Heads up, Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 players! Tomorrow, a Black Ops 4 new Operation starts tomorrow called Apocalypse Z! What better way to remind players of this than with a new Black Ops 4 Apocalypse Z trailer that showcases some of the stuff coming tomorrow.
Operation Apocalypse Z unleashes the hordes of undead in all game modes. Fans will find exciting new ways to play, including Multiplayer maps and modes that channel the Zombies legacy, a new Zombies experience, eerie changes throughout the Blackout map, and more new weapons for players to unlock and master.
The big news here is that Reaper from Black Ops 3, will be making his (its?) way to multiplayer in Black Ops 4, athe latest chapter in the Zombies saga and more. Same as always, once the update is live, we’ll be sure to let our readers know.
These days, it’s not enough that people just play the games they have, they also need to livestream it, share their accomplishments and more. In Borderlands 3, Gearbox Software is aiming to have that experience be as painless as possible with the introduction of the Borderlands 3 social features, and more.
In a press release, Gearbox outlined the Borderlands 3 social features, livestreaming tools, and accessibility options the game will offer.
Social: During the panel, Gearbox confirmed dueling is not only back, it’s better than ever. In a series first, Free-for-All Dueling allows for opt-in 1v1v1v1 competitive multiplayer, letting you take on your friends in a brand new way. Gearbox also announced rich presenceDiscord integration, activity group-based matchmaking, and asynchronous matchmaking, which allows you to play while the system searches for players to pair you with.
Streaming: Though the innovative ECHOcast Twitch extension was originally announced back in May, Gearbox confirmed additional functionality during the Guardian Con panel. In addition to allowing viewers to look through a streamer’s loadout/skilltrees and giving them a chance to score real in-game loot while watching on Twitch, the extension also allows viewers to spawn events in a streamer’s game once certain conditions are met. Options include Moxxi Mixer events, Badass Viewer events, and more.
Accessibility: In an effort to ensure all players are able to enjoy Borderlands 3, Gearbox has developed a full suite of accessibility options. Mostly notably, you can fully remap all of the controls, whether you’re playing on console or PC. This makes Borderlands 3 fully compatible with the Xbox Adaptive Controller. In addition, players will be able to toggle headbob, auto-mantling, and aim assist options, and will also find extensive closed captioning options (including adjustable text size and opacity) as well as deep considerations for color blindness.
In addition to that, Gearbox has also revealed that Borderlands 3 will have a pinging system where players can quickly communicate with their teammates without the need to speak or use a mic. You can makr loot chests, guns, call out points of interests in the game, and so on. Each time you do, your character will fire off a contextually relevant voice over for it.
Borderlands 3 will loot its way out this September 13 on the PS4, Xbox One, and PC.
Games such as poker or bingo have a really long tradition and have been a part of our society long before the Internet was invented. Poker has been a favorite card game of millions of players worldwide, as it was a great reason for friends to get together and have fun. In fact, both poker and bingo are very social games, meaning that we like to play them because we get to hand out and even meet new people.
That being said, it is only logical that both should be available in multiplayer on the web. In other words, playing either poker or bingo against the machine can make you feel a bit bored. We all seek that “social” part of these games.
Why Should You Play Social Poker or Bingo?
It’s quite evident that the gaming industry has been one of the most rapidly developing sectors in the world, with games such as LoL or World of Warcraft having millions of players. However, people sometimes don’t like to immerse themselves into other worlds, quests, magic, and more, and want an alternative where they could take a rest from all those PC and console games, and this is a perfect time for playing games such as poker or bingo. In fact, this article states that online poker is one of the games you should definitely play if you haven’t tried it so far.
How to Play Online Social Poker?
Playing online poker is not that different from playing poker in Vegas. Although you don’t get to see opponents’ faces, there is still room for bluffing, applying poker strategies, and other maneuvers that can help you win in this game.
Rules of online poker are, therefore, not different at all from rules of poker you would play with your friends. You just have to take into account that there are several types of poker and each is a tad different from the other, so you need to choose one and try to play it as good as possible. In other words, try focusing on one type of poker and learning as much as possible about it before you start learning more about others.
If you are new to online poker, you should definitely start with Texas Hold’em which is one of the most widespread variants of this game. Once you get tired of it, you could explore games such as 5 Omaha, 5-Card Stud, and more.
Poker is, above all, a game of skill, so make sure to learn the ropes of some poker strategies that could help you upgrade your game and start winning tournaments. Some professional poker players who make a living playing poker started small and took baby steps, so why wouldn’t you?
How to Play Social Bingo Online?
Bingo has always been one of those games that people fall in love with as soon as they start playing it. Unlike poker, which is a game of tactics and strategies, bingo is a game of mere chance, meaning that you need some luck in order to have success.
The main reasons why the popularity of online bingo has been rapidly growing is that people on the web find it relaxing. Bingo is relatively slow-paced and simple to understand. It is similar to the lottery, as all you have to do is wait for the right numbers to come so that you can get a “bingo.” Rounds are relatively short as they have timeframes that must be respected.
Online bingo features the so-called bingo rooms where you can chat with people and meet new friends, which is yet another reason for people to play this game. We have the innate need to play games with other people, and bingo rooms present a perfect opportunity for that.
Conclusion
To sum up, you don’t need a new console or a super-expensive PC gear in order to enjoy playing games with other people. Sometimes, all it takes is a mouse, keyboard, and Internet connection. Once you have these three, you can start exploring various games on the web. Free online poker and bingo games are currently the primary choices of millions of people around the world as they are not only straightforward but also quite relaxing and entertaining.
Thanks to yesterday’s TennoCon event, Digital Extremes showed off a TON of Warframe Empyrean gameplay. How much is a ton? Try 40 minutes of gameplay from the action game’s upcoming expansion.
Ready? Go watch the Warframe Empyrean gameplay video below.
What’s interesting here is, Digital Extremes isn’t just creating an expansion for a new planet with Empyrean, but rather, they want to create something that interconnects with the other worlds, and the planned changes will impact the game as a whole. One example of this is Squad Link, which will let players experience land and space combat at the same time in one mission!
There’s currently no set release date for Empyrean just yet, but once we know more, we’ll let our readers know.
What do you hope to see from this upcoming Warframe expansion? Are you happy with the gameplay footage released so far?
Continuing with past leaks, YouTuber TheGamingRevolution has now leaked the alleged Call of Duty: Modern Warfare weapons list! Note that this isn’t the full list of weapons/guns, and again, this is still a rumor until otherwise confirmed by Activision or Infinity Ward.
SMG:
MP7
MP5
BIZON
AK74U
MINI UZI
AUG (can turn into an AR with attachments)
P90
AR:
AK47 (can become an SMG)
FAMAS ( its 3 round burst default but can turn into full auto mode)
LYNX (FROM MWR) NOW CALLED THE HK433
M4A1
SCAR H
SIG MCX
FAL (SINGLE SHOT BY DEFAULT, BUT HAS A FULL AUTO MODE)
ASH12
ROCKET LAUNCHER:
JAVLIN
RPG-7
Carl Gustav (lock on launcher)
STINGER
PISTOLS:
DESERT EAGLE
X16
1911
SIG P320
44 MAGNUM
OTHER:
RIOT SHIELD (HAS A FLASH LIGHT ATTACHED TO IT FOR THE NIGHT MAPS)
2 COMBAT KNIVES
SNIPERS:
DRAGNOV
AS50
TAC50
1 MORE SNIPER TGR MISSED
MARKSMEN RIFLES:
KAR 98
WINCHESTER
M14 EBR
(((right now you cant put scopes on the marksmen rifles, maybe cus they are not ready or its intentional)))
SHOTGUNS:
HUNTING RIFLE (CHALI 720) from what i understood it behaves like the argus
MODEL6 (or might be the rem 870)
ORIGIN 12
KSG 12 (not the actual name, but its similar to the one from bo2)
LMG:
MG5
MG34
L86 LSW
PKM (Tgr’s source says its similar to the pkm from cod 4 but its not the name)
PLANNED WEAPONS: (MIGHT BE DLC WEAPONS)
ACR
M16
m91 CUSTOM
M13 CUSTOM
As you can see, players will once again wield real-world weapons (yay!), which is refreshing to see since we’ve been using fictional guns (though based on real-world weaponry) the past few Call of Duty titles.
Let’s hope the wait won’t be long now and we’ll hear actual, solid Modern Warfare news soon.
While Sony has been mum on The Last of Us Part II release date (stylized as The Last of Us 2), multiple rumors have cropped up claiming that it’ll launch this year, or that it’s “coming soon.” Well, it seems a new rumor has surfaced once again, and this time, this The Last of Us 2 release date rumor has merit!
Over on ResetEra, Admin and reliable industry insider ZhugeEX posted a message from an “agentkicker” claiming that The Last of Us 2 release date is set for February 2020, and that it’ll come with four different editions — Standard Edition, Special Edition, Collector’s Edition, and the Ellie Edition.
What makes this rumor different from the rest is that this same person who mentions this The Last of Us 2 release date has also correctly leaked the Death Stranding release date a month before it was announced! As for the different editions of the game, it’s to be expected for a title of this magnitude. I assume that the Ellie Edition is the most expensive one of the lot, and will include a figurine or something similar to justify the price.
My take? I can see this being a reality since launching this year is a tad too late. And if Sony’s PS5 plans are to bring the new console out in 2020, then The Last of Us 2 will be the perfect capper to the PS4, which is the same thing that happened with the PS3 and The Last of Us.
Let’s hope Sony confirms this in one of their State of Play video shows soon.
Would you be OK with The Last of Us 2 being out in February or do you think it’ll have a bigger impact if it was released during the holidays?
Digital Extremes has debuted some fresh brand-new gameplay for their upcoming Empyrean update and along with the much highlighted railjack gameplay, they have also debuted a pretty cool new social feature called “Squad Link.” Just what is this Warframe Squad Link? Read on for the details.
What Squad Link does is that it lets squad play with each other in real time through an objective that “crosses the barrier” of the game.
From the demonstration during TennoCon 2019, the team showed off this feature, which allowed two squads composed from either the player’s friends list, clan or alliance to link up with one another and share a common objective. The demonstration started off with the team on land responding to a distress call coming from the other squad, whom which were engaged in an all out space battle. Down far below on the surface of the planet the team responding to the call began seeing the battle come into view in the sky as they were tasked to shutdown a disruptor field to help those in space take down the enemy ships.
Sound familiar? Well it should as the dev team were quick to make the reference to Star Wars’ Battle Of Endor, which saw the main characters in the film in nearly the exact situation. The squad fighting up in space held out long enough for the team below to shutdown the generators powering the ship’s shield, and once that was done it was smooth sailing as they easily took down the opposing threat.
No further details were revealed as to how many squads can be linked at once, but the team did state that these types of linkage can still occur without Squad Link, although it would be very difficult to do so. And in addition, if you were able to get a linkage going you would be missing out on the benefits such as squad resources and rewards.
No release date for this Warframe Squad Link feature has been announced, other than it’ll go live with the big Empyrean update. Needless to say, if you’re a Warframe fan, this is one game feature that should make missions a whole lot more epic in scale.
A gamer at heart, James has been working for MP1st for the last decade to do exactly what he loves, writing about video games and having fun doing it. Growing up in the 90's gaming has been in his DNA since the days of NES. One day he hopes to develop his own game.
