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Coming off one of the series’ strongest issues to date, Grayson takes a detour from the main narrative in lieu of a World’s Finest level team up between Dick and the tight-tee sportin’, motorcycle lovin’ Superman. It’s a fun bit of setup involving two characters not often played against one another, but with some uneven, and at times contradictory, characterization, this annual never quite sticks the landing.
Tim Seeley gets first billing with this issue, and he does a solid job setting the stage, positing a situation wherein a young Robin gets to interact with Superman following a successful chase with sourpuss mentor, Batman. This setup informs we readers of an apparently existing relationship shared between the two that’s given further exploration as Dick runs, er, falls into Clark in the present. While the nickname sharing, buddy-buddy nature exhibited initially reads as a bit forced, Seeley finds a clever parallel between the two, namely in how their shared look-before-you-leap natures stands as a direct contrast to the black-cowled captain of contingencies. The script meanders a bit from there, as following some expository catch-up the duo is suddenly set upon by the Fist of Cain. Out for blood (and new high scores!), the rest of the issue becomes a cat and mouse game between the murderous Cain’s and their depowered prey.
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Warning: Full spoilers from the episode follow.
After turning Mr. Garrison into South Park's resident "Donald Trump" in last week's episode, it only made sense that the town would pay for it in "The City Part of Town." The irony of the townspeople being up in arms about Jimmy Fallon (who loves everything!) making fun of them on national TV when they themselves are constantly ragging on stuff was pretty hilarious. "Apparently he doesn't care that his jokes are at the expense of actual people."
But as this season has already made clear, South Park is a changed town. They're socially conscious, dammit! Which is exactly why they felt they deserved a Whole Foods in their town -- the mark of a true gentrified district. Of course, the funniest part about this episode was the fact that the only place to gentrify in South Park was Kenny's house and... pretty much just Kenny's house.
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Whether you're fond of Brandon Graham's growing 8house universe, a fan of fantasy comics in general or just looking to support comics from all-women creative teams, From Under Mountains will appeal to you. This series is set in the same world as books like 8house: Arclight and Kiem, but it also manages to stand on its own pretty well. While the trappings are unusual, the character archetypes are immediately identifiable.
Co-writers Claire Gibson and Marian Churchland divide their focus among several groups of characters in the realm of Karsgate. That approach does make the book a little more of a hurdle than necessary right off the bat. Initially it's hard to latch onto any particular character. But as the story progresses and readers become more familiar with the cast, this problem fades away. Before long the reader is plenty invested in the plight of Elena, a noble-born lady who yearns to see the wider world, or that of Tova, a thief who quickly finds herself biting off more than she can chew with her latest mark. Most of the characters fall into one fantasy archetype or another, but with just enough wrinkles so that the books doesn't feel redundant.
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Warning: this review contains spoilers for the events of the Arkham Knight video game!
DC's Arkham Knight prequel comic has already spawned the Arkham Knight: Genesis spinoff mini-series, and now readers are getting another dose of the Knight in this standalone annual issue. If you're craving a little more insight into what makes the villain tick and what drives him in his vendetta against Batman, this issue has something to offer. Just not enough to fill an almost 40-page comic.
Like the main series, this issue takes place during the lead-up to the game, as the Knight and Scarecrow continue preparing for their assault on the city. The opening pages are interesting in how they showcase Jason returning to his vigilante roots, even if his motives are far less noble. These pages do sort of beg the question as to how he kept the Arkham Knight's existence so perfectly shrouded in mystery when he's running around in broad daylight and interacting with police officers.
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Even though Jim Gordon is the one parading around Gotham as Batman these days, Bruce Wayne remains a significant focus in Scott Snyder's Batman series. The latest Batman-nual serves as a way of shining a closer light on Bruce and his current state of mind without slowing down the ongoing Superheavy storyline. This issue offers some interesting insight into Bruce and his small circle of friends and loved ones, but it loses some of its steam once the familiar Batman rogues enter the fray.
In some ways, this issue could be viewed as an epilogue to the short-lived Arkham Manor series. As Wayne Manor is emptied of its prisoners and turned back over to its previous owner, Bruce is forced to confront and take stock of a life he simply doesn't remember. Writer James Tynion IV builds a strong dynamic among Bruce, Julie, Alfred and Geri Powers, with the latter receiving some welcome growth that builds on her sporadic earlier appearances.
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Sandman: Overture is essentially the Prometheus to the original series' Alien in the sense that it's tasked with exploring how a specific character ended up in a specific place in the original story. Overture's series finale accomplishes that goal. Here readers learn exactly how and why a weakened Morpheus found himself taken captive by the cult in Sandman #1. But that's a pretty reductive way of looking that this issue. As with any story (and prequels especially), the journey is far more important than the destination. This issue serves as a fitting final leg in a surreal, wonderful journey across time, space and all of existence.
The stakes could scarcely be higher in this issue as Morpheus and his ship of 1000 souls faces the imminent collapse of all existence. Neil Gaiman gives this story a sweeping yet emotionally intimate scale. Trillions face their deaths, yet the focus remains on Morpheus steeling himself for his greatest challenge. In the process, Gaiman paints a fascinating psychological portrait of the character. He's not a gallant superhero fighting against all odds to prevent another Crisis. As this issue explores, Morpheus is bothered less by the idea of existence ending than he is by the fact that the calamity is his fault.
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The Uncharted series is one of the best action adventure franchises in recent gaming history, and Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection is the best way to play them today. These are lovingly handled remasters that bring out and preserve the beautiful art direction of the originals, and the upgrade to 60 frames per second lends even greater fluidity to all three Uncharted games’ already excellent gameplay. I only wish The Nathan Drake Collection presented itself more like a celebration of Naughty Dog’s great series rather than a simple bundle of three admittedly brilliant games.
Uncharted: Drake's Fortune is now eight years old (read our original Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune review), but you'd be hard-pressed to notice here. Though it certainly can't pass as a native PS4 game, remaster developer Bluepoint has upgraded just enough so that Drake's first outing still has those visual "wow" moments, and the doubled frame rate alleviates the original PlayStation 3 version’s slightly sluggish aiming substantially.
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Following the intro, go in search of water. Look at the mini-map and then walk in the direction of the green circle. You will come to a water source, so pull out your canteen and fill it. Now take a sip to refill Max’s health.
It seems Max’s dog vanished, so go looking for his pet. Exit the busted structure and you will see another green point of interest, this one revealing the dog’s whereabouts. Walk towards this green waypoint and a cut scene plays. When it’s over, head to the next green waypoint to view another movie.
Objectives: find wire for Chum’s buggy and loot the body.
