News:: 'Gears 4' adds new maps, support for multiple graphics cards

It's taken a while since Gears of War 4's October debut, but Microsoft has finally added an often-requested feature for PC gamers: SLI support. That way they can take advantage of multiple GPUs to render the game at its maximum quality, instead of leaving silicon sitting unused. There's also a new map in the update called Dawn, and the return of a Gears of War 2 favorite: Security. Of course, competitors can take each other on via PC or Xbox and with the new multiple GPU support (make sure you have the latest drivers from AMD or NVIDIA) there's just one more reason to try it on the PC side.

Source: Xbox Wire, Gears of War 4 Forums

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News:: Review: GNOG

GNOG isn't just a clever puzzle game with vivid color schemes and a cool name. It also has the distinct pleasure of evoking long-lost memories of my favorite childhood toy line: Mighty Max.

Talk about making a great first impression!

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News:: Arden's Wake and the Continued Brilliance of Penrose Studios

Last year at the Tribeca Film Festival, I was invited to a special preview of a semi-interactive non-movie non-game hybrid called Allumette, which would have its world premiere a few days later. It was a forty-five-minute solo session where I was able to experience Allumette for the 20 minutes of the demo and then talk to Eugene Chung, Allumette’s director and the founder of Penrose Studios, which created it. Those 20 minutes were, and I mean this in the least hyperbolic way possible, a life-changing experience for me. I have been following (and writing about) virtual reality experiences for years, and the technology has had a very real hold on me and my thoughts. I spend hours thinking about a lot of the philosophical questions that inevitably result from the development of immersive digital worlds. Allumette gave me a lot to think about.

I didn’t write about Allumette for Dtoid's film-focused sister site, Flixist, but Hubert Vigilla did, and he’s a better writer than I am anyway… so you should check that write-up out.

This year, Penrose Studios brought a new project to the Tribeca Film Festival: Arden’s Wake. They showed a fifteen-minute prologue that serves as the introduction to what will ultimately be a larger story of they-didn’t-tell-me length. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to talk to Chung again, but those fifteen minutes gave a sense of just how far the studio has come in one year and also where this sort of storytelling can go in the future.

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News:: Sci-fi exploration game Exo One looks like a total trip

Exo One is the type of game that's better seen than explained. It makes total sense, then, that the first line under "About this project" on its Kickstarter page isn't a written summary, but a gif -- a short snippet of momentum-based gameplay that illustrates just enough to capture initial interest.

Zipping down a blue sand dune before launching off and gliding up into the clouds is inherently cool, and it's even better with story context. Exo One is about "humanity's first, ill-fated mission outside the solar system," and the designers hope to provide "an entrancing, flowing, and exhilarating feeling of movement across a range of utterly alien exoplanets." That ball is an alien vessel, it turns out.

If I have one concern so far, it's that the game might be too minimalist for its own good, but dang if that momentum system doesn't look like a lot of fun to master. Loving those landscapes, too.

Exo One [Kickstarter]

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News:: Zelda: Breath of the Wild update adds voice language options

On top of previewing the first DLC pack for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild this evening, Nintendo also brought out a much-appreciated new update. Audio language options are here!

Tonight's update will let you choose between nine languages -- Japanese, English, French (France), French (Canada), German, Spanish (Spain), Spanish (Latin America), Italian, and Russian -- "with a different language used for on-screen text by downloading a free software update," per Nintendo.

If you're playing Breath of the Wild on Wii U, you'll need to grab the Voice Pack off the eShop. In either case, once your game is updated, you can find the new "Voice Language" choices at the bottom of the Options menu (which is accessible from the title screen, and also in-game when you pause).

I don't find most of the English performances too terribly grating, but yeah, I'm gonna swap to Japanese.

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News:: Nintendo details the first Zelda: Breath of the Wild DLC pack

Nintendo has posted details about what the first DLC pack for the Breath of the Wild season pass will contain. In all honesty, it doesn't sound that great, but one of the items could make collecting those Korok seeds more palatable. Coming this summer, there is going to be four new types of armor hidden in the world based on previous Zelda games from the series, specifically Majora's Mask, Wind Waker, Spirit Tracks and Twilight Princess.

Along with that comes a Korok Mask that will shake when players get close to a hidden Korok location. While I don't know if I care for Nintendo locking something like this behind DLC, there are plenty of maps currently available online that any truly dedicated players should be able to find the 900 seeds scattered around Hyrule. A travel medallion will also be hidden somewhere in the game world for you to discover. This medallion will allow players to create a single fast travel spot anywhere in the game world for convenience, I suppose.

