The Final Fantasy XIV Fan Fest kicked off to an explosive start with the reveal of the Dawntrail expansion. While details about this new expansion remain relatively light, we did receive confirmation that two new jobs will come to the game with the launch of 7.0.

Director and Producer Naoki Yoshida announced on stage that both jobs will continue to fill out our DPS role options. Specifically, we'll see one melee DPS job as well as one magic ranged DPS join the game. These match the roles added when Stormblood came out in 2017, so we'll have to see if this marks a pattern for future expansions. Will new Tank and ranged DPS options come in 8.0?

While the job reveals may seem like business as usual, they do come in response to some community unrest. With 20 different jobs in the game, each receiving updates every expansion, some worried that Square Enix wouldn't keep up the pace of adding two jobs each expansion moving into the future. Additionally, with Endwalker concluding the game's story that began with A Realm Reborn, Dawntrail would mark a natural point to set new precedents. Fortunately, it seems like we will see a steady influx of new jobs to play for the time being.

As for what the jobs will specifically entail, we can only guess at this point. However, as has been tradition, Yoshida removed his sweater to reveal the shirt he was wearing underneath. For those not in the loop, Yoshida's shirts at Fan Fest have always acted as a vague hint for job reveals. In this case, we have the Ninja Turtles.

[caption id="attachment_394191" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot via Square Enix Twitch[/caption]

Honestly, your guess is as good as mine as to what this might mean. Maybe we'll get a melee staff user? Perhaps a weapon master who switches equipment mid combat? Or we'll literally just play as an Adamantoise that can rapidly spin around as it flies in the air. I'll be excited to find out as we approach Dawntrail's release in Summer 2024.

The post Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail will introduce two new DPS jobs appeared first on Destructoid.

It’s been a year since Game of the Year winner Elden Ring first lit our tarnished souls on fire, and FromSoftware looks determined to keep kindling that flame. Players can download the game’s 1.10 patch today, which brings a few key balance changes to The Lands Between.

As far as overall balance goes, we have a few buffs to critical hits (i.e. what happens when you backstab). Not only are these moves wholesale stronger, but they now inflict greater poise damage as well. We also have “decreased recovery time after a missed critical hit” listed here. It's a merry crit-mas from FromSoftware.

That said, this patch also brings a few PvP adjustments. Three of the six changes focus on poise adjustments, and the skills “Quick Step” and “Hound’s Step” have decreased invulnerability windows. This section vaguely states that this patch “decreased the damage reduction granted by some skills, incantations and items” without specifying what this affects. Guess they expect players to figure it out on their own in classic Souls fashion.

Oh, also, critical hit angles have been extended in PvP too. This patch really is the gift that keeps on critting.

Rounding out the Elden Ring 1.10 patch are a few bug fixes. Again, these read a little vague, but players apparently won't have their attack direction unintentionally shifted around as much now. Other fixes include preventing the Sacred Order skill from persisting after you change weapons, as well as making it so certain spells and incantations won't cause damage while certain effects are active.

Check out the patch notes here if you want to see them for yourself.

[caption id="attachment_356578" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image via FromSoftware[/caption]

Just some balance adjustments

Overall, this patch mostly impacts players still invested in Elden Ring’s PvP scene. Nothing here will get a lapsed player to jump back in the game, unless they didn’t feel they met a critical hit quota, in which case go to town I suppose. That said, I’ll never object to seeing a game receive continued support. As long as that support addresses what the community wants, anyway.

The 1.10 patch of course comes ahead of the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC for Elden Ring, which still does not have a release window as of writing. While I wouldn’t recommend holding your breath waiting, I imagine any proper new content will release alongside that. If Shadow of the Erdtree is like previous Souls DLC, it should be a good time.

In the meantime, you can find Elden Ring on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.

The post Elden Ring patch 1.10 is out, and it’s all about the crits appeared first on Destructoid.

When a game like Disney Illusion Island puts "Illusion" in its name, it immediately evokes a rich legacy of Disney platformers.

Growing up, I wasn’t exactly a Disney kid. I had nothing against the mouse’s house, I was just more interested in mascot platformers with tragic backstories. Regardless, I loved the heck out of so many 16-bit Disney platformers. Games like Sega’s Castle of Illusion didn’t engage me because of the license, but because they offered their own unique spin on the world of Mickey Mouse. I still remember how Castle of Illusion could effortlessly transition from feeling whimsical, to mysterious, to kind of ominous when it wanted. Heck, it did all of that in the first world!

To its credit, Disney Illusion Island does not wear the “Illusion” brand lightly. Though it bares little similarity to Sega’s seminal title, I could tell how much the developers at DLALA Studios wanted to create a game that could sit alongside the greats in Disney's video game canon. In some respects, Illusion Island accomplishes this goal. I just don't think I’ll reminisce about it 30 years from now.

[caption id="attachment_393537" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Disney Illusion Island (Switch)
Developer: DLALA Studios, Disney Games
Publisher: Disney Electronic Content
Released: July 28, 2023
MSRP: $39.99

Everybody's busy bringing you a Disney Afternoon

Illusion Island starts on an unexpected high note. Mickey, Minnie, Donald, and Goofy meet up for a picnic on the titular island, each believing the event was planned by someone else in their crew. But just as many afternoon outings go, the picnic was not planned by friends, but by a race of hamster people who are in desperate need of help. It turns out that calamity is imminent for said hamsters if they don’t collect some magic books, and they need help from heroes who can do the job for them.

Naturally they turn to Mickey and friends to handle that adventuring. And I mean, as someone who grew up playing The Magical Quest Starring Mickey Mouse, I must admit the mouse does have some heroic chops.

As basic as this plot sounds, it’s told in a fully voiced, fully animated scene that I found charming. It has a Disney XD vibe, but I genuinely laughed at some lines here. Unfortunately, outside of the final act of the game, most story bits don’t employ this level of production. You’ll mostly stare at unvoiced dialogue boxes that lean heavier on fourth-wall breaking jokes that just don’t land quite as well, whether you’re a Disney fan or not.

This is a small, arguably inessential disappointment. The story obviously isn’t the focus here, I just liked the fully animated stuff so much that most everything after it felt disappointing. It’s a bummer for younger audiences, but I get the vibe that Illusion Island caters more to Disney adults. Especially when you realize what type of game it is.

https://youtu.be/QiUG1YWiMIY

Mouse-troidvania

Disney Illusion Island is technically a Metroidvania. If you told me 15 years ago that the exploratory platformer genre would become so popular that Mickey Mouse would throw his hat into the ring, I would have called you crazy. Regardless, here we are. Mickey and friends will traverse interconnected biomes across the island to recover the missing tomes, earning valuable movement upgrades along the way. At the start, the mouse's party can do little more than run and jump. By the end of the game, they can double jump, wall jump, and even ground pound to access new areas.

Control and movement lay the foundation for any good platformer, and luckily Disney Illusion Island nails this. It doesn’t lock off your best movement options for long, and everything from jump arcs to movement speed feel great. The game lacks any combat mechanics, so a surprisingly nimble move set keeps the experience feeling fresh. I really enjoyed the game when it simply focuses on testing your platforming prowess.

At its best, the level design throws you at challenge rooms that utilize all your abilities. While the game’s hardest is maybe 1/10^th of what something like Celeste throws at you, the difficulty can ramp up nicely in the second half. Platforming newbies may choose to play with infinite health, so no one should expect to get stuck necessarily. But as someone who once spent a summer playing Ninja Gaiden to see if I could beat it without any continues, I was shocked that I died in certain sections of the game. Granted, this was mostly due to my own impatience, but more on that in a bit.

While swimming in the latter part of the game can feel a little loose, I felt surprised by how tight Illusion Island controlled. Movement just feels good, with a level of polish typically reserved for top-shelf platformers. This is fortunate, since this counteracts several small stumbles that Illusion Island makes along the way.

[caption id="attachment_393538" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Bouncing here and there and everywhere

The biggest, most substantial question that could not leave my head during the entirety of Illusion Island’s runtime was one I’d never thought I’d ask: why is this a Metroidvania?

Look, I grew up on enough Metroid and Castlevania to absolutely love this genre. I’ve also enjoyed non-violent exploratory platformers too. The thing is, these games only work if they give you incentive to explore, and Illusion Island just… doesn’t have that. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a lot of stuff to collect here. I’d go so far as to call Illusion Island a collect-athon. It’s just that the things you hunt for don’t really matter.

You have Tokuns, a basic compendium of characters and enemies in the game with some banal flavor text. There’s Mickey Memorabilia, which is literally just Disney references drawn by the art team. Hidden Mickeys are, again, just small pieces of art you can find by spotting Mickey Mouse icons in the wild. And finally we have Glimts, the game’s equivalent of coins which unlock health upgrades. While I’m glad something impacts the play experience, these feel relatively insignificant since the game’s difficulty settings already determine how much health you start with.

I don’t think Illusion Island needs a robust RPG system to encourage exploration. But in a game that has precious few fast travel options until criminally late into the game, why would I want to backtrack just to unlock a picture of the wheel from Steamboat Willie? Honestly, that’s all this format really adds to the game: backtracking. Considering you can't even collect one category of unlockables until you've already explored the first few areas, I did occasionally feel that the game was just trying to pad its runtime.

To be clear, I didn't think the backtracking was necessarily egregious. But I did wish the game would have gone with a simple level-to-level progression instead.

[caption id="attachment_393539" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

D-d-d-danger! Watch behind you!

I also have to discuss the enemy design, which became more and more of a sticking point as I progressed.

As mentioned above, Illusion Island is a nonviolent platformer. I’m cool with this decision, but you'll still find plenty of enemies determined to smack you. And without combat, the game’s only way to escalate challenge from enemies involves making you wait. In the late game, I felt an alarming amount of enemies simply existed to interrupt a player’s natural forward trajectory. You can use acrobatics to dodge some foes, but many just want you to wait until they move or finish attacking. No platforming, no strategy, just waiting.

Like the level design, this isn’t game breaking. However, I eventually reached a point where I racked up deaths just because I was tired of waiting for enemies to move and tried to cheese my way past them. Sure, dying over and over to restart at the frequent checkpoints isn’t an efficient way to progress. But I'd rather die on my own terms than let Walt Disney's grunts control how I live.

After a certain point, I felt Illusion Island wasn’t necessarily getting harder as much as it was making it easier to get hit. I’m sure if I didn’t play on the hardest difficulty setting, I probably could brute force through all these obstacles. I just would have liked to have seen more exploration of the core controls over abrasive enemy placement. The developers put all this work into making movement fun, so why would they want players to not move?

[caption id="attachment_393544" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Side by side wherever we go

I do want to touch on the multiplayer in Illusion Island. While major platforming series like Rayman and Super Mario have embraced local multiplayer, I was still excited to test out how it handles here.

I had my girlfriend join my nearly complete playthrough for a session, and the results surprised me. Though she's generally unfamiliar with 2D platformers, she was able to wall jump and rope swing at my pace within minutes. This really is a testament to how natural Illusion Island feels to play, and we had a lot of fun running around together.

The problem, again, is that I don’t know why this is an exploratory platformer. While I don’t think anything of frequently opening and closing my map to track where I’m going, that constant pausing really disrupts multiplayer. Illusion Island doesn’t have a mini-map either, so even small forks in the road feel more troublesome than necessary. I mean, at several points in the game, you’ll find several branching paths. But three paths will lead to keys, all of which you’ll need to unlock a door blocking the critical path. Our takeaway joke while we played was "in Illusion Island, the only illusion is that we have any freedom."

