Posted by: xSicKxBot - 01-21-2019, 04:55 AM - Forum: Lounge
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Black Ops 4's Free Blackout Trial, New Limited-Time Mode Now Live
Players who have yet to pick up a copy of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 can now try its Blackout mode for free. Treyarch's limited-time Blackout trial has begun on PS4, Xbox One, and PC, allowing you jump into the hectic battle royale mode at no charge.
The free trial runs until 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET / 6 PM GMT on January 24. To participate, you'll need to download the Blackout trial client from either Battle.net on PC or your console's respective digital store. PS4 players aren't required to have a PlayStation Plus subscription, but Xbox One owners will need an Xbox Live Gold membership, while those playing on PC will need a free Battle.net account.
The trial gives you full access to all the content in Blackout mode. You'll also earn Echelon progression while playing and unlock Black Market Tiers and loot. If you decide to purchase the title after the trial ends, any progress you've made during the free period will carry over to the full game. You can read more details about the free trial on Reddit.
If you're interested in Blackout but don't particularly care for Black Ops 4's other modes, Activision is selling a $40 version of the game on PC that strips out Zombies and only includes Blackout and multiplayer. Like the trial client, this is only available through Battle.net.
Coinciding with the free trial, Treyarch has kicked off a new limited-time mode in Blackout, dubbed Down But Not Out. In this quad mode, any downed players will be able to rejoin the battle with each Collapse as long as at least one member of the team remains in the game. The mode is live now on PS4 and will come to Xbox One and PC at a later date.
Mortal Kombat 11 Art Director Seemingly Reveals Reptile’s Return
It sounds as if a Mortal Kombat 11 fighter may have been confirmed ahead of schedule. Following the grand reveal earlier this week – showing off the new character Geras and confirming classic ones such as Sonya Blade, DualShockers has shared new information about another popular character who appears to be making a return.
During a chat with NetherRealm’s Steve Beran about a new tower mode in the game and how different modifiers impact each play session, the Art Director seemingly let slip Reptile would be returning, when using him as an example to describe a few of the finer details:
“Then there’s certain things like you can activate Reptile’s Acid Ball. It’s very nostalgic. You have these helpers, if you will. It’s a blast and we’re really happy about that.”
This reptilian fighter started out life as a hidden opponent and has since been a regular member of the cast, so it’s not all that surprising to hear he’ll be back in the latest outing. As for if he’ll actually be a playable character, we’ll just have to wait and find out, but it seems likely.
Earlier this week, NetherRealm Community Manager Tyler Lansdown appeared on stage during the big reveal to announce the first Kombat Kast for MK11. This event will take place on 30th January and is going to be “pretty big” apparently. Kabal was also teased during this announcement, so it’s expected this character and others will be revealed.
Are you glad to hear Reptile is likely returning to the latest Mortal Kombat? Tell us below.
Movie About Lord Of The Rings Author Gets A Release Date
The J.R.R. Tolkien biopic finally has a release date. Fox Searchlight has announced that the movie about the Lord of the Rings author will arrive in theatres on May 10, 2019, and a week earlier on May 3 in the UK and Ireland. The movie stars Nicholas Hoult as a young Tolkien, with the story following the man long before he came to write his epic fantasy tome.
According to Entertainment Weekly, the film will track Tolkien as a young man who came into his own at school before serving in World War I. In the trenches of France, with death and despair surrounding him, Tolkien was said to have come up with the ideas that would become The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. A number of Tolkien's longtime friends died in World War I; Tolkien survived, came home, and wrote his defining work.
The movie will also focus on Tolkien's wife, Edith Bratt, who is played by Lily Collins, the actress daughter of singer Phil Collins. The relationship between Tolkien and Bratt was supposedly the inspiration for Tolkien's Beren and Luthien story, which itself inspired the Aragorn-Arwen relationship in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings series. Tolkien and Bratt share a gravestone, and on it they're referred to as Beren and Luthien.
The new movie, which is simply titled Tolkien, is directed by Dome Karukoski (Heart of Finland), based on script from David Gleeson and Stephen Beresford.
In addition to this film, another one is in the works that focuses on the relationship between Tolkien and Narnia writer C.S. Lewis, and how Tolkien helped convert Lewis to Christianity.
Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (January 19th)
Congratulations everyone, we’ve made it to yet another weekend! As is tradition, members of Team Nintendo Life have gathered together to talk about our weekend plans. Featuring games ranging from Mario’s latest platforming adventure to digital versions of trading card games, you can find our entries below. Make sure to join in the fun with our poll and comment sections below. Enjoy!
Steve Bowling, US editor
This weekend is all about the Mushroom Kingdom for me. I’ll be playing my way through New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe and Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story. I feel like the 3DS must be in its twilight by now, so I’m betting this is one of the last great first-party games the platform will enjoy. The series holds a special place in my heart and my recent interview with the team has left me wanting to play through it again!
Gonçalo Lopes, contributing writer
Being a Suda51 fan for decades, one would expect me to write about how much time I will spend this weekend with Travis Strikes Again… but I won’t; buying the game digitally is simply not punk enough so I will wait one more week for the physical retail version. Instead, I will be decimating poor souls in the ongoing ARMS Party Crash Bash bracket with my main man Ninjara, picking up a few more legendary spirits in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and play a few more long sessions of the lovely Tales of Vesperia: Definitive Edition (I’m about to wrap up Arc I!).
My game of the week goes to Gunman Clive HD Collection. You simply can not argue with that price/contents ratio, even if you have done it all before on Wii U and 3DS.
Dom Reseigh-Lincoln, reviewer
This weekend’s gaming exploits will be, predictably for me, as eclectic as ever. I’ll be giving the Lightseekers TCG a go on Nintendo Switch to see if it stacks up on console, and I’ll also be jumping in to Legrand Legacy: Tale of the Fatebound to see if this love letter to classic JRPGs is worth reading.
I’ve been watching a lot of Gotham recently (don’t judge me) and it’s given me a hankering to replay some of the old Rocksteady Batman games, so expect me and the eldest to give Batman: Arkham City Armored Edition a decent airing on Wii U.
Ryan Craddock, staff writer
For the first time since it released at the start of December, this weekend I might actually ignore Smash Bros. Ultimate for a while. We’ve got into a trend in my house of watching the Pokémon anime with dinner, before jumping into some multiplayer gaming on Switch. This week, rather than going on Smash every night, we’ve actually been really enjoying going back to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Overcooked 2.
We’re now actually playing through Overcooked 2’s Surf ‘N’ Turf DLC which is incredibly challenging at times. Hopefully we (by which I mean “I“) will have the patience to get to the end.
Austin Voigt, contributing writer
This weekend, a good friend of about 10+ years is coming to stay – and her requested activity is that I “teach her how to videogame”. MWAHA! This, I feel, was a mistake on her part – but it will be exceptionally fun on mine. Pandora’s box has been opened! Some context: this friend is a law student, so her life outside of textbooks has been close to nonexistent the past few years. She has so much catching up to do… and I plan to completely overwhelm her with gaming greatness all in 24 hours.
I think I’ll start her off on some Mario Kart, and then throw her to the wolves with Breath of the Wild. Afterwards, Splatoon 2 to regain her trust. And then I’ll attack her – literally – with Smash Ultimate. Stay tuned for updates on whether or not she dies of exhaustion!
Which games are you playing this weekend? (272 votes)
New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe
9%
Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story + Bowser Jr’s Journey
Apple again starts selling iPhone SE, this time on clearance for $249
By Andrew O’Hara Saturday, January 19, 2019, 07:26 pm PT (10:26 pm ET)
Apple returned the iPhone SE to its U.S. online store on Saturday, but only as part of a clearance effort to seemingly liquidate the remaining stock of the discontinued handset.
At a new special price, those who are interested can grab a brand new, unopened iPhone SE for only $249 with 32GB or 128GB for $299. They come fully unlocked sporting the same specs as when it was introduced in 2016. As a refresher, the iPhone SE includes the A9 Apple processor, Touch ID, and the four-inch form factor.
Those current prices are $100 and $150 off respectively compared to Apple’s prices before the phone was removed from sale.
Currently, Apple is only selling phones with displays above 4.7-inches, much to the chagrin of small-handed iPhone lovers. MacRumors was first to spot the discounted offering.
Grab one while you can because, with the discount, these likely won’t last too long. Gadget reseller Gazelle has some used models available as well, though they are also selling through.
It isn’t clear how long the iPhone SE will remain supported by iOS. The A9 processor first shipped with the iPhone 6S in September 2015.
