May 21, 2018 | Game ON news

Monday, May 21, 2018

News:: Deadpool 2 slices Infinity War box office take in half

Color me surprised, Deadpool 2 did what future classics Overboard, Life of the Party, and Breaking In couldn't do, it usurped Avengers: Infinity War as the top box office take for the weekend. Maybe it's not really surprising to see a comic book movie take out another comic book movie, but with how big Infinity War is/was I had a slim sliver of doubt that Deadpool wouldn't take the top spot.

Coming in with $125 million, Deadpool 2 actually underperformed some of the projections that analysts had it at, but with a shooting budget of only $110 million I'm sure the execs at Fox aren't really too overly sad about this news. Taking the 2nd spot as mentioned before is Avengers: Infinity War which I still need to see, but I finally caught up with all my Marvel movies so I'm good to go. Infinity War's take fell 54% from last week with only $28.7 million, which helped push their domestic take to just under $600 million.

Deadpool 2 slices Infinity War box office take in half screenshot

News:: See how Shenmue III has been touched up since the last time we saw it

There's a lot riding on Shenmue III for a lot of people.

Not only have several other developers and studios gotten in on the collaboration with Ys Net, but the original Shenmue creator Yu Suzuki is involved, and THQ Nordic, now parent company of Deep Silver, is also banking heavily on its success. As one of the highest earning Kickstarters of all time in any category, not just gaming, all eyes are on it to succeed -- especially since it's a continuation of a story seemingly abandoned in 2001.

Recently THQ Nordic hosted a segment on Shenmue III in a financial presentation, which re-iterated that the game was delayed in 2019, and showed off some new footage, showcasing some of the upgrades to the visuals we saw at gamescom. For a better look, you can check out the direct comparison video from Shenmue Fans.

See how Shenmue III has been touched up since the last time we saw it screenshot

News:: Labyrinth of Refrain: Coven of Dusk gets awkward trailer

NIS America have released a new gameplay trailer for their upcoming cheesecake title Labyrinth of Refrain: Coven of Dusk, which arrives on PS4, PC and Nintendo Switch this Fall.

I say "gameplay trailer" but it's basically a short conversation between cool characters Marietta and Dronya. I checked it out because I saw various people comment on it being "funny," "amusing" and "hilarious." So I was kind of taken back when it wasn't. At all. Maybe I have to understand the context, or maybe I'm a total sourpuss. Probably the latter.

Anyway, you can check out the trailer below, hold on to your sides. Available now in Japan for PS4 and PS Vita, Labyrinth of Refrain: Coven of Dusk lands on PS4, Switch and PC in the West this Fall.

Labyrinth of Refrain: Coven of Dusk gets awkward trailer screenshot

News:: New Overwatch deathmatch map Petra unveiled, will go live this week

Overwatch is getting another new deathmatch map, good news for those of you that dig that particular mode. It's called Petra, and it was shown off during last night's Overwatch League festivities. The thing is we won't have to wait long for it, as it's debuting with the second annual Overwatch anniversary event on May 22.

Petra is modeled after an excavated city, and will feature a host of indoor and outdoor zones, as well as a multi-tiered setup with broken bridges. Jump pads can boost people up without having to rely on locomotive abilities or slowly climbing the ruins yourself.

As usual there's a number of little details in there, like research tents and equipment and the like. I'm ready to give it a go tomorrow when it goes live -- I've been practicing my Brigitte lately!

New Overwatch deathmatch map Petra unveiled, will go live this week screenshot

News:: Check out Splatoon 2's new soundtrack set and sample track right here

Nintendo have unveiled their upcoming soundtrack set, the second of such, for their messy arena-shooter Splatoon 2. The Octotune set was revealed today on the game's Japanese Twitter.

Octotune will be available in both standard and Special Edition formats. Both releases include two CDs of music from the popular Switch title, with the Special Edition packaged in a neat boxset featuring art of Splatfest hosts Callie, Marie, Pearl and Marina. Also included in this set is a Blu-Ray of Off the Hook's recent concert at NicoNico Tokaigi. You can check out a sample track from the release below.