The next green waypoint leads Max to a corpse. Rummage through the remains and take the two shotgun shells. Now walk in the direction of the next green waypoint to come face to face with an enemy known as the War Pup. Since you found ammo for the shotgun, hit the War Pup with one blast to put him away, then travel to yet another waypoint to encounter additional War Pups looking to put the hurt on Max. You’re low on shotgun rounds, so your fists are the best weapons for the job. Pummel two groups of bad guys and then approach the waypoint to find some wire.
Objectives: Return the wire to Chum, follow Chum to his buggy, put the dog in the back of the buggy, drive to the lookout point and follow Chum to the lookout point.
Don’t return to Chumbucket yet. For now, search for two items in this location and pick them up. You’ll find one inside the tent, while the other is on a carrier. Now head in Chumbucket’s direction. Bring the dog to his buggy and put the canine in the back. Now hop inside the vehicle and stick to the green outlined path on the mini-map. Reach this new destination, get out of the buggy and walk with Chumbucket until another cut scene plays. Mission complete.
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Justice League #44 closes out the first act of "The Darkseid War" in grand style. Even as this issue explores the ramifications of recent big developments (including new transformations for both Batman and Superman), it throws out more twists and proves that this conflict is only getting bigger as it moves along.
Johns continues to frame the story from Wonder Woman's point of view. Aside from the novelty of having Diana front and center in a book where she's generally been a supporting player, her narration is great at bringing a sense of gravitas and scope to the conflict. This issue hammers home the idea that the Justice League, for all their strength and valor, are little more than helpless observers in the clash between Darkseid and the Anti-Monitor. That's not to say the League don't have their part to play, with one character in particular becoming the crux of what is easily the biggest twist in this storyline to date.
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In my very first moments of Jotun, I was immediately overtaken by the wondrous mood of Thunder Lotus Games’ impressive world. This journey through the legends of Norse mythology is supported by utterly beautiful hand-drawn animation and a rousing soundtrack that all comes together to create a place steeped in mysticism and reverence.
As Thora, the battle-hardened viking warrior who unceremoniously drowns one stormy night at sea, you’re given a second chance to prove your courage to the gods. And even while the larger story of a battle against elemental giants called Jotuns unfolds, Thora’s backstory and stoic personality shine through in her narration, fantastically delivered in her strong voice and native language.
The beta extension will be a way for not only fans of the Rainbow Six series to get more time to play the game, but it’ll also provide additional data and feedback from players over the next few days. In fact, Ubisoft is allowing those who participated in the beta the opportunity to invite their friends in. Anyone who play at least one match prior to 2:00PM ET on Sept. 29 will be sent an email with an immediate access code that can be shared with a friend.
The Rainbow Six Siege closed beta is one of the largest betas Ubisoft has ever performed and has learned a lot in the process. The publisher has identified a number areas that will provide long-term improvement for the game’s launch and also pushed out several updates that have helped ease things on a short-term basis.
Ubisoft shared some additional information regarding the beta, such as the average wait time for PvP matchmaking improving to 30-45 seconds and Terrorist Hunt having a 96% success rate per matchmaking attempt. The longer the closed beta runs, the more improvements Ubisoft can offer when Rainbow Six Siege is released on December 1.
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The Might & Magic Heroes series has had more than its share of ups and downs, but always in a valiant attempt to capture the unique balance between role-playing and strategic combat that the classic games have. Might & Magic Heroes 7 is the latest attempt, and it seems to get really close at first, but then numerous problems start appearing to weight down the experience.
Tell Me a Story
This chapter of the ongoing story takes place in the land of Ashan, which is thrown into turmoil after the Empress is assassinated. Factions are warring for the throne, so the Duke Ivan gathers a council of advisors to help figure out a way to restore order. But instead of strictly talking strategy, the council decides to share stories, with each focusing on a specific faction and theme.
These six stories make up the game's different campaigns, and players can switch between them at any time. They're comprised of related missions, some tied more loosely than others, to tell a longer tale. Once Ivan has heard the stories, his own campaign unlocks for players to experience. The story arcs might appear short, comprised of about four or five missions, but players have to build a kingdom up from practically nothing each time. So, it can take hours to gather the resources necessary to raise an army and defeat your foes - especially since the AI is terrible at managing your army when you select quick resolution.
I chose the Academy campaign, which focuses on Arabian Nights inspired wizards. It also happens to be a story that describes the power and perils of love, which makes it a bit hokey to begin with. It's not helped by how some of the voice acting is a little off, like how a woman is willing to commit suicide so that her life magic can power her lover's artifact, and that sacrifice is met with some matter of fact sounding dialogue.
Not even the introductions are all that appealing, since council discussions aren't animated. Instead, the storytellers are posed like mannequins with the camera panning around them while dialogue occurs over it. I'm sure the developers were shooting for some artistic approach, but it doesn't work very well.
Peace in Conquest
The gameplay is easier than what experienced players might expect. Heroes 7 uses a fixed difficulty system, which can be customized to preference, to help reign in elements like neutral creature army sizes, how quickly AI opponents develop, and so forth. You can build up a formidable army without feeling like you're in a race against a computer opponent with major advantages on its side.
Meanwhile, the creatures themselves have the usual hit-or-miss feel to them. Some creatures inevitably feel more useful, while others end up being little more than fodder. Stacking up a ton of minor units so that they deal a ton of damage is still a viable strategy. In fact, it works so well that you can reasonably get through the game without building Elite units like the Colossus. Spells feel much the same way. While you acquire most of them at random, there's always one spell that is powerful enough to resolve almost every conflict.
The game's relative ease makes it unnecessary to enlist more than one Hero, unless you just want one to govern one of your castles with economic and defense bonuses. It's far simpler to dump overwhelming numbers into one Hero's army and let them cut down everything in their path.
Purists might hate it, but I liked the fact that I could take my time and explore the maps without worrying about running into a neutral creature army that had grown way out of control. But it's also good to have the option to turn up the difficulty if I wanted. There are a number of streamlining systems that help make gameplay better, like how I can use magic to teleport reinforcements straight to my hero, along with caravans to order fresh units from one place to another. These features significantly cut down on a lot of the back-and-forth movements.
Kingdom in Chaos
However, Heroes 7 has a number of problems that completely ruin the experience. In one instance, the Hero I had to defeat ran into a sanctuary building and never came out. Reloading the game caused her to disappear from the map altogether, making the mission impossible to finish. Furthermore, the Academy campaign makes very little use of switching between underworld and overworld maps, which has always been a cornerstone feature of Heroes series. This makes it easy to overlook other features, like hot seat multiplayer and the collection of single scenarios.