I did like that each player could specify their own difficulty level via the health they start with. It makes Illusion Island easy to play with less experienced players when they can just turn on infinite health for themselves. But beyond that, I don’t think Illusion Island stands out as a multiplayer experience unless you specifically want to get someone into platformers. My partner and I enjoyed our session, but we didn't talk about it after we put our controllers down. And that kind of sums up the game in general.

[caption id="attachment_393541" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

I’m Timothy Monbleau from Destructoid, and you’re reading a Disney review

As much as I’ve focused on nitpicks, I could overlook them all if Illusion Island offered a charming, unique experience like the 16-bit Disney classics. But outside those fun animated scenes, I never saw anything in the game that really stuck with me. All the biomes in the game just kind of blur together, with somewhat differentiated but ultimately unremarkable visuals separating them. Outside of a water zone, the whole thing just feels like one long level.

Yet despite everything, I still played Illusion Island to 100% completion (which took me just under ten hours). And even after I was left with one small incentive to replay the game, I started a second save file. Illusion Island is undoubtedly a fun game. It plays very well at its core, which is hard for me to wax poetic about. But the game does deliver on that, especially when its level design lets those core mechanics shine.

I’d compare my experience to getting a burger from a nice fast casual restaurant. It’s not the best you’ve had, but it’s good in a pinch and you’re glad you had it. And sometimes you need a diversion to entertain you and possibly a family member for a weekend.

Disney Illusion Island won’t go down in history like the best Disney platformer classics have. But it’s still a fun, if not forgettable, romp starring Mickey and friends. Those who are newer to platformers or want to get someone in on the genre will be primed to enjoy this title. Also, while I don’t think the exploratory angle does the game any favors, it may appeal to collect-athon fans. Otherwise, Illusion Island is just a reliable game for a rainy day. A perfect seven if there ever was one.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}

The post Review: Disney Illusion Island appeared first on Destructoid.

Featuring Matt Cook from the Destructoid.com website

There is a terrifying, morbid curiosity that envelopes someone when they discover Pikmin gummy candies exist.

In her brilliant review of Pikmin 2, Destructoid’s Zoey “Stromboli” Handley discusses the empathic approach some take to the Pikmin series. Sure, the plant creatures in Nintendo’s franchise are disposable to an extent. But their tiny dying sounds and the little ghosts that fly away upon death fill me with deep sorrow. I planted those Pikmin. I plucked those Pikmin from the earth. And if I can’t keep them safe from the jaws of bizarre ladybug monsters, then did I even deserve their companionship to begin with? Every lost unit hurts my soul.

So you can imagine my reaction when I saw that certain retailers in Japan were stocking gummy candies based on the Pikmin franchise. Titled “Pikmin Can Be Eaten" gummies, there is no ambiguity that you are, in fact, playing the role of the monster by purchasing them. Fortunately, these candies are Japan-exclusive, so I shouldn’t even feel tempted to eat them. I mean, living in the United States, I would have to pay an exorbitant markup to import a pack of these. Or, even more extreme, we’d have to get someone to travel to Japan to try these gummies.

Surely that would be a silly amount of time and money to spend just to tell you how some Pikmin gummy candies taste, right?

[caption id="attachment_392744" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Image by Christian from Pixabay[/caption]

Two writers spend a silly amount of time and money to tell you how Pikmin gummy candies taste

Honestly, I can’t even summarize the series of events that turned eating Pikmin into an intensive journalistic feat. All I know is that it ended with me spending money to have these candies shipped across the world to me. Meanwhile, our own Matt “Quack Attack” Cook visited Japan to give us an exclusive look at where one could buy these firsthand.

To be fair, Matt was already in Japan when I started planning this story. However, I like to imagine Matt preemptively knew we'd want to run a story about these and visited strictly for that reason. I have a wild imagination, okay?

For context about our subject, the Pikmin Can Be Eaten gummies originally debuted all the way back in 2021. While these attracted buzz at the time, the release of the critically acclaimed Pikmin 4 has naturally reinvigorated the Pikmin brand. As a result, select stores in Japan have gone all-in on not only restocking these candies, but a ton of related merchandise as well. I’d explain more, but fortunately, I don’t have to.

I’ll turn it over now to Matt “Kersplat” Cook, coming to us with on-scene coverage from Japan. I don’t know why I’m introducing him like the weather segment on the local news.

[caption id="attachment_392557" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Photo by Destructoid.[/caption]

Hunting for Pikmin in Tokyo

Matt: When I went to Japan earlier this month, I had it on my list to find all of the Pikmin 4 launch tie-ins that I could. One of the best things about any big game launch in Japan is how thoroughly it's embraced across the country. Even if you have no idea what a Pikmin is, you'd find it difficult to be completely unaware of the Pikmin 4 launch.

One of the first things I did when I got to Tokyo was go to a Family Mart convenience store by my hotel. Convenience stores are pretty much everywhere you look in Japan, and Family Mart is one of the biggest chains. It was there, at the very first stop, that I noticed a big Pikmin 4 poster in the window. Family Mart was selling download cards for the game and Pikmin-themed Nintendo gift cards. It also had a lottery where Family Mart members could win limited-time goodies and, most impressively, Pikmin-themed food for the month of July.

Given the level of promotion, I thought I'd found the Pikmin gummies at my very first stop. But alas, the gummies were nowhere to be found. Over the next few days, I checked every convenience store, Family Mart or not, for the gummies. However, I couldn't find them anywhere. It wasn't until I went to the Tokyo Nintendo store that my luck changed.

[caption id="attachment_392561" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Photo by Destructoid.[/caption]

Pikmin celebration at Tokyo Nintendo

Predictably, the Nintendo store celebrated the launch of Pikmin 4 in a big way with shelves upon shelves of adorable merch. They had everything that any Pikmin fan's heart could desire, from plushies, dolls, and socks, to, yes, the gummies.

The massive variety was somewhat overwhelming. With limited suitcase space, I bought three packs of the gummies and entered the Pikmin 4 raffle hosted at the store. Raffles often accompany big game launches. You pay a fee - in this case, 700 yen ($5) - and you're guaranteed a prize which ranges from something small like a keyring up to some really cool plushies or even the game itself. I won a purple Pikmin keyring which I was pretty happy with since the purple Pikmin is obviously the best one.

As for the gummies, they're predictably delicious. Each one tastes, rather morbidly, how you may expect a Pikmin to taste. Purple is a very good grape flavor, red is apple, yellow is orange, and blue is blueberry. If there's one complaint I have about the gummies, it's about the rare strawberry and lemon white Pikmin. This one, as it says on the pack, is a rare sour gummy that you can only find if you're lucky. Unfortunately, as with many of life's rarities, it's far and away the best one! I was supremely disappointed after trying it to find that there was only one in the pack. When I found four of the rare sour gummies in my next pack, I felt like I won the Pikmin candy lottery.

If we get sequel gummies, I hope they release some all-sour options. I'd eat those every day on my next trip to Japan.

[caption id="attachment_392746" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Photo by Destructoid[/caption]

Back to Tim as he tests his gummy luck

Tim: Thanks Matt for the exclusive look! Had I known you would be in Japan, I might have reconsidered importing these things for myself. Not that I would have expected you to think “I should really let Destructoid Guide Editor Timothy Monbleau know I’m in Japan in case he’s interested in an extremely specific Japanese candy review on this video game website.”

Also, Matt probably does not call me "Destructoid Guide Editor Timothy Monbleau" in his internal dialogue, but I digress.

Anyway, after placing an order with a friendly eBay seller, I received a pack of Pikmin gummies in about ten days. It’s, appropriately, a tiny pack of candy. That said, the packaging illustrations look elaborate compared to the usual promotional candies we get in the States. The front obviously looks pretty cute, but even the bottom crease has a ton of… words about each Pikmin (pictured above). We probably should have chosen someone with even a cursory knowledge of Japanese for this assignment.

Opening my own package after reading Matt’s thoughts, I… okay, let me put it this way. Have you ever played a gacha or loot-based game where you get absolutely nothing but garbage, but your friend is rolling .01% luck odds? Because guess how many rare sour candies I got in my bag? Literally zero.

[caption id="attachment_392740" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Photo by Destructoid[/caption]

My full distribution of gummies was five blue, three red, two yellow, and one purple. The fact that I didn’t get any of the best-tasting gummy was a real bummer. Meanwhile, Matt, can you remind me how many sour gummies you walked away with?

Matt: I found two more in the third pack.

[caption id="attachment_392739" align="alignnone" width="4000"] Photo by Destructoid[/caption]

Tim: Either you have an amazing luck stat or mine is a negative number.

All this means is that the Pikmin gummies have a lot to prove because it’s time for -

[caption id="attachment_392737" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Photo by Destructoid[/caption]

The official Destructoid Pikmin gummy candy review

What you gotta know about me is that I’m no slouch when it comes to gummy candies. Since I was a kid, gummy candies have been my favorite variety of sweets. My palate has tasted many snacks, so the Pikmin Can Be Eaten gummies really need to impress if I can’t even taste the best flavor.

That’s why I’m here to tell you that after trying these gummies, my cynical verdict is they…they taste really good.

The first thing I noticed about the gummies was, weirdly, the smell. These things have a strong juice scent to them that candy generally lacks in the United States. Considering my sense of smell is - to use the clinical word - terrible, I can’t stress enough how unique this is. I can smell them now as I type this, even though the gummies sit on a table next to my desk.

As for the taste, they’re just plain pleasant. Even after flying across the world, they have a soft, chewy consistency that really lets you savor the flavor. They're honestly both sweeter and less abrasive than many gummies I've had. The word “clean” came to my mind as I ate them, even without any context of its ingredients.

I will say each Pikmin didn’t taste particularly different from each other. They all do look different, which is fun. Sorting them out to grab pictures reminded me of how I used to play with animal crackers and Pokemon gummy candies as a kid. But if you put a blindfold over my eyes, I wouldn’t be able to identify which flavors I consumed. I do think I liked the purple one the best, but probably only because that was my rarest gummy. It’s like only getting the guaranteed SR unit in a gacha ten-pull.

[caption id="attachment_390313" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Screenshot via Nintendo[/caption]

We have become monsters

So overall, what have we learned from this experience?

First, obviously, is to let Matt "Luckinator" Cook buy lottery tickets.

Second, the Pikmin Can Be Eaten gummies are so good that they straight-up spark an existential crisis. I think Pikmin are precious and must be protected. However, now that I know they taste good, I understand the enemies that consume them. If I were hungry, struggling to survive, and saw a bunch of innocent yet delicious creatures approaching me, would I eat them? For the sake of my sanity, I can’t ponder the question any further. I’m afraid of the answer.

I should note that I’m not an expert on Japanese candy. These could taste no different than the usual snack, I just lack that context. Regardless, I must admit these gummies surprised me. Would I pay a 600% markup to have them shipped to me again? Probably not. But if there wasn’t a price disparity and I saw them at my local convenience store, would I choose these over other gummies? Definitely yes.

So overall, I must admit that, while thematically horrifying, the Pikmin Can Be Eaten gummies were a smash hit. The question is, on a scale of A Link Between Worlds to ten, how would I rate them? Well, it is my pleasure to award these candies a score of 9.5/10. That’s right, they're better than Pikmin 1, better than Pikmin 2, and arguably better than Pikmin 4. Geoff Keighley, I hope you’re taking notes for The Game Awards because I'm willing to bet Tears of the Kingdom doesn't taste nearly as good as these.

And I didn't even try the sour ones.

The post We tried Nintendo’s Pikmin gummies, and they’re distressingly good appeared first on Destructoid.

Gex is like Erntedankfest in Zoey Handley’s garage

When Limited Run Games announced that Gex would return to modern gaming platforms, I decided to revisit the lizard’s debut adventure. I had no idea what I was getting into.

For the uninitiated, Gex is a mascot platformer released by Crystal Dynamics in 1995. It was originally developed for the 3DO console, a wildly expensive piece of hardware that, adjusted for inflation, cost around half a month’s rent in New York City. Naturally, this is how I first played Gex. Being in elementary school at the time, the only 3DO games that really appealed to me were Gex and Soccer Kid. All I remember about Soccer Kid is that there’s an enemy that says “get awf my laaaaaand,” which I found funny.

Meanwhile, I always internalized Gex as an underrated platformer. I even revisisted it in my late teens, where I also remember liking Gex. For this reason, I thought I had a pretty good handle on this lizard’s first adventure.

Of course, the internet has since morphed Gex into a bizarre meme format. While people still revere their Spyros and Crash Bandicoots, Gex might as well be the representation of all your Bubsys and Awesome Possums. You know, mascot platformers that solely existed as products of their time. While I understood the jokes, I've always wanted to stick up for Gex. As one of eight people who ever played a 3DO, I needed to tell these whipper-snappers that this is, in fact, a good game. Because I know it’s a good game. It’s a good game, right?

Well, I stand before you today as someone who fell down the Gex rabbit hole. I am no longer here to tell you that Gex is a good game. Because after getting the full Gex experience, I can never look at this gecko the same way again.

[caption id="attachment_391830" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

A tail as old as time

Gex begins with a brief cinematic showing the titular character watching some TV. After he indiscriminately eats a fly that flies in front of his face, Gex is sucked right into the screen. See, apparently that fly was a… something created by the villain Rez. So by eating it, Gex is sucked into the Media Dimension. In other words, Persona 4 is just a Gex ripoff.

There’s more to the story, but we’ll get to that later. Oh boy will we get to that later.

The ensuing 2D platforming adventure tasks Gex with collecting remotes across five TV inspired worlds as Gex spits out a stream of 90s pop-culture references loosely related to them. These are connected by a world map that a young Tim may have generously likened to Super Mario World, which could have influenced my childhood memories. I’m not here to psychoanalyze myself when I’ve still got the entirety of Gex in front of me, but it is worth noting that it did look impressive at the time.

I also must reiterate that I played this on a 3DO, and it’d be a few months until I saw a PlayStation. All I knew is that I liked Gex more than Soccer Kid.

[caption id="attachment_391831" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

More ambitious than organizing a wine and cheese party with Eric Van Allen

To be completely sincere for a second, Gex still impresses me on several fronts. For a mascot platformer, you can tell Crystal Dynamics had some legitimately great ideas they wanted to see realized.

First off, Gex himself features a creative moveset. You have your standard jump and tail-whip attack, as well as a dedicated tongue-whip button to grab and subsequently use items. Additionally, by pressing down on the D-Pad while midair, Gex can perform a DuckTales-style attack to bounce off enemies. Gex’s signature feature, however, is his ability to climb almost any wall or roof in the game. Just jump toward any applicable surface, and Gex will stick right on.

I like this, since it utilizies the fact that Gex is, you know, a gecko. It also lets the level design feature hidden areas to uncover and secrets that take advantage of Gex's abilities. For example, you’ll encounter a few narrow passageways that the lizard can't fit in. However, since Gex clings to a surface when climbing, you can follow specific wall-climbing paths to get through these spacess. I’m not saying it’s genius, but it is unique to Gex.

I also genuinely like the theming here. Basing levels around movie genres still feels relatively novel to this day. Additionally, there’s some nice graphical variety even within each world. You’ll see many different enemy types, occasionally strutting some impressive animation.

Plus, I’ll go on record and say that I like Dana Gould’s voice work as Gex. While the jokes themselves are… what they are… the delivery always feels on point. And considering the quality of video game voice work in 1995, Gex packs a surprising amount of personality. Remember, when Gex was released, people thought this lizard was genuinely funny. Electronics Gaming Monthly gave Gex Game of the Month, and that was the magazine I trusted most at the time!

I wonder if EGM’s writers ever bothered to revisit this game, and if they had the same spiral into madness that will detail below.

[caption id="attachment_391832" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Worse than playing a water level with a Roll n’ Rocker

Unfortunately, Gex suffered from development hell. That’s a story too long to cover here, but you can read the archived words of lead programmer Gregg Tavares here. Playing Gex today, the cracks in its development become extremely apparent.

The absolute killing blow to Gex is its controls. By default, Gex has a fairly slow walk speed, but he can run by holding the shoulder button. The problem here is that Gex feels floaty by default, and running gives Gex momentum that makes precision platforming way too difficult. And sure enough, Gex requires precision platforming more often than not. This requires a lot of awkward rocking of the D-Pad to pull off jumps, or just eating hits and hoping that you’ll find healing items later.

Considering the game showers you with restoratives and extra lives, I think the developers were actually aware of this issue. By the time I finished the first world, I had north of 30 lives. By the second world, I hit 99. Even with a lot of deaths, my reserves were comically inflated. It’s a bandage for sure, but not a solution. As a disclaimer, this recent playthrough was on the PlayStation version of the game. Even me, one of three people who ever had a 3DO in their house, was not about to use that version to grab footage.

Additionally, you can occasionally control Gex’s jump height by holding the Up button on the D-Pad. This might not sound like a big deal, but remember that Gex’s bounce attack requires holding the Down button. This makes some jumps exceedingly awkward to pull off, requiring me to weirdly rock my thumb at exact moments that legitimately kind of hurt to do. I have no idea why they didn’t take a page from Mario’s book and control jump height with, you know, the jump button.

Then you get into some wildly inconsistent level design. Sure, the first horror-themed world feels great. It’s even got a banger of a level theme that oscillates between sounding atmospheric and kind of rocking out. It is truly the YYZ of campy Halloween music. But the level design starts getting straight up hateful at certain points, with virtually the entire final world existing as an exercise in frustration. Considering the final boss theme is a seven-second loop, I strongly got the feeling that the team just ran out of time and energy with Gex.

You’ll find other major issues here, of course. The large sprites relative to the small resolution leads to a few too many leaps of faith, for example. But honestly, the quality of Gex’s gameplay is not what shocked me the most about this revisit.

Oh no, the thing that shook me to the core was Gex’s story.

[caption id="attachment_391833" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

You’re not ready for the Gex lore

Honestly, even if I could safely tell you Gex was a masterpiece platformer, I’m not sure anyone would care. The internet knows Gex because he endlessly spits out terribly unfunny pop-culture references with few actual punchlines. With this in mind, I started having certain suspicions about Gex as a character, which made me wonder if maybe the instruction manual housed any backstory that wasn’t conveyed by the approximately two-minutes of in-game cinematics.

Six pages. Six pages of Gex lore were in here. They changed everything.

Here’s the deal. Prior to the events in Gex, the titular lizard was apparently well-adjusted. He was the oldest of “three-and-a-half” kids and the son of a NASA researcher. However, his “carefree upper-middle-class life” abruptly came to a halt when his dad died in a freak NASA accident. So unable to confront both the tragedy and the infighting that enveloped his family, Gex decided to completely disassociate and lose himself watching TV.

Don’t worry, the story doesn’t stop there. Gex’s now-single mother apparently tried to get her son away from the TV to no success, so completely out of options, she moves the entire family from Hawaii to California. Yet even this does not shake Gex’s TV addiction. In fact, even when Gex’s mom helps introduce him to their next-door neighbor to help Gex make a fresh start, he refuses the opportunity outright. Because he explains, and I quote, “the last time he had gone outside, his dad blew up.”

This culminates in Gex’s mother removing the TV from the house outright, which triggers a complete breakdown. Gex loses his mind, tells his mother he’ll never see her again, and then leaves. As the instruction manual says, “the one thing in his life that had meaning was gone.”

[caption id="attachment_391834" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Gex keeps going

So after this point, Gex lives a miserable, meaningless existence of trying to make ends meet on his own. Even forced into the outside world, he misses his “TV friends”. This changes when Gex’s uncle also kicks the bucket, but this doesn’t trigger another mental breakdown. You see, Gex’s uncle was comically rich, so his death now means the family has money beyond their wildest dreams.

For the rest of Gex’s family, this inheritance is a new lease on life that lets them live lavishly and outright buy Australia. However, Gex himself decides to use his share of the cash to move back to Hawaii. His plan? He would buy a huge house and “spend the rest of his life watching all his old TV friends.”

Infinite wealth winds up just being an enabler for Gex’s escapism.

So that brings us to where Gex the game begins. Rez, the villain inside the TV, apparently captures Gex because he wants to make him the mascot of the Media Dimension. Rez doesn’t want to destroy the world. Gex doesn’t need to save the world. He just watches so much TV to avoid confronting the trauma of his father’s death that it literally consumes him.

[caption id="attachment_391835" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

This is weirder than playing Omori in an abandoned Toys "R" Us

So, okay, holy shit, where do I even start?

I started this journey wondering if Gex was ever intended to be funny or aspirational. I thought maybe I’d get a few lines to make jokes about, but now making fun of Gex feels wrong. Gex tells the story of a massively depressed person who quite literally cannot cope with reality without the escapism of media. He feels so lethargic that he can’t even bother to get up and make himself a meal. Rez traps him simply by waving a snack in his face.

Through this lens, the fact that Gex speaks almost exclusively through TV references becomes borderline terrifying. Even when Gex takes damage, half the time he reacts with a nonchalant quote like “I only cry at weddings”. He’s so detached from the human condition that he doesn't feel pain itself. After all, the refusal of pain is why Gex is here to begin with.

I get you probably think I’m reading too hard into this. But I don’t think it’s unreasonable to connect the symbolism of TV being Gex’s crutch to cope with life and the thing literally trying to kill him. Even at the end of the game, when Gex escapes the Media Dimension, he doesn’t even leave his seat. Instead, he says “I wonder what’s on HBO” and continues to watch the screen. There is no self-awareness. No growth. Just resignation. Gex is a tragedy.

So congratulations Gex, you’ve made it on the list of the saddest mascots of the '90s. You can take your spot right under Klonoa’s throne at number one.

[caption id="attachment_391827" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Gextraordinary circumstances

I do want to reiterate that I only grew up with the first Gex game. Its sequels, which did not debut on a prohibitively expensive piece of hardware, never entered my home. While I obviously didn’t read the instruction manual until now, this is the story I had at launch. Gex didn’t have to have six pages of tragic backstory with awkward asides sprinkled throughout, but that’s what the developers decided to include. Let me know in the comments if Gex ever confronts the pain of losing his father in the sequels.

Also, just now writing this, I must point out the irony that the plot of Gex, a game intended to introduce a Sonic-style mascot, involves him literally trying to not become a mascot. But my god, if I spend anymore time thinking deeply about Gex I think my head will explode.

So overall, replaying Gex was a surreal experience. I’m left with a lot of admiration for the developers, who clearly wanted to make something special in Gex. I also feel like I destroyed this happy memory of Gex being an underrated classic by realizing just how janky the game feels today. There were a lot of parts I did enjoy. At its best, I could briefly see glimpses of a game that could, theoretically, compete with a Sonic or Mario. But the execution needed a much more deft hand, which clearly wasn’t going to happen with its troubled development.

In other words, when Limited Run Games releases Gex Trilogy, I wouldn’t necessarily recommend buying it for this game. Not without some crucial tweaks at any rate, and even then, I’d remind you that you could just as easily buy Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series. But on the other hand, confronting Gex was important in its own way. Sometimes we compartmentalize memories in ways that are harmful to us, and holding Gex on a theoretical 7/10 pedestal could have misled someone down the line. So while this replay was not necessarily a pleasant experience, it was an important one. Unlike Gex, I was able to confront my past.

