Schlagwort: youtubegaming

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According to recent reports, Bully 2 might be Rockstar Games next release on PS4 and Xbox One.

While the famous Rockstar studios are currently busy with the launch of Red Dead Redemption 2, their next major single-player launch may have been leaked.

Internet sleuths have found evidence that suggests Rockstar may be in the middle of the development of a Bully sequel.

This stems from reports regarding casting calls being made for a new AAA game.

Request for a “new unannounced video game title with a leading UK games developer, shooting at Pinewood Studios,” have been making the rounds.

And they have been linked to a new Bully game; a follow up to the hit PS2 title from Rockstar Games.

The casting calls are reportedly looking for people to fill young roles, none of which have been given full character names.

Details of the roles include: “Mild violence and profanity will be used in scenes with the young performer.

“The project itself is a thriller/drama, and all scenes with the young performer will be handled with sensitivity.”

There have also been calls for actors to fill College Professor roles, narrowing down the idea that this could be for Bully 2.

Unfortunately, no smoking gun ties this project directly to Rockstar Games.

So fans will have to take this latest report with a big pinch of salt as there is no guarantee it couldn’t be for something else.

The evidence does stack up with earlier rumours that Bully 2 was in development at Rockstar Games.

There have been concept art leaks linked to a Bully 2 game, although Rockstar themselves have remained tight-lipped on the subject.

A leaker connected with GTA Online also revealed that Bully 2 was in development and will be the next big release, following the launch of Red Dead Redemption 2.

This appeared online earlier this year and comes from a noteworthy Rockstar insider.

Yan2295 posted the news on a popular Rockstar forum, adding: “Bully 2 is indeed in development and is supposed to be the next game after RDR2.”

It certainly sounds like Bully 2, not GTA 6, will be the next game arriving from Rockstar.

The usual five-year cycle between Grand Theft Auto games has been broken, with Rockstar launching RDR2 in 2018. It certainly seems like the overwhelming success of GTA Online came even as a bit of a surprise to the studio.

Red Dead Redemption 2 was announced in October 2016 and has taken an extra two years to hit shelves.

Rockstar said at the time that the game required further polish, but some analysts believe it also has something to do with the game’s online mode.

Red Dead Online looks set to play a major in the new game’s success and will arrive in beta form in November 2018.

But if it proves to be anything like as successful as GTA Online, could fans wanting GTA 6 be left waiting a longer period of time?

There’s no doubt that GTA Online continues to prove a massive success, with the base game still selling well.

And if Bully 2 will be in the frame and taking up development room, there’s a chance that GTA 6 won’t be announced for some time.

Website: LINK

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With rumors swirling in all directions for years regarding projects, one of which was always the now very real Red Dead Redemption 2, We thought it would be fun to speculate on what might come next from one of the industry’s titans. With the seemingly safe assumption that GTA VI is next in line three or four years from now, what comes after that? Here are our best guesses, ranked according to likelihood.

Unranked: Midnight Club, Manhunt

Among the most prominent games the label has put out as in-house works, these two come to mind as the types that are definitely done. GTA has, at this point, built into it a racing suite more interesting than a strict racing game like Midnight Club could ever do on its own. It doesn’t feel like Rockstar would want to make a game in the genre post-GTA V.

5. Max Payne

After taking over the full project from Remedy for Max Payne 3, they seemed to tell the anti-hero’s farewell story. Playing Max Payne 3 felt like they had wrapped it all up as a neat and tidy trilogy. Could they bring the series back for more? Possibly. Max would be even older than he already was, but in a series where someone that drunk and high can shoot guns that well, we guess they’re not too concerned with realism.

4. Agent

Do you remember Agent? You’d be forgiven if not. The game has a long and speculative history. First titled as early as 2003, the game was at one point due out for PS2 and Xbox. It then went totally quiet until 2007 when Sony revealed that Rockstar was working on an exclusive for the PlayStation 3. Two years later, Agent was officially revealed as a Cold War-era spy thriller when Sam Houser himself, hardly seen at any E3 in recent years, took the stage to debut the title.

3. New IP

We are putting this one right in the middle of the likelihood rankings because we could really see it go either way. Maybe Agent morphs into something else (or maybe it already has), or maybe Rockstar decides to finally create one of several other games they’ve likely been sitting on for years. Parent company Take-Two seems to give them quite a long leash to choose their own adventure, and with that freedom maybe there need not be a sequel at all, but a totally new IP that may become the next big franchise.

