In Fortnite (PC, PS4 & Xbox One) the comet is still a hot topic. Will it destroy Tilted Towers? Developers are even jumping on the fan theory and having a joke in the new update: They are throwing a comet party in Tilted Towers.
What’s it about? The rumor mill is buzzing regarding Fortnite: Battle Royale. For almost a month now, a comet has been seen in the sky coming closer. According to the common fan theory, when it hits, it will strike and destroy the controversial city Tilted Towers. This spot is so hot that it influences Fortnite: Battle Royale.
Causes discussions – a spot in the sky
Therefore, the community goes totally overboard every time something happens with the comet in Fortnite.
“Tilted Towers must be destroyed!”
What’s so bad about Tilted Towers? Tilted Towers is centrally located and contains a tempting amount of loot. Therefore, many players go there first. This leads to a massive slaughter at the beginning of the game.
Image source: kotaku
This greatly thins out the player pool. The mid-game thus becomes duller. Without Tilted Towers, Fortnite could overall become more exciting.
Are developers trolling the comet fans?
What just happened? So far, developer Epic has not commented on the comet theory and the possible destruction of Tilted Towers. However, since update 3.6, a week before the end of Season 3, Epic has patched in a few funny details into the game.
Those landing on a certain rooftop in Tilted Towers will find the remnants of a kind of “comet party” there. A telescope is aimed at the comet. Various signs can be found, including the Tilted Towers in a heart shape or showing the comet.
Image source: Kotaku
A particular jab comes from a sign that states “Today” but has been crossed out. Below it, it says “Tomorrow” instead.
Is Epic trolling the hyper-nervous fans who go crazy over every little thing regarding the comet and predict the imminent strike?
Image source: kotaku
New clues about comet game mode
Are there other theories? Not every player believes in the destruction of Tilted Towers. Dataminers “DieBuddies” have dug into the data again and discovered more clues about a new game mode featuring the comet.
It seems that there will be comets raining down, which are said to have their own sounds, including upon impact. Perhaps this is a temporary game mode for the start of Season 4, where smaller comets will hit before the big one comes and causes something more radical?
By the end of Season 3 on April 30, 2018, we should know more.
On Wednesday evening, April 25th, the servers at Fortnite report an outage. The login on PC, PS4, and Xbox One has failed. The servers are offline. What is going on? Why isn’t Fortnite working? And why are there such long queues now.
However, since around 6:00 PM, complaints have been increasing: “Fortnite login failed,” an error has occurred. The servers are offline.
Emergency server maintenance is needed to let blocked players back in
The reason is an emergency maintenance of the servers that Fortnite is conducting. This was necessary because a few players could no longer log in. They want to let these players back into the game, for which downtime is necessary. These players were blocked due to a backend service update, an adjustment that only affected the servers on Epic Games’ side.
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The current downtime at Fortnite should therefore only be a short disruption that will be resolved soon. A new Fortnite update or a server maintenance by Epic Games is actually not planned.
The downtime came without notice. Epic says: We’re sorry, but this had to be done quickly because some players could not play at all.
We all want to hope that it won’t be another massive maintenance like on April 12th, which has gone down in the history of gaming as a great Fortnite crisis. The servers were offline for almost an entire day.
Fortnite servers back online – There will be queues
Update: It looks like the servers came back online around 6:40 PM. Enjoy the Fortnite queue now that everyone is trying to log in at the same time!
Epic warns that players on PS4 and Xbox One might experience a crash after starting the game when launching Fortnite. They should just try again.
While you wait for the Fortnite servers to come back online, we recommend this article, which discusses the difference between “Fortnite: Battle Royale” and “Fortnite: Save the World”. Also, I know the author pretty well and they would appreciate it if you give it a read.
An update of the Open Street Map data is said to have unlocked new nests in Pokémon GO. Have you noticed it too?
In Pokémon GO, monsters appear in nests in certain locations. This means that there is a collection of specific species in the Pokémon GO nest that are present there for an extended period. These nests change regularly and then reveal new species that can be frequently found in these locations.
It seems that the data has been updated, from which Pokémon GO derives its locations for nests. Trainers report that there are suddenly many new nests to be found.
New nests around the world
Apparently, Niantic has unlocked many new nests in Pokémon GO. This is what player reports on Reddit suggest, wanting to confirm the changes in the Open Street Map data. Reports are coming from North America, Australia, and Europe.
What does this change mean for you? For you, it initially means that visually nothing has changed on the map in the game. However, it could be that nests now appear in parks in your area where there were none before.
To find out if you are affected by this change, you need to take action and visit parks nearby. Perhaps you will now find a new nest there.
Discoveries from the community
Trainer phillypokego writes on Reddit that a park in his city now suddenly has a Machollo nest. Before the update, there was no nest there.
Trainer Snuhmeh writes that a park near him always had many spawns, but there was never a nest in the park. Recently, he now finds an Elektek nest there.
Trainer BigFreakyIchiban is happy about the recent map update, as there are now twice as many nests in his city.
How do places become parks or nests? The community has already figured out that Niantic uses the data from OSM (Open Street Map) for Pokémon GO. What’s special about this map is that you can contribute to improving it by reporting and entering forests or parks.
When Niantic then uploads an update of the map to the servers, the game checks the new data. In some cases, this includes reported parks that have been confirmed by OSM. A secret algorithm then decides which parks qualify for nests. If Niantic wishes, they can then use this new data to release new nests.
Can you confirm the reports and have you already found new nests?
