Sony has purchased Bungie, who has meant so much to Xbox and its history, that we can't help but discuss the deal. We look at what it means for the future of Bungie on Xbox, remember our favorite Bungie-made moments on Xbox, and more. Plus: our reactions to the Halo TV show's new trailer and release date, and more!
Subscribe on any of your favorite podcast feeds, to our new YouTube channel, or grab an MP3 download of this week's episode. For more awesome content, check out our latest IGN Unfiltered interview, where Joseph Staten – one of Halo's original creators and now the head of creative on Halo Infinite – discusses his fascinating career:
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Steam Deck games could eventually look a lot better thanks to its support for FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR) — AMD's DLSS competitor that has the ability to enhance framerates and resolution.
Steam Deck's FSR support is detailed in the platform's partner FAQ, which contains info on inputs, graphics, and other questions relevant to developers. In a section titled "AMD," Valve talks about Steam Deck's support for FSR at launch, and what it could mean going forward.
"FSR is already available for some applications that support it. Games that already include FSR will work as is, but also FSR support will be included as part of an OS future release," Valve's FAQ says. "Once that happens, games could potentially make use of FSR even if...
The developer of Shovel Knight has announced a brand new game called Mina the Hollower, a top-down action adventure in a Game Boy Colour style.
At its Yacht Club Games Presents event, the developer launched a Kickstarter campaign to help fund the new project, promising a "bone-chilling action adventure" with an 8-bit aesthetic redefined for the modern era.
The studio's release of Shovel Knight in 2014 hurtled it into mainstream success and spawned several spin-offs, but it hasn't revealed a new franchise until today (Yacht Club has published non-Shovel Knight games, but never developed one itself).
Mina the Hollower will, like Shovel Knight before it, combine classic and modern styles – and will feature 60 frames per second combat...
Today's the day to acquire some gold for your collection. Last year, Resident Evil Village beat fellow nominees Valheim, New World and Forza Horizon 5 to secure the top spot on Steam. Also, the little game that could, It Takes Two, took out the competition at The Game Awards. Now's the time to fully comprehend how each of them achieved this (but for half the monetary outlay).
Notable Sales for Nintendo Switch
Purchase Cheaply for PC
Exciting Offers for XO/XS
Product Savings for PS4/PS5
Adam’s our Aussie deals wrangler. You can watch him game on YouTube.
Continue reading...
While players have certainly been aware of the struggles Battlefield 2042 has undergone since its launch last November, publisher EA owned up to the game's trouble in front of investors today, saying it "did not meet expectations."
In the company's Q3 earnings call, CEO Andrew Wilson said that Battlefield 2042 has always been an "ambitious game" for EA, noting that much of the game was made during COVID-19 lockdowns that ultimately impacted the final product.
"Developing this game with our teams working from home for nearly two years ultimately proved to be challenging," he said. "Through our process of testing and preparation we believed the experience was ready to be put in our players' hands. We launched with strong stability...
After previously expressing positivity about NFTs as a part of gaming's future, EA appears to be treading with a bit more caution in its most recent discussion with investors.
During the company's Q3 earnings call today, CEO Andrew Wilson was asked once again how he felt about EA potentially doing NFT and blockchain gaming sometime down the line. Wilson began his reply by reflecting on the fact that the investment trends gaming is seeing with NFTs are familiar, with similar investment including in the past around tech such as 3D, AR, and VR.
He continued by emphasizing the importance of "collectibility" as central to EA games, both in real and virtual worlds, saying he believes that will be an important part of EA's future one way...
Xbox will celebrate Black History Month by spotlighting Black and African American developers and creators for the entire month of February.
The company announced their plans in a blog post, where content developer and social lead Albert Dankwa said Xbox would be "celebrating gaming as a source of joy, connection, and self-care for many in the community."
The company has been celebrating Black History Since 2020, highlighting Black industry professionals and their contributions to the gaming industry.
Dankwa said he relates to finding joy through games: "I have fond memories of summer afternoons spent at a friend's home playing Halo and later enjoying Gears of War on my own first Xbox. was fascinated by the narratives, drawn to the...
The melding of tabletop RPG and Borderlands in Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands almost feels like a Pimp My Ride meme. "You like RPGs in your RPG-based Looter Shooters?" Because at its core, Borderlands has always been heavily influenced by role-playing games, both the tabletop and video game varieties. The visible damage counters as you unleash a clip or three-hundred into your enemies is a direct nod to the damage counters in games like Final Fantasy, and the Gearbox main offices in Texas have an entire room set aside with what might be the greatest TTRPG set-up I've ever seen. Giving Tiny Tina her own DLC (which is standalone as of last November) as well as a spin-off game with Wonderlands feels like the perfect encapsulation of the DNA of...
Battlefield 2042's Season One has been pushed back to early summer 2022 so developer DICE can focus on resolving current issues in the game. The decision was made "to bring the game up to the highest standards" according to senior producer Ryan McArthur, who published a blog post on the game's website.
Battlefield 2042 was released in November last year with a number of issues including server connectivity and UI problems. A seasonal Battle Pass will add new playable characters and maps, but DICE didn't confirm a timeline for when Season One will begin.
McArthur said, "We are heavily invested and committed to the future of Battlefield 2042 — working on taking action on multiple fronts to address feedback and implement extensive...
Xbox has announced several new games coming to Game Pass in February 202 headlined by CrossfireX, which launches on the subscription service the same day it's released, on February 10.
CrossfireX features the series' first campaign mode promising an "immersive single-player experience" set amid a sprawling global conflict between the Global Risk and Black List Mercenaries.
It also has a multiplayer mode, in which small teams fight against each other, similar to Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.
Ark: Ultimate Survivor Edition is Coming to Xbox Game Pass on February 1
The Ultimate Survivor Edition of Ark is also coming to Game Pass, so you can ride dinosaurs into battle with and against other players.
IGN said Ark was "good" when it...
Supermassive Games seemingly has plans to release at least six more Dark Pictures Anthology games on top of its upcoming The Devil in Me.
The developer has trademarked six further titles in the franchise with the European Union Intellectual Property Office, as spotted by @the_marmolade on Twitter.
The six games trademarked, all under The Dark Pictures Anthology brand, are called Switchback, Directive 8020, The Craven Man, Intercession, Winterfold, and O Death.
Supermassive Games has already released three games in the series - Man of Medan, Little Hope, and Houses of Ashes - and has confirmed a fourth is on the way. The upcoming game, The Devil in Me, was announced by the studio in October and revealed to be a Season One finale for...
For many of you it's either back to school or "return to the salt-mines" time. Yay. When that bell finally rings this afternoon, you're going to want to go home and decompress in the most discounted, game-related way possible. This is where today's deals come in. I've got something for everybody.
Notable Sales for Nintendo Switch
Purchase Cheaply for PC
Exciting Offers for XO/XS
Product Savings for PS4/PS5
Adam’s our Aussie deals wrangler. You can watch him game on YouTube.
Continue reading...
Valve's Steam Deck is coming out in less than a month, and we're starting to get an idea of what games will be playable on the system. A Steam user dug into SteamDB to see which games Valve has already tested and graded for its upcoming handheld using the previously announced verification system.
According to data pulled from SteamDB over the weekend, Valve has graded 106 games for Steam Deck compatibility. While the results aren't available on the Steam store just yet, you can check out which games will work with your Steam Deck according to this fan-curated list.
Valve detailed the Steam Deck verification system late last year, where we learned the four tiers of compatibility within the system. The highest tier is "Verified"...
The year 2022 – to be henceforth known as The Year Where Everything Got Consolidated – is only a month old and already the video game industry has seen three major acquisitions totaling $85 billion. The latest of those sees first-person shooter powerhouse Bungie joining Sony and PlayStation Studios in a $3.6 billion move. And while both Bungie and Sony say that the studio will continue to be a multiplatform developer, that may only end up proving true for Destiny, which continues to enjoy a thriving community and long-term support. Bungie has other projects in the works, and even as Bungie says those will remain multiplatform games, now that Bungie is with Sony, that could change sooner or later.
Regardless of whether it does or...
With the news that Sony is acquiring Halo and Destiny creator Bungie for $3.6 billion, the games industry is reacting with a mix of incredulity, cautious optimism, and concern. Though nowhere near as seismic a deal as Microsoft's purchase of Activision-Blizzard, which clocked in at a massive $68.7 billion, the Bungie deal will still have interesting implications for the future of Bungie and Sony's position in the ongoing competition with Microsoft.
Bungie and PlayStation both trumpeted the deal as a beneficial partnership that will allow the Destiny developer to retain its creative independence. Bungie CEO Pete Parsons said the deal will support Bungie's efforts to become a "global multimedia entertainment company" in a blog post...
After 18 years, World of Warcraft is finally relaxing its deep, historical faction divide between Alliance and Horde players, and letting them play together at last.
As Blizzard announced today, an update is currently in the works that will allow Alliance and Horde players to form parties together for dungeons, raids, and rated PvP. Though not available yet, the change is planned for release as part of an eventual 9.2.5 update sometime after the upcoming major patch, Eternity's End.
The shift is, by necessity, somewhat limited in scope. It has to be. World of Warcraft has always followed its Warcraft heritage in dividing the Alliance and Horde into warring factions — in fact, the majority of the game is built on and around that...
Dying Light 2 Stay Human is almost here: it's set to release for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC on February 4. A cloud version for Nintendo Switch will release sometime later. Dying Light 2 is a sequel to the 2015 zombie survival game that takes place 20 years later, in one of the last remaining large human settlements, called The City.
The game is up for preorder now (see it on Amazon, or Amazon UK). Read on to see where you can find it, how much it costs, and what comes in each edition.
Dying Light 2 Stay Human Collector's Edition - Back In Stock for PlayStation
PS4 (includes free PS5 upgrade)
Get it at Amazon - $229.99
Get it at Best Buy - $229.99
Get it at GameStop - $229.99
Xbox One / Series X|S - SOLD OUT
Get...
Bungie will retain "full creative control and publishing independence of the Destiny universe" following its blockbuster $3.6 billion acquisition by PlayStation, a roadmap that the duo are calling their "shared vision" for the future.
The three point plan guarantees that Destiny 2 will remain on all current platforms, with the potential to expand to still more platforms in the future. Bungie's ultimate goal is a "single global community, that you can play anywhere, on any device."
Bungie's article includes a short FAQ that answers questions concerning its immediate impact on Destiny 2 players, its effect on announced seasons and expansion packs, and what it will mean for The Witch Queen. In short, Bungie says that nothing will...
PlayStation boss Jim Ryan says we should expect more studio acquisitions in the future, in the wake of today's news that Sony is buying Destiny developer Bungie for $3.6 billion. GamesIndustry.biz's Christopher Dring tweeted that Ryan said, "we should expect more" when it comes to further PlayStation acquisitions.
It's been an acquisition frenzy so far in the games industry in 2022. In the last few weeks, Take-Two acquired Zynga for $12.7 billion, and then Microsoft blew that number out of the water by spending $68.7 billion to acquire Activision Blizzard King. While Sony's timing may indicate that the Bungie acquisition was a response to Microsoft's move earlier this month, Dring says this deal was in the works long before that, for...
Sony has announced that it will acquire Bungie for $3.6 Billion. As with many of these blockbuster acquisitions, there are questions regarding what this means for the future of that studio when it comes to exclusives. According to Bungie, future games in development will not become PlayStation exclusives.
Following news of the acquisition, Bungie released a Q&A addressing some common questions players and fans might have for the future of the company. One of the big questions is whether Bungie's future games currently in development will become PlayStation exclusives? To which Bungie responds flatly: No.
"No. We want the worlds we are creating to extend to anywhere people play games. We will continue to be self-published, creatively...
Fans of It Takes Two can look forward to seeing more of its world and characters in upcoming adaptations for film and television. Variety reports that It Takes Two developer Hazelight Studios has partnered with dj2 Entertainment to work on potential projects featuring last year's breakout hit. dj2 Entertainment has worked on the Sonic the Hedgehog movies, as well as other video game properties including Tomb Raider.
It Takes Two is a cooperative platformer game that focuses on a couple on the verge of divorce getting transported to a fantasy world, where they're forced to work together to repair their relationship. The game received lots of praise upon its release, getting a 9/10 in our review, and taking home the Game of the Year...
Sony Interactive Entertainment has announced it will acquire Destiny developer Bungie for $3.6 Billion.
GamesIndustry.Biz reports that following the deal, Bungie will be run as "an independent subsidiary" of SIE, and will remain a multiplatform studio with the option to "self-publish and reach players where they choose to play."
Bungie is best known as the creators of Halo but since becoming an independent studio have focused their efforts on Destiny, a live-service FPS RPG where players can explore the galaxy as Guardians of Light. The company is also working on a new IP.
"We've had a strong partnership with Bungie since the inception of the Destiny franchise, and I couldn't be more thrilled to officially welcome the studio to the...
American McGee’s Alice is getting its very own TV show, and it's being created by David Hayter, writer of the original X-Men movie, and voice of Solid Snake.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Hayter will write and showrun the upcoming video game adaptation, bringing the classic twisted Alice in Wonderland video game to TV.
“The American McGee’s Alice and Alice: Madness Returns game series is a ground-breaking reimagining of the classic tale,” said Hayter. “It takes you into the heart of a corrupted Wonderland and throws light into shadowy corners the world has never seen. I am beyond excited to bring this world of madness and wonder to a global audience.”
American McGee’s Alice was originally released in 2000 and told the story...
Activision Blizzard is currently facing serious ongoing allegations of harassment and mistreatment of marginalized workers. To learn more, please visit our timeline as well as our in-depth report on the subject.
The rumoured Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 – expected to be the franchise's 2022 release – has reportedly entered an early alpha stage, with the game apparently being developed by 11 different studios.
Activison Blizzard has yet to confirm that a sequel to 2019's Modern Warfare will be released this year but several reports from September indicate this will be the case.
According to industry insider Tom Henderson, who first reported on Modern Warfare 2's existence, three Infinity Ward studios are working on the game...
More Final Fantasy 7 spin-offs are on the way, according to the game’s creative director Tetsuya Nomura.
In addition to Final Fantasy VII Ever Crisis, which hits mobile later this year, Nomura said the release of Final Fantasy VII Remake in 2020 has prompted “even more FFVII projects” (as spotted by Siliconera).
The comments were made in a statement celebrating the original game’s 25th anniversary, with Nomura and Final Fantasy VII Remake’s producer, Yoshinori Kitase, reflecting on their involvement in the series.
Nomura, who also worked on the original game, said the release of Final Fantasy VII Remake, alongside The First Soldier battle royale and the upcoming Ever Crisis, give him “a real sense of how more and more people are...
Halo Infinite developer 343 Industries has stated that the game's shop was not delivering on "value, quality, or price" prior to its recent post-holiday shift – and explained that more changes could arrive.
In a recent community update post from 343, the developer spoke about a number of updates, and provided more information to fans surrounding the game's shop, which saw the addition of individual items for the first time last week.
"Our quick shift post-holidays was in recognition that we were not delivering on value, quality, or price," explained 343 senior community manager John Junyszek. "The offers we are running now, and will continue to run throughout S1, are to help us learn what is working and what’s not. This will take...
Elden Ring Director Thinks George R.R. Martin Might Be 'Shocked' By What He's Done to His Characters
Elden Ring Hidetaka Miyazaki says that George R.R. Martin may be shocked with what he has done with a number of the characters that the Game of Thrones writer created for the game.
During a recent interview with Game Informer, Miyazaki spoke further about the mythological lore that Martin had created for Elden Ring, which sets up the world before its catastrophic Shattering event.
In explaining that the writer had conjured up a number of human characters for the game, Miyazaki then went on to state that the writer may be surprised to see what inhuman monsters From Software has created from the back of his initial concepts.
“When Martin wrote these characters, and when he provided that origin story, that mythos for the world of...
A next-gen version of Cyberpunk 2077 may be on its way soon, as the game has reportedly been spotted for PlayStation 5.
As tweeted by the PlayStation Game Size Twitter account (below), which regularly posts findings from across the PSN database, a new addition suggests that the long-awaited new-gen versions of the CD Projekt Red RPG may be on the way.
The new database entry seemingly indicates a native PS5 version of the game, with a brand new piece of cover art, as you can see in the tweet below:
As stated in a follow-up tweet, the account has suggested that a next-gen version of the game could come to consoles between late February and early March. However, as with all leaks and rumours, that's worth taking that with a pinch of...
IGN can reveal that The Witcher's Gwent is becoming a new, single-player, standalone game, codenamed Project Golden Nekker and set to launch in 2022.
Project Golden Nekker is currently in development within CD Projekt Red’s Gwent team and aims to provide a “captivating single-player experience” different to previous versions of the digital card game.
Project Golden Nekker will be a completely standalone game, and won’t require players to own any other versions of Gwent to get the full experience.
Gwent was a fan-favourite minigame included in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, but evolved into a standalone multiplayer game in 201. In turn, Gwent got its own spin-off two years later with the excellent The Witcher Tales: Thronebreaker...
Sid Meier's Civilization turned 30 years old in 2021, which might make your bones hurt (it sure hurt mine). Every main entry in the series has had a new designer at the helm, starting with Sid himself all the way back in 1991, and we were fortunate enough to talk to four of them: Soren Johnson, who worked on Civilization 3 and headed up Civilization 4, Jon Shafer, who took the lead on Civilization 5, Ed Beach, the lead designer on Civilization 6, and Anton Strenger, who was in the driver's seat for Civ 6's Rise and Fall and New Frontier DLCs – and while we couldn't get a word out of him about it, seems like the heir apparent to take over for Civilization 7, whenever that might happen.
With its first-ever very direct competitor –...