Tag: News

Nioh 2 Release Date Confirmed, Open Beta Live Right Now

Team Ninja have officially announced Nioh 2’s release date as March 13, 2020. If you can’t wait till then, players can get a taste of Nioh 2 in its open beta which is currently live right now.

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Nioh 2’s open beta is available right now on the PlayStation Store and will run through to November 10, sitting at 12.51GB. You can either brave the beta solo or party up with friends in two or three-player co-op. Of course, online features will require a PS Plus Subscription.

The Open Beta will give players the chance to experience the game’s new and improved combat system, as well as new weapons like the Switchglaive and an extensive character creator system.

What to Expect

As the beta starts, players get to enter a place called the Interim. The Interim acts as a safe zone where you will be able to choose your weapons and test out the basic moves to get you ready for the real heart of the demo. Players will have two levels and two bosses to defeat (both of which are said to be fairly tough battles). Completing the beta will reward players with The Mark of the Demon Slayer, a reward which unlocks the Kamaitachi Helmet for players to equip when the full game launches.

Team Ninja producer Fumihiko Yasuda stated on the Official PlayStation Blog “I know many of you have been waiting and we thank you for your patience while we worked to set an official date. One of the primary reasons for not rushing to set a launch date was to ensure that we can achieve a “genuine evolution” from Nioh, which to us meant that we needed to bring in fresh new elements while retaining the things that we felt were right from the first game. Although there weren’t enough significant changes in the Alpha, we now feel that we have come much closer to reaching our goals.”

Pre-orders Available Now

For those of you interested in picking up Nioh 2, pre-orders for the game on PS4 are available right now. There’s been no mention of the game coming to PC as of yet but based off the first game I think we can expect Nioh 2 to be making its way over there at some point in the future.

If you’re a newcomer to the franchise you can also catch up in time for Nioh 2 as the original game is free as part of November’s PS Plus lineup. Be sure to stay tuned to GeekVibesNation as we’ll be breaking down the open beta with our first hands-on impressions.

Destiny 2 is taking players back to the Moon in their latest look at Shadowkeep Expansion

Bungie recently showed off a brand new look at the Moon in Destiny 2. A returning location and the setting for the upcoming Shadowkeep DLC.

The short preview trailer, which you can watch above, was shown off to attendees at GaurdianCon. The trailer is only 40 seconds long and quickly cuts through various shots of the moon, showing off some familiar-looking places and some all-new areas.

The Moon was, of course, a location which players could explore all the way back in Destiny 1 and is quite important to the lore of the game, for any of my fellow nerds out there. It was sadly missed out in Destiny 2 despite fans wanting to go back, but now Guardians prayers have been answered.

The Moon itself is looking pretty sweet with an interesting new red colored fortress being shown off, obviously the setting for the DLC, and the trailer ends with a tease of an infamous Destiny character returning. A quick shot of Eris Morn, a classic Destiny 1 vendor who, like the Moon, was also absent from Destiny 2 until now. I imagine she will take on a similar role to that of the Drifter where she will be essential to the story and will also double up as some sort of vendor to visit and purchase things from.

On top of our first look at the Moon, one of Shadowkeep’s new exotic weapons was shown off, in a particularly strange fashion. A real-life model of the weapon was brought out during GuardianCon and its a weird looking one.

The weapon, which has not been named as of yet appears to be a machine gun powered by some sort of pre-historic bug trapped in a block of amber…Did anyone else start humming the Jurassic Park theme tune or was it just me? We don’t yet know if this will be a random drop or an exotic tied to a quest like many of Forsaken’s exotics.

Shadowkeep is set to launch September 17th as its own separate expansion so you won’t be forced into playing previous expansions to play this content. We will no doubt see some new teases and reveals in the coming weeks.

The Division 2 receives a new specialization in its latest title update

The Division 2 has received its latest major update today, which brings along a whole host of changes as well as a new specialization to try out. The Gunner.

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The Gunner joins the battle for D.C in The Division 2’s latest title update 4, which after some unexpected maintenance delays is now live. If you’re a season pass holder you can get playing as The Gunner straight away, whilst everyone else will have to complete “five stages of in-game challenges!”. Season Pass holders can also complete these challenges to unlock some “unique cosmetic rewards!”.

