This week the Unlocked crew discusses the Xbox game price change news and also the surprising agreement Xbox and Nintendo made to keep Call of Duty on Nintendo gaming platforms for the next 10 years. Plus, the crew shares a short wishlist for announcements and reveals at The Game Awards and reactions to Halo Infinite's December update.
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 our interview with Todd Howard, who answered all of our Starfield questions after the big reveal at the Xbox Showcase:
For more next-gen coverage, make sure to check out our Xbox Series X review and our Xbox Series S review.
Miranda Sanchez is the...
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Crisis Core –Final Fantasy 7– Reunion is a perfect example of how a game can blur the line between a remaster and a remake, using the skeleton of its already great 2007 PSP original while completely rebuilding the muscle around it. Every change brings it much closer to 2020’s excellent Final Fantasy 7 Remake, from its gorgeously updated graphics to its considerably faster combat. However, Crisis Core stops short of the total upheaval FF7R leaned into, and many design choices made with the original PSP game in mind prevent this remaster from being an entirely unblemished reunion.
Just as before, Crisis Core is an action-focused prequel that follows Zack Fair, a plucky and likable foil to his far more moody companion, the iconic Cloud...
The little console that can is going for a very sizeable discount today. The Series S is an excellent second console, like if you want something for a kid who plays on a smaller screen or if you want a budget-friendly way to take your first steps into the new console generation. Comparatively speaking, think of it like a base model car with a V6 and very few options, while the Series X is the fully-loaded V12. The deals on it (and many more things) await you below...
This Day in Gaming
Brian Lara Cricket (PS) released, 1998. Modern take
Rugby League 2 (PS2) released, 2005. Sequel
Animal Crossing: Wild World (DS) released, 2005. Sequel
Prince of Persia (PS3) released, 2008. Get it
Table of Contents
Nintendo Switch
PC
Xbox...
Valve appreciates Microsoft’s continued support of the Steam storefront and says that a formal agreement isn’t really necessary for their partnership together.
We're happy that Microsoft wants to continue using Steam to reach customers with Call of Duty when their Activision acquisition closes,” said Valve CEO Gabe Newell in a statement to Kotaku. “Microsoft has been on Steam for a long time and we take it as a signal that they are happy with gamers reception to that and the work we are doing. Our job is to keep building valuable features for not only Microsoft but all Steam customers and partners.”
Newell explains that Microsoft even sent a draft for a long-term community to keep Call of Duty on the Steam platform but clarifies...
Seven dwarves set out from the Mountainhomes to establish a new colony in world rife with gods, monsters, and ancient legends. Though small, these dwarves are the heroes of our tale: Short, sturdy creatures fond of drink and industry. In their ingenuity they will craft incredible artifacts, face great evils, and establish a citadel to stand the test of ages... or they'll dig a little too close to a volcano and flood the whole thing with lava. Then you'll generate another world, with brand new gods, monsters, and ancient legends, and do it all again.
All that and more is par for the course in Dwarf Fortress, perhaps the most cult in the pantheon of cult-classic video games, has been generating stories of triumph and tragedy for nearly...
There are a lot of options out there for people who want to shoot their way through hordes of enemies with the company of their friends, but I'd wager none of them let you do so with a pet that doubles as a metal super arm that would even make Bucky Barnes jealous. Enter Synced, a roguelike looter shooter with an emphasis on a creative buddy system between man and man’s best bio-organic frenemy. That emphasis kept me engaged throughout my limited early access play session, but also highlighted some of its less imaginative elements, like some extremely basic gunplay, repetitive level design, and hit or miss skill progression.
What stands out immediately is the setting, which puts a lot more science into the sci-fi post-apocalypse. In...
The latest edition of the Upload VR Showcase has arrived and it shined a light on a wide range of games that included everything from a new Attack on Titan VR game to a farming sim called Across the Valley to The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners - Chapter 2 Retribution to a Peaky Blinders game.
There were a lot of games and it can be a lot to keep up with all of them, so we've gathered each and every announcement from Winter 2022's Upload VR Showcase below to ensure you don't miss a thing!
Attack on Titan: Unbreakable Brings the Beloved Anime and Manga to VR
The beloved Attack on Titan anime and manga is getting the VR treatment with Attack on Titan: Unbreakable in Summer 2023 on Meta Quest 2. While we didn't get to see any gameplay...
Enhanced versions of Moss and Moss: Book 2 will launch alongside the PlayStation VR 2 when it releases on February 22 next year, according to a new blog post on the company's website.
The update details how the Moss developer Polyarc has worked to make the most of the upgraded capabilities of the PlayStation VR 2 to remove some of the constraints placed on the series by its predecessor’s hardware.
Both games will run in 4K at 90 fps and will feature graphical upgrades including lighting and texture improvements, and will make use of foveated rendering to reduce overall demand on the system.
The VR2 upgrade will also have an increased field of view over the originals, and will allow players to use both hands while interacting with...
The initial allure of a video game remake is the chance to replay an old classic in modern, shiny graphics. And that's exactly what we're getting with Dead Space; one of the remake's many features is that it has been built from the ground up in EA's modern Frostbite engine, and so looks as crisp and glossy as you'd hope for.
It's easy to remember the original with rose-tinted glasses, so to demonstrate just how different the two games look we've created a side-by-side comparison video, which you can watch above. The original Dead Space still looks remarkably good for a game from 2008, but it's clear to see what a dramatic update the remake brings. That's thanks not only to high-resolution models and textures, but also the beautiful...
As 2022 comes to a close we’re looking at the best pieces of gaming tech from the last year, from powerful new components and best-in-class peripherals to complete gaming systems that fit in the palm of your hand.
Here are our nominees for the Best Gaming Hardware of 2022… Be sure to check back next week for our winner!
SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless
In a sea of wireless gaming headsets, the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless stands out. Instead of just working with one platform, you can hook up this headset to two consoles, PCs, or any combination of devices. Plus, it also has Bluetooth so you can listen to your mobile devices at the same time.
Of course, this gaming headset offers more than just a myriad of ways to...
Racing games are usually always a showcase for the launch of a new console, but each year also brings with it new entries in a genre that has some true die-hard fans. I mean, how many other genres have dedicated peripherals to play them?
2022 was a great year for all types of racers as it saw the return of Gran Turismo and Need for Speed as well as new entries in the F1, WRC, and Horizon Chase series. Racing games are so much more than just cars racing around a track, and these exemplified that.
These are our nominees for the Best Racing Game of 2022... Be sure to check back next week for our winner!
F1 22
In conjunction with some of the biggest regulation shake-ups in the sport in four decades, Codemasters’ long-running F1 series...
It’s rare for a game to come along that I can’t stop thinking about, even when I’m not playing it. There are plenty of great games out there, don’t get me wrong, but a precious few keep running in my head even after I’ve walked away from my PC. As you’ve probably guessed by now, I can’t stop thinking about Diablo 4. Even in its current unfinished state – Blizzard wouldn’t let us capture our own gameplay footage, likely due to the placeholder audio in my build and other normal in-development stuff that doesn’t make for a pretty video, so you’re looking at b-roll they put together for us here – Diablo 4 is absolutely crammed with story, content, beauty, character customization, and so much more. I played roughly 12 hours of Act 1...
Diablo 4 Designers Tip Endgame Content, Cross-Play as Proudest Achievements as Game Nears Completion
Diablo 4 impressed the Hell out of me (pun intended). After I spent roughly 12 hours romping through Act 1 and reaching level 25 before I couldn't progress any further, Blizzard's latest dungeon-crawling action-RPG sequel had its hooks firmly into me. After I had to put it down, I spoke with lead designers Zaven Harouotunian and Angela Del Priore about their approach to the design of a franchise that is now over 25 years old. With the finish line of the project now in sight, I asked each of them about the contributions to the game that they're most proud of.
"[I'm most proud of] how we’re supporting multiple inputs and platforms all at the same time," said Del Priore, whose duties include UI and user experience design. "It makes the...
From sweeping orchestral scores to retro mash-ups that trigger memories of fusty arcades, music can make the difference between a great game and an amazing one. It helps set the tone and carry the narrative, and although each of the five games shortlisted here takes a different approach to its audio, one thing is consistent – every soundtrack is a banger.
Here are the nominees for Best Video Game Music in 2022; be sure to come back next week when the winner is announced.
Elden Ring
There are five credited composers on the Elden Ring soundtrack, which shows that this gargantuan task required a team of talented musicians to execute. One listen to the expansive soundtrack (which clocks in at over 60 tracks) and you can hear a wide...
RPGs let you live in a world much different than your own and be the key player in a story that goes places no other games can go. Throughout the countless hours of the best RPGs, empires rise and fall, characters live and die, and worlds are saved or lost.
While it can be a lot to get through one, the journey can be one of the most rewarding experiences in gaming, and 2022 had a lot of RPGs that fall right into that category. From the return of a beloved classic to a Marvel/X-COM game that is much more than it sounds to a new take on Pokemon, there were some standout titles this year.
These are our nominees for the Best RPG Game of 2022... Be sure to check back next week for our winner!
Live A Live
The most traditional RPG...