The MMORPG Legends of Aria by Citadel Studios is referred to by many fans as the “true” spiritual successor to the classic Ultima Online. Whether there is any truth to this, we will find out in June when the open beta of the new MMORPG starts.
Although Ultima creator Richard “Lord British” Garriott actually developed Shroud of the Avatar (SotA) as a spiritual successor to Ultima Online (UO), many fans prefer to wait for Legends of Aria (LoA), formerly known as Shards Online.
Because SotA is not as successful as desired and does not offer the classic gameplay that fans expect from a new UO.
Open Beta in Summer – Legends of Aria Roadmap set for 2018
Whether Legends of Aria can truly fill this gap, we will see in June. Because the open beta is supposed to start then, where anyone can participate.
The developers at Citadel Studios stated that only a few updates are needed to reach the status of the open testing phase. Once the open beta is running, the developers will prepare for the soft launch through an early access phase – although not yet via Steam. While a release on Steam is planned, there is no date for that yet. The developers want to wait for how the open beta and the soft launch go before offering LoA to a larger community.
The current roadmap for LoA looks as follows:
Open Beta – June
Final Wipe – July
Early Access and Soft Launch – July
Steam Launch – 2018 (expected Fall)
Start of Marketing Campaign – 2018
Steam has to wait
The developers are currently keeping the launch on Steam open, as they explain that you only have one chance to launch here. And whoever messes this up usually has a big problem that, in many cases, can hardly be rectified. Is that an allusion to the failed launch of Shroud of the Avatar?
The developers of LoA believe that after the soft launch, they will need to make some optimizations and bug fixes, and there may even be rollbacks. They do not want to impose that on Steam users.
You decide whether you want to be an adventurer or crafter
The game’s economy is entirely player-driven
Many repeatable contents such as huge dungeons
Open housing system
Game strongly reflects the gameplay mechanics and features of Ultima Online
PvP is generally possible everywhere, but in many zones you are protected by guards who will help you
Players can create what are called shards and build their own worlds with their own rules
How close Legends of Aria ultimately comes to Ultima Online, we will still see. Players who participate in the closed beta feel strongly reminded of UO.
The free games for PS Plus (PlayStation Plus) have been announced for May 2018! These free games are now available for download on PS4, PS3, and PS Vita.
The new free PS Plus games are always officially revealed on the Wednesday before the first Tuesday of the new month. Because on the first Tuesday of the month, they are already available for download. In May 2018, that is on the 1st.
These are the free games for PS4 in May:
Beyond: Two Souls
The game “Beyond: Two Souls” is the first interactive action drama and blurs the lines between film and video game.
Experience the moving life of Jodie Holmes, a girl who possesses supernatural powers through her connection to an invisible entity. Accompany Jodie through 15 years of her life and experience the most poignant moments that define her fate through her actions and decisions.
Separated from her parents at an early age, Jodie is examined by scientist Nathan Dawkins in a Paranormal Activity institute. It doesn’t take long for the CIA to notice her abilities and try to bring Jodie to their side.
Rayman Legends
Here comes an absolute 2D jump ‘n’ run gem. There are not many games that can match the meticulously crafted gameplay and distinctive style of Rayman Legends.
Rayman, Globox, and the Teens traverse an enchanted forest when they discover a mysterious tent with a series of alluring paintings. Upon closer inspection, they realize that each painting seems to tell the story of a mythical world.
They stare for a long time at the picture of a medieval landscape, into which they are suddenly pulled. Unexpectedly, they find themselves in a new world, and the adventure can begin. The gang must run, jump, and fight their way through the worlds to reach their goal and uncover the mystery behind each of the legendary paintings.
In this video, you can get an impression of these games:
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You can now download these games from the PlayStation Store :
Beyond: Two Souls (PS4)
Rayman Legends (PS4)
Risen 3: Titan Lords (PS3)
Eat Them (PS3)
King Oddball (PS Vita)
Furmins (PS Vita)
What are the free games for PS Plus?
Once a month, PS Plus members receive a delivery of free games that they can download from the PlayStation Store and add to their library. This game lineup is included in the subscription to the online service. PlayStation Plus costs about 60 euros per year.
Do you need a PS Plus subscription or want to extend your existing one?
During the reveal stream for the 2nd DLC of Destiny 2, Bungie presented the upcoming PvP leaderboards among other things. After players have waited for years, you can dive into the new competitive progression system with Warmind and the then starting Season 3.
With DLC II for Destiny 2, “Warmind”, there is also a major innovation for PvP players. Bungie is introducing competitive leaderboards with Warmind after Guardians have been waiting for such a feature for the last few years.
Players can rank up step by step in the leaderboards and earn seasonal gear. Leaderboards are available for all players of Destiny 2, not just for buyers of “Warmind”.
Valor and Glory – two leaderboards for the Crucible
With the upcoming DLC, Guardians will not only deal with one leaderboard, but can collect points in two lists and have fun.
Valor – Points for this list are earned from all Crucible matches
Glory – This list is reserved for the competitive playlist in the Crucible
The Valor leaderboard is primarily aimed at Guardians who prefer to spend their PvP time in Quickplay. Progress in this list increases with every completed match; however, there is no penalty for a lost game. The Valor ranks are meant to highlight a player’s time investment in the Crucible.
If you win, you build a winning streak for which you earn bonus points with each subsequent victory. Winning streaks end after 5 victories and are reset.
The Glory leaderboardis aimed at hardcore PvP players and is only found in the Competitive playlist of Destiny 2. As with the Valor leaderboard, your personal rank increases when you win games, but it also decreases when you lose matches.
