Category: Video Games

Dr Disrespect dreams of NFT games providing “new PvP experiences”

Dr Disrespect is certainly no stranger to controversy

YouTube streamer Herschel “Dr Disrespect” Beahm is certainly no stranger to controversy, as the indefinite Twitch ban against the first-person shooter expert shows, but he usually lives in harmonical coexistence with his followers. When it comes to NFT games, however, even the popular streamer can’t excite his entire fan base.

“The concept of digital collectibles in an online game is so exciting to me,” he wrote on Twitter. “Especially an extraction type of game. People saying scam and ‘ugh’ are just brain dead headline followers. Same people that spend a ton on skins for an annual release game. Same skins everyone has too.”

“Imagine trying to ‘extract’ with an item you discovered worth $100,000 on the chain,” Beahm said. “Think about entertainment value as a viewer let alone player. A new pvp experience is upon us…” 

Dr Disrespect is currently working on his extraction shooter, DEADROP, which he seems to envision as containing NFTs to provide the exciting type of gameplay he has in mind. He has previously released NFTs in connection with the project.

Beahm’s vision is not shared among all of his followers, though, one of whom replied: “Ugh, NFT/blockchain gaming? I thought you were better than that. Was looking forward to your game, should’ve known better when you dropped exclusive NFT tokens for it lol.” 

Reacting rather undiplomatically to this feedback, the streamer simply answered: “What an idiot”.

It seems like Dr Disrespect is buying into the vision of the same NFTs being available and fully functional across many different games, a view held among many supporters of this technology in video games. When challenged about why developers would even bother implementing content from other games in their titles without getting paid for it, he did not post a response.

This frequently held viewpoint among NFT supporters has often been called out by developers, who’ve explained why this is pretty much unfeasible as such a level of interoperability simply doesn’t exist in game development. Independent developer Rami Ismail, to name one notable example, says that even very basic objects in a game can be difficult to implement across different titles and engines.

Beahm seems like he’s willing to try and find a way, and only time will tell if he can successfully do so – he would be among the first when it comes to the controversial NFT game sector.

Written by Oliver Brandt and Marco Wutz on behalf of GLHF.

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The best cozy games to relax and unwind with

The best cozy games are there for you at the end of a long day or if you need something relaxing to take your mind off the real world

Cozy games are there for you at the end of a long day or if you just need something relaxing to take your mind off the real world for a while, when something more demanding just won’t cut it. Stardew Valley’s launch and meteoric rise to popularity opened the gates for a flood of games, indie and otherwise, that prefer a laid-back approach to leisure, all with something unique to offer. Some give you a relaxing life on a farm, others scratch that desperate itch to clean something with power tools, and a few even let you bring color back to a drab world. We’ve picked out some of the best cozy games you can play, most of which are available on every modern platform.

Square Enix is voting to replace the company president after 10 years

Square Enix president Yosuke Matsuda is stepping down after a decade, with Takashi Kiryu taking his place after the company board votes

Square Enix president Yosuke Matsuda is stepping down after a decade, with Takashi Kiryu taking his place after the company board votes in June, the company announced in a statement. Matsuda joined Square Enix in 2013 and oversaw the release of games such as Final Fantasy XV, where he appeared as an optional boss, and a renewed push to bring the publisher’s classic games back to life for new audiences. These decisions were accompanied by less triumphant ventures, including the sale of the company’s Western studios and investment in NFTs.

Takashi Kiryu joined the company in 2020 as his first venture in the corporate world and served in various executive capacities, including on Square Enix’s board and as chief strategy officer. 

“Under the rapid change of business environment surrounding the entertainment industry, the proposed change is intended to reshape the management team with the goal of adopting ever-evolving technological innovations and maximizing on the creativity of [Square Enix Holdings Co. Ltd.]’s group in order to deliver even greater entertainment to its customers around the world,” Square Enix said in the statement.

It’s unclear whether Kiryu will continue pursuing investments in blockchain technology as Matsuda did or how his plan for the company will differ from his predecessor’s, if at all.

The news comes after Square Enix reported declining revenue and a weaker-than-expected fiscal year. The company will release its highly anticipated RPG Final Fantasy 16 on June 22, 2023, for PS5 consoles.

