Steve Thomas - IT Consultant

Fortnite's Battle Pass rewards will no longer be exclusive and will instead be made available to purchase in the future.

That's according to Epic Games, who shared the new changes in a new blog post where it explained that items will be made available at a later date but "might be offered purchase in the Fortnite Shop after 18 or more months from the Battle Pass’ expiration."

"This change lets us continue investing in new and exciting Battle Pass rewards while enabling players down the road to also enjoy the content, including Outfits based on popular licensed characters," the developer said.

Epic clarified in the FAQ that all types of items will be made eligible for purchase later on, including Outfits, Back Blings, Pickaxes, Emotes, Instruments, Decals, Wraps, Loading Screens, Banner Icons, and more, but reiterates that players will need to wait "at least" 18 months after a Battle Pass expires.

In addition, the number of alternative styles per item will also vary each time they are added to the shop. Epic explained that if rewards are added to the shop, with alternative styles, there will be an option to purchase them, but this does not include Lego Styles.

"If an item has a LEGO Style, this Style will always come with the item in the Shop," Epic said.

It stated, however, that not all items are guaranteed to come to the in-game shop after 18 months, saying: "Shop selection is dependent on a variety of factors, and there is no guarantee that a Battle Pass item will come to the Shop after this change goes into effect."

It added that if an item in a future Battle Pass will never be available at a later date it will inform players.

As for bonus and quest rewards, these "may be available for purchase", also at least 18 months after a Battle Pass expires, along with earnable items from Battle Pass Quests that unlock sometime after the Battle Pass launches.

Epic Games confirmed it will not be changing the price of the Fortnite Battle Pass despite the new changes, and will still cost 950 V-Bucks.

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Larian Studios has shared brand new Baldur's Gate 3 statistics to celebrate the game's first anniversary.

The developer revealed the stats in a series of X / Twitter posts, showing the many ways players have contributed to their playthrough's one year after the launch of the popular role-playing game.

There's plenty to sort through, but one of the more notable stats comes in regards to the game's Honour Mode. According to Larian, only 141,600 players have beaten the permadeath mode, while 1,223,305 playthroughs were unsuccessful. 

Baldur's Gate 3 is known for its memorable companions, and even lets you play the game from their perspectives as one of the Origin characters. Astarion, in particular, has proven to be one of the most popular, with 1.21 million players choosing to play as the vampire. He's followed closely by Gale at 1.20 million, with Shadowheart taking third place at 86 million.

However, as Larian points out, over 93% of players chose to play as their very own custom character, while only 15% picked Dark Urge.

Romance is also a massive part of any playthrough as Larian notes a staggering 75 million kisses across all companions. Overall, it seems that Shadowheart has captured everyone's heart, as she leads with 27 million kisses, followed by 15 million for Astarion. Minthara is apparently the least popular, only garnering 169,937 kisses from players. 

Larian also made it a point to share some less than conventional romance stats, too. While not the most popular companion, it's revealed that 658,000 players slept with the druid Halsin, 70% in his human form, while 30% chose his bear form.

As for the Emperor, 1.1 million players romanced the Mind flayer, although 37% chose to stick to their tentacle form.

There are plenty of other highlights, but one of the more shocking stats comes at the end of the thread. Only 34 players who played as Lae'zel chose to kill themselves at the end of the game after Vlaakith rejected their ascension, which Larian's publishing director Michael Douse found quite funny. 

Despite the game's massive success and numerous game of the year awards, Larian has confirmed that it is moving away from the Baldur's Gate series to focus on other projects.

This also means that the RPG won't receive any expansions in the future, but a final major content patch for the game will be dropping next month.

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The Nintendo Switch is likely to outsell the PlayStation 2 in terms of lifetime sales in the US.

That's according to Mat Piscatella, a  video game industry analyst at Circana. In a post to X / Twitter, Piscatella wrote: "In the US, PS5 is still 7% ahead of PS4 LTD and Switch is only 1.1M units behind PlayStation 2 in lifetime sales."

He adds that things aren't looking too bad for Xbox Series consoles, either, saying they're "holding close to Xbox 360's LTD pace (and will get a CF25 boost)." In a follow-up post, Piscatella hints that this is likely to be an interesting conversation to "revisit in a couple weeks."

