Home > News

Paladins Update 2.31 February 8 Rolled Out

While Hi-Rez Studios has released the Paladins Season 4 Calamity patch notes last week, the studio has released the Paladins update 2.31 February 8 patch and it’s live now on all platforms! There’s also a special Chinese New Year event gamers can look forward to as well.

Paladins Update 2.31 February 8 Patch Notes:

Last week we had the release of our first Champion in 2021, Yagorath. This week while she causes havoc in the Realm we’re rolling out some more fun to keep you occupied with all the other new content you have!

Yagorath Breakdown Video

  • Our Video and Design team are both bringing you a new update video on all you need to know about our newest Champion. You’ll be able to deep dive into the details and abilities that she’s capable of as well as other information you may have not already known so you can become a master at playing Yagorath!

Lunar New Year & Valentine’s Day Weekend

  • Not only does the Lunar New Year arrive this week on the 12th, but we ring in another Valentine’s Day in the Realm on the 14th. We will be bringing you special avatars for each of these as well as Battle Pass XP for those playing. Make sure to stay tuned on Thursday for a blog with all the details on this.

We’ll see you in the Realm!

WEEKLY CHAMPION ROTATION

***Rotates every Wednesday at 4AM ET***

  • Barik
  • Willo
  • Maeve
  • Grohk
Avatar photo

Alex Co

Father, gamer, games media vet, writer of words, killer of noobs.

Home > News

Spellbreak Update 2.01 February 8 Is for Chapter 1 Update 1

Developer Proletariat has released Chapter 1 Update 1 for Spellbreak! The Spellbreak update 2.01 February 8 patch is now live, and brings a host of gameplay improvements and technical fixes rathe than any new major piece of content.

Spellbreak Update 2.01 February 8 Patch Notes:

We’re here with the release 2.1 patch notes! This update to Chapter 1 largely focuses on bug fixes, quality of life updates, and laying the groundwork for Chapter 2. Y’all are still in the midst of Chapter 1 and there’s more stuff to uncover there as well…

Store

  • The Bewitching Glimmer Starter Pack has been removed.
  • Added Beguiling Rogue Starter pack.
    • We’ll generally be rotating Starter Packs over the course of multiple releases. We’ll keep you updated as they’re coming and going though so you don’t miss out.
  • Added a whole bunch of new stuff that you’ll see over the coming weeks, including some festive items for the upcoming holidays.
  • When previewing a bundle, all included items will be shown equipped at the same time.
  • New UI transition to show which items in the store the player already owns.
  • Added a sweet “cutscene” to show off a purchased item instead of the “1 reward(s) added to inventory” popup.
  • Added ability to zoom in on cosmetics in the store.
  • Added item frames in the store to show item rarity.

Art, animation, and sound

  • Players can now emote on the Play screen.
    • Dance off while waiting for your teammate to hurry back with a drink.
  • Added audio effects to a number of emotes.
  • Can now toggle sound on/off when Spellbreak is in the background.

UI

  • Chapter UI now more readily shows your next chapter unlock.
  • Chapter level progress is now displayed on the map screen.
  • When a player makes progress on a quest in match, a notification now pops up to let them know.
  • Hovering over an item in collections will now give a preview of that item.
  • Added the ability to “track” a quest, which makes them show up on the in-match quest UI.
  • Gamemode will now automatically adjust to accommodate party sizes.

Mastery Overhaul

We’re reworking a few major things here to prepare for some future features.

  • The XP required to level classes to 20 is now significantly lower than it was previously.
    • Existing earned XP will transfer over to the new curve which means players may find themselves at a higher level than they were pre-patch.
    • Eventually, the current class mastery system and rewards will be retired so we wanted to give you a heads up that if the higher level rewards are appealing to you, you should focus on getting them now. It’s still a ways off and we’ll give you plenty of notice, but even with the lowered XP curve, grinding all 6 classes to 20 is still quite the undertaking.
  • XP is no longer generated by damage done and time survived. Instead, XP is awarded in discrete amounts from achieving accolades in match.
    • We’ve added a large number of new accolades. It’s possible to earn a lot more XP in a given match, especially if you have a ‘good game’ where you pick up a bunch of accolades. It’s important for us to test this system out as it’s going to be built upon for some other features in the future. More info on that soon!
  • New UI shows by class type.
  • Gold granted by mastery levels is now shown in the reward’s title.
  • Mastery screen has custom backplates that correspond to the selected class type.

World

  • Elemental shrines have appeared across the map and will always spawn their matching gauntlet…
    • I wonder why!
  • Added POI in Shadowgrace valley.

