News:: Total War: Rome II is back again with Empire Divided

Four years later, Creative Assembly is revisiting Total War: Rome II with a major DLC release.

When it launches this Thursday, November 30, Empire Divided will add a new campaign set in 270 AD along with ten different playable factions and disruptive forces like banditry, plagues, and cults.

As it now stands, things aren't looking too great for Rome.

"The once-glorious legions are forced to assume a defensive posture as their strength wanes; time is not on Rome's side. However, there is yet hope. Aurelian stands ready to take the reins in Rome, though the task he faces seems insurmountable... Will you unite an Empire Divided, and return Rome to its former glory? Or will you become the arbiter of its final downfall?"

The team put out a cinematic trailer today:

According to the developers, the game still attracts "hundreds of thousands" of active players each month, hence this support. It was a "perfect opportunity for us to go back and address some of the areas we felt we could still improve, like we have with the Power and Politics update."

Even if you're skipping Empire Divided, you'll be able to benefit from this free Politics update. It's launching on November 30 as well and it will rework the politics system so that you're gaining influence and support through missions out on the battlefield. The motivation for the overhaul was to provide "far greater meaning to how you deal with other politics parties and government types" in Rome II.

Now this might not be my usual beat, but the idea of developers touching up older games in ongoing series with large-scale updates or DLC? That's cool. Something I'd love to see more of, certainly.

Also worth mentioning: Rome II is on sale this week to coincide with the new content.

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News:: GameCenter CX - Episode 211 - Taito Chase HQ

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News:: What genre can't Disney beat DC superhero movies with?

Thanksgiving weekend has long been known for your drunk uncle saying things they probably shouldn't, eating too much turkey, and rousing oneself out of the turkey-induced stupor to see a movie. Usually, this spells good news for big releases. Sorry Justice League, but you'll note the use of the term usually.

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News:: Xenoblade Chronicles 2 gets a hauntingly beautiful music video

With only a few days left to wait, Nintendo is ramping up the hype train for Xenoblade Chronicles 2. While no new footage has been shared, we now have a better understanding of what the music will sound like. The music/sound producer for Chronicles 2, Yasunori Mitsuda, employed the likes of Irish choral band ANÚNA to compose music for the towns in the game and the result is incredible.

Mitsuda shares his story about discovering the band's work over on Nintendo's website. He describes how in 1996, he was big into music from Northern Europe and was stunned by how ANÚNA carved out their own niche by mostly utilizing the human voice. "I dreamt about making music with ANÚNA one day," Mitsuda says. "After 20 years, my dream came true through the making of the game Xenoblade Chronicles 2."

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News:: Best gaming desktop deals for Cyber Monday starts at $500

 

If building a computer desktop seems too time-consuming for you or too complicated (it really isn't), this roundup of pre-built gaming desktop deals is just for you. Beyond saving time and juggling compatibility (PCPartPicker mostly solves this problem) - sometimes it's really hard to beat the pricing on OEM desktop from a major manufacturer. During most seasonal sales event, we'll spot deals on a desktop where you simply can't put together yourself at the same price. Today is one such day.

If you're returning home from work, getting ready to pick up a gaming PC as a Christmas gift, or simply something for yourself - here are all the best deals for Cyber Monday thus far. Note that while most deals below are time-limited, the deals from Lenovo and HP should run through the week (but we'll also update accordingly as we head into Cyber Week).

Below we've broken down the deals by categories and manufacturers. As we're now in Fall 2017, a number of manufacturers are already offering systems with the latest 8th gen Intel Coffee Lake processors. While there's a slight price premium to these machines, you'll be getting something that literally just came out of the fabrication plant a month ago.

Down below, you'll also see a very noteworthy HP Pavilion Power gaming desktop for only $500. Amazingly, this desktop comes with a GeForce GTX 1060 and while it's already sold out for shipping, inventory stock looks enouraging and you'll most likely be able to find it in-stock at your nearby Walmart. If you quickly scan the list below, you'll realize that most desktop with a GTX 1060 are priced well above $700, let alone $500.