2. Bully

After RDR2 was finally unveiled, many began speculating that Bully would (or at least should) be next in line for the long-awaited sequel treatment. While Red Dead fans had to wait eight years between titles, 2019 will mark 13 years since Bully released, and there certainly won’t be a Bully 2 in 2019, if there ever is one at all, which means they’ll be waiting for even longer than that. A new Bully with modern technology could be a lot of fun for Rockstar and for players. Rethinking the elements of the school day, playing hooky and skateboarding across town, dodging hall monitors and teachers, just generally being a juvenile delinquent, it all has the air of something with which Rockstar could do awesome things.

1. L.A. Noire

Of course, there is one title that fits the bill better than even Bully, and that’s L.A. Noire. Not only does it have the sandbox, open-world layout to its advantage, something which we believe is of great importance to Rockstar right now, but it has another clear trend in its favor as well. What do Max Payne and L.A. Noire have in common? We’ll give you a minute to guess.

What do you think Rockstar’s next project will be? Maybe more importantly, what do you want Rockstar’s next project to be?

Website: LINK

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The dispute over consoles came to a head in November 2013, when the PS4 and Xbox One were unveiled to the world, just seven days apart.

PS4 might be killing it with worldwide sales, but what’s the situation at home? Using Google Search Data, the website Decluttr.com looked at which states searched the most for which console: PS4 or Xbox One.

Surprisingly, it turns out we aren’t as torn on our gaming searches as our politics, with the US-made Xbox One topping the list in every state. That’s aside from one very important state in the gaming and tech world.

Home to Silicon Valley, California is the spiritual home of technology. It seems Californians are all about their PS4. Is there something developers and tech pioneers know that we don’t? Are Apple, Google and Tesla employees deliberately choosing a console that won’t see money going into Microsoft pockets?

Brand Loyalty

Decluttr.com also investigated which brand is the most popular overall.

Launched in December 1994, PlayStation had an almost seven year advantage to become the favorite gaming brand.

However, despite being launched in November 2001, our research suggests Xbox is still the most popular in the US, with PlayStation topping the searches in just 15 of the 50 states.

Interestingly it seems PlayStation terms are searched more in certain areas, such as the West Coast, topping the polls in California, Oregon and Nevada. Which is a similar story in the South East states such as Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee.

It also topped the polls in metropolitan cities New York and Washington, whereas Xbox dominated the searches across the majority of the east and Central America.

So there it is America.

Website: LINK

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When the PlayStation Classic was announced in September, the mini-retro box had plenty of details confirmed, including a December 3 release date and a $99.99 price. But its full 20-game list was missing, which changes today with an unveiling of what will likely be the make-or-break factor for potential buyers.

In the United States, the PlayStation Classic will ship with the following games. (An asterisk means the game was previously announced during the September unveil.)

• Battle Arena Toshinden
• Cool Boarders 2
• Destruction Derby
• Final Fantasy VII *
• Grand Theft Auto
• Intelligent Qube
• Jumping Flash! *
• Metal Gear Solid
• Mr. Driller
• Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee
• Rayman
• Resident Evil (Director’s Cut)
• Revelations: Persona
• Ridge Racer Type 4 *
• Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo
• Syphon Filter
• Tekken 3 *
• Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six
• Twisted Metal
• Wild Arms *

The list includes a few glaring omissions for PlayStation faithful. The biggest crater in the list is arguably thanks to publisher Activision, whose PlayStation-defining series Crash Bandicoot, Spyro the Dragon, and Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater all missed the cut. (Sony originally published Crash and Spyro games before those series’ rights were acquired by Activision.) EA is nowhere to be found, as well, though its roster of popular sports games would likely be a rights quagmire to bring back in a retro collection like this.

Additionally, Sony has left two of the PlayStation’s defining racing series off the roster: WipEoutand Gran Turismo (which each had two PS1 entries). Standing in their stead is Cool Boarders 2(which is the only ’90s “extreme sports” game on offer; sorry, Jet Moto fans). And while Square Enix has shown up with the previously announced Final Fantasy VII, the publisher apparently didn’t cough up any of the best-selling original Tomb Raider games—or any of its other hugely popular ’90s RPGs.

That’s different in Japan, where Squeenix RPGs Parasite Eve and SaGa Frontier will reach that nation’s version of the console. Japan’s PlayStation Classic will also ship with two Arc the LadRPGs.

We do see a decent number of bonafide PS1 classics on the final USA version, particularly the original Metal Gear Solid, which could have been locked up in a Konami-Kojima rights nightmare, and the first Persona RPG, which could prove quite interesting to newer fans of that long-running series. And the system includes a fair number of solid two-player games, which emphasizes the fact that the PS Classic ships with two controllers. (Though, to that point, Battle Arena Toshindenshould be nowhere near this console; while the game’s 3D visuals impressed during the console’s launch period, Tekken‘s graphics and combat quickly eclipsed it, and its sequels drove that point home.)

