Trainers are hoping for a return of an improvement in Pokémon GO that existed before. What it’s all about, you can find out here.
What is it about? On Reddit, trainers are discussing that the rewards for research breakthroughs are currently very disappointing. A research breakthrough is a reward you receive when you complete a field research task every day for 7 consecutive days. It is part of the tasks you can complete daily in Pokémon GO.
As a reward, you receive some stardust and experience points, a random item from a pool of items, as well as a Pokémon encounter. The Pokémon encounters are particularly criticized, as they have drastically worsened compared to before.
This is the topic of this post:
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Which item can I receive? The items you can receive can be one of the following:
20x Pokéball
5x Ultra Ball
5x Razz Berry
3x Rare Candy
1x Sinnoh Stone
1x Unova Stone
1x Remote Raid Pass
Trailer for the current season Timeless Travels.
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Pokémon GO shows the new season “Timeless Travels” in the trailer
Which Pokémon can I receive? The pool of Pokémon you can receive rotates regularly. While there were legendary Pokémon like Groudon, Kyogre, or Entei before, there are now Pokémon like Lapras, Coiffwaff, or Viscora. The community wishes for legendary Pokémon to be rewards again, as they used to be.
What does the community say about it?I remember how I got Shiny Latios and Latias because of this. How far have we fallen?, is one comment about it. Do you still remember when we got legendary Pokémon?, writes another trainer. That used to be the best part of the game, because of the legendary Pokémon is also found in the comments.
What do you think about it? Do you also think that legendary Pokémon should be available again as rewards in research breakthroughs, just like before? Feel free to share your opinion in the comments and exchange ideas with other trainers. You can also find an overview of the events in January 2024 in Pokémon GO with us.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Today is the last opportunity to complete a very popular Evolution in EA FC 24. This promises the highest rating yet for players who can rise to an overall rating of 93 through upgrades. We present the Evolution and show you the candidate with the best price-performance ratio.
What Evolution is it about? Pep’s Legacy was introduced with the Winter Wildcards to Ultimate Team. It is inspired by the coaching genius Pep Guardiola, who won the treble of championship, cup, and Champions League with Manchester City last year.
Despite its price of 75,000 coins, the Evolution is very popular (92% positive ratings on futbin) because it promises a strong upgrade for already very good cards. In addition to various stat boosts, the Evolution provides improvements for special moves and the “Weak Foot” ability. Additionally, the Evolution card receives two new playstyles that guarantee you a secure passing game, fitting to Pep Guardiola’s Tiki-Taka style.
Pep’s Legacy Evolution: Requirements and Upgrades (via futbin.com)
Pep’s Legacy Evolution: Requirements and Upgrades
As with all Evolutions, your players must meet certain requirements to be eligible for the upgrades.
These are the requirements:
Position: LB
Speed: max. 90
Dribbling: max. 86
Physicality: max. 81
Playstyles: max. 8
Playstyle +: max. 0
These are the upgrades:
Overall Rating: +5
Speed: +1
Shooting: +4
Passing: +8
Dribbling: +5
Defending: +2
Physicality: +2
Weak Foot Ability: +2
Special Moves: +1
Playstyle: Tiki-Taka
Playstyle+: Key Pass
The rare gold card of João Cancelo is the perfect candidate
Cancelo Preview for Pep’s Legacy Evolution (via futbin.com)
Why is João Cancelo’s gold card particularly suitable for Pep’s Legacy? The Portuguese player, who has been under contract with FC Barcelona this season, is a true jack-of-all-trades. He can be deployed at both full-back positions and comes with very good stats, especially his passing and dribbling values stand out even without upgrades.
Among the playstyles of his regular gold card are some very strong styles, such as the Outside Foot Shot (Trivela) or the Technical Playstyle, which is really effective paired with the new OP dribbling in EA FC 24.
Cancelo already has a Team-of-the-Week (TOTW) card in EA FC 24; however, since the release of the Evolution, it has been chronically sold out despite a proud maximum price of 210,000 coins. Therefore, we recommend saving the coins and time and instead buying the rare gold card. This is 200,000 coins cheaper on the transfer market but has almost the same values.
What makes Evolution Cancelo so special: With the upgrades from the new Evolution, his passing and dribbling stats are raised to a unique level, which he can perfectly showcase with the new additional earned passing playstyles. With his 5-star Weak Foot ability, you can make passes from any possible position to your teammate. With 5-star skills, you can refine his already strong dribbling and surprise your opponents with the strongest tricks in EA FC 24.
Evolution Cancelo is even better as a central midfielder
Here’s why you should play Cancelo in midfield: Only his speed and physicality are somewhat lacking for the fine technician. To compensate for this, it’s best to place him in a central midfield position, either as a defensive midfielder (CDM) or as a box-to-box midfielder (CM). He can compensate for the missing speed in these positions with good positioning. Moreover, Cancelo can participate in the game better in a central role, and you can shine even more with his strong dribbling and excellent passing.
So before the game, set up a formation in the tactical settings that allows Cancelo to move into a midfield position. Maybe you can be inspired by the two best formations in EA FC 24 that almost all pros are playing. In these systems, he could become your new playmaker in midfield.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
The world of Destiny 2 is on the verge of the grand finale of the first saga with ‘The Final Form’. Bungie is striving to further merge the two games Destiny 1 and 2. However, a crucial feature has only been recycled half-heartedly, and it’s time to discuss how important this gap is and how much it would enhance the gaming experience.
This should definitely be recycled: Recycling has long been a controversial topic in Destiny 2 and is not well received by some players. However, it is not always a bad thing.
I’m happy to wait for that. However, there is something I miss almost daily that Bungie has only half-heartedly recycled: the shooting range from the Season of Opulence in 2019.
Do you remember?
Start video
The Season of Opulence was popular among players, not only because of its shooting range
“Bungie, we need a real shooting range back!”
With the growing possibilities and the importance Bungie assigns to the build crafting of its Guardians in 2024, we players simply need a place to determine how much damage a weapon does or how effective something is.
Some might argue that the Enclave already offers a shooting range. After all, there are several targets that display damage numbers when shot. However, that is ridiculous compared to what Guardians could try out in 2019 in the Tribute Hall.
My request for a return of the Tribute Hall is more than just nostalgia. It is a practical necessity to deepen the gaming experience in 2024 and to provide Guardians with the tools to understand and perfect their builds. I am not alone in this opinion.
Many players dearly miss this place of the Tribute Hall, like mightbeaperson49, who even has a solution for the return of this space within the lore:
They should simply replace [the back room of the Enclave] with a hall in the style of the Menagerie. The Darkness looks into the past and creates illusions based on those past visions.
We don’t need a place for simple damage numbers. We need an arena for experiments, a playground for creativity, and an inspiration source for Guardians searching for perfection. Because I believe that this would genuinely enrich the future of Destiny 2.
