Path of Exile's next expansion has been announced, and it's coming very soon. The "Heist" expansion for Grinding Gear's action-RPG will launch September 18 on PC before coming to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One for its console release on September 23.Path of Exile: Heist allows players to hire thieves to help them steal artifacts that will help fund your crew as you plan an even more elaborate "Grand Heist." So basically, it's Ocean's 11 meets an isometric RPG.The expansion adds the Heist challenge league and nine more skills and support gems, while curses, steel skills, and spells have been revamped. The Grand Heists, as they're called, give players the ability to earn special weapon and body armor enchantments, trinkets, new gems, and other items.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

After about seven hours with Marvel's Avengers, I have one big observation: The beta really should have started with Kamala Khan.Ms. Marvel is the heart and soul of Crystal Dynamics' take on Earth's Mightiest Heroes, and the introductory level that kicks off the game's story establishes her as the nerdy, hilarious, over-the-top fangirl that anchors the entire experience. The Avengers end up disbanded after a huge accident that remakes the world, but it's Kamala's experiences--finding her identity, searching for community, struggling with adults in her life letting her down or failing to understand her--that are grounding Marvel's Avengers.It all starts with an opening mission that focuses less on punching bad guys and more on what makes the Avengers heroic as people. A number of times now, we've seen the A-Day mission, in which you play as each Avenger as they fight an army of bad guys who want to do terrorism. It's a quick snapshot of how each character handles before the game moves into its real story, in which you play Kamala trying to find and reassemble the Avengers to fight off the totalitarian threat of the villainous organization AIM. But it's Kamala's introduction with her father, wandering around the pre-attack A-Day celebration, that centers Marvel's Avengers. She's a kid who meets her heroes, who finds them caring (if awkward), and who takes from them all the best lessons to grow, after a five-year time skip, into a hero in her own right.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Marvel's Avengers has found its way into the hands of players who have early access, and many are now working their way through the campaign. The game is coming to PS5 and Xbox Series X, but PC players can already get a massively improved visual performance out of the game--as long as they download the high-resolution texture pack, which is tucked away in the game's Steam properties tab.As TheGamer notes, to access this resolution pack, which weighs in at 26.7 GB, you'll need to right-click on the game from your Steam library and select "properties". From here, navigate to the DLC tab in the top-right, and click the "install" box.Of course, you'll need a more powerful PC (and a 4K monitor) to make the most of these textures. Check out the game's recommended specs, which you'll need to make the high-resolution pack worthwhile.TheGamer reports that these textures "make a huge difference," so if your computer can handle them it's worth the download. If you're interested in a new PC to play Avengers check out this deal, which comes with a copy of the game.GameSpot is currently working on its review of Marvel's Avengers. The game's first DLC character has been revealed, and it's Kate Bishop.Info from Gamespot.com

There was a naked man in my court.On June 14, 1073 AD, my steward, vassal and knight, Earl Muiredach mac Carthach of Desmond arrived at the meeting of my small council dressed only in, well... his birthday suit. This was the man I'd entrusted to manage the paperwork of my realm, to ensure taxes were being collected. Was this newfound fashion choice a portent of his impending madness? Was it some bold power move designed to put me off my game? A sign of the contempt in which he held his ruler? Or was it a bug, a highly specific graphical glitch that just happened to leave one of my councillors undressed? I didn't know.Perhaps it's a credit to Crusader Kings 3 that I didn't have an immediate answer, a sign of the depth and complexity of its simulation and its capacity for surprise. Perhaps it was also a failing, a breakdown somewhere between the calculations of a mass of colliding gameplay systems and how their results were communicated to me. Perhaps it's both. Regardless, this memorable event served only to highlight the singular vision of Crusader Kings 3, a grand strategy game that successfully operates across a bewildering scale, feeling vast and unknowable one moment yet awkwardly intimate the next. It's a marvel of connectivity, effectively linking together complementary elements plucked from different genres--the role-playing game, the visual novel, the life simulation, the city-builder, the wargame--even if at times you can sense it straining at the seams.