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Anna, Lei, and The Walking Dead's Negan coming to Tekken 7
Tekken 7 is getting a second season pass that includes a bunch of familiar fighters...and for some reason The Walking Dead's Negan.
In a surprise move, Bandai Namco announced that baddie Negan from AMC's The Walking Dead will be joining Tekken 7 at some point in the future. Negan will arrive as part of Tekken 7's Season Pass 2, which will include both Tekken alums Anna Williams and Lei Wulong who were notoriously missing from the game's launch roster. This new pass is likely to cost $24.99 like the previous one and unlocks six new characters (three of which we know about).
"Introducing a brand new lineup of warriors stepping into the TEKKEN 7 ring! With Season 2 of the TEKKEN 7 Season Pass, fighters such as Anna Williams, Lei Wulong and Negan from AMC's The Walking Dead join the fight!"
Continue reading: Anna, Lei, and The Walking Dead's Negan coming to Tekken 7 (full post)
Fallout 76 beta contains full game, progress carries over
Unlike most betas, Fallout 76's anticipated beta test will give access to the entire game when it rolls out in October.
Testing out a live service game is tricky. Bethesda Game Studios is quite new at online-only games and stand to glean a wealth of feedback from beta testers to help shape the in-game world. Not only are betas usually different than the final product, but live services games continually evolve, meaning months after launch Fallout 76 may not even resemble its launch flavor (case in point: see No Man's Sky Next).
To learn as much as possible about crafting, molding, and sustaining a live game with content and engagement strategies, BGS will allow players access to the entirety of Fallout 76's in-game world during the beta test. That means no gated areas, and possibly even means progression won't be capped...but we still expect certain restrictions despite this affirmation. But all participants will keep their beta progress and be able to play their character in the final game when it ships in November.
Continue reading: Fallout 76 beta contains full game, progress carries over (full post)
Samsung announces production of first consumer SSD with QLC
Samsung announced mass production of the company's first 4-bit per cell V-NAND SSD for the consumer market. The drive will use Samsung's 1Tbit V-NAND and ship in 1TB, 2TB and 4TB capacities.
The company didn't release the series name for the new QLC-enabled drive but we doubt this will fall under the 860 EVO series. Performance is said to be similar to 3-bit per cell V-NAND products thanks to TurboWrite technology that writes most data in a consumer workload to a SLC buffer.
"Samsung's new 4-bit SATA SSD will herald a massive move to terabyte-SSDs for consumers," said Jaesoo Han, executive vice president of memory sales & marketing at Samsung Electronics. "As we expand our lineup across consumer segments and to the enterprise, 4-bit terabyte-SSD products will rapidly spread throughout the entire market."
Continue reading: Samsung announces production of first consumer SSD with QLC (full post)
Riot Games considers stepping into MMO's and other genres
Riot Games, the developer behind one of the largest games in the world, League of Legends has spoken out about its plans on stepping into a brand new genre, will Riot make an MMO?
Variety held an exclusive interview with Riot Games' Co-founder Marc Merrill, the owner discussed the companies direction in the future and where we could see Riot Games' development. Merrill said "It's an exciting time for us as a company, we're emerging from being the 'League of Legends' company to whatever it will be in the future. We've been working for such a long period of time on so many things."
According to Merrill, the tweet of him asking the community if the company should step into the MMO scene resulted in some controversy within Riot Games. "The tweet was a bit controversial internally, absolutely there was some risk, we may never deliver on that question, on the other hand, it is so validating and exciting to have players' minds focused on what could come." Merill also addresses that within Riot Games, there is many research and development teams working on what would be the next correct step outside of the hit MOBA League of Legends.
Continue reading: Riot Games considers stepping into MMO's and other genres (full post)
Maxsun shows off next-gen GeForce GTX 1180 iCraft card
NVIDIA hasn't made anything official about its next-gen graphics cards yet, with our own sources saying it will arrive as the GeForce GTX 11 series but there are Chinese AIB partners that are already unveiling next-gen GeForce graphics cards.
