Hey there Sports Fans. It's a new Comments of the Week following a great Super Bowl Sunday. It was a close game but the Eagles actually beat the Patriots and thus a little bit of hope for humanity was restored. While we may all be divided on many topics nowadays, we can all at least agree watching Tom Brady pout is universally enjoyable.
So, here's your latest serving of comments.
It's easier to appreciate nature when you witness it first-hand, but that's rather difficult with the ocean unless you have a submarine at your disposal. The BBC and Google have a more practical solution: they've launched a BBC Earth: Life in VR app that illustrates the underwater ecosystem on Daydream View headsets and compatible phones. You can explore environments ranging from kelp forests to deep sea trenches, and life as large as whales or as tiny as plankton.
Source: Google Play
Every month, Twitch Prime members (and by extension, Amazon Prime users) receive a free PC game for being signed up to the service. While some of the past games have been pretty good, Twitch is going all out for this month's freebie. Starting February 27, anyone with a Prime account will be able to grab the PC version of the Devil May Cry HD Collection for gratis (and a full two weeks ahead of schedule).
You can claim the title from Twitch's website, but you'll need to have the desktop app installed to actually download it. While that kind of sucks, at least you won't need to splurge on the package to find out if the port is any decent. Knowing Capcom's track record of PC games, though, I doubt this new version will be bad.
Devil May Cry Is A Twitch Prime Freebie Starting February 27, 2018 [Siliconera]
Sitting pretty in the #1 top-selling slot on Steam is the newly-released open-world action RPG Kingdom Come: Deliverance. As a new IP in an otherwise uncrowded Q1 release period, the game looks to be faring well in the user review department with a "mostly positive" rating on Steam. Being a Kickstarter-funded game, there's no doubt some of the high expectations may not have been met, particularly for those who have been waiting since 2014.
One major gripe seems to be the save system, which requires earning enough in-game coins to buy a Saviour Schnapps to save your progress (you can eventually craft it via alchemy). With some early game bugs, the save system compounds the problem some more. Having said that, mods are already available if you don't enjoy this particular "immersion" feature of the game.
If streams and reviews have piqued your interest, then we've rounded up all the current best deals for the game on the PC for your savings pleasure.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance PC Deals
Note: While the game will be made available on GOG with a DRM-free version, it isn't coming until February 27.
The easiest discount is probably at GMG, where if you plug in their current running site-wide coupon code FEB20 you'll knock 20% off the list price of the game. Conversely, if you prefer GamesPlanet, Kingdom Come: Deliverance is one of the titles which qualifies for an additional £3 off when you pay with Amazon Pay. After currency conversion, this comes out to about $48.61, essentially a 20% discount as well.
In terms of cheapest ever price for the game, it has dipped to as low as $45 during pre-order phase, but given the game is now released and the general reaction is positive. We think the deeper discount ship has sailed. If you want a bigger price cut on the new IP, we'd suggest checking back in three to four months.
Given the game still has a number of bugs, it appears the release-day download is made extra hefty by an included day-one patch that clocks in at 25GB, so factor that into your download time as well if you're planning to play later tonight.
Game deals from Dealzon. Sales help support Destructoid.
My greatest professional regret came in the springtime of last year. Days before New Prey released, I wanted to run a review of Old Prey. See, the headline format for reviews around here is just "Review: Prey," and I was very much into the idea of tricking people into clicking a link expecting to read about a 2017 game but instead finding words about a 2006 game.
But I didn't do it for reasons I don't remember, but those reasons almost certainly amount to "you got too lazy, dude." Here's the takeaway that review would've had and that I want you to leave this article with: Old Prey ruled hard.
Prey had so many fun quirks that added up to a solidly memorable game. Cherokee dude and his girlfriend get sucked up onto a weird alien spaceship. There are all sorts of unique extraterrestrial weapons laying around. You go into a spirit realm to solve puzzles. When you die, you shoot a bow and arrow at some eagles until you come back to life right where you died in the first place. It did portals before that other game did portals.