While some games live and die in the year they were released, others continue to thrive long after they first appear. Here we celebrate the games that continue to shine, from metaverse shooters to payload shifters, sprawling RPGs, and more.
Be sure to come back next week when we announce the winners of IGN's Best of 2022 Awards.
Destiny 2: The Witch Queen
It may be hard to believe, but Destiny 2 first welcomed players into its world in 2017. Since then, it has continued to build itself into something unlike anything else on the market and a game that constantly calls its Guardians back to duty. The Witch Queen is the latest call to action, and we said it represents the “best expansion that Destiny has ever received.” Not only does...
In an ideal world anyone could play any game, regardless of what they're playing on. But if you want to play this shortlist of absolute bangers, you have to do it on console. From maniacal rabbids to renegade gods, robot animals, medieval murderers and a pink thing, these are the Best Console Exclusive Games in 2022.
Come back next week to find out which one is the winner!
God of War Ragnarok
God of War Ragnarok accomplishes everything it sets out to achieve admirably and has started to demonstrate the PS5's full potential. The new weapons at Kratos's disposal can be upgraded and personalized to meet each individual's playstyle and have enhanced and fleshed-out combat. Kratos's tale in Ragnarok is one of growth just as much as it is...
Whether you're a fan of pizza-gobbling mutant turtles or the pistol-wielding witch on the Switch, 2022 was a breakout year for action games. TMNT: Shredder's Revenge and Bayonetta 3 showed these much loved icons are still at the top of their game, while Sifu's brutal learning curve made it all the more satisfying when everything clicked. Cult of the Lamb is as adorable as it is unsettling and don't be fooled by Vampire Survivor's simplistic looks, because underneath the pixel art is a roguelike that'll keep you hooked.
These are the Best Action Games of 2022. Make sure you come back next week to find out the winner!
Bayonetta 3
The 8-year wait for Bayonetta 3 and the return of our favorite Umbra Witch was a tough one, but the new...
Beauty may be in the eye of the beholder but regardless of your individual taste, 2022 saw some of the most visually stunning games ever released. In this year's shortlist of Best Video Game Art, fairy tale worlds are up against beautifully haunting vistas, robot dinosaurs roam sumptuous landscapes, cute rules supreme when the hero is a fox, and colourful manuscripts make for a welcome change in style.
These are the nominees for Best Video Game Art in 2022. Come back next week when the winner is announced.
Elden Ring
From the moment you step out into The Lands Between, Elden Ring’s haunting vistas immediately capture the eye as colossal golden trees tower over crumbling ruins of a land lost to decay. Much more than a dreary...
Shooters, thanks to games like Call of Duty, are consistently the best-selling games that often draw in the most non-gamers alongside sports games. However, the shooter genre has so much more to offer too.
From the colorful chaos of Splatoon 3 to the fantasy world of Tiny Tina's Wonderlands to the hero shooter Overwatch 2, there are so many different ways to get on the battlefield in the world of games, and 2022 was a prime example of that.
These are our nominees for the Best Shooter Game of 2022... Be sure to check back next week for our winner!
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is a joy to play and hits all the right notes in its homages to its 2009 namesake. While we had issues with the campaign, Call...
Stories in games continue to evolve thanks to improvements in performance capture technology, the fidelity of the worlds that surround them, and the ever-growing talent pool of incredible writers. While games were once all about gameplay, story has increasingly become more important as the years have gone on.
In 2022, the games that moved this medium forward in our mind are also the ones that have been telling the best stories. That includes everything from the AAA-title God of War Ragnarok to the smaller but no less special Pentiment.
These are our nominees for the Best Game Story of 2022... Be sure to check back next week for our winner!
A Plague Tale Requiem
A Plague Tale: Requiem is a sombre adventure that finds beauty in the...
2022 was the year for action-adventure games. If you like deep, sprawling stories peppered with breath-taking fight scenes then the last 12 months has served up some of the very best. God of War Ragnarok built on the foundations of its 2018 predecessor in almost every way, delivering a twist-filled story and fine-tuning the combat to make it better than ever. Likewise, Aloy's journey through uncharted lands in Horizon: Forbidden West took everything that was great about Zero Dawn and cranked it up a notch.
It's no surprise Elden Ring also makes the cut – it's FromSoftware's most ambitious game yet, and its masterful world building and challenging-yet-rewarding combat combine to make it a masterpiece. But definitely don't overlook two...
Strategy games challenge us in the best ways possible and capture why we love games like chess and those that require deep planning and wise reactions. There is something so beautiful about a plan coming together, and strategy games give us some of those greatest moments in gaming.
From the colorful and fun world Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope to the card-battling Marvel Snap to two entries in the beloved Warhammer series, 2022 had no lack of stellar strategy games.