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News:: Fan made Breath of the Wild inspired 2D game gets shut down

A little over a week after I posted about a fan made Breath of the Wild demake, it looks like Nintendo's lawyers have gotten on the scene. According to the game's developer, WinterDrake, Nintendo has issued a DMCA take down on his project for using copyrighted materials. That is hardly surprising, seeing as how the game is basically lifting artwork and characters straight from Zelda.

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News:: Modern Warfare Remastered might be getting a standalone release this summer

Activision's restraint has been commendable. When a Modern Warfare remaster was announced last spring, it was tied to premium versions of Infinite Warfare. Most everyone assumed that a standalone release was inevitable, probably after residual Infinite Warfare sales had completely dried up. We've gone a year without any real indication from Activision that it would ever happen.

Finally, word of that standalone release is starting to kick up -- not from Activision, though. As reported by Call of Duty enthusiast site Charlie Intel, GameFly accidentally posted listings for the Modern Warfare remaster that put its release dates as June 20 on PlayStation 4 and July 20 on Xbox One. (The listings have since been taken down, but screenshots are in the gallery below.) This month-long headstart would perfectly mirror the 30-day advantage PS4 players had upon initial release.

Of course, it's entirely possible that this information could be slightly off. Retailers put up listings with placeholder dates all the time. But, the important thing is that GameFly even put up pages for this in the first place. Also, those dates seem awfully likely, especially considering most everyone thought a standalone release would've happened by now.

Activision hasn't yet commented on this. It's probably just a matter of time until we have confirmation, though. This always felt like a "when" rather than an "if."

RUMOR: GameFly listing suggests Modern Warfare Remastered will be available separately in July [Charlie Intel]

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News:: The Top 10 North Korean-made video games, ever!

Joke article? No way, I'm totally serious. This afternoon I spent like four or five minutes researching Wikipedia and like two other links and found the very best that North Korean game engineering has to offer. Granted, there aren't that many games yet, but after they crush the imperialists hopefully they'll have a little more free time. Some of these games are NSFW, so if you're under 65 years old, please ask your creator. 

Let's do this -- the very best North Korean-made video games, evar!

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News:: Looks like Superhot VR is coming to Vive 'soon'

There are a handful of virtual reality games I feel like I'm really missing out on, and Superhot VR probably tops that list. Superhot? Excellent! Superhot VR? Even better! (Or so I'm led to believe.) Look, I wanna fight like Christian Bale in the not-great movie Equilibrium, and this is as close as I'll get.

Motivated HTC Vive owners can use a workaround to play Superhot VR, but as far as official support for the device goes, we're still waiting. If this tweet is any indication, though, it won't be much longer:

#soon http://pic.twitter.com/2xWVuphb0m

— SUPERHOT (@SUPERHOTTHEGAME) April 28, 2017

Are we talking soon-soon here, or slow-mo soon?

Superhot [Twitter]

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News:: Overwatch hits 30 million players, too many of them are Hanzos

Overwatch released almost a year ago and it shows absolutely no signs of slowing down. There were 7 million players in the first week, 15 million by August, and 20 million by November. Its growth rate is steady as it keeps accumulating total registered users.

Recently, Overwatch hit another milestone. As announced in the tweet embedded below, Blizzard's team shooter hit 30 million total players:

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News:: Nioh's Dragon of the North DLC is looking good

Slipping in right before tomorrow's launch, Team Ninja has a trailer out for Dragon of the North, the first major DLC for Nioh. As I was just saying the other day, I'll gladly take any old excuse to get back into this game -- it's a top ten contender for me this year, despite how absolutely packed it's been.

Dragon of the North will have new story elements relating to the "One-Eyed Dragon," as shown in this cutscene footage, along with the odachi, a far-reaching new weapon type. The trailer doesn't give too much away, preferring to show only snippets of new characters, yokai, and spirit guardians.

Also, I like that it ends on a happy note: more Kodama to rescue!

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News:: Man, Animal Crossing is such a wild series we don't think about often

Did You Know Gaming tackles the Animal Crossing series in its latest video, and as you might expect it can't contain everything. There's hundreds of Easter eggs and secrets hidden below the surface of this massive franchise, but they attempt to delve into the mystery of New Leaf, Happy Home Designer, and the first iteration alongside of its obscure ports.

Battery powered cartridges (which the original 64 version made us of) are also a pretty wild concept. While they were incredibly cool at the time, it's a shame to find out years later that once the battery died that it either irreparably screwed up the game or restricted access to a lot of content. Thankfully we have ways of sidestepping these issues with emulation.

