News:: Domesticate dinosaurs in Wild West settlement builder Dino Frontier

Amid the hustle and bustle of PlayStation Experience 2016, I utterly missed seeing one of the newly-announced games, Dino Frontier. We must talk about it now, for a few reasons.

• It's a settlement builder.
• More importantly, it's a settlement builder with dinosaurs in the Wild West.
• You take on the role of "Big Mayor."
• As Big Mayor, you have Big Hands, perfect for snatching up troublemakers.
• You can domesticate dinosaurs and then have cowboys ride the dinosaurs oh my god.

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News:: Raven's Gravity Rush 2 story will be free DLC, drops in March

Over the weekend Sony gave us some insight into the potential future of Gravity Rush 2 -- side stories. Although only Raven was announced, the "Another Story" tag was emblazoned upon the announcement, hinting at more potential meaty DLCs in the pipeline.

But thankfully, the first hit will be free. Sony clarified that although Raven's campaign "The Ark of Time: Raven's Choice" won't be available at launch, it will be free. Gravity Rush 2 is still slated for a January release, but a playable Raven won't make it in until March 2017.

That's perfect timing, I think. I spent several months combing the streets of Hekseville in the first game. It's just a lovely, lovely setting coupled with an amazing traversal mechanic.

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News:: VR zombie game Arizona Sunshine has a 32% off release-week deal

Grab your HTC Vive or Oculus Rift for tomorrow's release of Arizona Sunshine on PC. The VR zombie shooter is getting a 15% discount on Steam as a pre-order incentive before launch, but the game is even cheaper if you simply head to Green Man Gaming.

• Arizona Sunshine (Steam) — $27.29  (list price $40)
• Must login to see discount

Digital retailer GMG has the margin cut further to 32% off, discounting the game down to $32.29. Arizona Sunshine currently sits on Steam's top selling list at #11.

Be sure to login at GMG or create an account to see the full discount. It's a requirement, otherwise you'll only see the standard 15% off price break (which is available at all authorized retailers).

Note: If you try running this title on a low-end PC, you're gonna have a bad time. The minimum requirements to run Arizona Sunshine are a Core i5-4590 Haswell CPU along with a GeForce GTX 970 GPU. Recommended specs are a Core i7-6700K along with a GeForce GTX 980.

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News:: Underwater adventure Abzu out this week on Xbox One

This year, Giant Squid gave us a lovely and at times unabashedly whimsical underwater adventure game. I keep taking on any scrap of news I can as a blatant excuse to plaster its art here.

But maybe you're well aware of Abzu already and you've just been patiently waiting for the Xbox One version. We're almost there! It's coming tomorrow, December 6, with a $20 digital release. And if you buy the game during its first week, you'll knock 15% off the price tag.

Publisher 505 Games also plans to put out a Windows 10 version "soon," and that's in addition to January's physical copies for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, as previously discussed.

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News:: Russian MPs looking to ban or censor FIFA 17 for 'gay propaganda'

Russia is at it again. Russian MPs have sent a letter of complaint to the communications oversight and state consumer protection agencies asserting that FIFA 17 may be in violation of Russia's 2013 "gay propaganda" law that claims the presence of positive homosexual material in media will do "harm to children's health and development."

In this case, it was EA giving out a free rainbow calcio kit that led to Communist MPs sending the letter. EA gave away the digital item in support of the Rainbow Laces campaign meant to combat homophobia, biphobia and transphobia in the sport.

Show your support, get your FREE Rainbow kit in FUT now! More on the #RainbowLaces campaign: https://t.co/2NohXaloXe http://pic.twitter.com/xSbY9G8wAp

— EA SPORTS FIFA (@EASPORTSFIFA) November 26, 2016

According to The Guardian, Communist MP Valery Rashkin says the family-friendly-rated game needs to be investigated by the Federal Service for Supervision in the Sphere of Telecom, Information Technologies and Mass Communications to ensure it is in compliance with the 2013 law. Following that, authorities should order the developer to, "introduce changes to the programming code or the age classification of this information product, and if it refuses, adopt corresponding restrictive measures."