Website: LINK

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Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, released at the start of October, is already a hit, but there have been problems with players using exploits to gain an unfair advantage in multiplayer battles. An update to the game aims to crack down on players who use exploits, with a range of punishments for those who get caught.

Players have been taking advantage of an exploit that allows multiple copies of the same perk to be equipped in multiplayer mode, according to a post by the developers on Reddit. The developers state that they will be resolving this exploit in an upcoming update, but until then they remind players that abusing an exploit makes them subject to in-game penalties.

There are two tiers of penalties for players caught abusing an exploit, according to the developer Treyarch:

• First offense: Player will be temporarily suspended from playing the game online; will have their stats, Emblems, and Paintjobs reset; will have online splitscreen privileges revoked; and will have their Leaderboard entries deleted.

• Extreme or repeat offenses: Player will be permanently suspended from playing the game online; will have their stats, Emblems, and Paintjobs reset; and will be blocked permanently from appearing in Leaderboards.

The game is focused exclusively on multiplayer, with no single-player campaign, so it makes sense that the developers would look harshly on players trying to get a leg up in multiplayer battles. Although it might be tempting to take advantage of glitches when playing, this news is a strong reminder that it isn’t worth the hassle to cheat.

Other new content in the update includes access to the “Black Market,” where players can purchase cosmetic items, and the launch of the Halloween Event across all platforms with spooky-themed cosmetic items available in a second stream of the Black Market. Other minor changes have been made like doubling the bleed-out time of the last zombie in the Zombie mode, boosted XP rates in solo and two-player matches, fewer Hellhounds spawned in certain levels, and tweaking the use and effectiveness of Elixirs.

Website: LINK

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More PS5 rumors are coming in and according to the latest one, we are closer than ever to know about the next-gen console from Sony at PlayStation Devcon 2018. PlayStation Devcon is a place where Sony gathers all of the gaming developers and talks about their achievements or new products.

This time it’s not like as before because Sony moved this event to a later date and is now also holding it in their London headquarters instead of United States. It’s the same event at which Sony first talked about PS VR and PS4 so discussion around PS5 is a possibility this year.

Registration for this year DevCon 2018 event is now closed.
If you have already registered, we will be confirming places soon so look out for the email!
Please contact us via DevNet if you’d like to discuss late registrations.

Registrations are already closed and there’s no information about when it’s going to be held. As we are just two months away from 2019, this event is going to be held very soon.

With PS4 Pro, Slim and VR already out there, PS5 seems to be the only new hardware that Sony will talk about. Maybe it’s also the reason why they changed the event date. With Xbox X018 also around the corner, seems like both tech giants are going to announce their upcoming consoles very soon or at least brief developers about them.

Interestingly, a recent patent shows a built-in VR feature in PlayStation 5 that tracks your moments through two bracelets. These bracelets will not need any external device to work, according to the patent.

Sony Interactive Entertainment filed this patent on October 11 so it might be something to also talk about at Devcon 2018. Other patents from Sony reveal backward compatibility support which is currently the most wanted feature on PS5. Sony is also looking to work on a V-Sync technology which has been available for PC users already.

The upcoming major title like The Elder Scrolls and a new Call Of Duty game are also expected to arrive on PS5 and Xbox Scarlet.

Source: Gearnuke

Website: LINK

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Next generation talk continues to be a hot topic with even publishers themselves discussing what’s next on the gaming horizon. With both the PlayStation 5 and the codenamed Xbox Scarlet looming closer and closer, Yonghwan Kim, a designer from Seoul decided to put their own creative input into the mix with a visually stunning render of what they’d like to see the next PlayStation platform look like.

Kim created these concept images that look amazing! Sony should take notes. If you like to see more of Yonghwan’s work, check his Behance profile.

Yonghwan Kim designed a PlayStation Move controller concept that looks like it could be an actual official product from Sony. The designer came out with the design for the reason that Sony hasn’t designed a controller with the intent of being VR friendly. PlayStation Move controller was designed first for their motion games back in the PS3 generation. The control layout for those games made more sense but seems to be a bit awkward with VR.

Website: LINK

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With Microsoft looking to bring “console quality” streaming to phones and tablets with Project xCloud, how will the company achieve that when touch controls are still pretty bad? It seems the company is looking to bring physical controllers to mobile devices to offset this problem, according to these Microsoft Research papers.

The research paper documents some of the popular solutions to gaming via a touch screen, while hailing the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation Portable (PSP) for circumventing touch-based control limitations with full joysticks and buttons.

