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9 CommentsCould we finally get a real Hearthstone competitor from Magic: The Gathering?
Blizzard Entertainment’s digital card game Hearthstone has been an absurdly popular hit — to the tune of over 50 million players as of last April. While this player-friendly title has served as a perfect introduction to card games for many players (including myself), others who have been playing collectible card games for years have wondered: Why didn’t Magic: The Gathering ever get a truly great digital experience?
If publisher Wizards of the Coast is to be believed, that could finally change in the near future. Wizards of the Coast president Chris Cocks published a statement today, claiming that the company will be making “increased investments in our digital teams that will give us the capability and flexibility necessary to fully realize the enormous potential of our games.”
Going...
Cover Story
Issue
25
January 9, 2017
Final Fantasy 7: An oral history
30,000 words! 35 interviews! 4 videos! A trivia minigame! We take an in-depth look back at Square’s breakthrough role-playing game.
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6 CommentsShovel Knight gets a name change, new modes and a Switch release
Shovel Knight is heading to the Nintendo Switch, developer Yacht Club Games announced. But when it launches on the platform later this year, the retro-style platformer will arrive with a new name, as well as a long-requested feature.
A release date hasn’t been announced yet. Instead, the developer detailed all the content Switch owners — and current Shovel Knight fans — can look forward to when the port launches.
The entire Shovel Knight saga will come to Nintendo Switch under a new name: Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove. That set will collect Shovel Knight and its two expansions, Plague of Shadows and the upcoming Specter of Torment, into a complete package. Anyone who currently owns the game on PC, PlayStation 4 or Xbox One will automatically get the Treasure Trove collection in their...
News
1 CommentNight in the Woods launching in late February
Night in the Woods, the Kickstarter-funded adventure game from Infinite Fall, will be released Feb. 21, the studio announced today.
Infinite Fall first informed Night in the Woods’ Kickstarter backers, sending out a backers-only update with the release date. In the post, which was obtained by Polygon, the studio said, “We are excited and actually almost done which is kind of nuts.”
The three-person development team added that their “grueling final testing/polish period gets rolling next week.”
Infinite Fall
Infinite Fall announced the release date for Night in the Woods with this artwork.
A date of Feb. 21 doesn’t quite meet the window of “somewhere in the first part of February” — the time frame that Infinite Fall gave last month, when it announced it had to...
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3 CommentsVampire DLC bringing creepy fiends to The Sims 4
The Sims 4 is definitely taking a darker turn with its Vampires Game Pack, due out on Jan 24.
Players can take on the form of vampires, with special abilities, such as turning humans into vampires, and moving around using different forms. Vampires are powered by "plasma" which can be purchased, grown or harvested from human characters.
The Sims 4 is an open-ended life simulation for PC in which characters work, socialize, procreate and acquire goods. Previous expansions and game packs focused on relatively tame themes, such as outdoor adventures, fine dining and spooky costumes.
Vampires do not thrive in sunlight, so publisher EA has added a creepy new world to the game, called Forgotten Hollow, where nights last longer. Players can also try to raise their own families of vampires....
Best Games
62 CommentsBest PC games for new owners
You just got a new PC, packed full with terabytes of storage space, a top-of-the-line graphics card and more RAM than is legal in most countries. Congratulations, and welcome to the gaming platform that has the most choices across the widest variety of games.
But maybe all that choice is too much? Perhaps you find yourself paralyzed with indecision? Allow us to help. We've put together a list of some of the most must-play games on the PC, both recent and classic.
A couple notes before we get started. First, this list is not necessarily focused on stuff that will push new hardware to the limits. Certainly some of the games on here are gorgeous on their max settings, but some have retro stylings; some can even be run on a mid-level laptop. The point is to share the best and most...
Opinion
105 CommentsThe difficulty in banning the ‘most toxic League of Legends player in North America’
It’s a new year and a new competitive season for League of Legends, and it may be time for Riot Games to reconsider its permanent disciplinary ban on notorious troll Tyler1.
It’s going to take a lot of explaining about what happened and why. This situation digs into some of the most challenging aspects of online gaming in 2016, and how tenuous the control of these games can be for the people trying to police the community.
Okay, so what’s a Tyler1?
Tyler1 is a Twitch streamer, YouTube content creator and League of Legends player who was banned from the game for his persistent and outrageously toxic behavior in April 2016.
