coal and oil are powerful and refusing to exploit them will cede an immediate advantage to any rival. Through the Industrial and Modern Eras they fuel the most effective units in your navy and army. Do you really want to rely on defending your homeland with frigates while the enemy has ironclads? Further, consumable fuel resources are the first ways you're able to power your cities. A concept debuting in Gathering Storm, powering a city--say, via a coal power plant--boosts the yields of various districts and buildings. Can you really afford to let your research labs and stock exchanges sit idle while your coal-guzzling neighbor is sprinting ahead in the science race?Later you're able to develop methods of harvesting renewable energy resources such as wind and solar farms, but by the time you're able to deploy them, you may find yourself lagging too far behind a less eco-friendly rival or, worse, suffering the consequences of irreversible damage to the planet. Helping to mitigate such destruction and preserving the natural environment will slow down the effects of climate change. This forces new, perplexing early game decisions. Chopping down that nearby rainforest will give a quick boost to producing a settler, but leaving it untouched may mean future settlers will live to see a world that still has air to breathe. Before Gathering Storm, this wasn't a choice--you chopped for the short-term gain because there were no long-term consequences. Now, every decision is purposeful. Now, every tile in your empire is asking: "Are you sure you want to do that?"The World Congress is slightly less successful at providing new and meaningful choices than the World Climate system. What it does, though, is make you far more aware of what other leaders are up to. Once the congress convenes, from the Medieval Era onwards, you'll find yourself voting on various resolutions every 30 turns. You might be asked to vote on boosting or banning certain types of great people, or whether trade routes to particular civs or city-states should receive bonuses. You don't just get one vote; instead, you can spend a new form of currency called Diplomatic Favor to vote as many times as you can afford. Favors can also be traded with other leaders, just like any resource, meaning diplomatic players will need to give away valuable luxuries or strategic resources in order to fully exert their influence on the World Congress.In theory, these resolutions should enable the diplomatic player to tip the scales in their favor. In practice, though, their effects aren't transformative. You might get an extra trade route here, a slightly slower Great Engineer there, but nothing that feels game-changing. The randomness doesn't help--if you could propose a resolution rather than merely voting on the ones that pop up that would provide a better return on the investment.More compelling are the choices to be made around actually pursuing the new Diplomatic Victory, awarded to the leader who first reaches 10 Diplomatic Victory points. You're still essentially voting your way to the top, but you're also competing with other leaders to send the most aid to another civ recently devastated by floods, for instance, or to generate the most great people points to win the Nobel Prize. Diplomatic Favor is also earned via alliances with other civs and becoming the suzerain of a city-state, so the Diplomatic Victory is genuinely a case of demonstrating you can lead the world.These are the two biggest new features in this add-on, but Gathering Storm also includes countless smaller tweaks that in combination with the above make it an essential purchase for Civ VI fans. There are new World Wonders to build, such as the Great Bath or the University Sankore. There are new Natural Wonders, new military units to fill in the gaps between eras, and nine new leaders, including the series' first-ever dual-nationality leader (Eleanor of Aquitaine can represent either England or France).Thoughtfully, the new leaders are balanced between those that are clearly geared towards Gathering Storm's prominent additions--Kristina of Sweden is all about winning diplomatic favor while the unique abilities of Kupe, the Maori leader, incentivize leaving untouched as much of the natural world as possible--and those who embrace some previously overlooked facet of the game. In the latter camp, Matthias Corvinus heads a Hungarian empire whose military force is best composed of units levied from allied city-states, while in the Inca, lead by Pachacuti, we finally have a civ that wants lots of mountain tiles throughout its lands.Gathering Storm is overall a great expansion, ushering in two significant new systems that work hand in hand to deepen the experience. The embellished diplomatic options extend the range of interactions with other leaders, allowing you to work cooperatively towards common goals or pull the strings to your advantage behind the scenes. While the introduction of climate change delivers new strategic choices whose consequences resonate ever-more-loudly as you advance throughout the eras. It isn't simply more Civ, it's a whole new way to play Civ.Info from Gamespot.com

