Tuesday, November 21, 2017

News:: PC games Black Friday sale: $35 Destiny 2, $9 Rocket League, and tons more

Begun, the Black Friday deals have for PC digital games. At digital retailers across the web, you can now score deep savings on a multitude of titles including recent releases such as Destiny 2. In fact, GMG now has Destiny 2 even cheaper than Battle.net's sale price of $38 as they've dropped the Battle.net key down by 40% off to $35.87.

We think this will be one of the best prices of the PC version of the game this season - given most retailers are simply discounting console copies of Destiny 2 but not PC. In other goodies, you should definitely pick up historic low prices on Rocket League for $9, or Civilization VI for $25. Tucked in the sale are other aggressive discounts such as DiRT 4, XCOM 2, and XCOM War of the Chosen.

Down the list you'll find good prices on Assassin's Creed: Origins for $42, For Honor for $20, and Watch Dogs 2 for only $17. Come Black Friday we're expecting more titles to join this sale such as Wolfenstein II and other titles from Bethesda, so we'll be updating this as we edge closer towards D-Day.

Want a price history breakdown? Check our list here.

GMG Black Friday Sale PC Games Sale

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Deals listed above will run through Black Friday and Cyber Monday, expiring next week Tuesday November 28, 2017.

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PC games Black Friday sale: $35 Destiny 2, $9 Rocket League, and tons more screenshot



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News:: It took years but Bloodborne players finally found this rare Chalice Dungeon enemy

It shouldn't come as a surprise that folks are still putting in work to suss out secrets and rare occurrences in Bloodborne. From Software's action-RPGs are shrouded in an air of mystery that keeps dedicated fans searching, sharing, and theorizing. That's true of the Dark Souls games and it's certainly true of Bloodborne thanks in no small part to its procedurally-generated Chalice Dungeons.

I had my fill of the dreaded tunnels while earning the game's platinum trophy. I never want to explore those tombs again. But if someone finds something cool -- say, a certain enemy shown in a pre-release demo that seemingly didn't make it into the final game -- then sure, I definitely want to see it.

That's what we have here, essentially. A group of so-called Tomb Prospectors happened upon an undead giant with a flaming blade, which is a rare, sought-after Chalice Dungeon find. For the vast majority of Bloodborne fans, the only other time we've seen this variant (if at all) was during a 2014 PlayStation Experience showcase led by From Software's Hidetaka Miyazaki. Both the pre-release and retail-version footage of this "Flaming Undead Giant" are shown here in a video from Moros Nyx:

It's maybe not the craziest discovery in and of itself, but it is a sign that there's more to find. To that end, Moros Nyx posted a recap of other potential discoveries lurking out there and made a call to action.

"I never claimed I was the first to find the flaming blade giant. In fact, much stranger things have probably been found, but never reported because of the great amount of know-how of the dungeons required to understand what is and what isn't rare! Many hunters may see something odd and then just dismissed it because they though it is normal.

So this post is a call for everyone who has seen or in the future sees something strange to report it in /r/tombprospectors, or in the /r/bloodborne Discord's "tomb prospectors" channel! Don't keep quiet about it! Worst case scenario it's nothing special, but the Tomb Prospector community will be thankful for you sharing it regardless!"

If you'd like to see this undead giant for yourself, use the glyph "pa6ssc6u" to generate a dungeon.

It took years but Bloodborne players finally found this rare Chalice Dungeon enemy screenshot



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News:: Pit People's next update will be the final version

The Behemoth has announced that Pit People will be ready for early 2018. The next patch will be the full release and will bring an additional map alongside a fully scripted and acted campaign mode. Since there are a bunch of different factors that need finalizing (such as music, individual voice recordings and level testing), the studio doesn't have a firm date in mind.

I've been looking forward to Pit People ever since I finally got the chance to play it at RTX this year. While I had doubts about the shift from arcade style games to a more methodical system, that typical Behemoth charm shines through. Thankfully, it looks like we won't have to wait much longer for the game to leave Early Access.

Pit People's next update will be the final version screenshot



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News:: Steam tweaks community reviews to fight spam

Valve has known that its platform Steam, the biggest marketplace for PC titles, has had a review problem for years. Groups of users abuse a game's rating by 'review bombing' them, propping up negative feedback with far more 'this was helpful' votes than is humanly possible. While Valve tried a passive solution two months ago, but it didn't fix the problem. So the company is trying a couple more changes: Diluting the effects of likely review-manipulators and making sure a game's top ten reflect the title's overall approval rating.

Via: Gamasutra

Source: Steam



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News:: Dragon Quest Rivals has achieved 10 million downloads in Japan

Although it has live in its native Japan for less than a month, Square Enix' card-fighting mobile game Dragon Quest Rivals has already amassed a whopping ten million downloads.

The collectible strategy title, similar to other digital card-fighters such as Blizzard's Hearthstone, features many characters and locales from the titular RPG series, with players battling in out in turn-based combat, utilising stat attacks, defensive options and a front-line of the classic Dragon Quest monsters.

Having only launched in Japan on November 2, the game was already boasting its first seven million downloads within five days, with a further three million logging in since. To celebrate, Square Enix are giving a "Legend Rare Decision Ticket" to all players who login before December 2.

Dragon Quest Rivals is available on iOS and Android in Japan. There are no plans as of yet to localise the title in the West.

Dragon Quest Rivals hits ten million downloads milestone [Square Enix]

Dragon Quest Rivals has achieved 10 million downloads in Japan screenshot

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News:: The original Doom but with loot boxes

Doom originally released in 1993, approximately two decades before the invention (or at least popularizing) of video game loot boxes. Thankfully, we have the technology to fix the mistakes of our past.

ZDoom is a fan-made port that allows users to play and mod the first Doom. While ZDoom is the title of the game, it's also the name of the active community that follows and supports it. Member "Rip and Tear" recently riffed on the Battlefront II loot box drama by retrofitting the system into ZDoom (as reported by Mashable).

YouTuber Stronki posted some loot box gameplay in the video that's embedded above. Instead of finding standard weapon pickups around the map, the player has to rely on randomized key drops from dead enemies and randomized loot boxes hidden somewhere throughout the level. It basically amounts to a lot of luck and a lot of pistol play.

But, there's something more faux-sinister about the mod. Rather than waiting to find keys and boxes, there's a menu where the player can "purchase" both items in single or bulk quantities. Purchase is in scare quotes because there's not actually a functioning system for this; trying it just leads to a generic error message saying that the Doom servers can't be reached to complete the transaction.

What we're left with is an effective critique of a modern trend by applying it to a classic example in a way that's really not too far removed from reality. Well done.

Doom Loot Box Mod [ZDoom via Mashable]

The original Doom but with loot boxes screenshot



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News:: The Belgium Gaming Commission has declared loot boxes as gambling

This is an outcome many saw coming, just one that we never expected to happen so quickly. With the fiasco surrounding Battlefront II and microtransactions, people were hoping some type of regulation would be coming for loot boxes. Whether or not you agree they are a form of gambling, as far as Belgium is concerned, these predatory tactics are going to officially be classified as such.

Last week, we reported on how the Belgium Gaming Commission was launching an investigation into whether or not loot boxes constituted as a form of digital gambling. In the words of the Commission's director, Peter Naessens, "If there is a game of chance, it is not possible without a permit from the Gaming Commission." Guess what conclusion they came to.

"The mixing of money and addiction is gambling," the translated VTM News article concludes. "Mixing gambling and gaming, especially at a young age, is dangerous for the mental health of the child," said Belgium's Minister of Justice Koen Geens. Reportedly, Geens' ultimate goal would be to ban these types of in-game purchases in their entirety and not even solely in Belgium. "We will certainly try to ban it," Geens declares.

I can't say I disagree with that sentiment, either. I certainly understand that making entertainment is a job and not everything is created with some artistic merit, but to turn each product into a glorified slot machine has never sat well with me. I've don't enjoy gambling specifically because of how random it feels, so purposely gating content behind randomized drops has rubbed me the wrong way since the first time I saw it in a game.

Whatever the ultimate outcome, at least one government fully recognizes how ludicrous the concept of a loot box is. Even if it never becomes an official law, hopefully publishers learn their lesson and we won't see them shifting into a different business model with which to nickel and dime customers.