Balance/Gameplay Changes:

  • Added VFX to show when a player is restoring health or armor.
    • This lets you see other players healing so you can do something about it.
  • Vital Stone now (again) gives a 25% movement speed boost while invulnerable.
    • Vital Stone’s use has fallen off over the past few months, partially due to an evolving meta, but also because people would pop it and then not be able to get away making it pretty lackluster. We’re reintroducing the movement speed boost, so when you’re invuln, it’s time to run!
  • Reduced Flight Rune speed when traveling upward.
    • Going (straight) up with Flight is becoming too common, even in the early/mid stages of the matches. Instead of preventing it entirely, we’ve slowed the rate of ascent (not lateral movement) to keep things from going too sky high.
  • Increased height of line-of-sight check for Teleport rune destination, making “Invalid Target” failures less frequent.
    • This make TP much smoother to use, especially when it made no sense why it was calling the target invalid.
  • Toxic puddles that have been lit on fire can now be extinguished by Ice Lance or Flash Freeze.
    • Just minor consistency here!
  • The radius of Lightning Storm has been reduced slightly to better match visuals (600cm → 575cm).
    • You know all those times where you swear you shouldn’t have been hit? Those should hopefully be less!
  • Fix unintentional height nerf of Updraft. It now lifts characters the same amount as it did in the Prologue.
    • Yay!
  • Fixed Ice Lance and Lightning Bolts sometimes tunneling through flames or Flash Freeze instead of getting blocked.
  • Fixed some occasional rubber-banding when skating on ice trails.
  • Fixed inconsistent deceleration when no movement input is provided while mid-air after skating on ice trails.
  • Fixed bug where making a poison cloud explode with fire would continue to block projectiles for a couple seconds after the flame has dissipated.

Nintendo Switch

  • Added separate horizontal and vertical gyroscope sensitivity.
  • Adjusted smoothing of gyroscope input for improved responsiveness.
  • Fixed a bug where gyroscope aiming would sometimes cause large snaps in camera rotation.
  • FIXED THE WHITE SCREEN CRASH
    • Finally. Hopefully.

Xbox

  • Fixed a bug causing a spinner to go on forever in the quests tab.

Steam

  • Fixed a bug that caused players to be unable to immediately back out of the “Add Gold” shop when canceling a purchase.

Bugs

  • Previously, purchasing a Chapter Pass with gold that would level your class or mage rank, the purchase could fail. This has been resolved.
  • Fixed a bug where players would sometimes rubber-band for up to 5 seconds, especially when first entering a match.
  • Edited level of detail properties on characters to lower the amount of perceived rubber banding on players who are far away.
  • Fixed the ‘Buy Chapter Pass’ option briefly appearing after entering Quests menu when the player already has the Chapter Pass.
  • Fixed a bug causing the Hinterland outfit to not stay equipped.
  • Stormseeker Slipstream Cloudburst VFX no longer lingers after landing.
  • Stalwart outfit is no longer completely black when facing a light source or standing in shadows.
  • Dusken Wake afterglow no longer appears stretched in the collections screen.
  • Fixed a bug causing the Mage Rank icon to appear black on the Match Experience screen when the starter outfit is equipped.
  • Re-added stone particles to Stone’s Plummet cloudburst after being erroneously removed.
  • The player card is now displayed properly upon returning to Main Menu from Solo BR, Practice, or Tutorial.
  • Denying an item ping after accepting it now correctly makes the ping disappear quickly.
  • Spellbreak no longer crashes when switching between the tabs on the Main Menu after the quests roll over from the previous week.
  • Resolved a bug causing rare amulets from exiled enemies to count towards the progress of the ’Epic Collector’ Honor quest.
  • Corrected the “Top Fifteen” quest never completing but continuously providing rewards.
  • “Top Fifteen” Daily Quest has been fixed to be “Top Ten” (it would also only give rewards if you were in the top 10).
  • Progress now correctly updates for the ‘Eye of the Storm’ quest on entering the 4th and later safe zones in a match
  • The completion of the first step in the Tutorial is now correctly tracked in the progression of the “Initiation” tutorial quest.
  • Fixed quest completion notifications on the after match summary screen that were showing the Gold icon as a reward instead of an XP icon.
  • Picking up an item while using the Spellslinger talent now correctly progresses the ‘Collect X item’ quests.
  • Honor quests UIs no longer change their sizes while scrolling through them.
  • Text in Quest widget on Play Tab no longer overlaps with Rewards icons.
  • Fixed a number of instances of gaps in terrain that let players teleport to unintended areas.
  • Fixed instances of LOD popping around Timberrend.
  • Fixed a number of instances around the map where chests were floating.
  • Fixed many instances of assets clipping into one another all around the map.
  • Spamming the “buy” button to purchase a cosmetic item no longer results in a purchase redemption error.
  • Rapidly changing tabs on the main menu no longer creates unintended additional highlights.
  • Fixed a number of mismatched textures on structures.
  • Fixed a bug that caused players to see their own status as “In Match” while in a party on the main menu.
  • Loading screen art now correctly scales to resolution in windowed mode.
  • Fixed a bug causing the potion consume UI to remain on the screen if a player dies while consuming one.
  • Fixed a bug causing SFX in the quest tab to layer over one another and play extremely loud.
  • Fixed delayed audio on some emotes.
  • Fixed an issue causing ambient sounds to not play in the main menu.

Once we get wind of the next enchanting update, we’ll let our readers know.

Source: Reddit

Avatar photo

Alex Co

Father, gamer, games media vet, writer of words, killer of noobs.

Home > News

Final Fantasy 14 Patch 5.5 “Death Unto Dawn” Release Set for April 13, Brings Nier Crossover

While Square Enix already revealed the major expansion coming to Final Fantasy 14 later this year with “Endwalker,” the company announced the Final Fantasy 14 patch 5.5 release date and it’s on April 13! Titled “Death Unto Dawn,” this update will be split into two parts and set the stage for Endwalker!

Check out the official details for Final Fantasy 14 patch 3.5 below.