Spoiler alert: At the end of Far Cry 5, the United States gets nuked. Seventeen years later, the region and residents of Hope County have endured and mostly recovered from the devastation anew. The vegetation is more abundant, society has been reshaped, and there is a hell of a lot more duct tape everywhere. Everything feels new and different--well, except for that fact that there's ruthless, tyrannical oppression taking over everything and it's up to you, and basically only you, to stop it. Some things never change. That's Far Cry: New Dawn--despite a few new novelties and a great mechanical twist, New Dawn feels exactly like what it is: a direct continuation of Far Cry 5.That's not inherently a bad thing. New Dawn features the same kind of forward-thinking approach to open-world exploration and progression as Far Cry 5. While main missions are mapped out for you, the discovery of side activities like enemy outposts, treasure hunts (formerly prepper stashes), and companion recruitment missions mostly comes from your own organic exploration. Earning perk points to improve your abilities is tied to your discovery of hidden caches and diversifying the activities you undertake. New Dawn is a more concise game--the map is smaller than Far Cry 5 and there's less curated content to discover this time around--but the emphasis is still on staying out in the world and soaking up the environment.That sense of freedom has been diminished, however. It's not the fact that you're revisiting Hope County, but rather how New Dawn sets up the pins. In Far Cry 5, you began in the middle of the map and were allowed to explore in any direction you wished; New Dawn starts you off in the bottom corner of the map and basically pushes you in a steady, linear sweep north as you slowly reclaim territory, and asks you to regularly bring resources back to your base in that starting area to bolster it.What's to stop you from just darting ahead? Well, damage numbers. New Dawn introduces RPG elements, like damage numbers, into its design for the first time in the series. The game's guns and enemies fall into four different tiered ranks, and getting ahead requires that you go out into the world to scavenge crafting materials to upgrade your base so you can upgrade your weapons workshop and eventually craft better guns to take down the higher rank enemies impeding your progress. Outfits, armor, and defense numbers don't factor in your growth, just weapons. Guns at rank 1 and 2 will do a minimal amount of damage to well-armored rank 3 and elite rank enemies.Early on, this can be annoying if you try to push the limits of the game in a way you're not meant to. Heading too far into the map and needing to use up hundreds of bullets to take down a rank 3 bear you encounter isn't terrifying as much as it is silly, and eventually, the demands of story missions will stop you from going too far.But if you dial down your Far Cry 5-style expectations of freedom and go with the flow, you run into these awkward predicaments far less often. Your guns feel like they do the damage they're supposed to, and enemies feel like they have an acceptable level of resistance. In fact, once you get access to the top-tier arsenal, things will start to swing wildly in your favor--your guns will feel overpowered to the point where even shooting rank 1 enemies in the foot might be enough to take them out--which feels great when you're getting overwhelmed. Played the right way, the game's RPG-style systems basically feel invisible, and you can enjoy Far Cry's style of weighty gunplay and feel like an incredibly competent one-person army. The feeling of eventually being able to overcome New Dawn's elite enemies is good, but you're left wondering why you needed to be held back by artificial gating at all.It doesn't help that there's no tangible sense of growth with weapons and vehicle crafting; New Dawn's selection of guns and cars isn't dramatically different enough between ranks to make the large distinction in damage output believable. Rank 1 weapons are a varied suite of handguns, rifles, and shotguns, and higher-rank arsenals are basically defined by the increasing amount of duct tape and junk on that same suite, as if that stuff has magical properties that makes the guns perform better. There are lots of guns to choose from, but if you've played Far Cry 5 you'll immediately recognize them, duct tape or no.The one nice exception is the new Saw Launcher, which shoots circular saw blades. Higher tier versions of the weapon actually have noticeably different properties, like the ability to shoot saw blades with ricocheting, homing, and boomerang traits. It's the only weapon which truly feels like it was borne out of the post-apocalypse, improvised from scavenged parts. Aerosol cans, pipes, and spray paint might give the other guns and cars a cool look, but it doesn't change how familiar they feel.The same can be said of the world itself. Far Cry 5's Hope County already felt a bit post-apocalyptic--the rural setting was isolated from the world thanks to antagonist Joseph Seed--so even though there are plenty of visible differences to the region, the impact of those changes isn't massive. There are a few key locations that provoke some amusement in their discovery, but the strength of Far Cry 5's Hope County was its natural environments--the