Heroes 7 does have that "one more turn" quality that eats away the hours, but the game-breaking bugs, along with cheap cinematics and sound effects, ruin the experience. Also, since the stories take place in the past, there's no sense that players are impacting Ashan's fate until they unlock Ivan's campaign. Perhaps Heroes 7 will meet its potential after a few patches and expansions, but for now, it's tough to look past its flaws.
This review is based on a PC code provided by the publisher. Might & Magic Heroes 7 is available now for $49.99. The game is rated T.
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This has been a momentous week for the creators of Wildstar. Yesterday marked the launch of the game's long-anticipated free-to-play update. As some may have expected, the update has brought in an influx of new and returning players. In fact, there were so many players coming in that there were reports (including from our own Chatty community) of server issues throughout the day. A problem, for sure, but one that also serves as an indicator of piqued interest.
So what will this massive update mean to the folks at NCSoft and Carbine Studios and, more importantly, what will the update mean to the Wildstar user base? Shacknews recently had an opportunity to sit down with creative director Chad Moore to discuss user feedback, the free-to-play update itself, and what the future holds for WildStar.
(Editor's note: The following interview was conducted on Tuesday, September 15, prior to the launch of WildStar's free-to-play update.)
Shacknews: What's been the feedback from WildStar's user base on the free-to-play update beta that's been going over the last month?
Chad Moore, Creative Director: It's been great, even when it hasn't been great. Even when players have been like, "Hey, there's certain things we don't like." That's what closed beta is all about. For us, we wanted to get some of these new changes and new updates for the game into players' hands, so we could make adjustments and continue that overall process that we've been in since the beginning of the year. So I think in many cases, it has been good, because all of the changes have been received very well, but even when those changes haven't necessarily been received very well, we have been able to make adjustments and improve the experience for everybody. I think that's the best part of CBT.
Shacknews: Specifically, what hasn't been received so well?
Moore: One of the things that we talked about is sprint. So we basically changed our sprint mechanic so that sprint was always on. But when players jumped in and experienced that, there was a lot of things where they said, "I don't know if I like it in this particular case," or "I just don't like not having the control." So we are currently in the process of giving players more control over the sprint mechanic that they'll be able to toggle. So you can either keep it the way we have it in the game now or you can toggle to the new control scheme.
Shacknews: I know that for WildStar, mobility is important for things like combat, so do you expect experienced players to keep that sprint mechanic the way it was?
Moore: They may. I think it'll depend on who you're talking about. Some old players or experienced players might say, "I like things the way it used to be, so I want to keep it that way." You'll get other players that say, "I kind of like the way this new thing works." And again, I think the important thing for us is giving players a choice. Whether they like it the old way or the new way, the important part is that they get to choose which one is best for their particular play style.
Shacknews: I know the closed beta was aimed mainly at current WildStar players, but that probably means they won't be looking at the new tutorial or the new Alpha Sanctum scenario. So what kind of feedback are you expecting from players?
Moore: I think to start out that discussion, I think it's important to note that we did invite all of our existing players and allowed them to sign up. We let those players into the beta in waves. We're almost at the point where all of those players have been invited to play.
The feedback about the new character creation, the new arkships, and what we call the 'New Players Experience,' which is really levels one to three and a little bit beyond that, has been received almost universally with enthusiasm. I think players really like character creation, in particular. They think it's way better than it used to be and I agree with that. We've got these videos up now explaining classes. Paths in our game is something that's unique to WildStar, so you might not necessarily know, "What does it mean to pick the Explorer?" Well, now we have videos showing you what kind of gameplay is associated with being an Explorer: jump puzzles, surveillance quests, and that kind of thing. It's just prettier from our standpoint, too. So overall, that's been really well-received.
The new arkships, which is our opening tutorial levels, we've really streamlined those, so you get through them faster. The stories are punchier. We've really tried to highlight the conflict between the Dominion and the Exiles, so that is the core thing as you're going into your adventure on Nexus. That's an important backdrop to set up and we really try to bring that to the forefront with the new arkship experiences. And then, overall, I think just the general quest flow, where objectives are located, kill counts, and all those things have been adjusted in those early levels to make the overall experience just a bit smoother. And players almost across the board have said that all of that together have made a way better and more compelling early game experience.
Shacknews: What changes are you observing in PvP circles with the new update?
Moore: It doesn't come as a surprise to anyone that we've had some challenges with our PvP community. I think the changes to how PvP gear works and the way that progression works, I think players are way happier with now. I think they are generally happy with the class changes that we've made, so the hope as we get closer to launch, is that a lot of those players that jumped from our PvP servers to our PvE servers will jump back with this new influx of players that are coming in. I think the systems that we have in place now are improved to the point that will keep more players engaged and more active on our PvP servers.
Shacknews: What's the next main focus for the WildStar team once the free-to-play update drops?
Moore: Well, we've talked already about two events that are coming after the launch. One is Shade's Eve, which is our first holiday event. It's the equivalent of Halloween in the WildStar universe. We've got the Hoverboard Z-Prix Invitational, which is a really fun event where we've set up hoverboard tracks in many of our zones around Nexus. Players can get rewards for doing those. We've got these big hoops that we're jumping through with giant jumps and speed boosts and, as you engage with that content, you will eventually be able to earn cool costumes. I think there's a new mount that we'll be releasing an image of as we get closer to the event.
Those kinds of events are the things that we're really trying to focus on once we get passed the transition. Big updates to the game, whether those are new dungeons, new zones, or new raids, are important, obviously. But I think holiday events and seasonal events, little one-off things, are the glue that holds all of that content together. That's obviously something we haven't been doing. A lot of those things got pushed to the backburner while we figured out how best to improve WildStar overall, but now that we're to that point, those are the kinds of things you're going to see in our game all the time.
Shacknews: Now that we're reaching the free-to-play update, what would you say is the biggest difference between WildStar now and what WildStar was on day one?
Moore: That's an easy one. On almost every front, we have focused on making our content accessible to the largest number of players. So you look at the addition of Veteran Shiphand missions. There was a lot of talk early on that, "Hey, I get to max level and there's nothing to do if I don't want to raid." Now you can run Veteran Shiphand missions.
We added the Contract system, which is also for max level players. This sends players to different pieces of content and rewards them for completing them, which keeps you engaged. There's a new series of Contracts everyday. That, again, was a way to make all that content on Nexus more accessible to players.
One of the big changes we made for the upcoming update is that our dungeon progression is a lot smoother than it was when we launched. We have Protogames Academy at level 10, and all the dungeons leading to the high level dungeons. We've tweaked the challenge level of those, so players get in, they learn the mechanics a little bit more, and they get some success, so that the further they get up the ramp, the more prepared they are to be successful.
I just think, overall, when I look back at what WildStar was when it first launched, there was a lot of great content in there. But a lot of it just was just inaccessible to players. They didn't know how to get to it. We didn't have a great "Looking for Group" tool. We didn't have the Holo Wardrobe, which we have now, which gets players into the costume system. We didn't have pets and collectibles. All those things that really make for a vibrant MMO experience, we have now put those into the game and I think they just make the WildStar experience better for everyone that plays.
WildStar is now free-to-play for everyone. For more information on the update, be sure to visit the WildStar website.
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Activision and Treyarch have released a new trailer for Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 that takes a look at the game’s story.
We already knew Black Ops 3 would continue the route Advanced Warfare took by looking into a dark and gritty future. In this future, a new breed of Black Ops soldier has emerged, blurring the lines between humanity and military technology. The protagonist in Black Ops 3 has a direct neural interface installed directly into his head, making his mind his greatest weapon.
There appears to be a lot of secrets to uncover in Black Ops 3. Unfortunately, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 owners won’t have the chance to uncover them as their version of the game will only feature both online multiplayer and Zombies game modes.
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At this point, fans should not be surprised that the latest update for Super Smash Bros. for Wii U and 3DS does not feature patch notes of any sort. If Nintendo hasn't done it the first, second, or third time around, why expect anything to change now?
So beyond getting a handful of new stages today, the Smash Bros. characters have received various balance tweaks. Once again, the dedicated Smash Bros. community has tirelessly worked to uncover just what exactly has changed. Consider these changes unofficial, but for now, here's what's different. These changes come courtesy of the devoted Smashboards community.
Last updated: 9/30 09:52AM PT
Bowser
Fireball (B) initial hit damage increased to 6% from 5%, initial hitbox base increased, initial hit duration increased to 20 frames from 15 frames, and overall weaker hit damage and size.
Neutral Air damage on hits increased to 6% from 5%.
Bowser Jr.
Air Cannon (B - Custom 3) ending reduced by 14 frames.
Captian Falcom
Wind-up Raptor Boost (Side B - Custom 3) damage incrased to 8/9% from 7/8%.
Charizard
Sinking Skull (Down B - Custom 2) ground damage increased to 12% from 10%, air damage increased to 10% from 9%; ending reduced by 5 frames.
Donkey Kong
Giant Punch (B) shield damage decreased to 0 from 2 (also applies to custom specials).
Headbutt (Side B) shield damage decreased to 25 from 30 (also applies to Stubborn Headbutt - Custom 3).
Dr. Mario
Clothesline Tornado (Down B - Custom 3) damage increased to 10/12% from 8%; sweetspot knockback adjusted.
Fox
Blaster (B) damage decreased to 1.5% from 2%
Ganondorf
Neutral Air second strike hitbox damage increased to 10% from 9%; growth increased to 120 from 100.
Ike
Smash Counter (Down B - Custom 3) growth decreased to 70 from 100; base upped to 90 from 48.
Tempest (B - Custom 2) uncharged damage increased to 5% from 1%, duration increased by 2 frames, ending reduced by 4 frames.
Tempest (B - Custom 2) charged duration increased by 2-3 frames, initial hitbox moved slightly backwards, ending on regular charge reduced by 4 frames, ending on max charge reduced by 2 frames.
Furious Eruption (B - Custom 3) uncharged sweet hitbox size upped to 8.5 from 7 and adjusted upwards, duration altered to 10 frames from 12 on first hitbox and to 15 frames from 12 on second hitbox.
Furious Eruption (B - Custom 3) charged sweet hitbox size upped to 10 from 9 and adjusted upwards, duration altered to 14 frames from 16 on first hitbox and to 19 frames from 16 on second hitbox.
Furious Eruption (B - Custom 3) maximum charged sweet hitbox size upped to 12.5 from 10 and adjusted upwards, sour hitbox size adjusted to 16 from 15 and adjusted upwards, duration altered to 14 frames from 16 on first hitbox and to 19 frames from 16 on second hitbox.
Hammer Bash (Side Special - Custom 2) aerial weight adjusted, hitbox priority lowered for sweet spot.
Link
Shocking Spin (Up B - Custom 2) hitbox damages increased by 1-2% across the board; new 14% hitbox added.
Little Mac
Stunning Straight Lunge (B - Custom 3) unchaged damage increased to 11% from 10%, charged growth increased to 70 from 60.
Lucario
Glancing Counter (Down B - Custom 2) hitbox angle altered to 65 degrees from 58 degrees, ending decreased by 7 frames.
Lucina/Marth
Shield Breaker (B) shield damage decreased to 25 from 30.
Luigi
Down throw base decreased to 55 from 75, growth increased to 83 from 30.
Down Air spike hitbox size inreased to 2.5 from 1.8.
Luigi Cyclone (Down B) initial hitbox lag modifier increased to 1.3 from 1.0, final hitbox growth upped to 130 from 120 and angle adjusted to 90 degrees from 89 degrees.
Down Smash growth increased to 80 from 85 on first strike and to 100 from 104 on second strike.
Fiery Jump Punch (Up B - Custom 2) hitboxes altered
Ice Slasher (Side B - Custom 2) ending decreased by 6 frames.
Meta Knight
Lazy Shuttle Loop (Up B - Custom 3) final hitbox size increased to 7.2 from 7.0 and duration increased by 2 frames.
Ness
PK Fire Burst (B - Custom 3) damage on hit increased by 1-2%; damage on trigger increased by 8-9%, hits sooner and closer.
Palutena
Lightweight (Down B - Custom 2) infinite renewal glitch with platforms removed.
Rosalina & Luma
Guardian Luma (Down B - Custom 3) ending decreased by 1 frame; Luma hitboxes adjusted.
Floaty Star Bit (Side B - Custom 2) ending decreased.
Jab damage on rapid loops increased to 2% from 1.7%.
Samus
Melee Charge Shot (B - Custom 3) max charge damage increased to 20% from 18% with various hitbox adjustments; partial charge damage increased to 6% from 5% with various hitbox adjustments.
Screw Attack (Up B) looping hitboxes, angle, and weight knockback altered.
Neutral Air hitbox sizes and sweet/sourspot frames adjusted.
Forward Air looping hits damage increased to 1.6% from 1%.
Shulk
Dash Vision (Down B - Custom 2) hitbox angle altered to 35 degrees from 32 degrees, growth increased to 84/94 from 89/99.
Toon Link
Sliding Spin Attack (Up B - Custom 2) grounded attack now has 6 hitboxes instead of 1 with higher growth, with existing hitbox damage increased to 11% from 10%.
