Ahead of its upcoming open beta next month, Ubisoft is holding another private technical test for The Division 2. The test is now live for select players, but unlike the previous private beta, this one is only available on PC, and it will run from February 21-22.According to Ubisoft, the purpose of this technical test is to "assess a certain amount of fixes [it has] implemented based on your feedback following the Private Beta." Only players who have received an invitation via email will be eligible to participate in this test.If you're one of the players who've been selected, you'll be able to try out all of the content that was available in Ubisoft's previous Division 2 beta, with the exception of Conflict, Endgame, and Photo Mode. Participants also won't be able to invite friends to join during this test. You can read more details on The Division 2 website.Even if you don't make it into this week's test, everyone will soon have a chance to sample the upcoming shooter. Ubisoft is hosting an open beta for The Division 2 next week, from March 1-4. That test will be available to all players on PS4, Xbox One, and PC.The Division 2 launches on March 15. Ubisoft has already said it has a surprise planned for the title's endgame, as well as free DLC in the pipeline. You can read more about the game in our roundup of everything we know about The Division 2 and our favorite new features.Info from Gamespot.com

More than two years after the game launched, Pokemon Go will finally give players the option to change their teams. Niantic has announced a new item called the Team Medallion, which will go on sale in the in-game shop beginning February 26 and allow users to switch their allegiance to another team one time.The Team Medallion will cost 1,000 PokeCoins, which makes it fairly pricey, as a bundle of 1,200 coins runs for $10 USD. There are a few caveats as to how it works as well. You can only purchase one Team Medallion every 365 days, so once you switch teams, you'll be locked into your choice for the next year.Shortly after players first begin Pokemon Go, they're asked to join one of three teams: Mystic, Instinct, and Valor, which are represented by the Legendary birds Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres, respectively. Up until now, however, your choice has been permanent, so if you've been itching to switch sides, this will be your first opportunity to do so.The Team Medallion isn't the only new feature Niantic is introducing in Pokemon Go; the developer has also rolled out the recently announced Go Snapshot AR photo mode. This allows players to take photos of any Pokemon they have in storage and easily share them with friends and on social media.This weekend is a busy one for Pokemon Go players. From February 22-25, Niantic is bringing back the Gen 3 Legendary Pokemon Latias for a special Raid Weekend. On top of that, a new Limited Research event is scheduled to take place this Saturday, February 23, and it'll give players their first chance to catch the never-before-available Water Pokemon Clamperl.Info from Gamespot.com

What can be said about Tetris that hasn't been said already? Well, that depends on the type of Tetris game in question. Tetris Effect changed the conversation around the classic puzzle concept last year by directly tying your actions and the flow of stages to the fluctuating rhythm of an eclectic (and all-around amazing) soundtrack. In the case of the Switch-exclusive Tetris 99, the moment-to-moment gameplay is more immediately recognizable, but a new twist helps it stand out from Tetris games of old: a 99-player last-player-standing competition. It's chaotic, which can work in your favor or lead to moments that feel practically unfair. Thankfully, with the solid gameplay at its foundation and a quick means of getting into a new match, no game of Tetris 99 feels like time wasted.The competitive aspect of Tetris 99 is something most people are familiar with, albeit based on less ambitious setups. Clear some lines, and a batch of junk lines will appear in a queue next to your opponent's puzzle space. If they can clear lines of their own, the junk-in-waiting can be negated; if no new lines are completed, the weight of your success will bear down on their board and reduce the free space for mid-drop tetrimino trickery.This straightforward setup has, in the past, been utilized in two-player scenarios. With 99 players competing at once here, all visible next to your puzzle space with lines appearing and disappearing between players every few seconds, your early matches will feel a little confusing.Somewhat frustratingly, Tetris 99 offers no explanation of its inner workings nor the function of various attack modes you can pick from during a match. You can get really far by simply playing Tetris the way you always have, but an uninformed player will always be at a severe disadvantage. Even though all the info is a quick internet search away, it's disappointing that Tetris 99 is bereft of these details or explanations.So here it goes: You can influence automated attack patterns using the right analog stick, determining whether your offensive lines get sent to randoms, players attacking you, people near death, or players who have done the most killing in the match. Playing handheld, you can also use the Switch touchscreen to target players manually. Less intuitively, when playing docked, the left analog stick can be used to cycle through the phalanx of players on either side of your screen.The control given to you by most of these options can be used in strategic ways, but none more so than by attacking killers, AKA the "badges" option. It's named thusly because killing a player nets