Now we have Maxsun unveiling their new GeForce GTX 1180 iCraft at the recent ChinaJoy event, with the new card being part of Maxsun's high-end product line. The card is a thin dual-slot card with RGB strips along the front of the card and in the GeForce GTX branding on the top of the card.
Maxsun's GeForce GTX 1180 iCraft doesn't have a DVI port with one slot of the bracket dedicated to exhausting heat, while there's a single 8-pin PCIe power connector. I'm expecting the new cards to use a single 8-pin PCIe power connector thanks to the new 12nm node and what I'm sure NVIDIA will unveil as massive power efficiency through the refreshed Turing GPU architecture.
Continue reading: Maxsun shows off next-gen GeForce GTX 1180 iCraft card (full post)
Dragon Ball FighterZ new trailer reveals new fighter Cooler
During EVO 2018, Bandai Namco decided they were going to showcase a brand new trailer for Dragon Ball FighterZ, the trailer consisted of three upcoming characters, Base Vegeta, Base Goku and now Cooler.
From a leak that started back on July 19th from Twitter user Blackkite, which then eventuated into Bandai officially releasing trailers for into both Base Goku and Base Vegeta. The developer has taken to EVO 2018 to showcase yet again another trailer for the characters, but has now also included Frieza's brother, Cooler.
The trailer reveals to us a much better look at both of the characters movesets, we can see Goku using kaio-ken, Kamehameha and many close up combos. The same goes for Base Vegeta, we see combo's and galick gun displayed to us in an epic battle with Goku's kamehameha wave. What is most interesting in this video is the last half, as a "mighty warrior" approaches we are introduced to Cooler. Cooler will be joining the other season 1 DLC characters which include Bardock, Broly, Fused Zamasu and Vegito.
Continue reading: Dragon Ball FighterZ new trailer reveals new fighter Cooler (full post)
Smash 4 finals display a divided fighting community EVO 2018
During the EVO 2018 Super Smash Bros. 4 finals, fans in the crowd took quite a negative turn towards the fighters that were chosen to compete. The very last EVO event for Smash 4 could possibly have been the worst.
This debate has been raging on since February 3rd, 2016 when Bayonetta was released into Super Smash Bros. 4. Players and fans alike have constantly debated whether the quick attacks and follow-up combo's are too much to compete against. The constant fast attacks from not only close range but afar result in a all round amazing move-set, so good that of the Smash finals of this years EVO 2018 mostly consisted of Bayonetta players.
One of those players was 16-year old Zack Lauth or better known as "CaptainZack". Zack took the stage with Tamim Omary or "Lima" who also happens to be quite young as well at 17. Both players picked Bayonetta, and to the crowds disapproval a slew of booing was thrown at them the entirety of the match. Zack and Lima took the booing on the chin and displayed what seemed to be personal enjoyment between eachother, despite the angry cries from the crowd. At the start of the final reset, both players decided amongst themselves that they would waste time, each player didn't attack one another for over 2 minutes of the game, until a EVO 2018 official forced the rules upon them.
Continue reading: Smash 4 finals display a divided fighting community EVO 2018 (full post)
God of War will soon be getting a novel based on the story
God of War, the critically acclaimed title from Santa Monica Studios has had a new announcement made, the rich storyline that fans absolutely loved will be formed into a book.
God of War follows Kratos and his son Atreus, players delve into a father-son relationship that builds character. Kratos is set on teaching his son to survive in the wild while also training him to defend himself from monsters and perhaps even future gods. The games storyline was very well received by players, so well received that now a novelization has occurred and will be available at the end of the month.
The novel has been written by J.M Barlog, the father of Cory Barlog, who directed the new God of War. According to the description on the Amazon website, the novel will be concentrating on: "His vengeance against the gods of Olympus years behind him, Kratos now lives as a man in the realm of Norse gods and monsters. It is in this harsh, unforgiving world that he must fight to survive ... and teach his son to do the same. This startling reimagining of God of War deconstructs the core elements that defined the series-satisfying combat, breathtaking scale, and a powerful narrative-and fuses them anew." God of War: The Official Novelization will be available for $14.95 and will be released on August 28th. If you want to pre-order the title, visit the official Amazon listing here.