The intention behind the “mini-shooting range” of the Enclave was good, but still far from what it could be.
This will all take place in the Enclave on Mars in 2024:
The targets in the Enclave are at different distances to show the damage drop-off between closer and further targets.
Additionally, it is possible to see the difference between precision damage and normal damage.
The Tribute Hall was a huge space where players could unlock triumphs, causing simulated enemies to appear against which they could test the effectiveness of various weapons and abilities.
At the end, several simulated enemy types were available, which could be shot at without resistance, fought in melee, or obliterated with the Super.
They also reacted like enemies, so orbs would drop, allowing immediate feedback on whether your build, especially the mods, were working properly.
Moreover, you could take Kinetic, Energy, and Power ammo for free from the walls, ensuring you always had enough ammunition for testing.
Even Super energy could be charged piece by piece in the pre-room of the Tribute Hall at a crystal.
Additionally, there was direct access to the vault and always the same testing conditions.
That’s exactly why the Tribute Hall represents a significant gap in Destiny 2 that should be closed as quickly as possible – preferably before the second saga – to best support Guardians in creating new builds.
Players are hungry for a place where they can test their weapons and abilities, and the introduction of a state-of-the-art shooting range could not only evoke nostalgia but also make a crucial contribution to the future of Destiny 2.
What would you think about the return of the Tribute Hall? What features or improvements should a modern shooting range for Destiny 2 have? Or do you disagree and see reasons why Bungie cannot bring back the shooting range in its old form? Then feel free to comment and share your thoughts with us. Here you can also find everything you can expect in Destiny 2 until June 2024: Destiny 2: Season of Wishes will last almost 7 months: This is planned to keep the shooter alive
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
A former developer of Call of Duty says that we could have had a standalone zombie game in the COD franchise 10 years ago, but it was canceled.
Who is it about?
Michael Gummelt is a former developer and employee of Raven Software, who completed contract work for Call of Duty during that time.
At Raven Software, Gummelt worked on single-player, multiplayer, and zombie content, including CoD: Black Ops, CoD: Ghosts, and CoD: MW3 (2011).
Today, Gummelt works for ZeniMax Online Studios as an “Experience Director”.
Gummelt noted on his LinkedIn profile1 that he also worked on an unpublished “Call of Duty” game during his time at Raven Software. This game was supposed to revolve around zombies, and Gummelt was the lead designer.
What kind of game would it have been? Not much is known about the canceled game. However, Gummelt describes it on his LinkedIn profile as “Unreleased Call of Duty: Zombies Live-Service Game”.
Gummelt worked on this game for a total of eight months between November 2011 and June 2012, but the game was canceled before completion.
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The new CoD MW3 presents itself with shooter action in the new multiplayer trailer
Why was the game canceled? Gummelt indicates on LinkedIn that another studio was responsible for the cancellation of the zombie game and writes: “Canceled when the Activision studio that ‘owned’ this part of the Call of Duty IP wanted it back.”
Gummelt does not provide more detailed information about which studio wanted to cancel the game and for what reasons.
The zombie mode made its entry into the Call of Duty franchise with World at War (2008), which, like Black Ops 1, 2, and 3, was developed by Treyarch. Treyarch was acquired by Activision in 2001.
With the current Modern Warfare 3, the zombie mode made its return to CoD, but today’s concept is heavily based on the DMZ mode and resembles an extraction shooter – just without PvP.
To this day, we have never received a standalone zombie game in the “Call of Duty” franchise, but there are a few games trying to do something similar. With Hellbreach: Vegas, another shooter with a similar game concept is set to release in 2024:
Some players believe that anti-aliasing would make games worse. However, the feature has an important function.
What are players currently discussing? In a thread on reddit, players are currently debating whether anti-aliasing is harmful to games and performance. For example, the thread starter explains, “It’s insane how modern games are being destroyed because of this. With every new game that comes out now, it seems like Vaseline is being smeared on the screen,” illustrating this point with an example from the shooter Halo: Infinite.
He shows a still image with anti-aliasing turned on and off. Some explain that this is precisely the problem, because one cannot show the advantages with a still image.
Anti-aliasing improves image quality, TAA helps weaker PCs and consoles
What is anti-aliasing anyway? Anti-aliasing simply means “smoothing edges.” Pixels are typically rectangular. Anti-aliasing ensures that transitions between objects appear rounder and softer. This creates a more realistic image, as there are fewer sharp edges caused by pixels.
TAA is a special form of anti-aliasing and refers to temporal anti-aliasing: The technique uses multiple individual frames to calculate the smoothing. This requires significantly less power, but has the drawback of creating motion blur. Many people are upset about this in the thread on reddit.
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Why is this used today? Not everyone can afford a high-end PC with modern components to play all titles. TAA is used especially by older hardware and game consoles to reduce the performance load. Users are willing to accept the motion blur when frame rates are already low. This ‘fakes’ a smooth experience to the human eye even at low FPS.
A user with a high-end PC might complain about TAA, but other users with slower hardware are likely grateful to developers who integrate TAA and other features into their games. These players feel understandably marginalized by “power users.”
In general, it is advisable to enable anti-aliasing if you have the computing power for it: As this reduces image noise, the image quality increases significantly. If you do not have the corresponding hardware, you can save a lot of performance by turning off anti-aliasing and potentially significantly increase your FPS.
What is another problem? Another criticism is the example provided by the thread starter. Some users do not believe this can be the real image quality: One user writes, “So this somehow feels like a very low TAA setting or upscaled from a very low-resolution image example.” The user adds:
The only way to compare AA in games is to render a game on your own hardware and switch between AA and no AA. A static image or a recorded video will always be heavily compressed, which causes the image without anti-aliasing to look better than it actually does in real-time.
Others add that Halo: Infinite is technically a difficult game anyway: To make a case for how bad anti-aliasing is would be the worst possible example.
Criticism of DLSS: Another technology in games is currently also under criticism. Many players believe that features like DLSS lead developers to spend less time optimizing their games. In the end, the games may not run at all without the “miracle technology”:
A player who has apparently been a fan of World of Warcraft for a very long time has done some cleaning and found his old installation CDs. They are almost 20 years old and have almost no use today. But from the right angle, they reveal a special image
What is this secret? A user on Reddit posted the 4 CDs from the original World of Warcraft, or “Vanilla”, on Reddit. Vanilla is the “first” WoW and was released in November 2004. The CDs are even a bit older since they had to be pressed beforehand.
If the CDs are held so that the holes overlap in the center, the prints create a rune-etched ring: a Titan disc. This extends across all 4 CDs. The user – and many others – just noticed this now.
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“But I have 5 CDs!” This hidden message is only visible on the original Collector’s Edition of World of Warcraft, not on the Standard Edition. If you simply bought WoW back then, you probably own 5 CDs, each with different prints.
This sparked a discussion in the corresponding Reddit thread. The owner of the Collector’s CDs stated that he had thrown away the original packaging, causing outrage. A Collector’s Edition of Vanilla WoW is now a valuable rarity.
Vanilla WoW was revived some time ago with Classic. Hardcore servers are currently a big topic:
Start video
WoW Classic: The Hardcore Servers Are Here!
Fans speculate about the meaning, mock plot holes
In one of the comments, a user mocks the story of Shadowlands, which is generally considered poor. He mentions that the CDs clearly show the jailer’s plan and the holes in the center symbolize the holes in the story.
No one knows exactly what the runes mean. However, they are probably not a truly important message, as the runes repeat on each CD. They do differ from those seen on the Standard Edition.
Some users are still curious about what the Titan disc describes. They would like to see experts like Bellular tackle the issue. Especially since the mystery would fit perfectly into the upcoming story of the game.
There will be a mystery that has been dormant since Legion and the departure of the Titans, especially the stab of Sargeras into the world. Azeroth itself is also a Titan, somehow closely intertwined with the Old Gods. You probably won’t have to wait much longer for answers, the first realms of The War Within are already online.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
A player finds two boxes of AMD processors in a thrift shop. However, when he opens the packages, he realizes that he hasn’t had as much luck as he hoped.
What has the user discovered there? The user has discovered two boxes full of AMD processors (via reddit.com). At first glance, it looks like a great deal. Because the boxes indicate that the processors are supposed to be the Ryzen 7 5700G.
This is a mid-range CPU that you would normally buy for around 170 euros. Instead, the CPUs were offered for 7.49 US dollars (about 6.85 euros) each.
At least at first glance. Because when he opens the boxes, he finds that there are no processors included, only the coolers and manuals.
If the CPUs had actually been included, he explained, he would have jumped at the chance and bought all the processors. Because for 7 euros per processor, the offer would have been unbeatable.
The Ryzen 7 5700G is considered a popular CPU if you don’t want to buy a proper graphics card
What kind of CPU is that? The Ryzen 7 5700G is a CPU with a graphics chip, referred to as an APU by AMD. The advantage of these processors is that you don’t need an extra graphics card to display graphics. The graphics chip of most APUs is now fast enough to run older games at low or even medium settings. Another advantage is the low power consumption of the APU. For this reason, such processors have been used in inexpensive office PCs for years.
Is it worth it for me? It depends on what you want to do with your computer. If you already own a graphics card and want to buy a new processor to eliminate a bottleneck in your CPU, then an APU is rarely worthwhile. Because often you can get a faster CPU without a graphics unit for the same price.
With the Ryzen 5 5600X or the Ryzen 7 5800X, you get a CPU with significantly more performance for almost the same price, or sometimes even less. The Ryzen 5 5600X is now available for around 150 euros. You don’t need the graphics unit of the APU if you’re going to connect a graphics card anyway.
Usually, the eSports team of YouTuber Maximilian “HandOfBlood” Knabe is known for impressive performances in League of Legends. Now the club is entering a new arena and is getting involved not only in gaming but also in football. HandofBlood is supported by none other than professional footballer Hans Sarpei, who will serve as a consultant to the club with his expertise.
Which sport is Eintracht entering? On January 14 at 5 PM, Eintracht Spandau Football surprised everyone with a special press conference on their new YouTube channel. Under the leadership of President Knabe, alias Maximilian “Handofblood” Knabe, it was announced that the team will be entering football and will participate in the newly founded Baller League.
Football professional Hans Sarpei is also present at the press conference and is expected to assist the team as a consultant. He humorously presents the situation, as if he firmly believes that the new team will compete in the Bundesliga.
The presentation of the entire team is scheduled for January 15, 2024, on the Twitch channel of the Baller League, and fans can follow the first match day live on January 22, 2024, on the Twitch channel of Handofblood.
Start video
Everything you need to know about the LoL team Eintracht Spandau – in 4 minutes
Football – but with special regulations
What is the Baller League? The Baller League is meant to be a new football league. It is initiated by football stars Mats Hummels and Lukas Podolski, starting from January 22. Matches will be played in a former hangar of the Cologne Motorworld on a field measuring 50 × 29 meters, without walls, in a closed arena.
The teams, consisting of six players each, will compete in intense matches, with each match lasting two halves of 15 minutes each. The clock runs continuously, unless it’s exactly 17 minutes and 37 seconds, when a lucky wheel adds extra excitement.
A special twist occurs in the final phase of the match with special rules reminiscent of the “Action Cards” of the Kings League.
The Baller League season will feature a total of twelve teams, led by prominent team managers like Kevin-Prince Boateng, Jule Brand, and well-known streamers like Brotatos. The season includes 66 exciting matches held on eleven match days. The grand finale will be the Final Four, held in a Bundesliga stadium, where the top 4 teams of the table will compete against each other to determine the champion of the Baller League.
These are the other teams: So far, not all teams of the Baller League are known, as of 10:30 AM on January 15. However, several team managers have already been announced, including notable personalities like Knossi, Max Kruse, as well as professional footballers Jule Brand and Selina Cerci. Over the course of the day, three more teams will be revealed before the complete list of players for each team is announced.
Here’s how the community is reacting: The response within the community seems to be overwhelmingly positive. Under the video on YouTube, some fans express their excitement and positive opinions:
AdiOffiziell writes: “I can’t wait for Eintracht Spandau to also play football now.”
muhmi77 comments: “President is back, Sola as caster, Hans as sports director… what more could you want. Welcome to the Bundesliga… I mean Baller League.”
Malte1355 notes: “Incredible, the management must be top-notch if they are also getting into football. Thank goodness the president is back!”
About a week before the release, Netflix finally released a first trailer for the Anime Monsters 103 Mercies Dragon Damnation. In it, we see the characters for the first time in moving images. Action-packed fight scenes are also included in the video.
Cyrano (in the trailer Shirano) is an excellent swordsman and is connected to the young woman Flare through a tragic event.
The villain D.R. stands out with his clown-like face. He has stolen a dragon horn.
At the end of the trailer, there is a teaser for the fight against the dragon. The scenes appear fast-paced and promise an action-packed battle.
In the trailer, we also hear for the first time the voices of Ryuma, Cyrano, D.R., and Flare. In the Japanese dubbing, Ryuma may sound familiar to you as Reiner Braun from Attack on Titan. We have already heard Flare as Mitsuri in the 3rd season of Demon Slayer.
Under the tweet by newworldartur, a well-known analyst on One Piece, fans are upset that the animation style is much better than in One Piece. They are annoyed that the pirate anime would be stuck with Toei Animation. However, there are counterarguments that One Piece has never looked more beautiful than it does now.
You can watch the trailer for Monsters 103 Mercies Dragon Damnation here:
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Monsters 103 Mercies Dragon Damnation in the official Netflix trailer
Monsters shows the backstory of Zorro’s ancestor in 25 minutes
Why should I watch the series as a fan of One Piece? Monsters is officially a part of the One Piece story. In the anime, the Straw Hat Pirates have now left Wano Kuni, but for Monsters, the story returns to the land of samurais and ninjas – just many years before the events of One Piece.
The protagonist of the 25-minute episode even appears in One Piece. 23 years before the events of One Piece, Gecko Moria steals the corpse of the samurai from his grave and revives him as an undead. On Thriller Bark, Zorro then encounters the Zombie General named Ryuma, who is the same protagonist from Monsters.
The manga was originally written as a one-shot in 1994 by Eiichiro Oda. At that time, the mangaka was only 19 years old. There are some similarities between Monsters and One Piece, such as the sword Shisui or the name of the anime, which is also the name of an attack by Zorro.
As Iron Man, Robert Downey Jr. celebrated his biggest successes at the box office. They were responsible for keeping the actor on a high. It wasn’t until a big flop interrupted the streak of success and brought the Hollywood star back down to reality.
What is the situation? We are in the year 2019. Robert Downey Jr. is one of the most prominent actors from the Marvel films. Eleven years have passed since his first appearance as Iron Man, for which he wasn’t the first choice, by the way.
Downey Jr. is at the peak of his career. But then comes a big flop in 2020. Together with director Stephen Gaghan, the actor filmed the remake of “Dr. Dolittle.” The story about the veterinarian who can talk to his animal patients was already filmed in 1998 with Eddie Murphy in the lead role.
The remake was simply called “Dolittle” and was not a big success. On the contrary. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film currently has a 15% rating from critics. Box office success also left much to be desired. With a budget of about 175 million US dollars (via thenumbers.com), the earnings were around 251 million. That’s not enough for a success by Hollywood standards.
Here you can see the trailer for Robert Downey Jr.’s very first appearance as Iron Man in 2008:
Start video
English trailer for Iron Man with Robert Downey Jr.
Nevertheless, the actor is grateful to the film today
How does Robert Downey Jr. feel about Dolittle today? The big flop and the disappointment that came with it happened at the peak of Downey Jr.’s career.
In an appearance on the podcast “Literally! With Rob Lowe”, the actor spoke about that time. He felt that his “best work” in the Marvel films didn’t receive enough attention. The reason for this would be the superhero genre.
However, the Marvel films are certainly very popular. The actor admits in the podcast that he was hardly insecure regarding his self-confidence. It was only when “Dolittle” became both a commercial and artistic failure that it brought him back down to reality.
“I felt so exposed after being in the cocoon of Marvel,” said Downey Jr. He was not satisfied with his performance as Dolittle: “In a way, I did myself a favor because the ground was pulled out from under me.”
“Dolittle” simply “did not work” and was a humiliating experience that the actor urgently needed at that time. The film was, therefore, a turning point in his career. In 2019, Downey Jr. left the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The Marvel chief explained why this departure will be permanent.
Instead, the actor recently celebrated success with his role in Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer.” For his performance, he won, among other awards, the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor. After a brief intermezzo, it seems that Robert Downey Jr. is on the rise again. That he brings talent and his own ideas to a project is evidenced by an improvised, now iconic line as Iron Man.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
In Pokémon GO, trainers are complaining about current tasks during the cold season. What it’s all about, you’ll find out here.
In the current event Fairy Dreams, there are two collector challenges where you have to collect certain Pokémon during the event. In one of the two challenges, you need to hatch Pokémon from 7 km eggs to successfully complete it. Additionally, the event also includes field research, where you need to hatch eggs to complete them.
To hatch the eggs, you need to walk a lot of kilometers. For this, you have to place the eggs in incubators and then walk the required kilometers. This is disliked by many trainers during the current season, and they are complaining about it on Reddit.
We link the respective Reddit post here:
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What is the problem? The tasks are only available during the limited-time events. If you do not complete the collector challenges in time, you have no more opportunity to complete them afterwards. Moreover, you do not see which Pokémon is in the egg before hatching. Aside from one incubator that is always available to you, additional ones must be purchased with PokéCoins.
If you rely solely on the PokéCoins you can earn in the game, it takes several days to gather enough coins to purchase an additional incubator. These can also be used only 3 times before being exhausted.
Trailer for the current season Timeless Travels.
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Pokémon GO shows the new season “Timeless Travels” in the trailer
What does the community say? The community is annoyed that there are so many tasks requiring egg hatching right now in the cold season. If it were a different season or if the hatching distance were shorter, I wouldn’t mind, writes the creator of the Reddit post.
Other trainers agree: It is -15 °F (-26 °C) where I live. Hatching will be a torture, if not impossible. Another comment states: The best thing is to let go of the fear of missing out.
What do you think about this? Are you as active in the game during winter as you are in summer? Do you also think that tasks requiring you to leave the house should be avoided in winter? Or do you have no problem covering long distances even in low temperatures? Feel free to share your opinion in the comments. If you want to know what events are still waiting for you in January 2024 in Pokémon GO, you will find them with us.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Baldur’s Gate 3 is full of secrets. One player has done what probably no one would think of and grabbed an enormously powerful weapon in Act 1. Most players miss this sword because it is simply too good and yet obviously hidden.
What kind of sword is this?
Svartlebee’s Woundseeker is a +1 greatsword.
The special ability of the weapon is that you get a bonus of +1d4 on attacks when an opponent has already taken damage – which is the case in almost all situations.
How to get the sword: The Woundseeker is the weapon of one of the guards at the burning inn “Waukeen’s Rest” in Act 1. To get it, you must cast the spell: “Command: Drop” on armored glove Yeva. She is carrying the sword.
The user Silver-Scion on Reddit discovered where to get the weapon. However, this requires a bit of finesse. Normally, the guards start a fight with you as soon as you steal something.
You need to cast the command on Yeva and immediately kick in the door that the guards want to open. Do not pick up the sword yet; instead, complete the quest first. Then you have to finish a Long Rest and can then pick up the sword.
This method does not always work. User Sword_Enjoyer has found another way that promises more success:
Immediately open the door that the guards wanted to enter to start the cutscene.
Alternatively, you can also just kill all the guards. This makes no difference for the quest, Florrick won’t notice anything.
This is how you cast multiple spells in one go:
Start video
Baldur’s Gate 3: Cast two spells in one go
“600 hours and I’m still learning something new”
The community is thrilled with the find. Even players with hundreds of hours did not know about the sword, which is stronger than most of what you find in Act 1 with its +1 bonus – maybe except for the legendary sword of the Githyanki.
No one would expect that any guard has such a powerful sword. The command spell is actually intended for battles where you need to take out tough opponents. Most players simply do not expect such an application.
In the corresponding thread, other users share their secret finds. One that many players probably also overlook is the Duergar in the Underdark who interrupts you during the boat ride.
Since you have the option to simply throw the dwarf into the water… most do so. Because it’s the funniest option. However, if you fight him instead, you will receive a powerful greatsword and a magical bow from him. If you even let him live, he will become a trader among the dwarves.
Secrets hide in many places in Baldur’s Gate 3 that probably hardly anyone has discovered so far. Just the idea of casting the command spell on a seemingly random guard is absurd – but it works and excites the fans. Recently, players found a secret NPC that you can only talk to when you are in prison.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
In Pokémon GO there are a variety of opportunities to take advantage of every day to get the most out of it. We show you what actions you can take daily.
What kind of overview is this? Every day you can perform a lot of daily tasks or activities in Pokémon GO. Starting with quick and obvious actions like the catch series, to potentially more challenging ones like earning 50 coins through the gym, to “tryhards” like sending 100 gifts.
So that you know exactly what options you have, we have put together an overview for you. Whether it’s tasks in solo, PvP/PvE, or friendship areas – we list it all.
Maybe you’ll find a task or two that you haven’t considered yet that suits you and your play style, to get even more out of the game.
Overview of all daily tasks
Task
Category
Catch a Pokémon
Series
Spin a PokéStop
Series
Complete a field research
Series
Follow a route
Routes
Collect 3 Zygarde cells on routes
Routes
Send 100 gifts
Friendship and Exchange
Open 30 gifts
Friendship and Exchange
Save postcards to encounter Purmel
Friendship and Exchange
Conduct 100 trades with friends
Friendship and Exchange
Conduct a special trade with a friend
Friendship and Exchange
Participate in 4 battle sets with 5 battles each
PvP
Participate in 3 battles against a friend
PvP
Battle against a team leader
PvE
Battle against team rocket balloons
PvE
Participate in 5 remote raids
PvE
Get your daily free raid pass from a gym
Items and Coins
Earn 50 PokéCoins by placing Pokémon in gyms for a total of 8 hours and 20 minutes
Items and Coins
Feed berries to a Pokémon placed in a gym to receive stardust and, if you’re lucky, candies for that Pokémon
Items and Coins
Collect your daily free box from the shop
Items and Coins
Use your daily adventure incense and move for 15 minutes
Items and Coins
Earn hearts with your buddy through activities
Buddy
Switch your buddy 20 times (and earn hearts with each)
Which tasks are easy to perform and which are not?
Which tasks can be solved quickly? The following tasks can be performed quickly and are therefore suitable if you don’t have much time for Pokémon GO each day.
Catch a Pokémon
Spin a PokéStop
Complete a field research
Save postcards to encounter Purmel
Conduct a special trade with a friend
Battle against a team leader
Feed berries to a Pokémon placed in a gym to receive stardust and, if you’re lucky, candies for that Pokémon
Collect your daily free box from the shop
Get your daily free raid pass from a gym
Perform Mega Evolutions
Which tasks require a bit more effort? The following tasks require a bit more time or effort to solve.
Follow a route
Collect 3 Zygarde cells on routes
Open 30 gifts
Participate in 3 battles against a friend
Participate in 4 battle sets with 5 battles each
Battle against team rocket balloons
Participate in 5 remote raids
Earn 50 PokéCoins by placing Pokémon in gyms for a total of 8 hours and 20 minutes
Use your daily adventure incense and move for 15 minutes
Earn hearts with your buddy through activities
Which tasks can only be solved with significant effort daily? These tasks can only be accomplished with a lot of time and effort and are therefore only achievable for absolute top trainers who spend a lot of time each day with Pokémon GO.
Send 100 gifts
Conduct 100 trades with friends
Switch your buddy 20 times (and earn hearts with each)
What are the tasks for? A detailed overview of all the rewards and challenges that the tasks present to you can be found on page 2:
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Healing for everyone in Overwatch 2. This is one of the biggest changes there has ever been – but will it really make the game better?
There are only a few games that have faced as much criticism as Overwatch 2. Many did not like the change from “6vs6” to “5vs5”, and the cancellation of the long-promised PvE campaign also caused (quite justified) uproar. Significantly increased prices in the shop, bugs at launch, and other issues led to Overwatch 2 becoming the worst-rated game on Steam.
However, the developers continue to try to turn things around and significantly improve Overwatch 2 in 2024. One of the biggest changes of all time for the game is now on the way: All characters will heal themselves automatically to full health.
The newest hero in Overwatch is also facing heavy criticism:
Start video
Overwatch 2: This is Mauga, the crazy laughing tank who always gets headshots
What kind of healing is this? Currently, only support characters in Overwatch have passive self-healing. If they take no damage for a short moment, they heal for 15 health points per second, until they are fully healed or take damage, which breaks the effect.
A “weakened” version of this will be available in the future for all characters, including tanks and damage dealers. This means that when heroes withdraw from combat and take cover, they will be back at full strength after a few moments.
What does this change for the game? Although the change may seem minor at first glance, it is likely to have drastic effects on how individual fights play out in Overwatch 2.
Going forward, it will be significantly more appealing to flank with characters that do not have self-healing or permanent support backing them.
At the same time, this change takes a lot of pressure off the support characters. Instead of trying desperately to save a distant DPS character and placing themselves in the line of fire, a bit of responsibility for survival is handed over to the DPS player, who can simply take cover.
Soon all heroes will heal themselves. Some are asking: What is left for Moira then?
Lastly, this adjustment should ensure that the somewhat monotonous gameplay of “I wait at the med pack until the enemy comes” will not often decide the outcome of a skirmish in the future.
What is Blizzard’s goal? In the blog post, game director Aaron Keller writes that Overwatch 2 “is really good when the team harmonizes”, but “frustrating when it does not work”.
The dependency on team members can be one of the best and one of the worst features of our game. (…)
We want to improve that. We want to improve it by looking at the game through the lens of team play and making it easier for players to be part of a team while also alleviating the pain when it doesn’t work out.
Thus, they want to improve the game in both directions.
This means, on the one hand, being able to have a greater impact on the game, even if the team does not harmonize well. For example, a Junkrat who skillfully flanks and constantly takes cover can heal completely over a long period and split the attention of the opposing team.
At the same time, support characters are no longer caught in the dilemma of needing to follow individual flanking DPS players and putting themselves in unnecessary danger, and even tanks can survive longer through short breaks until their team is back with them.
Further changes are set to improve the gaming experience: Currently, there seem to be many discussions at Blizzard about how to further improve the game. According to Keller, features like a mini-map or a group interface where one can see the health points of the whole team are being discussed internally. The game director states that the idea of a mini-map will likely be discarded – but the team’s health display will “probably” be implemented.