The Nintendo Switch being on track to outsell the PS2 in the US in terms of lifetime sales does line up with Nintendo's recently-published financial results for Q1 2024. As of June 30, the Nintendo Switch family of consoles has collectively shifted around 143.42 million units globally. This isn't a million miles away from the PS2's global lifetime sales, which are reported to be around 155-160 million units.

Nintendo Switch hardware sales may be on the decline (as evidenced by its Q1 2024 financial results), but it's clear the console has had an extraordinary amount of staying power ever since it launched in March, 2017.

It also seems that, even with the tentatively-named Nintendo Switch 2 expected to launch next year, the Kyoto-based manufacturer still plans to support the Switch for some time to come. 

For example, Metroid Prime 4 Beyond was finally revealed at the June 18 Nintendo Direct, slated for a 2025 release on Nintendo Switch. This has led many to speculate it could be a cross-platform launch title much like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild was back in 2017, with that game also launching on the Wii U.

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Helldivers 2's Escalation of Freedom update is finally here, bringing new features and improvements. 

Escalation of Freedom, or Version 1.001.002, is the biggest update yet for the popular multiplayer shooter and brings with it a ton of new content. Some of the main highlights of the patch notes include a brand new difficulty Level 10 called Super Helldive, which Arrowhead Game Studios describes as "a new, extreme difficulty level designed for the most experienced and skilled Helldivers, featuring formidable new enemies and intense challenges."

With the Super Helldive level, new Terminid strongholds and Automaton fortresses will be available that will offer bigger challenges for better rewards. The update also introduces two new, secondary mission objects that will have players assaulting Automaton human processing plants to destroy their evil Bio-Processor, as well as venturing into Terminid territory to extract a living larva sample.

Alongside the return of The Impaler, new enemies have joined the fight, including the Rocket Tank, fitted with heavy armor and "devastating firepower", the Reinforced Scout Strider, which now boasts two rockets on each side for greater firepower, and the Spore Charger that will attack through acidic fog, accompanied by an Alpha Commander.

Helldivers can also get ready to deploy to a brand new swamp planet and also encounter new environmental hazards, namely Acid Storms. 

The latest update also comes with plenty of quality-of-life improvements in the form of balance fixes for numerous weapons, as well as some gameplay tweaks. For instance, the operation modifier Atmospheric Interference has now been removed, corrosive acid planets no longer have the 'Intense Heat' environment modifier, and Gunship Engines are now less durable.

You can check out the full list of changes and bug fixes in the patch notes below.

Helldivers 2: Escalation of Freedom - Version 1.001.002 - patch notes:

Major Updates

  • Difficulty Level 10: Super Helldive - A new, extreme difficulty level designed for the most experienced and skilled Helldivers, featuring formidable new enemies and intense challenges.
  • New mission objectives - Two new, faction specific secondary objectives
  • Bigger enemy outposts
  • New Bugs and Bots
  • New swamp planet
  • New environmental hazards: Acid Storms - Temporarily lowers armor for enemies and the player. Make use of this but stay on high alert Helldivers.

Balancing

SG-8S Slugger

  • Increased stagger force
  • Increased spread
  • Increased drag

SG-225IE Breaker Incendiary

  • Decreased number of magazines from 6 to 4
  • Increased recoil from 28 to 41

GP-31 Grenade Pistol

  • Decreased ammo capacity from 8 to 6
  • Increased the number of rounds replenished from an ammo box from 2 to 4

CB-9 Exploding Crossbow

  • Is now one-handed

AX/AR-23 Guard Dog

  • Increased number of magazines from 6 to 8

Orbital Walking Barrage

  • Increased number of salvos 3 to 5
  • Decreased movement speed by 40%

Orbital 120mm HE Barrage

  • Decreased cooldown from 240s to 180s
  • Reduced time between salvoes

Gameplay

  • The operation modifier Atmospheric Interference has been removed,
  • Additionally for the automatons we added the modifier "Poor Intel" which makes objectives on the map to get a search radius just like most Eliminate objectives already has.
  • Corrosive acid planets no longer have the Intense Heat environment modifier.
  • Gunship Patrols are now less frequent and the amount of ships are reduced.
  • Gunship Engines are less durable now.
  • Improved armory weapon preview controls.
  • Updated orders UI.
  • Energy shields such as the Shield Generator Pack and Shield Generator Relay now block snowstorms as well as sandstorms.
  • A new grief protection system has been added that allows kicked players to continue in their own mission. This allows players to complete the mission and get full rewards despite being kicked.

