Category: Video Games

Stalker 2 Delayed Again, This Time by 2 Months So the Dev Can Fix More ‘Unexpected Anomalies’

Stalker 2 has suffered yet another delay, this time to November 20, 2024.

In January, after years of development and multiple delays, Ukrainian developer GSC Game World announced a firm, “final” release date of September 5, 2024, which it will no longer hit.

In a statement, game director Yevhen Grygorovych said the extra two months will give the developers the chance to fix “unexpected anomalies”, aka bugs.

Here’s the statement in full:

“We know you might be tired of waiting, and we truly appreciate your patience. These two additional months will give us the chance to fix more ‘unexpected anomalies’ (or simply ‘bugs’, as you call them). We are always grateful for your ongoing support and understanding – it means the world to us. We’re just as eager as you are to finally release the game and for you to experience it for yourself.”

GSC Game World has been vocal about the challenges the studio has faced getting the post-apocalyptic PC and Xbox Series X and S shooter up to scratch after a mixed reaction to its debut public showing last year.

At gamescom 2023, GSC Game World addressed what some had called a “downgrade” sparked by Stalker 2’s latest gameplay trailer. At the time, GSC Game World told IGN it was still targeting a visual quality and level of polish suggested by Stalker 2’s eye-catching 2021 trailer (below). This despite the horrendous conditions suffered by the staff amid the war with Russia.

It’s fair to say the gamescom 2023 build was rough. As IGN’s Stalker 2 hands-on preview revealed: “Despite its Unreal Engine 5 base and prominent Microsoft support, the 15-minute gamescom demo suggests that Stalker 2 still sits in the ‘eurojank’ category; the colloquial term for eastern European games that are overly ambitious and technically wobbly.

“This sequel’s animations are stiff, its human faces look like haunted waxworks, the AI struggles to stay smart, and inventory management is fiddly. But in exchange for that you get a Soviet bloc world that feels authentic and layered with opportunity. This demo may have been short, but its small areas featured numerous angles for stealth or action approaches, fun flanking routes, and a variety of side objectives.”

GSC Game World said it will premiere a Stalker 2 developer deep dive in collaboration with Xbox on August 12, 2024. This, the developer said, will show lots of new footage, including world overview, various locations, gameplay, and cutscenes. Fans will get to see a full video walkthrough of one of the story quests.

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.

Ubisoft Battles Fresh Star Wars Outlaws Gameplay Leaks

Ubisoft is battling a fresh Star Wars Outlaws gameplay leak that saw over 13 minutes of footage hit the internet.

The lengthy gameplay clip, which appears to reveal the start of Massive Entertainment’s upcoming adventure, was uploaded to YouTube before it was taken down by a copyright claim by Ubisoft, cementing its legitimacy.

Of course, the internet noticed and has made the gameplay footage available elsewhere, although it’s worth pointing out it features heavy spoilers for the setup of Star Wars Outlaws protagonist Kay Vess’ adventures.

Meanwhile, further footage has found its way to social media, apparently from the same source as the YouTube leak, this time showing Kay play Sabacc, the Star Wars card game, as well as over two minutes of space combat.

It’s a disappointing development for Ubisoft, which has controlled the release of Star Wars Outlaws gameplay ever since it properly revealed the game at the 2023 Xbox Games Showcase. IGN has asked Ubisoft for comment.

Warning! Star Wars Outlaws spoilers follow.

The leaked gameplay footage shows Kay recovering from a crash landing on a moon and having to fend off an attack from a group of bandits. A local offers to help repair the spaceship, but in order to do so, Kay needs to head into the local town and secure work from a crime boss. The gameplay shows third-person shooter combat, open world travel via landspeeder, and exploration of the town, which is packed with Stormtroopers asking people for identification.

Kay manages to work her way into a meeting with the crime boss, only to be thrown out. At this point, another local offers her a job which, if successful, will help her build up her reputation to the point where the crime boss will take her seriously.

