News:: Swery's The Good Life, now with dogs!

When I interviewed Swery, director of Deadly Premonition and D4, at Tokyo Game Show he told me one last thing that I couldn't include in the interview. The big update I referred to was this: The Good Life will have a dog version. Instead of turning into cats, dog lovers can play as dogs instead.

Swery (real name Hidetaka Suehiro) loves both dogs and cats, and when asked told me his favorite breeds are retriever and Labrador because he owns each at his temple home. If you follow Swery on Twitter, you may have seen a few hints suggesting this dog version. Multiple times when going to sleep he tweeted a GIF of an in-game dog sleeping.

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News:: Puzzle Fighter is popping up on iOS and Android

Puzzle Fighter is back and I'm still surprised to be jotting down those words. The new game is beginning to roll out today on iOS and Android in select regions ahead of a worldwide launch:

• Australia
• Canada
• Hong Kong
• Malaysia
• Mexico
• Singapore

So, yeah. Some of you fine folks will be able to play today! The last time I touched this series was a decade ago (!) with Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network's Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo HD Remix.

Frightening chibi characters aside (Mega Man X in particular is effing me up), I think the game looks decent. Capcom has put some questionable releases out on smartphones in recent years, but this one makes sense. Just concentrate on those puzzle blocks and everything will be a-okay.

Puzzle Fighter [Twitter]

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News:: CNBC asked Tony Hawk about esports for some reason

Eighteen years ago, Tony Hawk landed the first-ever 900 on a skateboard*. The two-and-a-half aerial rotations ascended Hawk far past the vertical walls of a half-pipe. From that moment onward, Hawk was no longer a hero whose name was whispered by misfits and skate rats; he was a veritable pop culture icon.

Since the Hawk's first 900, his name and digital likeness got attached to some of the most beloved console games of all time. He influenced entire generations of skateboarders to push around shopping centers and mall parking lots. And now, at the ripe age of 49, the Birdman finds himself on CNBC where he's asked about NCAA basketball and esports. 

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News:: Supernatural adventure Oxenfree hits Nintendo Switch next week

Nintendo Switch is the next platform in line to receive Oxenfree, Night School's supernatural thriller, and with an October 6 launch locked down, it'll be here before we know it.

"They heard you calling. Now they're here."

OXENFREE comes to Nintendo Switch on October 6th! http://pic.twitter.com/CGWqkOSV7P

— Night School Studio (@nightschoolers) September 27, 2017

This trailer instills curiosity without giving too much away, which is key for a story-centric game like this. For more specifics about the setting, tone, and teen-talkin' mechanics, consult Nic's review.

Night School Studio [Twitter]

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News:: Picross S will not have touchscreen controls

You know, if there's one thing I like about Nintendo in the last 10 years, it's the touchscreens on the Wii U, 3DS, and Switch. They're pretty responsive, and I've loved using them for the Wind Waker remaster (seriously, having a dedicated map screen is lovely,) Mario & Luigi: Dream Team, and Pokémon Picross. 

Unfortunately, for one title, touchscreen functionality has been cut.

Picross S won't be using the Switch touchscreen when it releases tomorrow, according to a report by GoNintendo. Players can choose between docked or handheld modes to play in, but regardless of which approach you take, the touchscreen won't comply. 

It's not an earth-shattering revelation, but, for those who like the novelty of using a touchscreen, it's good to know going in that it will not be available.

Picross S releases September 28, 2017 for the Nintendo Switch. 

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News:: New Overwatch comic witnesses Zarya vs. Sombra

The latest issue of the fun Overwatch comic series is now available to read online, the fifteenth in the series of very short stories, each concerning a roster member or two from the colourful heroes and villains of Blizzard's arena-shooter.

Issue #15, Searching, sees the somewhat blindly patriotic Zarya forced to team with an Omnic in order to track down and eliminate my personal favourite, sly hacker Sombra, who has been causing chaos for Zarya's boss Katya (as seen in the Sombra animated short.)

Can Zarya put aside of prejudice of Omnics in order to to fulfill her mission? Will Sombra be able to outwit the Russian powerhouse, and will either of them get banned from Competitive Mode for no real reason?

Find out in Overwatch #15: Searching, which can be read right here.

