Gaming News

Thomas the Tank Engine's Reign of Terror Continues With Alien: Isolation Mod

Thomas the Tank Engine has become a gaming mod staple, having appeared in everything from Elden Ring to Skyrim over the years. Remarkably, though, the dread train has never appeared in Alien Isolation, the now-classic horror game built around the conceit of being stalked by a Xenomorph. At least until now. Released just in time for Halloween, a new Thomas the Tank Engine mod is now available for Alien: Isolation courtesy of MattFiler, who writes in the summary, "It had to happen sooner or later... Thomas the Tank Engine has arrived aboard Sevastopol Station!" As the description implies, the mod replaces the Xenomorph with Thomas the Tank Engine, an entity at least as scary as H.R. Giger's creation. Like the Xenomorph, the train...

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Diablo 4 Players Take a Major Step Toward Solving the Cow Level Mystery

Players are close to cracking the code for a major secret in Diablo 4, which just started its second season on October 17. Players have been searching for the Cow Level, a popular urban legend-turned-meme-turned-Diablo level, since the game released back in June. Now, thanks to the efforts of the Diablo IV community, we're closer than ever to learning the location of the Cow Level. Players have finally figured out how to earn three "Items of Great Significance," which have been hinted at as the relics used to craft a key. This key is needed to access the Forlorn Hovel, a location that's been rumored to be the room in which players can open a portal to the bovine plane and access Diablo 4's Cow Level. All this news comes courtesy of...

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How to Pair an Xbox Controller to PC

Although many PC gamers veer towards using a mouse and keyboard to play PC games, you might want to learn how to pair an Xbox controller to your PC for certain genres. If you’re playing an RPG for instance, a controller might not offer enough buttons to map all your spells or actions to. A racing or fighting game, however, lends itself nicely to a controller thanks to the joystick movement. If you would prefer to use an Xbox controller on your PC, it’s easy to set up as Windows and Xbox are both owned by Microsoft, so compatibility tends to be less of an issue. Pairing a wireless controller can be done via Bluetooth or by using Microsoft’s official Xbox Wireless Adapter. Wired controllers, on the other hand, can be plugged in via...

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Magic: The Gathering Announces Marvel Partnership With Sets Releasing in 2025

Comic book fans who play Magic: The Gathering will be happy to know that Wizards of the Coast and Marvel are teaming up for a collaboration that will see notable Marvel characters join the widely popular tabletop card game... but you're gonna have to wait a while. In a press release, Wizards of the Coast announced that its parent company, Hasbro, is teaming up with the comic book publisher to "develop collectible products" and tentpole sets featuring popular characters from Marvel. According to Wizards of the Coast, the products from this collaboration are not expected to be available for purchase until 2025. "Trading cards have always been a part of Marvel's DNA, so this collaboration takes that experience to a whole new level,"...

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How to Watch the Xbox Partner Preview Event 2023

Microsoft has announced an Xbox Partner Preview event livestream that will happen on Wednesday, October 25. The event will show new looks and reveals of upcoming games heading to Xbox, Game Pass, and Windows from third-party partners. IGN will be carrying the Xbox Partner Preview event livestream and this watch guide will provide you with everything you need to know to watch the show, including start times, a list of places you can watch it with us, and what you can expect from the event. Xbox Partner Preview Event 2023 Start Time The Xbox Partner Preview Event will take place on Wednesday, October 25 at 10am PT/1pm ET/6pm BST and is expected to last 30 minutes. IGN will be hosting a live Podcast Unlocked Post-Show immediately...

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Fallout: New Vegas Fan Mods Entire Map Into Fallout 4

A Fallout: New Vegas fan has put the entire Mojave Wasteland map inside Fallout 4 with a new mod. As reported by PCGamesN, NexusMods user bololo11 uploaded the FNV to FO4 mod, which grants Fallout 4 players access to the models and plugins for Fallout: New Vegas and Fallout 3 if they own each game. The included script also converts Fallout: New Vegas's map into Fallout 4, letting players explore the beloved game's Mojave Wasteland map inside the franchise's latest. Unfortunately this doesn't just let fans play the entirety of Fallout: New Vegas in Fallout 4 as it doesn't import any NPCs, creatures, quests, and so on. Creator bololo11 does offer some hope, however, saying these features are not "currently" available, meaning they be...