FIFA 17 could even end up banned in Russia. United Russia MP Irina Rodnina told Russian newspaper Izvestia that authorities need to "verify the possibility of distributing this game on the territory of the Russian Federation," noting, "Every state has its internal laws and order; they need to be obeyed."

Russian MPs accuse Fifa 17 video game of 'gay propaganda' [The Guardian]

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News:: P.T. ghost and Norman Reedus dance their hearts out in MGSV's infamous rain scene

While nowhere near as sensual and sexual as Ocelot in the role of Quiet, this video from Lakitouille takes the ghost and Norman Reedus character models from Kojima horror tech demo P.T. and puts them in that classic Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain scene.

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News:: Cap off the year with Shantae: Half-Genie Hero on Dec. 20

And with that, the wait is almost over. After recently giving the heads up that Shantae: Half-Genie Hero was finished and awaiting certification from platform holders, WayForward has settled on a December 20, 2016 digital release for its Kickstarter-funded platformer. What a packed year for games.

The launch list for that exact date, as it stands, is:

• Steam for Window PC - worldwide
• Xbox One - worldwide
• PS4 & Vita - North America & Europe
• Wii U - North America & Europe (awaiting final confirmation)

Backers can expect to receive their Half-Genie Hero codes in the next week or so. As for the specific timing of the various physical versions, "look to Xseed for an announcement shortly."

Shantae is Ret-2-Go! [Kickstarter]

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News:: Superhot, one of the best games of 2016, finally goes full meta

At long last, Superhot has gotten where it feels like it was destined for all along: Virtual reality. A game about a person in a nefarious VR simulation has finally achieved its full metanarrative potential by coming to actual VR. Nothing's real anymore. Mind is software.

The launch of Oculus Touch is the reason for the leap from more traditional platforms to virtual reality. Not all VR, though; Superhot is exclusive to Oculus. It's available for $25, or as part of a Touch launch bundle for $90 that also includes Space Pirate Trainer, I Expect You to Die, Kingspray Graffiti, and The Climb. Those who backed the Kickstarter can expect a free copy of the new virtual reality version.

There's also a new trailer to commemorate the occasion. All that violence makes it easy to forget, but Superhot's actually something of a beautiful ballet -- a wonderful waltz of mental preparation, slow-moving bullets, and enemies that crumble like Fabergé eggs. The classical music really sets the mood for all the shooting and slicing.

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News:: Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy needs some tweaking, but has high-nostalgic potential

I played Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy over the weekend at PSX, but I want to preface the preview with a couple thoughts. First, I remember enjoying the first three games a fair amount, and in my attempts to recollect them, I was unsure of whether they always felt like they were drenched in molasses or my child-skills weren't up to par. Second, after that fun Crash scene in Uncharted 4, I went back and played it for a few minutes to find that I wasn't totally n. sane after all: our humanoid bandicoot friend was never easy to navigate.

While my Crash memories are admittedly murky, the N. Sane Trilogy had a bizarre effect on the nostalgia buried deep within my guts. I started on the original beach level, and after acclimating to how much better Crash himself looked (so dang fuzzy!), I found myself knowing where every single crate, jump, and hazard was. Though Vicarious Visions is in charge of this remake, I was told that the team received the original level geometry from Naughty Dog and built upon it, which feels immediately apparent.

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News:: 10 characters who need to be in Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite

I haven't stopped thinking about Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite since it was officially announced earlier this week. We've had less than four minutes of total trailer footage, yet my mind is going crazy thinking of all the different possibilities. Before we find out the game's final roster (which will most likely be through a leak, like every other Capcom fighting game), I figured it'd be fun to list some of the characters I'd like to see. 

Taking into consideration Marvel's potential cinematic universe focus, franchise representation, and just overall fun play styles, I tried my best to limit my picks to 10. I've also considered ways to incorporate many characters into as small of a roster as possible since I keep getting that sinking feeling Infinite will feature an initially small cast. Hopefully it's like Tatsunoko vs. Capcom in that it makes the most out of little. 

Hope all of our favorites take us for a ride! 

