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  • New Pillars of Eternity Patch Resolves Serious Bug and More

    New Pillars of Eternity Patch Resolves Serious Bug and More

    Obsidian has released the 1.03 patch for Pillars of Eternity, perhaps the most important aspect of which deals with a serious bug that centers around equipping items.

    As detailed in the 1.03 patch notes, you can now safely equip items by double-clicking them. Prior to this, doing so would cause your character’s passive abilities to be permanently lost. Thankfully, you won’t need to start over if you were hit by this bug–simply open up your save with the game updated to 1.03 and your passives should be restored.

    The patch is out now on Steam, but may take a day or two to show up on Origin and GOG.

    Other additions include new icons for a variety of items, new graphics settings for antialiasing, the ability to use lockpicks stored in the Stash, and a way to cast area-of-effect skills on party members by clicking on their portraits.

    Pillars of Eternity was released late last month, the product of a successful 2012 crowdfunding campaign that raised $4 million.

    You can see the full list of patch notes–which features a large number of bug fixes, balance changes, and reductions in “antelope feet sliding” (yup)–below, courtesy of Obsidian’s forums.

    “Big Ticket” Items

    • Bears and Cats can now be equipped with hats. This is most likely not a joke… but might be a joke.
    • Double-clicking to equip items was causing passive abilities to get removed from the character. This has been fixed and we were able to retroactively fix the problem for people that have already run into the issue. If you open your saved game in the latest patch, your characters will be repaired.
    • Fixed a problem where attributes on characters could permanently increase by equipping certain items. This will also retroactively fix the problem in saved games that have characters with this issue.
    • The crash in Raedric’s Hold has been fixed.
    • Fixed the looping audio sounds that can occur if you play with minimized tooltips.
    • Previously Wizard-summoned items could persist after the spell’s duration. This has been fixed and it will also retroactively fix the problem in saved games that have characters with this issue.
    • The items Drinking Horn of Moderation and Talisman of the Unconquerable were causing Ciphers to permanently lower their amount of focus gain. We’ve included a fix to retroactively resolve the issue on Ciphers but the effect is still on the items. Unfortunately the fix will not fix the broken effect on those items, so you’ll need to keep those items unequipped until the next patch. If you do equip them, perform a Save/Load to fix your Cipher.

    Features

    • Added graphics setting to toggle antialiasing levels. This can improve performance on lower end machines when disabled.
    • Added pro tips to the Glossary.
    • Many new icons for items.
    • Added new voice set reactivity for lockpick, poison, enemy spotted in stealth, spell failure, death, immobilized, and completed task.
    • Added indicators on the loot screen when looting crafting and quest items.
    • Party can now use lockpicks that are in the Stash.
    • You can now cast AoEs on party member portraits and the spell will be targeted at the companion’s location.

    Balance

    • Monk unarmed attack buffed by 1 point at the top end.
    • Arbalest damage has been lowered.
    • Fast melee weapons do slightly more damage.
    • Slight bump to sabre damage.
    • Tuned down Mind Blades.
    • Tuned ranges of many Wizard spells to be higher.
    • Slicken spell is now a single hit AoE.
    • Chill Fog is now a friend or foe spell.
    • Curse of Blackened Sight is now foe only.
    • Changed reload speed multiplier from 2 to 1.2 for Sure-Handed Ila.
    • Fixed the price on Seal of Faith.
    • Adjusted price on figurines.
    • Adjusted price on rings.
    • Tuned up the Goldrot Chew.
    • Reduced the penalties for Bonded Grief.
    • Tuned up Bulwark of the Elements.
    • Modified attributes of companions and Itumaak.
    • Raised the bonus for having fewer than six party members from 5% per character under the limit to 10% per character under the limit.
    • Added cooldown to NPC Rogue’s Escape ability usage so they won’t use it back to back.
    • Rebalanced fight difficulty and spell selection for the Old Watcher.
    • Lowered the scale of the Defiance Bay reputation by 15%.
    • Beloved Spirits adds 0.4 Endurance to Ancient Memory instead of 2.
    • Changed duration of the Flagellant’s Path defense penalty.
    • Adjustments to the Mantle of the Dying Boar.
    • Reduced the price of the Brighthollow Hearth and Courtyard Pool.
    • Heart of Fury will now apply to all damage types.
    • Tuned damage on Brilliant Radiance down.