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Hiking in the digital wilderness of A Short Hike is a reminder of the small joys of stretching your legs out on the trails. Its pixelated habitat is saturated with the familiar sights and sounds of the backcountry in real life--like the bubbling of a sluggish stream through the woods or greeting fellow hikers as they trek along the steep edges of grassy plateaus. As a young canary named Claire, one of the first characters you'll come across is a pint-sized frog at the beach in Hawk Peak Provincial Park, who's clearly struggling with building a sandcastle. Her problem, unfortunately, is that she's heaving a full-sized shovel about, a clunky tool unfit for the refined job of sand sculpting. You can hand her a toy shovel, and over time, see her modest sandcastle gradually expand into a sprawling sand empire--simply a charming, heart-swelling sight.This is just one of the many minute scenes you'll embrace in A Short Hike, an exploration title about trudging across a park's hilly terrains and muddy routes. It's a game with a simple, singular objective: Trek towards the summit of Hawk Peak Mountain, as that's the only place with any cellphone reception. While this sounds scant, there are plenty of activities you'll need to busy yourself with in order to get to the top. You can collect seashells and sticks along the way, help other hikers out with their problems, or cast your hook into the tranquil rivers in hopes of snagging a rare fish. Doing these tend to net you some rewards, be it in the form of gold feathers--one of the most essential items in the game--or an assortment of tools and accessories. While some of these are purely cosmetic, others unlock more abilities for Claire, like the capacity to sprint, fly further, or bounce high on the island's fantastical plants.It's tempting to see these as mere side-quests to complete, but that defeats the point of these experiences--the real reward is in enjoying the plain beauty of these mundane moments. That's by no means a narrative flaw; it's these small instances that encapsulate the grandeur of traversing through A Short Hike's large, mountainous landscapes. Interactions with fellow visitors, like following along on an anxious painter's journey to seek inspiration in nature, an elusive endeavour even in this picturesque landscape, usually culminate in heartwarming conclusions. Other encounters also make for quietly humorous anecdotes, much like a private joke you recall sharing with close friends.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Ubisoft has issued an apology for imagery used in the opening video of Tom Clancy's Elite Squad, and committed to removing it in an upcoming title update. The video featured the game's antagonist organization using a raised fist image, which critics said implied a connection between terrorism and the Black Lives Matter movement.In a statement shared on Twitter, Ubisoft said the imagery was "insensitive and harmful in both its inclusion and how it was portrayed." It also said that the raised fist will be removed in a title update on September 1 for Android, and as soon as possible on iOS.An update regarding Tom Clancy's Elite Squad: pic.twitter.com/G6Hb1SO7Gx — Ubisoft (@Ubisoft) August 29, 2020In the context of the game's story, the symbol appeared in relation to the anarchist group UMBRA. The organization is said to be exploiting civil unrest to generate chaos and undermine world governments. That prompted widespread criticism, especially in light of the Black Lives Matter movement generating protests across America in recent months. At least one contracted writer on the project said that he did not see the scene and would have called out the problematic aspects if he had.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

When it comes to popular competitive games, most of us have had to deal with a cheater or two in our time. If you're an Call of Duty: Warzone fan, however, it's now just a little bit harder to find the fun-ruining cheats that will make you reviled in every game you step into. A site that sells cheats and hacks has removed those for the Call of Duty series following a lawsuit from Activision.The administrators of the site released a statement on their Discord to elucidate the changes: "As some of you may know, Activision Publishing, Inc has filed a lawsuit against CxCheats and has made it clear to us that our services violate their Terms of Use," a portion of it reads. "As a result of our lawsuit with Activision, we have agreed to cease development and support for all Call Of Duty related products or services sold through the site. These products will not be returning to CxCheats in any form."Though CxCheats appears to be down at the moment, Eurogamer found that the site is still selling cheats for non-COD games, such as PUBG and Apex Legends. Activision has dropped the hammer on Call of Duty cheaters before, banning more than 70,000 players back in April and promising more ban-waves to come in recent months. The cheating problem has become so rife in Warzone that some console players have taken to disabling cross-play in order to avoid PC players, since it's much easier to use these tools on a PC than a console. Recently, a Call of Duty streamer accidentally revealed their cheat tools while bragging about his skills at the game, which led a swift ban.