You may have read a lot about Assassin's Creed Odyssey leading up to its release on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. The new open-world game has finally arrived, and below, we've rounded up all of the essential information about the series' latest entry in one place. We'll run down many of Odyssey's broader features and go through the basics of what you should know before jumping in. Everything from story to combat tips are outlined below, along with links to more detailed guides if you wish to dig deeper. Note that there are no major story spoilers in this article.Table of Contents [hide]When And Where Is Odyssey Set?Catch Up On Assassin's Creed LoreHow Long Is Odyssey?Fighting With StyleSetting Sail In The MediterraneanPlay Your PartDifferent Versions, Special Editions, And DLCPC Minimum And Recommended SpecsReviewAll Our Assassin's Creed Odyssey CoverageWhen And Where Is Odyssey Set?You're probably aware that Assassin's Creed Odyssey takes place in Ancient Greece, but it specifically covers the Peloponnesian War fought between Athens and Sparta. The game opens with a 300-esque battle scene where you take control of King Leonidas of Sparta during the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BCE, then transitions to the start of the main protagonist's story almost 50 years later in 431 BCE.Greece makes for some breathtaking views.If you've followed Odyssey since it was first revealed at E3 2018, then you'll know that you can choose between taking on the role of a female or male lead; Kassandra and Alexios are two sides of the same coin and play exactly the same--the main differences are, of course, the voice acting and character model. Your choice also affects the narrative slightly; whoever you choose to play as is made to be the older sibling of the two. You come from Spartan lineage, but the game doesn't force you into aligning with either side of the war since you're a mercenary trying uncover the truth of your family's disappearance.Prominent Greek figures like Socrates and Hippocrates make appearances throughout Odyssey, and you can interact with them as they offer side quests of their own. While historical fiction has always been the foundation of Assassin's Creed lore, it's never been afraid to incorporate the supernatural. Odyssey takes it a step further by pitting you against mythology itself; one example is a fight against Medusa where you try to avoid getting turned into stone.Catch Up On Assassin's Creed LoreThis is a long-running franchise, but Odyssey can be a good point to jump into the series. Knowledge of previous events isn't necessarily required to enjoy the new game. However, if you need a refresher on the everything that have taken place up to this point, be sure to read our Assassin's Creed story summary.How Long Is Odyssey?It shouldn't come as a surprise that Assassin's Creed Odyssey is huge--its open world is about twice as big as Origins. That may not seem as daunting when you consider the fact that the Mediterranean Sea makes up a large portion of the map and that you'll spend plenty of time sailing the high seas. Regardless, there's still a great deal of ground to cover throughout Greece's mainland and several islands.As for game length, it's difficult to get an accurate range since every player will engage in a varying number of optional quests and activities along the way. Estimates have been around 50 hours to complete the main story and a decent chunk of side activities. GameSpot editor Alessandro Fillari spent 60 hours with the game for the purposes of his review, and there remain more optional content for him to take part in.New to the franchise is Exploration Mode. Instead of having waypoints and objective markers littered on screen in the traditional Guided Mode, Exploration Mode puts the onus on you to figure out where to go to complete quests. This means you'll have to pay closer attention to NPC dialogue and investigate the environment more closely.This is especially true if you take on the optional quest to hunt down a cultist organization. They're a web of mysterious figures with hidden identities scattered throughout Greece and you'll need to do investigative work to locate and assassinate them. Sometimes, you'll happen to take them down in the midst of a side mission that they're involved in, but you'll often have to dig for clues on their whereabouts whether or not you've activated Exploration mode.Fighting With StyleOdyssey builds off of Origins' combat system, but it introduces some key changes. Shields are no longer an option, which naturally pushes fights towards a faster pace. The skill tree remains divided in three categories attributed to specific playstyles (Hunter, Warrior, and Assassin), but it features some neat new abilities. You may think the Spartan Kick is in the game just for kicks and giggles until you realize that it's super effective for booting enemies off cliffs or creating space in fights. Another setting-appropriate ability is the Rush Assassination that lets you put the Spear of Leonidas to use during long-distance stealth kills.The skill tree includes several abilities that allow you to tinker with different character builds.In addition to multiple types of melee weapons (like polearms, swords, and maces), you have a bow that's both useful for attacking long-range and inflicting status effects on enemies. The Arrow Master skill unlocks arrows that can poison, paralyze, or explode on impact, opening up numerous possibilities in combat; combine that with Devastating Shot and your projectiles will be even stronger. The skill tree can be overwhelming at first, but we have a few tips on some good abilities to pick up early and how to use them in clever ways.Don't worry about min-maxing in the skill tree; you can respec at any time for small cost. This affords you the opportunity to experiment with different combat approaches and character builds.Setting Sail In The MediterraneanWith multiple islands scattered across Greece, great emphasis is placed on sailing and ship combat in Odyssey, essentially taking a page out of Black Flag's book. Engaging with hostile ships will have you firing arrow barrages, tossing waves of javelins, or using the naval ram to inflict damage. Once an enemy ship's health is depleted, you can either sink it for a small reward or board it with your crew to get better loot. If you board the ship, you'll have to get your hands dirty and fight the opposing crew.Enemy ships vary in size, health, and strength, so be sure to know what you're up against before engaging. Throughout Odyssey, you'll upgrade your ship and recruit shipmates from quests or smooth dialogue interactions. Different crew members offer specific bonuses and attributes for your ship.Play Your PartOdyssey doubles down on RPG elements. There's leveling up, skill trees, gear scores, and numerous optional quests, which was implemented in Origins, but the series dips its toes into branching story threads for the first time. Dialogue trees permeate character interactions and you'll face consequences for your actions whether they be good or bad. The way you decide to complete some quests will affect the resulting narrative and can also spill into the details of other quest-lines; don't be surprised if there are unforeseen consequences and collateral damage.With branching dialogue comes romance options. You're free to romance as many of the available characters as you want, and the circumstances for which you can romance them may change based on other decisions. Most often, these partners will become part of your ship's crew, which may be a bit of an unceremonious conclusion for love interests. However, these scenarios can play out strangely, and you can see for yourself how romance can feel awkward or forced.By nature of being an RPG that deals with choice and consequence, there are multiple endings in Assassin's Creed Odyssey; nine to be specific. Unfortunately, you'll be hard-pressed to see them all in one playthrough since key decisions early in the game will affect the possible endings open to you.You now have more agency in how the story plays out thanks to branching dialogue and quest decisions.Different Versions, Special Editions, And DLCAssassin's Creed Odyssey is out soon, but you can still snag the pre-order bonuses offered. Pre-ordering from the Ubisoft Store grants you access to the Blind King mission, Best Buy gifts you a $10 rewards certificate, and GameStop includes the Blind King mission and a Spartan helmet keychain. Aside from the standard edition of the game, there's a Deluxe edition ($80) that includes an XP and drachmae (in-game money) boost, the Kronos and Herald of Dusk gear pack, and the Capricornus naval pack. The Gold edition ($110) packs the DLC season pass, Secrets of Greece and Blind King bonus missions, and lets you start playing now. The Ultimate edition ($120) includes all the aforementioned content from both the Deluxe and Gold editions. There are few other special editions with collector's statues that you check out in our pre-order guide.PC Minimum And Recommended SpecsFor the PC players out there, make sure your system is powerful enough to run the game properly. If you're aiming for 4K resolution with High settings, Ubisoft recommends a system with at least an AMD Ryzen 1700X or Intel Core i7-7700 CPU, AMD Vega 64 or Nvidia GTX 1080 video card, and 16GB of RAM. For those not doing 4K, be sure to read up on the minimum and recommended PC specs to run AC Odyssey smoothly.ReviewYou can read or watch our review of Assassin's Creed Odyssey right now; editor Alessandro Fillari concluded: "Assassin's Creed Odyssey's ambition is admirable, which is reflected in its rich attention to detail for the era and its approach to handling the multi-faceted narrative with strong protagonists at the lead. While its large-scale campaign--clocking in at over 50 hours--can occasionally be tiresome, and some features don't quite make the impact they should, Odyssey makes great strides in its massive and dynamic world, and it's a joy to venture out and leave your mark on its ever-changing setting." For perspectives from other critics on the game, you can read through our review roundup.All Our Assassin's Creed Odyssey CoverageGuides And Reviews:Assassin's Creed Odyssey ReviewAssassin's Creed Odyssey Reviews Roundup11 Tips You Should Know Before StartingCombat Tips And The 12 Most Useful AbilitiesFeatures And News:How Long Does This Game Take To Finish?No New Assassin's Creed Game Coming For 2019AC Odyssey Was "Nearly Finished" A Year Ago, Annualization Not PlannedGame Director Talks Story And RPG InspirationsHow Assassin's Creed Odyssey Continues To Transform The SeriesRomance Feels Forced, But Some Of The Dialogue Options Are HilariousAC Odyssey Doesn't Have Multiplayer, But The Franchise Isn't Necessarily Done With ItUbisoft Wants Future Games To Feature Male And Female ProtagonistsAC Odyssey Releasing On Switch In Japan As A Streaming GameAC Odyssey For PC: System Requirements And Recommended SpecsAC Odyssey Is Playable Right Through Google Chrome, If You're ChosenInfo from Gamespot.com

Venom is finally here, and the verdict is in: While critics weren't crazy about the gooey, writhing mess of a movie--including our own review--fans have spoken loudly with their wallets. And Venom is a hit.We already broke down Venom's after credits scenes, plus all the Easter eggs and references you might have missed. And we chatted with Venom director Ruben Fleischer about the challenges of making Venom without Spider-Man.Venom may be kind of a mess, but it turns out the movie's mix of action and comedy, its faithful treatment of the symbiote itself, and Tom Hardy's unique performance were enough to win many fans over. Even if Venom feels like a pre-MCU comic book movie from the early 2000s, that doesn't make it bad.When we spoke with Fleischer, we covered more than just the lack of Spider-Man and that unfortunate plot hole. Read our full Q&A with the director below.I think the coolest thing about the movie is that Venom actually looks and feels like Venom, and I wanted to ask about your approach to the visuals and how you got it there.I really appreciate you saying that, because we worked really hard to make sure that Venom felt like he just leaped off the pages of the comic books. And I think that in deciding to have a fully CG Venom, it freed us up to be able to make him accurate scale and size and mass, and also allowed those incredible transformations, where Eddie becomes Venom. But yeah, it all started with the comics. I went through some of my favorite panels and pulled a bunch of reference and worked with this company called Legendary to design a 3D model of the character. That took some time to get right.You take a 2D image, and then to bring it to life in 3D, you have to make sure it looks right from all angles. But what was important to me were the eyes, the mouth, the tongue, the scale, the mass, the posture. And then once we had a model that we were happy with, then it was Double Negative's job to bring him to life and then to animate him and try and make him look as photo real as we could possibly make him. And I think in that first closeup when you see him, when he first appears with Treece, and he's holding him by the throat, he just looks like he's actually there, which I'm really proud of, which is so cool. But yeah, I really felt a responsibility, especially since we couldn't put the spider on his chest, that we make Venom be as true to the comics as possible despite that fact.Yeah, a lot has been said about the lack of the white spider symbol--it's been discussed to death. But I was wondering if there were any other changes that were considered to the character besides that?That was the only real thing that was a limitation, was the fact that we couldn't feature Spider-Man at all in the movie. So, of course, if there's no Spider-Man, then there wouldn't be any reason to have a spider on his chest. And so, it did take a lot of time to figure out what to put in its place, and we ended up with that veiny white pattern, which I think looks super cool. But yeah, we did a ton of iterations of different designs for what the chest would ultimately look like.That was the most challenging part, because you have something that's so iconic, and anything you put in its place just doesn't look right. So it took a lot of time to find something that was distinctive and subtle, but also, you can't just have a fully black character. There was also a version where he had nothing on his chest, but part of, I think, the reason why the spider is on his chest is because when you have such a big, black character, you need that contrast graphically of the white. And so it works really well, and I think the veins are really cool and distinctive. There's been a Venom spin-off in the works for ages. Had any of the work on this version been done before you started working on it? How much of any previous work got transferred over to this?Yeah, if anything happened, I'm not aware of it. I know even that there were multiple drafts, but I only got involved with the Pinkner and Rosenberg draft, which never had Spider-Man in it. And so, it's not like we had to extract him from it. It was always, from its inception, built as an origin story with a new approach. And I thought of it as an Ultimate version of Venom, like an Ultimate movie version of Venom.What do you think gives Venom staying power as a character, and as a story that has been told since the '90s?For me, Venom represents this forbidden fruit quality, especially for younger kids. This character that can do whatever he wants without repercussions. He's like this unbridled id, that just knows no bounds, and that's the push/pull between he and Eddie, as far as Eddie having to reign him and teach him the rules of our world. But I think for kids, a lot of people would be psyched to have the ability to turn into a giant black monster who can bite people's heads off if he doesn't like them, or throw people through windows, or do whatever else he does. And the fact that he's not a good guy, I think, is exciting. He's at times a villain, he's at times an anti-hero, but he's always a badass. And I think that's really enticing.There were some things in the movie that were surprising to me in the way that Venom talks to Eddie, in the way he's a smartass, he's a tough guy. You know what I mean? In your mind, why does Venom exhibit those personality traits as this alien creature who could really be anything?I think Venom on this planet is very powerful, and so he doesn't like being constrained. He also doesn't have much decorum or respect for polite behavior. But one of his earliest, best lines is in that apartment fight scene, where Eddie's putting his hands up, and Venom's like, "Why are you doing that? You are making us look bad." And Eddie's like, "No, it's the sensible thing to do. If guys are pointing guns at us, of course I'm gonna put my hands up." And Venom's not having any of it. And so, instead of succumbing, he puts people into the ceiling. Yeah, I guess he's got a bit of an ego, and he's not gonna be captured by the likes of these mercs. He's driving Eddie, and Eddie's just having to react to everything that Venom's doing in real time.I love that fight, because it's a fight, but there's also a sense of discovery in it. That's really when Eddie sees Venom for the first time, and it's when he has that thing where he sees the goo coming out of his hands, and he's like, "What is that?" And then he quickly turns and strangles a guy with it. It was an original way to approach a fight, where the main character in it is figuring out a new reality in the midst of the action.I didn't really expect Venom to be as funny as he was. There's a lot of lines where, like, he calls Eddie a "pussy" for not jumping out a window. That was when I started to realize in the audience, "Oh, Venom's the comic relief." Was that always the plan?Yeah, he was always funny on the page, but over the course of editing it, we definitely leaned into those lines, just because they're so fun. But in the comics, I think, Venom's really funny as well. I think that he has always got great lines, and some of them even made their way into the movie. Like that line where he grabs Treece, and he says, "Eyes, lungs, pancreas. So many snacks, so little time." That's taken directly from the comics. So he's always had great one-liners, and I think he has this sarcastic attitude that we tried to embrace for the film. I want to ask, what does Venom see in Eddie that makes him want to betray his whole species and stick around? Is it really just them both being outcasts?Yeah, we had to manufacture that, because obviously in the comics they bond over the fact that they both hate Spider-Man. And so, since we didn't have that as something for them to connect over, we went with the idea that they're kindred spirits, and that Venom sees in Eddie somebody like himself who--on his planet, maybe Venom's a bit of a loser too, and then on our planet he decides he can be a big fish in a small pond. In all honesty, I think we had to ground the relationship in something to justify Venom's betrayal of his own race. And we tried to make it that there was just a real connection between Eddie and Venom, because of their common worldview.There's this element in the comics that Venom is seen as an aberration among his own kind, because he chooses to bond with hosts and not just consume them and then move on. Did you try to get any of that across in the movie?No, but I was grateful that that exists, because it is an explanation for why Venom's different from the other Klyntar. And so we did think that we could embrace [that]. We weren't going away from the comics, and making it clear that Venom chooses humanity over his own people. Riot and the rest of his kind just want to consume our planet. Venom actually embraces us.Was that the ability of Riot's, to be able to go between different hosts at will? Because there was so much stuff with the symbiotes that were in the lab needing to find somebody who was compatible, but then Riot was jumping from person to person.Yeah, you can interpret it however you want, but it's an aspect of symbiotes that they can bond with different hosts, and even Venom himself, in the comics, jumps between different people. And in our movie, he goes between people. But our idea was that Riot was using up the life force of whoever he took, and then he jumped ship when he'd consumed them and then find a new host to carry him further on his journey.I have a plot question that I was just curious about. There's a six month time jump, where Riot is in the market, and then he kills a bunch of people and takes over that woman. And then six months later, the woman is at the airport and it jumps to the little girl. So was Riot just being someone's grandma that whole time? What was Riot doing for that period?Yeah, that's a good question. That's one of our few--hopefully--few logic bumps. But we had to have a passage of time in order to show Eddie's downfall, and that was the one thing that doesn't entirely track. But I like to think that old lady was going around murdering all throughout Malaysia, and she was just having a good old time just shooting shards through different people in Malaysia, but then finally she found her way to an airport and is gonna get to San Francisco.My assumption was maybe Riot was dormant for a period, but I like your version better.Yeah, I mean who's to know? But you're clever in having caught that. I want to know if there was any version of the script, or anything where we got to see what the Venom dog looked like, when it infected the dog in the hospital?I definitely imagined it, and I wish that--it wasn't in the script, but I always had this image when the dog was running through the halls of the hospital, that some lab sound went off, and then he blew up like a pufferfish, like a little Pomeranian/Venom pufferfish. And you just get this beat of like [poof] and then it goes back in. But it was not in our VFX budget to do that.I would have loved to see that.Yeah, maybe in the future, maybe, but that's the great question.So I wanted to ask about Woody as Carnage obviously. How did that come about, and is that something you hope points toward the future?I'll just answer this vaguely, but we tried at the end of our movie to lay the groundwork for a potential sequel, or a further story. And there's a character that's beloved by all Venom fans that does not appear in the body of our film that I think fans will be really excited to see, and especially with the casting. I found somebody who I have a relationship with and love working with. And I love all the characters that he's played. So to imagine him being an iconic adversary to Venom in the future is really exciting.That's actually a good segue to my last question--the zombie movie landscape has evolved a lot since Zombieland came out. So was there any specific thing that you think is going to help Zombieland 2 stand out in today's landscape?I think that the writers, Rhett [Reese] and Paul [Wernick], who wrote the original Zombieland, have always had an ability to have this meta commentary on films, and I think that's been really well exhibited in the Deadpool franchise, which they also wrote. But we are definitely hyper aware that the zombie market is somewhat saturated. But we like to think that we were one of the originators of the genre, and so, we'll be sure to offer commentary on the genre.Cool, looking forward to it! Thanks again Ruben!Venom is in theaters now.Info from Gamespot.com

The follow-up to Rockstar Games' classic western game Red Dead Redemption is fast approaching. Set 12 years before the events of the original game, Red Dead Redemption 2 will explore an expansive region of the American wilderness, with Dutch Van der Linde's gang on the run from lawmen during the last years of the wild west. Experiencing Rockstar's take on the open-world western from a new perspective, you'll uncover the history of the Van Der Linde gang, which has a young John Marston in its thralls.We got the opportunity to play Red Dead Redemption 2, and suffice to say, it's shaping up to be one of the most detailed open world games we've ever played. You can find out more in our preview below where you can read about our experiences completing story missions and exploring the game's world. There's also plenty of details below on the game's narrative and all of its trailers. With its release date of October 26 approaching, we've learned a lot more about the base game, as well as the first details about its Red Dead Online mode coming in November.Table of Contents [hide]Where Is RDR2 Set, And Is It A Prequel?The First RevealWho Are You Playing As?The Second TrailerWho's In Dutch's Gang?The Third TrailerFirst Gameplay TrailerSecond Gameplay TrailerWhat's New In Red Dead Redemption 2?How It Plays: Our In-Depth PreviewHow Will Online Multiplayer Work?How Can I Play RDR2? When Is Its Release Date?PS4 Pro BundleWhere Is RDR2 Set, And Is It A Prequel?Set 12 years before the main events of the original game, the prequel focuses on the outlaw life of the Van der Linde gang, led by Red Dead Redemption's main antagonists. After a robbery in Blackwater (one of the original game's major towns) goes bad--the gang finds themselves on the run. Dutch, his right-hand man Arthur Morgan, and several members of the gang have to contend with a life on-the-run while confrontations with rival gangs and the law make their situation grow more desperate.Rockstar also released a description of the plot:America, 1899. The end of the wild west era has begun as lawmen hunt down the last remaining outlaw gangs. Those who will