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PUBG: Battlegrounds is getting nostalgic as it celebrates its past. The popular battle royale game, which started in Steam Early Access back in 2017, is bringing back its original map, Erangel Classic, for a limited two-week run in May and June.

Krafton, the developer and publisher, promises that Erangel Classic will capture the essence of the original map, including its concepts, graphics, atmosphere, and user interface (UI).

We are going home.

Mark your calendar and get ready to relive the classic.#ErangelClassic for 2 weeks only.
⏳PC: May 14 – May 28 / Console: May 23 – Jun 6, 2024 (UTC)

Read more👉 https://t.co/MSFDcZIAAo #PUBG #BATTLEGROUNDS pic.twitter.com/CIEtETgs2F

— PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS (@PUBG) April 24, 2024

However, they’ll also add some modern tweaks to ensure it provides the enjoyable gameplay experiences that players expect today. This means it will feel close to the original while incorporating quality-of-life improvements that have been made over time.

This idea of bringing back a classic map is similar to what Fortnite did by reintroducing its original 2018 island map last year, which attracted record numbers of players.

Erangel Classic will feature foggy and rainy weather to add unpredictability, starting island bench weapons for players to grab, and reduced weapon recoil to match the original feel. The care package will include a Tommy Gun, and the map UI and graphics will have a retro style with a unique font.

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• Helldivers 2 Celebrates Epic Bug Kill, Then Braces for Defeat
• Darkest Dungeon II Coming To PlayStation On July 15th

The rollout will happen in stages, with PC players getting access from May 14 to May 28 and console players from May 23 to June 6. During these periods, the classic Erangel map will replace the modern version. More details about the changes coming with the Erangel Classic map will be shared in the May 14 patch notes.

Manor Lords is about to hit Steam and become the next big indie game. It’s a medieval city-builder, like Stardew Valley, and it’s already got over three million people wishing for it on Steam. The developer, Greg Styczeń, is getting ready for the big launch.

Tim Bender, the CEO of Hooded Horse, a strategy game publisher, says Greg’s main focus is making the game great and keeping players happy. They’re not overly worried about making tons of money.

Bender explains that while the game is expected to do financially well, that’s not the main goal. They expect about 10-20% of wishlists to turn into sales in the first week, which could mean hundreds of thousands of copies sold. But Bender and Hooded Horse value more than just profits. They believe in treating their staff and customers well.

In the past 18 months, many big companies have laid off lots of staff to chase constant growth, but Hooded Horse has a different approach.

Bender’s wife, Snow, who is the CFO and president, works hard to make sure the company is stable financially. She ensures they have enough money to cover costs each month and set aside extra for unexpected expenses, like the delay of Manor Lords.

When asked about the game’s launch, Bender seems relaxed. He says they’ve put in a lot of work beforehand to make sure everything goes smoothly.

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• Can’t Wait Until August? Xbox Game Pass Adds Day One Mystery Title
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They’ve focused on marketing, localization, and quality checks. The decision to delay the game for six months was a big one but aimed at delivering the best experience possible.

Instead of rushing the release, they wanted to offer players a really good game. The success of the October 2022 demo during Steam Next Fest got people excited, but Styczeń and Hooded Horse wanted to take their time to make sure Manor Lords was as good as it could be.

Blizzard has announced that it won’t hold BlizzCon this year, their annual fan convention. “After careful consideration over the last year, we at Blizzard have made the decision not to hold BlizzCon in 2024,” Blizzard stated on its website.

Instead of BlizzCon, Blizzard plans to host other smaller events throughout the year and participate in trade shows like Gamescom. This year also marks the 30th anniversary of World of Warcraft.

After careful consideration over the last year, we at Blizzard have made the decision not to hold BlizzCon in 2024. We’re excited to bring BlizzCon back in future years, and we still have some exciting plans for events in 2024!

Read more: https://t.co/Ub2rdKdCWs

— Blizzard Entertainment (@Blizzard_Ent) April 25, 2024

Blizzard intends to organize “multiple, global, in-person events” to celebrate this milestone. They will also share updates about WoW’s 10th expansion, The War Within, and Diablo IV‘s first expansion, Vessel of Hatred.

Despite canceling this year’s event, Blizzard assured fans that BlizzCon will return in the future: “While we’re approaching this year differently and as we have explored different event formats in the past, rest assured that we are just as excited as ever to bring BlizzCon back in future years.”

