Commander Fury

Hey everybody! Our next episode is Birds of Prey, and it launches on April 16. Plus, the event versions of the whole episode will be available free to all players level 15+ for a limited time. Whether you are just starting the game or already an expert, you will be able to jump in and experience the new story and content right away. New Episode: Birds of Prey The Birds of Prey has always been a strong, female-led team of kickass Super Heroes. Generally lacking the more convenient Superpowers like invulnerability or super strength or flight, the team relies on their martial skills, intelligence, and can’t-stop-us attitude to get the job done together. Following tech-guru and genius-hacker Oracle (Barbara Gordon, previously Batgirl), their diverse strengths come together with an unshakable moral compass to save the day. Our story begins in the formative stage of this team. Black Canary, Harley Quinn, The Huntress, and Poison Ivy know of each other, and every hero knows and works regularly with Oracle, but they haven’t become the supergroup they are destined to be. They haven’t needed to – at least until now. In Metropolis, an increasingly unhinged Lex Luthor has just risen to new heights of insanity. He has blown up his own LexCorp Tower, causing the citizens of Metropolis to go berserk and plunging Metropolis into panic. And to get to the bottom of it, the world needs a new team. A New Team Throughout the episode, whether you have chosen to be a Super Hero or Supervillain, you will bump into Black Canary, Harley Quinn, The Huntress, and Poison Ivy as you too scramble to assist Oracle. Just as they are figuring out how to trust each other and work as a team, so will you, which means you will end up working with and fighting against these powerful characters along the way. Black Canary is perhaps Oracle’s oldest friend and confidant, taking to the streets to fight crime with her exceptional skills in martial arts and her legendary Canary Cry. Her scream can render enemies hurt or even unconscious in a single breath. Lately her off-work endeavors have seen her using her singing voice in a less menacing way, and her new style reflects that. The Huntress is another core member of the team traditionally, and she has grown tremendously under Oracle’s guidance. Previously singularly focused on violent revenge, working with a team for an even greater good is unlocking even more potential as a Superhero. Her new style still reflects her darker past fighting the Gotham City mob, but with a new focus on adaptability. Harley Quinn is a newer addition to the team. Finding herself and stepping out of Joker’s incredibly unhealthy shadow and influence, she is still a bit of a loose cannon (or giant mallet). But Oracle’s patience is honed by years of personal sacrifice, with which she can relate to Harley. Harley’s… let’s say creativity… is already hugely benefiting this new partnership, and her new style reflects that confidence. Poison Ivy is an on-again off-again Supervillain who is motivated almost entirely to protect the natural world she exists in. Oracle has recognized that noble intent, despite Ivy’s sometimes cruel actions, and has worked to harness Ivy’s drive to save the planet for the greater good. Her perspective and powers amplify the team’s potential in battle, as long as she can stay in control. Her new costume is a statement, that she and the natural world will not be destroyed by careless thugs or the petty agendas of Supervillains who would ignore or pretend the threat is not real. Get Started You won’t want to miss this episode, so download and play DCUO today for free. The game is free to play, the event versions of Birds of Prey are free for months, and you don’t even have to have PlayStation Plus. All you have to do is: Download DCUO from PlayStation Store. Create your own unique Super Hero or Supervillain, with special powers and a look all your own. Start playing. It’s a great time to get into or back into the game, because all episodes are also free-to-access with Open Episodes and bonus events up to the launch of Birds of Prey on April 16. Come join the team! View the full article

Assemble your Mobile Suits and prepare to dive into the battlefield in our new game mode: Battle Simulator! While this mode delivers a new option for solo play, you also have the freedom to interact with up to two other friends in co-op. We won’t leave you behind, so to get you ready for battle, we’ve put together some notes. Co-op Play: Select NPCs or friends to be on your team Fight for survival as a team of three and fulfill missions Battle Simulator Missions Trial Sortie with specially selected Mobile Suits and destroy your target! Play and test your skills with pre-selected Mobile Suits in “Trial” mode even if you don’t own them, just try them out! Defeat the targeted MS to complete the mission. Survival Challenge yourself to defeat hordes of enemies! Show off your skills by defeating enemies in the fastest record clear time! Enemies will gradually multiply and become stronger, so bring your A-game (and choose your friends wisely). Survival of the strongest! Boss Defeat special foes — and a big bad boss! Fight special enemies like the Psycho Gundam and its companions! Annihilate the Boss to succeed and earn rewards. So there you have it, pilots! With the new Battle Simulator game mode, we’re sure you’ll have a blast in your fight for justice! Suit up — the fate of the Gundam universe depends on you tomorrow. View the full article

When Dandara launched on PS4 two years ago, we were elated to finally share it with the world. After the launch, the huge reception to the game felt magical and we were just floored by it. Something about Dandara and the world of Salt spoke to people and it amazed us. Alongside this mind-blowing reception, we also received a lot of incredibly positive feedback. And we also got a fair amount of constructive criticism, some of it aligned with what we were already feeling and other bits were of things that never occurred to us. Since then, we’ve been tinkering on Dandara implementing some of this into our ultimate version of the game which we’re calling Dandara: Trials of Fear Edition. When we started to think about how to continue developing and improving Dandara, our first thought was about the cuts we had to make before shipping the original version — every game has some sort of compromise it needs in order to launch — and the most interesting one was, by far, the secret ending we had originally planned. Our vision for this true path was a little too ambitious and we, unfortunately, had to keep it out in order to launch a quality game. We started jotting down ideas about how we would include it in the existing base game but in an interesting way. Based on ideas that came to us from the community themselves, we thought that Trials of Fear could be not only about awesome new content but also address some of that feedback we received. One of the most asked topics was the narrative itself, lots of people wanted to see more from the Salt and its inhabitants. We promise that the Trials of Fear Edition now delivers on this! The original content in Dandara has got some buffed-up descriptions and more detailed conversations that weren’t included in the vanilla edition, and it lines up really well with the new content present in Trials of Fear. When creating Dandara the first time, we inserted a lot of references to our Brazilian culture (and these are, of course, still in here) and with Trials of Fear, you could think of it as us inserting the community into Dandara. Take a look, you may find something you suggested! On the art side of the game, you can see how much the artists evolved as they continued development after Dandara launched. The new music tracks, sound effects, and píxel art featured are on another level. Thommaz, the composer for Dandara, even went so far as to remaster all the original tracks as well! If you’ve experienced Dandara before, we encourage you to dive back in for another playthrough because the new content and extra details to the story really make it shine again. Plus, we reworked its difficulty curve, and the new content intertwines with the original path in a way that things can play a lot differently this time. If you’ve yet to experience the world of Salt, now is a perfect time. Dandara’s actions will not be forgotten! And we will not forget the passion of you the players, that led to us creating this new edition. View the full article

Dogurai was initially made for a Game Boy themed game jam in 2014. Heavily inspired by platforming classics and videogame mascots from the 90s, the game was born of the simple idea of a samurai dog fighting robots. At first we were uncertain if we wanted to actually finish the game, so we left it untouched for about two years. After taking it to a local indie games event though, and seeing the positive response, we decided that Dogurai would be our first commercial release. One of the biggest challenges making it was our own lack of experience. We already had some certain familiarity with game jam, but the difference between quickly prototyping something and actually finishing a game, with lots of stages, mechanics and boss fights is huge! The development process was very iterative. Each stage was made and remade some times, as we figured and refined each one’s own identity and feel, as well as adjusting the game’s general difficulty level. We wanted it a bit challenging, but definitely not impossible, and taking the game to lots of local events and letting a lot of people playtest it was key. From motorbike rides to running away from a giant lava wall, the game has eight distinct stages, each with its own challenges. Different and challenging bossfights. No boss is like any other! Crispy pixel art and catchy tunes, all wrapped up in solid platforming action. Dogs. Swords. Robots. Developing Dogurai was a blast, and I’m super proud of the end result! Just hope you have fun with our game too! View the full article

Hi there! We’re Maschinen-Mensch, a small indie studio from Berlin. Curious Expedition, our roguelike simulation game set in the 19th century is arriving on PS4 on March 31, and we’re thrilled to see the adventures you’ll soon be experiencing. When you start the game, you can choose from seven different explorers, and you’ll be able to unlock more as you play: these are all based on real historical figures. Selecting your explorer is important, and depends on your strategy. Here’s some of our favourite characters. Ada Lovelace was a British mathematician and writer known for her work on Babbage’s early mechanical general-purpose computer, the Analytical Engine. She is often regarded as the first computer programmer. In the game, Ada Lovelace is a completionist-strategy explorer. Her British Soldier companion is a great source of sanity from combat, and the party’s well-rounded dice allow for decent combos. She also starts with the Abacus item, which helps reveal nearby stone circles and statues. Howard Phillips Lovecraft was an American author who achieved posthumous fame through his influential works in horror fiction. In Curious Expedition he’s a unique and formidable explorer. Though his max sanity level is quite low, his starting companions and pistol are ideal for a hunting strategy. Lovecraft is the only explorer that starts out with the Necronomicon item: his character has a greater probability of getting positive outcomes (like portals and tome pages) from using the book. Harriet Tubman was an African-American abolitionist, humanitarian, and — during the American Civil War — a Union spy. Born into slavery, Tubman escaped and subsequently made some thirteen missions to rescue approximately seventy enslaved family and friends. We recommend using this character in the game if you want to go for a pacifist strategy. She comes equipped with an overwhelming amount of climbing gear and fireworks, both of which can be used to escape/avoid enemies. Her Dreams Visions perk helps reveal distant locations, easing map exploration. These are just three of the many available characters in Curious Expedition. There’s one for every play type, and no matter who you choose, prepare to test the limits of your explorer in search of great fame… now go explore, adventure awaits! View the full article

Playing videogames enables players all over the world to connect with friends and family and enjoy much needed entertainment during these uncertain times. Sony Interactive Entertainment is working with internet service providers in Europe to manage download traffic to help preserve access for the entire internet community. We believe it is important to do our part to address internet stability concerns as an unprecedented number of people are practicing social distancing and are becoming more reliant on internet access. Players may experience somewhat slower or delayed game downloads but will still enjoy robust gameplay. We appreciate the support and understanding from our community, and their doing their part, as we take these measures in an effort to preserve access for everyone. View the full article

I hope you are sharpening your hunting skills for the upcoming Predator: Hunting Grounds Trial Weekend starting March 27. Here at IllFonic, we wanted to give you a preview of what you can expect this weekend where you will get to immerse yourself into the Predator universe as either the Predator or a member of an elite 4-person Fireteam. Each with their own set of weapons, abilities and tactics to survive. Whether you’re playing on your PS4 or PC during the trial this weekend, you will be spending time in one of our multiple maps, called Overgrowth. Concept Art The Map Nestled deep in the South American mountains lies Overgrowth. As you enter the map you will feel the claustrophobic environment of the dense jungle. It will make you feel a bit lost as you try to make your way on the jungle ground or up in the trees, depending which character you are playing as. This hot, remote jungle location harbors a significant presence of hostile guerrilla forces and operatives from the rogue Project Stargazer, a former government program now attempting to gain financially from discovering alien tech. Both Fireteam and Predator players will have to contend against these dangerous enemies while facing each other. The occupation of this hidden valley has uncovered a wealth of hidden ancient ruins surrounding a winding river. Something about this location seems to allow temperatures to climb higher than just about anywhere else in these mountains… a perfect place for the Predator to hunt. Team up against the Predator If you choose to play as a member of the Fireteam, know this isn’t your average group of soldiers. This group is elite and extremely deadly. While taking on the Predator one on one is very difficult, as a group you can work together to turn the tables on the hunter, or to complete the mission and escape. Each time you enter the jungle, one of a number of missions is randomly selected to present a constantly shifting gameplay experience. Each mission consists of multiple smaller objectives that must be completed in order to get to the chopper. In one mission, you and your team are asked to cut off fuel to the local guerrillas, who are buying massive fuel shipments from an elusive black market contact. You’re being sent in to find the fuel stores and destroy them, disrupting operations in the area for the foreseeable future. Once the fuel has been dealt with, you will need to find the black market operative and take them off the board. In addition to this mission, and hunting the Predator if you choose, you could be asked to accomplish multiple other random missions like sabotage an expensive solar array in enemy camps, destroy dangerous weapon stores, set fire to narcotics, clean up contaminated water sources, and many more. There are four Fireteam classes in Predator: Hunting Grounds, and during this trial weekend we will be showcasing three: Assault, Scout and Support. The Assault class is a well-rounded specialist with an affinity for leading the mission. If staying light on your feet is important, choose Scout, a quick, agile soldier that can cover the combat areas at great speed. Lastly, you can choose to play as Support, this is the Fireteam member they call in to really soak up the damage with their extra health and damage resistance. In addition to choosing your Fireteam class, you can choose from a wide range of weapons providing different tactical options. During the trial weekend, you can choose from a selection from each weapon type category, eg. shotgun, assault rifle, sniper, etc. As you level up weapons in-game you will be able to unlock upgrades like scopes, magazines, and suppressors to improve their efficiency. While you are playing over the trial weekend, keep in mind that as a member of the Fireteam there are perks, med kits, ammo bags, and other tools available to you. These tools will prove useful while in the midst of battles with the enemy AI forces, and the Predator who is somewhere hunting you! Hunt as the Predator Now, if you decide you want to jump into the jungle as the Predator, there is a lot happening for you in-game as well. You are the hunter, but do not forget you can be hunted too. Your mission in our game is to hunt for the best trophies. And by trophies, I mean the skulls of your prey. You want to take out the best of the best. In Predator: Hunting Grounds there are three classes of Predator: Hunter, Berserker, and Scout. Every class of Predator has its strengths and weaknesses. During the trial weekend you will be able to navigate across treetops as the Hunter class. This Predator class is well-balanced and an adaptive warrior capable of taking on a number of situations with ease. Players will be able to choose between the Female and Male Hunter and even select different armor to customize their own look. As the deadliest hunter in the universe, you have access to a plethora of off-world tech and weaponry. The classic arsenal will be the foundation of each Predator loadout. The Plasma Caster for ranged combat, the wrist blades for close encounters, infrared vision mode to track down your prey, and advanced cloaking for staying stealthy. Other weapons, perks, and gear will be available for unlock as players level up, such as the Smart Disc, Combistick, and more. And, not to worry, if the Fireteam bands together and gives you a run for your money, you have one last chance to end their efforts, by using your self-destruct. Now that you know what to expect this weekend, we hope you make some time to hunt with us! The trial will be available to download this Friday in Japan at 3pm JST, in Europe at 4pm GMT, and in North America at 5pm PST. We’ll be sharing some tips and tricks here soon so be on the lookout! Predator TM & © 2020 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All rights reserved. * You’ll need an internet connection and PS Plus subscription to play on PS4. PS Plus is a paid-for ongoing subscription and a recurring fee will be charged automatically at the frequency chosen by the consumer at purchase until cancelled. View the full article

Hey gang! Jim from Wide Right Interactive here. Before I dive in, I need to ask you a very serious question. Have you ever wanted to fly across the universe in a spaceship shaped like a hand, blasting music, and destroying everything in sight? If you said “YES!” or are generally intrigued, read on. I’d love to tell you why you should check out Freedom Finger, a crazy cartoon shooter, when it launches tomorrow, March 24! Freedom Finger is a music-driven, side-scrolling shooter that sends you shooting and punching through 40 levels of action. It features the superb voice talents of Nolan North (Uncharted), John DiMaggio (Futurama, Adventure Time), Sam Riegel (Critical Role), and Eric Bauza (Rick & Morty). On the music side of things, we have original music by Aesop Rock and over 30 licensed tracks from Red Fang, METZ, Power Trip, Com Truise, Ty Segall, Makeup and Vanity Set, Drab Majesty, Danimal Cannon, and more. So yeah, that’s a lot of bands and voice over dudes, but what about the gameplay? Freedom Finger combines the fast-paced shootouts of side-scrolling shooters and forges it with the melee combat of beat ‘em ups. Since your aforementioned spaceship is shaped like a hand, it has the ability to shoot, punch, and grab enemies. Shooting (from the middle finger, of course) inflects damage via laser cannon. Punching takes it a step further, allowing you to stack damage and deliver a devastating uppercut combo. Grabbing lets you capture the enemy and use their guns as your weapon. This is how you gain access to power-ups and alternative weaponry. Throwing the captured enemies turns them into a projectile. Time your toss correctly and you’ll knock out incoming enemies and rack up some serious points! It also looks pretty cool. Speaking of looks, everything in Freedom Finger was hand-drawn by artist Travis Millard. And when I say everything, I mean it. At last count we had well over 2,000 individually hand-drawn assets. This artwork plays a big role in bringing Freedom Finger’s story to life. The story is told through fully animated cutscenes, over 70 total, which together span over an hour of content. Highly satirical and over-the-top, the story features branching paths and multiple endings. Not a fan of story in your game? No problem. Head to arcade mode where all 40 levels are unlocked and fully playable from the start. Not a cutscene or plot point in sight! When it comes to the levels, each one is driven by a unique music track. These tracks drive the pace and influence the timing and movement of enemies. For example, a level featuring the synthwave beats of Com Truise might move a bit slower, making each enemy attack more deliberate and calculated. On the other hand, a level featuring music by thrash metal band Power Trip would be cranked up to 11. Lots of enemies, bullets, and mayhem. The variety within the soundtrack allows us to create an experience that will keep you on your toes level-to-level. We wanted to make the PS4 version of Freedom Finger even better, so we’ve added three new levels featuring original music by legendary hip-hop artist, Aesop Rock! We know players have a ton of great choices when it comes to gaming on PS4, so we wanted to absolutely pack Freedom Finger full of great music, hand crafted art, top-notch voice talent, and a lot of laughs. Freedom Finger launches tomorrow on PS4. We hope you’ll join us as we fly across the universe in a spaceship shaped like a hand, blasting music and punching everything in sight! View the full article

Hello players! My name’s Barry Meade from Fireproof Games, an independent games developer from Guildford, UK. Today I want to tell you about our journey from making mobile games to releasing a virtual reality game. Way back in 2012 we released our first game, a small and creepy puzzler called The Room on mobile devices. At that time most mobile games used a virtual d-pad as a control method, which as console gamers we felt was lacking compared to a real controller such as a DualShock 4. So, we decided to design The Room using the touchscreen itself as a control method. The universe of The Room would exist just under the surface of the glass, where players directly pushed objects around the game world using their fingers. We modeled the physics of every switch, lever, lock and clasp for realism so each object and piece of bizarre machinery you meet in The Room had weight and heft, adding a fun element to the snap and twirl of metal interlocking with metal as the player solved one conundrum after another. After listening to feedback, we know that our players loved the tactile feel of control this gave them. So now you know we’ve made a game famous for manipulating 3D objects using your hands — why is this important? Well, because every day since 2012 we’ve known The Room could make a killer VR game. But only if it’s done right — as an entirely new game designed exclusively for VR, where we can take the tactile gameplay we’re famous for and properly translate it to new technology and hardware. And now, after more than 1.5 years in development, our new game, The Room VR: A Dark Matter, demonstrates that an idea we came up with for mobile devices in 2012 may find its purest expression on console VR in 2020. So, am I here to tell you just how brilliant and perceptive Fireproof were eight years ago? Well, as much as that sounds appealing, no. In fact, I want to tell you the opposite. We thought The Room would translate perfectly to VR but sometimes what seems obvious on the surface is only that — obvious on the surface. I want to give you an insight into how our assumptions went stupidly wrong. Here’s just four ways VR schooled our asses: 1) We should totally watch people playing the game to learn their reactions to gameplay No, no we shouldn’t. It’s hard playing a VR game for the first time especially with people you don’t know. We design The Room to be played at the players pace, lost inside an interactive world they enjoy. When people know you are watching they don’t play in their natural state or pace and they make more mistakes. Solution: Leave players alone; ask them the annoying questions once finished. 2) The Room is already so tactile on mobile, we’ll ace the feeling of interaction in VR Ah ha ha ha. Fools. With Room Mobile games we could fill small spaces with detail knowing the camera will see it. In VR, the player can look anywhere at any time and they prefer to look around than focus on every surface. Secondly touchscreens are exact one-to-one feedback interfaces. By contrast, placing a hand in VR space is about modelling a feel and consistency to the controls in three dimensions. Above all, we didn’t want the players’ hands to flap uselessly about or the objects they play with to feel weightless. Solution: We had to put a lot of effort into modelling weight and resistances and adjusting the controls to make the players hand movements feel direct, physical, and impactful. 3) Getting stuck is bad, no wait, getting stuck is good Puzzle games are strange beasts because human minds are strange things. Different brains interpret our puzzles differently, especially in VR, so if we estimate someone takes too long to figure a puzzle out the temptation is there to simplify, to smooth it out. This can be a Very. Bad. Call. The thing is, people like bumps. They enjoy figuring stuff out. Getting stuck and then unsticking yourself is the satisfaction players crave in the puzzles. Solution: Is thinking ever a waste of time for a brain? Leave some hard problems hard to add some grit. Done right, the toughest challenges give the highest payoff. 4) The camera is the best part of a VR game to play… and the worst part to make This was a doozie. Making mobile games we used to be able to take control of the camera away from the player to guide it to all the pretty things they needed to see in the world. Move that camera all you want, Mobile didn’t care. In contrast to this if you even think of grabbing the camera from the player VR will shoot the tires out of your car. This is because with VR the player’s head is the camera, and really, tossing the player’s head around VR space is bad form, especially if they have an aversion to vomit. Coupled with the fact that our players had to see every reaction to their actions on-screen, we radically changed how we approached visualizing puzzles and the narrative sequences between them. Solution: Make sparkly things! In other words, we did a lot of work on leading the players’ eye, making them want to look in a certain direction so they knew what was going on at all times. These are just a few of the many, many non-obvious things we’ve been taught by working in VR. At the time we made our mistakes we thought our problems were unique but now we see they’re the same many developers go through. Believe it or not there’s a comfort in that — it meant we didn’t go too off the rails, didn’t ask too much from the software, we just had naïve expectations for how hard and counter-intuitive some aspects would be. Now that the game is done, all we can hope is that our efforts to make The Room VR: A Dark Matter super-playable were worth it and our learnings are there on the screen for all our players to see. If you do pick up a copy, you will let us know, won’t you? View the full article

