“I mean, if you look back to the peak or the pinnacle of Battlefield, it’s that Battlefield 3… Battlefield 4 era where everything was modern,” says Zampella in a new interview with IGN. “And I think we have to get back to the core of what Battlefield is and do that amazingly well, and then we’ll see where it goes from there.”

The past three games in the franchise have shrugged off the popular modern setting for takes on World War I, World War II, and the near future. While Battlefield 1 and V are underrated entries into the franchise, Battlefield 2142 wasn’t what fans wanted. The shift from a traditional class system to specialists turned many fans away. And despite a slew of updates that helped fix many of the game’s initial problems, the community didn’t return. 

Zampella touched on Battlefield 2142 while reiterating a return to traditional Battlefield gameplay with the return of classes.

“So I wasn’t there for 2042,” he told IGN. “I don’t know what the rationale was, but for me, it’s like the team tried something new. You have to applaud that effort. Not everybody liked it, but you got to try things. It didn’t work. It didn’t fit. Specialist will not be coming back. So classes are kind of at the core of Battlefield, and we’re going back to that.”

So, we’re getting a Battlefield set in the modern day with 64-player maps and a return to class-based gameplay. That checks off some of the most important features for long-time fans. I’m hoping for a return to more destructive environments. Give me a mix of Bad Company and Battlefield 4. 

I’m also curious to see what new stuff all the teams building the next Battlefield come up with. We know Battle Royale modes continue to be some of the biggest multiplayer games out there. Will the next Battlefield take another crack at it, or will they only be laser-focused on delivering a return to classic Battlefield gameplay?

Me? I would focus on delivering the best Battlefield game they can before diving into other modes. Go crazy with destruction and large-scale battles, and let those sell the game for you. Plus, EA already has Apex Legends, so I’m not sure if they would want to pull from that community. 

No news on a release date, but Zampella did hint at a community testing program coming in 2025 but didn’t specify if this was the usual beta testing period or something else. 

The post Next Battlefield Game Will Lean On The Franchise’s Strong Past appeared first on News Ledge.

In a newly posted video, Warhorse Studios updated the community on the release date and described what comes next as more of a marathon of marketing and content ahead of its release. At next week’s Gamescom Opening Night Live (August 20), a new trailer for Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 will drop. 

On August 21, previews from the press and creators will go live as they give their early impressions of the game. For folks who didn’t get invited or can’t make it to Gamescom, Warhorse will also be dropping 25 minutes of gameplay. 

In a financial report from Embracer Group, the parent company’s CEO touched a little more on the delay for Kingdom Come Deliverance 2:

“Our teams are committed to making and delivering better games. Our highly anticipated game Kingdom Come: Deliverance II, is now confirmed for global release on February 11, 2025, which we believe enables some final polish and a better release window.”

There’s nothing wrong with giving developers a little extra time to deliver the best possible game. And it’s hard to argue with the “better release window” statement. There are a ton of games coming in the second half of 2024, and it’s not a bad idea to find a spot where Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 can stand out a bit more. 

While Gamescom will give us a much better look at the game, the first trailer released a few months ago also showed off plenty for fans of the first to be excited about.

The post Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 Won’t Make Its 2024 Release Date appeared first on News Ledge.

“As we look ahead to Call of Duty®: Black Ops 6, we’ve been working on ways to improve the Call of Duty experience by optimizing menu navigation and offering smaller and more customized downloads, plus other benefits for your Call of Duty library,” Activision writes in a recent blog post.

For the download side, that means “more control over downloads, including Warzone content,” and “expanded streaming technology to reduce file sizes.”

Activision highlights how these updates will be delivered over the next few months:

• The first part of this streamlining will come with the August 21 Season 5 Reloaded update. This will include “new tech and a reorganization of data to prepare for Black Ops 6 Beta and Launch.”
• Another update in mid-October includes a new user interface and “remaining updates as we head into launch.”

From now on, when you buy a premium Call of Duty game, the installer will default to only downloading the files for that game. You’ll need to opt-in to download Warzone if you want both.

But all this optimization does mean one more big download. “The process begins with a download – a big one.  But downloading now will pave the way over the next several weeks and ultimately lead to a better experience when Black Ops 6 arrives,” Activision writes.

The developers make it clear next week’s update won’t permanently “add the sated file size to the storage space that Call of Duty takes up on your device.” This update reorganizes the file sizes and adds the new streaming tech. Once downloaded, the Call of Duty’s file size will drop. 

For PS5 users, the next week’s updates will be four separate downloads. The first download will be like all the others we needed before the game’s launch. The next updates will trigger as you start the game and access Modern Warfare III and Warzone. 

Activision does say Black Ops 6 will have a smaller download size at launch than Modern Warfare III. But since the game is still in active development, they aren’t quite ready to share the exact download size yet. 

For reference, Modern Warfare III’s file size ballooned over 200GB at launch, which led to the game’s official X account explaining why. 

The developers are making a big deal about the changes coming, so we’ll see how big Black Ops 6 will be in a couple of months.

The post Call of Duty Is Finally Doing Something About Its Download Sizes, But Needs One More Big One appeared first on News Ledge.

Hello Games’ Sean Murray touched on how the work on their next game (Light No Fire) is coming to No Man’s Sky. 