Titled “Death Unto Dawn,” Patch 5.5 will be split in two parts and set the stage for the Endwalker expansion. Part one is headlined by the third chapter of YoRHa: Dark Apocalypse—the NieR-inspired alliance raid featuring the work of guest creators Yosuke Saito and YOKO TARO—alongside an abundance of new story and battle content, system updates, and more.

  • New Main Scenario Quests – The story update—split into two parts—will pave the way for the Endwalker storyline.
  • New Alliance Raid – The third chapter of the NieR-inspired YoRHa: Dark Apocalypse alliance raid series.
  • “Sorrow of Werlyt” Questline Update – The thrilling conclusion of the Warrior of Light and Gaius’ quest to thwart the Empire’s warmachina development project.
  • New Trial: The Cloud Deck – Players can face off against the fearsome Diamond Weapon in this latest trial, which will be available in both Normal and Extreme difficulties.
  • New Dungeon: Paglth’an – Players can tackle this new story dungeon alongside fellow adventurers or a party of non-player characters via Trust System compatibility.
  • “Save the Queen” Questline Update – Alongside the addition of a new field area, “Zadnor,” players can further upgrade their Resistance Weapons to their final and most powerful stage.
  • New Unreal Trial – The next powered-up version of an existing primal will be unleashed upon level 80 heroes, providing players with a new challenge and a chance to collect unique prizes.
  • Crafter Updates – High-level crafters can look forward to new content in Patch 5.5 that will earn them special achievements and unique crafting tools.
  • Ishgard Restoration Update – Locals of The Firmament will periodically hold Fêtes to celebrate the completion of the restoration.
  • “Explorer Mode” Update – The Explorer Mode feature will be expanded to feature additional dungeons. Explorer Mode allows players to explore dungeons free from danger to capture striking and fun screenshots while enabling the use of mounts and minions. Players will also now be able to use performance actions while in dungeons, such as playing musical instruments.
  • Performance Action Updates – Players will now be able to change instruments at any time while performing, and a new instrument will be added.
  • Job Adjustments for PvE and PvP ActionsNew Custom Deliveries, Ocean Fishing Update, New Mounts and more.

As mentioned in the Endwalker announcement, the PS5 open beta will launch alongisde patch 5.5 on April 13! For more details about that, head on over here.

Avatar photo

Alex Co

Father, gamer, games media vet, writer of words, killer of noobs.

Home > News

343 Teases “A New Place and Way to Play” Halo MCC

Could Microsoft’s Halo: The Master Chief Collection (Halo MCC) be playable on other platforms aside from Xbox and PC? That could very well be the case if 343 Industries’ latest tease amounts to anything.

In a post on the MCC Development and Flightling Updates forum, 343 Industries talked about the latest update on the game. While there are newsworthy stuff incoming such as a Black History Month Nameplate, and changes on how Quit Bans, the most intruiging one can be seen at the bottom where 343 talks about the future. In it, the studio teases that Halo MCC will have a new place and way to play. Here’s that section with one part in bold for added emphasis.

Flighting Future
Later this month we are currently planning to kick off our next series of flights. We have quite a bit of new content we are looking to get into your hands, but we are deciding what the right amount is and are still waiting to see what progress is made in the coming weeks.If all goes well, later this month or early next month is when we plan to roll out our next public flight. Some of the items we are hoping (things can change) to have make it into this flight are as follows:

  • FOV slider support for all Xbox One consoles
  • FOV slider will no longer be locked when Xbox Series S|X devices are set to 120hz
  • Additional ways to customize controls
  • Additional Keybindings
  • Mouse & Keyboard Support for consoles
  • View Model Adjustments
  • And maybe a new place and way to play

What could this mean? Does this mean we’ll be able to play Halo MCC on another platform? Perhaps mobile? The Nintendo Switch? It can’t possibly be PlayStation platforms, but given we’re about to see the first Sony PlayStation-published game appear on Xbox platforms later this year, it seems like anything’s possible, That said, Halo is Microsoft’s flagship franchise, and I can’t imagine the company letting it appear on a platform for its main competitor.

Avatar photo

Alex Co

Father, gamer, games media vet, writer of words, killer of noobs.

Home > News

Battlefield Producer Jaqub Ajmal Departs DICE After 10 Years

While EA has confirmed that we’ll be hearing about this year’s Battlefield game in spring, it looks like that game will have to ship without one of the franchise’s veteran devs. Over on Twitter, Battlefield/DICE Producer Jaqub Ajmal announced that he’s departing DICE after almost a decade of service.

For those curious, Ajmal has worked on the following games:

Battlefield V- 2020
Battlefield 1 – 2020
Battlefield Incursions – 2019
Battlefield 1 – Apocalypse – 2018
Battlefield 1 – Turning Tides – 2017
Battlefield 1 – In the name of the Tsar – 2017
Mirror´s Edge Catalyst – 2016
Battlefield Hardline – 2014
Battlefield 4 – 2014
Battlefield 4 – Naval Strike -2014
Battlefield 4 – China Rising – 2014
Battlefield 4 – Second Assault – 2014
Battlefield 3 – End Game – 2013
Battlefield 3 – Aftermath – 2012
Battlefield 1942 – Origin Version – 2012
Battlefield 3: Armored Kill – 2012
Battlefield Play4Free – 2012
Battlefield Heroes – 2012

As you can see, he has worked on not only on mainline Battlefield titles but even on DLCS, and other spin-offs. Ajmal has been very active on Twitter in answering fan questions and even some tech-related queries from Battlefield fans, which not a lot of devs do.

