Wednesday, 31 July 2019

Lyft disables San Francisco e-bikes after suspected battery fires

Lyft has made its Bay Wheels e-bikes in San Francisco unavailable to customers after a couple of them caught fire. According to San Francisco Examiner, a witness who saw the first incident on Wednesday said the flames came from the bike's battery. A...

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'Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled' gets a dinosaur-themed grand prix

If you've already mastered Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled, the game has another challenge for you. When Activision and Beenox revealed their revival of the Naughty Dog classic last month, they kicked off the Nitro Grand Prix. With that first race com...

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FAA's new B4UFLY app makes it easier to know where drones are allowed

The FAA's free app that kept drone pilots aware of "no fly zones" performed a much-needed service -- but had few fans. The federal agency teamed up with drone software maker Kittyhawk to create a new version of the B4UFLY app that is being released t...

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Impossible Foods gets FDA approval to sell fake meat in grocery stores

Fake meat is coming to a barbecue near you. Impossible Foods has been granted approval by the FDA to sell its plant-based meat in US grocery stores this fall, reported Bloomberg. After expressing some initial doubts, the agency formally ruled that so...

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Cruel Google Maps trick marked livestreamer's mansion as a homeless shelter

While most pranks that originate from YouTube are terrible, a recent one targeted at homeless people in Los Angeles was particularly abhorrent and cruel. According to the Los Angeles Daily News, a group of online pranksters connected with popular You...

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Cyberpunk Skylines

Alexander Dudar is an artist at CD Projekt Red, the developers of The Witcher and Cyberpunk 2077.

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Pioneering Open World PS1 Game Has Finally Been Translated Into English

Mizzurna Falls, a Twin Peaks-ish open world game developed for the PS1 and only ever released in Japan, is now 20 years later available to play in English for the first time.

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Kill la Kill Game's Publisher Has "Prohibited" People From Streaming Its Story Mode

Kill la Kill the Game: IF, released earlier this week, is a fighting game with a story. And publishers Arc System Works are so protective of it that they’ve stated “all streams and uploads” of the game’s story mode “are prohibited indefinitely”.

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Google unveils advanced G Suite protection for high-risk employees

Google is levelling up its security for businesses. The company unveiled a host of new protections for its G Suite, Google Cloud Platform (GCP) and Cloud Identity customers at the Next Tokyo summit. G Suite Enterprise admins can choose to enroll high...

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'Away Mission' is a free-roaming 'Star Trek' VR experience

When Starfleet calls, Trekkies will answer, and Starfleet's latest call to action involves the world's first free-roam Star Trek experience. Later this year Sandbox VR will launch the first Holodeck VR experience, where fans can enter the world of St...

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The Morning After: Google delivers a new look for Android Auto

Hey, good morning! You look fabulous. July is almost over. So after you double-check your UltraViolet account, it's time to look over quarterly results from Apple and Samsung to find out what's working (services) and what isn't (high-end phones). Pl...

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Spotify adds 8 million paying customers in three months

In the three months since Spotify crested the 100 million Premium user mark, the company has added a further 8 million paying customers. It's another sign of health from a music streaming service that continues to grow in the face of tough and well-h...

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Facebook is inching closer to a think-to-type computer system

Elon Musk isn't the only one who wants us to communicate via brainwaves. Facebook also has ambitious plans to interface with computers using wearables and one day let us type rapidly with our brains. Now, neuroscientists from the University of Califo...

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Japan Approves Scientist's Plan to Create World's First Humanimals

For the first time, a government is supporting a plan to create animal embryos with human cells and bring them to term, resulting in a type of humanimal known as a human-animal chimera.

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Glitch Reveals Popular Young Streamer Is A Middle-Aged Woman

Qiaobiluo Dianxia, also known as “Your Highness Qiaobiluo,” was racking up followers and donations on DouYu, a Chinese live-streaming platform. The photos she uploaded and the short clips she posted showed a young woman, leading her growing number of fans to think this was her. It was not.

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Ford bought a robotics company to boost its self-driving cars

Back in April, Ford chief Jim Hackett admitted that the company overestimated the arrival of self-driving cars. He added that the applications of Ford's first autonomous fleet will likely be narrow, "because the problem is so complex." Now, the autom...

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Remedy's latest trailer for 'Control' digs into the supernatural shooter's story

At E3 for each of the last two years we've seen previews of Remedy Entertainment's supernatural action game Control, and on August 27th, players will be able to experience its world for themselves on Xbox One, PS4 and PC. You should read through our...

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Jaybird's Vista are a sleeker pair of wireless exercise earbuds

Since we reviewed Jaybird's Run, the company's first truly wireless earbuds, the competition has heated up significantly. So much so that just making the Run fully waterproof isn't enough -- Jaybird needs something bold to turn heads (and ears) again...

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NASA will help SpaceX and Blue Origin develop future mission technology

NASA is helping 13 companies develop technologies that could benefit its future missions. Jim Reuter, the associate administrator of NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate, explained that the agency has identified the key areas it needs for futu...

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Tuesday, 30 July 2019

HBO Max orders Greek mythology series ‘Circe’

The Greek goddess who infamously turned Odysseus's crew into swine in Homer's Odyssey is getting a modern-day reboot. HBO Max has ordered eight episodes of Circe, a modern-day adaptation of the ancient Greek myth that is based on the bestselling nove...

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Livestreamer caught using face filter to make herself look younger

It appears we're now in the era of face filter malfunctions. The popular Chinese vlogger known as "Your Highness Qiao Biluo" was revealed to be decades older than the online persona she projected to her thousands of fans. A technical glitch during on...

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We May Finally Get Nightwolf Footage and More for Mortal Kombat 11 During EVO

After weeks of endless teasing and speculation, concrete Nightwolf details for Mortal Kombat 11 may finally arrive later this week during EVO. NetherRealm Studios’ Creative Director, Ed Boon, teased as much in a recent post on his personal Twitter page. According to said tease, “The Wolf” may come out to play this coming Thursday.

See the Twitter post in question below:

This seems to correlate with recent speculation, following an incidental leak on Nintendo’s digital store. The leak suggested Nightwolf would make his way to Mortal Kombat 11 as a DLC character on August 13th. Of course, it did not take long for such an accidental listing to receive correction. Still, the speculation stands. NetherRealm and publisher Warner Bros. may have been holding onto DLC news to make a big announcement at EVO 2019. Based on the above tweet from Ed Boon, it appears that much may indeed be true.

Even if Nightwolf does get an announcement trailer and release date during the fighting game tournament, much of MK11’s DLC plans remain a mystery. Six characters will feature in the Kombat Pack DLC offering. Shang Tsung is already out. Sindel and Nightwolf are confirmed, but currently lack launch dates. Spawn is also confirmed to arrive at some point, though details about him are incredibly scarce. The other two characters in the Kombat Pack currently remain unknown. However, rumors and speculation posit that The Evil Dead’s Ash may be one. Meanwhile, the other guest character could be the Joker.

Mortal Kombat 11 launched this past April for the PS4, PC, Switch, and Xbox One. Upon release, the title quickly began breaking franchise records. This kind of momentum secured the latest MK a top spot on the NPD charts, until The Division 2 overthrew it as the best-selling game of 2019, thus far.

EVO 2019 will kick off in Las Vegas later this week on August 2nd and come to a close soon thereafter on August 4th.

[Source: Ed Boon on Twitter]

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Hitman 2 Update 2.50 Makes a Ton of Improvements, Fixes Bugs, Read the Patch Notes

Hitman 2‘s 2.50 update was released today and IO Interactive has provided fans with the release notes detailing exactly what has changed with the update. Aside from the previously announced content like the new Sniper Assassin mission set in Siberia, and the Anniversary Suits from IO Interactive’s past titles, the game’s latest update brings with it a ton of quality of life changes and bug fixes which should make the game more enjoyable to play.

One of the more notable quality of life changes coming with the 2.50 update is an adjustment to the detection meter which will give players a better idea of just how much time they have left before being detected in-game. There’s a new UI element which will make it easier for players to tell when an item is stashed in one of the game’s trash cans. IO Interactive has also made changes to the game’s UI when picking up an illegal item in order for players to be able to better distinguish between legal items and illegal ones, thanks to the new larger red exclamation mark beside the item’s name, and the fact that the interaction circle will become red when picking the item up. Also, due to requests from the community, IO Interactive has added the toggle aim option into the game.

When it comes to bug fixes with this update, there are plenty. For starters, this update fixes an issue that would cause Agent 47’s Handler, Diana, not to introduce targets or key objectives properly. IO Interactive has also stated that once she introduces a target or key objective, she will not say those lines again for another 48 hours of real time in order to reduce needless repetition. A glitch where the Silent Assassin rating would be lost if a player knocked out a target, killed them using an accident, and then the body was found was also fixed. A bug which would cause Agent 47 to be unable to leave a closet in the Crows Hideout in Mumbai was fixed, and another glitch that would cause thrown items to stick to ceilings in Mumbai was removed.

The list of patch notes is as follows:

Hitman 2 Update Patch Notes

Game Update 2.50: What’s Changing?

Camera Grids

A few months back, we made a change where security camera grids were always visible. We’ve now added this as a setting in the Options>Gameplay>Camera Grid menu. This will be set to ‘On’ by default but can also be changed to ‘Off’. When the setting is ‘On’, camera grids will always be shown whether in Instinct or not. When set to ‘Off’, camera grids will only be shown when in Instinct.

Illegal HUD Prompts

We’ve made a visual change to alert players when they are about to pick up an illegal item or perform an illegal action. Previously, there would be a small red exclamation point attached to the interaction button. Now, we have added a slightly larger exclamation point next to the interaction button and we’ve made the interaction circle turn red (rather than white) when performing the action. The ambition with these two small tweaks is to make it more apparent to players that they are about to perform an action that is illegal.

In the image below, you can see that the exclamation mark is easier to identify and that the interaction circle fills with red when the interaction button is pressed down.

Stash Icon

We’ve added a small visual change to the Stash Points in-game (e.g trash cans) that will show a subtle icon to indicate to players that an item has been stashed there. Currently, each Stash Point has the interaction marker (small white square) that indicates that you can interact with an item. Now, that interaction marker will be ‘filled in’ to indicate that an item is stashed there.

In the example below, it is now easier to see that an item is stashed in the trash can (the icon is filled in), but there is nothing in the briefcase (icon is empty).

Attention Spike

We’ve made three subtle changes to the Attention Meter to make it easier to know when you are gaining attention and how close you are to becoming compromised or spotted.

Firstly, we’ve made a change to the colour. Yellow is the new white and makes it easier to see.

Secondly, the meter will now ‘fill’ allowing you to see how close you are to being spotted.

Thirdly, we’ve made a technical change to the attention meter to prevent it from not being visible on-screen. It was previously a 3D object in the world and in some cases, depending on where the camera was positioned, it wasn’t visible to the player.

In the (zoomed) image below, you can see the new colour showing how much attention has been gained. The slightly faded yellow shows how much room there is for more attention before the guard will react.



Who is THAT?


We’ve fixed an issue where Diana, Agent 47’s handler, would not introduce targets (and key objectives) in some missions. She will now do so again in her trademark style. However, we’ve made a small tweak to give her a few days off every so often. Now, after hearing Diana introduce a target (or key objective) once, she won’t introduce that particular target again for a period of 48 hours real-time. We expect that this change will make Diana’s dialogue less intrusive for repeated playthroughs over a short period of time and make her less of a meme, whilst maintaining her impact and assistance to 47. Note: Key Objectives include things such as the virus in Sapienza, Soders’ heart in Hokkaido, etc.

SA KO OH NO

We’ve fixed an issue where the Silent Assassin rating would be lost if a target was knocked unconscious, killed in an accident and THEN the body was found.

SA RULES #2

We’ve addressed an issue where the Silent Assassin rating could be earned with 4 stars because the ‘Never Spotted’ bonus was sometimes not being granted after a SA playthrough. Now, the SA rating and all bonuses should be properly awarded after completing a SA playthrough. This was sometimes caused by 47 being almost/partially noticed by a target before killing them.

Tweaked Assignments

We’ve fixed an issue that was preventing Blair Reddington from completing the entirety of his loop in Embrace of the Serpent. He was skipping two specific steps that also meant that dialogue was not being triggered. Part of this fix included Blair triggering the correct dialogue, depending on the status of the chef.

Bank Chatter

We’ve fixed an issue in New York (The Bank) where two conversations could overlap in the Conference Room.

Time’s Up

We’ve fixed an issue where the ‘Time’s Up’ Challenge in New York (The Bank) would not always unlock correctly.

Lights Out

We’ve fixed an issue where the chandelier in the main hall of the Bank would ‘flicker’ and temporarily disappear after being destroyed.

Bank Cover

We’ve fixed some issues with 47 taking cover near the staircase to the CEO’s floor in The Bank.

Shot Gun

We’ve addressed an issue where the Sawed Off Bartoli 12G Shotgun (New York Mastery Unlock) could not be equipped as a starting weapon or placed in an Agency Pickup. The shotgun can now be used in those ways. However, it can no longer be holstered during gameplay and will instead function like all other shotguns in terms of being placed on 47’s back. To support these changes, we’ve altered the description of the weapon and renamed it to the “Customised Bartoli 12G”.

Update: This change is temporary and was inadvertently included as part of our investigations into how to we could make the weapon work properly with weapon stashes. With our next update (August), we will revert the weapon’s name and holster-ability (yes, that’s a word) as well as enabling it to be placed in large stash points.

Half-Baked Hippo

We’ve fixed an issue where Jorge Franco would sometimes suspend his routine during the ‘Half Baked’ Mission Story.

Locked Closet

We’ve fixed a community-reported issue where 47 could not exit a specific closet in the Crows Hideout in Mumbai. If you’re not happy with this fix, you can still enter the cupboard and refuse to leave.

Taxi Exit

We’ve fixed a community-reported issue where player-made Contracts created in Mumbai can be insta-failed if the “Required Exit” is set to a taxi driver who is then distracted or affected by combat.

Muffin Melee

We’ve fixed a community-reported issue where muffins and snowballs were categorised as Gear. They are now correctly placed in the ‘Weapons – Melee’ category.

A Quick Fix

We’ve fixed an issue where the “No Evidence” challenges would not be completed when players exited a mission, despite fulfilling the requirements. Once cause for this was immediately exiting the mission after eliminating a target. We’ve made it so that a fast-exit will still grant the challenge when the requirements are met.

Note: See the Known Issues below for an outstanding ‘No Evidence’ issue.

Lost Items

We’ve fixed an issue where thrown items could get stuck out of reach in certain ceilings in Mumbai. Thrown items would cause NPC’s to investigate the noise in the room above.

Roadmap? Jeppe!

We’ve added an option to the Featured Hub to allow players to view the newest monthly Roadmap. This will function as a one-time pop-up message when a new Roadmap is released each month and will give the option to visit our website (this one right here!) to get more details. It will then be a permanent fixture in the Featured Hub so that it can be reviewed and admired at any time.

Press P for Patch Notes

We’ve added a ‘hard button’ at the very bottom of the Options menu that will take you to our latest Release Notes / Patch Notes. If you’re reading this after pressing that button, you probably just found out about that.

Busted (Legacy)

We’ve fixed a community-reported issue where 47 was unable to pick up the bust in the storage room in Paris.

Step Up (Legacy)

We’ve fixed a community-reported issue in Bangkok where Agent 47 would not be trespassing on a specific step in the staircase between the lounge and the kitchen.

PC-Specific Fixes

SSAO

The ‘SSAO’ setting now has more options to select. Previously, this setting had two options; on or off. Now it has six options; Off, Minimum, Low, Medium, High and Ultra. These can be set in-game or via the Launcher.

Known Issues

We’ve listed some of the game’s known issues below, so that you know we’re aware. We’ve always got eyes on the Technical Support and Bug Report threads on the Forums and Reddit too, so if you’ve reported something there, we almost definitely know about it.

To save us from writing it repeatedly, “We are aware of an issue where…”

  • PC players are experiencing “0x8000000_” (and related) crashes. We’re continuing to work on a permanent solution to this with our friends and partners at Nvidia. We recommend that players who have been experiencing this issue use DX12, as this has been reported to fix the issue.
  • Players can encounter problems when dropping items needed for specific exits in Contracts Mode.
  • Players cannot unlock the ‘Janbiya’ from the House Built on Sand mission (Legacy Pack)
  • The ‘No Evidence’ challenge will not be earned if a sedated body is found.
  • The Summer Suave Suit (Hot Summer) does not count as a ‘suit’ with regards to challenges and Contracts Mode.
  • The ‘Sniper Assassin’ challenge in sandbox missions do not unlock if the target spots 47 before he kills them, conflicting with current SA rules.
  • Athena Savalas can get distracted *just* before falling to her death.
  • A gate to the Upside Down can be found when opening the door to the break room in the Bank. We’re consulting with Hawkins PD on a possible fix.
  • Area Discovery challenges, in some particular edge cases, do not unlock properly.
  • Players are unable to unlock the achievement / trophy for reaching Bangkok mastery level 20 in certain circumstances.
  • The SA rating can still be earned when the body of a target who has been tranquilised and then killed immediately afterwards has been found.

What do you think of these all of these changes to Hitman 2? Are you glad to see the detection meter was reworked? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

[Source: IO Interactive]

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Wolfenstein: Youngblood Review – A Messy Path to a Bright Future

Developing character and story is tricky business. Throw in interactivity and the discussion on storytelling becomes infinitely more complicated, particularly when considering gameplay and the need for engagement. In many respects, MachineGames’ rebooted Wolfenstein series has, thus far, ticked all of the boxes. Compelling, complex characters fuel an equally compelling narrative, both buttressed by good gameplay mechanics and an intriguing world. Unfortunately, Wolfenstein: Youngblood, a spinoff set roughly 20 years after the events of Wolfenstein II, doesn’t measure up. While Youngblood’s main characters excel on every front, and its story largely upholds the series’ appealing absurdity, the gameplay loop and plot structure stumble time and again.

The year is 1980; America’s long been liberated from the Nazi regime, yet the rest of the world isn’t so lucky. Paris, France, for instance, remains in the regime’s clutches, serving as the nexus of a power play brewing between two competing factions—the Hitler-founded Third Reich and the newly introduced Fourth Reich. To help free Paris as he once did the States, B.J. Blazkcowicz leaves his relatively quiet life in Mesquite, Texas. His lengthy departure and undisclosed whereabouts result in his unexperienced twin daughters, Soph and Jess, embarking on a rescue mission with help from Abby, Grace’s and Super Spesh’s daughter from Wolf 2. This premise carries within it the makings of a great Wolfenstein game, but fails to stick the landing as well as its predecessors.

Strangers in Paris

wolfenstein youngblood review

A disjointed opening segment sets things in motion as B.J. and Anya train their teenage twins on the art of killing. It’s a touching scene that sadly doesn’t utilize Youngblood’s co-op mechanic. In fact, the first instance of co-op seems rather mundane, with a standard infiltration mission introducing the mechanic, a stark contrast to the opening of Wolf 2 where B.J. engages in combat from a wheelchair. Disappointingly, Youngblood rarely disembarks from that feeling of the mundane.

Opposite the linear structure of MachineGames’ past entries, Youngblood’s Arkane Studios-assisted development takes a more open-ended approach. There’s a main hub, an underground hideout in Paris from which the twins work to help free the city and investigate their father’s last known location. Paris itself is divided into multiple districts, meaning copious amounts of backtracking. To an extent, the title functions like an Ubisoft game before the publisher mastered its open-world formula. One-note resistance characters in the hideout assign the twins various tasks, which essentially boil down to assassination, retrieval, or ‘go here and push a button’ missions. As such, there exists very little variety.

However, a few side missions do mix things up, though they are ubiquitous in each district. One common off the beaten path assignment, for example, requires the twins to release Parisians from their bonds. Every mission and task builds XP, adding to a character level that helps players track when best to tackle Youngblood’s primary goal—attacking three well-guarded Nazi outposts filled with sensitive information about B.J.’s potential location, Lab X.

To Wolfenstein or Not to Wolfenstein

wolfenstein youngblood review

Despite the monotonous, uninspired gameplay loop, moment-to-moment action remains a hallmark of the franchise. Gameplay feels good; yet, some players may find adjusting the controls’ sensitivity a necessity. Furthermore, Youngblood’s introduction of RPG-like qualities seems enough to keep players engaged throughout. Reasonably in-depth skill trees for power, health, armor, and other upgrades ensure spending skill points has a meaningful purpose. Even the weapon upgrade system is a massive leap compared to the series’ 2017 sequel.