“Six months ago, we announced Light No Fire. It’s this crazy, ambitious game. And we’ve been working on it for years, and we’ve learned so many things. And it feels like we’re almost bringing this technology back from the future,” says Murray.

He then discusses the visual improvements coming to No Man’s Sky with this new update. Worlds Part I brings huge improvements to water visuals. The new wave systems are dynamic and react to weather. Ships can now land and will produce ripples as they touch down. Planets have their own wind patterns. Murray also describes how one of his new favorite things to do is fly through the game’s new cloud system and into space. The new clouds will also react to the improved weather systems.

Honestly, this No Man’s Sky update has me even more pumped to play Light No Fire. It’s like we’re getting an early look at the evolution of Hello Games’ design and development philosophy. 

Worlds Part I also introduces a new expedition that Murray says is “Starship Troopers-inspired.” He describes it as “something super different” from what they’ve done before. The new expedition will take us to some of the new planets and biomes being added and offer “super cool” rewards.

No Man’s Sky is one of the (if not the most) impressive turnaround stories in gaming history. Hype for the game reached astronomical heights before release, but it didn’t deliver on its promise at launch. But in the years since, Hello Games have redeemed themselves and transformed No Man’s Sky into a game that has far eclipsed its lofty promises. 

And with a complete refresh of the universe coming in Worlds Part I, it’s a good time for those of us who only played it at launch to jump back in and see what the dev team have put together. 

The post Hello Games Brings A Little Light No Fire To No Man’s Sky In Huge Update appeared first on News Ledge.

“Space Marine 2 is almost ready. We are now entirely focused on optimization, polish and fixing remaining issues ahead of launch on September 9. This means we will not run a public online beta, as it would take the development teams away from preparing for the full launch, and our priority is to ensure the best possible experience at release.”

Those who did sign up for the beta (before June 28) will receive a limited Bolt Pistol skin. 

The news is a bummer for those itching to try the game before release. Canceling the beta will make folks wonder about the quality of the game. At least the team is sticking with the September 9 release, so they believe these issues can be addressed before then—or at least, they hope so. Still, I would wait for reviews to drop or watch a few livestreams just in case there are more issues at launch than expected. 

If we take a glass half-full approach, there have been plenty of hands-on previews of Space Marine 2 – and the reception has been positive. Here are a few of them:

Two weeks ago, Focus Entertainment released a short overview trailer showing the three modes coming to Space Marine 2 – Campaign, Operations, and Eternal War. 

Operations is a co-op PvE mode where you will fight off Tyranid hordes across six maps. Eternal War gives the PvP folks their fix with 6v6 matches across three modes: Annihilation (Team Deathmatch), Seize Ground (Domination), and Capture & Control (King of the Hill). 

While the beta won’t happen, fans can still play the game early as Focus Entertainment and Saber Interactive will be at several game expos across the U.S. and Canada this Summer. Here are the next dates and locations where you can go hands-on with Space Marine 2:

July 4 – 7: Fan Expo in Denver, Colorado

August 1 – 4: Gen Con in Indianapolis, Indiana

August 16 – 18: Fan Expo in Chicago, Illinois

August 22 – 25: Fan Expo in Toronto, Ontario.

The post Space Marine 2 Dev Shoots Down Open Beta, Focused Solely on Optimization Before Release appeared first on News Ledge.

Here are the most significant changes:

• Ammo for all world-spawned SMGs (the P90 is not included here) is changing to 9mm. That means the UMP-45 and Tommy Gun will now use 9mm instead of .45. 
• Basic and sprint speed increase by 2.6% and 2.4%, respectively. This is the movement speed when no weapon is equipped. 
• According to the developers, ‘Damage over Distance’ is getting an unspecified nerf for all SMGs except the P-90. “On average, this change will be noticeable at distances of 50 meters or more,” the developers write.

I like the ammo change to 9mm only. I’ve always been a huge fan of the UMP, but finding .45 ammo in the late game was often a struggle. That shouldn’t be as big of an issue since anyone using an SMG will have the ammo you need. Plus, we won’t be counting on random spawns for .45 ammo. 

As for the specifics, several SMGs (MP5K, Tommy Gun, UMP, Micro Uzi, and PP-19) saw increases in damage and decreases in recoil. While they will do less damage at distances greater than 50 meters, they will be even better in close-range fights than they were before. 

Depending on how steep that nerf is at range, I see SMGs becoming more popular, especially if the safe zone centers around a city. It’ll be a go-to weapon when landing in a hot zone. 

The devs are also still open to feedback. “Depending on player responses, a follow-up update for the SMG Rebalance may be implemented within the next month or two,” the devs write in a blog post covering the SMG rebalance. 

Today’s update also brought a couple of more weapon changes to the AUG and Dragunov. The AUG saw small decreases to its recoil stats while the Dragunov lost some of its one-hit potential on Lv. 2 helmets as the maximum distance for a one-shot decreased from 108 to 81 meters. 

According to the developers, tweaks to PUBG’s weapon pool will continue on a “bi-monthly” basis for the rest of the year. “We are planning significant updates across various weapon categories in the future.”

The post PUBG’s Big SMG Rework Goes Completely Live With Update 30.1 appeared first on News Ledge.

