Earlier today on July 15, Blizzard published a brand new list of patch notes for Overwatch 2 over on the game’s official website (opens in new tab). This new patch seems to be aimed at Tank characters in particular, as Doomfist, Orisa, and Junker Queen have all seen changes to some degree.

For example, Junker Queen’s Commanding Shout ability has seen its radius reduced from 20 to 15 meters, and Orisa’s movement speed with the Javelin Spin ability has been increased from 40 to 50 percent. Elsewhere, Doomfist’s Rocket Punch ability now deals damage to all enemies knocked back by the ability, instead of only just the first target hit.

Additionally, Junker Queen’s Rampage ability has seen its radius reduced from six to five meters, and Orisa’s Fortify ability now disables critical damage. Finally, Doomfist’s Power Block ability has seen its speed penalty while blocking reduced from 50 to 35 percent, and the minimum damage mitigated to empower Rocket Punch has now been decreased from 100 to 90 damage.

Tanks might be the broad focus of this new patch for Overwatch 2’s Beta, but the patch has also hit Symmetra, Sojourn, and Zenyatta. The former has seen the Teleporter ability cooldown reduced from 16 to 12 seconds, while the latter has had his overall shield health reduced from 175 points to 150. Meanwhile, Sojourn’s Railgun fire rate has been reduced from 15 to 14 shots per second.

This is actually the second Overwatch 2 Beta patch this week, as a few days ago, Mercy’s Guardian Angel “super jump” ability was finally fixed with a new update. Elsewhere in the same patch, Moira actually got a full rework, seeing her Biotic Orb ability actually turned into separate abilities, each with different cooldown periods.

Check out our full Overwatch 2 beta impressions to see what we made so far of Blizzard’s upcoming sequel. 

The post Latest Overwatch patch targets tanks appeared first on Game News.

Square Enix has posted a brand new developer interview blog to their official website (opens in new tab), this time focusing on Final Fantasy 7 Remake’s fifth chapter with those who helped create the RPG. In the game itself, this is a chapter where the player can control a variety of characters in battle, including Cloud, Tifa, Barrett, and Aerith.

When asked if Tifa was a difficult character to balance for the remake, Teruki Endo, battle director for Final Fantasy 7 Remake, confirmed as much. “It was comparatively easy to differentiate Cloud, Barret, and Aerith,” Endo explains. “But we had to think extremely hard about what defining characteristics we should give Tifa,” the battle director continued. 

However, Endo believes Square Enix ultimately succeeded in giving added depth to Tifa in the remake’s combat system, by tying her abilities to the ‘Burst’ system. This core pillar of Final Fantasy 7 Remake’s combat governs how much damage enemies can take before they’re stunned, and Tifa has key abilities that massively boost the amount of stagger damage dealt to an enemy.

In our Final Fantasy 7 Remake review from 2020, we heaped praise upon the remake’s overhauled combat system, writing that the combat was “satisfyingly varied” thanks chiefly to each character feeling distinctly different and entertaining to play. Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, the sequel to Remake and part two of a planned trilogy, should keep the party-based combat going when it arrives next year in Winter 2023. 

Here’s why the Final Fantasy 7: Crisis Core Reunion remaster is a must-play ahead of Rebirth launching near the end of next year. 

The post Tifas fighting style was the hardest to build for Final Fantasy 7 Remake appeared first on Game News.

Yesterday on July 12, Twitter account Centro Leaks (opens in new tab) provided a slate of leaked information for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, slated to launch later this year. As DualShockers (opens in new tab) points out, the Twitter account has provided accurate information pertaining to the Pokemon games over the last few years, particularly on Pokemon Legends Arceus.

You might recall that Pokemon Scarlet and Violet fans previously speculated that the new world of the Gen 9 game was in fact based on Spain. The Pokemon Company has never commented on this speculation, but according to Centro Leaks, the new world in question is actually called Paldea.

Now for some slightly wackier leaks. The leaker claims that Pokemon will time travel in Scarlet and Violet, but the player character won’t, and that there’ll be a new “gimmick” similar to that of Mega Evolutions featured in Pokemon Sword and Shield. This has lead some to speculate that the new “gimmick” mentioned here will involve Pokemon time travelling.

Finally, it’s claimed that there’ll be over 400 Pokemon in the PokeDex featured in both new games, and that Pokemon Scarlet and Violet will feature three cities and nine towns in total. Already, newcomers to the PokeDex have gained fame with fans online, including Lechonk the pig, and new starter Sprigatito to name but two.

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet launches later this year on November 12. Oh, and they both star conventionally attractive professors that the internet is already obsessing over. 