Written by Josh Broadwell on behalf of GLHF

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Super Mario movie directors say Luigi is the damsel in distress now

The Super Mario Bros movie is just around the corner, and directors Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic spoke about what they wanted for Peach

The Super Mario Bros movie is just around the corner, and directors Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic spoke with film magazine Total Film about what they wanted from Luigi and Peach (thanks, Nintendo Life). While the Mushroom Kingdom princess often takes a passive role in Mario games, usually as the object of a kidnapping scheme like in Super Mario Odyssey, Horvath and Jelenic wanted to take a different approach.

Rather than Peach getting swiped from her castle once again, the movie trailers show her leading a war council and developing plans to deal with the Bowser situation.

“[Peach is] the monarch who leads this kingdom of hapless, adorable Toads,” Horvath and Jelenic said. “We were thinking how strong that person would need to be to protect those people. All that informed the idea for Peach’s character in our movie.”

However, Mario has to have someone to rescue, and in Illumination’s movie, that someone is Luigi.

“It’s Mario’s goal to save his brother from Bowser’s clutches,” Horvath and Jelenic said. “He has to go on this epic adventure to do that. So Luigi, who’s a famously nervous, anxious character, finds himself in the worst possible predicament: having to survive interrogations with Bowser, and make it through that gauntlet.”

Whether Luigi’s nerves survive this ordeal after three haunted house incidents and a rather embarrassing fashion day at the tennis courts remains to be seen. Still, with just one game – Super Princess Peach – that let the Mushroom monarch shine, it’s about time someone else bears the brunt of Bowser’s wrath.

Written by Josh Broadwell on behalf of GLHF

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Blizzard says Overwatch 2 heroes are canonically anime fans

The Overwatch 2 One Punch Man collaboration starts soon, adding new skins inspired by the anime for some of the multiplayer game’s heroes

The Overwatch 2 One Punch Man collaboration starts soon, adding new skins inspired by the anime for a selection of the multiplayer game’s heroes, including Doomfist and Kiriko. Dion Rogers, the game’s art director, told Xbox Wire that the skins are actually cosplays for the characters, who officially love One Punch Man – Doomfist’s line “One punch is all I need” comes from the anime, Rogers said – and anime in general. 

“It’s something we’ve been wanting to do for a while,” Rogers said of the upcoming collaboration “There’s a bit of an anime look to Overwatch. So, being fans of anime, we were looking for a partner to collaborate with. And we looked at various studios, and then when One-Punch Man came up, it was surprising how many people on the team knew the anime, they loved it, they watched it.”

Rogers said the idea was so popular with the team that one of the character artists drew the first Saitama-Doomfist concept during the initial call about the project. He also said Kiriko was a natural fit for the Terrible Tornado thanks in part to her spiritual abilities and the fact that Kiriko resembles the Tornado anyway.

The collaboration is the season’s second major event, following the Valentine’s Day Loverwatch special. It begins March 7, 2023, and runs until April 6, 2023, and the character bundles will be available in the in-game shop for a few thousand Overwatch coins.

Written by Josh Broadwell on behalf of GLHF

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Metroid Fusion on Nintendo Switch is happening sooner than we thought

Nintendo is bringing the Game Boy Advance classic Metroid Fusion to Nintendo Switch Online, and much sooner than expected

Nintendo is bringing the Game Boy Advance classic Metroid Fusion to Nintendo Switch Online, and much sooner than expected. Metroid Fusion will be available to Switch Online subscribers who own the Expansion Pack from March 9, 2023, onward.

Nintendo added Game Boy Advance games to the service after the February Nintendo Direct, and while the Big N teased Metroid Fusion, along with Golden Sun and Metroid Zero Mission, as games they would add to the platform eventually, there was no indication of when or even in what order. 

While you can play Metroid Prime on the Switch now, Nintendo didn’t say whether there would be any connectivity between the games as there was when Prime launched on Gamecube and Fusion on Game Boy in the early 2000s.

Metroid Fusion continued space bounty hunter Samus Aran’s story after Super Metroid, when the last of the species was eradicated, and the Space Pirate threat was seemingly at an end. Samus traveled back to the home of the Metroids, only to find that a parasite had taken control after their natural predator – the Metroids, surprise – vanished. 

Fans and critics praise Fusion for its blend of Metroid style with horror.