forests, lakes, rivers, and mountains. The conceit that the region was re-vegetated by a super bloom after nuclear devastation means that the vibe in New Dawn is basically identical, despite dramatic increases in upended cars and graffiti. It's a pretty post-apocalypse, but it doesn't have the feeling of desperation you might associate with the theme. Scavenging for materials doesn't feel like a drastic necessity, just a way to get ahead. New Dawn doesn't feel like it takes the theme to enough of an extreme to feel meaningful or different.The solid bones of Far Cry's combat are still here, though, and they're still very good. Taking on outposts (within your rank), whether that be via stealth or aggression, is still enjoyable, and the game encourages you to repeat them at increased difficulties to earn more resources. New Dawn also introduces seven self-contained missions called Expeditions. These are large, diverse maps set outside Hope County, and they feature setpieces like a New Orleans amusement park, an aircraft carrier, and even a Splinter Cell-themed plane crash. Expedition environments are a highlight, but the snatch-and-grab objectives mean that you're never really encouraged to stop and appreciate them--you're more concerned with getting the hell out of there as a non-stop stream of enemies comes after you.The concise nature of the game means there's a remarkable lack of time given to the characters and plot, too. A few of the major characters feel like they could be interesting, the twin sister antagonists especially, but the few interactions you have with them are definitely not enough to develop them and make you care. While the performances have gusto, key moments of pathos just feel completely unearned. Something major happened to a key character and I was surprised how little empathy I felt. A detestable deal is made and I was mad at how little time they spent justifying it. Underdeveloped connections to characters also exacerbate the relative mundanity of the story missions compared to the game's side and open-world activities--turret sequences, bland chases, forced melee fights, and even a slow boat ride, all of which go on for way too long.You do get a double jump, though. That is, the ability to jump in mid-air. You also get the ability to basically turn invisible and give yourself super speed and strength. The Far Cry series has always dabbled in the mystic, but yes: In a strange turn of events, New Dawn eventually says "screw it" and gives you access to superhuman powers. And the way it changes how you approach the world is undoubtedly the best thing about the game.These sudden powers let you lean hard into superhero fantasy, allowing you to bound over fences and onto buildings, using your newfound mobility and invisibility to completely terrorize enemies like you're the Predator, or perhaps jumping high into the fray and firing off explosive arrows, pretending you're Hawkeye from The Avengers. Maybe you're more of a Wolverine, activating the berserker ability to rush an outpost at super speed and send heavily armed assailants and bears alike flying with your bare fists. A minor new mechanic lets you temporarily pick up shields from enemies and toss them like you're Captain America (supporting characters even refer to you as "Cap"), and I'm shocked they didn't do more with this--the inability to permanently keep a shield is a big disappointment.The powers are so good that it's almost a shame they come at a point late in the game where you'll likely already be well-equipped to deal with elite rank enemies, since a few scenarios that challenge your ability to use these effectively definitely would have been a welcome addition. But as it stands, they're a fantastic expansion of Far Cry's combat vocabulary. They completely elevate your confidence to rip through everything and everyone, suddenly turning New Dawn's familiar, pedestrian experience into a raucous blast.There's a lot of potential in the ideas seeded in New Dawn, but there isn't enough room for many of them to breathe and feel fully realized. Not the post-apocalyptic theme, not the RPG mechanics, not the weapons, vehicles, plot, or characters. Advancing through the adventure is an enjoyable experience, especially once you get your superhuman powers, but this is largely because Far Cry 5's combat and progression models remain compelling enough to propel you forward. For its part, New Dawn is a palatable but unremarkable spin-off that feels like it could have achieved so much more.Info from Gamespot.com

The non-profit advocacy group As You Sow has released its 2019 "Most Overpaid CEOs" report and it includes two notable companies from the games industry. Both Activision's Bobby Kotick and Electronic Arts' Andrew Wilson appeared on the top 100 list, which is intended to promote corporate responsibility.The non-profit bases its estimates on a CEO's yearly earnings, based on a calculation that takes into account shareholder returns. Kotick appeared at number 45, with an annual pay of more than $28 million--which As You Sow estimates is overpaid by almost $13 million. Andrew Wilson barely appeared on the list at number 98, with salary of more than $35 million, or an excess of $19 million.The median ratio between company CEO and median worker is 142:1. By comparison, Activision's was 301:1 and EA's was 371:1. The As You Sow list in general has a ratio of 300:1.This report comes just after both companies shared their most recent fiscal results. Activision made headlines by boasting record profits while laying off hundreds of employees--roughly 8% of its workforce. Meanwhile EA posted a "difficult quarter" with games like Battlefield 5 underperforming expectations. EA's fortunes may be turning around, though, as Apex Legends surprised-launched to a huge reception.Recently, stories of working conditions at high-profile developers like Rockstar, as well as Activision's mass layoffs, inspired the labor organization AFL-CIO to write an open letter to the games industry encouraging them to unionize. That letter explicitly mentioned both Kotick and Wilson.Info from Gamespot.com

The Halo TV show has been in the works for a very long time, and it suffered a setback recently when director Rupert Wyatt (Planet of the Apes) dropped out due to scheduling issues. Now, his replacement has been found, and it's another big name in the TV and movie business.Otto Bathurst, who directed Black Mirror's horrifying first episode, "The National Anthem," has been tapped to direct and executively produce the new Halo TV show. After Black Mirror, Bathurst went on to work on Peaky Blinders and later 2018's Robin Hood movie.The highly anticipated series #Halo will begin production later this year and is set to be directed and exec produced by @OttoBathurst! #Showtime pic.twitter.com/ZShHPHd17X — Showtime (@Showtime) February 21, 2019The Halo TV show will air on Showtime, whose parent company, CBS, also owns GameSpot. The last we heard from network president of programming Gary Levine was that the Halo show is "evolving beautifully with rich characters, compelling stories, and powerful scripts."Showtime said previously that Halo is the network's "most ambitious series ever," and that's notable given Showtime is behind some massive productions such as Homeland, Shameless, Billions, and more recently the Jim Carrey show Kidding.The Halo TV show will feature Master Chief in some capacity, but it remains to be seen if he is the lead, or what other characters might join him. Kyle Killen (Awake) will serve as writer, showrunner, and executive producer.Showtime has ordered 10 hour-long episodes of Halo for its first season. The Halo show was originally announced back in 2013 with Steven Spielberg's Amblin Television set to produce, which it still is.The next Halo video game, meanwhile, is Halo Infinite. The game is in development for Xbox One and PC. According to a recent report, it will be a launch title for a new Xbox console coming out in 2020.Info from Gamespot.com

There's a blacksmith, toiling away in the markets of the capital of Nava, who thinks making swords is boring. Why create something, she argues, when death is its only use? She'd rather make a kettle any day of the week. So I bought her kettle, and now I can brew all kinds of delicious, and at times mysterious, tea whenever I hole up and camp in the wilderness. And I still haven't found a sword.Eastshade is a non-violent, first-person adventure game set in a rolling open world full of quests. Imagine an Elder Scrolls game was an old boot, and you picked it up, turned it upside down and shook it until all the combat and magic and loot, every orc and dragon and bandit fell out. Then you took a shoehorn and eased a walking simulator inside the wrinkled leather before setting off on a delightful stroll across the countryside. Eastshade is just about the loveliest, prettiest, and just bloody nicest game I've played in years.You play an artist, recently shipwrecked in Eastshade near the small coastal village of Lyndor. After a kind chap finds you on the beach and lets you rest in his cozy cave until you recover, you resume your journey to visit and then paint your just-passed mother's favorite places in Eastshade. It's a simple setup, paying tribute to a lost loved one, and it's indicative of the kind of sincere, touching gestures you'll carry out over the course of the game.The flow of Eastshade will be familiar to anyone who has played an open-world RPG in recent years. You speak to NPCs, at first enquiring about the local history and points of interest before delving into something more personal and finally unlocking a unique quest. A child and aspiring painter asks you to help her acquire some art supplies. A smitten merchant wants some advice on how she should pursue her romantic interest. A park ranger needs your assistance in catching and caring for an injured waterfox. Not everyone has a story to tell--there are plenty of mute, generic NPCs filling the streets--but the ones you do meet almost always open up to you in the sweetest of ways.Most quests involve tracking down the next person in the quest chain or venturing afar to find a particular item. Some, however, require your talents as an artist. Indeed, it seems that once an Eastshadian discovers you can paint, they're quick to realize how much they'd really like some oil on canvas hanging over the fireplace. One keen art-lover asked me to paint him a picture of a chicken, so I made my way over the markets