These are our nominees for the Best Strategy Game of 2022... Be sure to check back next week for our winner!
Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope
Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope is one of those games that keeps you smiling with its charm, humor, and gameplay. Some may have not...
Considering 2022 was a 'quiet' year for new games, the quality on show was unquestionable. From blockbuster releases to smaller yet equally as impressive Indies, the last 12 months has been a stellar year whether you play on console or PC.
Two long-awaited giants lead the pack, with Santa Monica Studios' God of War Ragnarok closing off the latest chapter in Kratos' epic journey in style, while Elden Ring once again proves that FromSoftware and Hidetaka Miyazaki raise the bar with everything they make. Immortality boasted powerful performances and a gripping story, Tunic's unapologetically challenging gameplay was charming and rewarding in equal measure, and Marvel Snap upended the collectible card game genre with truly fresh ideas...
Accessibility in games continued to be a focus of the industry in 2022 as developers included accessibility features in a variety of titles. The increased awareness and concern around making sure that games are as accessible as possible is a very important aspect of game development, and so we brought together a group of experts on the subject to decide what 2022 games are worthy of recognition in this area.
Here are our nominees for Noteworthy Advancement in Game Accessibility in 2022... Be sure to check back next week for our winner!
As Dusk Falls
Since the rise and fall of Telltale Games (and hopefully soon to be rise again) the narrative-driven, choose-your-own-adventure style games are few and far between. Also, they don’t...
Video games are no longer just a few pixels on the screen with 100% of the focus set on gameplay, as they evolved into a medium that is telling some of the most important stories in entertainment. A big part of why is the level of performances by world-class talent bringing the characters on screen to life.
2022 featured some remarkable performances, including Ashly Burch's return as Aloy in Horizon Forbidden West, both Christopher Judge and Richard Schiff in God of War Ragnarok, Dominic Armato as Guybrush Threepwood in Return to Monkey Island, and Charlotta Mohlin in Immortality.
These are our nominees for the Best Performance in a Game in 2022... Be sure to check out next week for our winner!
Ashly Burch as Aloy in Horizon...
Puzzles are universal. Even from our youngest days, we love solving problems and even the most simplest of puzzles. This love grows as we do, and game developers have harnessed that into some truly special games.
2022 had a great range of puzzle games, and a lot of them came packaged with a great story like Immortality, Return to Monkey Island, and The Case of the Golden Idol. There were also some wonderful puzzle games that have you solving levels in the most efficient and fun way possible like Teardown and Escape Academy.
These are our nominees for the Best Movies of 2022... Be sure to check back next week for our winner!
Escape Academy
Escape Academy blends the excitement and intrigue of escape rooms with the wacky and wonderful...
Elden Ring's free Colosseum Update has arrived alongside a ton of balance changes, bug fixes, and even new hairstyles for the game's character creation.
Outlined in a Bandai Namco blog post, Elden Ring Version 1.08 is headlined by the PvP centric DLC announced yesterday but also serves as a fairly large patch for the game.
Five new hairstyles have been added (which can be viewed below thanks to Reddit user Katherine P), which are available when creating a character initially or later by using the Round Table Hold Clouded Mirror Stand.
Balance updates have been broken down into two categories: general adjustments and PvP exclusive changes. The general changes include fairly significant changes to the speed, distance, and recovery...
Microsoft has officially entered into a "10-year commitment" to bring Call of Duty to Nintendo consoles following its acquisition of Activision Blizzard.
Xbox boss Phil Spencer shared the news on Twitter alongside confirming Microsoft will continue to offer Call of Duty titles on Steam after the deal has closed as well.
The last time a mainline Call of Duty title was on a Nintendo Console was 2013's Call of Duty: Ghosts, which made its way to the Wii U. Since then, Nintendo owners have been left behind when it comes to one of the best-selling game franchises of all time.
In October 2022, Spencer said he'd "love" to see Call of Duty on Switch and that the Xbox's intention is to "treat Call of Duty like Minecraft." It looks as...
While Far Cry 6’s previous DLCs may have put past villains from the series into the spotlight, the latest expansion returns to familiar territory in a different way: by totally jumping the shark. Dropping you back in the shoes of Dani Rojas, Lost Between Worlds is all about an alien entity called Fai that crash-lands in Yara, creating a multitude of time rifts and portals to alternate dimensions. What ensues is a web of interconnected semi-roguelite levels that you’re free to playthrough in any order you want. It’s a genuinely fun way to bring an end to Dani’s story that I found myself happily plowing through all six hours of in a single day, even if it did essentially feel like a watered down version of the main game.
Similar to how...