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Gigantic, an action orientated MOBA most similar to SMITE, has now entered its open beta phase. As you might expect, both the beta and the eventual launch version are fully free-to-play, so if you're up for giving it a try head on over to the Windows 10 Store. And don't worry about losing your progress, there will be no accounts resets from here on out.
On the other hand, if you have no idea what Gigantic is all about and need a bit more information before you decide to pull the trigger, here's the recently posted beta trailer. It doesn't feature much in terms of gameplay, but it should still give you a pretty damn good idea on whether this is the type of game you'd enjoy or not. Have a look:
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Conan Exiles, an open-world survival game with a heavy focused on teamwork, is set to arrive in Early Access this January. It will bring with it a massive wasteland to explore, giant snake gods to appease, ancient ruins and temples to delve, as well as variety of rather... unpleasant natives to contend with.
Since all of this might be a bit overwhelming at first glance, Funcom has decided to release a brief overview of how to survive in the harsh wilderness of Conan Exiles. If you prefer the more detailed written version you can find it over here, but if you would instead like to see all of it in action you'll find the preview video down below. Have a look:
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One of the main benefits of owning Twitch Prime, besides the ad-free streams and a subscription to a channel of your choice, is the variety of free games and bonus in-game loot that rotate on a monthly basis. Last month this was in-game goodies for Watch Dogs 2, as well as free copies of Punch Club and This War of Mine, while this month is starting off with one of my favorites - The Walking Dead: Season 1.
So if by some miracle you still haven't played The Walking Dead, but you own a Twitch Prime membership, head on over here to claim your free copy. Do bear in mind, however, that this whole promotion will end on December 13, so don't wait for too long or you might just miss it.
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Even though I'm not a big fan of fighting games I spent a lot of time playing the Tekken series throughout my childhood. This wasn't because of its unique mechanics or intricate balance, but rather because it allowed me to beat up my friends as a giant panda, a wooden training dummy, or even a demon/alien samurai whose main attack was stabbing himself in the chest! And that's not even scratching the top of the list of ridiculous characters the series has toyed around with over the years.
With that in mind, I am very glad to say that the tradition of including outrageously over-the-top characters continues into Tekken 7 as well. And best of all, Bandai Namco has brought back my favorite - a giant panda named Panda (I never said they were creative), as well as her friend Kuma, the giant bear. It is pretty much as stupid as it sounds, but I can't deny its hilarious watching a bear beat someone down with a salmon! With that image now stuck in your mind, here's their reveal trailer:
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[Update]: The replay system has now arrived, and it's already pretty good!
Despite being fairly young, as far as modern video games are concerned anyway, Overwatch has already managed to garner quite the competitive scene. But in order to really push things to the next level there is a definitive need for replays and a better spectator system, all in order to slowly bridge the gap between the actual pros and the general playerbase.
We've known for a while now that the spectator mode is undergoing heavy improvements, but according to a recent post by Jeff Kaplan it appears that the team is also actively working on enabling both replays and highlight sharing/saving/exporting. Here's the full quote straight from the Overwatch Game Director:
Physical release dates for Shantae: Half-Genie Hero have been announced alongside a gameplay trailer
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Its been known for a while now that the digital version of Shantae: Half-Genie Hero would arrive on December 20 for all platforms, but the physical editions were somewhat of a mystery until recently. According to the newly posted trailer you'll be able to grab the physical PS4 and PS Vita copies of Shantae on the same date as the digital versions, while the Wii U variant will be delayed for a week, or until December 27 to be specific.
And while the release date announcements are certainly packed with useful information, the most interesting part of this one is the newly posted gameplay trailer. So if you're interested in seeing what the long-awaited Shantae: Half-Genie Hero looks like, head on down below:
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It doesn't matter if a game is free-to-play, requires a single purchase, or even an ongoing subscription - odds are it has some sort of microtransaction or DLC system. While that is usually fine, there is one particular type of microtransaction that is the most heinous of them all - the nowadays common loot box. Instead of being able to purchase whatever item you desire, you basically have to keep throwing money into an endless pit, all in the hopes of getting lucky and scoring an item with an astronomically low drop rate.
While it might not technically be gambling, it is pretty much gambling in every sense of the word, and as such I am very glad to say that China (of all places) has decided to pass a law that makes loot boxes much more transparent. According to an announcement translated by chillybright over at NeoGAF, China will soon start forcing developers to publicly disclose the drop rate of all items found in loot boxes! Or if you prefer that in legalese:
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After months and months of vague statements and brief previews of new items, the team behind The Binding of Isaac has decided to do something rather uncharacteristic - a proper announcement that not only revels the release date, but also exactly what to expect from the upcoming Afterbirth+ DLC. Once it arrives on January 3rd it will bring with it full access to mod tools, ~100 new items, a final chapter along with a final boss, 100s of new rooms to explore, as well as a whole bunch of other, assorted features.
And since no Isaac game can be released without a fucked up trailer, you'll be glad to hear that The Binding of Isaac: Afterbirth+ has one as well. So if you're up for getting creeped out without actually learning much about the expansion itself, you'll find the video right below. Have a look:
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When the Halo 5: Forge tool was first announced for the PC I was extremely excited as I figured it would allow us PC players to finally experience Halo 5's multiplayer, but in a higher resolution and with better controls. Unfortunately, what ended up happening is that Halo 5: Forge on PC more or less served only to make custom games for the Xbox One as the PC version could not actually host multiplayer matches for any of these fancy, newly created custom maps.
However, due to the most recent Monitor's Bounty Update this is no longer the case! Not only has the Forge tool been greatly improved, but the PC version now finally has the ability to browse and join multiplayer custom games. In other words, you now have the ability to play Halo 5 on the PC... for free!
Blizzard has announced plans to self-publish novels, comics, and coloring books based on their games
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Blizzard has announced today that they are creating a brand new book-publishing label by the name of Blizzard Publishing. As you would expect given the name, its purpose will be to publish and re-print novels, comics, and coloring books based on Blizzard's games, while also keeping a firm grip on their quality and accuracy towards lore.
The first books published under this new label include two sets of previously released novels, as well as two volumes of the Warcraft Legends manga. If you're interested in the specifics, here's the full list of books and their authors: