Category: Video Games

After teasing that a brand-new update would arrive in Starfield later today, Bethesda Game Studios has officially released the June 2024 update for Starfield, which introduces the Creation Kit, new Trackers Alliance missions, and more.

In a new blog post, Bethesda has detailed all the new features coming into Starfield update 1.12.30. Most notably, this month’s update introduces Creations, an editing tool that allows players to create mods and share them with other players via Bethesda.net. Players can pay for these mods via Creation Credits. The Creation Kit has been featured in several Bethesda Game Studios-developed titles like The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and Fallout 4.

More interestingly, Bethesda notes that those who purchased the Premium Edition of Starfield will find 1,000 Creation Credits available on their account after installing the latest update. While it seems odd to provide those select players with Creation Credits, given the tool was just released, in an interview with KindaFunny in April, Todd Howard revealed that a Creation Kit for Starfield was given to some creators.

The announcement comes hours after Bethesda’s parent company, Xbox, held a Summer Games showcase. At the showcase, the developer also provided the first official trailer for its upcoming story expansion, Shattered Space, which will be released sometime later this year.

You can check out the full patch notes below.

Starfield Update 1.12.30 Update Notes

Update Highlights

• Creations are here! Creations are now available in Starfield. What does that mean? You can now access and play new content in Starfield. Creations may include new missions, gear, skins, weapons, and more! You’ll also find Bethesda Game Studios Creations including one of the new Trackers Alliance missions, The Vulture. You can find Creations via the in-game menu. For those of you who own Starfield’s Premium Edition, you will also find 1000 Creation Credits within this menu.
• If creating your own content for Starfield is something that interests you, you may also now download the Creation Kit for Starfield on Steam. Note, this is a separate download from the game download and is only available on Steam.
• Trackers Alliance Missions Available New missions have been added to Starfield as part of this update. Trackers Alliance establishes the first of several missions enabling you to live your best bounty-hunting life. The first mission, The Starjacker will have you in contact with a mysterious Tracker located in settlements throughout the Settled Systems. From there, let the hunts begin!
• The second Trackers Alliance mission, The Vulture is available within the new Creations menu. And what bounty hunter is without their trusted methods to get the job done?
• Bounty Scanning and Mission Boards! This update also introduces the bounty scanner system that enables you to seek and destroy (or peacefully resolve…?) those targets with bounties on their heads. If you still want more, you can also check out the Elite Trackers Alliance mission board.
• Armed and Ever Ready! Those of you who appreciate being extra crafty may now find new melee weapon tiers and the ability to modify melee weapons when crafting. For those that prefer the firepower approach, ammo crafting has also been added with this update. You can research your preferred ammo at a Research Station and craft them at an Industrial Workbench!

Bug Fixes

• General: General performance and stability improvements
• Gameplay
  • Gameplay Options: Addressed a sustenance issue that caused sneak attack damage to be too high.
  • Ship Decoration: Nova Galactic All-in-One 2×1 Habs will now declutter properly.
  • Ship Decoration: Items can no longer be placed on ladders.
  • Addressed an issue that could cause Guards to give up their chase too easily.
  • Fixed an issue that caused visited space locations to appear undiscovered.
  • Addressed an issue that could occur when modifying the player’s ship at The Key.
  • Addressed a rare issue that could cause some objects to behave as if they were in zero-g.
  • Fixed a crowd character issue that could appear when loading a save.
  • Removed the “Fast Travel to Ship” button from screens where it could not be utilized.
  • Fixed an issue that could occur when opening photo mode at the start of a conversation.
  • Fixed an issue that could occur when trying to exit the pilot seat while landing.
  • Addressed an issue with incrementing the “Ships Modified” stat when entering ship builder.
  • Quest Trackers should highlight the correct NAT station when traveling to the Lodge in New Atlantis.
  • Cora Coe should now accept books even if the Main Quest is skipped after entering the Unity.
• Graphics
  • Fixed an issue which could cause a bright light when loading a save into New Atlantis.
  • Fixed an issue that could cause some objects to become hidden when they should be visible.
• Outposts
  • Resolved an issue where the Power Management Robot could unintentionally reduce power.
• Quests
  • Background Checks: Fixed an issue where the player could receive an unintentional trespassing message.

Taylor is a Reporter at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 is coming to PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC on October 25. This installment brings the sub-series up to the early 1990s, with in-game representations of world leaders like George H. W. Bush, Saddam Husseine, and Margaret Thatcher. As usual, it will include a single-player campaign, multiplayer, and zombies. It’s now available for preorder at all the usual retailers. Below, we have full details about where to buy it and how much it costs. Let’s dive in.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6

PS5

• Get it at Amazon – $69.99
• Get it at Best Buy – $69.99
• Get it at GameStop – $69.99
• Get it at Target – $69.99
• Get it at Walmart – $69.99
• Get it at PS Store (digital) – $69.99

Xbox Series X|S / Xbox One

• Get it at Amazon – $69.99
• Get it at Best Buy – $69.99
• Get it at GameStop – $69.99
• Get it at Target – $69.99
• Get it at Walmart – $69.99
• Get it at MS Store (digital) – $69.99

PC

• Get it on Steam – $69.99

PS4 / PS5 (Cross-Gen Bundle)

• Get it at Amazon – $69.99
• Get it at Best Buy – $69.99
• Get it at GameStop – $69.99
• Get it at Target – $69.99
• Get it at Walmart – $69.99
• Get it at PS Store (digital) – $69.99