Check out Splatoon 2's new soundtrack set and sample track right here screenshot

News:: ESRB ratings changes could hurt indie games in the PSN Store

It sounds like the ESRB could make it harder for indie game developers to sell their games. Recently, the Entertainment Software Ratings Board announced that it will be eliminating free, short-form ratings for digital games according to Gamasutra. While there aren't any laws mandating a rating, if a game isn't rated by the ESRB (or PEGI internationally) good luck purchasing it at a brick and mortar store, or on a console's digital marketplace.

Via: Variety

Source: Gamasutra

via Engadget RSS Feedhttps://www.engadget.com/2018/05/21/esrb-ratings-changes-psn-store/

News:: Fire Pro Wrestling World premium edition and season pass announced for its Japanese PS4 release

With Fire Pro Wrestling World making its way to PlayStation 4 later this summer, Spike Chunsoft has announced a new “Premium Edition” and “Digital Deluxe Edition” for its Japanese release. At a price of 9,800 yen (slightly under $90 USD), the Premium Edition of Fire Pro Wrestling World will include the following:

Fire Pro Wrestling World premium edition and season pass announced for its Japanese PS4 release screenshot

News:: Two Street Fighter V costume packs have taken a temporary price slash

For just a couple of days, Capcom are severely reducing the prices on two costume packs, available for their flagship fighting game title, Street Fighter V.

Fans can pick up the Summer Costume Bundle for six of the game's female characters for six bucks or the Original Characters Battle Costume Pack, which features 16 costumes, for around nine bucks. The offer is bafflingly limited. The discount only lasts a couple of days and is applicable worldwide on PC, but only in the Americas on PS4.

In total, you can bag 22 costumes for around 15 dollars. This, to me, sounds more like the price the costumes should be when full-price. But maybe your boy is just a cheapskate. Laura, Cammy, Ryu, Mika, Nash and Queen of the DLC Wardrobe, Chun Li, all benefit from this shopping spree. It should also be noted it ends tomorrow, so move fast!

Street Fighter V is available now on PC and PS4.

Two Street Fighter V costume packs have taken a temporary price slash screenshot

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/two-street-fighter-v-costume-packs-have-taken-a-temporary-price-slash-503932.phtml

News:: Someone made a portable Wii U gaming coat

While the Wii U is dead, it's still host to a ton of great first and third party games that aren't on the Switch yet. Wonderful 101 is probably the prime example (Pikmin 3, one of my favorite Wii U games is another), but there's also a host of obscure little gems like WarioWare: Smooth Moves or Nintendo Land that haven't made it over, and for functional reasons, could possibly never see the light of day on Switch.

As an answer to all that, the YouTube channel My Mate Vince has created another wacky invention -- the Wii U coat. The short of it is that it's an actual coat that's rigged up to play the Wii U outside of the confines of the tiny tablet radius, complete with a project in the hood, and..that's about it.

It's jank for sure, but for a reasonable price I'd buy something that allowed me to easily transport the Wii U. I'm still going back to it for the reasons I mentioned above, and probably always will.

Someone made a portable Wii U gaming coat screenshot

News:: A new Battlefield V teaser has dropped, confirming a World War II setting

Electronic Arts have just dropped a new teaser trailer for the upcoming Battlefield V, although the trailer itself is pretty uneventful and short, it does confirm World War II as the new setting.

During a short sequence within the teaser itself, the HUD is displayed at the top of the screen, showing the British Union Jack and the German Iron Cross, confirming the setting.

A new Battlefield V teaser has dropped, confirming a World War II setting screenshot

News:: Dramatic indie hit To The Moon getting film adaptation

2011's cult PC title To The Moon is to be adapted into an animated movie. The news was announced by the game's Canadian developer Kan Gao on his official YouTube account.

The seven-year-old game, which was developed in RPG Maker XP, concerns the intentions of two scientists, Eva Rosaline and Neil Watts, who are able to create artificial memories of events, Total Recall-style, and implant them in the memories of individuals who have little time left to live, thus allow them to pass without regret.

The game itself was praised for its complex themes of life choices, death and morality, as well as its bittersweet storyline and moving score. Though some players were a little taken aback by the title's overall lack of gameplay.

