Humble Bundle has launched a new ‘Stand with Ukraine’ bundle that offers 100 percent of proceeds to humanitarian relief efforts in Ukraine. These charities include Razom for Ukraine, International Rescue Committee, International Medical Corps and Direct Relief.
This Humble Bundle includes 123 games like Back 4 Blood, Satisfactory, Metro Exodus, Slay the Spire and Fable Anniversary.
The starting amount for this Humble Bundle is $51.31 CAD for all 123 titles, and Humble says it’s managed to raise $1.9 million USD (about $2.3 million CAD) at the time of writing.
Ubisoft has announced Scalar, a new cloud-native technology that it claims “changes the way games are made and experienced.”
Scalar is led by Ubisoft Stockholm in Sweden in collaboration with teams in Malmö, Sweden; Helsinki, Finland; Bucharest, Romania and Kyiv, Ukraine.
Per Ubisoft, Scalar will reduce dependency on game engines, which are used to create games, to open up game development possibilities. The company says this will enable developers to avoid traditional production constraints to focus on game design and player experience.
Using a microservice architecture, Scalar breaks down components and systems of traditional game engines, like AI and physics, independently in the cloud. This creates a distributed model across a “potentially unlimited” number of machines. In theory, this can then allow developers to leverage a “virtually infinite” amount of computing power to create digital worlds that “were previously unachievable.”
Additionally, Ubisoft says the tech is capable of dynamically starting and stopping services based on both player and developer activity so it only uses required computing power in real-time. This removes the need for developers to recompute what has already been computed.
Given that it’s still early, it’s unclear how this might impact specific Ubisoft games, like Assassin’s Creed or even the upcoming Splinter Cell remake. On a broader level, though, Ubisoft explained how this can impact the player experience.
For one, Scalar will allow developers to update and improve one service without affecting others, or add features to a game while people are playing, no download required. Additionally, the company teased how this might impact social games.
“Natively cross-platform and scalable, [Scalar] allows [players] to gather by the millions in a singular, shared virtual environment for new types of games and massively social experiences,” says Ubisoft. “And with cloud-accelerated systems, game worlds also reach a new level of persistency where players’ actions can have an immediate and lasting impact on their environment, opening the doors to new forms of emergent gameplay.”
For now, Ubisoft says its Stockholm studio is using Scalar to make a brand-new IP, although it will gradually expand the tech to all of its studios. The publishing giant has a significant Canadian presence, with major studios in Montreal, Quebec City and Toronto, in particular.
Companies are becoming increasingly invested in game streaming technology. In addition to the streaming-only platforms Google Stadia and Nvidia GeForce Now, Xbox and PlayStation have optional streaming services, Xbox Cloud Gaming and PlayStation Now, respectively. Nintendo also leverages the cloud to bring select games to the Switch, including Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy and theKingdom Hearts series.
Canadian streamer xQc from Quebec has broken a very important NDA after allegedly launching Overwatch 2on his Twitch stream.
While I can’t confirm the authenticity of this video, it looks likely that this is Overwatch 2, especially given the closed alpha is currently available for Overwatch League players and Blizzard employees — and apparently well-known streamers. It’s worth noting that the login page doesn’t say Overwatch 2 and only reads “Overwatch.” However, this doesn’t mean that it’s not the correct game.
Overwatch 2 was initially announced back in 2019, but the game has yet to release. While we’ve received news about new characters, maps and game modes, no actual release date has been confirmed. However, the game’s director, Aaron Keller, recently released more information about the title and revealed that a new closed beta will launch in late April.
Additionally, a developer livestream scheduled for March 18th will likely reveal more information about Overwatch 2.
Apex Legends Mobile is now available for pre-registration on Google Play, and you can sign up for updates on iOS.
Apex Legends Mobile offers the battle royale experience on the go.
According to EA, new legends, maps, gameplay modes, and live events and “mobile-first adaptations and innovations” will be part of this new smartphone and tablet take on Apex. The game will not feature cross-play with Apex Legends on other platforms, unlike the popular battle royale title Fortnite.
Apex Legends Mobile previously launched in a free closed beta in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Mexico, Peru, Argentina and Colombia.
In the regional launch, the only characters available were Wraith, Bangalore, Octane, Mirage, Pathfinder Bloodhound, Gibraltar, Lifeline and Caustic. However, it’s unclear if more of the game’s characters will be available in the mobile title.
Check out all other titles coming to Nvidia GeForce Now later in February here.
Nvidia’s cloud gaming service offers three membership options. The first is the free route that will give you standard access to the platform with a one-hour gaming limit per session. Once the hour passes, you can queue again to get another hour of free gaming in, although you may have to wait a while.
Nvidia also offers a paid membership option that gives you priority access to gaming servers without any session length limit. This subscription will cost you $12.99/month or $64.99 for six months.
Lastly, the company’s recently-released RTX 3080 tier provides a low ‘click-to-pixel’ latency of 56 milliseconds, and a boost in framerates and overall performance. The subscription is available for $24.99/month or $129.99 for six months.
Learn more about Nvidia GeForce and its subscription options here.
Warner Bros. has confirmed that its highly anticipated Hogwarts Legacy game will launch in holiday 2022.
The release window was given during a new PlayStation State of Play presentation, in which 14 minutes of new gameplay footage were revealed.
Developed by Avalanche Software, Hogwarts Legacy is an open-world, action-RPG that lets players create their own wizard or witch, a fifth-year newcomer to Hogwarts in the 1800s. From there, you’ll get sorted into Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff and attend various classes, including Defence Against the Dark Arts, Potions and Herbology.
The larger story focuses on the player character, who holds mysterious magical abilities, as they work with Professor Fig to investigate a mounting goblin rebellion. Since the game is set in the 1800s, characters like Harry Potter won’t appear, although Avalanche promises some “familiar faces,” such as Nearly Headless Nick pre-head injury, will pop up.
Outside of all that, you’ll be able to explore Hogwarts’ grounds, including the castle and courtyards, as well as surrounding areas, like Hogsmeade and the Forbidden Forest. Brooms and Hippogriffs will be available to traverse the outdoor areas. As you explore, you’ll meet new students who can become Companions, who will teach you new spells and unlock their own story threads in a system that is reminiscent of Persona.
Gameplay-wise, Avalanche is promising “dozens” of spells, including Accio, Incendio, Confringo and Reparo. You can also use magical beasts in combat, such as a Mandrake to scream at enemies and stun them.
Outside of the gameplay footage, members of the Avalanche development team offered some commentary on their approach to the Wizarding World. You can see that towards the end of the State of Play.
Hogwarts Legacy is coming to PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox consoles and PC.
Bandai Namco and FromSoftware have released a new patch for Elden Ring. Patch 1.03 offers new questlines, a new NPC, and map tracking for characters you’ve met. Additionally, the patch includes a nerf for the Mimic Tear Spirit Ashes (😢) and added bug fixes.
You’ll be able to add an icon and the name of an NPC that you meet on the map. The new NPC is named Jar-Bairn, who you can learn more about here.
FromSoftware also says that it has added some summonable NPCs in multiple situations — hopefully that means you’ll be able to summon an NPC before fighting Malenia, Blade of Miquella because that was one tough battle.
EldenRing has also fixed a bug with stat scaling on some arcane weapons, and added questlines for Diallos, Nepheli Loux, Kenneth Haight and Gatekeeper Gostoc.
Here are the full patch notes below:
Changes
Added a function to record an icon and the name of an NPC on the map when you encounter that NPC.
Added NPC Jar-Bairn.
Added new quest phases for the following NPCs: Diallos/ Nepheli Loux/ Kenneth Haight/ Gatekeeper Gostoc.
Added some summonable NPCs in multiple situations.
Increased the number of patterns of objects player can imitate when using Mimic’s Veil.
Added night background music for some open field areas.
Bug fixes
Fixed a bug that prevented summoned NPCs from taking damage in some boss battles.
Fixed a bug that sometimes prevented the player from obtaining items after a boss battle.
Fixed a bug that causes dialogue to be skipped when talking to NPCs and using custom key configurations.
Fixed a bug that causes the player to freeze when riding.
Fixed a bug that causes arcane to scale incorrectly for some weapons.
In situations where the player cannot obtain more than 2 talisman pouches, added talisman pouch to Twin Maiden Husks shop line up.
Fixed a bug that prevented the user from warping to sites of grace from the map at the end of the game.
Fixed a bug that prevented the player from moving to the next area after the battle with the Fire Giant.
Fixed a bug which causes some weapons to have incorrect scaling after strengthening.
Fixed a bug which causes some weapons to not use stat scaling.
Fixed hang-ups in certain occasions.
Fixed a bug which incorrectly displays multiplayer area boundary when playing online.
Fixed a bug that allows players to activate Erdtree Greatshield’s weapon skill without absorbing an attack using a special combination of item and incantation.