For those of you new to Division 2, Specializations are endgame classes which give players a unique weapon as well as a skill tree to upgrade. The Gunners signature weapon is a heavy minigun, accompanied by some Riot Foam grenades and the Banshee signature skill which can confuse enemies.

The title update 4 also brought along with it some new changes including a total rework for specializations and some changes to Division 2’s project system which includes more rewards for projects across the board. There have also been some NPC updates as well as general U.I improvements. You can check out the full patch notes here.

As for The Division 2’s future, the game recently just finished its free weekend, giving new players a chance to jump in and try the game out. Plus the games year one roadmap was recently revealed at E3 and its first major DLC, DC Outskirts: Expeditions is set to arrive later this summer.

Have you been exploring the post-apocalyptic ruins of D.C lately? Or did you give the game a try in its free weekend? let us know your thoughts on The Division 2 down below or over on Twitter.

 

 

 

Mobile Mondays: MORTAL KOMBAT

This week’s Mobile Mondays is bringing the infamous 1 on 1 battle of the Mortal Kombat series to the very small screen. MORTAL KOMBAT on mobile shows hints of the franchise shining through and, for the most part successfully brings over a good portion of the content to mobile. Its biggest downfall may, unfortunately, be the games biggest draw, its rather lackluster Kombat.

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Gameplay

MORTAL KOMBAT, (Yes it’s in all-caps on the play store, don’t shoot the messenger), brings many of the AAA game’s features to the mobile platform but it misses the mark massively in its most crucial area. Actual combat on MK Mobile is extremely lackluster, now I obviously didn’t expect it to be anywhere near as in-depth as the console versions but even Injustice 2 Mobile feels better than this. You simply tap 3 times to complete one combo, then swipe in a random direction, tap 3 times again and repeat. You can also hold the left side of the screen to block and that is about as far as gameplay goes. You cant swipe to slide or dash backward and forwards, there are no heavy or light attacks it just that same simple combo which every character in the game has. You almost feel stuck sometimes not being able to move and it does hinder the flow of the gameplay. Each character does have 3 unique abilities which you can use after building enough ability meter and those add some nice variation to the game, each requiring a different task to be completed before they are used such as swiping or tapping as fast as possible to increase damage. These abilities are easily the best part of MK’s combat but they don’t quite do enough to save it.

Story

One aspect of the Mortal Kombat franchise MK Mobile doesn’t decide to bring along is it’s narrative and I’m quite torn on its choice. On the one hand, Mortal Kombat has an incredibly in-depth story to tell with a huge cast of characters to explore but on the other hand, Mortal Kombat players usually don’t stick around for the story but rather the…well combat. They could do the same here except there isn’t any in-depth combat to learn. No tricky moves to master or characters to main it’s just simple tapping and swiping. The fact that the combat can be learned in your first match means a story mode to follow along with would have gone a long way. Unfortunately, we didn’t get that.

Graphics and Sound

MK Mobile nails the whole look and sound of the game. Character models look fantastic, animations are on point and even the backgrounds of the arenas are varied enough to keep the game looking fresh. I did encounter a few frame rate issues, most likely due to the high-intensity graphics but other than that MK Mobile looks amazing.

Progression

MK Mobile won’t have any problems keeping players busy after they download. There’s a story mode full of towers for you to complete, side quests which offer bonus rewards, and faction-based PvP battles as well. There are also loads of limited timed events to unlock certain characters or upgrades and then there are the characters themselves. A huge roster of some of Mortal Kombat’s most famous faces for you to unlock. You’ll never be short of something to do in MK Mobile.

MK Mobile is a good load of fun but I don’t know if it does enough to keep players invested. Sure, hardcore Mortal Kombat fans or even casual players might want to unlock their favorite character and level them up but aside from that, every battle plays out basically the same so its repetitive nature can suck the fun out fast. I’d recommend this to any fan of Mk or the fighting game genre in general, just don’t raise your expectations too high before playing.

 

Xbox Games With Gold For June 2019

June is bringing along yet another 4 free games for any Xbox Gold members. As always there’s two Xbox One titles and two 360 titles, but never fear, all 4 are playable on your Xbox One. Two will be available come June 1st with the final two titles launching on June 16th. This month includes a real variety of games from a recent sporting title, to a classic puzzler. There are some pretty cool offerings this month so let’s break it down.

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June 1st Xbox One – EA Sports NHL 19

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Similarly to last month, we’ve got yet another sports title, although admittedly this is a little more exciting than golf. Sorry golf fans. You build your own player from the ground up, eventually working your way up to the big leagues to play against the pros. The game is said to offer, some realistic feeling hockey action with seamless and responsive controls. Whilst I haven’t played NHL and can’t vouch for that, what gameplay I have seen looks pretty decent but it really is an acquired taste. Obviously, only hardcore hockey fans are going to be into this, and there’s a good chance most of them already bought the game so I don’t know how popular this choice will be. Will you be trying NHL 19?

June 1st Xbox 360 – Portal Still Alive

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The Xbox 360 offering for June 1st, which is, of course, playable on the Xbox One is the brain-numbing, dark-humored, Portal Still Alive. Everyone knows what Portal is, right? Use the infamous portal gun to bend the laws of physics, to solve some seriously intense puzzles, traverse and eventually escape the laboratory you are trapped in. Portal is great fun, if you’re a lover of puzzles its a must play and even if you’re just a casual player the humor dotted throughout and the unique gameplay style make this one worth picking up.

June 16th Xbox One – Rivals of Aether

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On the Xbox one for June 16th, we have Rivals of Aether. You can control the power of the elements, mainly fire, water, air and, earth in this retro style 2D fighter. The game has a singleplayer story mode to play through, as well as a co-op mode so you can play with friends and a competitive PvP mode as well. Its pixel-art retro style is certainly an acquired taste but if you’re into 2D platformers or fighters its worth giving it a go.

June 16th Xbox 360 – Earth Defence Force 2017

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Our last game, arriving June 16th for the Xbox 360 also just happens to be the second Earth Defence Force game we’ve had in two months. Earth Defence Force 2017. The Earth Defence Force has been preparing for four years for an oncoming alien invasion and now its finally here. Fight off hordes of bug-like alien invaders with a whole host of weapons and vehicles at your disposal. A slightly older title but if its outdated graphics don’t bother you and you’re up for some bug killing action Earth Defense Force 2017 could be just for you.

As always to get your hands on these titles simply head to the Gold section on your Xbox One, 360 or at Xbox.com/gameswithgold and your new titles should appear in the ready to install section. What are you most excited for out of Junes Games with Gold lineup? Personally Portal is a really good grab and Rival of Aether looks like it could be some good fun. Give us your thoughts down below or over on Twitter.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Announced, (Yes It’s a Reboot), Reveal Trailer and More

2019’s Call of Duty title has officially been announced by Developer Infinity Ward and publisher Activision. The game is titled “Modern Warfare” and will be a reboot of the 2007 classic (Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare ) which shares the same name. It will not be Modern Warfare 4, a remake or a prequel as some theorized.

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The latest installment in the Call of Duty franchise will include some famous faces, such as Captain Price in a new “ripped from the headlines” single-player campaign. In the campaign “Players will engage in breathtaking covert operations alongside a diverse cast of international special forces throughout iconic European cities and volatile expanses of the Middle East”. The game will also move to more classical “boots on the ground” style combat, something many fans have been asking for, as well as “an all-new cooperative play mode, featuring a collection of strategic co-op missions.” The official release date for the game is October 25th.

Watch the official teaser Trailer below:

 

Modern warfare will also be ditching the traditional “Season Pass” for its multiplayer so that “the team can deliver more free maps and content as well as post-launch events to all players”. The game will also support Cross-play: “With the launch of Modern Warfare, the team is taking steps to unite the community. First, the team plans for Modern Warfare to be played together across PC and console through cross-play support.” The PC version will be “fully optimized” for PC and will only be available through Blizzard’s Battle.net. The game will also run on a completely new engine courtesy of Activision.