you a portion of a badge and, better yet, any belonging to the defeated player. These badges enhance the output of your attacks, throwing more lines per combo and making the final moments of a match a living hell for your opponents. With the increasing speed of a Tetris 99 match, manually picking your targets based on small icons is an expert's game, so these automated attack profiles are ultimately to your benefit, even if they aren't explained well and could potentially be a source of confusion for new players.The beauty of Tetris 99 is the tried-and-true game at the center of it all. Tetris is a god among games, and competitive Tetris only enhances the rising tension of a match. Tetris 99, being a game with so many competitors and a default "random" attack pattern, means that you will inevitably enter matches where the odds feel stacked against you from the beginning with no rhyme or reason. And when that happens, you may find that you have no recourse with a screen full of junk lines.Even though each loss isn't always a lesson learned, it's also just a small roadblock, as a new match is generally seconds, rather than minutes, away. Simply hold down a button to start a search for new players, and watch the screen fill up with opponents in the blink of an eye. There may come a time when the countdown clock expires and matches have less than 99 players, but at launch, that is a very rare occurrence.Tetris 99 may not be a proper battle royale game, but it taps into the same emotional well, where a large number of players vying for supremacy creates an ever-present intensity that's difficult to shake. Add that layer to a game that's plenty capable of instilling tension on its own, and you've got a riveting experience that even at its worst is still a game very much worth playing. There's obvious room for improvement, but that's the last thing on your mind when the pieces start falling and the players start dropping.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.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

Ubisoft has announced the next Special Operation is coming to Ghost Recon: Wildlands on February 27. Special Operation 4 will introduce new PvP and PvE content, as well as several community-requested features.A brand-new PvE mode is included in Special Operation 4, although Ubisoft hasn't yet revealed exact details for it other than that it would "test your endurance." In a blog post, the developer did say that completing the mode for the first time will unlock a new outfit, and that more information would be shared "soon." On the PvP side of things, Ghost War multiplayer will be getting a new class in Special Operation 4, as well as two additional maps. The new Ghost War class will be exclusive to Year 2 Pass holders for a week, before going live for everyone else on March 6.Several community-requested features will go live in Special Operation 4 as well. You'll now be able to change the time of day in the solo campaign. Both Battle and Prestige Crates have been updated, with all voice lines and several emotes moving from the former to the latter. Prestige Crates will also drop higher rarity items more often. A new browser will allow you to look through custom matches based on your selected criteria. Challenges will also have increased Prestige Credit rewards, and two new PvP events are being added to the pool.In our Ghost Recon: Wildlands review, Miguel Concepcion gave the game a 7/10, writing, "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. 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."Info from Gamespot.com

Path of Exile continues to keep new content rolling out at a steady pace. Following the Betrayal expansion last December, the developers at Grinding Gear Games still have big plans ahead for the online action-RPG. In addition to the launch of their next update, Synthesis, the developers will also bring the long-awaited release of the PlayStation 4 edition in March.The Synthesis expansion launches on March 8 for PC and March 11 for Xbox One. It will shake up the game's familiar spell system for something more tactical and user-friendly, while also introducing some new features that will give greater incentive for players to revisit past locations. Along with new additions to the game's league system, allowing players to either start fresh with a new character or continue with their existing character, there's also a new storyline that deals with restoring the memories of a mysterious character who has access to a large arsenal of spells and loot--all set within a bizarre dreamscape.Managing director Chris Wilson spoke with us at great length about what to expect for Path of Exile's newest expansion, and how this one will be the beginning of an eventful year for the online-RPG--culminating at year's end with another substantial update."The title of this expansion relates to the actual Synthesis league--which is for the new content in the game--but the other part of this is for the really big rebalance and changes in Path of Exile," said Wilson. "It sounds like a routine thing, but the scope of it is a bit unprecedented for us. The goal is to try to open up a lot more viable build combinations for players. And honestly, as compelling as it is to release new leagues and other forms of new content, the rebalances often add more replayability to the game."Along with new updates to Betrayal's syndicate gameplay, which will be rolled into the main campaign, the next expansion also rebalances a number of combat skills and spells in the main game. However, the main conceit of Synthesis is the larger quest to help the new NPC Cavas restore his lost memories. Scattered around the world are secret portals that open up the pathway to Cavas' memories. Upon entering, you'll explore a miniature world full of dangerous monsters and valuable loot. Once you reach the finish, you'll acquire a Memory Fragment.Eventually, you can take these fragments to the Memory Nexus, Cavas' base of operations. Fragments can then be used to fill out spaces on the Memory Map, an ethereal space where new memories form a continuous set of mini-dungeons to explore on the map. If you're able to complete a full sequence, you'll acquire special loot and rewards from Cavas. However, the memories will eventually decay, making them unstable, causing some strange effects while within the memory. Once fully decayed, they'll be wiped from the map.In addition to the new gameplay loop with the Memory Map, one of the more substantial changes coming in Synthesis is the rebalancing of the spell system. Wilson stressed that this was the most difficult part of the expansion, which was also a long time coming."It's not just numerical values we're adjusting on the spells, we're kind of fundamentally altering how they work," said Wilson. "There's about 40-ish caster spells are all augmentable with several hundreds of support gems, and also compared to the over 110 different skills you can use as well. They can go through all these different shapes and timings, like a meteor-spell for instance. Having them all balanced was a very difficult task for the team, so it needed a lot of effort."Here's a quick breakdown of features coming with Path of Exile's newest expansion:The Memory Map: Over the course of the Synthesis expansion, you'll acquire Memory Fragments which can be placed onto the Memory Map, creating a series of mini-dungeons to explore. Successfully exploring a full sequence will yield valuable loot and special rewards.Fractured Items: The fractured items are special items that have powerful buffs applied to them, but they also often come with a downside. To combat this, fractured gear can be re-rolled to shuffle stats and buffs.New Spells And Rebalancing: Over 40 spells have been overhauled and rebalanced. Furthermore, new spells and skills have been added into Path of Exile, including the first-ever Holy-elemental attack.New Unique Items: 16 new unique items have been incorporated into the game. Coming in the form of armor, weapons, and accessories, the unique items of Synthesis are among the most powerful items that Path of Exile has seen yet.Synthesized Items: In the Memory Nexus, players can use the synthesizer to turn three different fractured items to produce a new item with a set of new mods.Throughout 2019, Grinding Gear will release three additional expansions following Synthesis. With the next ones coming in June, September, and December, the developer also plan to reveal the game's most ambitious expansions yet in November at Path of Exile's fan convention in New Zealand. During this event, two new major updates will be revealed--one of which is referred to as a mega-expansion by the developers. At this rate, Path of Exile's continued growth, which has been going for six years now, won't be slowing down any time soon.For more on Path of Exile, including the launch of the upcoming expansion and PS4 edition, be sure to visit GameSpot in the weeks ahead.Info from Gamespot.com

Team balance is pretty important in Apex Legends. Developer Respawn Entertainment shakes up the battle royale formula by including individual characters you can choose at the beginning of a match. That means the best teams aren't just thinking about how to beat other players, but how they can support and complement each other on the battlefield. Other than the medic character Lifeline, there's not another Legend in Apex as team-oriented as Gibraltar.Gibraltar is a defensive player, with abilities that are all geared toward standing his ground, protecting teammates, and making it tough for enemies to put fire on his squad. Used effectively, Gibraltar can save teammates' lives and turn the tides of fights by making your team's position more defensible than the enemy's. But perhaps more than most other characters in Apex Legends, effective communication with Gibraltar is key, because he can do as much harm as he can good at times.Playing as Gibraltar takes some getting used to, but once you've put some time in, you'll be saving your squad with dome shields and potentially dropping whole squads with effective mortar strikes. We've got all you need to know about Gibraltar's abilities, plus a whole mess of tips to help you make the most of any situation when playing as him.We've also run down a whole lot of useful information Apex Legends doesn't tell you, and spent some time myth-busting to find out exactly what is and isn't possible in Apex Legends, so check those out. You might also want to read our Apex Legends review.Other Character GuidesCaustic Guide: Tips On How To Be The Best Toxic TrapperLifeline Guide: Tips On How To Be The Best Combat MedicMirage Guide: Tips On How To Be The Best Holographic TricksterPathfinder Guide: Tips On How To Be The Best Forward ScoutWraith Guide: Tips On How To Be A Dangerous BamboozlerGeneral OverviewGibraltar is called the "Shielded Fortress" on the Legends select screen, and that's the best way to think about him. Most of his abilities are about absorbing damage and pushing the other team back and away from your squad, and they're all useful in a pinch when you're in a bad situation. Gibraltar is great to have on a team for those fights that aren't going your way, when you need a second to heal, reset, or retreat.The trick with Gibraltar is not getting too cocky about the shields he carries around. Yes, they're good at absorbing damage and can give you a couple extra seconds in a fight, but used poorly, they can also become a huge liability. Over-reliance on your shields can make you vulnerable to smart players, and your shields can block your teammates as well as your enemies. Communication about when to use your capabilities is key to using them effectively, so your team knows exactly what to expect and when to expect it. Almost none of the other characters require as much team awareness as an effective Gibraltar does.When used right, Gibraltar can totally shift a battle, making a position indefensible, forcing an enemy team on the run, closing off part of the battlefield to fire, or giving you the time you need to retreat or flank. He's also great in a stand-up fight with weapons like the Spitfire LMG or Peacekeeper shotgun because he can take a little more punishment than other characters. As long as you know your limits, Gibraltar can help you wreck other teams.SkillsPassive Ability: Gun ShieldIn any given fight, Gibraltar gets a leg-up on whoever he's battling with his Gun Shield. This is a damage-absorbing shield that covers his midsection whenever he's aiming down the sights of a gun. It can take a fair amount of punishment and make inaccurate players stumble against you as you fill them full of lead, but it has the drawback of requiring a sacrifice in mobility to use it. That makes the Gun Shield good for midrange or close encounters where you can benefit from taking time to aim, while your opponent is more likely to hit the shield and not you.Tactical Ability: Dome ShieldYour dome shield can be essential in any given fight. It creates 15 seconds of protection around a giving area, absorbing all fire in or out. That makes it great for blocking big attacks like air strikes, but any time you're facing down a situation that's not great, the shield can keep you alive long enough to get your bearings and get back the upper hand. The key is to avoid over-reliance on the shield--both teammates and enemies can walk right through it, so most people respond to seeing a bubble shield by switching to a shotgun and charging straight into it for close-range cleanup.Ultimate Ability: Defensive BombardmentWhile Gibraltar's abilities are mostly about defending against gunfire, his ultimate can do serious damage to unsuspecting enemies. The Defensive Bombardment is a mortar strike that drops bombs around a smoke grenade Gibraltar throws onto the battlefield, and anyone caught in the middle can get fairly wrecked by it. Unlike Bangalore's airstrike, Gibraltar's covers a circular area around the smoke grenade used to call it, so you can drop it right on an enemy position, in a specific place you want to force people away from, or even on yourself--it's great when combined with the Dome Shield to push a team away from you or quickly finish them off.Tips To Play As GibraltarGibraltar is a defensive hero, and you should try to use him as such whenever possible. That doesn't mean you don't get into a fight when you need to--aggression often pays off in Apex Legends, because giving a team a chance to heal up or revive enemies can lose you a fight. But the Dome Shield and Defensive Bombardment abilities are great for slowing or stopping an opposing team or giving your teammates the edge, so always think about how you can help keep your squad alive.Your Gun Shield is a handy boost in a fight, but it carries serious drawbacks, so think about when you want to use it and when you don't. It blocks a lot less damage than you think, and the loss of mobility means more fire comes at you. Use the Gun Shield when you have a weapon advantage, with something like a shotgun or an LMG, at a range where you're more likely to do more damage than you take. It can also be effective when you're sniping if you've got extra cover. In every instance, though, don't rely on the Gun Shield to save you, because it probably won't; it's best for giving you an edge, and that edge can be especially handy at closer ranges.Defensive Bombardment is a highly versatile ultimate. Drop it at the beginning of a fight to force another squad to scramble out of cover, or wait till you're in close and they're committed to fighting you turn the battlefield into a disaster area. The bombardment is also great for dropping on enemies you've knocked down: In most cases, the mortar strikes will kill them, and you might get lucky as a teammate tries to get the revive. Just note that you can take damage from your own bombardments, but your squadmates will be immune to it.If you've got a teammate down, try throwing the Defensive Bombardment on their location, then running in and dropping a Dome Shield. Mortars will keep anyone from charging you, in most cases, while the shield will give you ample time to pick up your teammate, with the possibility that they'll also have time to heal up a bit, too.Dome Shields are actually highly vulnerable, so be careful how you use them. They block incoming fire, but turn into death traps if an enemy with a shotgun gets bold enough to run in. Try using them at range when possible to avoid having anybody close the gap on you, and remember that being behind the shield is just as effective at stopping fire as being inside it. Keep mobile and adapt even when shielding.Domes are extremely visible to the enemy, and they cut through walls, so they basically give away your position whenever you use them. It's possible to use that to your advantage, though; dropping a shield makes an enemy squad think they know where you are, giving you a chance to try to not be there. The misdirect can be especially effective with Bangalore's smoke or Caustic's gas, allowing you to move