Fixed a bug which causes Fire’s Deadly Sin incantation to have a different effect.
Fixed a bug with the Ash of War, Determination and Royal Knight’s Resolve, where the damage buff will also apply to other weapons without that skill.
Adjusted the visual effect of Unseen Form spell.
Deleted the Ragged armor set from the game which was mistakenly obtainable in previous patch.
Fixed a bug that causes some hostile NPCs to drop Furlcalling Finger Remedy.
Fixed a bug that causes incorrect sound effect to play in some situations.
Fixed a bug which causes visual animation and hitboxes to not be displayed correctly on some maps.
Fixed bugs which cause incorrect visual and behavior for some enemies.
Fixed a bug that causes incorrect stat parameter for some armor.
Text fixes.
Other performance improvement and bug fixes.
Balance changes
Increased the drop rate of Smithing Stone for some enemies.
Added Smithing Stone to some early game shop line up.
Increased shield’s effectiveness.
Increased the damage for all offensive cracked pot items.
Increased the damage for the following items: Spark Aromatic/Poison Spraymist.
Increased the effect duration for the following items: Uplifting Aromatic/ Ironjar Aromatic.
Increased HP healing for Torrent when using the following items: Rowa Raisin/ Sweet Raisin/ Frozen Raisin
Reduced FP consumption and increased the damage of the following sorceries: Glintstone Cometshard/ Comet/ Night Comet
Increased the damage of the following sorceries: Gravity Well/ Collapsing Stars/ Crystal Barrage
Decreased FP consumption of the following sorceries: Star Shower/ Rock Blaster/ Gavel of Haima/ Founding Rain of Stars/ Stars of Ruin/Greatblade Phalanx/Magic Downpour/ Loretta’s Greatbow/ Loretta’s Mastery/ Carian Greatsword/ Carian Piercer/ Shard Spiral
Raised projectile speed and range of Great Glintstone Shard
Decreased Ash of War, Hoarfrost Stomp’s damage and increase cast time.
Increased Ash of War, Bloody Slash’s self-inflict damage while slightly lowering the damage and increasing the cast time.
Decreased weapon skill, Sword of Night and Flame’s damage.
Increased FP consumption and lower duration of Ash of War, Barricade Shield.
Changed FP consumption timing of Ash of War, Prelate’s Charge.
Decreased the damage of spirit summoned when using the item Mimic Tear Ash and changed the spirit’s behavior pattern.
FromSoftware’s Elden Ringis a fantastic game, so it’s not surprising that it’s already sold more than 12 million units. This is pretty impressive for a title that only came out on February 25th.
“It’s astonishing to see just how many people have been playing Elden Ring,” Elden Ring game director Hidetaka Miyazaki said in a statement. “I’d like to extend our heartfelt thanks on behalf of the entire development team. Elden Ring is based on a mythological story written by George R. R. Martin. We hope players enjoy a high level of freedom when adventuring through its vast world, exploring its many secrets and facing up to its many threats. Thank you for your continued support.”
Other FromSoftware games have sold well, but never this well. Bloodborne reached one million sales in its first week, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice sold 10 million units, and Dark Souls 3 sold three million sales worldwide.
If you want to learn more about Elden Ring, check out our full review.
Anticipated action-adventure game Tunic is releasing on Xbox Game Pass on day one, March 16th.
The surprise announcement came from publisher Finji during Xbox and Twitch’s indie-focused ID@Xbox Showcase. Tunic was previously only confirmed for Xbox consoles, PC and Mac without any Game Pass offering.
Notably, Tunic has been developed primarily by Halifax’s Andrew Shouldice over the past several years. Drawing inspiration from The Legend of Zelda, Tunic follows a sword-wielding fox as he explores a mysterious land. An emphasis has been placed on exploration and puzzle-solving, with the in-game text largely being displayed via a made-up language.
Xbox Game Pass for Console costs $11.99 CAD/month and is also included in a $16.99/month Game Pass Ultimate subscription. The game is also available for purchase for $34.99.
A well-known console modder has produced a functional portable GameCube.
The creation comes from YouTuber GingerOfOz, who has also made a portable PS2 and Wii. To make the portable GameCube, Ginger got feedback from “Demond,” the person who created the mock-up of the rumoured ‘GameCube Advance’ handheld that ended up being fake.
From there, Ginger had to painstakingly attempt to design the console using that single 2005-era render. In a nearly 20-minute video, he breaks down his efforts, which include using a Wii motherboard and adding unique GameCube software.
