Fresh skins await in the “Sturmzeichen” event of Overwatch. Fans of Junkrat and Baptiste should keep an eye out. All skins can be found in this article.
On April 16, the “Archives” will return in Overwatch. In this recurring event, there is always a different story mission from Overwatch’s past. In 2019, it is called “Sturmzeichen” and involves a special operation led by Tracer.
As every year, there will also be some new skins announced by the developers in advance. The first two, for Junkrat and Baptiste, have now been revealed.
Update: The article was updated on 04.15. Below you will find all the skins revealed so far!
Baptiste as Talon Soldier: Baptiste has a past with Talon and has gone down the wrong path as a mercenary throughout his life. However, he later turned his life around and improved himself. His new skin, which was presented on Twitter, comes from his time with Talon. It features the typical white and red coloring of the Talon units, along with some visual adjustments to the armor.
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Junkrat as Clown: Junkrat is generally a bit crazy and eccentric. He likes to let out “his inner clown” when it comes to explosions. Therefore, a painted skin and clown clothing is just right for him.
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In the past few days, more skins have been revealed. This includes new outfits for Wrecking Ball, Soldier: 76, as well as Moira and a particularly cool Bastion skin. You can view all skins here in the gallery (Click to enlarge)
How to obtain the skins? As usual, the skins will be included in the special loot boxes that can only be earned or bought during the Archives event. Fans will have three weeks from April 16 (until May 6) to earn the new skins. Those who have accumulated a lot of credits can also purchase the skins for credits instead.
In League of Legends, the final matches took place in the Spring Split of the LEC 2019. The three LoL matches between G2 Esports and Origen were so one-sided that the host Sjokz caused a stir with a cheeky question.
This was the host’s naughty question: The Belgian host Eefje “Sjokz” Depoortere (31) is a well-known figure in the LoL scene. She repeatedly hosts the broadcasts and is a “Personality.”
After the final, she interviewed the winners of G2 Esports and asked:
Luka, was it difficult for you to lift the trophy? It weighs 14 kilograms. Was it harder for you to lift the trophy than to defeat OG in the final?
The host Sjokz after G2’s clear victory
The audience responded with a prolonged “Oooh” – the remark must have hit home. They call that a “Burn.”
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How did the games go? The site Dailyesports explains how the three games in LoL unfolded.
In the first match, Origen put up noticeable resistance and it was a relatively close match. G2 secured victory after a Baron kill.
In the second game, Origen tried to adjust their strategy by choosing the same bot lane as G2 did in the first match. However, that backfired. G2 quickly gained an advantage and extended it towards the end.
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At the Star Wars Celebration, Respawn Entertainment and Electronic Arts announced the action game Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order. It will be a single-player game without microtransactions, but fans remain skeptical.
What was announced? The rumors leading up to the Star Wars Celebration turned out to be true – Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order will be a single-player action game and will not include microtransactions.
You will take on the role of the Padawan Cal Kestis, who survived the attack on the Jedi Temple in Star Wars: Episode 3 and is now on the run.
Combat will be at the forefront.
You must approach confrontations tactically and discover your opponents’ weaknesses.
You are accompanied by the small droid BD-1, who lightens the mood and assists you in missions.
You will visit multiple locations on various planets.
The story connects the film Star Wars: Episode 3 – Revenge of the Sith with the cartoon series Star Wars: Rebels. You must defend yourself against the female Inquisitor “The Second Sister”, who appeared in Rebels.
What was special about the announcement? The developers at Respawn Entertainment stated that there will be no microtransactions. This was even confirmed again on Twitter. It states: “No microtransactions. No loot boxes. And we will not add them either.”
In doing so, the developers are making a promise to the players. They now expect that there will indeed be no microtransactions at all.
Fans are excited but remain skeptical
How are players reacting to this? Many express joyful surprise. Many fans have been waiting for a story-focused single-player game in the Star Wars universe for a long time. And finally, what the players have hoped for could come true.
No microtransactions and no loot boxes. The motto of Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order is: Trust no one!
But now a single-player title is coming out without GaaS. How does that fit together? Some still cannot believe that EA truly wants to refrain from introducing microtransactions. Many want to see that with their own eyes first.
With funny memes, fans express their skepticism. In November, we will likely see if Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order will truly be a game without microtransactions.
With the next big update for World of Warcraft, there will also be some class changes. We reveal what changes for you.
Soon the next big patch of World of Warcraft will arrive. Update 8.2 Rise of Azshara will be thoroughly tested on the PTR (Public Test Realm) for the time being, and player feedback will be collected. Blizzard also plans to make some changes to classes that have proven to be too strong or too weak in recent months. We reveal what you need to prepare for.
Which classes will be changed? A total of 5 classes are to be adjusted in the first version of the patch. However, there will certainly be more during the testing phase.
Demon Hunter tanks will receive more passive armor but lose active armor as a result. This is intended to make them stronger in situations where their defensive abilities are on cooldown.
Guardian Druids can now remove corruption in bear form. Other druid forms lose their moonfire while transformed.
Hunters will only receive a small bugfix because one ability was not stackable with another. Overall damage remains about the same.
Rogues are popular in all dungeons and the kings of Blizzard’s dungeon tournament (MDI). One of their Azerite traits will therefore be weakened.
Protection Warriors will have to lose a bit of damage as they were able to deal too much.
Tfue, probably the best
player in Fortnite, wants to retire from the
competitive scene in Fortnite after the current World Cup. Instead, streaming is more important to him.
Who is Tfue? Tournament “Tfue” Tenny is a young Fortnite player and is considered one of the most successful streamers and top players of the battle royale game. His legendary skills have even caused other top-gamers like Ninja to suspect cheating.
“This is my last competitive shit, the World Cup. I won’t qualify anyway and shouldn’t even participate in this crap. But I don’t care, I don’t need the money anyway. I’m just playing for fun!”
What exactly does Tfue mean with his statement? Currently, the qualification rounds for the big World Cup tournament in summer are underway. At the World Cup, Epic is distributing $30 million in prize money.
Because the superstar is so well-known on Twitch, everyone knows where he prefers to land, what he looks like in the game, and what his tactics are. Additionally, stream snipers will be able to follow his actions live and specifically ambush him.
Nevertheless, Tfue wants to continue streaming his escapades in real-time and also broadcast the qualification rounds live.
“I could probably do quite well [without streaming]. But I prefer to stream and do poorly than not stream at all!”
This could also be behind Tfue’s decision: Furthermore, Tfue’s health condition plays a role.
Although the professional has not mentioned this as a reason, several health issues related to excessive Fortnite gameplay have been reported in the past.
Although the problems have receded now, they seemed to have occupied him for a while.
The streamer shows his problems in a Twitch stream.
Since he earns enough money as a streamer, he says he doesn’t need the prize money anyway. Thus, it could be that he wants to take it easy and focus more on streaming rather than on stressful and ineffective competitions.
However, the professional did not mention specific reasons for his withdrawal in the stream.
That’s why Tfue’s withdrawal could become a problem: However, this development could be bad for the eSports scene.
Because if eSports has to get along without the best players, the appeal is missing. And the big draws are also absent – since prominent streamers like Tfue bring in a lot of attention:
In League of Legends, it has almost become a tradition that professionals who find the sport too stressful transition to streaming after their pro careers.
Epic needs to come up with something to continue motivating the best players for major tournaments.
A player took the effort to play the “Game of Thrones” theme by hand in Overwatch. Apart from a little video editing for cutting and chords, no tricks are used.
This is how the fan played the theme: As Sombra, YouTuber Rodrigo Lelles stood in a private game on the new map Paris in front of a piano. By shooting at the keys, he produced the corresponding tones.
He then edited the tones together with a program and thus, in time for the start of the 8th and final season of Game of Thrones, played the popular theme.
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How does it work? On the new map Paris, there is a piano with working keys. When players shoot at a key, it plays the corresponding tone. Some fans have already played entire songs, as seen in the video of Lelles above.
However, since Sombra cannot play multiple notes at once, as would be necessary for the “Game of Thrones” theme, Lelles recorded the notes individually and simply arranged them in a video.
However, he did not resort to an aimbot. Using a specially written aimbot for the piano, another player as Mei played “All Star” by Smash Mouth on the piano. We have embedded the video for you.
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This is how the video is received: Compared to other fan content like the “Dark Mode” , the video receives relatively few upvotes on reddit, less than 1000 in 14 hours. Even on YouTube, the clip has barely reached approximately 3,500 views. (As of: April 15 at 11:30 AM)
Most of the praise refers to the work that went into the video. It may not necessarily be difficult to create something like this. However, it simply takes a long time, which is why hardly anyone goes through the effort:
“Take the required notes, record a clip of each note, create a timeline with the GOT theme, and arrange the clips. It’s not rocket science, but it takes a damn long time to arrange everything.”
Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford explained in detail why Borderlands 3 is coming out on the Epic Games Store and who made this decision. He points out weaknesses in Valve’s Steam platform.
Moreover, many players criticize the Epic Store, which offers much less comfort and security than Steam – many beloved features that Steam provides are simply missing on the new platform.
Pitchford: Epic Store will be tailored to Borderlands
What did Randy Pitchford mean? On Twitter, Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford was asked why the Epic Games Store was chosen when Steam has many more customers and better features. Pitchford responded with a very detailed answer that sheds light on the situation:
Randy Pitchford explains that the decision was made by the publisher 2K Games. He does have some influence, but cannot make decisions.
Regarding the features, Pitchford agrees. Steam offers more.
However, not all features fit every store. Therefore, one should not expect the Epic Games Store to become a second Steam in functionality.
What problem does Pitchford see? The Gearbox CEO does not only see the positive sides of the Epic Games Store. There are, of course, disadvantages too.
Pitchford believes that there is a risk. The Epic Games Store may not have all the features ready by the release of Borderlands 3 that the game needs.
He is not angry that 2K Games made the decision, but he just sees the risk and talks about it.
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Whom does the Gearbox CEO trust more? In the tweets, Pitchford clearly indicates that he has high expectations for Epic and their corporate philosophy, while he views Valve and their platform more critically:
According to Pitchford, Epic Games invests significantly more in new technologies than Valve.
Steam could lose relevance in five to ten years and be overtaken by other stores.
The store that dominates the market in ten years does not have to be Epic’s.
What is happening right now opens the doors for more competitors, who might do everything better.
The competition that is emerging now is good for the customers, developers, and publishers.
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Why is Epic currently pushing so hard? According to Randy Pitchford, Epic Games currently has some advantages they are leveraging to grow their success.
Epic focuses on technology and has improved the industry with Unreal Engine for 20 years.
They use this success and also the success of the online shooter Fortnite to offer better conditions. This attracts new customers and consequently boosts Epic Games’ success.
In contrast, Valve is a private company that invests little money in technology. According to Pitchford, revenues seemingly go into the pockets of the executives, as nothing appears to be invested in Steam or new games.
Valve simply hasn’t had to invest so far because there was no real competition to Steam.
Valve needs to change something, or Steam will die sooner or later.
Epic Games, on the other hand, takes a different approach. The revenue is invested. They offer developers better terms and continuously improve the store.
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What is the goal according to Gearbox? Randy Pitchford explains that the Epic Games Store was necessary to improve the market.
He says that he swallows the bitter pill and accepts the criticism from fans, because in the end, the exclusivity deal for Borderlands 3 was simply necessary.
In a few years, when we all get better games because developers have more money for their titles due to better conditions, many will understand.
And we will soon see a beginning: Those who join in will receive a Borderlands 3 on September 13 that is as fans wish it to be.
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Randy Pitchford concludes his explanation by stating that the Epic Games Store brings a balance that was simply needed. Furthermore, he does not understand why he had to have this discussion when the decision was made by 2K Games.
The discussion is long overdue because customers need to understand. However, Pitchford believes that 2K Games is simply afraid to speak publicly on this topic.
The openness with which the Gearbox CEO explains the exclusivity deal with the Epic Games Store is well received in the community. They agree that this topic should have been openly discussed a long time ago.
Many fans of The Division 2 are wishing for a companion app for the game. But why is that?
This feature is a major request from many fans: Currently, more and more agents are having a blast in The Division 2 in the endgame at World Tier 5. However, while the developers are working hard to improve the experience there based on fan feedback, a growing number of players are wishing for another feature, which Massive has no concrete plans for yet – a companion app.
What is the companion app all about? An increasing number of fans are demanding an app that allows them to use or manage various game functions from mobile devices.
Specifically, players are hoping for:
Inventory management
Item transfers
Loadout management
Clan management
Equipment and weapon comparison
Interactive map of the game world – also as a “second screen”
This wish has been circulating on Reddit since The Division 1, but currently, the calls for an app with such convenience features are getting louder.
Right now, numerous posts on Reddit have over 1,000 upvotes, where fans are demanding this feature from developers or third parties.
Why do players want this app? The benefits of this app are quickly explained. Players want to spend their time in The Division 2 mainly playing.
Things that can also be done outside of playtime should be manageable through the companion app – at times when they are not playing but still have time for it. This would be a significant enhancement of the gaming experience, as many fans agree.
For instance, one could quickly handle clan requests from the couch in the evening without needing to start the game. Many fans also feel they could optimize their loadout in advance for the next planned mission.
The desire for a way to organize and manage inventory outside of the game is particularly strong among players.
Many players complain that in the endgame they often spend 20 to 30 minutes each day cleaning out their limited inventory to make space for new items before they can even start playing again. They would love to be able to do this outside of the game to truly spend their sometimes scarce gaming time on playing, not on “spring cleaning”. But all of this is currently not possible.
What does Massive say about this wish? This wish has existed since The Division 1. However, a corresponding app has yet to materialize.
Apart from an interactive map (also for mobile devices) that shows players important locations in Washington D.C., there are no further apps. There are no official plans for such an application as of now. The developers have not yet addressed the numerous threads.
However, Massive has repeatedly shown that the developer listens to player feedback and actively implements it to enhance the player experience according to agents’ wishes. Recent announcements about the next major update for The Division 2 are a testament to this.
Under these circumstances, an official companion app does not seem completely out of the question. It will be interesting to see whether Massive will ultimately address the increasingly loud calls from fans.
What about you? Would you like a companion app with the corresponding features? Or are you satisfied with the comfort in The Division 2 even without an app?
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
In Pokémon GO, the Raid Week starts with Latios. We will give you all the information about the best counters, maximum CP, and the usefulness of the legendary Pokémon.
When does the Raid Week run? The Raid Week starts on April 15 at 10 PM German time. It runs until 10 PM on April 22. We German players can only start on April 16, as there will be no more raids at such a late hour.
The legendary Pokémon will also be available for the first time as a Shiny. If that’s not enough incentive, you should also know that Latios is a quite useful Pokémon.
These are the best counters against Latios
How should I counter Latios? The legendary Pokémon is of Psychic and Dragon type. Therefore, it has quite a few weaknesses. The types Dark, Dragon, Ice, Bug, Fairy, and Ghost are effective.
Especially Dragon-type Pokémon like Rayquaza are effective against Latios
Use these Pokémon: The following Pokémon are the best counters. Pay attention to the right moves as they are quite crucial.