For now, Ajmal has not shared where he’s headed, but we here at MP1st wish him nothing but the best! You can keep tabs on Ajmal’s next stuff planned by his profile on Twitter.

Avatar photo

Alex Co

Father, gamer, games media vet, writer of words, killer of noobs.

Home > News

Final Fantasy 14 Endwalker Expansion Announced, PS5 Beta Starts April 13

Square Enix has announced the next big expansion for MMORPG, Final Fantasy 14! In addition to that, the PS5 version wil get a beta this April. But first, let’s talk about Final Fantasy 14 Endwalker and get into the nitty gritty wiith the expansion set to drop this fall 2021.

Check out the trailer and story summary for the expansion:

Endwalker features the climax of the Hydaelyn and Zodiark story, in which Warriors of Light will encounter an even greater calamity than ever before as they travel to the far reaches of Hydaelyn and even to the moon. In addition to bringing the long-running story arc that began with A Realm Reborn™ to its conclusion, Endwalker will mark a new beginning for the beloved MMO, setting the stage for new adventures that longtime fans and new players can enjoy together.

Final Fantasy 14 Endwalker will introduce a host of new stuff which includes multiple new jobs, increased level cap, new areas to explore, updates to the battle system and more! Here’s a summary of some of the new stuff straight from the press release:

  • Journey to Thavnair, the imperial capital of Garlemald, and even the Moon!
  • New Jobs: Sage and more – A first look at the Sage in action can be seen here:
  • Level Cap Increase from 80 to 90
  • Expansive new areas, including Garlemald, Thavnair, and the city of Radz-at-Han.
  • A New Tribe: the Arkasodara
  • New threats, including Anima.
  • New Dungeons
  • New High-Difficulty Raid: Pandæmonium
  • Secrets Revealed in a New Alliance Raid Series
  • New Small-scale PvP Mode
  • An Additional “Trust” System ally: Estinien Wyrmblood
  • A New Residential District: Ishgard
  • Updates to the Gold Saucer
  • Relaxing Fun in Island Sanctuary
  • New Gear and Crafting Recipes
  • Expanded Horizons via the Data Center Travel System

Square Enix also announced that the PS5 version will feature numerous upgrades including improved frame rates, faster load times, 4K resolution and more. The FF14 PS5 open beta is set to launch on April 13, 2021. Players whose FF14 service account has a registered license for the PS4 version may upgrade to the PS5 version at no extra cost at the start of the open beta. New players can check out the PS5 version through the free trial, with the full game set to become available on the PS5 once the open beta ends.

Square Enix has also released a video featuring the PS5 improvements for FF14!

More info regarding Endwalker will be revealed during the Final Fantasy 14 Digital Fan Festival 2021 event scheduled for May 14-15, which will be streamed for fans.

You can check out the Final Fantasy 14 Endwalker teaser site to keep tabs of the expansion.

Avatar photo

Alex Co

Father, gamer, games media vet, writer of words, killer of noobs.

Home > News

Rogue Company Update 1.49 February 6 Deployed

While rogues got the big Rogue Company Season 1 patch earlier in the week, First Watch Games has released the Rogue Company update 1.49 February 6 patch! Note that given we just got Kestrel in Season 1’s patch, don’t expect any major content to be included in today’s update.

Rogue Company Update 1.49 February 6 Patch Notes:

Note that First Watch Games has not disclosed what this patch does just yet, though there is a new LTM (limited time mode) available now which runs until February 8.

More details regarding Sabotage straight from the devs:

New Mode: Sabotage (COMING FEBRUARY 5TH!)

Welcome to our newest limited-time mode, Sabotage. In each round of this 4v4 match, both teams fight to take control of a neutral bomb and detonate it in the enemy team’s zone or eliminate the enemy team’s tickets. If you have the bomb, be careful because the enemy team can see you!

Similar to Strikeout, you can respawn as many times as you like until you run out of tickets. A best of five rounds will determine the winner and you’ll switch sides each time!

  • Each round lasts 4 minutes.
  • Each team has 40 tickets.
  • The respawn time is 7 seconds.
  • A team wins by planting the bomb or having the most tickets left when the round ends.
  • There is no defend time once you plant the bomb.
  • While a player is holding the bomb they are revealed to friendlies in green and enemies in gold.
  • The bomb will reset where it spawns if it gets thrown off the map or is idle for 30 seconds.

Sabotage Maps

  • High Castle
  • Favelas
  • Lockdown
  • Vice
  • Windward

Same as always, if First Watch releases anything official, we’ll update the post.

Avatar photo

Alex Co

Father, gamer, games media vet, writer of words, killer of noobs.

Home > News

Black Ops Cold War Update Today February 6 Brings Gameplay Changes

While Treyarch just released the big Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War Season 1 Reloaded patch earlier this week, the studio has released a Black Ops Cold War update today February 6 patch, that brings a few fixes and gameplay changes.

Note that this is a server-side patch, and there won’t be download required. Players will automatically get the patch once they connect to serers. Head on below for the official patch notes straight from Treyarch.

Black Ops Cold War Update Today February 6 Patch Notes:

MULTIPLAYER

Movement

  • Slightly reduced penalties to speed and jump height when landing from a jump.

