The Giant Monsters That Have Come Closest to Destroying the World

As John Boyega and the rest of our heroes prepare to battle the big baddies of Pacific Rim Uprising, we thought it would be a good time to take stock of just how well the Earth has fared when facing the giant monsters of the past.

The kaiju genre has a long and venerable tradition, stretching all the way back to one particular giant monster in the ’30s (King Kong), through the atomic-irradiated nightmare of the ’50s (Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, Them!, Godzilla, and so on), all the way up to the CGI-generated enormous apparitions of the present day (Cloverfield, Pacific Rim, Colossal). But which of these huge hulking brutes actually came closest to destroying the planet? That’s hard to say, but we can nominate a few possibilities…

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Why Ubisoft Hasn’t Reworked Rainbow 6 Siege’s ‘Lord Tachanka’

Speaking at GDC today, Rainbow Six Siege game director Leroy Athanassof addressed one of the game’s least picked operators, Tachanka, and the possibility of a rework. Athanassof said Ubisoft knows he’s in a bad place strength-wise, but that his cult meme status within the community has stopped them from reworking him yet.

Tachanka, or Lord Tachanka as much of the community refers to him, has become one of Siege’s most prominent memes. He’s also potentially the worst operator in the roster, sporting both microscopic pick and win rates in the last competitive season.

Image uploaded from iOS

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ESO’s New Expansion Returns to Summerset Isle

The Elder Scrolls Online: Summerset, the next expansion for Bethesda Softworks’ online RPG, has been announced.

In the new expansion, which will be released for PS4, Xbox One, and PC/Mac on June 5, players will get to explore the Isle of Summerset for the first time since The Elder Scrolls: Arena. In addition to the new zone, which is even larger than Vvardenfell from ESO: Morrowind, The Elder Scrolls Online: Summerset features a main story that concludes the Daedric drama, which started in the Orisium DLC.

Players will also be able to join the Psijic Order, explore their home city of Artaeum, and acquire a new combat skill line. Additionally, the expansion will introduce jewelry crafting—allowing you to create new powerful gear—and will add new group PvE challenges, including a new 12-player trial, new delves and bosses, and more.

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Every PS4, PSVR, and Vita Release This Week

20 games hit the PS4, PSVR, and PS Vita this week, including Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom, as well as brand new titles like A Way Out.

For all of the new releases, including links to any IGN reviews of this week’s releases and official descriptions via the PlayStation Blog, check out the gallery below:

And the full list:

Guest Column: Why Paddington 2 Is the Film We Need Right Now

This guest column was written by Hannah McCarthy, a producer and writer at Rooster Teeth.

Paddington 2 might genuinely stand as one of the best films of 2018, and no, I’m not being facetious or hyperbolic.

With the movie coming to home video on Wednesday, March 21, it seems like a good time to remind everyone that not only is Paddington 2 uplifting and beautifully animated, it’s also incredibly smartly written, even when it doesn’t need to be to get laughs. So, prepare yourselves a stack of marmalade sandwiches and allow me to plead my case as to why Paddington 2 is the film we all need, right now.

Paddington 2 leans into the whimsy of a world in which bears can learn to speak, hold jobs in London, and make a mean sandwich, however none of this strikes any of the film’s near-equally loveable characters as strange (with the exception of Peter Capaldi’s alarmist neighborhood watchman, Mr. Curry). There are no spit-takes or gasping, no cheesy record scratches, and no pointed exclamations of “a talking BEAR?!” Paddington’s anthropomorphism is acknowledged as slightly odd, but no more unheard of than a teenager learning how to drive steam trains in his bedroom. Paddington’s a bear with two families (bear and human), a staunch work ethic, and big dreams. And it just so happens he can talk, and that’s totally fine.

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Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild Wins Another Game Of The Year Award

[UPDATE] The awards have now ended, and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild took home the overall Game of the Year award. You can see a full rundown of categories, nominees, and winners below. In addition to the game awards, Double Fine founder Tim Schafer won the Pioneer award, holding back tears during his acceptance speech. Additionally, Vlambeer’s Rami Ismail won the Ambassador Award.

The original story is below.