As smartphones and tablets have become pervasive, so has mobile gaming. Not surprisingly, popular games for these platforms are focused on touchscreen-based interaction. However, many types of game are less well-suited to mobile devices. Despite systems like AdaptControl which can adapt to the ‘drift’ typically occurring when using virtual on-screen controls, touchbased emulations of traditional gaming controls like Dpads, buttons & joysticks are often unsatisfactory.

Mobile gaming devices like the Sony PlayStation Portable and Nintendo’s DS and Switch are dedicated mobile gaming platforms which overcome these limitations via physical controls. The success of the Switch is testament to the value of mobile gaming with physical controls. A number of cheaper products allow a smartphone to be clipped into or onto a modified handheld gaming controller; these include the ION iCade mobile, the GameCase, the GameVice and products from Moga. However, the fixed form of these accessories means they are bulky and inflexible.

Microsoft built the prototypes out of foam and then had them 3D printed, based on conceptual renders. The work was carried out quite a while ago, back in 2014, but it seems Microsoft Research has resurfaced their efforts recently, noting the recent success of the Nintendo Switch.

While this research may be far away from turning into an actual product, it’s pretty imperative that Microsoft takes a serious role in exploring how it can improve the way Xbox games will handle on a mobile device to help take Project xCloud mainstream. Touch-based inputs have always felt like a half-way solution, and will feel even more like one when they come up against games designed from the ground-up for responsive, tactile inputs.

Would you like to see an Xbox controller like this hit store shelves for your phone or Surface Go? Let us know in the comments.

Website: LINK

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The Bureau of copyright, the US made revolutionary changes in the copyright Law in the digital age (DMCA). Previously, the DMCA prohibits users to make modifications to the operating system, which is operated by electronic devices and can repair them, it could be fined and even jailed.

Founder of iFixit Kyle Vince explained that authorize amendments to the law:

• To hack and modify the device with built-in voice assistants (including smart speakers Google, Apple and Amazon)
• To remove with new and used smartphones carrier binding
• Repairing smartphones, devices, smart home and appliances
• To make changes to and create own software for cars, tractors and other motorized equipment
• Order repair of electronic devices and equipment from third-party organizations

The DMCA still prohibits US citizens to hack, modify or repair game consoles.

Restrictions in the case of this category of devices is so serious that even the user can not replace the Xbox or PlayStation broken optical drive or hard drive – for this purpose it is necessary to contact an authorized service center.

Website: LINK

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It seems like you could well be playing The Elder Scrolls 6 on PS5/Xbox Two/whatever the hell the next wave of consoles are called.

Shortly after the megaton action-RPG was announced back at E3, Bethesda boss Todd Howard admitted the game was merely in “pre-production”, and thus was a looooong way off. New comments from Matt Firor of ZeniMax Online Studios back up the thought that the next Elder Scrolls is probably years away from launching.

“The easiest thing is look at how it was announced; it was Starfield and then Elder Scrolls 6,” Firor said in an interview with Gamespot. “You can go back and count the years between Bethesda Game Studios releases, and you’ll get the idea it’s not coming anytime soon.” He then added that by the time the RPG epic finally hits, “there will be a different console generation by then, I’m sure.”

I for one look forward to playing The Elder Scrolls 6 at some point in 2024 on an 8K TV that’s thinner than a sheet of A4. At least it gives me plenty of time to finally finish Skyrim.

[VG247]

Website: LINK

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Its that time of year again. Rumors about the next generation of consoles have started spreading around the internet. We do know that Sony isdefinitely working on the PS5 but, that’s all we know, at least officially. There are a lot of rumors claiming that the Sony PlayStation 5 is going to go with AMD Ryzen and AMD Navi.

Thanks to a recent report, we know that someone at Sony is working with AMD Ryzen technology.

“A principal programmer at Sony associated with the firm’s Advanced Technology Group is working with AMD’s Ryzen technology, improving the Zen core’s micro-architecture support within the LLVM compiler stack – a key component of a tool used in the PlayStation 4 development environment. Of course, there is no PS4 product using the Ryzen processor, leading to speculation that this is related to a prospective next-gen PlayStation 5 console currently in development.

The evidence – unearthed by Linux-specialist site Phoronix – shows the highly experienced Sony programmer making a number of commits to the LLVM github over the last few weeks, all of them related to the “znver1″ architecture, the codename for AMD’s first generation Ryzen processors. On top of that, information on LinkedIn confirms the staffer’s involvement in compiler development for PlayStation hardware. Game credits in Media Molecule’s Tearaway and Evolution Studios’ DriveClub confirm that the developer is also a part of Sony’s Advanced Technology Group, which serves a number of roles in the Sony organisation.”