not surrender or succumb are killed. After a robbery goes badly wrong in the western town of Blackwater, Arthur Morgan and the Van der Linde gang are forced to flee. With federal agents and the best bounty hunters in the nation massing on their heels, the gang must rob, steal and fight their way across the rugged heartland of America in order to survive. As deepening internal divisions threaten to tear the gang apart, Arthur must make a choice between his own ideals and loyalty to the gang who raised him.The First RevealDebuting on October 20, 2016, the first trailer for Red Dead Redemption 2 was a bit of a mood piece that showcased many locales in the game, while also portraying the somber tone of the main narrative. In this trailer, we saw several towns and locales, many of which are teeming with life and activity--such as ranchers rustling up some cattle, huntsmen bringing back their haul, and a group of citizens hanging out in the general store.Who Are You Playing As?Though the central character of Red Dead Redemption, John Marston, plays some role in the story--the main protagonist of the prequel is Arthur Morgan. As Dutch's right-hand man and enforcer for the gang, he'll handle much of the daily duties of keeping the gang in-check--which includes a young and less-experienced John Marston. When it comes to keeping the gang and its community afloat, Morgan is quite handy with picking up various jobs to ensure everyone is well fed and in good spirits. But as the story progresses, he'll begin to question his own resolve for Dutch's way of life, and whether he still has a place in the gang.The Second TrailerOn September 28, 2017, the second trailer for Red Dead Redemption 2 debuted. In the new footage, we got to see more of Arthur Morgan and how ruthless he can be while on the job. During some of the story cutscenes, Morgan will use coercion and physical threats to collect money and information, all for the "benefit" of the community. For more info on this particular trailer, check out our detailed breakdown.Who's In Dutch's Gang?In Red Dead Redemption 2, we'll see Dutch's gang and its key players in their prime. While the original game had John hunt down and kill the remaining members of the gang, we'll see many of the familiar faces in relatively happier times. From the most recent trailer, we see Dutch Van der Linde, Arthur Morgan, Bill Williamson, Javier Esquela, Sadie Adler, Charles Smith, Micah Bell, Hosea Matthews, and of course John Marston in the roster. We'll also interact with other characters who would have a key role in the gang and in the lives of both Arthur Morgan and John Marston.The Third TrailerIn the new footage released on May 2, we saw a deeper look into the game's narrative and how the gang functions. Along with the familiar activities like hunting, heists, and side-quests with the region's citizens, rob trains and banks, and take in shows at theaters. For the most part, the trailer focuses on the many connections you'll have with the members of the gang, as well as how your choices will affect them. For more info on the third trailer, check out our detailed breakdown.First Gameplay TrailerOn August 9, Rockstar unveiled Red Dead Redemption 2's first gameplay trailer. The new footage revealed that the core mechanics from the original game were still intact, but almost everything had received a facelift. Wildlife is smarter and lives within its own ecosystem. Arthur Morgan can interact with the people around him in ways John Marston never could.Second Gameplay TrailerOn October 2, Rockstar finally showcased the second round of gameplay footage it promised. It dives more deeply into the game's side-activities, as well as the nature of the world and its varying systems. In addition, there's an in-depth look at how the sequel's dead eye system works.What's New In Red Dead Redemption 2?While the sequel is largely in the same vein as its predecessor, focusing on exploration, hunting, shoot-outs, heists, and other side-activities where you'll interact with a number of unique characters--Red Dead Redemption 2 features a far more expansive world to dive into. There are a ton of new mechanics in Red Dead Redemption 2. Below you can find a bulleted list of many of the new features in the game, but for all the details on everything new, check out our comprehensive list of all the new features we've discovered so far.You can play the whole game in first-personYou can disable the HUDA new cinematic camera is utilized during missions where you're traveling across the world during missionsYou can inspect nearly all items in the worldYour weapons are always visible on your personThere's a killcam that changes depending on your honorYou can break enemy weaponsDead Eye has five levels nowYour guns can degrade and jamYou need to maintain and clean Arthur or else you'll get dirty and disgust people around youYou can gain and lose weightHow It Plays: Our In-Depth PreviewWe recently got a hands-on with a near final-build of Red Dead Redemption 2. It plays much like its predecessor, but with a bevy of new features and systems that enhance its storytelling, combat, and overall progression. We got to experience two story missions, as well as a chance to goof around freely in the open world. There's a lot to unpack about how the upcoming sequel looks and feels, so be sure to read our in-depth preview detailing our impressions about how it plays.How Will Online Multiplayer Work?Currently, Rockstar hasn't shared any info on how the online play will function. The original Red Dead Redemption featured online free-for-all and team deathmatch style gameplay in the open world, along with several co-op themed missions. While it's safe to assume that these sorts of missions will return, another long-lingering rumor is the appearance of a battle royale mode. Rockstar has recently confirmed that a public beta for the online mode is scheduled for a month after the game's launch.How Can I Play RDR2? When Is Its Release Date?Red Dead Redemption 2 is set for release on October 26 for PS4 and Xbox One. There are also plans for a collector's edition of the game called the Special Edition. Priced at $80, the package includes a copy of the game along with special missions, weapons and a physical map of the game world for players to own. There are also two additional packs for Red Dead Redemption 2 for premium prices, The Ultimate Edition and The Collector's Box--both priced at $100. While The Ultimate Edition has all items from the special edition--including additional DLC items to acquire--The Collector's Box does not include any digital items. Instead, it offers special playing cards, artwork, a bandit's bandana, a physical map of the game world, and a collector's coin in the set.It's worth noting that the PS4 version will have special content that's exclusive to that version for 30 days. There is still no word as to what the PlayStation-exclusive content is, but now we know it's for Red Dead Online and that Xbox One owners will have to wait to check it out.Though the original Red Dead Redemption never found its way to the PC, there's been some rumors that its sequel might. A mention of Red Dead Redemption 2's appearance on PC found its way online, but it has since been scrubbed.PS4 Pro BundleAlthough the system itself doesn't sport a unique design, there will be a Red Dead Redemption 2 PS4 Pro bundle. Priced at $400 in the US, you're essentially getting a copy of the game for free. However, this doesn't include any of the aforementioned special editions; it's just a standard edition version of the game. The bundle is available for pre-order now.Info from Gamespot.com

Epic Games has launched patch 6.02 for Fortnite on PC, Xbox One, PS4, Nintendo Switch, and mobile. The update introduces a funky new Limited-Time Mode centered around dancing and a powerful weapon for Battle Royale, while Save The World gets a special new weapon too. [Update: Epic has deployed a hotfix update for Disco Domination mode, increasing the score teams need to meet to win and decreasing the rate at which the storm circle closes in on the island.]The new Limited-Time Mode for Battle Royale is Disco Domination, which was recently teased in-game. This mode is effectively King is the Hill; players are divided into two teams of 32 and will need to capture specific points--in this case, dance floors--by dancing on them and defending them from enemies. The more friendly players dancing on a floor, the faster it will be captured.Once your team manages to capture a floor, it will begin filling your team's "dance bar" until either an enemy interrupts or the current storm timer elapses and the storm starts moving. The first team able to fill their dance bar to 100% will be the winner. You can find more details on the mode in the patch notes below.The new Quad Rocket Launcher, meanwhile, fires four rockets in quick succession. It is available in Epic and Legendary variants, details of which you can also find in the full patch notes below, courtesy of Epic. Along with the full patch notes for the Battle Royale changes, there's a video of the Quad Launcher in action. Head to the Fortnite website to see what's new with Save The World.Meanwhile, Epic has launched Fortnite for Android to all users, so you no longer need a beta invite in order to download it. Week 3 challenges are also now live, the most complex of which involves completing timed trials scattered around the map.Limited Time Mode: Disco DominationSummaryIt's time for the ultimate dance-off. Dance Floors have spawned around the Battle Royale island. Take them over by clearing out any enemies and then dancing to raise a disco ball up from the floor. The team that fills their meter the fastest by capturing and defending the dance floors will win the match!Mode DetailsTwo teams of fifty players.Respawning will be turned on until the third (last) storm circle.Five dance floors will appear on the map whenever the storm is not moving.Emoting on a dance floor when no enemies are present will raise a disco ball in the center of the floor, and capture it for your team. The more friendly players dancing on a floor, the faster it will be captured.Once a floor is captured, it will begin filling the team's "dance bar" on the HUD, until either an enemy stands on it or the current storm timer ends and the storm begins to move. The first team to fill their dance bar to 100% will win the match.The dance floors in the later stages of the match fill the bar more quickly, so don't give up if your team is behind!It is not possible to build on or over the dance floors, but they can be protected by surrounding them with a fort.Glider redeploy is activated in this mode, press jump while falling to use your glider.This mode uses 50v50 levels of loot and resources.Weapons + ItemsQuad Launcher Fire up to four lobbed rockets in quick succession.Available in Epic and Legendary variants. 80/84 base damage per rocket.300 unit explosion radius.Can be found in chests, Supply Drops, and Vending Machines.The Port-a-Fortress has returned and can be looted in-game. Port-a-Fortress availability lowered from 2.43% to 1.83%.Loot drop rate adjustments Decreased common Pistol drop chance from 5.8% to 5.47%Increased Epic Bolt-Action Sniper Rifle drop chance from 0.33% to 0.42%Decreased Rare Semi-Auto Sniper Rifle drop chance from 0.92% to 0.71%Increased Epic Heavy Sniper Rifle drop chance from 0.33% to 0.4%Increased Legendary Heavy Sniper Rifle drop chance from 0.07% to 0.13%Decreased Rare Grenade Launcher drop chance from 1.45% to 0.99%Increased Epic Rocket Launcher drop chance from 0.59% to 0.66%Increased Legendary Rocket Launcher drop chance from 0.08% to 0.21%Increased Epic Guided Missile drop chance from 0.11% to 0.2%Increased Legendary Guided Missile drop chance from 0.03% to 0.05%​​​​GameplayBug FixesRemoved a change that was inadvertently introduced in v6.01 which caused Bonesy to bark more than was intended.Fixed an issue that caused moving circles to be closer to the previous safezone than intended.PerformanceFixed some hitches on Switch caused by blocking loads of UI data.Increased the texture pool size on Xbox One, which should avoid some issues with blurry textures and improve rendering performance.Art + AnimationSkull Trooper styles have a visual issue when viewing the Outfit from the Locker. The Outfit still appears properly in-game.This issue will be fixed next patch.For those that haven't jumped into the world of Fortnite, Epic Games has partnered with Warner Bros. for a physical edition of Fortnite. Deep Freeze Bundle will hit the US on November 13 for $30 and the UK on November 16 for £25. You can find out what's included here.This week will also have more Fortnite challenges to complete, but before they arrive make you can get a little help getting Week 2's challenges done using our guides. The big challenge that will require you to do a little extra leg work involves visiting corrupted areas. Completing these challenges level up your Battle Pass and unlock cosmetics rewards. You can see everything available to acquire in our Season 6 rewards gallery. For help completing other challenges, be sure to check out our full Season 6 challenge roundup.Info from Gamespot.com

