[Update: Xbox Live services appear to have resumed and issues have been resolved.]Original story follows:Xbox Live is currently experiencing issues that are affecting signing in and playing multiplayer titles across Windows 10 and Xbox One. It doesn't appear there is a fix yet, but Microsoft is working on getting things running smoothly again.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Memorial Day weekend is upon us, and with most parts of the US still stuck inside and social distancing because of the coronavirus, this holiday weekend is sure to feel different than previous years. Whether you have a three-day weekend ahead of you or still have to work on Monday--our condolences in advance--there are plenty of online deals available as retailers kick off their annual Memorial Day sales, with tech brands like Razer, HyperX, and Lenovo offering some great discounts on gaming headsets, controllers, laptops, and more. On Friday, GameStop and Best Buy kicked off their big Memorial Day sales as well, with discounts running all weekend long and into Monday. It's the perfect time to stock up on gaming goodies for the next few months. Below, we've rounded up some of the best Memorial Day deals available so far. It's a great time to stock up on PC gaming accessories, a new gaming laptop, or a 4K smart TV as several brands are discounting these products right now. We've also curated a list of the best game deals worth taking advantage of this weekend across Nintendo Switch, PS4, Xbox One, and PC, with steep discounts on fantastic titles like Red Dead Redemption 2, Control, Borderlands 3, and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.RazerFrom now through May 25, Razer is offering some solid discounts on some of its controllers and headsets, including the Wolverine Ultimate Xbox One controller, which made our list of the best Xbox One controllers for its excellent, clicky face buttons, interchangeable D-pad, and six programmable buttons. Normally $160, the Wolverine Ultimate is discounted to $130 for Memorial Day. And fortunately, it'll be compatible with Xbox Series X when that console launches.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Memorial Day weekend is finally here, and with it, the holiday is bringing a slew of deals across tech and gaming. GameStop always gets in on the action with a major sale of its own, and its 2020 Memorial Day sale is live now through Monday, May 25 with deals on games, accessories, refurbished consoles, and more. Its biggest promotion is a buy two, get one free offer on new and pre-owned games for PS4, Nintendo Switch, and Xbox One. This type of sale is usually relegated to pre-owned titles only, so it's pretty notable that new games, including some Switch titles, are included as well. Unfortunately (but not surprisingly), first-party Switch games and retro games aren't included, and most of the games are full price.As usual, when you add three games to your cart, the price of the cheapest one will be subtracted from your overall order. Because of this, it's important to be strategic with which games you choose--buying two $60 games and one $15 game isn't much of a savings. You should also be aware that many of the games in this B2G1 sale are listed at a price higher than what we'd normally see them on sale. Nier: Automata's Game of the Yorha Edition, for instance, has regularly been available for $25, but it's listed at $40 here. The Witcher 3's Complete Edition is usually on sale for about $20 for PS4 and Xbox One, and $45 for the Switch version, yet those versions are selling for $40 and $60 here. And whatever you do, don't buy Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle for $60--it's nearly always on sale for $15 to $20.If you're shopping for new games, there are still some solid options included; just be aware you could probably find some of these games individually for cheaper. Notably, the sale includes Final Fantasy VII Remake - Deluxe Edition, which has been hard to find physical copies of since launch. Another great option is Persona 5 Royal's steelbook launch edition, on sale for $50. The B2G1 sale also includes the Resident Evil 3 remake, Control, The Outer Worlds, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, and Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, so you've got some good games to choose from.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Nintendo has rolled out a small new update for Animal Crossing: New Horizons. According to the patch notes on the company's support website, New Horizons' 1.2.1 update "addressed issues to further ensure an enjoyable gaming experience." The notes don't go into any more detail beyond that, but one of the issues that's been resolved is reportedly the item duplication glitch.You'll need to install the latest update to continue playing Animal Crossing: New Horizons online. If the update isn't installed automatically, you can do so manually by highlighting the game's icon on the Switch dashboard, pressing the Plus button, and then selecting Software Update.New Horizons is in the midst of its Stamp Rally event to celebrate International Museum Day. The event runs through May 31 and has you collecting stamps from different stations that are hidden around the museum's fish, fossil, and insect exhibits.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