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News:: Uniqlo's getting Nintendo shirts soon and they're all stylish as heck

Fashionable Japanese clothes retailer Uniqlo recently partnered with Nintendo to produce some shirts with iconic gaming prints. But, Nintendo didn't look to Uniqlo for help designing the tees. No, the two companies cooperatively turned to the fans to do their work for them.

Uniqlo has revealed the winners of its Nintendo t-shirt design contest. The top three feature stylish takes on Mario, Splatoon, and Zelda, respectively. Here are the winning designs:

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News:: How to be a human being in the comments: A refresher

So it has been a long time since we last posted comments guidelines and standards. To put it in perspective, the last time we talked comments with y'all, the iPhone 5 hadn't been released, Android fans were using Jelly Bean and Facebook had just gone public. A lot can change in the course of nearly five years, but one thing that's remained constant is our dedication to our readers. To that end, we wanted to take a minute to answer some questions, explain some features and, frankly, lay down the law when it comes to the comments section and our social channels. Pull up a chair and read on to find out what you need to know about Engadget's comments and community.

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News:: Koei Tecmo seems to be going all in on the Switch

While big publishers like EA and Ubisoft are in wait and see mode with the Switch, other Japanese powerhouses are jumping in with two feet right away. Koei Tecmo and Nintendo are already heavily involved with their Fire Emblem Warriors collaboration this generation, but there's more in the pipeline. 

In addition to their plans to bring Nobunaga's Ambition to the platform they're also working on multiple Switch exclusives, as per their chairman Keiko Erikawa. According to Takashi Mochizuki of the Wall Street Journal they really believe in the "anytime, anywhere" idea.

The company has been building quite the cachet with various platform holders, having hosted the critically and commercially acclaimed Nioh on PS4 (which still has more DLC to peddle), and is moving full steam ahead with Musou with the aforementioned Fire Emblem play, on top of Berserk, Dynasty Warriors, One Piece, Attack on Titan, All-Star, Toukiden, and Samurai Warriors titles.

Takashi Mochizuki‏ [Twitter]

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News:: Nintendo says Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is fastest-selling Mario Kart ever

In racing, a strong start is a good thing but ultimately meaningless if you can't also finish strong. No one remembers the first off the starting line, they just remember who took the checkered flag. In games sales, a strong start is reason enough to pop the champagne.

By Nintendo's account, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe had the strongest start of any Mario Kart game ever. In a press release, Nintendo calls it the "fastest-selling game in the franchise." Its 459,000 day-one sales in the United States handily beat out Mario Kart Wii's 433,00 from 2008.

Probably more impressive is the percentage of Switch owners who ended up immediately getting Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. Nintendo reports a 45 percent attach rate in the US, which means that nearly half of the people who own a Switch also bought Deluxe on the first day it was available.

That a port (albeit, a very good enhanced port) can do these kinds of numbers speaks to both the quality of the game and the circumstances surrounding it. Dead-horse-beating as it may be, there aren't a lot of high-profile Nintendo names for the Switch yet. It's the reason Zelda: Breath of the Wild somehow has an attach rate of greater than 100 percent. This being the first Switch game with Mario in the title makes it an instant buy for Switch owners who are thirsty for Nintendo exclusives.

Nintendo News: Mario Kart 8 Deluxe for Nintendo Switch is the Fastest-Selling Mario Kart Game in Franchise History [Business Wire]

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News:: You can try Baiken and Answer later today with a Guilty Gear Xrd Rev 2 demo

If you haven't gotten into Guilty Gear yet, this generation is the perfect time to start. There's a fantastic tutorial that rivals Skull Girls' -- plus Xrd's art style is head and shoulders above the rest of the pack. You might want to wait for Guilty Gear Xrd Rev 2 though, the upcoming iteration that's set to release on PS3 and PS4 at the end of the month.

Or, even better, just play the demo for free later today on PS4 if you're a PlayStation Plus member. You'll get to play Answer and Baiken, the new and returning characters respectively, in versus and practice modes, as well as the rest of the cast.

This is a perfect way to get acquainted with the new balance changes if you play Revelator -- fans will likely provide damage values and other statistics in due time if Arc doesn't provide them at some point.

Guilty Gear Xrd Rev 2 [Aksys Games]

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News:: Capcom is holding another beta for Street Fighter V's revamped online play

About a month ago, Capcom hosted a PC beta for Street Fighter V's new CFN (Capcom Fighters Network) update. I put some time in with it and wasn't that impressed. Matchmaking, in general, was pretty broken for the first couple of days and there was still an abundance of lag present in a most matches. As a matter of fact, ranked matches were the worst culprit, though going into non-ranked lobbies was fairly consistent.