Stability

  • Fixed a rare crash related to Gunfight.

Scorestreaks

  • Care Package
    • Addressed an issue where shooting down a Care Package helicopter with a launcher would not destroy it.

ZOMBIES

Stability

  • Fixed multiple crashes related to Jump Pads, Assault Rounds, Essence Traps, Tombstone Soda, Hellhounds, and the Mimic in “Firebase Z.”

Enemies

  • Addressed an issue where the Orda would not fire its secondary attacks appropriately.

Gameplay

  • Addressed issues that allowed the player to get on top of the Fire Control Unit in the Defense Lines.

General

  • Addressed an issue with Medals showing incorrect info (Fake Out, Hold the Line).
  • Fixed description tab time and score limit for multiple modes.

That’s about it. For Warzone players, don’t forget that a new patch was deployed for that game as well.

Avatar photo

Alex Co

Father, gamer, games media vet, writer of words, killer of noobs.

Home > News

BioWare Explans Why Mass Effect Legendary Edition Multiplayer Won’t Be Happening, Says It’s “Just Really Hard” to Implement

Just a few days ago, Mass Effect fans got a surprise treat when BioWare revealed the release date and our first gameplay look at Mass Effect Legendary Edition. If you’re wondering whether this remaster will feature a Mass Effect Legendary Edition multiplayer component (based off of Mass Effect 3), nope, it won’t, and it doesn’t seem like it’s in the cards too.

Speaking to Game Informer, BioWare Environment and Character Director Kevin Meek explained why the studio couldn’t implement ME3’s multiplayer into the Legendary Edition.

I feel strongly that we’ve chosen the things that are what the majority of our fans were most passionate about. On the topic of multiplayer, it was just really hard. Getting all of the online systems working and functionality would have been another large chunk to do but at the same time, there are a lot of other logistics involved. The economy is built completely differently. Then questions came up like, “Do we support it post-launch? What about people who are still playing multiplayer today? Do we try to find a way to somehow do crossplay between the PS3 and PS4?

Well, that dashes hopes that we’ll see it release post-launch. Personally, I’m one of the many that loved Mass Effect 3’s multiplayer. Not only was it surprisingly deep, but it made teaming up with other players a blast to clear through each challenge.

Here’s to hoping that the next Mass Effect game being developed will feature it in one form or another.

Avatar photo

Alex Co

Father, gamer, games media vet, writer of words, killer of noobs.

Home > News

Resident Evil Movie Reboot Set for a September 2021 Release

Looks like Resident Evil fans have something to look forward to this fall assuming it’s safe to go back to theaters at that time, as Deadline reports that Sony Pictures, Screen Gems, and Constantin Films have set the upcoming Resident Evil movie reboot for a September 2021 release — hitting Labor Day weekend and with little competition in sight.

Directed by 47 Meter Down director Johannes Roberts, the RE movie reboot will do away with the continuity seen in the Paul W.S Anderson films starring Milla Jovovich as Alice. Instead, the new movie will adapt the storyline from the games — staying faithful to the 1998 setting and adapting the plots from Resident Evil 1 and Resident Evil 2.

Kaya Scodelario of The Maze Runner films will lead the cast as Claire Redfield, while Robbie Amell of Upload and The Flash plays her brother and longtime series protagonist Chris Redfield. Hannah John-Kamen is Jill Valentine, while Avan Jogia is Leon S. Kennedy. Tom Hopper will play Resident Evil series baddie Albert Wesker, while Neal McDonough has been cast as Dr. William Birkin.

As the new film comes on the 25th Anniversary year of the Resident Evil franchise, the newest installment in RE Village is set for release on May this year and has a new trailer to boot.

Resident Evil movie reboot will be coming to theaters on September 3, 2021.

Tim Villasor

Home > News

Activision: COD Warzone Is Going to Be “Front and Center” for a Long Time

While Call of Duty: Warzone originally launched as the free-to-play battle royale component of  Modern Warfare, the game is now its own beast, and has integrated Black Ops Cold War into it as well. Now if you’re thinking that Activision would be stopping there, you’re dead wrong.

During Activision’s quarterly earnings report, President of Activision Rob Kostich revealed that COD Warzone will be “front and center” for the publisher for a “long time.”

Tyler Parker (KeyBanc Capital Markets): I‘d like to touch on Call of Duty first, I guess. So first off, now that you’ve launched a new addition in the franchise with Black Ops Cold War and integrated it into Warzone, I guess what are learning so far? Has it gone as expected? And then following up on that, just reinforce your confidence maybe in the strategy going forward, or did you come away with any new ideas on how to integrate this future releases into the Warzone experience? Thanks.

Rob Kostich (President of Activision): Hey, Tyler. It’s Rob. Thanks for the question. As you mentioned Warzone is now tightly integrated both with Black Ops Cold War and Modern Warfare. And this was a really big effort by our development teams across content, progression, in-game systems and a lot more. And overall as we’ve noted on the call, it’s gone extremely well now. We have historic fourth quarter engagement across our premium games and Warzone. We had a record second year sales for Modern Warfare in 2020, and also the Black Ops Cold War sales started strong even gained momentum in December when we launched Season 1 and the great news is we’re seeing positive momentum early in this quarter as well.