During TennoCon 2019, Director Dan Trachtenberg who’s known for his work on Black Mirror, 10 Cloverfield Lane, and the upcoming Uncharted movie, took to the stage to debut a new Warframe short film that he has been working on with Digital Extremes.
Running for roughly six minutes, this new Warframe cinematic trailer oozes all kinds of style, and isn’t just one action setpiece after another. We get to see Tenno’s interacting with nature, exploring new areas, and of course, fighting! Warframe is an action game after all.
“As a massive fan of the game myself, having logged in hundreds of hours of play time, it’s been so much fun crafting a story that both sets up the universe for new players in a pretty epic way, while sprinkling it with moments that, I hope, make it doubly rewarding for hardcore fans with a better understanding of the game’s lore.” Dan said in a recent Press Release.
For more on Warframe, make sure to check back on MP1st as we’ll be covering the biggest announcement at TennoCon 2019. And make sure to check out this awesome contest being held by Digital Extremes where the winner gets to fly out in space!
A gamer at heart, James has been working for MP1st for the last decade to do exactly what he loves, writing about video games and having fun doing it. Growing up in the 90's gaming has been in his DNA since the days of NES. One day he hopes to develop his own game.
Regardless if you like Warframe or not? Or whether you like joining random contests, this one is worth checking out. Do you play Warframe? Ever wanted to travel to space? Well, Digital Extremes made a Warframe trip to space giveaway announcement, and it’s out of this world — literally! Extreme Digital took to the stage during their Tennocon 2019 Live presentation to announce that they are giving one lucky winner the opportunity to go to space. Yep, you read right, SPACE!
The official FAQ and guidelines aren’t quite up yet, but you’ll be able to read up on all the specification once they go live to see how you can qualify for the trip here: warframe.com/spaceninja
A gamer at heart, James has been working for MP1st for the last decade to do exactly what he loves, writing about video games and having fun doing it. Growing up in the 90's gaming has been in his DNA since the days of NES. One day he hopes to develop his own game.
While Respawn Entertainment released a patch for Apex Legends just a few days ago, the studio has rolled out an Apex Legends new update via the servers (no download necessary) and it’s live now! Check out the list below.
Apex Legends new update (server-side):
hange to Disruptor Rounds Hopup
Reduced the shield damage multiplier from 2.26 to 1.7. It’s a minor tweak while we evaluate the full weapon meta next week.
Change to Location-Based Daily Challenges
For now we have removed location based Daily Challenges as we’ve seen them have a negative impact on the game. Players will still get 3 Daily Challenges.
Leaving Penalty in Ranked:
We have temporarily disabled the leaving penalty in ranked as we discovered some bugs we want to squash. That said, we will reserve the right to doll out penalties to players that abandon Ranked matches while we address it.
Twitch Prime Loot: Some tips for those encountering issues.
After redeeming, you may need to reboot Apex to see the rewards. The skins are classified as Rare so that’s where they should appear in the customization menus for Wattson and L-STAR.
In addition to that, the studio has also released an Apex Legends dev tracker as well. According to Respawn, this is a new way to introduce visibility on some of the bigger issue reported by players. Respawn will be updating this every week, and expect to hear more about it as well/
The annual event centered around the very successful free-to-play title, Warframe called TennoCon, is about to begin and you can expect to hear many new things at the event, including our first true look at the next Warframe expansion, Empryea. Down below you can catch the Warframe TennoCon 2019 livestream, which will begins on July 6 at 11:00 a.m. ET. Throughout the day you’ll be able to watch all kinds of different live panels as detailed below with the big Tenno Live event starting at 6:00 p.m. ET. We expect to see some major reveals being centered around Warframe’s next expansion, Empryea, which will introduce some major changes to the title including the much anticipated pilotable spaceships, a first for Warframe. We’ll be sure to update you all as major reveals are announced.