Fixes

Crash Fixes

  • Decreased the chance of crashing when pressing alt+tab while using exclusive fullscreen window mode. (Windows)
  • Fixed rare crash which could occur while browsing Warbonds.
  • Fixed rare crash which could occur when switching tabs in the loadout.
  • Fixed rare crash which could occur when inviting PSN friends to a session. (PS5)
  • Fixed rare crash which could occur when selecting a booster in the loadout.
  • Fixed crash which could occur when browsing the acquisition center menus and alt-tabbing. (Windows)
  • Fixed rare crash which could occur in the loadout after joining a game.
  • Fixed crash which could occur when ragdolling into barbed wire.
  • Fixed crash which could occur when joining a mission with active vehicle skins from disconnected players.
  • Fixed crash which could occur when peers with unique skins would get kicked or disconnected.

Weapon & Stratagem Fixes

FS-55 Devastator armor

  • Fixed incorrect description.

ARC-12 Blitzer

  • You can now hold the fire button to shoot continuously.

ARC-12 Blitzer, Plasma Punisher

  • Added missing armor penetration tags.

GP-31 Grenade Pistol, LAS-7 Dagger, SG-22 Bushwacker

  • Moved into a Special sidearm category.

LAS-16 SIckle

  • Fixed incorrect fire limit value in the weapon stats.

SH-20 Ballistic Shield Backpack

  • No longer blocks the enemies line of sight.
  • No longer collides with the combat walker.
  • Fixed a bug where picking up an SSSD drive would cause ballistic shields to be dropped.
  • Fixed ballistic shield to not collide with player as long as wielded.

AX/AR-23 Guard Dog

  • Can now be refilled from ammo boxes found on the map

Misc weapon fixes

  • Fixed a bug where weapons would be held sideways after interrupting a stratagem with a stim heal.
  • Fixed arc weapons not shooting out any bolts when line of sight to enemy is blocked by an obstacle. Bolts will now fire but they will hit the obstacle. The misfires did not give the player sufficient feedback. We hope this makes the weapon operation clearer.
  • Fixed arc weapons misfiring when shooting enemies quickly that are aligned horizontally.
  • Added in missing haptics when firing the AR-61 Tenderizer.

Social Menu fixes

  • General improvements to the social menu systems.
  • Resolved some issues related to inconsistent social menu options.
  • Fixed issues regarding squad menu block button.
  • Fixed Various UI issues in the social menu.
  • The “Block menu” now more accurately shows blocked players.
  • Improvements to recent players tab.
  • Improved reliability of social menu options.
  • Resolved issues related to friend code generation.
  • Reduced occurrences of ‘please wait democratically’.
  • Players should find it easier to join one anothers games.
  • Players should find it easier to send/accept/decline friend requests.
  • Improved UX for ‘dangerous’ actions (kick/block/unfriend).

