With its bright energy, colorful characters, and wacky-powered cars, Destruction AllStars takes many of the aesthetic and mechanical trends from the last five years of multiplayer-focused live games and applies them to the long-dormant car combat genre. Speeding around beautifully detailed and cartoonishly articulated demolition derby courses, looking for your chance to rev your engine and hit another player so hard their ride explodes. When your own car inevitably gets busted up beyond recognition, you can hop out of your car and climb into another: A novel idea, but one that keeps you out of the action. Despite its striking visuals and solid driving fundamentals, Destruction AllStars' demolition derby-style car smashing is inconsistent and unpredictable. Every multiplayer game has highs and lows, but Destruction AllStars' best bits are few and fleeting.You have one job to do in Destruction AllStars: Get into a car and crash it into other players. At the start of each match, 16 players start out on foot and race to grab one of a handful of empty cars, which come in many recognizable shapes like slick sports cars, burly SUVs, and tough trucks. Unlike in most car games, though, you are not tied to your car forever. You can eject from a vehicle at any time to trade for a new model or because the car's health is low and you don't want to wipe out.Whether you crash or get crashed into, at least you're going to look good doing it. Destruction AllStars' large arenas are incredibly well-detailed and drenched in bright, colorful lights are a visual feast. The characters, from Fuego the masked-metal head to Ratu, a teal-haired boxer in an orange jumpsuit, are all drawn in a familiar Overwatch-esque style but have very specific looks that pop and draw you to them all the same. Even the little flourishes, like how a character jumps into an empty white car which instantaneously takes on their color scheme, look cool every time.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Super Mario 3D World will be re-released on the Nintendo Switch on February 12, 2021, with a new addition in Bowser's Fury. You can read our review below, or check out what other critics thought in our review roundup. We also have a breakdown of how long it takes to beat and how it works with Amiibo.Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury is a candy confection of fine-tuned platforming that marries some of the best elements of 2D and 3D Mario in two very different ways. The package is mostly a re-release of a Wii U game, but this version upgrades the original with a faster pace and online play, and then adds the experimental and gloriously strange Bowser's Fury on top of it.The two experiences are bifurcated to the point where you need to quit out of one completely to start the other. This makes sense--the two share some superficial traits but are otherwise very different design philosophies and platforming approaches. Because of this very split design, though, it only makes sense to examine them as separate games.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

The new Star Wars game from the developers of The Division is only just getting started, so don't expect it soon. During an earnings call, CEO Yves Guillemot said the game is only in the "early stage" of development.His comment came in response to a question about when the game might be released. Guillemot declined to share a release window for the game, only stressing that the project is just getting started."We are very happy to be partnering again with Lucasfilm Games, Guillemot said. "The project will be aided by our Massive studio who will make the most of their cutting-edge technology, including the Snowdrop engine, to deliver a groundbreaking Star Wars adventure. We are very proud of this collaboration, which is a testament to Ubisoft leadership and expertise, notably in creating amazing works. It is another demonstration of our capacity to build partnerships with the biggest names in the entertainment and technology space."Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Rainbow Six Quarantine may get a name change in light of the coronavirus pandemic. It got a splashy introduction at Ubisoft's E3 2019 press conference, but after the last year of actual quarantine it hits pretty differently, which is prompting Ubisoft to reevaluate.The subject came up during an investor Q&A session following the release of Ubisoft's most recent earnings statement. One question raised whether the company is still planning to release a game with such a provocative title during or after the pandemic. CEO Yves Guillemot answered that the company is evaluating, but has nothing new to announce yet.This signals that the studio is at least considering a name change, a move that has seemed likely since the global pandemic forced the world into lockdown roughly a year ago. Since then the coronavirus pandemic has claimed more than 2 million lives worldwide and devastated many major economies as the public has had to quarantine to avoid exposure.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

The Xbox Store's biggest sale of 2021 so far is live now. There are more than 300 games on sale overall, so now's a great time to stock up if you own an Xbox Series X or Xbox One. The Lunar New Year sale runs until February 15 and features discounts on plenty of AAA hits, including Yakuza: like a Dragon, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2, and Control Ultimate edition.The Assassin's Creed bundle is arguably the best deal in the sale. It comes with Assassin's Creed Valhalla, Odyssey, and Origins for only $64. Considering Valhalla still regularly retails for $60, this bundle is a steal. Speaking of great bundles, the Arkane Anniversary Collection is down to $30. The collection compiles the Dishonored series (including Death of the Outsider) and Prey in one package. You can also grab Batman: Arkham Collection, which features all three of Rocksteady's critically acclaimed Batman games, for just $15.A variety of games that released over the holidays are discounted, too. Yakuza: Like a Dragon is $42, Watch Dogs: Legion is $30, and Immortals Fenyx Rising is $36. All three of those games come with free Xbox Series X upgrades. Control Ultimate edition, which just received its next-gen update earlier this month, is down to $28. If you're still gaming on Xbox One, the last-gen version of Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War is on sale for $45.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

