In eSports, the Fortnite star player and Twitch streamer Turner “Tfue” Tenney wants to leave his clan and has even filed a lawsuit for it. This particularly hits one of the clan leaders, FaZe Banks, hard. The lawsuit seems to have thrown him off course.
This is the situation: The streamer Tfue (21) signed a contract with the eSports organization FaZe in April 2018. The contract allegedly secures him $2000 a month but binds him to the organization until the end of 2021 and includes many clauses that assign FaZe a portion of Tfue’s earnings.
Tfue was still a relatively small name in April 2018, but with his entry into FaZe, his rise began. He is now one of the biggest streamers in the world on Twitch, has built a huge fan base and is considered one of the best players in the world in the highly popular shooter Fortnite.
Tfue wants out of the contract and has even filed a lawsuit for it.
Banks has “Code Tfue” tattooed on his leg
This is how FaZe Banks sees his relationship with Tfue: One of the clan leaders, Ricky “Banks” Banks (27), sees himself as a supporter, friend, and mentor to Tfue. He apparently takes the lawsuit against FaZe extremely personally.
After all, Banks even had Tfue’s name tattooed on his leg.
In a YouTube video, Banks shows that he had “Code Tfue” tattooed on his leg.
“Can you imagine how stupid I feel right now?” said Banks in an initial emotional video.
In Banks’ view, he made it possible for Tfue, discovered him on Twitch when hardly anyone knew him, then got him a strong duo partner for Fortnite in Cloak and built him up.
This is how Banks sees the current situation: Banks now shows himself bitterly disappointed that Tfue does not seek a conversation with him but only wants to talk through lawyers.
How torn Banks’ feelings are becomes evident in a series of tweets. Banks says,
that what Tfue is doing is just manipulative show.
Banks himself pours out his heart and speaks the truth. His team hates him for it, but he has no strategy, no lawyer, no script; he is not a robot, but a real person.
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Borderlands 3 will reveal some big info nuggets at this year’s E3. According to a tweet from Gearbox’s head, Randy Pitchford, fans can expect a surprise.
What can we expect for Borderlands 3 at E3? Apparently, fans are expecting a lot of new information about Borderlands 3 this year at E3. Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford wrote on his Twitter channel:
[…] We will show new gameplay, a new Vault Hunter, and a new planet! […] We might even have one or two surprises up our sleeves… I’m excited!
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
A few days ago, Square Enix released a video showcasing the new abilities of the jobs from Final Fantasy XIV in the upcoming expansion Shadowbringers. Our author Irie was greatly impressed by the trailer.
Final Fantasy XIV is currently racing towards the release of its next expansion. Therefore, it’s really not a big deal that new abilities were introduced in a stream with director Naoki Yoshida a few days ago, which will be available from Shadowbringers.
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The maximum level in the MMORPG will indeed be raised from 70 to 80, so it makes sense that players will get new cool abilities. This skill trailer still left a really strong impression on me.
You don’t just get randomly generated skills accompanied by lots of pretty effects. Some jobs receive abilities that were previously used against the players by story bosses, which I found much cooler than anything else.
Warning: Spoilers for the main story and side quests of FFXIV follow from here
When mechanics merge with the story of the game
The first example that immediately caught my eye in the trailer is the Dragoon. In the Shadowbringers expansion, Dragoons will receive a new ability that resembles the attack “Endchoral” of the dragon Nidhogg.
Nidhogg was one of the main antagonists of the Heavensward expansion. Blinded by grief and vengeance against the humans who killed his sister Ratatoskr, he waged a thousand-year war against the nation of Ishgard.
Through contact with the eyes of Nidhogg, the Dragoon Estinien was possessed by the will of the dragon.
In the story of Heavensward, he possesses the body of the NPC character Estinien and in the final crucial battle becomes a hybrid of human and dragon. In this form, he uses his strongest attack, which has wiped many groups.
The final battle against Nidhogg-Estinien is spectacularly staged, accompanied by epic music, and has left a deep impression on many players. And now they can use his ultimate ability, which was used against them. I was pleased, and I don’t even play Dragoon!
Fray Myste: The NPC that speaks to my soul
Or my favorite among the new abilities: At the end of the trailer for the skills, you can see the Dark Knight summoning his own shadow, which fights alongside him. Many players immediately recognized this shadow as the NPC Fray Myste.
Fray is the main NPC of the Dark Knight job quests. The quest line is considered one of the best in the game by FFXIV players.
The Dark Knight job quests are regarded as some of the best in the community, and Fray plays a crucial role in them. Throughout the story, it is revealed that he represents the dark side of the player character.
Fray represents the suppressed emotions of the player character, such as anger, frustration, and disdain, but also sadness and helplessness. He is fed up with always being the underling of others, saving their butts every day, and sometimes not even receiving a thank you for it.
To avoid being overwhelmed by the anger and sorrow in one’s own soul, players must fight against Fray.
He wants to be “free”. Therefore, he tries to get the player character to stop being the Warrior of Light, just walk away and let people solve their own problems. After defeating him in battle, he must retreat into the player character but says as a farewell that they can call him at any time.
And from Shadowbringers, this will actually be possible. Fray is a very popular character because players can identify with him. FFXIV has, God knows, tons of annoying fetch quests that have driven many fans up the wall (keyword: moogles). He speaks to our souls.
And now you can summon him in battle and fight alongside him.
In the currently last quest of the Dark Knight, Fray actually fights on the side of the player character.
“I don’t know which job I want to play”
And there are more examples of abilities that have a strong connection to the story and lore of FFXIV.
Summoners get Phoenix as a new skill, which plays a highly important role in the story around the raid “Twisted Shadows of Bahamut”
Machinists can use the rocket drill of the enemy Chewer. The robot can transform into a super-mecha along with four others in the Alexander raid.
There are also abilities that, while not connected to the story of FFXIV, are connected to other FF games.
Many abilities of the new job Gunbreaker have the same or similar animations as the abilities of Squall Leonhart from FFVIII
The same goes for the newly revamped Machinist, who uses the skills of Edgar Roni Figaro from FFVI. This includes, for example, Bio Blaster or Auto-Crossbow.