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News:: Total War: Warhammer II deals roundup for release week

Tomorrow marks the release of Total War: Warhammmer II -- the sequel to last year's fantasy strategy title that was well-reviewed by most sites. The first installment of course didn't launch without problems, but last we checked most of the major issues have been patched up.

So we're hopeful that the second installment coming this Thursday and unlocking later tonight will be smooth running. That said, given Creative Assembly's track record, we're not holding our breath either. Fans of the Total War or Warhammer series will most likely play release week regardless. Thankfully, deals are available and the release week purchase incentives are decent as well.

Total War: Warhammer II Deals

• DLGamer (Steam) — $48.99  <- 18% off
• Bundle Stars (Steam) — $49.19  <- also 18% off
• GamesPlanet (Steam) — $50.80  <- GBP to USD price

As of writing prices are similar at most digital retailers, hovering around $48.99 to about $51 depending on where you shop. All authorized retailers listed above includes the pre-order and release week bonus of an additional DLC race pack, granting you access to the Norsca Race.

If it's anything like the previous installment, the value of the DLC pack would be pegged around $8, but Creative Assembly also recently made a note that they are putting concrete effort into making sure they have a good balance between early adopter bonuses and post-launch support and we think thus far extending the pre-order bonus to one week within release is a good step. As of writing it looks like the Norsca Race Pack being offered is a lot more valuable than the previous Chaos Warriors race pack.

The game will unlock past midnight at 1:30 AM Pacific and pre-loading has been available since earlier in the week. All retailers above have been confirmed to send out keys for Total War: Warhammer II immediately after purchase. If you spot better deals elsewhere legitimately, let us know and we'll add them to the list above.

Game deals from the crew at Dealzon. Sales help support Destructoid.

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News:: Cop this fantastic Overwatch poster

"Hanamura Showdown" by Josan Gonzalez and Laurie Greasley just went up for pre-sale Ana Hero Complex Galaxy. The roughly two feet by three feet Genji-nius print is up for pre-sale through October 11 and will run you $75 a pop. It'll make a good Christmas gift since it'll hit your doorstep a month, month-and-a-half after they stop taking orders, Zenyatta-I-mean? You can get your Hanzo-n one for yourself, and up to three for all your clanmates, unless you're feeling McCree-dy and want to cop all four.

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News:: Everything you'll be able to play in the Star Wars Battlefront II beta

We're a week out from the Star Wars Battlefront II beta and now's as good of time as any to go over the featured modes and maps and what kind of setup you'll need if you're going for the PC version.

Content-wise, we're looking at:

• Galactic Assault: "defend Naboo as a Clone trooper, or join the ranks of the Separatists and storm the royal palace. Utilize 4 distinct trooper classes, call in reinforcements, pilot vehicles, and become a hero."
• Starfighter Assault: "race as the Rebel Alliance to destroy a Star Destroyer over Fondor, or rally as the Galactic Empire to defend it."
• Strike: "join a team of First Order troopers or Resistance fighters in team battles around Maz's castle."
• Arcade: "engage in single-player scenarios in Theed, capital of Naboo."

It's worth emphasizing that Arcade (which is not the game's story mode) pits you against AI forces across the three Star Wars eras. Notably, it's playable offline, you'll be able to adjust things like difficulty and trooper classes used by the AI, and you can earn credits for progression. Also! "On consoles, you'll also be able to team up with a friend or battle against one another in split-screen versus."

If Arcade sounds like something you'd be particularly down to try, the Battlefront II beta will have two playable portions: "a 10-on-10 team battle with AI allies and enemies, and a Hero vs. many scenario where you'll take control of Darth Maul and fight against legions of foes on Naboo."

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News:: Skyrim: Special Edition gets more 'realistic' with a new survival mode

Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is the game that just won't go away. Whether or not you actually enjoyed the title, it has remained popular over the last six years and Bethesda is gunning to keep it that way. We've seen a special edition remaster, the odd (and off-putting) "Creation Club", and now a brand new game mode!

Launching next week (although currently in beta on PC), "Survival Mode" will add a bunch of parameters to the main game such as hunger, fatigue and temperature meters as well as disabling automatic health regeneration and fast traveling. Leveling up also requires you to sleep in beds, similar to how Final Fantasy XV worked. It sounds a lot like the Frostfall mod that was available for the original game.

This new mode will only be available through the "Creation Club" for owners of the special edition and will be free for just one week. You read that right; in two weeks, you'll have to pay to experience Bethesda's vision of survival. Never change, Bethesda.

Skyrim Special Edition's All-New Survival Mode Coming Soon [Bethesda]

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News:: Saints Row dev lays off over 30 people after disappointing Agents of Mayhem

Volition (Saints Row, Agents of Mayhem) has laid off over 30 people, including general manager Dan Cermak, Kotaku reports. That's about 15% of its roughly 200-person staff and comes on the heels of Agents of Mayhem's August release. 

Agents of Mayhem is set in the Saints Row world, but a separate story seemingly meant to give the latter series a break. The last Saints Row release -- and first under new publisher Deep Silver -- the standalone Gat out of Hell mostly saw just-above-middling reviews. So too did the full game, Agents of Mayhem.

Though studios often do huge layoffs after AAA releases, Deep Silver is reportedly unhappy with the game's sales; in the UK charts, it was beat out by ancient games Grand Theft Auto V and Fallout 4 upon release.

Big Layoffs Hit Agents of Mayhem Developer Volition [Kotaku]

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News:: My bullet-riddled EGX-perience with Huntdown

The Xbox presence at EGX this weekend was surprisingly small. Whilst Nintendo and PlayStation had full hall-quarter setups and stage areas, and even individual games like Destiny having huge devoted floorspace. Xbox had a somewhat modest area, with their centrepiece being a beautiful Porsche 911, brought in to promote Project CARS 2.

Of the Xbox titles on display, the only ones I wanted to check out were Cuphead and Huntdown, both of which were relegated to just two setups, hidden behind the four hour queue for Shadow of War. At least this meant you could sit at these games undisturbed, but it was shocking to see what minor presence Team Green brought to the trade show.

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News:: The Evil Within 2's monstrous priest is also after the little girl

Say hello to Father Theodore -- Ted to his friends, the flamethrower-wielding souls he's ensnared to do his bidding. Ted is a bad guy so you probably should not let him get to Lily, the little girl Sebastian is trying to save in The Evil Within 2, before you.

Only a few weeks to go before The Evil Within 2's Friday the 13th October release. Catch up with 30 minutes of uncut gameplay if need be.

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News:: Killer Instinct is now on Steam

The excellent Killer Instinct may have come to PC last year, but now you won't actually need to have Windows 10 installed to play it. Just today, Microsoft's revival of the classic Rare fighter has made the jump to Steam. You can currently grab the game for 25% off its regular price, although $40 for the whole shebang isn't too shabby.

That is right; Killer Instinct isn't being offered as a free-to-play game on Steam. There is a single purchase option that will net you all three seasons of characters, all costumes, the story mode, the dojo training mode and every available stage. For some reason, the KI Gold currency is still in place, so I guess microtransactions are included.

For those curious, Killer Instinct on Steam will feature cross-play between the previous PC port and Xbox One players, it just won't carry over any purchases. If you already own the game on Windows 10, then you'll have to rebuy it to get it on Steam. I personally wouldn't do that since Killer Instinct was one of the few UWP apps to run with any kind of smoothness. If you haven't picked up the game, though, this is probably the best way to do it.

Killer Instinct [Steam]

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News:: 'Assassin's Creed Origins' adds history lessons in early 2018

The Assassin's Creed games have always had an element of historical realism to them, but it's hard to appreciate that cultural authenticity when you're five seconds away from being stabbed by a Templar. Thankfully, Ubisoft will take the pressure off for Assassin's Creed Origins players. It's adding a Discovery Tour mode devoted solely to giving you history lessons. There are "dozens" of guided tours led by Egyptologists and historians, focusing on subjects like the Great Pyramids (naturally), Cleopatra and mummification. And importantly, you're free to explore on your own terms without combat or plot getting in the way.

Source: Ubisoft

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News:: My Nintendo is offering a few indie games as rewards

Today was my first time logging into My Nintendo in what must've been months. You know it's been a while when you have to password-reset your way back in. Why now? There's talk of honest-to-goodness video games as rewards. Discounts and themes won't get me, but games? Sure, I'll bite.

The games are Bit.Trip Presents... Runner2: Future Legend of Rhythm Alien for Wii U (90 Gold Points), Zen Pinball 3D for 3DS (50 Gold Points), and Super Little Acorns 3D Turbo for 3DS (60 Gold Points).

Now, do I want or need any of these? Absolutely not. But I like where this is headed. If future game rewards can speak to me more than these three, I may finally part with some of this gold.

[Via GoNintendo]

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News:: Assassin's Creed Origins is getting a zero-combat education mode next year

Assassin's Creed Origins will be getting an educational mode in early 2018. The combat and action will be removed so players can learn about life in Ptolemaic Egypt.

The mode is titled "Discovery Tour" and players who own the base game, set to release on October 27, can expect the free update in early 2018.

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News:: Gone Home headlines October's Xbox Games with Gold

Strolls, not spooks, are the theme for October's Games with Gold on Xbox. Halloween would be the easy and obvious route, but next month's freebies for Xbox Live Gold subscribers mostly ignore that. Well, big deserted houses can be kind of scary.

On Xbox One, Fullbright's Gone Home is the most well-known of October's Games with Gold. It originally released in 2013, but only sauntered to Xbox in early 2016. Gone Home's place in video game history is well-disputed in thinkpieces and comment sections across the internet; I expect the same will likely happen again in this very comment section.

Halfway through the month, space station puzzler The Turing Test becomes the second Xbox One Gold game. The Turing Test is the follow-up project from the creators of Pneuma: Breath of Life. I had a chance to demo it at GDC a few years ago, and I thought it showed better puzzle design than Pneuma ever did.

As for Xbox 360, Rayman 3 HD is free for the first half of October. Then, on October 16, Medal of Honor: Airborne takes over for the rest of the month. As always, the Xbox 360 Games with Gold are all backward compatible to play on Xbox One.

Fall into October's Games with Gold [Xbox Wire]

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News:: 'Eve: Valkyrie' drops the VR requirement

If what's been holding you back from playing Eve: Valkyrie has been the lack of a VR headset, that (very valid) reason has disappeared. In addition to the new subtitle, Warzone, there's a new capture the flag gametype, new ships, ultra abilities and customizations for said ships and a pair of new maps. And, of course, now you can play the game on PC or PlayStation 4 sans an expensive and bulky virtual reality display hanging from your face.

Source: Eve: Valkyrie forums

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News:: Last-minute delay pushes Megaton Rainfall to October

That promising first-person superhero game Megaton Rainfall hit a last-minute snag. It was supposed to launch yesterday on PC and PlayStation 4, but it's now targeting an October 17, 2017 release.

What happened? Writing on Facebook, Pentadimensional Games explained that it "underestimated how long [it would take] to go through all the bureaucracy in this (crowded) time of the year" and offered an apology "to those of you that have been waiting for this game for years."

My fingers are firmly crossed that things work out and the optional PlayStation VR support meets expectations. The concept -- soaring across Earth, battling aliens while trying not to cause too much collateral damage in the process -- is just too dang good. Seriously, catch this trailer.

Megaton Rainfall [Twitter]

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News:: The evolution of video game cyberpunk: 'Ruiner' and 'Tacoma'

What does it even mean, cyberpunk?"

It's a strange question coming from Magdalena Tomkowicz, the narrative designer of Ruiner, a top-down action game that takes place in an anime-inspired, cyberpunk world. It just landed on Steam, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One this week from Polish studio Reikon Games, but fans of gritty sci-fi shooters have been looking forward to this one for months.

The thing is, Tomkowicz and creative director Benedykt Szneider never intended to create a cyberpunk game. They're simply products of the 1980s, pulling inspiration from their favorite childhood stories -- Alien, Die Hard, Ghost in the Shell -- to create something of their own. Tomkowicz is also a former journalist covering emerging technology and consumer trends, and her professional curiosity informed Ruiner's aesthetic far more than any desire to re-create the world of, say, Blade Runner.

Besides, the traditional Blade Runner version of cyberpunk -- dense, dark city streets coated in smog and grime, eerily illuminated by walls of neon -- is out of touch with today's reality, according to Szneider and Tomkowicz. This aesthetic made sense in the '80s, but sci-fi is all about extrapolating on current technological and social trends, not clinging to 35-year-old ideas about the future. Blade Runner completely missed the advent of cell phones, after all.

