AMD has been content to cater to budget gamers with its graphics cards over the past couple of years, but it's ready to play in the big leagues once again. After plenty of leaks and no shortage of hype (Apple even name-dropped AMD at the iMac Pro debut), the chip giant has unveiled GPUs based on its high-end Vega architecture. The Radeon RX Vega series touts processors with numerous tweaks that promise to finally give AMD performance comparable to NVIDIA's higher-end offerings, including updated geometry and pixel engines, a high-bandwidth cache controller and support for multiple data operations per cycle. Overall, Vega promises twice the throughput per clock cycle and twice the memory bandwidth per pin of earlier Radeon hardware -- not the highest bar to clear given AMD's recent lack of top-end cards, but still a huge improvement.
Do you miss the days when full-motion video was the biggest deal in games? When just seeing a known actor in a cutscene was enough to work everyone into a frenzy? You're in luck. A couple of months later than promised, Screaming Villains and Limited Run Games have announced that Night Trap: 25th Anniversary Edition will arrive on August 11th. You'll have to buy a physical PS4 copy to play on day one, but digital releases will be available on PS4 and PC (via Steam) on August 15th. And don't worry, Xbox One owners -- you're getting a version too, although there's no release date just yet.
In a turn of events that surprised nobody familiar with Persona, Atlus has announced an anime adaptation based on Persona 5 set for next year. As with previous adaptations of Persona 4 and Persona 4 Golden, A-1 Pictures will be handling the job. The studio was also responsible for the in-game animated cutscenes, as well as for the Persona 5: The Day Breakers one-shot aired last year.
Persona 5 should make for a better TV series than Persona 4, if mainly by virtue of its more propulsive central plotline, but if we're being honest, Persona 5's anime bits actually looked rather generic compared with the aesthetic of the game itself. Then again, the promo does look pretty good (I mistook parts of it for scans of the game's artbook), so if A-1 has the time and resources to make it look like that the whole way through, we could be onto something.
I just got back from a family vacation and have been feeling pretty burned out. For my wife, kids, and I, it was the first significant journey we took anywhere; a mere 14-hour road trip which might not seem like much, but with two kids in tow and me being the only one driving, it was a bit of an adventure. We went to Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada, specifically a town called Nanaimo which is where I grew up as a kid.
I'll always say that the island and the ocean surrounding it is in my soul. My long-term goal is to bring my family out there and settle down. Calgary is a busy city where it feels like everyone is in transit; the conversation starter is usually "Where do you work?" -- the city being very much an oil town, its greatest appeal an expansive job market and a lot of money to be made.
With a 4-1 win over Finland, the United States of America is the 2017 World Cup champion in Rocket League. The American squad (made up of Fireburner, GarrettG, and Kronovi) won all six games it played -- going undefeated in the group stage before picking up the necessary three consecutive victories in the knockout stage to take home the title.
The sports adage is that defense wins championships, and it holds true in this case. The United States only conceded four goals in the entire tournament. They all came on the final day, as the American squad made it through the Group B pool without allowing a single goal.
It wasn't until Sunday that the American squad was properly tested. England took them to overtime in the quarterfinals, and Denmark took them to the wire in the semis. The grand final was the only match in the knockout stage where the United States had any breathing room.
The American performance was impressive in its own right, but it was also helped along by a string of upsets throughout the entire tournament. Scotland, a popular pick to win it all, never won a single game. Similarly, Germany didn't make it out of the group stage. France was beaten by Finland in the semis. The 2017 World Cup will likely be remembered in equal parts both by who won it and who under-performed.
However, the biggest surprise probably comes from a team who over-performed. Brazil was expected to go winless in the tournament. At one point, the commentators even pointed out that a single victory would mean a ton for Brazilian Rocket League. Brazil ended up beating both Finland and Germany before narrowly losing to Denmark in overtime of the quarterfinals. Brazil played incredibly well in the 2017 World Cup, especially considering the pedigree of the players it was going up against.
For individual accolades, Fireburner takes home the tournament's Golden Boot award for scoring the most goals. He wasn't a one-man show, though. The American squad felt like they were usually pushing the pace, constantly applying pressure in their opponent's half. There weren't too many times when they were forced to rely on goal line defense.
It's up in the air as to how long the United States will be the tournament's defending champions. Another World Cup hasn't been announced, but it doesn't seem like something that will follow soccer's schedule of once every four years. Common consensus around this event appears to be that the production value was very good but that the "best of one" format should be extended to longer series. One game of Rocket League is an awfully small sample size that lends itself to all sorts of aberrations.
But for now, the United States can call itself the best in the world at Rocket League. Even if that isn't how the official Rocket League Championship Series LANs have played out for the last few seasons.
Last year's DOOM is already one of my favorite first-person shooters. Every piece of the game feels as though it was designed to hit players like a sack of bricks. Its combat encounters are violent and snappy affairs that encourage both constant movement and reckless aggression through the Glory Kill system. DOOM is kinetic energy distilled into a digital form.