One of the players from my raid group just said: “I don’t even know which job I want to play first.”
Unfortunately, not all jobs can boast of rising to boss level with Shadowbringers. As a main Bard player, I didn’t get a cool boss skill to play with.
Not groundbreaking, but a good decision
In the Stormblood expansion, the developers already made such a step. Instead of giving Summoners the “normal” primals as new pets, they directly implemented the dragon god Bahamut as a new ability.
In Shadowbringers, the devs seem to have decided to continue down this path. They took gameplay elements and linked them to emotional moments and player nostalgia. In this way, they further emphasize the story of the game and the Final Fantasy franchise.
This is not a practice exclusive to FFXIV. In WoW, Death Knights can use the abilities of the Lich King, as well as other abilities based on boss attacks. And in Destiny, Guardians could use the technology of the Vex and deploy weapons made from SIVA.
These boss abilities give players the feeling that it’s the next level of character development. You are now on the same level as really strong NPCs from the stories of these games.
On the other hand, it also has an emotional factor because these abilities are inextricably linked to the stories of FFXIV. In any case, I wish for more such skills in the future for Final Fantasy XIV.
In the gaming community, this epic cosplay of Diablo is celebrated. Some can’t believe it’s real. But videos and photos show: Yes, it really exists.
What kind of cosplay is this? This cosplay recreates the character Diablo from Blizzard’s universe. The costume is impressively designed. Claws, horns, dark look. Even the eyes and belly glow.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BxuAI_djMV-/
But not only standing in good light makes the cosplay look good. Even while walking, it shows how much work went into this amazing outfit and that every little detail was considered. Even the spiky tail of the beast looks fierce.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bx03FWQj1fz/
The cosplay often receives attention on Reddit. There, people celebrate the work and recently gave over 50,000 upvotes for a picture (via Reddit).
Who made it? After the cosplay became popular again on Reddit a few days ago, the creator behind it also received a lot of attention. On Instagram, he calls himself uncrowned_kin9. A Redditor managed to track him down. You can visit his Instagram profile here.
What do players say about it: The reactions to the Diablo cosplay are particularly positive. Many wonder how one can even walk through doors when everything is so huge and sticks out from the body.
On Instagram, a user writes “This still blows me away every time I see it. Incredible!”
https://www.instagram.com/p/BuU_7r5FQ–/
https://www.instagram.com/p/BweC4FTjw4l/
“Great cosplay. I saw the post on Reddit and followed you immediately.”
“How can you even make something like this? That’s insane”
“I’m pretty sure that’s not a cosplayer. It’s Diablo himself and he’s walking around letting people take photos with him for some reason”
The online game Dauntless has finally transitioned from beta into the official release on PC, PS4, and Xbox One. Our author Benedict has taken a look at the game for a while and has fallen a bit in love. Something that Monster Hunter World did not manage to do.
Since the release of Dauntless on May 21, I have played a few rounds again. I had played earlier, during the beta in 2018, but only up to level 7 and only for a few hours. I didn’t get very far.
Nevertheless, Dauntless excited me back then and still does today, drawing me in time and again for a while. I could never really get into the unofficial template, Monster Hunter.
That’s why Monster Hunter World couldn’t captivate me
I have been following the Monster Hunter series since around 2010 with Monster Hunter Tri because a friend pointed it out to me back then. I actually like action RPGs and brawling with cool weapons quite a bit.
However, with Monster Hunter, I was always a bit bothered that the enemies didn’t really seem to react to the players’ hits.
Whenever I saw gameplay, it was a group repeatedly hitting an enemy, which didn’t really seem to be affected by the blows. Unless a part fell off.
Even though I have checked out every new release of Monster Hunter in the past few years to see if perhaps it might be something for me, I always stayed outside. And then Dauntless came along.
The story of Dauntless simply speaks to me more. In Monster Hunter, I hunt monsters because I belong to the Hunter guild and it’s more or less my job. In Dauntless, I hunt them because they consume the Aether that holds the entire fabric of the world together. If I don’t kill them, everyone dies.
The desire for better weapons and armor then drove me on – as well as playing with friends.
Behemoths beating with the group is really fun.
Two minor annoyances
Even though Dauntless has captivated me, there are two smaller criticisms:
Tougher battles require a lot of preparation and theorycrafting to exploit elemental resistances and vulnerabilities
The fights are cool – but anytime I want to execute a particularly nice combo, I have to interrupt to dodge
Especially the last point annoys me a bit. Dauntless offers really cool weapons, including pistols for ranged combat. They also have really cool combos, but only if you can pull them off.
But the two things are more minor evils and only hinder me from playing excessively. Dauntless is still fun.
Dauntless has cool weapons, but I rarely see them in full action.
Conclusion: Why I prefer to play Dauntless
All in all, I really enjoy Dauntless. Especially in small doses. I go on a hunt maybe once or twice a week and then turn to other things. This makes for a very pleasant experience.
However, Dauntless also shows me that I don’t want to actively play Monster Hunter World. I would only play it exactly like Dauntless: as a casual. For that, Monster Hunter just feels too complex for me.
Many players are excited about Monster Hunter World. I’m not so much.
Moreover, Dauntless also allows me to play with friends on PS4 or Xbox. Something I personally highly appreciate, even though Dauntless currently has a few issues:
In Fortnite: Battle Royale has leaked a bunch of new skins and items. This time it’s about a new starter pack and a horde of silly Chinese dumpling brothers.
With the Update 9.1 new files were loaded into the Fortnite client. Data miners quickly dug into the matter and came out with a lot of images of new skins and cosmetic items that will appear in the shop or at planned events sooner or later.
The upcoming skins
These are the highlights of the skins: There are quite a few skins in the works this time. The highlight is clearly the “Bao Brothers”. These are four skins (or the variants of a skin) that are clearly inspired by the filled Chinese dumplings called “Baozi”.