Geens wil gokken in games verbieden [VTM News via PC Gamer]

The Belgium Gaming Commission has declared loot boxes as gambling screenshot



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News:: You can try Xbox Game Pass for $1

Xbox Game Pass, Microsoft's video game take on Netflix (even though I don't necessarily agree), can be a tremendous value. Or it can be a tremendous waste of money. It all really depends on how likely you are to rely on a somewhat-rotating catalog of games for your primary source of entertainment.

Regardless, Microsoft is running a deal right now that most people should be able to find some value in. Xbox Game Pass is normally priced similar to other entertainment subscription services at $10. Right now, it's 10 percent of that.

For the next six days (until November 27), Xbox Game Pass costs only $1 for a one-month trial. It's a promotion that only applies to new subscribers. Also, remember that the subscription will probably auto-renew at the full price once the month is up, so make sure to turn that off. Still, $1 is a good price to run through some games in December when not a lot of new stuff is coming out.

On that note, Microsoft also revealed the Xbox Game Pass additions for December. They are Gears of War 4, Darksiders: Warmastered Edition, Sherlock Holmes: The Devil's Daughter, This War of Mine: The Little Ones, Casey Powell Lacrosse 16, Mega Man 10, and Mass Effect. Here's the full list of Xbox Game Pass titles. Some decent stuff in there for $1.

December’s Xbox Game Pass Update Brings Gears of War 4, Darksiders, Mass Effect and $1 Game Pass for Limited Time [Xbox Wire]

You can try Xbox Game Pass for $1 screenshot



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News:: PlayStation Network's full Black Friday sale is live

Sony's initial batch of Black Friday deals for PlayStation Plus subscribers wasn't anything too wild, but now that the full sale is underway, there's a far better selection of games. (If you're on PS4, that is.)

What's good? I'm tempted by The Evil Within 2 dropping to half price and if you haven't picked up Wolfenstein II, that's also only $30. I'm hearing buzz for Prey ($20) start to bubble up again as we approach game-of-the-year discussions, and you've also got stuff like NieR: Automata ($36) and Persona 5 ($30) to consider. The sale has all that and a shit-ton of variably-named deluxe editions.

I won't be surprised if we also get a shorter weekend flash sale on top of this week-long Black Friday promotion, so keep that in mind before you go heavy on unnecessary impulse purchases.

PlayStation Network's full Black Friday sale is live screenshot

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News:: Xbox Live's giant Black Friday sale rounded up (100+ games)

Microsoft has launched its giant Xbox Live Black Friday sale for 2017 - and the sale is very much worthy of the Black Friday name. We're spotting over one hundred games on sale, many of which are at a historic low price.

You'll even find everything from the latest released triple-As such as Assassin's Creed: Origins, The Evil Within 2, and Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus. The latter of two are now 50% off and will be matching what you'll see come Black Friday at many retailers. For Destiny 2 and Assassin's Creed: Origins, we highly suggest you sit back and wait for Wednesday night, as many of these games will be 50% off or more come Thanksgiving (er we mean Black Friday).

Other games at new low price points include tons of Telltale titles such as The Walking Dead series, Batman, and Guardians of the Galaxy. You'll also find Tales from the Borderlands as a freebie for Xbox Live Gold members. You can see the entire price history breakdown of this Black Friday sale here.

We've listed 115 noteworthy titles below, but our personal picks would be $5 Mount and Blade: Warband, $4.50 Sleeping Dogs: Definitive Edition, and $20 Skyrim Special Edition (because you can never have enough copies of Skyrim).

All the prices listed below requires Live Gold membership. Don't have Gold? Worry not, because one-month membership is currently only $1 for non-Gold members. Just remember to unsubscribe if you're no longer need the service as it'll renew monthly. We've also listed three-month and 12-month deals available online as of writing below.

Xbox Live Gold Deals

Xbox Live Gold Black Friday Early Access

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Xbox Live's giant Black Friday sale rounded up (100+ games) screenshot



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News:: Checking out the battle system of Star Control: Origins

I have a heavy bias toward Star Control. It is one of the first PC games I ever fell in love with alongside MYST, though my original introduction to the series took place on the Sega Genesis. The original Star Control is likely not worth going back to for most. Sluggish, dull, and lacking an interesting campaign mode, the highlight is the one-on-one melee battle where two players pit a fleet of ships against one another in arena combat; a sort of two-player Asteroids with multiple ships and abilities.