With Halloween looming, the launch of Destiny 2's Festival of the Lost event is drawing near. Bungie had previously only offered a small tease of what to expect, but it's now provided an overview of the new types of activities that await players, as well as a look at the Halloween-themed rewards that will be available during the event.Perhaps the most significant component of Festival of the Lost is something called the Haunted Forest. Either solo or with a team, players will be able to venture inside to defeat its "ghouls and demons, who are spooking up a storm." There will be a 15-minute time limit to contend with, and the area will get more difficult as you make it further inside.Toward the end of the event, there will also be a questline to investigate the killing of Master Ives, a cryptarch previously located in the Vestian Outpost. As you work to uncover the truth, you'll be able to earn a piece of Powerful gear, but this won't begin until the weekly reset on October 30.Amanda Holliday, the shipwright at the Tower, has been charged with leading the general festivities during Festival of the Lost. The Tower will be adorned with spooky decorations, and she'll offer daily bounties that pay out a new type of item called Fragmented Souls. These can be cashed in for Festival of the Lost masks and a new Legendary auto rifle called Horror Story. There will also be new Triumphs to work toward completing, presumably related to all of the aforementioned activities.As with the Solstice of Heroes event back in August, filling your XP bar (if you've reached the level cap) during the event will be particularly valuable. You'll still receive the standard Bright Engram but also get an Ephemeral Engram, which includes new rewards. Those include a guitar emote and a new dance, both of which you can see here, as well as new Ghosts, ships, and a sparrow, which are all pictured above. Ephemeral Engrams will be sold by Tess at Eververse, who will also have a selection of these new items for direct sale in exchange for Bright Dust.Festival of the Lost begins next Tuesday, October 16, the same day that the first of two big updates arrives for Destiny 2. The event concludes on November 6. It does not require owning Forsaken to take part in.Info from Gamespot.com

Ever since Bethesda announced its newest game in the Fallout series, it's been difficult to get a sense of what Fallout 76--an online-only RPG--is all about. While the concept of an online Fallout experience is enticing, it also comes into conflict with the series' typical brand of role-playing. Though Fallout 76 does lessen those traditionally single-player details to a noticeable degree, it offers up an alluring opportunity to explore uncharted, irradiated territory with other players online.With the pivot to multiplayer, Fallout 76 focuses a lot more on exploration and survival in West Virginia's Appalachia, with all its regional oddities and newfound horrors coming in large doses. Recently, we played three hours of the game ahead of the game's upcoming October beta, and spoke with developers from Bethesda Game Studios about the particular challenges of making a different kind of Fallout.Set only 25 years after the bombs dropped--making it the earliest game in the series' timeline--Fallout 76 gives itself plenty of distance from previous games to show off the freshly devastated wilderness. In traditional fashion, you leave the safe confines of the Vault to venture out into the wasteland--bringing with you a sense of determination, and also the naïveté that can come from living in somewhat comfortable isolation. After a quick introduction, you create your character, get accustomed to the new controls and systems, and venture out to the surface. However, what sets this game apart from the others is that you're one of many survivors. And once you're outside, it's every Vault Dweller for themselves.During the first hour, I got my bearings by taking a tour around the immediate area, even joining a group to take in all the sights. Fallout 76 has the familiar RPG mechanics and sense of exploration that the series is known for, but it also has more of an amusement park vibe--with several key attractions and locales clearly highlighted on the map, such as The Greenbrier Resort and the Top of the World ski-slope. While exploring Fallout's take on West Virginia, which is several times larger than the Commonwealth of Fallout 4, I got the feeling that I was sort of experiencing the greatest hits of all things Fallout. First came the familiar weapons and armor found from previous games, then came the feral ghouls, the Super Mutants, and references to the Brotherhood of Steel and Enclave.Still, the new location in West Virginia feels totally different from Fallout 4's Capital Wasteland and the Mojave from New Vegas, which quickly introduces its own brand of locales and strange monsters that reside there. Along with weird monsters like enlarged ticks, three-headed possums, and even Mole Men, there are other monsters that reference West Virginian urban legends. This includes the headless, hulking Grafton Monster and the enigmatic Mothman, the latter of which is revered by the hostile cabal of Scorched, heavily irradiated humans who eventually evolve into ghouls of sound mind.For the most part, combat and general movement handle similarly to Fallout 4. However, the new mechanics and survival systems at play felt somewhat overwhelming to get a handle during our introduction. In 76, much of the tutorial happens in a trial by fire scenario in the open world, where you'll have to follow the early moments of the quests closely in order to learn the new mechanics, all while fighting off enemies and scavenging resources. While I appreciated the quick pace at which players are whisked out of the vault, picking up some meager supplies along the way, I felt that the on-boarding process could be a bit more detailed--it made me feel mostly unprepared as I was scrambling to find any weapon I could get my hands on.With the new online focus, some returning mechanics have seen some changes. For instance, Fallout's iconic V.A.T.S.--allowing you to target enemies and fire off precisely-aimed shots--now operates in real-time. It acts more like a real-time lock-on--with your weapon's hit-rate adjusting depending on the enemy's movement or their surroundings. This style of V.A.T.S. definitely took some getting used to. Mostly to the fact that enemies move around often, and combined with the awkward focus of the V.A.T.S. camera, it was jarring to actually use it during a fight. Because of this, I mostly stuck with standard aiming and shooting, which felt more reliable during engagements. While you can upgrade V.A.T.S. with perks to make it more effective, it feels more like an option that should be used sparingly.Fallout 76's survival mechanics take many cues from Fallout 4's more challenging Survival mode. In addition to keeping your character well fed on a regular basis, you'll also have to avoid ailments and diseases--such as contracting the oddly named but still troubling Rad Worms. Some enemies and locations even carry specific diseases, which create added risks to watch out for when exploring. These illnesses range from diseases that sap your maximum health, action points, and the general damage resistances for your character, to even increasing your susceptibility to radiation.With a large emphasis on survival, nearly every item and resource you can get your hands on feels much more valuable. Nothing really lasts too long in Fallout 76--even the buffs from Bobbleheads and skill magazines only last a short time--so every tool you have will inevitably be discarded for something new. As you're scavenging through the open world, you'll find junk items, scraps, and crafting plans that can be turned into new gear and building materials for your constructions. Some of these materials can create bizarre weapons like the Heated Pitchfork or Ski-Sword--a single ski sharpened to form a blade. But over time, weapons and armor will eventually need to be repaired or broken down into materials for other items. Moreover, cooking and chem stations now have a greater importance, allowing you to prepare meals and craft support items.Character growth is still the core part of Fallout 76, and it offers an impressive amount of variety and flexibility. After leveling up, you can place points into the familiar categories of the SPECIAL system, each of which boost areas of your character's raw stats. Eventually, you'll acquire a pack of Perk Cards that can offer special buffs in their assigned categories. For example, the Gladiator perk card is a Strength card which increases damage with melee weapons, while Lead Belly can decrease the radiation from drinking contaminated water. The more points you have in a category, the more Perk Cards you can potentially slot in, giving you a whole suite of added buffs. At any time, you can swap out your set of Perk Cards to readjust your character, to better prepare for different challenges.In keeping with the game's focus on pioneering, the building mechanics from Fallout 4 also return. Now known as the C.A.M.P. system, you have in your possession a mobile construction device that allows you create a building at any time--provided that it doesn't overlap with existing structures. You have free rein to construct whatever you like, whether that be subtle safe-houses for you to stash supplies, or even larger mega-structures that house turrets and a dedicated place to relax. If you ever want to pack up and move elsewhere, you can save your structure as a blueprint and dismantle it. This can come in handy if your chosen spot becomes too popular with other players.The biggest point of contention with Fallout 76's online nature is its lack of NPCs and slimmed down story, now serve to highlight the focus on moment-to-moment engagements with enemies and other players. This lack of traditional interactions and storytelling felt more noticeable the deeper we dove into the world. While you're certainly free to play solo and avoid other players--and we definitely took the opportunity to strike out on our own, leading to those familiar moments of solitude and wanderlust, you'll always be a potential target within the online world.Having said that, I couldn't help but feel intrigued by the re-focus here. Lore and smaller doses of story are still in surprisingly ample supply, but told passively through the environment and journals scattered about. While there are no active NPC characters to find--with exception to roaming robots that can offer trades and intel--you'll eventually stumble across the bodies of long-dead survivors who have had a notable presence in the world. In their possession are special holotapes known Survivor Stories, detailing the last moments of their lives in the irradiated wilderness.These stories told some interesting tales for the characters in Appalachia, which had some poignant and heartfelt moments to them--which was reassuring given the fragmented nature of the storytelling in 76. Speaking with design director Emil Paglliarulo, he elaborated on their refocus to make Fallout more about engaging with others players."We started off with the premise where the only other people you see are the ones that came from the vault," he said. "We've also never had the opportunity to do a game that's set twenty-five years after the bombs fell, it's always been two-hundred something years after. Now, we have the stories of the people that survived the initial war, and we've never been able to tell those stories before. Of course without NPCs or no dialog trees--which was a huge adjustment for our quest designers, as they were used to doing it a certain way--and now the lore-heavy stuff comes from holo-tapes, which now has its own tab in the Pip-Boy. That's been really interesting for us. And what ended up happening is that we ended up having a much more lonely story than in Fallout 4. All of these people that you do [learn about] are dead already, and it's almost like a weird ghost story. We didn't expect that."Whether you want to play solo or within a group, player interaction is a big part of the game. Encountering another person after rounding the corner or reaching the end of a dungeon creates some genuinely tense feelings--not knowing what intentions the other player in front of you has. To communicate with others, Fallout 76 features a variety of in-game emotes to use and proximity based voice-chat. During our session, however, we used Xbox Live's