The Bao Brothers look simply wonderfully silly and should fit well with the Burgerhead, the Tomatohead, the Chicken Trooper and the Ice Cream Warrior.
But there are even more cool skins coming:
A wacky dog-human named Doggo
A darker version of Vertex
Takara, a Japan-inspired skin
The two skins Sandstorm and Scimitar, reminiscent of Assassin’s Creed
Dark Vertex (Legendary)
Bao Brothers (Epic)
Doggo (Epic)
Gemini (Epic)
Takara (Epic)
Sandstorm (Rare)
Scimitar (Rare)
This is the next starter pack: Additionally, a new starter pack with a skin named Wilde has been leaked. Such skins are always particularly cheap in bundles and are therefore very popular.
Wilde Starter Pack
Normally, the pack costs €4.99 and includes a skin, a back bling, and 600 V-Bucks, which are already worth €6.
The upcoming pickaxes
These are the highlights of the harvesting tools: Especially cool are the soup spoon, which belongs to the Bao Brothers, and the chew bone from Doggo.
Plasma-Carrot (Rare)
Dark-Razor (Rare)
Shamisen (Rare)
Chew-Toy (Uncommon)
Souped-Up (Uncommon)
The upcoming back blings
These are the highlights in back bling: Many of the skins have cool back bling. Especially the dog food bowl from Doggo (which is probably named Odin) is cool.
Dark-Deflector
Bao-Basket
Chow-Down
Gaze
Palette-Pack
The upcoming gliders, emotes, and wraps
These are the highlights: The gliders are nothing special except for the Dark Forerunner from Dark Vertex. However, the new guitar emote promises a lot of fun. And the new wraps all look very promising.
Dark-Forerunner (Rare)
Engage (Uncommon)
Helium (Uncommon)
Rush (Uncommon)
Billy-Bounce (Rare)
Cartwheelin (Rare)
Glitter (Rare)
Guitar-Walk (Rare)
Lock-it-Up (Uncommon)
Emblem (Rare)
Ripple (Rare)
Converge (Uncommon)
Ruff (Uncommon)
But keep in mind that some of these skins may never come, as Epic sometimes packs assets into the data that do not end up being released.
Rumor has it that next week the 2019 Call of Duty: Modern Warfare will be revealed. According to early information, the campaign of the game is set to shock the world public and spark controversial discussions. How do the developers plan to achieve this?
What is known about Call of Duty: Officially, Activision Blizzard has only made vague announcements regarding the new Call of Duty:
the game is ambitious, and Activision Blizzard feels confident and has a good feeling about it
and it is supposed to be presented by June 2019
Modern Warfare allegedly to be revealed on Thursday
This is what is being said about Call of Duty: Although little is officially known, many pieces of information are circulating that have been confirmed by several sources and sound increasingly likely.
As the US site Kotaku reports, Activision Blizzard has already invited YouTubers and press representatives behind closed doors to showcase the game to them. Some details have leaked.
Does Modern Warfare fuel the debate over violent video games?
How is the campaign supposed to shock? According to Kotaku, the campaign is said to rely on “disturbing, emotionally realistic moments”. The campaign is heavily inspired by the “No Russia” mission from Modern Warfare 2 (2009).
In the mission, the player attempts to gain the trust of a Russian terrorist cell by participating in a massacre at an airport. The player has the option to shoot civilians. However, this is not mandatory, and they can even skip the mission.
This scene caused controversy 10 years ago:
while some were offended by the portrayal of violence and called for censorship
others welcomed the mission as a pivotal moment in game development, raising important questions about what video games are allowed to portray and to what extent they should make players perpetrators
The YouTuber “LongSensation”, who is behind many leaks about the new Call of Duty, also states that Call of Duty Modern Warfare is likely the most controversial Call of Duty of all time.
He wonders what the world press will say about the game.
The new patch 4.5 of Final Fantasy XIV has been online since yesterday and has new content for players. This includes new mounts, companions, and other cosmetics. We have created an overview of the locations of the items for you.
Not all locations of the new collectibles have been discovered yet, but the community is working hard on it. We will update this guide as soon as new information is available.
Mounts
Mount
Name
Location
Nine-Tailed Kamuy
After obtaining all other Kamuy, the quest “At the End of Loneliness” will be unlocked in Kugane (X:11.6 /Y: 9.9)
Blue Kamuy
Random drop from the chest in the “Soulstorm – Seiryu” trial
Imperator Kaktor
Gold Saucer, purchasable for 2 million MGP
Flying Carpet
Available for purchase at the Moogle kiosk
Magna Rotula
Reward for the Top 100 players of the FEAST Season 11
Magna Rotula X
Reward for the Top 100 players of the FEAST Season 12
Fat Cat
Available at the Moogle kiosk
Black Chocobo
Currently only available in Japan
Eureka Swift
From a golden bunny chest in Eureka
Proto-Yadis
After defeating Yadis in the Baldesion Arsenal
Cold-Resistant Magitek Avenger
After 100 victories in the Hidden Gorge (PvP)
Companions
Companion
Name
Location
Ramza Doll
From a chest in the new 24-player raid “The Orbonne Monastery”
Seitei
Craftable from 1x Seiryu Scale, 1x King’s Farm, 1x Double Page, 1x Cambric. Requires the Master Weaver VI book
Mini Magitek Transport
15,000 Wolf Marks
Tank Miniature
From a chest in the new dungeon “The Ghimlyt Darkness”
Aloah Otter
From the new submarine expeditions (Zone 7)
Hedgehog
From the Uznair canals
Baby Gremlin
Pre-order bonus for the expansion “Shadowbringers”
Snow Korpokkur
From various lockboxes in Eureka
Virtuous Companion
From a chest in the Baldesion Arsenal
Hairstyles and Emotes
Modern Aesthetic – Lexentale (male and female): Available in the Gold Saucer for 50,000 MGP after completing the 24-player raid “The Orbonne Monastery”
Ballroom Etiquette “Reprimand”: Buy for 15,000 Wolf Marks
In patch 4.5, the photo mode feature has also been expanded:
In Fortnite: Battle Royale, you can now find Fortbyte number 32. You can only discover it if you have Kyo as your companion and search at the northernmost point of the map. We show you the location of Fortbyte 32 and the northernmost point in Fortnite.