But DOOM's 2016 rebirth comes with a certain amount of baggage. After languishing in development hell for a few years, the shooter underwent numerous changes before releasing to critical praise. Though the final product is damn near perfect, getting it to that point took plenty of effort.
Fate/Grand Order is the hot new mobile title on the market, though it's been out in Japan for a while now. Despite an iffy translation and a formidable grind (the version we have is even toned down from how it was at Japanese launch time), it seems to have captured the heart of many an anime nerd with a decent battle system, cute-girl interpretations of historical figures, and a bonkers story mode.
Now Type-MOON want to tap that love in the wonderful world of virtual reality, with the fresh announcement of Fate/Grand Order VR featuring Mash Kyrielight, a new PlayStation VR-based experience starring the player's first party member from the game. Based on the trailer below, it takes a few pages from the Summer Lesson playbook, essentially allowing players to interact with Mash and gawp a bit as she changes into various outfits and prances around.
Other than the rendering of the character in 3D, it honestly doesn't look all that remarkable, but I'll admit I'm interested, if mainly for the possibility that they'll do this sort of VR-date thing with other Grand Order favorites. Maybe Nero or Altera from Fate/Extella, or some of the classic characters from Fate/Stay Night.
I find it a bit difficult pin down what exactly makes a JRPG engrossing. There are so many different settings and gameplay styles depending on what you fancy. But let's put gameplay aside for a moment and talk about settings.
Whenever I think of a classic JRPG, it's something in the style of Dragon Quest or Legend of Heroes. A world full of magic and a bit of technology without many complications where airships rule. It's this sort of nostalgic and innocent yet hard to quantify feel that I often enjoy. The game I feel exemplifies this the best is Tales of Eternia for the PS1 and PSP. (It's also known as Tales of Destiny II in North America thanks to a kerfuffle with He-Man).
Mods, I swear to all that is good, proper and covered in casserole that my account hasn't been taken over by Russian spambots. I can send nudes if you need convincing that this is still me and that I'm doing this shilling out of my own volition. But first, some backstory.
I am a connoisseur of fine let's plays, that there revolutionary new internet medium ripe with potential. Something that is harder than it sounds I'll have you know, what with all of the screeching manchildren playing classic platformers worse than any 6-year-old ever has. I won't name any names, so fill the blank with your despised person of choice.
No, I watch manchildren with just a bit of class, who know the art of soundmixing and edit out repeated failure. Which brings me to the boys at HellfireComms and their memetic brethren over at FindTheComputerRoom.
I've kept up with them for close to a decade now (Jesus Christ!), even though FTCR was technically in it's infancy back then. But the leading member of FTCR was part of HFC back then, so it still counts! HFC are reliable in their content, while FTCR are completely unpredictable. They let's played a Sonic popcorn machine for chrissakes! They've provided me with laughs and memes in spades, and it's time to share that with everyone here.
Besides chasing that sweet, sweet Youtube cash, they have spent the last few years doing charity marathon streams. HFC have held a Sonic-a-thon and a Nintendothon, while FTCR branched out to do Fund The Charity Room last year. BrainscratchComms, HPAW, Super Gaming Bros and SomeCallMeJohnny have also contributed to these events.
They even managed to get interviews with Hunnid-P and Jason Griffith of Sonic The Hedgehog fame.
But that was the past, and much good remains undone. That's where you (and your wallets.) enter the picture. This very August, both HFC and FTCR will run their own charity marathons, the Sonython and Platformania.
FTCR Platformania (August 5th-15th)
I feel like I've seen that somewhere before, weird. But anyway, Plaformania. As the name suggests, this is a marathon focused on platformers new and old. Mostly old, because the industry is what it is. The runners are the main cast of FTCR, BSC and SomeCallMeJohnny. I guess TJ is part of it too. Must be because of a mistake in the scheduling somewhere. The schedule got shafted because of Sonic Mania, but there are still some highlights in there.
And if that wasn't enough, there's even some extra games if enough money gets raised. Like Spongebob, Sonic ROM hacks, Smoovies burning his fellow streamers in the Sims and AM2R. And if they raise 10000 USD, SomeCallMeJohnny will once again torture himself for our amusement with Super Ghouls 'N Ghosts. Please make that happen, it must happen.
But for what great cause will this suffering be for? I'm glad you asked. It's the International Rescue Committee, IRC, who help people around the world with all kinds of issues. They even made a video explaining this stuff.
But wait, there's more! Not only are there incentive games, there are also raffles that can get you things. Actual things, worth money! You want one of them Nintendo Switches, right?
Sounds like a gay old time, eh? So bring your biggest bag of money and let the good times roll!
The HFC Sonython (August 18th-31th)
By comparison, the HFC Sonython isn't as flashy, but it doesn't have to be. Since they split off into their own marathons, this is a event with only HFC members.
As the name would suggest, it's a Sony themed marathon, following the Nintendothon from last year. According to the schedule, they've got all sorts of genres all mixed in. Even Sony Smash Bros for some reason.
The marathon is devoted to Child's Play, which is a charity determined to get children who are stuck in hospitals games and toys in order to make their stay less horrible. That's why the marathon is #ForTheKids.