In order to download and continue playing these titles, PlayStation owners need to be a PlayStation Plus member. So long as you’re a PS Plus member, you’ll be able to enjoy these titles, as well as previous releases, without any issues.
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Konami has revealed quite the major bug for the PlayStation 4 version of Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain, so if you play the game on that platform, you better keep reading.
In the opening alerts when starting up Metal Gear Solid 5, Konami has posted an alert for the PlayStation 4 version of the game. The bug affects consoles that have multiple PSN accounts on a single system that renders your save file unusable by displaying the following message: “This save data cannot be used, as the relevant downloadable content was not found.” Konami says users will find it impossible to resume from a save file if this message is display.
Konami is working on a fix for this bug, although it suggests those with a single PSN account connected to their PlayStation 4 should play Metal Gear Solid 5.
If you happen to share your PlayStation 4 with other members of your family or with friends, this could be quite a devastating bug to come across. Hopefully Konami can figure a fix out before too many save files are rendered useless from this bug.
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Bethesda Softworks has released a new trailer for Fallout 4 that takes a look at what makes each Vault Dweller S.P.E.C.I.A.L. We were previously introduced to Strength, Perception, and Endurance, and today, we take a look at Charisma.
Charisma will help Vault Dwellers in a number of ways, which includes the ability to barter with those in the Wasteland, talk your way out of possibly being murdered or other volatile situations, and keep you from accidentally becoming a raging alcoholic. Charisma can also help in charming animals, become a more loyal companion, and persuade others to do your bidding.
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Microsoft is in the middle of announcing new Xbox One bundles for this upcoming holiday season, and today’s appears to be the perfect option for families as The Lego Movie Videogame is getting its own bundle.
The Xbox One The Lego Movie Videogame Bundle features a 500GB Xbox One console, an Xbox One Wireless Controller with 3.5mm headset jack, and a copy of The Lego Movie Videogame for $349.
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Nintendo has announced Super Mario Maker has sold over one million units worldwide and revealed some other impressive statistics.
Super Mario Maker’s sales are based on Nintendo’s internal sales figures and includes standalone physical copies, digital sales, and bundled physical copies. In today’s announcement, Nintendo doesn’t go into detail as to how many sales the game earned in these specific categories, but it announced a total of 2.2 million Super Mario courses have been created, which combined, have been played close to 75 million times.
“For Mario fans around the world, including myself, Super Mario Maker was a dream 30 years in the making,” said Nintendo of America president and COO Reggie Fils-Aime. “The game has captured and unlocked the imaginations of gaming fans of all ages and brought their dedication to Nintendo to a whole new level.”
The Super Mario franchise has sold over 310 million units, and considering how much fun we’re having with Super Mario Maker, we’re sure that number will continue to increase this year.
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The Nvidia Shield Android TV has continued to grow since it first launched back in May. Its app support has grown considerably, almost reaching 900, with apps like Showtime Anytime expected to be supported soon. It is still the only set top box that supports media streaming at 4K, 60fps. Furthermore, the Tegra X1 boasts the most power of any system, even compared to the upcoming versions of Apple TV and Fire TV. Starting tomorrow, October 1st, the Shield Android TV will begin an all-new phase in its ongoing development in being the only set top box that streams high quality games the way Netflix streams movies.
There has been a 50% percent growth in Android games designed to take advantage of the Shield family's hardware, primarily ported from PC and consoles. As an added bonus, the October 1st system update will allow Android games to be upscaled to 4K, even if they weren't originally designed to support that resolution. Results may vary from game to game, but players should see crisper graphics in most cases.
The set top box will also see a bigger retail presence in stores like Best Buy, Fry's Electronics, and Micro Center. Perhaps most interestingly, Nvidia has entered into a partnership with Google Fiber, and customers in cities that support it can pick up an Shield Android TV systems at Google Fiber stores or add it to their carts when they purchase a subscription.
However, the biggest news to come out tomorrow will be official launch of the cloud-based video game streaming service, GeForce Now - formerly known as Nvidia Grid. The Grid service was used as a test bed to gather usage data, and GeForce Now represents the final results from all that testing.
Even with the growin availability of broadband, streaming is steadily changing the way we consume media, and Nvidia wants to fill the need for video games. Instead of waiting hours for a game to download and install, players can simply launch a game stream in 30 seconds without hassle. That means no driver updates, optimizing performance, troubleshooting or worrying about hard drive space. Players simply start the game and get the best experience possible.
The Shield Android TV already supports voice search for entertainment like movies, and GeForce Now will expand its capabilities to support game searches. Those who own the Shield Remote can use its voice search functionality to find the games that they want to play. For example, doing a search for Lego or Batman will bring up all related games. Additionally, the revamped interface will make it easy to see the most recently played, most popular, and featured games. There will also be parental controls so that GeForce Now will be kid safe.
Nvidia promises to upgrade its hardware and servers every year to provide the best performance and power possible. GeForce Now games also offer an opportunity for players to experience the Nvidia Gameworks features like PhysX at their highest settings without having to invest in a high end video card.
Users will have to pay a membership fee, but a GeForce Now subscription will include up to 50 games to play immediately, with more expected to come. These are generally older games like Saints Row The Third and Batman Arkham Asylum, which will eventually be rotated out according to age and popularity, but subscribers will be able to play them without limitations. However, the big news is the introduction of a new games store, where subscribers can purchase more recent games, like The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, to stream and play. The store will start with 10 games, with the goal of eventually including day 1 releases of the latest games. Prices will be comparable to other digital stores like Steam and GOG, but the most exciting aspect is that most of the game will include a retail key for the full downloadable version. So, players won't always be limited to streaming their games. Retail keys are limited to publisher participation.
A GeForce Now subscription will cost $7.99 a month, with the first 3 months of service free, and users can cancel at any time. The service officially launches on October 1, 2015 and is exclusive to Nvidia Shield devices like the Shield Android TV.
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Camel 101 and Bigmoon Studios have announced a new survival-horror game is currently in development called Syndrome.
Syndrome is an attempt to revitalize the first-person survival horror genre by taking things back to its roots. Players wake up on a spaceship from a deep cryosleep to search for the rest of the crew. Upon searching, we learn that most of the crew is dead, and whoever is still alive, is changed.
Players will have a few weapons to help defend themselves as they make their way through the ship, but unfortunately, there just isn’t enough ammunition to deal with all of the threats you’ll come across. We’ll need to hide and manage our resources if we want to survive this ordeal, as well as learn the enemy's’ behavior.
Syndrome is scheduled to release in Q2 2016 on PC, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Mac, and Linux. The game will also support Oculus Rift.