So thank you, Gex, for being the cautionary tale that I never knew I needed. I’m not saying that Gex needs a gritty reboot where he accepts that he can’t run from his trauma forever. But if such a thing did exist, it could be even better than tap water at Jerry Garcia's.

The post I’ve wildly misunderstood Gex appeared first on Destructoid.

Shantae Advance is an actually new GBA game

Look, I’m not going to pretend that new games on retro hardware is a novel concept. If Destructoid’s Zoey “The Flying Zebra” Handley can write 1000+ words about an Atari Lynx game that came out in 2009, nothing should surprise me. I say should, because WayForward has announced that Shantae Advance: Risky Revolution will hit the Game Boy Advance in 2024, and it’s taken me a good hour to wrap my mind around it.

To provide some backstory, Shantae Advance is a long, long lost chapter of WayForward’s trademark Shantae series. Though it began development in the early 2000s, the lackluster sales of the first Shantae game scared off potential publishers. Refusing to release a compromised version of the game, WayForward decided to cancel the project in 2004.

Fortunately, all that work never went to waste. In a world of abysmal game preservation, WayForward had the foresight to archive the game's files. Now, approximately 20 years later, the original team of creator Erin Bozon, director Matt Bozon, and programmer Michael Stragey have reunited to pick up exactly where they left off.

In years past, the prospect of a team like WayForward releasing a title for a legacy console would sound preposterous. However, thanks to a growing interest in retro games and the efforts of Limited Run Games, Shantae Advance has what it needs to cross that development finish line.

[caption id="attachment_391474" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image via WayForward[/caption]

A lost chapter of Shantae lore

In a behind-the-scenes video, Matt Bozon details what to expect from Shantae Advance. Notably, he talks about how the cancelation of Shantae Advance has impacted the series canon.

“Risky Revolution is when a lot of the main cast meets, in some cases for the first time,” Bozon explains. "We went straight into Shantae: Risky’s Revenge where everyone just somehow knows everybody. There’s an entire missing chapter of their lives that was never touched on.”

Rather than exist as a sheer novelty, WayForward seems intent on fulfilling their original vision of the game. So far, we have the promise of “multiple chapters, numerous towns and labyrinths, six creature transformations, fierce bosses, and a soundtrack by acclaimed composer Maddie Lim”. Additionally, Shantae Advance will feature four-player Link Cable support in what looks like a competitive minigame. This feature will fortunately require just one cart, though good luck finding three friends with Game Boy Advances on hand.

Overall, Shantae Advance looks legitimately impressive, even beyond its console novelty. I’ve played a lot of GBA games lately, and Shantae’s giving even the system’s lookers a run for their money. Unfortunately, WayForward has not announced any plans to release the title on modern hardware. We'll have to see if it remains exclusive to the retro handheld.

Shantae Advance: Risky Revolution will launch in early 2024.

The post Shantae Advance: Risky Revolution launches on Game Boy Advance in 2024 appeared first on Destructoid.

WayForward is developing a “Port+” of Clock Tower

In a world where games like Trials of Mana have official English translations, the pool of unlocalized SNES gems is shrinking. As someone who loves SNES games and grew up on fan translations through the 2000s, I am all for this trend. So you can imagine my reaction when I learned that WayForward will bring Human Entertainment’s horror classic Clock Tower West for the first time, with a slew of new features.

Announced during the Limited Run Games 2023 showcase, WayForward calls this a "Port+" of Clock Tower. It looks like a faithful recreation of the SNES original, with a fresh localization and bonus features. Extras in this new edition of Clock Tower include an animated opening, “motion-comic cutscenes,” a vocal theme by Mary McGlynn (known for her work on the Silent Hill series), and some quality-of-life features like save states. In short, it looks similar in concept to last year’s River City Girls Zero.

While some may feel disappointed that Clock Tower won’t see a full remaster, the original visual style holds up well. There’s something about retro horror that really gets under my skin, like Capcom’s Japan-only classic Sweet Home.

https://youtu.be/ZMzM9J20MOU

A partnership with Limited Run Games

WayForward’s Clock Tower will utilize Limited Run Games’ Carbon Engine, which specializes in porting vintage titles to modern hardware. As you’d expect, Clock Tower will also see a physical release through Limited Run Games on “select platforms”. Further details will be announced at a later date.

I’m incredibly curious to see how Clock Tower will fare with a new, modern audience. I honestly could never get far in the original back in my teenage years. Mostly because I couldn’t stand the oppressive feeling that all my bad choices were leading everyone to their deaths at the hands of the Scissorman. I also wonder if the original point-and-click interface will see any modernization. After all, fans have already done as much for the SNES original.

If you feel ready for some retro horror, Clock Tower will launch on the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox, and PC in early 2024.

The post After 28 years, the original Clock Tower is finally coming West appeared first on Destructoid.

Microsoft's battle concludes, the war rages on

The ongoing battle between Microsoft and the FTC has been a monumental spectacle in gaming history. Between accidental reveals and the announcement of games that almost certainly do not exist, it’s easy to forget that the fate of huge franchises like Call of Duty has hung in the balance amidst these legal struggles. Today, in a huge victory for Microsoft, a California judge has ruled in favor of the tech giant’s pursuit to acquire Activision Blizzard by denying a preliminary injunction from the FTC to block the deal.

In less legal terms, this means Microsoft can close this deal ahead of its July 18^th deadline. However, it still has to contend with the Competition and Market’s Authority (CMA) in the UK, which blocked the acquisition back in April.

UPDATE: Microsoft and the CMA have agreed to pause litigation to pursue further negotiations.

Even if Microsoft’s legal battles are far from over, today’s victory was enough for Xbox leader Phil Spencer to release a statement on Twitter.

“We're grateful to the court for swiftly deciding in our favor,” Phil Spencer tweets. “Since we first announced this deal, our commitment to bringing more games to more people on more devices has only grown. We’ve signed multiple agreements to make Activision Blizzard’s games, Xbox first party games and Game Pass all available to more players than they are today. We know that players around the world have been watching this case closely and I’m proud of our efforts to expand player access and choice throughout this journey.”

https://twitter.com/XboxP3/status/1678785930079944704

The FTC has not given up

The FTC sought to block the purchase due to concern over its impact on competition within cloud gaming and console markets. However, the judge ruled that the evidence presented did not indicate a lessening of competition within the gaming industry.

“This Court’s responsibility in this case is narrow,” the decision reads. “The Court finds the FTC has not shown a likelihood it will prevail on its claim this particular vertical merger in this specific industry may substantially lessen competition. To the contrary, the record evidence points to more consumer access to Call of Duty and other Activision content.”

Gamesindustry.biz reports that the FTC will announce new steps to continue fighting Microsoft’s deal “in the coming days.”

The post Microsoft wins FTC court battle over $69 billion Activision Blizzard buyout appeared first on Destructoid.

Elder Scrolls 9 was the best one

In case you haven’t heard, there’s been a whole thing with Microsoft and the FTC going on. Something about companies buying other companies, I don’t know, sounds like another day of capitalism to me. The important thing for those of us whose legal knowledge begins and ends with watching 2001’s Legally Blonde has been the inadvertent game reveals that just can’t stop popping up. Yet despite all the juicy news, the most recent “leak” has fascinated me on a profound level, even though I’m certain it does not exist.

As transcribed by The Verge, a lawyer representing Microsoft wanted to correct the FTC on some potential misconceptions. The result is this utterly amazing quote.

Could I clarify one issue that counsel raised with you, when you were asking about Zenimax and asked him to find a game that was most similar to Xbox, he mentioned Elder Scrolls. That is incorrect. There are two Elder Scrolls games, one is online called Elder Scrolls Online — that is a multiplayer game, it is on PlayStation today. The game he’s talking about Elder Scrolls 16... the projected release is 2026 as a single-player game. It is not anywhere similar to Call of Duty, which as you know is multiplayer and multi-platform.

Look, I get this is a bit out of context, so I’ll give the lawyer some benefit of the doubt here. But if you think I’m not going to take this opportunity to joke about Elder Scrolls 16 with you then I won’t even finish-

[caption id="attachment_389919" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image via Moby Games[/caption]

Chapter 1: Morrowind

Firstly, nothing has ever made me contemplate my mortality more than the sheer thought of The Elder Scrolls 16 existing. My first memory of the series was with The Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind on the original Xbox.

For those who never played this classic RPG, it tasks players with dicking around to increase their stats until they are strong enough to kill all the guards and become mayor of every town. At least, that was my takeaway when I was 13. The internet has since told me that there was apparently a storyline in that game. I’m going to need at least five sources on that before I believe it.

I got a bit off track there. The point is, that was so long ago that Morrowind is allowed to drink in the United States now. Yet we haven’t even seen footage of The Elder Scrolls 6, let alone 16. By my estimation, if Bethesda does nothing but work on Elder Scrolls games, we should realistically expect Elder Scrolls 16 roughly 12 minutes before the heat death of the universe.

[caption id="attachment_389924" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

I already ran out of chapter names

Let’s not get away from the other important reveal here: “it is not anywhere similar to Call of Duty.” Oh thank god. I’ve been worried about that one. Easily my biggest complaint about Skyrim was that it was way too similar to Call of Duty. They’re both in first-person, you can shoot things in both, I rest my case.

Personally, I hope Elder Scrolls 16 goes in a whole new direction. First, they gotta change that camera. Put it in a dedicated third-person view so the camera can really zoom out and show you battle arenas. Second, spice up that combat. Even if you have to scale down the RPG elements, making enemy encounters fast and frantic would really bring a lot of new fans to the series. Third, for the story, I think they should watch Game of Thrones and I just realized I’m describing Final Fantasy XVI.

I dunno, I still think it’s a good idea.

[caption id="attachment_389918" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Chapter 16: I’ll be serious now (maybe)

So obviously you can chalk much of this quote up to a mistake. By Elder Scrolls 16, obviously the lawyer meant The Elder Scrolls 6. That is a video game that we may, theoretically, see before we leave this mortal coil. One could treat this as a leak, and believe The Elder Scrolls 6 will launch in 2026.

Now… at this point, I could toss out quotes by Phil Spencer and the like that might conflict with this claim. But frankly, I don’t think I need to. In a world in which Starfield hasn’t even launched yet, I cannot close my eyes, really focus on the words, and say “The Elder Scrolls 6 is coming out in 2026” without cackling like I just saw Mega Man take a bullet for Abraham Lincoln. There is no way in all seven of the hells that The Elder Scrolls 6 will come out in 2026. I’d be pleasantly surprised if the thing even comes out within this decade.

In short, I’m left with the sinking suspicion that Microsoft did not hire this lawyer based on their Xbox GamerScore. And if you see anyone that takes any stock in their claims, kindly tell them that they are wrong. But what do I know, I just write about video games. The last good video game I played was Tiny Toon Adventures: Buster Busts Loose for the SNES, and honestly, Todd Howard better come prepared if he wants the next Elder Scrolls to clear that bar.

_{[Special thanks to our Freelancer Andrew Heaton for tipping us about this story.]}

The post Microsoft lawyer slips, discusses Elder Scrolls 16 appeared first on Destructoid.

Early game tips for Final Fantasy XVI

I’d say Final Fantasy XVI is finally out, but compared to previous series games, this one hardly felt like a wait. Still, I think I speak for everyone when I say that Creative Business Unit III’s take on the mainline series has drawn a lot of curiosity. Fortunately, the final product is as fantastic as I hoped it would be.

Final Fantasy XVI marks a bold new direction for the franchise. If you’re a fan of the previous turn-based entries, this game may feel downright alien at the start. Thankfully, Final Fantasy XVI takes many steps to help ease players into its mechanics. With time, you too can Precision Dodge into deadly counterattacks that trigger long, impressive combos. So whether you’re an action game enthusiast or a total newbie, here are ten tips for Final Fantasy XVI that will enhance your early game experience.

