Turrican returns this week - alongside another gaming legend

 Posted on June 11, 2023  |  8 minutes  |  1691 words  |  Fernande Dalal

Last year brought welcome news of a comeback of a beloved name in gaming, and in tandem with that news the revelation, to me at least, that another famous name in video games wasn't perhaps as dormant as I'd thought. With the release of Turrican Flashback later this month - a collection of the much-loved run-and-gunner series' highlights - we're not only seeing the return of the Turrican name, but also of developer Factor 5, the famed outfit behind the Rogue Squadron games and countless other fascinating projects that sadly shut down in the tumultuous wake of Lair's release. [Read More]

Why I love Fallout 4's skeletons

 Posted on June 11, 2023  |  5 minutes  |  877 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

Bethesda has a thing for skeletons, and so do I. No, not like that. Like this: in Fallout 4, as in other Bethesda games, skeletons tell stories without whispering a word. But there's something special about the post-apocalyptic skeleton. It offers a glimpse at humanity pre-war, before the bombs fell, sometimes, you imagine, as the bombs fell. They capture a moment in time, as the world turned to dust, as the fire blew the flesh from the bones of billions of people. [Read More]

Xbox party chat will no longer require Xbox Live Gold

 Posted on June 11, 2023  |  2 minutes  |  375 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

Xbox Live Gold will soon no longer be required to use party chat. Microsoft will drop the subscription requirement at the same time as it also removes the need for Xbox Live Gold to play online free-to-play games such as Fortnite and Rocket League. We knew about that latter part already, after a dramatic U-turn from Microsoft over a Xbox Live Gold price hike. That discussion prompted fierce criticism over the fact Microsoft continued to place games like Fortnite behind a paywall, in contrast to the situation on PlayStation and Nintendo platforms - something it then announced it would drop. [Read More]

A decade after Modern Warfare 2, the tactical nuke returns in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare

 Posted on June 10, 2023  |  3 minutes  |  523 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

The tactical nuke is back in Call of Duty after a decade missing in action - and players are now getting a clear show of it via the Modern Warfare beta. First, some background. The tactical nuke was a killstreak in 2009's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. In Modern Warfare 2, the tactical nuke required 25 consecutive kills. It was the hardest to obtain in the game, but it was worth it - once triggered, the tactical nuke calls in a nuclear warhead that explodes, engulfing the entire battlefield in white light. [Read More]

Animal Crossing: Amiibo Festival review

 Posted on June 10, 2023  |  6 minutes  |  1171 words  |  Arica Deslauriers

Too gentle and sweet to warrant the online bile, this board game spin-off is nevertheless a very limited and repetitive stopgap. How strange that a game where the happiest player wins should have made so many people so very angry. Only it's not really strange at all, is it? It's hard to think of another publisher whose games are so regularly resented for simply existing, but such is the way with Nintendo. [Read More]

Beyond 'arcade perfect' - Virtua Racing is a triumph on Switch

 Posted on June 10, 2023  |  11 minutes  |  2244 words  |  Arica Deslauriers

The Switch port of Virtua Racing first appeared on the Japanese Nintendo eShop at the beginning of the March. It's now available in all key territories, so we thought we'd republish our existing coverage to remind you about what makes this conversion so great. First released in 1992, Virtua Racing ushered in a new era for Sega trading super-scaler technology for full on 3D polygon graphics and now, thanks to the wizards at Japanese developer M2, Virtua Racing returns for Nintendo Switch - and if you're into arcade racing, I highly recommend that you check it out. [Read More]

Close Combat 4 : Battle of the Bulge

 Posted on June 10, 2023  |  6 minutes  |  1114 words  |  Fernande Dalal

Bulging The Battle Of The Bulge was the desperate attempt by Hitler to defeat the advancing Allied forces near the end of the war. The Allies had by then regained most of Europe, and were beginning to engage the retreating German army on their own soil. The confident American troops stationed in the Ardennes where completely unprepared for any kind of aggressive action, and were taken by surprise by a massive German strike force which vastly outnumbered them. [Read More]

Destiny 2 Gambit mode - Everything you need to know about the new competitive mode

 Posted on June 10, 2023  |  5 minutes  |  966 words  |  Trudie Dory

Destiny 2 Gambit is a brand new mode being introduced in the game's Year Two expansion, Forsaken. For the first time, Activision's shared world shooter will combine PvP and PvE - that's player versus players and the environment - in a single mode. Note this page is in need of an update with the arrival of Destiny 2's second year, so be aware some content might be out of date. [Read More]

Face-Off: God of War 3 Remastered

 Posted on June 10, 2023  |  10 minutes  |  2102 words  |  Trudie Dory

The deluge of HD remasters shows no sign of abating - fatigue is starting to kick in, but the allure of prettier, smoother, enhanced versions of genuine classics remains a pretty enticing proposition. God of War 3 Remastered stands apart from the crowd by delivering a full 1080p presentation in combination with performance that is to all intents and purposes locked at 60fps. From a visual perspective, nothing can quite top the experience found when locking resolution and frame-rate to the specs of your display, but even better than that, God of War 3 emphasises how gameplay can be improved via the remastering process too. [Read More]

FIFA 13 cover has Lionel Messi and... Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Joe Hart

 Posted on June 10, 2023  |  2 minutes  |  329 words  |  Arica Deslauriers

UPDATE: EA has announced that Messi will be joined on the FIFA 13 UK cover by Arsenal star Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Man City and England number one Joe Hart. Oxlade-Chamberlain said he has been a keen FIFA player for a number of years, since the age of six in fact. Being on the cover is a "massive honour" he said. Hart said he's not the greatest FIFA player in the world but enjoys the game and the banter that comes with playing with his team mates at moneybags Man City. [Read More]