Last year was busy for Blizzard, which finalized its acquisition by Microsoft for $68.7 billion, faced legal challenges related to the acquisition in the US and UK, and reorganized its leadership with CEO Bobby Kotick stepping down after more than 30 years.

BlizzCon has faced cancellations before. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic led to BlizzCon’s cancellation, returning later in an online format. Then in 2022, BlizzCon was canceled again amidst workplace harassment lawsuits. The event resumed in 2023.

The cancellation of BlizzCon 2024 follows the end of another major video game event, E3, last year. The video game industry is also grappling with unprecedented layoffs and financial challenges. Earlier this year, Microsoft laid off 1,900 employees across Activision Blizzard and Xbox, marking one of the largest video game industry layoffs in recent years.

The director of Stellar Blade explained that what players are calling input lag during certain moves is a deliberate design choice.

In an interview with 4Gamer, Kim Hyung-tae was asked about the game’s demo, and the topic of input lag came up.

Kim was asked why there seemed to be a delay between pressing a button for performing a perfect parry or dodge, and the actual move happening.

He explained that they intentionally added a delay to keep the animation smooth, and clarified that there’s no actual input lag because the skill activates the moment the button is pressed, even if the animation takes a moment to play out.

The Day One patch fixed the input time for basic attacks, as well as the timing of blocking and parrying to be more responsive.

Also, the chromatic aberration and grain noise effects can now be toggled on/off.😍#StellarBlade #PS5 #Dayone pic.twitter.com/sISg5Q1WmZ

— StellarBlade (@StellarBlade) April 25, 2024

“In Stellar Blade, there is about a 0.5-second delay between pressing the button and seeing the skill on-screen,” he said (translated by Automaton). “It’s a delay that can’t be reduced further.

“We decided not to trigger the character’s movement immediately upon button press, as we thought it wouldn’t match the game’s animation style.

“So, the skill itself activates right when you press the button, but the movement animation follows afterwards.” Kim also mentioned that if players find that the delayed animations make the game harder to play, the studio may make changes in the future.

This might have already been partly addressed in the game’s day one patch, which, according to the official X account for the game, improves “the input time for basic attacks, as well as the timing of blocking and parrying to be more responsive”.

The new limited-edition Xbox Series X consoles are a big hit with fans, but many people are frustrated because they can’t buy them in the usual way.

These special consoles, like the Halo-themed Xbox 360 I had as a kid and the Pokemon Nintendo 2DS I still own, are popular among collectors.

국립전파연구원, 3월 18일 MS XDK Console 인증통과 (출처 : XBOX 정보 카페 | 네이버 카페) https://t.co/c3VmTd1n7R

Microsoft’s new Xbox Dev Kit (XDK) console was certified by the National Radio Research Agency in Korea today.
This means that you can use the device in Korea.
It is… pic.twitter.com/jZAuYlynV4

— Xbox News for Koreans 🇰🇷 – 네이버 Xbox 정보 카페 (@KoreaXboxnews) March 18, 2024

Microsoft has created a ton of different limited-edition versions of the Xbox Series X, but the problem is you can’t buy most of them.

For example, the X-Men ‘97 version celebrates the success of the show on Disney+ and features a cool comic-panel design and controllers with colors inspired by popular heroes from the show.

Fans love these designs and want to add them to their collections, but they’re only available to win in sweepstakes, which has left many people feeling frustrated.

People have been tweeting Xbox asking why they don’t just sell these awesome consoles instead of making them prizes in contests.

Unfortunately, there haven’t been clear answers. However, the controllers from the X-Men ‘97 version are available through the Xbox Design Lab, where you can design and buy them yourself, but you’ll have to pay for them that way.

For a long time, Sombra has been a challenging hero for the Overwatch 2 team to balance. Despite receiving many adjustments, including a major rework in 2023, she has struggled to find a good place in the game.

Recently, players have discovered a powerful combo using Sombra’s abilities that lets her deal a lot of damage quickly. This has led some to view her as overpowered, which is surprising considering she was once considered poorly designed.

