Month: November 2020

Destiny 2 Dev Bungie Offers Huge Sale For Black Friday 2020

Black Friday 2020 is here, and Destiny developer Bungie is getting in on the action with its own store sale. Starting November 27 at 10 AM PT, the Bungie Store will offer discounts of up to 60 percent off a range of products, including the Destiny 2 expansions.

Additionally, everyone who spends $50 USD or more will receive a special art print at no extra cost. It appears at least some of the deals have kicked off early, as the Bungie Store currently displays a range of products that are nicely discounted, including t-shirts, jewellery, and a holiday bundle that comes with Destiny-themed stockings, tree ornaments, and more.

Go to Bungie’s website to see a full rundown of the developer’s Black Friday sale. The sale period runs until December 4 at 10 AM PT.

In addition to discounts on physical goodies from Bungie, the developer is offering deals on Destiny 2: Shadowkeep, Destiny 2: Forsaken, and Destiny 2: Legendary Edition, allowing you to get the expansions for up to 50% off. Visit your preferred store to see the full rundown of the Black Friday deals.

Destiny 2’s newest expansion, Beyond Light, was released earlier in November–and it is very good. The game will receive enhancements for PS5 and Xbox Series X in December.

Now Playing: Destiny 2: Beyond Light – Official Launch Trailer

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Ghost Of Tsushima Combat Designer Discusses The Difficulties Of Katana Balance

One of the big challenges when designing a game based largely around realistic sword combat is finding the right balance so that attacks feel powerful without combat relying on one-hit kills (unless you take the Bushido Blade path). When designing PS4 exclusive Ghost of Tsushima, Sucker Punch Productions had to find the right balance, and now the game’s senior combat designer has provided a deep dive into what their process looked like.

In a post on the PlayStation Blog, Theodore Fishman has delved into some of the issues they faced while designing the game’s combat. A term he uses throughout is “lethality contract”–the player’s understanding that if they cut an enemy with a sharp blade, they’ll likely die. While it’s possible to make silent kills and standoffs instantly lethal, getting the balance on standard combat was difficult.

“When we did our early playtests we received very negative feedback that enemies felt like ‘sword sponges,'” Fishman recalls. “My favorite quote from players was ‘I felt like I was hitting enemies with a foam bat.'” Giving the enemy a form of hitpoints wasn’t working, so the team ended up integrating a “maximum hits to kill” system, whereby no standard enemy could withstand endless attacks.

The balance needed to account for weaker enemies still being enjoyable to fight, though–if “low HP” enemies died in one hit, it would not be satisfying. “We had to increase difficulty across other aspects without breaking our ‘lethality contract’ with the player,” Fishman says.

The staggering system became important, he says, because the initial system of parries and counter-parries made fighting too reactionary. “The time it took to stagger an enemy was the time other enemies could strike, and was a core aspect of how we injected enemy variety,” he writes. The “Stance” system also helped to incentivize varied combat, as switching styles let you stagger faster.

However, the rules had to be bent for duels and boss fights. “Though the Samurai cinema trope is two swordsmen facing off and the first strike kills, we knew players would have different expectations,” Fishman says. “These were boss fights with high challenge and intensity. We had to bend the contract and honor this moment.”

Fishman goes into more detail, and if you’re interested, the full post is worth a look.

In any case, all the hard work paid off, and Ghost of Tsushima ultimately became PlayStation’s fastest-selling original IP. The developer now seems to be gearing up for a sequel or continuation.

Now Playing: Ghost of Tsushima – Stylish Armor Combinations

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Pete Davidson Will Play Famous It’s A Wonderful Life Character For Charity Table Read

Famous actor Ed Asner is organizing a celebrity table read for the iconic holiday movie It’s A Wonderful Life, and the cast is headlined by Pete Davidson portraying Jimmy Stewart’s character, George Bailey.

Maude Apatow will play Violet Bick, who was originally played by Gloria Grahame in the 1946 movie. The rest of the big-name cast includes Ellie Kemper, Mia Farrow, Carol Kane, Ed Begley Jr., Bill Pullman, Richard Kind, B.D. Wong, Michael Shannon, and Diedrich Bader.