Where is Fortbyte 32 in Fortnite? It is “accessible with the companion ‘Kyo’ at the northernmost point.” Through the Fortbytes, you can now learn about many well-known locations on the map that were also part of the challenges.
The northernmost point of the map is easy to find. It is even marked with a sign to ensure you show up at the right spot.
How do you unlock Kyo in Fortnite? You unlock this companion automatically in Fortnite if you own the paid Battle Pass for Season 9 and have reached level 28 within it. The companion is part of the Sky Heroes set.
It is a back bling that you can equip in the locker. With Kyo on your back, you then zoom to the northernmost point on the Fortnite map and unlock the Fortbyte.
This is how you collect Fortbyte 32: On the left, in front of the sign of the northernmost point, there is a pile of stones arranged in a U shape. Inside, you will find the Fortbyte. If you have Kyo on your back, you can simply collect it there.
Video leads to the northernmost point in Fortnite
Video tutorial: In the video by YouTuber StanPlay, you can see how to collect the new Fortbyte.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9HF151tAd8c
What are the Fortbytes? They are puzzle pieces that players can search for. Fortbytes were first unlocked in Season 9. If you manage to collect 90 Fortbytes, you unlock a bonus skin in Season 9.
There is an overview of all Fortbytes in Fortnite here:
Therefore, many fans are now wondering why Rayquaza, especially the shiny form, has been withheld for so long. After all, the shiny forms of Groudon and Kyogre have been in the game for several months.
Players ask: Where is Shiny Rayquaza?
This problem exists with Rayquaza: The dragon Pokémon is regarded by many players as the best Pokémon in the game. Therefore, it is even more important to possess a strong specimen.
The problem is that it is hardly found in raids. Both Kyogre and Rayquaza, which belong to the same trio, have been available to battle over three times.
Why is Niantic withholding the Pokémon? Many players are now pondering this. It is suspected that shiny Rayquaza will create a huge hype that Niantic wants to leverage.
Rayquaza might only return in mid-summer and attract even more interest due to the good weather.
This is what shiny Rayquaza looks like.
What do the players say about it? Trainers are demanding on Reddit the release of shiny Rayquaza. While Kyogre and Groudon are useful, they have been widely available in the game.
Crabominibble: Players will go totally crazy for shiny Rayquaza, so Niantic will surely save it for a golden moment.
citizen_kang2: For those who say they wait for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to print money, who says that wouldn’t happen with every reappearance? People will go crazy for shiny Rayquaza every time it returns. Hell, I would raid until I have a team of six shiny Rayquaza.
What do you think? When can we expect shiny Rayquaza?
In Hearthstone, a plague is causing a stir that raged 14 years ago in the MMORPG World of Warcraft . An eSports match at Grandmaster level ultimately came down to a game of “Russian Roulette.”
What kind of plague is this? In 2005, “Hakkar” wreaked havoc in WoW. He was the final boss of the Zul’Gurub raid. The fiend was capable of afflicting players with a blood plague that spread to other players. This was originally intended only for the raid.
However, in WoW, players were able to smuggle this plague out of the raid with hunter pets for a while and spread it to cities like Stormwind and Orgrimmar, where countless innocent players died, as there was no cure for the virus.
This is how the plague works in Hearthstone: The card “Hakkar the Soulbinder” costs 10 mana and has 9/6 stats. It shuffles the card “Corrupted Blood” into both players’ decks as a Deathrattle. This causes 3 damage when drawn and shuffles two more cards into the deck.
Normally, Hakkar the Soulbinder is only played in very specific decks, but through random effects, the card can find its way into play. Then it suffices for it to die, so that suddenly the Corrupted Blood is in circulation.
In the duel between Jang “Dawn” Hyunjae and Tyler “Tyler” Hoang Nguyen, Hakkar indeed made an appearance.
Intense Moment in Hearthstone eSports
That was “Russian Roulette”: In a recent match of the Grandmasters, the 48 top players in Hearthstone eSports, Grandmaster Dawn played a Mage deck. There is a spell that destroys a minion and summons 2 minions with the same mana cost.
As reported by RockPaperShotgun, thanks to the “Call of the Swarm,” Hakkar and the dragon Emeriss appeared from a sea giant (10 mana).
Both were quickly destroyed by a Warrior Brawl – but now the plague was in both players’ decks. This happened relatively early in the match, and the two continued to play against each other for almost 20 minutes, while health points dwindled, the deck piles became smaller, and the plague became more central.
Quickly, the commentators started calculating the chances of the plague killing one of the two with each turn: “Now the chance is 2:9,” it was said.
Even Grandmasters can only pray here.
At the end of the match, both Grandmasters faced each other with only 3 health points left and the plague cards in the deck. Every draw from the deck became a game of “Russian Roulette”: if the blood plague was drawn, it would be over for that player.
In the final turn, it came down to a showdown, and everything depended on whether DawN would hit the blood plague with the last draw or not.
Tyler and Dawn both clasped their hands together, seemingly praying to the Hearthstone gods for luck.
You can see the moment here:
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For a long time, Destiny was alone in its market segment “Online Loot Shooter” or “MMO Shooter.” In 2019, Destiny 2 had Anthem and The Division 2 as two competitors that approached the genre differently. But somehow, something is off, says our author Schuhmann in his conclusion in May 2019 about the genre of loot shooters.
Was Destiny the only option for 5 years? For years, players felt that there were hardly any alternatives to Destiny and played Bungie’s shooter even when there were actually no more contents for thousands of hours. They often complained that there was nothing left to do and that Bungie was just recycling.
To be fair, Destiny wasn’t truly alone from 2014 to 2019. In 2016, there was a period when many Guardians ran around as agents in New York, and in between, some Guardians wandered on other paths, becoming a Tenno in Warframe or a monster hunter in Monster Hunter World. There, they satisfied their hunger for more loot and bigger enemies that Destiny had awakened in them.
