Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon® Wildlands
ANNOUNCES NEW STORY CONTENT, operation ORACLE, COMING MAY 2
Play Ghost Recon Wildlands
for Free from May 2 to May 5
Sydney, Australia— May 1, 2019 — Today, Ubisoft announced that Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon® Wildlands will introduce Operation Oracle, a new narrative arc containing two free missions on May 2 on PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system, the Xbox One family of devices including Xbox One X and Windows PC. Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands will be free to play from May 2 to May 5 across all platforms, allowing all players to access the full game, including Operation Oracle.
Playable
in single-player or co-op, Operation Oracle sends the Ghosts on a rescue
mission for a Skell Tech engineer taken hostage by Unidad. This typical rescue
mission will soon turn into something much bigger. Forget what you know about
your enemies and friends as you meet Cole D. Walker, a Ghost Team Leader on the
hunt for truth.
Operation
Oracle comes after two years of substantial post-launch support for Tom
Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands and follows the completion of Year 2, which
brought four free major updates to the game further expanding the Ghost Recon
universe.
Players
will be able to pre-load the game May 1 on Uplay PC and PlayStation®4
system before the free weekend starts on May 2. All progress will carry over to
the full game if players purchase the full game. Please visit http://ghostrecon.com/freeweekend
for downloads and detailed timings and information.
Developed by Ubisoft Paris,* Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands is
a military shooter entirely playable in up to four-player co-op or
single-player from beginning to end. Players have total freedom to accomplish
their missions how they want and watch as the world reacts to their actions.
Players can choose to move quietly in the night, go in hot at dawn or work
together to execute a sync shot that takes out enemies in one fell swoop. Each
choice has a consequence, and players must improvise or adapt their plans to
ensure the completion and success of each mission. Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon
Wildlands Ghost War allows players to live the ultimate co-op experience in 4v4
modes. Featuring a growing roster of classes, maps and modes, Ghost War focuses
on teamwork, strategy and tense tactical engagements.
For more information about Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands,
please visit ghostrecon.com, follow us
on twitter.com/ghostrecon or
facebook.com/ghostrecon and join the conversation by using #ghostrecon.
For the latest about Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands and other
Ubisoft games, please visit news.ubisoft.com.
*In collaboration with Ubisoft Annecy, Bucharest, Bordeaux,
Montpellier, Milan, Belgrade and Reflections studios.
About Tom Clancy’s Ghost
Recon
Launched in 2001 with
critical acclaim from fans of the Tom Clancy’s world, the Ghost Recon franchise
has since convinced 30 million players thanks to breakthrough releases and has
become the best-selling Tom Clancy’s brand on the last generation of consoles
and PC. Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands brings the franchise to the next
level with an episode designed from the ground up for a new generation,
featuring a massive and visually stunning open world, playable for the first
time online in four-player co-op.
Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon
Wildlands is a work of fiction. Like similar Tom Clancy’s games from Ubisoft,
the game takes place in a modern universe inspired by reality, but the
characters, locationsand stories are created solely for entertainment
purposes. One of the reasons Bolivia was chosen as the background of this game
was due to its magnificent landscapes and rich culture. While the game’s
premise imagines a different reality than the one that exists in Bolivia today,
we do hope that the in-game world comes close to representing the country’s
beautiful topography, and that players enjoy exploring the diverse and open
landscapes it moved us to create. Any resemblance to actual events or any real
persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
FINAL
FANTASY XII THE ZODIAC AGE NOW
AVAILABLE ON NINTENDO SWITCH AND XBOX ONE
Battle
Against the Archadian Empire with New Gameplay Enhancements
SYDNEY,
1st May 2019
– Square Enix Ltd., today welcomes players to
return to Ivalice and experience FINAL FANTASY® XII THE ZODIAC AGE™,
with all new features and gorgeous remastered graphics for the first time on
the Nintendo Switch™ system and the Xbox One family of devices including Xbox
One X.
This version includes the ability
to switch between modern and classic soundtracks, a challenging Trial Mode, as
well as a variety of brand-new enhancements including:
License Reset Function: By
talking to Clan Centurio’s leader Montblanc in Rabanastre, players can reset
and change their party member’s jobs, allowing them to customise the jobs of their
party as desired.
