Gaming News

Should You Buy a Gaming PC on Amazon Prime Day 2023?

If you’re looking to obtain a new gaming PC on Amazon Prime Day this year, then you have two different options available. You can either purchase the components, including a GPU, to make your own gaming PC or you can go prebuilt. Many of the best prebuilt gaming PCs come packing plenty of power to play even the most intensive PC games, but there are also quite a few budget gaming PCs that can still run popular new titles. Although Prime Day doesn’t always feature the best gaming PC deals of all time, it’s still a great time to find discounts on popular brands like Alienware, Acer, HP, Cyberpower, and Corsair if you know what you’re looking for. Prime Day gaming PC deals will begin on July 11 and run through July 12 with the rest of...

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Sega Executive Dismisses 'Play-to-Earn' Blockchain Games as 'Boring'

Sega isn't as all in on blockchain gaming as it was before, now withholding its biggest IP such as Sonic the Hedgehog from being used in third-party blockchain games. This move is to ensure that Sega doesn't devalue its own content. Speaking with Bloomberg, Sega co-chief operating officer Shuji Utsumi panned blockchain games as "boring." "The action in play-to-earn games is boring. What’s the point if games are no fun?" Utsumi said. However, Sega will still let external partners use characters from lesser known franchises such as Three Kingdoms and Virtua Fighter as NFTs. Utsumi noted that the technology remains useful in instances where it's possible to move characters and items between different games. Sega is also pausing its...

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Mortal Kombat 1 Trailer Adds a Host of Returning Characters to its Roster

NetherRealm Studios has released a new trailer for its upcoming fighting game Mortal Kombat 1, with the latest trailer confirming more characters that will be on the roster at launch. The latest trailer spotlighted Smoke and Rain, two characters with a long history in the Mortal Kombat series. It also revealed four new Kameo Fighters: Sektor, Cyrax, Frost, and Scorpion. As a quick refresher, Kameo Fighters is a separate roster of characters in Mortal Kombat 1 that can assist players during a match. Smoke was first introduced back in Mortal Kombat 2 as an unplayable secret character before eventually making a proper debut in Mortal Kombat 3 as a cyborg. His first appearance as a human was in 2011's Mortal Kombat. He primarily...

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Diablo 4 Season 1 Release Date Revealed Along With Fresh Details on Quest Line and More

Diablo 4 Season 1 will release July 20, Blizzard revealed in a new livestream that also included a host of new details about the upcoming content update. Titled Season of the Malignant, the new seasonal content will bring with it a brand-new quest line featuring "new faces and new enemies, new powers, the first Season Journey, and the first Battle Pass." It takes place after the events of the main campaign and introduces a new character in Cormand, an ex-priest from the Cathedral of Light who is trying to stop the spread of the Malignant. Season of the Malignant features a "dangerous new threat" in the form of Malignant Monsters spreading throughout Sanctuary. Any elite monster will be able to spawn as a Malignant Monster with...

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How Diablo 4’s Story Breaks Free From Its Past

The Diablo series has made a return through the release of Diablo 4. An entirely new entry in the series, it takes place some 50 years after the end of Diablo 3, and introduces a new cast of characters, and a new antagonist. Story and Narrative Producer Melissa Corning, Senior Quest Designer Grzegorz Sadzinski, Associate Game Producer Kelly Yeo, and Art Director John Mueller took the opportunity to sit down with IGN and share information about the narrative, art direction, and how the team conceptualized this entry’s antagonist—Lilith. Art Director John Mueller shared what the key visual inspirations were for Diablo 4’s overall art direction, and that it traces back to a trip to the Louvre when he was young. Theodore Jericho’s The...

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The Callisto Protocol Gets Hour-Long PlayStation Plus Game Trial

The Callisto Protocol is the latest game to join the PlayStation Plus trials program, granting subscribers unfettered access to Striking Point Studios' horror game for an hour before buying. It will be available, as usual, to subscribers of the most expensive $17.99 a month PlayStation Plus Premium tier, which grants trial access to a growing list of games including God of War: Ragnarok, The Last of Us Part I, and more. The Callisto Protocol’s 60 minute trial is relatively diminutive compared to the duration of other titles included in the program, but should still grant a prospective buyer valuable insight into the game. Following its somewhat rocky launch the action horror title has received a number of updates, bringing new...