8th Gen Coffee Lake Gaming Desktop Deals

• HP Omen 880-150t Desktop Core i5-8400 Coffee Lake, GeForce GTX 1060, 8GB RAM, 1TB HDD — $799.99  (list price $1,300)
• Alienware Aurora R7 Core i5-8400 Coffee Lake, GeForce GTX 1070, 1TB HDD, 850W PSU, 8GB RAM — $1,077.99  (list price $1,300)

HP Omen Desktop Deals

• HP Omen 880-010z Desktop Ryzen 5 1600, Radeon RX 580, 8GB RAM, 1TB HDD — $799.99  (list price $1,000)
• HP Omen 880-020t Desktop Core i5-7400 Kaby Lake, GeForce GTX 1060, 8GB RAM, 1TB HDD + 256GB SSD — $949.99  (list price $1,200)
• HP Omen 880-160se Desktop Core i7-8700, GeForce GTX 1070, 8GB RAM, 1TB HDD — $1,199.99  (list price $1,700)
• HP Omen 870-255xt Desktop Core i7-7700, GeForce GTX 1070, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD + 1TB HDD — $1,299.99  (list price $1,700)

$500 Budget Friendly Gaming Desktop Deals

• HP Pavilion Power 580-023w, Core i5-7400, GeForce GTX 1060, 8GB RAM, 1TB HDD — $499  (list price $649)
• Dell Inspiron AMD Ryzen 3 1200, Radeon RX 560, 8GB RAM, 1TB HDD — $499.99  (list price $650)

Lenovo Legion Y720 Cube Cyber Monday Deals

• Lenovo Legion Y720 Cube 90H2000DUS Core i3-7100, GeForce GTX 1050 Ti, 1TB HDD, 8GB RAM — $611.99  (list price $720)
• Lenovo Legion Y720 Cube 90H2008GUS Core i5-7400, Radeon RX 570, 1TB HDD, 8GB RAM — $849  (list price $999)
• Lenovo Legion Y720 Cube 90H2000BUS Core i7-7700, 16GB RAM, 1TB HDD + 128GB SSD, GeForce GTX 1060 — $1,181.49  (list price $1,390)
• Lenovo Legion Y720 Cube 90H2000AUS Core i7-7700, 16GB RAM, 2TB HDD + 256GB SSD, GeForce GTX 1070 — $1,402.49  (list price $1,650)

Dell Inspiron Gaming Desktop Cyber Monday Deals

• Dell Inspiron 5675 Desktop AMD Ryzen 5 1400, Radeon RX 570, 8GB RAM, 1TB HDD — $674.99  (list price $850)
• Dell Inspiron 5675 Desktop AMD Ryzen 7 1700X, Radeon RX 570, 8GB RAM, 1TB HDD — $699.99  (list price $1,100)
• Dell Inspiron 5675 Desktop AMD Ryzen 7 1700X, Radeon RX 580, 8GB RAM, 1TB HDD — $832.99  (list price $1,100)

Mixed Reality (VR) Bundle Deals

• HP Pavilion Power 580-131 Ryzen 5 1400, Radeon RX 580, 8GB RAM, 1TB HDD + HP Mixed Reality Headset & Controllers — $748  (list price $1,148)
• Alienware Aurora R6 Core i5-7400, Radeon RX 480, 8GB RAM, 1TB HDD + Choice of Mixed Reality Headset & Controllers — $1,298  (list price $1,398)

Gaming desktop deals from Dealzon. Sales help support Destructoid.

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News:: Truberbrook is the next handmade adventure game to watch

I'm admittedly late on covering this one but it's much too special to pass up for that reason alone. Trüberbrook is a sci-fi mystery adventure game set in 1960s Germany that owes inspiration to The X-Files and Twin Peaks. Best of all, it uses digitized models to achieve a stunning handmade aesthetic.

I caught a glimpse over the long, food-filled holiday weekend and knew I'd have to mention the game come Monday. It's one thing too pull off this look (see also: The Neverhood, Skullmonkeys, and The Dream Machine) but you also need a story, world, and characters to make worthwhile use of it.

On that front, Trüberbrook follows an American physics student, Hans Tannhauser, who unexpectedly wins a trip to a German village full of strange folks and weird happenings. It turns out there's far more to his visit than just luck. In fact, he's meant to be there. He's meant to save the world.