The film adaptation will be a collaborative project between Japan and China and will feature a "significant" budget and "first-tier" production companies. Kan Gao will have a role in the overseeing the film's script-writing process. I wonder if, when Gao sat down to create the small-scale title back in 2010, he had any idea of the path it would eventually lead him.

To The Moon is available now on PC, Mac and Android devices.

Dramatic indie hit To The Moon getting film adaptation screenshot

News:: Final Fantasy Tactics director gives us a glimpse at the sequel that never was

Final Fantasy Tactics is generally considerd to be one of the best SRPG of all time. Born out of the 32-bit era, Tactics not only brought Ivalice into the world, the connected universe that's shared by myriad Squaresoft games, but it also helped redefine the entire SRPG space in a post-Tactics Ogre world.

It was popular enough to warrant several ports and even a PSP remake, but its sequels ended up getting sent off to the GBA and DS instead of a proper console. According to its director Yasumi Matsuno though, there was a full sequel slated for the original PlayStation. Dubbed Final Fantasy Tactics 2, the project was planned and was even at the point where it had assets (that Matsuno has released).

Unfortunately due to complications with whether or not to outsource the game and confusion with a swap from 3D to a 2D hexagon-based visual style, the project was canceled. While this isn't the entire story, what's crazy is that Square didn't just...re-create the original with a new narrative? Square has always struggled somewhat capturing lightning in a bottle with followups, and this anecdote helps explain why.

Final Fantasy Tactics [Livedoor via Nova Crystalis]

Final Fantasy Tactics director gives us a glimpse at the sequel that never was screenshot

News:: Hyrule Warriors makes strong debut as God of War continues to reign in UK Charts

Nintendo are doing pretty well in the UK Charts right now. While Mario Kart 8 Deluxe continues to dart comfortably around the Top Ten, the Switch re-releases of of Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze and the debuting Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition both hold premier positions in the Top Five.

It's not enough to shove Sony's almighty God of War from its roost, where it has sat for five weeks now. Electronic Arts' FIFA 18 has also pushed back into the number two slot, as Britain gets amped for another World Cup trouncing.

Elsewhere in the charts, Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey Redux and Dragon's Crown Pro unfortunately failed to make a huge impact, debuting at 31 and 33 respectively. They're re-releases of relatively niche titles, to be fair, but they both deserve better.

Hyrule Warriors makes strong debut as God of War continues to reign in UK Charts screenshot

News:: What we're playing: A new Atari Lynx game in 2018

This week on IRL, we're taking a break from the norm. It's a poorly kept secret that our managing editor, James Trew, has an Atari Lynx fetish. At last count, he owned seven of the things, not to mention every game ever made for them. But while Atari officially abandoned the Lynx way back in the '90s, that hasn't stopped creative types from producing new games for the system. Wyvern Tales is one such game, a labor of love by a solo developer that took eight years to build from scratch. It's the Lynx's first JRPG, and according to James, it's pretty impressive. Let's get weird.

via Engadget RSS Feedhttps://www.engadget.com/2018/05/21/wyvern-tales-lynx-homebrew-jrpg-irl/

News:: Nintendo Switch game streaming starts in Japan this week

The Nintendo Switch might not be the most capable piece of gaming hardware on the market today, but it never ceases to surprise us. Case in point: This morning Capcom announced that last year's terrifying Resident Evil 7 biohazard will be available on Nintendo's latest console later this week. The wrinkle here is that unlike Doom or the forthcoming Wolfenstein 2: The New Colossus, you'll stream the first-person horror-fest's port rather than downloading the game file all at once.

Via: Wario64 (Twitter)

Source: Capcom (Japanese)

via Engadget RSS Feedhttps://www.engadget.com/2018/05/21/resident-evil-7-cloud-streaming-nintendo-switch/

News:: Review: Flynn & Freckles

It seems like many developers who grew up with a love for bright and colorful 3D platformers are doing their best to revive the buried genre in recent years. Games like A Hat and Time, Yooka Laylee and the remastered version of the Crash Bandicoot trilogy have proven there are definitely players out there craving a return to the genre.

Flynn and Freckles takes the frustrating precision platforming of games like Spyro the Dragon and combines it with the swordplay and exploration of 3D Zelda titles, rolling it all into a brightly colored world of haunted swords and pirate adventure.