But The Division was just an interlude for many – other games differed too much in gameplay from Destiny to permanently satisfy the hunger.
Was supposed to be the major competitor to Destiny in 2019: Anthem.
This is what the players wanted: Solid games, a strong flow of content, more and more loot, and things to explore in the games, tear apart with space magic or pierce with bullets.
Fans accepted that one game would hardly be enough to satisfy the eternal loot hunger of the masses.
But three games together should be able to manage that, right?
Like a Buffet
This was the “best case” for fans of good loot: Ideally, the games The Division 2, Anthem, and Destiny 2 would fertilize each other. One game would always ramp up and bring new content, while the others would retreat to work on new content.
It would be like a buffet of loot shooters, where you can choose which dish to put on your plate.
You could “game hop” to simply outlast the content breaks in every game:
In Destiny 2, a new season starts every 3 months, so one could peacefully play through the new content, then switch to PvP and enjoy the first-person shooter. Ideal: Many love the gunplay in Destiny, but criticize the chronic content shortage
Anthem aimed for a strong story with regular content updates and completely without PvP. The RPG shooter would give story fans a kick while they fly through the world and explore the mysterious alien landscape
It seemed like the timing would fit well: Anthem was released in February, The Division 2 in mid-March. At the beginning of March and in June, Destiny 2 would showcase two seasons with its mini-updates.
The Anthem Road Map
And then in May, it would continue with the big Cataclysm update for Anthem, and then The Division 2 would be up again, Destiny 2 would certainly do something big in September, and so on.
If each game had about a 3-month cycle, as planned and promised, the future actually looked bright. But at least each of the three games had already presented a roadmap with so many new contents.
Buffet is Quite Empty
This is how it really is now: In fact, it looks much bleaker in May 2019 than thought. There is a buffet, but most dishes are either cold or not there yet:
With Anthem, the content plan has completely gone awry. The freelancers actually have hardly any reason to log in for 2 months – BioWare is still working on fixing the issues that occurred at launch
The “content rush” that was promised from the 3 titles held some gaps, for instance, from February to April: with one month of Anthem, a few days of Destiny 2, and about 6-8 weeks of The Division 2 – at the moment, however, many feel that it’s once again a bit deflated.
The exact composition of the loot shooter diet can vary from player to player – depending on preferences.
This is the hope: All three games still have content planned in the pipeline. Most of us probably already paid for that for one, two, or even all three games in the form of season passes.
We can be curious about what the next content offerings will be like.
At the moment, one must note that 2019 started strong for fans of loot shooters: Anthem and The Division had solid to very good leveling phases. But after a strong start, 2019 has declined.
The battle between The Division 2 and Anthem dominated the early months of the year – currently, both are not doing very well.
Let’s see how things will proceed. At the moment, it seems that studios still haven’t found a formula for keeping players consistently in a game, not even when three games are available.
It seems that there are 5 free Raid Passes available today, Sunday, for players in Pokémon GO. We will show you what this is all about.
What’s new: Trainers are reporting on Reddit that they continue to receive multiple free Raid Passes from gyms today, on May 26th. This bonus was intended for yesterday in Europe, in celebration of Lapras Day.
According to initial reports, it seems that there is still the opportunity to raid for free multiple times this Sunday afternoon. From spinning a gym disk, trainers are reporting today that they can receive up to 5 free Raid Passes.
Here’s how to get the free passes: You can only receive one pass at a time. You must complete a raid and use a pass first, then spin the disk of a gym again to receive the next pass. This is said to work up to 5 times.
What the players say: On Reddit, user eryhM writes: I just went to a gym, did a raid, and received a new Raid Pass when I spun the disk. I then went to another raid and received another free Raid Pass. It stopped after 5 raids.
Other players in the Reddit thread confirm that they also received the free passes today, even outside of Lapras Day.
What’s the reason for this? It is uncertain whether this bonus is intentional or occurs by accident. It is likely that Lapras Day is still taking place today in the Asia-Pacific region. And the bonus with the Raid Passes is probably still available in other parts of the world, even though those have already had Lapras Day.
A player also reports the opposite phenomenon: “In APAC (Asia-Pacific) we also had up to 5 free Raid Passes yesterday, even though our Lapras Day is only today.”
What does this mean for you? You should get to gyms quickly and take the chance to raid for free there.
We cannot say how long this bonus will last. Therefore, it is better to take advantage of it as quickly as possible. Update 5:50 PM: It appears that there are no more free passes available now.
For the next raids in Pokémon GO, the opponents are already known. Here’s the selection:
With the last major patch, some weapon talents have been revised in The Division 2 . We show you which weapon talents are now among the best.
This talent was previously on the throne: Before Title Update 3, the “Optimist” talent was particularly popular among weapons as it significantly increases damage the emptier the magazine is. However, with the balance changes, the Optimist was weakened.
In this guide, we want to introduce you to the talents that are now among the best after the update.
Measured (Measured)
What can the talent do? The description reads:
“The upper half of the magazine has +20% rate of fire and -15% weapon damage. The lower half of the magazine has -20% rate of fire and +30% weapon damage.”
“Measured” can only roll on assault rifles, SMGs, and LMGs.
What makes the talent so good? “Measured” is one of the talents that has been significantly improved with the update. The damage buff for the second half of the magazine was increased from +15% to +30%.
In principle, the talent can be combined with any weapon. Furthermore, it is active regardless of your builds, as the talent has no requirements you need to meet.
If you also carry an exotic Chatterbox as a secondary weapon, its holstered talent can nearly negate the negative effect of “Measured”.
Unhinged (Unhinged)
What can the talent do? The description reads:
“Weapon damage is increased by 20%, but weapon handling is negatively affected by -25%.”
What makes the talent so good? “Unhinged” was already one of the most popular talents before the update, which is why the damage bonus was toned down.
Nevertheless, it is still a strong talent. For a +20% bonus, you have to deal with a worsened handling. This particularly affects your precision and stability.
“For every 5 m you are away from the target, gain +2% weapon damage.”
Requires 4 additional attributes or less.
What makes the talent so good? “Ranger” is especially suitable if you play at medium to long distances. This talent works best on rifles and sniper rifles.
However, it can also be well combined with assault rifles and LMGs, as those weapons also have a higher range. Already from 25 meters, you have a buff of 10%.
For shotguns and SMGs, “Ranger” is rather unsuitable, but there is another talent that is more suitable for this.
Close & Personal (Close & personal)
What can the talent do? This is the description:
“Killing a target from a maximum distance of 7 m grants +50% (PvP: +35%) weapon damage for 5 seconds.”
Requirements: 5 attack attributes or more.
What makes the talent so good? This talent is essentially the counterpart to “Ranger”. It increases your damage when you take down enemies from short distances.
Especially with SMGs and shotguns, this can be well combined, but assault rifles, LMGs, and rifles can also be used in close combat.
However, the buff is bound to a countdown. However, the overall weapon damage is significantly higher. Keep in mind that close-range combat can be quite dangerous.
Strained (Strained)
What can the talent do? This is the description:
“You gain +5% damage from critical hits for every 10% of your armor that is destroyed.”
What makes the talent so good? “Strained” works especially well in combination with builds focused on high crit chance and crit damage.
The more your armor is destroyed, the more damage you deal with critical hits. Submachine guns are among the categories with the highest crit chance, but you can combine “Strained” with all weapon types.
Still one of the best talents: Optimist (Optimist)
What can the talent do? This is the description:
“Weapon damage increases by +3% (PvP: +10%) for every 10% (PvP: 2%) of ammunition missing from the magazine.”
Requirement: 5 attack attributes or less.
What makes the talent so good? You basically don’t have to do anything to benefit from Optimist.
For the damage bonus, you just need to fire your weapon. The emptier your magazine, the higher the damage. This bonus works best with large magazines, as every single shot benefits from the buff.
So you should use assault rifles or LMGs. However, the talent works with all weapon types. The downside to this talent is the requirements.
Due to the limit of 5 attack attributes, you are somewhat restricted when building a DPS build.
Are there any other talents missing from this list? Let us know in the comments.
In Season 17 of Diablo 3, the Necromancer build LON Singularity Mages is among the best. We show you which skills and items are required for the build and how to play it.
The special thing about Season 17: Since May 17, 2019, Season 17 has been running in Diablo 3. In the new seasons, Blizzard passively grants a buff that is credited to every participant of the season.
In Season 17, this is the LoN (Legacy of Nightmares) buff. You automatically receive the bonus Legacy of Nightmares. Therefore, it can sometimes be more effective to run without a set bonus, focusing especially on ancient and arcane items.
This also affects the meta, as the 6-piece bonuses are no longer the strongest everywhere. In the community’s playstyles, creativity is emerging. Many forgotten items become interesting again through the LoN buff, leading to new builds.
One of the currently strongest builds of the Necromancer also utilizes this buff. We explain how to play the Necromancer with this best build.
As the season progresses, it will be revealed which build is ultimately the strongest. The LoN Singularity Mages build is currently one of the best builds. For many players, it is regarded as “the best”.
LoN Singularity Mages – Build Guide for Season 17
How is it played? This build primarily relies on generating as much maximum essence as possible, making the summoned skeletal mages even stronger. The Singularity rune consumes your entire essence when summoning a skeletal mage. The more essence consumed, the stronger the mage.
You then refill your essence with skills such as Devour, Corpse Feast, or the Soul Harvesting Wrap.
The combination of Land of the Dead and Simulacrum allows you to deal extreme damage for a short time. The Reservoir rune in Simulacrum increases your maximum essence by 100%, thereby significantly buffing the mages. With Land of the Dead, you can devour an unlimited number of corpses. Within seconds, a strong army of your skeletal mages is at your command.
To ensure that you don’t constantly fall during battles, you buff your defensive values with Altern. This happens in combination with your belt.
With this build, you easily cruise through Torment 16 and Greater Nephalem Rifts.
These skills are used
Which skills are used?
Ability
Rune
Land of the Dead
Frozen Land
Skeletal Mage
Singularity
Simulacrum
Reservoir
Altern
Dizzying
Devour
Satiated
Bone Armor
Dislocation
Passive
Blood is Power, Growing Corruption, Corpse Feast, Overwhelming Essence
Kanais Würfel: The items in Kanai’s Cube can also be swapped with the ones listed above. It is important to equip the item with the better stats. In Kanai’s Cube, the one with the worse stats comes.
Armor: Nemesis Bracers for more elite spawns, making the Nephalem Rifts complete faster
Weapon: Reilena’s Shadowhook for even more maximum essence and thus even stronger skeletal mages
Why is this worn?
The head “Leoric’s Crown” is worn for the cooldown bonus. The power of the socketed gem is increased by 100%. You put a diamond in it to get as much cooldown reduction as possible. That’s the essence of this build.
The shoulders “Razeth’s Volition” are worn to improve corpse regeneration. Each time a skeletal mage dies, it leaves a corpse that can be devoured.
The neck “Haunted Visions” is worn to make Simulacrum last twice as long. By using Simulacrum, you create twice as many skeletons. In combination with one of the rings, 4 skeletons are created with each spell.
The ring “Circle of Nailuj” is worn to summon more skeletal mages and keep them active longer.
The ring “Convention of Elements” is worn to utilize its elemental bonus during the right time window for a damage boost. You can also use it in Kanai’s Cube and swap it with the 3rd ring, Krysbin’s Sentence.
The gloves “Tasker and Theo” are worn to make your skeletal mages attack faster. They deal the majority of the damage of this build and should therefore be made as strong as possible.
The chest “Requiem Chest” is worn to restore more essence and life with Devour, which is continually cast.
The wrists “Soul Harvesting Wrap” are worn because your skeletal mages absorb your essence. Therefore, it is important to ensure rapid regeneration.
The belt “Dayntee’s Binding” is important for building more toughness. This buff should be active all the time.