where I'd earlier spied some chickens nestling among the hay, set down my easel and painted the perfect poultry portrait.The act of painting itself isn't simulated in any way. You simply use the mouse to drag a frame across the screen. Anything within that frame is then captured, rendered in a painterly style, and reproduced on the canvas. In essence, you're taking screenshots. As such there's much pleasure to be had in framing your subject, as anyone who has unearthed the joys of a game's photo mode can attest. I was asked by a particularly pompous villager to paint his portrait, and fully capture all his self-described nobility and heroism. He was sitting in a tavern at the time, next to a huge fireplace whose chimney stretched to the double-story ceiling, so I framed him as this tiny figure dwarfed by the imposing stone furnace. He was grateful, of course--I'm sure the game logic merely checks if the required subject is in the frame--but I found it extremely satisfying.At a certain point you will also gain the ability to register with another local artist and begin taking commissions to earn glowstones, the local currency. It functions much like a job board: you check in, accept the gig, then return later with the finished painting and collect your cash. Each commission gives you a description of the type of painting desired and it's up to you to figure out where you need to go and what you need to include in the frame. Some are easy to identify, like a specific request for a windmill, but you may have no idea where to find it. Others are more vague, like a “starry cavern” or a “natural arch.” Either way, it's enjoyable to have your memory of the landscape tested as you struggle to recall elements of the terrain.Sometimes you won't have a spare canvas to paint on, meaning you'll have to obtain the materials necessary to craft a new canvas. Fortunately, there are wooden boards and piles of cloth lying around the various towns and villages, and NPCs don't seem to mind at all if you walk into their homes and grab some. It's a good idea to thoroughly explore every area and collect any such craftable materials as there doesn't seem to be any limit on how much you can carry. I found I typically had enough canvases to complete quest-critical paintings, but if I'd wanted to paint for fun, as it were, I would have had to tediously wait for previously collected materials to respawn or spend my hard-earned glowstones to buy them.Money's tight, you see, and there are other things worth purchasing. This isn't an RPG, so you won't be selling loot to finance your endeavors--though there is a sort of joke merchant who will buy anything off you for the princely sum of one glowstone. However, there are items you will need in order to access new areas of the world. A coat, for example, lets you continue to explore the countryside during the cold nights, while a tent lets you camp outdoors overnight or simply rest for a while if you need to meet someone at a certain time of day.You'll find yourself walking a fine line between securing what you need to complete your current tasks and saving up to afford what you need to unlock new quest possibilities. I remember standing in the markets and agonizing over whether to spend what little money I had on a fishing rod (because one quest wanted me to catch a particular type of fish) or a kettle (because my pockets were already bursting with all different kinds of plants and herbs). It was a genuinely stressful moment in a game otherwise conducted entirely in serene contemplation.Eastshade is a slow game. There's an awful lot of walking, or running once you realize there's the option, and you'll spend almost all your time trekking back and forth between villages or strolling across town from one shop to the next, ferrying this item to that person and hoping to speak to so-and-so about this-and-that. It would quickly grow tiresome were it not for the dinky penny-farthing bicycle you can buy and the presence of craftable fast travel items, and more importantly, the immense natural beauty found in every corner, along every path, and over every crest of the world.Indeed, Eastshade is a slow game that moves at just the right pace. From the warm, golden sunlight filtering through the dense canopy of the Great Tree to the pools of water on the terrace farms that skirt the city glittering in the morning light, you'll constantly find yourself stopping to catch your breath. Even after treading the same cobbled road a dozen or more times, hours later I would still find myself admiring the scenery, expansive vistas and minute details alike.The pace perfectly complements your actions, too. This is a game about taking your time and paying attention to the environment through which you're moving. You have a quest log and a map of the land, but there are no quest markers or waypoints telling you where to go. You have to read the lay of the land and remember details of where you've been. As you travel, the geographical contours of the world gradually become imprinted in your mind until you could paint them almost from memory alone. Almost.By giving you a paintbrush (and a kettle) instead of a sword, Eastshade is a rare first-person open world game that's not about killing but rather about doing good deeds, helping people see the error of their ways, and bringing communities together all through the power of art. It's a breath of fresh Eastshadian air and a genuine, unironic feel-good game. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to put the kettle on.Info from Gamespot.com