The game is currently crowdfunding on Kickstarter with just over two weeks to go. It's a clear success at this point, and any extra funding will go toward goals like an audio commentary and making-of materials. Trüberbrook is aiming for "late 2018" on PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.

TRÜBERBROOK – A Nerd Saves the World [Kickstarter]

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News:: 'Demon's Souls' servers are shutting down for good February 28th

One of the coolest things about From Software's original, brutally difficult Demon's Souls was the in-game messaging system. No, you weren't able to pen letters to your friends, but you could drop hints anywhere you wanted in the game — before a nasty drop or difficult set of enemies, for example — that other players would then see as they made their way through the virtual wastelands. Such a system required servers, however. Those holding Demon's Souls' messages have been maintained for years with various reprieves from threatened shutdowns. Now, however, it appears that publishers Sony and Atlus are shutting down the servers for good as of February 28th, 2018.

Via: Kotaku

Source: Atlus

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News:: A mellow game about befriending monsters

Being the new person in town is tough. Moving away from family and friends means starting fresh. Breaking into social circles and putting yourself out there is no small task, especially when your new neighbors are monsters.

At least that's the case in Monster Pub. The narrative game casts players as a fresh-faced arrival in a town where everyone is a monster. Over the course of one night, you chat with all manner of creatures, play some cards, and maybe -- if you're lucky -- end the evening with a few new friends.

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News:: Let it Die and World of Tanks seems like a weird combo

As Grasshopper Manufacture's PS4-exclusive free-to-play Let it Die nears its one-year anniversary, it's turning to collaborations as its primary form of advertising. The game is popular, no doubt, as it cleared three million downloads back in May. Still, install bases tend to be front-loaded and dwindle over time.

In the coming days, Let it Die is teaming up with World of Tanks for a cross-promotion that takes place from November 30, 2017 through January 11, 2018. These are the 10 skill decals that will be added to Let it Die:

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News:: Dive into 'Destiny 2' for free starting tomorrow

So you missed out on Destiny 2's beta tests and didn't want to buy the game without giving it a try. Are you stuck? Thankfully, no. Bungie will offer a free Destiny 2 trial on PS4, Xbox One and PC starting on November 28th, and it's giving you a sizeable chunk of the game to try before you fork over your money. You can explore Earth's European Dead Zone and Titan (though you won't get all the campaign missions), fight fellow players in the Crucible's Quickplay rotation and progress up to level 7. This leaves out Nessus, Io, the Competitive playlist and most of the story, but there's at least a few hours of gameplay to be had before you run into the trial's limits.

Source: Destiny, Twitter

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News:: A Hat in Time lands on PS4 and Xbox One next week

Charming indie 3D platformer A Hat in Time will be making the jump to consoles next week on December 6. You'll be able to get it on PS4 or Xbox One for $29.99. If you're wondering about a Switch port, the devs have stated they there are currently no plans to port the game to Nintendo's hybrid device.

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News:: Nioh's PC port finally gets mouse support

Nioh will finally be getting mouse support for its PC port in a new update. Coming November 30 (for Japan), Koei Tecmo will allow users to rebind keyboard controls and move the camera with the mouse. I'm shocked this wasn't in the original port, but at least the problem is now rectified. The update will also be addressing a few other issues, including some matchmaking problems.

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News:: Black Mesa's Xen chapter gets delayed yet again

It has been two years since the fan made remake of Half-Life, Black Mesa, hit Steam Early Access. Fans have been promised that the Xen chapter of the game would be coming for nearly as long as Black Mesa has been on sale. In a not so surprising development, Xen will not be making a 2017 appearance.

Taking to the Steam fourms, developer Crowbar Collective regrettably announced the decision to push back the release of the final version of the game. "We are truly sorry for getting everyone's hopes up and then delaying... again," the post reads. "We worked very hard to make December, but we are not yet ready. As a team, we take FULL responsibility for that...Simply put, Xen has proven to be an enormous undertaking, and while we are managing it to the best of our ability, it is proving to take longer than we estimated."

So what will be happening in December, then? Black Mesa will receive a massive update the will prep the game for the inevitable conclusion. "The good news is that we will be releasing a large update in December to test all of the new features that have been developed for Xen. We have changed a number of things within the Source Engine, and we want to make sure they all work on the myriad of PCs out there."