Studio head Dave Stohl has stated that Modern Warfare is “a real passion project for the studio”. He also stated that the game “is a military sim. It’s more about that kind of authentic experience.” when asked about the game returning to its modern-day roots rather than the futuristic setting of other recent Call of Duty titles.

The game has some returning faces both on screen and behind the scenes with art director Joel Emslie, animation director Mark Grigsby, and audio director Stephen Miller all returning to work on the project. They each worked on the original Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare.

You can expect more details regarding Modern warfare to surface at E3 so be sure to stick around to catch our coverage of the event.

Are you excited for this year’s Call of Duty? Are you happy the game is going back to modern day “boots on the ground” or do you prefer the more futuristic setting the other games have tried? let us know your thoughts down below or over on twitter.

 

Rumor: Death Stranding Release Date Leaked? PS Store Pre-Order Page Revealed

Anticipated Death Stranding fans are eagerly awaiting the games official release but it appears they won’t have to wait as long as they thought with the games release date being leaked slightly early.

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Many have been speculating and sharing rumors regarding the game release for a while now with some saying it would release late this year and others suggesting it would be pushed back to 2020. Well, it appears the former were correct with the game looking to release November 8 according to various sources including an official regional PlayStation page which shared the date before quickly removing the post.

The reveal came in the form of a post by the official Taiwanese PlayStation page on Facebook and was screenshotted by Twitter user NanoGuidingStar who later shared it.

This has apparently been reaffirmed by an Italian journalist who Tweeted out the same release date only a day prior.

The games unexpected release date seems even more likely with the strange behavings of both Sony and Kojima Productions these last couple of days. Various PS4 players have reported seeing a promotional pre-order page for the game appear in their PlayStation Store. The promotional page, seen below, shows off all the extra goodies you get for pre-ordering the title including a PS4 Dynamic Theme and Avatar, Gold Sam Sunglasses, Gold Armor Plate, Gold Hat and, a Gold Speed skeleton. Certainly, a good way to add some bling to your Death Stranding playthrough.

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There has also been an ongoing live stream which started yesterday on PlayStation’s official Twitch. The screen appears to be covered by the ominous black sludge seen in the game’s trailer which is slowly disappearing revealing the same looped video playing in the background. Many believe this will end with a new trailer for the game being shown.

Are you excited for a possible reveal for death Stranding and will it be a game you pick up or even pre-order? Let us know down below or over on Twitter.

 

 

Call of Duty 2019 will be titled: Modern Warfare and will be a “Soft reboot”

Some very interesting news regarding this year’s entry into the Call of Duty franchise has just broken thanks to Kotaku’s Jason Schreier who went to Twitter with a flurry of tweets apparently confirming the title of the game as “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare”.

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It has been all but confirmed for a long time now that this year’s Call of Duty would take a step back from the futuristic setting of the franchise’s recent titles and even move away from the “Advanced movement” found in the Call of Duty: Black ops series to focus on a modern day shooter. Whilst there has been no official confirmation from Infinity ward themselves it appears the rumors were true.

Jason followed up with yet another tweet confirming it to be a soft reboot of the franchise.

With E3 right around the corner, we can expect and official announcement or reveal regarding this year’s Call of Duty which is looking to be a shake-up for the series. Are you excited about this year’s Call of Duty? If you’re a fan of the Modern warfare trilogy how do you feel about this supposed “soft reboot”? let us know down below or over on Twitter.

 

Destiny 2 Players Are Unhappy With The Game’s Most Recent Update Weakening Their Favorite Weapons

Bungie has been consistently tweaking and updating their AAA looter shooter and flagship title, Destiny 2 through various live updates. It appears they have kicked the hornet’s nest with their latest one which has left many players unhappy.

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Bungie has detailed, on their official blog, not only the upcoming “Season of Opulence” which will start June 4th but they have also detailed various tweaks to some of the games most infamous Exotic weapons and gear. Bungie stated that with the launch of a new season there will also be a new raid which they want players to “plan accordingly” for. The most notable changes come to the exotic sniper rifle Whisper of the Worm and exotic linear fusion rifle Sleeper Simulant. The former has now had its infinite ammo perk removed in order to get players using different snipers and Sleeper Simulant has had its bounced shot damaged reduced. Both of these weapons are not only considered fan favorites but also two of the most powerful weapons in the entire game. There apparent nerf is to help get other lesser used exotics back into guardians hands.

The Blog then goes onto to detail various changes to exotic armor, more specifically in terms of armor which helps players generate their super-charge abilities, basically their ultimalty abilities. “Along with the weapons above, we will also be making some changes to some Exotic armor pieces. Primarily, we’re paying attention to pieces of Exotic armor that grant back Super energy. We felt they are increasingly becoming “must-pick” gear choices. Orb generation from teammates is meant to be the best way to accelerate your Super generation. These Exotics are allowing players to bypass this teamwork mechanic by generating a large amount of Super energy without relying on other players’ orbs”.

Armor pieces such as the Skull of Dire Ahamkara, Orpheus Rigs, and Phoenix Protocol give players super energy back, upon using their super abilities which meant players could chain multiple super’s in quick succession. As cool as it was to feel like an overpowered space wizard destroying everything in front of you, Bungie just made it much harder. These armors will “now receive Super energy back with diminishing returns, making it rarer to get a full Super back”.

Fans can still hold onto some hope however, as the full patch notes for Destiny 2’s next season of content haven’t dropped yet and will most likely contain even more changes and tweaks. How fans will respond to them is unknown but many have shown their distaste to this recent update with some even threatening to leave the game until their favorite weapons are restored to their former glory. Regardless of whether that happens, Bungie does listen to its very vocal community but it remains to be seen if they take any action on players most recent comments.

Are you unhappy with Bungie’s most recent update and some of their changes to exotic weapons and gear? Are you excited for Season of Opulence? Let us know down below or over on Twitter.

Sony And Microsoft Officially Announce Partnership Opening Up Possibilities For Gaming and the Cloud

In a move that nobody saw coming, Sony and Microsoft have officially announced that the companies are planning to collaborate for gaming and Cloud services.

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The partnership will mainly focus on the sharing of technolgy and information and whilst each company’s flagship console aren’t mentioned by name (PS4 and Xbox One) the partnership will help improve entertainment platforms including gaming.

Both Microsft and Sony will work together using Microsoft Azure to help develop future cloud solutions and services within the gaming industry. Sony will also be using Microsft Azure in their own gaming and streaming services. There were also talks of the two working on A.I in the future thanks to the partnership.

Sony president Kenichiro Yoshida had this to say in the announcement; “Sony is a creative entertainment company with a solid foundation of technology. We collaborate closely with a multitude of content creators that capture the imagination of people around the world, and through our cutting-edge technology, we provide the tools to bring their dreams and vision to reality. PlayStation® itself came about through the integration of creativity and technology. Our mission is to seamlessly evolve this platform as one that continues to deliver the best and most immersive entertainment experiences, together with a cloud environment that ensures the best possible experience, anytime, anywhere.”

He then went onto say; “For many years, Microsoft has been a key business partner for us, though of course, the two companies have also been competing in some areas. I believe that our joint development of future cloud solutions will contribute greatly to the advancement of interactive content. Additionally, I hope that in the areas of semiconductors and AI, leveraging each company’s cutting-edge technology in a mutually complementary way will lead to the creation of new value for society”.

On the other side of the partnership, Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft stated; “Sony has always been a leader in both entertainment and technology, and the collaboration we announced today builds on this history of innovation. Our partnership brings the power of Azure and Azure AI to Sony to deliver new gaming and entertainment experiences for customers”.

She and head of Xbox Phil Spencer also had a back and forth over Twitter where they repeated the emphasis on their efforts for the gaming industry.

Many Xbox and PlayStation fans may be quick to get excited about possible new announcements, especially with E3 on the horizon and whilst there is definitely a possibility I wouldn’t bank on it just yet. Whilst Xbox will still be attending Sony will be skipping this Years E3 out.

What are your thoughts on Microsft and Sony’s new partnership? Are you excited for some of the possibilities this opens up? Let us know down below or over on Twitter.