News:: Apple signs ‘Big Sick’ writers for a series about immigrant stories

Apple has added yet another scripted series to its lineup: Little America, a half-hour anthology series based on true stories about immigrants in the US featured in Epic Magazine. The company has tapped Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon, writers of the Oscar-nominated indie hit The Big Sick, as well as SMILF executive producer Lee Eisenberg and Master of None co-creator Alan Yang to make the series for Apple.

Via: The Hollywood Reporter

Source: Deadline

via Engadget RSS Feedhttps://www.engadget.com/2018/02/08/apple-signs-big-sick-writers-for-a-series-about-immigrant-stor/

News:: Upcoming battle royale game Egress is angling for the Souls crowd

If we're getting a vehicular take on the battle royale craze (and we most certainly are), then you better believe someone else is out there making a Dark Souls-inspired multiplayer survival game.

That's pretty much what Egress, a "role-playing battle royale with an intense hardcore melee combat system," is going for later this year. Whether it'll deliver is another matter, but just as a general idea, I think there's interest. We've seen plenty of shooters; I'm ready for more experimentation.

The game is set within a city environment spanning streets, houses, and sewer tunnels. Bigger picture, Egress takes place in a universe "combining the Victorian era, Lovecraft's mythology, and Retrowave."

It's in production at Beastiarium developer Fazan for release later this year on PC, PS4, and Xbox One.

Something for me to keep an eye on, at least.

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/upcoming-battle-royale-game-egress-is-angling-for-the-souls-crowd-486898.phtml

News:: There's a Switch eShop sale on Golf Story, Rocket League, and more

Assuming you aren't already overloaded by the recent surge of good games on Nintendo Switch, you might be interested in the current eShop sale running in North America. There's some decent stuff!

A few standouts: Golf Story ($11.99), Rocket League ($14.99), Brawlout ($14.99), and Inversus Deluxe ($12.74). Nintendo also has some miscellaneous discounts on 3DS and Wii U eShop titles.

Obviously these prices aren't greatly reduced, but as someone who is prone to buying eShop games on a whim and almost bought Golf Story just the other day, every little bit helps.

Sales & Deals [Nintendo]

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/there-s-a-switch-eshop-sale-on-golf-story-rocket-league-and-more-486880.phtml

News:: Joaquin Phoenix in talks to star in Joker origin movie

The Hangover director Todd Phillips and legendary film producer Martin Scorsese are an unlikely pair still making an unlikely project: a Joker origin movie. And with that unlikely idea comes an unlikely casting fantasy in actor Joaquin Phoenix.

The project was initially eying frequent Scorsese collaborator Leonardo DiCaprio to play the Clown Prince, in what is supposed to be a gritty, dark and violent film separate from the upcoming Suicide Squad sequel and a standalone Joker and Harley Quinn movie with Jared Leto. If Phillips is able to ultimately nab Phoenix for the role, this would be his first comic book movie bout, as Phoenix previously turned down the roles of Lex Luthor for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Marvel Studios' Doctor Strange.

So to summarize, we are getting at least three separate film projects from Warner Bros. and DC about the Joker. One must wonder what kind of chaotic nonsense is happening in that movie studio, which is presumably run by even more unhinged, irrational and clownish men with unfortunate forehead tattoos.

Joaquin Phoenix in Talks to Play the Joker in Todd Phillips’ Standalone Movie [Variety]

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/joaquin-phoenix-in-talks-to-star-in-joker-origin-movie-486871.phtml

News:: Splinter Cell: Conviction is now backward compatible on Xbox One

Splinter Cell: Conviction never got the love it deserved. While it certainly deviated from the established tropes of the previous four games in the series, Conviction's shift away from non-lethal choices perfectly matched Sam Fisher's motivation as a character. He had been betrayed by the agency that he dedicated his life to, so why would he even consider keeping people alive?

It is a great game, though, and one you should experience. While it was previously only available on Xbox 360 and PC, the game has now joined Xbox One's backward compatible program. To commemorate the event, Ubisoft is holding a 50% off sale from now until February 12 on the Xbox Live Marketplace.

Some other Ubisoft titles are also on sale which run the range of Xbox One and 360 titles. You'll be able to nab a bunch of Assassin's Creed games, all of the Far Cry games and Beyond Good & Evil HD for 50% off or more! I'm not going to list every item, but there is bound to be something for you.

Read more...

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/splinter-cell-conviction-is-now-backward-compatible-on-xbox-one-486852.phtml

News:: BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle will have an English dub when it releases

When BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle releases in May, it will contain an English dub for fans of not reading subtitles. While this may seem like a no brainer, every BlazBlue title past the second has axed dubs in favor of cutting costs for localization. I'm guessing the inclusion of characters from RWBY spurred Arc System Works into preparing an English voice-over for the rest of the cast to keep consistency.

If that wasn't enough, you can even toggle the voice acting between Japanese and English on a per-character basis. This was shown during a live stream event where two members from Arc System Works confirmed that dub will be in while playing with characters from RWBY using both English and Japanese options. You can see that clip here.

BBTAG DUB CONFIRMED! [Twitch]

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/blazblue-cross-tag-battle-will-have-an-english-dub-when-it-releases-486843.phtml

News:: This Monster Hunter Great Jagras cosplay is top notch

The great jagras pic.twitter.com/cES6QVsQH6

— Honk! (@DorcaPecs) February 6, 2018

Make sure to equip your Bandit Mantle so that he drops Large Peels.

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/this-monster-hunter-great-jagras-cosplay-is-top-notch-486892.phtml

News:: Vampyr finally sees the light of day on June 5

After three years of waiting, Vampyr is ready to awake from its slumber. The vampire-themed action RPG from the Life is Strange developer has a release date, barring any last-second setbacks.

Tucked away inside the fourth installment of a Vampyr webseries is a June 5, 2018 release date. That's three months from now, and it sits right in that around-E3 summer lull where a lot of games don't traditionally launch. Vampyr will probably have the spotlight mostly to itself.

Dontnod's Vampyr is largely predicated on moral dilemmas -- the push and pull of protagonist Dr. Reid's medical sensibilities to save people and his vampire instinct to prey on them. It seems like nothing will have a clear-cut easy answer. At least now you know when you'll have to make the tough choices.

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/vampyr-finally-sees-the-light-of-day-on-june-5-486882.phtml

News:: Batter up, Super Baseball 2020 hits Nintendo Switch today

Remember when I covered this game before? It was my first ever news article for Destructoid. I said that American baseball is governed by the "MBA". How you all laughed at me. Well, look who's laughing now. Oh... it's still you.

At least I get to relive that embarrassment all over again, as Super Baseball 2020 has been re-released by retro-lovers Hamster, only this time on the Nintendo Switch. The 1991 Neo Geo game was part of SNK's wave of  "future-sports" titles. 2020 features cybernetically-enhanced players teleporting onto the diamond, while hapless fielders attempt to dodge landmines and utilise rocket-jump pads that are littering the playing area.

Gameplay is a little dated - which is pretty ironic considering it's set two years into our current future - but it can still provide some fun when played with a pal. Sadly, this release is lacking online support.

Super Baseball 2020 is available today for Nintendo Switch, priced at $8.

Read more...

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/batter-up-super-baseball-2020-hits-nintendo-switch-today-486807.phtml

News:: Far Cry 5 has seven helper companions, but you're gonna pick the puppers

Methodically dismantling a cult seems like a tall task to undertake alone. Far Cry 5 won't make you fly solo, though. There are theoretically seven different aides that will assist you in murdering your way through all of Eden's Gate.

It's theoretical because, well, you're going to pick the dog because he's a very good puppy. The stealthy hunter lady is probably great at picking off enemies with her bow. The fly boy raining hellfire from his plane is probably an incredibly useful tactic for getting out of jams. Both of these options are inferior because neither of these options are dogs.

Anyway, Ubisoft has compiled a joint profile of these seven companions for you to peruse ahead of the game's March 27 release. But you might as well stop lying to yourself like your selection is up in the air. You're taking the only one with four legs and fur.

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/far-cry-5-has-seven-helper-companions-but-you-re-gonna-pick-the-puppers-486879.phtml

News:: Tetsuya Nomura has changed Cloud's design for the Final Fantasy VII Remake

Oh hey Final Fantasy VII Remake, didn't see you there. Literally, because Square Enix is keeping everything behind closed doors for months on end.

It's interesting in this era of "share everything Early Access" that we're still seeing some developers be so secretive, and I mean that. Earnest "we know literally nothing about this game" events rarely happen these days outside of Kojima projects, and I kind of like that one day we'll just get a huge info dump on the Final Fantasy VII Remake.

But for now, we do know a bit more about it, and I really do mean a bit. According to those who attended the 30th anniversary Final Fantasy exhibit, a surprise visit from Remake director Tetsuya Nomura brought a new development along with it -- the appearance of Cloud will be changing.

While we can't see it yet, Cloud is supposedly going "more natural," and more inline with his "dork" tendencies that he displays in VII proper -- and not his super-badass renditions like various anime appearances and cameos. Nomura stated that we'll see a "more youthful" version of Cloud.

Well, all we have to do now is wait! Then people can argue over "how muscular" Cloud is while I continue to wait to see how good Remake will be.

Monoyu_ka [Twitter via Gematsu]

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/tetsuya-nomura-has-changed-cloud-s-design-for-the-final-fantasy-vii-remake-486821.phtml

News:: Twitch updates policies on hate speech, harassment and sexual content

The fight against online hate speech and harassment continues to gain momentum. Twitter's new policies against such behavior went live last November, while Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg began the new year with a new pledge to combat abuse and hate, too. Now video game live-streaming platform Twitch has updated its community guidelines to be clearer about what constitutes harassment, hate speech, and sexual content, which are all already prohibited. The new rules will go into effect February 19th at 9:00 AM Pacific Time.

Source: Twitch

via Engadget RSS Feedhttps://www.engadget.com/2018/02/08/twitch-updates-hate-speech-harassment-sexual-content-policies/

News:: 'Overwatch's new Capture The Flag map and competitive mode is live

For the second year, Blizzard has launched a seasonal event to celebrate the Lunar New Year. As promised in a Developer Update video earlier this week, players get a new Thailand-inspired map and competitive mode for Capture The Flag, as well as new skins. There are a couple more changes, too -- including, at long last, the ability to change your hero's outfit at the start of the match.

Source: Overwatch

via Engadget RSS Feedhttps://www.engadget.com/2018/02/08/overwatchs-new-capture-the-flag-map-and-competitive-mode-is-li/

News:: Give the gift of love in tonight's new Fire Emblem Heroes content

Fire Emblem Heroes fans will be able to get their hands on some new content later today, as the "Love Abounds" DLC goes live on Nintendo's popular mobile-battle title.

Four new heroes will join the game's expanding roster of character, as Roy, Hector, Lilina and Lyn will be made available for download. Also going live is a new paralogue story that, if this trailer is to be believed, revolves the ever-troublesome woes of suitable gift-giving.

The Love Abounds event begins tonight at 23:00 PT and tomorrow morning at 02:00 ET and 07:00 GMT. Fire Emblem Heroes is available to download now on Android and iOS.

Read more...

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/give-the-gift-of-love-in-tonight-s-new-fire-emblem-heroes-content-486801.phtml

News:: Overwatch's Lunar New Year event returns with wonderful new skins

The good news? The Lunar New Year event in Overwatch starts today and runs until March 5. The bad? There are some excellent new legendary character skins and it's going to sting if you can't get 'em.

Along with the seasonal cosmetics, Blizzard has reworked capture the flag to be more "action-packed" and not end in draws, and there's an accompanying map, Ayutthaya. You'll also now be able to swap between outfits during the Hero Select screen. No more ducking out to change!

I'm not a Genji player but, once again, I feel compelled to become one because he's gotten another fantastic skin. Same goes for Zarya! It's times like this I'm glad the Mystery Heroes mode exists.

Check that gallery at the bottom of the post.

Read more...

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/overwatch-s-lunar-new-year-event-returns-with-wonderful-new-skins-486869.phtml

News:: Final Fantasy XV: Pocket Edition is out today and it's kind of awesome

Playing a massive JRPG can be pretty daunting at any age. I mean, I work full-time reviewing and writing about games and between all my other assignments, MMOs, MOBAs, shooters, and other recreational activities, it can get tough to fit in a JRPG every so often. More often than not I can do it, I might just have to drop everything else.

Final Fantasy XV: Pocket Edition is an attempt to fix that main time sink issue. It's a miniature version of XV in every sense of the word, and strangely, a lot of love and care went into it.

Read more...

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/final-fantasy-xv-pocket-edition-is-out-today-and-it-s-kind-of-awesome-486818.phtml

News:: Final Fantasy XV: Pocket Edition is out today and it's kind of awesome

Playing a massive JRPG can be pretty daunting at any age. I mean, I work full-time reviewing and writing about games and between all my other assignments, MMOs, MOBAs, shooters, and other recreational activities, it can get tough to fit in a JRPG every so often. More often than not I can do it, I might just have to drop everything else.

Final Fantasy XV: Pocket Edition is an attempt to fix that main time sink issue. It's a miniature version of XV in every sense of the word, and strangely, a lot of love and care went into it.

Read more...

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/final-fantasy-xv-pocket-edition-is-out-today-and-it-s-kind-of-awesome-486818.phtml

News:: Top female player wins Olympics-backed 'StarCraft 2' tournament

Sasha 'Scarlett' Hostyn is one of the most skilled and successful women in eSports, and she just won a major StarCraft 2 tournament. Not just any competition, either: An Intel Extreme Masters (IEM) tournament was held in Pyeongchang ahead of this weekend's Winter Olympics and, most importantly, is the first competition backed by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). In other words, as Polygon pointed out, Scarlett became the first female winner of a big international StarCraft 2 tournament, which itself is a promising foray in eSports and Olympic collaboration.

Via: Polygon

Source: Intel

via Engadget RSS Feedhttps://www.engadget.com/2018/02/08/top-female-player-wins-olympics-backed-starcraft-2-tournament/

News:: Love comes to Fire Emblem Warriors with DLC Pack #2 on Valentine's Day

Nintendo has announced that the second DLC pack for Fire Emblem Warriors will be arriving on February 14 at 4PM PT. While some of the contents were known beforehand, the curtain has been pulled back on what exactly will be in the DLC. The company also confirmed that it will be $8.99 USD if you do not own the season pass.

Love is certainly in the air with the new costumes.

Read more...

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/love-comes-to-fire-emblem-warriors-with-dlc-pack-2-on-valentine-s-day-486862.phtml

News:: Classic shoot 'em up Blazing Star available today on PS4 and Xbox One

This week sees a true gem arrive in Hamster's ACA Neo Geo range, as fast-paced, intergalactic shmup Blazing Star becomes available to purchase on PS4 and Xbox One.

Originally released in 1998, Blazing Star is the sequel to so-so space blaster Pulstar, which improves on the original in every way. Weighing in at a hefty 350MB, the game utilises cool 3D sprites, neat visual effects and amusing translation errors to provide a pretty damn good arcade experience.

As is the style of many of the R-Type clones, Blazing Star features frantic, bullet-dodging action, with a whole host of power-ups and weaponry to be collected in battle. Holding down the fire button will unleash a powerful charged shot, which changes depending on your choice of ship. Already available on Nintendo Switch, Blazing Star is a solid game from the tail end of the Neo Geo era. It's not perfect, but it's definitely worth a revisit.

