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Explore the Effects of Quarantine With This Video Game

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Aletheia
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COVID-19 — a deadly disease that has taken over the world and required everyone to stay within the safe confines of their homes. In response to this, researchers and students from the EPFL College of Humanities (CDH) and UNIL Gamelab collaborated with the Initiative for Media Innovation (IMI) and Le Temps to create an interactive game showing what the past few months have been like as we all isolated ourselves in our houses.

Countless questions and worries go through our head on a daily basis, such as “How do you stay entertained?” or “How can I stay focused as I work from home?” Most of us haven’t seen our friends in a while, nor have we had physical contact just to try and stay safe.

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In order to explore and find the answers to our questions, researcher Yannick Rochat believed that a narrative game would be the perfect medium, showing the various ways different struggle and how they respond to it. Rochat states:

“Video games can convey information as well as emotions. The idea behind this game is to have a testimony to this period in history that has impacted us all. For a newspaper like Le Temps and for a researcher like myself, it is important to document and keep an account of these experiences.”

On August 20, 2020, Rochat and his team composing of graphic designers, programmers, and the like, released Quatre Apparts et un Confinement or Four Condos and a Containment. This is a series of choose-your-own-adventure stories that act out the lives of fictional neighbors as they live in solitude.

The game was developed around June and July 2020 with the cooperation of Andrew Dobis (EPFL student), Paul Ronga (Le Temps journalist), Saara Jones (UNIL student), Mathias Hängärtner (graphic designer), and Mounir Krichane (IMI Director).

The game is easy enough to understand, albeit it is in French. All you have to do is click through the different apartments and engage in the lives of each character. You will bear witness to their worries, their frustrations, and other emotional turmoil they may be experiencing during this difficult time. You might even be able to relate to some of the characters.

The game currently has an open-source code, so the creators are inviting others to publish the game into other languages as well, so that more people will be able to experience this one-of-a-kind game.

TERA Battle Arena: First Look at Heroes

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Aletheia
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TERA is a fantasy MMORPG that has recently dipped its toes into MOBA territory by introducing TERA: Battle Arena, a team-based battle game. Battle Arena will be able to provide a fresh look and feel to the way combat works, all the while allowing you to play as characters you know and love from TERA.

According to Bluehole Studios as mentioned in this press release:

“Exploring TERA‘s world of Arborea and playing dungeons certainly is a unique and memorable experience, but we thought it would be great if even more players could experience some of the well-known TERA action in short sessions. Creating content focused on battles everyone can readily participate in without grinding for armor is one of the purposes of developing the TERA Battle Arena”

The developers also mentioned that they made Battle Arena much easier to understand, especially for new players who don’t have prior knowledge to the many skills you can find and use on TERA. The map for the game also has different kinds of objectives that will help teams achieve victory.

Recently, there has been some buzz about the game because the first batch of heroes has been revealed. For now, skills and descriptions have also been released, but these are still prior to change since the game is still a work in progress.

A hero spotlight was posted on the TERA website, along with an overview of the abilities and backgrounds. However, here’s a summarized list on the characters you can expect:

  • Elleon: Valkyon Federation Hero
  • Fraya: Allemantheia Commander
  • Ciebel: Velik’s Priestess
  • Zolyn: Moonlight Mercenary Captain
  • Paesyn: Valkyon Federation Supporter
  • Dixie Pincher: Captain of Red Wolves
  • Avion, the Azart Tank (Battle Arena Field Boss)

So far, TERA: Battle Arena sounds exciting. As they say, we can never have enough MOBA, so we can’t wait to try out this one this coming Fall.

Apex Legends Season 6 Reveals New Character

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Aletheia
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It’s been a few months since the release of Apex Legends, yet this battle royale game won’t be dying down anytime soon. Due to COVID-19, this sixth season, otherwise known as “Boosted,” was started a bit later than expected. However, this didn’t stop the team from working as hard as they normally would, despite working from home. In fact, Respawn mentioned that one of the game’s animators had to set up his very own motion capture studio in his back garden. With that in mind, it’s amazing how much they were able to put into this newest update.