As with Valor, there are winning streaks in Glory, but there is also a loss system that operates similarly. If players lose multiple matches in a row, they lose more and more points.
Additionally, you can only earn the new legendary pulse rifle Redrix’s Claymore in the Glory leaderboard for the Competitive playlist. The weapon comes with the unique and powerful perk “Desperado”, which increases the weapon’s fire rate after reloading while the perk “Outlaw” is active.
In both leaderboards, there are different ranks to achieve. Each new rank is rewarded with a package that may contain tokens, engrams, and masterwork cores. Additionally, there are unique seasonal armor and weapons.
As the Senior PvP Designer at Bungie, Kevin Yanes, announced on Twitter, players need 2,000 points to reach the Legendary rank in the Valor leaderboard. For the Glory leaderboard, it is supposed to be 5,500 points needed for the highest rank.
Guardians who reach the highest rank in the respective leaderboard will also be able to set it to “Prestige”, as is already known from other shooters. This allows players to reset their earned progress and start again from zero. This is intended to be possible unlimitedly and unlock new rewards.
Heroes in Overwatch often have multiple tasks and can fulfill multiple roles. In the future, there should be more “pure” heroes.
Looking at the release of the latest Overwatch heroes, it seems that Blizzard is placing a significant focus on hybrid heroes. Moira, for example, is a support character. However, her abilities also deal substantial damage or are even suitable for flanking.
The release of Brigitte was a nuisance for many players. No character in Overwatch embodies the “jack of all trades” quite like Brigitte Lindholm. She not only deals solid damage at close and medium range with her flail, but also heals her allies, grants them armor, and can even act as a “mini-tank,” allowing individual players to seek protection behind her shield.
More “pure heroes” in the future
In an interview with PCGamesN, lead designer Geoff Goodman revealed that in the future, not only new hybrid characters will be released. There will also be “pure” heroes, i.e., those with a clearly defined role (DPS, Tank, Support), making a comeback.
Goodman stated:
“The most important thing is that we always want to offer a lot of different options for players to experiment with. Sometimes that means more hybrid heroes like Brigitte, Zenyatta, or Roadhog, and sometimes it means more heroes with a ‘pure’ role, like Mercy, Reinhardt, or McCree. I think it’s very likely that we will see both more hybrid heroes and ‘pure’ heroes.”
Symmetra has faced this issue as well. Although classified as a “support” hero, she cannot heal – a clear breach for many players that needs to be addressed. Therefore, a comprehensive Symmetra rework is on the way.
What do you think of the hybrid heroes in Overwatch? Should there be more characters that don’t fit into a clear role? Or should the role assignment for each hero be clear-cut?
Black Desert wants to gradually revise existing mechanics and make the game more fun and varied. However, the significant changes to PvP last week caused frustration among some players. Therefore, the Executive Producer is personally addressing the players: Black Desert has become very repetitive, so boring. Now they want to focus on class balance for the next 30 days.
What is the problem? Black Desert has been with us since early 2016 in Europe and has since been steadily expanded with new content. New classes and new areas sailed over from Korea to keep players engaged with content.
However, the core mechanics have not been significantly altered since the release. There has been a buildup of clutter that, according to Jae-hee Kim, the Executive Producer of Black Desert, has led to stagnation.
The Producer says: “The gameplay has become very repetitive. We want to refocus on an exciting MMO.”
The goal of the latest updates was to “clean up” Black Desert and rid it of unnecessary mechanics.
Small changes did not have the desired effect
The various content added to Black Desert was meant to address the problems slowly, without hitting players too hard. However, these small changes did not lead to a solution. Thus, the problems have been carried along, but now the point has been reached where only drastic measures can lead to the desired results.
The problem was intended to be solved with a harsh change in PvP. However, this led to chaos among players.
The foundation is being shaken
Existing meta has become boring: Before the update on 18.04.2018, classes that had skills to trigger the effect “Grabbing” were superior to other classes that could not.
In PvP, which plays an important role in Black Desert, these classes were stronger.
PvP players relied mainly on a single combo that they executed repeatedly to eliminate opponents. However, this meta led to frustration among players who sought other ways to defeat their enemies. Players who did not want to succumb to the mighty combo and wanted to play by their own rules were at a disadvantage in PvP.
Radical change in PvP causes problems: The goal of the patch from 18.04 was to shake up the meta a bit and return fun to PvP. However, instead, this led to some players believing that the patch “destroys PvP”.
The goal of improving balance between classes could not be achieved.
Crowd-control effects are being revised again
But instead of waiting for the next regular maintenance, the developers released a patch on 21.04.2018 that brought some changes to the crowd-control effects that caused such confusion on 18.04.
This is how it was before the patch (18.4.): Before the patch, the effects of knockdown, stun, push, knockback, stun, and grabbing were seen as a set. These effects could be activated twice on the target within 5 seconds.
This is how it is now: The crowd-control effects are now assigned certain numeric values.
Freezing
0.7
Knockdown, Stun, Push, Knockback, Stun
1
Knockback, Airstrike
0
Once CCs on a character equal the value of 2 or greater, no debuffs can be applied to the target anymore. However, the CCs knockback and airstrike can always be applied.
The developers propose a solution
This is what they want to do to combat boredom: The developer of Black Desert promises to listen better to player feedback in the future and admits that they have overdone it with the speed of bringing new content. They will now place more emphasis on internal testing.
It remains to be seen how this will affect new content.