The release of Viper Commandos also kicks off developer Arrowhead’s new approach to designing and releasing future Warbonds. In a blog post, the team explained they are listening to feedback from the community and have decided they are “slowing the pace that we release Warbonds to allow a little more time to polish these designs before they’re released.” 

Before, Helldivers 2 saw a new Warbond on the second Thursday of every month. That release schedule will now change. There is no word yet on how long fans will be waiting, but the developers promised to confirm a new timeframe soon. 

Arrowhead also explained they want to have “stronger theming” with Warbonds, starting with Viper Commandos. What does that mean exactly? Think better weapons, items, armor, etc.

“It’s time to focus on quality over quantity. When we started researching items for Viper Commandos, we wanted to be sure we answered our player calls for stronger theming that coordinates across all the items, more emotes, unique armor passives, and more thoughtful designs rather than simply giving more of the same.

So, Arrowhead will slow down the release of Warbonds, but we should see much better quality in them going forward. Some of the newer guns did feel too much like the other guns with just different visual cues. Hopefully, this extra development time means more unique weapons and armor. And better balancing around what’s already in the game. 

The post We’ll Be Waiting Longer For Future Helldivers 2 Warbond appeared first on News Ledge.

Sony also summed up the minimum requirements for PS VR2 gameplay on PC:

Processor: Intel Core i5 – 7600 / AMD Ryzen 3 3100

GPU – Nvidia Geforce GTX 1650 or later

AMD Radeon RX 5500XT or later

For the best performance, Sony recommends an Nvidia Geforce RTX 3060 or later or AMD Radeon RX 6600XT or later.

Today’s news means folks who jumped into PS VR2 and own a capable PC have many more games to try. But it does come with a caveat you should know about. I’ll let Sony explain:

PS VR2 was designed from the ground up specifically for PS5 – so you’ll notice that some key features, like HDR, headset feedback, eye tracking, adaptive triggers, and haptic feedback (other than rumble), are not available when playing on PC.

What you do get is a capable headset to play PC VR games with. Especially if you already own it. I don’t see too many folks straying from the Meta’s lineup to go with PlayStation VR2. The standout features above that won’t work when playing on PC are what help the PS VR2 stand out from Meta’s lineup. Not having them work on PC is a bummer. But it’s good news for those who grabbed a PS VR2 early and are looking for more games to play.

We’ll have to wait and see if some modders can get those other features to work once this adapter drops in August.

Sony did mark their headset off by $100 in select regions for their Days of Play celebration. You can grab one for $449 instead of $549. This sale will last through June 13. 

The PC adapter does make me wonder if we might see first-party Sony VR games make their way to Steam eventually. Ghost of Tsushima is just the latest Sony game to see a nice resurgence thanks to a Steam release. First-party VR games won’t have the same reach, but they could see a nice little bump from the PC VR crowd. 

The post Sony’s PS VR2 Is Coming To PC, But… appeared first on News Ledge.

A post from the official game account confirms that the closed beta will be available on all platforms in July. 

And here’s a short trailer showing gameplay. 

Yep, it looks like Overwatch. But I’m also pumped to try it out. Running around as Spider-man, Starlord, Venom, and countless other Marvel heroes? Sign me the hell up. If NetEase can get this out the door with polished gameplay and a smooth launch, this could be the next big shooter. 

NetEase also announced PS5 owners will get an exclusive Scarlet Spider costume when the game launches on that platform. 

In a blog post covering the announcement, NetEase’s Stephen Wu highlights environmental destruction as one of the Marvel Rivals’ big features. “Marvel Rivals lets you tear down walls to open shortcuts across the map or destroy a building’s foundation to collapse it on your foes. Embrace your strength as you destroy a bridge with Hulk or obliterate a building with Storm’s atmokinesis!”

The trailer shows a few examples of this in action. It’s not complete environmental destruction, but it’s a cool way to show how powerful the character’s abilities are.  

Right now, Marvel Rivals doesn’t have an official release date. I imagine NetEase wants to see how this July closed beta goes before making a final decision. Plus, it probably won’t hurt to see how this holiday season is shaping up with games like Call of Duty before committing to a date.

The post Marvel Rivals Is Coming To PS5, Xbox Series X|S With a Closed Beta Planned For July appeared first on News Ledge.

The Xbox One version is a curious omission, but a report from Insider Gaming says that the Xbox Series X|S version comes with cross-gen support for the Xbox One. 

Why can’t games shake the PS4 and Xbox One? It’s all a numbers game. Sony painted a crystal clear picture when it announced it had hit 59 million PS5 consoles sold. It’s a great number, but they also mentioned there are 118 million monthly active PlayStation users. That means about half of them are still rocking a PS4. Some could be playing PS3 or Vita, but most are on PS4. 

While the PlayStation 5 has sold well, it also shows that despite the industry growing a lot over the past decade – the playing/spending habits have seen a huge shift. A recent report from Newzoo (covered by Kotaku) shows how we can’t shake old games and why millions of folks are reluctant to upgrade their consoles (hint: all of these games still run fine on old hardware).

• According to Newzoo, the top 10 games by average monthly active users (MAU) are over seven years old.
• In 2023, 66 games were responsible for 80% of all playtime. Five (Fortnite, Roblox, League of Legends, Minecraft, and GTA V) accounted for 27% of all playtime that year. 
• Just 8 percent of playtime was spent on new, non-annual titles.

I’m part of the millions stuck playing what has been dubbed ‘forever games.’ Most of my playtime is spent on PUBG, which helped kickstart the Battle Royale genre in 2017. That or Warzone. Sure, I played some Diablo 4 and Dragon’s Dogma 2 when they released, but nowhere near the amount I would have played five or six years ago. I always return to my ‘forever game.’ 

Publishers have been trying to tackle this problem with mixed results. Some games, like Baldur’s Gate 3 and Helldivers 2, can break through. Others completely fail, Redfall being a recent example that comes to mind. This ultimately led to the studio’s shuttering. 

Jacob Navok, formerly director of business holdings at Square Enix, put together a fascinating thread on X talking about the recent failure of Final Fantasy games to meet their sales expectations. It’s a deep dive into the economics of video games and how they have shifted in recent years. 

What will be really interesting to see is what happens in 2025. That’s when Grand Theft Auto VI comes out. Take-Two has announced the game will only be available on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. This is one of the few franchises that can move the entire industry. And it will likely be the game that helps push early adoption for the ‘Pro’ versions of the Xbox Series X and PS5. 

As for Black Ops 6? Get ready for a huge reveal on June 9 during the Xbox Showcase.

The post Why Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Is Coming To Last-Gen Consoles Again appeared first on News Ledge.

“With two very ambitious RPGs now starting development, what better way to see our visions realised than by growing the team and opening a 7th studio in the heart of Poland’s lively gaming scene!

Welcome, Larian Studios Warsaw!”

In a press release, Larian Studios founder Swen Vincke touched a bit more on their decision to open a new studio in Poland.

“Visiting GIC last year confirmed what I’d been thinking for a while – there’s a lot of talent here and a lot of devs who think like us. On top of that, many of them want to work on RPGs so it’s a match made in heaven. Our plan for the Polish studio is very simple. Build a team that can work on our two—very ambitious—new RPGs and enjoy the fruits of their labour.”

You read that right; work is underway on two new games from the folks who brought us Baldur’s Gate 3 and Divinity: Original Sin. Earlier this year, Larian confirmed they were stepping away from the Baldur’s Gate franchise.

“As an independent studio since 1996, we value the freedom to follow our creativity wherever it leads. In this case, after six years in the Forgotten Realms and much discussion and rumination, we’ve decided to seize this opportunity to develop our own IPs. We’re currently working on two new projects and we couldn’t be more excited about what the future has in store.”

With seven studios under their belt, Larian Studios has the headcount to get to work on two games at once. And while we pretty much don’t know anything about these new IPs, Larian has said that player choice will be one of the central themes. 

“We’re fueled by the very same fire in our bellies, one that drives us to create immersive experiences shaped by your choices, and we can’t wait for you join us on this next adventure.”

Larian won’t be working on any significant new content for the Baldur’s Gate franchise, but they are still pushing out updates with some major features in the works including modding tools, photo mode, cross play, and more.

The post Baldur’s Gate 3 Developer Larian Studios Starts Up Yet Another Studio, Now Has 7 appeared first on News Ledge.

Helldivers 2 not only set a new record in sales but also marked a significant shift in Sony’s release strategy. The co-op shooter was simultaneously launched on PS5 and PC (via Steam), a move that was accompanied by a more affordable price point of $39.99, a departure from the usual $59.99 price tag of PlayStation games. 

With the game launching on PC at the same time, it was obvious it was going to be PlayStation’s biggest title. “The game has become our biggest PC hit to date, and as a multi-platform title, it also contributed significantly to sales and profit last quarter,” according to Sony.

But what kind of platform split are we talking about? Steam accounts for more than half of the sales. Circana’s Mat Piscatella said about 60% of Helldviers 2 sales in February were from Steam. It wouldn’t surprise me if this split steadily increased since Helldivers 2 is still in the top 10 on Steam for top-selling games by revenue. 

While the recent pushback over the PSN sign led to review bombing and Sony reversing its decision, it doesn’t seem to have translated into lost sales for PlayStation games. Helldivers 2 remains one of Steam’s top-selling games, and Ghost of Tsushima joins it at #5. 

As for the rest of PlayStation? The platform is still in a very powerful position. In the U.S., sales are still 7% ahead of PS4 and 66% ahead of PS3 at the same point in their life cycles. But the best days of the PS5 are probably behind it from a hardware sales standpoint. Sony announced 20.8 million units sold in its most recent fiscal year (FY23), which barely missed their 21 million target. For FY24, Sony expects to sell 18 million. 

However, those numbers could be higher depending on how well the long-rumored PS5 Pro is received. As summer kicks off, publishers and developers show off all the new stuff they are working on. Xbox has already penciled in a June 9 date for its Showcase. Last year, Sony held its Showcase in late May. So, it shouldn’t be long until we hear something about the next piece of PlayStation hardware. 

The post No PlayStation Game Has Sold Faster Than Helldivers 2. Ever appeared first on News Ledge.

According to the developers, ziplines “can be placed on building, terrain, and stationary, indestructible objects.”