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Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol 1 Is Up for Preorder

Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 is set to release for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, and PC on October 24. It includes the first three Metal Gear Solid games from the PS1 and PS2 era, plus Metal Gear 1 and 2, along with a number of extras. The collection is available to preorder at all the usual retailers (see it at Amazon). Below, we have info about where to get it, how much it costs, what’s included, and more. Let’s dive in. Preorder Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 PS5 Get it at Amazon - $59.99 Get it at GameStop - $59.99 Get it at Walmart - $59.99 Get it at PS Store (digital) - $59.99 Xbox Get it at Amazon - $59.99 Get it at GameStop - $59.99 Get it at Walmart - $59.99 Get it at Xbox Store...

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Ubisoft Reveals Educational History of Baghdad Feature For Assassin’s Creed Mirage

Ubisoft has announced a new History of Baghdad feature for Assassin’s Creed Mirage which will allow players to explore the historical realities of the city as they progress through the campaign. Unlike the educational Discovery modes featured in previous Assassin’s Creed games such as Origins, and Odyssey, The History of Baghdad content will not require the player to enter a separate mode of Mirage. Instead, the offering will be via an in-game codex as the player progresses through the story, in a similar vein to how Ubisoft imparted historical facts in earlier Assassin’s Creed titles. "From the start we had an ambitious premise: to help the players better understand the world of ninth-century Baghdad." "From the start we had an...

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Naraka: Bladepoint Finally Launches on PS5 This Month

Naraka: Bladepoint comes out on PlayStation 5 on July 13 alongside a switch across all platforms to free-to-play. The mythical melee battle royale also gets a new mode, called Capture the Spirit Well, a new hero called Tessa, and a new Dual Halberd weapon. Cross-play across all platforms launches July 13, too. Naraka: Bladepoint, developed by 24 Entertainment and published by NetEase Games Montreal, launched on PC in August 2021 before Xbox Series X and S in June 2022. The new PS5 version launches just over a year later. NetEase said Naraka: Bladepoint has now crossed the 20 million unique player mark. It’s a regular in Steam’s top 100 played games by concurrents list. At the time of publication, Naraka: Bladepoint was the 17th...

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The Other Xbox News While We Wait for the FTC Verdict – Unlocked 602

As we await the verdict in the Microsoft vs. FTC trial regarding the fate of Xbox's Activision-Blizzard acquisition, we dig into some of the other things happening in the world of Xbox, from the future of Banjo-Kazooie (if there even is one) to Ubisoft's rumored Assassin's Creed Black Flag remake to this month's hidden gem on Xbox Game Pass, and more! Subscribe on any of your favorite podcast feeds, to our YouTube channel, or grab an MP3 of this week's episode. For more awesome content, check out my recent interview with Todd Howard, who discussed the realization of his vision for Starfield after eight years, how Red Dead Redemption 2 was something of an inspiration, what his future holds, and more! For more next-gen coverage, make...

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How to Watch Naraka Fest 2nd Anniversary

Watch the skies above you, Naraka: Bladepoint fans! Because big news about the melee battle royale game is on the way. The third Naraka Fest is upon us, and an upcoming live stream will give information on all the updates coming to Naraka: Bladepoint. Here’s a watch guide on where and when to watch IGN’s stream of Naraka Fest. We'll also take some guesses at what you can expect to see when you tune in. Naraka Fest Stream Start Time The 2023 Naraka Fest stream starts on Wednesday July 5, 2023 at 7 p.m. PST. That's at 10 p.m. for folks on EST. It's also a sensible Thursday July 6, 2023 at 12 p.m. in AEST. Where to Watch the Naraka Fest Tune in to any of the links below to watch the Naraka Fest Stream. We have several portals to the...

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Emile Morel, Beyond Good and Evil 2 Creative Director, Dies Suddenly at 40

Emile Morel, a Ubisoft game designer and creative director for Beyond Good and Evil 2, has passed away at age 40. The announcement was originally spotted by IGN on LinkedIn, where two individuals that worked with Morel made tributes on the website. "A cherished colleague for over a decade at Ubisoft Montpellier, we laughed and wept through good times and bad, and shipped a lot great games together," Morel's former colleague M. Gabrielle Shrager wrote on LinkedIn. "Emile was so very proud of Beyond Good and Evil 2, the Space Monkeys and his teammates. He will be sorely missed." Emile was so very proud of Beyond Good and Evil 2, the Space Monkeys and his teammates According to Morel's LinkedIn page, he began working at Ubisoft in...