Rayquaza
Moves: Dragon Tail and Outrage
Salamence
Moves: Dragon Tail and Outrage
Dialga
Moves: Fire Blast and Draco Meteor
Dragonite
Moves: Dragon Tail and Outrage
Palkia
Moves: Fire Blast and Draco Meteor
Giratina (Origin Form)
Moves: Shadow Claw and Shadow Ball
The current Origin Form of Giratina is a good counter
These alternatives are available: There are plenty of alternatives to the top counters. We will give you a list of examples that you can use if you don’t have the top counters in your team:
Latios
Mewtwo
Sableye
Gengar
Houndoom
Scizor
Mamoswine
Tyranitar
Roserade
How many people do I need? If you use the top counters, you can easily defeat Latios with three players. If you have lower levels and do not possess the strongest counters yet, you should be about 5 trainers.
All information about the Raid Week with Latios
Is there a Shiny Latios? Niantic announced the shiny version of Latios for the week. The shiny rate is about 1 in 19. So you have a good chance of getting a Shiny.
This is what Shiny Latios looks like
That’s why you should go raiding: Of course, the Shiny attracts players outside, but Latios is also worth it without Shiny. It belongs to the best Dragon-type Pokémon in the game and is very useful in PvP with its move Dragon Claw since the attack is quick and charges well.
You can also use Latios well in gyms against weak Pokémon. It quickly charges its charge move, enabling it to defeat weak Pokémon particularly fast.
These CP are good: In the raid, Latios can reach a maximum of 2178 CP. The closer you are to this value, the higher its IV. With weather boost, Latios can even reach 2723 CP. It is boosted in windy weather.
Latias had a raid week already. Now Latios follows
This is how a Raid Week goes: We already had a raid week with Latias. During this period, the 5-star raids are usually increased. So you have better chances for many raids.
Additionally, Latios shares the 5-star raids with Giratina, but the chance for Latios is likely higher than for Giratina. This was the case recently with Latias.
We have summarized for you which events await you in April:
From now on, there are predictions for the Team of the Week 31 in FIFA 19. You can see which players could make it into the Team of the Week here.
These are TOTW predictions: The predictions aim to estimate which players could get into EA’s Team of the Week.
This is based on the real performances of the football players from the weekend. The better the performance, the more likely a spot in the Team of the Week.
Prediction for Team of the Week 31
These predictions come from TVM:
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Kingsley Coman contributed to Bayern’s victory over Düsseldorf with his 2 goals. Another Inform-card for the Frenchman seems quite possible. Many FUT players would certainly appreciate that. Coman’s first Inform card is already set in many teams on the left wing. A second TOTW card with an expected overall rating of 86 would therefore be very popular.
1st Inform card of Coman (85)
Jadon Sancho scored twice against Mainz 05. Thus, he is positioning himself for a spot in the Team of the Week 31. It would be his third Inform card.
Previous Inform cards of Sancho
Lukáš Hrádecký put on a good performance against VfB Stuttgart and kept a clean sheet. Inclusion in the Team of the Week would grant him his first Inform card.
Kevin Kampl made an impact with a goal and good performance. He has yet to receive an Inform card in FUT 19.
Then the TOTW 31 will be released: On April 17 at 7 PM, the new Inform cards for Team of the Week 31 will be released. From that point on, you will have the opportunity to pull the cards from packs or buy them on the transfer market.
Keep in mind that the predictions are never 100% reliable. There may be significant differences from the actual TOTW from EA.
Since the launch of the early access phase of Bethesda’s mobile game The Elder Scrolls Blades, there have been accusations of Pay2Win. With an update, one of the problems has now been reduced: the silver chests.
What was the problem? The Elder Scrolls Blades relies on microtransactions. Many actions in the game can be expedited by using gems, which are available for real money.
You can “buy free” these actions:
opening treasure chests
crafting new gear, potions, and decoration items
building structures
Opening the treasure chests is particularly problematic and annoying. For silver chests that contain somewhat interesting items, it took 3 hours to access the contents. And only one can be opened at a time. However, since you frequently find chests during adventures, many accumulate.
Up to a certain point. Then the space for chests is used up. No more can be picked up, and it becomes hardly worthwhile to do more quests.
This leads to having to wait a long time in The Elder Scrolls Blades – or spending money.
This is what players have been waiting for
What has changed now? With an update, Bethesda has now addressed the players’ criticism, who particularly complained about the waiting time for the silver chests.
It now takes not three hours to open such a chest, but only one.
How do players react to this? This adjustment has been very well received by players. It significantly reduces waiting time, enabling a noticeably better flow of gameplay.
GetDustin says on Reddit: “Excellent! This is much more manageable and ensures that you engage much more with the app. Now every hour. It’s a win-win situation.”
wmerritt84 says: “These are very good and urgently needed updates! Thank you!”
There are still other issues
Is everything okay now? There are still other issues that fans criticize. For example, it is somewhat annoying that you cannot open wooden chests while you are opening a silver or gold chest. Some players wish that at least two chests could be opened at the same time.
It is also unfortunate that there are no silver chests as rewards in the Abyss anymore.
Nevertheless, Bethesda has made players very happy by adjusting the timer for the silver chests. Fans of The Elder Scrolls Blades can look forward to what the early access phase of the mobile game will bring in terms of changes.
Since the launch of Destiny 2, character transfers and cross-saves have been a highly desired feature among fans. Now it is known why the Guardians have been waiting in vain for it until today.
Why character transfers? Character transfers between platforms are a feature that numerous fans have longed for since the launch of Destiny 2.
Since the release of the game, some Guardians have switched to another console, and later the PC was added as another platform. However, switching remains anything but player-friendly to this day.
For if you fundamentally decide to switch to another platform or simply want to enjoy some rounds with friends on other platforms, it means: starting completely from scratch. The progress cannot be carried over – everything you have achieved in the Destiny universe remains on the old platform.
This was originally planned: Gaming journalist Jason Schreier addressed this issue in his Kotaku Splitscreen Podcast.
In his conversations with Bungie employees, he found out that the developers originally had plans for exactly this feature. Schreier said: “I heard that Bungie wanted to do character transfers for PS4 and PC.”
Therefore, the feature was not implemented: But it did not happen. According to Schreier, the reason for this was Sony. He continued: “But Sony did not allow it. For Sony, it was all about: We want people to connect Destiny 2 with the PS4.”
Since Sony has a deal with the (then) publisher Activision, the word was apparently significant enough to reject this feature. Schreier himself notes that this situation is annoying and hopes that Bungie will end this policy after separating from Activision.
Could this feature come in the future? Currently, the contracts between Activision and Sony are still in place. At the moment, this is rather unlikely. This was shown by the recent example of the PS4-exclusive weapon Wellenspalter.
This weapon was accidentally available on Xbox One and PC for a short time after Update 2.2.1. However, Bungie soon disabled this weapon on those platforms again, as it is supposed to remain PS4-exclusive until September 2019.
How long the deal between Sony and Activision will still force Bungie’s developers to make certain decisions after separating from the publisher is unclear. Therefore, it remains to be seen when the first content will be released that Bungie publishes entirely on its own and without Activision’s influence.
But as the original plans show, there is indeed hope for implementation in the future.
What do you think about it? Would you be interested in a cross-save feature or a character transfer?
A new expansion has been announced for Star Wars: The Old Republic. In Onslaught, the war between the Republic and the Empire is reignited.
Fans of BioWare’s MMORPG Star Wars: The Old Republic had to wait many months. But just a few days ago, the new expansion “Onslaught” was finally revealed, which continues the story. Onslaught is set to release late summer, just a few months away.
When will SWTOR: Onslaught be released? There is no exact release date yet, but the month has already been set for September 2019. In about 5 months, the wait for many new contents in SWTOR will come to an end.
What is the cost of Onslaught? According to current plans, the Onslaught expansion will be free for all subscribers. Whether it can also be permanently unlocked with Cartel Coins remains to be seen.
What is the story of the expansion? The Republic and Empire have been drawn back into war for some time now. This war is spreading further in the galaxy, leading to a rise in crime and piracy, and resources are becoming scarce. The Alliance Commander (the player) can choose whether to support the Republic or Empire to influence the war in one direction or another.
While the Sith Empire prepares to strike decisively against a new shipyard on Corellia, the Sith Council is already engaging in power plays over the division of the spoils.
The Republic, on the other hand, is desperately trying to find new allies to withstand the Empire’s assault.
Pirates and smugglers rule the hollowed-out asteroid of Mek-Sha.
What is in SWTOR: Onslaught?
In addition to more story missions, there are also new areas, new equipment options, and fresh content for all raid (operations) fans, as well as an increase in the level cap to level 75.
New areas: The storyline leads to various new areas. So far, the following have been announced:
Onderon – A planet with large jungle areas and many wild, dangerous creatures. Onderon was previously a member of the Republic, but the new king of the planet may have other plans.
Mek-Sha – This industrial city is located in a hollowed-out asteroid. Once under the control of the Hutts, the place has now fallen to smugglers and thieves.
Corellia – Much has changed on Corellia since the last visit by players. The war has broken out, bringing a new Flashpoint at the end of the story.
New species: With Onslaught, players will get a new playable species. The amphibious Nautolans join the fight.
Onslaught introduces the Nautolans as a new playable species.
A new operation: For raid fans, there are also new contents available right at launch. On Dxun, the largest moon of the planet Onderon, many employees of the mysterious Czerka Corporation are present, and Trandoshan hunters have also been sighted there, wanting to prey on the moon’s wild beasts. The operation is set to be available right at launch.
New type of equipment: All characters will receive a new equipment slot, the “tactical items.” These are supposed to have a direct impact on players’ abilities and therefore their playstyle. They should also be combinable into new set bonuses. How exactly this will look is still not entirely clear. There will certainly be more information in the coming months.
What do players say? The mood in the SWTOR subreddit is good after the announcement of the expansion. The innovations are well-received, especially the return to Onderon and Dxun, which players could already visit in the single-player game Knights of the Old Republic 2. The release in September is viewed as clever, as the team will have enough time to iron out potential issues before the Christmas holidays.
Are you looking forward to the new expansion Onslaught? Or do the announced features and story promise too little? What do you expect from the next chapter of the SWTOR universe?