Now that said to your question we learned a lot through this integration. I’d say here is probably few of the toplines. Black Ops Cold War brought a ton of content to Warzone, at over 30 new weapons, new operators and a lot more, and this was a massive update that required a lot of resources on our side. And having gone through this integration now we now have even a greater sense for how we can make these transitions work even better and smoother for all of our players in the future. And this is really important for us because Warzone it’s going to be front and center for us for a long time.

Given how Activision reported that it garnered over 250 million players for Call of Duty in 2020 — a number I suspect was buoyed by Warzone being F2P — I don’t see Activision easing up on the Warzone throttle anytime soon.

Does this mean we’ll see this year’s Call of Duty be revealed using Warzone as a platform again (like it was for Black Ops Cold War)? I wouldn’t bet against it.

Avatar photo

Alex Co

Father, gamer, games media vet, writer of words, killer of noobs.

Home > News

Sony Purchases 1.9% Stake of From Software Parent Company Kadokawa Corporation

One of the biggest names in gaming joins forces with one of the biggest publishing arms of manga and anime, as Sony has formed a capital alliance with publishing company Kadokawa Corporation — purchasing a 1.9% stake from the company which will utilize Sony’s global expansion power of animation and consumer games. Kadokawa Corporation also happens to be the parent company of From Software — the studio behind the Dark Souls and Bloodbrone games. The partnership will also see smartphone company CyberAgent getting the same shares as well, which will allow Kadokawa access to their game developer arm CyberGames and their popular set of Japanese mobile game IPs.

Reported by VGC, the deal will definitely boost Sony’s power and reach as a media company — giving them access to anime and manga IPs that could help them boost their business.

“We believe that it is necessary to procure such funds in order not to miss potential investment opportunities and to solidify our ability to create IP based on our track record of creating rich and unique IP consisting of a diverse portfolio of books, movies, animations, games, and UGC platforms, both financially and financially,”

While that is going on, PlayStation is busy with their PS5 promotions and distribution — including releasing a PS5 Launch Collection Merchandise Bundle set.

Does this mean we can expect more From Software to be PlayStation-exclusive? Your guess is as good as ours at this point.

Tim Villasor

Home > News

Activision Expects Lower Sales From Call of Duty 2021 Compared to Last Year

Just last month, sales reports came in and confirmed that Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War was the best-selling game of 2020. While Activision might be expecting Call of Duty 2021 to sell a lot of copies, the publisher has confirmed that it’s not expecting it to beat Black Ops Cold War’s sales numbers.

This was revealed by Activision Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Dennis Durkin during Activision’s quarterly earnings report where he states that the publisher is “conservatively” assuming that Call of Duty 2021 sales will be lower year-over-year.

We will benefit from a full year of Warzone driving upgrades to our premium content and incremental in-game player investment, and we have a substantial opportunity to continue migrating the community to Black Ops Cold War as well as another strong premium release planned for Q4 in 2021.

In our outlook, we are conservatively assuming Call of Duty premium units are lower year-over-year. However, with opportunities in in-game across all platforms including the ramp up of Call of Duty Mobile in China we do expect growth in net bookings overall for the Call of Duty franchise. – Dennis Durkin, Activision Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

Note that we do not know which studio is developing this year’s Call of Duty, nor what it’s title will be and so on. Chances are, it’ll be Sledgehammer Games or Raven Software taking the lead, with Treyarch and Infinity Ward offering support as well.

Hopefully, COD 2021’s reveal won’t take as long as Black Ops Cold War’s which eschewed the franchise’s traditional May teases, and instead was revealed just a few months from launch.

Avatar photo

Alex Co

Father, gamer, games media vet, writer of words, killer of noobs.

Home > News

Prince of Persia The Sands of Time Remake Delayed

Fans who have been waiting on updates the upcoming Prince of Persia The Sands of Time Remake are going to be sorely disappointed at the latest news, as Ubisoft has made the decision to delay the game and vacating its planned March 2021 release date.

Here’s the tweet from the official Prince of Persia Twitter page.

As it reads, the dev team responsible for the game has made decision based on feedback after the reveal trailer was shown during Ubisoft Forward last year.

Since announcing Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake in September, we saw an outpouring of feedback from you on this beloved franchise. It is your passion and support that is driving our development teams to make the best game possible. With that said, we have made the decision to shift the release of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake to a later date. This extra development time will enable our teams to deliver a remake that feels fresh while remaining faithful to the original.

As pointed out, much of the fans who saw the reveal trailer found the game’s graphics to be lackluster — especially since it was using the latest iteration of the Ubisoft Anvil engine. Hopefully this extended time will do wonders and give the developers the proper motivation to make a remake worth praising.

If you missed the Ubisoft Forward 2020 reveal trailer of the Prince of Persia The Sands of Time Remake, watch it here.

Tim Villasor

Home > News

Activision: Diablo Immortal Sets Stage for Franchise to Expand “Global Reach,” Lot of Excitement From “Depth & Authenticity”

While Activision has confirmed that Diablo 4 won’t be released this year, there is a Diablo game set to launch in 2021, and that’s Diablo Immortal. While some gamers might still not be warm to the Diablo mobile game, Activision has lavished praise on it based on regional testing.

In Activision’s quarterly earnings report, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick says that Diablo Immortal has “set the stage” for the franchise to expand its global reach.

Diablo Immortal our upcoming free-to-play mobile title was extremely well received during its recent regional testing. And this has set the stage for the franchise to meaningfully expand its global reach. – Bobby Kotick, Activision CEO

In the same earnings report, Daniel Alegre,President & Chief Operating Officer of Activision confirms that Diablo Immortal is on track for release later this year, and adds that based on regional testing, Immortal garnered excitement due to its “depth and authenticity.”

Diablo Immortal concluded its first stage of regional testing with very positive player feedback. A lot of excitement about the depth and authenticity, that this latest Diablo experience and strong engagement metrics.

We look forward to getting the game in the hands with more players and further regional testing ahead of a launch planned for later this year. And the Blizzard team is looking forward to channeling the spirit of BlizzCon to engage and celebrate the community once again. At BlizzConline on February 19th and 20th where they will share more about the plans for the franchise. – Daniel Alegre, President & Chief Operating Officer of Activision

Hopefully, the mobile game does deliver a proper and faithful Diablo experience on mobile. If it can pull that off, Activision might have another Call of Duty Mobile hit on their hands again.

Avatar photo

Alex Co

Father, gamer, games media vet, writer of words, killer of noobs.

Home > News

GTA Online & Red Dead Online Thank You Bonuses Incoming, GTA Online Sets New All-Time High in Player Numbers

It seems that gamers just can’t get enough of both Red Dead Online and GTA Online! In a press release, Rockstar Games announced that the compamy is delivering GTA Online and Red Dead Online Thank You Bonuses for making both games a massive success!

Rockstar summarized some of the highlights and stuff incoming, which you can read below.

  • GTA Online set a new all-time high in player numbers, in a year that brought The Cayo Perico Heist, GTA Online’s biggest adventure and musical update to date
  • Red Dead Online experienced record-breaking numbers of players and newcomers this past December, more than any time since the launch of the Red Dead Online beta
  • Both Grand Theft Auto V and Red Dead Redemption 2 shattered records for video views on YouTube
  • Over half of GTA Online players who took on El Rubio’s compound on Cayo Perico decided to do it alone, embracing the new ability to take on a Heist solo for the first time

To thank the Rockstar Games community, here’s what’s coming to players of both titles.

  • A special bundle of gifts for all Red Dead Online players that log in by February 15th: Rewards for a free Horse (under Rank 40), a free Stable Slot, 5,000 Club XP, 2 free Ability Cards, a free Coat, a free Hat (Rank 15 and under), a free Shirt (Rank 15 and under), and a free Fast Travel Voucher, plus High Velocity Ammo for all gun types, Horse Reviver, and an assortment of select Tonics and other consumables
  • A free Rockstar Cap and Rockstar Rolling Tee for those who jump into GTA Online until February 12th (to be received next week)

Rockstar shares that there will be new employment opportunities on the horizon for solo Red Dead Online players, and there will be celebratory events for both GTA Online and Red Dead Online planned.

Don’t forget, we here at MP1st delivers the weekly update for both titles! So bookmark our GTA Online and Red Dead Online game hubs to know once it’s live.

Avatar photo

Alex Co

Father, gamer, games media vet, writer of words, killer of noobs.

Home > News

Apex Legends February 5 Update Fixes Exploits, Tweaks Map Rotations

Heads up, legends! While Respawn Entertainment has just released the Apex Legends Season 8 update earlier this week, the studio has released the Apex Legends February 5 update which is a server-side hotfix that takes out exploits, and rejigs the map rotation. Check out the official list of changes below.

Apex Legends February 5 Update Patch Notes:

Here’s what Respawn Entertainment shared on Twitter:

Kings Canyon will now be the only map in rotation through Feb 9 instead of the previously stated 2-week window. Peep some additional fixes and or view the full Season 8 patch below.

  • Fixed an error stopping players in Belgium from purchasing the Battle Pass (Note: the button will still say “Unavailable”, but clicking it will let you purchase the Battle Pass. A client patch later will fix the button still saying “Unavailable”)
  • Fixed an edge case where the gas from Caustic’s ultimate would persist even after his squad was eliminated
  • Fixed an exploit letting players block damage from grenades by dropping items on top of them,
  • Fixed an issue that allowed Fuse’s tactical ability to do damage through shieleds
  • Reduced likelihood of late-game circles ending on Mirage Voyage and The Pitt in King’s Canyon.

Again, this is a server-side update, so players won’t need to download anything. Nintendo Switch owners, don’t forget, Apex is coming to Switch on March 9!

Avatar photo

Alex Co

Father, gamer, games media vet, writer of words, killer of noobs.

Home > News

Destruction AllStars Update 01.002.002 February 5 Barrels Out

Lucid Games has released the Destruction AllStars update 01.002.002 February 5 patch which disables multiplayer lobby voice communications as the default, and a few other fixes. Note that Lucid Games calls this patch 1.2.2 though PS5 gamers will see the version number we listed in the post.

Check out the changes made today down below.

Destruction AllStars Update 01.002.002 February 5 Patch Notes:

Here’s what developer Lucid Games announced today over on Twitter:

Destruction AllStars Hotfix 1.2.2 is now LIVE!

Hotfix Notes Thread:

  • Disabled multiplayer lobby voice communications by default for all players.
  • We are actively working on longer-term enhancements to the voice communications system.
  • Fixed several client crashes relating to Multiplayer Lobbies and UI.

