Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Leak Suggests Castlevania Representative
On August 8, Nintendo plans to air a Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Direct hosted by director Masahiro Sakurai, indicating a strong likelihood of a character reveal. However, due to what appears to be a mistake with an early upload, it seems the new character might be from Konami's Castlevania series.
A few weeks ago, we posted a story about Nintendo uploading music from the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate soundtrack to their website to show off samples of the new arrangements. Last week, the uploaded music was from Galaga, which fits with Pac-Man's representation of Namco arcade history. Earlier today, reddit user Hinata2000100 found that the track's title had been changed. While the music remained Galaga's, the title had seemingly accidentally been changed to "Bloody Tears/Monster Dance" instead.
Bloody Tears debuted in Castlevania II: Simon's Quest on the NES and is one of the most well known songs in the Castlevania series, with Monster Dance also hailing from the same game. While the title has since changed back, we have confirmed the original title change ourselves. It was also noted in this video from YouTube series GameXplain.
What does this mean? Unless the Nintendo YouTube account was hacked just hours before the Smash Bros. Direct, which is possible, then someone pulled the trigger a little early on what is likely a reveal for tomorrow's show. It could also be possible that the music is Castlevania's only representation in the game and is not for a specific character, but that's without much precedent.
If it is indeed a character, that would give Konami two representatives in Smash Bros., Capcom two, Sega two, Square Enix one, and Namco one.
We'll find out for sure when the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Direct airs on August 8 at 7:00 a.m. PDT.
Dauntless wears its Monster Hunter inspiration on its sleeve. This fantastical ride revolves around fighting monsters in confrontations that can last a few minutes or almost half an hour, with significant degrees of difficulty and rewards. You go out to battle a beast, then return home to craft new gear; like Monster Hunter, that entertaining loop propels you through Dauntless. Because it’s a live service, the prospect of an infinitely expanding experience distinguishes Dauntless from Capcom’s series (developer Phoenix Labs has already announced an expansion), though how that unfolds remains to be seen. Regardless of the game Dauntless eventually becomes, its current form is a welcoming banquet for a voracious new wave of monster hunters.
Dauntless’ core progression is seductive, even if the missions and maps are threadbare in terms of tasks. It’s all monster slaying, all the time. Pick a weapon and go start smashing monsters, break off some pieces, come back to down and forge new and powerful gear. Combat is fluid, simple, and accessible; I appreciate how the weapons have straightforward movesets, but also leave high skill ceilings for mastery. New players can gravitate toward easy-to-use swords and chain blades, while seasoned hunters may choose heavy-hitting (but timing-critical) weapons like the axe or war pike.
All the weapons are fun to try, but weapons like the hammer and the axe are the most enticing, as you can really feel the impact of each massive swing, leading to big staggers and broken chunks of monster bits. Each weapon is unique, but Dauntless only has a small selection of them, and the essential combinations are few and easy to learn. While this works well for onboarding new players, the lack of options dulls the experience over time.
Outside of weapons, armor, and consumables, you can augment your gear with cores that provide various boosts and abilities. Creating sets of gear with powerful bonuses – like the chance to deal double damage, or the ability to revive an ally with full health instead of a fraction – is incredibly satisfying. You can feel the weight of each new tier and choice as you take on behemoth after behemoth.
You can dance around the flames of giant turtles, avoid the deadly tail of a mutant beaver, and find the squishy core of a rock-ensconced foe. Whatever you’re fighting, you need to learn and adapt. Battles are more complex than simply dodging a behemoth’s standard attacks. Learning how to “boop” an enemy during certain animations and knock them down, interrupting dangerous attacks and getting a large window of opportunity, is enjoyable and allows you to take on tougher monsters with experience and skill. Later encounters task you with dodging at the disco as an immense laser bug showers the sky with beams, and fighting under a cloud of darkness as the behemoth hunts its pray unseen.
While some behemoths are recycled across difficulty tiers, various tweaks and changes to their abilities keep them interesting and fresh. One monster lays down structures that fire deadly projectiles, and hunters need to destroy and manage these electrified blasters. A later version of the same monster drops the same defenses, but they’re shielded – so you this time you need to bat their projectiles back.
