Mario Kart Tour Update Adds Multiplayer Team Racing And Custom Matchmaking
A new update has drifted onto the scene in Mario Kart Tour, bringing with it a couple of welcome new features that should improve your multiplayer gaming experience.
The first new addition is Team Races, which puts players into four separate teams of two racers. These races can be made up of friends nearby, friends online, or strangers online, and each team will be competing to get themselves to the top of the podium to earn in-game rewards.
The second update adds a ‘Room Code’ feature. This allows you to create your own custom room and provides you with a code to share with your friends or family. This way, you’ll be able to play with people you know – and only people you know – in matches that support up to eight players.
If you’re wanting to check out these new features, make sure your app is fully up to date. You should find that the game is now on version 2.1.0 (or higher if you’re reading this in the future).
Still play the odd game of Mario Kart Tour? Do these new features sound like a good addition to you? Tell us below.
2K has revealed that PGA Tour 2K21 will be swinging onto Switch and other platforms this summer, with a worldwide release of 21st August being announced.
The announcement comes alongside a new trailer, which you can check out above, as well as the news that PGA Tour pro Justin Thomas is set to be the cover star. The game has been developed by HB Studios, the team behind The Golf Club 2019 Featuring PGA TOUR, and will include 15 licensed PGA Tour courses. Here’s some PR:
Thomas will be joined by 11 additional PGA TOUR pros, each of whom will present a challenge to players in PGA TOUR Career Mode as they compete to become a FedExCup Champion. Players can also create and personalize their MyPLAYERs with equipment and apparel from licensed brands including adidas, Polo Ralph Lauren, Malbon Golf, Callaway Golf, Bridgestone Golf, TaylorMade Golf and more.
Capping off the simulation experience, PGA TOUR 2K21 will feature a broadcast-style presentation with state-of-the-art graphics, dynamic cutscenes and a seamless replay system, all anchored by the play-by-play commentary of renowned broadcaster Luke Elvy and analyst Rich Beem.
The game’s said to be designed for players “of all skill levels”, with real-time tutorials, tips and shot suggestions being on offer for rookies, while veterans can make use of the game’s Pro Vision, Distance Control, and Putt Preview features. Expect to find several ways to play online, too, with modes like Alt-Shot, Stroke Play, Skins and 4-Player Scramble.
A press release for the announcement notes that PGA Tour 2K21 will be “available in digital format for Nintendo Switch at launch”.
Into your golf? Looking forward to checking this one out on Switch? Let us know with a comment below.
CW's Next Arroverse Crossover Will Be Smaller And Won't Happen Until 2021
The Arrowverse crossover Crisis on Infinite Earths featured the vast majority of heroes--and a few villains--from all across The CW's DC programming. While the Arrowverse crossover event has become an annual staple for these series, there are a few changes coming to the next one.
CW's next DC crossover won't be as ambitious as last year's Crisis on Infinite Earths, and it won't happen in December, like the annual event normally does, according to Variety.
"It will not happen in December but it will happen sometime hopefully first or second quarter of 2021," CW chairman and CEO Mark Pedowitz said. "It'll be a smaller event than usual. We're already planning a two-hour event. We are talking about doing Superman and Batwoman together at this point, with a lot of characters coming from other shows. But again, timing is impacted across the board, but we are planning for sometime middle, late first quarter, early second quarter, for that to happen."
Rumour: Pikmin 3 Deluxe Reportedly In The Works For Nintendo Switch
If today’s Paper Mario reveal wasn’t exciting enough, we now have mumblings of a potential Pikmin 3 rerelease for Nintendo Switch to ponder over.
In a newly-posted article discussing Paper Mario: The Origami King‘s announcement, VentureBeat has reported that “other Nintendo studios will have games ready for release soon, as well. That includes the 3D Mario remasters, but it should also include Pikmin 3 Deluxe”.
The line about 3D Mario remasters is, of course, referring to the rumoured 35th-anniversary releases that were first reported on back in March. ‘Pikmin 3 Deluxe’, however, is something that we haven’t heard a whole lot about before.
So, should we be expecting a boatload of Mario games and Pikmin 3 Deluxe this year? We’ll have to wait and see what Nintendo decides to officially unveil, but it’s certainly an exciting prospect.
What do you think? Do you believe the claim that a Pikmin 3 rerelease is on the way? Let us know with a comment.
The next game to be released on the Xbox Game Pass is Fractured Minds on May 19. Fracture Minds is a first person adventure game which explores the issues of anxiety and mental health. For a full look at what's coming to Xbox Game Pass this month, check out our article here.
Guardian Games has come to a close. Hunters won the first day, but Titans showed up in force to completely dominate the rest of the event. Warlocks took home the silver, and Hunters still look frabjous.
The final Iron Banner of the Season is also live this week and, along with it, players have discovered a new quest. The community has been tasked with helping Rasputin by completing Seraph Tower events and are currently working to complete the objectives on EDZ, the Moon, and Io.
We’ve seen feedback that the Tower events are too difficult and that it’s hard to wrangle up enough people to join the cause. We have made some server-side changes to lower the difficulty of the event to help alleviate frustrations and increase your success rate.
We made an error when we calculated how many completions were required, so yesterday we introduced bonus multipliers to help the community’s progress and get you all on your way to the next step. You can read more details on the changes we made here.
Max Power Level
Back in February, Luke spoke about upcoming plans for Legendary gear infusion. The Destiny Dev Team has more details on how this system is going to work.
Destiny Dev Team: Today we’re going to talk about changes to the Infusion system that are coming to Destiny 2. These changes are going to be visible starting in Season 11 but won’t start impacting your arsenal until Season 12. More on that in a bit.
We want the sandbox to feel interesting, exciting, and dynamic, and to evolve in compelling ways over time in the same way that the game evolves. Our weapons are the primary way that players interact with the world, and Season over Season we want players to discover new weapons that feel powerful, have interesting new perks to explore, and power the builds that players craft in new and unexpected ways.
The changes to the Infusion system we’re talking about today are designed to promote the following:
We want you to more frequently earn and enjoy more powerful and standout gear.
Right now, if a new Legendary weapon isn’t better than the current best-in-class, there is no reason to replace your existing weapon with it.
If a new Legendary weapon is better than the current best-in-class, we risk power creep, removing challenge from the game, or making the item mandatory/the only option for challenging activities.
Both above points apply equally to new mods and perks, as well.
Powerful weapons can be era-defining, but eventually those eras need to end so that new eras can begin.
We want strong weapons to have their time in the sun, and whenever possible we want you to expect and prepare for powerful gear to cycle out of the endgame meta.
We can’t solve this by just making weapons that are always “better” than the previous ones. This will steadily lower time-to-kill in both PvP and PvE, until the combat sandbox is neither fun nor tactical.
We also want to foster a gradually evolving meta that regularly promotes experimentation and debate.
We believe Destiny is at its best when you have new desirable things to pursue and when you have active debates with your clanmates about which of those new things to bring into the new raid, or which is going to be hot in Trials next Season.
With those goals stated, let’s break down how the changes will work:
Each Legendary weapon and piece of armor will have a Max Power Level it can reach through infusion.
Exotics will not have a Max Power Level.
The Max Power Level for these items will be set at the player Power Cap attainable 3 Seasons after its release Season (4 Seasons total).
This means all Legendary gear has a one-year span of time during which it can be used in activities where being at or near the player Power Cap is important (difficult and Power-enabled activities).
The Max Power Level for these items will be visible in game in Season 11, but no items will be at their Max Power Level at the start Season 11.
This means all your gear will be relevant in all activities during Season 11.
You’ll be able to see what the Max Power Level is for all your gear, and plan accordingly.
At the start of Season 12, weapons and armor released in Seasons 1-8 will have a Max Power Level at the Season 11 player Power Cap
Gear from Seasons 9, 10, 11, and 12 will all be infusible to new player Power Caps for 1 year after their release.
Weapons and armor from the Last Wish and Garden of Salvation raids, will be granted exceptions and will have a higher Max Power Level”
Example of how Max Power Levels will be displayed in Season 11
Those are the basics. But you may have additional questions, such as:
Can I still use gear that has reached its Max Power Level?
Yes. You will always be able to equip and use any piece of gear.
Reaching the player Power Cap is beneficial, but not strictly required, for most activities in Destiny. You can continue to equip and use all gear in these activities.
This applies to armor as well as weapons?
Yes – all Legendary gear that provides Power will have a Max Power Level.
Starting in Season 12, armor will no longer have a Seasonally rotating fourth mod slot. Instead, there will be a mod slot that accepts mods introduced into the game throughout a full year. We recognize that the current need to replace your armor every two to three Seasons, and hoard armor from past Seasons, is undesirable.
Transmogrification, which we talked about in the TWAB last week, will give you the ability to keep your favorite looks and apply them to new armor pieces with higher Max Power Levels.
When gear drops after its debut Season, what will its Max Power Level be?
It will have the same Max Power Level as it did in its initial release Season.
Note, this is different than gear that is re-issued. See next question.
Will gear ever have its Max Power Level updated?
Not directly, but gear can be re-issued in future Seasons.
These re-issued versions will have a new Max Power Level based on the Season in which it is re-issued.
We’re going to experiment with how and when gear is re-issued into the game throughout Year 4. Let us know what you think of the different methods as you experience them.
We’re sure you’ll have more questions that aren’t covered above, so please let us know!
We’re committed to Destiny 2 continuing to grow and evolve for years to come, and a part of that continued evolution is the curation of an interesting, exciting, and dynamic player sandbox. The introduction of Max Power Level will allow us to create exciting new gear more frequently without significant concerns of permanent power creep, which is unsustainable in any game. This also should open up creative and experimental builds, season over season, while letting you anticipate and prepare for how the sandbox will change over time.
Please continue to share your thoughts and feelings about these changes as you get your hands on them.
[REDACTED] Engrams
We spoke a lot about rewards last week, but still have some more juicy nuggets to share with you on some additional plans we have for next Season. Here’s Creative Lead Robbie Stevens with the details.
Robbie Stevens: Hey everyone,
In Season 11 we’re trying something new with how and where you can earn Seasonal rewards.
So far, every Season in Year 3 has followed a formula where the Seasonal activity (Vex Offensive, Sundial, Bunkers/Seraph Tower) asks for a significant amount of playtime to earn new rewards. While we believe that new content should be one of the best places to earn new rewards, we also realize that Destiny 2 is a big game and it can be frustrating to have so much of your playtime dictated by and focused solely on Seasonal activities.
So, in Season 11 Seasonal rewards will drop from completing core activities (Strikes, Crucible, Gambit) as well as basically every other activity in the game, (see the full list detailed below). We want to make engaging with the entire game feel rewarding, and for every play session to give you a chance at earning Seasonal loot. In addition to new rewards, Season 11 also features two returning weapons each from Season of the Undying, Season of Dawn, and Season of the Worthy, for a total of six weapons that are free for all players.
Okay, we’ve talked about some of the places where you’ll earn rewards in Season 11, now let’s talk about how you can influence those rewards to chase god rolls and high-stat armor.
Over the last few Seasons we’ve introduced Weapon Bounties that give you agency to chase specific rewards. While addressing bounty fatigue will be an effort that extends beyond Year 3, for the upcoming Season we’ve moved away from Weapon Bounties as part of that effort. Instead, we’re introducing a new type of [REDACTED] Engram that contains the majority of the Season 11 rewards, and by spending Seasonal currency you can influence the contents of this [REDACTED] Engram.
To clear up any confusion let’s imagine if we launched this [REDACTED] Engram in Season of the Worthy. Imagine this engram contained all the Season of the Worthy weapons and armor. Now imagine you could take this engram to a Seraph Bunker and spend Seasonal currency to Focus the contents of this engram so it only contains the Seventh Seraph SMG and Shotgun. By focusing [REDACTED] Engrams in Season 11 you can choose your rewards, this includes the ability (once you’ve earned it) to Focus engrams so they only contain Season 11 armor with high-stat packages.
All free players and Season Pass owners will receive [REDACTED] Engrams while playing Season 11, however only Season Pass owners can access the full suite of Focusing categories in Season 11.