Earlier this month, Massive revealed to IGN that three of the five planets in Star Wars Outlaws can be crossed in four or five minutes while riding a speeder. Speaking to IGN as part of a larger interview, creative director Julian Gerighty reiterated the planets — Tatooine, a Toshara moon, Akiva, Kijimi, and Cantonica — will be around the size of two or three zones in Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, and confirmed “Toshara is very close in size to Akiva and Tatooine; I think Tatooine may be a little bit larger.”

When then asked how long it would take Kay to ride from one end of Tosharra to the other side on her speeder, Gerighty gave the four or five minute answer, which will seemingly apply to Akiva and Tatooine too since they’re around the same size.

Star Wars Outlaws was revealed in 2023 as a scoundrel adventure set between Star Wars: Episode 5 – The Empire Strikes Back and Star Wars: Episode 6 – Return of the Jedi. It stars Kay, her droid partner ND-5, and her beastie friend Nix as they attempt to carve out their own success during Star Wars’ golden era of criminal activity.

It arrives August 27, 2024 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and S, and PC, with the $70 Standard Edition joined by a $110 Gold Edition, which comes with three days of early access alongside the Season Pass.

An even more expensive, digital-only Ultimate Edition comes with both of these perks alongside cosmetics (the Rogue Infiltrator Bundle and the Sebacc Shark bundle) alongside a digital art book.

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.

The twisted animals of horror zookeeping sim Zoochosis will be released from their cages in autumn

Animal caretaking sim Zoochosis is about being an ordinary zookeeper working in an ordinary zoo. What’s that? There are no ordinary zoos? My mistake. Let me start again. Animal caretaking horror game Zoochosis is about being a stressed-out zookeeper in a hideous zoo where the giraffes have tendrils coming out of their chests and the kangaroos have rows of chattering teeth in their marsupial pouch. There, got it right in the end. We’ve known about the development of this terror-heavy tourist attraction since its announcement early this year. But now the upcoming horror sim has been given an autumn release date in a new trailer.

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LEGO Reveals New Shadow The Hedgehog Set, Launching This October

Oh Shadow, what have they done to you?

LEGO has today revealed a Shadow the Hedgehog bust set, which is set to be released on 1st October 2024.

Retailing for £59.99 / $69.99, the 720-piece kit features Shadow’s head mounted on a stand with an attachable nameplate. It all sounds rather sinister when we write it out. Fortunately, the set features “Easter eggs hidden in both the head and the sturdy stand”, so that takes the edge off it, right?

Read the full article on nintendolife.com

World of Tanks Modern Armor gets loud with Motörhead and Rob Zombie July 30

How do you make a second act spectacular? Turn the volume up even higher.

This summer, World of Tanks Modern Armor gets loud as Motörhead and Rob Zombie take the stage for Metal Fest, the central event of our new Heavy Metal season!


World of Tanks Modern Armor gets loud with Motörhead and Rob Zombie July 30

Just like all the best music festivals, Metal Fest has become an annual event. Anyone who missed our 2023 headliners (Sabaton, Megadeth, and Iron Maiden) is in luck; for a limited time, we’ll be bringing back last year’s content in all of its guitar-shredding glory.

But you don’t want to just relive last year’s epic moments. You want to hear about the new stuff. So let’s talk about what it took to make this year’s event happen with the legendary Motörhead and Rob Zombie!

Motörhead

Motörhead blasts its way into battle with new content that includes:

  • The Thunder Chief Object 452K tank
  • The “Bomber” Skin for the FV107 Scimitar
  • 2D Commanders representing band members Lemmy Kilmister, Phil Campbell, and Mikkey Dee
  • 3D Commanders modeled after Lemmy and the band’s mascot, Warpig

Motörhead is one of the true vanguards of heavy metal. Their lifestyle and legend remains fiercely popular, and founding father Lemmy (who passed away in 2015) continues to be revered in the community.

But as well as leading Motörhead to deafening global popularity, Lemmy was also an avid gamer, and the band was actively involved with concepts and ideas for Tanks’ new content. Talking about the Lemmy 3D Commander, the band states, “Modern technology has enabled us to have Lemmy fully integrated into the game, which felt appropriate given that this is exactly the sort of game he played and avidly enjoyed.” 