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Skyrim Fan Recreates Entire Game in Age of Empires 2

A particularly dedicated fan of The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim has recreated the entire map in Age of Empires 2. Reddit user Grouchy_Bluejay4511 shared their creation with a handful of screenshots showing iconic Skyrim locations like Whiterun, Solitude, and Windhelm built in the classic real-time strategy game. The world isn't just built to look at though, as Grouchy_Bluejay4511 has also promised it includes more than 50 quests and 100 unique characters, with players able to command any of the cities and push for control of all Skyrim. Those looking to experience it for themselves will be able to "soon", as Grouchy_Bluejay4511 plans to upload it to Steam's modding store Steam Workshop. They didn't say when exactly it will be...

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Ghostrunner 2 Review

The best sequels are the ones that can recapture what made the original so great, while also expanding those elements to make them feel bigger, grander, and more exciting than what came before. That’s exactly what Ghostrunner 2 manages to pull off. This is still a first person, one-hit-kill slasher where – to quote my review of the first one – you must run fast, slide fast, kill fast, and if you can’t do those things fast enough, you die fast. But now you get to do all of that while also occasionally riding an absolutely sick motorcycle, and with a wider variety ninja tricks to customize your playstyle. Couple that with a much more fleshed out world, excellent level variety, fantastic bosses, and a thumping soundtrack that enhances the...

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Lords of the Fallen 'The Most Important and Ambitious Game' in Publisher CI Games History

Lords of the Fallen has sold one million copies in 10 days, publisher CI Games has announced. Hexworks’ Soulslike launched on October 13 on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X and S with a myriad of performance issues. A number of patches later and Lords of the Fallen is in a better place. Indeed the most recent patch makes big improvements to the game, with a further patch due October 26 that reactivates crossplay between PC and consoles. “Lords of the Fallen is the most important and ambitious game we’ve developed in our 20-year history, and the first in our new planned AAA pipeline of games in the years ahead,” said CEO of CI Games Marek Tyminski. “To see this fresh and innovative take on the action-RPG achieve one million...

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Microsoft Announces Xbox Partner Preview Broadcast Event

Microsoft has announced an upcoming Xbox Partner Preview broadcast event set for October 25 at 10am Pacific / 1pm Eastern / 6pm UK. The 30-minute show focuses on providing new looks at games coming to Xbox, Windows PC, and Game Pass from Xbox’s third-party partners, Microsoft said. That includes a look at in-game activities for Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio’s Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, a launch trailer for Remedy Entertainment’s Alan Wake 2, the first gameplay for Studio Wildcard’s Ark: Survival Ascended, and a deep dive into Microbird Games’ Dungeons of Hinterberg. Fans should expect more than 20 minutes of trailers and new gameplay footage. In its note to press, Microsoft made a point of saying the Xbox Partner Preview will not...

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How Call of Duty Reinvented The First-Person Shooter

Very few video games have truly changed the way we play. The likes of Half-Life, World of Warcraft, and Fortnite are once-in-a-generation shifts. October 2023 marks the 20th anniversary of one of those seismic games: the original Call of Duty. What began as an attempt to beat Medal of Honor at its own game turned into a monolithic franchise with over 400 million sales across 30 different games. It was a significant turning point for both FPS campaign design and online multiplayer, ushering in an era of cinematic set pieces and ladder-based progression. Call of Duty was, undoubtedly, the FPS that changed shooters forever. The tale of Call of Duty can, technically speaking, be traced back to the Second World War, the conflict out of...

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Assassin's Creed Mirage Players Can Soon Turn Off Frustrating Chromatic Aberration Feature

Ubisoft will soon let Assassin's Creed Mirage players turn off the controversial chromatic aberration feature many found frustrating. An update coming around the end of October will set chromatic aberration — a graphical effect implemented to simulate lens distortion to make gameplay appear as if filmed with a real camera — off by default with the option to turn it back on. While this is an effect implemented across many games, some Assassin's Creed Mirage players called its use the worst they'd ever seen, while others claimed it made them unwell, forcing them to stop playing. Ubisoft failed to include an option to turn chromatic aberration off in Assassin's Creed Mirage at launch. "We are working to address your feedback with...