Capcom’s riveting samurai adventure returns! This version includes the original game’s intense swordplay and dramatic revenge story, plus improved controls, widescreen display, a new soundtrack, and more. Experience this enhanced version of the best-selling action-adventure classic!
Get into the game–literally–with Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes
Get into the game–literally–with Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes
Travis touches down… again! But this time, he finds himself sucked into the legendary gaming console, the Death Drive Mark II. Become Travis and hack-and-slash your way through various game genres, enemies, and bosses. Represent your favorite indie games by rocking their swag in-game, and keep an eye out for other in-game collaborations. Hit the road in an all new adventure with gaming’s most hardcore otaku assassin. Beam Katana in hand, Travis Strikes Again!
Features
Chain exhilarating attacks and unleash an arsenal of skills to squash hordes of bugs.
Engage in tactical battles with the diabolical bosses that lurk within each game.
Prove the urban legend—collect all the mythical Death Balls to make one wish.
Pass a Joy-Con™ controller to a friend for local co-op, and partner up with the one and only Badman.
Hit the road in an adventure mode full of irreverent humor and hilarious hijinks.
New Preview Alpha Skip Ahead & Alpha Ring 1904 Build – 1/14/2019
Starting at 2:00 p.m. PST today, members of the Xbox One Preview Skip Ahead and Preview Alpha Rings will begin receiving the latest 1904 Xbox One system update (19h1_release_xbox_dev_1904.190111-1920). Read on for more about the fixes and known issues in the latest 1904 system update. For the next few releases we will keep Alpha Skip Ahead and Alpha builds in sync to test core functionality.
Fixes:
My Games and Apps
System
Miscellaneous bug fixes and base operating system framework updates.
Known Issues:
Dashboard – Blank Tabs
We are aware that some users are seeing Dashboard tabs not loading console on boot. Please file feedback ASAP when you see this so we can continue to investigate.
Profile Color
Sometimes users may encounter the incorrect Profile color when powering on the console.
My Games and Apps
We are tracking an issue in which certain apps are displaying the error code 0xD0000189 when launching. Workaround reboot the console and launch the app.
Skype
We are aware of an issue with skype that when a user clicks on a conversation and/or pressing X to start a video call seem to freeze and eventually crash skype.
Limited Run Games Publishing Dragon’s Lair Trilogy Physical Edition
Last week, we found out Dragon’s Lair Trilogy would be released on Switch eShop on 17th January after a listing on the European Switch eShop. With the game now available on Nintendo’s digital platform, many fans of the classic series are probably wondering when they can get their hands on a physical release.
The good news is, it shouldn’t be too far off. The box art for the game was recently spotted on the Nintendo website. Although there hasn’t been an official announcement yet, it confirms physical distribution specialist Limited Run Games will be publishing the title at some point in the near future. Take a look at the box art below:
If you haven’t played this series before, the trilogy contains Dragon’s Lair, Dragon’s Lair II: Time Warp and Space Ace – where you take control of Ace instead of Dirk. These games are made up of cinematic-style quick time events with animation from Don Bluth. The first game was released in arcades in 1983, Space Ace came out in 1984 and Dragon’s Lair II arrived in 1991.
Have you been holding out for a physical release since the Switch trilogy was announced? Tell us in the comments below.
The Darksiders Twitter Account Might Have Teased A Switch Release
The history of Darksiders on Nintendo platforms dates back to 2012 when Darksiders II was released on the Wii U as a launch title. Years later, at the very end of the system’s life, THQ Nordic followed up with Darksiders: Warmastered Edition.
The question now is, will this hack and slash action-adventure series – drawing comparisons to the likes of God of War and The Legend of Zelda – ever be released on the Nintendo Switch? Based on a recent social media exchange between the Darksiders Twitter account and a fan, there might be a chance:
Once this comment was posted, the series’ publisher THQ Nordic stepped in to talk down the possibility of the games coming to Switch and then claimed how the Darksiders account wasn’t making any sense. The conversation went downhill from there, with the two accounts engaging in some friendly banter.
Darksiders III is the most recent entry in the series and was released on the Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC last November. Compared to existing entries, this new one has been compared to the Dark Souls series. Considering the Wii U has already received the second game and Warmastered, it would be lovely to see the latest one make its way across to the Switch.
Would you like to see the latest game in this series come to the Switch? Would you be happy with a Darksiders game in general on the hybrid platform? Tell us below.
