Although Horizon Zero Dawn and its sequel, Horizon Forbidden West, are not M-rated games, they aren't the most obvious choices to get turned into Lego games. Earlier this summer, Guerrilla Games and Sony revealed that Aloy's first adventure will be adapted as Lego Horizon Adventures. But considering that the Lego games are aimed at younger players than Horizon, some of the franchise's rougher edges are being toned down."We have tried to keep as much of the story as possible," explained Guerrilla Games' narrative director James Windeler during an interview with GamesIndustry.biz. "A lot of what happens in the world, like the destruction of the old world… that's a pretty heavy theme for an eight-year-old. So we needed to find ways to keep that present in the story, because it is essential to Horizon. But it is also not something we leaned on. You won't find some of those devastating reveals from the first game, like those corporate masterminds dead around the table or anything like that."This wouldn't be the first time that the Lego video games have softened some story moments for young gamers. The Lego Star Wars games turned tragic moments like Luke Skywalker getting his hand cut off into something more humorous. It sounds like Lego Horizon Adventures will follow a similar path to keep things from getting too dark with Aloy and her world.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

The creature-collector genre is dominated by Pokemon and filled out from there with many games heavily inspired by it. Through a certain lens, Flock is a creature collector, too, but if you go into it looking for a game very much like Pokemon, you won't find it. The task of filling out your Pokedex-like Field Guide by discovering a world of (mostly) fantastical creatures, each with their own physical and behavioral traits, is very much like the genre's titan, but beyond that, Flock is much more lax, not to mention charming and delicate. It's better described as a creature observer, and that novel approach winds up being very enjoyable.Flock takes place in a gorgeously colorful wilderness called The Uplands. As the customizable player character and bird-rider, you and an optional co-op partner head into a small camp where your aunt and some pals need your help cataloging the many critters roaming the land. The entire game takes place on the back of your feathered friend, and the game's way of automatically adjusting your flight path vertically, while you do so horizontally, makes it all very easy to control. It feels light and fun in your hands, like going down a slide at the playground.This child-like spirit is present throughout the game, from its candy-colored trees and plains to its small cast of characters who speak mostly in terms players of all ages can understand, but who occasionally pack a hint of something more grown-up in their musings. I found it similar to how characters on many Cartoon Network shows speak. It isn't trying to be subversive, like a Dreamworks movie sneaking in an adult joke; rather, it treats its audience with some maturity, expressed in the words characters choose. It's immediately inviting, and the game's soft music makes for a perpetually calming soundtrack that keep game feeling meditative and decompressing.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

We're a week away from Deadpool and Wolverine, with Deadpool being added to the MCU proper, but what fate awaits the rest of the certain X-characters has yet to be seen. The movie has several characters from the X-Men film series from 20th Century Fox--now 20th Century Studios, as it was acquired by Disney. Dealing with the multiverse is never easy, but what about the Marvel characters already in play?During the Deadpool and Wolverine press day, GameSpot asked Kevin Feige if fans should still be excited and ready to pick up the plot threads from projects like Eternals and Moon Knight--Marvel movies and shows that have been far more standalone than the past films."That's at the core of the 85 years of publishing and at the core of our 15-plus years in theaters," Feige said. "And I think there was a cadence for a while where the turnover is very quick in terms of somebody popping up in one movie and appearing in the next. Tony Stark was introduced in May and you saw him again in July of 2008. But then there are also the Tim Blake Nelsons, who showed up in that very movie in 2008. And we haven't seen again until the trailer we just put out. So I think that again is the fun of what we're able to do."Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