This update will include things like lens flare effects, dynamic lighting, texture blending, and new shadow maps. That might sound superfluous, but having Xen look graphically impressive along with being completely redesigned to not suck like the original should make for a fitting end to this saga.

I find it kind of ironic how Black Mesa is almost mirroring the actual Half-Life in terms of fan anticipation and disappointment. Despite Half-Life 2: Episode Two releasing 10 years ago, people are still eager to get a Half-Life 3. Every time we seem to be building up to a reveal through some ARG, Valve then adds a pointless feature to Steam. Unlike Valve, however, Crowbar Collective has been paying attention to its game, so I still have faith that we'll see the inevitable conclusion.

Bad News, Good News [Steam Community]

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News:: Ubisoft is running a Nintendo Switch eShop sale

We weren't impressed with the Switch game selection or pricing in Nintendo's eShop Cyber Deals last week (some of you wondered if the featured games were even discounted), but today brings several more titles to peruse. Better yet, a few of these could actually be considered "deals."

The Ubisoft Cyber Monday Sale is live on the Switch eShop and it'll last until Monday, December 4.

• Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle ($40.19)
• Just Dance 2018 ($35.99)
• Just Dance 2017 ($35.99)
• Rayman Legends Definitive Edition ($26.79)
• Uno ($6.69)
• Monopoly ($26.79)

The complete edition of Rabbids Kingdom Battle is still $80, so you're better off buying the standard edition for $40 and nabbing the season pass for $20 if and when you ever decide you want that too.

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News:: Dissidia's next gloomy looking Squall-ass stage is from Final Fantasy VIII

Don't let the header fool you -- I couldn't resist -- I love Final Fantasy VIII.

I'm okay with Square trying something new, and they really needed to after the massive popularity of VII. It wasn't perfect, the Draw system could use some work in particular (as well as the daycare arc of the story, which I won't spoil because it's kind of too stupid to even discuss), but it made a lasting impact on me, so much so that I have random vivid memories of roaming around its overworld, fighting Diabolos, and remembering Zell flip out constantly.

Now you can relive all that in Dissidia Final Fantasy, when the "Promised Place" level hits. It starts off all Squall-like -- gloomy and dark, then morphs into a wonderland not unlike an Elysium you'd see at the end of a lot of games.

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News:: Ubisoft’s next indie game ‘Ode’ is out in the UK

A couple years ago, Ubisoft started an incubator at its Reflections Studio to make indie games -- the first of which, the delightful Grow Home, came out in early 2015. Now the same team has released a new title, the relaxing platformer 'experience' Ode.

Via: Rock Paper Shotgun

Source: Ubisoft

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News:: Destiny 2 demo out tomorrow for PC and consoles

It took a couple months, but Bungie is nearly ready to roll out a trial for Destiny 2.

The demo will be available starting tomorrow, November 28 and it's set for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC. This'll be a good way to check out the latter version if you're curious how Destiny fares at a higher frame rate. I'm still not used to the fact that you have to launch the game through Battle.net.

The trial will let you "experience your first steps" in the campaign, "explore new worlds," and "face off in competitive multiplayer," according to the studio. Your progress will carry over to the full game.

With some players rallying against XP shenanigans in Destiny 2, the timing here is a little amusing.

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News:: Dataminer leaks footage of Call of Duty WWII weapons and modes

This weekend, YouTuber and CoD fan IAMJarni datamined a glut of upcoming content for Activision's million-dollar shooter, Call of Duty: WWII.

In a video uploaded - and since removed - from his channel, IAMJarni showed off returning modes and all-new weapon variants, which are now clearly expected to make an appearance in the game somewhere down the line. The video, which can (for now) be viewed at MP1ST, features footage from the multiplayer modes Infected, Gun Game and Control, as well as some as yet unknown boomsticks. The video is also scored with very loud music that hurts my ears.

As this is obviously unofficial chicanery, there is no news as to when or how this content will be implemented into WWII. It can be assumed that the weaponry might appear as part of the game's loot crate system, but hopefully the modes will simply be added to the game for free in the near future.