Check out our Pokemon Scarlet and Violet PokeDex guide for a full look over all the confirmed creatures so far. 

The post Pokemon Scarlet and Violet leaker claims new world details and battle gimmicks appeared first on Game News.

The Walking Dead: Last Mile kicked off on July 11, 2022, and is available to take part in for free. All you need is a Facebook account. The next chapter in The Walking Dead series sees players tune into a daily, choice-based narrative experience which is set to take place over the course of the next four months. 

Being developed in collaboration with Genvid Entertainment, Skybound Entertainment, and of course Meta, the idea of the project is that it isn’t quite a game, isn’t quite a TV show, it’s somewhere in between. Players can create avatars to join the universe and make decisions about the adventure unfolding in front of them. The story will also be explored through a series of live streams which are being hosted by actors Yvette Nicole Brown and Felicia Day.

One of the appeals of The Walking Dead: Last Mile (opens in new tab) is that it actually does exist within the wider The Walking Dead universe. So whatever the story’s outcome turns out to be in a few months’ time, it will technically line up with the story from the original The Walking Dead comics. It’s also pretty simple to get involved, all you need is access to either the desktop site or the Facebook app on mobile to join in. 

There’s been a tonne of other The Walking Dead games over the years from mobile games, FPS games, choice-based games, and more. Aside from The Walking Dead: Last Mile though, we’ve also got another The Walking Dead game to look forward to as The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners gets a sequel for PSVR 2 later this year.

If you’re looking for something else to play, take a look at our best zombie games list. 

The post New The Walking Dead game will last four months and take place on Facebook appeared first on Game News.

A photo of the ad was shared by @PushDustIn (opens in new tab) on Twitter (thanks, Nintendo Life (opens in new tab)!) and contains information about the base game as well as its DLC – with only one out of six booster passes revealed. 

The replies to the tweet point out (opens in new tab) that the poster instructs the 7-Eleven employees to take the poster down on July 17, 2022. Of course, this could mean nothing. But it could also mean that the poster will be out of date by that time, perhaps due to another booster pass being revealed around that time?  

7-11 is advertising the course pack (note that it says you double the number of courses in Japanese, nothing about wave 2). I think we should see a reveal sooner than later. pic.twitter.com/qpRtTBiUdpJuly 9, 2022

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Although this does feel like a little bit of a stretch, it’s worth noting that this wouldn’t be the first time it’s happened. Also spotted by @PushDustin (opens in new tab) a few of years ago, 7-Eleven in Japan also had an advertisement for Banjo-Kazooie joining Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Just like in this instance, Banjo’s ad was instructed to be taken down by September 15, 2019, and Banjo got added into the Nintendo fighter on September 4, 2019. 

If you haven’t been keeping up with the latest on Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, here’s what you’ve missed: it was revealed back in February that – instead of Mario Kart 9 like we were all hoping for – Nintendo’s fan-favourite racer will be getting 48 new tracks in the form of DLC. We’ve already had wave 1 (as of March 2022) which gave us classic courses such a Coconut Mall, Chocco Mountain, Sky Garden, and more.

The good news is, it’s actually really easy to get a hold of these new tracks as the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC is available as part of the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack membership. Which, if you’re also a fan of Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Splatoon 2, and classic consoles such as the N64 and Sega Megadrive, is well worth the investment. 

Wondering if the DLC is worth a go? Find out why the first wave of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Course Pass tracks has left me wanting more.

The post 7-Eleven ad in Japan has fans theorizing that Mario Kart 8 Deluxe wave 2 could be here soon appeared first on Game News.

Breath of the Wild’s Guardians are probably the most obnoxious enemies in the game. It’s not that they’re particularly hard – once you get the hang of the shield parry, they’re a breeze to kill – it’s just that they can’t always be ignored, forcing you to stop what you’re doing, equip a disposable shield, and dispatch them just so you can carry on with whatever you were doing. And heaven forbid you mess up the timing and get hit by their laser beam, which knocks you down and does a heck of a lot of damage for such a common enemy.

Anyway, the next time you’re out in the wild and come across one of these suckers, perhaps try taking a page from Redditor DonkeyKindly7310, who’s made it their mission to kill a Guardian in a different way “until it’s over the top.” The first day (opens in new tab), they employed the tried-and-true shield method described just above, which the player notes will work just fine even using a pot lid on Master Mode. The second day (opens in new tab) of their campaign showcased another popular method: shoot ’em in the eye until they die.