Here is preview of the [REDACTED] Engram focusing categories that all players can access after completing the Season 11 opening quest:
Season 11 Armor Focusing reduces the number of rewards in the engram so it only contains Season 11 armor.
Previous Season Weapon Focusing converts the rewards in the engram so it only contains the six weapons that are returning from Season of the Undying, Dawn, and Worthy.
When Season 11 launches, all players will get three focusing categories and Season Pass owners will have access to an additional 15
List of Activities that Reward [REDACTED] Engrams in Season 11:
[REDACTED]
[REDACTED]
Public Events
Strikes
Gambit
Crucible
Dungeons
Raids
Adventures
Nightmare Hunts
Forges
Reckoning
Menagerie
Escalation Protocol
Blind Well
Note: In addition to the above list, [REDACTED] Engrams have a chance to drop when defeating combatants anywhere in the system, similar to Legendary Engrams. They share the same loot pool as Legendary Engrams and when you hit that loot pool you have a 66% chance to earn a [REDACTED] Engram and a 34% to earn a Legendary Engram.
We hope this preview of Season 11 gives some insight into how we’re approaching the communities’ feedback in the short term.
Guardian’s Heart
Earlier this week, we wrapped our Guardian’s Heart Charity Initiative that had been going strong for the last month. We asked you to help support Direct Relief in their efforts to deliver supplies to hospitals and healthcare workers around the world. Guardians everywhere answered the call in full force and together you raised $788,923.19. Smashing our goal of $700k.
We’d like to thank everyone who donated, and everyone who volunteered their time to help spread the word by streaming in one of the 39 Bungie Bounties that we put on during the event. It’s been inspiring to watch this community come together once again to make the world a little better during a tough time.
More Fixings
The Player Support team is keeping an eye out for any issues players are reporting and have updates on how we are handling them.
This is their report.
HOTFIX 2.8.1.2
On Tuesday, May 19, Hotfix 2.8.1.2 will be available to players. Below is a timeline of Destiny 2 maintenance for Hotfix 2.8.1.2:
9 AM PDT (1600 UTC): Destiny 2 service maintenance begins.
9:45 AM PDT (1645 UTC): Destiny 2 is taken offline on all platforms.
10 AM PDT (1700 UTC): Destiny 2 Hotfix 2.8.1.2 begins rolling out across all platforms and regions. Players will be able to log back into Destiny 2 at 10:01 AM PDT.
10:01 AM PDT (1701 UTC): Destiny 2 is back online on all platforms.
12 PM PDT (1900 UTC): Destiny 2 service maintenance concludes.
Below is a list of issues that will be resolved with the release of Hotfix 2.8.1.2:
Season Pass Small Fireteam XP Buffs will now work as intended.
The Wormgod Caress gauntlets will no longer grant infinite 5x Burning Fists when repeatedly taken on and off.
Removing the Winter’s Guile gauntlets will now properly remove all Warlock’s Sigil perks.
ERROR CODES
On Friday, May 8, a potential fix was implemented for those experiencing frequent WATERCRESS error codes. Since May 8, we have been closely monitoring WATERCRESS reports and have noticed a significant decrease in WATERCRESS errors appearing. While we continue to progress toward a resolution, we recommend anyone continuing to experience WATERCRESS errors to report in our #Help forum.
We are continuing to monitor increases in BEETLE, RABBIT, BEAVER, and ANTEATER error codes.
GUARDIAN’S HEART
The Guardian’s Heart Initiative ended on Tuesday, May 12. Any donations made after 10 AM PST on May 12 are not eligible for the Guardian’s Heart emblem.
If you donated within the Initiative’s timeframe and still have not received your emblem, please contact the Bungie Foundation with your donation receipt order number and date of donation for assistance.
CURRENT KNOWN ISSUES
While we continue investigating various known issues, here is a list of the latest issues that were reported to us in our #Help Forum:
The Ascendant Champion triumph is not unlocking for some players.
The Enhanced Fusion Rifle Loader, Enhanced Auto Rifle Loader, and Enhanced Bow Loader mods are not dropping as intended.
