Massively Overpowered

Mass Effect: Andromeda ends single-player support, forges on with multiplayer updates

August 21, 2017 Justin Olivetti 21 comments

It’s the end of the line for Mass Effect: Andromeda, as BioWare announced this past weekend that it had no further plans to develop single-player content for its sci-fi RPG. Fortunately, several projects to expand the game’s multiplayer aspect are still in the works.

“Our last update, 1.10, was the final update for Mass Effect: Andromeda. There are no planned future patches for single-player or in-game story content,” BioWare posted on the game’s site. “In the coming weeks, our multiplayer team will provide details of their ongoing support and upcoming content, including new multiplayer missions, character kits, and what’s in store for N7 Day.”

Andromeda failed to live up to the high studio and fan expectations, netting mixed reviews and a 72% Metacritic score following its March 2017 release. With work being done on other projects, such as Star Wars: The Old Republic and the upcoming multiplayer Anthem, BioWare may be looking to reallocate team members to needed departments.

Source: Andromeda via PC Gamer

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Breakaway shows off its competitive side in a new trailer

August 21, 2017 Eliot Lefebvre 2 comments

Why will you be playing Breakaway? The latest trailer for the game is all about how you’ll be playing the game to win and to smash the heck out of your opposition. And you’ll be doing it quickly. And streaming it for the adulation of adoring fans. And then, possibly, doing a double backflip on a BMX bike before jumping on to a skateboard that is inexplicably perched on an entire stack of fidget spinners.

Are bikes still a thing? We’re not sure. The point is that it’s a trailer about the competitive side and about making big explosions and getting noticed. You can check out the trailer just below if that sounds like your jam, or if you’re just hoping that it does actually feature that aforementioned backflip on a bike.

Lawbreakers nerfs a bunch of abilities post-launch

August 21, 2017 Justin Olivetti 4 comments

When one looks at a gravity-challenged game like Lawbreakers, one cannot help but wonder when the devs will add an update where your characters will have to fight a “nausea” meter while spinning and flipping through the air like some demented carnival ride.

No nausea meter yet, but the team did put out a small post-launch patch last week that adjusted downward (read: nerfed) some abilities that turned out to be a wee bit overpowered. These include the Harrier’s Convergence skill and the Wraith’s Wasp Sting. Gunslingers also felt the nerf bat pretty hard, but they did get a new mechanic that grants them a warp charge for every omega headshot. We assume that if you play the game, you’ll understand the words in the previous sentence.

Lawbreakers has been struggling with low numbers and rankings ever since the shooter’s launch several weeks ago. Boss Key CEO Cliff Bleszinski recently said that streaming the game during testing hurt its prospects.

Source: Patch notes

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Shroud of the Avatar works on replacing placeholder scenes

August 21, 2017 Justin Olivetti 3 comments

With the broad outline of the game now completed, Shroud of the Avatar’s team is turning to placeholder locations and revising them with hand-crafted content. This includes the new mountainous region of Crooked Shank, the hilly lands of Middle Downs, and more Viking-inspired clothing for northern NPCs.

“We are focusing the next few releases on building the lower tier scenes near the cities along the paths of Truth and Courage,” Portalarium said. “Most of these scenes have been clones of other scenes and will now be replaced with completely original scenes.”

The team is going to be quite busy this month, not just with August’s Release 45 but also by making appearances at Gamescom, PAX West, and Dragon*Con. The studio is also hiring a web developer to be a part of the team.

Get a look at the making of Middle Downs after the break!

Absolver shows off its grouping options in a new video

August 21, 2017 Eliot Lefebvre 2 comments

It should come as no real surprise that Absolver is not a private journey (otherwise we wouldn’t really cover it here), and thus there are different ways to team up with other players and take on the dangers to be found in the game world. A new video just below details the ways in which players can work together, starting by just teaming up in a group of up to three players to punch, kick, and otherwise brawl across the landscape. It’s an old style of group gameplay, but why mess with something that already works?

Experienced players can also mentor less-experienced players and give these lower-level characters access to combos that might otherwise be locked off, so you can play the part of the wizened master if you so desire. Last but not least, you can always take on other players in structured competitive PvP, even if the game is only starting with one-on-one best-of-five sparring matches. Check out everything in the video just below.

You can now rent a private ARK server for the PlayStation 4

August 21, 2017 Justin Olivetti One comment

Second-class console players, despondent about their lot in life, look in misery upon the glory of their PC betters and imagine a world in which they too could rent and run their own ARK: Survival Evolved servers.

But oh! Frapjous joy! Such rare privilege is now part and parcel of the PlayStation 4 lifestyle! For Studio Wildcard announced last week that Nitrado is now the first company to offer servers-for-rent to the PS4 ARK crowd. Cost for these servers start at $13 per month and range up from there.

One interesting feature with this service is that players have the option to link multiple private servers together to create a “Cross ARK” cluster. And Xbox One players? Don’t feel left out. There are plans in the works to offer the same options come September.

Source: Nitrado

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Dark and Light runs down the basics of crafting

August 21, 2017 Eliot Lefebvre 2 comments

We understand that you, personally, are committed to playing Dark and Light the way it was originally meant to be played. And we respect that you have a deep commitment to squatting naked in a ditch foraging for berries and throwing rocks at other players. But you can see other adventurers wandering around with things like tools and weapons and clothes and shelter, and maybe you’d like to get in on that? So perhaps you should take the time to check out the crafting methods you’ll need to use.

