Category: Gamespot

It might have taken Matt Damon nearly a decade to return to the Bourne series, but the franchise’s producers have no intention of letting him leave. Jason Bourne hits theaters next week, and Universal boss Donna Langley has revealed that she hopes to keep the star and director Paul Greengrass involved in the franchise.

Speaking to the New York Times, Langley was very clear about her intentions for the series. “Even though Matt and Paul had been very definitive about not wanting to come back, we weren’t really willing to submit to that,” she said. “Look, here’s what I think the goal is: to keep Matt Damon and Paul Greengrass doing Bourne movies till they can’t do them anymore.”

Damon and Greengrass collaborated on the second and third films in the series–2004’s The Bourne Supremacy and 2007’s The Bourne Ultimatum. In 2012, an attempt was made to reboot the series with Jeremy Renner in the lead role, but The Bourne Legacy was both a critical and commercial disappointment.

In the NY Times feature, Damon talks about being persuaded to return to the action franchise. “At a certain point, I said to Paul, ‘People really want to see this movie, and that’s not something to turn our noses up at,” he said. “Having made movies that didn’t find an audience, I didn’t want to thumb our nose at this opportunity.”

“It’s this weird thing where you can’t give them exactly the same thing, or they’ll be resentful,” Damon continued. “But you have to give them enough of something they recognize that they feel like they’re getting what they paid for.”

Jason Bourne is released on July 29, 2016. It also stars Vincent Cassell, Julia Stiles, Alicia Vikander, and Tommy Lee Jones.

For more coverage of the film check out:

• You Might Talk More During Jason Bourne Than Matt Damon Does
• New Jason Bourne TV Spot Teases Sinister “Iron Hand”
• Matt Damon Tears Up Las Vegas in New Jason Bourne Clips
• Watch Jason Bourne’s Thrilling First Full Trailer

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The rumors were right. Fast food company McDonald’s today announced that it is partnering with Niantic Labs for a Pokemon Go promotion, though specifics are still light.

According to a previous report, more than 3,000 McDonald’s locations across Japan will become Pokemon Go gyms as part of the promotion. However, the official statement, reported by Kotaku, quotes McDonald’s Japan as saying, “This was not an announcement our company made.”

The first report also said Pokemon Go would launch in Japan today, July 20, but so far, it hasn’t. McDonald’s Japan said Niantic is “diligently preparing” to launch the game in Japan. Previously, it was reported that Niantic was not confident that the servers would hold up.

McDonald’s Japan did not say when its Pokemon Go promotion will begin, only commenting that it should start “soon,” presumably sometime after the game launches in the country.

Whether or not the partnership will be extended to other regions, like the US or UK, remains to be seen. Niantic CEO John Hanke told The New York Times recently that the developer had already signed sponsorship deals with a number of companies, though no partners beyond McDonald’s have been announced yet.

McDonald’s is already benefiting from the Pokemon Go craze. According to Bloomberg, shares of the fast food company rose 23 percent recently, representing the biggest daily surge since it was listed on the Japanese stock exchange in July 2001. Why? The fact that the restaurant started giving away Pokemon figures with its Happy Meals on Friday probably had something to do with it.

In other Pokemon Go news, someone in Baltimore was reportedly distracted by Pokemon Go and hit a parked police car, while “Pokemon” has been added to the dictionary. What a time to be alive.

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It looks like Blizzard is gearing up to make a major announcement about Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft, teasing a “once-in-a-lifetime event” for next week.

Blizzard is currently sending out invitations to watch a stream on Hearthstone’s official Twitch channel on Thursday, July 28, starting at 11 PM PT.

“We would be honored if you would join us for a once-in-a-lifetime event that will be full of magic and celebration,” reads a line from the invitation sent to GameSpot. “We also have something very special in store for you.”

Viewers can expect an “unforgettable adventure,” which sounds like a hint that this event may bring news about Hearthstone’s next single-player set.

Hearthstone’s latest expansion was Whispers of the Old Gods, which came out earlier this year for the popular card game. The new invitation is signed, “Sincerely, an old friend,” though it’s not immediately clear what that could be a reference to.

As of the end of April 2016, Hearthstone had 50 million registered players. The free game is no doubt a big hit, but Blizzard has not disclosed how much money the game is bringing in through its various microtransactions.

We’ll have all the news from the stream as it’s announced. What are you hoping to see from the event? Let us know in the comments below.

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Ubisoft has high hopes for its upcoming Watch Dogs sequel.

CEO Yves Guillemot said during an earnings call this week that Watch Dogs 2 could become one of Ubisoft’s top games in its 30-year history in terms of sales.

“Watch Dogs 2 has the potential to be one of Ubisoft’s best-selling games of all time,” Guillemot said.

He said he’s confident in the gameplay and story advancements the team has made for the sequel, specifically citing the game’s “more seamless” online functionality and co-op. The game also has “engaging” characters and a “relevant storyline” inspired by hacker culture, he said.

The reaction to Watch Dogs 2’s official announcement at E3 this year was “very positive,” Guillemot said. He also mentioned that the reveal trailer passed 30 million views.

The first Watch Dogs, released in 2014, sold 4 million copies in its first two weeks. It went on to ship more than 9 million copies, though this figure is only accurate as of October 2014.

Watch Dogs 2 launches on November 15 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. The game is set in San Francisco (the original took place in Chicago), and stars a new protagonist named Marcus Holloway, an African-American from across the Bay in Oakland.

For lots more on Watch Dogs 2, check out all of GameSpot’s previous coverage here.

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The upcoming PlayStation 4 version of Rise of the Tomb Raider is being designed to run at 1080p/30fps, Square Enix has confirmed. This is the same resolution as the Xbox One version.

Square Enix is “still optimizing,” the publisher said in a statement to VideoGamer.com. The publisher also confirmed that the frame rate will not be below 30fps.

Interestingly, Square Enix also said, regarding frame rate and resolution, that “anything beyond that is a bonus.” Whether or not this is a reference to the new and more powerful PlayStation 4 Neo console is unclear.

Sony announced the Neo console in the days before E3, though the system was not present at the event. The console is rumored to launch this year, and if that is indeed the case, we would expect Sony to start talking more about it soon. It won’t replace the existing PS4, as it will be sold alongside the device and is meant to offer a more high-end option.

Square Enix’s statement might not be a reference to Neo, however. As VideoGamer points out, Square Enix put out a similar statement about 2014’s Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition. At the time, the developer said the ambition was to deliver “the core Tomb Raider gameplay at native 1080p and running at 30fps. Anything beyond 30fps for this version is gravy.”

Rise of the Tomb Raider is making its way to PS4 through a 20 Year Celebration edition that comes with all of the game’s DLC, a new chapter, and VR support. It’s also coming with new box art that looks a lot like Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection’s cover.

Rise of the Tomb Raider: 20 Year Celebration releases for PS4 on October 11. Season pass holders on Xbox One and PC will get all of the new content, except VR support, for free.

In other Tomb Raider-related news, the next movie recently had its release date set. You’ll be able to see Oscar-winner Alicia Vikander star as Lara Croft on March 16, 2018.

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Production has now wrapped on Alien: Covenant. The latest movie in the long-running sci-fi horror franchise has completed principal photography in Australia, and the series’ official twitter account released a new behind-the-scenes image, featuring director Ridley Scott and star Katherine Waterston. Check it out below:

This is the latest in a number of images and videos released from the production. Earlier this month, a new clip revealed prosthetic work on a familiar appendage, while previous images have included Waterston in character and the insignia for the ship of the title.

Alien: Covenant has assembled an impressive cast, which also includes Michael Fassbender, Billy Crudup, Demian Bichir, and Danny McBride. Last week, McBride revealed that the film would be a “dark horror movie,” and despite being known as a comedy actor, he would not be there to lighten the tone.

“[Scott] starts talking to me about it and starts showing me these diagrams of a spaceship,” he told Hitfix. “I’m just thinking, as he’s talking, ‘Jesus, this is f**king Alien, he’s talking to me about Alien right now.

“And then my next thought was, ‘Well why would he be interested in me for this? Am I just going to be the silly comic relief?’ And then I got the script and I’m like, ‘This sh*t is dark. There is no comic relief in this at all.’”

Alien: Covenant was originally announced as a direct sequel to Scott’s’s 2012 hit Prometheus, but has subsequently gone through a couple of name changes to align it closer to the Alien series. It hits cinemas on August 4, 2017.

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Shuhei Yoshida, president of Worldwide Studios for Sony Computer Entertainment, has been hacked on Twitter by a group called OurMine.

“Hey, its OurMine, we are testing your security,” reads the first Twitter message posted by the group. It later added, “You have been hacked by OurMine Team Visit our website to secure yourself.”

In another Twitter update made on Yoshida’s hijacked account, OurMine claimed it was not a hacking group.

“We are a security group, not a hacking group,” it said. “We will give his account back immediately if he contact us.”

OurMine indicates the takeover was intended to test the security of Yoshida’s account. A number of the tweets contain links to their websites and an email address, which he can use to get in touch and supposedly reclaim control.