As strange as the idea sounds--teenagers who are mutant turtles, who also happen to be ninjas--Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles has been a wildly successful franchise going back to its origins as a comic book in the '80s--so successful, in fact, that it spawned a legion of copycats, copy mice, frogs, sharks, and more. With that history of imitators in mind it’s funny to see Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splinted Fates act as such a direct clone of Hades, just with a TMNT coat of paint. Unlike Street Sharks or Biker Mice from Mars, though, this does an admirable job of capturing most of what makes its inspiration great.As is tradition, Master Splinter has been kidnapped, and it’s up to the four turtles to battle through four levels of roguelite action to get him back. Each run starts in the sewers, moving room to room as you clear enemies and collect power-ups along the way. When you die, you are transported back to the turtle’s lair to regroup, buy a few upgrades, and start again.Splintered Fates was originally a mobile game, but it was built with modern high-spec devices and access to controllers in mind. As a result, its solid core gameplay loop feels right at home on the Nintendo Switch. Delivering attacks before quickly dashing away to avoid damage generally feels fast and fluid. Intense fights near the end of a run can be a dizzying whirlwind as you prioritize targets and deliver blows in the small gaps in which enemies are vulnerable. Attacks quickly charge up a powerful special attack and a tool with a unique power, like Michelangelo’s taunt, which stuns and damages enemies in a small area of effect.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Rockstar's The Warriors is one of the oddest games that the GTA developer ever released, though it's quite enjoyable in its own right. According to a recent report from retro gaming site Time Extension, Rockstar came extremely close to releasing a GBA port of the game around 2005, but it was ultimately canned.The Time Extension piece attributes the information to an anonymous former Rockstar Games employee. That employee says that the game was essentially finished when it was canceled in 2005, and that it used tech from Rockstar Leeds' GBA port of Max Payne, including the game engine. The piece also states that there's at least one copy of the game out there, but it hasn't yet seen a release due to potential legal concerns. According to the source, the GBA Warriors had four-player co-op through the console's link cable, and it was "fun to play." However, it never saw the light of day because the PSP was gaining momentum, and Rockstar was decidedly on the Sony side of the platform war. The employee also cites Nintendo's apparent dislike for promoting M-rated games as a factor in the decision. Rockstar developed a number of original GTA games for the PSP, including Liberty City Stories, but also developed Chinatown Wars for the DS.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Nintendo deserves and often rightly gets a lot of credit for the proliferation of esports and speedrunning, two competitive video game subcultures that have exploded in recent years. The Nintendo World Championships events were among the first high-profile, publisher-led efforts at esports, and many of the best-known speedrunning records are based on classic NES games. It makes sense, then, that Nintendo would capitalize on its place in history with Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition, a hybrid speedrunning tutorial and ongoing online competition for Nintendo Switch. While the tools are a bit barebones for true speedrun enthusiasts, the presentation nicely preserves and illuminates the joy of racing to shave milliseconds off your best time.Nintendo World Championships kicks off on a self-congratulatory tone, having you peruse icons, favorite NES games, and "Hype Tags"--slogans from throughout Nintendo history--to build your profile. The icons are all from Nintendo-published NES games, but the "favorite games" include lots of third-party games and even Famicom listings. Similarly, the slogans run the gamut from nostalgic ("Plays With Power") to more contemporary ("Retro Game Collector"). It's a nice little touch of personalization to welcome you into Nintendo's long history.Once you've created your profile, you can choose One Player or Party Mode. The One Player menu greets you with three gameplay options: Speedrun Mode, World Championships, and Survival Mode. Speedrun Mode makes for the bulk of single-player, and is composed of a large collection of challenges from across 13 classic Nintendo games. Those challenges are then reused for the solo online play and Party Mode challenges. The challenges include each NES Super Mario Bros. game (including the so-called Lost Levels), Metroid, The Legend of Zelda, Donkey Kong, Kirby, Excitebike, and Balloon Fight, among others.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