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Lords of the Fallen Patch 1.1.224 Makes Big Changes to the Soulslike

Lords of the Fallen patches are coming in thick and fast. The latest brings Hexworks’ Soulslike up to version 1.1.224 and makes big changes to the game. The biggest change here is to New Game Plus. In a post on Steam, Hexworks explained the change: “From today's patch onward, now when you complete your initial playthrough, you will be presented with a new option before embarking on your next runthrough; you can either progress directly to the next consecutive New Game (if you’ve just completed NG+1, you would move onto NG+2), or you can replay the current NG at the same difficulty, albeit retaining your character, items and progression, but resetting the entire world, including NPCs and questlines. This will allow trophy hunters and...

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Blizzard Disables Diablo 4 Trading Again, Threatens to Ban Anyone Who Uses Item Duplication Exploits

Blizzard has once again disabled Diablo 4 trading amid a new duplication exploit players were found to be using. In a post on the Blizzard forum, community manager filthierich said the developer is working on a fix for the issue. “We’ve suspended player trading in Diablo 4 until further notice due to a duplication exploit,” filthierich said. “We are working on a fix to amend this issue and will update you once we’ve reinstated the ability to trade. We will continue to monitor this activity to ensure a healthy playing experience for all.” Filthierich then issued a stark warning to those who are using item duplication exploits: “Any account that engages in gold and item duplication exploits will be actioned in accordance with our End...

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Konami Confirms Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 Issues to Be Addressed Post-Launch

Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 launches this week with a number of issues, Konami has said. Post-launch updates are planned to address them. Konami provided IGN with a list of these issues, which we are breaking down by their relevance to the games within the collection. Let’s start with the bonus content for the Metal Gear and Snake's Revenge NES ports. In the bonus content videos, the timing of some subtitles doesn’t match up with the audio. Konami said it’s planning a patch that will correct the timing. A post-launch patch is planned to add a number of visual options in the games, including a CRT scanline filter and the ability to change the pixel aspect ratio. Moving on to the MSX2 versions of Metal Gear and Metal...

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Over 10 Years After It Was Announced, Star Citizen’s Single-Player Squadron 42 Is ‘Feature Complete’

Star Citizen developer Cloud Imperium Games (CIG) has said the campaign portion of its controversial space sim is finally “feature complete”, over a decade after it was announced. Squadron 42 was part of the original Star Citizen Kickstarter campaign launched in 2012, before it was split off from the main game to become a standalone story campaign. It suffered multiple delays and long periods of silence. In 2015, CIG announced a long list of Hollywood stars had joined its cast, including Mark Hamill, Gary Oldman, and Gillian Anderson. Flashy cinematic trailers were released showing off the cast in action, with other cast members such as Andy Serkis, Ben Mendelsohn, Mark Strong, Harry Treadway, Jack Huston, and John Rhys-Davies...

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Daily Deals: Get The Callisto Protocol on PS5 for $3.75, TCL 65-inch QLED TV for $399, and More

The best daily deals for Sunday, October 22 include a Callisto Protocol on PS5 for just $3.75, a TCL 65" Smart TV for $399, $300 off a great Acer Predator gaming laptop, and a lot more. Callisto Protocol PS5 for $3.75 The Callisto Protocol is a good game, but you don't need to take my word for it, just check out our review from Tristan Ogilvie. While this game, which was originally set to be a tie-in with PUBG, it also draws a lot of inspiration from Dead Space, and right now you can get a Day One Edition physical copy of the PS5 version from GameStop for just $3.75. You'll have to pay a few bucks for delivery if there isn't one you can pick up from your local store, but it's still far cheaper than you could get it otherwise. TCL 65"...

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How to Play the Call of Duty Games in Chronological Order

To say that Call of Duty is an important piece of video game history would be an understatement. It’s hard to think of first-person shooters (or even action games in general) without mentioning this series, which became one of the most successful works in media after revolutionizing single-player campaigns and online battles. For decades, the multiplayer scene has been partially dominated by this franchise, with entries that have explored several war conflicts both from our past and possible future. Apart from creating iconic characters in the genre, like Captain Price and Alex Mason, the series has also introduced unexpected figures to their lines, like Spawn, Snoop Dogg, Lionel Messi, and more. Jump to: How to play in...