party chat client to stay in constant communication with our group--which won't be the case for most players online.When playing in groups, communication is important, and the emotes and proximity chat are a great way to get your point across. This is especially vital when grouping up for some of the more active quests that task you with overcoming some bizarre obstacles, such as finding the keys to an armory in a makeshift town built out of a destroyed aircraft, or finding out a mob of "unruly golfer feral ghouls" at a ritzy resort that's still maintained by protectotrons. This can lead to some humorous and equally tense moments where players are scrambling to rely on their team's special skills to progress further.Once you reach level 5, Fallout 76's PvP systems open up. When you encounter another player that's over level 5, you can fire your weapon at them to let them know of your intentions. If they return fire, then you'll both engage in a duel, with the loser dropping their current haul of junk items--no caps or gear is lost after a defeat. When shooting at a player that hasn't engaged in response, all damage will be cut in half, which gives them enough time to react. It's possible to kill another player who is not into the idea of fighting, and appropriately enough, this backhanded approach will mark you as a murderer, painting a massive target on your back for all players in the world to see.Our group of level 5 explorers tried to take down a level-58 player in power armor in similar fashion, but it didn't go over well at all as he easily decimated the group with a high-powered Tesla Rifle. While damage calculations scale for enemies, allowing low-level players to potentially take out monsters several levels ahead of them, it does not for PvP engagements. However, if you wish to avoid PvP, or if a player is bugging you too much, you can block them or fast-travel to safety fairly easily. So far, the system in place is a thoughtful way to overcome the potential harassment that can often spring up with this type of game.To cap off our hands-on time, the developers launched a nuke, which obliterates specific areas of the map. We all had front row seats to the explosion, and then proceeded to jump into the ensuing fallout--with its heavy radiation promptly killing us off one-by-one. As one of the larger end-game goals in Fallout 76, activating a nuke can lead to new events in the irradiated areas, revealing rare materials and dangerous enemies to fight. It also highlights the more dynamic nature of Fallout 76, with many of its narrative touches informed by the player's decisions in the world.The scale of Fallout 76 seemed impressive based on the first few hours. The location of West Virginia--and all its oddities--was exciting to dive into, which felt refreshing after coming off of Fallout 4's Commonwealth. However, much like previous Fallout games, there were a number of odd bugs and large frame-rate dips that occurred throughout. This was especially noticeable during larger fire fights against large groups of enemies, which brought overall performance down to a slog. The developers we spoke to, however, assured us that the performance will be improved in time for its November 14 launch.76 certainly isn't like other Fallout games. After our three hours, I got the impression that Bethesda is taking a risky approach with the series in regards to its lore and its core gameplay. With its heavy focus on survival gameplay and the online experience, I suspect that this largely experimental take on Fallout will become a rather polarizing entry. Though the mechanics were somewhat overwhelming to get a handle of, I can't deny that I enjoyed exploring the large map and engaging in the mysterious, post-apocalyptic take on West Virginia. Fallout 76 looks like it can flourish in the long-term, and I'm interested in what can come about after many hours in its off-kilter and ever-changing setting.Info from Gamespot.com

Sony's new movie, Venom, has received mostly poor reviews, but that hasn't stopped it from setting a new US box office record in its first weekend. And although it may also not be part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it is a comic book movie--and that means it borrowed some pages of the MCU playbook by including a pair of extra scenes after the credits roll. Its two post-credits sequences feature a surprising reveal, a sequel teaser, and some hype for another Spider-adjacent movie entirely. So technically there is a Spider-Man reference in Venom? Does this count? Obvious spoilers ahead--please consider yourself warned!The first and most consequential of Venom's credits stingers features a rather abrupt jump to Eddie being escorted into a supermax prison by a guard, apparently on assignment for his newly resumed journalistic career. The actual angle of the piece and the outlet that commissioned it are never revealed, but that doesn't stop the guard from running down a list of intimidating Silence of the Lambs style rules Eddie has to follow upon conducting his interview, as if he's Clarice Starling about to meet Hannibal Lecter for the first time. Venom itself stays hidden and mostly quiet as Eddie approaches the cell, and we see a man painting the word "welcome" in blood on the walls of his cage, which happens to be a lone box in the middle of an otherwise empty room. He's the only prisoner kept here, we can assume for the safety of the other inmates.As the camera focuses on his face, he's revealed to be played by Woody Harrelson, sitting in a white jumpsuit, done up with an almost cartoonish red wig. He never formally introduces himself but begins to speak as Eddie approaches, warning that when he "gets out of here, there's going to be carnage" before the scene cuts to black.Though he's never formally named, it's pretty obvious that Harrelson is set to play Cletus Kasady in whatever Venom sequel might be in the works, the serial killing mass murderer who eventually comes into possession of his very own symbiote named--wait for it--Carnage.In the comics, Carnage is actually one of the Venom symbiote's many offspring, created during a brief stint in which Eddie was incarcerated and kept in a cell next to Kasady, where it eventually bonded to him without Eddie's knowledge. Thanks to Kasady's major homicidal streak and psychopathic tendencies, and some comic book science involving the symbiote bonding to Kasady's blood directly (don't worry about it), Carnage became a massive and powerful threat almost immediately.Physically, Carnage looks similar to Venom, except it's blood red in color and tends to fight with a bunch of gooey tentacle-like appendages in addition to its standard issue symbiote shape-shifting and brute strength. Unlike Brock, however, Kasady was never interested in trying to reign in Carnage's murderous, cannibalistic side, meaning Carnage basically just gets to cut a swath of destruction and terror wherever it wants, whenever it wants. We can't be sure based on this scene alone just how the Carnage symbiote will come into play or how Kasady will bond with it. The movie universe hasn't dealt with the symbiotes reproducing so far, so it's likely that the family connection between the two will be changed. And given that Brock himself isn't actively incarcerated, there will probably be some other way for Kasady to come in contact with his symbiote--a rogue Life Foundation experiment, maybe? Some sort of Riot fragment that survived the crash? Alternatively, there's a slight possibility that the movie will posit Kasady already having Carnage inside him (hence the high security prison set up and the "there will be carnage" line) with the intent of building out that backstory somewhere down the line. Really anything is possible at this point.In an interview with GameSpot, Venom director Ruben Fleischer elaborated on the scene and the casting choice of Woody Harrelson, with whom he has worked in the past."We tried at the end of our movie to lay the groundwork for a potential sequel, or a further story. And there's a character that's beloved by all Venom fans that does not appear in the body of our film that I think fans will be really excited to see," Fleischer said. "I found somebody who I have a relationship with and love working with. And I love all the characters that he's played. So to imagine him being an iconic adversary to Venom in the future is really exciting."The only thing we can be sure of is that, should Venom be greenlit for a part two, Carnage fans will definitely have something to write home about. Enter Spider-ManVenom's second post credits segment was actually, technically, not a post credits scene at all, but a promotional clip for an entirely different movie: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, which is set for release this December. Heralded by a bright "Meanwhile, in another universe" title card, the clip featured the animated Miles Morales running from an unknown, masked enemy wearing a makeshift spider-style costume before winding up at the grave of the late Peter Parker.He's then met by a very much alive Peter Parker, who he accidentally knocks out, prompting a Weekend At Bernie's style series of mishaps around New York in which Miles drags the very unconscious Peter around the city. The clip was previously showcased in part at San Diego Comic-Con this year.Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse has no direct connection with either Venom or the MCU that we know of yet, and even if it did, it certainly doesn't impact the significance of this particular clip. Instead it's set to build its own multiverse populated by some fan favorite Spider-Man comics characters, hence the "Spider-Verse" title. So, no real hidden meanings or major clues for the future of Sony's superhero line on this one, just a little teaser for another movie headed to theaters this winter. Info from Gamespot.com

Venom and Spider-Man are linked inseparably in fans' minds, and for good reason. In the comic books, Venom's entire characterization, from its motivations to its appearance, revolves around Spidey. So making the new Venom movie without any reference to Spider-Man seems like a gargantuan task--a fact Venom director Ruben Fleischer is well aware of.The most glaring representation of Spider-Man's absence in Venom is easily the lack of the Symbiote's iconic white spider logo that's normally emblazoned across its chest, which Fleischer addressed at Comic-Con. As he rightfully points out, giving Venom a spider logo in this movie "makes no sense." And as he told GameSpot during a recent interview, figuring out how to make up for Spidey's absence in the movie was "the most challenging part" of production."That was the only real thing that was a limitation, was the fact that we couldn't feature Spider-Man at all in the movie," he said. "If there's no Spider-Man, then there wouldn't be any reason to have a spider on his chest. And so it did take a lot of time to figure out what to put in its place, and we ended up with that veiny white pattern, which I think looks super cool. But yeah, we did a ton of iterations of different designs for what the chest would ultimately look like."That was the most challenging part, because you have something that's so iconic, and anything you put in its place just doesn't look right. So it took a lot of time to find something that was distinctive and subtle."Naturally, Venom's look wasn't the only aspect of the character that had to be altered for this movie. There's also the question of the Symbiote's motivation--why does it ally itself with Eddie Brock, if not for their mutual hatred of Spider-Man?"Yeah, we had to manufacture that, because obviously in the comics they bond over the fact that they both hate Spider-Man," Fleischer said. "Since we didn't have that as something for them to connect over, we went with the idea that they're kindred spirits, and that Venom sees in Eddie somebody like himself who--on his planet, maybe Venom's a bit of a loser too, and then on our planet he decides he can be a big fish in a small pond. "In all honesty, I think we had to ground the relationship in something to justify Venom's betrayal of his own race. And we tried to make it that there was just a real connection between Eddie and Venom, because of their common worldview."The Venom spin-off movie has been in the works since at least 2008, but it's unclear how much work from earlier versions was incorporated into the latest iteration. According to Fleischer, the version of the movie he's worked on--the draft penned by Scott Rosenberg and Jeff Pinkner--never had Spider-Man in it. "So it's not like we had to extract him from it," Fleischer said. "It was always, from its inception, built as an origin story with a new approach. And I thought of it as an Ultimate version of Venom, like an Ultimate movie version of Venom."Given that they had to change so much about the character, Fleischer tried to stay true to the comics in as many other ways as possible, from the visuals to the writing. Lines of dialogue are ripped straight from the pages, while Fleischer used his favorite comics panels as inspiration for Venom's visual design."I think in that first closeup when you see him, when he first appears with Treece, and he's holding him by the throat, he just looks like he's actually there, which I'm really proud of," he said. "I really felt a responsibility, especially since we couldn't put the spider on his chest, that we make Venom be as true to the comics as possible despite that fact."Venom star Tom Hardy recently said that his favorite scenes from the movie didn't make it into the final cut, while Venom co-creator Todd McFarlane revealed how he would have changed the movie. Meanwhile, we ranked every Venom universe Symbiote based on how '90s Xtreme they are.Venom hits theaters Friday, October 5. Info from Gamespot.com