In the next 30 days, they specifically want to focus on the balance of PvP and achieve the goals they have set internally.
But before that, on Wednesday, April 25 at 7 PM, the “Team of the Week” will appear again. It will remain in sets for one week.
The highlights of this week are Milinkovic-Savic (88), Marco Reus (87) as CAM and Alexandre Lacazette (86). Lukas Podolski (83) has also received an Inform.
TOTW 32 – Ratings of the Player Cards in Ultimate Team
These were the predictions for Team of the Week 32 in FUT 18
TOTW predictions are forecasts of which players deserve a place in the upcoming Team of the Week. These predictions do not always match 100% with the official TOTW, and it is therefore risky to act on the transfer market based on these, yet they provide a good overview of which players might receive the coveted special cards.
We provide an overview of predictions from various FIFA sites.
Hans Vanaken [CAM] 77 > 81 – Belgium – Club Brugge
Luis Alberto [CM] 85 > 86 – Spain – Lazio
Nabil Fekir [CAM] 87 > 88 – France – Lyon
Milinkovic-Savic [CM] 87 > 88 – Serbia – Lazio
Marcelo Brozovic [CAM] 84 > 86 – Croatia – Inter
Forwards:
Theo Robinson [ST] 61 > 73 – Jamaica – Southend
Kenan Kodro [ST] 71 > 78 – Bosnia and Herzegovina – Grasshopper Club
Johnny Russell [RF] 70 > 77 – Scotland – Sporting Kansas
Ignacio Piatti [ST] 80 > 82 – Argentina – Montreal Impact
Alireza Jahanbakhsh [RF] 77 > 81 – Iran – AZ
Mark Uth [ST] 83 > 85 – Germany – Hoffenheim
David Neres [RF] 80 > 83 – Brazil – Ajax
Florian Thauvin [RF] 86 > 87 – France – Marseille
Alexandre Lacazette [ST] 85 > 86 – France – Arsenal
Marco Reus [LM] 86 > 88 – Germany – Dortmund
What is the Team of the Week (TOTW) in FIFA 18 Ultimate Team?
Every Wednesday, EA Sports reveals the Team of the Week in the “Ultimate Team” mode of their annual football simulation. This is also the case in FIFA 18. The players who performed outstandingly in real football the previous week are rewarded with special cards that have improved attributes.
You can draw the TOTW cards within one week from the sets in which rare (Gold) players can be included. However, the chance of that is considered low.
Additionally, you can buy these on the transfer market if they are offered by other players. However, the prices are usually extremely high. If you want to buy one of the new Informs for your team, it is advisable to do so at the beginning of the next week, as they will be cheaper then.
In Fortnite (PC, PS4, iOS & Xbox One) introduced an option to return purchased skins with Patch 3.6. However, the developers took the refund option offline shortly after. What are the reasons for this, when will it return, and when can you finally sell skins in Fortnite?
What happened? The developers of Fortnite introduced an inconspicuous new feature in Patch 3.6. This allowed you to return items that you purchased with V-Bucks within 30 days. The bucks were refunded in full. However, shortly after the feature went live, the developers disabled it again.
Battle Pass exploit is likely the reason you can’t return skins
Why was the exchange function removed? The reason for deactivating the refund option has not yet been officially confirmed by Epic. However, rumors are increasing on Reddit and Twitter.
It is quite likely that it was an exploit involving a specific Battle Pass offer. You could buy 10 levels of the Battle Pass for 900 bucks. Curiously, this purchase was also refundable – you were only supposed to be able to return cosmetic items.
Customers then received the 900 bucks back AND still kept their Battle Pass progress. A clear exploit that could have cost Epic a lot of money, especially with Season 4 and a new Battle Pass around the corner.
When will the skin refund come back?
What is the current status? The developers are still working on a solution to the refund issue.
Aside from the first tweet on the topic from April 24, 2018, no new statement has appeared. However, we will continue to monitor the situation and report when something happens.
Players want more freedom in returning items
What can be improved? The option to refund items was generally welcomed by fans. However, many were puzzled by the limitation.
You could only exchange items that you had bought in the last 30 days. Many complained: “I still have an old dragon glider that I don’t like anymore” or “I really wanted to return the old cuddly bear from Valentine’s Day; I hardly play it.”
Fans are therefore demanding an unlimited exchange period when the feature goes back online. Additionally, many players would appreciate having more than just 3 lifetime exchange options. Three refunds per year or even one per month would be preferred by many players.
At least many fans hope that Epic will compensate for the faulty feature by granting a few more returns when it functions again.
Refund, no sale or trade
Will skins also be available for sale or trade? On Twitter, Reddit, and others, there is an increasing desire to sell skins directly. Or that by returning them, you can somehow unlock the respective skins again in the shop. However, none of this is possible with the return option!
You will only be able to return items and receive the original amount back in V-Bucks.
The returned items will disappear; they will not suddenly be available again in the shop.
So anyone who wants to have the returned item back later must wait until it appears again in the daily shop rotation. That may take a while.
This also applies to your friends. The coveted Valentine cuddly bear will not suddenly appear in their shop if you return it!
The most annoying card from Hearthstone, the Shudderwock, will soon be nerfed. We reveal what will happen to the Shaman card.
“My teeth grind, my claws scratch!” – Those who hear this sentence in Hearthstone can lean back, spin their office chair around a bit, and wait for the hours to pass. The trigger for this phrase is the Shudderwock (original “Shudderwock”), a legendary card of the Shaman from the current Hearthstone expansion “The Witchwood”. The card has caused so much frustration that Blizzard will now intervene and has announced a nerf.
Shudderwock will be reined in
What will change? The number of Battlecries copied by the Shudderwock will be reduced to a maximum of 20. Even if more Battlecries are played, the Shudderwock will only repeat 20 of them. Additionally, the speed of the Shudderwock’s Battlecry animations will be doubled, so the card will be processed faster.
Why was the nerf necessary? A clever deck from streamer Disguised Toast utilized the mechanics of the Shudderwock in conjunction with other cards to create an almost endless combination of Battlecries. As up to 200 Battlecries had to be processed, turns could last several minutes, even though a single turn in Hearthstone is supposed to last only 90 seconds.
When will the nerf come? There is no exact date yet. Since many players are frustrated with the Shudderwock’s mechanics, Blizzard is likely to release the relevant patch or hotfix in a few weeks.
It is also worth mentioning that the Shudderwock deck was not particularly successful. Its win rate was below 50 percent, which is why its popularity has declined significantly in recent days.
What do you think about the changes to the Shudderwock? Is this a good solution to keep the card interesting?
The developers of Battlefield 1 have now confirmed that the monthly updates will soon come to an end. And that’s right before E3. Could it be that Battlefield V will be announced there?
Only a few updates remain for Battlefield 1, which will be received monthly. Fans have been used to regular updates with changes to weapon balance or new maps. But this will end in June 2018. The developers are now talking about the future of Battlefield 1.
The support for Battlefield 1 is slowly being phased out
Until June 2018, Battlefield 1 will still receive its monthly updates, after which it will be discontinued. After 20 months since the release, the support power is slowly being reduced.
What does this mean for you? As fans of Battlefield 1, you don’t have to worry. DICE is not completely discontinuing support for Battlefield 1 but is simply saying goodbye to these regular updates. Therefore, there will probably be no extraordinary innovations or complete overhauls of the weapon meta.
What happens next with Battlefield 1? After the last DLC “Apocalypse” has been released, maps from They Shall Not Pass will gradually be made available to all players. From now on, you can play on the map “Break,” which takes place during the Second Battle of the Marne. In May, more maps will be added to the selection.
In June, a new game mode will continue. Shock Operations is similar to the regular “Operations” mode but is limited to one map. This is suitable for players who have little time and cannot commit to a huge session. Shock Operations will then be available on the following five maps:
Shadow of the Giant
Prise de Tahure
Lupkow Pass
Zeebrugge
Somme
These maps actually belong to the Premium Pass or DLCs, but can also be played in the new game mode without DLC or Premium Pass.
Battlefield at E3?!
For fans, it may seem sad at first glance that support for Battlefield 1 is being phased out, but that doesn’t have to be a reason to be gloomy.
That’s why you can still be excited: The timing for the dwindling support should give you hope. The developers say, “We will continue to update Battlefield 1 monthly until June 2018.” This is interesting because E3 2018 is also happening in June. And here, players are hoping for cool news about Battlefield 5, which may even get a Battle Royale mode.
So we are eagerly looking forward to E3 2018 and enjoying the free content that the Battlefield 1 team will provide until then.
The science-fiction MMO Project Genom currently has a poor standing among players. The developers want to change that with a massive update.
With an average of four players online at the same time, according to Steamcharts, and mostly negative reviews, Project Genom seems to be heading towards disaster. But the developers want to pull the emergency brake.
The team has been working on a major update that will overhaul the entire game for one and a half years.The problems that the game had at the end of 2016, when a programmer turned against the project, seem to have been finally resolved.
Many changes
In principle, the entire game has been revamped:
The entire world has changed, now presenting over 100 km² in new zones
The majority of quests have been rewritten
Many new quests have been added
The enemies received a redesign with new models, animations, and balancing
More monsters found their way into the game
It is possible to customize the hero
The interface has been revamped, just like the controls
No old lines of code were left in the game
A new game
The developers say that Project Genom has essentially become a new game due to the work. Those playing on the test server can already see the changes and innovations. You need to purchase Project Genom on Steam and then select the “Test Branch” server in the beta tab. Enter “privatetestserver” as the password. The update will be applied to the main server on May 7.
Let’s see if this new Project Genom can finally convince players. Because the premise is interesting. A large science fiction MMORPG with many quests, a huge world, and the ability to enhance the hero using cyber implants or mutations.
Fortnite (PC, PS4, Xbox One, iOS) received a new weapon in the latest update 3.6: The Sticky Grenade. This can lead to a lot more chaos than one might initially think. We will show you 4 creative tricks to use the Sticky Grenade cleverly and coolly.
What happened?Patch 3.6 in Fortnite introduced a new weapon: A Sticky Grenade. This bomb sticks to surfaces and players. It explodes after 2.5 seconds, dealing 100 damage (200 to buildings). It can thus kill a player in one hit if they have no shields.
At first glance, the Sticky Grenade is nothing special and seems more like a fun gimmick than a serious weapon. But then players got creative …
Sticky Grenade Trick 1 – The Living Bomb
How does it work? This trick ideally works only in team mode, as there is no friendly fire. You take a Sticky Grenade, stick it to a (hopefully informed) teammate, and happily send them roaring towards the enemy.
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If the bomb goes off, the enemy in range takes damage, but your teammate does not. But watch out and keep your distance, because your own explosions are deadly for you too. You can see how this looks in action here in the video.
Sticky Grenade Trick 2 – The Bomb Comes Back!
How does it work? Keep in mind that the enemy has the trick with the living bomb figured out too. If you successfully attach a Sticky Grenade to an enemy, don’t forget that the enemy has 2.5 seconds to get back at you out of spite.
https://youtu.be/cE_q1uktVB0
In a nasty way, by simply chasing you down and giving you one last explosive hug. You are not immune to your own bombs! In the embedded video, you can see how things like that can end.
Sticky Grenade Trick 3 – Posthumous Revenge
How does it work? You can also take revenge on your opponent in other ways. If you are facing certain death and still have a Sticky Grenade, you can sneakily place it just before your death somewhere near you where the opponent does not see it.
If the enemy then takes you down and greedily wants to grab your loot, it will soon blow up in their face, and you’ll have the last laugh from beyond the grave.
Sticky Grenade Trick 4 – There is No Escape!
How does it work? The Sticky Grenade is of course great for trolling enemies. Especially if you accurately throw it at an enemy who is desperately building wall after wall to escape from below you.
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If you hit at the right moment with a Sticky Grenade, you’ll see your enemy who thought they were safe going up in flames on the horizon. Few things are more satisfying.
Have you already pulled off such actions with the Sticky Grenade? Or do you know more fun ways to use the new weapon?
In yesterday’s reveal stream for DLC II of Destiny 2, the new activity of “Warmind” was also introduced. Escalation Protocol is a new type of public event that can be initiated by the players themselves and offers exclusive rewards.
With the Escalation Protocol, Bungie aims to address the criticism that activities in Destiny 2 have been too easy so far. With the upcoming second DLC “Warmind”, the game will now have a new type of public event with a horde mode character.
To start the event, players must have completed the story of the new expansion
However, anyone in the region can participate in Hive Escalation, even if the campaign has not yet been completed
Since the new event is located on Mars, players need the DLC “Warmind” to participate in Hive Escalation. It is supposed to be an endgame activity that presents players with a new challenge and offers exclusive rewards.
In the stream, it was explained that players must have completed the story of the additional content to be able to start this mode themselves. While all players can join this event, since it is an endgame event, it is very likely that one will die more than play before completing the story. Participation is accordingly recommended only for high-level players.
This is what Hive Escalation offers
Hive Escalation is a kind of horde mode
In increasingly stronger waves, there are a new type of Hive enemies
There are a total of seven waves
Each wave has a mini-boss, while the final boss awaits in the seventh wave
In total, there are five unique final bosses with their own loot, which rotate each week
In Hive Escalation, towers must be activated that attract the Hive. This is how the event is started. In a total of seven waves with different characteristics, a new type of Hive enemy is fought. This Hive is covered in ice.
Each wave has its own mini-boss, while at the end of the last wave, a large boss enemy awaits. There are five “bosses of the week”, each dropping different loot and rotating weekly.
After the third and fifth waves, there are supposed to be crates with rewards. Among other things, there is exclusive armor in Rasputin style, but there are also cosmetic items. Hive Escalation is also supposed to provide armor and weapons that can only be obtained in this mode.
Additionally, with Hive Escalation, the Hive Swords return. During the event, shadow rifts spawn, which must be destroyed within a certain time. The rifts are protected by a knight, who drops one of the swords upon his death.
Players also receive weapon cache codes during the event, which grant the players special weapons. These weapons can only be used during Hive Escalation and are only available for a limited time.
The weapon shown during yesterday’s stream was the Valkyrie spear, which can be used for both close combat and ranged combat. In close combat, the spear is plunged into the ground, while it is thrown for ranged combat.
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Fortnite covers the two different types of gaming with “Battle Royale” and “Save the World”, according to our author Schuhmann.
I have a bad feeling that I will be criticized for “There are only two types of games” because there are so many more.
There are many genres, and the distinctions are becoming finer: Story RPGs and Action RPGs, Action games and Action-Adventure, First-Person Shooters and Third-Person Shooters, Real-Time Strategy and Turn-Based Strategy: There are all kinds of genres now, and all are completely different and unique.
One thing I have learned in the last four years at Mein MMO: Players hate it when their game is lumped together with too many others.
People already get angry when you compare Destiny with The Division, because these are two completely different games that should exist in very different dimensions. Of course.
And woe to anyone who compares a fan of MMORPGs with WoW – that has already sparked wars. No question.
Nevertheless: For me, it boils down to two types of games since childhood: High-intensity games and low-intensity games.
I believe no game has illustrated this as clearly as Fortnite has. And Fortnite also shows what kind of games the future belongs to.
The Two Types of Games
In one type of game, I think about something else while I play. Or at least I am allowed to think about it. I can let my mind wander. As a child, while playing Phantasy Star on the Sega, I listened to Alf cassettes and can still recite individual episodes when they come on television.
In the other type of game, I am under high tension, must focus all my attention on the game, and let myself be completely absorbed by it. Because I have to pay attention to auditory signals, small details that I might otherwise miss, and that could cost me my head. There’s no room for other thoughts while playing this type of game.
I Was a Fan of Games I Could Play on Auto-Pilot
For a long time, I only played low-intensity games: primarily RPGs, strategy games, and sports simulations. I loved Planescape Torment, devoured Baldur’s Gate, spent hours in the strategy worlds of Europa Universalis and Crusader Kings, and enjoyed leading a village team to the top of football in Anstoß.
Although these games also captivated me and I could immerse myself in the story, there were always pauses. One waited for round ends in strategy games and could regularly breathe. Much of it runs on autopilot in these games. You set a goal and pursue it. But what happens in that particular moment is usually not that important.