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News:: Microsoft says the wait for Crackdown 3 will be a year at most

It may seem like a while since we've last heard about Crackdown 3. That's because Microsoft has been in no great rush to offer more details about the open-world destructathon that it initially revealed at E3 2014. It sort of just faded to the background while more imminent games got all the attention.

At long last, it seems like Crackdown 3 will soon be part of Microsoft's marketing cycle of upcoming games. During an Extra Life stream, members from the Crackdown 3 development team confirmed that the game is scheduled for holiday 2017 or earlier. Assuming no additional delays, that means we're looking at about a maximum of a one-year wait until it releases.

Another tidbit to trickle out of the stream was the fact that Crackdown 3 will run at 4K on Scorpio. This isn't necessarily surprising given that Microsoft has said in the past that all of its future first-party games will run at a native 4K on Scorpio. But, if Crackdown 3 launches before Scorpio, it's not a feature that would necessarily be expected. Now we have confirmation that it'll support that resolution on the high-end console.

Although it will have been little more than three years from initial reveal to release, Crackdown 3's selling points already feel something like a relic. It was originally billed as having amazing large-scale destruction because of its reliance on Azure's cloud infrastructure. Microsoft hasn't pushed that angle much lately, especially considering its early-days preaching about how the cloud could supercharge gaming. If that's still the case (and it probably is), it shouldn't be a whole lot longer until we hear that song and dance again.

Crackdown 3 Will Come Earlier than Holidays 2017; Will Feature 4K on Project Scorpio [DualShockers via NeoGAF]

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News:: Yo-Kai Watch is getting a fourth movie in 2017

The US just recently aired the first Yo-Kai Watch film by way of Disney XD, but Level-5 is already planning a fourth movie! It's the IP that just won't stop in Japan, and although we don't exactly know what it entails, there will be another feature film released in winter 2017.

At this point Yo-Kai theatrical releases are somewhat of a holiday tradition, as one movie will have dropped every December since 2014. They also do insanely well, topping $65 million US (breaking records) and $45 million US for the first and second movies respectively.

Yo-kai Watch Franchise Gets 4th Film in Winter 2017 [Anime News Network]

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News:: PC Port Report: Watch Dogs 2

The PC port for Watch_Dogs, on release, barely managed to run. It was missing graphical features found on consoles and looked nothing like the initial trailer shown in 2012. Not much of what Ubisoft had claimed about the port was present and an “extreme” texture option was locked away behind code. It took months of patches to finally get into a working state, but it still haunts the publisher as one of the worst bait and switches of its history.

Thankfully for the sequel, Watch Dogs 2, Ubisoft has upped its game. The port (or, rather, PC version) isn’t perfect, but it’s a far cry from how crippled the first game was. It also doesn’t lack any graphical features from the console versions and even offers 4K support for GPUs that can handle it.

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News:: Holiday deal: PlayStation 4 with one year of PS Plus for $269 at Walmart

Believe it or not, beyond Black Friday and Cyber Monday, there is actually a "Green Monday" sale where retailers attempt another go before Christmas. However lame it is, we do occasionally see some decent deals, such as this PlayStation 4 Slim Uncharted 4 bundle with a bonus 12-month PlayStation Plus subscription ($60 value). While PS Plus does go on sale occasionally, it's been pretty sporadic since the price increase from $50 to $60 earlier this year.

• PlayStation 4 Slim Uncharted 4 500GB + 1 Year PS Plus — $269  (list price $300)
• Online-only, free shipping, may expire soon

This is an online-only deal so you won't be able to order online and do same-day in-store pick up. We're unsure of the expiration date so if you really want a PS4 Slim for the holidays as a gift of some sort, and you missed out on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, this is a decent comparable deal in terms of value.

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News:: Capcom is looking to bring back 'dormant' properties

Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite was one of the many pleasant surprises unveiled over the weekend at a very eventful PlayStation Experience. The leaks tipped us off beforehand, I'll grant you that, but still! A new Marvel! I'm amazed it's happening, and I'm already anticipating future EVO matches.

Now, not to get your hopes up with what-if scenarios, but there's a curious note in a press release for the game: Infinite is only the start of the company's larger plan to cultivate its properties.