    Systems

    • Fixed issue with Wizard’s summoned magical items getting stuck after save and load. Wizards will be restored to a proper state after loading a game.
    • Changed one of the fatigue status effects to not end with combat.
    • Fixed save game issues with spells and abilities that place down traps.
    • Fixed issue to prevent Ciphers from casting abilities without the required Focus.
    • Restored modal flag for Reckless Assault.
    • Set Transcendent Suffering to not be combat-only.
    • Fixed duration issue with Plague of Insects.
    • Fixed companion audio triggers for some status effects.
    • Hunting Bows had the wrong speed descriptor. They are now listed as Fast.
    • Character Hit Autopause option should be working as intended.
    • You can now close the Grimoire and Chant UI with a hotkey.
    • Fixed issue with summoning magic items while unarmed.
    • Fixed delay issue on Knockdown.
    • Fixed a few issues with Dominate and Charm spells.
    • Fixed a bad item mod on the Ring of Protection.
    • Fixed issue with the Terrible weapon mod.
    • Changed bad data in ranger summons.
    • Made Takedown to be consistent with Knockdown.
    • Fixed multiplier on Blooded.
    • Summoned weapons will be removed when Spiritshifting.
    • Fixed issue with bouncing reflected melee attacks.
    • Party members will no longer switch to different weapons after being Charmed or Dominated.
    • Ancient Memory is now Ally only.
    • A summoned weapon will not unequip the grimoire.
    • Fixed Spellstriking mod.
    • Fixed trigger count issue with the Prone reduction mod.
    • DOT spells should clean up properly when combat ends.
    • Fixed Deflection +10 mod.
    • All Exhortations are now combat-only.
    • Only play weapon ineffective VO if the attack is hostile.
    • Aggrandizing Radiance will now last until combat ends.
    • Holy Radiance is now combat-only.
    • Carnage now works better.

    Quests

    • Fixed issues with factions and super friend quests with Lady Webb’s dialogue.
    • Adjusted trigger in front of the Salty Mast to fix a possible way to skip a required cutscene.
    • Fixed issue with the Winds of Steel quest line.
    • Fixed a trigger outside the First Fires Keep that could have been avoided.
    • Many fixes to music, audio, and VFX to a scene near the end of the game.
    • The prybar should now display the correct image in the Raedric’s Hold moat scripted interaction.
    • Changed faction on the Hall of Warrior’s containers.
    • Fixed scripted music for the forge knight combats in the keep.
    • Visual effects in the introduction cutscene should now be triggered properly.
    • Fixed conversation of the guards in Raedric’s Hold to not repeat.
    • Added cape and armor to the loot for the Fampyr boss.
    • Fix to Osrya’s starting timer not being attached to the trigger in the area.

    UI

    • Fixed sound issue when collapsing the tutorial UI.
    • Fixed issue with double clicking items to equip. This is a retroactive fix and will restore characters with proper stats.
    • Fixed issue where camping supplies were disappearing when added to Stash.
    • Cage Cursor setting should not turn off after loading a scene or cutscene and is now on by default.
    • Fixed cropping on a few portraits.
    • Fixed issue with highlighting dead bodies and containers in the fog of war.
    • Fixed item stacking issue that was stacking items inappropriately.
    • Reduced the intensity of the explored fog of war on the area map, and fixed an issue where the shadow layer was causing the area map to be darker than it should be.
    • Small UI updates to the journal screen.
    • Reworked the enchanting UI to work better with multiple lines.
    • Fixed UI sorting issue in store.
    • Fixed UI sorting in crafting menu.
    • Fixes to Capitular glyphs in end-game slides.
    • Fixed issue with stronghold alert widgets not hiding properly.
    • Fixed an issue with weapon mods were incorrectly being displayed in some cases.
    • Drag select should work properly when starting the drag over an enemy.
    • Fixed a few issues with drag select and formation rotation causing issues when the mouse goes over UI elements.
    • Fixed some control issues with holding down keys.
    • Shot on the Run recovery value should be now displayed correctly.
    • Fixed issues to how the HUD fades out during conversations.
    • When the party receives or loses items, those log messages now go to both logs.
    • Cleaned up the character sheet formatting and made more items clickable.
    • Store item names can now take up two lines.
    • Spells now show DT bypass in the description.
    • Consumables now show per-Rest and per-Encounter usage limitations.