It didn't take long for Black Panther to make an impact at the Academy Awards, snagging two Oscars early in the evening--one for Best Costume Design and the other for Best Production Design. In all, the Marvel Cinematic Universe film has been nominated for 7 Oscars.Upon accepting her award for Best Costume Design, Ruth Carter was quick to give thanks to Spike Lee for giving her her start in 1988's School Daze, which he directed. She also gave thanks to Marvel for creating Black Panther in the first place, saying, "Marvel may have created the first black superhero, but through costume design, we turned him into an African king.""Thank you to the Academy, thank you for honoring African royalty and the empowered way women can look and lead on-screen," she continued. This was Carter's first Oscar and also sees her making history as the first black person to win an Academy Award for Best Costume Design. "This has been a long time coming," she joked.As for the Best Production Design awards, Hannah Beachler did the majority of the speaking for herself and Jay Hart. "I stand here with agency and self-worth because of Ryan Coogler," she said of Black Panther's director. As with Carter, Beachler also gave thanks to Marvel, who she said "lifted us up" every day during the process of making the film.Make sure to come back as we continue to track Black Panther at the Oscars. Also, make sure to check out our list of all of the 2019 Academy Award winners.Info from Gamespot.com

With Game of Thrones Season 8's April 14 release date quickly approaching, HBO has released some new footage just in time for the 2019 Oscars. The footage came in a larger video full of clips from various of the premium cable network's upcoming shows, including Big Little Lies Season 2, Barry Season 2, Watchmen, and more.The video opens with a shot of ravens flying around the top of the Wall, which isn't anything to write home about. But if you skip ahead to around 48 seconds in, you'll see what's really exciting in the new footage: some recent arrivals at Winterfell.Check out the video above.As you can see, Dany's lethal Unsullied army of eunuchs will apparently arrive at Winterfell some time during the upcoming Season 8--and with them, Dany's largest dragon, Drogon. It makes perfect sense that they'd be marching North, given what happened in the Game of Thrones Season 7 finale. I'd bet this will be in the first episode, given what little HBO usually reveals about new Game of Thrones seasons before they air.There's not much else to glean from this, although it's worth watching the full video for a look at some of HBO's other upcoming shows. Keep checking GameSpot for all the Game of Thrones Season 8 coverage you need leading up to the April 14 release.Info from Gamespot.com

The 91st Academy Awards are airing right now, and it'll be a long night full of awards, speeches, and other memorable events. Here in this post we're rounding up all the winners, including the highly coveted Best Picture that will be revealed at the end of the night.Below you can see a list of the Oscars categories and nominees. The winners will be put in bold, so keep checking back with GameSpot throughout the evening to see all the winners. And for lots, lots more on the 91st Academy Awards, head to GameSpot sister site ET.91st Academy Awards Categories And WinnersBest PictureBlack PantherBlacKkKlansmanBohemian RhapsodyThe FavouriteGreen BookRomaA Star Is BornViceLead ActorChristian Bale, ViceBradley Cooper, A Star Is BornWillem Dafoe, At Eternity’s GateRami Malek, Bohemian RhapsodyViggo Mortensen, Green BookLead ActressYalitza Aparicio, RomaGlenn Close, The WifeOlivia Colman, The FavouriteLady Gaga, A Star Is BornMelissa McCarthy, Can You Ever Forgive Me?Supporting ActorMahershala Ali, Green Book [WINNER]Adam Driver, BlacKkKlansmanSam Elliott, A Star Is BornRichard E. Grant, Can You Ever Forgive Me?Sam Rockwell, ViceSupporting ActressAmy Adams, ViceMarina de Tavira, RomaRegina King, If Beale Street Could Talk [WINNER]Emma Stone, The FavouriteRachel Weisz, The FavouriteDirectorSpike Lee, BlacKkKlansmanPawel Pawlikowski, Cold WarYorgos Lanthimos, The FavouriteAlfonso Cuarón, RomaAdam McKay, ViceAnimated FeatureIncredibles 2, Brad BirdIsle of Dogs, Wes AndersonMirai, Mamoru HosodaRalph Breaks the Internet, Rich Moore, Phil JohnstonSpider-Man Into the Spider-Verse, Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, Rodney Rothman [WINNER]Animated ShortAnimal Behaviour, Alison Snowden, David FineBao, Domee Shi [WINNER]Late Afternoon, Louise BagnallOne Small Step, Andrew Chesworth, Bobby PontillasWeekends, Trevor JimenezAdapted ScreenplayThe Ballad of Buster Scruggs, Joel Coen , Ethan CoenBlacKkKlansman, Charlie Wachtel, David Rabinowitz, Kevin Willmott, Spike LeeCan You Ever Forgive Me?, Nicole Holofcener and Jeff WhittyIf Beale Street Could Talk, Barry JenkinsA Star Is Born, Eric Roth, Bradley Cooper, Will FettersOriginal ScreenplayThe Favourite, Deborah Davis, Tony McNamaraFirst Reformed, Paul SchraderGreen Book, Nick Vallelonga, Brian Currie, Peter FarrellyRoma, Alfonso CuarónVice, Adam McKayCinematographyCold War, Lukasz ZalThe Favourite, Robbie RyanNever Look Away, Caleb DeschanelRoma, Alfonso Cuarón [WINNER]A Star Is Born, Matthew LibatiqueBest Documentary FeatureFree Solo, Jimmy Chin, Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi [WINNER]Hale County This Morning, This Evening, RaMell RossMinding the Gap, Bing LiuOf Fathers and Sons, Talal DerkiRBG, Betsy West, Julie CohenBest Documentary Short SubjectBlack Sheep, Ed PerkinsEnd Game, Rob Epstein, Jeffrey FriedmanLifeboat, Skye FitzgeraldA Night at the Garden, Marshall CurryPeriod. End of Sentence., Rayka Zehtabchi [WINNER]Best Live Action Short FilmDetainment, Vincent LambeFauve, Jeremy ComteMarguerite, Marianne FarleyMother, Rodrigo SorogoyenSkin, Guy NattivBest Foreign Language FilmCapernaum (Lebanon)Cold War (Poland)Never Look Away (Germany)Roma (Mexico) [WINNER]Shoplifters (Japan)Film EditingBlacKkKlansman, Barry Alexander BrownBohemian Rhapsody, John Ottman [WINNER]Green Book, Patrick J. Don VitoThe Favourite, Yorgos MavropsaridisVice, Hank CorwinSound EditingBlack Panther, Benjamin A. Burtt, Steve BoeddekerBohemian Rhapsody, John Warhurst [WINNER]First Man, Ai-Ling Lee, Mildred Iatrou MorganA Quiet Place, Ethan Van der Ryn, Erik AadahlRoma, Sergio Diaz, Skip LievsaySound MixingBlack PantherBohemian Rhapsody [WINNER]First ManRomaA Star Is BornProduction DesignBlack Panther, Hannah Beachler [WINNER]First Man, Nathan Crowley, Kathy LucasThe Favourite, Fiona Crombie, Alice FeltonMary Poppins Returns, John Myhre, Gordon SimRoma, Eugenio Caballero, Bárbara Enrı́quezOriginal ScoreBlacKkKlansman, Terence BlanchardBlack Panther, Ludwig GoranssonIf Beale Street Could Talk, Nicholas BritellIsle of Dogs, Alexandre DesplatMary Poppins Returns, Marc Shaiman, Scott WittmanOriginal SongAll The Stars from Black Panther by Kendrick Lamar, SZAI’ll Fight from RBG by Diane Warren, Jennifer HudsonThe Place Where Lost Things Go from Mary Poppins Returns by Marc Shaiman, Scott WittmanShallow from A Star Is Born by Lady Gaga, Mark Ronson, Anthony Rossomando, Andrew Wyatt and Benjamin RiceWhen A Cowboy Trades His Spurs For Wings from The Ballad of Buster Scruggs by David Rawlings and Gillian WelchMakeup and HairBorderMary Queen of ScotsVice [WINNER]Costume DesignThe Ballad of Buster Scruggs, Mary ZophresBlack Panther, Ruth E. Carter [WINNER]The Favourite, Sandy PowellMary Poppins Returns, Sandy PowellMary Queen of Scots, Alexandra ByrneVisual EffectsAvengers Infinity WarChristopher RobinFirst Man [WINNER]Ready Player OneSolo A Star Wars StoryInfo from Gamespot.com

You'll shoot a lot of guns in Anthem, but the most fun part of combat is combining your flying javelin suit's special abilities with those of your teammates to execute combos against bad guys. These combination attacks do major damage and inflict status effects on enemies that can turn the tide of battle, and each kind of javelin gets its own benefits from a successful combo. The Ranger has increased power against a single enemy, the Colossus creates an area-of-effect explosion, the Storm can transfer status effects to multiple enemies, and the Interceptor gets an aura that afflicts any nearby enemy.The trouble with combos in Anthem is that the game isn't very clear on how they work. We've got a complete combo guide to help you make the most of your javelins' abilities, but for a top-level understanding of how to execute combos, you just need to know about two things: Primers and Detonators. Primers are abilities that set up a combo; Detonators are abilities that trigger them for massive damage and other effects.The big question is, how do you know if an ability is a Primer, a Detonator, or neither? Anthem provides that information for you when deciding what gear to add to your javelin's loadout, if you know where to look. You'll sometimes see an icon next to the name of a gear piece--that's how you know if it can be used in a combo or not, and what its function is.Primers are marked by a circle icon with a dot inside that kind of looks like a bullseye.Detonators have icons beside them that resemble throwing stars, like an explosion.When you use a Primer in the field, you'll know an enemy is ready for a combo when a red icon appears next to their nameplate. The icon will also tell you what status effect the enemy is suffering from because of the Primer, like freezing or burning. Using a Detonator on enemies with those icons will trigger the combo.It's not a hard-and-fast rule, but you'll want to generally try to bring a Primer ability and a Detonator ability with you on every mission. That way, you can set up combos for your teammates, complete the combos they set up, and even "self combo" where you use Detonators on your own Primers. Combos are what make Anthem fun and especially at later levels and harder difficulties, they're essential, so make sure you're picking the right gear for your javelin to make the most of them.We've got plenty more Anthem coverage coming in the days ahead, including more guides to make you the best javelin pilot you can be. Until then, check out our Anthem review.Info from Gamespot.com

Kotaro Uchikoshi is the mind behind the wild series of puzzle-adventure-mystery games known as Zero Escape (999, Virtue's Last Reward, and Zero Time Dilemma), and fans of his imaginative direction should keep an eye on his upcoming game AI: The Somnium Files. But Uchikoshi-san is doing things a little differently this time around. A character in the game, Iris Sagan, has become a virtual idol and streamer/influencer in the real world under the stage name A-set--and he's helping produce and promote her.When the team at publisher/developer Spike Chunsoft reached out and offered an opportunity to interview Uchikoshi-san and Iris (or A-set), I wondered how this would fly with my managing editor Peter Brown. But me being a huge fan of virtual idols such as Hatsune Miku and the vocaloid family, Haruka Sawamura of Yakuza fame, and Rise Kujikawa of Persona, I couldn't say no and Pete knew this was a job that only I could do.We tried to get more details on AI: The Somnium Files itself, which will have players taking on the role of detective Kaname Date to investigate a series of murders--but those efforts proved fruitless as some questions were declined. While we wish there were more talk about for the game, our interview doesn't disappoint. Well, we'll let you be the judge.AI: The Somnium Files is set to release sometime this year on PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and PC. The following interview was conducted via email correspondence with translation from Spike Chunsoft.What's your opinion on the Zero Escape games? Which is the best?A-set: They're all good! I still remember beating each one, it was like, mind-blowing! My brain felt so fuzzy after that I had to disconnect from social media for a few days just to process them. I know people say that the second is the best one, but I honestly think they're all awesome! But as for which one is my favorite? It's too hard to pick one! It's like trying to pick my favorite Alien or Indiana Jones movie. Except those had more than three...never mind!What are you doing to keep surprising Zero Escape / Danganronpa fans who've seen so many wild things happen already?A-set: I don't have any surprises planned... But I'm up for any ideas! My fans mean everything to me, so if anyone has any requests, you can always find me on Twitter, @Lemniscate_Aset!Uchikoshi: Hm, let me think. Isn't surprising yourself more important than surprising others? And to do that, every night before I go to sleep I down three gallons of tequila. Trust me, if you do that, you'll forget everything that happened that day. Which means that when you wake up the next morning, every idea you have, even if it's an old one, will seem fresh and exciting!The tag-team itself: Iris Sagan/A-set (left), and Kotaro Uchikoshi (right)Is AI: The Somnium Files something you would stream?A-set: That would be amazing, I'd love that! Will Spike Chunsoft let me? *laughs*Best girl and best boy in the Danganronpa series?A-set: Best girl: Junko. Best boy: Nagito.Is a full-length record in the works?A-set: Of course I'd like to make one, but I'm still new to the scene. Right now, I just want to focus on promoting [the song] "Invincible Rainbow Arrow."Best Hatsune Miku song or vocaloid song?A-set: "Sand Planet"!Are there any idols that you look up to yourself?A-set: When I was young, Rihanna and Ke$ha were big. Lady Gaga also brought this fun, art-pop style that I enjoyed. I wanted to put some of that influence into my music. Start with poppy, catchy tunes and maybe eventually grow into something else. Ariana Grande is also putting out great stuff right now, but her vocal style is pretty different than mine, so... As for personal idols? The Powerpuff Girls!How is it working with Uchikoshi-san?A-set: Intimidating, but kinda weird.How is it working with A-set?Uchikoshi: Intimidating, but kinda weird.Iris made her first appearance at Anime Expo 2018 during a panel for AI: The Somnium FilesWhy promote a virtual idol now? How is this leading into something bigger?Uchikoshi: First of all, A-set is not a "virtual" idol. She's a real idol with a real flesh-and-blood body. She just seems "virtual" because her presence is mostly online. I'm an old friend of Mr. Okiura, the president of Lemniscate, A-set's agency. He introduced me to her. He was pushing A-set, saying, "This is our agency's hottest new net idol!" To be honest, I was totally mesmerized by her dancing. I told him, "Well then, how about I produce her?" That's how it went. "Something bigger?" I don't know exactly what you mean, but it would be amazing to see her become something bigger. So please, support A-set, everyone!What do you say to those who are skeptical of virtual idols? How do you help open their minds to the idea?A-set: Well, I wouldn't know much about that. I'm a real idol, not virtual. But anyway, I put my heart and soul into everything that I do. I know that, if you just give me a chance, I can make my way into your heart and soul! *laughs*Uchikoshi: When you get home, fill your bathtub with hot water, sink in, and then chug three gallons of tequila. If you do, your neocortex will go numb and you'll be more willing to accept idols like A-set. If your pupils dilate, so will your heart. Please give it a try. Info from Gamespot.com