The third day is where things take a turn toward the unconventional, which of course is where things get really fun. In this clip, you can see the player use stasis to freeze a steel crate and then whack at it a bunch of times with a boulder breaker before shooting it with an arrow. When the stasis effect ends, the crate ploughs into an unsuspecting Guardian at such a velocity that its legs go all wonky and stretchy. A few seconds later you can see the Guardian hurling through the air toward infinity.

how_to_defeat_a_guardian_day_3_statis_steel_box from r/Breath_of_the_Wild

The third method (opens in new tab) shows another quick and efficient way to take down Guardians without having to potentially break a good shield. The most recent video, however, might be the most amusing. Here, the player toys around with Guardians like they’re play things, and toward the end you almost feel bad for the octopods… almost. 

Check it out:

how_to_defeat_a_guardian_day_5_guardians_arent from r/Breath_of_the_Wild

Who knows how long this can go on? DonkeyKindly says they have 10 videos recorded, which means another five videos are already in the bag, ready to be released. Hopefully we’ll see even more than that as they continue experimenting with those Guardians’ poor, worthless lives… Is that too far?

In the meantime, watch this Breath of the Wild speedrunner beat every shrine without using runes.

The post Breath of the Wild player aims to find a new way to beat a Guardian every day appeared first on Game News.

“We don’t take the decision to retire services for older Ubisoft games lightly, and our teams are currently assessing all available options for players who will be impacted when these games’ online services are decommissioned on September 1st, 2022,” Ubisoft told GamesRadar+ in a statement. 

“We are also working with our partners to update this information across all storefronts, so players will be fully informed about the removal of online services at the point of purchase as well as via our support article where we shared the news,” the company continued. 

“Only DLCs and online features will be affected by the upcoming decommissioning,” Ubisoft elaborates. “Current owners of those games will still be able to access, play or redownload them. Our teams are working with our partners to update this information across all storefronts and are also assessing all available options for players who will be impacted when these games’ online services are decommissioned on September 1st, 2022.”

Original: Multiple Ubisoft games on Steam have either been delisted, or will be delisted come September.

Just earlier today on July 11, social media users reported that Assassin’s Creed Liberation HD would be removed from Steam later this year. A new notice on Steam stated that the game would be entirely delisted from the storefront on September 1, and would no longer be available to purchase or play after this date.

Now, the same thing appears to be happening to multiple other Ubisoft games. Both Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands (opens in new tab) and Splinter Cell Blacklist (opens in new tab) have both been amended with the same tag on Steam, notifying players that their Deluxe editions and all corresponding DLC will be delisted on September 1.

In fact, some Ubisoft games have already been delisted from Steam. Silent Hunter 5: Battle of the Atlantic (opens in new tab) and Space Junkies (opens in new tab) have been entirely taken down from the PC storefront, with a notice reading “At the request of the publisher, Space Junkies/Silent Hunter 5: Battle of the Atlantic is no longer available for sale on Steam.”

Right now, there’s zero information as to why these five games in total are being delisted on Steam. However, the notices for Space Junkies and Silent Hunter 5 make it clear that it’s Ubisoft themselves, and not another third party, that are behind the delistings. We’ve reached out to Ubisoft for comment, and will update this article with any further information received. 

Head over to our new games 2022 guide for a complete look at what Ubisoft and every other developer has on the horizon for the near future. 

The post Ubisoft confirms only DLC and online features will be affected by Steam delistings appeared first on Game News.

Breath of the Wild’s Guardians are probably the most obnoxious enemies in the game. It’s not that they’re particularly hard – once you get the hang of the shield parry, they’re a breeze to kill – it’s just that they can’t always be ignored, forcing you to stop what you’re doing, equip a disposable shield, and dispatch them just so you can carry on with whatever you were doing. And heaven forbid you mess up the timing and get hit by their laser beam, which knocks you down and does a heck of a lot of damage for such a common enemy.

Anyway, the next time you’re out in the wild and come across one of these suckers, perhaps try taking a page from Redditor DonkeyKindly7310, who’s made it their mission to kill a Guardian in a different way “until it’s over the top.” The first day (opens in new tab), they employed the tried-and-true shield method described just above, which the player notes will work just fine even using a pot lid on Master Mode. The second day (opens in new tab) of their campaign showcased another popular method: shoot ’em in the eye until they die.

The third day is where things take a turn toward the unconventional, which of course is where things get really fun. In this clip, you can see the player use stasis to freeze a steel crate and then whack at it a bunch of times with a boulder breaker before shooting it with an arrow. When the stasis effect ends, the crate ploughs into an unsuspecting Guardian at such a velocity that its legs go all wonky and stretchy. A few seconds later you can see the Guardian hurling through the air toward infinity.

how_to_defeat_a_guardian_day_3_statis_steel_box from r/Breath_of_the_Wild

The third method (opens in new tab) shows another quick and efficient way to take down Guardians without having to potentially break a good shield. The most recent video, however, might be the most amusing. Here, the player toys around with Guardians like they’re play things, and toward the end you almost feel bad for the octopods… almost. 