If you played Metroid Dread and thought the E.M.M.I. sections were tense, Fusion goes a step further. One of the parasites assumes Samus’ form and stalks her throughout the ruins of a space station. Some encounters are scripted, though at some points, you never know when your deadly doppelganger might appear

With the inclusion of Fusion, the entire 2D Metroid saga is playable on Nintendo Switch. Meanwhile, Metroid Prime 4 is still in production, four years after Nintendo announced the highly anticipated sequel.

Written by Josh Broadwell on behalf of GLHF

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Destiny 2 Lightfall: How to easily reach the power cap

The Destiny 2 power cap determines the maximum level your gear, we’ll show you tell you how to reach it quickly in the Lightfall exapnsion.

The latest expansion for Destiny 2 is in our hands at last, and once you’ve gone through the story you’ll want to focus on leveling up so you can be as powerful as ever. Grinding levels is still pretty much the same experience as it was in The Witch Queen, but the caps have moved, so you need to know what you’re working towards.

We’ll give you some tips on how to get there.

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Destiny 2 Lightfall action figure locations: How to complete They’re Not Dolls triumph

Destiny 2’s latest expansion has a new round of collectibles that will be released over the coming weeks. We’ll help you find them.

Once the campaign for the new Destiny 2 expansion is out of the way, you should have a look at the post-campaign content, specifically the “Virtual Fighter” title. In there you’ll find a triumph called “They’re Not Dolls”, which asks you to look for action figure collectibles. Like those from previous expansions, finding them is no easy feat.

There are nine figures to find on Neomuna, although you can’t get all of them right now. As the season progresses, more will become available around the world, with two obtainable right now. It’s likely a new one will be added each week as the season progresses, we’ll tell you where to find them, and keep things updated with each Destiny 2 weekly reset.

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Yuji Naka pleads guilty to insider trading charges over Final Fantasy

A few months after Yuji Naka was arrested for insider trading, the former Sonic lead said he’s guilty of the charges

A few months after Yuji Naka was arrested for insider trading, the former Sonic lead said he’s guilty of the charges. Japanese media giant NHK first reported Naka’s confession during his courtroom appearance (thanks Eurogamer), though whether Naka pleads guilty to the second charge of insider trading remains to be seen.

The first charge alleged that Naka bought shares in mobile developer ATeam after learning the studio was developing Square Enix’s Final Fantasy 7: The First Soldier, a battle royale game that shut down barely a year after Square Enix launched it. At the time Naka made the investment, Square Enix hadn’t announced The First Soldier to the public, but Naka learned of the project while employed there.

“There is no doubt that I knew the facts about the game before it was made public and bought the stock,” Naka said.

The second charge alleges that Naka bought approximately $20,000 of stock in another mobile developer, Aiming, after learning that they would be working on a Dragon Quest mobile game. That game was Dragon Quest Tact, which Square Enix launched in 2020. That game remains available worldwide on mobile devices, though mobile analyst firm Sensor Tower shows that Tact made Square Enix less than $5,000 in February 2023.

Naka has not yet admitted to this second charge, though his trial remains ongoing.

Written by Josh Broadwell on behalf of GLHF

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EU regulators will reportedly permit the Microsoft-Activision deal

A new report from Reuters says that EU regulators will likely allow the Microsoft-Activision deal to pass without major concessions

A new report from Reuters says that European Union regulators will likely allow the $69 billion Microsoft-Activision deal to pass without requiring concessions. The report comes from anonymous sources Reuters says are familiar with the matter, just a few weeks after the U.K. Competition and Markets Authority said Microsoft would have to sell parts of the business for the deal to proceed – an action Microsoft president Brad Smith called unfeasible and impractical.

Reuters’ sources say Microsoft’s commitment to providing Call of Duty on Nintendo platforms and all Xbox Game Pass cloud games on Nvidia’s GeForce Now platform helped convince the EU commission that the deal would have no substantial, negative effect on competition in the games space.

The EU declined to comment to Reuters, though it and the U.K. CMA are expected to issue their final reports in the next two months. Both of Microsoft’s intended partnerships address key concerns that regulatory bodies raised over the deal, namely access to Activision Blizzard’s most lucrative property and the possible harm such a deal could cause in the cloud gaming space.

The CMA, in its original report from February, said providing games built for PC and more powerful consoles to Nintendo would only cost more money for developers and result in inferior products. 

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission still has an ongoing lawsuit against Microsoft intended to halt the deal’s progress and has yet to comment on Microsoft’s recent announcements with Nintendo and Nvidia.

Written by Josh Broadwell on behalf of GLHF

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