    Other Fixes

    • Fixed stats issue with saving and loading on the same map where a companion is found. This is a retroactive fix and will restore companions and characters to the proper state.
    • Fixed issues with save games in Raedric’s Hold, causing the game to not function correctly or freeze.
    • Ranger Animal Companions should not disappear anymore and broken animals will be restored after loading and saving the game.
    • Fixed possible issues with disappearing items and weapons.
    • Minor fixes to a few select voice over lines.
    • Fixed size issues with equipped capes on Godlike characters.
    • Changed Explorer achievement to check for 152 maps rather than 160.
    • Fixed many issues where combat would not end properly.
    • Updated credits with more backer names.
    • Updated paperdoll level up lighting.
    • Scripted music should now be restored properly after loading a game.
    • Updated Temple of Eothas render.
    • Fixed some rendering issues with Fog of War on some areas.
    • Fixed sounds on movie that plays near end of game.
    • Reduced antelope feet sliding.
    • Fixed issue with weapon caching causing issues when weapons are swapped.
    • Interstitial music no longer loops.
    • Fixed issue where party members could take damage in cutscenes.
    • Fixed voice cues during looting for full inventory.
    • Fixed transparency on ghost characters.
    • Fixed issues with cutscene pathfinding if the game’s process is halted.
    • Fixed issue with Expert mode settings getting saved improperly.
    • Fixed issue where characters were not properly stopping at the last waypoint of their path.
    • Adjusted Skuldr scream vocals.
    • We now handle some edge cases in resolution management on some hardware configurations.
    • Fixed issue with the party member Knockout achievement not reporting the correct numbers.

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  • Bungie Banning "Toxic" Destiny Players

    Bungie Banning "Toxic" Destiny Players

    Bungie continues its ongoing support of Destiny this week with a range of new tweaks meant to improve the overall online experience. User research lead John Hopson explained in the latest Bungie Weekly Update that part of this effort is banning “toxic” players from matchmaking.

    “In Destiny’s community, the efforts of a dedicated player can have a huge impact on the experience of hundreds or thousands of other players,” Hopson said. “Most of the time, this is awesome. When someone is willing to put in the time as a Raid sherpa, a clan leader, or a forum moderator, we all benefit and Destiny comes a little bit closer to its potential as a shared world.”

    However, Hopson added that there are players who “put in that same level of monomaniacal effort into being jerks.” Bungie has long been aware of the negative power of players who sit idle in Destiny Strikes or PvP, but is now taking steps to eradicate the worst offenders.

    “It’s become clear that a small number of the worst idlers are responsible for damaging the experiences of thousands of other players,” he said. “One player not contributing in an activity might seem like a small thing, but it can make a Weekly Heroic Strike unbeatable or make a Crucible match unwinnable. Those little bits of damage to the experiences other players adds up over time.”

    To address the issue, Bungie this week “restricted a small number of the most toxic players from matchmaking.” Bungie isn’t banning these players outright, as the restrictions applied to offending players are only temporary and apply specifically to the activities where they were “chronically idle.”

    However, Bungie said if these Destiny players don’t shape up, the developer won’t be afraid to wield the banhammer. “If the affected players keep up this behavior after the restrictions lapse, we will apply stronger and (eventually) permanent restrictions on their accounts,” Hopson explained.

    This new policy probably doesn’t apply to you, Hopson clarified. Putting down the controller to answer the the phone or get to the door to pay the pizza delivery person won’t lead to a ban. Only the people who have “really gone out of their way to repeatedly cheat their teammates” will feel the force of Bungie’s banhammer, the developer explained.

    As always, Destiny players can utilize the game’s reporting system to inform Bungie of bad eggs.

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  • Bloodborne Boss Guide: How to Beat Mergo's Wet Nurse

    Recommended Level: 65

    Your prior experience with being on the receiving end of scythes will determine how intimidated you’ll feel during this boss fight.

    Your best bet is to keep your distance and lure the Wet Nurse into gliding toward you. Assuming you have the lock-on activated, roll towards the Wet Nurse during its glide. With the right timing, you should be able to roll right through its attack. This will leave the Wet Nurse open to a series of your own melee hits, at least as much as your stamina bar is willing to allow.

    Many of the Wet Nurse’s attacks are easy to counter with the Regain System. Furthermore, walking toward and away from the Wet Nurse will lure it into using melee attacks, some of which will leave this boss open to a few quick hits. The one attack you should step back from is its full body uppercut. You can anticipate this attack by watching for when the Wet Nurse slowly rotates clockwise.

    This is a fight that rewards assertiveness, not only because of the Regain System, but also to distract the Wet Nurse into delaying the use of its dark fog ability. Not only does the Wet Nurse become partially concealed in fog, but it also conjures an equally lethal doppelganger. This is not the time for caution. The more you attack the Wet Nurse, the sooner the fog disappears.

    Back to our Bloodborne Boss Guide.

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  • Microsoft's E3 Showing Won't Be All About VR and AR

    Microsoft's E3 Showing Won't Be All About VR and AR

    Virtual reality technology has been a major talking point so far in 2015. And although Microsoft is involved in that space with HoloLens, the company isn’t going all-in on that front at E3 this summer.