Review: Flynn & Freckles screenshot

News:: The Witcher books were a 'huge influence' for Kingdom Come: Deliverance

When Kingdom Come: Deliverance launched in February, it didn't take players long to find all the secrets scattered across its take on 15th century Bohemia. There are easter eggs from all the heavy hitters of high fantasy -- Lord of the Rings, The Elder Scrolls, Game of Thrones to name a few. However, there are Witcher references that probably sits nearer and dearer to the creators than the other ones.

For a presentation at Krakow-based Digital Dragons, Kingdom Come: Deliverance director Daniel Vávra gave a lengthy talk about historical accuracy and what kind of research Warhorse Studios did to create what it felt was the most accurate depiction of the region 600 years ago. Early into the session, Vávra switches slides to reveal a large picture of Witcher creator Andrzej Sapkowski. He's fantasy royalty in Poland. There's a brief interruption as the room breaks into applause.

Vávra explains how Sapkowski and The Witcher helped shape Kingdom Come: Deliverance. "[Sapkowski] was very important. He wrote, I would say my favorite books. It's funny that one of the best historical books about [Czech] history was written by a Polish guy," Vávra says.

He continues "But I really do think that it's really well-researched. Despite the fact that there are fantasy elements, it's one of the best books about this period of our history. It was a huge influence on me and I also learned a lot of facts from the book because it depicts the daily life very well."

Make no mistake about it: Kingdom Come leans as far into realism as it possibly can. Fantasy is the exact opposite of what Warhorse wanted to accomplish. But, it turns out Poland's most famous fantasy series is steeped in enough realism that it ended up as a notable influence for Vávra and his team.

The Witcher books were a 'huge influence' for Kingdom Come: Deliverance screenshot

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/the-witcher-books-were-a-huge-influence-for-kingdom-come-deliverance-503946.phtml

News:: Game of Thrones composer plays his own theme on Nintendo Labo

Time and time again we've seen Nintendo release a periphial only to stop supporting it hastily after launch, but Labo could be different. We've seen Ariana Grande embrace it, and now, the composer for Game of Thrones.

IGN got Ramin Djawadi to sit down with the piece of tech and work his magic, and he managed to actually do it. He creates the bass line, melody, and drums, and sticks them all together. As he should, it looks like he had a little fun doing it, smiling and laughing along the way.

With all this publicity out of the gate, odds are we'll see at least one more Labo pack on the Switch, but I hope we get more than that.

Game of Thrones composer plays his own theme on Nintendo Labo screenshot

News:: Resident Evil 7 hitting Nintendo Switch via the cloud

The Switch is an undisputed hit and one of the things about being a hit console is everyone wants to find a way to work with it. For some, that means finding a team that specializes in porting the games to the console to handle development. For others, it means executing their catalog with the Switch at the forefront. For Capcom and its celebrated Resident Evil franchise, it means turning to other avenues to get its game on the device.

Case in point: Resident Evil 7 Cloud Version. Announced solely for Japan at the moment, this Switch version will allow players to enjoy one of the best horror games in years while downloading just a minuscule amount of data. A consistent internet connection is required, but fans will get access to the full game and all of its DLC.

Resident Evil 7 hitting Nintendo Switch via the cloud screenshot

News:: 'Dreams' makes imagination manifest on the PS4

Like Little Big Planet before it, the premise behind Dreams has long confused and infuriated me. Why on Earth would you pay good money for a game in which you work to create smaller games? But after puttering around in what is essentially a console-based development platform during a demo in Santa Monica last week, I realized that this game isn't built for gamers, it's built for artists.

via Engadget RSS Feedhttps://www.engadget.com/2018/05/21/dreams-makes-imagination-manifest-on-the-ps4/

News:: The Morning After: Our verdict on the OnePlus 6

Hey, good morning!

Monday is here, and we're kicking things off with a review of the OnePlus 6, following it up with the first teasers for Samsung's next Galaxy Note (don't get too excited -- it's Bixby related) and NASA's planet-hunting spacecraft taking its first photo.

via Engadget RSS Feedhttps://www.engadget.com/2018/05/21/the-morning-after-the-verdict-on-the-oneplus-6/

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Monday, May 21, 2018