Additional Gambit Sets: Gambits
allow players to customize their party’s AI.
Players can now create three unique sets, allowing players to switch between
sets for different situations, such as map exploration or boss fights.
Improved ‘New Game+’: Allows
users to start the game with party members at level 90 and carry over some
items like weapons, magic and gil obtained during previous playthroughs.
Specific to Xbox One X – Supports
up to 60fps
FINAL FANTASY XII THE ZODIAC AGE is now available in boxed and
digital formats for the Nintendo Switch™, and as a digital release for Xbox One. For more information, go to: https://eu.finalfantasy.com/
NEW SEASON OF CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS 4
CONTENT STARTS NOW WITH ‘OPERATION SPECTRE RISING’
Available First on
PlayStation®4, Operation Spectre Rising Introduces a Ton of Free, New Content
and Updates Across the Game
Black Ops Pass Owners
Gain Access to Three Additional Multiplayer Maps, Including Two New Maps and
One Remastered Classic Map and an Exclusive Blackout Character
SANTA MONICA, Calif. – Apr. 30, 2019 –
The newest community event and seasonal release for Call of Duty®:
Black Ops 4is available now on Playstation®4, with other
platforms to follow. Operation
Spectre Rising delivers assassin-themed updates
across the game, including a beloved Specialist, big changes to Blackout, new
game modes and personalization items, as well as adding three Multiplayer maps
and a special summer-themed event.
“The community has anticipated Spectre’s
return for a long time, and that’s inspired us to build Operation
Spectre Risingallaroundthisshadowy,
fan-favorite assassin and the wetworks theme,” said Dan Bunting, Co-Studio
Head, Treyarch. “This new Operation delivers lots of new game modes and fun
ways to play Black Ops 4, including some really cool changes to the Blackout map following Spectre’s
dramatic introduction – players won’t want to miss this event!”
Operation Spectre Rising’s free, new content includes:
The Assassin Specialist – Available in Multiplayer and
Blackout, Spectre introduces a new gameplay innovation with a unique
Shadow Blade melee weapon, and channels players’ inner assassin to skillfully
strike targeted enemies for quick and stealthy kills. This fan-favorite
Specialist also wields a smoke grenade that not only provides instant cover to
move undetected, but also reveals enemies.
New Blackout Updates – In Blackout, Spectre has
ruptured the famous Hydro Dam causing a massive flood, altering the landscape
and forcing players to adapt in order to survive a wide variety of combat
situations, while outrunning the Collapse. Additionally, players will have the
opportunity to discover updates in Alcatraz like the addition of the Tactical Raft
and more.
New Black Market Gear – The Black Market
has been restocked with a variety of new weapon camos, outfits, gestures, and
accessories themed for Operation Spectre Rising. This includes
notable weapons like the Tigershark LMG and the Nifo’Oti melee weapon, all
unlockable through the Contraband Tiers as fans play through the game.
New Zombies Features –Operation Spectre Rising
introduces new weapons across all Zombies maps, Classic Elixir Restock feature,
and Hard Mode Gauntlet challenges throughout the season.
In addition to the free content, Black
Ops Pass owners gain access to even more in-game content, available first on
PlayStation®4:
New Multiplayer Map, Masquerade – A medium-sized map
set amidst an embassy under siege. Masquerade is structured for
mid-range combat as players must weave through markets and city alleyways to
get to the fortified embassy courtyard.
New Multiplayer Map, Artifact – A larger-sized map
set in a remote landscape where treasure hunters have located and unearthed an
ancient artifact. The mapis filled with a variety of rock formations
from thermal geysers to ice caverns. Combat is fierce with engagement ranging
across environmental hazards on a vertical map.
New Multiplayer Map, WMD – Remastered from
the original Call of Duty: Black Ops, WMD is a medium-sized map set in
an active weapons manufacturing facility. Combat takes place in a combination
of interior and exterior engagements at different ranges that supports all
types of weapon types and playstyles.
New Blackout Character, Uncle Frank – Black Ops Pass
owners get instant access to Uncle Frank, also known as the older
version of Frank Woods. This iconic, fan-favorite character originally from Call
of Duty: Black Ops II makes his debut in Blackout.