It’s a legacy that the Motörhead superfans in Tanks’ design and development crews took seriously. “We did a ton of visual research to make sure we were making the most authentic version of Lemmy seen in any video game ever, and I think we achieved that,” says Andy Dorizas, Tanks’ art director. “I wanted to make sure we honored him as the amazing guy he was.” 

This dedication is reflected not only in the Commanders but in the Motörhead tank and skin (“the back of the tanks, the amps—you will know if you know,” says Dorizas) as well as the Warpig 3D Commander. According to Dorizas, “We even have Warpig carrying the bomb from the Bomber album cover into the game when you choose him in the UI.”

In fact, this marks the first time that fans will get to hear Warpig’s voice, a responsibility that fell to another Motörhead fan: Brendan Blewett, Tanks’ audio director.

“Motörhead provided clear goals and direction for Warpig in that they wanted a character that was a cross between a wild, free-wheeling-no-rules biker and an English bulldog,” Blewett explains. “I had to think about how to achieve this, and I decided that interpolating recordings, in combination with modulating a human voice recording against a different recording of dog vocalizations, was going to be my method.”

So, who was chosen to assist with this iconic role? “My sister-in-law has a puggle named Ollie, and he is a legendary vocalizer when it comes to snorting and breathing and grunting and whatnot, so the solution presented itself,” says Blewett. “The whole of every line is a human voice being directly modulated by dog vocalizations.”

Sometimes you go to great lengths to make rock and roll happen.

Rob Zombie

Rob Zombie thunders onto the battlefield with new content that includes:

  • The Dragula T-55AGM tank
  • The “Superbeast” Skin for the M53/55
  • 2D and 3D Commanders modeled after the man himself

Zombie is an unmatched creative force who, with the 1998 release of Hellbilly Deluxe, solidified his status as a ruler in the realm of shock rock. The Dragula T-55AGM acknowledges this with a design that pays tribute to the album’s lead single.

But Zombie’s career extends far beyond that, which meant that his 3D Commander in particular had to reflect all his accomplishments and interests.

“We made two designs of his 3D commander,” says Dorizas. “Rob chose the one that was more authentic to Rob and not tied to any one album theme … a bad-ass tanker with evil style and some serious menace.”

No matter which act is your favorite, this year’s Metal Fest aims to thrill. Motörhead and Rob Zombie were among players’ top five most requested acts, and we’re honored to bring them you.

So crank it up. We’ll see you on the battlefield for Metal Fest starting July 30 on PS5 and PS4!

Massive Fallout 4 Mod Fallout London Finally Has a Release Date — and It’s Today

The hotly anticipated Fallout 4 mod, Fallout London, finally launches today, July 25, after a series of delays.

Team FOLON lead project manager Dean Carter told Inverse that, “unless nuclear war happens, yes,” July 25 is the release date.

Fallout London is perhaps the most high-profile mod ever created, and lets players engage with everything from “stuffy parliamentary aristocrats to a resurrection of the Knights of the Round Table to an uncompromising cult of revolutionaries” in what amounts to an expansion-sized add-on.

It has even secured the likes of Baldur’s Gate 3’s Neil Newbon for its voice cast, with former UK Speaker of the House John Bercow in the game, too.

The mod was previously due to arrive on April 23, 2024 but actual Fallout developer Bethesda announced a surprise update for Fallout 4, which the mod developer feared would impact its release.

Carter later lamented how Bethesda, which has made clear it’s aware of Fallout: London, failed to inform Team FOLON of its plans. “That has, for lack of a better term, sort of screwed us over, somewhat,” Carter said.

As a result of Bethesda’s Fallout 4 updates, the release of Fallout London is slightly fiddly. If you get the mod on GOG, it’s compatible with Fallout 4: Game of the Year Edition from both GOG and Steam. But the Steam version of the game is after the next-gen update, making it non-compatible, which means you have to downgrade your game.

Meanwhile, GOG has confirmed that Fallout London won’t be playable via Epic Games Store-bought copies of Fallout 4 at launch because the storefront doesn’t support update rollbacks.

Bethesda development chief Todd Howard has confirmed Fallout 5 will arrive after the Elder Scrolls 6, which is still years away itself, though massively multiplayer online game Fallout 76 continues to be updated.