The world of Once Human is absolutely enormous, and while you can unlock teleportation stations that let you fast-travel around the map, you'll need a vehicle. The good news is that there are several in Once Human, including a motorcycle you can unlock fairly early. It'll help you get around for a while, but if you want to use the motorcycle long-term--or if you want to unlock better vehicles later on--you'll need to understand the systems for crafting, upgrading, and repairing them.How any of that stuff works isn't particularly clear, though. Here's everything you need to know about getting your motorcycle, fixing it up, and keeping it in working condition, as well as making better vehicles later on.Table of Contents [hide]How To Get The MotorcycleHow To Get The MotorcycleThe good news is that you can get your first vehicle pretty early in the process of playing Once Human, provided you follow the main story. Keep on the tasks under the Follow the Stardust tab in your Journey menu, and eventually, Mary will send you to the settlement of Deadsville. The quest will have you learn about some of the key figures in the town, including Claire and Lowe. When you're done, Mary will send you out into the world and give you a motorcycle for your trouble.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn has been marketed as a souls-lite rather than the more common souls-like, which I assumed meant it would be more approachable while still retaining many of the genre's core tenets. This is partly true in that it's nowhere near as punishing as From Software's games, and features familiar elements like bonfire-esque checkpoints and an Estus Flask-style healing system. Yet the game's style is more akin to something like Star Wars: Jedi Survivor than any Dark Souls game. Flintlock feels like a mashup of sensibilities between a souls-like and a more traditional action game, bridging the gap between the two with its own delightful approach to fast-paced combat and high-flying traversal.One area in which Flintlock immediately stands out amongst its contemporaries is its unique setting. Mixing magical high fantasy with elements from the 17th to 19th century and the advent of gunpowder, Flintlock's world is immediately intriguing. For your part, you're strapped into the boots of protagonist Nor Vanek, a sapper in the Coalition army who unwittingly breaks a seal to the Great Below, unleashing malevolent Gods and their armies of the dead upon the lands of Kian. This act sets in motion a fairly straightforward story as Nor--wracked with guilt over condemning her home to near-annihilation--sets out on a path of vengeance to kill the Gods and retake the world. She's joined by a mysterious fox-like companion called Enki, who's keen to share his knowledge of the Gods while aiding Nor's efforts with a host of magical abilities.The narrative's simple, laser-focused approach works in the game's favor, giving you a clear end goal to pursue that aligns with the snappy pacing of its action and movement. There are moments of interpersonal conflict, but the story never deviates from its deicidal path, lending the narrative a purposeful sense of forward momentum that carries it through to the end. The trade-off, however, is that you're unlikely to feel any attachment to its small cast of one-dimensional characters, despite enjoyable performances from Olive Gray (Halo), Alistar Petrie (Sex Education), and Elias Toufexis (Deus Ex: Mankind Divided).Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

mClassic Graphics Upscaler for Switch and Retro Games $80 (was $100) See at Amazon For Nintendo Switch users and those with an affinity for retro gaming, one of the coolest gaming products on sale during Prime Day 2024 was the mClassic Graphics Upscaler. The steep discount on this game-changing little accessory was only supposed to last for a single day, but the deal has been extended until July 31, or until it sells out. Normally $100 and almost never discounted outside of Prime Day and Black Friday, the mClassic is up for grabs for only $80 at Amazon. This deal matches the mClassic's lowest price yet. mClassic Graphics Upscaler for Switch and Retro Games $80 (was $100) For many, the mClassic's main draw is its Nintendo Switch features. It offers noticeable visual upgrades--though the degree to which you notice the differences depends on how discerning you are when it comes to graphics. Switch games can be upscaled up to 1440p at 60fps or 4K at 30fps. It has built-in anti-aliasing tech that smooths jagged edges and sharpens the picture. The exact boost in visual fidelity varies based on the game, in our experience--and you aren't getting true 4K like the PS5 and Xbox Series X.On consoles with HDMI such as Switch, PS3, and Xbox 360 (besides first-gen 360 consoles), all you need to do is plug it into your console, connect the included power cable, and then reconnect your HDMI cable from your TV into the mClassic dongle. The mClassic substantially improves the overall picture quality and playability of game consoles from the pre-HD era--Super Nintendo, N64, GameCube, etc.--on modern flat-screen 4K and HD TVs. We tested the mClassic a couple years back and were extremely impressed by its performance with retro consoles. A CRT TV is still clearly the best option for retro gaming, but the mClassic is a great option for those who don't want to deal with the bulk of a box TV or the hassle of finding one in general.Note: Game consoles without an HDMI port--like the aforementioned retro Nintendo consoles--require the mClassic to be connected to an adapter, such as this $30 model or this one for $18. See at Amazon On the side of the dongle, you'll find a switch that lets you toggle the enhancements on and off. There's also a mode designed for retro consoles built to display in a 4:3 aspect ratio (like "square" CRT TVs). Depending on the retro game you're playing, you'll probably want to turn this mode on instead of using the default widescreen setting that stretches the image. The mClassic still upscales the picture, even when using the retro mode's 4:3 aspect ratio.The mClassic's manufacturer Marseille recommends locking your Nintendo Switch to 720p while docked--the resolution for handheld mode--for the best results. Based on our testing, we agree with that recommendation, but don't forget to turn 1080p back on before you play without the mClassic.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