In Patch 8.2 Azshara’s Rise, the new WoW zone Mechagon arrives. We reveal what awaits in the crazy gnome paradise.
The bulk of the story in Patch 8.2 is told in Nazjatar. However, the second zone, Mechagon, should not be neglected. It essentially fulfills the role of the “Timeless Isle” from Mists of Pandaria and comes with plenty of secrets. Those who enjoy farming and grinding will likely be busy there for many weeks.
What is in Mechagon, the new WoW zone in Patch 8.2?
In a livestream a few days ago, as well as in many interviews with YouTubers, the developers revealed numerous details about Mechagon. We want to mention a few key facts here so that you know what the new zone has in store for you.
Mechagon is a grind zone: The developers do not hide the fact that Mechagon is an area where a lot of grinding is needed. At least if you want to earn all the rewards. There will be no time-gating (only for the opening of the dungeon “Operation: Mechagon”), but it should still be impossible to get all rewards in one day. There would simply be too many rewards from different sources with varying levels of effort.
Players control the pace: Mechagon is designed so that each player can explore it at their own pace. Besides the relevant reputation needed for flying, everyone can take as much time as they want in Mechagon. Most rewards are optional. This allows players to freely explore the area and focus on what they want to do each day.
Here you can turn in a lot of junk – and get cool rewards.
Quests are “hidden”: Unlike in most World of Warcraft zones, many quests will not be shown on the map (similar to back in Suramar). Players are intended to stumble upon them while exploring the map and then complete them. Many quests are so-called “turn-in” quests, where you can repeatedly turn in collected items. Therefore, those who play more and collect more can turn in more and earn rewards faster.
This is the size of Mechagon: In terms of size, Mechagon is said to be slightly larger than the Timeless Isle. However, Mechagon is “not so vertical” – hence there will likely not be large height differences with multiple levels. Navigating through the area should be easier as a result.
A custom trinket – that’s available in Mechagon.
Mechagon has numerous secrets: According to Jeremy Feasel from the WoW team, Mechagon has “more secrets per square meter than any other zone in the game.” Most of these will likely be small secrets (like triggers for rare spawns), but there should always be something to discover. Rare spawns in Mechagon are actually rare. If you spot one, be sure to engage in the fight!
What rewards are there? The exact rewards from Mechagon are not yet known. There is definitely a trinket that players can craft themselves and several mounts that can be found on the island. Due to the numerous rare spawns, there will surely be some toys or pets as well.
Many more details about the giant patch 8.2 Azshara’s Rise can be found here:
In Fortnite: Battle Royale the Pirate Fever Challenge is running only until April 16th. There are cool cosmetics like gliders and an epic emote that you can easily earn.
What is this challenge? The challenges for the Pirate Fever have been active in Fortnite for a few days now. But they only run until April 16th.
For the tasks, you need to:
Visit pirate camps
Dug up treasures
Reach the top 10 in team matches
Fire yourself from cannons
What rewards are there? The coolest reward is an epic emote where your character opens a chest that is then sealed again by an octopus.
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Reward: For completing this task, you will receive this glider:
Search for buried treasures
This is how you complete the task: Fortnite wants you to go treasure hunting. If you find a treasure map in the game, a special location will be shown to you on the map. Clearly recognizable by a bright beam and arrows on the screen.
Go there and swing your harvesting tool at the marked X. This will dig up a chest that contains legendary loot. You need to do this once.
Reward: For completing this task, you will receive this spray:
Reach the top 10 in team matches with a friend
This is how you complete the task: For this task, you need to join matches together with a friend from your friends list and be among the last 10 remaining players.
You need to achieve this 3x. Are you looking for friends in Fortnite? Then just write your name and possibly your platform here in the comments or on our Facebook page.
As a duo, you can coordinate in Fortnite and tactically dismantle other teams.
Reward: If you complete this task, you will receive the following banner:
Fire yourself from a pirate cannon in 5 different matches
This is how you complete the task: Here, it makes sense to combine the challenge with the one for visiting pirate camps. If you’re already visiting a pirate camp, then fire yourself from a cannon there.
Load yourself into a cannon and fire. Upon impact, you even deal damage!
It doesn’t get any easier than this. You will find plenty of cannons at the individual pirate camps. Also, take a look at the pirate camp map mentioned earlier in the article.
Reward: If you complete this task, you will receive 1,000 XP.
Load yourself into a cannon and fire. Upon impact, you even deal damage!
It doesn’t get any easier than this. You will find plenty of cannons at the individual pirate camps. Also, take a look at the pirate camp map mentioned earlier in the article.
Reward: If you complete this task, you will receive 1,000 XP.
Elder Scrolls Online fans, pay attention: Since 01.04, there are cat costumes in the style of the Khajiit in the Bethesda Gear Store. Price: a whopping 100,000 dollars.
Looking for a cool outfit for your kitty? Check out the Bethesda Gear Shop! For 100,000 dollars, you can find stylish outfits for fashion-conscious kitties. What, that cheap? Is that a joke? Unfortunately, yes.
