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Category: Gamespot

  • Mass Effect: Andromeda's Ship Won't Have Loading Screens

    New details for Mass Effect: Andromeda have been revealed by way of Game Informer. The information pertains to The Tempest, which is the ship players will be exploring the Andromeda galaxy in.

    The Tempest will serve a similar function to the Normandy, the ship players called home throughout the first three games. However, there have been some changes to give it a unique new feel. Chief among them is the way players choose their destination, which is done by standing on the bridge and looking out into the stars in front of you, instead of transitioning to a map.

    In another part of the ship is a holographic interface which main character Ryder uses for upgrading. Players can also redistribute ability points and shift around upgrades to suit the mission at hand. There’s also a garage where you can admire the Nomad, a surface exploration vehicle similar to the Mako.

    The decor of Ryder’s quarters can be customised to some degree and there will be various momentos from missions you go on.

    Fans of the series will be glad to hear that there are no loading screens within the Tempest, unlike in the Normandy, which means you won’t be standing around in lifts or waiting to be scanned while running around the ship. Additionally, developer BioWare says moving from the Tempest to exploring a planet will also be seamless.

    “With memory limitations, with loading limitations, there was a real problem [in previous games]; if you wanted to go from one place to another, you had to unload everything, you had to reload everything–it was a long time,” explained technical director Harold Chaput.

    “It really broke the flow of the game. Now, it’s so much smoother to be on the ship, land on a planet, jump around, go inside a building. It’s all very seamless, so breaking down the barriers frees up the player to explore and do activities. It makes it easier to make a rich and full environment.”

    BioWare is expected to show more of Mass Effect: Andromeda gameplay footage during The Game Awards on December 1. Andromeda is scheduled to launch this spring for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. While not confirmed, multiple retail listings have suggested a March 21 release date.

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  • Blizzard Working On Unannounced First Person Project

    Blizzard is working on an “unannounced project that utilizes a robust first-person engine,” according to two job listings on the company’s US careers site.

    The listings are for two lead software engineers, both specifically preferring workers with experience working on first-person games.

    To date, Overwatch is the only first person game Blizzard has ever developed. It’s not clear whether the project these job listings refer to is an expansion or sequel to Overwatch, or a new game altogether. Other series from the developer include World of Warcraft, StarCraft, Heroes of the Storm, and Hearthstone.

    This isn’t the first time Blizzard have advertised jobs for unannounced projects. Earlier this year, the company was after someone to lead the next Diablo project. In 2015, meanwhile, it was hiring an art director for an “unannounced project” in the Diablo universe.

    Overwatch’s latest big update is the introduction of Sombra, a new character capable of hacking other players’ abilities. The base game, meanwhile, was very popular here at GameSpot–critic Mike Mahardy called it a “brilliant shooter,” awarding it a 9. For more, check out our full Overwatch review.

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  • Why They Cast Johnny Depp in Fantastic Beasts 2

    Why They Cast Johnny Depp in Fantastic Beasts 2

    Famous actor Johnny Depp will have a big role in the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them sequel, playing the evil wizard Grindelwald. Now, producer David Heyman has discussed why they wanted the Edward Scissorhands and Pirates actor for the part.

    “What we wanted was an iconic actor to play Grindelwald, because Grindelwald is an iconic character who has a significant place in this story,” Heyman told Collider. “His ability to persuade the hearts and minds, to persuade people to follow him is essential to this story.”

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    Grindelwald is “dangerous” in that way, Heyman added. So the producers sought out an actor they thought could be “seductive,” charming, and original.

    “We were looking for someone who was seductive and could be charming and could be original, who was iconic, who was a great actor; and that’s what Johnny Depp is,” he explained. “He can be irresistible. He’s powerful. He’s created some iconic characters, and not made the obvious choices when doing so. The unpredictability of the choices he makes is part of what makes him so extraordinary and that was very exciting for us. He was the perfect choice for Grindelwald.”

    Depp actually appears as Grindelwald in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them in a small, cameo role. Heyman said Depp filmed his part early in 2016 due to his availability. That Grindelwald, played by Depp, would appear in the first firm was kept a secret from then on.

    Fantastic Beasts director David Yates previously talked about casting Depp as Grindelwald, praising the actor for his talents and uniqueness.

    “Johnny Depp is a real artist,” Yates said earlier this month. “He’s created several characters who have really resonated in our popular culture. He’s a really brilliant, brilliant actor. We were excited about seeing what he would do with this guy, the character. He’s fearless; he’s imaginative; he’s ambitious. We thought he would do something fun and special. So we went for him, purely on that selfish basis. We don’t care if he’s famous or not famous. We just know he’s interesting.”