Dreamlike odyssey Paper Beast launches for PlayStation VR tomorrow. We had a talk with Eric Chahi, Creative Director & Game Designer about the four years he and the team at Pixel Reef spent developing the game. Read on to learn about the technology they developed specifically for this game and the challenges they encountered as they worked to make this universe feel so alive. Where did Pixel Reef find inspiration when creating Paper Beast? The living world, of course! The way animals move, their curiosity, the way they look at things… There is a strong bond between the land and the living. Animals have an impact and influence on their environment. Look at ants, beavers, or even simple earthworms and how they change the terrain. That’s part of the gameplay. Another inspiration is traveling and wild areas like Sahara or Tassilia, with their majestic dunes and rocky outcrops. Virtual reality allows you to feel that. Paper Beast plays with these spaces; you go from closed environments to open spaces. This is often shifted and surrealist by the intrusion of elements related to data, another of the game’s themes. It’s a surprising hybrid world that draws on reality to sublimate it. How long did development take? Four years. Four years is a long time! What kinds of challenges did you encounter along the way? The main challenge was to create a home-made physics engine that suits our needs. We wanted creatures to have fully simulated locomotion. We started by working on the sandbox for two years, which gave us the foundation of the engine. Then, we worked on level design. We were looking for large environments with lots of landscape elements. As we progressed, we zeroed in on a balance between design and technology. The most challenging part was to work on the game’s performance, ensuring that it could run at 60 FPS in VR. It has been a tremendous effort. We made sure there was no compromise on the quality of the game. An important aspect of Paper Beast is the use of physics, especially to animate its creatures. Is there a particular reason you decided to go that route? In a video game, you usually have nice predefined animations, but you can’t really manipulate a character; their posture doesn’t adapt in real-time. In Paper Beast, animals have virtual skeletons driven by physics and animated by an adaptive algorithm. With this technology, these virtual animals can move smoothly in any situation, making them feel truly “alive.” Physics seem to go beyond gameplay, becoming part of the game’s universe. It’s quite unusual. Why this choice? Creatures are actually calculated by the physics engine and parts of the landscape, such as sand, water, wind… even moving paper. It’s part of the narrative. For example, we used physics to create data and paper storms: powerful aerial phenomenons. It creates a flow and coherence throughout the game, from the gameplay to the environment. Like looking at a raging sea in the real world — beauty comes from physics! There is no dialogue in the game, yet the player lives a story. Is this a form of narration that you had already explored in Another World / Out of This World? Absolutely, but the story is told differently, by creatures’ behavior and big changes happening in this world. Paper Beast is set up in a kind of crazy world. It gives the freedom of imagination to the player; in hindsight, I realize it’s a deep breath in a world overwhelmed by the stream of information. During the creative process, I had strong surrealistic visions that I could hardly describe with words. The team was very in phase with this vision. We were in sync with Pascal Lefort, our Artistic Director and 3D artist. The incredible skies in Paper Beast — it’s him. Floriane and Roly had total freedom on the audio and musical ambiance. The result is very emotional, and even though I played the game hundreds of times, I still happen to have tears in my eyes… but nobody knows, because I’m wearing a VR headset. What advice would you give to Paper Beast players? Use a good audio headset and make sure the volume is high enough to be totally immersed in the universe of Paper Beast. This adventure is an odyssey about emotion and discovery vertigo. You are about to discover a brand new world with strange but logical rules. Pay close attention to the environments and emergent behaviors. The sandbox is a place for experimentation. Enjoy it from the “god mode” view where you will feel like a giant. You can terraform the terrain and observe creatures’ behavior. Don’t forget the linkers! You can bond creatures to each other and create some funny situations. View the full article

The Guiding Lands have undergone lots of change lately. First it was Rajang opening up the Volcanic Region, Stygian Zinogre paving the way to the Tundra Region and the discovery of Safi’jiiva. Raging Brachydios and Furious Rajang are upon us… and on the horizon we see the embodiment of calamity: Alatreon! The Brilliant Darkness Headed our way this May is one of the mythical “Black Dragons” of Monster Hunter. Alatreon is also known as the “Blazing Black Dragon” but that moniker only tells a fraction of what to expect from this Elder Dragon. Alatreon brings to the table dynamic new elements to the hunt, so you’ll always have to be ready to adapt to the situation if you want to survive. This battle will be a monumental test of your abilities as Hunters of the Fifth Fleet. Alatreon’s arrival is still distant and details on its behavior in the New World are still scarce; but stay tuned for more details as the Guild discovers more info on this awe-inspiring Elder Dragon. Part of what makes Alatreon special is the category of monster it belongs to: “Black Dragon.” The existence of these “Black Dragons” has been treated more like a taboo in Monster Hunter series; so much so that there hasn’t even been much official information disclosed about these monsters. However, this May we’ll finally be pulling the curtain a bit and talking about one of these mythical beings in an official capacity. We’re very excited for this occasion and hope you stick around to find out more and face this mythical “Black Dragon” in Iceborne. Title Update 3 In the meantime, we have a couple of new challengers at our doorstep, and the Research Commission needs your help. Starting from March 22 at 5pm PDT / 8pm EDT, both Raging Brachydios and Furious Rajang will blast their way into Iceborne. Reports say their move sets have been revamped and they punch harder than ever before. But those who survive these grueling brawls… will be able to craft some of the most powerful gear in the game! Good luck, hunters! Full Bloom Fest Hunters seeking respite and more light-hearted challenges, can look forward to the Full Bloom Fest, our next Seasonal Event for Iceborne. As usual, the Gathering Hub will be fully decorated — this time with beautiful flower arrangements — and new quests and bounties will be posted up so you can craft seasonal Layered Armor, weapon pendants and more. Full Bloom Fest will be starting on April 9 at 5pm PDT / 8pm EDT. Path to Iceborne If any of this sounds like fun to you (maybe it’s the ruthless challenge… maybe the fashion hunting… maybe both), the perfect time to jump into Iceborne would be now. And to sweeten the pot a bit, the base game and expansion are currently on sale until March 31 for 50% off and 25% off respectively; and the Iceborne Master Edition is going for 33% off. And for the new hunters-to-be out there, you can start your journey at no cost with our Free Trial covering most of the Low Rank portion of Monster Hunter: World. It will run from March 24 until March 31 and all progress made on the Free Trial transfers over to the full game! Happy Hunting! View the full article

PlayStation VR gets a pair of diverse new experiences next week in The Room VR: A Dark Matter, the newest in the acclaimed puzzle series (and its first foray into virtual reality); and Paper Beast, a surrealistic zen sandbox from gaming industry legend Eric Chahi — the mind behind 1991’s seminal cinematic adventure Another World. For a full list of new games coming to PlayStation next week, read on. And enjoy The Drop! Ara Fell: Enhanced Edition PS4 — Digital (Out Mar. 26) Ara Fell: Enhanced Edition is a 16-bit era, Japanese-style role-playing game. Take in the beauty of a magical world floating above the clouds, then take on a menacing race of vampires hidden in the dark. Dissection PS4 — Digital I don’t remember how I got into this house. I only know that I need to quickly find a way out because something terrible is walking around and looking for me. Avoid meeting a ‘living corpse’ and find key items to progress through the game. Find the key to the front door and run away from this house. Dogurai PS4 — Digital Dogurai is a retro-styled platformer with animal-like characters, graphics, and soundtrack designed with old portable games in mind — down to the limited color ranges and sprite sizes! Duck Souls+ PS4, PS Vita — Digital (Cross-Buy) Run, jump, and dash your way through traps to collect all the eggs! Duck Souls+ is a fast-paced, action platformer about a little duck with an incredible skill to dash and a mission: find all the eggs to save his species. Element Space PS4 — Digital Year 2199. Assemble an elite crew and make allies as factions of the Galactic Congress grapple to determine a future for humanity’s space colonies. In this sci-fi tactical RPG, command Pietham’s squad through turn-based battles, strategize ideal positions to decimate foes in 24 hand-crafted stages. Freedom Finger PS4 — Digital Freedom Finger is a music driven, side-scrolling shooter that sends you blasting through 40 levels of crazy cartoon action. Whether you want to chill and enjoy the story or crank the difficulty for a butt-blasting ridiculous challenge, we’ve got you covered! Mekorama PS4, PS Vita — Digital (Out Mar. 26) Guide an adorable robot to safety after he crash lands on a strange cubic planet. Explore each level, rotating it in 3D to see all sides, looking for a way through. Use lifts and slide platforms to get around while looking out for dangers. 100 varied levels throws up new surprises. Try your hand at creating your own levels with the level editor. Moons of Madness PS4 — Digital Moons of Madness is a first-person, story-driven cosmic horror game where the scientific exploration of Mars meets the supernatural dread of Lovecraft. As a technician stationed on Mars, you begin seeing and hearing things that aren’t there. Visions, hallucinations — is that even what it is? Or are you slowly descending into madness? Odallus: The Dark Call PS4 — Digital The old gods have forgotten this land… Odallus is an exploration/action game and loving homage to the 8-bit genre classics. You play as Haggis — a battle-weary warrior who must wield his sword once more to rescue his son from Darkness. One Piece: Pirate Warriors 4 PS4 — Digital, Retail (Out Mar. 27) One Piece: Pirate Warriors 4 is the latest evolution of Pirate Warriors action! Based on the concept of ‘experiencing a real One Piece battlefield,’ buildings will come crashing down during the action and attacks will throw up smoke and dust, placing you in the thick of the One Piece world! Oniken PS4 — Digital (Out Mar. 24) In a post-apocalyptic future controlled by a sinister corporation, ninja mercenary Zaku is the last hope for humanity. Inspired by the demanding gameplay of 8-bit action/platformers, Oniken pits your agility and swordplay against a gauntlet of enemies, traps, and challenging bosses. Paper Beast PS VR — Digital Experience a dreamlike odyssey through a wild and simulated ecosystem. Take off on an adventure! Connect with exotic and surprising creatures. Shape the environment to solve puzzles. Or let your imagination guide you through an immersive sandbox. The Room VR: A Dark Matter PS VR — Digital (Out Mar. 26) The British Institute of Archaeology, London, 1908: The disappearance of an esteemed Egyptologist prompts a Police investigation into the unknown. Explore cryptic locations, examine fantastic gadgets and enter an otherworldly space which blurs the line between reality and illusion in The Room VR: A Dark Matter. Star Wars: Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy PS4 — Digital (Out Mar. 26) The online multiplayer classic comes to PS4 with Trophies and modernized controls! Take on the role of a new student eager to learn the ways of the Force from Jedi Master Luke Skywalker. Interact with famous Star Wars characters as you face the ultimate choice: fight for good and freedom on the light side or follow the path of power and evil to the dark side. Twin Breaker: A Sacred Symbols Adventure PS4, PS Vita — Digital The United States sends generation ships to nearby star systems to find new planets to colonize. But once in interstellar space, the ships mysteriously disappear. When clues emerge about the missing spacecraft, two pilots jump through a wormhole into a story-driven brick breaker in the spirit of Arkanoid and Breakout. Vampire: The Masquerade — Coteries Of New York PS4 — Digital (Out Mar. 25) Vampire: The Masquerade — Coteries of New York is a narrative experience set in the rich universe of Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition. It presents the struggle for power between two vampiric factions – the Camarilla and the Anarchs – bathed in the night lights of the Big Apple. Yu-Gi-Oh! Legacy of the Duelist : Link Evolution PS4 — Digital Experience 20 years of Yu-Gi-Oh! history with Yu-Gi-Oh! Legacy of the Duelist: Link Evolution! Build your Deck from over 10,000 cards and take on the most iconic Duelists from the Yu-Gi-Oh! universe. Relive the stories from the original animated series through Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS! Hip Hop & Play: Lil Baby Takeover Birds of Prey Bloodshot The Invisible Man The information above is subject to change without notice. Pardon our dust! In the coming months, you may notice the occasional discrepancy in The Drop as we’re updating the back-end systems we pull game info from to populate our list. We will, of course, strive to correct any mistakes as they arise. Thanks for your patience! View the full article

Last week, we asked you to turn to the dark side and share devilishly demonic characters from your favorite games using #PS4share and #PSBlog. From horned dark elves to flying monsters, here are this week’s highlights: BBuradori shared a horned Dark Elf Lord in God of War. JRPyznar shared colorful demon from MediEvil. Philt43_Yewone shared a winged demon from Metro Exodus. Demons come in all shapes and sizes, like this GTA5 share by StMtGang. Winter Lanterns from Bloodborne definitely count as demons, as shared by tidymice. Nero takes a new form in Devil May Cry 5, as shared by virtua_photo. Search #PS4share and #PSBlog on Twitter or Instagram to see more entries to this week’s theme. Want to be featured in the next Share of the Week? Theme: Teamwork Share by: 9am Pacific on Wednesday, March 25 Next week, it’s time to team up! Share moments in the game of your choice where teamwork made the dream work using #PS4share and #PSBlog for a chance to be featured View the full article

Koei Tecmo Games continues its unique interpretation of the warring states period (also known as the Sengoku period) in Japan with last week’s release of Nioh 2. In this article, we’ll be shining a spotlight on the figures, battlefields, and lore that populated this turbulent period. From 1467 – 1568 CE, rival feudal lords or “Daimyo” fought for control of Japan. Eventually, one Daimyo named Nobunaga Oda would rise above the rest and set the country on a course for unification. Nobunaga Oda, along with his two immediate successors, Hideyoshi Toyotomi (also one of his samurai) and Ieyasu Tokugawa are credited with finally unifying medieval Japan in the 16th century CE. It is with the historical backdrop that Nioh 2 takes center stage – with many of the era’s historical figures playing a role in the game. The Story So Far The story of Nioh 2 begins in the Mino province, where our protagonist (that’s you!) is hired as a mercenary to hunt down Yokai. In a battle against a mighty Yokai, they lose control of their Yokai powers. The dire situation is remedied, however, by a wandering merchant by the name of Tokichiro who sells strange ‘Spirit Stones’ — magic-imbued artifacts that can help the wielder communicate with Yokai spirits. Thanks to Tokichiro’s Spirit Stones, the protagonist regains control. Tokichiro hires our protagonist for protection as he seeks his next buyer for the Spirit Stones — Dosan Saito, the Daimyo of the Mino province. Before Tokichiro can make his approach, however, Dosan loses his life in an attack by his son, Yoshitatsu. The pair is then forced to escape Mino province for their safety. Following Dosan’s last words of advice, the pair escape to Owari province. There, they run into the “Fool of Owari,” none other than the Daimyo of Owari, Oda Nobunaga. They come into his service and begin piling on successes from their military exploits. Eventually, the pair come to refer to themselves by the same name, “Hideyoshi” — the historical successor to Oda mentioned above! The Protagonist Our protagonist is a hired mercenary and Yokai hunter who works in the Mino province, living in a dilapidated house. Part human, part Yokai, our protagonist has the unique ability to call on the power of guardian spirits to aid them in battle. Our mercenary hero also has Yokai powers which they use to summon superhuman strength. At times, it’s precisely because of these immense powers that they lose control. Our protagonist doesn’t actually know their real name – they take the name “Hide” a homage to their mother. The Figures: A look at Nioh 2’s characters inspired by history Tokichiro is a merchant who sells spirit stones embedded with Amrita. Together with the protagonist, he later becomes known as Hideyoshi Toyotomi. An amicable character with deep knowledge of various fields, Tokichiro maintains a wealth of friendly relationships, even with some of the most influential Daimyo of the area. He was able to get out of some tough times in the past with his natural wisdom and his keen merchant skills. A determined and ambitious individual, Tokichiro complements Hide’s talents on the battlefield with his military strategy and planning skills. Guardian Spirit: Masaru Masaru is the sacred monkey of the Hiyoshi Shrine, located in the scenic landscapes of Mount Hiei. Nobunaga Oda is the young Daimyo of the Owari province. He was known for his bizarre behavior which earned him the nickname, “The Fool of Owari.” Moniker aside, he would be remembered as a shrewd feudal lord and brilliant strategist. Historically, Nobunaga paid no attention to nobility nor class and took into account only the skills that people brought to the table. In the game, despite the two Hideyoshis being relative newcomers, Nobunaga holds them in high regard for their exploits on the battlefield. Nobunaga did have a radical side to him, which made him many enemies over his lifetime. Historically, this included his own vassal, Akechi Mitsuhide who rebelled against him and ambushed him at Honno-ji Temple. Guardian Spirit: Hyobishin Known as a hot-tempered god with no tolerance for uncleanliness, Hyobishin is also identified with Ketu, which controls the solar eclipse. He is not deceived by first impressions and can pierce through the soul to get to the truth. Nohime The daughter of Dosan Saito, Nohime was married to the young Nobunaga. Although set up primarily as a marriage to forge an alliance, Nobunaga was said to be a fan of her strong will and noble mind throughout their lifetime. Guardian Spirit: Usura-hicho This striking guardian spirit is as cold as it is beautiful. Its followers swear that venerating it will protect you from ice and snow-related disasters. Katsuie Shibata One of Nobunaga’s most trusted generals. He was known by several names like “Demon Shibata” and “Attacking Shibata” for his numerous exploits in battle. Perhaps due to his intense dedication to physical combat, he didn’t think much of the more strategic and planning-oriented Tokichiro. Guardian Spirit: Inosasao The Inosasao takes on the form of a wild boar of many years who holds divine, supernatural powers. Toshiie Maeda Starting out as a page in his boyhood days, Toshiie Maeda is a long-time warrior in the ranks of Nobunaga. The “Mataza of the Spear” gets his nickname for his intense spear skills. He’s worked under Katsuie Shibata for a very long time. Guardian Spirit: Okuri-inu A dog-like Guardian Spirit, the Okuri-inu builds a following among the regions as a defender of sorts, warning travelers of the dangers that lie ahead. Koroku Hachisuka Koroku Hachisuka is the head of the Kawanami, a mutual aid group which has a loose solidarity with peaceful Yokai dwelling in Sunomata. Koroku himself also inherits Yokai blood, which is why parts of his body look like a kappa. He comes across the two Hideyoshis when Tokichiro starts planning to build a castle in Sunomata. Hanbe Takenaka A wise officer for the Saito clan, he was said to have taken over the Saito clan’s castle at Mount Inaba with just a few men, to show his lords of its vulnerabilities. He later absconded to live a peaceful, secluded lifestyle, but was called up by Tokichiro and promptly thrust back into action. Guardian Spirit: Hakutaku An intelligent and sacred beast, the Hakutaku can communicate with humans and boasts a great deal about Yokai and other demons. Sen no Rikyu Originally a merchant from Sakai, Sen no Rikyu was known as a master of tea ceremonies and the originator of the Wabi-cha style. He was under Nobunaga until Toyotomi took over, whereby he came into their services. Dosan Saito An ambitious Daimyo who won his seat by forcing out his own superior, Dosan Saito is also known as the “Viper of Mino.” Although he used to be at odds with the Oda clan, he managed to make peace by marrying his daughter, Nohime, to Oda himself. Guardian Spirit: The White Viper The White Viper has a large following throughout Japan as an incarnation of God boasting a high spiritual rank. Yoshimoto Imagawa Yoshimoto Imagawa is an influential Daimyo from the prestigious Imagawa clan who rules over large swaths of the Tokaido region. He’s famous for being the “Number One Archer of Tokaido region”. Yoshimoto invades the Owari province, seeking a stronger influence over the western territories. He finds himself up against Oda in the Battle of Okehazama. Don’t let his aristocratic garments fool you — Yoshimoto is unparalleled as a Samurai commander. Guardian Spirit: Rokugezo A gorgeous, majestic elephant, Imagawa’s Guardian Spirit encapsulates his military prowess. Nagamasa Azai The Daimyo of the Omi province, Azai marries Nobunaga’s daughter, Oichi to form a powerful alliance with the Oda clan. As his brother-in-law, he was trusted highly by Nobunaga. However, that trust would not be paid back in return — Nobunaga would be betrayed as he launches his attack on the Asakura family. He was supposed to be blissfully spending the days with his beloved wife, Oichi. But seemingly out of nowhere, he makes a complete transformation and antagonizes the Oda clan. Perhaps the Spirit Stones that came into his hands had something to do with it… Guardian Spirit: Hiyokucho The male and female birds fly together in a harmonious fashion, symbolizing his intimate relationship with his wife. Oichi Known for her stunning good looks, the beautiful Oichi is Nobunaga’s sister. She lives in the Kiyosu Castle, from where she keeps watch over the two Hideyoshis from behind the scenes. As part of Nobunaga’s political maneuvers, Oichi is married off to the Azai family. Guardian Spirit: Nine Tails Fox Spirit The nine-tailed guardian spirit appears as the world reaches a turning point. Naotaka Magara A general for the Asakura clan, Naotaka uses his superhuman strength to swing a lengthy sword called the Taro Tachi. At the battle of Anegawa involving the Asai and Oda clans, Naotaka uses the powers of the Spirit Stones to transform into a mighty Yokai. Mitsuhide Akechi For someone who was regarded as the wisest general in the Oda clan, lots of mystery surrounds his background. He previously served the Saito clan in Mino province, but later transferred to the Oda clan upon their downfall. He would display exceptional wit to climb high up the ranks, even as a relative newcomer to the clan. A man who assigned a high value to harmony, Akechi saw danger in the Spirit Stone peddler, Tokichiro. At the Siege of Kanegasaki he sought to find an opening to kill him. Before long, his fear of the abuse of the Spirit Stone would lead him to strike Nobunaga at the Honno-ji Temple. Guardian Spirit: Genbu, the Black Tortoise of the Four Gods The Black Tortoise symbolizes the power of water, extinguishing turbulent flames. Toshimitsu Saito A retainer for the Akechi clan, Saito is adept at both Onmyo magic and swordsmanship. He uses these skills to great effect to produce some stunning displays on the battlefield. Saito is highly trusted by Akechi — perhaps that has something to do with his prominent role in the Battle of Yamazaki at Honno-ji temple. Hisahide Matsunaga The Daimyo of the Yamato state, Matsunaga is known for his cruel streak, killing his former Master, Miyoshi, and purging the Ashikaga clan. Though most often known for his cruelty, Matsunaga has a healthy appreciation for the finer things in life, especially the art of the tea ceremony. Tadakatsu Honda One of the “Tokugawa Four Heavenly Kings,” Honda was regarded as Tokugawa’s cream of the crop. He has produced some stunning displays over numerous battles while he served as a retainer for the Tokugawa throne. Despite countless appearances on the battlefield, he is said never to have suffered even a single scratch. Hanzo Hattori Hanzo Hattori was a samurai who headed the ninjas of the Iga province on espionage and other stealth missions. Magoichi Saika Magoichi was a skilled gunman who headed he Saika mercenary group in Kii province. He was responsible for shooting down prominent figures on the battlefield during his day. The Battlefields: Where History Was Made The characters of Nioh 2 do battle in some of the most famous battlefields in feudal Japan. Let’s take a look at some of these scenes where history was created, recreated in all their glory in Nioh 2. Okehazama The stage of the decisive battle between the Oda and Imagawa clans. The tall plant life through the ravines provided poor visibility and thus were a safe space for soldiers to rest. In this battle, Nobunaga defeated the Imagawa clan and established himself as one of the front-running warlords in the Sengoku period. Kanegasaki With thick forests and steep valleys, the treacherous grounds of Kanegasaki was full of obstacles to safe passage. It was the stage for the Siege of Kanegasaki, where Hideyoshi would battle it out to help the Oda clan escape from the betrayal of the Azai clan. Honno-ji Temple This was the site of the “Honno-ji Incident” where Akechi staged his revolt against Oda. Akechi’s army tossed fire all over the site, leaving behind not even a shadow of the once spectacular Buddhist temple. The Lore: A look at the Yokai inhabiting Nioh 2 Expect to find yourself surrounded by countless Yokai as you make your way through the game. Defeat enemy Yokai and you just might snag a Soul Core. You can attune these to your Guardian Spirit to perform some of their maneuvers. Let’s take a look at some of the Yokai you’ll find throughout your journey. Enemy Yokai Mezuki You’ll be able to identify the Mezuki by its horse-like head. The hatred of the dead and horses merge to create this Yokai. The Mezuki lunges into enemies with its large body and mean saw. Enenra The Enenra is a smoke and fire Yokai that emerges from the bitter thoughts of human beings. Drifting through the air, the Yokai emerges from smoke and steam to attack human beings. Yatsu-no-Kami 夜刀神（やつのかみ） The Yatsu-no-Kami is a serpent Yokai with a horn made of countless blades sticking out from its forehead. It uses these blades to lunge at you in attack. In the Dark Realm, the serpent’s hands take on a life of their own, springing forth to attack you from different angles. Kamaitachi 鎌鼬（かまいたち） The Kamaitachi is said to “ride the wind,” slashing at its victims with biting gales. It uses its sharp arms and tails to unleash fierce spinning attacks. Whereas the Kamaitachi was once a peaceful creature, the spirit stones created in it a horribly violent streak. Kasha The so-called “Chariot Lady,” this Yokai moves on a set of gigantic wheels with its top half presenting a woman’s figure. Kasha steals dead bodies and brings them to hell with her. Ryomen Sukuna This grotesque-looking Yokai is half-red and half-blue, joined at the back. Its red half lays siege in melee combat with its sword and axe, while its blue half attacks from long distance with its bow and arrow. Tatarimokke The Tatarimokke takes on the form of an owl, created by the gathering of the spirits of those who died with many regrets. It unleashes these dead spirits like a missile onto its prey. It also unleashes beams from its third eye. Mitsume Yazura A Yokai born from the souls of various beasts combined, Mitsume Yazura emits breath attacks in every direction. Waira A Yokai with a huge, intimidating figure and gigantic claws to match, Waira dives into the ground to hunt its prey. Yamanba Taking on the form of an old woman, Yamanbas con travelers, eating them after cutting them up with its sharp knife Ippon-Datara A blacksmith-turned demon, the one-legged Ippon-Datara swings its giant hammer and Odachi to kill its prey. Enki The Enki are monkeys that were transformed by Amrita into Yokai after a lifetime of cruelty and abuse at the hands of humans. Highly intelligent creatures, the imposing Enki are mightily dexterous. Nure-Onna A snake-like Yokai with the head of a woman, the water-loving Nure-Onna stuns prey and paralyzes them with her stare. Friendly Yokai They’re not all out to get you — some Yokais are friendly, too! If you ever encounter any friendly Yokai along the way, be sure to interact with them. Kodama The Kodama are little green tree spirits that embody the souls of everyday man-made objects. You’ll find the Kodama scattered throughout the land among the trees of the forest. Some of them are lost, though — help these lost Kodama find their way back to their shrines and get a boost from their blessings later in the game. Sudama The Sudama are the corrupted form of the Kodama. Despite their corrupted form, they do not have aggressive tendencies and won’t attack humans out of nowhere. They are, however, intensely materialistic creatures. Give the Sudama a small gift of its liking and you may be rewarded with a rare item in return. Do not give them salt though — they will get upset! Scampuss A ball-shaped cat Yokai. Pet the Scampuss and let it get attached to you. Soon enough, you’ll find them following you around. These creatures help you restore your Anima, and at times will even help you out in battle. In the Dark Realm, the Scampuss puffs up into a blowfish-like status, possibly a protection measure against nearby enemies. Historical figures, epic battlefields, and fantastical Yokai — Nioh 2 has a lot in store. We hope you enjoyed this deep dive into the world of Nioh 2. Be sure to have a look at the characters in the Amrita Memories in-game. Nioh 2 is out now on PS4. View the full article

