The console versions of World of Tanks will receive two new tanks from the Japan RPG Valkyria Chronicles. So soon you will be able to drive and shoot with the “Edelweiss” or the “Nameless” on Xbox One and PlayStation 4.
The J-RPG Valkyria Chronicles takes place in a fictional world that resembles ours from the time of World War II. At the center is a group of young soldiers and a tank named “Edelweiss”.
If you love Valkyria Chronicles, the Edelweiss and World of Tanks, you will soon have the opportunity to drive this tank in Wargaming’s tank battles.
World of Tanks – Edelweiss and Nameless as Premium Tanks
From June 23 to July 10, 2017, you can buy the tanks “Edelweiss” and “Nameless” as premium tanks for real money for the PS4 and Xbox One versions of World of Tanks.
“Nameless” will be a Japanese heavy tank at Tier VIII
“Edelweiss” is a medium tank. It will also appear in the tech tree of the Japanese at Tier VIII.
Both tanks come with their own camouflage and a unique, fully trained crew that is modeled after the main characters from Valkyria Chronicles. They will even have their own voice lines.
https://youtu.be/LodCB1Y0xzE
You can admire both tanks in an action-packed trailer from Japan. It also features the little speedster “Lupus”, which is only available for the Japanese version of World of Tanks Blitz.
The action and tactics MMO Kingdom under Fire 2 has no plans for a release on Xbox One, as the franchise actually originates there. It is considered more suitable for PS4. The MMO has a budget of 90 million US dollars and is expected to come to Europe in 2017/2018.
Kingdom under Fire was originally a PC franchise, but most of the games were released for the original Xbox and Xbox 360. The last title, “Kingdom under Fire: Circle of Doom”, came to Europe in 2008, still for the Xbox 360.
A hardcore group of fans has been hoping for another game in the franchise for over a decade. This core group has endured many disappointments as the sequel has repeatedly been delayed; it is now clear: “Kingdom under Fire 2” will come to Europe but is not planning a release for Xbox One.
Kingdom under Fire 2: Release in Europe for PS4 and PC planned
The successor game “Kingdom under Fire 2” has been in development for years, with a tumultuous development history and journey behind it. KUF2 is a mix of action MMO and strategy game, belonging to the new genre of “Siege MMOs.” Currently, the game is available in Asia.
Kingdom under Fire 2 is reported to have cost 90 million US dollars. Source: GNN.Gamer
At an event in Taiwan, the head of the developer company Blueside spoke about the future of the game. Kingdom under Fire 2 is expected to launch here in Europe and North America between late 2017 and early 2018 for PC and PS4.
Microsoft’s console Xbox One is being left out because it is believed that the PS4 is better suited to represent the massive battlefields, even considering the “network issues” of consoles.
Blueside is planning a virtual reality version for Kingdom under Fire 2, intending to invest additional creative energy into it. A simple port is not sufficient.
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We have frequently reported on the turbulent development history of Kingdom under Fire 2. Blueside has repeatedly announced plans to begin an offensive and bring the game to the West. Those plans have often collapsed. Over the years, it has been a roller coaster. Now it looks like Kingdom under Fire 2 has established itself in Asia and is ready to also come to Europe and North America.
The game is considered the most expensive Korean MMO of all time. Incidentally, the costs have been raised once again. We thought it was 78 million US dollars. It is supposed to be 90 million.
In The Division you will soon be able to show all agents in New York how much you have already achieved. Update 1.7 introduces a new score.
Ubisoft and Massive published an article detailing the Commendations. The Commendations are a new feature of Update 1.7 and represent a type of achievement system: You will receive new objectives. When you master them, there are rewards.
As part of these Commendations, a new statistic will be introduced that reflects your progress: the Commendation score.
Each completed Commendation increases – depending on its difficulty – this Commendation score. In other words: The more you achieve in the game, the higher this score is. It applies account-wide – all your characters contribute to the same score.
You can view this statistic in your UI – however, it is also visible externally to every agent.
What are Commendations?
Massive aims to achieve three goals with the Commendations:
Provide new challenges that reward players based on their skills and endurance
Encourage players to try out new things in The Division – you should “experiment”
Players should be rewarded with something special and new to show off their success in the game
Over 500 different Commendations are to be implemented, covering all modes and aspects of The Division (PvE and PvP). They aim to address different play styles and vary in duration: Some can be completed quickly, while others take longer.
For some Commendations, you need to
master a challenge (complete an activity under certain conditions)
achieve statistical milestones (for example, collect a certain number of credits)
or complete a checklist of activities.
As a reward, there are “Patches.” These are various patches for your agent’s right upper arm that replace the SHD logo.
The Commendations are divided into 8 areas: General, Combat, Missions, Exploration, PvP, DLC, Global Events, and Achievements. A few examples of Commendations were shown in the last “State of the Game” stream.
You earn Commendations by, for example:
reaching level 30
completing missions
reviving allies in co-op
recovering contaminated items
killing named bosses in the DZ
But there will also be unique Commendations such as:
completing the raid Dragon’s Lair without being hit by an exploding toy car
viewing pictures in a gallery for three minutes in Survival mode
A new job posting brings joy to fans. Are Warcraft III and Diablo 2 getting a remake soon?
When Blizzard announced a few months ago that the original StarCraft, along with the expansion “Broodwar,” would receive a remaster with better graphics and detailed presentation, fans of the strategy classic were thrilled. But it didn’t take long for other Blizzard players to wonder: And what about game XYZ? Why does StarCraft get a remastered version and other titles do not?
Well, the question seems to be answered now. As PCGamer and Buffed report, there was a job posting on Blizzard’s official website, which was only visible for a few hours.
According to that, Blizzard was looking for a “Lead Software Engineer,” whom they wanted to attract with the following text:
“Engaging stories. Exciting multiplayer. Endless replay value. These are the qualities that made StarCraft, Warcraft III, and Diablo II the titans of their time. Evolving operating systems, hardware, and online services have increasingly made it difficult for these titles to be played by their loyal fans or discovered by a new generation.
We will bring them back to glory and need your talents, your passion, and your ability to tackle hard tasks.”
A short time later, this notice disappeared from the website. Did it reveal more than Blizzard actually intended?
A remake for Diablo 2 and Warcraft III would make sense
It would fit, as both Diablo 2 and Warcraft III are considered gems for many players of “our” generation and have consumed countless hours, keeping players glued to their screens. Many fans crave the chance to play these “oldies” again without having to use additional programs or dig out an old computer. A small graphical update would also do the titles good.
Whether these games will actually be newly “remastered” remains to be seen, probably earliest at GamesCom – but at the latest at BlizzCon this November.
In Destiny 2, the exotic fusion rifle Cold Heart was presented to the wrestling giant “The Big Show.” He was pleased with the gesture, as he was only interested in codes.
For The Big Show, gaming is a break from everyday life; the giant doesn’t just have to grab people by the neck, lift them, and slam them onto the mat in his day job – he also has to be nice to all the fans, smile, and give autographs. So, Destiny is pure relaxation.
At E3, The Big Show had the opportunity for a casual conversation with Pete Parsons, the head of Bungie, in front of an audience. The whole thing was an amusing PR exchange that gave the giant a chance to showcase his “mic skills.”
The Big Show struggles with the same issues as every Destiny player
Highlights included statements like:
“I don’t use cheese spots… well, not that often!”
“It’s a great opportunity for Destiny movies… and you definitely need a giant Hunter.”
“I hate Titans because they always destroy me in PvP; you run around the corner, and the Panic Fist comes flying at you.”
“When you do a weekly activity and end up with 3 strange coins while the guy next to you, who has been hiding in the cheese spot the whole time, gets an exotic… totally fine by me. I mean, he needs the exotic weapon… I’m just waiting for Xur!”
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The highlight was when The Big Show asked the Bungie head for “codes”; there must be something that can be done. Parsons then said, “I’m really tired of this now,” and pulled out an exotic weapon, a fusion rifle, and presented it to “The Big Show.”
He hugged his new favorite and said: “You have never seen a 2.13m tall, 167kg nerd cry… but soon you will.“
Details about the exotic fusion rifle Cold Heart are not yet known – some suspect it might have some sort of “freezing effect.”
A few years ago, Bungie made another Guardian happy with an exotic weapon:
Dataminers have been diligent and found new clues on maps in Overwatch . We’ll reveal where the journey is headed.
For Overwatch, the release of the new map “Horizon Lunar Colony” is just a few days away. Players will then be able to explore a new environment and find out how Winston was raised and what went wrong on the moon that led to the gorilla uprising.
Meanwhile, on Reddit, user Richard Gryffon, who previously found the icon for the Summer Games 2017 in the game data, has unearthed something new. While sifting through the various files and folders of Overwatch, he stumbled upon some suspicious designations that already hint at new maps.
3 new Overwatch maps in 2017
He became suspicious when he found the designation “hlc_cp” – this likely stands for “Horizon Lunar Colony” and the “cp” for “Capture Point” – exactly the map we already know is coming soon.
A second name is “Maunganui” or also “maunganui_es”. This could hint at “Mount Maunganui”. It is a small suburb of the city of Tauranga and is named after a volcano. Since “es” stands for “Escort”, it would make sense to push a payload up the mountain on this map – maybe the volcano has become active again? In this context, a comment also suggests that Roadhog could theoretically be from New Zealand – which adds more reason for the map.
The third file path is “Utopea” or “utopia_c” – a fictional city in India’s future. The place where Symmetra spent a large part of her youth and where the Vishkar Corp. has immense influence. Since we know very little about Vishkar so far and have also learned little about their vision of a “perfect world”, this map could make sense.
Blizzard has announced plans to release at least 3 maps in 2017. The three names would fit perfectly into the plan.
But whether we will really be lighting up the weapons in New Zealand and India soon, we will probably find out in a few weeks.
The RPG Beyond Good and Evil 2 is eagerly awaited by fans. We have compiled all the currently known details about the game for you here.
Hardly anyone expected the announcement at E3 2017, but the developers did a huge favor for long-time fans and finally announced Beyond Good and Evil 2. But what does the game actually want to accomplish, having waited nearly 14 years for a sequel? We have summarized all the currently known facts and plans of the developers for you in this article. There are some spoilers, so you have been warned.
The Setting and the Game World of BGE2
Logically, Beyond Good and Evil 2 takes place in the same game world as its predecessor – however, nearly 50 years before the events of the first part, namely “a generation before the birth of Jade”.
During the 22nd century, India and China have risen to become the two global superpowers and have advanced genetic research to create human-animal hybrids. These beings serve as laborers to advance the colonization of space – including the solar system “System 3”. Here, there are particularly abundant resources and worlds in the habitable zone.
Some of the hybrids eventually staged a rebellion and fled, since then they have led a life as space pirates to get by. This results in colorful crews made up of many different hybrids.
The story primarily deals with the revolution of the hybrids, which ultimately leads to them being recognized as equal beings in Beyond Good and Evil 1.
The Gameplay – Custom Character and Lots of Action
At the beginning of the game, each player creates their own character – we no longer take on the role of a pre-made hero. Most elements from the predecessor are expected to return in the game, which means: third-person view, stealth missions, combat, exploration (with photography) and vehicles (combat and chases). This promises to be a colorful mix with plenty of variety.
At the start of the game, the hero is an insignificant nobody who barely owns a rickety spaceship. As the story progresses, one is supposed to rise to become a “legendary captain”. There is a level system not only for the character but also for the crew and the spaceship – three separate progression systems. Not all characters in the game are fixed. Some “side characters” are generated randomly.
The story is essentially “the same for everyone”, but how one approaches a mission changes depending on the playstyle. Those who prefer stealth can avoid many fights – the brutal method will probably also achieve results. The actions during the various missions will have an impact on the game world. For instance, blocking the trade route between the cities will have consequences for both cities.
The cities and other locations themselves place a high value on verticality. Therefore, one can also change levels with a grappling hook in many places, making chases, battles, and stealth missions even more exciting and varied.
Photography and “Family Friendliness”
Photography will again be an important feature of the game. You can take pictures of almost all locations in the game and then show the images to different NPCs, which leads to various reactions (and can advance the story). The photos can also be shared with other players online.
Part 1 did not have harsh language, like the successor – here options are to be offered.
One criticism of the first trailer was the harsh language with swear words. The first BGE was a family-friendly game, which is why the trailer received criticism. The developers are considering an option for “family friendliness”, where dialogues can do without particularly harsh swear words. So if you want to play the game with your offspring, you can use this option.
Is BGE2 a Multiplayer RPG?
There will also be a multiplayer mode in Beyond Good and Evil 2. The developers have experimented with up to 15 players simultaneously, although it is still undecided how many players can actually roam the game world in co-op. However, this mode will be optional, and those who do not want that can also experience the story of BGE2 solo. In general, the entry into multiplayer should be possible “at any time”.
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However – and this must be clearly stated – Beyond Good and Evil 2 is still in a very early stage of development. It could still take years before the actual release.
These are all the currently known information about Beyond Good and Evil 2. Are you already looking forward to the game?
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
A leak shows the first gameplay scenes from the highly anticipated Monster Hunter World. Check out how dynamic the world really is!
Since Monster Hunter World was presented at E3 last week, there have been numerous discussions surrounding the game. As the hunt for monsters can take place on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC, the pool of potential players is particularly large.
The first trailer at E3 whetted the appetite for more, and all the promises of “spontaneous” multiplayer, the dynamically acting game world with monsters that react differently depending on the situation, only fuel the excitement further.
Leaked gameplay from Monster Hunter World
However, the first gameplay scenes have now been leaked, which were apparently presented during a demonstration!
The recordings are of low quality, as they were apparently made secretly, but they already reveal significantly more about the gameplay and the possibilities of the game than the trailer could. At the beginning, little can be seen, but in the later minutes, the image becomes relatively clear. Without further ado, here are the leaked scenes:
Clearly, Monster Hunter World seems to be able to fulfill all promises. Particularly impressive are the behaviors of the monsters and how they interact with each other. Skillfully exploiting the environment, like falling from a great height with the waterfall, severely wounds the creatures, allowing for double loot opportunities.
The battles will be full of action, and every creature feels like its own proper boss fight. Coordination and teamwork seem to be important components to be able to defeat creatures like the T-Rex hybrid in the video.
What do you think of the leaked scenes? Is your inner hype only further fueled? Or do you believe nothing until the finished game is on the market?
During the Sony Days of Play, you can get offers such as the 12-month PlayStation Plus subscription for €34.99. There is also an attractive complete set of PlayStation VR.
You have the opportunity to secure one of the offers from the Sony Days of Play until June 21, 2017. The most attractive offer by far is the 12-month subscription for PlayStation Plus. Saturn includes UEFA Euro 2016 for PS4 for free.
With the PlayStation Plus subscription, you receive free games every month for PS4, PS3, and PS Vita. In June, for example, you will get Life is Strange and Killing Floor 2 for PS4.
New VR games were announced by Sony at E3 2017. Therefore, the PlayStation VR Complete Set might be interesting for you. In addition, there is a PS4 bundle with top titles Horizon Zero Dawn and Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End.
Please note that most products currently have a delivery time of several days. However, the waiting time might be worth it for an offer like the PS Plus subscription.
The offers displayed here are equipped with so-called affiliate links. By purchasing through one of these links, we receive a small commission from the respective provider. The price remains unaffected.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
A ton of screenshots and concepts have been released that show you what to expect in Destiny 2 .
You decide: Either lean back and enjoy the following screenshots of Destiny 2 in all their glory, or lean forward and meticulously inspect each image to spot even the tiniest detail.
Activision has released a lot of imagery for Destiny 2, including screenshots and concepts of weapons, landscapes, guardians, Ghaul, vehicles, and PlayStation-exclusive content.
We embed all of them for you.
Concept Art for Destiny 2
Let’s start with four images of different locations in Destiny 2. In the first, you see the Saturn moon Titan. It consists of a “methane sea.” There is no land mass. You move on buildings from the Golden Age:
This concept is titled “Waterway.” The area looks like the asteroid Nessus, transformed by the Vex. Here, vegetation with red leaves thrives:
This concept is named “schoi eden” (a term I cannot make sense of). Perhaps we are on the sulfur moon of Jupiter named Io:
Here you see a location in the European Dead Zone:
Next up are weapons. This is a fusion rifle by Veist. Veist is a new weapon manufacturer in Destiny 2. It might be a linear fusion rifle?
Here is a stylish hand cannon:
This is a “Gunship” – a heavily armed vehicle. In Destiny 2, guardians can ride various vehicles, but this looks more like a war machine of the Cabal:
Speaking of Cabal – here is Ghaul. A size comparison with a guardian is shown:
The online shooter Overwatch (PS4, PC, Xbox One) keeps running and running. Even a year after the release, the interest is high. Unusual for a full-price title. The interest in For Honor, Horizon Zero Dawn, or Destiny has developed differently.
We have seen it repeatedly in recent years. A game launches with a lot of hype, then loses its way, there come horrifying reports about dwindling player numbers and one reads : “Does anyone still play this? It’s dead” or, if you like it short, “Dead Game.”
The medieval fantasy brawler “Samurai versus Knights versus Vikings”, For Honor, was the latest example of such a downward spiral.
If you look at the Google interest in Germany in For Honor, you see the clear trend: In February at release, the peak is reached, it is at 100. But just a month and a half later, the interest has dropped to a tenth. Only a hardcore group plays “For Honor”, a month later that is halved, now only one in twenty who was interested at release is still interested in the game.
For Honor serves as a striking example of how interest wanes: In principle, this is typical. Even an outstanding single-player game like “Horizon Zero Dawn” quickly shrinks to a tenth of the interest, after two months.
Indeed, Overwatch forms an exception here. Even with Overwatch, interest in the title waned after the initial hype, but the hardcore group still interested in Overwatch after 6 weeks is surprisingly large. About one in four players who were there at the release is still interested in the game. These are excellent values.
Under “20%” of the initial hype, interest has not declined in more than a year, sometimes during major events it even rises back to 40. In this year, only three new heroes were added to Overwatch – but the events with changed loot boxes, skins, and emotes drive the player numbers up.
Such a positive trend as in Overwatch is rare among full-price titles. Even the MMO shooter Destiny, a constant presence in international media, has shrunk to a sixth of its interest in Germany in March 2015, about half a year after release.
In the disappointing years 2016 and 2017 it fell to a tenth and then to a twelfth. And Destiny is already considered an incredible success hit that the industry looks up to.
So we see: Almost every game collapses after 6 weeks or at the latest one like a soufflé. Overwatch, on the other hand, runs at the same pace as the cursed Duracell bunny.
These are good news for Blizzard, who found a game with Overwatch that works throughout the year and generates revenue. But these are also bad news for potential competitors: Competing in this market against Blizzard and Overwatch will be as hard for newcomers as establishing a MOBA against League of Legends – although LoL has indeed weakened a bit in the last year, but that’s another story.
If you enjoy this kind of analysis, then this article will be interesting for you:
Strong action by Take-Two against the developers of a GTA 5 cheat. They must now donate their earnings for a good cause.
The battle of Take-Two and Rockstar against mod developers continues to the next round. This time, however, for the benefit of the community, as the developers of the Force Hax mod are in the crosshairs.
This mod is a paid cheat for GTA 5 Online, that users could use to kill and kick other online players. But that should now come to an end. The tool has not only been banned, but Take-Two also enforced that all earnings from the cheat must be donated to charity.
Force Hax discontinued – earnings will be donated
The Force Hax cheating tool gave players in GTA 5 Online the ability to give themselves a lot of money or annoy other players by kicking or freezing them. It was especially dangerous when users employed the tool to steal money from other players.
The Force Hax tool was very popular among cheaters in GTA 5 Online.
Now Take-Two and Rockstar have not only ensured the shutdown of the tool, but also provided an interesting apology. The earnings that the developers made from selling the cheat tool must be donated to a charitable cause.
On the official website of Force Hax, it says: After discussions with Take-Two, all work on the Force Hax cheat menu will be immediately discontinued. The earnings will be donated to charitable purposes, and the developers apologize for all problems caused with the Grand Theft Auto Online community that arose from the Force Hax services.
It is unclear how much the amount to be donated will be. Force Hax cost 15 dollars per month and an estimated thousands of players regularly used this service.
Beacon of hope for the community
The shutdown of cheating tools like Force Hax should not come as a surprise to the community, as Rockstar made it clear that they do not want such dangerous modifications in the game anymore.
Due to such security risks, the developers of the OpenIV mod already received a cease-and-desist order. However, the community does not agree with this, as OpenIV was actually only intended for single-player, where no other players are at risk. To save OpenIV, the community is currently collecting signatures on Change.org
The ban on the OpenIV mod has led to harsh criticism and many negative reviews for GTA 5. The game is now rated “extremely negative” on Steam.
The shutdown of a true cheating tool is viewed positively in the community.
Players are pleased that “the right ones” have finally been hit. But this is just a small beacon of hope in the generally poor mood of the GTA 5 fans.
Players want mods, but no cheats
The ban on dangerous mods that can harm other players is welcomed by many players in the community. However, the fact that single-player mods are also suffering from this is a bad aftertaste that fans do not take well.
On one hand, they wish for a cheat-free online session, but on the other hand, many also want to try cool mods. Therefore, they wish that Rockstar and Take-Two would differentiate better and distinguish which mods are truly dangerous.
It is currently difficult to assess what the modding future of GTA 5 will look like. Perhaps the developers will be able to differentiate better and can allow mods like OpenIV again in the future.
In Far Cry 5, you will be rewarded for stunts that you can perform with the popular wingsuit. However, in the new game, towers are omitted.
The wingsuits were popular in previous installments of the Far Cry series and were often used by players to get from point A to point B. Whether the wingsuits will also be present in the fifth installment was initially unclear, as gameplay scenes did not show the cool flying aid.
During an interview, it was revealed that the wingsuit will indeed be present in Far Cry 5. However, you will not find the typical towers.
Wingsuit? Yes. Towers? No!
We have been prepared for the release of Far Cry 5 for a few weeks now. Initially with short trailers, then with gameplay material from E3. In the video, we already saw a little selection of weapons and cool NPC companions who support you on your adventures from the air or on the ground.
However, wingsuits were not seen in the trailers. They were already present in Far Cry 3 and 4, and fans were wondering if they would make a comeback in the fifth installment. This question from the community was posed by YouTuber RajmanGaming to Executive Producer Dan Hay in an interview.
Initially, he wasn’t sure if he could even talk about the feature. But then he said “Fuck it! Yes, the wingsuits are coming back!”
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In addition, Hay hints at a connection between stunts with the wingsuit and a famous stuntman from Montana. Through the stunts, you can pay tribute to the mentioned stuntman. It likely refers to Evel Knievel.
Towers will not be present in Far Cry 5. Dan Hay explained in an interview with Gamespot that they want to deviate from the “norm” and show that not all Ubisoft games must always have the same base functions.
Fans are now wondering how the maps will function without getting the information from the towers. Bell towers in the fourth installment revealed parts of the map or unlocked new missions.
For Far Cry 5, the developers must have thought of an interesting alternative. We look forward to more news on this!
Teleporting enemies in the Crucible of Destiny are a major annoyance for the player base. Calls for better servers are repeatedly heard. We take a closer look at the servers and the Destiny network.
Why this is not so simple with the servers has been clearly and informatively written by Redditor nessus42. Our author Shin summarizes the information for you and gives an outlook on what Bungie wants to improve with Destiny 2.
“Look how he teleports around”
“You can’t possibly hit him”
“I’m dead, and I didn’t even see him”
“Bungie please, fix your servers”
I assert that every Destiny player has had such a conversation at least once. These situations are a major annoyance as we often find ourselves powerless against them. This will not change in the future.
The Holy (Server) Trinity
Even though Bungie avoids the term, there are actually dedicated servers in Destiny. However, Bungie does not want to call them that because they only manage a small part of very important information, the so-called “critical mission status.” They control activity scripts that, for example, open doors when you place certain artifacts in the appropriate spots.
These servers are housed in Bungie’s server cloud and are called activity servers. There are two of these servers: the instance host and the mission host. The third one is the physical host, which we will talk about later.
The host responsible for the instance (you could also call it a “zone” in the game) regulates, for instance, how many enemies spawn in a certain location or what happens when players stand on a platform to trigger certain events.
The mission host is comparable to the instance host but manages different information, such as the progress of a cooperative mission, a strike, or a raid checkpoint.
It is often the case that your console communicates with both servers simultaneously. A good example of this is the Glass Chamber. The starting area of the raid is also a public patrol area. Random players can help you open the chamber but do not participate in the raid instance itself.
For each instance, there is also a physical host. This host manages billions of small details that are not covered by the instance host. Basically, all calculations relevant to the physical host are performed independently on each console that is part of an instance. However, the final say goes to the physical host of the instance (for example, the console of the fireteam leader).
Let’s illustrate this with an example. You start a raid with five other players. Player 1 is the fireteam leader and the physical host of the instance. Player 1’s console always has the final word when it comes to the current state of the instance. All consoles of players 2-6 perform their own calculations. However, the “reality” is determined by player 1. Any discrepancies that occur between the servers must be corrected by your consoles.
This explains, for example, why enemies teleport around. Conflicts between the servers occur due to poor connections that need to be corrected, resulting in erratic behavior of the enemies.
If the physical host leaves the instance, another console is immediately selected as the new physical host, which now represents the new “reality”. This circumstance ensures that changing the fireteam leader in a raid makes absolutely no difference as long as the former fireteam leader is still in the instance. If you want to designate a specific console as the physical host, the owner of that console must be the first to enter the instance (e.g., a raid). Since he is the only player in this instance, he will naturally also be the physical host.
However, nowhere in the documentation published by Bungie does it state that this host is permanently fixed, nor whether it can change during the further progress of an instance.
This technique also allowed Crota to be defeated with a little trick. The physical host removes its LAN cable before transitioning to another console can occur. Now there was enough time to kill Crota before a transition took place.
Dedicated Servers – Yay or Nay?
Bungie emphasized again in its weekly update on 25.05.2017 that it will introduce no dedicated servers. This statement seems surprising, as there are clearly servers operating in Bungie’s spheres. Bungie itself provides the answer to this terminology:
“We do not use this terminology because “Dedicated Servers” in the perception of the player base refers to a purely client-server model. Destiny 2, on the other hand, uses a hybrid of client-server model and P2P model (console as physical host) similar to Destiny 1 (we will talk about the exact differences later). The servers are responsible for game progress, each console for movements and abilities. This allows us to give players the feeling that everything they do happens instantly, be it the shooting behavior of a weapon or the movements, no matter where they live in the world, and regardless of with whom they play in the world.”
A statement we can confirm. No matter what you do with your character, you see the effect immediately on your screen, regardless of what kind of connection the opponent has. This is how Bungie intended, with the goal of creating an experience for players that feels like a single-player shooter.
What would it mean if Bungie actually used a purely client-server model and could therefore actually talk about dedicated servers? Let’s consider this using a trivial example. You fire your weapon at an enemy. In a pure client-server model, where your console really only takes on the part of displaying the game, the following happens:
You fire your weapon. You then have to wait for this information to be transmitted to the servers. The server now calculates whether you hit your target. If that’s the case, the server calculates the damage you inflicted. The server then sends this information along with the remaining health bar of your opponent back to the console. Only after all this has happened can your console display the damage on your screen. This logic applies to everything you do with your character. Every movement must first be calculated by the server and reported back to the console.
Unless you have a truly very fast internet connection, your gaming experience will not feel as immediate as it does in Destiny.
At this point, it should be mentioned that no known first-person shooter has implemented a pure client-server model in the last 15 years. Instead, mechanics are used that predict players’ movements, thereby simplifying server-side calculations.
What about cheaters?
Counter Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) is ranked number one among eSports games in terms of revenue. The developer takes a different approach than Destiny and is much closer to a pure client-server model. This is what Valve says about their client-server model:
Network latencies and lags can create paradoxes that seem illogical. For example, you can be hit by an opponent even though you have already taken cover. The server has moved the hitbox of the player to the last known point where they could still be hit. This inconsistency cannot be resolved, especially with poor internet connections.
In this example described by Valve, a lagging player can be hit even though they have already taken cover, as the server (which dictates the “truth”) has not yet received this information.
In comparison to CS:GO, a player in Destiny with a poor connection has an advantage. This is because the respective console dictates the “truth” regarding the player’s position. If lags occur here, it appears as if players are not moving, are invulnerable, or shoot you from nowhere.
From the opponent’s perspective, he simply walked around you and shot you in the back. This movement, however, did not register with you due to the opponent’s poor connection, so your console cannot represent that movement.
The great weakness of Destiny’s architecture is the so-called “Lag-Switch.” These are simple mechanical switches that temporarily disconnect the outgoing network connection from the game (the incoming connection remains intact). As a result, these cheaters can see your movements, but the data packets from the cheaters do not reach you consistently, leading to teleporting enemies.
CS:GO is also not immune to cheaters. However, instead of using lag switches, they work with so-called denial-of-service attacks. The router of another player is bombarded with requests, significantly degrading his connection and causing a disadvantage in the game.
When it comes to purely PvE, Bungie’s approach is clearly the better one. AI enemies do not have a lag switch, so the gaming experience is significantly better. And these are the very levers Bungie wants to continue to pull with Destiny 2.
In summary, it can be said: Even if Bungie were to implement a pure client-server model, it would not eliminate the possibility of cheaters. Only the tools would change to ruin the gaming experience for other players. The gaming experience for the PvP mode would not necessarily improve.
Will everything be better with Destiny 2?
This question can be answered clearly with a yes and no. What changes specifically? In Destiny 1, the function of the physical host is taken on by a console. In Destiny 2, this part will also move to Bungie’s servers. The final word lies with Bungie and not with a console that potentially has a poor internet connection. Nevertheless, every single console will still perform its own calculations regarding shooting behavior, movements, and abilities and reconcile them with Bungie’s servers.
With regard to PvE, the gaming experience will continue to improve. In PvP, Destiny 2 will still be susceptible to cheating through a lag switch or poor connections of your opponents. Of course, it is also possible that Bungie will pursue different approaches between PvE and PvP for Destiny 2. However, this is very unlikely due to the resources required for that.
Ultimately, it can be concluded that Bungie now uses “dedicated servers.” However, they do not use this term because the console still plays an important role in various calculations.
The summary:
In Destiny 1, there are three different server types: the mission host, the instance host, and the physical host. The first two are housed in Bungie’s sphere, while the physical host is a randomly selected console in an instance. This was implemented for cost reasons, as the physical host performs a multitude of calculations.
In Destiny 2, the physical host will also transition into Bungie’s sphere. Nevertheless, many calculations will continue to take place on each console and will be reconciled with the host. However, no console will be the host anymore.
If you enjoyed the story of Wrath of the Lich King, you will love this WoW cinematic. A nearly two-hour machinima about the sad tale of “Crusader Bridenbrad”.
After more than two years that Cstyle12 has dedicated to Light’s Champions, the big release of the finished film finally took place last Friday (March 16, 2017).
Light’s Champions takes place during the time of Wrath of the Lich King. Horde and Alliance have ventured to Northrend to finally extinguish the undead life lights of the Scourge and the Lich King Arthas. However, there is no talk of peace between the Alliance and Horde – smaller and bigger battles break out repeatedly, and only the Scourge benefits from the new dead. It was amidst this chaos that Crusader Bridenbrad was lost, a long-time friend of the video’s protagonist.
WoW Machinima Light’s Champions has a runtime of nearly 2 hours
But not everything is serious in Light’s Champions – a blood knight and a rogue from the Forsaken constantly argue about which weapon and viewpoint is the best. The elf is usually the loser.
Now, without further ado, here is the “main program”. Here you can watch the full version of Light’s Champions with English subtitles.
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Cstyle12 feels honored by the comparisons to Tales From the Past, as it was one of his biggest sources of inspiration.
What do you think of the film? Damn good work that has been delivered? Or do you find it incomprehensible why someone would create a 2-hour “play” movie for which they are not even paid?
Girl crush, wonder boy, and berserker. The new god in SMITE has to live up to quite a few stories.
The developers of SMITE seem to have no intention of slowing down the release of new gods. After a few weeks have passed, Hi-Rez is now introducing the next hero who will intervene in the eternal conflict of the deities: Cu Chulainn appears with patch 4.11.
Cu Chulainn comes from Celtic mythology and resembles the stereotypical wonder boy who could take on 150 peers at just five years old. This gave him an easy time impressing the ladies and he quickly became a great warrior – not least because he had a ability called “Fury Distortion”. His body reshaped in anger – a typical “berserker form”.
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In SMITE, Cu Chulainn is a warrior and thus a mix of a protective tank and an aggressive hunter. Let’s take a look at Cu Chulainn’s abilities:
His passive ability Berserk ensures that Cu Chulainn has a modified mana bar that works like “rage” in other games. Attacks, abilities (that hit gods), and damage taken refill his mana. If he is over 85 mana for more than 3 seconds, he enters a berserker mode. Here he gains new abilities, is stronger, and has more health points.
Barbed Spear thrusts in a straight line and deals damage to all hit targets. Minions are briefly stunned, and hit gods receive less healing for a short time. In berserker form, the ability turns into Ground Slam and deals damage in a straight line. Hit enemies are rooted.
Vent Anger increases Cu Chulainn’s movement speed and continuously deals damage to all enemies in the area. Additionally, mana is consumed – perfect to keep “rage” below 85 if you don’t want to enter berserker mode yet. In berserker form, Vent Anger is permanently active.
His mobility ability is Salmon’s Leap. He jumps to a target location and damages all enemies in the target area. In berserker form, the ability turns into Furious Charge. The god charges straight ahead, hitting all enemies and carrying them a short distance before briefly stunning them.
Cu Chulainn’s ultimate Spear of Mortal Pain deals damage to all enemies around the god and briefly launches them into the air. In berserker form, this turns into Warcry. Cu Chulainn damages all enemies in the area, causing them to flee in fear for a short while.
The art of mastering Cu Chulainn will be to time the abilities so that one only enters berserker mode at the crucial moment and can thus decide a battle. The difference between “good” and “bad” Cu Chulainns will be very easy to recognize.
It is now clear: You have only a few days left until the arena shutdown in Pokémon GO. Remember your coin rewards!
In the coming days, Niantic will deactivate the arenas in Pokémon GO to prepare the game for the arena overhaul. A specific date has now been set. You have only a few days left until the gyms are deactivated.
Update Monday 11:50 AM: The arenas are still active. If you haven’t collected your defender bonuses yet, you should hurry.
Pokémon GO arenas will close on June 19
As part of the one-year anniversary of Pokémon GO, there will be some changes in the game. One of these changes is the overhaul of the arenas in Pokémon GO. A few days ago, the developers explained that the arenas will be temporarily closed for this rework. However, they could not provide a specific date at the announcement.
On social media channels, Niantic announced today, on June 17, that the arenas will close on June 19. By Monday, you should have collected your defender rewards.
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Niantic did not specify a exact time for the shutdown. To “be safe,” you should collect your defender bonuses from the arenas by Sunday evening at the latest.
Typically, events in Pokémon GO start in Germany at 10:00 PM, but we cannot guarantee that the arena shutdown will start this late for us.
When the arenas are shut down, your Pokémon will be sent to your accounts. You cannot collect your defender bonuses during the shutdown; you must do that before the shutdown begins.
When is the arena rework coming?
Niantic is shutting down the arenas to prepare for the overhaul of the gyms. One can assume that shortly after the shutdown, the arena rework will be announced or incorporated into the game. The developers have not yet provided a specific date.
The Xbox One X is on everyone’s lips after the announcement at the E3 2017. “The most powerful console in the world,” as Microsoft describes it, could become a bestseller on Amazon.
The Xbox One X will be released worldwide on November 7, 2017, and was perhaps the biggest topic at the world’s largest gaming fair, E3. Some even speculate that the Xbox is back. Statistics on Google confirm this.
This interest seems to be translating to Amazon as well. Whether on Amazon.de, Amazon.uk, or Amazon.com – the same picture everywhere: The Xbox One X is the most wished-for product in the “Games” category.
This data comes from various shopping lists of Amazon users. While it does not equate to a purchase, it is at least an indicator.
This is indeed surprising, especially since Microsoft has not announced any AAA exclusive titles yet. Only titles like Sea of Thieves or State of Decay 2 are currently on the release list.
Exclusive titles are actually an important reason to buy for many players, perhaps the biggest after performance and the “my friends have this console too” factor. Innovative approaches, like those found with the Switch, are sadly lacking in the Xbox One X. The sheer power and the performance of the console take center stage.
Xbox One X – High interest in pre-orders according to Google
If you take a look at Google Trends, when combined with the search term “Xbox One X,” pre-orders are by far the most popular choice.
The interest is thus linked to a clear purchase intention. The interest goes beyond mere curiosity about the specs of the next-gen console or how many exclusive titles Xbox One has.
The nearly €500 seems like a hefty price for a console at first glance, but as shown in the following video, the Xbox One X is indeed fairly priced. Microsoft even claims that the Xbox One X is a loss-making venture. The real money comes from games, according to Xbox head Phil Spencer. So far, it is also assumed that the Xbox One X will primarily appeal to enthusiasts looking for a premium product.
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The SF shooter Destiny 2 (PC, PS4, Xbox One) is still a few months away, but the chief strategist already has plans for the next installment, Destiny 3. But why is there actually Destiny 2? Why isn’t the first part continued?
Luke Smith was the Creative Director of “The Taken King” and is now the Game Director of “Destiny 2.” He worked his way up at Bungie from 2007, utilizing his years of experience as a passionate fan of World of Warcraft.
In an interview with the men’s magazine GQ, Smith spills the beans. An intriguing question: “Why is there actually Destiny 2?” Why didn’t Bungie just continue the existing Destiny with expansions, just like Blizzard has been doing with WoW for years.
Why Destiny 2?
The question of “Why a Destiny 2” has different answers according to Smith.
The boring and unsexy answer is “We have a contract” – that’s the business side of it.
The creative answer to the question “Why a Destiny 2?” gave Smith more headaches.
They were at a crossroads. They could have continued Destiny with expansions like “The Taken King” indefinitely. Smith discussed this extensively with the director of Destiny 1, Jason Jones. There were tables full of “Plus” and “Minus” points and quite a few sleepless nights.
A number on the box means: opportunity for a fresh start
Ultimately, one idea was crucial: “If we put a number on the box, that means: Now is a good time to start fresh with Destiny.”
If they had continued with expansions, the audience would have gotten smaller and smaller.
The great thing about Destiny is creating a world that brings players together. But that’s difficult when some players already have hundreds of hours of head start.
Then you tell a friend: “Come, play with me.”
And he thinks: “Come on, get lost. You have thousands of hours of head start, I could never play with you!”
Destiny 3: More social
Smith was also asked about the time after Destiny 2. He and the team worked on making statements like “Other players matter too” or “The social action shooter.” If a Destiny 3 were to be released, that would be the direction they want to go.
In another statement to the site Kotaku, Smith says that in the long run, he and the team can imagine fulfilling “support classes” or similar role fantasies – for instance in the raids.
Destiny 2 – “Endless MMORPGs” don’t do much different
Mein MMO says: Why Destiny 2? Because the gaming market was different 5 or 6 years ago.
And back then, the contract between Activision and Bungie was forged, not today. At that time, one could hardly imagine Destiny on PS4 and Xbox One and effectively wanted the next Call of Duty: a full-price title released biannually for the console market with expansions and DLCs. Back then, no one wanted a game that lasts forever – because how could you make money with that?
If they were to draft the contract today, there might only be one Destiny that would have been continued annually following the WoW model. But that’s speculation.
Smith is indeed right about this. What he describes is truly a problem facing “endless titles”: The audience tends to get smaller with every expansion.
MMORPGs struggle to attract new players after 5 or 10 years because they think “The veterans have such a lead – I won’t start that.” So, the “endless titles” like WoW, ESO, or Final Fantasy XIV deal with hard resets, level boosts, “everyone is equally strong” and new player campaigns.
What many fans complain about in Destiny is also an issue in endless MMORPGs: Old content from years ago becomes largely irrelevant with each new expansion. A game like WoW has 13 years of content, but everything older than 2016 is no longer useful to players and is therefore largely ignored.
It leaves the question of price: Maybe one couldn’t charge as much for an expansion as for a “full sequel.” There are about 20€ missing in that case. But publishers have long invented microtransactions. The main reason is certainly the opportunity to attract new players, especially when moving to PC as a new platform.
What do you think? Would it have made a difference for you if there hadn’t been a “2” on the box?
More information about Destiny 2 can be found here:
In Challenge Rifts in Diablo 3, you need to complete Greater Nephalem Rifts with builds from other players. For this difficult task, you will be rewarded.
With new gameplay, the developers of Diablo 3 want to offer the community more variety in the game. Therefore, Challenge Rifts will be introduced in Patch 2.6.0.
In Challenge Rifts, you need to complete a Greater Nephalem Rift within a certain time and use the build (including equipment and skills) of another player. If you succeed, you will be rewarded. In the video, the developers give an insight into what this is all about.
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The new Patch 2.6.0 is expected between the end of Season 10 and the start of Season 11. A special feature of this update is the new Challenge Rifts, where you can compete against other players.
Every Monday, a new Challenge Rift is released, which is an exact copy of a completed Greater Nephalem Rift of a player.
An “exact copy” means: Map, pylons, enemies, and dungeons in the portal look exactly like in the original run of the copied portal.
In addition, an exact copy of the character who completed this copied Greater Nephalem Rift will be created. The items, skills, Paragon levels, and equipment of the character will be copied and must be used to complete the Challenge Rift.
If you manage to beat the original player’s time, you will receive loot, crafting materials, and blood shards as a reward.
The Unique Aspect of Challenge Rifts – Explanation
Randomness plays an important role in Diablo 3. It determines what loot, monsters, or environments you will encounter in the game. Challenge Rifts are somewhat “abnormal” for Diablo 3, as they don’t involve as much randomness. On the contrary: All players get the same conditions for this new type of competition.
To succeed in Challenge Rifts, you must be able to handle many classes and prove your knowledge in the game. It is not enough to know every meta build of a class, as your task is to be adaptable. Unusual builds may also come into play, to which you will first need to acclimate.
Familiarize yourself with the map and memorize where certain groups of enemies are located and which ones you should skip. Knowing where the pylons are can help you plan an effective route, thus gaining a time advantage. This way, you can succeed in the challenge.
Handling New Builds
As previously mentioned, Challenge Rifts do not only use copies of characters with meta builds. Sometimes you will see something completely different that has nothing to do with the meta or popular builds on Icy Veins.
If the build is from the beginning of a season, you may have a mix of average legendary items that do not synergize. All players must then cope with this build and complete the portal while beating the time. Whether you play as a Whirlwind Barbarian or as a “crazy chicken“.
What Are Challenge Rifts? Summary
Here are the key points of Challenge Rifts summarized:
Challenge Rift Rotation: Challenge Rifts change once a week (Every Monday)
Loot: Once a week, you will be rewarded with a pouch for successfully completing a Challenge Rift. It contains equipment, blood shards, and crafting materials.
Practice: Before you enter a portal, you can try out the character on mobs. There are single-target and AOE targets.
Multiple Chances and Leaderboard: If you successfully complete the portal and beat the time, you can continue. If you like the portal and the character build, you can keep going to try to set an even better time. A leaderboard will keep track of the best players of the weekly Challenge Rift.
Same Chance for All: The skills and equipment of a character cannot be altered. While you can assign different keys to the skills, the abilities remain the same.