Mirrorwatch is here and it’s flipping the script on our Heroes and Villains 🔁

Learn more about the new limited-time game mode Mirrorwatch and join the action now through May 13 💥 pic.twitter.com/YdKobzzOyb

— Overwatch (@PlayOverwatch) April 23, 2024

In the non-canon Season 10 event called Mirrorwatch, Overwatch 2 has made changes to several heroes, including Sombra. Now, her Hack ability can be used on allies to boost them instead of weakening enemies.

It increases their attack speed and gives them extra health. Sombra also has a new tool called anti-virus that boosts attack speed and health for herself and nearby teammates.

These changes have transformed Sombra into a hybrid support and damage dealer, and players are impressed. Many players hope that Blizzard will make these changes permanent because they address long-standing issues with Sombra’s gameplay.

Some players, however, think these changes would be better suited for a new hero, creating a supportive version of Sombra’s hacking abilities.

Although Blizzard hasn’t announced any plans to make the Mirrorwatch changes permanent, the positive response from players suggests they should consider it. The community has been through some drama recently, so this update could bring much-needed positivity to the game.

A reliable source in the Genshin Impact community has shared the full list of materials that players will need to gather beforehand to upgrade Clorinde and Sigewinne’s talents and ascensions in Version 4.7. In Genshin Impact, it’s exciting for players to fully develop a newly obtained character from an event banner, and preparing their required materials in advance can be very satisfying.

Clorinde and Sigewinne are characters coming to Genshin Impact in Version 4.7. Unlike Arlecchino from Version 4.6, whose ascension and talent materials require new bosses and domains introduced in that version, Clorinde, and Sigewinne’s materials will come from existing content, making it easier for players to prepare.

Clorinde’s materials include Fontemer Unihorn, Lumitoile, Philosophies of Justice, and Worldspan Fern. Sigewinne’s materials consist of Water That Failed to Transcend, Romaritime Flower, Philosophies of Equity, and Lightless Eye of the Maelstrom.

To obtain these materials, players will need to challenge specific bosses. For example, the Worldspan Fern can be obtained by defeating the Guardian of Apep’s Oasis, while the Lightless Eye of the Maelstrom comes from the All-Devouring Narwhal boss.

It’s important to note that while Arlecchino in Version 4.6 requires materials from new content, Clorinde and Sigewinne’s materials are tied to older content, making them easier to farm ahead of their release.

Version 4.7 will also introduce a new Spiral Abyss mode, with the first season set in Mondstadt. Players can access this mode through Lisa’s library in the Knights of Favonius headquarters. The new Spiral Abyss will feature trial characters and allow players to borrow a friend’s character to tackle its challenges.

Overall, preparing materials for Clorinde and Sigewinne in advance can help players fully equip and level up these characters as soon as they are released in Genshin Impact Version 4.7.

Halo Infinite is bringing back a classic feature with its next free update: the Plasma Pistol will once again disable vehicles with a fully-charged shot.

When Halo Infinite’s multiplayer launched in November 2021, players were disappointed because the Plasma Pistol lost its ability to disable vehicles with an EMP effect.

Drop Incoming 🪂

The Big Shot Battle Pack and Halo 4 Master Chief have officially landed!

Available only in the @JazwaresVault.

💥 https://t.co/4aqoQyesb3 pic.twitter.com/zJxkAhGBkm

— Halo (@Halo) April 24, 2024

This feature was given to new weapons like the Disruptor and Shock Rifle instead. This change left the Plasma Pistol with less usefulness, especially for fans of the older Halo games.

Now, after two and a half years, the Plasma Pistol will regain its important function in Halo Infinite’s upcoming Banished Honor update on April 30.

During a livestream revealing the update, Halo senior community manager John Junyszek expressed his excitement for this change. He mentioned that restoring the Plasma Pistol’s effectiveness was a common request from players since the game’s launch.

The team wanted to ensure that the Plasma Pistol felt more powerful, useful, and appreciated.

In addition to this improvement, the Banished Honor update will include a new free 20-tier Operation centered around the Banished faction, along with two new Forge palettes for players to create custom maps.

It will also introduce the Exchange, a new way for players to earn cosmetics by using credits earned from matches to buy customization items.

Halo Infinite has moved away from traditional seasons and now focuses on free Operations lasting 4-6 weeks. These Operations have featured events like The Yappening and Cyber Showdown, as well as new customizable armor cores such as the Mjolnir Mark IV armor from Halo Wars.