The cycling of collecting, building, and customizing cycle is great all the way to the end. At that point, things change. Dauntless’ endgame offers players a new type of loot to collect, rare recipes that provide insane bonuses that break all the rules (like resurrecting after death for a few incredibly powerful vengeful blows). However, the true top end of the game is currently limited to two challenging monster encounters. Both these fights are awesome to learn and master, but after you’ve brought them both down 20 times or so, even hoping for those amazing exotic drops doesn’t provide enough incentive to hop back in for another round.
As a live service, developer Phoenix Labs could address the scarcity of content for advanced players in the future, but that possibility doesn’t excuse the missteps in the current version of the game. Dauntless is a great foundation for a rollicking monster-mashing time, but without the critical component of a compelling endgame, your journey has no satisfying destination. Only time will tell if the swirling islands around Ramsgate can provide something more.
Benjamin "Problem X" Simon made history in more ways than one last Sunday night. Not only is he the latest world champion of Street Fighter V after winning this year's Evolution Championship Series tournament, but he's the first person outside of Japan to do so in Street Fighter V, and the first person from the UK to ever hold the title in the Street Fighter series at large.
We caught up with Simon shortly after his win to talk about his history with Street Fighter, who inspired him to play in the first place, regional pride, and which of the two new characters he's most interested in trying.
Overall, how are you feeling about your performance here? Obviously, I know it’s a bit of a loaded question, but…
It’s still all trying to sink in, but I’m very happy to have won Evo 2018. I practiced really, really, really hard for this tournament, and I said to all of my friends that this year I want to win Evo because I have done well at everything else – ranking events, premieres, I did well at Eleague, got top eight at Capcom Cup – but every year at Evo, something happens. I always have a bad Evo. So I really focused for the tournament, so it means extra to me.
You’ve been around Street Fighter V for a while, but how long would you say your Street Fighter career has been?
About seven years. I traveled to Canada Cup 2011, that was when I started.
That was around Street Fighter IV, right?
Yeah.
So you played that competitively for a while. You have an Evo victory under your belt [in SFV], but overall do you think Street Fighter V is a game you understand better than Street Fighter IV?
I would say I was more of an advanced tournament player by the release of Street Fighter V. I started Street Fighter IV very late, I started late Super, but I feel like the game is a bit more accessible at an entry level, but since I’ve been playing from the start I felt it’s better for me. I would love to have been playing Street Fighter IV from vanilla and have the mindset that I have now to be able to compare, but since I don’t I would say that Street Fighter V obviously I have the Evo victory for V, so Street Fighter V.
When you’re thinking, "I am one of the few people from Europe," – it was you and Luffy [Oliver Hay from France, who also made top eight] – how much do you think of that regional pride in terms of, "I’m not just doing this for my career, but I’m also doing it for the UK"?
I do have quite a bit of regional pride, but it’s lower on the list of things for me. Firstly, I wanted to do it for myself. And also for my sponsors and everybody who has believed in me for a long time. I started competing from watching [competitive Tekken and Street Fighter player] Ryan Hart when he was playing Daigo [Umehara] in SFIV in an old, old tournament, and I can’t even remember the name of the tournament now. But I watched that, and it got me into Street Fighter. And I’ve been playing and training with Ryan all along the way, not so much Street Fighter V, because he hasn’t been playing it as competitively, but still, the stuff I learned from Street Fighter IV and tournaments and lots of things that you can’t gain from competing, they have to come from somebody who has experienced all of these things. I like to win for all of that.
Ryan Hart, who inspired you, is here [Editor's Note: Hart was accompanying Simon after his win and was in the room during the interview.] Is it strange for you to have this path come full circle, where the person who inspired you is the person who’s here with you now?
Not everybody gets that. It’s something that I aimed for, because I always try really, really hard. I came from a Call of Duty background, and I was doing really well in that game. I know that I’m a determined individual, but with the right experience and skillset and things like that, I’m happy to know that I was able to achieve what I have achieved today.
Now that you’ve won Evo, there are still other tournaments, but what are you setting your sights on in terms of improving as a player? Are you going back and immediately looking at your strategies, or what are you thinking about moving forward?
I just want to keep winning. I want to win Capcom Cup next. I got top eight last year, which is my first big top eight for Street Fighter V, so I would like to win that. And yeah, I’ve got to have a look at G.
You’re more interested in G than Sagat?
Oh yeah, yeah. I’m not a Sagat guy, but G, I like G.
Disney is separating from Netflix, with Ant Man and The Wasp being the last movie to grace the third party streaming platform. With the release of future films, whether Star Wars or Marvel, they will end up on the yet-to-be-named Disney streaming service.
