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Nintendo Direct May 31st – A Quick Briefing

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Nintendo-Direct

So another Nintendo Direct has come to an end. There didn’t seem to be as much excitement surrounding it, though. Probably because it was Japan-only and was aired only a couple of weeks before E3, so there wasn’t going to be much in the way of bombshell surprises. If you chose to skip it, I don’t blame you but there was still quite a bit announced so here’s a quick and basic rundown of the more important reveals from this month’s Direct.

1. Dragon Quest VIII Remake for 3DS

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Originally released on the PS2, the eighth main title in the Drgaon Quest series of RPGs was the first title to release in Europe and Australia. Its success might have helped bring subsequent titles (including all those remakes of previous games) to the PAL region, and now it too will receive the remake treatment on the 3DS. Players take control of a motley crew of heroes on a journey to save their kingdom and lift the curse on both its King and Princess. Fans of turn-based RPGs better keep their eyes peeled for this one.

2. Create a town in new Fire Emblem

Anybody who loves the Fire Emblem series are probably not just fans of the strategy RPG genre. Fire Emblem has always been about the bonds the player develops with the cast of characters at his/her command; that’s why there’s such a heavy emphasis on characterisation and interacting with said characters. That’s why a lot of people will probably be very happy with the announcement of a new feature of the next entry: making your own towns.

Not only that, but you will be able to use StreetPass to visit other player’s towns and fight in their party. What benefit you gain from this is unknown at the moment but this sounds like a great way of implementing Fire Emblem’s own brand of multiplayer.

It was also confirmed that the Fire Emblem amiibos (Marth, Ike, Robin and Lucina) will be compatible with the game. Judging by the footage shown, you can summon the respective characters to fight against, though it looks like they will be rather challenging.

3. Chibi Robo is back

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in 2006, Nintendo released a quaint, little title on the GameCube called Chibi Robo. It had players take control of the titular character, whose job it was to do good deeds for the family of the home he was living in, in order to accumulate Happy Points, all the while making sure he didn’t run out of battery as he moved around the house. Those who played it loved it, but Chibi Robo fell into obscurity; its sequel wasn’t even released in Europe.

Now, to our surprise, the tiny robot is back, but in a very different kind of game. Chibi Robo will now star in a more action-orientated game; a side-scrolling 3DS platformer that will have Chibi Robo using his plug as a whip to defeat enemies, destroy blocks and solve puzzles. It even functions as a grappling hook. What’s more, there will also be a Chibi Robo amiibo. Fingers crossed this makes it to the West.

4. Mario & Sonic head to Rio

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Mario and Sonic will be crossing paths at the Olympics once again; this time at the 2016 Olympics in Rio. As the fifth game in the series, you probably already know what to expect from this: more minigame-style events designed for anyone to pick up and play.

The last game in the series, which was set at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, was very underwhelming, only being released for the Wii U, sporting forced implementation of the GamePad and very few events to take part in. This title, which will be released for both Wii U and 3DS, will hopefully be a vast improvement. A short trailer revealed quite a few events including football, table tennis and golf, as well as some new playable characters like Nabbit and Rouge the Bat. With a wide variety of events, interesting and fun modes and plenty of fan service, this could have the potential of being the best entry yet.

5. Monster Hunter X

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Capcom has decided to skip the numbering stuff and go straight to adding an X at the end of the title because, as we all know, the X makes it sound cool.

In all seriousness, Capcom will be bringing another Monster Hunter to the 3DS, promising new moves, new areas and, of course, new monsters to slay. Capcom has also stated that the concept for the game is to take the action and make it varied enough so that anyone can find their own style of play. There will also be other villages from previous Monster Hunter games to visit.

Aside from that, Capcom also revealed that Monster Hunter spin-off Monster Hunter Diary: Poka Poka Airou Village DX (which originally came out on the PSP in 2010 as Japan-only) will be coming to the 3DS and would see players take control of the series’ feylene cat characters, going on quests and managing their village.

While Nintendo is obviously saving the big guns for E3, there was still some interesting stuff here, including a few things I left out due to lack of information (and my inability to understand Japanese) including trailers for a new Dr. Mario and the next Pokemon Mystery Dungeon game. If you want to see the whole direct, check it out here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUxgnYVD_-Q

Michael is a graduate from Brunel University, where he studied Computer Games Design and Creative Writing. He denies claims that he did it just to give him an excuse to play videogames. He usually has something to say on the latest news in gaming, film and TV, even if no one wants to hear it.

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Cyberpunk 2077 2.0 Patch Notes: Massive PS5 Update Now Available!

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The crucial Cyberpunk 2077 Update 2.0 is now available on PS5. A massive, game-changing patch at 17GB. Completely redesigned systems and countless smaller changes make the gameplay more refined.