Character-specific upgrades are earned by leveling up, but weapon upgrades must be purchased through in-game currency known as Silver Coins. This currency is easy enough to find, as boxes filled to the brim with them are strewn about each district. Still, the inclusion of microtransactions warrants note. Yes, they’re cosmetic, but why implement them at all? What’s their purpose, to fulfill the bizarre always-online requirement? An unfortunate consequence of this component constitutes its bleeding into the gameplay, since pausing is no longer an option.

Co-op works well for the most part, barring the other player who doesn’t own the game needing to download a 35GB demo. Yet, co-op with a single player and AI doesn’t quite hit the mark. More often than not, the AI gets in the way or fails to smartly engage in combat, ultimately leading to their death. And their death can come mighty quickly in certain combat encounters. This wouldn’t be too much of a hassle if Youngblood’s checkpoint system didn’t serve as the game’s most reprehensible feature. Just made your way through a huge mini-boss and a wave of bullet sponge enemies, only to have your progress stunted by the AI’s repeated deaths? Too bad, back to the start of the level you go.

Something Wicked This Way Comes

wolfenstein youngblood review

If nothing else, Youngblood does an excellent job of laying groundwork for the franchise’s apparently harrowing future. A few fantastic twists make the overall experience justifiable towards the end. Yet, it doesn’t deliver on the carefully orchestrated sci-fi shenanigans that set its two predecessors apart. Without spoiling anything, Youngblood does an exorbitant amount of telling and not enough showing.

In many respects, this entry feels more akin to an Arkane game and not enough like the Wolfenstein experiences we’ve come to know and love. At the very least, the future is bright, especially if Soph and Jess come along for the ride. Their brilliantly written and performed sisterly banter somewhat makes up for this largely disjointed and underwhelming venture into the franchise’s broader horizons.


Wolfenstien Youngblood review code provided by publisher. Reviewed on PS4. For more information on scoring, please read our Review Policy.

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Transform And Roll Out, Comrade

Longque Chen is an artist who has worked in games, film and toys.

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I Wish To Inform You That Another Garfield Kart Has Been Made

Garfield Kart came out in 2013, was ignored, then reborn in 2018 as a thing, because the internet has taken the lazy cat and reshaped it in its image. The game is now getting a sequel on Xbox One, PS4, PC and Switch.

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LG's updated UltraFine 5K display works with your iPad Pro

LG's UltraFine 5K Display has returned after a months-long hiatus, although you might not scramble to get one depending on what device you're using. The updated version of the 27-inch monitor is compatible with the USB-C output from recent iPad Pros...

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First Two No More Heroes Titles Could Eventually Receive PlayStation 4 Remasters

Suda51’s No More Heroes franchise is already on its way to the PlayStation 4, with Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes set to hit the platform this October. However, earlier entries in the series could eventually arrive on Sony hardware as well. This is according to Suda51 himself, who recently revealed he’s been in talks with publisher Marvelous to bring remasters of the franchise’s first two installments to the PlayStation console.

While nothing is presently set in stone, Suda51 teased the potential No More Heroes remasters during a interview with Dengeki Online. Should Marvelous give the go ahead, PlayStation 4 owners may eventually see 2007’s No More Heroes and 2010’s No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle arrive on the platform. Thus far, according to Suda51, his ongoing discussions with Marverlous on the matter have been nothing short of “positive.” If all goes well, fans should anticipate that “an announcement regarding [the remasters] might be coming soon.”

No More Heroes‘ first entry originally launched on the Nintendo Wii in December 2007. Years later, an enhanced version titled No More Heroes: Heroes’ Paradise launched for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The hack and slash, action-adventure game’s sequel, No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle, hit stores in 2010 for the Wii.

When Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes arrives on the PlayStation 4 later this year, it’ll be the first time the series has appeared on a Sony platform in nearly a decade. Bearing that in mind, remasters of the first two titles will likely be considered a welcomed surprise among fans should such a potential project actually come to fruition.

Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes launched exclusively for the Nintendo Switch earlier this year. The title will land elsewhere on October 17th, as it is slated to makes waves on the PlayStation 4 and PC.