We knew a lot of changes were coming with the Season of the Chosen in Destiny 2, but Bungie's patch notes to go with its most recent update are pretty extensive. Bungie provided more detail about how its adjusting weapons, however, which will likely have some effect on the overall metagame and which guns players choose to take into activities like raids and the Crucible.Bungie posted the full patch notes for Destiny 2's Update 3.1.0 on its website, detailing a host of bug fixes coming with the launch of the Season of the Chosen. The rundown also includes many changes the developer had already outlined--like the return of higher-level rewards to the Moon and Dreaming City. Bungie also posted a list of known issues for the season so players know what they're getting into.As it was gearing up for the new season, Bungie said it would be adjusting how some guns handle to make them more viable. Feedback has suggested that SMGs, for example, don't get a lot of use because camera shake and recoil make them less effective than other rapid-fire alternatives, like auto rifles. Update 3.1.0 reduces camera movement while firing an SMG by a big margin--24%--which should make them a little easier to handle in combat situations. Pulse rifles and machine guns also got their camera movement reduced, by 7% and 9.5%, respectively.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Skybound Entertainment, known for its work with horror franchises such as The Walking Dead, has announced a collaboration with Striking Distance on its recently revealed survival horror, The Callisto Protocol.The partnership between the two companies will allow the new IP to be marketed and expanded in new mediums, along with its already announced release on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. Skybound says in the announcement that it plans to bring the IP alive beyond games alone."The partnership between the horror powerhouse and new studio led by the creator of Dead Space, Glen Schofield, will see Skybound Entertainment utilizing their transmedia brand extension and multiplatform expertise to bring Striking Distance Studio's new IP to life in games and beyond," the statement reads.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Hearthstone will make another major shift to its Standard play, Blizzard announced today. Starting with the next set rotation, the Basic and Classic sets will be removed from Standard play and replaced by a batch that Blizzard is calling the Core set. This comes alongside a few other changes, and a new Classic mode. It's all a little heady, so let's break it down.The New Core SetHearthstone introduced the Standard and Wild modes in 2016 to keep gameplay competitive without the collection of playable cards getting too large and daunting for newcomers. Standard combined the Basic and Classic sets with the most recent two years of expansions. Basic cards are gained by reaching level milestones with heroes, while Classic cards are the regular, vanilla set of cards that come in randomized Classic packs. Wild would house absolutely everything, including older expansions.Starting this spring, though, both Basic and Classic will be replaced in Standard with a new Core set. The Core set is a collection of 235 cards that will be free for all players. You'll earn them by leveling up classes, and if you're an established player who has already reached level 10 with each class, you'll just have them all automatically as soon as you log in. You can also earn the Golden versions by completing achievements as each class.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Actor Tom Holland has revealed that his Spider-Man counterparts Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield will not appear alongside him in the upcoming Spider-Man: Far From Home sequel. Speaking with Esquire, Holland's statement effectively denies or nullifies recent rumors stating otherwise."No, no, they will not be appearing in this film," Holland said. "Unless they have hidden the most massive piece of information from me, which I think is too big of a secret for them to keep from me. But as of yet, no. It'll be a continuation of the Spider-Man movies that we've been making."For those not up to speed--and the Esquire piece digs into this--Holland's reference to secrets being kept from him on films he's starring in is due to the actor's habit of either inadvertently spoiling the endings or crucial plot points of his own films during interviews or public appearances. See this four-minute clip from 2018 for just one explosive example of this.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Bridesmaids co-writers Kristen Wiig (Saturday Night Live) and Annie Mumolo (Modern Family) have re-teamed for the newly announced comedy Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar, which will be released digitally on February 12. Even though the entire movie's plot is pretty much right there in the title, you can and should check out the new trailer below that conveys the film's kooky and earnest tone.In Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar, the titular best friends leave their small Midwestern town for the first time for a vacation in Vista Del Mar, Florida. While taking in the sun, they kibbitz, take in the sights, and try to live their best vacation lives.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Disney is closing down the Oscar-winning animation studio Blue Sky, which broke out with the Ice Age franchise and whose movies generated $5.9 billion at the box office.The Connecticut-based studio was owned by 20th Century Fox, but Disney is shuttering the studio after inheriting it in the acquisition; the closure, which is expected to happen in April, will impact the 450 employees of Blue Sky.Blue Sky released 13 movies over the years, but its most famous work was the Ice Age series. The company also released the Oscar-winning short, Bunny, in 1998.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

[UPDATE] Halo community manager John Junyszek confirmed that this job ad was for Halo Infinite, not a new Halo game.The original story is below.Microsoft is hiring for a "new project in the Halo universe." GamesRadar discovered a job ad for a producer that will work on this unannounced project.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Mass Effect: Legendary Edition remasters BioWare's original Mass Effect trilogy. In order to give you a better idea of just how much of a transformation we're talking about, we've compiled several comparison screenshots.As the original Mass Effect is getting the most out of the remaster in terms of updated character models and locations, we've only compiled screenshots from that game. That said, there are noticeable improvements for Mass Effect 2 and Mass Effect 3 in the Legendary Edition as well.For the sake of convenience, all of the screenshots on the left side of the comparison are from the original trilogy (which were taken from the PC version of the game), while those on the right are from the Legendary Edition. We've listed the screenshots in order by which they appear.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

The developers of Call of Duty: Warzone continue to take aim at cheaters in the battle royale game. After banning 60,000 accounts just last week, developer Raven Software has now confirmed yet another ban wave--and the studio is prepared to drop the banhammer again."Stepping up anti-cheat efforts on all fronts," the developer said. "More to come. Let's keep Warzone clean!"Another ban wave today across #Warzone. Stepping up anti-cheat efforts on all fronts. More to come. Let’s keep Warzone clean! — Raven Software (@RavenSoftware) February 9, 2021With many millions of players, the developers of Warzone face a very difficult and ongoing task of weeding out bad actors from the battle royale game. With a game of that size and scale, some portion of the audience will be jerks who try to ruin the experience for others, and this has been and continues to be the case.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

The latest patch for Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War has arrived, ushering in some important changes for the just-launched League Play event, while the Zombies mode gets more stability improvements, bug fixes, and more.League Play kicked off this week and the new patch includes a series of fixes, one of which solves the issue that could cause classes to show up empty in some scenarios. The update also delivers some restrictions, one of which is that you cannot use any type of suppressor attachment, while a number of barrel attachments are also cut.League Play is the new competitive-minded option for players looking to have a more serious and intense experience.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com