On May 19, 2015, Polish studio CD Projekt Red released The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, the final entry in its trilogy continuing author Andrzej Sapkowski's Witcher saga. With a huge open world, the game was a big departure from the style of the previous two games, but the risky move resulted in a game that still holds up five years later. It is often considered one of the best role-playing games of all time, and its enormous and lively world is largely responsible for that. In an interview with Polygon, the CDPR developers have talked about how The Witcher 3 was such a big departure from other games in the series, and what went into making that change.“Our quest director Mateusz Tomaszkiewicz, said that the main goal [of The Witcher 3] was to combine the design philosophy of previous Witcher games, which was to create a complex and mature story that has choices and consequences, with an open world," senior quest designer Philipp Weber told Polygon. "There used to be this preconceived notion you would hear a lot that open world games can’t tell interesting or deep stories. So that was something we took up as a challenge."Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Fortnite has held several virtual concerts inside its battle royale mode over the last few months as players stay sheltered at home, and Minecraft is getting in on the fun as well with a massive dance music festival. Electric Blockaloo is a four-day event that will feature some of the biggest stars of the electronic dance music genre, including Diplo and A-Trak.Running from June 25 through June 28, the Electric Blockaloo festival will be available across both the Bedrock version of Minecraft and the older Java version, meaning you can enjoy it regardless of system. Attendance is open to all 112 million active players, and those who don't play the game will also be able to view the concert on separate livestreamed feeds from the official website.Artists can sell tickets through their own links sent directly to fans, and there will be a 60/40 revenue split. More than 300 different artists are going to play over the course of the festival, and the play area itself includes a recreation of Dunder Mifflin's building from The Office and The Gorge venue. There will be games available to play as well as prizes and Easter eggs.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Call of Duty: Warzone has housed a bunch of secret bunkers that have laid dormant, but now they appear to be opening and supplying vast riches in the process. The latest update has finally given players a way to open the bunkers, and we'll help you do it yourself if you're having trouble.How To Unlock Call Of Duty: Warzone BunkersFor the bunkers numbered 1-10, you will need a Red Access Card, found via supply crates. The cards are extremely rare, but once you find one or kill a player holding one, you can get inside all but one of the bunkers.Bunker 1: Located on the northern end of the map near the crash site.Bunker 2: Located to the west of the first bunker, near the dam.Bunker 3: Located to the east of Bloc 15.Bunker 4: Located just south of Bunker 3.Bunker 5: Located just next to Bunker 4.Bunker 6: Located in the western part of the map, just north of the junkyard.Bunker 7: Located just next to Bunker 6.Bunker 8: Located between the junkyard and kart racing track.Bunker 9: Located in the south end of Tavorsk ParkBunker 10: Located in the southeast end of the map in Zordaya Prison ComplexBunker 11: Located in the northernmost section of the map, northwest of Arklov Peak Military Base.For Bunker 11, you will need to complete a puzzle. This involves finding the phones strewn across the map and finding one that has a Russian voice on the line. This voice is in Russian and using a table provided by Reddit user StrangerRobijn, you can translate the numbers the voice says.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

The official Call of Duty app sent players a mysterious message yesterday about an event happening in Call of Duty: Warzone on Thursday, May 21, possibly in connection to Season 4. The notification is cryptic but players think it could mean a major change is coming to the Warzone map, Verdansk, sometime soon. A video teaser released alongside shows a fan-favorite character could be joining. It's the most recognizable character in the series history--Captain John Price--and it was just a matter of time before he showed up. The notification, which went out to everyone who has the app downloaded on Wednesday, mentions a "tactical alert" happening on Thursday and for players to maintain "vigilance on enemy comms for location of enemy surveillance." Some players believe this is related to the newly-opened bunkers that contain a nuclear warhead and rare items, going as far to say the warhead will be use to level part of the map. We're less than two weeks away from a new season for Warzone so this could be a teaser ahead of a new battle pass. A video teaser adds further fuel to the Price rumor fire, as his signature hat is visible.The notification mentions an event happening at 4:37 PT / 7:37 ET on May 19 which aligns with when some of the first bunkers were opened in-game.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Following a massive update that brought some new modes to Call of Duty: Warzone, developer Infinity Ward has announced that the Classic Battle Royale mode is now playable in Trios on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.The Classic Battle Royale mode, which was announced a little earlier this month, does just as the name implies. The mode removes all of Warzones add-ons--cash, contracts, loadouts, the Gulag, all of it--and opts for a stripped-down, traditional last-man-standing experience.🚨 #Warzone Playlist Update! Now live across all platforms, jump into BR Trios Classic: No Cash, No Contracts, No Gulag, No Loadouts, No Respawns! — Infinity Ward (@InfinityWard) May 22, 2020When Infinity Ward first introduced the mode, the studio called it a limited-time experience. It's unclear whether the mode will remain as a permanent addition to Warzone's playlist.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Immediately after the Xbox Series X was announced, fans remarked that its refrigerator-like design makes it an excellent canvas for custom editions. Microsoft has yet to announce any special-edition Xbox Series X designs, but one fan has put together a very good-looking one for Halo Infinite. It's sharp and rugged, yet it isn't gaudy, and it looks good enough to be an official design if Microsoft launches a limited-edition console when the game releases. Noted designer Xbox Pope created the lovely-looking mock-up that you can see below. It features the Halo franchise's signature green color scheme and a distressed "117" in reference to Master Chief's name. Xbox Pope also created a mock-up for an Xbox controller that matches up with the console design. Check it out below, but remember again that this is not an official design.Some @Halo @Xbox fan art fun for you all to enjoy, keeping you all hyped for #haloinfinite coming soon #XboxSeriesX pic.twitter.com/7WLbZ4A7w6 — POPE (@XboxPope) May 19, 2020Given that Halo is one of Microsoft's crown jewel franchises, and that Infinite is one of Microsoft's marquee launch titles for Xbox Series X, it stands to reason that the company may actually create a special-edition console for the game. That's just speculation for now, though.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