It’s the middle of March, but the video game industry is still celebrating the best games of last year. The 2018 Game Developers Choice Awards, which includes the IGF Awards, takes place tonight in San Francisco. The show starts at 6:30 PM PT / 9:30 PM ET, and you can watch the entire event through the Twitch embed below.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Horizon: Zero Dawn lead the way with six nominations each, including nods for Game of the Year. The other Game of the Year nominees are PUBG, Nier: Automata, and Super Mario Odyssey. You can see a full rundown of the categories and nominees below; we’ll put the winners in bold as the show goes on.

Robin Hunicke, a game design professor at UC Santa Cruz and also the founder of developer Funomena, is hosting the awards show tonight.

In terms of the IGF Awards, these honor independent games. The nominees for the Seamus McNally Grand Prize this year are Getting Over It With Bennett Foddy, Night in the Woods, West of Loathing, Into the Breach, Heat Signature, and Baba is You.

Game Developers Choice Awards Nominees:

GAME OF THE YEAR

  • PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG Corporation)
  • Nier: Automata (PlatinumGames / Square Enix)
  • The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
  • Horizon Zero Dawn (Guerrilla Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
  • Super Mario Odyssey (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)

Honorable Mentions: Cuphead (StudioMDHR), What Remains of Edith Finch (Giant Sparrow / Annapurna Interactive), Persona 5 (P-Studio / Atlus), Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (Ninja Theory), Gorogoa (Jason Roberts / Buried Signal / Annapurna Interactive), Divinity: Original Sin 2 (Larian Studios), Night in the Woods (Infinite Fall / Finji)

BEST AUDIO

  • Cuphead (StudioMDHR)
  • Nier: Automata (PlatinumGames / Square Enix)
  • Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (Ninja Theory)
  • The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
  • Horizon Zero Dawn (Guerrilla Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)

Honorable Mentions: Super Mario Odyssey (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo), Star Wars: Battlefront II (EA DICE / Electronic Arts), Resident Evil 7: Biohazard (Capcom), Destiny 2 (Bungie / Activision), Persona 5 (P-Studio / Atlus), Night in the Woods (Infinite Fall / Finji)

BEST DEBUT

  • Team Cherry (Hollow Knight)
  • Sidebar Games (Golf Story)
  • StudioMDHR (Cuphead)
  • Infinite Fall (Night in the Woods)
  • Jason Roberts / Buried Signal (Gorogoa)

Honorable Mentions: Game Grumps (Dream Daddy: A Dad Dating Simulator), Terrible Toybox (Thimbleweed Park), Team Salvato (Doki Doki Literature Club!), Lizardcube (Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap)

BEST DESIGN

  • Super Mario Odyssey (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
  • Horizon Zero Dawn (Guerrilla Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
  • PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG Corporation)
  • The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
  • Nier: Automata (PlatinumGames / Square Enix)

Honorable Mentions: Cuphead (StudioMDHR), Gorogoa (Jason Roberts / Buried Signal / Annapurna Interactive), What Remains of Edith Finch (Giant Sparrow / Annapurna Interactive), Divinity: Original Sin 2 (Larian Studios), Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy (Bennett Foddy), Prey (Arkane Studios / Bethesda Softworks)

BEST MOBILE GAME

  • Reigns: Her Majesty (Nerial / Devolver Digital)
  • Hidden Folks (Adriaan de Jongh and Sylvain Tegroeg)
  • Monument Valley 2 (ustwo games)
  • Gorogoa (Jason Roberts / Buried Signal / Annapurna Interactive)
  • Bury Me, My Love (The Pixel Hunt / Figs / ARTE France / Playdius)

Honorable Mentions: Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo), Fire Emblem Heroes (Intelligent Systems and Nintendo EPD / Nintendo), Old Man’s Journey (Broken Rules), Flipflop Solitaire (Zach Gage), Gnog(KO_OP / Double Fine Productions)

INNOVATION AWARD

  • Gorogoa (Jason Roberts / Buried Signal / Annapurna Interactive)
  • The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
  • What Remains of Edith Finch (Giant Sparrow / Annapurna Interactive)
  • Everything (David OReilly / Double Fine Productions)
  • PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG Corporation)

Honorable Mentions: Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (Ninja Theory), Cuphead (StudioMDHR), Nier: Automata (PlatinumGames / Square Enix), Horizon Zero Dawn (Guerrilla Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Super Mario Odyssey (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo), Tacoma (Fullbright), Pyre (Supergiant Games)