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Final Fantasy 14 Shows Off New Viper Class Alongside Final Fantasy 11 and 16 Crossovers

Square Enix has revealed several new announcements at the Final Fantasy XIV Fan Festival 2023 in London as part of a deeper look into its upcoming expansion, Dawntrail. This includes a new Viper job alongside a Final Fantasy XI crossover raid and a Final Fantasy XVI crossover called “The Path Infernal.” Additionally, an open beta test for the Xbox Series X|S version is scheduled for mid-January to February 2024. The Viper class focuses on close-range combat with two one-handed weapons, but they can be combined to create a single two-handed one. Its purpose is to unleash devastating damage swiftly. The crossover raid with Final Fantasy XI is called the Echoes of Vana’diel, which is named after the world in which the game is set in...

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Spider-Man Face-Off: What Is the Best Spidey Game of All Time?

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 has arrived on PS5 and marks the biggest gaming adventure yet for our favorite friendly neighborhood hero who first swung into the gaming world in 1982’s Spider-Man for the Atari 2600. Since then, there have been some spectacular and amazing entries in the wallcrawler’s game output, as well as some that didn’t quite live up to Spidey’s good name. In celebration of Spidey’s long history in the world of video games and the release of Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, we want to know your favorite game starring the legendary web-slinger. Do you think Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 has already climbed to the top of the Empire State Building-sized list of games? Or do you prefer 2004’s Spider-Man 2, the game that first let us feel – in a...

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Assassin's Creed Mirage Performance Review

After a three-year hiatus, Assassin’s Creed returns with Mirage. From a visuals and technical perspective, the team at Ubisoft has gone for a “less is more” approach. Powered by the latest iteration of the Anvil engine, Mirage looks stunning, often due to the myriad features it sports that are still not commonplace in all games or engines, such as real-time lighting systems that incorporate time of day, global illumination bounce of light, dense cities, vast landscapes, and huge vistas with rich and colourful flora and fauna. The bustling city of Baghdad and its tight streets look authentic and have a strong art direction. Sandstone buildings and looming palm trees are bathed with dense fog volumes and crepuscular rays obscuring long...

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Alan Wake 2's PC Specs Stun Fans With Its Hefty Recommended Requirements

Alan Wake 2's recommended requirements on PC are finally here, and it looks like fans may want to upgrade their GPU. The newly-revealed PC requirements suggest that players will want at least an RTX 4070 if they want to be able to enjoy Alan Wake 2 with ray tracing activated. It will also require at least 90 gigabytes of storage on an SSD harddrive for an optimal experience. Here are the recommended requirements. Recommended (No ray tracing) Resolution: 1440p GPU: GeForce RTX 3060 / Radeon RX 6600 XT VRAM: 8 GB DLSS/FSR 2: Balanced CPU: Ryzen 3700X or i7 10700 RAM: 16 GB Storage: 90 GB SSD Recommended (Ray tracing) Resolution: 1080p GPU: GeForce RTX 4070 VRAM: 12 GB DLSS/FSR 2: Quality CPU: Ryzen 3700X or i7 10700 RAM: 16 GB...

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The Bad King Kong Game Is Part of a 'Vicious Cycle' of Licensed Titles, Devs Say

When Skull Island: Rise of Kong was released earlier this week, we reported on the visceral social media reactions to its rudimentary gameplay, PS2-esque graphics, and left-fielded bugs with many calling it "the worst game of 2023." The reason it's received that dubious title, however, is apparently because the developers only had a year to work on King Kong's latest video game outing. Per a new report from the The Verge, developers at IguanaBee, an indie studio based in Santiago, Chile, said they were contracted by GameMill to create Skull Island from scratch within a strict one-year turnaround, with development starting last June and expected to be wrapped on June 2, 2023. One developer said the crunch to meet that deadline "was...

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RoboCop: Rogue City Nintendo Switch Version Cancelled

The publisher of the promising RoboCop: Rogue City has quietly cancelled the Nintendo Switch version of the game. A Switch version was announced in July 2022 alongside the PC, Xbox Series X and S, and PlayStation 5. You can see the Switch logo on the trailer revealed last summer: But a note on the RoboCop: Rogue City Facebook page reveals the Switch version is no longer in the works: “At this moment we don’t have any plans for a Nintendo Switch release.” It’s perhaps an expected move from publisher Nacon given the ambition of Teyon’s stompy shooter. IGN went hands-on with RoboCop: Rogue City at gamescom 2023 and found slow first-person shooting, decision-making, and a spot of detective work is all part of this unique-feeling game...

