Audio player loading… The day before Elden Ring's release, Nikita fled his country. Early in the morning on February 24, an airfield in his home city of Bucha, Ukraine was bombed by Russian forces. Within days, Russia had broken into the city, ransacked homes, and massacred over a thousand people (opens in new tab) , according to reporting by the BBC and other outlets covering the war. "We woke up in the morning and heard explosions. They killed a lot of people on the streets that were trying to find food," Nikita says. "People were trapped in the city for about two to three weeks without food, water and electricity. They eventually got evacuated, but it was horrible and a lot of them suffer from PTSD now." Nikita, 21, and his four family members escaped Bucha (which is about 30 km west of the capital city of Kyiv) by car and drove for the Polish border on the first day of the attack. They took alternative roads to avoid running into Russian forces. "I almost … [Read more...] about Ukrainian refugee finally plays Elden Ring after funding a new PC with VTuber models
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Itch.io’s ‘Bundle for Ukraine’ fundraiser offers nearly 1,000 games for your donation
Audio player loading… Itch has launched the Bundle for Ukraine , a massive collection of nearly a thousand games designed to raise funds for two humanitarian organisations aiding civilians in the war-torn country. Donations start from $10 and, in exchange, you'll get a dizzying amount of games: 991, to be exact. Honestly, more than you'll probably ever be able to play. Some highlights in the bundle include the brilliant retro-styled JRPG CrossCode, bleak roguelike Gonner, and the cheerful musical adventure game Wandersong. But you'll also get heavy hitters like Celeste, Towerfall Ascension, Superhot, Baba Is You and A Short Hike, to name barely a fraction of what's on offer. The bundle was initiated by Necrosoft Games last week, the studio responsible for Gunhouse, Oh Deer! and the forthcoming Hyper Gunsport . Since then, over 700 creators have joined the initiative, which will split all income between International Medical Corps—a medical assistance organisation—and … [Read more...] about Itch.io’s ‘Bundle for Ukraine’ fundraiser offers nearly 1,000 games for your donation
Prey is the perfect blueprint for a killer Predator game
I'd suffered through too many bad Predator movies to get excited about Prey, but now I'm an evangelist spreading the good news: this is the best Predator movie since Arnie flexed his muscles in the jungle. It's striking but understated, leaving plenty of room between the lavish violence to build tension and develop not just Naru, played by the superb Amber Midthunder, but her alien adversary as well. And now that we've finally got another great Predator movie, wouldn't it be nice if we got a game to match? Predator hasn't exactly gone ignored by game developers: there's a long list of adaptations going all the way back to 1987, though in most of them the spotlight is shared with the xenomorphs. This was the case with the best Predator games: 1999's Aliens versus Predator and its 2001 sequel. There was even an AvP RTS in 2003. But aside from an appearance in Mortal Kombat X, there's not been much Predator love for years. When Predator: Hunting Grounds came along in 2020, then, my … [Read more...] about Prey is the perfect blueprint for a killer Predator game
EA announces the last-ever EA FIFA game and it’s made me weirdly melancholy
Audio player loading… Over the last year there's been some drama between videogame giant EA and FIFA, the world governing body for football, over the FIFA name. EA's current licensing deal with FIFA is ending (opens in new tab) and it's going on to build its own football brand, the snappily titled EA Sports FC. It marks the end of an incredibly successful partnership, and is a bit of a disaster for FIFA (opens in new tab) , which now has to build a competitor from scratch. FIFA 23 will be the final game released in this partnership, and comes out on September 30 for PC. It features women’s club teams for the first time: specifically, the Barclays Women’s Super League and Division 1 Arkema. It will also introduce this year's Qatar World Cup and the women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand as post-launch updates. The press release waffles on about HyperMotion technology and physics systems, as well as a new "intelligent dribbling" system, which sounds oddly … [Read more...] about EA announces the last-ever EA FIFA game and it’s made me weirdly melancholy
FFXIV 6.X Story Will Revolve Around The Thirteenth Shard