Miscellaneous fixes

  • Fixed a game soft lock where the extraction shuttle would sink into the ground preventing players from extracting.
  • Fixed being able to click hidden items (ie- items that have scrolled out of view) in the settings and bindings menus.
  • Game no longer hangs on quit after changing the crossplay setting.
  • Fixed hellpods not destroying trees in the swamp biome.
  • Weapons supporting auto reload retries could reload twice if interrupted in the final stage and firing occurred before resuming. Auto reload retries can now be canceled by pressing reload.
  • Resolved an issue where transitions into jog and sprint animations would be delayed if spammed.
  • Reduced the intensity of the Experimental Infusion booster visual effect.
  • Fixed missing description from Experimental Infusion booster
  • Fix Helldivers's prone rotation being reset after dodging while aiming.
  • Fixed stamina bar not respecting the stamina visibility HUD setting.
  • Fixed section number of owned stratagems not updating on purchase.
  • Fixed Hologram map preview not showing extraction point.
  • Improved performance of terrain destruction.
  • Fix stuck helldivers in cryo chambers after cutscene interruptions triggered by the host.
  • Improvements to the physics of the Ballistic Shield Stratagem as well as some bugs related to physics.
  • Fixed effects tab top title not showing correctly in Portuguese.
  • Fixed discarding when changing settings menu after changing resolution, render scale or screen device without applying.
  • Fixed special characters not showing in player names when picking up items.
  • Fixed the issue where players couldn't press ESC to discard resolution changes on the popup.
  • Fixed naming of Shrieker nests as Bug holes when pinging.
  • Hive Breaker Drill now does damage when dropped in Nuke Nursery Chamber missions.
  • Fixed weapon aim modes (both global and per weapon) not being remembered between closing and re-opening the game.
  • Fixed progress bar not showing for Raise the flag objective.
  • Adjusted flame effects to work more realistically.
  • It doesn't go through various bodies/objects where bounce off would be the expected behavior, like on armors and static objects.
  • Fixed issue where minimap would allow interactions during ion storms.
  • Changing text language in-game will no longer cause terminals to appear blank.
  • Fixed a bug where equipping a skin from the Warbond's purchase confirmation menu would reset the player's armor selection.
  • Hellpod skins are now visible on ships; initial hellpod drops from host ships will share the host's skin selection, while subsequent reinforcements will use individual skin selections.
  • Samples are transferred to the shuttle when boarding, dying inside the shuttle won't drop samples.
  • Reverting to default settings on a tab will no longer overwrite settings in other tabs.
  • The minimap now closes, if open, when exiting an Exo-Suit.
  • Loadout menu call-in times now include transportation time, aligning with in-game values.
  • Hellbomb stratagem will now be visible on the HUD when you are near an objective where it can be called down.
  • Applied fix to avoid that multiple stratagems - SOS beacon, sentries, resupply pod - would deploy inside of the Escape Pod.
  • Added graphics settings preset for Steam Deck.
  • Helldivers may now use stims while at full health for their other democratic effects.
  • “Kill x amount of enemies by guard dogs" personal orders can now be completed.
  • The latest warbond released will now appear at the top of the warbonds list.
  • Fix "[0/0]" being displayed in assassinate missions.
  • Fixed bug causing equipment previews to load indefinitely.
  • Fixed teammates picking up an item not showing the name in their color.
  • Fixed text chat cursor not working.
  • Implemented a more informative Quickplay toggle button.
  • Fixed effects tab sometimes showing scrambled.
  • Fixed mines being invisible for hot-joining players.
  • Additionally, fixed a bug causing recently deployed mines to become invisible.
  • Mines will no longer detonate if they are shot through a Shield Generator Relay bubble from the exterior or situated behind a solid obstacle and shot at.
  • Display hit markers for all weapons.
  • Fixed mute icon not showing when player muted.
  • Fixed bug when using a stim which canceled other players' sprint.
  • Fixed stimming animation while holding an Expendable AT.
  • Gone in 360 seconds trophy now awarded on difficulties greater than or equal to 6 rather than only on difficulty 6.
  • If a hellbomb is destroyed while it's armed and the timer is active it will explode.
  • Fixed issue where the player can throw an unlimited amount of grenades/throwing knives after diving off of a ledge while holding and then throwing the last throwable.
  • Fixed another issue where the player would hold an invisible grenade/throwing knife if they still had any left after hitting the ground in the same way.
  • Added TOGGLE MICROPHONE option to toggle the microphone activity for voice chat.
  • Sentries now won't try and attack certain buildings, and bullet sentries don't waste ammo on dropships.
  • Fixed HUD Info feed visibility setting not working correctly.
  • Fixed HUD Stratagem Visibility setting showing stratagems UI when set to hidden and opening the map.
  • Fixed UI sometimes showing the wrong amount of bug holes destroyed.
  • Patriot Exosuit missiles no longer self inflict damage.
  • Fix explosions not working from far distances against armored enemies.
  • Fixed issue when not being able to text chat when in loadout and the rest of the team is on the mission.
  • Fixed issues with Mission Control Radio voiceover not triggering.
  • Fixed a bug where changing VO language could take a very long time (sometimes forever) to apply.
  • Fixed issue that was leading the account linking menu to close automatically if it's being accessed through the in-game settings and the user's account was already linked.
  • Defend event progress now properly shown in mission end sequence.
  • Fixed effects tab sometimes showing scrambled text.

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Nintendo has released a brand new The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom trailer all about traversing the land of Hyrule. 

The next game in The Legend of Zelda series launches on September 26 for Nintendo Switch, but ahead of time, Nintendo has offered an in-depth look at how traversal will work from the perspective of Princess Zelda.