Marvel shows made with Netflix are an entirely different matter, and while they will remain on the service for now, their future is not sealed. Disney will not launch their service until 2019, and touts that it will have an exclusive live-action Star Wars series from John Favreau, the director of Iron Man.
Keeping in line with their family focused image, Disney will not offer any sort of R rated content on their service, which seems like a clear tell that the Marvel Netflix series' will remain on that platform due to their graphic nature. Disney has recently garnered the rights to Fox's X-men and other comic book properties, and is looking to buy back the exclusive Star Wars movie streaming rights from AT&T.
Showtime's upcoming Halo TV series will star Master Chief as "a lead character," IGN has learned. Showtime's President of Programming Gary Levine told the publication that there will be other protagonists to support the Chief. Levine said at a Television Critics Association summer press tour panel that Master Chief's face being constantly obscured by his helmet "is a key question and an important part of our series."
Back in June, Showtime announced that the series will be executive produced by showrunner Kyle Killen (Lone Star) and directed and produced by Rupert Wyatt (Rise of the Planet of the Apes). At the time, no release window was announced, but Levine told IGN that Showtime is aiming for a 2020 release.
[Source: IGN]
Patrick Stewart is reprising his role of captain Jean-Luc Picard in a new Star Trek television series. Even days after its announcement at the 2018 Star Trek Convention, just typing that line brought a big smile to my face. Picard is an all-time Star Trek great, and I can't wait to see where his story goes next. All we know for now is the show will air exclusively on CBS All Access, and will explore the next chapter in Picard’s life.
In a tweet to fans, Stewart seems eager to return to the captain's chair, and credited the stories he heard from fans as a reason for coming back. "During these past years, it has been humbling to hear stories about how The Next Generation brought people comfort, saw them through difficult periods in their lives or how the example of Jean-Luc inspired so many to follow in his footsteps, pursuing science, exploration, and leadership," he wrote. In his final line he teased that the journey ahead would explore "unexpected" territory for Picard.
You can see the moment Stewart announces his return in the video below. Prepare to be consumed by shivers.
I hope CBS' plan for Picard's return factors in the time that has passed since Stewart last wore the suit. I'm guessing the series begins with him retired, enjoying a quiet life. Gary Whitta, one of the writers behind Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and numerous other films and books, shared a fascinating idea on Twitter. "Picard as a troubleshooting Federation ambassador who defuses galactic crises and solves archeological mysteries in his spare time. Occasional trips home to sort out the family vineyard. That sounds just the ticket."
I love the idea of Picard being called in from a humble life to solve universe-spanning conflicts. Would CBS keep him on the sidelines, though? I doubt it. I have a feeling he'll be back in the captain's chair of a new Enterprise after just an episode or two. I also wouldn't be surprised if his old crew slowly comes back together. Let's include Wil Wheaton for this tour! Let me know what you hope to see from the show in the comments section below.
Jon Favreau is at the helm of another highly anticipated science-fiction television series. New York Times reports his Star Wars series, which will debut on Disney's forthcoming streaming service, will cost $100 million for 10 episodes. That budget isn't unheard of for blockbuster shows. Game of Thrones' sixth season had a budget of over $10 million per episode. How that money is used for Star Wars remains to be seen, but we can likely look at Game of Thrones as a bit of a blueprint for star power, scale of sets, and computer graphics usage. Disney having the great Industrial Light & Magic in its back pocket should reduce the cost significantly for CG characters and sets. When George Lucas was thinking of bringing Star Wars to TV, he envisioned a future where assets could be shared between the films and shows. That's something we might see with Favreau and Abrams' work.
In the world of superheroes, or should I say supervillains, I have mixed feelings about Venom. The footage doesn't look bad, but the plot teases don't say much more than "origin story." I hope there's a good counter to Venom and more than him dealing with inner demons. The best thing I've seen from the film is the international poster, which screams of Venom's comic heritage.
I don't feel the same way about the first teaser image for the untitled Terminator movie. I like that it's a direct sequel to James Cameron's work on the series, and is directed by Tim Miller of Deadpool fame, but I don't think there's another property out there that feels like it's been milked to death as much as Terminator. The robots keep coming back to the past to do the same thing. We've already been to the future. What's left? Bringing back Linda Hamilton is a nice touch, as she has always been one of the best parts of the series, but I hope they explore new territory outside of just introducing more powerful machines that travel to the past.