The latest video is just past the break and covers the basics of crafting in the game, from the simple things you can always craft (like cooking fires) to recipes requiring specialized workbenches (like most tools and weaponry). You can also have one craft facilitate another, such as using a cooking fire to make straw more easily. Check out the video just below for a quick overview; it’s worth considering before you go back to your ditch, after all.

LOTRO Update 21.1 works to improve Mordor

August 21, 2017 Justin Olivetti 4 comments

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The road goes ever on for Lord of the Rings Online — as does the work needed on its newest expansion, Mordor. Today the team released Update 21.1, a patch designed to fix a few glaring errors, add in a smattering of content, and deliver quality-of-life improvements to the new High Elf race.

High Elves have gotten their own horse summoning animations and some new starting characteristics, and the devs have fixed several hair options for Elves and Man characters.

Over in Mordor, where evil never sleeps because it’s too dang loud, there are now “Scourges of Gorgoroth” populating the country for players to find and defeat. Players who struggled with the early quests dealing with spies and surrendering mobs will be pleased to know that they’re now easier to find.

With the Summer Festival over, LOTRO plans to kick off its Famer’s Faire on Wednesday.

Source: Patch notes

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SWTOR posts Crisis on Umbara patch notes for tomorrow’s update

August 21, 2017 Justin Olivetti 4 comments

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Nothing wrong with getting patch notes a day early, right? We mean, if you’re getting them the day of, you’re often too busy jumping in and playing the game to give more than a cursory glance at the list of changes. And by then, you’re over your head and it’s too late.

So let us rejoice that Star Wars: The Old Republic is getting the notes for tomorrow’s Update 5.4: Crisis on Umbara to us today. That way we may leisurely peruse them, discuss them in civilized company over a sifter of brandy, and rage the night away at whatever class nerfs are personally impacting our characters.

The update centers around the titular flashpoint and its related mobile stronghold, a speeding train that’s zipping around the planet’s surface. It also marks the beginning of ranked season 9, continues a wide-ranging series of class balance adjustments, displays characters’ item rankings, and allows for Senya to be customized. If you dare.

Destiny 2’s launch trailer is clucking awesome

August 21, 2017 Justin Olivetti 16 comments

“Do you see all that I have done?”

The stakes are high for this fall’s Destiny 2, with a near-unstoppable villain smashing through the status quo to set himself on the top of a rubble of worlds and Destiny 1 character accomplishments.

On top of this morning’s news about some of the bells and whistles coming for the PC version, Destiny 2 released its launch trailer today to set the stage for the events to come. It’s a wild ride through a broken landscape with desperate sorties, Tron-style frisbees, massive guns, and even a chicken. Our money is on the chicken.

Treat yourself to some cinematic adrenaline after the break!

Overwatch goes all apocalyptic with its new Junkertown map

August 21, 2017 Justin Olivetti 10 comments

It’s time to lock and load and do what video gamers do best: escort! Today, Blizzard announced a brand-new map for Overwatch called Junkertown that takes place in a Mad Max-style city.

“Junkertown is an escort map located in the harsh and unforgiving Australian Outback,” the studio explained. “Constructed from the remains of a destroyed omnium, it’s now the home to a band of lawless scavengers known as the Junkers, led by their cutthroat Queen. When they aren’t pillaging the omnium’s skeleton for anything of value, the Junkers blow off steam in the Scrapyard — a massive gladiatorial arena whose combatants fight for glory, riches… and to survive.”

Get your first look at the map after the break, and while you’re hanging out there, why not also check out “The Plan” animated short starring Junkrat and Road Hog? It’s well worth your time.

Mad World shows off just how crazy cross-platform it can be

August 21, 2017 Justin Olivetti 4 comments

One of our “MMOs you’ve never heard of” (before we mentioned it, of course), Mad World is attempting to reach for your attention by being everywhere and on everything you might use to play video games.

In a new video released this past week, the team demonstrated how this 2-D MMORPG can run on browsers, smartphones, and tablets just fine. You can spot seven devices operating the game in the video, all synchronized for cross-platform play.

With colorful, expressive art and robust cross-platform capabilities, Mad World is inching up in our esteem as a contender. Check out the demo after the break and let us know on which device you’d want to play this game.

Wild Buster is a new MMO made by Mad Libs, apparently

August 21, 2017 Justin Olivetti 3 comments

If you can’t create anything new, just slap together a lot of other things until you get something that sounds and feels vaguely fresh. Hey, we’re not knocking that approach; there have been a lot of wonderful games made that way.

So that’s why we’re trying to keep an open mind about Wild Buster, a newly announced title that incorporates mechanics and style from MMORPGs, MOBAs, action RPGs, and what looks to be a thinly veiled adoration of StarCraft. Developed by Nuri Works and published by Insel Games (Guardians of Ember), Wild Buster allows gamers to choose a specific hero to fight through waves of enemy mobs and enemy players, depending on one’s preference.

The game’s already been out for a while in Korea, but now Insel is working on bringing it to the west at an unspecified date. Early access for Wild Buster will begin next month, and fans should expect an Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign this week to help with the localization and gameplay adjustments.

Check out the teaser trailer after the break!