“The team has worked hard to offer a
real diversity of content with Operation Spectre Rising, while
providing a thoughtful cadence that keeps the experience fresh across the
entire breadth of the game,” said Mark Gordon, Co-Studio Head of Treyarch.
“From Spectre debuting in Multiplayer and Blackout, to design
modifications that will allow us to share content on a more regular basis, Operation
Spectre Rising really shifts this season into a higher gear.”
In addition to the content releasing
now with Operation Spectre Rising, spring turns into summer in June with
the annual Call of Duty Days of Summer community event. This
limited-time event will debut new game modes, seasonal themed customizations
and accessories for fans to acquire.
The Black Ops Pass* is included in the Digital
Deluxe Edition, the Digital Deluxe Enhanced Edition, the Pro Edition,
and the Mystery Box Edition of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4,
and can also be purchased standalone digitally or at participating retailers.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 is published by
Activision and developed by Treyarch with additional development support from
Raven Software and PC development with Beenox. For the latest intel check
out: www.callofduty.com, www.youtube.com/callofduty and follow @CallofDuty and @Treyarch on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. The game is rated M for Mature
(Blood and Gore, Drug Reference, Intense Violence, Strong Language).
*Black Ops Pass (BOP) content is not
final, is subject to change, and may not include all downloadable content
available for the game. BOP content may not be available in all countries,
and pricing and release dates may vary by platform. BOP content should be
downloaded from the in-game store only; do not purchase separately, or you will
be charged again. BOP content may be sold separately.
About Treyarch
Treyarch is an award-winning video game
studio, driven by the desire to create epic gameplay experiences that are
enjoyed by as many video game fans as possible. It is an approach that has
helped to make the studio behind the Call of Duty®: Black Ops series
of games an industry-leading developer. Call of Duty: Black Ops set
an entertainment launch opening record upon its release in 2010 and continues
to be one of the best-selling games of all time, according to NPD and GfK
Chart-Track; Call of Duty®: Black Ops II set world-wide launch
day records; and Call of Duty®: Black Ops III held the biggest
entertainment opening weekend of 2015, and was the #1 console game globally for
the calendar year. Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 isthe
studio’s most recent release. Additionally, Treyarch is the birthplace of
Call of Duty’s Zombies. Treyarch is wholly owned by Activision.
About Activision
Headquartered in Santa Monica,
California, Activision is a leading global producer and publisher of
interactive entertainment. Activision maintains operations throughout the world
and is a division of Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ: ATVI),
an S&P 500 company. More information about Activision and its
products can be found on the company’s website, www.activision.com or by
following @Activision.
Cautionary Note Regarding
Forward-looking Statements: Information in this press release that
involves Activision Publishing’s expectations, plans, intentions or
strategies regarding the future, including statements about the expected
availability, features, functionality, events and content for Operation
Spectre Rising and the Black Ops Pass, are forward-looking statements that
are not facts and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Factors that
could cause Activision Publishing’s actual future results to differ
materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements set forth in
this release include unanticipated product delays and other factors identified
in the risk factors sections of Activision Blizzard’s most recent
annual report on Form 10K and any subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q.
The forward-looking statements in this release are based upon information
available to Activision Publishing and Activision
Blizzard as of the date of this release, and neither Activision
Publishing nor Activision Blizzard assumes any obligation to
update any such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements believed
to be true when made may ultimately prove to be incorrect. These statements are
not guarantees of the future performance of Activision
Publishing or Activision Blizzard and are subject to risks,
uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond its control and may
cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations.
ACTIVISION, CALL OF DUTY, and CALL OF
DUTY BLACK OPS are trademarks of Activision Publishing, Inc. All
other trademarks and trade names are the properties of their respective owners.