    A young version of the famous wizard Dumbledore will appear in the first Fantastic Beasts sequel, though it’s not been confirmed yet who will play him in the 2018 movie.

    Warner Bros. is planning five Fantastic Beasts movies. Yates is reportedly officially signed up for the first sequel, but he’s not yet ready to commit to directing all five.

    Fantastic Beasts opened on November 18 and pulled in $75 million at the US box office to become the No. 1 film of the weekend. For more on the movie, check out GameSpot’s review and what other critics are saying.

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  • All 1 TB Xbox One S Models Are $50 Off Right Now

    All 1 TB Xbox One S Models Are $50 Off Right Now

    There are going to be quite a few solid Xbox One S offers on Black Friday, but you can avoid the lines with a new offer on the 1 TB variant right now.

    As announced previously, retailers across the US are selling all 1 TB Xbox One or Xbox One S models for $50 off through November 23, bringing the price down to $300. That’s the normal price of the 500 GB model (which will go down to $250 on Black Friday).

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    Some of the 1 TB Xbox One S models available now include the military green Battlefield 1 system, as well as the Gears of War 4, Madden 17, and Halo bundles that come with a white system. Go to Microsoft’s website to see a full rundown of all available Xbox One S bundles.

    Starting on November 24/25, retailers will offer the 500 GB Battlefield 1 and Minecraft Xbox One S bundles for only $250.

    If you’re in the market for new digital games, Xbox Live is hosting a huge sale right now–see all the deals here. Check back soon to see a full rundown of all the best Xbox Black Friday deals.

    For now, check out what retailers are offering in the stories below:

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  • Westworld Episode 9 Teaser Shows a Lot of Action and Drama [SPOILERS]

    This post contains major Westworld spoilers.

    The first season of HBO’s Westworld is wrapping up soon, as there are only two episodes left. Following Episode 8’s debut last night, the network today put out a teaser preview for Episode 9–and there is a lot to take in. We see the continuation of Maeve’s uprising, the Man in Black getting deeper into his hunt for the Maze, and Dolores going through a tough time of her own. Back inside the lab, we see Bernard trying to come to terms with his reality. Check out the video below.

    Episode 9 is titled “The Well-Tempered Clavier.” Here is the chapter’s official description: Dolores and Bernard reconnect with their pasts; Maeve makes a bold proposition to Hector; Teddy finds enlightenment, at a price.”

    The episode airs this Sunday, November 27 at 9 PM. Keep checking back with GameSpot for more on Westworld in the days ahead.

    HBO recently renewed Westworld for a “mysterious and exciting” Season 2. Man in Black actor Ed Harris teased that he’ll be “involved” with the season, expected in late 2017 or 2018, though the extent of his involvement remains to be seen.

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  • The Witness' PS4 Pro Update Out Now – Here's What it Does

    The Witness has been updated to take advantage of PS4 Pro‘s extra power. The recently-released patch benefits owners of both 1080p and 4K TVs.

    If you’re playing the Witness on a 1080p set, you can enjoy native 1080p, up from 900p before. It will continue to play at a smooth 60 FPS.

    If you own a 4K TV, meanwhile, you get two options. Option one: you can play the puzzler with the world rendered in 1440p upscaled to 4K, UI at native 4K, all at 60 FPS. Option two: everything at native 4K and 30 FPS.

    Creator Jonathan Blow also confirmed his game will support HDR TVs.

    We loved The Witness here at GameSpot–critic Mike Mahardy awarded it a 9. Check out our full The Witness review. Alternatively, take a look at our list of every PS4 Pro game that is and isn’t getting an upgrade patch.

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  • Modern Warfare 3, Oblivion Not Coming to Xbox One Backwards Compatibility, At Least Not Yet

    Modern Warfare 3, Oblivion Not Coming to Xbox One Backwards Compatibility, At Least Not Yet

    Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion are not coming to the Xbox One‘s backwards compatibility program, at least not yet. Both Xbox 360 titles recently appeared on the Xbox Live Black Friday sale site, described as games that are playable on Xbox One.

    Microsoft’s Major Nelson confirmed on Twitter that these listings were posted in error. The games have now been removed from the Xbox Live Black Friday sale site.

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    Modern Warfare 3 and Oblivion have not been ruled out for backwards compatibility, however, so they could come someday. Microsoft already has a relationship with the publishers of both titles, as Activision and Bethesda have games in the backwards compatibility catalog. Call of Duty: Black Ops is among the Call of Duty games already in the catalog, while Doom and Doom II are there as well.

    Oblivion ($4.94) and Modern Warfare 3 ($15) are marked down right now as part of Xbox Live’s Black Friday sale, which began on November 18. Check out this post to see a rundown of other discounted games.