[Source: Dengeki Online via DualShockers]

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Fighting Bullies With the Power of Art – Concrete Genie Hands & Head-on Preview

We were recently invited to PlayStation HQ in San Mateo to meet up with the developer team of Pixelopus and tour their studio space. We spoke with members of the team and got some hands on time with their upcoming title, Concrete Genie.

Ash vs. The Bullies of Densk

Before heading to the studio space, I played roughly 90 minutes of the first level of the game. The game is an action-adventure title that follows a young man named Ash as he tries to save his abandoned town of Densk from a darkness that is covering its walls. The only other people in town are a bunch of punk kids that bully Ash every chance they get, so he must avoid them as much as humanly possible as he uses his artistry and magical paints to bring this town back to life. Along the way, he finds that his little monster creations on paper turn into Genies that can help by not only directing his artistry, but also by unlocking new abilities.

The game has a very unique feel to it, and the Genies are actually your creation. They can be as scary as you like, or even as nice and pleasant as you like. You can give them appendages and make them tall or short, skinny or fat, whatever your heart desires. The development team has created so many different animations that, no matter what you draw, it truly comes to life, and their uniqueness helps give the game a more personal feel. The animations are entertaining to watch and are remarkably smooth to the eye.

Light vs. Dark

It isn’t just Genies that need drawn. Those punk kids took your book and tore out a bunch of pages from it and scattered them around each level. Finding those pages unlocks more and more designs for Genies and the town of Densk. With the help of your genie, you’ll unlock a super brush which can cure that dark infection from the walls, and allow your Genie to direct your artistry to lighten up the place by adding many types of plants, objects, and even the sun to help lighten up the place. Speaking of light, each level has light strings you’ll have to find and interact with to completely lighten up a level before you can move on to the next area. It’s an interestingly fun take on the light vs. dark symbolism that often plays out in literature and storylines.

Each level has a specific number of light strings to light up, Genies to find, wall areas that need to be cured and decorated, and interactive stories to collect. These stories will incorporate your unique Genies, so even they can have a personal touch. Always keep an eye out for those punk kids though, as they are mean and will not be nice to you if they find you. If they are in your way, you can holler at them and they will move to where your voice came from. It is a helpful little tool that can make them go running off and allow you you access to an area they don’t want to vacate.

VR Content is Separate from the Story

Concrete Genie contains two PSVR modes – VR Experience and VR Free Paint. These are separate from the story mode and the story mode is not playable in VR. In Experience, players will help a Genie discover a mysterious power through painting and see their art come to life from a new perspective. In Free Paint, players use two PS Move motion controllers to create beautiful living landscapes, using the sketchbook pages collected from the VR Experience. As I played through the VR Experience, I found myself completely immersed in the title, as the stunning graphics and imagery were so well detailed that it went a long ways into making my brain think it was almost real. Very impressive.

After spending 90 minutes playing the game, we were taken to the Pixelopus Studio space. Walking in, the first thing I noticed was the incredible amount of art work they had generated while storyboarding for the game. These images would make for an incredible book that any collector would be happy to own (hint hint). After playing through the game, it was amazing to see how much of the storyboards played out in-game, and how the imagery was actually used.  Several team members took the time to walk us through their animation processes, and show us how the game was brought to life. I really wish we could have taken some photos of their work space and storyboard areas, as that was as impressive as the game itself. Special thanks to the young ladies and young men who took the time away from their busy day to walk us through some of their processes and speak to us.

On our way back from the space, I spoke with Jeff Sangalli, an Art Director at Sony Interactive Entertainment, about his team at Pixelopus and was impressed to find out that PlayStation has an intern program with San Jose State University and several of the Pixelopus team members had gone through that program. SJSU is one of the top animation schools in the world, and Jeff actually graduated from there himself in 2000, so I shouldn’t have been too surprised that quite a few graduates have got a foot in the door with PlayStation through that program.

Concrete Genie has an official release date of October 8th, 2019 and from the 90+ minutes I played, it is already a fun and fantastic game, with a beautiful art style that you can truly make your own.

 

The post Fighting Bullies With the Power of Art – Concrete Genie Hands & Head-on Preview appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.



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