[caption id="attachment_388115" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

1: Check the blacksmith often

A couple hours after the prologue for Final Fantasy XVI ends, you’ll find yourself in your first hub area. Naturally, this is where you’ll handle some basic upkeep between exploring fields and charging through dungeons. This is also where you’ll see the blacksmith, who you should check in with often.

Crafting isn’t necessarily deep here. Basically, you’ll shove materials you found into your equipment to make some numbers a little higher. Still, don't leave those stats on the table, especially when weapon upgrades can help take enemies down faster. Check for a circle marker next to the Blacksmith or Shop icons to see if they have new goods for you!

[caption id="attachment_388116" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

2: Watch which moves deal HP or Stagger damage

In your skill tree, you’ll note that abilities have star ratings that indicate both their raw damage and their stagger damage potential. These aren’t hard to understand, but in the thick of combat, it’s easy to just spam abilities off cooldown and hope for the best. However, you could seriously boost your damage output by using your moves strategically.

This especially applies to the early game, where your pool of Eikonic abilities is still relatively sparse. Moves that primarily stagger enemies can actively waste your time if you use them when an enemy is already staggered. Conversely, if you use your strongest HP damage abilities when a foe is already staggered, you can stack 150% damage modifiers on them.

As your playstyle evolves, you may opt to ignore staggering enemies depending on your build. Either way, as you equip abilities, make sure you know what you’re putting in those ability slots.

[caption id="attachment_388117" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

3: Activate Active Time Lore when you need it

The plot in Final Fantasy XVI can get pretty dense. You may infer key details from context, but just a few key background details can help immerse yourself in the story. That’s where Active Time Lore comes in.

Anytime during a cutscene, hold the touch pad button to open the Active Time Lore menu. This will show you a small handful of lore blurbs relevant to your point in the story. This is especially helpful near the beginning of the game when terms like Dominants and Bearers get introduced in rapid succession. You don’t need to use this throughout the entire game, but definitely check your Active Time Lore if something confuses you.

[caption id="attachment_388118" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

4: Respeccing is free

As you progress your skill tree in Final Fantasy XVI, you’ll see a mixture of cheap upgrades and expensive abilities to unlock. If you have your eyes on, say, the Flames of Rebirth move, you might think to save your ability points. Don’t do this!

Respeccing is fast and free in Final Fantasy XVI. If you aren’t in combat, you can get your ability points back from any skill, no questions asked. In other words, if you’re saving for an expensive ability, invest in other skills in the meantime and reallocate those points later. As a bonus, this system makes it very easy to experiment with different playstyles. Find what works best for you!

[caption id="attachment_388119" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

5: Use ranged attacks to learn attack patterns

Bosses in Final Fantasy XVI are absolutely bonkers. We’re talking multiphase, bombastic enemies that stretch the limits of what your PS5 can even handle. These encounters can easily pummel anyone who recklessly charges, which is where ranged attacks come in.

To learn attack patterns, it helps to keep a small distance while pelting magic with the triangle button. This makes it very easy to find out how long certain enemies will wind up moves, or what areas certain attacks will strike. Then, once you have the rhythm of the fight down pat, rush in to start comboing between Precision Dodges.

Honestly, it can be easy to forget you have magic at your disposal in any given moment. If a boss absolutely prevents you from closing in on them, chucking magic can help you squeeze in a few hits as you wait for them to return to the arena.

[caption id="attachment_388120" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

6: Pay attention to your grey health

When Clive takes damage, you should notice two things about your health bar. Firstly, you’ll lose health, because… well, that’s how video games work. But more importantly, you’ll also notice that part of your health bar becomes greyed out. This is no accident.

While grey health doesn’t contribute to your overall health pool, you can restore it using certain abilities. The biggest example of this is Torgal’s Cure command, which will slowly regenerate your grey health specifically. The Flames of Rebirth ability follows the same rules with its healing properties. To heal beyond this, you’ll want to either use an item or wait for a level up, which will fully restore your HP.

[caption id="attachment_388121" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

7: Remember that you can charge attacks

Once you start unlocking skills, you’ll discover charge attack options for both your melee and magic buttons. Don’t forget you have these once you unlock them!

The game will instruct you that charged attacks can break enemy shields, but that’s far from their only use. For example, when you’re still in recovery frames after finishing a combo, you can hold down an attack button to prepare a strong strike, even when you'd normally have to wait to start swinging again. Use all the tools at your disposal!

[caption id="attachment_388122" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

8: Stock up on items if you’re having trouble

Unlike classic RPGs, you can’t grind until you can afford 99 potions to breeze through every dungeon in the game. Clive can only hold a handful of each item, but they can easily make the difference between victory and defeat.

If you're stocked on items, any potions you find will turn into instant healing. Additionally, stat buff items like Stoneskin Potions can help you withstand attacks you don’t know how to dodge or amplify your damage during burst windows. They’re relatively cheap to stock up on, so you might as well grab them in case of an emergency.

[caption id="attachment_388123" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

9: Complete sidequests when you find them

So I don’t mean to sound any alarms with this tip, but Final Fantasy XVI does have points of no return. These generally won’t take you by surprise, as the game will nudge you to take care of unfinished business beforehand. However, they do exist. I recommend you clear side quests as you progress so nothing passes you by.

Granted, most side quests in Final Fantasy XVI involve small stories that flesh out the world. They do have some nice rewards, but missing them won’t ruin your save file or anything. Completing them does make Final Fantasy XVI feel more like an RPG than a character action game, though, which brings me to my final point.

[caption id="attachment_388125" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

10: Explore and find treasure chests

Final Fantasy XVI is not an open world game, but I wouldn’t say this is a bad thing. Like the NES and SNES Final Fantasy titles, many areas hide treasure chests to uncover if you spend time exploring. I recommend checking any curious corners or hallways you find to get the most out of Final Fantasy XVI, especially if you’re approaching it more as an RPG.

While most accessories you’ll find won’t necessarily change your game experience, they still add a great sense of discovery to the game. And at the end of the day, you paid $70 to play something you enjoy. Take the game slowly, soak in the scenery, and get as invested in the world as you want.

We don't know if we’ll ever get another mainline Final Fantasy game like this again. But if there's only one tip you should take going into Final Fantasy XVI, it's to enjoy it while it lasts.

The post 10 Beginner Tips for Final Fantasy XVI (FF16) appeared first on Destructoid.

Lots of penguins in Penny's Big Breakaway too

Today's Nintendo Direct is full of surprises. In addition to some excellent RPG news, we've got some info about interesting original titles as well. A prime example of this is Penny's Big Breakaway, a new 3D platformer from the team behind Sonic Mania.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hAgpRYM2M8

While the game itself doesn't have too many similarities to the typical Blue Blur video game, it does promise a speedrun-centric slant with its Time Attack mode. More importantly, we got lots of yo-yo based attacks, which the titular Penny can modify with various snack-based power-ups. We can already find mentions of unlockable bonus items and secret stages, so it looks like this one will lean heavy on replay value.

Fortunately, this title won't be a Nintendo Switch exclusive. Penny's Big Breakaway will launch on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch in Early 2024.

The post Penny’s Big Breakaway is a new 3D platformer from Sonic Mania team appeared first on Destructoid.

This is a good year for RPG fans

As a longtime RPG fan, I am losing my mind for today's Nintendo Direct. First we get the wild announcement of a Super Mario RPG remake, and now we have solid footage of the previously teased Dragon Quest Monsters followup. Even better, we know this one is arriving this year!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLsr5N4-mmU

In a blog post by Square Enix, it looks like The Dark Prince will stay true to the formula of previous games in the series. Protagonist Psaro will have to collect monsters to fight on his behalf, which he can fuse into stronger creatures using the Synthesis feature. Monsters will also include Dragon Quest series favorites alongside completely new creatures for this entry.

Additionally, the world will change with the passing of the seasons. While we don't know how expansive this will be in the final game, we have confirmation that certain areas of the world will open depending on the season.

Dragon Quest Monsters is a fantastic spinoff series for a fantastic series, so any new entry is hella welcome in my book. Additionally, it looks like previous Dragon Quest heroes may make a cameo appearance here as well. While last year's Dragon Quest Treasures was nice, I'm excited to see Monsters returning to its roots like this.

We'll learn more when Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince arrives on December 1, exclusively for Nintendo Switch

The post Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince coming December 1 appeared first on Destructoid.

I am losing my mind

It was a rumor that I was certain couldn't possibly be true. In fact, even as I write this, I still can't fully believe it. But Super Mario RPG is indeed getting a full fledged remake, cementing 2023 as one of the most wild years in recent gaming history.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0r5PJx7rlds

The footage we saw during the June 21 Nintendo Direct showed us many familiar locations faithfully recreated in 3D. While the graphical revamp takes center stage, the gameplay does appear to have some extra flourishes. For example, battles show chain bonuses and a mysterious percentage meter on the left side of the screen. What do they mean? I don't know! And I'm dying to find out!

While potential new details about this upcoming remake remain scarce, just seeing Geno and Mallow in full 3D is enough for my hype. Super Mario RPG is one of the best SNES games of all time, and now is a great time for both old and new fans to experience this classic once again.

The Super Mario RPG remake will land this year on November 17 for the Nintendo Switch. Preorders are available now.

The post Super Mario RPG remake is real, coming November 17 appeared first on Destructoid.

Like half a sitcom of Assassin's Creed Mirage

As the penultimate act of the Ubisoft Forward stream, we saw a lot of footage of Assassin's Creed Mirage. The first revealed trailer, as has been the rhythm of this show, focuses on the story. Unsurprisingly, this splices together some cinematic scenes to give us an overview of the characters and show off some environments.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hjico7nYvo

Of course, the real meat and potatoes lies in the subsequent gameplay trailer. This provides us almost eight minutes of footage showing what Assassin's Creed Mirage will bring to the table.

That said, we didn't receive any confirmation over whether this was an an open world or a semi-open world. I think they should have included that vital detail.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxpYHW-M_Ac

As we reported previously, Assassin's Creed Mirage will launch on October 12 for Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and PC. Pre-orders are available now.

The post New Assassin’s Creed Mirage trailers confirms it is Assassin’s Creed appeared first on Destructoid.

Also starring a "semi-open world"

During the Ubisoft Forward event, we got to see a pair of new trailers for the upcoming Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown. The first of these was an animated trailer, which offers a pretty good time if you're a fan of the new design for the titular prince.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wxP9Mx3AdEk

Of course, cinematic and animated trailers in the video game world are a dime a dozen. Fortunately, the second trailer demonstrates the proper gameplay of this title, which gives us a bit more to chew on. Director Mournir Radi said The Lost Crown has a "semi-open world," which I still can't get over.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3qsC8T42Ag

The most intriguing part of this trailer is the showcase of time-based powers reminiscent of the original Sands of Time. While this gimmick might be in vogue at the moment, Prince of Persia at least has precedent for it. So far, it looks like time-based mechanics will factor heavily into both the combat of The Lost Crown and exploration of its not quite linear world. It's not a full open world, that I can assure you.

Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown and its semi-open, definitely not closed world will launch on January 17, 2024. You can grab it on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, and PC.

The post Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown shows off time powers in new trailers appeared first on Destructoid.

Themed headset/controller also revealed

Starfield looks to be one of the biggest games from Microsoft this year, and its trailer during the Xbox Games Showcase really wants to drive that home. Reiterating that this game comes to us from the minds that brought us Skyrim and Fallout 4, it shows off some nice areas and, of course, the vast darkness of space.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kfYEiTdsyas

We have a dedicated Starfield special following the Showcase, so that will be our time to dive into the crunchy details. Starfield will launch on September 6, 2023. Also revealed was a Limited Edition Xbox Wireless Controller and Headset combination, which will launch alongside the game in September.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NFOjh3nUF4

The post New gameplay trailer for Starfield shows off its expansive universe appeared first on Destructoid.