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A few weeks ago, Nintendo unveiled a new stage for Super Smash Bros. for Wii U and 3DS based on this months's major release, Super Mario Maker. The time for that stage's release has arrived, but that's not all that Nintendo is releasing for the fighter today. There are also some other new stages that are now available on the Wii U and 3DS eShops, as well as some new costumes for the game's Mii Fighters.
Wii U owners will see another vintage stage hit the rotation today. Super Smash Bros. Brawl players will recognize the Pirate Ship stage from The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. This stage puts players aboard the familiar pirate vessel from the GameCube (or Wii U re-release, if you'd prefer to think in those terms) installment of the series, as they duke it out along the high seas. This stage will cost $1.99.
Meanwhile, 3DS owners are getting a more current stage. The Duck Hunt stage from the Wii U version of Super Smash Bros. will now make its 3DS debut. This, of course, is the stage that sees fighters go at it while a vintage game of Duck Hunt unfolds in the background. This stage is now available at no extra charge.
But the main event, of course, is the Super Mario Maker stage, which sees a custom Super Mario Maker course constructed prior to each fight. This leads to completely different layouts for each session, with different Mario game styles utilized. And if anything gets broken, look for a helpful hand to reconstruct any missing pieces. This stage is available for $2.49 for one platform and $3.49 for both Wii U and 3DS.
Finally, there are some new Mii Fighter costumes available, which can be seen in the video below. The prices for these new trinkets vary.
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Spoilers for Scream Queens Episode 3, "Chainsaw," are below.
Everyone's a suspect as Scream Queens returns with its third episode, and as its title promises, there was plenty of chainsaw action.
While I would argue Scream Queens' self-awareness is one of its best strengths -- it is a satire and commentary on slasher flicks, after all -- that focus on the characters trying to confront the Red Devil killer in Episode 3 actually caused it to drag. There still are some standout moments of comedy, but this week's episode felt bogged down by the need to respond to questions the audience would be asking by this point, like "who is the killer?"
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Better tuck that skin on your back and choke down those chicken bones, because this episode of The Bastard Executioner finally proved to us that this is a show worth checking out.
Following three episodes of story that focused on the weird, surreal relationship between Wilkin and Annora of the Alders, the story finally pulled back from the witchcraft stuff. OK, so maybe there was a teeny little warning about death etc., but I'm on board with that if it means Katey Sagal is used sparingly -- as she should be with this role.
With the witchy stuff out of the way, that left plenty of time to focus on some of the early standouts of the show, namely Milus, Lady Love and of course, our leading lad Wilkin. For Lady Love, that meant visiting a very young version of King Edward II, one who was much more interested in sporting than ruling his people (as most young royal people tend to be on television). Watching her attempt to be the bigger person, first by not eating any of the spread that was set in front of her, and then by rejecting the advances from the King's advisor, she brought forward a lot of the show's issues around women trying to make it by in a man's world. With the advisor not wanting to play fair and deciding to divvy up Ventrishire, she had little choice but to claim there was an heir in that beetle belly of hers. Now of course all she has to do is find an heir. Odds on her trying to seduce Wilkin? Pretty darned good.
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Warning: Full spoilers from the episode follow.
Not to sound hyperbolic, but Limitless's second episode was easily my favorite episode of a new series I've watched this fall. Admittedly, I was a little hesitant after watching the pilot. I thought it was good, but a lot of the first hour felt like a retread of the movie to me, and the promise of case-of-the-week storylines didn't sound very inciting. So my expectations were low going into episode two, and I certainly didn't think I would like it as much as the first installment.
Thankfully, I was wrong! Not only was "Badge! Gun!" more enjoyable than the pilot, but it was actually kind of hilarious. While the premiere tapped mostly into the movie's action-drama sensibilities, this week's episode fully embraced the fun that comes along with being the smartest guy in the world. (It was almost Chuck-like in that respect, with plenty of upbeat musical cues to keep things light.) Part of that, I think, stems from the fact that Brian is more of a goofball than Eddie ever was. But also, Brian seems to have more of a conscience and a real drive to do good -- especially when it comes to his family -- which makes him easier to root for. Plus, Jake McDorman is just a funny dude. Some of his one-liners killed.
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Full spoilers for the episode follow.
SHIELD is an ever-evolving show and Season 3’s premiere found it, more than ever, truly becoming something some fans have wanted since the start – a show about superheroes, not simply a show set in a world where superheroes exist.
I never had an issue with SHIELD being about normal people in the Marvel Universe, but obviously the show had plenty of early issues to deal with above and beyond that and perhaps that “Why are we spending time with these guys?” aspect some dwelled on became a symbol for the issues those making the show wanted to move beyond. Regardless, as the story and pacing problems were dealt with, Season 2 also began to offer more, well, “Marvel-y” aspects, especially with the introduction of Inhumans and the revelation Skye Daisy was one of them.
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I wouldn't say that the second episode of ABC's The Muppets was a vast improvement over the first, but I will say that the show seems to be quickly finding its groove as it pertains to celebrity guests portraying heightened parodies of themselves. Whether the roles are big or small (this week, Josh Groban "hogged" a lot of the spotlight as Miss Piggy's new highly influential boyfriend), the series has a good handle on how to bring in stars and feature them in funny ways. In fact, my favorite part of "Hostile Makeover" was probably Laurence Fishburne's drive-by "your show sucks!" harassment of Kermit. Which I'm still sort of giggling about.
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Defense wins championships, and the improvements to AI defenses in NBA 2K16 bring this year’s iteration of the long-running basketball sim another title. Due to some big AI upgrades, the offensive tactics that I had been accustomed to using simply no longer work, so I was forced to think like a coach and constantly adapt. Running pick and rolls and calling plays finally felt like it was necessary, as opposed to a tougher option I had to enforce on myself. NBA 2K16 is a great representation of the sport of basketball, and it plays like a dream – both online and off.
Not that it was suffering visually before, but NBA 2K16 looks better than ever. The player models are upgraded with new, more detailed body scans, and that has a profound effect on the overall experience. Faces, hair styles, body types, and even wingspans are true to life, but the wide variety of new signature animations bring it all together. In fact, the presentation in general has received a lot of love this year, and brand new game-opening sequences, from team introductions to the national anthem, did a good job of distracting me from the lengthy load times.
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Shacknews talks with Lawrence Metten, Halo 5: Guardians Senior Multiplayer Designer at 343 Industries to go in-depth on Warzone, Breakout, Slayer and more.
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If you've ever wondered what it would be like to experience the world of Mass Effect in real life, then you're in luck. Great America of California and Electronic Arts are collaborating on a brand new attraction based on the Mass Effect series to feature in its Action Theater.