Just like every new season, Apex Legends will be introducing a new character, and just like every new character, we’re excited about this one. The new addition to the game is Rampart, a badass British-Indian lady who owns a gun store.

She’s a defensive character with the ability to put down a wall anywhere – super handy as a cover to protect the team!

According to the Apex Legends website, here are Rampart’s abilities:

  • Amped Cover: Build a crouch-cover wall, which deploys a full-cover amped wall that blocks incoming shots and amps outgoing shots
  • Modded Loader: Increased magazine capacity and faster reloads/recharge when using LMGs and the minigun
  • Ultimate Ability: Place a mounted machine gun that anyone can use. High ammo capacity, long reload time

Her list of abilities sound amazing, but she’s not overpowered, though. She still has her weaknesses such as grenades and airstrikes. This is because her shield as well as her mini-gun are secured to the ground.

The addition of Rampart brings with it a change to the way crafting works in the game, where you can now create your own gear. This is perfect for those players who prefer to go around the map looking for materials instead of fighting.

This is how it works: players can pick up all kinds of resources throughout the map and then bring it to a replicator, which then offers you all kinds of things you can make. What’s more, it’s always a surprise as to what kind of items you can craft, since the menu goes through weekly and daily rotations.

One interesting thing we need to take note of, however, is the fact that whatever item is available in the replicator for that day won’t be available anywhere else on the map. This means that if you want to use a specific gun and it’s in rotation, then you will have to scavenge for it.

That being said, we’re still not sure about how crafting can affect the game if you look at the big picture. For one thing, it’s definitely a plus if your respawn point is near a replicator. Not only that, but it’s a great way to refill on ammo. However, we can’t imagine that players would build a whole gaming approach out of this.

Aside from releasing a new character, season 6 will also have a new weapon (“Volt”), an electrified submachine gun. It’s quite a formidable gun, with its medium-fast fire rate and no heat-up delay. You will also find a new battle pass that has over 100 items.

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The World’s Edge map also received a major change, namely, you will now be able to find a rocket launch site on the southern part of the map. Right off the bat, this is a drop-off point for so many players, as this location has so much loot. Sadly, the rocket doesn’t launch, but you can close the doors in order to block off other players.

With all these new updates, we’re just super excited to see Rampart in action, who is basically the star of season 6.

Crysis Remastered Gets Release Date

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Aletheia
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For those who use gaming platforms other than the Nintendo Switch, Crysis Remastered will finally be released on the PlayStation 4, PC, and Xbox One on September 18. It was supposed to be launched earlier this year, however, Crytek decided to delay the announcement due to the fans’ negative backlash towards the leaked trailer.

Now, with its enhancements, Crysis Remastered is more than ready to be released to the world of fans. According to the developers, you can expect “high-quality textures up to 8K resolution, Global Illumination (SVOGI), state-of-the-art depth fields, new light settings, motion blur, ray tracing and much more for a major visual upgrade.”

According to Polygon, only Xbox One X and PlayStation 4 will be able to run the ray tracing mentioned in the trailer. The PC version, on the other hand, will be able to support ray tracing on setups that use Nvidia’s VKRay Vulkan extension or the GeForce RTX graphics cards.

The first Crysis game was released a fairly long time ago – 2007. So, this remastered version will be a trip down memory line while also being a breath of fresh air for many fans. This renowned first-person shooter game was known to push the limits of PC gaming even back then, so much so that the phrase “but can it run on Crysis?” became a meme. With that in mind, you may need to have an extra powerful PC if you want to run Crysis Remastered on the highest settings.

Crysis Remastered' can run in 8K, if your PC can handle it | Engadget

If this is your first time hearing about Crysis, you play as a soldier known as Nomad whose attempts at a rescue mission across North Korea don’t go as planned due to extraterrestrial enemies, among other things.

Others players enjoy the plot, while others don’t – but one thing’s for sure, though: if you wish for a game that will test the capabilities of the consoles we have today, you should definitely check out Crysis Remastered.