The pants “Hexing Pants of Mr. Yan” are worn to achieve more damage and regeneration. The negative effect of dealing less damage and regenerating fewer resources while standing still should not occur. Because with this build, you do not attack personally, which means you should almost never stop moving.
As an alternative for the pants, you can also wear the Swamp Land Waders with a high roll on physical damage.
The boots “Illusory Boots” are worn to help you move better through the battlegrounds. Keep in mind that these boots are optional.
The weapon “Scythe of the Cycle” is important for making your skeletal mages stronger.
The offhand “Bone Ringer” also serves to further strengthen your skeletal mages.
Legendary Gems:
Giant’s Deception
Fire Gnu’s Stone
Executor
This is how you fight: Make sure that when fighting, you always hit at least one enemy with a curse so that Dayntee’s Binding protects you. Then you also start to maintain Bone Armor.
Then you should summon skeletal mages. It’s best to do this when your essence is full. To gain essence, you use Devour. When the essence is full, you summon skeletal mages again.
For a strong damage boost, use Land of the Dead together with Simulacrum when the bonus from Convention of Elements is on physical damage.
Keep in mind that the best build may still change throughout the season. We will update this article for you. In the YouTube video, expert Rhykker explains even more about this build
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The World Health Organization, WHO, has officially classified “Gaming Disorder” as a mental health disorder. What consequences will it have for us in Germany that the addiction to video games is now a disease?
What has been decided? The World Health Organization will add “Gaming Disorder” to the list of officially recognized mental illnesses. According to the definition, it is a particular form of addiction triggered by video games.
This decision was made despite some criticism from psychologists and representatives of the gaming industry.
What does this decision mean for us? The World Health Organization is an agency of the United Nations, so its decisions generally apply to all UN member states.
Gaming Disorder will, according to the decision, be included in the list of diseases from January 1, 2022.
All member states must strive to find effective treatment options for the disease or take measures to prevent its occurrence.
Since Germany is also one of the UN member countries, our country will also have to face this task. It is difficult to predict what consequences it will have for German gamers. Generally, each government decides whether and what measures will be taken.
Germany is known in Europe for strict regulations regarding video games. The PEGI rating, which applies to European countries, is merely a recommendation. The German USK rating, on the other hand, punishes the sale of, for example, USK18 games to minors.
Gaming addiction defined similarly to gambling addiction
When is someone considered “sick”? To be diagnosed with gaming addiction, one must meet the following conditions:
Loss of control over gaming behavior: duration, frequency, intensity, cessation, and more
Shift in priorities towards gaming, making it more important than other activities or daily tasks
Continuation or escalation of gaming despite its negative consequences. This behavior must be severe enough to cause significant impairments in personal and family areas, as well as in education and work
The behavior pattern must also occur for at least 12 months in order for the affected individual to be diagnosed with gaming disorder.
In the list of mental disorders, “Gaming Disorder” is listed directly after “Gambling Disorder” and adopts many of its formulations. Polygon has noted that in some places the wording has remained the same, with “Gambling” simply replaced by “Gaming.”
Are there counter-arguments? Several UN member countries and organizations from the gaming industry have opposed the classification of gaming disorders.
The Entertainment Software Association (ESA), which organizes E3 every year, issued a statement requesting the World Health Organization to reconsider its decision.
This is how the opponents argue: ESA representatives believe that further studies and investigations are needed to make a definitive decision regarding gaming disorders:
We believe that further discussions and investigations are necessary before the classification [of gaming disorders] can be finalized.
The billions of gamers around the world affected by this classification deserve measures based on careful research and investigation.
ESA Director, Stanley Pierre-Louis
The South Korean ministries of health and culture have also opposed the World Health Organization’s decision.
They argue that the gaming addiction of young people contains external psychological factors such as stress in school, social influences, and parental behavior. They refer to a study by Konkuk University.
One can therefore expect that this debate will continue.
Looks like the Exotic vendor Xur from Destiny 2 is also causing trouble in the card game Hearthstone. There, fans have discovered an Easter egg that unmistakably references the mysterious Agent of the Nine.
Who is Xur anyway? Xur is a mysterious vendor who has been supplying Guardians with exotic weapons and armor pieces week after week since the first Destiny installment.
In short: Anyone who has a bit of interest in Destiny should recognize the unmistakable noodle face.
What’s the deal with Xur and Hearthstone? After his excursions with the Guardians, Xur always disappears – and no one knows where to.
Now it seems he has not just ventured outside the solar system. It looks like he is now even in a completely different game – namely in Blizzard’s collectible card game Hearthstone. There an Easter egg has been discovered that unmistakably references the Exotic vendor from the Destiny series.
What does the Easter egg look like? Recently, Hearthstone received a new campaign as part of the expansion “Conspiracy of Shadows” – “The Big Heist“. There, players face several new bosses, among other things.
One of them has caught the attention of clever Guardians due to his name. The boss bears the striking name Xur’ios, which is quite noticeable for Destiny fans. This name alone may not be enough proof for some. But at the latest, his dialogue lines reveal that it must actually be a reincarnation of Xur.
If you decide, for example, to face Xur’ios as a Hunter, he greets you with the following words: “A Hunter! Where is your Golden Gun?” The reference to Destiny is here unmistakable.
If you play as a Mage, Xur’ios says: “This encounter is fated … Our fate (our Destiny) …”. If you perform an emote during this boss fight, you get the response: “Greetings, Traveler”. Here too, fans see a clear reference to the Traveler from the Destiny series.
The Hunter’s Golden Gun super in Destiny
Xur has also made a guest appearance here: This is not the first time there has been a reference to Xur in other games or even in TV series.
In the city of Dalaran, a mysterious vendor Xur’ios appeared. Not only did the name or title reference Xur, but visually the vendor looked quite similar to his Destiny counterpart and also had no face.
In addition, this WoW vendor had a special item every day, such as “Gjallar’s Horn” or “Crota’s Shield”. You did not have to pay Xur’ios with Strange, but with “Curious” coins.