Check it out:

how_to_defeat_a_guardian_day_5_guardians_arent from r/Breath_of_the_Wild

Who knows how long this can go on? DonkeyKindly says they have 10 videos recorded, which means another five videos are already in the bag, ready to be released. Hopefully we’ll see even more than that as they continue experimenting with those Guardians’ poor, worthless lives… Is that too far?

In the meantime, watch this Breath of the Wild speedrunner beat every shrine without using runes.

The post Breath of the Wild player aims to find a new way to beat a Guardian every day appeared first on Game News.

As revealed by the achievement tracker website Exophase (opens in new tab) (via Push Square (opens in new tab)), the Annapurna title will have 25 trophies, some of which require you to tap into your inner feline to obtain.

According to the list of trophies, Stray will have not just one, but four cat behavior-related trophies. The most interesting of these is the silver trophy ‘A Little Chatty’ which players can only unlock after meowing as the ginger protagonist over 100 times. Which is about the same amount of times a real-life cat would meow when you’re taking too long with its dinner.

The next of these cat-related trophies is another silver one called ‘Productive Day’ which requires players to sleep for more than one hour, which should be easy for a cat. 

Further down in the list, we’ve also got the bronze trophy ‘No More Lives’ which, you guessed it, can only be obtained after players die nine times in the game. The final trophy worth a mention is the silver ‘Territory’ trophy that requires players to scratch something in every chapter of the game. 

In other Stray news, as also pointed out by Push Square (opens in new tab) (via Orbis Patches (opens in new tab)), the developer behind the feline adventure game, BlueTwelve Studio, has recently uploaded a day one patch to Sony’s servers. The patch contains all the usual improvements and fixes, but also a couple of cat-specific additions too. The patch notes include: “A LOT of collision fixes, naughty cat!” and “some Meows have been totally re-meowed.”

Stray is set to release on PS4, PS5, and PC on July 19, 2022. It will also be available to play for free to PS Plus Extra or PS Plus Premium subscribers. There’s clearly a lot of hype surrounding this game as Stray recently clawed its way up to the top of Steam’s most wishlisted games list, pushing post-apocalyptic MMO The Day Before to second place.

Just can’t get enough of animals in games? From Ghost of Tsushima to Stray, how devs design the most realistic in-game animals. 

The post Feline adventure Stray offers a trophy for taking an hour-long nap appeared first on Game News.

“We don’t take the decision to retire services for older Ubisoft games lightly, and our teams are currently assessing all available options for players who will be impacted when these games’ online services are decommissioned on September 1st, 2022,” Ubisoft told GamesRadar+ in a statement. 

“We are also working with our partners to update this information across all storefronts, so players will be fully informed about the removal of online services at the point of purchase as well as via our support article where we shared the news,” the company continued. 

“Only DLCs and online features will be affected by the upcoming decommissioning,” Ubisoft elaborates. “Current owners of those games will still be able to access, play or redownload them. Our teams are working with our partners to update this information across all storefronts and are also assessing all available options for players who will be impacted when these games’ online services are decommissioned on September 1st, 2022.”

Original: Multiple Ubisoft games on Steam have either been delisted, or will be delisted come September.

Just earlier today on July 11, social media users reported that Assassin’s Creed Liberation HD would be removed from Steam later this year. A new notice on Steam stated that the game would be entirely delisted from the storefront on September 1, and would no longer be available to purchase or play after this date.

Now, the same thing appears to be happening to multiple other Ubisoft games. Both Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands (opens in new tab) and Splinter Cell Blacklist (opens in new tab) have both been amended with the same tag on Steam, notifying players that their Deluxe editions and all corresponding DLC will be delisted on September 1.

In fact, some Ubisoft games have already been delisted from Steam. Silent Hunter 5: Battle of the Atlantic (opens in new tab) and Space Junkies (opens in new tab) have been entirely taken down from the PC storefront, with a notice reading “At the request of the publisher, Space Junkies/Silent Hunter 5: Battle of the Atlantic is no longer available for sale on Steam.”

Right now, there’s zero information as to why these five games in total are being delisted on Steam. However, the notices for Space Junkies and Silent Hunter 5 make it clear that it’s Ubisoft themselves, and not another third party, that are behind the delistings. We’ve reached out to Ubisoft for comment, and will update this article with any further information received. 

Head over to our new games 2022 guide for a complete look at what Ubisoft and every other developer has on the horizon for the near future. 

The post Ubisoft confirms only DLC and online features will be affected by Steam delistings appeared first on Game News.