The costume does indeed exist in the Bethesda Gear Store, a kind of real-life shop for The Elder Scrolls Online, but purchasing it is not possible.
If you try to add the costume to your cart, you get the message “Happy Jesters Day” – “Happy April 1st.”
Since the release of the costumes was on April 1st, we can assume that it is an April Fool’s joke.
However, you can still find the costumes in the shop.
Pets can be quite expensive
Here’s what’s available
The joke was well executed. The folks at Bethesda spared no effort and dressed a cat in a few funny outfits.
But as it looks, the kitty was not impressed. In all the pictures, she looks quite grumpy.
“Dude, you have five seconds to take this eye patch off me, or you’re going to need two of them yourself!”
Five wonderfully quirky costumes were offered:
Proper Alfiq Banker
Diligent Alfiq Merchant
Venerable Alfiq Clan Matron
Cultivated Alfiq Men’s Outfitters
Alfiq Parasite Carrier
Unfortunately, the names were not matched to the photographed costumes.
Wait a moment, what is an Alfiq? Alfiqs are one of the 17 known Khajiit races and are the most similar to the cats from our world. They are just as small and also walk on four paws. However, they are just as intelligent as their larger relatives and also understand the human language.
Cats can cosplay too!
My cat really wants one of those costumes! What should I do? Well, you have to use your creativity. Take your grandma’s old rug and cut out a piece. Now you have a nice Khajiit cloak.
In an oriental jewelry store, you are sure to find a nice necklace that looks similar to the ones in the pictures.
“I’m the boss, you’re human”
A matching headgear is also quickly organized. Take a washcloth and wrap it around the cat’s head. You now have the authentic look of a purebred Alfiq from Elsweyr!
A Khajiit not only needs something nice to wear; he also needs drugs:
The Chinese company NetEase is working on the release of the Fortnite clone “BuildTopia” and interest in the game is high.
The developer and publisher NetEase last made waves here in the West when it was announced that they were working on the mobile game Diablo Immortal.
Now they are also coming out with a game that looks quite similar to a popular battle royale title from Epic.
What is BuildTopia? At first glance, one cannot help but compare BuildTopia to Fortnite . The graphic style of the game, as well as many of the animations, are very similar to Epic’s BR hit. But there are also similarities in gameplay.
Currently, the game is in a closed beta phase. Now, NetEase has received approval for a launch of BuildTopia. You can watch a gameplay video here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vyjqIWQFYKQ
Originally, the game was called “FortCraft“. The name was meant to indicate from which games the main features were borrowed, namely Fortnite and Minecraft.
What are the prospects for success for BuildTopia? BuildTopia is not the first BR game that NetEase has released. With “Rules of Survival” and “Knives Out”, it has already brought two such games to the market.
And they have provided the company with substantial revenue. “Knives Out” alone is supposed to have generated around 465 million dollars in profit, at least according to the analysis firm Sensor Tower.
Knives Out is another battle royale game from NetEase. It has a more realistic graphic style.
Therefore, a similarly large success is expected from BuildTopia as it combines elements from several highly popular games. It is also supposed to be as accessible as possible and function on older smartphone models to reach as many players as possible.
Whether Epic will take action against this copy of their game is still unknown. PUBG, on the other hand, has previously tried to eliminate “Rules of Survival” and “Knives Out”:
Several months ago, Niantic announced that trainers all over the world would soon be able to submit suggestions for PokéStops in Pokémon GO . But to this day, that is still not possible in Germany. Why is that?
What is the problem? Pokémon GO connects the real world with a mobile game. At interesting locations in the real world, such as the Eiffel Tower or a football stadium, you can find a gym or a PokéStop in Pokémon GO.
But these can also be local interesting places like cafés or shops in a smaller town.
These stops and gyms are important for players. You get items there that can be used in the game or battle in raids against rare monsters to catch them afterwards.
You get important items for playing from PokéStops. Such as Poké Balls.
In many places, there are few or no stops and gyms. Especially in rural areas, this is a big problem. In cities, such interesting places can be found everywhere. In the countryside, sometimes there’s nothing within a radius of kilometers. Players have few opportunities to collect items there.
And currently, you can only suggest stops if you play Ingress. But not everyone wants to do that.
What Niantic has announced: Because the stops and gyms currently rely on reports from Ingress (another game by Niantic), there are currently only a few stops. Niantic wants to change that.
Already in September 2018, the developers announced that they would test the function for submitting PokéStops in Brazil and Korea as a beta phase. After that, they intend to roll out the program to other countries.
Players are excited: Finally, there should be opportunities to suggest stops themselves
Players can suggest spots that they consider important as PokéStops using the function. Other trainers will then verify whether the suggestion meets the criteria, and if everything is fine, the location will become a stop or gym.
In places with few stops, this function is urgently desired.
Why do we still have to wait? The function for submitting PokéStops is still in a beta phase, so it is still being tested. Gradually, Niantic is enabling individual countries to try out this function.
There is no official information on which country will be invited to the tests next.
Which countries are already part of the tests?