Dotemu Bringing Modernized Classic Wonder Boy: The
Dragon’s Trap
to iOS and Android on May 30th
Remake of Beloved Fan Favorite Nears Half a Million Sold
Across PC and Console
PARIS – April 30, 2019 – Publisher and
retro masters Dotemu and Playdigious today announce Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s
Trap, the critically acclaimed re-imagining of Westone and SEGA’s cult
classic adventure, will invite mobile gamers into its breathtaking hand-drawn
world on iOS and Android devices as well as the Nvidia Shield for $8.99. Those
who pre-register via the Google Play Store will be notified via email to
receive a whopping 30 percent discount when the game is available on May 30th. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.dotemu.wonderboy.dragonstrap
The mobile adaptation will offer the full premium experience of one of this generation’s most warmly received remakes by fans and critics alike. Redesigned for PC and console in 2017 by Lizardcube, the game has been optimized by development studio Playdigious for mobile, including the iPhone X, to best present its gorgeous, fluid depiction of Monster Land’s charming environments and menacing baddies. Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap features the same beautiful hand-drawn animation from its PC and console counterparts, bringing every moment within its vibrant world to life, as shown in this new trailer showcasing handheld gameplay:
Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap’s mobile version
has been adjusted for touchscreens and will allow players to enjoy the action
platformer on the go. Each of the remake’s highly lauded additions will be
present, allowing fans to switch between classic and remastered visuals and
audio on the fly, enter retro passwords discovered from the original 1989
release, and experience the playable debut of Wonder Girl.
For more information on Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap on
mobile, be sure to follow @Dotemu on Twitter and visit the official site: http://www.TheDragonsTrap.com/.
# # #
About Dotemu
Dotemu is a french video game company specializing in
modern releases of beloved retro games. Our mission is simple: give every gamer
access to yesteryear’s classic video games on today’s platforms, including PC,
mobile, console and more. Working alongside the world’s most cherished and
recognized publishers, the Dotemu team has produced a number of global
top-sellers across both PC and console, including Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s
Trap, Windjammers 1 and 2, Streets of Rage 4, several games in the Ys series
and more.
Founded in 2007, Dotemu leverages its considerable
technological know-how to maintain the original spirit of classic games while
giving them a second life as rediscovered gems for a new generation of gamers.
About Playdigious
Based near Paris, France, Playdigious is a publisher
founded in 2015 with in-house porting capacity currently working on high
quality indie games on mobile and soon on additional platforms. We thrive to
provide gamers with quality indie titles that stand out in terms of graphics,
story and gameplay.
After a few leaks and an official poster reveal we now have a full debut trailer for the live action Sonic movie, simply titled Sonic the Hedgehog. This first trailer, clocking in at around two and a half minutes, gives us a good look at Sonic and his various abilities as well as an introduction to Dr. Robotnik and how the two will end up fitting into the real world setting, including how Sonic will end up becoming friends with someone named Tom Wachowski.
The trailer can be found below while the film featuring Sega‘s mascot will be released in theaters in North America sometime in November.
Update: Currently the Australian release date for the film set for January 9, 2020.
Idea Factory International appears to be following a trend of introducing the girls of Date A Live by order their appearance as the company has continued their series of character introductions for Date A Live: Rio Reincarnation and this time the one being introduced is Kurumi Tokisaki, also known as Nightmare.
As fans of the series know, Kurumi is one of the only Spirits that Shido has encountered that he was unable to “save” through a date causing her to be listed as “The Worst Spirit.” Although most Spirits enter the human world by accident, she is a special entity who can travel between worlds at will. Make no mistake, there is some method to her madness. Her motives, however, are not yet clear. The angel she manifests is Zafkiel.
You can check out these new screenshots below and keep an eye out for the game when it is released on the PlayStation 4 on June 18th in North America and June 21st in Europe with a PC release arriving later in the year.
THQ Nordic and Black Forest Games announced their post-apocalyptic adventure Fade to Silence has launched on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows. The game is priced at $39.99 USD/$59.95 AUD on PC, and $49.99 USD on consoles. The game originally hit Steam Early Access in December 2017.
Fade to Silence throws players into a permanent winter landscape where Eldritch horrors stalk the wilderness. Players can play alone on with a friend as they explore the wasteland for supplies and resources to build their settlement. Just be wary, as the cold winter can be just as deadly as the monsters, as plunging temperatures and white out blizzards will sap strength and test the player’s preparation.