No Caption Provided

The virtual table read will take place on Sunday, December 13, starting at 5 PM PT. All proceeds from the charity event will go to the Ed Asner Family Center, which is a group that raises money for children with special needs and their families.

Tickets for the show start at $50 USD–head to the event’s website to learn more.

Regarded as one of the best movies of all time in some circles, It’s a Wonderful Life earned five Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, though it did not win any. It was the first movie that Stewart starred in after returning from fighting in World War II.

Walmart Black Friday 2020 Sale Is Live Now

Walmart’s full Black Friday sale features some of the hottest deals and savings we’ve seen this holiday shopping season. The sale is live now through November 29. The sale also brought a new wave of PS5 and Xbox Series X stock, which went live at 9 PM ET before selling out almost immediately. If you’re a Nintendo Switch owner, Walmart’s Black Friday sale is the best place to shop for select exclusives, as games like The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening and Luigi’s Mansion 3 are discounted to just $30. We’ve rounded up the best deals in Walmart’s Black Friday 2020 sale below. Like many other retailers, Walmart is prioritizing online shopping this year due to COVID-19. Walmart’s deals are only available online at the moment, with in store deals kicking off this Friday–Walmart stores are closed on Thanksgiving this year.

Best Black Friday 2020 deals at Walmart

Available until November 29

Walmart has some excellent game deals for PS5/PS4, Xbox Series X/Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. In addition to the handful or so of Nintendo Switch exclusives for $30, Walmart has great deals on Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time, Watch Dogs Legion, and The Last of Us Part II. The 2020 Switch holiday bundle with Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, which has been selling out elsewhere, has been getting refreshed since the sale went live.

Nintendo Switch

PS5 and PS4

Xbox Series X and Xbox One

4K TVs

Tech and accessories

Godzilla Vs. Kong Might Go The Streaming Route, Report Says

According to sources speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Warner Bros.’ new monster movie mashup Godzilla vs. Kong could release in theatres and on a streaming site.

THR said Netflix made a bid of more than $200 million to acquire the streaming rights to the film, but Warner Bros. “blocked the deal” and came up with its own offer to bring Godzilla vs. Kong to its in-house streaming platform, HBO Max.

A spokesperson for WB told THR, “We plan to release Godzilla vs. Kong theatrically next year as planned.”

Per the report, production company Legendary financed 75 percent of the movie, with WB picking up the remaining 25 percent. WB’s involvement is key, however, as the studio controls the distribution plans.

WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar and WB chairman Ann Sarnoff are currently negotiating an offer for Godzilla vs. Kong, according to the report, and it would, “in theory,” include a theatrical release as well. This would not be new territory for WB, as the company recently announced that another one of its tentpole films, Wonder Woman 1984, will release in theatres and on HBO Max this Christmas.

The new Godzilla monster movie series began with 2014’s Godzilla, which was directed by Gareth Edwards (Star Wars: Rogue One). The series continued with 2017’s Kong: Skull Island from Metal Gear Solid director Jordan Vogt-Roberts; a third movie, 2019’s Godzilla: King of the Monsters, starred Stranger Things’ Millie Bobby Brown. Collectively, the films have made more than $1.5 billion at the global box office.

Godzilla vs. Kong, as its name suggests, will feature a showdown between Godzilla and King Kong. The film is directed by Adam Wingard (Death Note, The Guest) and it brings back some of the main cast from King of Monsters, including Millie Bobby Brown and Kyle Chandler.

The Crew 2’s New Season Update Casts You As An In-Universe TV Star

The Crew 2 has just rolled out a huge free update, and it’s introducing a new progression system to Ubisoft’s 2018 open-world racer. The Crew 2: Season One Episode One is called “The Chase,” and it casts players as the star of The Chase, a new in-universe show by “Motorflix”.

Each season of The Crew 2 will run for four months and feature two episodes, and this first one has you playing an Interceptor unit hunting down an outlaw group that has stolen a lot of money. There will be eight PvE events during this first episode, and the first one is live now.

Players can call in reinforcements or jump in with friends and other players to take on the challenge. You can check out a trailer below.

This update also introduces the Motorpass, The Crew 2’s version of a battle pass. There are 50 tiers of free and premium rewards; to get the premium version, you’ll need to spend 80,000 Crew Credits. You can buy 100,000 credits for $10.