We’re not just copying CD Projekt Red’s marketing. We got early access to Update 2.0 and have been playing with it for weeks. In our extensive Hands On article, we said it’s a great patch that improves Cyberpunk 2077. A long time coming!

CDPR released 2.0’s full patch notes, which are massive. Read them below.

Patch notes for Cyberpunk 2077 2.0

COMBAT

New Police System

  • The NCPD will chase you when you commit a crime, whether on foot or in a vehicle.
  • The types of units in pursuit and their behavior will depend on your NCPD Wanted Level. These chases can include various NCPD vehicles, roadblocks and MaxTac swooping in with AVs.
  • The NCPD will now be present in the world, actively patrolling the streets of Night City. Officers working at crime scenes will now also engage in pursuits.
  • You can now hear NCPD radio chatter through the radio.
  • It’s now possible to quickhack NCPD officers.

Vehicle Combat

  • Added the option to engage in combat while driving a vehicle from either first-person or third-person perspective. While driving, you can use pistols, submachine guns and health items. Some vehicles come equipped with mounted weapons. Melee combat is possible on motorcycles.
  • Vehicle tires can now be shot or slashed.
  • Introduced new Perks that unlock a variety of vehicle-related abilities such as quickhacking vehicles, increasing collision damage, boosting vehicle weaponry, allowing the use of Sandevistan and Kerenzikov cyberware, and the ability to exit moving vehicles quickly and stylishly.
  • Vehicles vary in durability. Vehicles equipped with CrystalDome technology receive additional protection.
  • You can now encounter AI-driven and randomized chases between different factions in a given district.

Combat AI Enhancements

We made numerous improvements to enemy AI, including:

  • Various enhancements to enemy netrunner AI.
  • Improved NPC reactions to grenades and their use of grenades.
  • Improved NPC reaction time when flanked.
  • Faster detection by enemies when you’re walking or sprinting.
  • Enemies equipped with Sandevistan cyberware will now activate it to counter a player who uses their own.
  • Enemies that don’t hear a silenced weapon but do notice the bullet impact will now properly investigate the source of the gunshot.
  • Made improvements for scenarios where a group of NPCs can join another group in combat against you.

Netrunning Changes

  • Added Perks to expand netrunning capabilities. For example, a new Overclock mode allows you to upload quickhacks by consuming Health if you have insufficient RAM. You can also acquire the ability to queue multiple quickhacks on a single enemy.
  • Rebalanced RAM costs.
  • Rebalanced damage and upload time. Changed the effects of some quickhacks.
  • Removed the option to use Breach Protocol on enemies.

Other

  • Health Items and grenades now have a limited number of charges that recharge over time after being used.
  • Stamina is no longer drained outside of combat for actions like sprinting, sliding and jumping. Stamina is drained when firing ranged weapons or attacking with melee weapons. Stamina cost varies by weapon.
  • Improved the Aim Assist feature.
  • Rebalanced the base game’s main boss fights.
  • Introduced Armor Penetration for the base game’s main bosses.
  • Removed the one-hit kill protection from civilians.

PERKS & SKILLS

  • A complete Perk tree overhaul. These trees now contain fewer perks, but impact gameplay in a more meaningful way. Progressing in a given Perk tree will allow you to unlock special abilities such as Overclock mode for netrunners, Bolt shots for Tech weapons, the Adrenaline Rush ability for Body-focused character builds, and so on. Because we introduced extensive changes to the Perk system, your spent Perk points on existing playthroughs have been refunded. You can also choose to reset your Attributes once. Feel free to redistribute these Perk and Attribute points to suit your preferred playstyle before you continue playing.
  • We merged the previous Skills into five new ones – Headhunter, Netrunner, Shinobi, Solo, Engineer. These are not restricted by their corresponding Attribute’s level. On existing playthroughs, your progression on old skills has been transferred to their new counterparts. Skills unlock new passive buffs every 5 levels, and can be leveled up to a max of 60.
  • Removed the option to reset all Perks at once. Instead, it is now possible to refund each Perk individually for free.
  • Introduced new kinds of progression shards: Attribute Shards, Carrying Capacity Shards and Cyberware Capacity Shards.

CYBERWARE

  • Armor is now provided primarily by cyberware. As a result, clothing’s purpose is mostly cosmetic. Clothing items no longer have mod slots, and only some items provide bonuses.
  • The number of cyberware implants your body can handle is now determined by your Cyberware Capacity.
  • Cyberware implants are now Attuned to specific Attributes – the higher the Attribute, the stronger the stat bonus.
  • You can now upgrade cyberware on the ripperdoc screen.
  • Some Cyberware slots can be unlocked by acquiring specific Perks.
  • Added multiple new kinds of Cyberware.
  • Visiting ripperdocs is now more immersive. When getting cyberware installed, you sit on an operating chair and experience different animations depending on the type of implant.
  • Added a side quest introducing the new cyberware system for players who load an older save on the 2.0 update.