Dark Age of Camelot and WoW – The MMORPG Years
When I then discovered MMORPGs, I encountered this other type of game for the first time. In Dark Age of Camelot, PvE was relatively dull, and during long grinding hours, people chatted in the chat. But during intense PvP hours, there was nothing else but the moment. At any time, we could encounter another tribe group and the adrenaline level skyrocketed.
Moreover, back then, we discussed every battle afterwards in the forum or on IRC. Impossible, my group would have shamefully lost against any common players!
Later, in WoW, which I played a lot in my 20s, there were again few moments when I needed full attention: only during a raid and only during new boss encounters did I have to concentrate. Otherwise, it went on autopilot. The togetherness with other raiders was the focus.
I always had the feeling that many played WoW in a kind of trance.
This seems to be widespread. I constantly heard: MMORPG fans are looking for some series or podcasts to watch while gaming.
LoL – The Great Absorber
This other type of “gaming” I first really experienced with LoL.
League of Legends was totally absorbing for me. You had to pay attention to the surroundings, keep an eye on the mini-map, and ideally check which ultimates were currently in play. In every minute of a LoL match, something could happen that you had to be prepared for.
In conversations on Teamspeak, it revolved only around LoL – and nothing else. At every second, you had to shout to the others: “Inc Inc!”, “Botlane, Botlane!” or “Where was the gank, you noob? You can do nothing.”
In a LoL match, at least for me, there was no chance to think about anything other than LoL. The game demanded my complete attention. The hours flew by. I had experienced that before as well, when I spent nights playing Crusader Kings and then laid down in bed in shame in the morning to get a few hours of sleep.
But with LoL it was different. The hours with the game were simply gone, as if erased. Because there was no thought other than the moment.
Fortnite is Two Completely Different Games
Fortnite is quite astonishing. The PvE mode “Save the World” is of low intensity. The individual rounds follow a clear pattern. Highlights and surprises are rare.
You build your fortress calmly, brace yourself against the attack, and systematically deal with it. There are also some highlights and tricky moments in the later storm shield missions, but these moments are rare.
Most of the time, “Save the World” runs at low intensity. You pursue a strategy in a meta-game, getting slowly stronger through grinding, quests, and loot llamas. Ultimately, the individual round or minute is relatively unimportant.
Completely different is “Fortnite Battle Royale.” I tried it out one weekend recently and it was indeed like with LoL again. High intensity, pay attention to every sound, complete attention is required from start to finish in Fortnite.
You wait for minutes to meet an opponent. And then, in seconds, it is decided whether the round continues or whether everything you have collected and done until then was for nothing.
Apparently, the World Wants High-Intensity Games
What gives me pause: Apparently, this is exactly what people want. While “Save the World” leads a niche existence, “Battle Royale” is skyrocketing.
And this isn’t just something that applies to Fortnite. For the past few years, this type of gaming seems to be gaining traction. It appeals more to the younger generation, who are into events and action at every minute.
The current environment is also made for this type of game. No one wants to watch someone on Twitch clicking through the day of a strategy game. No, the hit is the “anything can happen at any time” action games like Fortnite.
Therefore, Epic will also have a hard time when they offer “Save the World” for free: even though it has the same characters and gameplay principles as “Fortnite: Battle Royale,” it is still a completely different game.
A game where you can also think about something else while playing it.
I am curious if the pendulum will swing back in the future. I can’t really believe that at the moment.
The Overwatch players do not want to part with Hanzo’s Scatter Arrow. They demand a special emote to honor the ability.
For many months, the Overwatch players have been demanding that the hero Hanzo finally needs to be reworked. Now Blizzard has granted this wish and presented the new version of Hanzo on the PTR.
As previously threatened, Hanzo loses his notorious Scatter Arrow. Instead, he receives two new abilities that are intended to make him more reliable and a bit more skill-dependent.
Emote as a reminder of old abilities
However, not all fans are pleased. Although the changes to Hanzo are generally supported, there is already a group of players who do not want to completely part with the Scatter Arrow.
On Reddit, they demanded: Give Hanzo a new, legendary emote – the Scatter Arrow.
There are several ideas for this. For instance, players wished for an emote where Hanzo shoots a blue arrow down to the ground, which then darts into the sky. A short time later, a dead bird would fall to the ground behind Hanzo, and he would initially look surprised before grinning and shrugging his shoulders.
Basically, it serves as a reminder that the Scatter Arrow has sometimes eliminated targets that Hanzo did not even have in his sights.
Within a day, the post received over 18,000 upvotes, making it one of the most successful posts in the Overwatch subreddit in recent months.
The fans’ ideas went even further. For if Hanzo would receive a “memorial emote” for old abilities, then Reaper should also get an emote where he gazes longingly at a soul orb in his hand.
What do you think of this idea? Should old abilities be honored in this way? Or is it good for new players to never come into contact with these old abilities?
Who owns Daybreak Studio? Who owns the company behind the games H1Z1, Everquest and Planetside 2? This is not so easy to answer. Apparently, Daybreak does not belong to the company “Columbus Nova”, because that would pose serious problems. Columbus Nova is indirectly owned by a Russian oligarch, whose assets have been frozen by the U.S. Treasury.
Who is Daybreak? Daybreak is the former studio “Sony Online Entertainment”, which separated from Sony in 2015. They were taken over by the investment group Columbus Nova in February 2015, or so it was thought.