"In addition to regular major title releases each fiscal year, Capcom is currently focused on reviving series that have not had new entries recently, or otherwise dormant IP," reads the release. "Beginning with Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite, a return for the series following a five-year hiatus, Capcom looks to enhance its corporate value even further by utilizing its library of rich contents."

I could see part of this plan coming about with ports, like the re-release of Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 on PS4 over the weekend. That could be a smart way to warm up new players to a series before its proper revival. (As an aside, please port over Asura's Wrath.) But as far as new entries go? Goodness. I don't even know where to start. A new Onimusha, perhaps? More Dragon's Dogma in the West?

Let's hear your ideas. Which IP is long overdue a new game, and why?

Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite Announced! [Capcom via NeoGAF]

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News:: Resident Evil 7's PS4 demo exclusivity ends on December 19

Sony has Resident Evil 7 locked the fuck up.

Although it's also coming to PC and Xbox One, they have a firm timed exclusivity deal on VR support, and hell, even demos! But after waiting since June, a demo is finally arriving on PC. Straight from the Steam page's [digital] mouth, you'll be able to play it for yourself on December 19.

While the jury is out on whether or not this is a fully functional and not half-assed PC port (Capcom has been good about this recently), there's a ton of options, including the holy FOV slider, so be sure to check out the full list.

Resident Evil 7 PC Demo out on Dec. 19th, 2016 [Resident Evil 7]

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News:: Third-party accessories indicate Nintendo's Switch will charge via USB

Since the death of the GBA, Nintendo's portable consoles have relied on internal battery packs to provide power for their systems. Frustratingly, these have always required proprietary charging cables that only work with systems in the current generation of hardware. I don't know why, but my cat enjoys chewing through wires, and I've lost a couple of 3DS charge cords that way.

Fortunately, it looks like the upcoming Nintendo Switch may break this pattern of proprietary charge cables. Nintendo Everything reported that EB games' Australian website is offering some accessories intended for use with the Switch. Among these is an "Extra-Long 3m Charging Cable" meant to be used with the upcoming console. This doesn't confirm that Switch will absolutely use USB, but it looks likely.

The cords in question convert electricity from USB-A to USB-C, a newer type of connection intended to allow for faster charging. USB-C is a new industry standard that can transfer data and power simultaneously, and doesn't have a "wrong" orientation like a standard USB does. While these cables aren't terribly common yet, anyone can make a cord that utilizes these connectors, so they should be much easier to replace.

EB Games' website also lists a pair of "Starter Packs" that include a travel case for the Switch, screen protectors, and a cleaning cloth. The more expensive version also includes a pair of standard earbuds. I guess Nintendo isn't feeling particularly courageous at the moment.

EB Games via [Nintendo Everything]

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News:: Ragnaros enters Heroes of the Storm in today's big PTR update

Ragnaros is the latest Heroes of the Storm addition, and based on Chris' time with the World of Warcraft character at BlizzCon, he sounds fun as hell with his ability to fire off waves of lava and even take over forts and keeps. The Firelord is playable today through December 12 on the Public Test Realm.

That's just the icing, though! Blizzard has rolled out a huge patch on the PTR, with the holiday Winter Veil celebration coming (25% bonus experience, quests, and rewards), sweeping changes to ranked play (Hero League is solo queuing only now), the long-awaited return of the Haunted Mines map, buffs for characters like Artanis and Dehaka, and a rework of Diablo as more of an all-out tank.

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News:: Review: How We Soar

Flying, much like driving, is a captivating fit for virtual reality. While there have been plenty of games that opt to take us on a trip into the far-flung future, placing us inside a cockpit and sending us off into crazy and sometimes disorienting spaceship battles, How We Soar goes for a much slower, calmer pace.

Unlike Ubisoft's Eagle Flight, another recent VR game about flying, this one sits you atop a sort of piñata phoenix, sandwiched between its huge flapping wings. How We Soar is the story of a writer struggling not only to craft a great story and prove his worth, but to keep a strained relationship going.

