A YouTube video about Tyler “Ninja” Blevins’ switch from Twitch to the platform Mixer has put the Fortnite streamer in a bit of a bind. Because it was also about money.
What kind of video is this? The YouTube channel Thoom has taken the effort to create an animation about Ninja’s time on Twitch.
This is what Ninja showed: The streamer watched the video live on Mixer and was initially touched by the moments highlighted in the video. After all, Ninja experienced many highlights with fellow streamers on Twitch. His stream with Drake was also there, who brought Fortnite into the mainstream.
The clip seemed to resonate with Ninja and touched him.
However, at the end, when an animation came showing Mixer showering the streamer with money, Ninja quickly turned off and laughed somewhat bewildered.
This is how Ninja explains his switch: After the video, he picked up the money topic again and said: “I can’t give you details, but trust me, money was not the incentive.”
People say that after Ninja’s switch to Mixer, the streaming platform from Microsoft probably must have paid a lot of money. Otherwise, Ninja wouldn’t have switched from popular Twitch to the smaller competitor.
How does the video end? After Ninja turns off, some quirky things happen in the video. Ninja shoots a shotgun at the Twitch logo and then dances in a rain of money in front of a Mixer advertisement.
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How do fans react to this? Many viewers do not really believe Ninja’s statements. For them, it is clear that Ninja switched because of the money.
But there are also some positive voices on Reddit about the incident. One user writes: “Call me naive, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he just wanted a fresh start on a new platform. He already has enough money to do what he wants.”
What do you think? How much truth is there in Ninja’s statement?
In August, EVE Online is hosting a special event. They are trying to fulfill a dream where more than 10,000 pilots will participate in a battle simultaneously.
What kind of event is it? Aether Wars Phase Two will take place on August 18 at 7:00 PM our time. The goal of the event is mainly to stress the servers, as they have found a new tech partner in the British company Hadean.
At the same time, the developers and players are also trying to break their own world record. This was set in January 2018. At that time, 6,142 players participated in a single PvP battle simultaneously.
The battle even earned the game a spot in the Guinness World Records. This record is now to be surpassed.
Players are lured by special offers
How does the event work? Aether Wars Phase Two takes place on a dedicated client. This will use a new cloud-based engine, which apparently allows larger battles than the previous system of EVE Online.
The test is free, and anyone can participate, whether EVE veteran or newcomer. The event can and should even be streamed.
What do you get for participating in Aether Wars? Besides the knowledge that you participated in perhaps the largest battle in an MMO ever, players also have special rewards awaiting them.
An exclusive skin bundle awaits every participant. Additionally, a trip for two people to EVE Vegas will be raffled off. At the convention, fans of the game gather at the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas to celebrate the space MMO.
EVE is known for mass battles
How often do large PvP battles occur? EVE Online is particularly praised by players for the ability to compete against many players.
Other MMOs may allow battles with up to 100 players, but in EVE, it’s common for thousands to clash.
In Fortnite , the eSports organization Gen.G has formed a team of four female players. The team is sponsored by a dating app. The players have noble goals: they want to be pioneers for women in eSports.
The problem is: There is a gap in Fortnite eSports:
Women are generally rare in eSports and almost considered exotic, not just in Fortnite but also in other competitively played games.
Geguri is the only female player in the Overwatch League.
Those who stand out as women and belong to the top are treated quite strangely:
In Teamfight Tactics and Hearthstone, for example, Hafu complained that although she was statistically better than some well-known other players, she never received the respect she deserved – she was mocked, saying she was only known because she was a woman, not because she was a good player.
Pokimane is a streamer who benefited greatly from the Fortnite boom. She has little to do with eSports.
Women are afraid of failing or being harassed
Why are there so few women in eSports? As Fortnite players highlight in discussions with The Verge, it is difficult to be recognized as a woman in eSports. They do not have the luxury of “just being a player.”
Often, they are the only woman competing. Day by day, they receive video messages or emails from players expressing negative views about women, especially when they were killed by a woman in Fortnite, explains Madison Mann, a player who has had a contract with Gen.G as a professional Fortnite player since October 2018.
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Tina Peres says: Women in gaming face a lot of backlash. This can be discouraging or even intimidating.
Many are afraid of being harassed or mocked. There is a lack of “female role models,” says teammate Tina Peres. And you really get a lot of backlash; one might hear: “There’s a reason why there are no women at the World Cup: You just suck.”
Peres believes that this is because many women are afraid to compete. They fear the reactions just because they are women.
These were the first two female players that Gen.G signed in October 2018. Tina Perez (left) and Maddison Mann.
This is the new team: The eSports clan Gen.G signed two female players for its Fortnite team back in October 2018, Tina “Tinares” Perez and Madison “Maddiesuun” Mann.
In 2019, they added players Carlee “Carlee” Gress and Hannah “Hannah” Reyes to have a full four-woman squad in Fortnite.
Dating app signs a 3-year contract with women’s team – streamer helps
This is new: Gen.G has entered into a three-year deal with “Bumble BFF”, a dating app that particularly favors women. Only women can initiate contact with a partner in male/female pairs.
Bumble would likely like to incorporate more gaming into its offerings. Users can now identify as “gamers” to find partners who also play.
Here are the 4 players with “KittyPlays” (center, back), who is intended to support them.
Bumble has also hired the well-known streamer Kristen “KittyPlays” Valnicek. She has a million followers on Twitch and is now the new “Head of Gaming Initiative” at Bumble.
In her role, KittyPlays is supposed to help the team create content. KittyPlays says she has long hidden her “gamer side” but is now proud of it and wants to be open about it.
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This is the team’s goal: As Tina Perez tells the magazine Verge, they want to open the door for women in eSports with the new team, so that other women can also receive contracts.
Perez says she has always lacked a role model as a woman, a female eSports athlete to look up to. She now wants to be that for future female players.
Women have a really hard time being recognized in other games as well:
The name reservation for WoW Classic starts in a few hours. We will tell you what to keep in mind if you want to secure your names in World of Warcraft: Classic.
Update 13.08., 00:10: The reservation of names is now possible. However, there may be login issues since the demand is currently extremely high. You need to be patient!
Original message: The release of World of Warcraft Classic is only two weeks away, but tonight should be an important event for eager players. In just a few hours, players can reserve up to three names and create their characters. First come, first served.
When does it start? The name reservation officially starts at 0:00 on August 13, 2019 – which is tonight. It is not entirely clear how long it will remain open, but probably until the official launch on August 27.
How does the reservation work? To reserve a name in WoW Classic, you need to log in to WoW Classic at midnight and select your desired server. We have a list of all servers here for you.
You can download WoW Classic in the Battle.net launcher. Select the menu item “World of Warcraft” and at the bottom under “Version,” choose “World of Warcraft Classic.” The game is only about 5 GB large, so it should be downloaded relatively quickly for most.
After that, you can normally create a character and already give it a name. You can do this up to 3 times, as you cannot reserve more per account.
Logging into the game with the characters is not possible yet. This will only be possible with the release.
Name reservation for subscribers: It is also important to mention that the name reservation is only available to players who have an active subscription for World of Warcraft. Otherwise, it is not possible to log into the servers and participate in the name reservation.
Can't think of a name? If you don't know what to name your characters in WoW Classic and want to be a bit more creative than Xshadowkillerx or Ìllîdân, you can find plenty of inspiration online. The Fantasy Name Generators website proves to be particularly helpful – it has a random generator for almost every race that spits out plenty of possibilities.
Have you already thought about which names you will secure for your characters? Will you be there at midnight?
Ihr wollt mehr zum Spiel? Tolle Specials, heiße News und interessante Infos zu World of Warcraft findet ihr auch auf unserer WoW-Seite auf Facebook.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
It is a disappointment for Minecraft fans. The promise of beautiful Minecraft is dead, as the developers have discontinued work on it.
In recent months, there has been a lot of excitement surrounding Minecraft. Not only did the main game receive a new patch with numerous new contents, but Minecraft Earth was also announced. But for fans of the standard version of Minecraft, there is sad news. Development on the “Super Duper Graphics” has been halted.
What were the “Super Duper Graphics”? In 2017, the “Super Duper Graphics” pack was presented at E3. This was supposed to be a DLC for Minecraft that would elevate the game visually to new heights. In a trailer, the developers already showed what they were working on and what impact it would have on the blocky world of Minecraft:
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Many formerly flat objects, such as rails, were transformed into 3D items that protruded significantly from the ground. Another highlight was the new possibilities for how blocks could interact with light. Different light sources, such as the sun, torches, or fire, could illuminate blocks from various angles, which would create actual reflections. This would have created a much more realistic ambiance. Moving grasses and plants, which would sway in the wind, were also planned.
Why was the graphic pack discontinued? The official Minecraft site revealed that the project was discontinued with a heavy heart. The reason is that they were not satisfied with how well it worked across different platforms.
Apparently, the pack’s requirements were so high that many devices could not handle it, leading to a massive drop in performance. This is quite believable, as even on current computers, Minecraft is still extremely resource-hungry.
Anyone who wants to can still beautify their Minecraft, for example, with some great texture packs. Many of the planned effects can now also be produced with other software and addons – at least on PC.
Did you look forward to the graphics pack? Or do you think the Minecraft style is good as it is now?
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Fallout 76
is still plagued by bugs. But sometimes that’s a blessing when it enables such creative base buildings as demonstrated by this player here.
What’s the deal with the glitch base? In Fallout 76, the player MrsP123 has come up with something very special. Thanks to a bizarre glitch, she was able to step through a wall behind the map in the north of the Whitespring station. This brought her into the substructure of the Fallout world where she had a brilliant idea: Why not build a base down there that is safe from enemies?
A little paradise beneath the map
Here’s what the underground base looks like: After MrsP123 reliably figured out how to glitch under the map (the trick is to place two platforms in such a way that they connect the overworld with the underworld), she got to work.
A small staircase leads back up to the overworld, but underground, on wooden planks, you can find things like a greenhouse, workshops, and even a cozy conservatory with a piano.
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How dangerous is the underground? In her little “bunker,” MrsP123 is mostly safe. Only occasionally does a mole rat follow her through the glitch portal. Larger enemies probably can’t get in.