More than almost any other genre, the metroidvania is reaching a saturation point. We have beloved modernizations like Hollow Knight and Axiom Verge and big-budget takes like Batman: Arkham Asylum or this year's Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, alongside a steady, constant drumbeat of indie releases. It's hard to throw a rock at Steam without hitting at least a couple of metroidvanias, and with that much choice, it's hard for any one to stand out. Gestalt: Steam and Cinder is the latest indie take on the genre, but it manages to do what many others don't: pay homage to the two most prominent originators of the genre with smart, deliberate design choices that help it stand out in a crowded field.In some sense, all metroidvanias combine aspects of Super Metroid and Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. Gestalt does so as well, but it also wisely leans on some of their best attributes, which feels like a conscious choice. For Super Metroid, that means a vast, interconnected world that is broken into a handful of distinct zones that play like their own stages. And like Symphony of the Night, it sports gorgeous pixel art with an emphasis on slick combat with light RPG hooks.In Gestalt, you play as Aletheia, a no-nonsense bounty hunter who is on semi-friendly terms with the governing body of Canaan, a post-apocalyptic steampunk city. The world has recovered from the devastation of a war involving clockwork soldiers and cursed armor, but the stability is tense and everyone senses it's coming to an end. You get the impression throughout that Canaan's peacekeepers have tried to recruit Aletheia at various points, but she's always preferred to go her own way because she is, above all else, a cool, independent protagonist. Taking bounties ultimately leads to trouble as she investigates the areas around Canaan for clues about what's really going on.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

In 2019, Marvel Studios was on top of the world with Avengers: Endgame, the culmination of the Infinity Saga, and its epilogue, Spider-Man: Far From Home. But thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was almost another two years before another Marvel movie was back in theaters. While promoting Deadpool and Wolverine, Marvel's Kevin Feige reflected on the way COVID affected the MCU's shared universe and the studio's production."I think you can go look at any big broad slate presentation we've done over the last 10 or 15 years and there have been changes--small and big--to them," Feige told GameSpot. "Certainly, as you point out, these last few years have unquestionably been the most disruptive to all of us as citizens of Earth, but also to those of us trying to plot out a shared cinematic universe."Some of the challenges of COVID meant that Marvel's release schedule was upended. For example, Spider-Man: No Way Home was released before Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness even though Spidey's film was originally supposed to take place afterwards. COVID has also had the unintentional effect of closing some of the five-year gap between our present and the MCU's near-future after Endgame. It's currently unclear when the present day Marvel movies are supposed to take place.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Coming off the heels of the decade-long Hydaelyn and Zodiark saga, Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail takes you to completely new territory, quite literally. For once, you--the Warrior of Light--are offered the chance for some peace and quiet alongside your friends, with no calamitous threat looming over your shoulder. There are no dragons to slay, gods to fell, or villains to vanquish on the agenda. Hell, we traveled to the literal edge of the universe, I think it's fair to say we deserve this break.This latest adventure is the beginning of something new for the MMO and aims to try something a little different with a number of unpredictable outcomes. You'd be setting yourself up for disappointment if you're expecting this expansion to offer the non-stop excitement and narrative revelations or Shadowbringers or Endwalker, but Dawntrail is still a great setup for a lower-stakes adventure, and one that ultimately makes Dawntrail's twist that much more compelling.Major spoilers ahead for Dawntrail's storyContinue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