We would like to announce that due to the situation with COVID-19 and the postponement of the Nurburgring 24-hour race event, we will not be hosting the Gran Turismo World Tour ‘Nurburging’ event previously scheduled for May 22-23, 2020. Additionally it has been decided that the Online Season due end with Rd.10 of Stage 1 on 18th-19th April (previously referred to as Stage 1) will be removed from the official rankings and henceforth referred to as an Exhibition Stage. Furthermore, we will be changing the start of the official 2020 Series to April 25. On April 25, 2020, the 2020 FIA Gran Turismo Championship will officially start anew. The Championship Overview page below will be updated with the details regarding the future championship structure and schedule (as well World Tour selection) as soon as details have been decided. Thank you for enjoying Gran Turismo Sport. View the full article

Brutal as it is brilliant, Doom Eternal is a first-person shooter par excellence. Even judged just on its meaty, content-packed single player campaign, id Software’s title is an easy contender for 2020’s GOTY lists. It’s also uncompromising. As example, a confession: the first few hours’ worth of vicious enemy encounters obliterated any confidence I had in my shooter skills. Difficulty spikes in combat arenas seemed so plentiful that I was left wondering if the studio had knowingly swerved into masocore territory. Was it that? Or worse, was it that — whisper it — age was finally eroding my reaction times? Turns out, I was the problem. Just not in the way I thought. I was simply playing from the wrong rulebook: 2016’s reboot’s, in fact. A fatal mistake. Faster — dear God, so fast — and taut with new interconnected gameplay loops, Eternal is a much more dangerous beast than its predecessor. But when it clicks, it clicks. Those deadly gauntlets become, as executive producer Marty Stratton so perfectly put it, “speed chess.” Eternal still offers you the power fantasy of playing a kick-ass demonic slayer… but you have to prove you’re up to the challenge. So while you’re counting down the hours for the game to unlock at PlayStation Store tonight, chew over this cheat sheet that’ll help you down your own demon slaying path more easily than I did my own. 1. Dash Why run when you can Dash? One of the fundamental alterations to Doom’s combat gameplay is this recharging, four-way dodge maneuver. It gives you the additional mobility essential to keep up with increased demonic aggression, dodging fireballs or claws on the ground and even in mid-air. Sharpen your skills with it as early as possible (playing dodge with a demonic tentacle is a great primer). Unlock the suit’s Fast Dasher (which speeds up the Dash recharge) as soon as possible. 2. Scale the difficulty to get over early combat bumps Yes, there are some of us that will scoff at playing anything less than Nightmare. But for us mere mortals, even Hurt Me Plenty — ‘Normal’ in common gaming vernacular — can brutally tenderize you early on. Eternal allows you to toggle the difficulty at any time. Dial it back to lessen the damage received by any foe. Soon you’ll unlock enough abilities to conquer these early clashes with ease when you replay them. But for now, if you hit a combat roadblock, swallow that pride and shift difficulty gears. Better to enjoy learning the new rhythms of combat than wallow in frustration at another checkpoint reload. 3. Demonic pinatas What was true in 2016 is still true four years later: lower level demons wandering combat arenas are basically ever-moving, occasionally aggressive restocks of your essentials. In Eternal though, item drops now come in three varieties, depending on your chosen execution method. Use Glory Kills for Health, Chainsaw kills for ammo and (once unlocked) Flame Belch for armor. On that last, killing an already on-fire enemy will spew additional armor. And the bigger the demon, the bigger the drop (though those Heavy and Super Heavy fiends will extinguish flames quickly, an unlockable Sentinel perk can keep ‘em cooking longer). Bigger drops are also possible with chainsaw kills, but you’re going to need a lot of fuel to chew through larger demonic carcasses. As standard, your fuel gauge will only recharge one bar of a possible three. Fuel cans scattered around arenas will help max it out and let you carve through the bigger competition. 4. The importance of keeping a secret (and how to make it easy) Let’s talk about something other than combat for a moment. Eternal’s levels are huge, yet you’re never far from a secret item. All are located in hard-to-reach locations: part puzzle, part platform challenge. While some are fun collectables, others help you gain important upgrades. Time to fire up your Auto Map. Initially this 3D schematic of the current level doesn’t show secrets’ locations, Make sure to unlock your suit’s Item Finder upgrade early, which will. If you’re still stumped about how to get to an item, don’t fret; once you near a level’s end, you’ll unlock Fast Travel. Access this through your Auto Map to quickly backtrack and mop up those last few items. 5. Runes to keep you alive Eternal has numerous skill trees, stretching across weapon mods, armor upgrades and base ability buffs. These last are visualized as Runes, of which there are nine to unlock, though you can only have three active at a time. All either recharge over time or reactivate on death. Spoiled for choice? I can recommend three right away. Saving Throw slows time on your death, giving you a few seconds to nab a Health pack and continue slaying. Seek and Destroy increases the distance you can perform a Glory Kill from. Due to the increased verticality of combat arenas, Chrono Strike is a must, slowing down time when mid-air. 6. Final weapon upgrades All weapons have two mods, which once unlocked are switchable with a tap of Up on the D-Pad. (Another unlock worth snagging early is your suit’s Hot Swapper, which speeds up that switch). Each mod has further upgrades, and each weapon has a final ‘Mastery’ upgrade once all previous mods have been unlocked. Nicely, these final ones can only be earned through gameplay challenges. Once you’ve got the Super Shotgun, focus on unlocking its final upgrade. Not only is it super simple to earn (kill 50 demons while using the Meat Hook to grapple towards them). But it’s a battlefield lifesaver, sets anything grappled on fire, means you’ll be reeling yourself into armor drops. Note: even kills in the Fortress of Doom’s training room counts towards that 50. 7. Workout at Fortress of Doom Buried at the bottom of your hub, and introduced by the game early on, is a prison for demons that doubles as your personal training room. It’s easy to forget in your thirst to go on to the next campaign level. But whenever you unlock a new weapon or return to the game after a long break, it’s worth a visit to test your new toys or get your head back into the game before venturing out. Humanity needs your best Slayer skills, so best shake off the cobwebs in private. Play Video View the full article