BEST NARRATIVE

  • Night in the Woods (Infinite Fall / Finji)
  • Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (Ninja Theory)
  • What Remains of Edith Finch (Giant Sparrow / Annapurna Interactive)
  • Horizon Zero Dawn (Guerrilla Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
  • Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus (MachineGames / Bethesda Softworks)

Honorable Mentions: Nier: Automata (PlatinumGames / Square Enix), Tacoma (Fullbright), Persona 5 (P-Studio / Atlus), The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo), Divinity: Original Sin 2 (Larian Studios), Uncharted: The Lost Legacy (Naughty Dog / Sony Interactive Entertainment)

BEST TECHNOLOGY

  • Destiny 2 (Bungie / Activision)
  • Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (Ninja Theory)
  • Assassin’s Creed: Origins (Ubisoft Montreal / Ubisoft)
  • Horizon Zero Dawn (Guerrilla Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
  • The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)

Honorable Mentions: Star Wars Battlefront II (EA DICE / Electronic Arts), Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus (MachineGames / Bethesda Softworks), Uncharted: The Lost Legacy (Naughty Dog / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Nier: Automata (PlatinumGames / Square Enix), Resident Evil 7: Biohazard (Capcom)

BEST VISUAL ART

  • Persona 5 (P-Studio / Atlus)
  • Cuphead (StudioMDHR)
  • Horizon Zero Dawn (Guerrilla Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)
  • The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)
  • Night in the Woods (Infinite Fall / Finji)

Honorable Mentions: Gorogoa (Jason Roberts / Buried Signal / Annapurna Interactive), Star Wars Battlefront II (EA DICE / Electronic Arts), Assassin’s Creed Origins (Ubisoft Montreal / Ubisoft), Destiny 2 (Bungie / Activision), Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (Ninja Theory), Super Mario Odyssey (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)

BEST VR/AR GAME

  • Superhot VR (SUPERHOT Team)
  • Star Trek: Bridge Crew (Red Storm Entertainment / Ubisoft)
  • Lone Echo (Ready at Dawn / Oculus Studios)
  • Resident Evil 7: Biohazard (Capcom)
  • The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim VR (Bethesda Game Studios / Bethesda Softworks)

Honorable Mentions: Farpoint (Impulse Gear / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Rick and Morty: Virtual Rick-ality (Owlchemy Labs / Adult Swim Games), Luna (Funomena), Robo Recall (Epic Games), Gnog (KO_OP/ Double Fine Productions), Doom VFR (id Software / Bethesda Softworks)

2018 INDEPENDENT GAMES FESTIVAL FINALISTS

Seumas McNally Grand Prize

  • Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy (Bennett Foddy)
  • Night in the Woods (Infinite Fall)
  • West of Loathing (Asymmetric Publications)
  • Into the Breach (Subset Games)
  • Heat Signature (Suspicious Developments)
  • Baba is You (Hempuli)

Honorable Mentions: Tacoma (Fullbright); Rain World (VIDEOCULT); Dream Daddy: A Dad Dating Simulator (Game Grumps); Cosmic Top Secret (klassefilm); Hollow Knight (Team Cherry); Cuphead (StudioMDHR); Everything Is Going to Be OK (Nathalie Lawhead)

Excellence in Visual Art

  • Night in the Woods (Infinite Fall)
  • Cuphead (StudioMDHR)
  • Echo (ULTRA ULTRA)
  • Luna (Funomena)
  • The Gardens Between (The Voxel Agents)
  • Chuchel (Amanita Design)

Honorable Mentions: Jettomero: Hero of the Universe (Ghost Time Games); Dead Cells (Motion Twin); AER – Memories of Old (Forgotten Key); Tooth and Tail (Pocketwatch Games); Rain World (VIDEOCULT); Shape of the World (Hollow Tree Games); Hollow Knight (Team Cherry)

Excellence in Audio

  • Tormentor X Punisher (e-studio)
  • Cuphead (StudioMDHR)
  • Vignettes (Skeleton Business)
  • Rain World (VIDEOCULT)
  • Uurnog Uurnlimited (Nifflas Games)
  • Celeste (Matt Makes Games)

Honorable Mentions: Tumbleseed (Benedict Fritz, Greg Wohlwend, Joel Corelitz, David Laskey and Jenna Blazevich); Hollow Knight (Team Cherry); Tacoma (Fullbright); Tooth and Tail (Pocketwatch Games); Million Onion Hotel (Onion Games); Night in the Woods (Infinite Fall)