Over on the game side of of the universe, put Planet Alpha on your radar. Hitting September 4 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC, Planet Alpha is a side-scrolling adventure with a unique hook: You control whether it's day or night. As you work your way across a hostile alien world filled with robotic sentries and Godzilla-sized beasts, you'll be tasked to leap across collapsing platforms and solve puzzles for reasons that haven't been explained yet. The game looks absolutely stunning, and I've been itching for another runner like Limbo or Inside. If not for a full review, I hope to at least provide impressions when the game hits in a month.
The final bit of news I have for you isn't really news. Think of it more as a pressing PSA. You need to read Marvel's new Infinity Wars series. If you are a fan of the old Infinity trilogy, or first encountered the gems in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, you owe it to yourself to read this book. The first issue (and the prelude book) are loaded with "HOLY CRAP" moments. I wouldn't be surprised if one of them ends up in the forthcoming Avengers film. The threat that is introduced in this story is so damn good, and just makes sense from a lineage standpoint. The first issue came out last Wednesday. Download it now, or turn off your computer and drive to the store to read it. Again, let me know what you think of it in the comments below.
See you all in seven short days with Fallout 76 details!
Things in the World Of Warcraft have been a bit rough for Horde players lately. In last week's "Warbringers: Sylvanas" trailer, Blizzard confirmed that Horde warchief Sylvanas Windrunner burned the killed innocent night elves by burning their "world tree" home.
This, as Polygon reports, set off a storm of anger among the WoW community, as many Horde players feel Sylvanas' actions do away with the "gray" morality of the Warcraft series and don't want to be associated with a faction that follows a plainly evil leader.
Some Horde players, according to Kotaku, have gone so far as to hide their shoulder armor in imitation of the "Old Soldier" trailer's Varok Saurfang, protesting Sylvanas' actions.
Looking for in-game Horde members that share players' reactions to Sylvanas, Wowhead user perculia points to a God Of War reference that Reddit user newshadow1 discovered back in May.
In the Easter egg, a male orc, "Travelling Warrior," talks in Orgrimmar with his son, "Traveling Son," about the events of the looming war. According to perculia, the two have the following conversations:
TW: You are quiet. More so than usual.TS: I heard other children talking about the war. Did... did the Horde do something bad?
TW: War is a test of honor. Once lost, it is not easily reclaimed.
TW: Remember that, boy.
TS: I will, Father.
TW: What is it, boy?
TS: Is this a bad war? I mean... worse than the others?
TW: Wars never change. Only the warriors do.
TS: Do you think this war is going to change the Horde?
TW: We will see, boy. We will see.
TS: I feel bad that the elves lost their tree.
TW: Why?
TS: You told me that we orcs once lost our home.
TW: That was long ago.
TS: Didn't it make everyone sad?
TW: We were... not ourselves. It is difficult to explain, boy.
TS: Mother spoke of it sometimes. I... I think it made her cry.
TS: I don't think anyone should lose their home. Not if it makes them feel like that.
TW: You have your mother's heart.
It appears Horde players have at least one young orc who shares their feelings. For more World Of Warcraft, check out Dan Tack's Battle For Azeroth island expeditions preview and stay tuned for more Battle For Azeroth coverage.
[Source: Wowhead]
The world of games is always changing, and the way we review them has to change as well. Behind the scenes, we have been working on a new way to handle reviews, while still keeping the core components that make Game Informer reviews, well, Game Informer reviews.
At the core of these changes is finding a way to cover and score games that interest you, or more directly, are looking to take money out of your wallet.
When Minecraft launched in 2009, it was one of the first games that released as an alpha and slowly moved toward launch almost two and a half years later. It was fun, and we discussed it as one of our Top 50 games of that year, but held back because the game was officially in “alpha” and wasn’t a final product. We wanted to be fair to the developers so their game was reviewed and judged in its final form. The rest of the story is well known: Minecraft became a cultural phenomenon, and we didn’t review it until a review didn’t matter anymore other than us putting on record that the game was – surprise! – a lot of fun.
More games started taking the “Early Access” approach, charging players for the chance to be a part of the game’s creation, driven in part by player feedback. But somewhere along the line, these Early Access games were no longer just works in progress; they were products (incomplete or not) demanding players’ time and money.