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.

This web game lets you drag words around a communal fridge door to create poetry

I’ve never been a poetry guy, not because I don’t like it, I’ve just never gone out of my way to read them over books or whatnot. The poems I’ve engaged with the most are those read out during wedding ceremonies, those that pop-up before the start of a horror game, or The Tiger by 6-year old Nael that occasionally pops up as I’m doomscrolling. But thanks to the multiplayer web game “fridge poetry”, where you drag words to create poems, I might become a day-to-day poem guy. Going off my first effort, I don’t think many will appreciate my career switch.

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Sony’s $40 Hero Shooter Concord Does Not Have a Battle Pass

Concord, Sony’s $40 hero shooter set to launch on PlayStation 5 and PC in August, does not have a battle pass.

Sony-owned developer Firewalk Studios took to social media to answer questions coming out of the recent closed and open betas, and confirmed Concord bucks the live service trend by ditching a battle pass in favor of an old-school unlock system fueled simply by playing the game, completing objectives, and leveling up.

“Concord does not have a battle pass,” Firewalk said. “We wanted to focus our attention on making Concord a rewarding and robust experience on day one, where just playing the game, leveling up your accounts and characters, and completing jobs yields meaningful rewards.”

No Battle Pass, folks. You own Concord, Concord doesn’t own you.

Firewalk Studios gameplay animation director, Mark DeRidder, followed up by tweeting: “No Battle Pass, folks. You own Concord, Concord doesn’t own you.”

Concord is set to enter the tough live service hero shooter market, taking on established players such as Blizzard’s Overwatch 2, EA’s Apex Legends, and Riot’s Valorant by charging $40 all-in, rather than go free-to-play with microtransactions and battle passes, as its competitors do.

The game’s chances of success are a hot topic online, with recent poor concurrent player numbers on Steam for the closed and open beta fueling the sense that Concord will likely struggle on PC. Concord may fare better on PS5 (Sony does not make PlayStation player numbers public), but tough questions will surely continue around whether the game hits Sony’s commercial expectations for it.

Sony has found enormous success going down the PS5/PC cross-platform route for fellow PlayStation live service, Helldivers 2. Arrowhead’s third-person co-op shooter, which also launched at $40, is PlayStation’s fastest-selling game of all time with over 12 million sold in 12 weeks. Early indicators suggest Concord will struggle to emulate its live service predecessor’s sales success.

Meanwhile, Firewalk confirmed Concord does not have a PvE mode at launch, although pointed to the addition of new modes in the future. Concord launches with the six 5v5 PvP modes seen in the beta, alongside 12 maps and hundreds of customization items to unlock.

The idea is Firewalk will release new characters, maps, and plenty more as part of regular post-launch seasons. Cinematic vignettes will be released weekly in-game at launch (three we shown during the beta). These let you get to know the characters and learn about life as a Freegunner and the broader Concord galaxy.

One big problem the beta suffered from was no mid-match leaver penalty, and no join-in-progress system. That meant players would be faced with playing as part of an under strength team, or against a team short on numbers, which would encourage more players to leave.

Firewalk said “ensuring teams are complete and evenly matched throughout a game is a priority for us,” and confirmed plans to explore the potential of a leaver penalty system “to incentivize players to start and stay in complete teams,” but it doesn’t sound like it will be in place for launch.

And finally, at launch, Concord will have its training mode and Galactic Guide unlocked.

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.

Grit And Valor 1949 is a real-time Into The Breach, or at least vaguely similar enough that I can squeeze a more popular game in this headline

Grit And Valor 1949 certainly evokes the tactics of Into The Breach, with its stompy machinery and floating tile battlegrounds. But, despite all appearances, this one isn’t actually turn-based at all. A tiley, tiny real time strategy then? Aye, and one that’s actually pretty frantic as it happens. Missions are snappy, intense skirmishes. You’ll fight off waves while trying to protect your useless, freeloading command vehicle. This threat, combined with on-the-fly tactical consider-me-do’s like utilising cover and keeping rock-paper-scissors matchups in your favour ends up spawning something quite distinct. Please, do stomp on, preferably with less hypens for all our sakes.

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