Every now and then, however, players accidentally find a way into the underground. If it’s a rogue player who means harm to MrsP123, the problem is quickly solved. The player lures him deeper into the bunker and simply edits the floorboard beneath his feet away. This causes the attacker to fall into the white void beneath the map and disappear.
This is the reason for the bunker: MrsP123 herself has died multiple times while building her little refuge. But even though the little bunker is dangerous, MrsP123 does not want to create a death trap, as has been done by a player with his labyrinth or a wicked genius with his funny catapult death trap.
Her little realm is mainly intended for sightseeing.
Fun fact: You can see the map above from underground. This is especially beautiful when nukes go off there. Therefore, MrsP123 wishes to detonate a small atomic bomb in Whitespring herself and watch the fireworks in safety from underground.
More and more details about the new Call of Duty: Modern Warfare are being revealed. In a developer blog, there are now fresh insights into what players can expect from the weapons in terms of gameplay. The weapons in Call of Duty will soon behave somewhat differently than many fans have been used to: They differ in 5 details.
What do the changes entail? With the 2019 reboot of the “Call of Duty” franchise, Modern Warfare does many things differently compared to its predecessors. In this context, Infinity Ward decided to revise some weapon mechanics for the multiplayer mode.
We explain how Modern Warfare 2019 plays differently concerning weapons compared to its predecessors.
This is how the weapons of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2019 are changing
What specific changes will be made regarding weapons and their handling? We summarize the most important aspects and examples for you below:
Reason 1: Bullet Drop
Call of Duty is known for its fast-paced gameplay. For weapons, this is largely based on the so-called hit-scan method. This means: a fired projectile travels in a perfect straight line at infinite speed. As a shooter, you do not need to adjust your aim for bullet drop (a projectile drops as distance increases) or the movement of the target (leading).
To maintain the fast character of the matches, the developers did not want to introduce too much bullet drop but did loosen the existing hit-scan system. This aims to encourage weapon variety as well as skill in using them.
At close to medium range (targets that can be hit within a frame) and depending on the weapon, you will still hit the target immediately – and still with the previous hit-scan method. However, it will be different with enemies that are further away. You will need more skill to land a hit. There will be bullet drop, meaning you will have to lead your shots more as the distance increases to hit the target.
Reason 2: Archetype Changes
Changes to some established weapon classes are planned in CoD Modern Warfare. For example, submachine guns (SMGs) are mentioned.
SMGs in Call of Duty have historically been weapons with significant recoil. In reality, however, these weapons utilize small calibers and are therefore much easier to control. They also have lower damage and are more precise.
As a result, the role of submachine guns has been revised in Modern Warfare. They are now suitable for medium distances along with assault rifles.
Reason 3: Animations
Significant attention has been paid to the animations of the weapons. The more or less static weapon view has been significantly improved for Modern Warfare. The weapons are intended to move much more realistically from all perspectives.
If you look around or change your viewpoint (not in aiming mode, but during normal movement), the weapon’s animation will be independent of your view. First, your character turns their head and gaze. Only then will the weapon follow independently.
The new animations even take the weight of a weapon into account. Moreover, the firearms are expected to react more intensely to the immediate environment. So if you carry a weapon up a staircase, the game will consider this circumstance and depict the movement differently than if you are just standing somewhere or moving on a street.
Another important role is played by the numerous customization options within the Gunsmith features, which allow you to tailor your weapons to your play style. The selection is as vast as never before, and you should feel the effects of your choices.
The developers give an example of a shotgun:
For the shotgun, you can attach an extended barrel and a sniper scope, turning the firearm into a sniper shotgun.
Conversely, you can shorten the barrel and remove the stock, making the weapon much quicker to handle and play completely differently than its starting version.
Reason 5: The Sound
The sound of the weapons is also intended to contribute to a completely different feeling than previous installments of the series.
Each weapon has its own distinctive 3D sound, which can vary depending on the environment, perspective, and weapon attachments, and interacts differently with the surroundings.
What do you think of these changes? By the way, if you want to experience and try all of this from the front row before the launch, participate in the beta:
Successful Overwatch players are leaving the league. But what is the reason for this? Former pro Seagull has an explanation, and it has to do with many patches.
The Overwatch League is still relatively young compared to other eSports scenes. After a bumpy start, it was only a few weeks ago that it became known that viewers are being lost.
But professional players from Overwatch are also turning their backs on the league. In the nearly two years, several extremely successful players like Seagull, Miro, Effect, or Fissure have already left the league.
Seagull recently revealed in a stream why Overwatch professionals are leaving and provided several reasons.
Overwatch is too complex: According to Seagull, some professionals lose interest in the Overwatch League because Overwatch is simply too complex regarding balancing changes.
Whenever there is a balance change for a hero, it not only impacts that one character and the team composition but also all 21 maps, which are increasing. A small change to one hero means you have to rethink what strategy with which hero setup makes sense on all 21 maps. Seagull says:
It’s much harder with Overwatch considering how many things constantly change on so many maps. This makes Overwatch really annoying because with every balance patch, all changes happen on every map, and the whole meta of the maps changes.
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Other games are more consistent: As a counterexample, Seagull mentioned other eSport games like Counter Strike, League of Legends, or DOTA. Here, there is basically always a constant, and only one area of the game changes. For Counter Strike, there may also be many maps, but only a few balance changes. This makes it easy to adapt to the few changes.