It's about time

Though the Xbox Games Showcase showed off many follow-ups to well-established names, we've gotten some totally original titles too. A prime example of this is Clockwork Revolution, a new game from the creators of Wasteland.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDFuhaYxeMU

In a blog post by InXile Studio Head Brian Fargo, we fortunately find a few details to give this world some context. As the title might imply, Clockwork Revolution will focus heavily on time travel. Fargo promises both "dynamic time-bending combat" and a plot centered around the gimmick. It looks like players will find themselves traveling to the past and making choices that will affect the future in substantial ways.

The post notes the team is "pushing roleplaying reactivity to new heights" with this game, so we'll have to see how much player choice impacts the final product.

That said, don't expect to see Clockwork Revolution anytime soon. The post clarifies that the game is "still early in development," and that this is just a sneak peak. The trailer says the game will "come in due time," so we'll stay tuned to learn more.

At the very least, some of you may wind up with Clockwork Revolution whether you like it or not. The title will launch on Xbox Series X|S and PC, and it will appear day one on Game Pass.

The post Clockwork Revolution is a new steampunk RPG shooter from InXile appeared first on Destructoid.

Whispers everywhere

After a long wait since it was originally unveiled, we're finally getting more footage of Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2. During the Xbox Games Showcase, we saw an extended trailer that I'm sure fans of the original will eagerly unpack. But even if this is your first rodeo, it's a wild time if you have a headset on.

In fact, the official YouTube description reads "best viewed wearing headphones." Enjoy the binaural experience.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRqLDCBxW04

Though the new Hellblade 2 trailer provides a release window, it simply confirms the game will launch in 2024. In other words, we'll have to wait to find out when exactly this one will appear. At least we're slowly getting closer to the official debut of Ninja Theory's latest title.

Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2 will launch on Xbox Series X|S consoles and PC.

The post Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 has a wild trailer for headphone users appeared first on Destructoid.

Rob 'em blind

During the 2023 Xbox Games Showcase, we got to see new footage of the newest entry in the Payday series. It's been a minute since Payday 2 came out, and now we have a firm release date: September 21.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIZGW3mty8I

In the footage we saw, it looks like we can expect similar thrills as Payday 2. In other words, you'll rob places with friends while you all wear funny masks. Classic Saturday night activity, really. We also got confirmation that Payday 3 will be playable day one on Game Pass.

Payday 3 will release on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC on September 21.

The post Payday 3 brings more high-stakes heists on September 21 appeared first on Destructoid.

Is the endgame content your endgame?

When I took on review duty for Diablo 4, I knew it would come with some controversy. As someone slightly more critical of the game than the average consensus, I expressed concern with the online requirement and the live service nature of the game. Yet one conversation I absolutely didn’t expect to see post-launch was about the state of the content itself.

Though the game’s barely a week old, the endgame of Diablo 4 has sparked fierce debate. From what I’ve observed, opinions fall into two camps. On one side, you have people who sped through the campaign to get to the endgame. Many here insist that it’s too repetitive, funneling players into a couple of types of content without any notable variety. Others say that the crowd who rushed to the endgame got what they deserve since they didn’t bother to enjoy the journey along the way. Essentially, if you didn’t bother to enjoy the main course, don’t complain if you’re hungry after dessert.

For me, it’s wild to see this conversation pop up. I’ve probably played the game for 50 hours if we include the review period, and I'm already satisfied with it. A Link to the Past inspired me to argue for quality over quantity some months ago, so I’m happy to say I've gotten enough entertainment out of Diablo 4 to call it worthwhile. But even if the way I play the game completely differs from someone who just wants to race to max level, I still find it fascinating how different perspectives can completely change the way we look at a game.

Let’s explore this topic together.

[caption id="attachment_385530" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

“Endgame is when the real game starts”

If you’re into gaming enough to read a site like Destructoid, you’ve probably heard variations of this sentiment. Many MMORPG players will proudly say their game really starts once you reach max level. Heck, titles like Borderlands 2 literally say this in the game. To be charitable, I think the intended effect of these words is “Oh, you’re having fun now? The game’s only going to get better from here!”

In actuality, years of “endgame is when the game starts” has created some deeply negative conditioning. After all, if the fun part of the game is potentially 40 hours in, why wouldn’t you just rush there? This is prevalent in MMORPGs, where the crunchy gameplay of coordinating with friends to take down raids is usually reserved for the end. And since Diablo 4 is now riding an awkward line of kind of being an MMORPG but also kind of not, I can understand why players would approach it that way.

In truth, if something straight-up isn’t fun for such a long period of time, that isn’t a player problem. That is a game problem. If you assume you won't have fun until endgame, maybe you should play something else. For example, the “It’s not good for 40 hours” argument was often thrown around for Final Fantasy XIV. This caused the developers to take some drastic measures. The team cut huge swaths of the base game, remade several dungeons, and offered the whole thing for free.

Clearly, they didn’t feel happy treating their early game like a wall, and we should hold what we play to the same standard.

With the limitations of technology two decades ago, we can see why “the game starts at endgame” was a comfortable mantra for online games. However, game design has evolved since then, and we’ll miss out on great experiences if we assume so much of them will bore us. To this extent, I can understand why someone would feel mad that others are speedrunning the campaign of Diablo 4.

[caption id="attachment_385532" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Endgame content offers its own experience

Having said all that, I also get why someone would want to get to endgame as fast as possible.

In a good endgame, the world becomes your oyster. You’ve unlocked everything, you’ve finished the story, and now you can focus solely on becoming stronger. In a series like Diablo, early progression differs dramatically from the endgame.

Initially, you'll pick gear with better numbers. Later, you'll equip gear that makes one skill gain an additional effect where enemies explode after two seconds, which synergizes perfectly with your other gear that arguments your passive so exploding enemies explode three more times, which really cranks up your main skill that gets a +30% damage bonus for every explosion in the last ten seconds. Or maybe the build where enemies freeze instead of explode could be considered "better."

A good endgame can provide an engaging, long-term gameplay loop as you inch closer toward a “perfect” build. And watching your character take on greater challenges with every increase in power can feel remarkably satisfying. Maybe the core gameplay won’t change much from the early or mid-game, but the sense of progression completely differs. So for someone specifically looking forward to that end of the experience, I can understand the disappointment of never finding it.

Of course, I can’t really say for myself if Diablo 4 fails or succeeds in its endgame loop yet. I’m just taking my time and enjoying the game until I get there, which makes it easier to accept whatever state it's actually in.

Finding your own way to play

I’ve always been a completionist. Pokemon Red was the first game to ever inspire me to “100%” a game, what with all the marketing about needing to catch 'em all. Since then, I haven't cared so much about getting something specific out of a game, but just seeing everything it offers.

This is why I still feel excited to explore a game like Diablo 4, despite needing to start my character from scratch. I love uncovering all the corners of the map and completing side quests. I adore finding Lilith Statues in the wild and conferring with others on where to find more. Even the prospect of replaying the game with different classes and builds sounds exciting to me. Every aspect of the game may not connect with me, but I at least want to experience them for myself.

I don’t mind taking my journey slower and savoring the experience. Since I’ve taken up employment at Destructoid, I’ve realized how special it is when a game really connects with me. I want to enjoy those moments while they last, and I’d hate to ruin the fun by racing to see what’s around the corner.

If we visualize games as mountains to climb, some want to see the view at the top while others enjoy the journey itself. I’m the person who’s off in the woods somewhere because it’s a beautiful day outside and someone told me I could find mushrooms out here. And you know I’m not going to miss an opportunity to snap a photo of a cool mushroom.

[caption id="attachment_385534" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Let’s hear from you

My thoughts are slightly more scattered than my usual opinion piece, but honestly, that’s deliberate. While I know the way I like to play video games, seeing this conversation really sparked my curiosity. Sure, I’ve framed this article around Diablo 4, but discussions surrounding endgame content have existed long before now. Heck, I remember people told me I hadn’t even experienced Final Fantasy 7 unless I defeated Ruby Weapon.

So this is where I ask you, Destructoid: how much do you value endgame content? Do you want a game to provide a fun loop that can keep you engaged for dozens of hours? Will you drop a game as soon as you complete the main story? Or maybe your expectations depend on the genre of the game. There are no wrong answers unless you slam your head on your keyboard and type an incoherent string of letters. That might provoke Professor Tim to give you a failing grade.

Regardless of your take, I hope you enjoy the games you like and accept other perspectives. In an ideal scenario, maybe approaching a game from a new mindset can turn it into a new, exciting experience. That said, I’m still not going to play a game that only gets good at 40 hours. I’d rather beat A Link to the Past five times instead.

The post How much does endgame content matter to you? appeared first on Destructoid.

What's that? You want more hacking and slashing?

T'is the season for ARPG fans, it appears. Diablo 4 is out, Path of Exile 2 was shown during Summer Game Fest, and now we have another title in the genre competing for our time. In this case, it's Lysfanga from Sand Door Studio, which brings its own twist to the formula.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BDRfAVyW0aw

What will hopefully separate Lysfanga from the competition is a time traveling mechanic. By rewinding time, Lysfangha's protagonist will create specters of her past self that fight alongside her. While we've seen similar mechanics in other games, it's still a neat concept to see pop up across different genres.

While a release date was not nailed down, we did get a reveal that the title would arrive later this year on PC via Steam and Epic Games.

The post Indie time traveling ARPG Lysfanga coming in 2023 appeared first on Destructoid.

We got the box art too

The fun part of a showcase like Summer Game Fest is seeing how each game company handles its reveals.

Some opt for grandiose trailers to tingle our imaginations. But for Marvel's Spider Man 2, it needs no such fanfare. They simply had game director Bryan Intihar come on stage, talk about a few details, and then the bombshell drops. Marvel's Spider Man 2 launches on October 20, 2023. The crowd goes wild.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zI9ym7wYf28

While a simple release date could stand on its own as a major reveal, we also gleaned some juicy new details about the upcoming PS5 exclusive. For example, Venom is "not Eddie Brock," as Intihar asserts that the team wanted to tell an original story with this title. Additionally, we also received news that the city "pretty much doubled in size." Pretty exciting!

Following the show, a post on the PlayStation blog confirms that pre-orders for the game will open on June 16. As has become common for major game releases, we have a few editions of the game to choose from. There's of course the standalone game for $69.99. For $79.99, we also have the Digital Deluxe edition, which comes with "2 additional skill points" and a handful of cosmetics.

[caption id="attachment_385338" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image via Insomniac Games[/caption]

That said, hardcore fans can sling for the $229.99 Collector's Edition, which contains a Steelbook case and a 19 inch statue of Venom fending off the Spider Men. Only a digital voucher for the game in this one though, which tickles my funny bone.

It's a tough act to follow a huge critical hit like the original Marvel's Spider Man, but it seems the team at Insomniac Games wants to surpass all expectations. We'll see how it measures up when Marvel's Spider Man 2 launches on October 20.

The post Marvel’s Spider Man 2 will launch on October 20 appeared first on Destructoid.

The next stage in Project Sand Land

Summer Game Fest is here to reveal everything it has, ranging from release dates to gameplay. Since we covered the multimedia adaptation of Akira Toriyama's cult hit manga Sand Land late last year, Geoff Keighley's show's reveal of the game wasn't totally news. However, we did receive confirmation that this upcoming action RPG would launch on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and Steam.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-h48hdeoEM

The footage we did see showed a lot of creatures, vehicles, and creatures in vehicles. A blog post by Bandai Namco Europe confirms that the Sand Land game comes to us via ILCA, who recently gave us One Piece Odyssey and Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl. Sand Land will focus on vehicular and character combat, which I imagine makes sense for readers of the manga.