The team behind PUBG also explained their thoughts behind the Zipline Gun:

Open up a whole new dimension of map navigation and engagement with Rondo’s latest addition, the Zipline Gun. Locations that were previously difficult to reach can now be infiltrated and ambushed via a zipline deployed at your chosen spot. We hope that the introduction of the Zipline Gun will allow for a broader array of strategies and engagements in Rondo, ultimately enriching the game’s meta with increased diversity.

Here’s a quick rundown of some of its features:

• Takes the secondary weapon slot.
• Three-second reload time between shots.
• Four uses per zipline.
• Can fire SMGs/handguns while zipping.
• Travel speeds depend on the slope of the zipline.
• It can also be deployed vertically to reach higher locations. (see 1:53 in the trailer below)

Update 29.2 also brings back Erangel Classic for a limited time. While the old-school lobby and UI will be heavy with nostalgia, the big changes to recoil have me wondering if the devs are using this to gather data on sweeping changes to the weapon meta before implementing them into the full game.

Horizontal and vertical recoil is seeing a 20-30% decrease across the board for ARs, SMGs, DMRs, LMGs, and Shotguns. The devs will offset the easier-to-control guns with a bump to armor. “All armor performance is increased by 7.5%.” That translates to all guns needing an extra bullet to take out other players. 

It’ll be interesting to see if anything from this limited-time mode makes it to the regular game. It’s a smart move by the devs to test things like lower recoil and better armor without pushing them into the main game. See how the community responds to it in a one-off mode without making controversial changes that could cause an uproar. 

Update 29.2 also brings a fresh map rotation. The good news for folks wanting to try Ernagel Classic is it’ll be a Featured Map during its two-week event. After that, Erangel will rejoin the usual map rotations. 

The post Zip Lines Go Portable In PUBG Update 29.2  appeared first on News Ledge.

“This is Furukawa, President of Nintendo. We will make an announcement about the successor to Nintendo Switch within this fiscal year. It will have been over nine years since we announced the existence of Nintendo Switch back in March 2015. We will be holding a Nintendo Direct this June regarding the Nintendo Switch software lineup for the latter half of 2024, but please be aware that there will be no mention of the Nintendo Switch successor during that presentation.”

Remember, the fiscal year is between now and March 2025. 

What we’ll see next month is the last push of Nintendo Switch software before the next hardware launch. 

But what about the Switch 2 (or whatever Nintendo calls it)? What kind of timeline are we looking at between reveal and release? Let’s look at the Nintendo Switch to get an idea of what we could see. 

The Nintendo Switch was unveiled on October 20, 2016, and hit retail less than six months later on March 3, 2017. The most recent rumors are pointing to a March 2025 release date. If these rumors pan out, we’ll probably see a very similar reveal to release for the next piece of Nintendo hardware.

I’m curious to see what today’s official acknowledgment of the next Nintendo hardware means for game announcements later this year. We’ll see a flurry of game announcements next month as publishers host events to talk about their lineups for the rest of this year and beyond. When 2025 games are announced, will the platform list include the next Nintendo Switch? It’ll be something to keep an eye on. 

Microsoft made a big deal about promising to bring Call of Duty to Nintendo platforms as it finalized its Activision Blizzard buyout. Maybe we’ll get confirmation that the next Call of Duty will hit Nintendo during their Xbox Showcase on June 9. 

I’m curious to see what Nintendo decides to do. The company has never been one to follow the traditional path. And the handheld market has a lot more competition these days with the Steam Deck. But Nintendo’s software will carry whatever they decide to do. Just give us a good performance bump, and I’ll be happy. 

The post Nintendo Confirms Switch Successor Is On The Way, But No News At June Nintendo Direct appeared first on News Ledge.

Typically, this close to a release, the specs start to firm up outside the normal social media speculation. What has leaked includes a mix of likely and the more ‘we wish it could do that.’

• Sensor: 24.5 megapixels
• Processor: EXPEED7
• Stabilization: 7 stops
• Shutter: 1/16,000 sec
• AF: 299 points
• Video: 12-bit N-RAW recording 6K/60p & 4K/120p
• 4K H.265 10-bit MOV video, ability to upsample 4K FX to 6K or 4K DX up to 120p.
• Burst: Up to 40 frames per second in FX format, 120 frames per second in DX format.
• Viewfinder: new high-resolution 5.76 megapixel viewfinder.
• Card slot: Supports CFexpress Type B and SD UHS-II cards
• Battery: EL-15″ battery
• High-Resolution Pixel Shift Photography
• Easy-to-use multi-angle LCD screen
• Shutter angle fine adjustment options, distinction between project frame rate and shooting frame rate
• Support for 2.4/5 GHz WiFi and Bluetooth LE connectivity
• USB-C fast charging and HDMI Type-A connectivity

Some are the pretty basic upgrades you see when moving up a generation. The sensor will get an upgrade alongside the processor. It bursting 120fps in DX mode seems like wishful thinking. It’s cropped, so it lends some credence, but a feature found in $5000 camera bodies in what is an entry-level full-frame? I’m not buying that spec, nor the video capability. Why not save that for a camera with better margins for Nikon?

Take the spec rumors with a generous helping of salt. It will be an upgrade, but the biggest generational leap ever? That’s not happening. If the timeline of ‘within weeks’ holds, expect some more realistic spec sheets to start leaking as we get closer to an announcement.