Me and my dad played it for hours and hours. The campaign mode was less interesting, putting players on a static map of stars in a board game style conquest where conflicts were handled in the same melee combat. When I heard about Star Control 2, the PC and 3DO sequel, I was ecstatic. And when I did finally get a chance to play it at my friend's house on 3DO, I was blown away by how good it was.

Checking out the battle system of Star Control: Origins screenshot

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News:: BadLand Games, publisher behind physical release of Axiom Verge, to donate 75% of profits to developer's son

Over two and a half years after its initial digital release, today indie gem Axiom Verge finally sees its physical release in North America across PlayStation 4, Vita, and Switch. Developer Tom Happ recently took to the Axiom Verge site's blog to detail a brief history of the journey from self-published indie title to physical release across several platforms, providing some insight into how that sweet, sweet game-sausage is made.

It's apparently a pretty lengthy process!

BadLand Games, publisher behind physical release of Axiom Verge, to donate 75% of profits to developer's son screenshot

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News:: Sonic the Hedgehog 2 joins Sega's free mobile game initiative

Sonic has had a bit of a crazy year. While Sonic Mania was well received by both fans and critics, Sonic Forces is a bit of a mess. Some people can dig it, but the general consensus seems to be that the game was a missed opportunity. Why not take your mind off things by reliving one of the blue blur's greatest adventures?

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is now available for free on the iTunes App Store and Google Play store thanks to SEGA Forever. As with other games in the free game collection, you'll have access to the full game with limited ad support, bluetooth controller functionality, cloud saves and leaderboards. You can also pay a one time fee of $1.99 to remove all ads, if they are too intrusive for you.

This port of Sonic 2 is the remastered version Christian Whitehead made on his faithful Retro Engine, so it includes full widescreen support, online multiplayer and the additional Hidden Palace Zone stage as well as having Knuckles without "lock-on technology." Way past cool!

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 joins Sega's free mobile game initiative screenshot

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News:: Review in Progress: Eiyu*Senki - The World Conquest (Steam)

Whenever a game lets the player pick a romantic partner, there's a chance they'll engage with other people in a debate over who's the best candidate. If your opponent disagrees with you, then their reply will contain the s-word and your favorite character in the same sentence. Of course, this confrontation can happen with other mediums.

The romance strategy title, Eiyu*Senki - The World Conquest, may not bring an end to this conflict, but you got to give it props for letting the player partake in a harem. While its sex scenes were cut in the Steam release, this version shows more goods than its all-ages PS3 port from 2015.

Review in Progress: Eiyu*Senki - The World Conquest (Steam) screenshot

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News:: Q-Games is making a new PixelJunk Monsters for mobile

PixelJunk Monsters remains one of my all-time favorite tower defense games to this day, and I think for a lot of us, it turned us into longtime fans of Q-Games. As we approach the title's tenth anniversary, the studio has shared plans for another entry, PixelJunk Monsters Duo, due next year.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, this will be a free-to-play mobile title for iOS and Android. Also, they're going through Kickstarter, which, yeah. With this pricing model, the idea is at least in part to "make it easier to keep new stages, islands, monsters, and other features coming as fast as we can whip them up."

The campaign page has some concept art and mock-ups that show new card- and deck-based mechanics as well as some cute new "Tiki family" critters. Those kinds of mobile-game hooks aren't ideal but I definitely understand why Q-Games would steer the series in this direction.

After the recent-ish closure of The Tomorrow Children, I'm glad to hear they're back at it. I just don't know how many PixelJunk fans are going to show up to get a free-to-play release off the ground.

PixelJunk Monsters Duo Mobile Game [Kickstarter]

Q-Games is making a new PixelJunk Monsters for mobile screenshot

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News:: Watch Gotenks rock that wild hair in Dragon Ball FighterZ

Dragon Ball Fighterz might not have on the fly fusions, but at least we'll be able to play as our favorite fused duo. Gotenks is now among the ranks of the other classic characters you'll be able to duke it out with and he's (they are?) still rocking that wild hairdo.

Watch Gotenks rock that wild hair in Dragon Ball FighterZ screenshot

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News:: Slay Sobek in Assassin's Creed Origins' second Trial of the Gods

Karma's coming for Bayek in a big way. After senselessly murdering hundreds of crocodiles in pursuit of a bigger arrow bag, the King Croc wants revenge. Sobek's pissed.