I never as much as saw the source material for Sand Land until I conducted research for this article. However, since the game coincides with a "visual adaptation," it looks like Bandai Namco hopes to broaden the work's appeal. Will it work? Who knows! Even with this reveal, details remain scarce about the project.

Keighley noted "we're excited to see more of it soon" following the trailer. In other words, we'll hopefully learn more details about Project Sand Land soon.

The post Project Sand Land is coming to PlayStation, Xbox, and PC appeared first on Destructoid.

An alternative to Diablo 4

During Summer Game Fest 2023, we got to finally see our first footage of Path of Exile 2. While we didn't learn many new details about Grinding Gear Games' next project, the timing for this reveal couldn't be more pointed. With Diablo 4 not even a week old at this point, ARPG fans are eating good these days.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s65fA1urV4E

While the trailer didn't show a release date, it does tease that more information will arrive on July 28. That coincides with the upcoming ExileCon, so it sounds like Grinding Gear Games has quite a show in store. Announcements for announcements will always sound funny, but I'm plenty curious to see what Path of Exile 2 has in store for us in this case.

In the meantime, you can play Path of Exile on PC, MacOS, Xbox, and Playstation platforms.

The post Path of Exile 2 gameplay revealed, more to come on July 28 appeared first on Destructoid.

Dancing with the devil

Over a decade after Diablo 3 was first released into the wild, Diablo 4 has finally become available to the public. I was able to play a pre-release build of the game for my review, which you can find here. In short, I have some concerns about the game in the long run, but otherwise I had a lot of fun playing it!

That said, I learned many lessons during my time with the game. Now that I’m replaying it from scratch, I’m already having more fun after figuring out how the game’s many progression systems work. Don't worry, Diablo 4 is perfectly playable without any prior knowledge. But if you want to streamline your playthrough, I recommend considering these ten beginner tips for Diablo 4.

[caption id="attachment_383754" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

1: Focus on the main story

Diablo 4 features an open world, filled with secrets to uncover and dungeons to crawl. Nothing’s stopping you from getting your butt kicked by superpowered foes right off the bat, so if that’s what you want to do, knock yourself out.

That said, you will want to clear the main campaign to unlock everything Diablo 4 has to offer. Everything from mounts to the highest difficulty settings will become available with story completion. Unless you specifically need to power up for a specific story encounter, I highly recommend making those yellow quest markers your highest priority.

[caption id="attachment_383020" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

2: Use potions generously

Potions in Diablo 4 work off a simple charge system. You’ll start with a maximum capacity of four potions, and you can freely refill them in most towns. Don’t be afraid to use them!

Dying in Diablo 4 will damage your gear. With enough damage, you’ll need to spend valuable gold on repairs. Conversely, warping back to town to refill your potions is incredibly easy. You’ll create a gate in town that will instantly bring you back to where you left off, so you won’t even lose progress. As long as you aren’t in combat, potion refills are always seconds away and will save you serious gold from the deaths you’ll prevent.

[caption id="attachment_383470" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

3: Know which gear to salvage

As with any game of the genre, Diablo 4 will shower you with more gear than you’ll ever feasibly need. Fortunately, you can put that excess equipment to good use by selling or salvaging.

As a rule of thumb, the materials you’ll get from salvaging Rare or Legendary gear will give you valuable materials that you’ll be glad to have by endgame. Conversely, Common or Magic items give materials that you’ll likely have in abundance. For this reason, I recommend salvaging Rare and Legendary gear and selling Common or Magic items. This will vary a bit once you reach high-level content, as you’ll have more specific resource priorities and other ways to use your Legendary items. But starting out, this will set yourself up well for later.

[caption id="attachment_383743" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

4: Don’t bother level grinding

Diablo 4 uses a level scaling system you’ve likely seen in other titles by now. While you can be underleveled for certain quests or areas, enemies will scale up if you exceed their minimum level requirement. In other words, if you’re stuck on a certain boss, leveling up could potentially become counterproductive.

That isn’t to say grinding is useless. Optional dungeons and cellars can hide powerful bosses that potentially drop great gear upon completion. As long as you’re deliberately working towards goals like these instead of mindlessly grinding mobs in the overworld, you’ll be fine. There are so many side systems that will increase your strength in Diablo 4, take advantage of them!

[caption id="attachment_382756" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

5: Activate waypoints as soon as possible

Waypoints make your life infinitely easier. Even after you get a mount, traveling around Diablo 4’s huge world will take ample time. If you see a waypoint icon on your map, drop everything and rush over to activate it.

Not only will this give you another fast travel location, you’ll earn Renown in the region you’re exploring. Speaking of which…

[caption id="attachment_382755" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

6: Earn Renown for extra power

If you do want to grind in Diablo 4, the Renown system is one of your best ways to do it. By completing a variety of objectives in different areas of the map, you’ll earn Renown. With enough Renown, you’ll unlock useful perks, including bonus skill points and potions. Best of all, rewards like these apply to your entire account. New characters you create will have a huge head start with these advantages!

If you specifically want to earn Renown in an area, side quests and waypoints are your easiest sources. However, if you’re up for the challenge, clearing enemy strongholds will reward you with a hefty Renown bonus while unlocking some nice perks afterwards as a bonus. If you’re stuck, I highly recommend collecting any extra skill points you can this way.

Until you reach World Tier III or higher, Renown rewards will be locked after the third unlock. Once you reach this stage, save the Renown grind in that area for later and check out different sections of the map.

[caption id="attachment_383744" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

7: Prioritize certain enemies

You'll face a wide variety of foes on your journey to defeat Lilith. While many enemies are easy fodder for you to hack through, stronger enemies will appear with potentially lethal attacks. Keep track of who exactly you’re facing on the battlefield.

Foes that buff or summon monsters should go down ASAP. You’ll often hear a sound like a rainstick if one is on the field, so playing with volume on will help. Meanwhile, bulky Elite foes might become easier to take down once you clear the field of small fry. Your priorities may change depending on your build, so always keep track of your biggest threats at any given time.

[caption id="attachment_383679" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

8: Use Gems if you’re stuck

Longtime Diablo fans should be familiar with Gems. Players can augment any piece of equipment with at least one open circle on its respective icon with a variety of Gems. These offer diverse perks depending on how you slot them, and these bonuses can provide some serious power boosts.

Honestly, for most of the campaign, I suggest simply collecting and storing Gems for the future. You’ll swap equipment often throughout the early and mid game, and un-socketing Gems costs Gold, so the benefit isn’t terribly worthwhile. However, once the leveling curve starts to slow down, the value prospect evens out.

UPDATE: That paragraph turned out to be bad advice! You can actually get your Gems back by salvaging the gear they're attached to, so you should almost always augment your equipment with them. Check out our Gems guide here for more information.

Given what we know about Diablo’s level scaling, Gems go a long way in giving you that extra push to defeat a particularly tough challenge. For me, this was invaluable as I made my way towards unlocking World Tier III difficulty. Fortunately, anyone just starting the game won’t have to worry about that for some time still.

[caption id="attachment_383745" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

9: Remap your hotbar

As you progress down the skill tree, you’ll naturally earn skills that will automatically appear on your hotbar. This works well enough at first, but as you flesh out your kit, you may find your skills don’t play well with your muscle memory. That’s where remapping comes in.

On the skill tree screen, you can press the right stick on a controller to manually assign skills. PC players can drag and drop skills from the tree directly onto their hotbar. This let’s you swap skills around however you like, which can make the game play much more naturally. For example, I like to have skills I use most often on the face buttons while leaving skills with longer cooldowns on the shoulder buttons. This screen also lets you map multiple skills of a certain type to your hotbar, which opens up the door for particularly wacky builds. In fact, this leads me to my final tip.

[caption id="attachment_383746" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

10: Play with your build

Early on, Diablo 4 lets you respec for free. This gives you some time to experiment with early game abilities, but you’ll only get a feel for how certain perks synergize as you progress down the tree. Reassigning skill points will eventually require a little gold, but trust me, finding your perfect build is well worth the cost. Don’t feel committed to making your first build idea work when you were still figuring out how to play the game!

Honestly, many builds won’t even function properly until you unlock Key Passives at the end of the tree. For this reason, deliberately respeccing as you progress through the game is arguably optimal for progression. You can already find plenty of build ideas in the wild, but at the end of the day, the best build will be the one that appeals to your playstyle the most.

Mess around with your character and tinker with your abilities, especially as you find legendary loot with unique effects. Maybe you’ll need to worry about optimal meta builds later, but for now, focus on having fun. Games shouldn’t be second jobs, so enjoy the adventure however you want.

The post Here are 10 beginner tips for Diablo 4 appeared first on Destructoid.

Paving the road to Hell

During my time with Diablo 4, I couldn’t stop thinking about how precise a good loot-based action-RPG is.

When done right, games of the genre put you in a hypnotic trance. The flow of hacking and slashing as you find rare loot and make numbers go up fires off powerful waves of happiness chemicals in your brain. However, such an inherently repetitive gameplay loop will become tedious if the execution isn't just right. Since Diablo set the formula that countless action-RPGs since followed, new games in the series come with high expectations. Will Diablo 4 remind us of why we enjoy this genre to begin with, or will the king need to give up its throne?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJ6M39OmYMA&ab_channel=Destructoid

As someone who never grew up with the Diablo series and only really dived deep into Diablo 3, I didn’t necessarily approach Diablo 4 with this level of scrutiny. However, after marathoning the campaign and seeing what this vast new world offers, I can confidently say that the core of Diablo 4 lives up to the standards established by its forbearers. Unfortunately, the state of modern video game monetization is also here to remind us why we can’t have nice things.

[caption id="attachment_381855" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Diablo 4 (PC [reviewed], PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One)
Developer: Blizzard Entertainment
Publisher: Blizzard Entertainment
Release: June 6, 2023
MSRP: $69.99

Right out of the gate, Diablo 4 wants you to know that this is a game for grown-ups. Lots of blood is spilled to summon the game’s big bad Lilith, who will either save or ruin the world depending on who you ask. People die in gruesome ways, and limbs will fly before you reach the game’s ending. This ain’t your dad’s Diablo, assuming your dad only played Diablo 3. Actually, that logistically seems unlikely. This ain’t your slightly older sibling’s Diablo.

Diablo 4 puts a lot of effort into its storytelling, but I can’t say the plot ever connected with me. Its writing and structure don’t take enough time to build up its characters, so the bigger story moments don’t land nearly as well as they should. I didn't care for the main cast, and I didn’t feel any attachment to the fate of Sanctuary. People invested in the Diablo canon might feel shocked or moved by Diablo 4, but it did nothing for me.

It's honestly a bummer because the cutscenes and cinematics in Diablo 4 are executed well. Even with the weak writing, I still felt pumped as I ventured toward the more epic encounters in the adventure. That said, the plot does connect a variety of diverse set pieces for players to battle through. And in an action-RPG that hopes to engage you for hours, that’s the most important base to cover.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XV4zVqb9vWc

Crawl every dungeon

Diablo 4 smartly does little to change its core formula. Either alone or with friends, players will fight through overwhelming hoards of foes as they spam skills on cooldowns and chug potions. If you’re lucky, you’ll find loot of varying rarity levels that can potentially transform your entire playstyle with their unique effects. Rinse and repeat until you’ve had your fill.