The Clenched Fist perk for the Stronghold gauntlets is not working as intended.
For a full list of emergent issues in Destiny 2, players can review our Known Issues article. Players who observe other issues should report them to our #Help forum.
Streaming Now
Now let’s check in with the movies that caught our eye this week.
Movie of the Week: Velocity
Honorable Mention: Eye of the Storm
As always, these winners will be receiving a special emblem as proof that their creations were featured here. If you won, make sure you have a link to your Bungie.net profile in the description of the video.
We hope you enjoyed the little preview we gave you of the new [REDACTED] Engram coming next Season. Next week, we’ll share more changes coming to how you earn rewards in Season 11. Some of you know what a world loot pool is. Many of you have no idea what I’m talking about. Don’t worry, we’ll talk next week.
Minecraft with RTX Beta new Creator Worlds #2 & Sweepstakes
Have you guys been playing with the RTX Beta? I’ve been watching videos and enjoying the lovely screenshots the community has been sharing since the Beta was first announced earlier last month. NVIDIA today has released it’s 2nd Creator Worlds containing five new worlds with gameplay ready to be download and experience but the community. Head over to the marketplace and be sure to grab them!
There is a little bit of everything in this pack for everyone. This Survival island may just be right for those who are still looking for a survival experience. This lovely Italian inspired village is gorgeous and showcases her previous concepts, advancements, and features in her previous world Color, Light and Shadow RTX.
Not feeling up for survival? That’s fine, Feed The Beast has created a nice Mini-Game for everyone to enjoy. Solve puzzles, find secrets, and most of all conquer challenges as you find the hidden eggs as you try to complete the two game modes as fast as possible. After you get a chance to play tell us your fastest time in the comments below!
Still wanting a survival experience but Hilltop isn’t quite catching your fancy? Maybe this medieval themed world will. You have another gorgeous world but don’t let it fool you. Beneath this village lies a secret. Are you able to find the mysteries below? Prepare yourself on this perilous journey and share below what you find!
This survival abandoned village gives off an eerie feeling. Embark on your quest of solving puzzles, discovering secrets, and enjoying the overall experience that this haunting village has to offer you. What looms beyond the shadows?
The final map in this pack is truly jaw-dropping visually. This adventure map has you explore an underground structure. Take your time as you discover the lore and uncover mysteries of what happened to the Observer’s denizens.
Sweepstakes
I know a lot of you here are interested in what was meant by sweepstakes, so I’ll catch you up to speed and send you off for the full details. NVIDIA is proving Minecrafters a chance to win a few different prizes including GeForce RTX 2080 Ti graphics cards! For full details on how to enter and what you can win please head over to NVIDIA’s website for all you need to know.
Rainbow Six Siege Brings the ‘20s Roaring Back in The Grand Larceny Event
Rainbow Six Siege is getting dapper with The Grand Larceny, a special in-game event available to Xbox Live Gold members from now until May 19. Inspired by Jazz Age British mobsters, the event introduces a new game mode, Stolen Goods, in which two teams of five Operators clash over cash-filled safes. The action unfolds in a version of the Hereford map, which has been overhauled to fit a Roaring ‘20s theme as well as to remove many of the metal support beams that prevented players from dropping through breakable floors.
The rules of The Stolen Goods are straightforward: the Attackers need to grab and open safes (or wipe out the Defenders) to win, while the Defenders need to defend the safes and take down the Attackers. Everyone knows where the safes are. Everyone gets a shotgun as their main weapon. And unlike other modes, there’s no prep phase for the Defenders or spy drones for the Attackers – just fast, high-stakes firefights for filthy lucre.
The event is playable as most of Rainbow Six Siege’s Operators, and 10 of them are getting into the spirit of the event with new outfits: Defenders Maestro, Kaid, Echo, Warden, and Wamai, and Attackers Gridlock, Maverick, Hibana, Fuze, and Amaru. They’ll automatically sport their era-appropriate threads when playing The Stolen Goods, and you can score Grand Larceny packs to use the new uniforms, weapon skins, and headgear – 31 pieces in all – on a more permanent basis.