Ant-Man & The Wasp's Quantum Realm is easily one of the most complicated concepts in the Marvel Cinematic Universe right now, up there with the Infinity Stones themselves. We know that it is a realm that exists, essentially, between atoms and molecules, that can only be reached by shrinking down impossibly--dangerously--small. We know that it distorts space and time. We know that it can potentially breach into our reality--or at least, facilitate breaches into our reality--via people who have been inside it. We know that Janet Van Dyne, the original Wasp, was stuck in it for decades and, somehow, against all odds, survived--but came back fundamentally changed. Maybe even mutated.But, like most big, high concept superhero things, the rules of the Quantum Realm are as esoteric as ever. We may have a big list of "knowns" but our list of "unknowns" is even greater--and will probably always be greater, considering the fluid nature of the MCU's science to begin with. The laws of physics don't really apply--which means that, essentially, anything is possible.That's actually great news, when you think about it, especially considering Scott Lang's fate at the end of Ant-Man & The Wasp. Some fluid rules and infinite possibilities might be a massive help when it comes to getting Ant-Man back in the fight--but the nature of the Quantum Realm might not be the only thing there to help Scott escape. Director Peyton Reed of Ant-Man and Ant-Man & The Wasp teased some interesting possibilities for the future of the MCU during an interview with GameSpot for the Ant-Man & The Wasp Blu-ray release earlier this month.When asked if the specifics of Jan's survival in the Quantum Realm had ever come up, Reed explained that "we've only just scratched the surface of the Quantum Realm, and we liked to tease the possibility that maybe, just maybe, she wasn't just surviving down there--maybe she was thriving."Thriving how? Well, that's where things get interesting. When asked directly if that meant that, potentially, Jan had some help--that there was a chance other people may have been in the Quantum Realm along with her--Reed was quick to respond. "Absolutely. We love the concept of the Microverse from the comics--some of my favorite runs have to do with the limitless potential of that whole idea. Anything from people from our future who may have escaped into the Microverse when they saw the way the world was headed--anything. There's limitless potential for that here."The Microverse--the comic book Quantum Realm equivalent--has been the home of whole kingdoms of people, quantum time travelers who occasionally get swept up in the affairs of the "normal" universe when they're visited by heroes and villains like Captain America and Doctor Doom. It's saturated by something known as the Enigma Force, which, really, is just some comic book mumbo jumbo that empowers people to exist outside of space and time. It was, for a time, populated by a "race" of people known as Time Travelers who were almost entirely the time-displaced astral projections of a Microverse explorer named Arcturus Rann.Listen, it's a lot. Not much of it makes sense--but, like Reed said, it does represent a level of limitless possibility. Sure, a great deal of that possibility comes from the fact that superhero comics can casually drop in concepts like "time displaced astral projections" in sub-microscopic kingdoms ruled by ancient, immortal aliens without batting an eye, but you get the idea, here.As far as we've seen, the MCU's Quantum Realm isn't populated by a race of people--there were no visible kingdoms, no advanced technology, no sentient lifeforms on screen when Hank made his attempt to rescue Jan. However, we've only seen the smallest glimpse of what's actually there--and, as Reed said, if Jan was indeed thriving, it wouldn't be too much of a stretch for her to have had help.This, of course, means that Scott may not be doomed after all. If Jan had help, Scott could find help, too. In fact, thanks to the wonky time-space mechanics of the Quantum Realm, and the fact that the Time Stone is very much in play in Infinity War, there's a good chance Scott might have the ability to escape the Quantum Realm into the past, or perhaps, the future--or, maybe he'll just be given a chance to meet someone entirely new while he's there who can teach him to get a message out. Who knows?Until then, our best course of action will be studying what we can see of the Quantum Realm in Ant-Man & The Wasp while we pace around and anxiously wait for Captain Marvel and Avengers 4. Let the countdown to 2019 being.Info from Gamespot.com

NBC's workplace comedy The Office is reportedly coming back to TV with a new show, but the original program's star, Steve Carell, thinks it won't work. He told Esquire that "the climate's different" today, and that the attitude, characteristics, and style of his character, Michael Scott, might not go over well today."Apart from the fact that I just don't think that’s a good idea [to bring back The Office], it might be impossible to do that show today and have people accept it the way it was accepted ten years ago," he said. "The climate's different. I mean, the whole idea of that character, Michael Scott, so much of it was predicated on inappropriate behavior."Michael Scott was written to be an idiot. Throughout the show, he makes numerous sexist and derogatory comments toward his co-workers. The show popularised the phrase "That's what she said," after all. Michael Scott being out-of-touch and kind of a jerk is the point, Carell said, but this attitude probably wouldn't fly in 2018."I mean, he's certainly not a model boss," Carell said of Scott. "A lot of what is depicted on that show is completely wrong-minded. That's the point, you know? But I just don't know how that would fly now. There's a very high awareness of offensive things today--which is good, for sure. But at the same time, when you take a character like that too literally, it doesn't really work."The Office, which is a spinoff from the British show created by Ricky Gervais, ran for nine seasons from 2005-2013. NBC has said it is considering bringing back The Office, as well as The West Wing, but never Seinfeld.According to reports, the new version of The Office will feature a combination of returning cast members and newcomers. Carell and the character Michael Scott won't be back, and instead there will be a new boss. Once again, it would take place at Dunder Mifflin's office in Scranton, PA.Info from Gamespot.com

The third season of Netflix MCU darling Daredevil is on its way and bringing with it a whole slew of faces both old and new as Matt Murdock's story enters a new, brutal chapter.Murdock's live action road has been anything but easy. He's had two solo seasons and a starring role in the Defenders, which teamed him up with his fellow Netflix heroes Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Danny Rand. During his time in the spotlight, Matt has faced off against the Kingpin of Crime, Wilson Fisk, Frank Castle aka The Punisher, ex-girlfriend Elektra, and shady occult syndicate The Hand. He's fallen out with his closest friends, Karen Page and Foggy Nelson. He's lost his law practice--hell, he may even legally be considered dead.The end of Defenders left Matt in a bit of a tricky position. After he saved the world from the Black Sky and The Hand, an entire building was dropped on him, which left his entire team and all his friends assuming he hadn't survived the fight. Danny Rand loosely picked up the slack left in Hell's Kitchen in Matt's wake while everyone else grieved and moved on. Little did they know, however, that Matt had actually been rescued from the rubble and taken to a convent to be nursed back to health.So, yeah. There's a lot going on. Daredevil's life has never been what you'd call easy, but coming into Season 3, he's playing a whole new ball game. But, at the very least, we do have some idea of what we should expect.When is it coming out?Daredevil Season 3's Netflix release date is October 19th. Like every other Netflix MCU show, Daredevil Season 3 will be primed for binge watching, so clear your schedules and get ready for a midnight sprint to the finish line.Who are the villains?We know that fan-favorite Wilson Fisk (Vincent D'onofrio) is making his return after spending Season 2 in jail, so expect a major showdown there. But we also know he won't be coming for Matt alone. At New York Comic Con, it was finally confirmed that Wilson Bethel would be playing Benjamin "Dex" Poindexter, AKA the infamous Bullseye, one of Daredevil's most lethal foes over in the comics.Season 3 will be an origin story for Poindexter, Bethal said during the Daredevil panel, and feature his slow decline from FBI agent to full on super villain.What is Fisk's plan?After being sent away to jail by Daredevil in Season 1, Fisk is harboring a personal vendetta against everything Matt Murdock stands for. His plan in Season 3 is to ruin the Devil of Hell's Kitchen from the ground up by smearing his reputation and making the public see him as a murderer and a monster. To do this, as we've seen in the trailers, Fisk will be using Bullseye, dressed in a replica Daredevil costume, running around New York committing crimes.Who is Sister Maggie?Matt's life was saved by a mysterious nun we now know is Sister Maggie, played by Joanne Whalley. We know from the comics that Sister Maggie is actually Matt's long lost mother who divorced Matt's father and was taken in by the church, though it's not yet clear whether the show will keep her backstory the same. Maggie became a nun and lost all contact with her family, meaning we can expect she and Matt's reunion to be strained at best.Where are Karen and Foggy?They'll be here. Karen was featured in The Punisher Season 1, and has since been slowly convincing herself that maybe, possibly, Matt is alive. Foggy has been working for Jerry Hogarth and appeared in both Jessica Jones Season 2 and Luke Cage Season 2. He, however, is much less convinced than Karen that might might still be kicking around.Where is Claire Temple?Claire, sadly, will not be around. After a prominent feature in Luke Cage Season 2, Claire is taking a break from the complication of superhero life in New York City--and actor Rosario Dawson has no real plans to return to the MCU any time soon.What about Frank Castle, Elektra, and the other Defenders?Cameos from the other corners of the Netflix MCU are still up in the air, but probably unlikely. Elektra is still, officially, "dead" from the finale of Defenders--though she is known for her affinity for resurrection, so there's still a chance. Frank has had very little to do with any of the Defenders at all since his appearance in Daredevil Season 2, so he probably won't be coming back. Other cameos from Matt's superheroic teammates aren't entirely out of the realm of possibility--but we don't have much reason to hope for them right now.What's going on with Matt, really?After his near death experience, Matt isn't having a great time. Remember that aside from his super senses, Matt's still just a normal guy--this means no healing factor, no super strength, and no super speed. He's been hurt badly and is in the process of trying to recover. After (or, knowing Matt, during) that recovery process, he's going to go back to wearing his plain black suit and mask from Season 1--while Bullseye co-opts the red devil horns this time around.Is it based on any comics?From what we can tell, Daredevil Season 3 is going to be borrowing elements of the "Born Again" story arc which took place in the early '80s between Daredevil #227 and #233. It also looks like it's going to use some of the early Bullseye stories from issues like Daredevil #284 "The Outsider" and Daredevil #191 "Roulette."Though, as with any MCU adaptation, these versions of comic book story lines are probably going to be heavily modified to work in the live-action universe--so don't expect a one-to-one translation. Info from Gamespot.com