Excellence in Design

  • Into the Breach (Subset Games)
  • Shenzhen I/O (Zachtronics)
  • Wilmot’s Warehouse (Richard Hogg, Ricky Haggett, Eli Rainsberry)
  • Baba Is You (Hempuli)
  • Uurnog Uurnlimited (Nifflas Games)
  • Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy (Bennett Foddy)

Honorable Mentions: Heat Signature (Suspicious Developments); Dead Cells (Motion Twin); Factorio (Wube Software); Space Pirate Trainer (I-Illusions); Battle Chef Brigade (Trinket Studios)

Excellence in Narrative

  • Tacoma (Fullbright)
  • Attentat 1942 (Charles University and Czech Academy of Sciences)
  • Where the Water Tastes Like Wine (Dim Bulb Games)
  • Night in the Woods (Infinite Fall)
  • Butterfly Soup (Brianna Lei)
  • Tooth and Tail (Pocketwatch Games)

Honorable Mentions: A Mortician’s Tale (Laundry Bear Games); Lost Memories Dot Net (Star Maid Games); Dream Daddy: A Dad Dating Simulator (Game Grumps); Bury me, my Love (The Pixel Hunt, Figs and ARTE France); Cosmic Top Secret (klassefilm); West of Loathing (Asymmetric Publications); Rakuen (Laura Shigihara)

Nuovo Award

  • Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy (Bennett Foddy)
  • Tarotica Voo Doo (TPM.CO SOFT WORKS)
  • 10 Mississippi (Karina Popp)
  • A Mortician’s Tale (Laundry Bear Games)
  • Cosmic Top Secret (klassefilm)
  • Everything Is Going to Be OK (Nathalie Lawhead)
  • Baba Is You (Hempuli)
  • Kids (Playables)

Honorable Mentions: Where the Water Tastes Like Wine (Dim Bulb Games); IO Interloper (DANG!); The Norwood Suite (Cosmo D Studios); Cheap Golf (Pixeljam); Witchball (S.L.Clark); Million Onion Hotel (Onion Games)

Best Student Game

  • IO Interloper (DANG!)
  • Don’t Make Love (Maggese)
  • Penny Blue Finds a Clue (DigiPen Team Cactus Curse)
  • We Were Here (Total Mayhem Games)
  • Baba Is You (Hempuli)
  • Guardian of the Gears (DigiPen Team Studio 76)

Honorable Mentions: Crewsaders (Titan Squad); A.L.F.R.E.D. (Hugo Lefevre, Joseph Reichenbach, Romain Jaohar-Gaillard, Garance Royere Lebigre, Nicolas Tham, Marion Speiser, Delphine Migeot de Baran, Song Huang); MOLOCH (Seemingly Pointless); Kyklos Code (Cube Factory); Membrane (Perfect Hat / Seth S. Scott); That Blooming Feeling (The Tots Team); Tell Me What You See (Pesky Bees)

Here’s How God Of War PS4 Learned From The Last Of Us

God of War on PlayStation 4 looks to explore more emotional depth from Kratos, after years of the character being criticized as one-note. Game director Cory Barlog opened up in the video above about where he’s failed to make the character seem relatable and human, and how he’s attempting to explore more depth from Kratos.

The roots of the series are steeped in tragedy, between Kratos’ family tragedy and the quiet moment of his suicide attempt at the beginning of the series. But after that, the character became a cipher for anger and a power fantasy. Barlog admits that attempts to get back in touch with his emotional core, as in Ghost of Sparta, fell flat.

The method of humanizing Kratos comes down to contrasts. By giving him a son, Atreus, Kratos has to balance his instincts and rage against responsibility and a need to soften his rough edges for his son. Crucially, Kratos starts this attempt at self-improvement because he sees a lot of his own personality in Atreus and wants to keep him from repeating his father’s mistakes. This gives him an arc similar to that of Joel in The Last of Us–a hard, cynical man forced to soften when he’s given the responsibility of parenthood.

Barlog does make sure to note that this is still Kratos, though. He still has a monster lurking inside him, and as much as he attempts to control it, that part of himself will come out by mistake. Coping with this common parenting failure is another piece of what makes this latest iteration of Kratos that much more human. We’ll see just how successful Barlog and developer Sony Santa Monica were when the game releases on April 20.