We were first provided a look at the many regions of Hyrule, which might be familiar to fans, including the vast landscape outside of Hyrule castle and Gerudo desert, as well as the Jabul Waters, Eldin Volcano, and the Faron Wetlands. 

Each area will feature a number of characters you can meet, along with respective side quests that will reward the player for their good deeds.

In Echoes of Wisdom, you won't have to rely on walking on foot around the kingdom, as there will be many ways to travel.  

For instance, there's Travel Waypoints which, when attuned, will be accessible for fast travel. In other areas, however, there'll be obstacles in your way and that's where Zelda's horse comes in.

When mounted, you can gallop over weaker enemies and instantly defeat them, hop over smaller obstacles, like fences or cliffs to make getting around much easier and quicker. Using Zelda's powers, you'll also be able to recreate carrots that you can use to call your steed from distances. 

The game will also feature a system similar to cooking. With the right ingredients, you can visit shops manned by Business Scrub's and blend them into different smoothies, each with their own unique effects. Outfits and accessories will also enhance Zelda's abilities. 

The trailer also introduced two brand-new powers called Bind and Reverse Bond. With the help of a creature called Tri and Zelda's Tri Rod, you can create echoes – imitations of objects found in the environment - that will help you overcome a variety of obstacles. 

However, as the trailer shows, some obstacles won't be as simple. By utilizing Bind and Reverse Bond, you can make objects follow Zelda’s movements and similarly allow Zelda to follow a creature’s movements. For example, with Bind, you can move boulders out of the way by simple walking in the direction required, uncover treasure chests from the ground, and also push enemies off cliffs. 

Using Reverse Bond, you can also attach Zelda to moving objects like platforms and even bond to birds to give her the ability to fly.

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom was revealed during June's Nintendo Direct and will follow Princess Zelda on a quest to save Link and the people of Hyrule from a mysterious void. 

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The prison management simulator game Prison Architect 2 has been delayed indefinitely. 

Paradox Interactive announced the news in a recent forum post, where the published explained that it will be delaying the game ahead of its September 3 release in order to make improvements to both performance and content.

"Our continuous internal reviews and beta test groups have highlighted areas that we need to focus on more, mainly performance and content, which we need to address before launch to ensure that you, the players, get a good experience in the game," Paradox said. "We need to raise the quality a bit more to meet the standards we'd like to achieve with this sequel.

"We are confident that the sequel to Prison Architect will be great, and we're looking forward to showing you all the new ideas brought into it: the switch to 3D, multi-floors, and the new behavior system that all bring a new dimension to the game and open new gameplay possibilities for the players. However, we want to make sure the game lives up to the franchise’s legacy and is released in a state that satisfies both you, our players, and the Prison Architect 2 teams at Kokku and Paradox Interactive."

After it was announced in January, the sim game was initially set for a March 26 release before it was delayed to May 7. At the time, Paradox said it was "confident in the quality of the game" but needed extra time to identify bugs and optimize the game for all platforms". However, Prison Architect 2 was then delayed once again in April, and received a new September 3 launch date.

Following the latest announcement, the publisher was unable to share a new release date, meaning the Prison Architect 2 has been delayed indefinitely until Paradox can "re-assess the scope of the work needed to be done before the game is release-ready." 

The post continued, with Paradox saying that over the next few months it will focus on improving the game and building a "more robust release timeline", but that it will be limiting communications with fans until it has one its comfortable with.

Due to the indefinite delay, pre-orders on all platforms - including PS5Xbox Series XXbox Series S, and Steam - have been refunded, and pre-order items will instead be added to the base game.

"We are confident that delaying Prison Architect 2 is the best path forward for the game, allowing us more time to deliver a high-quality experience that honors the legacy of Prison Architect," Paradox added. "This is not the announcement we hoped to make, but it is necessary, as we believe this will result in a better game for you."

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A Santa Monica Studio developer has confirmed that the studio is currently working on a new intellectual property.

As spotted by a ResetEra user, God of War developer Glauco Longhi recently took to LinkedIn to share that he has been acting as a supervisor at the Sony owned studio looking at character development on a "new IP".

"Santa Monica Studios presented the opportunity of coming back as Character Supervisor, looking after the entire Character Development pipeline, on their new IP, so here I am, thrilled to be back, working again with the crew and pushing Characters in videogames together," the full post reads.

According to Longhi's "about" section on his LinkedIn profile, he has worked as a senior character artist on Naughty Dog's Uncharted 4, as well as on Santa Monica Studio's 2016 God of War

The developer has also worked as a lead character artist on God of War Ragnarok, which launched in 2022, but left the studio later to work on The Calisto Protocol as a character and art director at Striking Distance Studios.

He re-joined Santa Monica Studio earlier this year after working for less than a year as an art director at the Subnautica developer Unknown Worlds Entertainment. 

At the moment, we don't have any information about this "new IP", however, there have been rumors that the studio is potentially looking to produce a space-themed game following cryptic posts from Santa Monica Studio's creative director, Cory Barlog back in 2019.

Although currently unannounced, a third God of War game is also a possibility. Following Ragnarok's launch, the Santa Monica went on to release the free Valhalla downloadable content (DLC), an extended epilogue roguelike that takes place after the events of the sequel. 

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The content roadmap for Star Wars Outlaws has been revealed.

Ahead of the game's release later this month, Ubisoft has shared a post-launch roadmap, providing details on upcoming Season Pass content. 

First things first, at launch Season Pass owners will obtain the Kessel Runner character pack with outfits for Kay and Nix, and also gain access to an exclusive mission called 'Jabba’s Gambit'.

Ubisoft confirmed that all players will meet Jabba the Hutt in the main game, but Season Pass owners will gain an additional quest from the crime lord.

"Just as Kay is putting together a crew for her big heist, she receives a job from Jabba the Hutt himself - ND-5 owes the Hutts a debt from years ago, and Jabba has come to collect," the publisher teases. 

Star Wars Outlaws

(Image credit: Ubisoft)

In addition to these Season Pass exclusives, Star Wars Outlaws will receive two story packs included in the Season Pass, but will also be available to purchase separately.

The first expansion is called Wild Card, which is set to arrive in Fall 2024, and will find the game's protagonist Kay Vess infiltrating a high-stakes Sabacc tournament as she crosses paths with the iconic character and gambler Lando Calrissian.

When this story pack is released, Season Pass owners will also get access to the Hunter’s Legacy and Cartel Ronin bundles, each with additional outfits for Kay and her companion Nix, along with cosmetics for Kay’s speeder and her ship, the Trailblazer.

Coming in Spring 2025, players can expect the second story pack: A Pirate's Fortune.

"The Trailblazer’s reputation precedes Kay as she runs into veteran pirate Hondo Ohnaka, who is looking to settle old scores with a ruthless gang of pirates," the description reads, confirming that players will once again meet the fan-favorite character, known for his appearances in the animated shows The Clone Wars and Rebels.

Star Wars Outlaws launches on August 30 for for PlayStation 5Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and PC. 

Pre-orders are now available and will reward players with three days early access to the game on August 27 if they purchase the Gold Edition or Ultimate Edition, or play with a Ubisoft+ Premium subscription. 

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It looks like the existence of Final Fantasy 14 Mobile has been confirmed by the Chinese government.

The news was reported by Daniel Ahmad, director of research and insights at Niko Partners via X / Twitter. Ahmad writes that China has "approved a new batch of import games" with Final Fantasy 14 Mobile among them. The upcoming title is joined by an as of yet untitled Rainbow Six game, a Dynasty Warriors title, and Marvel Rivals.

A breakdown published on the Niko Partners website goes into further detail, stating that Final Fantasy 14 mobile is in development at Tencent's Lightspeed Studios and Square Enix with the Japanese publisher's approval. Ahmad adds further context in a follow-up post, writing that the game is "expected to be a standalone MMORPG" that will be a separate experience to the main game.

And that's all we know about Final Fantasy 14 Mobile so far. While the mobile version will likely share assets with the popular MMORPG, it's probably not going to be the full experience you'd get on console or PC. It's easy to imagine the game's cooldown-based combat system being somewhat streamlined for mobile devices, though.

Still, having a mobile version of the MMO makes a lot of sense. Player counts continue to rise following the launch of Final Fantasy 14: Dawntrail. The latest expansion is a transformative one, kickstarting an all-new story arc and introducing a graphical update that massively improves lighting, shadows and texture work. 

The game has also recently been released on Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S consoles, allowing more players than ever before to take up the mantle of Warrior of Light.

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Two-dimensional side-scroller The Eternal Life of Goldman was just announced as part of the THQ Nordic Showcase, and for many it'll no doubt be the standout game of the show.

Coming from Weappy Studio, developers of This is the Police and its sequel, The Eternal Life of Goldman debuted with an utterly jaw-dropping trailer showcasing the game's hand-drawn animations and gameplay. 

The opening cutscene, which follows a simian creature attempting (and ultimately failing) to escape a burning forest, seamlessly transitions to gameplay where we discover the game's protagonist is an elderly gentleman who's part Sonic the Hedgehog, part Scrooge McDuck, with lightning quick running speed and a cane that can be used in combat and platforming.

We see that the cane has multiple functions, such as being used to defeat enemies like a giant octopus, and performing feats like pulling out objects to be used as platforms.

While certainly looking fun to play and featuring a very novel protagonist, The Eternal Life of Goldman is seriously impressive in terms of its visuals. The world itself here seems to be quite harrowing, with a mixture of spike-ridden caves, trap-filled dungeons and industrial cityscapes. Enemy design is particularly macabre, too.

I'm also greatly impressed by the soundtrack so far, which layers a violin with strong percussive beats, and I can't wait to hear more in the full release.

On that note, however, there is no confirmed release date for The Eternal Life of Goldman as of yet. You can wishlist it right now on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Nintendo Switch and PC.

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Disney's Epic Mickey: Rebrushed just received its first gameplay trailer.

Revealed at the THQ Nordic Showcase 2024, the latest trailer gives us our first look at the return of Mickey Mouse in this enhanced remake of the of the 2010 Nintendo Wii game, which was announced earlier this year.

Equipped with a magic paint brush, paint and thinner, Mickey can be seen exploring a number of different zones in the Wasteland inspired by classic Disney stories as he uses his powers to restore color to the world, and even alter his environment to uncover hidden secrets.

The trailer also provided a look at a variety of enemies players will encounter in this 3D platformer, including a glimpse at the first boss fight, The Clock Tower in a large scale area. Mickey can be seen utilizing just some of his brand new abilities adapted from the original title on these enemies, including new movement skills, such as a dash, ground pound, and a sprint. 

Players will get to meet other Disney characters along the way, including Oswald the Lucky Rabbit - Walt Disney's first creation - as well as experience multiple different endings "based on your unique playstyle and decisions."

THQ Nordic calls the came a "faithful remake of the beloved classic" featuring updated graphics and other quality-of-life improvements that will send Mickey Mouse on a journey "that requires creativity and a spirit of discovery."

Epic Mickey: Rebrushed is set to launch on September 23 for PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC. 

Pre-ordering now will also give players 24-hour Early Access before release - excluding PC and Steam - as well as access to an exclusive costume pack free of charge, which features outfits inspired by classic Mickey looks. These three costumes include: Boat Willie, Football, and Brave Little Tailor. 

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Titan Quest 2 has finally received its debut gameplay trailer as part of the THQ Nordic Showcase 2024.

First teased during last year's showcase, the Greek mythology-inspired hack 'n' slash sequel can be wishlisted now on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and PC. Though sadly, neither THQ Nordic or developer Grimlore Games have announced a release date for the anticipated title just yet.

The Titan Quest 2 gameplay trailer showcases a gorgeous world map which, like the original game, is presented from a top-down isometric viewpoint. The player character is seen exploring the map, visiting towns and combating mythological creatures across the world map. Also noteworthy here is the excellent soundtrack which hits similarly Greek-inspired notes as Assassin's Creed Odyssey and Supergiant's Hades series.

As you might expect from a game of its kind, Titan Quest 2 will feature what appears to be a robust skill tree system, allowing players to unlock new abilities separated by an escalating number of tiers. Presumably, the higher the tier, the more potent the skill or ability will be.

We also get to see a selection of detailed, thematic armor sets. While there's nothing too fantastical here, at least in this trailer, hopefully there will be potential for players to transmog gear to add some flair to their build, just as you can in Diablo 4.

We expect that Titan Quest 2 may still be a ways off yet. A combat showcase against a larger enemy towards the end of the trailer does have some choppy animation, so there's likely some polish left to implement before the upcoming game goes gold. Still, it's great to see that Titan Quest 2 appears to be coming along nicely, especially for fans of the 2006 original.

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