away from the shield while your enemies are focusing on the wrong thing.You don't just have to use bombardments to attack enemies--try dropping them at choke points or in areas where you're worried a team might try to flank you. The bombardment is deadly, but its real defensive function is to push squads out of position and make them move, so try to use it to control the battlefield. The same is true of the Dome Shield, which you can position to block incoming fire from flankers while you deal with a closer, more pressing threat.If you're trying to escape a fight, try dropping the Dome Shield behind you as you go. It'll block incoming fire like a wall while you keep moving, allowing you to get some distance on your attackers while they fire on you. If you're lucky, the shield's position might cause them to lose track of you as well.You can turn off Gibraltar's Gun Shield anytime you want to, and if you're trying to discreetly target enemies without being seen, it's a good idea to switch it off. Seen by opponents, the shield is a big, orange, glowing rectangle, and like the Dome Shield, it's very visible. Just remember to switch it back on for closer fights.It's possible to drop your Dome Shield generator on top of a Lifeline healing drone. That lets you push the floating drone forward, moving the shield, giving you a mobile barrier.Info from Gamespot.com

A new freebie is now available for Twitch Prime members. For a limited time, players can claim a free loot pack for Respawn's newly released battle royale game, Apex Legends, hot on the heels of the release of its new patch (and new weapon that is now live, Havoc). The pack is available on PS4, Xbox One, or PC and contains an exclusive skin, among other rewards. However, this can only be claimed on a single platform per account, meaning you have to be wary of how and when you complete the process.The Apex Legends Twitch Prime Pack comes with a variety of cosmetics for the battle royale game. The highlight is the legendary Omega Point skin for Pathfinder (pictured below), but it also includes five Apex Packs, the game's equivalent of loot boxes which contain a random assortment of cosmetic items such as skins, weapon skins, and emotes. They don't contain Legends, the game's various playable character classes; the two you don't have access to right from the start can be earned by purchasing them with a currency you can buy or one you can earn by playing. Opting for the latter route takes a while.To claim the Twitch Prime Pack, you'll first need to link your Twitch account with your EA Account, then click on the crown-shaped Prime Loot icon on Twitch's website. As previously mentioned, the pack is available on PS4, Xbox One, and PC, but you can only redeem it once, and only on the first platform you log into with your linked EA Account. You can read more in the FAQ.This is not the only freebie available to Apex Legends players. PS Plus members are entitled to a bonus, as are those with EA or Origin Access memberships.Twitch Prime is one of the perks included in an Amazon Prime membership, and it offers freebies for a variety of games. Members can also download a selection of titles every month at no charge; February's batch includes Pikuniku, Dear Esther: Landmark Edition, Downwell, The Flame in the Flood, and Draknek & Co Puzzle Collection. Square Enix is also separately offering Final Fantasy XIV Starter Edition for free until May 3.Apex Legends launched earlier this month following a surprise reveal, and it's already hit a huge player milestone. Much like Fortnite, it's free to download and play, but it also places a heavier emphasis on teamwork and features a variety of characters with unique abilities and characteristics, not unlike Overwatch. If you're new to the game, be sure to check out GameSpot's guides roundup for helpful tips and strategies.Info from Gamespot.com

Overwatch's newest map, Paris, is now live across PS4, Xbox One, and PC. The map arrives as part of a new patch that also fixes numerous bugs and other issues in Blizzard's popular hero shooter.Paris is the fifth Assault map to hit the game. It's set in the titular French city and features narrow streets, corridors, and storefronts to funnel players into firefights. It also encompasses a variety of areas, most notably the Cabaret Luna, the Pâtisserie Galand, and the sprawling Maison Marat located in the heart of the city.The Paris map made its debut in Overwatch earlier this month on the PC test servers, but this marks the first time it is available on all platforms. If you want to take a closer look at it before hopping in, you can watch us play a round on the new map in the video above.In addition to Paris, the new Overwatch patch implements a long list of general and character-specific bug fixes across platforms. Among other things, Blizzard has patched out a bug that allowed Symmetra's teleporter to reach "unintended" areas, as well as one that prevented an enemy from being hit by Reinhardt's Earthshatter if they were pinned by his charge. You can find the full patch notes on Blizzard's website.Overwatch's annual Lunar New Year event recently wrapped up on February 18, and as usual, it introduced a variety of seasonal skins. Blizzard also made some big buffs and nerfs to certain characters as part of that update, notably Brigitte and D.Va; the former's Rally was capped at a maximum duration of 30 seconds, while the latter's Defense Matrix cooldown was increased from 1 second to 2 seconds.Info from Gamespot.com