According to rumors, the PS5 is going to use AMD Navi GPU’s. This is a good choice as AMD Navi will be the worlds first 7nm GPU. This means that Sony can give it less electricity but, get more performance in return. AMD Navi will likely do better than current GPUs in terms of temps making it the perfect option for a compact and slim gaming console.

Current-gen consoles are being held back because of their lackluster CPU. The Xbox One X has a very powerful GPU for a $500 console but, the CPU didn’t get that big of an upgrade. The GPU gets held back because of the CPU but, an AMD Ryzen and Navi combination would be perfect. The PS5 is definitely going to be more powerful than current-gen consoles and that combined with Sony’s optimization, games will look amazing.

Website: LINK

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Since Microsoft launched the Xbox One Elite Controller in 2015, PlayStation 4 owners have waited for something comparable. Many of those fans have pinned their hopes on Scuf Gaming’s new Vantage. This is a custom version of the PS4’s DualShock 4 that has many of the features of the Elite. It comes in a wireless model for $200 or a wired version for $170. It’s out now, but is it really the PS4’s Elite controller?

No. It’s not.

The Elite is an expensive product at $150, but it earns that price with a premium feel and precision. By comparison, the Vantage feels cheaper but costs more. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t get one. It’s probably still one of the best PS4 controllers you can find, but it has some quirks that may make you want to wait.

The Scuf Vantage is rough around the edges. And that makes it tough to recommend at $200. The good news is that most of the problems are things that Scuf can address without having to re-engineer the entire product. If it can make sure future analog sticks just work out of the box and fix the bugs and flimsy switches, I’d suggest it to anyone who wants the absolute best PlayStation 4 controller.

But even in that case, this is not the same thing as the Elite Controller for Xbox One. That device looks great, feels great, and plays great, and I don’t think the Vantage matches it in any of those categories.

The Scuf Gaming Vantage is available now for $200. Scuf provided a sample unit for the purpose of this review.

Website: LINK

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Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve probably realised Red Dead Redemption II has been taking the world by storm.
Riding into town on a horse laden high with praise, gaming journalists the world over have been treating it as a rare and highly accomplished ‘masterpiece’.     .

Critics have praised the vast, detailed expanse of the game, which allows for an epic 100 hours of playing time; with visually stunning graphics which easily transport the player back to the end days of the lawless west.

The immersive quality of the game means players are quite happy to explore the gorgeously imagined wilderness at their leisure, in between moments of high octane action; herding cattle and even visiting the barbers (beards actually grow in real time in this game).

It also means players can draw knobs in the snow, which is what we only care about when it comes to these sort of games:

However, it is the realism which gaming writers have praised again and again; allowing them to feel a real connection with Arthur and those he interacts with.

To the tech artist who worked multiple late nights on the snow deformation technology, know that you’ve brought much joy to the world.

Red Dead Redemption 2 launches October 26, 2018, for Xbox One and PS4.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAQKYNr87Is]

Website: LINK

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The original PlayStation housed some of the most influential games ever made. From Final Fantasy VII through to Resident Evil, Tekken, and more, many genres were defined for years to come by the classic releases that made their way to Sony’s console. However, history hasn’t remembered every PlayStation game, and a few great games have therefore slipped by the wayside.

So what are the most underrated PlayStation games ever? LET US KNOW IN THE COMMENTS BELOW, and as always we’ll feature our favorite.

Website: LINK

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While Rockstar Games latest title, Red Dead Redemption 2, is set for release this coming Friday, some people are already looking forward to the next installment in the highly successful Grand Theft Auto franchise. If you’re one of them, you might be in for a long wait.

In an interview with GQ, Rockstar Games co-founder Dan Houser talks about GTA VI and how he’s thankful it’s not releasing during the “age of Trump” — obviously referring to current US President, Donald Trump.

It’s really unclear what we would even do with it, let alone how upset people would get with whatever we did. Both intense liberal progression and intense conservatism are both very militant, and very angry. It is scary but it’s also strange, and yet both of them seem occasionally to veer towards the absurd. It’s hard to satirise for those reasons. Some of the stuff you see is straightforwardly beyond satire. It would be out of date within two minutes, everything is changing so fast.

The good news is Houser didn’t say the game isn’t coming, so maybe Grand Theft Auto fans should also be “thankful” that Red Dead 2 is set to launch before VI. Hopefully world politics has sorted itself out by the time GTA VI releases, the last thing we want is to wait longer than we need to.