Among the many 2D fighting game franchises Mortal Kombat has always stood out among the major three and after a successful soft-reboot back in 2011 the franchise has only grown more popular over the years. Raiden’s efforts to alter the timeline haven’t gone unnoticed and now that an Elder God with the power to control time itself has stepped in, Mortal Kombat 11 features an even more expansive storyline than before along with a number of gameplay modifications and a few new characters to spice things up. The question is, does this entry bring the series to new heights or is it dragged down by extra baggage?
Story
Mortal Kombat 11 takes place after the events of Mortal Kombat X that saw Shinnok defeated by the forces of Earthrealm at a terrible cost. Numerous longtime fighters had fallen in battle only to return as Revenants and even Raiden saw himself corrupted during the battle. Things quickly grow more dire as Kronika, the Elder God of time, has found Raiden’s interference with the realms to be an affront to her own plans and she begins to force the past and present together in an effort to create a “New Era.”
This sees numerous fighters from the past step into the present day where many of them have either been killed off or revived as Revenants and witnessing the various interactions these characters tend to have with one another makes for some great scenes, especially when certain fighters meet their own daughters that are nearly older than them. If someone would say ten years ago that Mortal Kombat could deliver a solid lore-filled storyline that has its fair share of drama, loss, and some moments of levity here and there few would believe them but that is what NetherRealm studios manages to pull off here.
That being said, the motivations for some characters flip flop incredibly easily at times and it is quite evident that the writers struggled to find a solid ending for the storyline here, especially given how the story concludes. Even with these faults players will find that the different twists, lengthy cutscenes showing off plenty of action that allows the player to jump in for a few fights as most characters, and aforementioned character interactions make the story one that fans will not want to pass up, even if it falls apart a bit by the end.
Gameplay
Wherever players choose to start their experience in Mortal Kombat 11 the game will initially give players a chance to make use of a fairly in-depth tutorial that explains not only the ins and outs of the standard gameplay elements but also goes over the various changes that have been made to the game’s combat system in this entry. In fact, if you really want to stick it out in the tutorial players can find that they can even learn how to manage the battlefield and use certain combos to their advantages while character specific training options are also available, allowing both returning and new players to get a feel for how their favorite, or perhaps new, fighter controls in this new entry.
However many other elements of the game have been changed a bit and streamlined to make fights run a bit smoother and at a brisker pace, which is a bit ironic given that many of the faster movement elements are now removed. Players will find that dash distance is smaller now and running has been removed entirely though defensive options, as well as offensive ones, remain as tried and true as ever. Rather than using an energy meter like previous games players now have access to both Offensive and Defensive meters that can be used to trigger a variety of effects such as using Offensive meter to perform armored wake-up attacks or extending the damage of a special move or using the Defensive meter to immediately drop out of a potential juggle or avoid ending up in a precarious knocked down state.
Even attempting to try and turtle up is a bit discouraged unless players are prepared to be active with their blocks as chip damage still exists outside of performing “Flawless Blocks” that require a block right as a blow strikes. That being said there are still plenty of unique ways a fight can go, especially since powerful Krushing Blows deliver x-ray style devastation with increased damage whenever used as a counter attack and players can still use another powerful weapon at least once a match, Fatal Blow. Fatal Blows can only be used once per match and only if the user’s health drops to around 33%. These flashy attacks replace the previous X-Ray strikes and deliver massive damage to the enemy, often turning the fight around entirely if used correctly but it is a bit annoying as many of these Fatal Blows do drag on a bit too long and hurt the pace of a fight.
The overall roster for Mortal Kombat 11 may be missing a few characters that fans may have wanted but packing 24 fighters at launch (with the 25th being a pre-order bonus) there is still tons of variety here. This is especially true since three new characters in the forms of Cetrion, the Kollector, and Geras have been added to the group. Customization returns and allows players to choose various skins that they have unlocked and little equipment pieces as well that can alter their fighters’ appearances though it is worth noting that these generally are only available for use in single player as online modes tend to restrict players to the default two options available as default.
Now while players will want to dive into the story first to unlock a certain character and various cosmetic items for their fighters, the majority of their time will be spent elsewhere either fighting online against other players or taking on the numerous towers available hoping for some good rewards. Thankfully the online mode works great with a variety of solid match types available including a king of the hill and tournament mode. Other than a rare disconnect or laggy connection nearly every fight online has run smoothly and just in case you fight someone that chooses to drop out early, they still receive a fitting punishment.