In LoL and DOTA, however, there is basically only one map, but numerous adjustments to the heroes. Because the layout of the map remains the same, you also have to adjust to fewer scenarios and can focus entirely on the heroes.
Sigma will also shake up the meta again.
Overwatch players are copying tactics: Because there is so much “to learn anew” every time, some teams have simply given up completely and only copy the strategies of the other teams. He continues:
In my opinion, that’s why you see so many teams that just blindly copy the respective other teams and don’t think as much about the strategies anymore. One team has a Mei-Reaper combo, and then they’re like, “Oh, forget it, we’re all playing Mei and Reaper this week.
Do you also find Overwatch to be a game that develops too quickly if you want to compete at the pro level? Or do you have a completely different view?
In the space game No Man’s Sky, four players have built a city that nobody thought possible. To make it so detailed, even glitches had to be used.
What kind of city is this? Replicant City is a cyberpunk city created with great care and many details. It looks so good that one might think it was created by the developers.
In reality, however, only four players worked on this project, with the builder ERBorrughs claiming to have built about 75% on his own.
The construction itself was not easy, as No Man’s Sky doesn’t actually support such constructions. But the fans, who love their game so much, found a way to make it happen.
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What’s the problem? To build Replicant City, the players had to use “Glitch Building”. This involves deliberately using bugs to construct things.
Complicating matters was also the mass of components. “A planet with a lot of flora and fauna would have led to rendering problems,” as the creator JC Hysteria reports. So a remote location had to be found.
The group was thus limited in construction not by their ideas, but mainly by the technology, as ERBurroughs explains. They often had to reduce the number of components to the point where the game ran smoothly and the basic idea was still recognizable.
A tour of the city in VR
Where is the cyberpunk city located? While the four builders of Replicant City have already released a video about their city, they do not want to reveal its exact location yet.
What platform is required for the city? ERBurroughs and his friends used the PS4 version of No Man’s Sky, so the cyberpunk city will only be found there.
Unfortunately, PC and Xbox fans will not be able to enjoy this wonderful player creation live and on their own.
There could be good news for fair players, as Niantic is reportedly targeting a specific group of spoofers in Pokémon GO.
What is Niantic planning? According to the site SlashGear, Pokémon GO hackers and spoofers on Android and iOS should prepare for some changes. Niantic is supposedly paying increased attention to players who fake their GPS location in Pokémon GO using the iSpoofer app and similar systems.
Bans for cheaters in Pokémon GO are apparently being planned. This means at least a few days, and possibly even permanent exclusion for players who resort to these prohibited services.
This information has not been officially shared by Niantic. It comes from an anonymous source at SlashGear. Therefore, it should be understood as a rumor for now.
As recently as June 2019, Niantic made another significant strike against cheaters. They filed a lawsuit against Global++, which shortly afterward shut down their channels and apparently ceased their services.
Can I be banned? If you are unsure whether you might be affected by the potential upcoming ban wave in Pokémon GO, you should read up on what you can be banned for in Pokémon GO.
Have you already used spoofing services to teleport in Pokémon GO? Then you could be banned.
Such spoofing apps deceive the game into believing the player is in a different location. This allows players to sit comfortably at home on their sofa while being in Paris or New York in the game, participating in raids, catching Pokémon, and more. This is against the terms of use of Pokémon GO.
Such spoofing apps are often used by players living in rural areas, where there are generally fewer PokéStops and gyms. However, with the new feature to submit PokéStops in Pokémon GO, this problem should be resolved in the near future.
The Twitch streamer and multiple LoL world champion Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok is considered one of the trickiest and best players in the world in League of Legends. He is particularly feared when he plays the LoL champ LeBlanc, a tricky assassin. What it means to face a Faker on LeBlanc was something an opposing team had to find out the hard way: with a series of nasty moves, Faker takes out 2 opponents in the match.
This is the situation: Faker is regarded as an outstanding mid-laner in League of Legends, who can make an impact with almost any champ and can maximize even unusual picks, being a factor in every match.
However, Faker is especially known and feared in League of Legends for his play with LeBlanc. Because the champ can create clones, and Faker always seems to be where the opponent does not expect him. LeBlanc is an ideal champ for the tricky Korean.
Faker’s ability to perfectly maintain an overview of the game situation suits him well with the agile champ.
When Faker plays as LeBlanc, kills rain down.
There were times when LeBlanc was almost always banned in competitive mode when Faker was on the opposing team.
Twitch clip shows kill, bait, and escape in perfection
This is the play: The match is well advanced, Faker is already level 16 on LeBlanc and well-fed. Faker’s team leads comfortably with 22vs9 and is gearing up for the final push.
With a quick 4-combo of all 3 skills and an item, Faker catches the opposing Kindred and takes them out of the match immediately.
Then he goes on the offensive and dives into the fight, but gets hit and Faker retreats. However, the opposing Akali counters and deals damage to Faker, bringing him down to 163 HP.
However, Faker uses the abilities Distortion and Mimic so skillfully that the opponent runs into a blank and ends up looking quite bewildered without any kills. Because Faker is no longer where Akali expects him to be.
Faker initially wants to pull back after his spectacular escape, but then sees that his team is winning anyway, as he has tied up 2 opponents: Kindred is already dead and Akali has been lured out of the base by Faker, dooming her team.
So Faker re-engages, helps to shred the isolated Akali, and easily takes the victory.
What’s impressive about it? The special thing about this clip is the masterful control and overview that Faker shows.
Even though he actually just wants to teleport back to base, Faker checks the match’s progress multiple times, looks at the stats, and then reassesses the situation.
Just recently, the “Episode 1” DLC brought Expeditions to The Division 2 – a new PvE activity. Now, they are already being removed from the game – much to the dismay and confusion of many players. Why – the developers at Massive have now explained.
What are Expeditions anyway? Expeditions are a new PvE activity that came with Episode 1. They take agents to the grounds of Kenly College outside of Washington and consist of 3 sections that were released weekly in stages.
Expeditions are essentially a type of puzzle activity where you must solve various tasks to ultimately clarify the fate of a lost military convoy – the last one was just on August 6.
What exactly is happening with the Expeditions? As Massive recently surprised many players by announcing, this new activity is subject to a cycle. And the first one ends today, August 13.
Specifically, this means: The Expeditions along with the corresponding content cannot be played continuously but only at certain times. Starting today, they will be temporarily disappearing. Until when exactly is unclear. All that is known is that they are supposed to return later this year.
Why are the Expeditions disappearing now? This decision met with confusion and anger from many players. Especially the poor communication was widely criticized. Many only heard about it for the first time a few days ago.
In a post on Reddit, where players have discussed the removal of Expeditions, Community Manager Giuseppe Dalicante tried to explain what Massive was thinking with this decision.
They have always envisioned the Expeditions as a rotating experience that opens for a certain time, then disappears for a certain time, and later becomes available again.
Part of the plan was also that this rotating experience brings new elements for replayability. Normally, this is where the Mastery System should kick in. But since the Mastery System was not completed for Episode 1, they had to make the decision: either postpone the Expeditions as a whole or include them in a complete rotation cycle so that players could already get a glimpse of this experience.
They did not want players to get worn out by repeatedly playing an activity that currently does not offer the right replay value. Therefore, they decided to bring back the Expeditions only when the Mastery System meets the corresponding quality. In the meantime, they are open for discussions regarding the availability of the Diamondback.
What is the Mastery System all about? The Mastery System was roughly explained by Massive back in June. It was intended that in Expeditions, the 3 different sections would go live sequentially. After that, a persistent rotation was to take place. The so-called Mastery System was supposed to modify each of these sections within this rotation to provide more challenge and variety – and thus address the aforementioned lack of replayability.
What do you think? Was it the right decision? Or can you still not understand the decision?
In Destiny 2, we expect another Solar Week and an Exotic item related to the Solstice of Heroes – but will both still happen?
Why should this happen? About 3 weeks ago, detailed data mining results were revealed on reddit. The game data was examined for information on the Solstice of Heroes – and a lot was discovered that has since proven to be correct. From voice lines of Eva Levante to the tasks you need to master for the Solstice armor.
The data mining revealed two “contents” that have not made it into the game yet:
The Solar Week
and strange lines associated with an exotic rocket launcher
And presumably, both are somehow connected.
Lord Saladin announces the Solar Week – but when?
When does the Solar Week start? Following the delay of Shadowkeep to October 1st, Bungie recently released a new roadmap detailing what lies ahead in the extended Season 7. And the curious thing is: It contains no indication of the Solar Week nor a new Exotic:
The start dates for exotic quests, such as the Lumina quest, have consistently been mentioned in the roadmaps. Since the Arc Week was also shown on the roadmap for Season 6, the question arises: Why is the Solar Week missing from the current roadmap?
The Arc Week was included in the roadmap for the Drifter season
Here’s the information from the data mining about the Solar Week: According to the data mining, Guardians will be infused with increased Solar energy at some point. As a result, Lord Saladin announces a week of celebration.
During this week, several Solar subclass paths will be improved.
Several vendors in the Tower will offer new bounties for Solar Guardians. To complete them, you must participate in activities using Solar damage.
New Solar-themed emotes are expected in Eververse.
Thus, according to the data mining, Lord Saladin is linked to the Solar Week. It’s likely absent from the roadmap because it will coincide with an Iron Banner.
In fact, only one Iron Banner was supposed to take place in the current season, but due to the Shadowkeep delay, two will happen instead:
From August 27 to September 3.
and from September 17 to September 24.
So there won’t be an Iron Banner during the Solstice of Heroes. Will anything happen during the summer event at all?
Gjallarhorn or Dragon’s Breath – Will one of these rocket launchers return?
Here’s what you need to know about the Exotic: In the game data regarding the Solstice, the data miner found two strange lines:
Scattered pieces of a greater whole
Components of the rocket launcher
When Guardians read this, they combined both pieces of information – resulting in: During the Solar Week, THE rocket launcher returns: The Gjallarhorn.
Why Gjallarhorn? In Year 3 of Destiny 1, you could forge the Gjallarhorn by searching for scattered components of the weapon. Now that components of a rocket launcher are mentioned again, the connection to Gjallarhorn is quickly made.
Many players also think of the “greater whole” when considering the exotic rocket launcher. The Gjallarhorn was an incredibly powerful weapon in Year 1 of Destiny 1, the best choice for every occasion. It achieved cult status and formed the core Destiny experience for many.
What about Dragon’s Breath?Dragon’s Breath was a fiery rocket launcher in Destiny 1. Since it was a strong Solar rocket launcher alongside the Gjallarhorn, it would also fit within the context of the Solar Week. Therefore, it could also be referenced.
Dragon’s Breath in Destiny 1
And what is the situation with the Exotic? Several theories might apply:
Perhaps Bungie has simply scrapped the Solar Week along with the exotic rocket launcher. They may now need to focus on cross-save, the transition to Steam, and the Shadowkeep expansion, which apparently still needs fine-tuning. Maybe there isn’t enough time left to mess with the Solar focuses.
Or the Solar Week might unexpectedly start with a new Exotic in tow. Because the Arc Week was seen as a disappointment, with higher expectations due to its dedicated spot on the roadmap. Perhaps Bungie is better off launching a Solar Week as a nice surprise rather than announcing it in advance.
And it’s also possible that Bungie has only inserted these lines into the game files to mislead curious Guardians.
The future will ultimately tell. But perhaps something will still happen during the Solstice of Heroes. Because the mystery surrounding the hidden cat statue in the EDZ has yet to be solved:
SpatialOS promises gigantic worlds in MMOs, which can even be managed by small teams. But now, with Lazarus, the third online game that wanted to use this “wonder technology” is being shut down. Previously, the MMORPG World’s Adrift and the shooter Maverick: Proving Grounds had to face the same fate.
What is SpatialOS? It is a cloud technology from the company Improbable, which allows developers to create huge game worlds and manage them with minimal effort. Even expansions of the worlds should be easy to implement. The large landscape is distributed across multiple servers to enable more complex features.
This should enable even smaller indie studios to develop large MMORPGs.
https://youtu.be/pjpq0anXya0
The end of another SpatialOS MMO
Which game has now been shut down? The indie studio Spilt Milk was working on the MMO space shooter Lazarus, which aimed to enable fast action in a large, persistent world where thousands of players could battle each other. But now, that will not happen. The studio explains that work on the shooter will not continue.
Why is Lazarus being shut down?On Steam, there is a detailed explanation that boils down to one point: money.
Even with SpatialOS and the support of Improbable, operating the game would be so costly due to fees for software licenses, server costs, and the effort of constant updates that a dangerous financial situation would arise for the small studio.
In short, the team apparently overestimated itself with the huge shooter, and now lacks the funds for ongoing operation.
It now simply raises the question of whether it is really that good for small studios to use this technology. While it may simplify the development and management of huge game worlds, it presents a danger that Lazarus has highlighted:
The temptation for a small team to create a gigantic online world apparently makes developers forget that such a large game incurs further costs. The larger a game is, the more other elements and technologies that need to be utilized cost.
An indie team must be aware in advance that it is very expensive to develop and operate a large online game – even when using SpatialOS.
Millions of Fortnite players are following the streamer Ninja online. He has now surprisingly shared his phone number publicly. Why is he doing this?
How did the streamer share his number? On Twitter, Ninja shared a video with his 4.7 million followers on August 11, stating, “Stay tuned … I’m leaking my phone number tonight. This is NOT a joke.”
In the video, he explains that he has something crazy planned and wants to reach a more personal level with his fans, which is why he would share his phone number.
Just a few hours later, on August 12, it was time. He shares his number with his followers, stating that he will receive every text and respond to as many as possible:
“Send me a text message now and you will receive a link. Fill out the fields so I have the information to contact you personally. I will send you great videos, messages, behind-the-scenes material from events, or even cute photos of my dogs lying on the couch. […]
Additionally, I will personally respond to a few people and ask for their Fortnite gamer tags to get some Vic Roys (Victory Royals) later this week.”
This is what happens when you text the number: If you fill out a text message and send it to the shared number, you will receive an automatic reply with a link to Ninja’s profile on Community.com. There, you can enter your name, location, gender, birthday, and email, and also accept the terms of use.
Thousands have already texted him shortly after the announcement of the number. Many with the words “Hi Ninja, play with me!”
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The terms of use state that Community gives users the ability to receive and send text messages to and from customers [like Ninja]. But that is not always the case.
It also explains that messages may look as if they come from Ninja, but a PR person might be behind it, acting only on behalf of him. It is not about private conversations, but about “interactions that are solely for the purposes of advertising and/or marketing for the customer and the customer’s products and services.”
Should you text the number? For big Ninja fans, this service is probably a good way to stay informed. Insights behind the scenes at major events can be quite interesting for fans.
One should be aware that Ninja has not shared his personal cell phone number here. You cannot call him and ask if he wants to play a round of Fortnite.
This is primarily about Ninja’s marketing. This way, he can reach his fans via SMS everywhere and inform them when a big event with the streamer is coming up.
During this action, Ninja had an uncomfortable situation with Twitch. They advertised non-age-appropriate content on his old channel:
With Padria Online (PC), a new MMORPG is in development that deliberately targets a niche: hardcore PvP players who are not afraid of any battle. The game is set to come out on Steam.