Possibly in response to feedback like that, Capcom is holding a second beta round for testing out the "improved" CFN update. Instead of limiting it to PC, this time, the next beta will be heading to PS4 and PC with crossplay. Much like the first beta, all fighters will be unlocked and available for play, including the "I can't believe its not Eminem" character Ed.

The beta will take place from May 11 to the 14th. I guess it will be available at midnight, because Capcom didn't mention a time on their blog. They did, however, go into further detail about specific changes you'll find. I'm not sure how much I care about battle country flags, though, when netplay is what needs the most attention.

Capcom Fighters Network Beta 2 Coming to PS4 and PC, May 11 – 14 [Capcom Unity]

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News:: Tekken 7 has a ton of customization options, if you're into that

We've already seen a few of the ancillary modes that Tekken 7 is going to offer when it arrives in early June, but as we're nearing its launch, Bandai Namco has shared a few more clips of its many extras.

One staple that's sorely missing from a lot of modern fighting games is its customization mode, which has hundreds of items for each character to don. You can see its full absurdity on display in the below clip that features Akuma.

The gist? You'll earn fight money (similar to Street Fighter V) for activities that you can use to buy in-game items, or partake in a "Treasure Battle Mode" to nab loot directly. It'll also ship with a story mode and arcade mode, the latter of which begins with a young Kazuya fighting his not-so-nice dad, Heihachi.

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News:: Did you upgrade to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, or are you angry it exists?

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is out on Switch, and I feel like I've heard reactions from both sides of the fence. Some folks who maybe missed out on the Wii U entirely are stoked with it, but an equal amount seem to be angry that we're not even three years removed from 8 proper, and are being charged $60 for what amounts to DLC.

It's a sticky wicket, absolutely. One way I judge re-releases that are out quicker than usual is whether or not they're wort the "upgrade fee." Typically I trade in or sell my old version, then look at the difference as DLC. In this case I posit that battle mode, extra characters, double items, and all of the other tweaks are worth the price -- others may not.

But in all honesty, it is a shame that the Wii U version can't at least get a free update to add some of the smaller enhancements like the new mini-turbo boost level and the aforementioned double item system. To see Nintendo completely and utterly abandon the Wii U like that, both on a hardware and software level, is a shame.

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News:: The Mario Brothers are slinging energy drinks under the table

The review scores of Mario Sports Superstars drove the Mushroom Kingdom to drinking, and the drink of choice is a new brew of DEKAVITA C, which roughly translates to "Big Vitamin C".  It's Suntory Corporation's watery, less acrid version of a weak-ass Red Bull with special vitamins and minerals and shit. The ads are playing on Japanese television and I also found a bunch of them all over the JR Line in Shibuya. We've seen Nintendo do a ton of crossovers in the past years, including a bizarre Mercedes-Benz crossover that didn't end in people flipping cars. I'm in Tokyo for 3 more days then getting the fuck out of Asia like the avian flu. 

It's an all-star cast: The guy playing Mario is Toma Ikuta, a popular actor from Johnny's Entertainment, Luigi is Sosuke Ikematsu, the Princess is Moe Sasaki, and Toad is the child actor Kokoro Terada.  There's also the totally fake gamer girl (look for the product placement next to the sofa, blink and you'll miss it!) whose blood type is O and was in a controversial commercial where she sprays water on her breasts and then turns into a giant barbecued eel, because Japan. Happy stalking!

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News:: Nintendo is eating costs to ship more Switch units by plane

While Nintendo was enjoying a surge in popularity with the Switch compared to their last console, they were eating a hefty amount of cost shipping it out to get it into the hands of its end users.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Nintendo used aircraft to directly distribute many Switch units from China, which were shipped to the US and Europe in March. Since then they've moved back to the more common freight system (starting in April), but according to researchers Nintendo ate a cost of roughly $45 per unit to meet demand with the plane shipments.

It's always important to strike while the iron is hot, and for the Switch, it was pretty damn hot a few months ago. Now we get to see its growth, which is already bolstered by some heavy-hitting first party games and more third party support than in the past.

What I really want to know is when, or if, EA, Activision, and Ubisoft will pay attention to it. While some people are down on those publishers they make bank, and it could really help boost Nintendo up to Sony's level -- who is killing it with the PS4.

Nintendo Shipped Switch Consoles by Plane to Quickly Meet High Demand [WSJ]

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News:: The Morning After: Monday, May 1st 2017

Welcome to your Monday morning. China is making its own giant fighting robot, hackers have pillaged a bunch of forthcoming TV shows, and we explain how The Circle takes anti-tech paranoia a little too far.

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