When you think of AAA game development, images of designers, programmers, and engineers creating and iterating on their titles for months and years likely come to mind. The original Assassin's Creed spawned an enormous franchise developed today by thousands of people, but its side missions were actually developed in a span of just five days.Charles Randall--a former Ubisoft employee who worked on the first two Assassin's Creed games--shared that the original game was essentially finished when the company's CEO apparently had his son give it a try.so we're all ready to ship the game, first submission goes pretty well, and thenThe NewsThe CEO's kid played the game and said it was boring and there was nothing to do in the game — Charles Randall (@charlesrandall) May 23, 2020so my lead comes to me and he says "so, we have to add a bunch of side activities into the game. we have a plan from patrice, but I'm not going to say yes unless you are in."I tell him to give me some time to think about it, and I go crank my music and have a nap at my desk — Charles Randall (@charlesrandall) May 23, 2020oh yeah I forgot the key part. he says "we have to put all these side missions into the game in five days, and they have to be bug free, because the build is going to be burned directly to disc and released to retail." — Charles Randall (@charlesrandall) May 23, 2020He found that version of the game to be boring and didn't think there was enough to do, and the team then decided to add in side missions as a result. They only had five days to implement them, as the build they produced was going to be burned directly to discs and shipped.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Last week Rainbow Six Siege developer Ubisoft filed a lawsuit against Google and Apple because of Area F2, a mobile free-to-play shooter developed by Alibaba and Ejoy. Area F2 has been taken down permanently, with refunds being issues to players who purchased items via microtransactions.The notice of termination, shared by industry analyst Daniel Ahmad, stated that Area F2 would be taken offline yesterday, May 20. Although the notice makes no mention of Ubisoft and their lawsuit, the timing suggests Alibaba and Ejoy decided against trying to defend their product in court. Players who made purchases during the game's beta period can apply for refunds, either through the Apple App Store, Google Play Store, or third-party retailer.Ubisoft pointed towards Area F2's user-interface and end match score screen as particularly egregious examples of the game's copyright infringement. The French publisher also noted that it had pre-emptively warned Apple and Google of the game before it filed its lawsuit, but that neither took the game down in response.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

The pace of 3DS games has considerably slowed since the Nintendo Switch released, which is what made it so surprising to hear about a new physical release on the way. The publisher of the physical version has now said that other 3DS releases could follow, if this one does well enough.The game is the Atooi Collection, a compilation of Atooi games including Mutant Mudds, Mutant Mudds: Super Challenge, Bomb Monkey, Xeodrifter, and Chicken Wiggle. The physical version is being handled by Limited Run Games, a boutique distributor of limited edition physical games.The word of more potential releases came from Limited Run on Twitter, which responded to GameSpot's story with a retweet saying it hopes to do "a few more 3DS releases." That will depend on the success of the Atooi Collection, though.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

eFootball PES 2020 was meant to receive DLC for the UEFA 2020 tournament in April, but it was delayed due to the COVID-19 crisis--and the tournament itself is not happening. Now, after a short delay, we have a release date for the new pack, and it'll be completely free for anyone who owns the game. The pack contains every national team from the UEFA, giving players the perfect opportunity to jump back into the game. You won't have to wait too much longer to get the free DLC, either, as it's scheduled to release in just a few weeks. RESULT! 🙌We are delighted to announce that the postponed UEFA EURO 2020 content is coming to #eFootballPES2020 on Thursday 4th June featuring all 55 participating UEFA National teams, 2 brand new Stadiums and more! 👀🌟 #PlayingIsBelieving pic.twitter.com/7Th57QGrKA — eFootball PES (from 🏠) (@officialpes) May 18, 2020This content will arrive on June 4 as part of Data Pack 7.0, and will be available on PS4, Xbox One, and Steam.According to the press release, here's what it will contain:Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Listen, I know we just recently got our hands on the long-awaited reimagining to one of the most beloved games ever with Final Fantasy 7 Remake. But as the first wave of folks work their way to finishing this 40-hour(ish) journey through Midgar--which was just the opening portion of the original game--we naturally begin to wonder where FF7 Remake goes from here. You probably have questions, like how many parts will it be, or how long will we have to wait for Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 2, or whatever the next entry is called? When will the game release, and do we know if it will even really be a sequel? Will it launch on the same system, the PS4, or a new one?For one, I would say relax and let the development team do their thing, because as a reminder, the next part in FF7 Remake is currently in development. In a Square Enix blog post back in November 2019, game director Tetsuya Nomura stated, "We've already begun working on the next one as well, but I'm confident that playing through this title will expand your expectations just like the world that extends beyond Midgar."Our own senior editor Edmond Tran had a conversation with producer Yoshinori Kitase just last month, and asked Kitase-san how he feels about the possibility of working on FF7 Remake for the rest of his career. He said he isn't worried about the commitment, concluding, "I think it is a very important thing." He also echoed Nomura-san's assertion, saying that the team isn't taking a break from the Remake project and that they'll "get straight to it." (You can read GameSpot's full interview with Kitase-san for more.)Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com