These packs can be earned by completing special challenges during the event, or by purchasing them with R6 Credits or Renown. Players can also grab the Roaring Riches Bundle during the event, which includes a Crafted Six charm and Deco Artistry signature weapon skin. It all ends on May 19, so jump in and experience tense, 1920s-style smash-and-grab action while you can.
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six® Siege Deluxe Edition
Ubisoft
☆☆☆☆☆110
★★★★★
Upgrade to the Rainbow Six Siege Deluxe Edition, which includes the full game, 8 Operators from Year 1 and 8 Operators from Year 2. Dive into explosive 5v5 gameplay, high stakes competition, and thrilling PVP team battles. Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six® Siege features an ever-expanding experience with limitless opportunities to perfect your strategy and help lead your team to victory. The Deluxe Edition contains: – The full game (all maps and modes). – All 8 Operators from Year 1 (Frost, Buck, Valkyrie, Blackbeard, Caveira, Capitão, Hibana and Echo) – All 8 Operators from Year 2 (Jackal, Mira, Lesion, Ying, Ela, Zofia, Dokkaebi and Vigil)
Scavengers Studio ends active development on Darwin Project
Scavengers Studio is winding down support for its social battle royale game Darwin Project, noting in a post that its team will be redirected to other projects within the studio.
It’s an unfortunate end to any online game, and one the team at Scavengers says they tried to stave off with new platforms, content, and features to no avail.
“We have assessed all potential solutions and scenarios, but unfortunately, Darwin Project is unable to sustain itself thus forcing us to come to this very difficult decision,” write studio co-founders Simon Darveau and Amélie Lamarche.
An end to active development doesn’t mean an end of support, at least not quite yet. The Darwin Project team says the ten-person battle royale game and its stream-centered features will remain online and fully playable until at least the end of 2020.
At Visual Concepts, we believe great games are made by diverse and empowered teams with a shared passion for play. As one of the world’s top game development studios, we have shipped over 100 multi-sku titles to critical acclaim and commercial success. Our teams are independent and entrepreneurial. Our studios in Agoura Hills, Novato, Orange County, Budapest, Shanghai, and Seoul are committed to artistry and technical innovation, offering top candidates the opportunity to learn and grow with some of the smartest and most creative minds in the industry.
What We Need:
Do you prize efficiency, productivity, and the satisfaction that comes from helping a team do their best work? Do you have organizational ability combined with a passion for solving technical, artistic and design challenges? Are you a collaborative leader and great communicator who thrives on delivering results? If so, wow, do we want to talk to you!
Our Agoura Hills studio is looking for a Producer to work with our team to help organize, focus, prioritize and track a host of new features and best-in-class visuals that we’re creating for the WWE 2K franchise. In the role of Producer, you’ll drive initiatives to improve our gameplay, visuals, technology, and game features to help make the next iteration of WWE 2K the best ever.
What You Will Do:
Work with a team of artists, engineers and designers to prioritize, plan and deliver amazing new features to our players
Work across partner teams to share vision, resolve dependencies, and ensure on-time delivery of feature inputs and requirements
Decompose long term efforts into incremental steps, planning and communicating road maps and risks to all stakeholders
Drive alignment, resolve ambiguity, and clarify technical and design strategy to maximize your impact
Collaborate with team members across the US and Canada to ensure the impact and quality of your features
Who We Think Will Be A Great Fit:
Four or more years of game production experience
One or more shipped games with significant scope of ownership
Experience setting clear goals, planning and delivering features with cross functional teams and multiple competing requirements
Outstanding project management capabilities, documentation, tracking and transparency
Attention to detail and completeness, ability to see around corners, anticipate issues
Familiarity with development tooling, Perforce, build systems, integrated test
Organized, excellent communication skills, passion for games, collaborative demeanor
Preferred Qualifications:
Background in Character or Character Tech Art
Project management training in Scrum or other agile framework
Experience in Jira or other project management software
Whether you’re just starting out, looking for something new, or just seeing what’s out there, the Gamasutra Job Board is the place where game developers move ahead in their careers.
Gamasutra’s Job Board is the most diverse, most active, and most established board of its kind in the video game industry, serving companies of all sizes, from indie to triple-A.
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