There are mystery games for some multiple of 1000 dollars raised. There's also some donation incentives related to specific games. The donation wars usually end up determined at the last minute, which can get exciting.
So, that's all I had to say and I hope you have it in you to part with t-shirt and Gundam money for the sake of charity and Johnny's suffering. If not, you can share this blog or the promo videos to other people. For the greater good!
I subscribe to the school of thought that normal on-air television is something I don't want to pay money for. After the game changed thanks to Netflix, I cut the cable and made the majority of my television time exclusively streaming. But whenever I'm indecisive about what to watch specifically on services like Netflix or Hulu, I just go straight to YouTube and stream something accessible and easy to watch, like one of the many video game and let's play oriented channels.
Change and the internet are two things that don’t get along very well.
There could be any number of reasons why, but the biggest is typically fear. As creatures of habit, humans have a hard time reacting to brand new stimuli once we get settled into a routine. We become accustomed to something that we enjoy and get scared that, eventually, it may leave us behind.
Destructoid has recently been subjected to quite a big change. Our acquisition by Enthusiast Gaming has some of our long time community members afraid that we’ll never be the same.
Coincidentally, there is another fairly large gaming website that has recently gone through a similar shift in ownership. Screwattack.com, founded in the same year as Destructoid, was acquired by Rooster Teeth in 2015. Just a few months ago, the company was turned over by its founder, Stuttering Craig, to a longtime employee (Chad James) so that Craig could create an independent streaming channel, called Game Attack, with his best friend Shaun Bolen.
It’s safe to say that longtime fans of Screwattack were a bit upset. The website had shifted away from the content that made it popular a decade ago and now even the father was leaving the company, which seems to be signaling the end. While I don’t believe that thought process, it’s not hard to see why some people are scared that their home for the last 10 years might be changing dramatically.
At RTX I had the chance to interview Stuttering Craig and Shaun Bolen, the tag team streaming duo of the world that makes up Game Attack. I asked them what they believe causes fan outrage to change, what they think is the recipe for staying relevant online and what the future may hold for them.
Sitting on my desk right now are unopened copies of Bloodborne and Dark Souls 2. Having just got a PlayStation 4, I’m playing a bit of catch up with some of the games I’ve missed over its life. I’ve never played a Dark Souls game. In fact, I can’t name a FromSoftware game I’ve played off the top of my head. But I’ve always wanted to play the products they make because I am in great need of a real challenge.
Gaming has, either through design or through my years of training, become too breezy of an experience for me. Playing against others is always good for a challenge, but it’s been years since a single-player experience made me want to cry and give up. In fact, it’s been more than 20 years because no game made me want to give up the hobby forever more than Super Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back.
I lost count of how many lives I lost playing this game, how many times I had to break out the Game Genie to get past a level. Every step I took in that game put me closer to death with far too many enemies on the screen for me to handle. It’s a twitchy experience I spent plenty of weekends trying to conquer, but every time I rented it I found it to be a total waste of money. It made me want to hate Star Wars years before Jar Jar Binks did.
Super Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back is my white whale, and it’s impossible compared to the walks in the park listed below.
PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds is, as I have been told, popular. Very popular. It's the game of choice of The D-Team, it hit six million copies sold earlier this month, and it's produced some entertaining stories of people tempting the hands of fate when they pull off dick moves. Its success is one of those feel good stories of a gamer being so passionate about this hobby and working their ass off in the mod scene, they're able to make a real, honest-to-God career out of it.
I have nothing but respect for Brendan Greene and what he has created with the team at Bluehole, and I am genuinely happy their game now holds the record for highest peak player count for a non-Valve title.
[This promotion is by no means an admittance to addiction. Have your own dark secrets and vices to admit to? You can get help, or start a blog in the community!~Marcel]
On November 28th 2014 Nintendo started selling little pieces of plastic that were molded and painted to look like their characters. They were called amiibo and they quickly became known for their addictive qualities among the community who collected them. I'm a member of that community and I'm an amiibo addict. I currently own 97 of them and have even more preordered.
[A week ago, this list turned one year old. Come, friends, gather in joyous celebration with silly poetry and prizes! Is there anything more to friendship?-Panda]
Good morning/afteroon/tomorrow, my friends/robots/Gardevoir
It has been made aware to me that, just perhaps, you all enjoy video games. It might even be said that you... like to game with others? Now now, don't be that way, I don't mean to lump you into some sort of box. You're all just such lovely folks, it pains me to watch you, struggling in vain to connect with each other, striving to engage in...
Contrary to what the title implies, The End is Nigh does in fact begin at the end. The world is over, nearly everyone is dead, and the only thing for the last person left on the planet to do is play video games and stream to a silent, empty world. This is where we find Ash, sole survivor and platforming enthusiast. He’s surprisingly chipper considering the circumstances, finding his joy where he can.
And then his game breaks.
It’s like that episode of the Twilight Zone with the nerd and his glasses, only with more tumors, spikes, and swearing.