WEAPONS

  • Changed the unique effects of some Iconic weapons to better reflect their distinctive features.
  • The “first equip” animation can now be triggered at any time.

– PlayStation: double tap △ while the weapon is holstered.

  • Added smoke grenades.
  • Added new melee weapon Finishers.
  • You can now find a Thermal Katana in the game.
  • Added new weapon mods and reworked some existing ones. Once installed in a weapon, mods are irreplaceable.
  • All obsolete weapon mods will be removed from the game. In their place you will find new, random weapon mods in your backpack. The quality of any mods added this way depends on your level.
  • Removed the silencer slot from Revolvers.
  • Removed the scope slot from Light Machine Guns.
  • Implemented a new way to craft weapon mods. To craft a mod, you must first have 2 mods of lower quality.
  • Expanded the stash wall in V’s apartment to display all of the Iconic weapons from the base game.

VEHICLES

Traffic

  • NPC vehicles can now switch lanes to avoid obstacles.
  • Pedestrians will now try to avoid running into moving vehicles.
  • NPC drivers are now better at avoiding you when you are on foot.
  • Improved braking, acceleration and suspension of cars in traffic.
  • Some NPCs now might react aggressively when you hijack their vehicle.
  • Various improvements to traffic density depending on time of day and night, resulting in more realistic traffic behavior.
  • Driving with a quest-related NPC in your vehicle no longer disables traffic in the occupied lane, resulting in the feeling of a busier city.

Other

  • Fixers will no longer text you about vehicles up for sale. You now purchase vehicles via the AUTOFIXER netpage on V’s computer or by using terminals located in gas stations and repair shops throughout Night City. To find these, enable the new Autofixer filter on the world map. Vehicles are sorted by manufacturer. The vehicles equipped with built-in weaponry have photos marked with a special icon. As you earn more Street Cred, you will unlock more vehicles for purchase.
  • Added new user settings to help configure vehicle camera and controls. You can now also choose between three different third-person camera distances when driving a vehicle.
  • Added a new “Driving” category and Driving Manual to the Database.

We implemented various changes and tweaks to vehicle performance and handling:

  • New speed-sensitive steering applies to most vehicles. The max turn speed and radius adapts to different vehicle speeds better than before.
  • All engines have torque curves now, which reflect the engine’s character and any power modifiers (e.g., supercharger, turbo, hybrid, etc.). Some adjustments and balancing have been made to vehicle acceleration and top speeds.
  • Conducted a full pass on adjustments to braking force. For slower vehicles it has been dramatically increased, and all stopping distances were measured and adjusted as necessary.
  • All vehicles react better to rough terrain and impacts with curbs, meridians, etc. Vehicles feel “heavier” now, as we have improved how we apply gravity as the suspension moves.
  • Many vehicles were fully retuned or their tuning was heavily revised.
  • Multiple other small improvements.

BALANCE & ECONOMY

NPCs

  • All NPCs now scale to your level. Enemy difficulty is no longer dependent on what area of Night City you’re in.
  • Enemies will have different tiers depending on the faction they belong to.
  • Some NPC archetypes will feature Low, Medium or High armor.
  • All resistances for regular NPCs have been removed.
  • Rebalanced game difficulty to increase the challenge at higher difficulties.

Weapons

  • Weapons now scale damage based on their Tier.
  • The damage for Smart weapons has been lowered, but they now benefit from dedicated Perks.

Loot

  • Loot now scales to your level.
  • Removed excessive findable loot in the game, such as loot that distracts from scenes and quest locations.
  • NPCs no longer drop clothing.

Crafting & Upgrading

  • Crafting and upgrading now require only one type of component instead of multiple types.
  • Replaced old rarity levels (Common, Uncommon, Rare, Epic, Legendary) with Tiers (from Tier 1 to 5++).
  • Apart from cyberware, now only Iconic weapons can be upgraded. They gain a higher Tier with each upgrade.

Vendors

  • You can now access the Wardrobe feature through clothing vendors.
  • Vendor stocks scale with your level, expanding as you reach a new Tier.
  • Updated vendor stocks so that each has a more distinctive theme and specialization.
  • Vendors no longer sell quickhack and crafting components.
  • Adjusted the prices of weapons, cyberware, apartments, clothing and more.