The group has been targeting the social media accounts of many high-profile executive recently. Among them are Yahoo boss Marissa Mayer and even Twitter’s own chief executive, Jack Dorsey.

Before these, it claimed to have taken over Mark Zuckerberg’s Twitter account and the associated Vine profile. The source of the information being used for these hacks is reportedly a LinkedIn password dump.

OurMine also claimed responsibility for a recent Pokemon Go outage. An image of its website, where it confirms the Yoshida hack and the Pokemon Go disruption, can be found below

At the time of writing, Yoshida has not regained control of his Twitter account.

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More Battlefield DLC is now available for free as part of EA’s “Road to Battlefield 1” campaign. The latest offering is Battlefield 4‘s Naval Strike add-on.

It normally sells for $15, but you can now get it completely free on Xbox One and Xbox 360. If history is any indication, it will become free on PlayStation systems and PC sometime later today; we’ll update this post when it happens.

You can use the links below to queue up your download (we’ll add PlayStation and PC links when they become available):

• Xbox One (4.11 GB)
• Xbox 360 (1.24 GB)

The Naval Strike DLC for Battlefield 4, which originally launched in March 2014, introduces four new multiplayer maps, five new weapons, two gadgets, and a new hovercraft vehicle that can traverse both land and water. It also adds the Carrier Assault mode, which is an homage to Battlefield 2142‘s fan-favorite Titan mode.

This isn’t the first time that EA made the Naval Strike DLC free, as it also did so in August 2015, but the catch was that you needed to be an EA Access member.

The Road to Battlefield 1 campaign sees EA give away DLC for Battlefield 4 and Battlefield Hardline. In June, EA made Battlefield 4’s Second Assault expansion free, while Hardline’s Betrayal add-on was offered at no cost earlier this month. If this latest offer is like the previous ones, you have only one week to grab the content before it returns to its normal price.

Battlefield 1 comes out in October for PS4, Xbox One, and PC. A public beta for the game begins this summer, while DICE recently confirmed that Rush mode will return.

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Following the release of GTA Online’s Cunning Stunts update last week, Rockstar today added more stunt races and cars to the crazy-looking mode.

The new races are for all kinds of vehicles, from bikes to muscle cars. In keeping with the Cunning Stunts theme, they are completely over-the-top, challenging players to race through things like flaming rings and fireworks.

Here is a rundown of the six new races, with descriptions written by Rockstar:

• Afterburner (Bikes)
  • There was a time when jumping through a wreath of flame on a poorly engineered chopper was enough to give even the most jaded patriot a semi. Those simple days are gone, but apply the same formula a thousand feet above an urban area in the middle of the night and you stand a decent chance of a sudden rush of blood to the crotch. Spectacular Stunt race for bikes.
• Double Loop (Super)
  • You can never have too much of a good thing, especially when that thing is a gravity-defying loop-the-loop over Fort Zancudo. Kiss your already fragile grip on the laws of physics goodbye on this intense stunt race for super cars.
• Forest (Bikes)
  • The great woodlands of San Andreas are one of our most bountiful resources, providing an endless supply of endangered timber, plenty of discreet hideaways for doomsday cults, and now some of the most suicidal dirt bike jumps in the country. Stunt race for bikes.
• High Flier (Bikes)
  • Time to ditch the private jet, saddle up, and learn a thing or two about corporate dominance with this stunt race for bikes through, around and over almost every skyscraper in central LS.
• Trench II (Muscle)
  • Are you susceptible to paranoia? Feel like the walls are closing in? Often have the sense you’re trapped with no escape? Come play this stunt race for muscle cars and give your neuroses something to really latch onto.
• Zebra (Sports)
  • A few massive slingshots and vertical drops around Mount Chiliad will play havoc with a full stomach. Time to skip lunch… and breakfast… and to pack a change of underwear. Point to Point stunt race for the sports class.

Today’s Cunning Stunts update also adds three new, stunt-ready vehicles: the Ocelot Lynx, Declasse Drift Tampa, and Western Cliffhanger. You can see these in the image gallery below.

Additionally, Rockstar has launched the latest sale and promotional period for GTA Online items. Now through July 25, you can get the Silver jumpsuit, which comes with a matching helmet, completely free when you log in.

In another sale, Rockstar is offering 20 percent off on garages and properties (including those that have garages) for the week. There is also a sale on car items, as you can save 20 percent on spoilers, wheels, tire smoke, skirts, exhausts, and horns.

GTA Online is the multiplayer mode for Grand Theft Auto V. It’s free to play (with the purchase of GTA V), but you can spend money on currency–and that’s reportedly big business for Rockstar.

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