That being said, even if GTA VI was scheduled for release this year, it’s an absolute money machine. We really can’t imagine Rockstar pushing back a release or missing out on all that wonga. Plus, the game is rumoured to be years-in development already, so don’t lose too much sleep over this news. It’s coming some day.

Let us know what you think about these comments, and whether politics and video games should stay two completely different things.

Website: LINK

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Peeking behind the curtain to see the process of game development is already a rare joy, but it’s even more unusual to see some of the flawed, erroneous moments that had to be polished out of a finished piece of work. Thankfully, Sony Santa Monica, the makers of PS4 hit God of War, have lifted that curtain for us in a newly posted video.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_gvG6fxnCo]

“Making a video game is difficult,” reads the YouTube description for the video, which showcases some particularly choice prerelease gameplay bugs. “Making a stable game that both pushes the capabilities of the hardware and creates a super immersive, no-camera-cut, epically-sized AAA gaming experience like the one seen in the new God of War, is vastly more difficult. This massive task, involving hundreds of people developing and implementing content simultaneously, which can often have a tendency to break things, definitely added to the challenge.”

Some of the glitches are the sorts of things you’d expect: hovering models, limbs going places where they shouldn’t, repeating lines. Others, though, like Atreus’ warping face and Kratos’ endless punches, make this highlight reel a hilarious viewing experience. More developers should share content like this — it makes it clear just how much work and struggle goes into these games, and how easily they could go terribly wrong.

Website: LINK

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The PlayStation 2 is now truly a mature adult. Released at the turn of the century, Sony’s PS2 is to this day the bestselling console of all time. It’s no surprise, either, as the sixth-generation console was still popular for several years after the release of its successor. Sadly, repairs for the PS2 ceased in September 2018, so if you’ve still got one at home, you’ll need to take good care of it in order to ensure it has a healthy adult life.

The PlayStation 2 was announced in the late 90s with a trailer directed by none other than David Lynch, who directed films such as Blue Velvet and Eraserhead, and created the iconic Twin Peaks. You can watch the trailer below, which is infamous for its absurdity.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msMehuZo3x8&w=1101&h=826]

Although Lynch’s ad is commonly referred to in relation to how obscene it is, it actually provides us with the means to examine how wonderful the PS2 was in a truly touching way. You see, the talking duck in the video welcomes the protagonist to “the third place.”

The “third place” is a term that was coined by American sociologist Ray Oldenburg. Oldenburg studied the idea of places in relation to what certain spaces signified. In modern society, people tend to spend the majority of time in isolation at home, which Oldenburg labelled the first place. The second place, then, was the workplace, a sort of home away from home that allowed one to continue inhabiting the first place. However, the third place was perhaps the most important of all. According to Oldenburg, third places “host the regular, voluntary, informal, and happily anticipated gatherings beyond the realms of home and work.”

In the third place, people are free to be themselves; they are not defined by their social status or their position at work. Third places provide people with a neutral ground that provides them with opportunities to connect with others. It is the bond established between people in third places that make up the most meaningful friendships and relationships in the world. By tying this back in with the PlayStation 2, we can see that by welcoming players to the third place, the duck in the ad was actually welcoming them to a place where they would belong.

The PlayStation 2 invited people to play games together, either online or by choosing to play games that offered a couch co-op option. However, that wasn’t all that it invited people to do. From Grand Theft Auto III to Shadow of the Colossus, players were offered opportunities to explore vast virtual worlds that offered them a virtual third space from the comfort of their own homes. It gave people the option to participate in “regular, voluntary, informal, and happily anticipated gathering beyond the realms of home and work” without asking anything more of them than to turn on the console and sit down.

David Lynch is often seen as a visionary, as the iconic filmmaker’s distinctive style has had an effect on the practice of film-making as a whole. It’s important to acknowledge the fact that he really hit home with that PlayStation ad. Although the reference is relatively subtle, it makes all of the absurdity of the video make sense. The man loses his head temporarily, a duck sitting next to what looks like a mummy possesses the faculty of speech for some strange reason; however, the strangeness resembles what the poet Louis MacNeice called “the drunkenness of things being various,” which is a particularly apt way of describing the magical properties imbued in games.

Games are not confined to the kind of logic that defines reality. They offer people stories that can’t be experienced in any other way. In this sense, they’re a truly special kind of third place, where magic exists and things don’t always need to make sense the way they have to at home or at work. These enchanting stories can make players feel all kinds of emotions, while offering them truly unique experiences all the while. The sense of exploration that the medium offers make this third place a place that can be a home within a home that’s theoretically away from the former. It’s at all times tangible, but intangible, as it’s within reach, but never corporeal. This is what makes it a place in which you can truly be yourself without ever having to feel isolated.

Today, October 26, the day on which Red Dead Redemption 2‘s release will dominate the media all over the world, the PlayStation 2 will enjoy a quiet birthday. Having finally become an adult, it can look back at its youth with fond memories, recalling the fact that it offered over 150 million people the opportunity to visit their very own third place whenever they so desired. True, online play has come on in leaps and bounds ever since, but the PlayStation 2 will be remembered for the quintessential role it played in establishing the games industry as we know it today. For that, players should always be grateful.

Website: LINK

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SEGA has released a new video showing off Yakuza 4 Remastered on PlayStation 4.

Yakuza 4 Remastered is set for release in Japan early next year, and you can take a look at how its coming along.

Protagonist Masayoshi Tanimura has been given a revamp in the game. This is due to Toshiki Masuda taking over the character previously portrayed by Hiroki Narimiya, who retired.

You can see his likeness and hear his voice in the trailer (thanks, Siliconera).

The video is in Japanese, but the sense of drama is still heavy even if you can’t speak the language.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_BJ076uWds]

Remastered versions of Yakuza 4 and Yakuza 5 were announced in May.

The former was originally set to release in Japan this fall, but was pushed to January 17, 2019. Yakuza 5 Remastered is set to release in spring 2019.

At present both games have only been confirmed for Japan, but each will surely head west at some point.

Yakuza 3 Remastered was released on August 9, and once the fifth installment is released, the entire series will be available on PlayStation 4.

Website: LINK

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Far Cry 5 is the latest game in the infamous Far Cry series. Today, we are going to look at the opinion of gamer’s and reviewers to determine the big question, is Far Cry 5 the best Far Cry game? To determine the best game, we are going to look at the Metacritic score of these games. I am only going off of the PC score of these games on Metacritic and the Far Cry games that are only exclusive to one console aren’t going to be included in this comparison.

In terms of reviewers, the first Far Cry game has the best score out of all other Far Cry games. Far Cry has a score of 89/100 on Metacritic and a user score of 8/10. The game is set on a mysterious tropical island chain. You play as Jack Carver and follow his search for a journalist who went missing. Of course, Far Cry isn’t comparable to Far Cry 5 as it came out a long time ago but, considering that it came out back in 2004, the game is very interesting.

The second game in the infamous Far Cry series is Far Cry 2 with a Metacritic score of 85/100 and a user score of 5.8/10. The player is caught between two rival factions in a war-torn African country. You are sent out to take out The Jackal. The Jackal is a mysterious character who has restarted the conflict between the warlords.

Far Cry 3 is another critically acclaimed Far Cry game. Many players consider it as the best Far Cry game and you can see that from the game’s user score. Far Cry 3 got an 88/100 on Metacritic and an 8.3/10 user score. If you go off of user score, Far Cry 3 is the best game in the Far Cry series. The game’s official description reads, “Jason Brody, a man alone at the edge of the world, stranded on a mysterious tropical island. In this savage paradise where lawlessness and violence are the only sure thing.”

Next up is Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon. Just like Far Cry 3, the game is very popular amongst gamers and reviewers. Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon has an 81/100 on Metacritic and a user score of 8.1/10. Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon is a spin-off from Far Cry 3. The game features around eight hours and it comes with an open-world island for players to explore.

Next up is Far Cry 4. Far Cry 4 isn’t very popular amongst gamers as it is with reviewers. Far Cry 4 has an 80/100 on Metacritic and a user score of 6.8/10. The game’s official description reads, “Concealed in the monstrous Himalayas lies a country ingrained in tradition and brutality. You become Ajay Ghale, returning to the country of his birth, this forests and formidable snow-capped summits of Kyrat, to fulfill your mother’s dying wish of spreading her ashes.”

Far Cry Primal features a unique world. Although the game has the same map as Far Cry 4, it feels very different as it is set in the stone age. The game brings many new mechanics to the Far Cry series such as taming animals. You have to survive from enemies and dangerous animals that populate the game’s massive world. Fallout Primal has a score of 74/100 on Metacritic and a user score of 5.2/10. Far Cry Primal has the lowest score out of all other Far Cry games.

The latest Far Cry game is Far Cry 5. Far Cry 5 brings a lot of mechanics from Far Cry Primal to the modern world including animal companions. Far Cry 5 has a 78/100 and a user score of 5.9/10. The game’s official description reads “Welcome to Hope County, Montana. This idyllic location is home to a community of freedom-loving people – and a fanatical doomsday cult known by many as The Project at Eden’s Gate. Led by the charismatic prophet Joseph Seed and his devoted siblings, Eden’s Gate has been surreptitiously infiltrating all aspects of daily life. When your arrival incites the cult to violently assume control of the region, you have to rise up and spark the fires of resistance to liberate the besieged community.”

In terms of user scores, the best Far Cry game is Far Cry 3 and the worst Far Cry game is Far Cry Primal. In terms of reviewer scores, the original Far Cry game has the best score, closely followed by Far Cry 3. So no, Fary Cry 5 isn’t the best Far Cry game.

Website: LINK

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Fallout 76 is the next installment in the long-running Fallout series. Fallout 76 is going to be the first online-only Fallout game but, that doesn’t mean Fallout 76 is going to go battle royal and drop the story. Fallout 76, like all other Fallout games, is going to feature a lot of content. So much content that most gamers will most likely not be able to complete the whole game.

Bethesda Game Studios recently did an interview with the Official Xbox Magazine, and they revealed that Fallout 76 is going to feature more than 150 hours of content. Remember, the side content alone will take you more than 150 hours so that combined with the story will take you a very long time. This is good news to fans as this means Fallout 76’s map is going to be densely packed with content even though it’s 4x bigger than Fallout 4’s map. That’s not all, Bethesda has revealed that Fallout 76 has an aggressive post-launch schedule, so you are going to be occupied for a very very long time, even after you finish the main story.

That’s not all, Bethesda’s Development Director Chris Mayer went on to explain that the story is going to be very interesting thanks to the constant threat of getting attacked and possibly killed by monsters and enemy players.

You play this game 30 hours, 300 hours; sometimes you’ll play in a group, sometimes you’ll focus on certain activities but sometimes you’ll play solo. And those are the times when you’ll have time to delve into the fiction and listen to the holotapes and read all the monitors and really get into the story. But there is more of a tension there, you can’t pause the game to read a terminal. When you’re reading a terminal something could sneak up behind you and eat you. And it often does. The more we’ve play-tested, the more we’ve realised how viable that is, and it supports the idea of how dangerous and how lonely it is out there.

Website: LINK

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The PlayStation 5 may drop sooner than expected despite Sony making it clear that it will not arrive until 2021. Recent speculations have suggested that the next-gen console could be released as early as Q4 2019, right on time for the holiday shopping.

Sony is hoping to catch Microsoft off-guard by releasing its newest console early just in time to compete with Microsoft’s next Xbox console, codename Scarlett, according to reports and leaks via T3. The intended release is to be around Christmas 2019, taking advantage not only of its status as the first proper next-gen console but also the hordes of Christmas shoppers looking for their holiday presents.

A truly exciting theory no doubt, and it just got some weight to it after Sony recently posted a new job listingfor a Senior Product Manager with the not so subtle description of owning “the roadmap for next generation PlayStation campaign.” Whichever way you slice it, posting a job for an “entrepreneurial Product Lead” to help lead a “PlayStation campaign” does raise a few eyebrows.

With the speculated Q4 2019 release date still over a year away, Sony certainly has plenty of time to do some marketing. And even if Microsoft catches wind of their plans, they’re probably in no position to reply once Sony makes the first move.

Supporting the theory that Sony has the PlayStation 5 almost ready to roll out is the barrage of rumors regarding its many expected functionalities, chief among them being backwards compatibility, a feature that was highly requested but was never implemented on the PlayStation 4, Comicbook.com reported. Furthermore, rumor has it that the console’s backwards compatibility will not only cover the PlayStation 4 but also the PlayStation 3, all the way to the original PlayStation. Sounds fantastical, though we certainly hope it’s true.

Another purported feature of the new console is V-Sync support, which means programs will run better on the platform allowing for smoother actions and reduced screen tearing. Coupled with a supposed graphical boost, this will cement its place as the first true entry into the next proper console generation.

With the continued adoption of 4K displays into the gaming market, it’s pretty much expected that the PlayStation 5 will fully take advantage of the technology to become the gaming powerhouse that will smoke the current king of consoles, the Xbox One X. Hopefully, the fabled 2019 release does materialize and allow gamers to experience true next-gen experience two years sooner than expected.

Website: LINK

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With the first beta for Fallout 76 wrapped up on Xbox One, the Wasteland is once again on everyone’s minds before the online game’s release next month. To get into the spirit, one custom controller shop decided to give their own Fallout nod with an incredible DualShock 4 controller for the PlayStation:

Seeing the detailing in the above controller is amazing. Though simplistic at first glance, the texture of the shell is made up to replicate that of the iconic Power Armor suits known within the franchise. With the Vault Tec simple at the top and the coils framing it, this is definitely a controller worth of the Wasteland.

Website: LINK