It's not clear yet if the ride will feature an adventure created by BioWare specifically for Great America that pulls from the Mass Effect trilogy or the upcoming Mass Effect: Andromeda. But the Action Theater attraction will make use of motion-based seating and 3D to thrill and chill visitors. There'll even be a live performer on deck to narrate and interact with parkgoers as well as 4D effects (possibly blasts of air, vibrating chairs, etc.) to simulate a tale where guests are traveling to a distant planet to help "save the day," Mass Effect-style.
This is the very same type of attraction you've likely seen and even taken part in before if you've visited a Six Flags location or Kings Island during Halloween with special seasonal shows or even Looney Tunes-themed rides. It'll be different with a shiny new Mass Effect veneer, however, and it sounds pretty exciting. Imagine taking on the Reapers as you sit back and relax and are tossed around in big leather seats.
The ride will be opening next year, so that's totally plenty of time for you to save up for a trip to California by 2016 if you're an extremely enthusiastic Mass Effect fan.
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Perhaps because the series is based on collectible toys, or maybe because the franchise uses original creations that affords some creative freedom, Skylanders has had unusual success coming up with unique gimmicks year after year. This year's iteration, Skylanders: Superchargers, feels less like a breath of creative fresh air than recent years, but the implementation of the new vehicle mechanic is so well-done it gets a pass for that simplicity.
Taking the Wheel
The eponymous Superchargers are yet another elite team of Skylanders. One has to wonder just how many teams the Skylanders have, since they're starting to rival G.I. Joe for absurd levels of specialization. At any rate, this particular strike force are vehicle specialists, called in to bring down a machine called the Sky Eater that threatens to destroy Skylands as well as cut off the Portal Master (that's you) from the Skylanders themselves.
In practical terms, this means each stage contains at least one section devoted to each of the three vehicle types: land, sea, and air. Only land is required to complete a stage, since it's included in the Starter Pack, but completing the sea and air objectives can subtly change other elements in an area.
The focus on vehicles is a roundabout way of fixing one chief criticism of the series. Skylanders has always been about selling toys, with power tokens serving as commercials for action figures and areas gated behind particular elements. There have been eight elements throughout the series, with two more (Light and Dark) added as downloadable content last year, meaning players have needed at least ten toys to see all the content.
Superchargers changes that. By only locking content behind vehicle types, and including one of the three in the pack, you could easily get a sea and air vehicle of your choice and access all the stage content. Special challenges still await for elemental types, and vehicles get "Supercharged" when matched with their appropriate driver, so it certainly still has those hooks. Still, less content gating makes this the most consumer-friendly version yet.
All Wet
The vehicle segments themselves were sometimes standout, but occasionally forgettable. The sheer mass of them--I made sure to do all of them in every stage--meant they tended to blend together. The sea vehicle segments in particular were consistently rather dull. Land vehicles were better, since it felt like a competent kart racing game, but since they doubled as race tracks the roads felt too wide to present a real challenge. Air portions were by-and-large my favorite, alternating between rail shooter and full-range areas that at their best felt reminiscent of Nintendo's Star Fox series.
It also houses a large series of races against A.I. opponents or friends, with your own customized Supercharger vehicle and weapons to bring down the thunder as you race around the tracks. These add some longevity to what is already a lengthy campaign, and even after you finish the story Superchargers offers new daily quests and tons of collectibles. As a series built for kids who ravenously consume games and plumb every nook and cranny, it finds some ways to keep them busy for a while.
The emphasis on vehicles does mean the traditional loot-driven platforming takes more of a back seat in Superchargers. If you take on all three or more vehicle challenges in a stage, your total time on-foot is probably roughly half. It's just as mechanically sound as ever, and the character designs themselves are a notable step up from last year's Trap Team, but there's proportionally less of it.
That's not to say it doesn't have its share of inspired level design though. One uses a painterly style to create unique side-scrolling platforming and overhead shoot-em-up stages, appropriately enough while the Skylanders are researching ancient history. Another uses a magnet mechanic to push or pull everything in a stage--including enemies. Juggling your moves while also swapping between polarities was a tricky twist on the usual combat.
For the first time in the series, I started to feel Skylanders creaking under the weight of its yearly iteration. At this point the series is so chock full of different mechanics, and the team is so beholden to include some form of backward compatibility, that it had to make a compromise. I unexpectedly loved the Trap Team mechanic, which let you keep defeated bosses in small stones and summon them at will. Superchargers relegates all those trapped villains to special ammo for your vehicles and a Skystone for its card-based minigame. It's a minor concession, but it makes me wonder if future iterations will similarly have to pick-and-choose which older mechanics they utilize.
King of the Koopas
I also experimented with the Wii U version, which is content identical to the PlayStation 4 version except for the inclusion of special Nintendo-themed Amiibo-Skylanders. These are awfully clever, with a small switch on the base that swaps them from one proprietary NFC toy to the other. However, Skylanders have never looked as good as Amiibo, and these are obviously worse-looking than Nintendo's toys. Not to mention, the Wii U version has a noticeable drop in graphical quality overall, so fans who don't care about playing as Bowser or Donkey Kong will want to spring for the more powerful console versions.
Finish Line
Vehicles certainly aren't the most inventive toy tie-in the series has ever seen. In fact, outside of the sub-par Giants iteration, it's perhaps the least creative idea we've seen introduced since the Skylanders series. However, there's something to be said for implementation, and between the well-designed races and more consumer-friendly gating, the machines are a strong addition. Skylanders: Superchargers didn't impress me with ingenuity like Swap Force or surprise me like Trap Team, but it's a solid series entry regardless.
This review is based on retail PlayStation 4 and Wii U copies, along with several figures, provided by the publisher. Skylanders: Superchargers is available now, for $74.99. Individual vehicles are priced at $14.99, and figures are priced at $12.99. The game is rated ESRB.
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There came a moment when Marty McFly, Chell from Portal, and The Wicked Witch of the West were all fighting a giant robotic Joker atop a building in Springfield when I stopped and wondered just what the heck was going on. But then again, I was having a complete blast watching it all happen.
LEGO Dimensions is developer Traveler’s Tales first foray into the toys-to-life genre, which is a natural fit for its virtual versions of physical LEGO. While the gameplay itself is still relatively simplistic, the personality that runs through each and every world is the reason to stick around.
This is the kitchen sink approach: throughout the 10-hour campaign, you’ll bounce from the settings of classic movies like Back to the Future and beloved comics like Batman to amazing games like Portal. Like in the charming LEGO Movie, these collisions are fun, creative, and rife with hilarious, idiosyncratic interactions. Small moments, like how Homer Simpson is so very confused at the fact that Scooby-Doo is a talking dog, are Dimensions’ greatest strength.