    Head of Xbox Phil Spencer recently addressed the matter on Twitter.

    @bleedsoe9mm Our E3 will not be all about VR and AR. I promise.

    — Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) April 2, 2015

    It’s possible Microsoft may talk about HoloLens in some form during its E3 briefing. After all, the company has openly stated that the technology does have gaming potential.

    E3 2015 runs June 16-18 in Los Angeles. Of course we don’t know yet what will be announced, but we are expecting some news about the Gears of War franchise and Halo 5: Guardians.

    HoloLens–an augmented reality technology–is “something different” than Oculus and Project Morpheus, Microsoft said previously. Interestingly, Spencer also recently said that Microsoft has not ruled out developing its own dedicated virtual reality technology some day.

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  • Bloodborne Boss Guide: How to Beat The One Reborn

    Recommended Level: 60

    The One Reborn is a big boss, but one with enough surface area to make it a very easy target. Make your way to its base, but feel free to melee attack its outer limbs along the way. Its fireballs are a nuisance, but aren’t so harmful that you can’t just recover health using the Regain System while you continue to pummel The One Reborn’s base.

    When you’ve reduced its health to about 30%, listen for a growl from The One Reborn. You must roll away from it or else you’ll be caught in a painful shockwave. Continue to keep your distance because it will most likely follow up that shockwave with a series of rapid foot stomps. You can resume your close-quarters attacks after this temper tantrum.

    Back to our Bloodborne Boss Guide.

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  • Bloodborne Boss Guide: How to Beat Micolash, Host of the Nightmare

    Recommended Level: 60

    Don’t let Micolash’s cowardly evasive tactics get to you. Locking on is recommended to track him through the map’s hallways and mist. At the same time, don’t worry about catching up to him; he’ll eventually wind up in a more manageable space. Feel free to ignore his minions unless they’re constantly distracting you while you deal rapid melee blows against Micolash. Be sure to keep your distance when you’re regaining stamina and health as he tends to unleash a far-reaching tentacle attack.

    At 50% health, Micolash will run away again, leading you to a new part of the map. He’ll temporary elude you by shutting a gate between the two of you. If you explore the upper areas well enough, you’ll come across a room with a ledge leading to a long drop. Rather than pointlessly jumping, turn toward the doorway on the right. There you’ll find the open ceiling leading to Micolash. Now would be a good time to make an entrance with a falling attack.

    In this last phase of the battle, there are no minions to worry about, but Micolash has a new attack in the form of a multi-beam salvo. Either have enough health to suffer the attack or be ready to dodge roll. The rest of his moves should be familiar to you by now. The shortened version of your melee weapon should beat out Micolash’s own melee moves. Again, just be sure to keep your distance when recovering stamina.

    Back to our Bloodborne Boss Guide.

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  • Bloodborne Boss Guide: How to Beat Amygdala

    Recommended Level: 60

    Between Amygdala’s grapple moves and potent laser attacks, this boss may seem like a frustrating handful. But on the contrary, this is one of the more straightforward boss fights in Bloodborne, with no major tactical shifts mid-battle.

    The key is to focus on its tail and hind legs, although any of its other body parts are worth hitting if you’re close enough. Amygdala’s jump is an obvious sign its aiming to body slam you, so simply roll away from your current position. Same goes for any time it lifts any of its hind legs.

    Back to our Bloodborne Boss Guide.

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  • Uncensored Binding of Isaac Coming to Xbox One, Wii U, New 3DS

    Uncensored Binding of Isaac Coming to Xbox One, Wii U, New 3DS

    The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth, the latest game from Super Meat Boy co-developer Edmund McMillen, is in development for Xbox One, Wii U, and the New Nintendo 3DS. McMillen originally announced the news yesterday, which was April Fools’ Day, with some taking it as a joke. However, it’s actually happening.

    “So for those that only read headlines, Binding of Isaac Rebirth is FOR SURE coming to Wii U, new 3DS, & Xbox One soonish!” he wrote on Twitter. Attached was a Vine of the New 3DS version (see below).

    Meanwhile, Binding of Isaac producer Tyrone Rodriguez said in his own tweet that the game will not be censored at all when it launches on the new platforms.

    “The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth for new 3DS, Wii U, or Xbox One is not censored in any way,” he said.

    In February 2012, McMillen said Nintendo blocked The Binding of Isaac from launching for the 3DS not because of its M-for-Mature rating, but rather due to its “questionable religious content.”

    The Binding of Isaac sees players controlling a child who must escape the clutches of his mother, who is out to kill him after the voice of God commands a sacrifice.

    It appears Nintendo has been able to get past whatever objections about The Binding of Isaac it originally had.