Big Mouth's first season covered everything about puberty, from the onset of weird urges to the mind-blowing fact that "girls are horny too" (literally, several characters' heads exploded when they found out). Big Mouth Season 2 has arrived on Netflix, and it's just as bonkers as Season 1, with musical numbers about the beauty of all--all--female bodies, a new character called the Shame Wizard, and more awkward insanity. It's all in good fun, and often in lovably bad taste. Is there a line the show won't cross? As co-creator and star Nick Kroll confirmed at New York Comic Con, nothing is off limits in Big Mouth."No, I think the whole idea of this show is that we take what seems to be things that seem to be off limits and find our way of telling the funniest, most truthful version of that," Kroll said during a press conference that also included actors Jason Mantzoukas, Jenny Slate, Jessi Klein, and Fred Armisen. "I mean, there have been certain jokes, or visuals that you see, and you're like, 'I don't know if I need to see a thermometer taken out of Coach Hormone Monster's penis. Maybe we don't need to put that in the show.'""I do. I need to see that. I would love to see that footage," Mantzoukas added."I need to get the thermometer taken out of my penis," Slate chimed in."Did you figure it out? Do you have a fever?" Mantzoukas replied."I think it's really hot, yeah," Slate added."She calls her penis Nick Lachey because it's always 98 degrees," Kroll finished.Yes, the whole press conference was like that.Ironically--considering the big new addition of the Shame Wizard, who hounds John Mulaney's character Andrew throughout Season 2--Big Mouth is a show without shame. It revels equally in educating us about reproductive health and the importance of Planned Parenthood (there's literally a whole episode about it), and grossing us out with Coach Steve's endless terrible descriptions of sex (I'll rest easier if I never hear the phase "make the thick in the warm" again)."I think that's what we're always trying to do in the show, which is take some big swings, do some kind of raunchy, dirty stuff...but also be saying these larger things about trying to get people to fall in love with their own bodies and who they are and what's happening to them, and demystify a lot of that stuff," Kroll said. Early in Big Mouth Season 2, Andrew gets caught grinding his pepper mill by Nick's sister Leah (Kat Dennings), and he spends much of the season coping with the embarrassment and shame. But beyond his storyline, Season 2 also tackles female shame, which is a whole other entity (or so I'm told)."Shame, especially in the female experience, the way that I think it's usually done is like, 'Here, hold this, it's yours, keep it private,' whatever, it's a secret," Slate, who voices Missy (and a ton of other characters), explained. "That is really sad to me, because teen shame and personal shame is very specific, and women are usually encouraged to not talk about it, or only talk about it in ways that are kind of pre-approved. So for me, it feels really good that we are expressing it and showing many different types of the ways that women react to becoming themselves.""It's so easy, your whole life, but especially when you're that age, to feel like you're the only one going through a thing," added Klein, who voices her namesake on the show. "And I think especially for girls, living in the culture that we live in, the images you're surrounded by, it feels like there's such a small way to acceptably be a girl, and that if you're not that, 'Oh, I'm somehow on the outside.' And I think that dissipates when you can just talk about it. For me that feels great, if the show can make someone feel less alone."Kroll agreed. Big Mouth can seem crass--and it undoubtedly is. But it works so well, not just because it's hilarious, but because it has heart."In general, puberty and everything that happens to you at that point makes you feel so alone," Kroll said. "I think the idea of the show, whatever we're saying, is like, showing kids now--and also to adults who are still dealing with the stuff that happened to them in middle school and through their adolescence and puberty--that you're not alone going through it. And that shame plays a big part in Season 2, and a lot of the things that make you feel shameful sort of grew out of that time in middle school and adolescence, and hopefully this kind of stuff will make you feel less ashamed."Big Mouth Season 2 is streaming now on Netflix.New York Comic Con 2018 CoverageFull Daredevil Season 3 Trailer Features Two Daredevils And Lots Of HittingThe Walking Dead Creator Says "Stay Tuned" For Telltale ResolutionAquaman - Official Trailer #2Best NYCC 2018 Cosplay -- Marvel, Star Wars, DC, More (Day 1)Netflix's The Dragon Prince Season 2 Coming Next YearNetflix's Daredevil Season 3 Is Getting PoliticalCheck Out The Aquaman Movie Costumes At DC's NYCC BoothMortal Engines At NYCC: The First 30 Minutes Is Pure '80s Adventure NostalgiaAmerican Gods Season 2 Release Date Announced During Comic-Con PanelNYCC 2018: Best Cosplay At New York Comic Con 2018Nightflyers Feels Like A Slick Homage To The Best Of Space HorrorBest NYCC 2018 Cosplay -- Spider-Man, X-Men, Doctor Who, More (Day 2)Hellboy NY Comic Con Exclusive Trailer Shows Iconic Flaming CrownBoy Meets World Cast Explains Why Show Is Still Relevant After 25 YearsMarvel’s Daredevil: Season 3 - Bullseye Origin Story Trailer | NYCC 2018Devil May Cry 5 Reveals New Cowboy Hat WeaponHulu's Future Man Debuts Season 2 Premiere And First Trailer At NYCCNew Star Trek: Discovery Season 2 Trailer Shows Young SpockDC Titans NYCC Premiere | First ImpressionsDark Phoenix: The X-Men Go To Space In NYCC FootageJean Grey's Dark Phoenix Origin Revealed At NYCCBest NYCC 2018 Cosplay -- Dragon Ball Super, Star Wars, Game Of Thrones, And More (Day 3)NYCC 2018: Cobra Kai Heads Back To Mr. Miyagi's House For Season 2What We Do In The Shadows Perfectly Captures The Original Cult Movie's Magic13 Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse Spoilers We Learned At New York Comic ConInfo from Gamespot.com

The West Virginia Tourism Office has announced a partnership with Bethesda to promote Fallout 76, which is set in West Virginia (albeit a version of the state destroyed by nuclear war), and also encourage people to visit the state.As part of the partnership, Bethesda and the Tourism Office will work together on new advertising campaigns that aim to suit the interests of both parties. The goal for West Virginia is to "educate players about West Virginia's unique landscape and culture," and get people to come visit and spend money, or potentially relocate there, while Bethesda gets to slap Fallout 76 on all the advertising materials.Your #AlmostHeaven adventure to @Fallout begins now. #Fallout76https://t.co/V0qdxWoM0A pic.twitter.com/mJJnssbyqM — West Virginia Tourism (@WVtourism) October 11, 2018"It's finally time the rest of the world sees what a gem West Virginia is," West Virginia governor Jim Justice said in a statement. "For years, I've been saying we have it all: beautiful scenery, the best people you could ask for, and more. And now, we get to share a piece of that with people all over the world through the unique lens of this video game."West Virginia Tourism Office commissioner Chelsea Ruby said in her own statement that the announcement trailer for Fallout 76 depicted an "eerily beautiful post-apocalyptic West Virginia." She also lauded the trailer's use of the more "futuristic" cover of John Denver's classic "Take Me Home, Country Roads," which is one of West Virginia's official anthems.Fallout 76 features numerous real-world locations from West Virginia, including the State Capitol, the New River Gorge, West Virginia University, Camden Park, The Greenbrier, Moundsville Penitentiary, Harpers Ferry, and the Hutte Swiss Restaurant. Some of the other locations featured in the game include the Cranberry Glades, Summersville Lake, Greenbrier Chapel, and the National Radio Astronomy Center.Fallout 76 is set to launch on November 14 for PS4, Xbox One, and PC. A pre-order exclusive beta will be available in October for all platforms (though Xbox One owners get in first). The beta will include the entire game and progress carries forward to the full release.Info from Gamespot.com

Forza Horizon is back for another year, and that means Barn Finds are back too. If you're new to series, all you need to know is that as you play through Forza Horizon 4, you'll periodically get a call telling you that there's a beat-up old car somewhere for you to find on the map. This will unlock a particular Barn Find, and you'll be given a rough area to search. But, it's up to you to explore the zone and pinpoint the location of the barn yourself.Sometimes this is easy, and sometimes it can really tricky--barns can be in plain sight or hidden within a dense forest. But finding them is worth it--the rare and iconic cars will be restored over time and gifted to you for free, adding a nice boost to your Car Collection level. If you're having trouble locating some of these Barn Finds, or just want to save yourself some time, this guide will help you find the exact location of the barns for particular cars.How To Use This Guide: We've provided screenshots of the barn locations on the world map, a photo of what it looks like in-game, and a shot of the restored car you'll get. We suggest using these images along with Horizon's Drone Mode (use RB to boost!) to quickly track these down.A Quick Note: Forza Horizon 4 features a version of Great Britain that has rolling seasons, which change every 7 real-world days. As such, there are a small handful of Barn Finds that are exclusive to Autumn, Winter, Summer, and Spring. At the time of writing, we've only experienced Autumn, Summer, and Winter, but we'll update this guide with information about the other Barn Finds as the seasons change, so come back then!Additionally, there is one Barn Find that is exclusive to one of the game's Properties, Bamburgh Castle, so you'll have to cough up a cool 10 million Credits to buy and unlock that one. You may also encounter Barn Finds in a slightly different order to our list, but a quick reference of the World Map should let you know what you're looking for.For more on Forza Horizon 4 be sure to read our review. We said that "Playground Games continues to excel at making the act of virtual driving exciting, approachable, and entertaining without sacrificing complexity."Table of Contents [hide]1983 Audi Sport Quattro1986 Ford Escort RS Turbo1993 Jaguar XJ2201961 Jaguar E-Type S11997 Lotus Elise GT11966 MG MGB GT1965 Mini Cooper S1998 Subaru Impreza 22B STI1962 Triumph Spitfire1998 TVR Cerbera Speed 12Summer Season Exclusive - 1962 Peel P50Autumn Season Exclusive - 1960 Aston Martin DB4 GT ZagatoWinter Season Exclusive - 1973 Land Rover Range RoverProperty Exclusive - 1930 Bentley BlowerSpring Season Exclusive - ???1983 Audi Sport QuattroThis B-Class Audi Sport is an All-Wheel Drive built for both road and rally. The barn is located within a forest just below Derwent Reservoir, as in, literally just below the "Derwent Reservoir" name on the world map. 1986 Ford Escort RS TurboThis Ford Escort is was limited to just 5000 models when it was released back in the 80's. It's a C-Class vehicle in Horizon 4, and you can find its barn at the peak of a mountain in the Scottish Highlands, west of Glen Rannoch. Make sure you bring an AWD to climb those inclines! 1993 Jaguar XJ220The XJ220 is built for racing and was the fastest production car from 1992-1993. It's ranked S1, and you'll find its barn tucked away on a private country road east of Ambleside. 1961 Jaguar E-Type S1This rare Series 1 version of the E-Type roadster is a C-class in Horizon 4. You'll find the barn just off a dirt road in the south of Tarn Hows. 1997 Lotus Elise GT1Who left this one to rust? The Lotus GT1 touring car is an S1 vehicle and hidden just west of Horizon 4's slate quarry. 1966 MG MGB GTA real British classic, the MGB is a D-Class car in a fetching gumboot green that will make you feel like you've gone back in time. This one's hidden on a small hill on the edge of a strip of trees in Astmoor. 1965 Mini Cooper SWho doesn't love a Mini? Well, anyone who needs luggage space, I guess. Regardless, this D-class version of the classic little car is hidden in a small valley on the far west of the map, on the southern end of Derwent Water. 1998 Subaru Impreza 22B STIAnother classic rally staple, this 90's WRX STI is only a B-class initially but is screaming for an upgrade. It's hidden in a creepy part of Lakehurst Forest, by the side of a dirt road. 1962 Triumph SpitfireYet another British classic, the Spitfire convertible doesn't have a lot of grunt, but is perfect for relaxing country drives. This one is hidden very sneakily within a thick patch of bushes and trees just outside the Express Railyard, which we spent far too much time in during our hunt. 1998 TVR Cerbera Speed 12This high-performance concept car never went into production, but thanks to the magic of video games, you can own and drive one for free! It's an S1 class vehicle, and its barn is located just east of the Greendale Airstrip.Summer Season Exclusive - 1962 Peel P50The adorable little D-class Peel micro-car is only available during summer. It's hidden in a forest between Ashbrook and Broadway, and perfect for those quick trips down to the shops. Autumn Season Exclusive - 1960 Aston Martin DB4 GT ZagatoLike the name suggests, this Aston Martin is only available during the autumn season. Another 60's classic, only around 25 of these things were produced. You can pick it up very easily just south of the Horizon Festival Site, in a nice open field.Winter Season Exclusive - 1973 Land Rover Range RoverThis hardy Range Rover is a great vehicle to tackle the ice and snow of Horizon's Winter. You'll find the barn on a small island in the middle of the Derwent Water lake, which is completely frozen over during winter.Property Exclusive - 1930 Bentley BlowerWe'll update this article when we can afford to spend 10 million credits on Bamburgh Castle. If you've saved up 10 million credits in Forza Horizon 4... well, that's an amazing effort.Spring Season Exclusive - ???We'll update this article when the seasons change and we get access to this seasonal Barn Find!What's your favorite Barn Find in Forza Horizon 4 and how do you think it compares to previous Barn Find selections? Let us know in the comments below.Info from Gamespot.com