28 vehicles will be made available across the season, including the Chevrolet C8 Stingray 2020 and the Lamborghini Veneno Interception Unit 2013. Some will need to be purchased, while others will be given to you for completing challenges. There will also be new “Creator” vehicles added, which are created by freelance designers and artists from around the world.

If you haven’t played The Crew 2 since launch, it’s worth jumping back in–it’s received several massive updates since launch.

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Fortnite Adds New NFL Skins And Emotes

Once again, Fortnite has partnered with the NFL to bring a series of new jerseys and other extras to the battle royale game.

The new Gridiron Gang Set–which is out now–includes jerseys for all 32 NFL teams. These aren’t the same jerseys from the previous Fourth Down set, but instead they are “redesigned” for a modern and stylized look. Each comes with two uniform styles, along with the “Logo-a-go” back bling that supports the logo of any of the 32 teams.

Players can also customize their jersey number and choose to have a reflective visor on their helmet. New football-themed emotes have been added, too, including “Penalty” and “It’s Good.” You can see them in the video above.

Epic has also announced two new football-themed Fortnite competitive tournaments, the NFLPA Open and the Twitch Rivals Streamer Bowl. Head to Epic’s website to learn more about these events and what to expect from them.

In other news, Fortnite leaks have revealed that the battle royale game might be getting new Star Wars content from The Mandalorian, including Baby Yoda.

Best Black Friday Webcam Deals: Logitech C920 Bundle And More

Black Friday 2020 week has brought thousands of great deals across every major retailer, but if you’re someone who’s either looking to get into game streaming or working from home a lot these days, there’s one specific product that may be on your wishlist this week: a new webcam. Because of the pandemic, many of us are finding ourselves interacting with others via Zoom or other video call platforms more than ever these days, and a webcam can ensure you have a clear, stable picture for others to view you with.

Increased demand has led to webcam shortages this year, meaning some of the best webcams on the market from name brands like Logitech have sold out. However, if you’re hoping to pick up a new webcam during Black Friday–just in time for that Christmas video call with the family–you’ve still got some nice Black Friday webcam deals to pick from this year. One such deal includes a great bundle with the Logitech C920S webcam and a microphone. From top-of-the-line 4K options to budget-friendly webcams to get you started, these Black Friday webcam deals offer some nice options for instantly upgrading your video chats.

$310 (was $390)

Best Buy has a great webcam and microphone bundle on sale. The bundle comes with the stellar Logitech C920S webcam, the Blue Yeti Nano USB Condenser microphone, a GorillaPod tripod, and Adobe Photoshop Elements and Premiere Elements 2021. At $80 off, this is a great deal for four excellent products.

$130 (was $180)

If you’re in the market for a 4K webcam, Best Buy has a fantastic deal on this Aluratek webcam. The Aluratek 4K HD webcam streams in true 4K and has technology that optimizes the lens to provide a clear picture at all times. It also boasts auto-low light correction and has 5X zoom capabilities. This webcam has a pair of noise-canceling stereo microphones to promote crisp and clear audio.

$50 (was $60)

If you’re looking for a solid webcam for video conferencing, Aluratek’s 1080p HD webcam with a built-in microphone is a great option. It streams at 30 frames per second and features manual focus and auto-low light correction. It’s on sale for $50 at Best Buy.

$60 (was $80)

Designed with streaming in mind, Avermedia’s Streamer Cam features full HD resolution at 30fps. It has a pair of built-in mono mic and can swivel 360 degrees. This webcam uses Avermedia’s RECentral 4 software to make streaming and recording video easy and customizable.

$29.74 (was $60)

Amazon has a bunch of budget-friendly webcams on sale for Black Friday, including this full HD option from Aukey. Normally $60, you can pick this 1080p webcam up for under $30 right now. It’s capable of recording and streaming at 30fps and offers plug-and-play functionality on PC and Mac.

We’re tracking the best Black Friday sales and deals all week long, including steep discounts on PS5/PS4, Xbox Series X/Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch games. We’ve also seen fantastic deals on 4K TVs, gaming monitors, gaming laptops, and gaming chairs–be sure to check out the sales and grab anything on your wishlist before the week is over.