    The Binding of Isaac was originally released in 2011 for PC. A remake of the game, Rebirth, launched in 2014 for PC, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation Vita. For more on the title, check out GameSpot’s review of The Binding of Isaac.

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  • Titanfall DLC Maps Added to Regular Playlists

    Titanfall DLC Maps Added to Regular Playlists

    Now that all Titanfall DLC maps are free forever, developer Respawn Entertainment has merged them into almost every playlist in an effort to improve the overall matchmaking experience.

    Respawn programmer announced the news on Twitter.

    GameSpot checked the Xbox One edition of Titanfall today and found that DLC maps are now in rotation for the playlists printed below. The same should be true for the PC and Xbox 360 editions of the game.

    • Attrition
    • Marked for Death Pro
    • Frontier Defense
    • Hardpoint
    • Marked for Death
    • Capture the Flag
    • Wingman LTS
    • Last Titan Standing
    • Pilot Skirmish (8v8)
    • Pilot Hunter
    • Deadly Ground — Variety Pack

    Last month, Respawn co-founder Vince Zampella confirmed that the studio had started work on a “multiplatform” Titanfall sequel, suggesting it will come to both Xbox and PlayStation platforms. He also said at the time that Respawn had formed a second internal team to work on “small, exploratory” projects.

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  • Battlefield Hardline Patch Will Nerf Deadly Couch

    Battlefield Hardline Patch Will Nerf Deadly Couch

    The first patch for Visceral’s recently released Battlefield Hardline will reduce the effectiveness of the multiplayer shooter’s deadly couch Easter egg. Apparently, the couch was actually proving to be reliably useful to some players, and not a throwaway joke vehicle as Visceral had intended.

    That’s all changing with Hardline’s first patch. Per the official patch notes:

    “Couch health reduced and repair rate decreased to a miniscule amount, making the Couch the one-off it was intended.”

    The couch, called “The American Dream,” can be found in Hotwire mode on the Dust Bowl map. It spawns in one of several different locations, but only a single time per round–once it’s been destroyed, it’s gone until the next game begins. However, it can be repaired.

    Hardline’s upcoming patch also makes a variety of bug fixes and general gameplay changes. The full patch notes are printed below.

    The patch will be deployed in the “near future,” though a specific launch date was not announced. Hardline is available now for Xbox One, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, and PC.

    BUG FIXES:

    • Fixed a server crash in Rescue
    • Increased the character limit in the MapList to support up to 150 maps in a rotation
    • You can now set the time limit to 0 and it disables the time limit instead of instantly ending the round in Blood Money
    • Various fixes for server crashes with rental servers (multiple issues addressed)
    • Fix for the timer in Conquest freezing when the user set the time limit higher than 800
    • Fix for MP squad join issue where after the squad leader gets disconnected, a new leader cannot kick members or disband
    • Fix for the patch awarded in released game for reaching Rank 10 in the Beta
    • Fix for Derailed Levolution where players were teleported to origin of Point B and killed in some circumstances
    • Fix for crash if the UI is disabled in the .cfg file
    • Fix for Bloodmoney exploit in HH where players could access the money pile through the floor/roof
    • Fix on XB1 for players using invite/join on friend after Quickmatching
    • Fix for the Uzi’s weapon license cost, setting it to the correct value of $50,000
    • Fix for X360 players being unable to invite friends while playing Rescue
    • Fix for a rare crash in the Customize screen
    • All platforms, miscellaneous low frequency crash fixes

    GAMEPLAY CHANGES:

    • Conquest tickets increased (CQL 999, CQS 600)
    • Greatly decreased nearby bullet impact flinch; your aimpoint will not shift from rounds striking the environment near you
    • Fixed some issues with FLIR/IRNV
    • RPG reduced to 1 ammo from back of cars, with smaller explosion radius overall thus requiring more skill to use effectively
    • TDM friendzones have been adjusted for better spawning
    • Rescue / Crosshair exploit where players could skip the round start time by hitting START or ESC has been fixed
    • Couch health reduced and repair rate decreased to a miniscule amount, making the Couch the one-off it was intended
    • Player should no longer Quickmatch into servers with unsupported numbers of players
    • K10: Reduce max damage to 33 and min damage to 8
    • Saiga and PTR: reduce recoil to bring more in line with Cop faction DMRs
    • HCAR and HK51: reduce recoil to bring more in line with SCAR-H and SA-58
    • .410 Jury: Increase damage per pellet to become more effective
    • FMG-9: increase damage per round to 25 and push out falloff start range to make these weapons more effective
    • Battlerifle min damage increased to 25 across the board
    • AKM min damage reduced to 24

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