One week away from the release of Deadpool and Wolverine, Marvel Studios just couldn't resist releasing one last trailer that blew one of the biggest cameos in the film: Dafne Keen's return as Wolverine's clone daughter, Laura/X-23. Keen originated the role in 2017's Logan, which was meant to be Hugh Jackman's final appearance as Wolverine before he agreed to return for this film. Now, Keen has revealed that she was able to keep her comeback a secret by taking her cue from the way Andrew Garfield lied about Spider-Man: No Way Home."All the [inspiration] comes from Andrew Garfield," said Keen during an interview with EW. "He is the master at this." While Jackman's Wolverine is not the same variant who met his end in Logan, Keen revealed that she is reprising the same version of Laura, who is now a young adult."It was wonderful to get to come back to that and explore that as a grownup," added Keen. "Now understanding more parental rage so much more and bringing that to the table for her. I found that Laura in Logan stumbled into having a dad and then having lost her dad. We find her again really knowing how to appreciate--and with this kind of wiseness to her--how much her father means to her."Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba is a wildly popular anime and manga series that stars a captivating cast of characters all seeking to protect innocents from insidious threats. My wife and I are huge fans of the show to the point that we’ve obtained dozens of Banpresto, Figurizm, and Masterlise figures for our humble collection. It’s also why I was intrigued by Demon Slayer: Sweep the Board!, a virtual board game adaptation of the series from CyberConnect 2 and Sega.Following its release on Nintendo Switch this past April, Demon Slayer: Sweep the Board has been released on additional platforms. Unfortunately, however, it seems my wait for Sweep the Board to come to PC was not worth it. After nearly 10 hours of playing, I still have a hard time discerning just who exactly this game was made for. From clunky controls to boring minigames, Sweep the Board feels like a party game that lacks any sense of "party."Demon Slayer: Sweep the Board adapts several arcs of the manga and anime into Mario Party-esque layouts. From Asakusa and Mount Fujikasane in Board 1 to the Swordsmith Village in Board 5, each map is chock-full of references and nods to moments from the show, which was a treat for me as a fan. For instance, there are multiple paths in Mt. Natagumo that take you to Tsuzumi Mansion, which has a mysterious drum that causes characters inside the building to move to random locations. The Swordsmith Village, meanwhile, has hot springs, mechanical training dolls, and Haganezuka chasing you around. Those familiar with the source material will no doubt get a kick out of the references, albeit a brief one.Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com

In late May, Harry Potter finally received the adaptation many fans would probably assume had already existed: Monopoly. Hasbro, the publisher of the ubiquitous board game, has partnered with seemingly every big film and television franchise, but Harry Potter wasn't one of them. Surprising, we know. But now fans no longer need to create custom versions of Monopoly set in the Wizarding World, and Monopoly: Harry Potter Edition is available for its first discount at Amazon, dropping the price to only $32 (was $40) for Prime members.When Amazon sells out--the retailer is nearly sold out as of 2:15 PM PT on July 19--you can buy Monopoly: Harry Potter Edition at Walmart for $33. Plus, you don't need a membership to take advantage of Walmart's deal. See at Walmart Continue Reading at GameSpotInfo from Gamespot.com