And don’t forget, if you are gonna watch the livestreams tomorrow make sure to link your account to either Twitch, Steam, or Mixer for some unique Warframe drops. Full details on how and what you can get can be found on the official Warframe Tennocon page.
A gamer at heart, James has been working for MP1st for the last decade to do exactly what he loves, writing about video games and having fun doing it. Growing up in the 90's gaming has been in his DNA since the days of NES. One day he hopes to develop his own game.
Today at GuardianCon, Bungie debuted a brand-new trailer for their upcoming Destiny 2 expansion, Shadowkeep. In it, we get a good glimpse of the Moon, which was a location originally from the first game, and was even comically made into a meme with Peter Dinklage’s (Tyrion Lannister from Game of Thrones) “It came from the moon!” line. Check out the Destiny 2 new Shadowkeep trailer below.
Along with this new trailer, Bungie has also revealed that the next season, Season of the Undying will indeed focus on the Vex, as players will need to deal with their invasion happening all across the Solar system. We reported on this just last month when the season title became available in-game, suggesting that the Vex would indeed play a major role. You can watch the video below, although it’s just restating what we just said.
Speaking of Shadowkeep, Bungie has confirmed that a new exotic weapon will be in the expansion. You can check out our first real-world look of it here.
Destiny 2: Shadowkeep will be out this September 17 on the PS4, Xbox One, and PC.
A gamer at heart, James has been working for MP1st for the last decade to do exactly what he loves, writing about video games and having fun doing it. Growing up in the 90's gaming has been in his DNA since the days of NES. One day he hopes to develop his own game.
Heads up, PlayStation Plus members! This July’s PS Plus freebies are now available! Same as in every month, the file sizes, download links, official descriptions and more are listed below. And yes, the PS Plus free games July 2019 download links are both for US and UK!
PS Plus Free Games July 2019 Download Links:
Detroit: Become Human Digital Deluxe Edition – 76.76GB (Includes Heavy Rain)
Purchase the Detroit: Become Human Digital Deluxe and get Heavy Rain PS4 and additional digital content.
Detroit: Become Human Digital Deluxe Edition includes:
– Detroit: Become Human PS4™Digital Full Game
– Heavy Rain PS4™ Digital Full Game
– Detroit: Become Human Digital Art Book
– Detroit: Become Human Digital Deluxe Soundtrack (Upgrade)
– 2 X Detroit: Become Human PS4™ Dynamic Themes
– 22 X Detroit: Become Human PSN Avatars
How Far Will You Go To Be Free?
Detroit: Become Human is set in Detroit during the year 2038 after the city has been revitalized by the invention and introduction of Androids into everyday life. But when Androids start behaving as if they are alive, events begin to spin out of control.
Discover what it really means to be human in a powerfully emotional journey made of choice and consequences.
A TRIBUTE TO CLASSIC ARCADE RACERS Horizon Chase Turbo is a racing game inspired by the great hits of the 80’s and 90’s: Out Run, Top Gear, Rush, among others. It recreates classic arcade gameplay and offers you unbound speed limits of fun.
COUCH MULTIPLAYER IS BACK Horizon Chase Turbo offers a Multiplayer Split Screen mode that rescues the nostalgia of playing with your best friends sitting on a couch all night long.
16-BIT GRAPHICS REINVENTED Horizon Chase Turbo is inspired in the past without letting go of its contemporaneity. You’ll pilot your car through extraordinary places, watching the sun setting, facing rain, snow, volcanic ashes and even severe sandstorms.
BARRY LEITCH, THE LEGEND Horizon Chase Turbo presents Barry Leitch, the musician behind the soundtracks of classic arcade racing games Lotus Turbo Challenge, Top Gear and Rush.
With Destiny 2’s upcoming expansion called Shadowkeep set to arrive this September, not only will Guardians tackle new quests, slay new bosses and more, there’s also going to be top tier weapons as well. A Destiny 2 upcoming exotic weapon was teased over on Twitter today, and it seems to be an LMG (light machinegun).