"It's like it's actually a retro-futuristic genre and something that is locked in its bubble," Tomkowicz says.

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News:: The Phantom Pain and Amnesia: Collection kick off the October PS Plus lineup

To everyone who thought about messing with Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain but never went through with it: next month is your month! The uneven but incredible-feeling open-world tactical adventure is going to be one of the PlayStation Plus games for October. In particular, if you've never tried the series before, I'd implore you to give this a shot -- even if it's just the first few hours.

The other PlayStation 4 selection is Amnesia: Collection, which bundles The Dark Descent, a seminal horror title, and A Machine for Pigs. I imagine plenty of us own one or both of these games by now, but at the very least this will be a fitting time for a replay what with Halloween approaching.

The remaining games for October are: Monster Jam: Battlegrounds (PS3), Hustle Kings (PS3), Hue (PS Vita and PS4), and Sky Force Anniversary (PS Vita, PS3, PS4). Of this lot, don't sleep on Hue!

PS Plus: Free Games for October 2017 [PlayStation Blog]

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News:: Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite bombs as Pokken DX tops Japan

Marvel vs. Capcom 3 first launched on February 17, 2017 in Japan and was met with 80,966 sales combined between the PlayStation 3 (67,187) and Xbox 360 (13,799) versions. Infinite did not fare so well. Only the PS4 version made the top 20 which tripped on it's face with only 8,273 sales. Oops. It's fine, Capcom is about to make a billion on Monster Hunter World so I'm sure they'll be fine.

Pokken Tournament DX led the charge with 53,395 sales, which is quite a good showing considering the original Pokken Tournament opened with 69,675 sales back on March 18, 2016. Cthulhu-named Nil Admirari no Tenbin: Kuroyuri En’youtan has a name that just begs to be Googled. It's just a romantic visual novel, but good enough to move 5,000 copies and land at the 16 spot.

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News:: If you get banned from Overwatch's competitive mode or lose ranking, it might be a bug

Overwatch has been a pretty smooth ride in terms of massive bugs, and even this new one has been cited as fairly rare, despite its gargantuan nature.

According to a bunch of players on the official forums, their accounts have been getting instant competitive play bans, or have lost a random amount of ranking points. The big seems to be tied to disconnects that aren't the fault of the player when loading a map, which forfeit the match.

This isn't just hearsay as director Jeff Kaplan has commented on the matter, explaining that the issue is a "high priority" and that they're going to be removing the bans as soon as possible. According to Kaplan, fewer than 200 accounts have been impacted.

The fact that the Overwatch team bothers to even listen to that many people in a game with millions of players is fascinating. Kaplan and his team have forged quite a reputation for themselves since the game's beta phase, and are putting a lot of other "games as a service" competitors to shame.

Serious Rare Bug [Battle.net]

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News:: My traumatising, hands-on EGX-perience with Monster Hunter World

"I only came here to play this!"

I turned my head to see a wide-eyed girl beaming at me like it was Christmas, her eyes glistening behind her trendy millennial glasses. Whereas she was really excited, I was more baffled, as I turned back to stare at the most complex layout of controller prompts I'd seen since Steel Battalion.

This was me at the Monster Hunter World booth at EGX this weekend. Despite the game being premiered at the show, it had been tucked away right in the very corner. It didn't help that Capcom no-showed the event, leaving it to Sony to squeeze the game between Lego Marvel 2 and a Subway stand. But I had eventually found it and here I was, young and confused, and young left town.

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News:: Fire Emblem Warriors' intro shows off most of the cast

It's always tough to figure out who makes the cut in an all-stars/crossover game. Koei Tecmo usually does a great job of balancing the old and the new, with the latter usually winning out. Fire Emblem Warriors seems to be using the same mentality, as they're leaning heavily into Awakening and Fates, with some classic characters sprinkled in. You can see for yourself in the intro below, which doesn't show off much in the way of exposition or actual gameplay, but recaps some of the choices so far.

Fire Emblem Warriors will be released tomorrow in Japan, and on October 20 in the rest of the world on the Switch and 3DS. Koei Tecmo had the good sense to make it exclusive to the New model of handhelds this time after putting a sluggishly under-performing Hyrule Warriors that technically worked on older 3DSes but was woefully choppy.

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