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Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5 released today, but it appears the game may need some more time practicing its grinds and ollies as there are many reports claiming the game is very buggy.
We first heard of the buggy release from Eurogamer as it published a video highlight many of the game’s issues, which includes falling through walls, having parts of the skater’s body stuck in various objects, and the occasional falling off of the skateboard when the skater doesn’t come into contact with anything.
We decided to check Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5 for ourselves and while we didn’t run into as many bugs as Eurogamer did, we did notice some issues from the get go as the Activision logo was extremely laggy when we first started playing the game. We also ran into several connection issues that would cause skaters to randomly disappear from Freeskate mode, the inability to start an activity, and we found ourselves stuck in a wall or two.
We've also heard from a number of sources that without today's patch, the game was completely unplayable. Those who played the game prior to the patch release were only able play tutorial mode and create their own skate park. Accessing anything outside of those two options would cause the game to crash.
We’ve reached out to Activision to see if it has any updates regarding the bugs included in Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5. We will update this story accordingly when we hear back from the company.
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With a stellar cast and an engaging premise, Code Black is addictive from the very beginning. The new CBS drama, debuting this Wednesday, is a fictional adaptation of Ryan McGarry's documentary of the same name, which tells the story of a group of doctors working in the emergency room of the real-life LA County Hospital.
The TV series is set in the same hospital, where the amount of patients being admitted sometimes outnumbers the resources needed to care for them. That situation is called Code Black and, predictably, the show has one in its pilot. But if there are story moments that are expected, none of them feel rote. The fast-paced storytelling required to create a world where it only takes seconds to lose a life allows Code Black to make every moment of its pilot count.
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The Persona series has taken steps out of its RPG comfort zone before. In recent years, the Investigation Team stepped into the fighting arena and dungeon crawling realms. So the idea of a Persona rhythm game doesn't sound absurd in the least. After all, the Persona games have some upbeat songs and a colorful enough atmosphere to sustain such an idea.
And sure enough, Persona 4: Dancing All Night works pretty well by taking these well-known characters and placing them into a different type of supernatural tale that plausibly fits into their world. They're still the Investigation Team that people have come to recognize, but Dancing All Night feels like a different kind of episode of their strange adventures. And given the Story Mode's presentation, it certainly feels like a full blend of a visual novel and a rhythm game that comes together to deliver a memorably catchy experience.
Express Yourself
The story centers around pop star Rise Kujikawa, who's helping prep her friends for an upcoming stage performance. The main pop act, a new group known as Kanamin Kitchen, stumbles onto a cursed video that's plastered onto the event website, like a sinister twist on the old plot of the 2002 film, The Ring. When the members start vanishing, it's up to the Investigation Team to get to the bottom of what's happening.
Over the course of the story, the Investigation Team will hit the mysterious Midnight Stage, a strange world that does not run on violence, meaning Personas cannot fight here. So what does that leave the player with? The power of dance and self-expression. It's remarkable to see what Atlus has pulled off, taking what looks like a laughable premise on the surface and crafting a narrative that actually makes total sense of it in a logical fashion. Without spoiling the major plot points, the idea is indeed to learn to let it all hang loose and dance like no one's watching.
Of course, the trouble here is that the Story Mode tends to drag an awful lot. While the game will automatically save at points, those looking to complete an entire chapter in one sitting will often be sitting for longer than an hour, between text, transitions, loading, cutaways, and (eventually) the gameplay itself. While the dialogue can be sped up, it can still be a slog to sit through.
Dance Lessons
So how do the rhythm mechanics actually feel? For Vita owners, they should feel remarkably simple to grasp, with the main idea to hit the notes in rhythm with either the Up, Left, Down, Triangle, Circle, or X buttons. There are several note types that require players to tap or hold a button, as well as ones that require simultaneous button presses. On lower difficulties, it's an easy idea to grasp, but going to anything harder requires players to also flick the analog stick whenever a solid ring reverberates towards the circular note bar. That can be a lot tougher, since this doesn't feel very intuitive, making it easy to miss these notes. Add in the lower margin of error and the added intensity of the notes and the degree of difficulty between the Normal and Hard can be a little too much for some players.
This is also a rare instance where the beauty of Persona's art style works against it. With the notes laid out at the edge of the screen, it means all the action is happening at the dead center of the screen. It's easy to get distracted by the moves right in front of you, making it so that notes just fly off the screen completely unseen. This can be brutal in harder difficulties and the challenge of avoiding the on-screen show only gets harder upon hitting a Fever state. Hitting enough notes launches a Fever sequence that has a character's dance partner hit the stage for a duet. This is a cool idea and it's hard not to get jazzed by Chie dancing with Yosuke, but it can ultimately become a distraction.
Worse yet, PlayStation TV owners have the added difficulty of HDTV lag to work against. Input lag is murder in a precision game like this and it can get immensely frustrating to overcome. That's a shame, given that Persona's gorgeous art style is something that just begs to be seen on a larger screen.
Encore
Even with a few missteps, the presentation for Persona 4: Dancing All Night is as colorful as it gets and a beauty to behold. The anime art style remains crisp and if there's anything better than seeing the Persona characters in prime form, it's watching them get their groove on. Ultimately, a rhythm game like this is only as strong as its soundtrack, but fortunately for Atlus, there are some truly enjoyable tracks to be found, including a few remixes of some old favorites. All of those earworms can easily be accessed through Free Dance mode, which is good for anyone that just wants a few quick sessions aboard a plane or in line at an amusement park.
It's not the greatest concert you'll ever witness, but Persona 4: Dancing All Night gives a solid performance, one that does its catchy soundtrack proud.
This review is based on a PlayStation Vita code provided by the publisher. Persona 4: Dancing All Night is available across retailers and on the PlayStation Store on September 29, for $49.99. The game is rated T.
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It's been almost a full year and a half since Obsidian Entertainment and publisher My.com announced their entry into the free-to-play tank-busting world, but Armored Warfare continues to inch closer to release. And now, the free-to-play multiplayer game is about to enter its open beta stage.
The open beta will debut over 60 different tank varieties across several categories. Players will be able to roll those tanks onto nine PvP maps, which include environments like desert refineries, a forest airbase, a tropical island, and a snowy tundra. Players can also jump into online co-op to take on 25 different PvE maps, which will also provide the same types of progression rewards as PvP.
Look for content updates to hit the open beta as it goes on. The Armored Warfare open beta is set to kick off on October 8. As for those that have purchased a Founder's Pack through the Armored Warfare website, they'll get open beta access early. Their open beta will kick off this Thursday, October 1. For more, check out the trailer below.
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