Respawn Entertainment has revealed that a brand new gun will be added to its popular battle royale title, Apex Legends. The announcement was short and sweet, with a video of the rifle in question being posted to the official Apex Legends Twitter account. The video has a glitching effect going on, so it's difficult to get a really good look at it, but it seems like the weapon can be fired like an automatic rifle and will have an alternate fire that lets the player charge a shot. Take a look at the video for yourself below. [Update: The new gun, Havoc is now live in-game, and we've gotten an even better look at it with the first full trailer. It shows the weapon has some unique properties to it.]Get ready to cry havoc—a new gun is coming to King's Canyon pic.twitter.com/w8LNa2GDWn — Apex Legends (@PlayApex) February 19, 2019Respawn hasn't said exactly when the new weapon will be added to Apex Legends, only that it'll be available tomorrow (February 20). Of course, we'll be at hand to let you know when it's available on PS4, Xbox One, and PC. We'll also take it for a bit of a test run and bring you some video of it in action. Depending on how it performs, we may even add it to our list of best Apex Legends guns.Apex Legends is a free-to-play title that launched on February 4 and has since become incredibly popular. Respawn has revealed that the game hit 25 million players in the first week of availability and had "well over" 2 million peak concurrent players at one point. The game is set in the Titanfall universe, and although it doesn't have the iconic giant mechs or the ability to parkour around environments, it retains Titanfall's frenetic, satisfying gameplay style.Apex Legends also takes a page out of Overwatch's book and features a diverse cast of characters that each have unique abilities. This is what gives Respawn's take on the battle royale genre its own unique flavor.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

Niantic has announced a new Limited Research event for Pokemon Go. Much like a Community Day, the event will run for three hours this coming Saturday, February 23, and it'll give players their first opportunity to catch a never-before-available Pokemon: Clamperl.During the Limited Research event, players will be able to receive special Field Research tasks by spinning the Photo Disc at PokeStops. Other Water Pokemon, such as Krabby and Wailmer, will also appear more frequently throughout the event, and players will be rewarded with twice the normal amount of Stardust for every Water-type they catch.Just as during the first Limited Research event, you'll be able to complete the special Field Research tasks you collect any time, even after the event ends, but they'll only be distributed during the designated hours. Completing these tasks will end in an encounter with Clamperl, one of the last remaining Gen 3 Pokemon yet to appear in Go.Clamperl has two possible evolutions: Huntail and Gorebyss. In the mainline games, the Pokemon will evolve into one of the two forms depending on what item it is holding when traded; in Go, however, Niantic says you won't know which form it'll turn into until it evolves, so you'll want to capture as many as possible during the event to ensure you get both evolutions. You can find the event hours for each region below.A special Meltan event is also currently underway in Pokemon Go. Until March 4, you'll have a chance of encountering a Shiny Meltan when you open the Mystery Box. On top of that, the time you need to wait to re-open the box has been shortened by three days.Pokemon Go February Limited Research ScheduleThe Americas and Greenland11 AM - 2 PM PT2 PM - 5 PM ETEurope, Middle East, and Africa10 AM - 1 PM UTCAsia-Pacific12 PM - 3 PM JST (February 24)Info from Gamespot.com

Cities: Skylines publisher Paradox Interactive has announced it is partnering with Microsoft to bring its opening modding platform, Paradox Mods, to Xbox One. Beginning today, February 20, players will be able to download and play mods for select Paradox titles on Microsoft's console.Through this partnership, mod creators can now easily distribute their mods across PC and Xbox One "with a single upload" using either GOG or the Paradox Launcher."Modding has been, and remains an important part of the Paradox community," Paradox Mods product owner Andres Törlind said. "As we have diversified the way we distribute our games, we want to make sure all our players can take part in the creation process."The first game to receive mod support is Surviving Mars, a 2018 simulator that tasks players with building and sustaining a colony on the red planet. More than 30 mods are now available for the title. These can be accessed by logging into your Paradox Account on the game's title screen, then selecting the Mod Manager option at the bottom of the screen. Additionally, the Xbox One version of the game has been updated to allow mouse and keyboard supportWhile Surviving Mars is currently the only Xbox One title to take advantage of this new feature, Paradox says that mod support for other titles "is planned to come later this year." You can take a look at some of the mods that are available through the platform on Paradox's website.Info from Gamespot.com