As an interesting, but wholly unproven trivia tidbit, it is believed that the modern internet vernacular of the term "Fail" originated from this title and its notorious Game Over message: "You Fail It. Your skill is not enough. Bye-Bye".

Blazing Star is available to download on PS4 and Xbox One today, priced around $8

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/classic-shoot-em-up-blazing-star-available-today-on-ps4-and-xbox-one-486803.phtml

News:: Voez's new patch on Switch brings a bunch of new songs

Voez just won't die on Switch. After adding in Joy-Con support last month, publisher Flyhigh Works has announced that the rhythm game will be receiving an additional 14 songs in its latest update. The patch should be available right now on the eShop and will include the following tunes (check the video for a quick preview of each one):

Read more...

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/voez-s-new-patch-on-switch-brings-a-bunch-of-new-songs-486844.phtml

News:: Voez's new patch on Switch brings a bunch of new songs

Voez just won't die on Switch. After adding in Joy-Con support last month, publisher Flyhigh Works has announced that the rhythm game will be receiving an additional 14 songs in its latest update. The patch should be available right now on the eShop and will include the following tunes (check the video for a quick preview of each one):

Read more...

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/voez-s-new-patch-on-switch-brings-a-bunch-of-new-songs-486844.phtml

News:: Take-Two says it has no Switch games to announce, but is 'impressed' with the system

A lot of western developers have dabbled in the Switch, and eastern studios are scrambling to support it. The Switch is flying off the shelves but we haven't seen its full potential yet -- imagine an era where we see a Doom or Wolfenstein 2 arrive date and day with other consoles and not months later.

Take-Two (2K and Rockstar) isn't quite there yet. Take-Two President Karl Slatoff recently stated over an earnings call that he was impressed with the Switch, but isn't going full-hog with it yet. Here's the full statement: "In terms of bringing other titles to Switch, obviously we’ve done a few titles already. We’ve done NBA, WWE, L.A. Noire. We look at this like any other platform opportunity to the extent that we look at our development costs, is the game right for the platform, what does the audience look like, what’s the install base? So when we do believe that there’s an opportunity to do something on Switch, then you’ll hear from the labels. We are impressed with the growth, we’re impressed with the units that have been sold into the market so far, so we’re very sanguine at this point, but we’ve nothing more to announce specifically at this point."

If someone gave me a dime every person said that they "respect Nintendo but have nothing to announce at this time" going back to the Nintendo 64 era, I'd be a rich man. But you do have to give it to Take-Two; putting out L.A. Noire after all this time with new features took some effort -- so I'm a little more enthusiastic about how they'll handle the Switch.

Event Details [Take-Two via Nintendo Everything]

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/take-two-says-it-has-no-switch-games-to-announce-but-is-impressed-with-the-system-486817.phtml

News:: Smilegate is launching its own Bitcoin-style cryptocurrency

I'm very bullish on the whole crypto scene for videogames for one very compelling reason: The promise of what blockchain can do for in-game item ownership of digital goods.  You see, if you "own" something in a videogame right now, what you own is a fleeting database record in a system that can be snatched from you the second that company stops supporting that game. You think your Steam folder is valuable?  In the event that your favorite online game goes under tomorrow, you don't actually own jack shit (sorry).

With a distributed blockchain, that ownership goes on -- it's in your digital wallet, period. Its yours to sell, to trade, to HODL even. It exits the game and it opens the floodgates for more decentralized gateways to trade your digital goods beyond the vendor which you obtained it from. This is an emerging idea called "the Internet of value" and it's going to be all up in everyone's face by the year 2020, if not sooner.  Your digital assets have a chance to continue to have value (and maybe interoperability).  Get it?  Yeah, it's a big stupid mostly unexplored deal. If you think this sounds absolutely stupid and unlikely think hard about how much money people are already spending on make-believe hats.