What is Padria Online? In the MMORPG Padria Online, it is primarily about one thing: PvP. The developers are aware that this will not attract a large audience and therefore consciously target a specific niche;
You create a hero and choose whether to focus on combat, crafting, trading, or magic
You improve your character through skills
There are no PvP zones. Player-vs-player battles can happen anywhere
While PvE also plays a role, PvP is the focus
It is important to form groups to conquer the world together
It is possible to control nations and eventually the entire land
A Game That Comes from the Heart
Who is behind the MMORPG? The indie developer SnaxxGames is developing Padria Online. It is intended to be a game that the team has always wished for. It is a project born out of passion for PvP in MMORPGs.
Who is the game aimed at? The developers know that hardcore MMORPGs have a hard time in the market, especially when they focus on open PvP. But the team doesn’t care. They want to implement their game and thus consciously target a relatively small niche of players who find such a concept appealing.
Padria Online is therefore an MMORPG for those who enjoy PvP battles in MMORPGs and love the danger of being able to be ambushed by other players at any time and everywhere.
Story in a PvP World
Does Padria Online also have a story? Yes. You are the last knight trying to find the resting place of the legendary Padria to gain glory and become the king of the land. Along the way, monsters and other players will stand in your way.
Are there PvE and PvP servers? No, PvE and PvP are not separate. Everyone plays in the same, large world. Therefore, you basically cannot avoid PvP.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare has released over 20 minutes of gameplay for the last multiplayer reveal in 4K. There you can see various maps and game modes. Furthermore, it seems that an important feature is missing.
What is shown in the multiplayer video? The developers at Infinity Ward provided a video of nearly 24 minutes in length and in 4K resolution from the big multiplayer reveal. In it, you can see intense multiplayer action on the following maps and game modes:
Grazna Raid – Headquarters
Azhir Cave (Night) – Team Deathmatch
Hackney Yard – Cyber Attack
Azhir Cave – Headquarters
Gun Runner – Domination
Aniyah Palace – 5 Flag Domination
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The game already looks extremely impressive. Especially the high realism and the high-resolution graphics are enjoyable to watch. However, a controversial new feature stands out.
Multiplayer Gameplay: Where is the Mini-Map?
What is the deal with the mini-map? It is quickly noticeable: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare seems to no longer have a mini-map. The small display on the screen edge has always been used in previous installments of the series to quickly obtain tactical information about the battlefield and gameplay.
Especially experienced players liked to use it to find out where enemies were active and how the spawn points looked. Without the mini-map, one has to rely on reconnaissance drone killstreaks, which are only available for a short time.
What does the missing mini-map mean for the beta?
Without the mini-map, as stated by Kotaku, players may play less aggressively and prefer to play it safe. This could mean, in extreme cases, cautious tactics and camping, which is the opposite of the gameplay that Call of Duty has been known for.
Will the mini-map come after the beta? A player already asked on Twitter whether they might get the mini-map if enough people want it after the beta. Art Director Joel Emslie responded that one should definitely play the beta before forming an opinion on the matter.
When does the beta start? The beta of Modern Warfare starts on September 12 on the PS4. A crossplay beta on PS4, Xbox One, and PC is scheduled for September 19.
The head of Epic Games, Tim Sweeney, has now announced that PC players will not have the option to start a preload for the shooter Borderlands 3 . The reason: The feature is not yet finished in the Epic Games Store.
Here is the announcement: The Epic head, Tim Sweeney, was asked on Twitter whether one could download Borderlands 3 before the release. Because players want to start immediately at midnight on release and not wait for the thing to be downloaded.
The response of the self-made billionaire is sober: I’m sorry, but we will not support a preload when the release of Borderlands is imminent.
It indicates: The feature is simply not ready yet.
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This is how fans react: The person who asked thanks politely.
But other users are not so thankful. One user on Reddit says that he hopes the servers of Epic Games will withstand the download stress on the release day of such an AAA title.
For critics, directly on Twitter, the cancellation of the preload is a confirmation that the Epic Games Store does not provide a real alternative to Steam and that it was a mistake to release Borderlands 3 exclusively there.
There are some flames “You don’t even try anymore” or “You are only interested in Fortnite.”
A quote from Borderlands head, Randy Pitchford, from April 2019 is dredged up, stating that the Epic Games Store will be a different entity in September when Borderlands 3 releases, than it was at that time in April.
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Sweeney has said that the only thing that really helps to attack the quasi-monopolist are exclusive titles.
From Sweeney’s perspective, Steam needs to be attacked because they ask for too much money from developers and that this is bad for the industry in the long run.
Epic Games faces criticism for exclusivity policy
This bothers the fans: Players who want to play Borderlands 3 on PC are practically “forced” into the Epic Games Store.
However, players accuse the Epic Games Store of not offering the features that have long been standard on Steam. This includes features like rating games, commenting, or starting a preload.
Epic says that they will bring many of the features in the future, but they are not yet available at the moment.
Rayquaza is considered one of the best monsters in Pokémon GO, but it can be easily defeated. This is demonstrated by 19 players who only fought with Spheal.
This was the challenge: They aimed to defeat Rayquaza only with Spheal. Many players were allowed to participate, but battles could only be fought with Spheal.