Hey guys! Nick here, a game designer from Grinding Gear Games. We’ve just launched Delirium, our latest expansion and challenge league for Path of Exile. In the Delirium challenge league, players encounter shimmering illusions throughout the world which, when approached, release a rush of flowing mist. The mist moves outwards, and if you can keep up with it, you’ll face horrifying new foes that drop rich rewards when bested. My job at Grinding Gear is often to take a set of game mechanics and rewards and find a story or theme that will unify them. Delirium has been one of the most interesting projects to work on, because the theme — inexorable, creeping madness — opens up a lot of possibilities. We’ve touched on madness a few times throughout Path of Exile’s history. Characters like Niko the Mad (if the name didn’t give it away) and the antagonists in the Atlas of Worlds have displayed varying degrees of paranoia and delusion. Items like the sword Innsbury Edge play with the player’s perception of the game world by causing unusual behavior to occur (such as your character keeling over dead from seemingly nothing, only to suddenly spring back up… yet leaving your corpse on the ground at the same time!). But we’ve never tackled madness on this broad a scale, and so intimately tied to the player’s behavior. We’ve also never really used madness as part of actual gameplay. Usually, it’s just a little bit of flavor. We needed to ensure that a league centred on madness set itself apart. So for Delirium, we approached this theme in a few ways: The Fog As a visual representation of the effects of Delirium, the flowing fog simply looks fantastic. It makes the world feel like it’s shifting, and obscures the ground just enough that you might not be sure if you just saw that giant, glaring eyeball emerging from the dirt or not. The Monsters Besides new monsters springing up while you travel through the fog, the monsters that were already there may behave… differently. And by ‘differently’, I mean they may tear themselves in half and have a terrifying entity emerge and attack you, before retreating back into the original monster’s body. Or maybe you just imagined it. The Sound Early on, you’ll hear whispers and phrases as you approach and activate the Delirium mechanic. It’s quite unsettling. But not nearly as unsettling as what you’ll hear later, when the Delirium begins to really manifest itself. You may start hearing voices. And what those voices say won’t always be helpful… or true. It’s up to you, the player, to determine what is real, what is madness, and what is caught in between. The Rewards Path of Exile’s passive tree is notorious for its size and complexity. Several years ago we added jewels, allowing players to customize the passive tree. Delirium is adding new jewels that not only customize the tree, but add to it. Some of those jewels even let you add to the additions. And even those might be expandable… You might even say the choices are… maddening. Of course, the Delirium league doesn’t launch in a vacuum. Like all our updates, Delirium comes with new skills, items, and myriad other improvements and additions. Now that Delirium is out, I hope you’ll join us, because it’s sure to be a lot of fun. I know I’ll be playing, and watching other players react to all the strange manifestations they’re going to see and hear! View the full article

Get ready for a sale of mega proportions. From now through March 30, PlayStation Store’s Mega March offers deals up to 50% on a massive sale lineup. Explore and conquer hundreds of titles, including Borderlands 3, Resident Evil 2 and more! Here’s 100 titles to get you started. For the full list, head on over to PS Store. PS4 Games Title $Sale $Original 428: SHIBUYA SCRAMBLE $9.99 $49.99 A FISHERMAN’S TALE (VR) $9.74 $14.99 ABZÛ $12.99 $19.99 ACA NEOGEO BASEBALL STARS 2 $3.99 $7.99 AGE OF WONDERS: PLANETFALL $24.99 $49.99 AGENTS OF MAYHEM $3.99 $19.99 AGENTS OF MAYHEM – TOTAL MAYHEM BUNDLE $5.99 $29.99 AGONY $4.99 $19.99 AI: THE SOMNIUM FILES $35.99 $59.99 AKIBA’S BEAT $8.99 $29.99 ALEKHINE’S GUN $2.99 $19.99 AMERICAN FUGITIVE $8.99 $19.99 ARISE: A SIMPLE STORY $14.99 $19.99 ASTRO BOT RESCUE MISSION $14.99 $19.99 BAJA: EDGE OF CONTROL HD $8.99 $29.99 BATTLE CHASERS: NIGHTWAR $7.49 $29.99 BATTLEFIELD 1 & TITANFALL 2 ULTIMATE BUNDLE $17.99 $59.99 BATTLEFIELD 1 REVOLUTION $7.99 $39.99 BATTLEFIELD 4 $3.99 $19.99 BATTLEFIELD HARDLINE DELUXE EDITION $4.99 $24.99 BATTLEFIELD V YEAR 2 EDITION $29.99 $49.99 BATTLEZONE $13.99 $34.99 BEAST QUEST $4.49 $29.99 BIOSHOCK: THE COLLECTION $14.99 $59.99 BLACK MIRROR $5.99 $39.99 BLOOD BOWL 2: LEGENDARY EDITION $7.49 $29.99 BORDERLANDS 2 VR $24.99 $49.99 BORDERLANDS 3 DIGITAL DELUXE BUNDLE $39.99 $79.99 BORDERLANDS: THE HANDSOME COLLECTION $19.79 $59.99 CAT QUEST $6.49 $12.99 CATHERINE: FULL BODY $29.99 $59.99 CATHERINE: FULL BODY DIGITAL DELUXE EDITION $39.99 $79.99 CATLATERAL DAMAGE $3.49 $9.99 CHAOSCHILD $29.99 $59.99 CONCEPTION PLUS: MAIDENS OF THE TWELVE STARS $41.99 $59.99 CONCRETE GENIE $14.99 $29.99 CONSTRUCTION SIMULATOR 2 $7.49 $14.99 COSMIC STAR HEROINE $8.99 $14.99 CRAWL $5.99 $14.99 CREED: RISE TO GLORY $15.59 $29.99 CRYPT OF THE NECRODANCER $7.49 $14.99 CRYSTAR $29.99 $59.99 DAKAR 18 $9.99 $24.99 DARKSIDERS II DEATHINITIVE EDITION $7.49 $29.99 DARKSIDERS WARMASTERED EDITION $4.99 $19.99 DAY OF THE TENTACLE REMASTERED $4.49 $14.99 DEAD ALLIANCE $4.49 $29.99 DEAD ALLIANCE – MULTIPLAYER ONLY $2.99 $19.99 DEAD RISING 4: FRANK’S BIG PACKAGE $19.99 $39.99 DEEMO -REBORN- $27.99 $39.99 DESTROY ALL HUMANS! $6.99 $19.99 DESTROY ALL HUMANS! 2 $6.99 $19.99 DJMAX RESPECT $19.99 $49.99 DMC4SE DEMON HUNTER BUNDLE $8.99 $35.99 DOCTOR WHO: THE EDGE OF TIME $14.94 $22.99 DON’T STARVE TOGETHER: CONSOLE EDITION $7.49 $14.99 DON’T STARVE: CONSOLE EDITION $3.74 $14.99 DON’T STARVE: CONSOLE EDITION + REIGN OF GIANTS EXPANSION $4.74 $18.99 DONUT COUNTY $6.49 $12.99 DOOM $9.99 $19.99 DOOM + WOLFENSTEIN II BUNDLE $34.99 $69.99 DOOM VFR $14.99 $29.99 DRAWFUL 2 $4.99 $9.99 DUNGEONS 3 $9.99 $39.99 EA FAMILY BUNDLE $15.99 $39.99 EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 WINGDIVER THE SHOOTER $9.99 $19.99 EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 $29.99 $59.99 EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 DELUXE EDITION $44.99 $89.99 EARTH DEFENSE FORCE: IRON RAIN $29.99 $59.99 EARTH DEFENSE FORCE: IRON RAIN ULTIMATE EDITION $44.99 $89.99 ELEX $14.99 $59.99 ESPIRE 1: VR OPERATIVE EXPERIENCE $20.99 $29.99 EURO FISHING $6.59 $19.99 EURO FISHING URBAN EDITION $10.99 $24.99 EURO FISHING: CASTLE EDITION $7.99 $24.99 FADE TO SILENCE $10.49 $29.99 FALLOUT 4 $11.99 $29.99 FALLOUT 4: GAME OF THE YEAR EDITION $19.79 $59.99 FALLOUT 76 $19.99 $39.99 FARMING SIMULATOR 17 – PLATINUM EDITION $11.99 $29.99 FE $3.99 $19.99 FIBBAGE: THE HILARIOUS BLUFFING PARTY GAME $3.49 $6.99 FIRE PRO WRESTLING WORLD $14.99 $49.99 GRAND THEFT AUTO V $14.99 $29.99 INJUSTICE 2 – LEGENDARY EDITION $17.99 $59.99 MEDIEVIL $19.49 $29.99 MONSTER HUNTER WORLD: ICEBORNE DIGITAL DELUXE $37.49 $49.99 MONSTER HUNTER WORLD: ICEBORNE MASTER EDITION $40.19 $59.99 MONSTER HUNTER: WORLD $14.99 $29.99 RATCHET & CLANK $14.99 $19.99 RESIDENT EVIL 2 DELUXE EDITION $22.99 $49.99 RESIDENT EVIL 2 REMAKE $19.59 $39.99 STAR WARS BATTLEFRONT II CELEBRATION EDITION $23.99 $39.99 TEAM SONIC RACING $21.99 $39.99 THE ELDER SCROLLS V: SKYRIM SPECIAL EDITION $15.99 $39.99 THE ELDER SCROLLS V: SKYRIM VR $17.99 $59.99 THE JACKBOX PARTY PACK 3 $14.99 $24.99 THE LAST OF US REMASTERED $14.99 $19.99 THE WITCHER 3: WILD HUNT $11.99 $39.99 View the full article