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Intel's annual Gamer Days sale brings discounts on Intel-based gaming laptops and a variety of accessories to improve your setup. The annual promotion is live now until September 6 at multiple retailers, including Amazon and Best Buy. Amazon's Gamer Days sale focuses on Dell products, including Alienware keyboards, mice, and headsets. Best Buy's offers feature a variety of gaming laptops, including the Razer Blade 15 and Asus ROG Strix G15. We've rounded up the best Intel Gamer Days hardware deals below.Green Man Gaming is also hosting an Intel Gamer Days sale featuring select PC games (Steam keys), including numerous racing games from Codemasters. F1 2020's Seventy edition is discounted to $36.95, while Dirt Rally is down to just $4.40.Intel Gamer Days deals at GMG Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

As popular games increasingly trend more towards a free-to-play model, concerns over cheating have also bobbed to the surface, especially in competitive shooters. Riot's popular shooter Valorant is no exception, and a new blog post from the game's anti-cheat lead gives some new details about the Vanguard system, which protects its legion of players from the aspiring wallhackers of the world.The blog post says that player reports are still the most potent weapon in Riot's arsenal, with Vanguard automatically banning players that are clearly using third-party software, and giving oft-reported players an ominous-sounding "higher intensity game integrity scan" to weed out careful cheaters. Riot also employs a manual review process against the most suspicious players, particularly those using cheats that haven't necessarily been detected yet by Vanguard. The post also suggests that Riot uses the number of overall reports as a benchmark for the competitive health of Valorant--if there are a lot of reports, people aren't happy with the game, and something needs fixing.The blog ends on some interesting data points: for example, 97% of Valorant players never receive a single report, and only 0.3% have received 3 or more reports. The numbers also suggest that reports aren't always the best indicator of whether or not a player is truly cheating: only 53% of banned cheaters were reported before their ban. Truly, the cheaters walk among us, hiding in plain sight.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Pokemon Go players have a slew of events to look forward to in September 2020, including a few revolving around Mega Evolutions. To give everyone a chance to participate, Niantic is offering a cheap Remote Raid Pass bundle in Pokemon Go's in-game shop for a limited time.Until September 30, you can pick up a bundle of three Remote Raid Passes for only one PokeCoin. You can only claim this bundle once, and you need to have fewer than three Remote Raid Passes already in your inventory to get it.In celebration of our Mega September event, you can purchase a one-time bundle of three Remote Raid Passes for 1 PokéCoin in the shop! Remember, you must have fewer than three Remote Raid Passes to purchase more. Learn more here: https://t.co/WpVCRmbB0p pic.twitter.com/2PwhsBBCT5 — Pokémon GO (@PokemonGoApp) August 31, 2020Remote Raid Passes give you the ability to join a Raid Battle without physically venturing out to that Gym. You can use them on any Raid that appears in the Nearby screen, although there are a few caveats to keep in mind when it comes to joining Raids remotely. You can learn more about the process in our Remote Raids guide.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Fall Guys' two-week long charity fundraiser has finally come to an end. Tyler "Ninja" Blevins, G2 Esports, Jimmy "MrBeast" Donaldson, and Aim Lab came together to donate one million dollars to the UK charity Special Effect. Now the group will have special skins featured in the game show battle royale.Crowns should be held in the palms of those who continue to do good 👑 We've teamed up with @G2esports, @Ninja & @MrBeast to pledge $1,000,000 for charity! @SpecialEffect you dropped this 👑 pic.twitter.com/siBA3q819d — Aim Lab (@aimlab) August 31, 2020The donation came within a minute of the charity drive ending on August 31. YouTuber FGTeev held the lead as the final seconds counted down. Ninja tweeted his last second bid just in time to close the fundraiser out.The donation will go to Special Effect, a UK-based charity that helps "level the playing field" for players with disabilities. The nonprofit has specialists that visit players with disabilities to help them create accessibility-minded gameplay setups. Though individual in-person visits are no longer possible, the charity is still operating during the pandemic.