All of those sound like non-sequiturs, like there's no way they could all be competently interwoven with each other. They are though! It works great and adds up to this distinct experience that still holds up. I know; I just played through Old Prey in the summer of '16.
Xbox just made it a lot easier to play through Prey again. It was added to the list of Xbox One backward compatible games today, along with 2010's Mafia II. The two couldn't be any more different. Mafia II can be a slow burn, as it spends a lot of its time reveling in mundane low-level gangster tasks (if my memory from eight years ago serves). Prey, on the other hand, is anything but mundane. It's a wild ride and it's worth playing 12 years later.
@majornelson [Twitter]
Speed is considered the key trait of Sonic’s gameplay. The thrill of blazing through landscapes and the challenge to quickly complete stages is almost always a selling point for his games. This past decade, his speed has been amped up even further, most notably by the recurring Boost mechanic. You’d think this would cause the thrilling appeal of his games to skyrocket, but his general reputation says otherwise. It’s no secret that most of Sonic’s newer games are received less well than his older games (with the rare nostalgia-heavy exception). When comparing these games against each other, one common topic of praise or criticism recurrently appears without fail: the physics.
This isn't a big surprise. Sonic's a platformer, how he moves affects whether the game is good or bad. But this topic still comes up much more often in conversation than it does for most mascot platformers. Sonic, however, isn’t a usual platformer. His games are driven by platforming across stages as speedily as possible, and as such, the methods by which players manage their speed acts as the cornerstone to that experience. So, what defines good physics for a Sonic game?
Roughly two weeks ago, the "Nuclear Disarmament" on the PC version of Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain triggered and let players witness the hidden cutscene that was supposed to be a big surprise. This cutscene should have triggered when every player online laid down their arms and got rid of their nuclear weapons. Clearly that won't ever happen, so why did this event trigger?
Konami has discovered the reason and it has to deal with "incorrect values." Taking to Twitter, the company sent out a message that claims the servers for MGS V misinterpreted a value sent to it and assumed the nuke count was at zero. From what I've seen online, this seems to deal with integer scaling and how Konami improperly coded the game to use a lesser value. This led to hackers eventually maximizing the nuke count, which then reset the value to zero.
At least Konami is dedicated to making sure this never happens again...despite, you know, allowing hackers and cheaters to proliferate on Metal Gear Online.
Over at Kotaku UK, Laura Kate Dale has reported that multiple sources say Activision is working on a Spyro the Dragon trilogy remaster for release on PlayStation 4 this year.
The report states that the title will be announced in March of 2018 with a release set for the third quarter of the same year.
All sorts of schooner-steerers are welcome on the tranquil-but-usually-also-hostile waters of Sea of Thieves. Xbox One owners already know that their standardized ships will be perfectly adequate for living that pirate life. But, PC players might be left wondering if their clunker will stay afloat.
Rare has released PC specs for Sea of Thieves, and they're surprisingly attainable if you just want to get the game in a playable state. According to the chart below, the minimum recommended rig needs something like a GTX 650, an Intel Q9450 processor (which is now a decade old), and 4GB of RAM. That will allegedly get Sea of Thieves going at 30 frames per second at 720p resolution.
However, that's just minimum recommended. While it's not ideal, Rare says players can get Sea of Thieves running at 30 frames per second and 540p with an integrated GPU, something like an Intel Iris 540, and 4GB of RAM. A press release makes it seem as if these low-end specs are primarily for people who own the game on Xbox, but want to fiddle around occasionally on their laptop by making use of the Play Anywhere functionality.
Of course, the hardware shifts wildly in the other direction for anyone looking to hit ideal settings. Attaining 4K at 60 frames per second will require an i7 (4th gen or better), a GTX 1080Ti, and 16GB of RAM. It's all in the handy infographic below, but there's one broad takeaway from all of this -- if you want to play Sea of Thieves on PC, you're probably going to be able to get it up and running in some capacity.