However, Diablo 4 is the first game in the series to be designed with controller support from the outset. As a result, we have both a dedicated dodge button and encounters designed with lots of movement in mind. You’ll feel this most during the boss battles, which lean heavier on MMORPG-style mechanics and even bullet-hell-style projectiles to dodge at the higher end. This design philosophy serves Diablo 4 well, as it feels like a logical evolution of the series’ gameplay. I consistently felt excited to see new enemies and overcome any unique challenges the game would throw at me.

My only minor nitpick is that outside of boss battles, most mobs only lean into these mechanics by using strong attacks telegraphed by long wind-up animations. If you’re surrounded by enemies (and this is Diablo, so that will happen), it’s easy to get killed from full health just because five minor foes all decided to use their most powerful hit at the same time. This is fortunately far from game-breaking, as Diablo 4 lets you fight back with plenty of powerful tools.

[caption id="attachment_381859" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Do you want to climb a skill tree?

To begin your adventure, you’ll have to choose from one of five character classes in Diablo 4. However, once you dive into each class’ skill tree, you'll realize that even a single character represents a multitude of playstyles to choose from.

Many games of this genre either feel too limited or too overwhelming in their customization. Diablo 4 rides a fine line between these two extremes. At the start, the skill tree feels easy to understand. You’ll see a small handful of options and follow a subtly guided path to build your character’s kit. Once you progress further and get a feel for your class' capabilities, you'll uncover many synergistic build options just begging to be tried. Fortunately, Diablo 4 makes respeccing easy, though you’ll lose all your hard-earned gold if you swap character builds too often.

Starting out, I built my Barbarian as a tanky guy swinging a giant mace who could spin to win through hoards of monsters. I eventually realized the potential of his Berserk buff, which boosts power and speed if you can maintain it. I tinkered with my build throughout the campaign, eventually transforming completely into an aggressive dual-wielding monster who stayed angry at all times.

This created an incredibly active play style, as I juggled stuns and relentless attacks while timing my Death Blow skill to slay foes at perfect HP thresholds. The class became harder to play, but the exponential DPS gains were well worth the effort. I loved how easily I could customize my gameplay without changing characters. I could focus on spinning to win if I wanted to turn my brain off. But in the end, my character fit my ideal playstyle like a perfectly made glove.

Diablo 4 effortlessly achieves this player freedom without upsetting that delicate dance of a well-paced action-RPG. It virtually guarantees you'll find a build that you'll enjoy, assuming Blizzard makes them all viable in the long run.

[caption id="attachment_381886" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

All things imbalanced

If I have one complaint about Diablo 4 – aside from the thing I’ll get to – it’s how it's currently balanced.

I started my adventure on the harder World Tier II difficulty, which felt great. Earning more gold and experience after defeating tougher enemies was deeply satisfying. However, if you exceed the recommended level of a given quest or area, enemies will scale to match your power level. By the time I reached my first major story boss, the gear I acquired looked painfully under-leveled compared to the challenge in front of me. I figured that maybe I had just bitten off a bit more than I could chew and that some wonky loot scaling was my problem.

Except as I progressed further into the game, I often found the difficulty would wildly swing at seemingly random. I’d fight climactic story bosses that could barely dent my Barbarian as I smashed them to bits. Then I’d take on a sidequest at the same level against a miniboss that would require me to fight for my life to survive. Admittedly, once I finished messing with my build, I actually welcomed these difficulty spikes. They just happened so often during my campaign that I couldn’t chalk them up to how I built my character or what gear I equipped.

This, fortunately, evened out by the end of the campaign, culminating in an engaging climax. And trust me, if this was my biggest issue with the game, I’d be elated with the overall product. However, we need to discuss the money-hungry elephant in the room.

[caption id="attachment_381889" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image via Blizzard Entertainment[/caption]

Greed and Gluttony

In the review build of Diablo 4, all microtransactions and the promised battle pass system were absent. The official word is that this was due to technical logistics. Instead, I was provided pictures and videos of these systems in action. These revealed that the cosmetic shop will sit in one of the main in-game menus, which is already enough for me to say it's too intrusive.

Diablo 4 is a self-proclaimed live service, forcing a constant internet connection and leaning on multiplayer features. If we’re treating the game like an MMORPG, I can allow some leeway for cosmetic microtransactions. However, the avenue to purchase them has no business within the core gameplay loop of a $70-$100 game. Not only is this immersion breaking, but it also subtly inflicts a psychological temptation that builds over hours of playing and seeing that “SHOP” tab stare you in the face.

Were this something you only saw before logging in, then it wouldn't be so bad. But considering Diablo 4 rewards collecting cosmetic gear, the shop's place in the game feels especially insidious. In a free-to-play game, this is something I can deal with. Not in a title with a premium price tag.

The only silver lining is that the shop wasn't shown in the main character menu, which you’ll interact with most often. And the menu it is in mainly serves as a map screen, so you won’t necessarily need to scroll over the shop often. That is until the battle pass appears, which opens a whole other can of worms.

[caption id="attachment_381893" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image via Blizzard Entertainment[/caption]

Sloth, Envy, Pride

Any game using a live service model inherently adds an intense level of uncertainty. Ideally, it allows the game to grow and reward dedicated players. The reality is that the game you bought could fundamentally change into something you don’t recognize. This alone requires me to add an asterisk to any recommendation of Diablo 4.

For example, the preliminary news of battle passes and seasonal content worries me. Limited-time content has messed with my head and caused me to lose sleep grinding in the past. That’s since slipped a bit, especially now that playing games is my job. But three years ago, these systems would seriously damage my health. I know that some people tolerate battle passes, but I’ve never heard a single person say “You know what would make this 80-hour grind better? A deadline.”

Even without speculation, the live service model made my time with Diablo 4 worse. Logging in took longer than necessary as I connected to servers. I had no ability to pause, and my connection would drop while I let the game idle. Even worse, connection issues always made me lose progress, as they reset dungeons and return you to rigid quest checkpoints. My internet woes weren’t necessarily the fault of Diablo 4, but the outcome of them is.

The tradeoff for these hindrances is a handful of multiplayer features that could have worked outside a live service environment. This technically applies to other MMORPGs, but comparing Diablo 4 with previous series entries informs what exactly is gained and lost here. Diablo 3 launched with this issue over a decade ago, and it’s still relevant today.

Live service games require a foundation of trust, as meaningful updates ostensibly justify these inconveniences. Before you buy Diablo 4, ask yourself if you trust Blizzard to deliver an experience that will only get better into the foreseeable future. Otherwise, you'll need to be content knowing that Diablo 4 could change at any moment, either for better or for worse.

[caption id="attachment_381888" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Deal with the devil

It’s a genuine shame I need to talk about any of this because I otherwise really enjoyed Diablo 4. Even after playing the game nonstop, I still want to explore the quests I missed and power up my character. I often lost track of time, totally engaged in Diablo 4’s rhythm. And then I’d lose all my dungeon progress because my internet provider had an issue, which instantly brought me back down to earth.

There is undeniable passion and talent that went into making this game. From the detailed areas you explore to the variety of enemies you’ll fight, Diablo 4 feels complete in a way that's rare in modern times. I'd love to report back to you in a year and say Diablo 4 is even better than it is now. But in the meantime, these live service elements feel like they exist solely to sell microtransactions. Even if you can ignore these parts of the game, there’s no denying they make the final product worse overall.

For series fans, Diablo 4 makes a compelling case to become your next main game. For everyone else, the specter of cosmetic microtransactions and live service elements hang heavy over this refined action-RPG formula. Fortunately, the game is strong enough out of the box to entertain anyone willing to dive into its world. Everything I played of Diablo 4 was solid, I just hope it stays that way.

_{[This review is based on a review build of the game provided by the publisher.]}

The post Review: Diablo 4 appeared first on Destructoid.

We got PlayStation Earbuds too!

Near the end of today's PlayStation Showcase, we got our first look at Sony's newest device. While it's not quite a Steam Deck competitor, it will give you a method to play your PlayStation 5 without getting out of bed.

Project Q is a handheld system dedicated to streaming games from your PlayStation 5. So far, we only have a general overview of the device. It features an 8-inch LCD Screen, and it supports streaming a 1080p image at 60 FPS. Additionally, it matches the feature set of a DualSense Controller, complete with haptic feedback. Considering it looks like a PS5 controller with a screen in the middle, that makes sense!

This device does come with the stipulation that it can only play non-VR games directly installed on the PS5, but none of that should come as a surprise. Funny enough, games streamed via a PlayStation Plus Premium membership won't receive support on Project Q.

[caption id="attachment_381641" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image via Sony[/caption]

With this announcement came the reveal of a new set of earbuds with the PlayStation branding. These fortunately work with more devices than your PlayStation 5. We have confirmation that the earbuds will support PC, and they can connect to smartphones via Bluetooth. The presentation promised that these will bring "lossless audio with low latency," so we'll have to see how each product performs after they make their respective debuts.

Neither device received as much as a release window, aside from the hint to "look out for more details soon." Given what we know so far, the success of Project Q and the earbuds will largely hinge on whether their prices match their performance. I'm always on the hunt for quality earbuds, so those have most of my attention at the moment. We'll have to wait and see if any intriguing new details come out in the near future.

The post Sony announces dedicated PlayStation 5 streaming handheld Project Q appeared first on Destructoid.

Not to be confused with Resident Evil 4 VR

The Resident Evil 4 remake is the remake that keeps on remaking. While it seems like yesterday that the Oculus Quest version of Resident Evil 4 made news, we'll soon see the remade version of this horror classic get the virtual reality treatment.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_s9Ch6c4z0

During the PlayStation Showcase, Capcom announced that "Resident Evil 4 VR Mode" is in development for PlayStation VR 2. We didn't see as much as a launch window in the trailer, though we did get to see the iconic village fight from a first person perspective. Fortunately, VR Mode will arrive as free DLC for Resident Evil 4 on PlayStation 5. As of writing, this feature will stay exclusive to Sony's latest Virtual Reality headset.

We'll have to wait and see if VR support substantially transforms the Resident Evil 4 experience. You can find the remake of Resident Evil 4 on PlayStation, PC, and Xbox platforms.

The post Resident Evil 4 Remake will get VR support on PlayStation VR 2 appeared first on Destructoid.

Preorders available now

During the Sony PlayStation Showcase, Ubisoft threw their hat into the ring to showoff some footage of Assassin's Creed Mirage. As part of this presentation, we received confirmation that the game will make its debut on October 12.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G97lx7orMN8

Pre-orders are available now, so if you're ready to make that commitment to the newest Assassin's Creed, you can put your money where your computer mouse is. As per usual with Ubisoft's upcoming releases, you can choose between a Standard Edition, Deluxe Edition, and a Collector's Case. Depending on whether you want the game itself or a handful of digital and physical collectibles, you have some options to choose from.

Assassin's Creed Mirage will appear on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and PC.

The post Assassin’s Creed Mirage will launch on October 12 appeared first on Destructoid.

Snaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaake

In a reveal stacking on top of a reveal, the news of Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater's return was punctuated with the announcement of Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol 1. This splash screen promised that we can "sneak back into the original games on PlayStation 5" this autumn.

So far, we know that the Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol 1 will contain the following games:

• Metal Gear Solid
• Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
• Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater

The second and third titles will be based off the HD Collection versions of each game. Otherwise, we await more details about any extra features this compilation may bring.

A new promotional website for Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol 1 promises the compilation will "allow fans to play the games as they were, as first released on the latest platforms." However, we have yet to receive official word on which platforms this collection will appear on. We'll keep you posted as we learn more.

Konami has pumped out retro compilations of its glory day games at a consistent pace. In other words, it's reasonable to believe that Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol 1 will follow a similar trend. Even more intriguing is the "Vol 1" part of the title, implying that a second collection will eventually appear. We'll have to see how these games look on modern hardware later this year.

The post Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol 1 brings the first three games to PS5 appeared first on Destructoid.