You may have read a lot about Assassin's Creed Odyssey leading up to its release on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. The new open-world game has finally arrived, and below, we've rounded up all of the essential information about the series' latest entry in one place. We'll run down many of Odyssey's broader features and go through the basics of what you should know before jumping in. Everything from story to combat tips are outlined below, along with links to more detailed guides if you wish to dig deeper. Note that there are no major story spoilers in this article.Table of Contents [hide]When And Where Is Odyssey Set?Catch Up On Assassin's Creed LoreHow Long Is Odyssey?Fighting With StyleSetting Sail In The MediterraneanPlay Your PartDifferent Versions, Special Editions, And DLCPC Minimum And Recommended SpecsReviewAll Our Assassin's Creed Odyssey CoverageWhen And Where Is Odyssey Set?You're probably aware that Assassin's Creed Odyssey takes place in Ancient Greece, but it specifically covers the Peloponnesian War fought between Athens and Sparta. The game opens with a 300-esque battle scene where you take control of King Leonidas of Sparta during the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BCE, then transitions to the start of the main protagonist's story almost 50 years later in 431 BCE.Greece makes for some breathtaking views.If you've followed Odyssey since it was first revealed at E3 2018, then you'll know that you can choose between taking on the role of a female or male lead; Kassandra and Alexios are two sides of the same coin and play exactly the same--the main differences are, of course, the voice acting and character model. Your choice also affects the narrative slightly; whoever you choose to play as is made to be the older sibling of the two. You come from Spartan lineage, but the game doesn't force you into aligning with either side of the war since you're a mercenary trying uncover the truth of your family's disappearance.Prominent Greek figures like Socrates and Hippocrates make appearances throughout Odyssey, and you can interact with them as they offer side quests of their own. While historical fiction has always been the foundation of Assassin's Creed lore, it's never been afraid to incorporate the supernatural. Odyssey takes it a step further by pitting you against mythology itself; one example is a fight against Medusa where you try to avoid getting turned into stone.Catch Up On Assassin's Creed LoreThis is a long-running franchise, but Odyssey can be a good point to jump into the series. Knowledge of previous events isn't necessarily required to enjoy the new game. However, if you need a refresher on the everything that have taken place up to this point, be sure to read our Assassin's Creed story summary.How Long Is Odyssey?It shouldn't come as a surprise that Assassin's Creed Odyssey is huge--its open world is about twice as big as Origins. That may not seem as daunting when you consider the fact that the Mediterranean Sea makes up a large portion of the map and that you'll spend plenty of time sailing the high seas. Regardless, there's still a great deal of ground to cover throughout Greece's mainland and several islands.As for game length, it's difficult to get an accurate range since every player will engage in a varying number of optional quests and activities along the way. Estimates have been around 50 hours to complete the main story and a decent chunk of side activities. GameSpot editor Alessandro Fillari spent 60 hours with the game for the purposes of his review, and there remain more optional content for him to take part in.New to the franchise is Exploration Mode. Instead of having waypoints and objective markers littered on screen in the traditional Guided Mode, Exploration Mode puts the onus on you to figure out where to go to complete quests. This means you'll have to pay closer attention to NPC dialogue and investigate the environment more closely.This is especially true if you take on the optional quest to hunt down a cultist organization. They're a web of mysterious figures with hidden identities scattered throughout Greece and you'll need to do investigative work to locate and assassinate them. Sometimes, you'll happen to take them down in the midst of a side mission that they're involved in, but you'll often have to dig for clues on their whereabouts whether or not you've activated Exploration mode.Fighting With StyleOdyssey builds off of Origins' combat system, but it introduces some key changes. Shields are no longer an option, which naturally pushes fights towards a faster pace. The skill tree remains divided in three categories attributed to specific playstyles (Hunter, Warrior, and Assassin), but it features some neat new abilities. You may think the Spartan Kick is in the game just for kicks and giggles until you realize that it's super effective for booting enemies off cliffs or creating space in fights. Another setting-appropriate ability is the Rush Assassination that lets you put the Spear of Leonidas to use during long-distance stealth kills.The skill tree includes several abilities that allow you to tinker with different character builds.In addition to multiple types of melee weapons (like polearms, swords, and maces), you have a bow that's both useful for attacking long-range and inflicting status effects on enemies. The Arrow Master skill unlocks arrows that can poison, paralyze, or explode on impact, opening up numerous possibilities in combat; combine that with Devastating Shot and your projectiles will be even stronger. The skill tree can be overwhelming at first, but we have a few tips on some good abilities to pick up early and how to use them in clever ways.Don't worry about min-maxing in the skill tree; you can respec at any time for small cost. This affords you the opportunity to experiment with different combat approaches and character builds.Setting Sail In The MediterraneanWith multiple islands scattered across Greece, great emphasis is placed on sailing and ship combat in Odyssey, essentially taking a page out of Black Flag's book. Engaging with hostile ships will have you firing arrow barrages, tossing waves of javelins, or using the naval ram to inflict damage. Once an enemy ship's health is depleted, you can either sink it for a small reward or board it with your crew to get better loot. If you board the ship, you'll have to get your hands dirty and fight the opposing crew.Enemy ships vary in size, health, and strength, so be sure to know what you're up against before engaging. Throughout Odyssey, you'll upgrade your ship and recruit shipmates from quests or smooth dialogue interactions. Different crew members offer specific bonuses and attributes for your ship.Play Your PartOdyssey doubles down on RPG elements. There's leveling up, skill trees, gear scores, and numerous optional quests, which was implemented in Origins, but the series dips its toes into branching story threads for the first time. Dialogue trees permeate character interactions and you'll face consequences for your actions whether they be good or bad. The way you decide to complete some quests will affect the resulting narrative and can also spill into the details of other quest-lines; don't be surprised if there are unforeseen consequences and collateral damage.With branching dialogue comes romance options. You're free to romance as many of the available characters as you want, and the circumstances for which you can romance them may change based on other decisions. Most often, these partners will become part of your ship's crew, which may be a bit of an unceremonious conclusion for love interests. However, these scenarios can play out strangely, and you can see for yourself how romance can feel awkward or forced.By nature of being an RPG that deals with choice and consequence, there are multiple endings in Assassin's Creed Odyssey; nine to be specific. Unfortunately, you'll be hard-pressed to see them all in one playthrough since key decisions early in the game will affect the possible endings open to you.You now have more agency in how the story plays out thanks to branching dialogue and quest decisions.Different Versions, Special Editions, And DLCAssassin's Creed Odyssey is out soon, but you can still snag the pre-order bonuses offered. Pre-ordering from the Ubisoft Store grants you access to the Blind King mission, Best Buy gifts you a $10 rewards certificate, and GameStop includes the Blind King mission and a Spartan helmet keychain. Aside from the standard edition of the game, there's a Deluxe edition ($80) that includes an XP and drachmae (in-game money) boost, the Kronos and Herald of Dusk gear pack, and the Capricornus naval pack. The Gold edition ($110) packs the DLC season pass, Secrets of Greece and Blind King bonus missions, and lets you start playing now. The Ultimate edition ($120) includes all the aforementioned content from both the Deluxe and Gold editions. There are few other special editions with collector's statues that you check out in our pre-order guide.PC Minimum And Recommended SpecsFor the PC players out there, make sure your system is powerful enough to run the game properly. If you're aiming for 4K resolution with High settings, Ubisoft recommends a system with at least an AMD Ryzen 1700X or Intel Core i7-7700 CPU, AMD Vega 64 or Nvidia GTX 1080 video card, and 16GB of RAM. For those not doing 4K, be sure to read up on the minimum and recommended PC specs to run AC Odyssey smoothly.ReviewYou can read or watch our review of Assassin's Creed Odyssey right now; editor Alessandro Fillari concluded: "Assassin's Creed Odyssey's ambition is admirable, which is reflected in its rich attention to detail for the era and its approach to handling the multi-faceted narrative with strong protagonists at the lead. While its large-scale campaign--clocking in at over 50 hours--can occasionally be tiresome, and some features don't quite make the impact they should, Odyssey makes great strides in its massive and dynamic world, and it's a joy to venture out and leave your mark on its ever-changing setting." For perspectives from other critics on the game, you can read through our review roundup.All Our Assassin's Creed Odyssey CoverageGuides And Reviews:Assassin's Creed Odyssey ReviewAssassin's Creed Odyssey Reviews Roundup11 Tips You Should Know Before StartingCombat Tips And The 12 Most Useful AbilitiesFeatures And News:How Long Does This Game Take To Finish?No New Assassin's Creed Game Coming For 2019AC Odyssey Was "Nearly Finished" A Year Ago, Annualization Not PlannedGame Director Talks Story And RPG InspirationsHow Assassin's Creed Odyssey Continues To Transform The SeriesRomance Feels Forced, But Some Of The Dialogue Options Are HilariousAC Odyssey Doesn't Have Multiplayer, But The Franchise Isn't Necessarily Done With ItUbisoft Wants Future Games To Feature Male And Female ProtagonistsAC Odyssey Releasing On Switch In Japan As A Streaming GameAC Odyssey For PC: System Requirements And Recommended SpecsAC Odyssey Is Playable Right Through Google Chrome, If You're ChosenInfo from Gamespot.com