That’s about it. If you’re a PlayStation Plus member, don’t forget that the game is free for this month as part of the PS Plus monthly freebies! Gameplay overview and official description can be seen below.

Destruction AllStars (PS5)

Entertain the crowds by bringing controlled chaos to the vehicular combat arena of this metal-crunching multiplayer game*. Pick one of 16 superstar competitors, then leap into four game modes, using timing, tactics and skills to cause carnage behind the wheel or create havoc with your parkour skills. Perfect your character’s abilities – including a hero vehicle unique to them –  to give you the edge in free-for-all battles or team challenges and become Global Destruction Federation Champion. The game also supports PS5’s Game Help feature**, giving you hints and tips to become the ultimate destructive machine without the need to leave the game.

Once we get wind of the next update, we’ll let our readerks now.

Avatar photo

Alex Co

Father, gamer, games media vet, writer of words, killer of noobs.

Home > News

Destiny 2 Trials of Osiris Rewards This Week February 5, 2021 (Update)

While we’re about to see this season of Destiny 2 end, the next season, called “Season of the Chosen” will also introduce new Trials of Osiris rewards. However, before that, MP1st is here to bring you the Destiny 2 Trials of Osiris rewards this week February 5, 2021 edition!

Destiny 2 Trials of Osiris Rewards This Week February 5:

Post has been updated with all the rewards for the week.

Don’t forget that we’ll be updating the rewards list as they are known, so make sure to check back on this post from time to time. Once it’s finalized, we’ll post an “update” in the headline and let our readers know it’s final.

Trials of Osiris Map

Burnout

Rewards

Rotation not known yet, please let us know!

  • 3 Wins (Powerful): Exile’s Curse! (Legendary Fusion Rifle)
  • 5 Wins (Powerful): The Scholar! (Legendary Scout Rifle)
  • 7 Wins (Pinnacle): Chest!
  • Flawless (Pinnacle): The Summoner (Legendary Auto Rifle) +! (Adept Counter Balance)

Bounties

Name Description Cost Requirement Reward
End Game Complete matches and rounds. Wins in the Trials of Osiris grant the most efficient progress. Awards the 3 Win Challenge reward from this week. 1000 Glimmer 100 Progress XP & Glimmer & 35 Valor Rank Points & 5 Trials Token & 1 Trials Engram
Sweep the Field Defeat opponents. Multikills and streaks in the Trials of Osiris grant the most efficient progress. 1000 Glimmer 100 Progress XP & Glimmer & 35 Valor Rank Points & 5 Trials Token

Passages

Name Perk Cost
Passage of Mercy Forgives one loss per run. 25000 Glimmer & 15 Legendary Shards
Passage of Ferocity With zero losses, your third win grants a bonus win. 25000 Glimmer & 15 Legendary Shards
Passage of Wealth Increased tokens from reaching 3, 5, and 7 wins on a ticket. 35000 Glimmer & 25 Legendary Shards
Passage of Wisdom Grants bonus XP from Trials wins, scaling with the number of wins on a ticket. 35000 Glimmer & 25 Legendary Shards
Passage of Confidence Grants bonus rewards from Flawless Chest. 50000 Glimmer & 50 Legendary Shards

Don’t forget to check back next week when the Trials of Osiris starts on Feb. 12 with all-new rewards!

Thanks, Reddit!

Avatar photo

Alex Co

Father, gamer, games media vet, writer of words, killer of noobs.

Home > News

Destiny 2 Xur Location Today February 5, 2021

It’s been a rather busy week for Bungie and Destiny 2 this week, as the studio has announced the Season of the Chosen which starts next week. Now, for those that don’t care about that and  would rather spend their Strange Coins, MP1st is here to bring guardians the Destiny 2 Xur location today February 5 post!

Same as before, check out Xur’s location and what he’s selling for this weekend!

Destiny 2 Xur Location Today February 5:

Xûr, Agent of the Nine

Description:

A peddler of strange curios, Xûr’s motives are not his own. He bows to his distant masters, the Nine.

Location:

EDZ, Winding Cove


Exotic Gear:

Name Type MOB RES REC DIS INT STR Total Cost
Telesto Energy Fusion Rifle 29 Legendary Shards
Gwisin Vest Hunter Chest Armor 14 3 16 7 13 8 61 23 Legendary Shards
Severance Enclosure Titan Chest Armor 14 7 9 18 9 2 59 23 Legendary Shards
Sunbracers Warlock Gauntlets 11 16 3 15 10 6 61 23 Legendary Shards

Exotic Ciphers:

Name Type Cost
A Question Quest Step

What’s a Xûr?

Xûr, Agent of the Nine, is a strange vendor who randomly appears in a Public Sector on one of the Worlds. Xûr sells Exotic equipment and only takes Legendary Shards in exchange for them.

TL;DR: He’s the Santa Claus of Destiny and every weekend is Christmas. Sometimes he brings you what you want, sometimes he brings you coal. Mostly it’s coal.

When does Xûr visit?

Xûr visits every Friday at 17:00 UTC and departs at Weekly Reset (Tuesday 17:00 UTC). If you would like to see all the live conversions of Time Zones, please follow this link here.

Thanks, Reddit!

Avatar photo

Alex Co

Father, gamer, games media vet, writer of words, killer of noobs.