Aside from that, they plan to make massive balance changes in the next season to particularly reduce high damage spikes – this affects almost all tanks and DPS characters. “Oneshots” or combos that lead to death in the blink of an eye are expected to occur much less frequently.
This is what the community says: The changes are met with mixed feelings from the Overwatch 2 player base. Many are skeptical because previously planned changes with good intentions have often had negative effects. Therefore, feedback in the Overwatch 2 subreddit has thus far been rather restrained and only occasionally optimistic, although the benefits are recognized.
“I have to wait and see what other changes there are in season 9 and beyond, because this type of change creates waves and is influenced by and influences everything: character kits, map design, game objectives, everything.” – LanoomR
“Damn… the only good thing about support was being able to decide which of your friends lives and which dies 🙁 “ – NaCly_Asian
“At some point, I just have to accept that the game is turning into something I don’t like anymore.” – samsonixx
“It’s a shame to see that everyone is just complaining. This could be a very refreshing change, and they are clearly willing to revert it if it doesn’t work.” – p0ison1vy
Whether the changes will have the desired effect remains to be seen. But the mere introduction of “healing for everyone” is likely to be the biggest change to Overwatch since the launch of Overwatch 2.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
In WoW Classic, people have a special, very old sense of humor. They troll their fellow players in nasty ways – causing chaos for hours.
The Season of Discovery is Blizzard’s attempt to breathe new life into the “classic” world of World of Warcraft. There are new content, new abilities, and even fresh raids and PvP objectives in the world.
But the “old hands” keep returning to a time-honored tradition: wreaking havoc in the capitals and ensuring that no one can trade in peace.
What kind of chaos is being caused? In the WoW Classic subreddit, evidence is repeatedly shown that there seems to be one primary goal for some: to disrupt life in the capitals and unleash a little apocalypse. In recent days, there have been numerous screenshots proving that someone has brought “Teremus the Devourer” or “Volchan” to Stormwind.
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How does it work? The basic idea behind this chaos is to “kite” a particularly strong enemy from the open world over a long distance – that is, to pull it behind you without it resetting or killing the player character. Hunters usually excel at this task, but other classes can also achieve it with endurance and skill.
Once you manage to get this enemy into a capital, the chaos then unfolds by itself. City guards join the fray, large area spells grill players and NPCs alike, and it often takes a long time before the enemy mob is finally defeated and peace is restored.
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This method of “trolling” dates back to the time of the first beta tests of World of Warcraft. Even then, people tried such things – and in the end, Blizzard even overran the cities with mobs to end the beta.
That’s why it’s particularly cheeky right now: It’s especially nasty right now because there are no level 60 heroes who can just “clean up”. In the Season of Discovery, players are currently limited to level 25, as the season unfolds in phases with different level caps. So if an elite enemy at level 50 or higher runs amok in Stormwind, Alliance characters can hardly do anything about it.
Due to the level difference, the mob practically dodges every attack or resists spells. This leads to a very, very long battle with a lot of skeletons and some frustrated heroes who just wanted to make a few gold in the auction house.
Do you regularly join in on this chaos? Or is that not really for you?
In Pokémon GO there are plenty of powerful Pokémon to catch. However, some strong specimens are still missing. We look at 5 examples.
If you want to catch powerful Pokémon in Pokémon GO, you already have a huge selection. Legendary monsters from various generations, Ultra Beasts, Mega Evolutions, and other examples can now be obtained in the game.
Nevertheless, there are still a few monsters to look forward to that have not yet made it to Pokémon GO. We show you 5 monsters from the main series that are not yet roaming in Pokémon GO.
Mewtwo is already one of the strongest Pokémon overall; its Mega Forms X and Y are even more dangerous. You get them by performing the Mega Evolution. Once they debut in Pokémon GO, they are likely to be among the strongest you can use in battles against raids.
Are there signs for Mega Mewtwo X and Y? Indeed, because they have already been part of official artworks for Pokémon GO anniversaries and have been found in data mining. However, that was quite a while ago and is no longer an indicator that they will appear soon. However, some of the top Mega Evolutions like Rayquaza, Tyranitar, or Garchomp have already appeared. It’s possible that Mewtwo is not too far away either.
Necrozma is a cruel monster searching for light to absorb it. It is an extremely strong monster that also brings new forms when it takes over the legendary Pokémon Solgaleo and Lunala, both of which are already present in Pokémon GO. Additionally, it introduces an “Ultra Form” belonging to the Psychic and Dragon types.
Are there signs for Necrozma in Pokémon GO? Necrozma is closely linked to the Ultra Beasts and the Pokémon Solgaleo and Lunala, which are already in the game. Furthermore, it was hinted in November 2022 along with other Ultra Beasts from Pokémon GO in the form of various teasers.
However, it has still not made it to the game, as have the other Ultra Beasts from the teaser. So here it is a matter of waiting longer.
Endynalos is part of a trio that also includes Zacian and Zamazenta. However, while the two legendary hero Pokémon are already present in Pokémon GO, their powerful adversary is not yet in the game.
Endynalos is an extraterrestrial monster that arrived on Earth thousands of years ago and began to absorb the energy of the Galar Region. Zacian and Zamazenta stopped it, but in the games “Sword and Shield,” it returns during the storyline.
It is also responsible for the Dynamax phenomenon that transforms Pokémon into gigantic shapes of themselves. Endynalos itself also possesses a special, gigantic Dynamax form. Looking at the stats, Endynalos is one of the most powerful Pokémon overall.
Are there signs for Endynalos in Pokémon GO? Unfortunately, none so far. Many Galar Pokémon are already represented in the game, but some are still missing. One can only hope that Endynalos will make its debut in due time.
Start video
Pokémon GO shows the new season “Timeless Travels” in the trailer
The white and black Kyurem
The black and white Kyurem (Image source: pokemon.com)
The Pokémon Kyurem has been catchable in Pokémon GO for a long time, but its more powerful forms have not yet been available. It can achieve this by fusing with the monsters Zekrom or Reshiram. These two have also long been catchable in Pokémon GO.
Are there signs for the Kyurem forms in Pokémon GO? Yes, they were even briefly in the game – but by accident. For a short time, trainers could receive the white or black Kyurem as rewards from the Battle League, causing much excitement. However, this process turned out to be a mistake, and the forms were disabled again by Niantic.
Arceus is a mysterious Pokémon and a special case: it can take on any of the known Pokémon types by switching certain plates. It is considered in legend as the creator Pokémon of the Pokémon world. It is closely linked to the Pokémon Giratina, Dialga, and Palkia. Additionally, it has fully balanced stats and therefore no significant weaknesses.