New Valorant Patch 1.06 Nerfs Shotguns

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Aletheia
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After their week-long break, Riot Games is now back and they have brought with them a new Valorant patch. However, some fans are disappointed by this update, as it doesn’t really provide anything new to the game.

In fact, there aren’t a lot of changes to be found here, and the only major update is the fact that they nerfed the shotguns. The accuracy for all the shotguns you can use in the game has been reduced while you are firing in the air. To be more specific, they changed the spread penalty when in the air from 0.5 to 1.25, which means that you will no longer have extremely accurate results while you’re jumping and trying to shoot with a shotgun.

The development team also added in the patch notes:

“While shotguns are doing well in situations they are supposed to, there’s been overly frustrating moments where people are accurate with these weapons while in the air. We hope to curb some of those encounters while still making them possible if you catch an opponent at a short distance. We’ll also be investigating more potential changes to shotguns now that we’re rested.”

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Aside from this, there have also been some minor changes to Phoenix and Breach’s blinding abilities. It is indicated that the new patch will be able to hint to the player when it’s time to look away and when it’s okay to look again using audio and visuals. However, there is no clear indication as to how this will present itself in the game.

Other bug fixes, such as a fix for disappearing HUDs, have also been included in this Valorant patch. Compared to previous updates, patch 1.06 is definitely the smallest one yet. However, this shouldn’t come as a surprise since Riot Games recently took a week off.

One thing we noticed that is missing in this patch, however, is the fix that they promised for the Killjoy exploit on Split. If you’re not aware of this, this is the glitch where Killjoy is able to place her turret under the map and provide her teammates with unlimited information. Hopefully, they’ll include this in a future patch.

Trials of Mana Surpasses Sales Expectations

By
Aletheia
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Throughout the years, Square Enix has had its fair share of negative reviews, especially for its more recent remakes. However, fans of the Mana series can rejoice knowing that Trials of Mana was able to surpass the company’s sales expectations.

For those who aren’t in the loop, Trials of Mana is a remake of a once Japan-exclusive game for Super Nintendo. It was originally entitled Seiken Densetsu 2, but it was localized to Secret of Mana in Europe and North America. Unfortunately, Seiken Densetsu 3 never made it out of Japan, but players still found a way to play the game by translating it to English and releasing it online for other players to access.

It was only renamed to Trials of Mana after it was released on the Nintendo Switch. The game also received a full remake and was released for other systems such as Steam earlier this year.

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We are pleased to find out that the hype for the Mana series still hasn’t died down. In fact, Square Enix revealed in a recent Q&A with an investor that Trials of Mana surpassed their sales expectations.

Q: Other than “FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE,” how are new and catalog HD games selling?

A: Sales of “TRIALS OF MANA” are so strong that they have significantly surpassed our initial expectations. In regards to
catalog titles, we are seeing growth in digital sales from our library, especially of titles featuring our core IP, and this is
despite not engaging in any special promotions. In addition, unrelated to HD games, revenue generated from one-off
sales of smartphone games also grew in 1Q

If you really think about it, it’s amazing that the game was able to do as well as it did, given the fact that it was released around the same time as the Final Fantasy VII remake. What’s more, Square Enix didn’t promote Trials of Mana as much as they did FFVII, and yet, they were still able to sell more than they thought they would.

That being said, what does this mean for Square Enix’s other older games? Well, given how well their remakes have been so far, it wouldn’t come as a surprise if they also open up the possibility of creating remakes for the beloved classics such as Chrono Trigger.

If wish to play Trials of Mana, it’s available for purchase on PC, PS4, and on the Nintendo Switch.

Buckle Up for PUBG Mobile’s New Era

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Aletheia
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On August 24, 2020, PUBG Corp. will be making a big announcement regarding the beloved PUBG Mobile, which they claim will open up a new era of the game. Interested players can watch this announcement go live on both YouTube and Facebook. Players are brimming with excited for this announcement, as it will include a major update for the game, as well as more information about the much-anticipated global esports event for the game.

We humbly request your presence as we announce a New Era for PUBG MOBILE! ⏰ Join us on August 24th for an AWESOME…

Posted by PUBG MOBILE on Thursday, August 20, 2020

On a related note, PUBG Mobile also received an update recently wherein it now has an Ancient Secret Mode, among other new and exciting features. For this new game mode, you will see a building rising from the Erangel and Miramar maps, which will eventually become a two-storey building. On the second floor, players will be able fight bosses and earn rewards.

So, don’t forget to mark your calendar, folks! August 24 is almost upon us and we’re more than excited to discover what PUBG Mobile has in store for us.

Train Dinosaurs with Minecraft’s Jurassic World DLC

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Aletheia
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Have you ever wanted to be a dinosaur park manager? How about a dinosaur trainer? If your answer to both is yes, which it should be, then you’re in for a treat. With the new Jurassic World DLC, you can take Minecraft to a whole other level of fun gameplay.

As a park manager, it’s your responsibility to train and craft your dinosaurs, all while doing all that you can to keep the park open and running. What makes this DLC even more interesting is that you can create your very own exhibits, but if that’s something you don’t feel like doing, you can go on expeditions to find dinosaur DNA.

Of course, since you will be managing a park full of dinosaurs, it won’t come as a surprise that you’ll encounter problems that need fixing. To make things easier for you, you can have your very own team of NPCs to assist you in times of need. If you succeed, you might even earn a high score.

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Minecraft’s Jurassic World DLC features 21 skins as well as 60 different kinds of dinosaurs – even hybrids! Along with this, you will also find a free Character Creator item that will help you blend in with your dinosaur friends.

If you’re interested, you can purchase this DLC on the Marketplace section of your Minecrafting device.

League of Legends To Add New Champion Stats Feature

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Aletheia
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Finally! After 10 long years of waiting, Riot Games is adding an extensive stats feature for all available champions (including their abilities) on the Public Beta Environment (PBE). This feature will be so comprehensive that it will include damage, mana cost, AD or AP ratio, and even cooldown information for each ability.

This information can be viewed when hovering over a champion’s ability, ranking from lowest to highest.

Despite being five years younger than League of Legends, games such as Smite and other MOBA titles have already been using this tool for a while now. Previously, avid players of this competitive esport game used to rely on third-party websites in order to have an in-depth look at the champion’s stats. Now, this new feature should make the players’ lives that much easier.

Asides from knowing the stats, this tool will also provide you a deeper understanding of how your champion progresses throughout the game, as well as helps you better your technique. You will also have a better idea as to when you should take on specific fights, or when you should trade.

That being said, Dota 2 players will be quite familiar with this feature, as the developers have loosely based the stats on a similar feature found on the said game. Not only that, but Reina Sweet, League of Legend’s tech designer, is in charge of this feature and she has had a lot of experience with both League and Dota.

Sadly, there isn’t a set date for the feature’s release just yet, but what we do know is that it will definitely be soon.

Apple Arcade’s ‘Grindstone’ To Be Released on Nintendo Switch

By
Aletheia
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0
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Grindstone, a well-loved game available on Apple Arcade, will be available to play on the Nintendo Switch this coming Fall. In fact, you can now even add it on your wishlist on the Nintendo eShop. What’s even more amazing about this is the fact that this will be the first time that the game will be available outside of iOS.

The game showcases adorable, cartoon-ish animation, but don’t let that fool you! Grindstone is a gory, puzzle game that will keep you glued to your device for hours on end. It has levels upon levels available to you, while also allowing you to craft new gear in order to defeat tenacious enemies.

The announcement trailer for the game has also since been released, which shows us how the game would look like on the Switch console.

Essentially, the gameplay is still the same compared to Apple Arcade. However, the overall UI has been updated to ensure that it works smoothly and perfectly on the Switch’s wide screen.

It doesn’t come as a surprise that there is a lot of hype around this announcement. In fact, Grindstone received great reviews when it launched. It even received a 90% Metacritic score. For now, there is no set release date, but it’s said to be available by Fall 2020. In the meantime, Nintendo Switch users have a lot of other games they can play to keep themselves occupied, as the Switch has had several new game launches recently.

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