Under the name “Spheal Team 6”, a combination of the English name for Spheal and an American elite unit, the brave trainers faced the battle.
Players prove how strong Spheal is
How the battle went: A fitting video of the battle shows the details. A total of 19 trainers were in action and fought exclusively with Spheal:
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In the end, the result was quite clear. With just under 90 seconds remaining, Rayquaza was taken down by the Spheal army.
Where it went wrong: Already at the last appearance of Rayquaza, in March 2019, they faced this challenge. There, they fought with 12 players and narrowly lost against Rayquaza. Now they brought in 7 more players and ultimately won.
How does this work? Even though Spheal is not strong, it is still an Ice-type. Rayquaza is vulnerable to this, and Spheal can hit it very effectively.
So, if you have the right amount of Pokémon, you can defeat a Rayquaza even with Spheal.
Nevertheless, it is a great achievement because Spheal is not particularly useful. It has an attack value of 95 and is comparable to Pokémon like Magikarp, Squirtle, or Flurmel.
In The Division 2, we showcase a sniper build that can achieve nearly 20 million damage per shot. This is supposed to be the best build for snipers.
This is what the build can do: Sniper builds are basically focused on one thing: enormous damage. The following build is no exception. If you replicate it, you will be the type in the squad that deals high damage from a safe distance but should not take damage yourself, as you will go down instantly otherwise.
The build is thus designed for high damage and group play – like in raids.
Who created the build? The YouTuber NothingButSkillz designed this build. According to him, it is currently the best sniper build capable of achieving dizzying heights of around 20 million damage. In the comments, the build has received positive feedback, being described as “very good” and “crazy”. You can see it in the video here; we present it in German below:
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The important stats: Since you only want to deal damage, you need neither high armor values nor hit points. Focus on 11 offensive attributes (red), 5 utility attributes (yellow), and 0 defensive attributes (blue). The armor is at 178,000, hit points at 27,000, and skill power at 1,400.
These are the weapons you need: The heart of this build consists of the weapons – 2 sniper rifles.
Surplus SVD (Highend) – This is a sniper with a fire rate of 260, 91.4k damage, and 15 shots in the magazine (thanks to the extended magazine). The talents:
Ranger: For every 5 meters you are away from the target, you gain +2% weapon damage
Instead of Ranger, the Naked talent is also possible: Headshot damage is increased by 50% when your armor is destroyed
Optimized: +15% weapon handling
The mods: The scope (3.4x) increases damage against elites by 5%, the magazine increases the capacity by 5 shots, and with the grip and compensator, each increases stability by 10%
Nemesis (Exotic) – The second weapon is the exotic sniper, which has over 570k damage, a fire rate of 50, and 5 shots in the magazine. The special feature of this weapon is that you deal more damage the longer you “charge” the shot. Additionally, you can increase the damage on the enemy if you aim at them for a long time. Only with this weapon are the 20 million damage possible.
Nemesis
These are the armor pieces:
Mask of Sokolov Concern with bonuses to damage against elites (+37%, mod), skill strength, and skill speed. The key talent here is “Explorer”: +20% weapon damage to enemies marked by a pulse.
Chest piece of 5.11 Tactical with bonuses to headshot damage (+19%, mod), +9% weapon damage, and skill strength. The talent Ruthless grants +10% damage against elite enemies. With the mods, you can increase weapon damage and sniper damage.
Holster of Airaldi Holdings with bonus to skill strength and the talent Ruthless. Increases weapon damage and sniper damage with mods.
Knees of Douglas & Harding with bonus to skill strength and the Ruthless talent. Increases weapon damage and sniper damage with mods.
Gloves of Airaldi Holdings with a bonus of +11% sniper damage and talent “Nefarious”: +10% weapon damage to enemies affected by status effects.
Backpack of Airaldi Holdings with bonuses of +8.5% weapon damage and +6.5% crit damage. The important talent is Ruthless. Increases weapon damage and sniper damage with mods.
This is the important brand set: The build relies on Airaldi Holdings, which adds +10% precision, +10% headshot damage, and +10% sniper damage when 3 pieces are equipped.
This is what you still need to consider: To further optimize the damage output and achieve around 20 million damage, you must play in a squad. A teammate needs 6 parts of the “Tip of the Spear” gear set, which triggers a small pulse when you kill an enemy. Enemies marked by this pulse take +20% more damage from all allies.
Additionally, a member must wear the gear set “Aces and Eights”, which grants +100% weapon damage for all allies for 5 shots with activated talent.
How powerful this build is in practice can be seen at the beginning of the above video and at the end from minute 08:00. At the shooting range, you can achieve nearly 20 million damage with all perks, but even if not all bonuses are active, you deal good damage.
Which skills does the build use? A pulse emitter and the revive drone stock are recommended – in case you take damage.
When do I use this build? This sniper build is mainly designed for PvE. Hide at a safe distance from the enemy and deal significant damage to the opponents. In the raid, it should shine against Boomer.
You primarily shoot with the Nemesis exotic, whose talents you exploit. This means you do not shoot wildly, but rather charge the shots first to deal increased damage per shot.
What do you think of this build?
You can find another currently quite strong build here:
