Leaks are dropping frequently as the launch date approaches.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, set to release on October 25, has received some leaks about classic multiplayer maps such as Nuketown, and more.
The leaks also showed info about menu screens and perks, but shortly after, Activision took down the content, citing copyright claims. The leaks originally came …
No Rest for the Wicked developer Moon Studios has released its first new content update for the early access release.
Known as The Crucible update, it brings a "whole new Crucible" (seems fitting), as well as a new fungal enemy faction known as the Gloam, a new Exalted item status, the promise of "more visceral" combat and more.
You can check out a little teaser for the update in the video below.
Grimdark hack-and-slasher No Rest For The Wicked has received its first major update - or the first that isn't focused on bug fixes and performance improvements, anyway. It focuses on revamping the Crucible, the endgame's repeatable roguelite, adding more randomisation to arenas and a new system of player buffs.
Grimdark hack-and-slasher No Rest For The Wicked has received its first major update - or the first that isn't focused on bug fixes and performance improvements, anyway. It focuses on revamping the Crucible, the endgame's repeatable roguelite, adding more randomisation to arenas and a new system of player buffs.
Welcome back to Next-Gen Console Watch! It's a two-man show this week, with Daemon joined by Unlocked's Ryan McCaffrey to talk gamescom 2024 predictions. How hard will Xbox go, considering they're the only major console manufacturer attending? Could we finally see the Xbox handheld? Maybe some release dates for upcoming games? Plus we go over the previous poll results, and have a new poll for you to vote on at IGN.com.
Way back in 2004, that terrible year when I swore off video games entirely to focus on my university studies, developers 1C SeaWolf announced Captain Blood, a piratical action game loosely based on Rafael Sabatini's adventure novels, in which a crew of 17th century freebooters set forth across the Spanish Main to rescue a magistrate's daughter from assorted bilge-drinking scallywags. Early footage painted the portrait of a spirited 3D hack-and-slasher featuring much buckling of swashes, heaving of hos and jollying of rogers.
Jim Rossignol (RPS in peace) was cautiously enthused when he played Captain Blood in 2008. "It was actually pretty fun - especially the arcade boat violence between speedy galleons - but I'm not exactly holding out for a masterpiece," he wrote. Alas, Captain Blood's ship struck a reef in the shape of unspecified publishing disputes, and sank beneath the waves after one last defiant preview showing in 2010. Now, the game has risen from the depths Flying Dutchman-style thanks to new developers Seawolf Studio and General Arcade and publisher SNEG Ltd. It'll finally launch on PC later this year.
Way back in 2004, that terrible year when I swore off video games entirely to focus on my university studies, developers 1C SeaWolf announced Captain Blood, a piratical action game loosely based on Rafael Sabatini's adventure novels, in which a crew of 17th century freebooters set forth across the Spanish Main to rescue a magistrate's daughter from assorted bilge-drinking scallywags. Early footage painted the portrait of a spirited 3D hack-and-slasher featuring much buckling of swashes, heaving of hos and jollying of rogers.
Jim Rossignol (RPS in peace) was cautiously enthused when he played Captain Blood in 2008. "It was actually pretty fun - especially the arcade boat violence between speedy galleons - but I'm not exactly holding out for a masterpiece," he wrote. Alas, Captain Blood's ship struck a reef in the shape of unspecified publishing disputes, and sank beneath the waves after one last defiant preview showing in 2010. Now, the game has risen from the depths Flying Dutchman-style thanks to new developers Seawolf Studio and General Arcade and publisher SNEG Ltd. It'll finally launch on PC later this year.
Activision Blizzard steps in to clarify Call of Duty download size after player panic.
Activision has clarified that Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 won’t actually require a 300 GB download despite previous messaging.
Players began to panic about the size of this year’s Call of Duty after noticing its Xbox store page yesterday. At the time, the page listed that the game would …
The iPad Air keeps getting better and better. The new 2024 iPad Air sports the powerful M2 chip, and on top of that, Apple has introduced a new 13-inch size in addition to the 11-inch, just like the iPad Pro M4. If you're looking for a good case for your iPad Air M2, the good news is that most cases for the iPad Air 5 will fit the 11-inch model, and there are already a lot of great options for the 13-inch Air. We've got you covered with the best iPad Air M2 cases right here.
But there’s no word on a price rise.
Amid speculation Microsoft plans to launch a new, more expensive tier of Game Pass, the company has confirmed Call of Duty Black Ops 6 will be playable upon launch on all existing tiers.
This week, Microsoft announced the arrival of Call of Duty Black Ops 6 day-one on Xbox …
Counter attack.
The high-profile video game cheat maker recently ordered to pay Activision millions of dollars in damages in a court ruling has vowed to continue to release cheats for Call of Duty.
This week, the United States District Court of the Central District of California granted Activision’s motion for default judgement …
Unlocked weapon sets, exclusive operator skins, and more
The Call of Duty Black Ops 6 showcase is scheduled for June 9 2024, featuring after the Xbox event. It was announced by the Xbox wire on Tuesday. In just over a week, the worldwide reveal of Black Ops 6 is happening, and fans are excited. It's expected to be …
Microsoft plans to launch this year's Call of Duty via Xbox Game Pass for the first time, in a first for the franchise.
That's according to The Wall St Journal, which today reported that Microsoft had now made the decision ahead of the game's formal unveiling next month.
While Xbox has always brought new first-party games to Xbox Game Pass on day one, and Activision Blizzard is now a Microsoft first-party publisher following the completion of its $68.7bn takeover, there had still been a question mark over whether Call of Duty would be included.
The 360 years feel like a lifetime ago. This week, Xbox stunned the industry by announcing it had closed three studios, and repurposed a fourth into another service game support team. This follows the 1900 people laid off across Xbox at the start of this year, and those Xbox employees quietly caught up in the 10,000 layoffs Microsoft made the year before. It has been a disastrous piece of PR self-sabotage, particularly with the reputations of these studios in mind.
Arkane Austin struggled with the uncharacteristic co-op, online shooter elements of Redfall, but before that made the excellent 2017 reboot of Prey and the first, fantastic Dishonored that led to the immersive sim's modern mini-revival. Tango Gameworks, Microsoft's only Japan-based studio that was led, until earlier this year, by horror legend Shinji Mikami, made The Evil Within games and the critically acclaimed, BAFTA-winning breakout Hi-Fi Rush. Roundhouse Studios was founded by the makers of the original Prey, but is now presumably destined to make different coloured leather boots for The Elder Scrolls Online. Alpha Dog made mobile games, an area where Microsoft has been specifically looking to expand. More broadly, for two console generations now, Xbox has floundered under a clear and obvious lack of inventive, attention-grabbing exclusive games. It just bought these studios in 2021.
If it weren't for the people involved, in 2024, these closures would almost feel routine. This is far from the end of Xbox, of course - in Los Angeles next month, it'll hold yet another make-or-break press conference, that maps out yet another plan for rescuing a lost generation. But be it through exasperation or exhaustion - or the wider industry's sheer, pent-up rage - this feels like something of a nadir. Xbox has spun its wheels for more than a decade, lurching from U-turn to U-turn, strategic reboot to strategic reboot, acquisition to acquisition, closure to closure. The good times have always felt just over the horizon. Project Scorpio will set the tone; Game Pass is the future; the Series X will have the games; Starfield will jump-start Game Pass now it's stalled. The growing sentiment today is that they'll probably never come.
Moon Studios has outlined the changes coming to the first patch for its early access dark fantasy action RPG, No Rest for the Wicked.
"This patch brings significant CPU and GPU performance improvements (especially when it comes to traversal and “heavy” areas), keyboard control remapping, a new mouse/keyboard control scheme, increased inventory stacks, chest inventory access at vendors / crafting, bows using stamina, earlier housing access, Quality of Life and 45+ bug fixes," the team explained in the patch notes, saying the patch "celebrates" the game's two-week anniversary.
Given the long, long list of performance improvements and optimisations, Moon Studios has now revised its recommended PC specs for the RPG, the updated version of which is available below:
The 360 years feel like a lifetime ago. This week, Xbox stunned the industry by announcing it had closed three studios, and repurposed a fourth into another service game support team. This follows the 1900 people laid off across Xbox at the start of this year, and those Xbox employees quietly caught up in the 10,000 layoffs Microsoft made the year before. It has been a disastrous piece of PR self-sabotage, particularly with the reputations of these studios in mind.
Arkane Austin struggled with the uncharacteristic co-op, online shooter elements of Redfall, but before that made the excellent 2017 reboot of Prey and the first, fantastic Dishonored that led to the immersive sim's modern mini-revival. Tango Gameworks, Microsoft's only Japan-based studio that was led, until earlier this year, by horror legend Shinji Mikami, made The Evil Within games and the critically acclaimed, BAFTA-winning breakout Hi-Fi Rush. Roundhouse Studios was founded by the makers of the original Prey, but is now presumably destined to make different coloured leather boots for The Elder Scrolls Online. Alpha Dog made mobile games, an area where Microsoft has been specifically looking to expand. More broadly, for two console generations now, Xbox has floundered under a clear and obvious lack of inventive, attention-grabbing exclusive games. It just bought these studios in 2021.
If it weren't for the people involved, in 2024, these closures would almost feel routine. This is far from the end of Xbox, of course - in Los Angeles next month, it'll hold yet another make-or-break press conference, that maps out yet another plan for rescuing a lost generation. But be it through exasperation or exhaustion - or the wider industry's sheer, pent-up rage - this feels like something of a nadir. Xbox has spun its wheels for more than a decade, lurching from U-turn to U-turn, strategic reboot to strategic reboot, acquisition to acquisition, closure to closure. The good times have always felt just over the horizon. Project Scorpio will set the tone; Game Pass is the future; the Series X will have the games; Starfield will jump-start Game Pass now it's stalled. The growing sentiment today is that they'll probably never come.
Moon Studios has outlined the changes coming to the first patch for its early access dark fantasy action RPG, No Rest for the Wicked.
"This patch brings significant CPU and GPU performance improvements (especially when it comes to traversal and “heavy” areas), keyboard control remapping, a new mouse/keyboard control scheme, increased inventory stacks, chest inventory access at vendors / crafting, bows using stamina, earlier housing access, Quality of Life and 45+ bug fixes," the team explained in the patch notes, saying the patch "celebrates" the game's two-week anniversary.
Given the long, long list of performance improvements and optimisations, Moon Studios has now revised its recommended PC specs for the RPG, the updated version of which is available below:
Did you miss out on the news this week? If you did, there were some really good parts for Apple fans as the company announced several products during its Let Loose event. But even if you're not interested in new iPads, we still saw a ton of cool Raspberry Pi projects. So, here are all the cool news stories we saw this week.
Apple announced the all-new M4 processor alongside the only device sold with the chip, the 2024 iPad Pro. This marks the first time Apple has launched a new processor with a handheld device and not a Mac as well as an M-class processor instead of an A-class. What this means is the new iPad Pro launching later this month will be one of the most powerful Apple devices, aside from the Mac Pro of course. I owned an original iPad, which launched in 2010, and haven't had another tablet since. Watching the iPad Pro launch has made me reconsider this stance.
The 360 years feel like a lifetime ago. This week, Xbox stunned the industry by announcing it had closed three studios, and repurposed a fourth into another service game support team. This follows the 1900 people laid off across Xbox at the start of this year, and those Xbox employees quietly caught up in the 10,000 layoffs Microsoft made the year before. It has been a disastrous piece of PR self-sabotage, particularly with the reputations of these studios in mind.
Arkane Austin struggled with the uncharacteristic co-op, online shooter elements of Redfall, but before that made the excellent 2017 reboot of Prey and the first, fantastic Dishonored that led to the immersive sim's modern mini-revival. Tango Gameworks, Microsoft's only Japan-based studio that was led, until earlier this year, by horror legend Shinji Mikami, made The Evil Within games and the critically acclaimed, BAFTA-winning breakout Hi-Fi Rush. Roundhouse Studios was founded by the makers of the original Prey, but is now presumably destined to make different coloured leather boots for The Elder Scrolls Online. Alpha Dog made mobile games, an area where Microsoft has been specifically looking to expand. More broadly, for two console generations now, Xbox has floundered under a clear and obvious lack of inventive, attention-grabbing exclusive games. It just bought these studios in 2021.
If it weren't for the people involved, in 2024, these closures would almost feel routine. This is far from the end of Xbox, of course - in Los Angeles next month, it'll hold yet another make-or-break press conference, that maps out yet another plan for rescuing a lost generation. But be it through exasperation or exhaustion - or the wider industry's sheer, pent-up rage - this feels like something of a nadir. Xbox has spun its wheels for more than a decade, lurching from U-turn to U-turn, strategic reboot to strategic reboot, acquisition to acquisition, closure to closure. The good times have always felt just over the horizon. Project Scorpio will set the tone; Game Pass is the future; the Series X will have the games; Starfield will jump-start Game Pass now it's stalled. The growing sentiment today is that they'll probably never come.
Moon Studios has outlined the changes coming to the first patch for its early access dark fantasy action RPG, No Rest for the Wicked.
"This patch brings significant CPU and GPU performance improvements (especially when it comes to traversal and “heavy” areas), keyboard control remapping, a new mouse/keyboard control scheme, increased inventory stacks, chest inventory access at vendors / crafting, bows using stamina, earlier housing access, Quality of Life and 45+ bug fixes," the team explained in the patch notes, saying the patch "celebrates" the game's two-week anniversary.
Given the long, long list of performance improvements and optimisations, Moon Studios has now revised its recommended PC specs for the RPG, the updated version of which is available below:
Former Microsoft senior PR manager Brad Hilderbrand has blogged about the recent closure of Tango Gameworks and Arkane Austin, making a familiar case that Microsoft’s gaming division are now expected “to cut expenses to the bone” in the wake of the wildly expensive acquisition of Activision Blizzard and amid slowing growth of the Game Pass subscription business. In Hilderbrand’s view, Game Pass will likely never be sustainable or profitable. Microsoft’s only chance on this front, he says, is “to put all the world's biggest games on the service” – namely, Call of Duty, which still earns hundreds of millions annually in direct sales, or GTA 6, which, hahahaha.
After a bit of a bumpy landing on PC, it looks like No Rest for the Wicked is finally finding its feet. The early access action-RPG launched with notable performance problems that developers Moon Studios promised they’d address, starting with several hotfixes over the last few weeks that managed to claw back some frames. The game’s first big patch goes a step further, seemingly boosting the game’s performance to a degree that its minimum and recommended hardware specs have been lowered as a result.
If you’re holding out hope for another Ori and the Blind Forest sequel after Will of the Wisps, bad news: it’s probably going to be a while. Developers Moon Studios have said they’re all-in on Soulslike action-RPG No Rest for the Wicked, suggesting that their “magnum opus” will be their focus for up to a decade.
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No Rest for the Wicked's first early access hotfix has been rolled out, and a second patch is "already in progress".
As Victoria summarised for us yesterday, the Diablo-like game from Ori and the Blind Forest developer Moon Studios released to mixed reviews on Steam, but already the team is on the case in a bid to address "balance, durability, stamina, loot, stability, and immediate Quality of Life".
In a lengthy update on the game's social media accounts, the team said: "Thank you again to all of you for making our Early Access launch so amazing. Today's hotfix is the first of many upcoming patches and updates to improve No Rest for the Wicked on the road to our 1.0 release.
No Rest For the Wicked launched in early access yesterday, but has unfortunately hit a few bumps on its debut.
The Diablo-like game from Ori and the Blind Forest developer Moon Studios currently holds a mixed review average on Steam, with the top comment stating that while there are definitely the bones of a good release here, its developer "still needs to cook".
"I want to like this, but the performance is just not in a good enough place for me to recommend it right now," one player wrote, while another adds: "Wait till further development/release if you have any self control."
No Rest for the Wicked is out now on early access, giving us our first glimpse at Moon Studios' latest project. The developer's prior offering - Ori and the Blind Forest and Ori and The Will of the Wisps - turned the Metroidvania style of game on its head, offering a powerful, fresh experience that is difficult to forget. And now, four years later, Moon looks set to do the same for action RPGs with No Rest for the Wicked. Simply put, No Rest for the Wicked couples a stunning visual design with elements inspired by From Software's Souls titles, Blizzard's Diablo and even Animal Crossing - and yet the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
At its core, Wicked remains a game rooted in the Unity Engine but with a vast range of customisations transforming it into its own thing, hence the nickname - Moonity. This, however, is used only for the game's presentation layer - the graphics you see on-screen. Moon has also built a new simulation engine - built on top of Exit Games' Quantum Engine - to handle game logic, including a fully deterministic 3D physics system for networking, which No Rest for the Wicked will feature at a later date.
What makes this setup work well is the division between rendering and simulation - basically, input responsiveness is separate from frame-rate so, if you're playing on a lower end platform, like a Steam Deck, at 30fps, the game will still feel as responsive as a game running at a higher frame-rate. The visuals, however, are striking. First and foremost, Wicked supports HDR on day one - this is important as we have largely considered Ori and the Will of the Wisps to stand out as one of the best examples of HDR in any game released to date. The HDR implementation is superb and just as intense and engaging as Ori. It makes a gigantic difference if you use an HDR display.
No Rest for the Wicked's first early access hotfix has been rolled out, and a second patch is "already in progress".
As Victoria summarised for us yesterday, the Diablo-like game from Ori and the Blind Forest developer Moon Studios released to mixed reviews on Steam, but already the team is on the case in a bid to address "balance, durability, stamina, loot, stability, and immediate Quality of Life".
In a lengthy update on the game's social media accounts, the team said: "Thank you again to all of you for making our Early Access launch so amazing. Today's hotfix is the first of many upcoming patches and updates to improve No Rest for the Wicked on the road to our 1.0 release.
No Rest For the Wicked launched in early access yesterday, but has unfortunately hit a few bumps on its debut.
The Diablo-like game from Ori and the Blind Forest developer Moon Studios currently holds a mixed review average on Steam, with the top comment stating that while there are definitely the bones of a good release here, its developer "still needs to cook".
"I want to like this, but the performance is just not in a good enough place for me to recommend it right now," one player wrote, while another adds: "Wait till further development/release if you have any self control."
No Rest for the Wicked is out now on early access, giving us our first glimpse at Moon Studios' latest project. The developer's prior offering - Ori and the Blind Forest and Ori and The Will of the Wisps - turned the Metroidvania style of game on its head, offering a powerful, fresh experience that is difficult to forget. And now, four years later, Moon looks set to do the same for action RPGs with No Rest for the Wicked. Simply put, No Rest for the Wicked couples a stunning visual design with elements inspired by From Software's Souls titles, Blizzard's Diablo and even Animal Crossing - and yet the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
At its core, Wicked remains a game rooted in the Unity Engine but with a vast range of customisations transforming it into its own thing, hence the nickname - Moonity. This, however, is used only for the game's presentation layer - the graphics you see on-screen. Moon has also built a new simulation engine - built on top of Exit Games' Quantum Engine - to handle game logic, including a fully deterministic 3D physics system for networking, which No Rest for the Wicked will feature at a later date.
What makes this setup work well is the division between rendering and simulation - basically, input responsiveness is separate from frame-rate so, if you're playing on a lower end platform, like a Steam Deck, at 30fps, the game will still feel as responsive as a game running at a higher frame-rate. The visuals, however, are striking. First and foremost, Wicked supports HDR on day one - this is important as we have largely considered Ori and the Will of the Wisps to stand out as one of the best examples of HDR in any game released to date. The HDR implementation is superb and just as intense and engaging as Ori. It makes a gigantic difference if you use an HDR display.