If you visit Tyler1’s YouTube channel, which has 450,000 subscribers, or his webpage where you can buy a #FreeTyler1-branded tank top, you will see a banner graphic...
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7 CommentsHeroes of the Storm’s full roster unlocked for free this weekend
Every character in Heroes of the Storm will be available to play for free for 72 hours this weekend, developer Blizzard Entertainment announced today.
The studio is characterizing the free weekend as a new year promotion, even though it’s perhaps a bit late — the event will run from Friday, Jan. 13, through Monday, Jan. 16. It applies to Heroes of the Storm players in all regions, so the free weekend will begin at 10 a.m. on Friday and end at 10 a.m. on Monday in whatever time zone you’re located in.
As a free-to-play title, Heroes of the Storm typically offers 10 characters for free in a rotation that changes weekly. Players can pay to unlock permanent access to a hero.
At the moment, a total of 60 heroes are available in the game; the latest, the World of Warcraft troll warlord...
Games of the Year
21 CommentsBest local multiplayer games of 2016
2016 saw a slew of great online multiplayer games like Overwatch, Titanfall 2 and Battlefield 1. But this year's offline, local multiplayer games are the real unsung heroes. Sure, it may be easier to just wear a headset and play with friends online, but sharing a couch or a spot on the floor at a friend’s place is another bonding experience entirely.
What surprised us was that, with games and consoles increasingly internet-dependent these days, local multiplayer games continued to come out in droves. Better yet, many of them were among our favorite games of the whole year. Some of these games do a very thorough job at testing your friendships — something you might’ve not experienced since the early Mario Party days. Others are pure, hilarious joy, plain and simple.
We've compiled the...
News
15 CommentsNative Xbox controller support comes to Steam
A client update for Steam is now in beta, adding native support for Xbox 360 and Xbox One controllers, alongside other, generic gamepads. Players will be able to map features to these using the Steam Controller Configurator, giving them more input on how they play their PC games.
Although many games previously offered Xbox controller support, that functioned on a game-by-game basis. The expanded options open up the platform to a bevy of gamepads without any extra work, and they allow players to customize the controls to their liking.
Generic X-input gamepads are easy to come by, and with the addition of Xbox controllers, Steam will now support the gamepads of both major consoles. Official PlayStation 4 controller support came late last year, and the beta now also allows players to use...
News
2 CommentsTattletail looks like every ’90s kid’s worst nightmare
If you were of a certain age in 1998, it’s likely that you received a Furby for Christmas. Just as likely: You were deathly afraid of that Furby, probably because it somehow activated itself in the middle of the night, started walking around and woke you up asking for food.
Furby and other virtual pets continue to be the worst, and that lingering trauma is what the development team behind the new Steam game Tattletail is banking on. Tattletail is a horror game that appears to be in the vein of Five Nights at Freddy’s, based off its first teaser.
NEW GAME: Tattletail90's virtual pet horror. Available on Steam NOW!! https://t.co/yeinEVxHGg pic.twitter.com/aheUi5fr3N— ben esposito (@torahhorse) December 28, 2016
Ben “Torahhorse” Esposito, known for absurdist comedy games like Bubsy...
News
13 CommentsDiablo 3’s retro Diablo event now playable
Diablo 3 players can revisit the original dungeons of Diablo starting today. As part of Blizzard’s 20-year anniversary event for the classic dungeon crawler, players can experience The Darkening of Tristram, a recreation of the original Diablo’s hellish Cathedral in Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls.
The Darkening of Tristram event, which was announced at last year’s BlizzCon, sends players back in time to battle classic versions of Diablo and enemies like The Butcher. Players will be able to earn new loot, achievements and other rewards as part of The Darkening of Tristram. Blizzard developed a special graphics filter that it dubbed “RetroVision” to give Diablo 3 a more pixelated look for the event, which is only available to play in the month of January.
For a look at what’s included in The...
News
2 CommentsSexy visual novel Ladykiller in a Bind finally lands Steam release (update)
Several months after launch, the not-safe-for-work narrative game Ladykiller in a Bind is coming to Steam. Lead designer Christine Love announced on Twitter that her most recent erotic visual novel is heading to the platform on Jan. 9, despite Valve previously barring her from selling it there.