Sony has confirmed that an unintentional offensive reference in the sci-fi game Stellar Blade will be removed in a day-one patch. The reference involves the word “hard” in pink spray paint appearing alongside other elements in the game that, when viewed together, could be interpreted as an allusion to a racial slur.

Stellar Blade embargo is up so I can finally show you the “Hard R Shop” graffiti lmao wonder how long this’ll take to get patched out. pic.twitter.com/e7xv2aoxGz

— Lance McDonald (@manfightdragon) April 24, 2024

In one location of the game, this graffiti appears next to a neon sign for an “R shop,” where a character named Roxanne is encountered. When combined, the text on the wall spells out “Hard R Shop,” which could be seen as a joke referencing a racial slur.

Sony stated to IGN that the placement of these graphics was unintentional and Shift Up, the developers, did not intend to create offensive artwork. They will replace the graffiti in a day one patch.

The offensive reference seems to have already been removed from the game. It’s unclear if this change will be included in physical copies of the game or only through downloadable patches.

It’s not uncommon for offensive content to accidentally make its way into games. In the past, other games like Destiny 2, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and Overwatch have also had offensive imagery or references removed or altered after release.

Embracer Group CEO Lars Wingefors is taking responsibility for recent layoffs, studio closures, and game cancelations at the company.

In 2023, Embracer made significant changes due to challenges in the video game industry. They laid off 1,400 employees, closed seven studios, and canceled 29 games. These actions followed years of mergers and acquisitions, including a failed $2 billion deal with Savvy Games Group.

Embracer’s CEO says “I’m sure I deserve a lot of criticism” as he reflects on a company split three ways—but maintains that every “key entrepreneur and CEO” believed in its “mission”. https://t.co/FCBv10JHOh

— PC Gamer (@pcgamer) April 24, 2024

In response to criticism, Wingefors acknowledged his role, saying, “As a leader and an owner, sometimes you need to take the blame and be humble about mistakes or what could have been done differently.” He recognizes the impact on his team but believes in the company’s mission despite the restructuring.

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• Early Access Exodus! Steam Zombie Game Finally Breaks Free After a Decade-Long Uprising
• Infection Free Zone’s Early Access Needs a Patch, Not a Pandemic

Embracer recently announced splitting into three entities: Coffee Stain, Middle-Earth, and Asmodee, each focusing on different aspects of the business. They also sold Gearbox, known for Borderlands, for $460 million after acquiring it for $1.3 billion three years ago.

Wingefors emphasized unity among Embracer’s leaders regarding the company’s direction. He acknowledged challenges but expressed confidence in their game pipeline and plans, despite adjustments needed due to industry changes.

World of Warcraft has announced a big change for its upcoming expansion, The War Within. Over 440 mounts will now be able to use Dynamic Flying, a new and improved version of Dragonriding, making it easier and faster to explore the game’s vast world.

The War Within is the tenth expansion for World of Warcraft, bringing in new areas, items, and features. Dynamic Flying is one of the most exciting updates in this expansion. It allows more mounts than ever before to fly, making it convenient to travel around.

The War Within arrives in 2024!

🕯️ Delves
⚔️ Warbands
✨ Hero Talents
💎 Earthen Allied Race
And more! pic.twitter.com/38VpHcjwg1

— World of Warcraft (@Warcraft) November 3, 2023

In a recent preview video, World of Warcraft revealed that there are over 440 flying mounts that can use Dynamic Flying. These mounts come in various models, shapes, and sizes, totaling more than 200 different types. The number of mounts eligible for Dynamic Flying may increase before the expansion’s launch.

Dynamic Flying can be unlocked at level 15 for all characters, and they’ll gain more abilities up to level 70. This includes all the dragon-riding talents from a previous expansion, making flying easier and more accessible.

Many familiar flying mounts like dragons, griffins, wyverns, and unique favorites such as Ashes of Al’ar and Invincible are included. Surprisingly, even wingless mounts like mech suits, cloud serpents, and Mimiron’s Head can use Dynamic Flying.

One exciting aspect is that Dynamic Flying will be unlocked earlier in The War Within, with all players gaining access at level 15. Those lucky enough to participate in the expansion’s alpha testing can try out these changes before the official launch.

Overall, this update promises to transform the way players explore World of Warcraft, offering more options and easier access to flying mounts.