FFXIV's entire 6.X storyline will center around the thirteenth shard, as confirmed by Naoki Yoshida. Players have guessed as much since 6.1, Newfound Adventure, teased the appearance of a mysterious voidsent, but Yoshida's interview confirms that the 6.X arc will focus on what happened to the thirteenth shard, as well as the memories of feelings of those who were once human, but are now monsters. Yoshi-P says in a new Famitsu interview that FFXIV Patch 6.2 and the rest of the 6.X patches will revolve around the Thirteenth Shard in its story. pic.twitter.com/SVz7Yj0IQK — ☆オードリーAudrey☆ (@aitaikimochi) August 9, 2022 The thirteenth shard is the first word the Ascians tried to rejoin, but unfortunately, through their efforts, everybody in that world became voidsents. Yoshida says in an Famitsu interview, with translation by Twitter user Audrey (@ aitaikimochi ), "Patch 6.1 asks…'since we have already traversed to the world of the First, what would the other shards look like?" … [Read more...] about FFXIV 6.X Story Will Revolve Around The Thirteenth Shard
The Rival Pro Is A Solid Pro-Style PS5 Controller, But You Can Build It Yourself For Less
Over the past year, HexGaming has released a variety of customized PS5 controllers aimed at competitive gamers. I tested a couple of early models, and while they were good, it was hard to recommend spending close to $300 on a controller. The latest edition, the Rival Pro, somewhat remedies this issue, as the controllers start at $200. Granted, only the matte black color scheme is available for this price--others are quite a bit pricier. For instance, the "White Wave Red" model I tested is $290. In terms of feel and performance, the Rival Pro is just about as good as the Scuf Reflex Pro, our pick for the best PS5 Pro-style controller . The Rival Pro is a great PS5 controller for multiplayer games thanks to its mappable rear triggers and its improved grip. However, if you're up for the task, you're better off modding your own DualSense controller. In fact, you can make your own Rival Pro. HexGaming Rival Pro Starting at $200 See at Amazon While it's not made … [Read more...] about The Rival Pro Is A Solid Pro-Style PS5 Controller, But You Can Build It Yourself For Less
Being a bear who runs a B&B is no picnic
I identify with Hank, the ursine protagonist of Bear and Breakfast. Not just because I am also large, hairy, and fond of long naps, but because my winding journey through life had me renovating and running a small B&B out in the hinterlands for a few years. It's hard work, but it's satisfying when a guest has nothing but praise. I admit though, having Hank's charming friends and neighbors would have improved things greatly. Bear and Breakfast is the first game from Romanian indie outfit Gummy Cat, and a strong first showing if my first 10 hours of play are anything to go by. Doing what it says on the tin, it's a game about a cute, vaguely Yogi-esque bear managing a rapidly expanding bed and breakfast business, revitalizing an abandoned tourist town in the process. The bear essentials On a purely mechanical level, Bear and Breakfast is a relatively simple construction and management game. Controlling Hank directly (except when in the building interface), you wander around … [Read more...] about Being a bear who runs a B&B is no picnic
Is $300M for Tomb Raider and Deus Ex really that big of a steal?
When I heard that Square Enix had sold Tomb Raider, Deus Ex, and three respected game studios to Embracer Group for $300 million, I instantly became that guy who knows exactly how much everything is worth but can only back up his valuations with rhetorical questions. $300 million? For Tomb Raider? And Deus Ex? Are they serious? It seems like a steal for Embracer, but in retrospect, just because my dad knows who Lara Croft is doesn't necessarily mean that the series is going to be profitable in the future. Sexy British artifact thieves are unfashionable—people want to play as miserable wretches named The Tarnished these days—and the kind of games Eidos-Montréal and Crystal Dynamics are best at making are very expensive to produce. Eidos-Montréal studio head David Anfossi said in 2018 (opens in new tab) that Shadow of the Tomb Raider cost as much as $100 million to make, and another $35 million to promote. It was half-off during Steam's Autumn Sale the same year it … [Read more...] about Is $300M for Tomb Raider and Deus Ex really that big of a steal?
Elden Ring update makes summoning easier and finally lets you do the Varre quest solo
Audio player loading… FromSoftware just pushed out a new update for Elden Ring (opens in new tab) , making summoning a friendly face a whole lot easier, removing the online requirements for a quest and slapping some nerfs on a few meta skills and weapons. Patch 1.06 lets you send summoning signs to more areas, including regions you're not currently in. It should make finding a helper in quieter areas a lot easier now, though understandably you can only be summoned to areas you've already visited. The same is also true for invaders, so now you can invade a larger area, including regions you're not currently in. The update has also introduced an offline alternative for the White Mask Varre questline (opens in new tab) . Before now, the only way to advance was by invading someone else's game three times. Although you didn't actually have to fight or win against any other players, it was a pain for people playing offline. Now, those who don't fancy getting their hands … [Read more...] about Elden Ring update makes summoning easier and finally lets you do the Varre quest solo