Ladykiller in a Bind will be “fully uncensored and unedited” on Steam, Love added. That’s important to fans of the explicit lesbian sex comedy, which takes a no-holds-barred approach to showing its young adult protagonists engaging in BDSM, exploring kinks and navigating sexual power dynamics.
While it hasn’t been offered on Steam until now, the PC game has been sold through its competitor, Humble, since October. All Humble buyers will receive a Steam key for the game next week, Love said.
Back...
Explainer
7 CommentsHow to protect your gaming accounts with two-factor authentication
Cybersecurity is of paramount importance these days, considering our ever-increasing dependence on cloud-based services. We store more and more data online, often for convenience but often because there is no other option, and we trust giant corporations to safeguard our sensitive private information — passwords, addresses, credit cards, Social Security numbers and more.
But paradoxically, our reliance on these systems is increasing exponentially even as our faith in them is dropping. It seems like reports of massive hacks are coming more and more frequently.
To hear our next president tell it, we live in challenging times.
Cybersecurity is of paramount importance
“I think that computers have complicated lives very greatly,” said President-elect Donald Trump last Wednesday, speaking to...
PC
24 CommentsBlizzard is celebrating Diablo’s 20th anniversary in all of its games
On Dec. 31, 2016, Blizzard’s Diablo series turns 20 years old. To celebrate, Blizzard will hold a special event called The Darkening of Tristram in Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls, in which players will be able to revisit the original game’s cathedral dungeon, sometime in January.
But that’s not all Blizzard has planned for the Lord of Terror’s upcoming anniversary.
Blizzard announced today it will also sprinkle some Diablo-themed goods in its other games — Heroes of the Storm, Hearthstone, Overwatch, StarCraft 2 and World of Warcraft — as part of the celebration. Most of those cross-franchise perks appear to be player portraits and sprays for games like Overwatch and StarCraft 2, but some of the other offerings — like a Hearthstone Tavern Brawl — sound a bit more robust.
Here’s a tease of...
News
31 Comments5 Steam alternatives you can trust
If Steam is down, there is no reason to fret!
The internet is filled with alternative services worth throwing your wallet at. Each have their own unique advantages, deals and community. Whether Steam is down or you’re looking to try out a new service, here are five you can check out:
GOG.com
GOG.com
Some of your favorite AAA game franchises are on on GOG, like the Witcher and Walking Dead games, in addition to some of your favorite developers like Bethesda, Double Fine and more. Not only that, they regularly sell games in easy-to-buy, discounted bundles.
Origin
Origin
If you’re in the market for AAA games, Origin has you covered. Huge titles like Battlefield 1, Titanfall 2, FIFA 17 and the Mass Effect franchise are all one click away. Like...
Deals
12 CommentsSteam Winter Sale: Best deals on new games
The annual Steam Winter Sale is on right now, which means there’s a ton of cheap games to sift through and spend all that holiday money on. But with price cuts offered on hundreds of games, figuring out what’s worth buying can be a challenge.
We’re digging through the discounts to find some of the seasonal event’s best deals. If you need to catch up on the year’s biggest games, keep reading — Steam has many of them at some pretty stellar prices, just in time for Game of the Year season.
As always, feel free to pitch in with any other Steam Winter Sale highlights you find in the comments below.
Stardew Valley ($9.99, 33 percent off)
Chucklefish Games
The most common refrain heard this year — this very, very trying year — was “fuck 2016.” That’s precisely why Stardew...
News
27 CommentsSteam Winter Sale 2016 is now live
Valve just launched Steam’s annual Winter Sale, offering a wide variety of deals alongside the kickoff of voting for the first-ever Steam Awards.
The Winter Sale runs from now until 1 p.m. ET on Jan. 2. Here are some notable deals available now:
Hyper Light Drifter for $11.99 (40 percent off)
Cities: Skylines for $7.49 (75 percent off)
Doom for $19.79 (67 percent off)
Stardew Valley for $9.99 (33 percent off)
Just Cause franchise sale (up to 75 percent off)
Mortal Kombat XL for $13.59 (66 percent off)
Street Fighter 5 2017 Deluxe Edition for $47.28 (57 percent off)
Tom Clancy’s The Division for $24.99 (50 percent off)
Voting in the 2016 Steam Awards also went live today. For the next 24 hours, Steam users can vote on the first of 12 awards — today’s category is the “Villain...
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