Sea of Thieves for Windows 10 -- Let's Talk about Specs [Sea of Thieves]
While we already knew PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds was coming to Chinese mobile devices, it is kind of surprising to learn that there are two variations of the game. While they both bare resemblance to the official PC version, each game seems to focus on a different aspect of the experience.
Army Attack strips back the more tactical elements of the main game and gets players into the action a lot quicker. You'll also see a greater focus on air combat, something that the main game doesn't even feature. Battlefield, meanwhile, is basically the main game running on mobile devices. Somehow, it doesn't look like a total waste of time and actually retains a lot of the "quality" from the main game.
2008's limb-slicing sci-fi horror title Dead Space has found its way onto Origin's On the House program. For a limited time, you'll be able to add the game to your PC library for free. It's yours to keep.
For an extra dash of nostalgia, here's the original launch trailer in all its 360p glory:
I adored this series at the time, and while I'd be more likely to revisit Dead Space 2 if I went back for a revisit, the original still holds a special place in my heart. A horror game is really only as good as its creatures, and the gruesome Necromorphs are among my favorites. I love stomping those things.
Dead Space [Origin]
Twitch Prime only occasionally offers sweet game deals, but this one might be worth grabbing if you want to brush up on video game history. Twitch and Capcom are offering the Windows version of the original Devil May Cry (specifically, from the HD Collection) for free to Amazon Prime subscribers starting on February 27th. In many ways, this is the archetype for stylish hack-and-slash action titles like Bayonetta -- Dante succeeds in his demon hunting saga by mixing up attacks to create an unbroken chain of death. Add in a story inspired by The Divine Comedy and it's fairly clear why the series spawned both multiple sequels and a remake, even if if they didn't always live up to the original.
Via: Wario64 (Twitter)
Source: Devil May Cry (YouTube), Capcom
The Palico portion of the Horizon Zero Dawn and Monster Hunter World crossover is old news. Phase one has come and gone, and now we're entering phase two, which includes gear for your hunter.
Starting today and until February 28, you're now tasked with getting to Hunter Rank 11 (a little past early game) and hunting an Anjanath (T-Rex) to earn Alloy's bow and outfit. It's not an automatic get either, you have to pick up the quest called "The Proving."
Again, you have until February 28 to do this, so mark your calendars. Beyond Horizon Zero Dawn, which is a PS4-exclusive affair, there's also crossover content from Capcom franchises like Mega Man and Street Fighter.
Monster Hunter [Twitter]
A few days ago, YouTube personalities Gavin Free and Meg Turney were targeted in their Austin, Texas home by a disturbed fan. Both Free and Turney hid in a closet and called 911 after the man entered their house. Police arrived within 10 minutes and the man was fatally shot in the couple's driveway.
Christopher Giles was the name of the perpetrator and his intent (as gathered from evidence on his phone) was to kill Free. One of the many messages recovered stated, "I want Gavin Free to die alone, with no children." Giles had become enamored with Turney after watching various vlogs of hers. When police had arrived on the scene, the man was backing out of the driveway where he was told to stop. A gunshot was heard from the car and police returned fire.
Both victims recall hearing a gunshot and glass shattering around 3:40 am while they were sleeping. They then took to hiding and waited for the police to arrive. Giles searched the home and couldn't find the victims, so he decided to leave. Security footage from the house shows Giles carrying a .45 caliber firearm.
Free and Turney are most famous for their roles at Rooster Teeth productions, where they've worked on various different shows over the last decade. Most of you may know Free for his work on Red Vs. Blue, while Turney is most prominent for The Know (a show about current events in pop culture).
