Overwatch is removing the Hero Pools system for Diamond rank and below
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[Update #2]: Blizzard has now officially removed Hero Pools from Competitive Play.
[Update]: Blizzard is also looking into tweaking Moira and the support category as a whole.
Hero Pools (essentially hero bans) have been introduced to Overwatch in order to combat the stale meta and force teams to get creative when it comes to their strategies. However, while Hero Pools have been a decent success in the Overwatch League and in the higher echelons of Competitive Play, their impact in the lower ranks has been pretty negligible.
As such, the next update will be removing Hero Pools for Diamond rank and below, while maintaining it for Master and Grandmaster ranks, as well as the Overwatch League. Furthermore, in order to combat the recent trend of only popular but balanced heroes getting banned, the new Hero Pools will be based on Overwatch League data instead of high level Competitive Play data.
Planetside 2 is adding the Colossus - a massive five-player tank
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[Update #2]: Planetside 2's The Shattered Warpgate update has brought in a giant chunk of new content.
[Update]: The Colossus tank has now arrived, and it's deadly against both air and ground opponents!
It seems that the Planetside 2 developers have fully embraced the 'bigger is better' motto. Just recently they have unleashed the absolutely massive Bastion Fleet Carriers that serve as floating battle stations, and now they have also unveiled the smaller yet still rather sizable Colossus tank.
Unlike the various other Main Battle Tank options, the Colossus will require five players to operate at full capacity. The main player will be doing all of the driving and using the main cannon, while the four other players will provide much-needed support from the various turrets. Here's a little sneak peek at what it looks like in-game:
Apex Legends' Season 5 and its accompanying new character have been delayed until May 12th
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[Update #2]: Season 5's newest preview shows off Loba, massive Kings Canyon changes, and even the new quest system!
[Update]: A brand new trailer has been released, this time around highlighting Loba's abilities and some of the Kings Canyon changes.
As is the case with pretty much every game these days, Apex Legends is having to slow things down a little bit due to most of the developers working from home. As such, Season 5 has now been pushed back an extra week and will be arriving this May 12th with a whole bunch of changes, a new Battle Pass, as well as a brand new character.
It's not all bad, however, as this does mean that Season 4 has been extended by an entire week. So if you still have some cosmetics to pick up from the Season 4 Battle Pass, this would be the perfect (and final) chance to do so.
The excellent strategy game Total War: Shogun 2 is free to grab until May 1st
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While I haven't played it in quite a few years, Total War: Shogun 2 holds a very special place in my heart. Not only was it my very first Total War game and the one that got me hopelessly addicted to the entire series, but it was also a pretty darn good game in its own right, and one that kept me entertained throughout a very long and very boring summer.
As such, I'm more than happy to say that Shogun 2 is entirely free to grab until May 1st! All you have to do is head on over to Steam, click on that giant green button, and you'll be ready to fail conquering Japan in no time!
Next Overwatch update will be greatly improving the in-game communication options
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[Update]: Blizzard is also looking into tweaking Moira and the support category as a whole.
As with any team-based game, whether you win or lose in an Overwatch match depends heavily on how well your team can coordinate. However, despite this being the case since the very beginning, Overwatch currently has fairly lackluster communication options. Sure, the voice chat feature is great, but outside of that there's really no easy way to get your point across.
Luckily, this won't be a problem for long. According to the latest developer update, Blizzard will soon be greatly expanding the Communication Wheel by not only adding a variety of new actions and commands, but also voice acting for each of them in order to make them truly stand out.
Age of Sigmar inspired Warhammer Underworlds: Online has now released in full
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After spending a fairly short amount of time in Early Access, the Age of Sigmar inspired Warhammer Underworlds: Online has now been released in full. The launch version brings with it six distinct warbands with their own unique units and combat style, a whole bunch of cards and effects to help twist things in your favor, and most importantly of all, plenty of little models to smash into each other.
The concept is fairly simple, so if you're wondering just what Warhammer Underworlds plays like, you'll get a pretty good impression through the recently posted launch trailer. Have a peek:
Action-packed spin-off XCOM: Chimera Squad has now landed onto PC
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[Update]: The Gears of War flavored XCOM game, Gears Tactics, has now landed onto PC and Xbox One - just in case you're looking for a little bit more turn-based action!
Instead of a full-blown XCOM experience, the newly released XCOM: Chimera Squad is more of an action-orientated spin-off. The missions are shorter and have much simpler objectives, the combat is more frequent and hectic due to the breaching mechanic, while the pre-made characters offer a bit more personality and unique combat options when compared to the usual XCOM grunts.
If you're wondering just what all of this might look like in gameplay terms, you can get a pretty good impression through two of the recent trailers. The first one sets up the various characters and the overall storyline, while the second one is all about the actual battles. Have a gander: