Month: January 2019

Eleven Arts has announced that A Silent Voice is finally getting a physical disc set release in North America. The anime movie is releasing in a deluxe package that includes the Blu-ray, DVD, and digital versions.

First premiering in Japanese theaters in 2016, the home release of A Silent Voice will be available for purchase in North America on April 2, according to Crunchyroll. The disc set includes both the original Japanese version of the film and the English dubbed version.

A Silent Voice rapidly gained popularity in Japan when it first released, and its emotional story captured American audiences when the film released internationally the following year. The movie is a condensed version of the story told in the seven volume manga of the same name–titled Koe no Katachi in Japan–that was created by Yoshitoki Oima. A Silent Voice follows the changing relationship between Shoko and Shoya, a girl who’s deaf and the male peer who used to cruelly bully her in elementary school. Shoya reaches out to Shoko when the two are in high school in an effort to make amends, as well as come to terms with his own guilt, and the two eventually spark an unlikely friendship that begins to grow into something more.

While you wait for A Silent Voice to come out, there are plenty of other options for anime you can watch. If you’re looking for something new, we’ve put together a guide of series to both watch and keep an eye on during the current Winter 2019 season. For older titles, consider looking at our guide for anime series from the Fall 2018 season or a list of our favorite anime from 2018. Sentai Filmworks also released several new home release disc sets in January 2019, including a cool-looking special steelbook collection for Land of the Lustrous–one of 2017’s best anime.

Disney

While so much of Disney is taken up with the likes of Marvel and Star Wars, it’s important to remember the House of Mouse has more going on than the companies it’s purchased. Disney has a massive film slate in 2019, as well as the launch of a new streaming service.

While it’s hard to know exactly what the company will promote during the Super Bowl, contenders include Jungle Cruise starring Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt, Tim Burton’s Dumbo, and, of course, the sequel to Frozen, which hits theaters in November. It would also be surprising if we got away from game day without some mention of the Disney+ service, which will be launching later in the year.

One thing we know for sure is new Toy Story 4 footage will arrive Sunday after the game is finished.

Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth has been confirmed for a western release, heading to the US and Europe on June 4, 2019. The 3DS exclusive will cost $40 at launch, and like its predecessor, it crosses over the casts of various Persona games.

Persona Q2 is a spin-off featuring the Phantom Thieves of Persona 5. The heroes have to battle their way out of dungeons, each themed after a movie genre with its own set of tropes. They’ll join up with both original characters and notable names from the Persona series along the way. Those will include characters from Persona 3, Persona 3 Portable, Persona 4, and Persona 5. Clever team-ups between characters will grant special rewards through a new “Unison” battle system. It will be Japanese-only with subtitles.

Atlus paired the announcement with word of a special “Showtime Premium Edition” for $70. That will include a Koromaru plush, art book, four buttons featuring the four protagonists, and a deck of playing cards with characters across the Persona series. Pre-orders also include the buttons set.

Persona Q2 was among our most anticipated games this year, as a follow-up to the well-received spin-off Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth.

“It’s an ambitious crossover that unites my favorite games, characters, and soundtracks in one place,” wrote Michael Higham. “It’s as if I had different groups of dearly beloved friends somehow meet each other, get along, and band together in a stylish fight for what’s right. This might be the 3DS’s swan song, and it’d be a hell of way for the storied handheld to end its tenure when it comes to the West on June 4, 2019.”

Nintendo has indicated that we may not have long to wait before beloved RPG Final Fantasy VII is available on the Switch. In a new, rather short commercial, the game is shown on the handheld hybrid console, with the video’s description reading: “Final Fantasy VII coming soon!”

Final Fantasy developer and publisher Square Enix originally revealed its intention to bring the game to the Switch in September 2018, when it was announced for the platform alongside Final Fantasy IX, the X and X-2 remaster, and Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age. However, they only gave a vague “2019” release window. While “coming soon” doesn’t exactly give us a specific release date, at least we know we won’t be waiting until the end of the year for it.

Square Enix previously confirmed that these versions of the Final Fantasy games will be based on recent ports either to other consoles or PC–obviously, this is not the in-development Final Fantasy VII remake. Final Fantasy VII was released for PC in 2013, with the game also available on the PlayStation Store digitally. Along with the Switch release, these games will also be making the jump to Xbox One, which is a first for a number of them.

Other Final Fantasy games on their way to Switch include the compilation game World of Final Fantasy and an updated version of GameCube title Crystal Chronicles.

This weekend, Anthem has its second and final demo before the game officially launches. Below, we’ve outlined every bit of information you need to know about the open demo, including how you can participate and what you’ll be able to do.

Anthem is an upcoming multiplayer-focused, third-person shooter RPG developed by BioWare. You take control of a Freelancer, one of the disgraced heroes who protect the inhabitants of Fort Tarsis, who ventures out into the world to fulfill contracts, explore uncharted territory, and handle threats for others. You do this with the help of Javelins, powerful exo-suits that grant their pilots superpowered strength, reflexes, and abilities and come equipped with flight jets and deadly weapons.

There are currently four Javelins in Anthem, each of which gives you a different range of abilities. Ranger exists primarily as a support Javelin, but its assortment of powerful grenade, rocket, and laser abilities provides it enough explosive firepower to stand on its own. Colossus is the slowest of the Javelins, but it also has the toughest armor and is the only one strong enough to carry heavy weaponry and a near-indestructible shield. Interceptor, on the other hand, trades defense for lightning-fast speed that gets it into an enemy’s face where it can deal massive melee damage before twirling out of harm’s way. Finally, Storm also has light armor, but its personal force field and powerful elemental attacks gives it plenty of long-range potential.

Anthem releases for Xbox One, PS4, and PC. The game has a staggered launch, but will be available for all come February 22. Both of its editions are available for pre-order.

When Is The Anthem Demo?

The Anthem demo starts February 1 at 9AM PT / 12PM ET / 5PM UK. It ends on February 3 at 6PM PT / 9PM ET, which is February 4 at 2AM in the UK.

How To Participate In The Demo

To participate in the open demo, you’ll need to download the client first. It’s 26 GB on consoles and 44 GB on PC, and you can pre-load the client right now if don’t want to spend time over the weekend downloading it.

When the demo is finished downloading, you’ll need to sign into your EA or Origin account to access the game. On Xbox One and PS4, you’ll need a Gold/PSN subscription, as Anthem, even when you play solo, is an always-online game. Microsoft is having a Free Play Days For All event this weekend, from January 31-February 1, so you’ll be able to play the first day of the Anthem demo on Xbox One without paying for a Gold subscription.

What Can You Do In The Demo?

The Anthem demo takes place just before the halfway point of the full game’s story, and you’ll be able to play through two story missions. You’ll also be able to explore a portion of Anthem’s full map in freeplay mode, and take on one of the game’s harder pieces of a content: a Stronghold.

With the exception of the Stronghold–which must be tackled with four players–every part of the demo can be done solo or as a group. However, you receive experience boosts when playing with others, so it’s worth your time to team-up. You’ll start at level 10 in the demo and be able to reach 15. Everyone starts with the Ranger Javelin, and at level 12 you’ll be able to unlock one of the three others: Colossus, Interceptor, or Storm. You’ll only be able to unlock one other Javelin the whole demo, so choose wisely.

If you played the Anthem VIP demo, your progress from that demo will carry over into this one. Your progress from either demo, however, will not carry over into the full game.

Two more Xbox 360 games are joining Xbox One’s growing backwards compatible library. Major Nelson has announced that Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes and Port Royale 3: Pirates & Merchants will both be playable on Microsoft’s current-generation console beginning today, January 31.

Both of this week’s BC games originally released in 2012. Lego Batman 2 is a humorous open-world adventure that sees the Caped Crusader team up with other DC heroes like Superman and Wonder Woman to save Gotham from the combined threat of Joker and Lex Luthor. Port Royale 3, meanwhile, is a simulation game that cast players in the role of a sea captain.

As usual, if you have a physical copy of either game, you can pop the disc into your Xbox One, which will initiate a download allowing you to play them on the console. On the other hand, if you’ve previously purchased either game digitally, you’ll find them automatically waiting in the Ready to Download section of the console’s My Games and Apps tab.

Microsoft has been steadily adding new backwards compatible games nearly every week this month. Other recent additions include Battlestations Pacific, Fuel, and Rayman Raving Rabbids, as well as two Command and Conquer games, Tiberium Wars and Red Alert 3. You can see the full list of Xbox One BC games here.

In other Xbox news, Microsoft recently announced February’s free Games with Gold. Beginning February 1, Xbox Live Gold members will be able to download Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon and Assassin’s Creed Rogue, with Super Bomberman R and Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy following later in the month. A big Assassin’s Creed sale is also underway in the Microsoft Store.

Microsoft has announced that this coming weekend will be a Free Play Days For All event on Xbox One. So whether or not you have an Xbox Live Gold membership, you’ll be able to play with your friends online in whichever game you want.