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Remedy Entertainment has come a long way from the permanently-scowled face of its first hero, Max Payne. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the studio, which grew out of the demo scene in Finland in 1995. The studio's publisher, Epic Games, put together a short video to celebrate the milestone.In the video, Remedy's lead staffers briefly reminisce on the studio's founding, as well as the unique qualities shared by all its games. The studio's first effort was 1996's Death Rally, a top-down PC racing game with a focus on smashing cars and arcade action. They're also known for Quantum Break, an early Xbox One game that attempted to cross video games with prestige television. Creative director Sam Lake says that the studio's first hit Max Payne was born out of a desire to tell a "proper story" in an action game. Later, communications director Thomas Puha jokes that the studio's next game will be "bright and happy"--unlike their other work--before conceding that it will likely be just as brooding and melancholic as the noir-tinged Control.Control recently received its second major piece of DLC, titled AWE, which clearly sets up Alan Wake 2 as Remedy's next game. (The original Alan Wake was a cult phenomenon, but it never sold as well as the studio's other games.) It also solved the game's most enigmatic mystery, albeit in a surprising way. The developer was recently in the news when they announced that players will not receive a free next-gen upgrade for Control unless they purchase its $40 Ultimate Edition, which also includes both of the game's major DLC packs. Epic and Remedy recently announced that the Fortnite developer will publish Remedy's next game, along with new efforts from Limbo developer Playdead and others.Info from Gamespot.com

The latest game in Paradox Interactive's medieval strategy RPG series, Crusader Kings III, releases tomorrow, September 1. It'll be available exclusively on PC and will be sold on Steam. As in the past, Crusader Kings III is set in medieval times and allows players to control an ongoing dynasty of rulers as they seek to keep their kingdom going despite various obstacles over a series of generations. It's been a long wait for the new game, with Crusader Kings II having released way back in 2012. A stream of expansion packs have been released in the meantime, but Tuesday's launch marks the biggest evolution in the series in nearly a decade. Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Ubisoft's sci-fi take on the battle royale genre, Hyper Scape, hasn't exactly set the world aflame so far, but this week's new patch will make some much-requested changes to the game. As a patch preview video posted by Ubisoft Montreal reveals, the update will nerf several weapons, adjust controller aiming, and add some new features.We are excited to give a sneak peek at Patch 1.1 coming next week!🎮 Controller aim update🔫 Hexfire + Mammoth nerfs👑 Crown adjustmentsAnd much more!📺Watch @Drjennog and @MrPope go over the patch highlights here: https://t.co/AbsiynabVy — Hyper Scape (@HyperScapeGame) August 28, 2020First, the update will reduce the clipsize of the Hexfire minigun and the overall damage of the Mammoth shotgun, since both of these weapons are widely-considered overpowered by the community at the moment. Second, the patch takes aim at the game's controller support, giving players more options on how to adjust the acceleration and sensitivity of their sticks, as well as reducing the default sensitivity.The patch also overhauls the game's Crown Rush gamemode, making it harder to use movement options to escape your pursuers when you have the Crown. Ubisoft is adding some basic features to the game as well with this update, such as a player stats and a report button.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Pokemon Go has a handful of events lined up for September 2020, starting with Mega September--a three-week event revolving around Mega Evolutions. Each week will have a different focus, and if players can hit certain milestones, Niantic will introduce additional Mega-Evolved Pokemon in the game.Although Mega-Evolved Pokemon are the primary focus of Mega September, there will be plenty of other rewards available during the event, including new Shiny Pokemon to catch. You can see a full breakdown of the Mega September event below.Week 1: Mega RaidsSeptember 1 (8 AM local) - September 7 (10 PM local)The first leg of the Mega September event revolves around Mega Raids, a new tier of Raid Battles that pits players against a Mega-Evolved Pokemon. Throughout the week, Mega Raids will occur at Gyms more frequently than usual, and you'll get an increased attack bonus if you raid alongside friends. If players around the world can clear two million Mega Raids before the week ends, Niantic will introduce Mega Pidgeot as a Mega Raid boss.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com