The second of Assassin's Creed Origins' Trials of the Gods encounters features a massive fight with Sobek, the Egyptian deity of strength and power. The trailer above does an apt job of introducing him. Like the previous Anubis trial, this one is available for a week; it ends on November 28.

The deadline isn't the only similarity Sobek shares with Anubis. This fight plays out almost the same. It's predicated on shooting Sobek in the chest while avoiding ground attacks and fending off enemies that spawn at certain intervals. The Anubis battle has trained you well for this one.

As before, being at level 40 is suggested before attempting this fight. Here's the reward you get for defeating Sobek; beating all four gods will unlock a set of legendary armor. However, anyone who isn't far enough along to try these encounters doesn't need to worry. Ubisoft has confirmed that all of the Trials of the Gods will be available again sometime down the road.

Slay Sobek in Assassin's Creed Origins' second Trial of the Gods screenshot

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News:: GameCenter CX - Episode 189 - Magic Sword



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News:: With Session, one studio aims to reinvent skateboarding games

For years, skateboarding thrived in the shadows. It was a sport defined by alleyways and scraped knees pioneered by punks and self-described weirdos. Before the X-Games and multimillion-dollar sponsorship deals, skateboarding was a secret ritual shared between outcasts. Together, outside of popular culture's watching eye, kids practiced kickflips for hours. They pushed one another to learn tricks, celebrated successful attempts, and laughed when their friends' faces hit the pavement. 

Skateboarding's changed a lot since then. It's grown up. What was once the gangly, easily-bullied cousin of traditional team sports has become a staple of youth culture. It's on television, now, during prime time, attracting entire generations to waste days rolling around. No matter what, skateboarding's allure lies in its simplicity. It might just be a piece of wood, four wheels, and two pieces of metal, but when you're riding one anything seems possible.

And that's where Session comes in. Following in the footsteps of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater and EA's Skate series, the independently developed skateboarding game aims to capture the sport in its purest form. There are no high scores or outside influences. According to developer Creā-ture Studios, Session aspires to nothing more than to be the closest possible version of skateboarding ever seen in a video game.

With Session, one studio aims to reinvent skateboarding games screenshot

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News:: Review: Battle Chef Brigade

Battle Chef Brigade is a delightful concoction. It's one part side-scrolling brawler, complemented by a series of match-three puzzles in the form of a cooking competition. With a dash of light RPG progression and beautiful, hand-drawn visuals added to the mix, there's nothing quite like Trinket Studio's debut offering on the market. Like a hearty meal, Battle Chef Brigade entices on multiple levels.

In the simplest terms, Battle Chef Brigade is a game about magical cooks. They travel the world fighting monsters, only to serve exotic dishes with ingredients taken from their quarries. It's a silly premise, but it's one that's easy to get wrapped up in during the game's six chapters. As Mina Han, an amateur chef keen on joining the Brigade's storied ranks, the combination of culinary battles and character-driven storytelling creates a breezy, enjoyable experience.

Review: Battle Chef Brigade screenshot

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News:: The secret origin of 'Hangry' and other localization surprises

In the past few years we've seen an outpouring of kids and young adults with a newfound rage over how games are localized. I feel their pain, but I also think that they don't know how good they actually have it. If you don't like how a game was localized, chances are extremely high that you can either see all of the original version of the game on YouTube, or better yet, download it and play it yourself. In the era of high-speed internet, true censorship is all but dead, at least in a practical sense. In principal, the forces that drive censorship (fear of offending others, attempts to control the direction that our culture evolves, etc.) are all alive and well, but when it comes right down to it, you just can't hold information back anymore. 

There's also the fact that most of the localization changes that upset people today are small potatoes compared to what we used to have to put up with. Capcom has removed entire characters from their games at least twice during their localization process. The sixth stage of  UmJammer Lammy had its lyrics, graphics, and cut scenes changed so that all references to the Hell environment were replaced with a random island. We never even got this Pingu game with its dedicated "NOOT NOOT" button. These kinds of injustices were just accepted back then, as there was no high-speed internet to gather around with other like-minded citizens for commiseration. 

The secret origin of 'Hangry' and other localization surprises screenshot

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