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Vault Edition

• Get it for PlayStation – $99.99
• Get it for Xbox Series X|S – $99.99
• Get it for PC – $99.99

The Vault Edition of Black Ops 6 gets you the base game, plus these digital upgrades:

• Hunters vs. Hunted Operator Pack (4 Operator Skins: Adler, Park, Brutus and Klaus)
• Mastercraft Collection (5 Mastercraft Weapons)
• BlackCell (1 Season) -(Includes: Battle Pass, 20 Tier Skips, 1,100 CP and more
• GobbleGum Pack for Zombies (12 GobbleGums of high rarities)

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Vault Edition Upgrade

• Get it for Xbox Series X|S – $30
• Get it for PC – $30

The Xbox- and PC-exclusive Vault Edition upgrade is for people who either are playing Black Ops 6 on Game Pass, or bought the standard edition (perhaps because you wanted a physical copy). It upgrades your standard edition to have all the extras in the Vault Edition.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Will Be on Xbox Game Pass Ultimate on Day One

If you don’t want to drop $70 all at once to play the new CoD, you can subscribe to Xbox Game Pass, because the subscription service will get Black Ops 6 on day one.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Trailer

Other Preorder Guides

Xbox boss Phil Spencer has addressed the recent closure of a number of studios at Microsoft’s gaming business, insisting he has to make “hard decisions” to run a sustainable business.

Speaking to IGN’s Ryan McCaffrey at IGN Live, Spencer briefly commented on the shock decision to shut Redfall developer Arkane Austin and Hi-Fi Rush developer Tango Gameworks.

“The closure of any team is hard obviously on the individuals there, hard on the team,” Spencer said. “I haven’t been talking publicly about this, because right now is the time for us to focus on the team and the individuals. It’s obviously a decision that’s very hard on them, and I want to make sure through severance and other things that we’re doing the right thing for the individuals on the team. It’s not about my PR, it’s not about Xbox PR. It’s about those teams.

“In the end, I’ve said over and over, I have to run a sustainable business inside the company and grow, and that means sometimes I have to make hard decisions that frankly are not decisions I love, but decisions that somebody needs to go make.

“We will continue to go forward. We will continue to invest in what we’re trying to go do in Xbox and build the best business we can, which ensures we can continue to do shows like the one we just did.”

Microsoft announced to staff in May that it would be closing Redfall maker Arkane Austin, Hi-Fi Rush and The Evil Within developer Tango Gameworks, and Alpha Dog Games, while Roundhouse Studios would be absorbed by ZeniMax Online Studios. The move led to shock and anger throughout the industry, especially considering one of Xbox’s most successful recent exclusives, Hi-Fi Rush, was developed by Tango, a studio that was absorbed by Microsoft via its acquisition of parent company Zenimax in 2021.

It’s the first time Spencer has commented on the studio closures since they were announced, and follows similar comments from other Xbox executives who were asked about the decision.

Frost Giant Studios took the time to announce a PC via Steam Early Access release date of August 13, 2024, for its sci-fi fantasy RTS, Stormgate, during the June 2024 PC Gaming Show.

The date arrived alongside a new trailer, a one-minute video also reveals that the game’s third faction is the Celestial Armada. It’s described as a “race of highly technologically advanced interstellar travelers” that seeks to challenge the Infernal Host faction for control of Earth.

Frost Giant says its playtesters have called the Celestial Armada the “most original RTS faction they’ve ever played.” You can dive into the details of this powerful new race here.

Stormgate is free-to-play but offers a trio of Early Access bundle deals for those looking to sweeten their RTS experience. You can read more about them, as detailed by Frost Giant, below:

• The Early Access Pack ($25 USD) includes the Amara Human Vanguard Hero, the first Chapter of the Vanguard campaign, and the Gold Vanguard Army Accent.
• The Deluxe Early Access Pack ($40 USD) includes everything in the Early Access Pack plus the Maloc Infernal Host Hero, the Auralanna Celestial Armada Hero, and the Chicken Pet.
• The Ultimate Early Access Pack ($60 USD) includes everything in the Deluxe Early Access Pack plus Chapters 2 and 3 of the Vanguard campaign (available sometime after August 13) and the Firestorm Fog of War Shader.

Each pack comes with its own variety of goodies, but the real benefit comes from the preview access. Every bundle grants owners two weeks of preview access, meaning you can play Stormgate as early as July 30, 2024. Progress made during these two weeks will not be reset upon the full Early Access launch.

“Launching Stormgate in Early Access represents a major milestone for our team and our community,” Frost Giant CEO and Production Director Tim Morten said. “We believe Early Access is a better way to make games, as it allows us to form a true partnership with our players. Their feedback and participation have already been invaluable in shaping the future of Stormgate, and we can’t wait to see what future contributions they’ll make as together we forge a bright future for the real-time strategy genre.”

Stormgate was revealed as Frost Giant’s debut video game in 2022. Its team is comprised of former Blizzard Entertainment developers with experience on titles like StarCraft 2 and WarCraft, and that background shows in their work. Late last year, we put Stormgate under the microscope to see what makes it tick and what sets it apart from other RTS titles.

While we wait for Stormgate to launch into Early Access, you can read our interviews with other ex-Blizzard developers who went on to start their own companies. You can also learn more about the developer who helped write Stormgate’s story before eventually heading back to Blizzard.

Michael Cripe is a freelance contributor with IGN. He started writing in the industry in 2017 and is best known for his work at outlets such as The Pitch, The Escapist, OnlySP, and Gameranx.

Be sure to give him a follow on Twitter @MikeCripe.