Anthem is BioWare's latest game, but fans of the studio's massive RPGs like Mass Effect and Dragon Age will find a very different experience waiting for them. Anthem is a loot shooter, more akin to Destiny or The Division, consisting of a campaign followed by an extensive post-game with bigger and better rewards to collect and more difficult bosses to take on.Anthem differentiates itself from the competition with extensive use of a flying mechanic, letting you zoom above the battlefield like Iron Man. It also lets you swap between classes more easily, as your character is a pilot called a "Freelancer" who can take the controls of the various suit types at will.So far Anthem has only been released in early access on PC and Xbox One, through EA's various membership programs. Many of the reviews published thus far are early impressions without scores. Still, a consensus seems to be forming that while flying through the battlefield is enjoyable, the story is lackluster--especially compared to BioWare's best--and many say the game feels unfinished in its current state. Read on for impressions from around the industry, and check out GameSpot sister site Metacritic for more details.GameSpot -- No Score (In Progress)"I'm currently treating Anthem's disparate missions as an excuse to try a new weapon or special attack, which, combined with flight, gives me incentive to keep going. I'm hoping that I get more out of the story as I go on, but so far it's too generic to get its hooks in me. I'll keep playing on PC--I've luckily only been kicked due to server issues twice--so look out for the full review in the next few days." -- Kallie Plagge [Full review]Destructoid -- 7/10"I wish some things were different but I find myself wanting to play Anthem beyond the scope of this review. It isn't changing the way the genre operates, not by a long shot, and if you've struggled with a few of them before and tossed them in the gutter, you'll probably do the same here. BioWare will need to build quickly on top of its shimmering jet-fueled foundation to hold people's interest, but folks looking for a new neighborhood to move into might want to give Anthem a try--either now or after fixes and updates." -- Chris Carter [Full review]Ars Technica -- No Score"This game is freaking rad at its best, but it's just not done. It's not fun to have sessions with friends so constantly interrupted. It's not fun to keep quitting out of the main map just to check my loot and quest beats. It's not fun to fight these boring bad guys in these boring missions, again and again and again. It's not fun to feel confused by a lack of information all over the place. Anthem has flashes of being a really good game, but what's the point if it's not fun?" -- Sam Machkovech [Full review]Polygon -- No Score"BioWare has already done a lot of the hard work. A satisfying core gameplay loop is difficult to create, but the studio has managed it. Playing makes me feel like a true sci-fi superhero, 10 seconds at a time. But in order for Anthem to survive, BioWare will need to clarify its identity and prioritize the right elements of it. I’d love for the story, the interface, the experience of playing Anthem to service that loop, rather than fight it. I’d love for unique quests and activities to not just keep me occupied, but give me something to strive for. Playing Anthem, I can sense where this game is going. I just worry about how long it will take to get there." -- Russ Frushtick [Full review]GamesRadar -- No Score (In Progress)"But there's nowhere near enough of the stuff that makes BioWare games distinctly BioWare. That's the content that Anthem needs sooner rather than later because, at the moment, it's existing solely in the shadow of Destiny. Not Destiny 2, which has steadily grown and evolved with the community, mind – but the Destiny of five years ago. Anthem is designed to grow and evolve over time, but unless that happens sooner rather than later it'll be dead on arrival." -- Sam Loveridge [Full review]USGamer -- No Score (In Progress)"It's a beautiful game where the movement is unique and freeing. The story is throwing a lot at the players and some of the characters feel like living mannequins, but there are standouts as well. And the overall mission loop feels like it has too many operations and too much downtime. It feels like the first Destiny: it's an intriguing start, but there are several problems that need to be ironed out. What's frustrating is that many of these problems have already been solved by other MMOs. It's baffling to me that Anthem seems to be starting from scratch, even if I'm sure BioWare is going to do whatever it takes to improve post-launch." -- Mike Williams [Full review]Info from Gamespot.com

Microsoft previously announced its slate of Xbox Game Pass offerings for February, but more than halfway through the month the company has now announced even more coming before the month ends. This new batch includes a cute game starring Mickey Mouse, another chapter of Telltale's The Walking Dead, and more.First, on February 21, the service will add Headlander, the Metroidvania from Double Fine starring a disembodied head, along with Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two, the sequel to Epic Mickey with co-op play between Mickey and his erstwhile rival Oswald. As previously announced, February 21 will also bring Batman: Return to Arkham, remastered versions of the first two Arkham games.Then on February 28, you can play the second season of The Walking Dead, along with Alien: Isolation. The first one continues Clementine's story after the events of the first season, which joined Game Pass on February 7. The second is a a creepy survival thriller as an alien stalks you aboard a space station.Other games added to the service this month include Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Pumped BMX Pro, De Blob, and Crackdown 3.Xbox Game Pass offers all-you-can-eat gaming from a selection of titles for $10 per month. The company offers all first-party games on the day of release, which is why Crackdown 3 is included for February. As a subscription service the games are playable as long as you're a subscriber. Separately, Microsoft offers Games with Gold for Xbox Live Gold subscribers, which grant a few games every month.Info from Gamespot.com

Netflix has a whole slew of new movies, TV series, and originals coming to its service for the month of March. From classic movies you've seen a thousand times and want to watch again to brand-new movies and series produced by Netflix, and there are plenty of those.Hitting the service on March 1, Stanley Kubrick's classic A Clockwork Orange arrives. The film centers on the leader of an ultra-violent gang who undergoes behavior modification experiments, which doesn't go as planned. Also arriving to Netflix that day is the Ron Howard film Apollo 13. Starring Tom Hanks, the movie centers around the real-life story of the Apollo 13 space flight, which had a disaster mid-flight, and the astronauts and NASA searched for a way to get everyone home safely.As you'll see, there are a lot of new Netflix originals for March, and there are a few of note you might be interested in. On March 15, there is a new round of Arrested Development episodes coming, and the third season of Queer Eye arrives that day as well. Mark your calendars for March 22, when The Dirt comes to Netflix. The movie is a dramatization of an autobiography about the '80s rock band Mötley Crüe. If you know anything about the band's antics off stage, you'll want to check this one out as their stories are legendary.It's not all good news though. There are plenty of movies and TV series leaving the streaming service in March as well. On March 31, all five seasons of The Real Ghostbusters will fade away, so get your animated fix of Slimer while you still can. And on March 1, both Ghostbusters and Ghostbusters II will be leaving as well. It's almost like Netflix hates people who bust ghosts.Below, you'll find everything coming to Netflix in March and leaving the service as well. For more streaming service stuff, check out what's hitting Amazon Prime Video next month.Coming in MarchOn My Block: Season 2-- NETFLIX ORIGINAL (Date not listed)Avail. 3/1/19A Clockwork OrangeApollo 13Budapest (FR)-- NETFLIX FILMCricket Fever: Mumbai Indians-- NETFLIX ORIGINALCrouching Tiger, Hidden DragonDisney's Saving Mr. BanksEmmaJunebugLarva Island: Season 2-- NETFLIX ORIGINALLosers-- NETFLIX ORIGINALMusic and LyricsNick and Norah's Infinite PlaylistNorthern Rescue-- NETFLIX ORIGINALRiver's Edge (JP)-- NETFLIX FILMStuart LittleSweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet StreetThe Boy Who Harnessed the Wind-- NETFLIX FILMThe Hurt LockerThe NotebookTysonWet Hot American SummerWinter's BoneYour Son (ES)-- NETFLIX FILMAvail. 3/2/19Romance is a Bonus Book (Korea) (Streaming Every Saturday)-- NETFLIX ORIGINALAvail. 3/3/19Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj: Volume 2 (Streaming Every Sunday)-- NETFLIX ORIGINALAvail. 3/5/19Disney's Christopher RobinAvail. 3/6/19Secret City: Under the Eagle: Season 2-- NETFLIX ORIGINALAvail. 3/7/19DoubtThe Order-- NETFLIX ORIGINALAvail. 3/8/19After Life-- NETFLIX ORIGINALBangkok Love Stories: Hey You!-- NETFLIX ORIGINALBangkok Love Stories: Innocence-- NETFLIX ORIGINALBlue JasmineFormula 1: Drive to Survive-- NETFLIX ORIGINALHunter X Hunter (2011): Seasons 1-3Immortals-- NETFLIX ORIGINALJuanita-- NETFLIX FILMLady J (FR)-- NETFLIX FILMShadow-- NETFLIX ORIGINALSpy Kids 2: The Island of Lost DreamsThe Jane Austen Book ClubWalk. Ride. Rodeo.-- NETFLIX FILMAvail. 3/12/19Jimmy Carr: The Best of Ultimate Gold Greatest Hits-- NETFLIX ORIGINALTerrace House: Opening New Doors: Part 6-- NETFLIX ORIGINALAvail. 3/13/19Triple Frontier-- NETFLIX FILMAvail. 3/15/19A SeparationArrested Development: Season 5 B-- NETFLIX ORIGINALBurn Out (FR)-- NETFLIX FILMDry Martina (AR)-- NETFLIX FILMGirl (BE)-- NETFLIX FILMIf I Hadn't Met You-- NETFLIX ORIGINALKung Fu HustleLas muñecas de la mafia: Season 2-- NETFLIX ORIGINALLove, Death & Robots-- NETFLIX ORIGINALPaskal (MY)-- NETFLIX FILMQueer Eye: Season 3-- NETFLIX ORIGINALRobozuna: Season 2-- NETFLIX ORIGINALThe Lives of OthersTurn Up Charlie-- NETFLIX ORIGINALYooHoo to the Rescue-- NETFLIX ORIGINALAvail. 3/16/19Green Door-- NETFLIX ORIGINALAvail. 3/19/19Amy Schumer Growing-- NETFLIX ORIGINALAvail. 3/21/19Antoine Griezmann: The Making of a Legend-- NETFLIX ORIGINALAvail. 3/22/19Carlo & Malik-- NETFLIX ORIGINALCharlie's Colorforms City-- NETFLIX ORIGINALDelhi Crime-- NETFLIX ORIGINALHistoria de un crimen: Colosio-- NETFLIX ORIGINALMirage (ES)-- NETFLIX FILMMost Beautiful Thing-- NETFLIX ORIGINALReMastered: The Miami Showband Massacre-- NETFLIX ORIGINALSelling Sunset-- NETFLIX ORIGINALThe Dirt-- NETFLIX FILMAvail. 3/26/19Nate Bargatze: The Tennessee Kid-- NETFLIX ORIGINALAvail. 3/28/19Ainori Love Wagon: Asian Journey: Season 2-- NETFLIX ORIGINALAvail. 3/29/1915 August (IN)-- NETFLIX FILMBayoneta (MX)-- NETFLIX FILMOsmosis-- NETFLIX ORIGINALSanta Clarita Diet: Season 3-- NETFLIX ORIGINALThe Highwaymen-- NETFLIX FILMThe Legend of Cocaine Island-- NETFLIX ORIGINALTraitors-- NETFLIX ORIGINALTucker and Dale vs. EvilAvail. 3/30/19How to Get Away with Murder: Season 5Avail. 3/31/19El sabor de las margaritas-- NETFLIX ORIGINALThe Burial of KojoTrailer Park Boys: The Animated Series-- NETFLIX ORIGINALLeaving Netflix In MarchLeaving 3/1/19Bruce AlmightyFair Game - Director's CutGhostbustersGhostbusters 2HostagePearl HarborThe Breakfast ClubThe Cider House RulesThe GiftThe Little RascalsUnited 93Leaving 3/2/19Law & Order: Special Victims Unit: The Eighteenth YearLeaving 3/3/19Drop Dead Diva: Seasons 1-6Leaving 3/4/19Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's EndLeaving 3/5/19Newsies: The Broadway MusicalLeaving 3/8/19ClickLeaving 3/16/19Baby MamaCharlie St. CloudRole ModelsLeaving 3/18/19Disney’s Beauty and the BeastLeaving 3/31/19Party of Five: Seasons 1-6The Real Ghostbusters: Seasons 1-5Info from Gamespot.com