Apex Legends developer Respawn has provided some transparency on its update plans for the hit battle royale game, making it clear that it won't follow Fortnite creator Epic Games' lead. In a statement, Respawn's Drew McCoy said the company will release 'thoughtful updates' during game seasons, but won't compromise its work culture or risk burning out employees in order to rapidly release new content.
Some conventions have become so normal and so ingrained these days that you almost have to explicitly state something that was, a few years ago, the norm. That's half of gamers' reaction when the next Star Wars Jedi title and trailer were finally revealed, following the first trailer for Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker. To assure fans of the franchise that this won't be a money grab, the game is now being heavily advertised as a strictly single-player activity with no microtransactions involved.
On March 26, aging game Star Wars Battlefront II will get an update that brings a new mode called "Capital Supremacy" set during the Clone Wars era of the franchise. The game mode will be set in Pipeline Junction West on Geonosis, as well as in the interior of the Separatist Dreadnought and Republic Attack Cruiser capital ship. According to EA, players can expect non-linear ground battle gameplay.
The battle royale genre has been successfully shaken up thanks to the arrival of Apex Legends, with Respawn's team shooter hitting 50 million players in its first month. But that rapidly growing player-base means more than a few cheaters are jumping in as well. Fortunately the developer is on top of things, for the most part, revealing that several hundred thousand players have been struck down by the ban-hammer.
Apparently, gamers aren't tired of battle royales just yet. The young genre, led by the likes of Epic Games' Fortnite and lone wolf PUBG, is the hottest thing in gaming these days and anyone and everyone is trying cash in on it. Just three days ago, game developer Respawn Entertainment, makers of Titanfall, launched its free-to-play version set within the same universe and within that time frame, it reached a player milestone that Fortnite also did only after two weeks.
This weekend sees the release of another demo for Anthem, the multiplayer third-person shooter/RPG from BioWare and EA. But unlike last weekend's "VIP" demo, which got off to a rocky start thanks to heavy server loads and other technical difficulties, this weekend anyone can give it a try on PS4, Xbox One, or PC, getting a taste of the game before its release on February 22nd.
It seems that Amazon has found a new niche market for Alexa that goes beyond smart home automation. Last October, it collaborated with Ubisoft in order to bring Alexios, a new Alexa skill designed specifically for the Assassin’s Creed Odyssey game. This time, it has worked with Electronic Arts not for a new game but for an expansion that is smashing the real world and the virtual world together. Unfortunately, there’s now funny The Sims incarnation of the real-world Alexa even if there is an incomprehensible one in-game.
Fans of any franchise, be it sci-fi or fantasy, would probably drool over the thought of living in an open world version of that fictional world. Even if said world is purely digital. Indeed, there have been no shortage of plans and sometimes even low-budget attempts to have open world games based on The Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones, Star Trek, and, of course, Star Wars, few of which have come to pass. One that almost seemed close to becoming reality might sadly no longer happen as EA Games has reportedly canned the open world Star Wars games it has been working on for the past year or so.
Battlefield V (or 5, whatever you want) FIRESTORM was revealed today by EA and Origin. Firestorm is the Battle Royale of Battlefield 5, bringing a wild new approach to the game mode that's become wildly popular over the past year. Starting in at around the 1-minute mark here in the newest trailer for the impending launch of the game.
Last week's mass shooting tragedy in Jacksonville, Florida at a bar hosting a tournament for the Madden 19 video game left three people dead and 11 others wounded. Now, one of the victims that was shot twice and survived has filed a lawsuit against EA, the developer/publisher of the football game, and the venue that hosted the tournament. The suit alleges that the game company "failed to provide a safe and secure environment" for the event.
One of 2019's most anticipated games is EA's Anthem, the sci-fi action/shooter RPG that lets players don mech-like battle suits and explore an open world with friends or on their own. At this weekend's PAX West event, developer BioWare hosted a panel focusing on the game, revealing a few new details about what players can expect before release, namely a playable demo coming in February.
EA's Origin service has competed with Steam for years at this point, but now we're seeing it take a page out of Netflix's book as well. Today, EA launched a new service called Origin Access Premier, which allows subscribers to play the company's newest titles without a purchase in return for a monthly subscription fee. Other gaming companies have tried similar subscription services, with Sony and Microsoft most notable among them.