    There are more than 280 games in the Xbox One backwards compatibility program right now; see them all there.

    November has been a big month for additions to the catalog. Mass Effect 2, Mass Effect 3, Skate 3, and Blue Dragon were all added. Microsoft’s Phil Spencer said at the start of the month that November would be a “great” month for additions to the program.

    The Xbox One’s backwards compatibility feature launched a year ago this month with the New Xbox One Experience update. In celebration of the birthday, Microsoft recently revealed that people have spent 210 million hours playing Xbox 360 games on Xbox One since the feature launched. This is up from 145 million hours as of August 2016.

    In other news about Xbox backwards compatibility, Microsoft engineering lead Mike Ybarra said recently that Project Scorpio will “of course” support backwards compatibility. The console goes on sale in holiday 2017.

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  • The Walking Dead Showrunner on Whether a Movie Version Will Be Made

    The Walking Dead Showrunner on Whether a Movie Version Will Be Made

    The hit zombie drama The Walking Dead continues to pull in millions of viewers every week, but the makers are already thinking beyond the end of the series.

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    Showrunner Scott M Gimple was asked about the chances of fans seeing a Walking Dead movie by Comicbook.com. “That question comes up every now and again,” he said. “I’m sure one way or another, one day, it’ll happen. I think it would be cool.”

    Gimple went on to jokingly speculate about who we might expect to see in a Walking Dead movie, mentioning a few stars from previous hit shows. “William Shatner as Rick,” he suggested. “We’ll get Edward James Olmos as Daryl. Hit all the big shows! Matthew Fox as the Governor!”

    Even if a Walking Dead movie does happen, it’ll be a while off. The show has already been recommissioned for an eighth season once the current one ends next year.

    Earlier this month, Robert Kirkman, who created the comic that the show is based on, revealed that no one involved in the series has any input in the story’s ending. “There’s no communication whatsoever,” he said, via EW. “They have no approval over what happens in the comic. They’re kind of a hundred percent in the dark, which I guess is pretty remarkable, and I would probably say it’s a testament to the trust that AMC has in me.

    “I mean, I guess to a certain extent, at this point, the comic book is kind of a workshop of future seasons of the show, and it’s fun to think that I can just completely torpedo the story if I wanted to.”

    The Walking Dead season 7 kicked off in October. The season premiere was a violent and controversial episode, that was nevertheless watched by a total of 20.8 million viewers.

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  • Space 'FPX' ADR1FT Cancelled on Xbox One

    ‘First person experience‘ Adr1ft is “no longer releasing on Xbox One,” according to the game’s writer, Adam Orth.

    Orth replied to a fan on Twitter, advising them to “get a refund.” As co-founder of developer Three One Zero, he initially said the game would be coming to PS4, PC, and Xbox One. Publisher 505 Games declined to comment.

    The writer, who also composed the game’s score, said the game is inspired by the aftermath of him leaving Microsoft following his controversial “deal with it” tweets. “I was becoming the next victim of the Internet hate phenomenon,” he said in a talk about the issue at GDC. “It was an absolute feeding frenzy. My public and private life was fair game. People began to distance themselves from me. I was dejected, ashamed, and embarrassed. I destroyed my career and feared being blacklisted by the industry. I went from income to no income.”

    Adr1ft launched on PC and PS4 earlier this year, and is also playable in VR. We weren’t huge fans of the sci-fi adventure here at GameSpot–critic Mike Mahardy awarded it a 5. Check out our full Adr1ft review.

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  • Nice Pre-Black Friday Deal Gets You 1 TB Xbox One S With Bonus Controller for $300

    Nice Pre-Black Friday Deal Gets You 1 TB Xbox One S With Bonus Controller for $300

    There is less than a week to go before Black Friday–and there are going to be some solid offers on game consoles that day. But if you don’t want to wait, Walmart has a pretty good deal on Xbox One hardware right now.

    Via Slickdeals, the store is offering the 1 TB Xbox One S Battlefield 1 and Gears of War 4 bundles plus a free controller for only $300. The systems alone normally go for $350, so this deal not only knocks off $50 from the price but gets even better with the free controller. You can pay $5 extra to get an Armed Forces special-edition controller. Go to Walmart’s website here to select your package.

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    Numerous retailers will offer the 500 GB Battlefield 1 and Minecraft Xbox One S bundles for only $250 on Black Friday itself. Dell has possibly the best deal, as it’s offering the 500 GB Battlefield 1 Xbox One S bundle with a free copy of Gears of War 4 and an extra controller for only $250.

    Check back soon with GameSpot for lots more on Black Friday. For now, see the store-specific deals in the links below.

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