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Cyberpunk 2077 Patch 2.02 Coming Soon, Says CD Projekt

CD Projekt has revealed Cyberpunk 2077's Update 2.02 is "coming soon" and includes a handful of bug fixes and other challenges. Revealed on CD Projekt Red's support website, the update will fix perhaps the two biggest issues left with the Phantom Liberty and Update 2.0 version of Cyberpunk 2077. The developer didn't share when Update 2.02 would be released, but its last update arrived one week after CD Projekt Red said it was "coming soon". The first issue addressed in Update 2.02 is the fixing of skill progression passives, as some players were not gaining the passive buffs that came with upgrading each skill level. The other major gripe for players will soon be sorted too, as CD Projekt will rebalance the timers in courier...

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Naruto X Boruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm Connections Might Be the Complete Anime Fighting Game Package

Naruto X Boruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm Connections is, to be sure, a fighting game at its core. While not as rigid as Street Fighter or technical as Tekken, it does an exceptional job of continuing the legacy of the Ultimate Ninja Storm series by introducing a huge roster of over 130 characters – many of whom can interact with each other – as well as a brand new and very accessible “Simple Control Mode.” While some fans of the Ultimate Ninja Storm series might not be too hot on this totally optional simplified control scheme, the ability to ease things down a bit for newer players with simple single button attacks and movement is an excellent addition to the game, and still kept combat interesting and engaging in both the story mode and...

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Microsoft Just Advertised Xbox Using Earth's Mightiest Billboard

Microsoft has taken over the LED display of Las Vegas' gargantuan Sphere arena to create an Xbox-themed light show that dominated the city skyline. The Las Vegas Sphere has contributed its fair share of viral moments since its inaugural show in July, during which it illuminated its 580,000 square foot ‘Exosphere’ with a spectacular light show. Since then, Earth’s mightiest billboard has manifested a plethora of spectacles to amaze and annoy the residents of the Nevada metropolis. Among the visual offering has been a menacing pumpkin, a spectacular fireworks show, a basketball, and, of course, a vast and unsettling human eye. The interior meanwhile is capable of seating close to 20,000 people, and is designed to host live musical...

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Star Citizen Alpha 3.21: Mission Ready Update Released Ahead of Upcoming Announcements

The Star Citizen alpha updates continue, adn this time we’re up to alpha 3.21 with the release of a new patch dubbed Mission Ready. Developer Cloud Imperium Games (CIG) released the update ahead of CitizenCon 2953, a two-day event that promises insight into the future of the controversial space sim. “CitizenCon is ultimately about our incredible community, and we couldn’t be more thrilled to return with our largest-scale physical event ever, while continuing to support our global community online. We have so many exciting developments and advancements to share that will make this our best CitizenCon to date,” said Chris Roberts, chairman and CEO of CIG and Star Citizen creative director. “While we look towards the future this...

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EA Sports FC 24 Players Horrified as Huge Glitch Spreads to Ultimate Team Weekend League [Updated]

Update, Oct. 20, 12:00 p.m. PT: In an attempt to address the glitch, EA has temporarily removed the Trickster+ playstyle from Ultimate Team Players Items. They'll look to add it back in "once this issue has been addressed in a future Title Update," they said on X (formerly Twitter) today. Previous story: The FIFA community is up in arms over a devastating glitch that has spread to EA Sports FC 24’s highest-level competitive multiplayer mode. The 'Trickster glitch' sees a player with the Trickster+ playstyle perform a skill move to fully attach the ball to the back of their leg, leaving them free to run straight into the goal. There is nothing the opponent can do to prevent this. FC players have called it the worst glitch ever seen in...

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Magic: The Gathering Fallout Cards Are Now Available to Preorder

Magic: The Gathering is getting official 'Universes Beyond' Fallout-themed cards and sets to go alongside its many other recent partnerships (Lord of the Rings and Doctor Who). This includes four new Commander decks featuring familiar characters, enemies, and abilities from the beloved RPG series. If you've been looking to secure yourself all four new Fallout decks, or even just some boosters, preorders are now live on Amazon. Each deck will cost $45.13 (payment on dispatch), or you can opt for all four decks which is $164.15. There are also the Fallout Collector Boosters, which are $23.12 each and include 15 new MTG Fallout cards. You can find quick links to the preorders just below. Caesar is one of a handful of characters...

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