Daybreak operates games such as Everquest, Everquest 2, H1Z1, DC Universe Online, or Planetside 2. They also publish Lord of the Rings Online. Since they joined “Columbus Nova”, there has been a cost-cutting trend – for example, they have canceled Everquest Next and Landmark. The long-time head of the studio, John Smedley, left the company in July 2015. Important identification figures of the individual games also left Daybreak over the years.
Who owns Daybreak? Actually, it was thought that Daybreak belongs to the group “Columbus Nova”. Daybreak announced this itself in a press release in 2015. However, this would currently be a very delicate situation, as Columbus Nova is in serious trouble.
Assets of Russian Oligarchs Frozen in the USA
What is going on with Columbus Nova? Columbus Nova belongs to the Renova Group, which in turn is owned by the Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg (61).
The U.S. Treasury (via Home.treasury.gov) froze the accounts and possessions of seven oligarchs and twelve companies in the USA on April 6. This includes the assets of Viktor Vekselberg and the Renova Group. This is related to the annexation of Crimea and the support of the regime in Syria by Russia. Additionally, Russian oligarchs are accused of sabotaging Western democracies, including the 2016 U.S. election.
Vekselberg and the Renova Group are specifically accused of being involved in corruption regarding energy production in Russia.
They have until June 5 to wind down their operations in the USA.
They are asking: “Will it be over in two months?” Because if Columbus Nova can no longer operate in the USA: How will Daybreak continue, and thereby Everquest 2?
This is not our owner, our own press release from 2015 was wrong
This is what Daybreak itself says: Daybreak tells the U.S. site MassivelyOp: This is all a misunderstanding. They have nothing to do with Columbus Nova. A former member of Columbus Nova, Jason Epstein, is the owner of Daybreak Game Company and has always been since he bought the company from Sony in February 2015.
The press release they issued at the time was a mistake that they are now correcting. The press release from 2015 clearly states: “Columbus Nova bought us.”
Moreover, users discovered a conflict on Daybreak’s Wikipedia page. Apparently, accounts attempted to delete all references to Columbus Nova from Daybreak’s Wikipedia page when the sanctions became known in early April.
In a reveal stream for the Warmind expansion, Bungie shared a lot of information about the upcoming second DLC of Destiny 2 – including details about the future story. We show you what the plot of the Warmind DLC will revolve around.
While there have already been some leaks and many speculations regarding the story behind the Warmind expansion for Destiny 2, official information has been scarce. Apart from the Warmind setting and a location on Mars, no further details were confirmed.
In a reveal stream for the second expansion, Bungie announced, among other things, how the story will continue for the Guardians. Since the stream, more and more information has come to light. We summarize it for you and show what the Guardians can expect in the continuation of the story in the second DLC.
Warmind – this is how the journey of your Guardians in Destiny 2 continues
As part of the plot of the Warmind expansion, your Guardian is taken to Mars. In the Hellas Basin region near the poles, you will encounter the Warmind Rasputin. He has awakened and set in motion a chain of events that extends throughout the entire solar system.
War satellites from the Golden Age fall from the sky over Mars and cause the polar ice caps to melt. This reveals Rasputin’s Warmind bunkers and the research complex of the Clovis Bray Corporation, which had previously been preserved under thick layers of ice.
The Clovis Bray Corporation was once a powerful and influential company, responsible for most of the groundbreaking technologies during the Golden Age with which humanity colonized the solar system. Among other things, they created the engram technology, the Exos (race), SIVA and the Warminds.
But that was not all that lay hidden beneath the melting ice. Something terrible is crawling from the depths. An ancient army of the Hive, known as Nokris’ Grip, determined to destroy Rasputin, has awakened and is now gathering around their god Xol.
Ana Bray – your friend and companion
As these events unfold, the Guardians meet Ana Bray. This long-lost, enigmatic Guardian is here in search of connections to her past and will play a central role in the story of the second expansion.
Throughout your Mars adventures, Ana will become your friend and ally. She will also be the key to uncovering and connecting the numerous secrets surrounding herself, the Clovis Bray Corporation, Rasputin, and the Bray family on the red planet.
But it is not only about helping Ana shed light on her past. Side by side with Ana Bray, the Guardians must now destroy the giant worm god of the Hive before it is too late.
Here you can watch the prologue video of the Warmind expansion, in which Ana Bray is introduced:
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For several weeks, fans of World of Warcraft have been very concerned. The upcoming expansion “Battle for Azeroth” has been stuck in alpha for a while, and time is running out. In about four months, Battle for Azeroth will celebrate its release, and there has been no sign of an official beta until now.
What has happened: Last night, on 24.04.2018, Battle for Azeroth officially transitioned from alpha to beta. The beta is now live.
Together with the transition to beta, Blizzard has also invited a large number of new players to play on the two beta servers “Anduin” and “Sylvanas”.
Here again is the warning: There are no keys for the beta of Battle for Azeroth. If you have been granted access to the beta, you can simply check this in your Battle.net launcher! If someone tries to sell you a key or asks for your access data, it is a scam.
Level cap has been lifted, characters deleted
With the start of the beta, all existing characters have also been deleted. So if you’ve played in the alpha, you now have to create a new character – but it starts already at level 110, so you can immediately dive into the new content.
In the future, character copying should also be possible – then you can transfer your character from the live version of the game to the beta. However, this feature is still disabled.
The level cap from the alpha has also been lifted. From now on, characters can be played up to the new maximum level of 120!
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Are you already in the beta of Battle for Azeroth and busy gaming? Are you still waiting for access? Or do you have access but prefer to wait for the release?