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Here's What Kerbal Space Program 2 Developers Are Building in Tears of the Kingdom

When The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom first came out, one of the earliest and best jokes that circulated the community was a very specific flavor of Ultrahand building nonsense: the Korok Space Program. Essentially, players were having fun building increasingly complex and silly vehicles to launch Koroks into the sky, or across long distances, and humorously dubbed their efforts in a clever play on space flight sim game Kerbal Space Program. The two games seem to have few simularities, but the slapstick way Tears of the Kingdom players' rockets launched, caught on fire, crashed, and generally caused mayhem was at least somewhat reminiscent of chaotic scenarios in Kerbal. Most people probably would have let this comparison...

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Grand Theft Auto V Returns to Xbox Game Pass Today

Microsoft has announced that Grand Theft Auto V returns to Xbox Game Pass starting today, July 5. In an Xbox Wire post, Microsoft announced the next slate of games hitting its Game Pass subscription service, with Grand Theft Auto V headlining. Rockstar's critically-acclaimed open-world game is available on the console version of Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Cloud Gaming. This marks the third time Grand Theft Auto V has released on Microsoft's game subscription service after debuting initially in April 2020. It was removed roughly a month later and replaced with Red Dead Redemption 2. The fifth mainline Grand Theft Auto then returned to the service in April 2021 with support for Xbox Cloud Gaming, before it was removed for the second time...

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Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin – The First Hands-On Preview

I've been nerding out over Warhammer Fantasy and 40K since before I could drive, but my relationship with Age of Sigmar, Games Workshop's most recent plane-hopping, epic fantasy spinoff has been mostly at arm's length. Realms of Ruin is an upcoming RTS that reached out a gleaming, armored fist to pull me in a bit closer. And the fact that it looks a lot like Dawn of War, aka one of my favorite RTS series of all time, made me all the more eager to reach out and grab it. If you're not up to speed on what exactly Age of Sigmar is, I'll do my best to break it down for you quickly. The world of Warhammer Fantasy, the one we see in the Total War: Warhammer games, was completely destroyed when the ravening forces of Chaos finally won in a...

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Diablo 4 Players Come Up With Cool Theory to Explain Terrifying Giant Butcher

If you’ve been lucky (unlucky?) enough to have been graced by the presence of Diablo 4’s infamous The Butcher, you may have noticed he appeared larger than you expected. Or perhaps he grew in size as you fought, likely in vain, to survive. It turns out there’s an explanation for this Giant Butcher, and it suggests all enemies are similarly susceptible to enlargement. Our story starts with a Reddit post from a confused IronHeart_777, who ran into a Giant Butcher while killing demons in a Nightmare Dungeon. Alongside posting a screenshot of this larger than virtual life demon, IronHeart_777 asked: “So uh… anyone know why we found a Giant Butcher? He appeared this big…” Strange! But there’s more. Icy-Veins subsequently reported on a...

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Someone Complained to Ad Standards That a Diablo 4 Billboard Reminded Them of the ‘Hell’ of Lockdown

Advertising standards officials have dismissed a complaint about a Diablo 4 “Welcome to Hell” billboard displayed in Melbourne. The unnamed complainant contacted the Australian Ad Standards Community Panel to say the billboard “brought back memories of the hell of the two years of lockdowns in Melbourne”. The person also accused the advert of causing offense to Christians and Catholics, and “promoting evil and satanic paraphernalia”. “The words 'welcome to Hell Melbourne' as part of the advertisement for this game and a picture of a devil are offensive to me as a Christian,” reads the complaint. “The imagery is also inappropriate for my children to see and has already given them nightmares. The imagery is frightening to children...

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Friday the 13th Dev Gives Players Access to Everything Ahead of Delisting

Friday the 13th: The Game players will soon have their accounts maxed out to level 150 and be granted every unlockable in the game. The game's Twitter account posted a list of changes coming on July 6, which essentially give players access to everything ahead of Friday the 13th's delisting later this year. Every player will be given the 30 most popular legendary perks with the best rolls possible, every unique kill (outside of DLC), and have all Challenge Skulls unlocked as their accounts are boosted to level 150. "This was the best way we knew how to give you, the players, the best experience and a heartfelt thank you, as we move towards an inevitable goodbye," said Wes Keltner, boss of publisher Gun Interactive, in a follow-up...

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Xbox and Bethesda Attending Gamescom 2023

Xbox and Bethesda are officially locked in for Gamescom 2023, meaning fans attending the event may get a chance to play Starfield ahead of its September 6 launch. Gamescom itself announced the news in a tweet (below). "Breaking. Xbox and Bethesda will join us on the show floor for Gamescom 2023," it said. "More details soon." Xbox is a regular exhibitor at the convention in Germany, having shown up every year in a time when PlayStation hasn't. Sony is yet to confirm if it will attend the 2023 show. Sony last appeared in 2019, opting not to have a presence at the digital-only show caused by COVID-19 or the subsequent events. Nintendo was in the same boat, but confirmed in April it would return to Gamescom in 2023. 2022 saw the...

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The Deepest Discounts of the Sixth Day of Steam Summer Sales, and Dropped AAA Console Must-owns!

I've done all of the hard work for you this morning. With great effort, I've waded through Valve's deal pool with the discounts, at times, coming right up to my nostrils. Everything worth mentioning has been mentioned below. You need only size up that prospective title and decide whether or not to grab hold and heave it way, way up onto that pile of shame of yours. This Day in Gaming Aussie birthdays for notable games and hardware - Pokémon Go (iOS) 2016. Table of Contents Nintendo Switch PC Xbox PlayStation LEGO Nice Savings for Nintendo Switch Expiring Deals From Yesterday Hardware Watch How much to make the switch to Switch? Back to top Purchase Cheaply for PC Expiring Deals From Yesterday Hardware Watch Slay...

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Kiryu's New Voice Actor Calls on Yakuza Fans to Wait for Like a Dragon to Come Out Before Passing Judgment

Long-time Yakuza protagonist Kazuma Kiryu will have a new English voice actor starting in Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, and fans are unsure about it. As reported by The Gamer, YouTuber Yong Yea is replacing Darryl Kurylo and gave fans a preview of the new voice at Anime Expo 2023's Dragons of Japan panel. "That little monologue he did was painful," said a Reddit user in response. "And the yell at the end was very much not Kiryu." Others were less critical of the performance, though still didn't think it was a good fit. "Yong Yea's voice isn't horrible but it sounds like a 20 year old, not a 50 year old," said one. The YouTuber posted on Twitter to defend himself though, and released a better quality but still...

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After 12 years, Terraria Developers Say Enduring Demand Makes It ‘Hard to Move On’

As Terraria’s next major patch approaches, developer Re-Logic has revealed it’s “hard to move on” and start a new project owing to the success and demand generated by the 2011 cult game. "After 12 years the game still sells like hot cakes," said Re-Logic head Andrew Spinks in a Twitter post from his now deactivated account, as reported by PC Gamer. "There is so much demand it makes it hard to move on." Since its release in May 2011, Terraria has graced every active gaming platform under the sun, ranging from the PC and Nintendo Switch to the PlayStation Vita, smartphones, and even Google Stadia, following a fraught development process. During its 12-year lifespan Terraria has expanded significantly in scope, thanks to a slew of...

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Early Prime Day Deal: Elden Ring Drops to It's Lowest Price Ever in the UK

Amazon Prime Day is right around the corner on July 11-12, but we've already started to get a few extra deals before the big event next week. These will likely be locked up and dressed as Prime Day offers next week, but for now you're able to get these deals without having a Prime account. This will change soon so you better lock up this Elden Ring discount ASAP. It's down to just £35 on Xbox, and £36 on PS5 at Amazon for a limited time only. That's up to £25 off the RRP of £59.99, and the best deal we've ever seen on the 2022 Game of the Year. Other great deals you might want to consider right now include Xbox Seagate Expansion Card for its all-time low price of £139, Star Wars Jedi Survivor for just £48, and Xbox Series S consoles...

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Are Diablo 4 Players Okay?