ABQ man targeted YouTube celebrities [Albuquerque Journal]
Home invasion suspect shot and killed by APD officer identified [KXAN]
Sea of Thieves just enjoyed a boisterous boost on Twitch thanks to its recent beta period and its ability to convey emergent stories on a streaming platform. How it'll fare once it actually arrives next month is anyone's guess, but in the meantime I'm enjoying the trickle of information every so often that helps us figure out what the final version will be like.
One big tidbit by way of the game's design director Mike Chapman -- there aren't going to be any loot boxes. I know we should never say never as many studios have added them in afterward, but Chapman is conceding that although they may put microtransactions in, he's betting his reputation on not allowing any "form of gambling in Sea of Thieves, of any description." Pay-to-win items are also supposedly out.
It's a bold take in a sea (ha) of loot box-laden games, and one I hope they follow up on. Just what these microtransactions actually might entail is anyone's guess (the only descriptor is something that "brings value to players" and is cosmetic), but at least it won't involve gambling for what you want. It's odd to see Microsoft take an about-face on this when they jammed microtransactions into most of their Xbox One launch games, but here we are in 2018, and they're forced to evolve and implement a ton of new good policies.
'There will never be loot crates in Sea of Thieves,' says design director [PC Gamer]
The DCEU just can't get out of its own damn way. You'd think the drama over Justice League would be over now that it's been released for months, but here it is again, being dragged, kicking and screaming, back out into the sunlight. Just leave the poor thing alone. It can barely hide a mustache let alone take this kind of torture.
Veteran entertainment reporter Josh L. Dickey is quitting whatever his job was and has gone full Jerry McGuire. He grabbed the goldfish, he's pointing at folks as he's leaving the office, he's shouting about how fantastic he was, and he's dropping info bombs like none other. One being that Zack Snyder was fired from Justice League a full three months before it was announced he was stepping aside for personal reasons. Evidently the studio was more upset with his handling of the entire franchise than was publicly shown, and they really didn't like his rough cut of the film.
Since I'm shifting into DGAF mode, here's a hot one for ya: Zack Snyder was fired from the DCEU just over 1 year ago. Couldn't write it ~quite~ that way at the time, but was able to tapdance around it [clumsy/oblique headline not mine] https://t.co/7cht70rCaG
— Josh L. Dickey (@JLDlite) February 10, 2018
Rumors had, of course, been circulating about this since before Snyder publicly stepped down so it's more than this one reporter's take. Reports had come in previously that Snyder's original cut of the film was "unwatchable." I actually enjoyed the film more than most, but you could easily tell which scenes were Snyder's and which were Joss Whedon's as there was an obvious tonal shift. Snyder had dug the franchise into a dreary hole and clearly the studio wanted out of it. There was more going on here than just quality control with the death of Snyder's daughter, which may be one of the reasons this wasn't reported as him getting fired originally, but it's interesting to see that the film was in more dire straights than we ever knew.
Zack Snyder Was Reportedly Fired from ‘Justice League’ [Collider]
The video game industry is getting a wake up call over paid loot boxes. Last November, Belgium ruled that loot crates in Star Wars Battlefront II could be classified as gambling. Last month, a Washington Senator proposed a bill aimed at regulating the practice via the state's gambling commission. Now Hawaii is looking to limit these types of game systems with a couple of bills proposed by state legislators, one of which restricts sales of these types of games to the over-21 crowd.
Via: Polygon
Source: Hawaii Tribune-Herald
Do you like hats? Do you like Destructoid? Do you have terrible haircut? We've got the cure!
One of the guys from Enthusiast Gaming has a giant gifted boner for designing merchandise and he came up with these just as concepts. Should we make one of these? Is love real? We're dangerously close to getting them made just before EGLX as a show exclusive, and possibly for web pre-orders if anyone gives a shit. I don't even wear hats and I want one. I want to wear it backwards and tell dead rats in the forest to smash that like button and subscribe. I wanna be the guy!