Hello again, PlayStation Slayers! I’m here today to tell you about the Scorched Earth content update for Dauntless, arriving March 19 on PS4. It’s a hefty update that includes a new Behemoth, Blaze Escalation, Hunt Pass, and loads of new bells and whistles for you to check out. Blaze Escalation If you took part in our Shock Escalation season that launched this past December, you’ll be familiar with the mechanics of the hunt type, but here’s a refresher: Escalations task Slayers with a series of Behemoth encounters with unique difficulty modifiers and randomized Behemoth combinations, culminating in a battle against the Escalation’s “boss” Behemoth. Shock Escalation was our first experiment with this type of hunt, so we wanted to expand the breadth of content for this season. You’ll find new fiery Behemoth variations in Blaze Escalation, and we’ve added a number of new attack patterns to these variants that should keep you on your toes. If you’ve been keeping an eye on our interactive Scorched Earth map you probably noticed a few teasers for Blaze Escalation content, including new aggressive fauna, a lush, tropical island chain to explore, and the star of the show, our new Behemoth. Without further ado… New Behemoth – Torgadoro Meet the Torgadoro! Torgadoro is the “boss” Behemoth in Blaze Escalation, and you can reach this menace by successfully netting an Escalation score of 40 or above in a “10-50” level Escalation hunt. With a high level of agility (despite his gargantuan size) and fists that can quite literally crack the earth and bludgeon Slayers to a pulp, the Torgadoro is a formidable opponent for even the most seasoned Slayer. You’ll get your chance to test your might against this foe in the crater of a volcano soon. If you successfully reach the end of a 10-50 Escalation hunt, you’ll earn schematics for powerful legendary weapons forged using Torgadoro parts. Each legendary Torgadoro weapon includes two prismatic cell slots, the ability to “bond” the weapon to another blaze weapon, and a special ability that calls forth Torgadoro’s rage, letting you rampage across the battlefield with oversized fists. Searing Talons Hunt Pass Scorched Earth also brings with it a brand new Hunt Pass, Searing Talons. You can earn up to 50 levels of cosmetic rewards and consumables from the enigmatic Blaze Hawk faction of Slayers known for swift, stealthy hunts in fiery islands of the Burning Heights. The set culminates in a dazzling set of Blaze Hawk armour skins that will show you’re ready for Torgadoro’s domain. Hunt Pass Prestige Completing all 50 levels will open up Hunt Pass Prestige, launching Thursday with the content update. Each Prestige level you complete will earn you Vault coins — a new currency created especially for Prestige players. These can be used to purchase hard-to-find items from previous Hunt Passes, including cosmetic armour sets, emotes, weapon skins, and more. New Improvements This update brings a number of quality of life improvements and other features we’ve been itching to get into Dauntless. You’ll find a new and improved move list that provides detailed information about combos, weapon specs, and more. We’ve also updated our daily login bonuses to include a multitude of potential items, including rams, elemental orbs, arcstones, patrol chests, bounty tokens, and tonics. For the “bounty hunters” out there, bounties have been rebalanced across the board, and the bounty rating (bronze, silver, gold) should now properly reflect the challenge associated with each bounty. We hope you enjoy Scorched Earth, Slayers! If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave us a message below. View the full article

We know that fans are excited to find out more about our next-generation console, PlayStation 5, and exactly how it will bring about the future of gaming. Today we’re proud to unveil more details behind the technical and hardware components that make PlayStation 5 such an innovative and powerful platform – the ultra-high-speed SSD, integrated custom I/O system, custom AMD GPU with ray tracing, and highly immersive 3D audio. With these capabilities, PS5 will allow developers to maximize their creativity, building expansive worlds and new play experiences in the games they design. This presentation from Mark Cerny, lead system architect for PS5, dives deep into the hardware system’s architecture and how we designed PS5 to benefit developers and the games they create. View the full article

Hello! I’m Josh from Raredrop Games, the studio developing Warborn – our upcoming turn-based tactics game featuring powerful mecha units, known as Variable Armour. Today I’m very happy to be able to share with you the release date for the game, which is June 12. So you’ll soon be able to jump into the world of Warborn and take command of your own mecha strike force! Warborn is set in the Auros System, where the discovery of a material known as Eionite has given way to rapid technological advancement. Expanding into space, disputes over territory leave mankind divided, dragging the system into an era of war. This new age sees the creation of the “Variable Armour” (or VA), an advanced bipedal weapon controlled by a human pilot which changes the face of warfare across the system forever. The campaign of Warborn sees you take the helm as one of four commanders, each with their own allegiances and motivations. Tensions between factions are high in the aftermath of a major conflict and new threats are beginning to emerge. As commander you’ll be deploying your Variable Armour forces to battlefields across the solar system, from the planet Cerulia to the space colonies of Nethalis. Gameplay is turn-based, swapping back and forth between you and your opponent. During your turn you’ll be aiming to complete various mission objectives by directing your Variable Armour units across the battlefield, calling in reinforcements from dropships, and issuing commands to engage the enemy. After moving a unit you’ll be presented with a set of skills that are unique to each type of Variable Armour. These skills allow you to take action, attacking the enemy, capturing structures or assisting allies depending on the abilities of that particular Variable Armour. Once the enemy is in your sights and you’ve chosen an attack skill, the tactical map will explode away and transition into a cool combat sequence. Warborn is a turn-based tactics game but there are also some elements you’ll be familiar with if you like strategy games too, such as capturing structures to gain resources and spending those resources to deploy new Variable Armour units. When we’ve taken the game to shows, players have often commented that Warborn is fairly easy to pick up and play, which I think is great. But for those of you looking for more depth, there are plenty of advanced systems you can master to gain the upper hand! A good example of this is the defence rating system. As you learn more about the capability of each Variable Armour you’ll notice attack skills are categorised into three damage types: kinetic, energy and explosive. Variable Armour units have different defence ratings against these damage types, so knowing which one to use against an enemy Variable Armour will give you an edge in battle. Aside from the single-player campaign, Warborn also features a skirmish mode where you can play against the computer with custom match settings, or if you’re feeling competitive we also support online multiplayer. If you want to get creative, a full map editor is also included with the game and you can play your custom maps against either the AI or other players in private multiplayer matches. It’s very exciting to be able to talk about Warborn on here, so thanks for taking the time to read my post. If you enjoy turn-based tactics games as I do, please check out Warborn when it launches June 12 on PS4. View the full article

Hello, over the past few years, PlayStation fans have become familiar with the name Hello Games largely due to No Man’s Sky and the regular stream of updates for that game we have been working on since launch. No Man’s Sky continues to be a major focus for the studio and our PlayStation community can expect a lot more from us in the future. Secretly in the background though, a small off-shoot team has been working on something altogether intimate and beautiful. We announced The Last Campfire in December 2018 at the Video Game Awards with a teaser trailer. Today we are able to announce that The Last Campfire will be coming to PlayStation 4 in Summer 2020. To celebrate, we have put together a new trailer that gives a little glimpse into the emotional journey this small team is crafting. The Last Campfire is the culmination of several years of work by a couple of members of the team who had the urge to make an artistically focused single-player adventure game. The result is which hopefully looks a little like an animated movie, and delivers an adventure with an emotional impact. You play as Ember. You are trapped in a puzzling place, searching for meaning and a way home. At its heart, it is the story of rekindling hope in an otherwise hopeless world. Hello Games was born out of a close-knit team of four friends working together to create our first game, Joe Danger. We are still a very small studio, and while No Man’s Sky takes up a large slice of our bandwidth, we want to nurture creative new ideas from small teams. We are excited for The Last Campfire, and what this team builds next. We really hope you enjoy The Last Campfire when it comes to PS4 this Summer. Another journey begins. – Sean View the full article