South Korea is no stranger to digital goods. As the capital of eSports and home to some of the biggest gaming companies you've never heard of, I'm very excited to hear that Smilegate is starting to dabble with community interactivity and virtual currencies. They're going to copy a version of Reddit called Steemit (not Steam, no relation to Valve), which is Reddit plus crypto.  While this is not yet exactly the kind of blockchain deployment I'd like to see, they appear to be printing their own cryptocoins (which appear to be pre-mined, not like Bitcoin actually) using the ICON platform as the foundation. 

Read more...

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/smilegate-is-launching-its-own-bitcoin-style-cryptocurrency-486863.phtml

News:: EVO 2018 organisers speak on Marvel vs Capcom: Infinite's exclusion

Speaking during the EVO 2018 broadcast, tournament organisers Joey "Mr. Wizard" Cuellar and Mark "MarkMan" Julio briefly touched upon the reasons that Capcom's Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite, a game which has been out for less than six months, failed to make the main line-up for EVO.

The exclusion of MvCI as a headliner was met with memeriffic cries of "When's Marvel?" from viewers, but Mr. Wizard had little issue plainly speaking when responding. "It was on a slippery slope and it had a lot of competition going forward, and it just kind of... fizzled." stated Wizard. "Not to talk smack on Marvel or anything. It's always been a great game for EVO... It was the main game for eight straight years... But I don't think people are playing it, and that's the problem". Wizard and Markman followed up by saying that the game would feature in a side-tournament.

Response from Marvel players came thick and fast, with devotees on social media voicing their displeasure at the game's disappearance from the main card. Markman then took to twitter himself, explaining the situation in a lengthy stream of tweets, noting in particular that it's "Hard to include a game that doesn't have support. I'm not talking about Capcom, cuz they've supported it the most."

Read more...

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/evo-2018-organisers-speak-on-marvel-vs-capcom-infinite-s-exclusion-486796.phtml

News:: Metal Gear Survive is getting a second beta on all platforms

How can you survive without playing Metal Gear Survive? Isn't the wait killing you? Aren't you being played like a fiddle while waiting? While that last question doesn't make sense, either does the existence of Metal Gear without its creator, but that isn't stopping Konami from finishing and releasing Metal Gear Survive this month.

To give people another chance to experience the title before launch, a second beta is on the cards for next week. Running from February 16 - 18, players on PS4, Xbox One and even PC will be able to experience the game. Players who have the first beta downloaded on their consoles won't need to redownload anything.

Since this is the same beta, you can expect to pass the time with a medicore zombie game that is a bit too complicated for its own good. I actually streamed the first beta for Destructoid's Twitch channel with my super hardcore Kojima loving friend and we both just shrugged. It is an okay experience that has a lot of polish thanks to the FOX engine.

It can be fun, in spurts, but it has basically nothing to do with Metal Gear. I understand wanting to take a series in a new direction, but why not just start a new IP? That is just my opinion based on around two hours of playtime, so why not give it a shot and see if you feel differently?

2nd “METAL GEAR SURVIVE BETA” Coming to PS4, XBox One, and Steam on February 16, 2018! [Konami]

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/metal-gear-survive-is-getting-a-second-beta-on-all-platforms-486839.phtml

News:: Monster Garden is about goofy creatures and growing friendships

Monsters get a bad wrap. They're often ugly things, toothy and violent creatures whose only purpose is to pose a threat to humans. In games, monsters tend to function as disposable roadblocks. Goblins and zombies get slaughtered with impunity just because they stand in the hero's way.

But maybe there's more to the monsters' story. Maybe monsters have feelings too. Maybe monsters are just like us; insecure, conflicted, just trying to make sense of the world they're stuck with. What if monsters aren't all that bad? Maybe they just want to hang out with one another and party like there's no tomorrow.

Read more...

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/monster-garden-is-about-goofy-creatures-and-growing-friendships-486226.phtml