Diablo 4 has been out for a month now, and as players work their way through the campaign or the endgame with characters either at or approaching the level cap, the community is digging into the detail of how Blizzard’s action role-playing game actually works. But there are some rabbit holes players perhaps need not go down. This week, some Diablo 4 players convinced themselves the game’s rats lead players to better loot. In a sort of reverse Pied Piper situation, redditor zerger45 took to the Diablo 4 sub to declare: “FOLLOW THE RATS.” “Okay this is going to sound really bizarre, but you need to follow the rats for good loot,” zerger45 claimed in the post, which has 8,400 upvotes. “Don’t follow the predetermined path in any...

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Persona 5 Tactica Trailer Reveals New Playable Character

Atlus may have accidentally given fans a little more bang for their buck by revealing a new playable character in Persona 5 Tactica's latest trailer. As reported by Game Rant, a two-minute character spotlight trailer (above) breaking down the moves and abilities of Joker, Mona, and Erina also revealed a character called Toshiro that will seemingly be playable in the game. Only viewable briefly, at about 36 seconds into the trailer, the mission objective is to "have Toshiro reach the target destination". The bottom right corner of the screen, where playable characters like Joker and Mona have their health bars, also shows what's presumably Toshiro. This character has a much smaller health bar than the others though, and also doesn't...

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Indie Game Roundup – July 2023

July is upon us and with it comes not only the best indie games releasing in July, but also the oppressive heat and humidity that some weirdos claim to love. Not us though, you can find us in a dark room praying for rain and tweeting about how horrific it is to be too warm. […] The post Indie Game Roundup – July 2023 appeared first on Green Man Gaming Blog. Continue reading...

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Turtle Beach Stealth Pro Impressions, An Almost $200 Discount and More!

Way more often than not, Turtle Beach make a shelluva good headset. You've got to sand it to 'em. Horrific wordplay aside, their products do often grace the apex end of our Budget to Best lists. My sound catchers have been happily ensconced in their offerings since the company started making ear-cans in 2005, which is why I jumped to give these new Stealth Pros a crack. As you'd expect from a high-end audio solution, they're not an inexpensive proposition. That being said, if you're a connoisseur of aural pleasures — or a pro gaming strategist who knows the value of bat-level threat detection — then the price of a well-made peripheral at this tier is often justified. Before I dive into the pros and cons of this headset as I see them...

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God of War Ragnarok Axed by 46%, 72% off PS to PC Must Owns and More!

The Steam Summer sale continues to gather...uh, steam...today. Case in point: it's pushed down the RRPs of a bunch of PlayStation-to-PC must-owns. Personally, I'd take this opportunity to give Days Gone another shot. Not a perfect game, by any means, but it's slowly but surely gaining cult-hit status. Maybe just get it at a discount before the day's gone. Table of Contents Nintendo Switch PC Xbox PlayStation Nice Savings for Nintendo Switch Expiring Deals From Yesterday Hardware Watch How much to make the switch to Switch? Back to top Purchase Cheaply for PC Expiring Deals From Yesterday Hardware Watch Slay your pile of shame. Back to top Exciting Bargains for Xbox Expiring Deals From Yesterday Hardware Watch...

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Disney Speedstorm to Race Out of Early Access This September

Disney Games and Gameloft Barcelona have announced that Disney Speedstorm will officially race out of Early Access on September 28, 2023. On September 28, Disney Speedstorm will be free-to-play on Switch, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PS5, PS4, and PC and will bring with it many of the lessons the dev team learned during the Early Access period which began on April 18, 2023. “Since the launch of Early Access, we’ve received invaluable feedback and support from players, which have been instrumental in shaping Disney Speedstorm into the incredible racing experience it is today,” says Aska Suzuki, Game Manager. “Our incredible community’s enthusiasm, dedication, and love for the game have been our inspiration from day one, and we can't...

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The 15 Most Played Steam Games of All Time

Whether it’s the emergence of the battle royale genre or breakout multiplayer survival games, PC gaming often serves as the frontier for the latest trends and innovations in the gaming landscape, often leading to massive concentrations of players. But of all the PC games ever to appear on the Steam charts, few have enjoyed the exceptional popularity of those atop Steam’s most played charts. Based on the maximum number of concurrent players ever held by any game on Valve’s platform, here are the 15 most played Steam games of all time. 15. Fallout 4 Concurrent Player Record: 472,962 As the long-awaited sequel from the studio that had most recently released The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, the anticipation for Fallout 4 was undeniable...

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