Call of Duty: WWII leaked content [MP1ST]

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News:: Ubisoft's Grow Home developer just surprise-launched a new game called Ode

Fewer than three months from its last release, Ubisoft Reflections has already put out another game. Arena shooter Atomega launched in September, and now, without any sort of prior warning, Ode is out.

Ode is some sort of a music-based adventure game. You control Joy, a little something-or-other who's rolling around in a hamster ball, as it explores four fantasy environments and tries to collect stars. It seems as if nearly everything you interact with has some sort of melodic component to it. Ode looks and sounds neat.

Ubisoft Reflections has made a reputation for itself as the publisher's studio that tackles smaller experimental projects. It made a name for itself with Grow Home and Grow Up. Atomega was the third game that Reflections headed. Ode appears to be more in the vein of the Grows than Atomega.

Ode is available now for $5 on PC through Ubisoft's Uplay service.

Ode [Ubisoft Store]

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News:: Assassin's Creed Origins still hasn't been cracked on PC

Piracy and cracking is a weird thing. 

CD Projekt Red fought it tooth and nail sending legal compensation notices to its users before they backed off and become the "cool kid developer" they're known as today. Some big publishers like Sega try to sneak it in big, otherwise critically successful games and act like no one would notice it and cause an uproar. Some massive titles, like Middle-earth: Shadow of War, are hacked in a day or mere hours.

But evidently according to DSOGaming, pirates are having a really tough time getting Assassin's Creed Origins to crack under pressure, because of a VMProect and Denuvo tag-team. Because these two are together and sort of bond to form an unholy parasitic union, which some claim are taking up CPU power to operate.

The battle continues!

Ubisoft has managed to protect Assassin’s Creed Origins from pirates for an entire month [DSOGaming]

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News:: Blizzard offers more chances to become an 'Overwatch' pro

It's tempting to compete for a spot in the Overwatch League -- make it big and you could earn a solid income from your Mercy or Reinhardt skills. But getting there isn't necessarily easy, and Blizzard thinks it can help. As of March, the studio is expanding Overwatch Contenders (its development league) to cover virtually the entire globe. The existing regional leagues in China, South Korea and Asia-Pacific are becoming Contenders leagues, while there are new Contenders leagues in Australia and South America. Your team will have more chances to prove itself and, hopefully, attract the attention of Overwatch League scouts.

Source: Overwatch League

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News:: Play Arts Kai unveil figures of Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children's Cid and Cait Sith

Fine figure creators Play Arts Kai have released images of the next release in their long-running Final Fantasy VII range. The next character in line for the Play Arts treatment is short-tempered sky pilot Cid Highwind.

Cid is rocking his slightly less grizzled Advent Children look, which sees his tattered old uniform and super-high pants replaced with a slightly hipper blue shirt, tied jacket ensemble. His overall demeanor here is a little cooler and sexier, as well as seeing him sans cigarette.

Standing around 10.5 inches tall, Cid comes with a selection of interchangeable hands and weaponry. Also along for the ride is lil' bastard Cait Sith. Cait is sadly missing his ride-on moogle, but still makes for a fun sidekick. Cait Sith also has interchangeable hands and comes with his trusty megaphone.

The 2-in-1 pack is currently available for pre-order on hobby store AmiAmi, on offer at ¥11,820 (about $100 or £80). It is scheduled for release in April 2018.

Play Arts Kai Cid Highwind/Cait Sith [AmiAmi]

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News:: There's going to be an absurdly priced giant Aku Aku mask from Crash Bandicoot for sale

An Aku Aku statue for $384.99. You in? Okay so maybe a lot of you hardware collectors might be. How about a bundle for two versions of the statue for $699.99?

First 4 Figures, master statue creators, are now allowing pre-orders for the aforementioned Aku Aku, which comes in multiple varieties and clocks in at roughly 25 inches tall. You can also go for a golden edition, or an LED edition, all for $385.

If you do plunk down the cash note that the thing isn't going to even come out until the third quarter of 2018. Given that Sony is probably happy with the sales of the Crash Trilogy on PS4, you're probably going to be seeing a lot of Crash merch, and potentially a new game announcement, in the next year.

I'm cool with that! Crash deserves a comeback after all of the horrid post-Naughty Dog games. Give us another kart racer that compares to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed.

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