In Fortnite: Battle Royale the World Championship qualifiers are currently taking place, offering a lot of money. A player has made a big profit thanks to the support of his father.
Who is it about? The Fortnite player BuckeFPS recently participated in the World Championship qualifiers. A lot of money was at stake and the opportunity to compete in the grand finals of the World Championship in July 2019. As usual, many players participated to fight for the coveted qualification spots.
This is how BuckeFPS got help: BuckeFPS participated alone, as it was a solo round. However, he had substantial support from his father, who joined live via voice chat and commented on everything his son did.
Not only did he encourage BuckeFPS. His father also had solid knowledge of Fortnite, the gameplay, the weapons, and the tournament structure. He constantly explained how many players were still in the race and how many kills and placements his son still needed to achieve optimal results.
Additionally, he offered valuable tips on the game itself, including the optimal use of materials and the extremely important shadow bombs, which the father eventually commented on with, “Use those damn things!”.
While BuckeFPS gets increasingly nervous and frantic, his father mostly remains calm and composed, which benefits his son’s gameplay and helps him keep his nerves in check.
Here’s how it all ended: In the end, BuckeFPS did not win the last round, but an analysis by his father quickly showed that he likely made it onto the list of qualified players overall. And with that, he earned a whopping $50,000 as well as a spot in the even more lucrative World Championship finals in July.
While BuckeFPS – as seen in the embedded video here – is completely thrilled and can hardly believe his luck, his father has one final piece of advice: “Son, do me a favor. Be a humble and grateful player.”.
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After that, BuckeFPS bursts into tears and spends the rest of the video explaining everything to his mother, who is also very proud of her son and his achievement.
While BuckeFPS’s father was fully immersed in his son’s hobby, another father was left speechless when he found out that his son made a lot of money in Fortnite.
In the world of GTA Online, the time trial “Los Santos Airport” is active. This gives you 101,000 GTA Dollars in 2 minutes. We will show you how to win the race easily.
How to win the money? The time trial is available on the public map of GTA Online. You do not join a mode, but simply drive to the starting point on the map.
If you reach the goal within the given time, the victory prize awaits you. But the time is tight. A single accident can cost you the victory.
Which race is active? The time trial “Los Santos Airport” is active. You have a maximum of 1:43.40 minutes for the track. A victory will give you a one-time prize of 101,000 GTA Dollars.
How to win the “Los Santos Airport” race in GTA Online
The course of the track: This race takes you on a ride that is about 5 kilometers long. Mostly, you will follow a road with heavy traffic. So be careful.
We have marked the route for the race here on the map:
The route of the time trial Los Santos Airport
This is how the ride goes: The starting point is at the top exit of the parking garage at the airport. You start in the direction the arrow points.
There you accelerate slightly to the left over this ramp. Ideally, you land below between the two posts. Then drive straight up the ramp against the oncoming traffic.
This is where you land best
You will then drive up the next ramp again to the left, against the traffic. Now follow this road as indicated in the track name above on the map.
You won’t have to turn anymore now. However, it’s important to fully concentrate on the road. The track has a lot of traffic that often suddenly turns. So be prepared for that and expect it.
If you don’t have an accident, you should arrive on time at the finish line. Then the 101,000 GTA Dollars belong to you. If you want to earn big money in GTA Online, take a look here:
Can you repeat the race? Yes, you can drive the race as often as you like. The 51,000 GTA Dollars are only available once. After that, you will receive 1,000 GTA Dollars for each successfully completed race. So it’s really worth it only the first time.
Which vehicles should you choose? On this route, it is important to choose a vehicle with good handling. You often need to make small maneuvers to avoid oncoming traffic. Good control while driving is essential.
The trade dispute between the USA and China is escalating. A new document lists numerous products that could be subject to tariffs. Among them are game consoles. The gaming industry is concerned. Because the tariffs could make the PS5 and the next Xbox more expensive.
What will the US government impose tariffs on? A lengthy document from the US government (via ustr.gov) proposes to impose tariffs of up to 25% on thousands of products imported from China to the USA:
The new products would incur tariffs amounting to $300 billion per year.
As of early May, tariffs on Chinese products amounting to $200 billion per year had already been imposed.
The current list essentially includes all products that were not previously subject to tariffs, except for some minerals and pharmaceuticals.
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Trump says: In the last trade war 30 years ago, we lost. Now we won’t lose again.
Which products are affected in gaming? In gaming, the following products imported from China to the USA would be affected:
Game consoles
Gaming controllers
Slot machines that operate with coins or tokens
Board games
Why would this be a problem? Gaming consoles of the current generation are manufactured in China, as well as those of the next generation:
The Xbox One has been manufactured in South China since September 2014 (via reference.com)
The PlayStation 4 is also produced in China. (via Kotaku)
Behind both stands the “mega-company” Foxconn. A Taiwanese company with 1.3 million employees (2015), a revenue of $135 billion (2016), and 12 factories in China.
Risk that the next consoles will become more expensive
What do representatives from the gaming industry say? There is a statement from the ESA, which is the organization behind E3.
They state:
“The video game industry contributes a trade surplus to the American economy. Tariffs will endanger the American economy, its industries, and consumers.”
Statement from the ESA
Otherwise, especially concerned board game manufacturers express their worries about these tariffs. They would likely drive prices up and quality down – probably both.
The site Game Daily points out that video game consoles are usually sold at a loss. A 25% increase could disappoint customer pricing expectations, as manufacturers would then pass on increased costs to customers.
The gaming industry is already burdened by a 10% tariff affecting chip manufacturers AMD and Nvidia. AMD is responsible for the vital internals for PlayStation and Xbox.
Does this also affect us in Europe?
The questions are open: But at the moment it is unclear,
whether the trade dispute will really escalate and whether the additional tariffs will come at this level
what the actual impact would be on the video game industry and how high the additional costs would be that they would incur
whether Sony or Microsoft would only pass the potentially tariff-increased costs on to US customers or distribute them globally – then PS5 and the next Xbox could also become more expensive for us.