Are there signs for Arceus in Pokémon GO? Trainers have been waiting for Arceus for many years, but it has not appeared to date. Even supposed hints about the monster have thus far proven to be misleading. Now the big Sinnoh Tour is starting in February 2024, for which many trainers had hoped to see the Pokémon god, but it has not yet been announced here either. Instead, the Sinnoh Tour seems to focus more on the original forms of Dialga and Palkia.
In short: As it stands, it is completely open when Arceus will land in Pokémon GO, and one will likely have to be patient. But at least there is another “god” in Pokémon GO that you can catch in droves.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Currently, you can secure 8 games through a Humble Bundle, all of which are rated very positively to extremely positively on Steam. Among the titles is the acclaimed cooperative shooter Borderlands 2, alongside Bayonetta.
What games are included? In collaboration with Awesome Games Done Quick, short AGDQ, Humble Bundle is releasing a game package consisting of 8 titles that shine with good to excellent ratings on Steam.
The package includes:
Bayonetta: 90% positive
Borderlands 2: Game of the Year Edition: 93% positive
Celeste: 97% positive
Sprawl: 85% positive
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night: 94% positive
Astalon: Tears of the Eart: 93% positive
Sonic Adventure 2: 86% positive
Sonic Adventure 2 Battle: 78% positive
Here you can see a trailer for the shooter hit Borderlands 2:
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Launch Trailer for Borderlands 2
What kind of game is Borderlands 2? The game, released in 2012, is a cooperative loot shooter that is regarded by fans as one of the best representatives of its genre.
In it, you play as a Vault Hunter searching for treasures in a world full of monsters, psychopaths, and the nefarious villain Handsome Jack.
In addition to a single-player experience, Borderlands 2 also offers a cooperative mode where you can team up with up to 3 other hunters to complete missions, collect loot, and take down enemies.
The Game of the Year Edition of the game includes not only the main game but also all 9 DLCs for Borderlands 2.
How much do you save with the bundle? The Humble Bundle has a total value of 152.62 euros. You save about 143 euros if you opt for the lowest price of 9.15 € at which the game package is offered.
How long is the Humble Bundle available? You have 12 days left to grab the package. The offer is available until January 26th at 1:00 PM German time.
With the Humble Bundle, you can decide how much you want to pay for the package. 9.15 € is the minimum amount you can pay for the AGDQ bundle. There is no limit to how much you can give, as a portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Prevent Cancer Foundation, an organization focused on cancer prevention. Additionally, the developers and Humble Bundle will also receive a share of the money. You can find out more about Steam here: 20 years ago, the first game on Steam was released, and you all know it
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Nick Offerman, who played the character Bill in the HBO series “The Last of Us,” revealed that there are plans for a spin-off of the well-known video game adaptation and that these have already been pitched.
As actor Nick Offerman told Comic Book, there are already concrete ideas for a sequel to the hit series The Last of Us, which have also been presented to the showrunners.
The spin-off could delve deeper into the story of two characters whom we already met in an emotional episode of the series:
Here you can see a trailer for the series adaptation of The Last of Us:
Start video
The new trailer for The Last of Us series shows: It will break our hearts over and over again
“We are not lacking in ideas”
Nick Offerman disclosed that there are ideas for a miniseries centered around the characters Bill (Nick Offerman) and Frank (Murray Bartlett).
This is supposed to take place before the events of The Last of Us. The prequel would therefore shed more light on the beginnings of the zombie epidemic and tell more about the lives of the two characters before their first meeting.
Nick Offerman then joked that the spin-off could also become a musical if the two showrunners Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann would like it that way.
He further stated that it is now in the hands of the producers to decide how to proceed with the project:
“We are not lacking in ideas. We will just see what Craig [Mazin] and Neil [Druckmann] come up with.” (Source: Comic Book)
When and if the prequel will actually come is still uncertain. However, if it actually gets the green light for the series, Offerman would definitely be interested in stepping back into the role of Bill. What is already certain is a 2nd season of The Last of Us, in which the character Abby will make her first appearance: The Abby actress for the “The Last of Us” series has been confirmed and I’m already worried about her
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
In recent years, the number of really good licensed games has significantly increased. Sometimes they are based on movies or series, sometimes on books and comics. Below, we present five recommendations for PC (Steam) and current consoles that perfectly capture the essence of their source material.
The games on this list are particularly good in one respect: They succeed in transferring what makes their source material special into the medium of gaming. This is not a ranking, so the order is purely random.
[toc]
1. The Witcher 3
Developer: CD Projekt RED | Release: 05/19/2015 | Platforms: PC (Steam), Xbox One/SeriesX, PS4/5, Switch
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The Witcher 3 – PS4 Trailer
Yes, The Witcher is truly not a hidden gem. However, that is not the point here. The video game series is based on the novels and short stories by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski.
And Polish is the keyword: The Witcher 3 is heavily inspired by the myths and legends of the country, as well as European folklore. Uninspired clichés are the exception here. The game is not influenced by the fantasy mainstream but follows the path of the books. It tells an adult story in a dark universe full of violence, racism, and poverty.
Moreover, many of the numerous side quests in terms of narrative structure resemble the short stories written by Sapkowski. In the spirit of the motto: Short, creative stories that stick in your memory and provide a narrative basis for the universe and its characters. Furthermore, these characters are vividly written and the dialogues feel authentic. The fact that one willingly sinks hundreds of hours into the game proves that the world from the books fascinates and keeps players engaged.
2. Alien Isolation
Developer: Creative Assembly | Release: 10/07/2014 | Platforms: PC (Steam), Xbox 360/One/SeriesX, PS3/4/5, Switch, iOS, Android
Start video
Alien: Isolation – Launch Trailer
The author of these lines is a real scaredy-cat. While I love horror movies, I always think twice before exposing myself to the experience in games. However, in the case of Alien Isolation, I dared to pick up the controller. I still felt fear in many places, especially since the game wonderfully manages to capture the atmosphere of Ridley Scott’s first Alien film.
This means: Constant fear of encountering the alien. Whenever you hear its approaching footsteps, your heart rate rises. The beeping sound of the motion tracker drives you even crazier.
You can only save at predefined points in the level, and you will often die. This increases the fear of being caught by the alien. If that happens, death is almost inevitable. The game creates a serious threat that is on par with the alien from the movie.
That the game is oriented towards the first part of the film series and not the much more action-oriented second part is a great strength. If you were to fight the alien armed with a Gatling gun, the appeal of the horror-focused game would be lost.
Developer: Respawn Entertainment | Release: 11/15/2019 | Platforms: PC (Steam), Xbox One/SeriesX/S, PS4/5, Stadia
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Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order – Launch Trailer
Star Wars has produced quite a few good games over the years. Just think of the role-playing games by Bioware or the Battlefront series. One of the newer games is Jedi Fallen Order.
It tells the story of the young Padawan Cal Kestis and is set after the end of Episode 3 of the film series. This in itself isn’t really revolutionary, but the game succeeds in telling the story of its protagonist with great staging and a lot of emotion. Fallen Order is both tragic and dramatic, with heartwarming aspects like our little companion BD-1 not being overlooked. The perfect encapsulation of Star Wars.
The game world, which is quite linear in structure, heavily utilizes environmental storytelling and is reminiscent of classic Metroidvania in the best sense. One of the highlights are certainly the battles and their gameplay. Armed with a lightsaber, protagonist Cal Kestis faces numerous enemies. The combat is reminiscent of the Souls games and is similarly challenging. Slashing through hordes of enemies is incredibly fun and makes us feel like a true Jedi. Exactly what one expects from a game with “Jedi” in the title.
You’ll find more good licensed games on the next page.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Baldur’s Gate 3 is overwhelming for many. So much so that they don’t even start it. A big mistake, thinks MeinMMO demon Cortyn and explains what you are missing.
That Baldur’s Gate 3 is a great game that everyone should play at least once is something I don’t need to tell anyone anymore. It is a huge RPG with countless possibilities and different options for how the story can unfold. Many report that a single playthrough takes 150, 200, or even more hours of gameplay.
But it is exactly this scope that is not only fascinating but also intimidating for many. In my circle of friends, I have some passionate gamers who are actually “afraid” of Baldur’s Gate 3.
“Isn’t the game so huge that you spend weeks on it?” or “Don’t you have to be super careful to catch everything?” are questions I have heard more than once.
No wonder – even if you are not particularly interested in Baldur’s Gate 3, you stumble upon countless, page-long guides on the Internet with precise instructions on what you need to do or should do for a specific weapon or a very special scene.
Start video
Baldur’s Gate 3 is coming to PS5 – Trailer prepares for console release
What many overlook is: None of this is important. None of this is relevant to having fun in Baldur’s Gate 3. None of this is necessary if you just want to experience a good story that is consistent from start to finish.
If designer Anna Guxens from Larian says that you “shouldn’t be intimidated by the systems because they are designed so that you can always have fun with them,” then that is the plain truth. A truth that you have to accept as a gamer, at least for the first time (via gamereactor.eu).
Learning to Fail Again – Because It’s Part of It
We gamers can be exhausting sometimes, especially for ourselves. If there is an unopened box somewhere or a fight results in even minimal losses, we search the entire environment or reload to ultimately finish something “perfectly”.
However, this is exactly what hinders you in Baldur’s Gate 3. Because much in the game is decided by dice rolls. Only if you exceed a certain value will the respective action be considered successful; otherwise, it is deemed failed.
The twist is: This is exactly how it’s intended. Baldur’s Gate 3 has been designed with the idea that you will succeed brilliantly at times and fail miserably at others. In most cases, there is no “Game Over” because you failed a die roll. It has negative consequences – even if it’s just that an NPC doesn’t trust you or you can’t accomplish a certain action.
Things always move forward and often in very funny ways. Because seeing your own heroes fail from time to time makes them even more relatable and makes the glorious victories even sweeter and more significant.
Sometimes things can fail spectacularly. It only makes the game better.
Failing is simply a fixed, planned part of the gaming experience. The failure is not only intended; it is desired and intended by the developers. Because many dialogues and surprising turns only occur when you fail.
I don’t mean that you should “never reload.” We did that during our playthrough too, whenever we felt the game had treated us really unfairly.
To give a specific example: In a quest, you must protect the druid Halsin while he performs a ritual and is attacked from all sides. While my teammate protects the left flank with Shadowheart and his character, I hold the right flank with a wall of flames from my sorceress and Karlach’s melee abilities.
Once the battle ends, a cutscene starts immediately, Halsin thanks us for our help and wants us to meet him at the camp. The sequence ends and Halsin immediately starts walking – only to step right into my wall of flames within 2 seconds, moving in slow motion and basically dying instantly before I even had the chance to cancel the channeled spell.
That was a moment when we both said, “Okay, that’s just dumb. Let’s replay this scene.”
Not because we were dissatisfied with the outcome of a fight or a die roll, but simply because it felt unfair to see Halsin walk into the allied flames even before the sequence was fully completed.
With this approach, only repeating something in absolute exceptions, we not only had an immense amount of fun, but also experienced many scenes that we would probably never have seen in a “perfect” run with a guide.
A (spoiler-free) event of this kind happened in the second act of the game. After arriving at the inn, we extensively talked to all the NPCs, triggering several events. These ultimately led to the main story suddenly making a rapid advance.
From these conversations and the choices made, an epic battle ensued, with 20 to 40 fighters on both sides – a really long fight with “back and forth,” where we fought for the survival of every NPC and still couldn’t save them all.
It just felt good and right. During this process, we never noticed that we had missed some scenes because of this path. During the game, that was completely irrelevant. We only noticed it months later during our second playthrough – and those “new” scenes fascinated us just as much and increased the replay value even more.
Some may think here: “What! But then you missed great scenes while playing, and I don’t want that!” – And yes, you could see it that way. But it never felt that way to us. Because Baldur’s Gate 3 is so full of great scenes, decisions, and different paths that, in the flow of the game, you don’t even notice if you miss something here and there.
This pressure only arises when you read very carefully beforehand about what is available and how to see as much as possible. But then you miss, at least in my view, a lot of the appeal in an RPG of this scale and freedom.
Ultimately, I can understand if Baldur’s Gate 3 seems intimidating and overwhelming because of its size. But that feeling only arises if you approach it with the mindset of wanting to experience this size in its entirety. You really don’t have to. It’s not even advisable.
If you haven’t done so yet, give Larian’s RPG a chance. Immerse yourself in the game world and let go of the idea that you must emerge victorious from every situation or master every die roll with flying colors.
It’s such a “gamer disease” to want to overcome every challenge and truly explore every last detail of the game world before moving on.
This only hinders your fun in Baldur’s Gate 3.
Don’t try to work through a “checklist” – just do what you feel like doing.
Yes, you can discover small secrets in many places, and if you focus on it, you’ll succeed in every die roll if you reload each time.
But that doesn’t make Baldur’s Gate 3 a better game; the opposite is true.
If the developers say you should just “go with the flow,” then that’s not a cliché – it’s something that has been incorporated into the game design.
The vast scope of Baldur’s Gate 3 doesn’t seem so intimidating anymore when you free yourself from the thought of wanting to experience everything in one playthrough. That is ultimately not even possible and only leads to thinking more about a “To Do” list than about the grand story with lovable characters and lots of great twists.
Twists that only occur if you don’t play “perfectly.”
Get a move on and let yourself be carried away by the game. You certainly won’t regret it.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