AUDIO

New Radio Stations

  • 89.7 Growl FM features songs created by our community. The DJ, Ash, is voiced by Sasha Grey.
  • Impulse 99.9 features a completely new set of songs remixed by Idris Elba.
  • 107.5 Dark Star is a new station for electronic music.

UI

  • The Quest Journal now has a new, cleaner look. Jobs are located in separate tabs, depending on type. The distance to each quest marker is now displayed in the Journal.
  • Added the option to untrack a quest in the Journal.
  • Overhauled the phone UI to be more intuitive.
  • Revamped Perk and Cyberware menus.
  • Simplified item tooltips. The most important stats are now represented by bars to make comparison easier.
  • The minimap will now zoom out dynamically depending on your speed.
  • Updated the minimap to better serve the situation around you. Vision cones will not be visible unless a given NPC reacts to your actions or engages in combat.
  • Improved D-pad navigation in menus.
  • You can now change the HUD safe zone. This option is available in Settings → Interface.
  • Multiple UI fixes for widescreens.
  • You can now preview clothing and weapons not only at vendors, but also in your inventory.
  • The indicators that show the status of active cyberware are now displayed on your HUD.

QUEST FIXES

  • Beat on the Brat: The Glen – Fixed an issue where it wasn’t possible to draw fists when the fight started.
  • Blistering Love – Fixed an issue where the parked car despawned after talking to Rogue in front of the Afterlife.
  • Cyberpsycho Sighting: Bloody Ritual – Fixed an issue where Zaria’s body could get stuck underground after defeating her.
  • Forward to Death – The forces defending the gate of the construction site now properly attack V.
  • Gig: Serious Side Effects – Fixed an issue where it wasn’t possible to deposit the beta acid at the Drop Point.
  • I Fought The Law – Fixed an issue where it was possible to get stuck in the Red Queen’s Race after completing the quest.
  • Queen of the Highway – Fixed an issue where it wasn’t possible to complete the “Talk to Panam.” objective on older saves.
  • Spellbound – It’s now possible to steal the data from R3n0’s computer if you don’t have a cyberdeck.
  • We Gotta Live Together – Fixed an issue where an invisible wall made it impossible to return to the camp on the Basilisk.

STABILITY AND PERFORMANCE

Multiple fixes and improvements related to stability and optimization.

MISCELLANEOUS

  • Added Trauma Drama, an arcade mini game that offers a chance to win special rewards.
  • Added more secrets to be discovered in Night City.
  • Added some small scenes to the game, including some conversations with Johnny Silverhand when visiting V’s apartment in Megabuilding H10.
  • You can now change tattoos at ripperdocs.
  • You can now choose between three Control Schemes for controllers: Classic, Dynamic and Alternative.
  • Apartments will now give smaller buffs.
  • Updated the Characters tab in the Database to include more side characters.
  • Added new niches to the Columbarium.
  • Added Ukrainian text localization.

CONSOLE-SPECIFIC

  • Changed the target upscaling resolution on Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 in Performance Mode from dynamic 4k to dynamic 1800p for improved performance and image quality.

Will Update 2.0 bring you back to Night City?

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Solar Souls-Like Enotria: The Last Song Performs in 2024

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Souls-like Enotria: The Last Song is scheduled for PS5 release in Spring 2024. The spin this time? Enotria escapes darkness into a folkloric Italian sunlit world. This is a technical showcase trailer, and while the art direction and environment are good, combat animations should be tightened before launch.

The Canovaccio, a twisted, eternal play, freezes the world. Maskless Ones control their own fate because they have no predetermined role in this charade. Destroying the fearsome Authors will free this world and give you their fallen Masks, enabling new play styles.

Thoughts on Enotria: The Last Song? Is there enough to keep you interested, or are you tired of this prolific subgenre?

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Not Playable in PS5’s Rebirth: Final Fantasy 7’s Coolest Companions

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Square Enix has confirmed to IGN that everyone’s favorite edgy gunslinger will be an AI companion in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth and not fully playable, like Red XIII in Final Fantasy VII Remake. Cid, the chain-smoking pilot, is elusive, hard to define, and cool.

Naturally, Red XIII and Cait Sith (who we don’t remember being cool) will be playable. The Intergrade standalone expansion confirmed Yuffie’s playability and deeper story integration (she was an optional ally before). Even Sepiroth will be playable briefly.

Zack Fair’s role is expanded in this reimagining of a classic video game story, according to Rebirth producer Yoshinori Kitase: “We see him at the end of Remake, which is different from the original title. Zack will appear in a new Rebirth episode with more of him than in the Remake. I can’t say much more because I want players to play and experience it.”

While Square Enix may be saving the best for last, Vincent and Cid will fight alongside the party, albeit AI-controlled. Which FFVII companions do you prefer?

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