Vote now, drop a comment below! From top left to right: 1,2,3,4,5
Yesterday, Capcom revealed the date that Brazilian warrior Blanka will return to the ring, bringing his trademark electrifying fighting style to Street Fighter V. The green beast-man, one of Street Fighter's oldest and most recognisable characters, will be available to rejoin the roster February 20.
Later today, Capcom Unity will host a live stream dedicated to Blanka, in which we can expect to see little Jimmy in action, showcasing his moves, specials and Critical Art, as well as his V-Skill and V-Triggers. Blanka has always been an incredibly popular character in the franchise, as well as being somewhat frustrating to fight, due to his deceptive range and fast start-ups.
It will be interesting to see what new techniques have been added to this new iteration of the character. If you want to see the misunderstood monster in action, then be sure to tune in to the Capcom Unity Twitch channel today, at 15:00 PT/18:00ET.
Final Fantasy XV: Pocket Edition has an...interesting art style to say the least. It's not quite chibi, as that would imply cuteness, but this in-game dig at the visuals is pretty damn cute.
When getting your portrait drawn in Altissia, apparently Pocket Edition plays it coy by dishing up a picture of the party based on their console appearance. The team comments on it in a confused fashion, and the blank looks on their little deformed faces only make it better.
As I've said already I'm strongly considering cycling in Pocket Edition when it comes to re-experiencing FFXV in the far future.
Grab tickets to the expo here (includes party entrance): https://www.eglx.ca/?tix=Dtoid
Kind of a big deal: We're hosting the FIRST EVER Destructoid Battle of the Bands. We've always wanted to do a concert, and this year celebrating our first time at EGLX and also 12 years of Destructoid!!
It's a free afterparty for EGLX ticket holders. Please arrive early as space is limited to a couple of hundred people (and we're expecting 12,000+ people at the expo). Important: you gotta be over 19+ and over. We're not catering for you animals, so please grab something before you arrive.
Cost: Free with your EGLX pass or $10 at the door
When: March 10th, Saturday
Who: Destructoid.com presents EGLX's Official After Party, featuring:
You Bred Raptors?
Arm Cannon
Knights of the Round
followed by a brief break... and taking you into the early hours of the morning we have two DJ performances: Danimal Cannon with an electrifying live set and finishing off with our headline DJ all the way from San Francisco, GRIMECRAFT.
Where: The Sheraton Hotel @ Ambrosia Ballroom
When: 8pm - 3am
See you there!
A lot of people are proper miffed at the exclusivity deal on the upcoming Bayonetta 3. The third run-around for the sultry witch will be released only on the Switch, with many fans complaining that the third game, much like its predecessor, won't be grace non-Nintendo platforms.
Probably getting a little tired of being @'ed about this matter on a daily basis, series creator Hideki Kamiya decided to explain the history of the frenzied-action franchise and what has gotten Bayonetta to this point. On Twitter, the modern millennial classroom, Kamiya began his 15 tweet history lecture.
Kamiya's notes on the matter can be read below but, essentially, Nintendo are hugely responsible for the series' continued existence. Though Sega got the original Bayonetta off the ground, it was Nintendo that put the cash in for the game's second and third sequel, with Bayonetta 2 facing cancellation after Sega had to pull their funding.
The straightest way of putting it, when you take out all the jive, is simply that Nintendo paid for the games to be made, and they want them on their consoles. It's pretty straight-forward, and an unsurprising business decision. The Bayonetta franchise is very popular, and of course it sucks when a title you want isn't on "your" format, but unfortunately that's how the industry chooses to play the game sometimes.
Bayonetta 3 is currently in development for release on Nintendo Switch
The Assassin's Creed series is known for its vast and richly detailed historical environments, and well... lots of murder. What you might not realize is just how much work goes into making these virtual windows into the past somewhat realistic. That's something Ubisoft is aiming to highlight with Assassin's Creed Origins' Discovery Tour. You can think of it as a museum-like experience set within the game's meticulous rendition of ancient Egypt. The goal? To turn one of the most popular gaming franchises in the world into a truly useful educational tool.
Nintendo is at it again, riding high on the Switch. Following their conquest of the Wii U's lifetime sales in a fraction of the time, a recent investor Q&A once again cemented their idea of pushing the Switch as often and as long as possible.
Speaking on the Switch, Shigeru Miyamoto noted, "When you think about what can be done with the Nintendo Switch as a device that can be taken on the go and that every person has in their hands to play, you realize it has many features not available on any other hardware to date," Miyamoto said. "Nintendo also has a system in place whereby the software developers focus on these hardware features in their development efforts for the continuation of the Nintendo Switch business. Up until now, the hardware lifecycle has trended at around five or six years, but it would be very interesting if we could prolong that life cycle, and I think you should be looking forward to that."
He wasn't done though, as he also re-iterated that the idea is to peddle multiple units to families: "In terms of corporate activity, there are a variety of risk factors, but if we can popularize Nintendo Switch among a broader consumer base I think most of the problems will be resolved. The marketing strategy going forward is to instill a desire to purchase Nintendo Switch among a wide consumer base in all the regions of Japan, the US, and Europe. Our ultimate ambition is for a Nintendo Switch to be owned not just by every family, but by every single person."
I'm anxious to see how things are going in five year's time. Will there be a new Xbox or PlayStation by then? Or something new entirely that throws a wrench into Nintendo's plans for domination? Will they even reach 100 million units sold by then and be anointed into the upper echelon of console sales with a few of their past successes? And what of the 3DS, if that line is even going to still exist given that the Switch is portable?
It's a lot to take in, but we'll all be along for the ride together.
Q & A [Nintendo]
Bossa Studios, the indie publishers behind kooky games such as I am Bread and Surgeon Simulator, have announced that the feline-friendly dating adventure, Purrfect Date, lands feet-first on iOS devices tomorrow. This is, fittingly enough, Valentine's Day.
Purrfect Date sees you take on multiple roles within a team of scientific researchers. The team visit the remote Cat Island in order to investigate its strange population and uncover the mystery behind the leafy-green, idyllic tropical paradise. Oh, also, you'll date cats.
Players can meet and interact with the game's cast of talkative moggies, from the highly-strung Snooty Booty to 60's flower-child Trixie. The quest for truth, love and a quality scratching post will lead to one of 18 different endings. The game released late in 2017 on Steam, where it raised both eyebrows and smiles with its wry sense of humour, outlandish concepts and cheerful soundtrack.
So, if you fancy spending Valentine's Day with a feline friend, maybe give it a shot. I can't promise you that you'll end up with the Deputy Mayor from SWAT Kats, or that legwarmer-wearing gal from Heathcliff, but you could still meet a great guy/gal to share a radiator with.
Purrfect Date will be available to download on iOS tomorrow for around $5/£5. It is available on PC right meow for around $10/£7.
Kung Fury, for the uninitiated, is a 2015 crowd-funded short film that pays homage to '80s cop and martial arts movies. It's solid gold shit, the best of bad movies, but coming in at only 31 minutes in length, it's never been able to call itself a 'movie,' only a short, until now.
It's been announced that Michael Fassbender has joined the cast of a sequel in an unknown capacity. Kung Fury himself, creator, writer, director, and producer David Sandberg will also return, as will David Hasselhoff.
Omega Force knows what its fans want when it creates Warriors games. Lord knows tons of outsiders have asked, begged, or pleaded with Koei Tecmo to "try something new," and for the most part we've had the same hack-and-slash foundation since the year 2000.
Insiders know that there's plenty of nuances within the endless supply of offshoots and mainline entries, from different combo systems to siege capabilities to inventory and character management, but looking at the big picture Dynasty Warriors has always had a niche appeal.
Koei Tecmo is looking to literally turn this franchise around with the open world Dynasty Warriors 9, but ends up mostly just satisfying its existing fans in the process.