India – Since May 9, 2019
Denmark – Since April 24, 2019
Taiwan – Since April 11, 2019
El Salvador – Since March 27, 2019
Guatemala – Since March 27, 2019
Nicaragua – Since March 27, 2019
Costa Rica – Since March 27, 2019
Panama – Since March 27, 2019
Honduras – Since March 27, 2019
Belize – Since March 27, 2019
Ecuador – Since March 27, 2019
Bolivia – Since March 27, 2019
Colombia – Since March 27, 2019
Uruguay – Since March 27, 2019
Paraguay – Since March 27, 2019
Suriname – Since March 27, 2019
Venezuela – Since March 27, 2019
Guyana – Since March 27, 2019
Indonesia – Since March 14, 2019
Peru – Since February 27, 2019
Vietnam – Since February 14, 2019
Argentina – Since January 31, 2019
Thailand – Since October 31, 2018
Mexico – Since October 17, 2018
Brazil and South Korea – Since September 18, 2018
Recently, on March 27, 2019, there was a big wave of new countries allowed to take part in the tests for suggesting PokéStops. If Niantic continues at such a rapid pace, there will soon be many more countries able to submit stops.
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How do you submit suggestions for PokéStops? When the function is enabled, it will initially only be for players who have reached level 40. There are certain criteria to be considered for new stops because not every location is interesting.
We have an introduction for you that you should consider when the suggestions for PokéStops are activated.
The biggest streamer on Twitch is Tyler “Ninja” Blevins. Since his rise through Fortnite, he has sworn off his former foul-mouthed self. But during the World Cup qualifications for Fortnite, the “Old Ninja” made a comeback.
This is how Ninja cursed: The streaming star was recently on a European trip, visiting Paris, Salzburg, and Warsaw. In Paris, he probably ate one baguette too many.
In his latest stream, he advised an opponent he had just defeated to eat a “baguette,” the biggest one he could find. He should stuff the whole thing in.
However, Ninja didn’t actually say baguette.
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This was the situation: Ninja (in the Mercy tribute skin) felt that another player (in the notorious Soccer Skin) had been stalking him for 6 minutes. Ninja thought the other player was a stream sniper deliberately hunting him down to eliminate him.
Streamers like Ninja have the problem that they want to stream their games live to interact with their chat. However, this also makes them susceptible to stream snipers, who can see them, know where Ninja is, and deliberately hunt him down.
That’s why cursing is so unusual: Ninja was considered an aggressive player during the days of Halo and H1Z1, often flipping out and insulting people while streaming.
Overall, the evening went quite well for Ninja – despite the stream sniper.
Some older fans criticized this: Ninja would be pretending and is a “sellout,” having sold out for success and not being the Ninja of old.
Therefore, the glimpse of “Old Ninja” is now a reason for joy for some veteran fans, while perhaps some younger fans have shown irritation.
In Ninja’s chat during the moment, most fans were amused, with many “Lols,” “Yes,” and “hahahahs.” On reddit, the clip also receives rather positive feedback: One would act the same way if being stalked like that.
Generally, Ninja’s haters should also eat a baguette, it is said there.
The clip has already received 190,000 views in a short time.
According to The Division 2 , the defensive skills are apparently too weak, as Massive now acknowledges. Therefore, hardly any agent plays a so-called “Tank.” Massive aims to change this with the next patches.
The game was supposed to be characterized by the use of as many different builds as possible, granting various advantages. Loot was meant to feel meaningful and bring a lot of variety to the gameplay.
Gear sets are part of different builds and determine the playstyle.
The three “main builds” of The Division 2 should be as follows:
Players can prefer weapon damage (the red talents) to deal the most damage with weapons, like in a classic shooter – like with a sniper build
Agents can prefer items that increase skill power (the yellow talents) to excel with their skills, control enemies, or heal teammates – a kind of tech specialist
and players can focus on defense (the blue talents) to draw fire, endure a lot, and create space – these are the tanks
That was at least a theory: Within these 3 main areas, there could have been different variations.
Offense is the best defense in The Division 2
This is what Massive says about the tank problem: In practice, “Tanks” are too weak, as Massive now admits.
The developer agrees with fan complaints that “tank builds” in The Division 2 currently are not worthwhile. There are too few advantages to go for hit points and armor.
Massive states: The problem lies in the fact that the best way to avoid damage in The Division 2 is to eliminate enemies as quickly as possible:
Those who are dead deal no damage
when enemies are dead, they do not shoot at you, you do not have to crouch in cover and can deal more damage yourself
the problem gets worse the further you progress into the endgame – the damage you deal becomes increasingly important
However, Massive does not want to make “Tanks” necessary by simply increasing the hit points of enemies and prolonging fights. Because that would cause the enemies to feel like bullet sponges again – this is something Massive definitely wants to avoid.
After all, it was one of the major criticisms of Part 1, why a guy in a hoodie can take eight shots from a machine gun.
This is how The Division 2 plans to solve the problem: In further patches, they aim to overhaul the talents overall. Defensive skills on gear should become significantly stronger, so that every “Defensive” role also feels important.
Massive wants to take a look at the overall balance and adjust it so that more builds play a role in The Division 2.
Especially at higher difficulties, they want to adjust the lethality of enemies to ensure a better experience. Healing should also become more important.
One can be curious about how The Division 2 will change in balance in the coming weeks and months.