Continue reading: God of War will soon be getting a novel based on the story (full post)
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Direct date set announced, Aug 8
Nintendo has taken to their 'Nintendo Versus' Twitter page to announce that there will be a Nintendo Direct featured around the upcoming next installment into the Super Smash Bros. franchise, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
The official Nintendo Versus account has revealed that on August 8th at 7AM PT, fans of the Super Smash Bros. series will have more details revealed to them regarding the upcoming release of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. It is possible that throughout this very unique Nintendo Direct we could have a new fighter revealed to us. The Nintendo Direct that was held in March this year teased Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, the title was then officially revealed at E3 2018.
According to the Twitter post, the livestream will be hosted by none of then the Super Smash Bros. Director Masahiro Sakurai. Throughout this livestream we will most likely have the fundamental game mechanics explained to us and the rest of the changes that have been added to the new game. I'm assuming that Sakurai will be addressing the speed of the game as that has been a massive topic of discussion amongst the Smash community. The livesteam could also shed some light towards how many new characters will be included within the initial fighting roster, rumors have pointed towards the following possibilities: King K. Rool, Paper Mario, Simon Belmont and also Waluigi.
Continue reading: Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Direct date set announced, Aug 8 (full post)
Samsung's Galaxy Note 9: up to 1TB storage, all-day battery
Samsung has a whole lot of hype around its upcoming Galaxy Note 9 smartphone and for good reason - it's the last flagship smartphone the company will unveil until at least CES 2019 which is when we should begin to see or hear official things about the Galaxy X, the world's first foldable smartphone.
For now, we'll deal with the latest rumor on the Galaxy Note 9 that sees it packing a huge 1TB of storage. Not only that, but Samsung will be pushing a larger battery into the Galaxy Note 9 where 'all-day battery' is being offered. We're expecting a 4000mAh battery inside of the Galaxy Note 9, up from the smaller 3300mAh battery which should provide the 'powerful all-day battery' that Samsung is teasing.
Samsung should offer up a Galaxy Note 9 with 512GB of storage and the option of upgrading to 1TB of internal storage with the expandable microSD card slot taking up to 512GB. There aren't 512GB microSD cards available in all countries, but Samsung will still be able to market the Galaxy Note 9 as having 'up to 1TB' off storage.
Continue reading: Samsung's Galaxy Note 9: up to 1TB storage, all-day battery (full post)
TSMC fab plants attacked with viruses, disrupting production
TSMC is one of the world's largest chip manufacturers, handling wafers of chips for the likes of NVIDIA and Apple has been hit with viruses on Friday night that forced multiple factories to be shut down in Taiwan.
We don't know which specific factories were hit with the viruses and shut down, and whether they were factories that are important to NVIDIA and its next-gen GeForce GTX 1180 and other graphics cards expected to be released imminently, or Apple's upcoming next-gen iPhone. August is a big month for manufacturing as we're leading into the holiday season and consumer devices are being made now, but you can't make those new expensive products without chips made by TSMC if you're one of their customers.
TSMC is now the world's largest independent semiconducer in the industry, with the company making NVIDIA's new 12nm GPUs for their upcoming GTX 11 series graphics cards, and the new 7nm chips for Apple's new iPhones. Other TMSC customers having chips made in Taiwan include AMD and Qualcomm. A small disruption like this in production can have very hefty snowball effects depending on which companies chips were being made that day.
Continue reading: TSMC fab plants attacked with viruses, disrupting production (full post)
Overwatch Summer Games kick off on August 9
Blizzard is bringing back the Overwatch Summer Games for a third year running now, with the new games kicking off on August 9.
The annual Summer Games will include summer-themed events, something that will include a soccer-inspired 3v3 fight in Lucioball, with rumors suggesting we should expect the matches to take place in Busan, Korea. Overwatch is one of the most popular games in the Asian region, so it would be fitting to host the annual Summer Games for Overwatch there.
Expect some Summer Games Loot Boxes to be released, with skins and other event items up for grabs. As an avid Overwatch player, I can't wait! Personally I want to see more than just Lucioball, with Blizzard going all out. The game isn't pushing boundaries against massive juggernauts like Fortnite now with an ever-changing world. I feel Lucioball for the third year in a row is... I don't know, a little boring?
Continue reading: Overwatch Summer Games kick off on August 9 (full post)
Take-Two to continue infusing live services into its games
Propelled by strong IPs like GTA Online, WWE, and NBA 2K, Take-Two Interactive wants to keep pushing live services into its slate of upcoming games.
Live services are a boon for major publishers and are currently the main driving force behind specific games. Everyone wants to make an online game that continually generates revenue over time via microtransactions, but not everyone can successfully monetize their game accordingly. Luckily for Take-Two Interactive, Rockstar Games has proven themselves adept at this feat with years and years of strong GTA Online earnings.
Taking a gander at the publisher's Fiscal Q1'19 earnings shows why it's keen on continuing this trend. The company earned $240.56 million from recurrent consumer spending (in-game purchases, microtransactions, DLC, etc) in the three-month period ended June 30, primarily driven by GTA Online and NBA 2K. Recurrent spending made up 63% of net revenues in Q1, up 21% year-over-year, and digital net revenue sits at $315 million, up 17.44% YoY.
Continue reading: Take-Two to continue infusing live services into its games (full post)
GTA V nearing 100 million shipments
Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto V has been a runaway success since its release in 2013, and continues bolstering Take-Two's earnings on a quarterly basis.
Thanks to its online mode, GTA V has raked in consistent quarterly and yearly revenue via microtransactions and in-game purchases. But actual game sales are up too, and Rockstar Games parent company Take-Two Interactive is constantly surprised at the game's performance. The game, which strongly drives the publisher's recurrent consumer spending, has nearly reached 100 million global shipments (or sell-in).
"Sales of Grand Theft Auto V also outperformed our expectations with the sell-in of the title now approaching 100 million units," Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick said in the company's Q1'19 earnings call. "Remarkably nearly five years after its initial release, Grand Theft Auto V remains the standard-bearer for the current console generation."
Continue reading: GTA V nearing 100 million shipments (full post)
Tencent to publish Call of Duty mobile in China
Tencent will be publishing Activision's Call of Duty game in China, the company recently announced.
Game titans Activision and Tencent have teamed up to bring one of the industry's biggest franchises to Chinese mobile markets: Call of Duty. We've known Activision is working on a smartphone-based Call of Duty for a while now, but the publisher is apparently working on two different flavors: a standalone game for Chinese gamers, and another being developed by Candy Crush dev King.
Tencent will be making the Call of Duty mobile game for China, which will be a free-to-play shooter that's likely infused with microtransactions and live service content. The game is specifically being geared for the Chinese market and won't be a port of its overseas cousin. Remember Activision is the king of monetization and has big plans for its mobile push, including further adapting its IPs into smartphone games.
Continue reading: Tencent to publish Call of Duty mobile in China (full post)
Patrick Stewart returns to the Star Trek franchise as Picard
I still remember growing up as a kid and my Dad being an avid Star Trek fan, and a huge fan of Patrick Stewart playing Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation. Well, Picard is coming back to the franchise which is huge news.
CBS has announced a new All Access series that will continue the story of Captain Picard, with Discovery co-creator Alex Kurtzman looking over the show with the help of other veterans from All Access' Star Trek show. We have no idea what it'll be about, when it'll arrive, or anything - but the news of Patrick Stewart returning to the role of Picard is big enough on its own.
Stewart took to his personal Twitter account to announce the news, and release a statement. In his tweet, he said: "It is an unexpected but delightful surprise to find myself excited and invigorated to be returning to Jean-Luc Picard and to explore new dimensions within him. Read my full statement in the photo".
Continue reading: Patrick Stewart returns to the Star Trek franchise as Picard (full post)
Origin's new EON gaming laptop rocks Core i9 CPU, GTX 1070
Origin PC has just announced two new laptops that are made for gamers, streamers, and everyone in between: we have the EON15-S and EVO17-S, depending on your needs.
The EON15-S is under 1-inch thick and only 3.4 pounds, with a hybrid mechanical keyboard that features individual key lighting, and can pack up to the Intel Core i9-8950HK (6C/12T) processor. Origin also uses an all-in, intuitive battery saving feature that provides up to 8 hours of casual use on the EON15-S with a single press of the button.
Inside, the new Origin EON15-S can pack the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 6GB, with a 15.6-inch 1080p IPS display, up to 32GB of DDR4-2666MHz RAM, 2 x M.2 SSDs for storage, and Origin's own custom HD UV printing.
Continue reading: Origin's new EON gaming laptop rocks Core i9 CPU, GTX 1070 (full post)
GIGABYTE X399 AORUS Extreme ready for next-gen Threadripper
GIGABYTE has just announced their flagship X399 motherboard that is fully prepared and laden with features ready for AMD's upcoming next-gen Ryzen Threadripper CPUs.
The new GIGABYTE X399 AORUS Extreme motherboard will support the new Threadripper 2990WX which is AMD's upcoming 32C/64T flagship second-gen TR processor that has a TDP of up to 250W. GIGABYTE is using a heavily improved cooling system on the X399 AORUS Extreme, with 10+3 phase PWM supply that gets its power through not one, but two 8-pin EPS connectors.
There are 8 x DDR4 DIMM slots on the GIGABYTE X399 AORUS Extreme, 6 x SATA 6Gbps ports, 3 x M.2 slots (which are cooled by GIGABYTE's M.2 heat sinks), 4 x PCIe 3.0 x16 slots, and 1 x PCIe 3.0 x1 slot. There's 64 PCIe lanes thanks to Threadripper, so GIGABYTE is preparing for anyone to throw the kitchen sink at this motherboard with connectivity options galore.
Continue reading: GIGABYTE X399 AORUS Extreme ready for next-gen Threadripper (full post)
AMD's new semi-custom chip: Ryzen/Vega tech for PC/consoles
We already know that AMD is heavily committed to the semi-custom market with Sony working hand-in-hand with RTG on the development of Navi for their next-gen PlayStation 5 console, but now it's China's time in the spotlight with a Ryzen/Vega SoC in development.
A new semi-custom system-on-chip (SoC) was announced today that packs a quad-core Ryzen CPU and Vega GPU with 24 stream processors, all packed with 8GB of GDDR5 memory. AMD is working with Zhongshan Subor on the new chip, something that will be powering a "new gaming PC and upcoming console" in China.
Inside, teh new SoC packs a 4C/8T Ryzen CPU at 3GHz, and 24 Vega CUs at 1.3GHz joined by the 8GB of GDDR5. We should expect Radeon RX 580 level performance, which is fine for 1080p and 1440p gaming at 60FPS depending on the game and detail levels used. The more interesting side here is that the Vega GPU technology is using GDDR5 memory and not HBM2 like AMD originally said when they announced the Vega GPU architecture.
Continue reading: AMD's new semi-custom chip: Ryzen/Vega tech for PC/consoles (full post)
Bee Simulator lets you play as a bee in New York
There are games that let you play as a farmer, or an animal - and now we have Bee Simulator, where you play as... well... a bee. Check out the Gamescom 2018 trailer for Bee Simulator:
Bee Simulator will let players "compete with other bees in races, collect pollen, perform waggle dances, and explore a world inspired by Central Park in New York". Bringing legitimacy to the game in its soundtrack, something that The Witcher 3 composer Mikołaj Stroiński will be handling.
The game will of course have a pollen-collecting story mode where the bees are the heroes, and the humans are the bad guys. There's an exploration mode that lets you fly around Central Park, New York and a split-screen mode that has an additional map.
Continue reading: Bee Simulator lets you play as a bee in New York (full post)






