Challenge your wits and reflexes in the incredible platformer La-Mulana 1 & 2, available now! La-Mulana 1 features the archaeologist Lemeza Kosugi and his adventure in exploring ancient ruins that supposedly harbors great treasure and the secret behind the origin of life. In La-Mulana 2, Lumisa Kosugi, his daughter, investigates the sudden appearance of monsters in the ruins while also searching for the whereabouts of her now-missing father. This non-linear metroidvania throws the player into the unknown, with plenty of deadly foes, wicked puzzles, and diabolical traps that stand between them and the ultimate truth behind the world. Join us for this exclusive interview with creator Takumi Naramura about game design, story development, and lessons learned! What inspired the aesthetic? The art concept began with imagining what modern beautiful pixel art would look like if it evolved from the limited color palette frequently used in retro games. However, just making it more colorful wouldn’t necessarily make it better. I think the limited color combinations and contrasts were the key to beauty of that time, so I tried to make it so that the colors of the walls and backgrounds in La-Mulana as a whole resonated beautifully with one another. How did you balance the characters’ light-hearted humor with the game’s underlying dark and somber setting? Personally, I don’t really read books. When I was a child, grown-ups told me to read books, but I rebelled and read only manga. In other words, I don’t have the foundation or know-how for constructing novels, which I make up for by utilizing a more playful writing style, rather than a serious one. But there are many retro games that take place in a “serious” world or setting but have comical dialogue. I really like that kind of mood or atmosphere; if it’s usually lighthearted, the impact of any serious story development becomes greater. Was there anything you learned from designing and developing La-Mulana that you applied to La-Mulana 2? If so, what was the most valuable lesson? The first version ever developed was designed without much thought. When that was remade, it was completely redesigned so we could be proud of it as a consumer-facing product [as it was no longer just a passion project]. Although it’s a game whose story is more structured around lighthearted dialogue, I thought it essential for it to also convey a deep and immersive setting. During the development of La-Mulana 1, I studied ancient civilizations and collected a lot of materials like photographs and books. Though I kept it at a Wikipedia level in my research to avoid being overly serious, and limited my book exposure to more suspicious ones, like those closer to occult genres rather than fine research. The research that did not go into the first’s remake was used up in the sequel, La-Mulana 2. Speaking of which, the greatest focus for La-Mulana 2 was its in-game mythos (that was based off of Nordic mythology) as it was important to link this mythos to that of the first game and create a consistent game universe overall. The left is a sketch of an immortal war zone based off of Midgard in Nordic mythology. I followed the tradition of a map portraying an area surrounded by seas, then plugged in map symbols accordingly. It’s a bit hard to understand this map because its size is reduced in game, but the important part was to have it impart onto the player an air of mystery and ambiguity when they look at it—such an atmosphere is crucial for La-Mulana 1 & 2. How did you find the balance between difficulty and the player having fun when designing puzzles? To be honest, I’m not very good at thinking up puzzles, which led to difficulty in thinking of ways to entertain players through them. Nevertheless, instead of providing explanations and excessive tutorials, I intended the puzzles to be that once you continuously attempt it, you will gradually be able to understand it [like trial-and-error]. In the beginning, puzzles were prepared so they could be solved using clues located in the same scene. As the game progresses, it becomes increasingly difficult to find the clues, scattered throughout multiple areas, and generate the solution. Eventually, the player will end up using the entire map to solve puzzles. This method of puzzle-solving was not the aim in the first, original version. In addition, those who played the first version were a huge help. From the numerous uploaded playthroughs, I saw many players evacuate the area immediately after solving a puzzle because they were wary of any traps I may have set. I believe this taught me what the essence of La-Mulana was in reverse: when it came to entertaining players, the answer was to play to their sense of distrust. Is mythology something you were always interested in? Most of Japan’s elementary school boys are interested in ancient civilizations, aliens, and ghosts. For my generation, if you were to mention “archaeologist,” the first thing that would come to mind is Indiana Jones along with his iconic wide brim hat and whip. 80s Hollywood movies were also influential. At the time of La-Mulana’s remake, I watched all four Indiana Jones films, along with The Mummy and Tomb Raider, but only Indiana Jones was used as reference. The 12 crystal skulls from the fourth Indiana Jones film was a concept I wanted to use since La-Mulana. But now, there are studies that reveal these crystal skulls are actually out-of-place artifacts. That’s how I found that the deeper you delve into and research ancient civilizations, the higher the chance that the romance behind all the mystery fades. Because of this, I centered my studies around sources like Wikipedia and occult-like materials. My imagination has run wild ever since I can remember. Of all the different mythologies in the world, I’d have to say Egyptian is my favorite, which is why I made sure to play games like Assassins Creed and Assassins Creed: Origins. But since there are similar myths all around the world, I liked to play with this idea that maybe each culture’s mythology was based on a same historical and global event. La-Mulana is the outcome of these imaginations that culminated in my adulthood. In La-Mulana 2, the shopkeepers are cameo characters from other video games. Where did that idea come from? Most of our fans from the early days of Nigoro were into retro computer games. I thought that component should not be forgotten while doing the remake, so I parodied the titles of retro PC games for the shopkeepers’ names. For La-Mulana 2, we had the opportunity to add bust-up illustrations for them. I strongly believed in still preserving the parody, which led me to reference the games in these illustrations as much as I could without getting in trouble. However, some of the storekeepers were changed during the porting process as there was a request to have these characters rewritten so that their resemblance to already existing figures does not anger their respective creators. This bothered me quite frankly, as they did not understand the concept of parodies whatsoever. I thought, “If I have to redraw them so they’re not parodies anymore, then I might as well call up my indie game friends and ask them to make a cameo!” And that’s how that collaboration and cameo came about. Could you ever see your game become adapted for the big screen? If I did this though, I would totally get in trouble because then I’d be doing nothing more than shamelessly appropriating Indiana Jones. You’re trying to set me up, aren’t you? But, we at Nigoro do deeply wish to widen our scope outside of games someday. View the full article

MLB The Show 20 launches today. Here are our Top 10 Reasons that you should get it: 1. Brand New Online Game Mode: Showdown Take on a gauntlet of challenges to earn huge rewards. Start each Showdown with a draft and pick your squad MVPs. In each draft, you also will select perks, which boost your team’s performance in clutch situations. Then, play Moments with your newly crafted squad. Conquer the Final Showdown to earn huge rewards in the form of Program progress, Stubs, XP, Packs, and other items. 2. Brand New Game Mode: Custom Online Leagues Allows You To Play Seasons With Friends* Playing video games with friends is fun. Beating your friend in Game 7 of the World Series in your own Custom League is even more fun. In MLB The Show 20, you can create or join the gameplay experience that’s customized for you and your friends. Choice of 40-Man Live MLB Rosters or Diamond Dynasty Collection Season long format with Postseason Flexible schedule Competitive or Relaxed Atmosphere *Active PS Plus subscription required for online multiplayer. 3. Relationships Matter More In Road To The Show Our Full Baseball RPG Relationships matter in Road To The Show. We all do better when the team is clicking, so build those relationships with your teammates. Doing so brings out the best in them and in you. Challenges have been improved and expanded to give you more targeted options, better outcomes, and bigger rewards that you can see in real-time. New Challenges identify and surface the highest leverage moments for you to impact your team’s win expectancy. Choose your challenge based on what attribute, cap or personality you want to advance. New multi-reward Challenges include on-field Personality gain opportunities, speeding up your perk progression. Rewards now earned for completing new “Boss Battle” Challenges. 4. Minor League Rosters Make Road To The Show More Realistic For the first time ever in MLB The Show history Minor League Rosters will be in the game at launch! Through a collaboration with Scott Spindler (AKA RidinRosters) and his team you will now see the future of your favorite team’s franchise on day one. You’ll find these guys in Road To The Show, Franchise, and March To October. 5. Franchise Allows You To Relocate and Customize Your Team For the first time ever in Franchise Mode you can change your team’s name and logo. Bring your idea to life with our Logo Creator tool. Not the artistic type? Then search through the Logo Vault and download one of the thousands of stylish logos uploaded by players just like you. Have you always dreamed of your favorite team being a little closer to home? Then change the location of your team and pick the stadium they play in for home games. 6. March To October Gives You More Of What You Want Variety is the spice of life, right? Well this year March to October has greatly broadened the variety of unique game situations with which your team will be challenged. So be ready to evaluate the situation and execute clutch play from the very first at-bat of each game! New Gated Rewards System New Call-Up Opportunities New Dynamic and Beginner Difficulty Options More Compelling Variety of High-Leverage Situations New Trade Hub Enabling Strategic Trade-Making More Trades and Call Ups And with The Show 20’s addition of 1500+ real Minor Leaguers, when you choose to make a suggested roster move you will immediately get a Player Lock game (with a chance for a Player Boost) with one of the actual top prospects that your favorite team is in the process of grooming! 7. David Ortiz, Mickey Mantle, Mariano Rivera, And Other Beloved Legends Have you ever wondered how David Ortiz would do against Nolan Ryan in his prime? Or how Mickey Mantle would stack up against Ken Griffey Jr.? Then you’re going to love the list of Legends that are in MLB The Show 20! Play with all of these Legends in a home run derby, get them on your Diamond Dynasty squad, or add them to the pool of free-agents in Franchise. 8. Perfect-Perfect Hitting System Rewards Great At Bats Hit the sweet spot and get rewarded. Perfect-Perfect batting is a true hitting reward system that allows the best players to shine. Whenever your swing timing and plate coverage indicator are both the best you will trigger a perfect timing and perfect contact feedback grade. 9. Defense Is More Fun And Matters More Than Ever With Extreme Catch And Throw Home Indicators Do you go all-out for that hard sinking line drive, or will it eat you up? The Extreme Catch Indicator will help you decide if your outfielder is confident enough to make the big play or if it would be smarter to play it off the bounce. Hitting the catcher at the plate from the outfield is not easy. Neither is hitting the needle in the new Outfield Throw Home Indicator, but you’ll have to do it if you want to make that play at home in The Show 20. Reaction time and first steps are huge differentiators in the MLB. With the new First Step System, you will feel the hesitation of an average fielder or the smooth quickness of the elite players. In MLB The Show 20 player ratings matter more than ever! 10. Featured Programs and Bosses Return In Full Force To MLB The Show 20 In Diamond Dynasty* you build a custom squad to face-off online against other players from around the world. Some of the best player items that you can get will be found in our Featured Programs. Progress far enough in a Program and you will earn the coveted Boss Choice Pack. That pack lets you pick one of the three bosses (each boss is guaranteed to improve your squad)! How do you progress in Featured Programs? By playing Missions, Showdown, Moments, Conquest, by Collecting items, or just by playing the game and earning XP. *Active PS Plus subscription required for online multiplayer. Order MLB The Show 20 now and get a jump start on Opening Day: play.st/TheShow20 View the full article

With the recent release of our 108th God, Smite has broken new ground with the first-ever playable character based not on mythology or ancient legend, but on history: Hua Mulan, the Ascendant Warrior. To celebrate Mulan’s arrival, we are excited to announce the new Smite Mulan Plus Bundle — available free to all PlayStation Plus members. This incredible bundle features exciting content that celebrates Smite’s Chinese Pantheon. Mulan joins over 100 other Gods in Smite, the world’s most popular action multiplayer online battle arena. Choose from Gods spanning over a dozen Pantheons, including Greek, Norse, Japanese, Voodoo, and, of course, Chinese. The Battleground of the Gods has never been more exciting – or deadlier! And best of all, Smite is absolutely free to download and play on PS4. What’s included in the bundle, you ask? The Smite Mulan Plus Bundle unlocks the following content: Mulan Nu Wa Empress Nu Wa Skin Master Guan Fu Guan Yu Skin 3-Day Account Booster 100 Gems Who is Mulan, and why are we so excited about her release? Hua Mulan is a well known legendary figure who heroically took her father’s place in the army of China. Disguising herself as a man, she worked relentlessly to rise through the ranks, maintaining this pretense for 12 years. At the end of 12 years of service, she was offered a high rank, but turned it down in favor of returning home to her family. But that was not the end of the end of her story… or her fight. For now, a new danger threatens her land, and Hua Mulan must once more take up her weapons in defense of her home. Mulan’s inherent skill as a fighter was honed with over a decade of intense training and battlefield experience. Not content to master a single weapon in her army’s arsenal, she would go on to perfect her skill with the sword, spear, and longbow. In Smite, Mulan wields all three of these weapons in combat to deadly effect, combining their power in her appropriately named Divine Mastery ultimate ability to deal truly devastating damage to her opponents. Redeem the Smite Mulan Plus Bundle on PS4 today to play Mulan free, and enjoy the rest of the content celebrating our Chinese Pantheon! View the full article