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News:: Magearna is now available in Pokemon Sun and Moon

As mentioned previously, Pokémon Sun and Moon are getting their first mythic Pokémon starting today. Magearna is a Steel/Fairy type and resembles a clockwork doll with a pokéball dress. Its typing means it's only weak to Ground and Fire moves, and has useful immunities to Poison and Dragon attacks. It takes lessened damage from nine other types, making it a great defensive wall for your team.

Unlike most other Pokémon distributions, Magearna can be accessed using Sun and Moon's QR code scanning feature. You can scan the code on the official Pokémon website, or access it below. This code may only work with North American copies of Sun and Moon, but we'll update this page once the European and Australian codes are released.

_{North American Magearna QR Code}

To download Magearna, you'll have to have become the Alolan champion first. If you've beaten the game, you can scan this code, then pick up your Magearna at the Antiquities of the Ages store at the top right of Hau'oli City's Mall. This can only be done once per game. Scanning the code will grant 20 QR points instead of the usual 10. 

Magearna arrives at level 50 and is holding a bottle cap, which can be traded to help with IV training. It will know the moves Flash Cannon, Lucky Chant, Helping Hand, and its signature move, Fleur Cannon. Its ability Soul-Heart will boost its already impressive special attack stat whenever a Pokémon faints. 

The distribution site says that "This code will continue to work indefinitely, so there's no rush to beat the game!" That being said, I've seen it reported elsewhere that Magearna won't be distributed after March 5, 2017. That sounds like plenty of time, but you may want to get it as soon as you can.

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News:: Review: Oculus Touch

VR has had a curious impact on the industry.

It's not mainstream yet. It's pricey. It's unwieldy. Yet, it's all executives and developers are talking about. We're not quite at the apex of the "revolution," but we do have platform wars currently raging full force with "big three" (HTC, Oculus, PSVR) -- and this is with many other suitors (like Google) waiting in the wings.

In my home though, it's welcome. Nine months later, and I'm still playing around with the Rift on a fairly regular basis. VR hasn't taken over my core console and portable habits just yet, but it's creeping in, especially after I got my hands on (and into) the Rift's motion controls.

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News:: THQ Nordic: Optimizing Darksiders Warmastered Edition for Wii U is a 'tough task'

When November 22 rolled around, I was pretty confused. Darksiders Warmastered Edition dropped on both PS4 and Xbox One, but the Wii U version was nowhere in sight. A week later the PC version was available on Steam as a free upgrade, and still, no Wii U port. Now it's early December and I still haven't seen it appear on the Nintendo Download list. So what gives? Well THQ Nordic says it's taking a while longer because they want to get it right.

Speaking to Nintendo Everything, the publisher explains that "The main challenge of the Warmastered Edition project was besides the upgrade and improvement to bring it out on many different platforms. We spent more time on a few things than we thought and optimizing the game for the Wii U is still a tough task. So we made the call of releasing it properly and the only conclusion was to delay it." Good on them for not putting out a broken port.

And despite the issues, things are still going swimmingly for THQ 2.0's relations with Nintendo, as they also remind us that they have two projects in development for the Switch.

THQ Nordic on continued Wii U support, updates on various IPs, more [Nintendo Everything]

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News:: Review: I Expect You To Die

The VR industry is really starting to take shape. Sure, a lot of the games out there are still limited experiences -- guided tours, if you will -- but even in the infancy of the technology, it's something we haven't quite seen before. Is that curiosity worth a minimum of $400 to explore? For most of you, probably not.

But being able to [literally] get my hands on I Expect You To Die with the upcoming Oculus Touch is a really great way to sell it.

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News:: Oh yeah, Uncharted 4 is getting a horde mode

Buried underneath the salvo of announcements at PSX was another mode for Uncharted 4 -- Survival.

It's nothing new, as it's a wave-based horde mode (with integrated challenges) for up to three players, but it's something else to do if you've already tapped out of multiplayer and grabbed all the collectibles from the campaign. It's also nothing new even by Uncharted terms, since the last two games had a co-op arena mode.

I appreciate Naughty Dog's efforts to keep Uncharted 4 relevant with DLC updates months down the line, but I think the campaign speaks for itself.

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