The post Nikon Z6 III Rumors Heat Up as Launch is Speculated to be Within Weeks appeared first on News Ledge.

This time last year, Xbox’s Matt Booty told Axios the plan was to keep Arkane Austin open while they continue updating Redfall. “That is the plan right now,” said Booty. “They are hard at work on updates and continued content for Redfall.”

Booty also told Axios that he feels “accountable that we could have done a better job with Arkane.” Well, it’s the developers on the receiving end of that accountability today as Booty announced today’s studio closures in an email to employees. Here’s what he wrote specifically about Arkane Austin today:

This studio will close with some members of the team joining other studios to work on projects across Bethesda. Arkane Austin has a history of making impactful and innovative games and it is a pedigree that everyone should be proud of. Redfall’s previous update will be its last as we end all development on the game. The game and its servers will remain online for players to enjoy and we will provide make-good offers to players who purchased the Hero DLC.

Sure, Redfall wasn’t a great game – but not every game will be the next big thing. And for a platform that needs games to keep Game Pass going, today’s decision to shutter Arkane Austin, Tango Gameworks, and Alpha Dog Studios doesn’t make much sense, especially at a time when we see smaller games becoming hugely popular. Almost every big game launched in 2024 came out of nowhere or was developed by small teams: Helldivers 2, Palworld, Manor Lords, Balatro, and countless others.

What kind of message does this send to the rest of the Xbox teams? If I’m the folks at Ninja Theory, I’m sweating bullets. Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II looks fantastic, but can it be successful enough for whatever metrics Xbox deems appropriate at the time? 

Supposedly, Xbox was pleased with Tango Gameworks as recently as last August.

Until they weren’t. 

It’s hard to see how any team not working on Forza, Call of Duty, Fallout, The Elder Scrolls, or Halo aren’t constantly looking over their shoulder, wondering if their studio is next. 

The post One Year After Saying They Don’t Plan To Shut Arkane Austin, Xbox Shuts It appeared first on News Ledge.

Developer, Sucker Punch, jumped on Twitter/X at the height of the Helldivers 2 controversy to reiterate what parts of Ghost of Tsushima will require a PSN account. If all you want to do is play the single-player portion, no PSN account is required. However, the multiplayer mode, Legends, will require a PSN account. You’ll also need a PSN account to use the PlayStation overlay.

I should note that this update from Sucker Punch did come before PlayStation’s statement late last night where they said they would no longer require a PSN account for Helldivers 2. 

Will PlayStation back off on the requirement for all multiplayer games? If Helldivers 2 doesn’t need it, why would any PlayStation game? Sure, it makes sense to have it for the PlayStation overlay to work – but this weekend’s pushback from the Helldivers 2 community shows it’s not needed at all for multiplayer games. 

Also, why did PlayStation catch all this flak from PC players while other publishers like Xbox and Rockstar Games don’t? There are a couple of reasons.

First, Helldivers 2 only briefly required a PSN sign-in at launch – but was quickly scrapped to help stabilize servers. PC folks don’t like having requirements thrown at them after a game’s launch. But the pushback to linking a PSN account was galvanized once Helldivers 2 was removed from sale from 177 countries/territories that don’t have access to PSN. 

We’ll see what happens moving forward. I won’t be surprised by PlayStation’s decision either way, but if I were them, I would lean towards removing the PSN account requirement for multiplayer, period. I’ll update this article if PlayStation’s position changes across all their games.

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Before the amateurs get excited, this won’t be slapping on a Mavic anytime soon. Think Inspire 3 or maybe a potential dual launch alongside an Inspire 4. The current focal length leader on the DL line is a 50mm f/2.8, so the 75mm is definitely an upgrade.  

The f/1.8 will allow for better low-light capability for both aerial photographers and videographers. It will also be the first true telephoto lens for the line, which will hopefully see further increases as the year progresses.

Compatibility is limited to DJI products with the Ronin 4D cinema camera along with the DJI Inspire. While we have a leaked screenshot, no word on the specs including weight, which will be especially important for the DJI Inspire 3. The longer focal length and wider aperture feel like a signal for the lens to tip the scales past the average DL lineup of .40 pounds.

Look for more leaks as we head into the summer. After the Avata 2 launch, all eyes will start to turn to DJI’s more traditional camera drone platforms for refreshes. 

IMG: OsitaLV

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“Patrol spawning has been increased when there are fewer than four players. The fewer the players the bigger the change. For 4 player missions there will be no change compared to before. The biggest noticeable change will be for solo players at higher difficulties.”

On first read, the changes don’t make much sense. But Helldivers 2’s community manager reached out to specific developers at Arrowhead to explain the changes. The quick answer? Missions were easier with fewer players because the patrol spawns didn’t match up correctly.

“Scaling of patrol spawns was exponential before, and that felt good on four player lobbies, but a bit too empty when playing with fewer players, especially when playing solo. 

Now we’ve made the scaling of patrols to be linear, which means that if you play solo you will get 25 % of the patrols compared to a four player lobby, instead of having about 17 % of the patrols. 

There is still a cap on patrols that may spawn at the same time, so during situations when we spawn a lot of patrols (such as extractions) even solo players won’t notice the difference. 