Towers on the other hand are something of a bane on the existence of Mortal Kombat 11 as it often does a great job squandering the solid fighting mechanics that the developers have crafted in favor of ridiculously challenging and exploitative modifications. You see, while the aforementioned customization does allow players plenty of options to change the looks of their character and to a lesser extent add various buffs to certain abilities almost every element of customization and other aspect of unlockable content in the game is locked behind mechanics worse than many mobile games on the market today.
By playing the game players earn three types of currency that can then be used in the returning Krypt. This Krypt is actually quite interesting to explore and features a number of little puzzles to solve but it also contains completely randomized chests that require the aforementioned currency to unlock. Every fight rewards players with coins in some form or another while defeating foes rewards souls and performing brutalities or fatalities rewards a heart. Each of these three types of currency can then be used to open chests that reward the player with a randomized roll of literally anything. Concept art, other types of currency, consumables usable in the tower, equipment or augments for characters, logos or backgrounds for a fighter card, costumes, and even other fatalities can potentially be obtained here. That being said, the fact that you can, and will have to, pay additional coins to have the chests reset with additional loot in hopes of getting something useful is already a bad sign as unless you happen to be quite lucky it’ll be a very long grind until you manage to find some useful drops here since special drops seem to be quite rare.
Of course if you simply want to you can also purchase premium currency called Time Crystals that can then be used to simply buy whatever is currently available from the rotating in-game store. Forcing players to deal with this level of microtransactions and randomization in loot for a fighting game is already annoying enough but when the actual towers themselves tend to feel incredibly unfair, things only get worse. Players have the ability to take part in standard Klassic Towers that work like an arcade mode with every character getting a special ending and select a difficulty that fits them without worrying about other modifiers but the Towers of Time are another beast entirely.
The Towers of Time are a time-limited series of fights that see the player needing to complete a handful of towers to unlock special rewards such as costumes and pieces of equipment for various fighters. Unfortunately these fights tend to be incredibly unfair most often than not. Even with plenty of practice with your favorite character these tower battles stack not only challenging AI but modifiers that will constantly beat you down. Numerous hazards such as freezing projectiles, health draining missiles that heal your opponent, boost your enemy’s attack while lowering your health, and many more will only affect the player and encourage them to use consumables that can also only be obtained at random from the Krypt. Unless the player opts to use their limited consumables to counter these effects, they are simply at the mercy of whatever the enemy AI feels like throwing at them. Even then these consumables often fail to work correctly even if they directly counter the effects of the modifiers leaving players feel like they are being jipped even worse.
Between these elements and the game telling players to skip difficult fights with also limited skip tokens and you have a recipe for disaster. To make things worse, even if you do want to obtain equipment and costumes that don’t fall into whatever current Towers of Time are available you will need to spend in-game money once again to unlock that character specific tower at an ever increasing cost to obtain items for your preferred fighters. This sheer level of grind required to hopefully unlock items that match your playstyle or favorite fighters and the nasty nature of the Towers of Time leaves Mortal Kombat 11 with the foul stench of extra monetization at every turn outside of its well-crafted combat system.
Visuals & Audio
As soon as you begin playing Mortal Kombat 11 it is evident that NetherRealms spent a lot of time making sure this game looked as detailed as possible. Every character model is gorgeously detailed, even background characters for the most part, and the stages themselves are wonderfully designed with plenty of little interactable elements that can play a part in the fights. Thanks to the highly detailed character models the aforementioned lengthy cutscenes end up feeling quite cinematic in nature and will not disappoint fans of the series. The gore is also easily at its highest level possible with so many of the Fatalities, Krushing Blows, and Fatal Blows delivering gruesome results that you’ll have to see to truly believe, if you can unlock some of them that is.
The soundtrack features a great mix of background music for use in the game’s various stages and story mode while the characters’ voice work, outside of the awful sounding Sonya Blade, is top notch. It is noticeable that nearly every fighter has different dialogue with one another when beginning a fight and this is a very nice touch that more games should mimic.