Games like Fortnite are now on Season 5 yet still haven’t left Early Access, and many other titles are always “in progress” or continually changing with updates and patches happening at lightning speed.
We feel labels like Early Access, Open Beta, and Game Preview can be used as shields for poor production (or are straight-up marketing), so going forward we are taking the stance that if a game is monetized, it is open to critique. Yes, there will be exceptions, and yes there are games that use Early Access as intended, but at this point we need to find new ways to inform gamers.
...we are taking the stance that if a game is monetized, it is open to critique.
Part of the new review process we are designing will enable us to update these reviews as the games evolve, but for now we can’t ignore the games out there any longer. As such, we are now reviewing games that aren’t officially “out” because we want to allow our readers to make the best decisions with their money regardless of some arbitrary and inconsistent label.
Cheers,
Andy
This letter was originally printed in the September 2018 issue of Game Informer. Minor edits were made for online relevance.
Bonus Website Update:
It's been a few months since launch, and I want to let you know what we are working on with the new site. We're currently focusing on backend technology to help with digital magazine/subscription management, getting our newsletter up and running, and other minor tweaks. That said, "lights out" mode is also in the works (per your request). I don't have an ETA yet, as our current work has taken us longer than expected. The community blog time capsule is also taking longer than expected, but that is still in progress. Hope you are enjoying the new site.
If you subscribe to the computer, tablet, or mobile edition of Game Informer magazine, you can now learn all about Assassin's Creed Odyssey. Following today's cover reveal, our digital issue is now live on web browsers and will be coming to iPad/iPhone later in the day. You can download the apps to view the issue by following this link. All of these digital options are included in a standard subscription.
The issue launches later this week on our third-party subscription apps including Google Play, Kindle, and Nook.
Not a digital subscriber yet? Convert your existing print subscription here or start a new subscription here.
Click the banner below to see what we’ve got planned for our month of Assassin’s Creed Odyssey coverage, and bookmark the hub. New stories will be added every few days, so be sure to come back often to learn more about Ubisoft Quebec’s next game.
Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed is one of the most respected 3D Sonic games. With creative maps and tight kart controls, developer Sumo Digital delivered an unlikely success for a much-maligned franchise. A new trailer for the follow-up title, Team Sonic Racing, shows that the developer isn't content to just make more of the same.
Team Sonic Racing, as the name suggests, wants players to cooperate with each other so everyone ends up placing well at the finish line. Points are accumulated by the team as a whole, so simply coming in first isn't an assurance of victory.
A new trailer for the game shows off a number of power-ups and mechanics designed to encourage this sort of team play. Players can give and request items, slingshot around each other, and even smash into each other for a speed boost. Although the kart-racing genre can be formulaic, these additions add a serious layer of strategy to an otherwise reflex-based game.
We were excited by the game at E3, and these new details are promising as well. Team Sonic Racing will release this winter on Xbox One, PC, Switch, and PS4.
If you've watched Game Informer's Extra Life streams, you know that we're big fans of The Jackbox Party Pack games. The fifth bundle of party games that have players use their phones as controllers is coming out this fall on every system known to man and we have the exclusive gameplay reveal of one of its new games: Patently Stupid. The game tasks players with creating, pitching, and funding absurd inventions. The Jackbox Party Pack 5 contains the return of You Don't Know Jack, new games called Split the Room and Mad Verse City, and another mysterious original game that's yet to be revealed.
Watch Ben Hanson, Jeff Cork, Ben Reeves, and Leo Vader play a round of Patently Stupid below. Jackbox Games wanted us to point out the gameplay in the video below represents an early/work-in-progress build of the game.
Prince Of Persia (2008), Earth Defense Force 2025, and Sine Mora join Xbox One's backwards compatibility program today. Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb announced the additions via Twitter.
Prince of Persia, Earth Defense Force 2025 and SINE MORA are coming to Xbox One Backward Compatibility today https://t.co/qPMRNs2ZLo pic.twitter.com/ALyoRniCv8
— Larry Hryb (@majornelson) August 7, 2018Now Xbox One players can revisit Prince Of Persia's stylish action gameplay, slay giant insects in Earth Defense Force 2025, and skillfully dodge projectiles in Sine Mora. To learn more about these games, check out our reviews of Sine Mora and Earth Defense Force 2025 and read Kyle Hilliard's feature comparing the roles of Prince Of Persia's and The Last Of Us' female leads.
Comments
Post a Comment