The change is made to make the world feel less empty for one and two player lobbies, especially on high difficulty missions – which was also slightly too easy for solo players compared to our intentions.”

Ok, that makes more sense. I wondered why they were making it more difficult for fewer players for seemingly no reason. Instead, it was a bug with spawn rates that is being fixed. The folks at Arrowhead could have saved themselves a community uproar if they explained that better in the patch notes. Or just wrote, “fixed patrol spawning.” Instead, the patch notes read like smaller squads are being punished. 

Still, if you’re running less than four players – you’re going to feel this change today. 

Despite Helldivers 2 being one of the smoothest co-op games to play with random folks, plenty of players still enjoy going solo. Some of the most popular guides on Steam focus on solo play.

Today’s patch is packed with changes to most of the game’s weapons. Some of the biggest at first glance are the nerf to the Quasar Cannon. Its recharge time is now increased by five seconds. The Railgun got some love today with increased armor penetration in both fire modes. Check out the full patch notes to see if your favorite loadout got better or worse today. 

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Here are the character breakdowns:

• Aaron Pierre as Mufasa
• Kelvin Harrison Jr. as Taka, a lion prince with a bright future who accepts Mufasa into his family as a brother
• Tiffany Boone as Sarabi
• Kagiso Lediga as Young Rafiki
• Preston Nyman as Zazu
• Mads Mikkelsen as Kiros, a formidable lion with big plans for his pride 
• Thandiwe Newton as Taka’s mother, Eshe
• Lennie James as Taka’s father, Obasi 
• Anika Noni Rose as Mufasa’s mother, Afia
• Keith David as Mufasa’s father, Masego
• John Kani as Rafiki
• Seth Rogen as Pumbaa
• Billy Eichner as Timon
• Donald Glover as Simba
• Introducing Blue Ivy Carter as Kiara, daughter of King Simba and Queen Nala
• And Beyoncé Knowles-Carter as Nala

The movie will enlist Rafiki to tell Mufasa’s story through a series of flashbacks. That’s how we are getting the addition of Beyonce’s daughter as the voice actor for Simba’s and Nala’s cub. The film is set to release on December 20th, with Lin Manuel Miranda taking the helm for the film’s songwriting and production duties. 

Expect a full trailer closer to the film’s release.

IMG: Disney

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First announced in 2020, the hype surrounding Manor Lords has exploded over the past 12 months, as city-building and strategy fans alike have been itching to get their hands on the game. 

Early critical reception has been overwhelmingly positive, but understand that the game is only now entering early access. The usual bugs will be present, and some features might be undercooked. According to the developer, Manor Lords will probably stay in early access for about a year. But the developer also stresses that “that might change depending on how the design develops with player feedback.”

What today’s release offers is “the structure and major mechanics of the game, ” says the developer.

As for a roadmap of what’s next? Styczeń is hesitant to release one right now.

“I’ve made a mistake once or twice before, of promising and working on a feature only to find out that the testers didn’t care as much as I did and that they actually wanted something else.” 

Instead, what comes next will focus on what the community really wants. For the next month or so, work will focus on critical bug fixes and continuing to polish the game. “During that time, together with Hooded Horse, we’ll be collecting your feedback and then prioritizing work based on what we hear,” Styczeń writes.

It wouldn’t shock me to see the current peak player count of 146,000 grow even further as we enter peak gaming hours this weekend. Manor Lords is launching with a 25% discount to celebrate its early access launch. If you’re looking for an even cheaper way to try the game out, Manor Lords also launched on PC Game Pass today.

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For two weeks starting May 14, Erangel Classic will return. This will be the fan-favorite map as it was when it first launched. Hell, we’re even getting some of the old UI elements back. 

While Erangel will return to its classic roots, the gameplay evolution we’ve seen over the past seven years will mostly remain intact with one curious change. From the developers:

“The firearms carry a certain nostalgic touch, too… That’s right, we’ve reduced recoil! While not an exact replica of the old recoil, players will still be able to reminisce about those early PUBG days.”

PUBG’s developers touched on gunplay changes as part of their 2024 roadmap. An SMG rebalance is already live in the game’s Arcade mode, including recoil decreases across the board. The developers could be using the Erangel Classic event to test out reduced recoil for all the weapons.

The developers have promised that more significant changes will be applied to a dedicated playlist in Arcade mode before it is fully implemented in Normal and Ranked matches. But we’ll also see smaller weapon changes go live occasionally in monthly updates. The small buffs to the SCAR-L and AKM are good examples of this. Both were improved slightly in the most recent Update 29.1.

As for new maps? We haven’t heard anything official on that front. But the team did say there was some content that “is still too early to unveil in this roadmap.” We do know that work towards transitioning PUBG to Unreal Engine 5 is underway. And the team continues to work on what they call a “User Generated Content (UGC) service.” 

I’m curious to see how far this UGC service goes. Could we get a map editor similar to Halo’s Forge? Fortnite is an excellent example of how a game’s community can help keep a game as popular as ever. 

For now, the most faithful PUBG fans will get a hefty dose of nostalgia as the Erangel Classic returns on May 14.

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Why is the 40 FPS mode a big deal? Digital Foundry explained it in a video they did when talking about Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart’s 40 FPS. They described it as “like a midpoint between 30 fps and 60 fps.” 