Overall
Delivering a solid and entertaining storyline coupled with well-honed combat mechanics make Mortal Kombat 11 a great fighting game that returning fans and even newcomers can grasp thanks to the extensive tutorials available. With so many solid tweaks to the fighting system players will find that this remains one of the best fighters in the series. That being said, the fact that literally every other aspect outside of the fight is plagued with obvious efforts to force players to spend a little extra through microtransactions or simply slog through a grind worse than many mobile games in order to unlock even the smallest of extra content makes Mortal Kombat 11 an excellent fighter that is buried under the weight of monetization.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
Note: Capsule Computers was provided a copy of this game from Saber Interactive for review purposes.
Video Review
Overview
Set in same world as the World War Zbook and film, the video game takes players to the US, Israel, Russia, and Japan. Survivors of the zombie outbreak are just barely hanging on, each group looking for long term security. The World War Z game offers four player story-based co-op and 4v4 PVP.
Story
The stories in World
War Z are short. Each chapter represents the story from one locale, and each
chapter contains two to three episodes. The straight forward nature makes it
easy for players who haven’t watched the film to get a rough idea of what is
going on in the world, though there are certain major events referred to in the
dialogue that aren’t fully explained for those new to the franchise.
The game’s writers have only enough time to offer some basic background information. While episodic four player co-op shooter games tend to be short on story, World War Z is further limited by having different settings and characters for each chapter. There just isn’t enough time for any reasonable character development or deep plots. The writers do a decent enough job given the circumstances. The plots are interesting, albeit straightforward, stories. The writers try to make up for the lack of the character development and background information in the collectible tab in the main menu. Where the character development falls the shortest is the random character lines in game. The writers fail to use quiet moments in the game to better flesh out characters through conversation as most of the lines seem purely focused on the task at hand.
The voice lines in the game are a bit corny and limited. The
audio engine seems to favour a chattier environment, which makes the woefully inadequate
number of lines obvious. While reducing the number of random callouts would be
a workable fix, World War Z would
have been better off with more lines in general.
Gameplay
World War Z does
not stray far from the gameplay first established by Left 4 Dead. Four players cooperate to blast their way through
hordes of zombies and protect each other from special zombies that can
incapacitate stragglers or restrict movement. What differentiates World War Z from other titles in the sub-genre
is the fast paced, arcade style action and the defensive set ups.
The game’s zombie behaviour is impressive. It’s incredible
to watch the zombies swarm, behaving almost like a fluid than a mass of undead
bodies. On their own, the basic zombies are easy enough to kill, but their vast
numbers and quick speed is what makes World
War Z so challenging. It only takes a few seconds for zombies to suddenly swarm
and overwhelm the players.
Co-op is a lot of fun. The map design is good, though
generally very straight forward. The game’s pacing is well balanced, breaking
up forward momentum with interesting defensive set pieces. The game limits the randomness
between playthroughs to item drop location and types of item, so learning the
maps does not take long. The defensive items have pre-set locations, encouraging
players to focus more on overall strategy than finding the perfect arc of fire.
Players have access to a variety of character classes and
weapons to level up. Account level, class level, and weapon level all increase
independently. Account level is the total amount of experience gained, while
class and weapon levels are based on performance with that class or weapon. Reaching
a higher level will only make an improved version of the weapon or class
ability available for purchase with credits. A set amount of credits per
difficulty level are awarded for winning a co-op or multiplayer map, with lesser
amounts awarded for a loss. As a result,
World War Z requires a bit too much
grinding, especially as prices for higher end skills and equipment rises. A
boost in end of game credit rewards would be an easy fix to the issue. I think
a 15% overall increase would be a good start.
The AI is passable, but still short of an actual human
player. The AI does a decent job of staying close to players and freeing them
from pins. Their aim is okay for the difficulty level, but they don’t carry or
use items. Solo players will have their work cut out for them as they alone
will be responsible for finding defensive items and setting them up.
The difficulty is generally balanced well between maps. The
only exception is the map Setting Sun. The final defensive battle is significantly
more challenging than any other map in the game. The combination of multiple places
to defend, the inability to see how much health each point has left, and the sheer
size of the area requires more coordination and preparation than other levels.
The PVP multiplayer section of World War Z is boring. It’s billed as a player versus player versus
zombie environment. In reality, multiplayer feels more like a generic shooter
that throws in waves of zombies every once in a while. The bigger problem with
multiplayer is how the class system is implemented into multiplayer. The exact
same class system in co-op is in multiplayer; the only difference is multiplayer
has its own set of classes and no weapon progression. It’s a bit unbalanced, as
low level players don’t have access to the same set of buffs as high level
ones. Since World War Z’s talent
system offers different options at the same tier, Saber Interactive should have
given all players a base set of talents, with higher levels unlocking new
alternative talents at different tiers.
The PC version of World
War Z falls short. The game lacks full support for switching between toggle
and hold. Players can only choose for sprint activation, as crouch is locked to
toggle and aiming is locked to hold. There is no option for adjusting the field
of view or support for ultra widescreen monitors at this time either. I also noticed
the game suffered from severe hang ups whenever the game needed to load a new
area or a player joined the game. Additionally, the game has no option for removing
an overlay with game data on the bottom of the screen.
Visuals
World War Z uses a
realistic art style that works well for the game given its movie roots. The
character designs fit each locale, and the maps are do a good job of visually
conveying their setting. The developers use subtle visual cues well to signal
important gameplay mechanics, like yellow paint for areas that can be climbed
over and silhouettes where defensive structures can be placed.
Audio
The audio experience in World
War Z is a bit rough. The sound effects and music are decent, but the game’s
voice acting is poor. The voice actors do not always have great lines to work
with and several are noticeably weaker in skill. A couple voice actors really struggle
to maintain their accents, often falling back to an American accent at random
times. I found the inconsistency to be rather jarring and suspect using only
American accents would have provided a better experience.
Overall
World War Z offers an enjoyable, fast
paced co-operative experience. The game is far from perfect, as the multiplayer
is completely forgettable, and the voice acting is pretty rough. The game will benefit
from more content, especially new story content with the existing characters. World War Z isn’t the new king of four
player co-op shooters but Left 4 Dead fans
will definitely enjoy the change of pace until the mythical third game finally
appears.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
BANDAI
NAMCO Entertainment to distribute Cyberpunk 2077 in Australia and New
Zealand
TUESDAY
30TH APRIL, 2019 – CD PROJEKT RED, creator and publisher of The Witcher
series of games, and BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment Europe are excited to
announce their partnership to distribute Cyberpunk 2077 in
Australia and New Zealand.
“We have a long history of successful cooperation with BANDAI
NAMCO and I’m convinced Cyberpunk 2077 is in good hands in Australia and New
Zealand,” said Michał Nowakowski, CD PROJEKT’s Member of the Board and SVP
of Business Development.
“We are delighted and proud that CD
PROJEKT RED has chosen BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment as their partner in ANZ for
their upcoming game Cyberpunk2077,” said Mark Gilbert, General Manager of
BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment Australia and New Zealand. “Cyberpunk 2077 is highly
anticipated by gamers worldwide and we look forward to working closely with CD
PROJEKT RED in bringing this masterpiece to the local market.”
Cyberpunk 2077 is a
narrative-driven, open-world RPG set in the most vibrant and dangerous
metropolis of the future — Night City. The game follows the story of V, a
mercenary on the rise in a world of cyberenhanced street warriors, tech-savvy
netrunners and corporate life-hackers. Featuring CD PROJEKT RED’s hallmark
concept of choices and consequences, players will face difficult decisions that
ripple through the entire game. Winner of over 100 awards at E3 2018, Cyberpunk
2077 is set in the universe of the classic pen & paper RPG system,
Cyberpunk 2020.
CD PROJEKT RED is a game development studio
founded in 2002. It develops and publishes video games for personal computers
and video game consoles. The studio’s flagship titles include The Witcher
series of games, GWENT: The Witcher Card Game and the upcoming futuristic AAA
role-playing game — Cyberpunk 2077. Together with GOG.COM, a game store offering
hand-picked titles for PC and Mac, CD PROJEKT RED is part of the CD PROJEKT
Capital Group. CD PROJEKT S.A. is listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange (ISIN:
PLOPTTC00011).