The Free Play Days For All event begins on January 31 and continues until February 3. Microsoft’s advertising for the event leans heavily on Fortnite, but you’ll be able to play any game you own. Whether that means you jump into another battle royale game, such as PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, or into something else, like Titanfall 2 or Dark Souls III, is up to you.

If you do jump into Fortnite, you’ll be able to cross-play with friends on other systems, including Switch and PS4. The game is currently experiencing a DJ Marshmello-themed mini event, with an in-game challenge to track down Showtime posters. Two more challenges are expected to open up on February 1, just in time for the Free Play Days For All event.

If you’re on the fence about pre-ordering Anthem, this weekend is the perfect opportunity to try the game prior to its launch–which is staggered out over multiple days in a manner even EA admits is confusing. BioWare’s upcoming multiplayer-focused, third-person shooter is having a free demo February 1-3, so if you have an Xbox One, you’ll be able to play without the additional requirement of purchasing a Gold membership.

Anthem’s VIP demo ran into several technical problems, but hopefully some of those issues have been ironed out for the free one this weekend. If you played the VIP demo, your progress will carry over into the free one, including having all four Javelins unlocked.

The Super Bowl is going to be chock full of ads and movie trailers, but if you stay tuned after the game you’ll get an extra treat. Disney Pixar has teased in a short clip that a sneak peek of Toy Story 4 will follow the big game.

The clip features the new characters Ducky and Bunny, who debuted in their own teaser in November. That could signal that the sneak peek will revolve around them, though we’d expect to see at least an appearance from more well-known characters like Woody and Buzz.

Just recently, a separate teaser announced the return of Bo Peep, Woody’s love interest who went missing in the third movie. We’ve also met a new character named Forky, who is exactly what he sounds like: a plastic fork with a make-shift face. Pixar has said that this movie is about the gang discovering how big the world is for a toy.

Several companies have already started debuting or even just teasing their own ads that will air during the Super Bowl, so check out all the ones we’ve seen so far. We also expect to see some surprise movie trailers, especially for blockbusters like the Marvel cinematic universe. As you wait and stock up for the big game, check out some of the best commercials in Super Bowl history, or study up on everything we know about Toy Story 4.

Super Bowl 53 airs on CBS, whose parent company also owns GameSpot.

Challenges for Season 7, Week 9 of Fortnite are now live, and for one of them, you’ll have to embark on a dancing pilgrimage around the island. Specifically, the challenge requires you to locate three key landmarks, hop on top of them and then do a little dance to earn the precious Battle Stars. Those with good knowledge of the map will probably be able to get this done real quick, but if you need a guiding hand, we’re here to offer one. Below you’ll find a breakdown of the challenge, as well as exactly where you should go to complete it.

So, the three landmarks you need to find are a sundial, an oversized cup of coffee, and a giant metal dog head. All there are spread out across the map, so it may be easier to find one, drop out of the game, and then fly out of the Battle Bus to the next and so on. The sundial can be found in the bottom right of the island in the desert area. Head to grid reference G9 and look for a hill north of the gas station. You’ll see a bunch of cars stacked in a very strange way–that’s your sundial.

Next up is the oversized cup of coffee, which you’ll need to drop into grid reference F5 to find. Head to the Dusty Divot diner, specifically the parking lot, and you’ll see the caffeinated beast there. If you’re approaching it from the front, it’s on the left of the car park area. And finally, the giant metal dog head is all the way up in the top left of the island at Junk Junction. Hop over to grid reference B2 and look for the crane on the left of the entrance, which has a little dog face on it. Get to the very top of the crane–the head as it were–and bust a move. Take a look at the map below for a visual representation, and there are also screenshots showing the exact locations.

Fortnite Sundial, Oversized Cup of Coffee, Giant Metal Dog Head Locations

• Sundial: Southwest of Paradise Palms at grid reference G9
• Oversized Coffee Cup: Dusty Divot diner at grid reference F5
• Giant Metal Dog Head: Junk Junction at the top of the crane; grid reference B2

The rest of the challenges for the week are fairly straightforward, and you can get a breakdown of them all here. Of course, the wintry event in Fortnite is ongoing and, as part of that, a new weapon called the Chiller Grenade has been added to the game. It arrived in update 7.30, which also introduced the Solid Gold limited-time mode. You can read about both of those, as well as the various other tweaks and changes, in the full Fortnite update 7.30 patch notes.