No rest for No Rest For The Wicked's developers, it seems. The punishing action-RPG launched in Steam Early Access last week with performance issues, among other issues, and Moon Studios have now deployed their first hotfix.
Lured like an unsatisfied sailor by the siren song of alleged performance woes, I’ve been giving No Rest for the Wicked a cursory benchmarkin’, and yes! The isometric ARPG does suffer from all the early access wonkiness you’ve likely heard about already today.
No Rest For The Wicked, the top-down soulslike that released yesterday in Steam early access, is already seeing its fair share of performance and QOL issues, including instability, lack of keybinding options, and players losing their progress. In response, developer Moon Studios have put out a blog saying that, yes, they’re aware of the problems and, yes, they’re actively looking to address the most common hiccups.
Nowadays, I'm more than happy to sacrifice high frames and a big screen for the comforts of the Steam Deck. I like lounging on the couch, the light forearm workout, and heating my room in only a few minutes. So it's good news that Moon Studios' upcoming ARPG No Rest For The Wicked will be playable on launch for Deck, the ROG Ally and other handhelds. Minimum PC specs also don't look too taxing, but those after the shiniest-looking game on recommended hardware may be in for a shock.
As a big fan of Ori And The Blind Forest, I am very excited for Moon Studios' new venture No Rest For The Wicked, an online ARPG which swaps the cutesyness of Ori and that ickle wickle forest for top-down fights against abominations slathered in muck and entrails. A new early access release trailer highlights said fights, alongside the devs saying that there's going to be no microtransactions, no always-online requirement, and no anti-cheat software bundled in. I don't want to speak too soon, but so far, it looks like we're onto something pretty darn good here.
Ori and the Blind Forest is well known for its tear-jerker of an intro cutscene so for developer Moon Studios, the dark and damp, gore-soaked world of its next game No Rest for the Wicked, seems like a radical change in direction.
But how well has the studio managed the switch from magical Metroidvania to a swords and sorcery Soulsborne-like? Well, I went in blind and you can join me in my journey of discovery as I learn the ropes in the gameplay video below, where I play through the first 90 minutes of the game.
In No Rest for the Wicked, you play as a Cerim, a holy warrior imbued with remarkable powers (that you have to earn back before you can use them it seems) and, after a tragic accident at sea, you wash up on the backwaters of a land called Isola Sacra which is awash with something called 'the Pestilence'.
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Ori and the Blind Forest developer Moon Studios has announced its dark action-RPG No Rest for the Wicked will launch into Steam early access on 18th April.
No Rest for the Wicked, which was unveiled during last year's The Game Awards, is described by Moon Studios as an "expansive" and "visceral" action-RPG that's "set to reinvent the genre". It casts players as a Cerim - a holy warrior "imbued with remarkable powers" - who embarks on a journey across the harsh Isola Sacra to defeat an unholy plague.
Its campaign promises a "mature, dark" narrative, as well as "brutal, precision-based" combat, and a hand-crafted world, with players can take on No Rest for the Wicked's challenges, quests, and bosses either solo or with up to three friends by their side.
The two Ori games were gorgeous platformers that challenged your dexterity while tugging on your heartstrings. The next game from developers Moon Studios seems more likely to do the former than the latter. No Rest For The Wicked is a Souls-ish action RPG that apparently thinks you're extremely wicked.
It also got a release date today during a showcase stream: April 18th.
When Ori And The Blind Forest developers Moon Studios announced that their next game would be a top-down, online action RPG, my initial reaction was, 'Heck yes, sign me the hell up for this Souls-y, Diablo-y hack and slash.' Having now played the opening 90 minutes of the game ahead of tonight's Wicked Inside showcase, that initial excitement has settled into more of a 'Hoo boy, this thing is hard as nails. Folks who like Elden Ring and Dark Souls are going to go absolutely bananas for it.' It's definitely verging on the edge of being just a teensy bit too punishing for my personal taste, but even though my arse got thoroughly whomped time and time again during this initial prologue section, there's still something about No Rest For The Wicked that's left me quietly captivated.
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