Here’s a more technical explanation from them:

“Instead of updating every 33.3ms (30fps) on a 60Hz screen, Ratchet updates every 25ms (40fps) at 120Hz, the same consistency but smoother.”

60 FPS would be 16.6ms. While there is only a 10 FPS difference, 40 FPS will feel much smoother than 30 FPS because of the differences above. 

Today’s news could also impact Star Wars Outlaws. Both Outlaws and Frontiers of Pandora are developed by Massive Entertainment (the folks responsible for The Division franchise). While we’ve heard no official word on a 40 FPS mode coming to Star Wars Outlaws, the fact Frontiers of Pandora received this update means a similar mode coming to Outlaws is more likely. 

So far, we haven’t seen many games with a 40 FPS mode. Only a handful support the performance mode on both PS5 and Xbox Series, including:

Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora

Hogwarts Legacy

Lies of P

Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord

A Plauge Tale: Requiem. 

Several PlayStation exclusives also support the mode like God of War Ragnarok, Horizon Forbidden West, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, Spider-Man 2, and a few others.

It wouldn’t shock me to see a 40 FPS mode become more popular with developers as more folks get TVs that support 120hz and VRR (variable refresh rate). This is especially true as it’s looking more likely that the ‘Pro’ version of new consoles won’t see any substantial CPU upgrades. 40 FPS modes could be a solid middle ground as developers look to show off graphics while keeping gameplay smooth. 

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In a community update this morning, the dev team teased a little bit more about what’s next for Larian. 

“As an independent studio since 1996, we value the freedom to follow our creativity wherever it leads. In this case, after six years in the Forgotten Realms and much discussion and rumination, we’ve decided to seize this opportunity to develop our own IPs. We’re currently working on two new projects and we couldn’t be more excited about what the future has in store.”

Long-time Larian fans will instantly assume one of these projects is related to the studio’s Divinity IP. If you want to scratch your Baldur’s Gate itch, you can’t go wrong with Larian’s last game, Divinity: Original Sin 2. Everything that made Baldur’s Gate 3 special came from the work done on Divinity: Original Sin 1 and 2.

We don’t know much about these two projects currently in the works, but the devs say player choice will play a role. “We’re fueled by the very same fire in our bellies, one that drives us to create immersive experiences shaped by your choices, and we can’t wait for you to join us on this next adventure.”

As for Baldur’s Gate 3? The team is working on the next update, Patch 7. This will include better evil endings for the game with new cinematic cutscenes and music. And they dropped a piece of music that will be used as players embrace their dark side.

Besides the usual bug fixes, Patch 7 will introduce Larian’s official modding tools. This will give modders more options to change visuals, animations, sounds, stats, etc. And while we won’t get any DLC, the devs will continue to push out updates with Crossplay and a Photo Mode also in the works. 

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The Fun Pimps (the team behind the game) got the rights back for the console version and are working on a new version of the game that’ll run on PS5 and Xbox Series consoles. 

This upcoming version will be running on the same version of the game as the PC version. 

In a February dev diary, the developers touched on the upcoming release of Alpha 22. We don’t have a specific release date yet, but it will be this year. In it, they briefly touched on the new console version:

• The Alpha 22 update will be released on PS5 and Xbox Series consoles along with Windows/Mac/Linux. 
• All the features and content will be the same across all platforms. 
• This will be an entirely new version of 7 Days to Die. That means you’ll have to purchase it again on console. The devs “are in talks hoping to offer a discount for players that own the old 2016 release.” But I would go in assuming you’ll have to pay full price for this new version. 

The Fun Pimps were at Pax East 2024 recently, showing off the PS5 version of the game. You can see the Alpha 22 version displayed in the top right of the footage. 

Performance looks rough here, but I’m pumped that we’re finally seeing feature parity between console and PC. There’s nothing quite like 7 Days to Die, and it’s fantastic to see console folks finally getting the most up-to-date version of the game. 

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There also appears to be an issue with getting players connected to all the regional data centers the dev team uses for Sea of Thieves. From Rare: 

“While the team are hard at work attempting to mitigate the issues as we speak, we will not be able to resolve the issue fully during the Closed Beta.” 

This issue can cause two problems. Long matchmaking times and higher latency as players connect to servers that aren’t the closest to them.

For folks who do manage to play this weekend, any progress made will carry over once the game officially launches on April 30. Sea of Thieves’ newest season, Season 12, will kick off the same day with new weapons and content coming.

Sea of Thieves is part of Xbox’s expanded plan to bring more games to rival platforms. Four games are coming (or have already been released) on Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 5:

• Pentiment – released February 22 on PlayStation and Nintendo Switch
• Hi-Fi Rush – released February 22 on PlayStation 5
• Grounded – releasing April 16 on Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 5
• Sea of Thieves – releasing April 30 on PlayStation 5

These aren’t the first games to hit other platforms. When Minecraft became part of Xbox, support continued across all platforms. And with Microsoft’s recent acquisition of Activision Blizzard, games like Call of Duty, Overwatch, and Diablo will continue to be released on other platforms. 

But the four games above do mark a shift as Xbox looks to expand each game’s community and how much they can make. It wouldn’t surprise me to see Xbox expand even further, depending on how well these games are received.

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