Made by AurumEffects, this Destiny 2 upcoming exotic weapon can be seen shown off (the real-life version) in the video below which was taken at GuardianCon.
And that’s all we know for now. We don’t know its exact name, what its abilities are or anything. To further add to the legitimacy, the official Bungie account tagged it and said that this “redacted” exotic weapon will be making its way into the game this September in Destiny 2: Shadowkeep.
Speaking of real-life weapons, make sure to check out this fan-made, real life version of Thorn! If you’re not a fan of that, make sure to check the exotic items available in the game today in our weekly Xur post. We also posted this week’s Weekly Reset if you haven’t finished them all.
We already know that a new Black Ops 4 Operation is set to happen next week, it seems Treyarch has a big info and video blowout the day before it drops. Those looking forward to the Black Ops 4 new Operation called Operation Apocalypse Z, mark your calendars for Monday, 11 a.m. PT/2 p.m. ET, as Treyarch will be doing video premiers, and lots more. And yes, this seems to be what Treyarch is teasing today as well.
Tune in at 11AM PT Monday for all the intel on Operation Apocalypse Z:
Tune in at 11AM PT Monday for all the intel on Operation Apocalypse Z:
• New video premieres • #AlphaOmega gameplay reveal • MP map walkthroughs • New MP mode gameplay • #Blackout map update reveal • A very special guest visit… + more
People will be able to watch the entire thing on Treyarch’s YouTube channel. We will, of course, have the videos and relevant stuff up once we have ’em.
Here’s what we know of Operation Apocalypse Z per Treyarch:
Operation Apocalypse Z Starts July 9th on PS4
The zombie apocalypse arrives one week from today on PS4 as the undead take over Multiplayer, Zombies, and Blackout in Operation Apocalypse Z! We’ll have more intel and surprises to share as we count down to launch, along with more of what’s in store for the next chapter of the Zombies Aether story in “Alpha Omega”.
What are you looking forward to the most in this Black Ops 4 new Operation? Let’s hope Treyarch has somehow figured how to dish out new weapons properly this time.
While this year’s Call of Duty — Call of Duty: Modern Warfare — is set to be released in October, it seems Treyarch isn’t done promoting Black Ops 4. Today, Treyarch has sent out Twitter DMs (Direct Messages) to Call of Duty influencers with vague images.
Reddit user HarryRobb has compiled some of the images floating about and posted a roughly finished one with a few missing pieces.
Based on the image, I think we can pretty much surmise that this has something to do with Black Ops 4’s Zombies mode. Now, if you’re not a fan of that mode, then this shouldn’t mean anything to you. Once we know more info, or have the complete image, we’ll update the post.
Just a few days ago, we ran a story on how developers were upset with online game retailer G2A regarding its online ads, and how the company is said to be doing illicit business at the expense of the developers/publisher. Today, G2A sent MP1st a statement directly regarding this incident, and promised to pay developers 10x the money proven to be lost via chargebacks on illegally obtained games.
Here’s the statement in full:
Let’s lay all cards on the table.
We will pay developers 10 times the money they lost on chargebacks after their illegally obtained keys were sold on G2A. The idea is simple: developers just need to prove such a thing actually happened on their stores.
To assure honesty and transparency, we will ask a reputable and independent auditing company to make an unbiased examination of both sides – the developer’s store and G2A Marketplace. The cost of the first three audits is on us, every next one will be split 50/50.
The auditing company will check if any game keys sold on G2A were obtained using stolen credit cards on a developer’s store compliant with card scheme rules from Visa and Master Card/payment provider rules. If so, G2A guarantees it’ll pay all the money the developer lost on chargebacks… multiplied by 10.
We want this process to be transparent, so we will publicly report every step of the procedure. Meaning, you will get information such as who came forward, and what the verdict was, all of which will be published for everyone to see.
If you’re a developer willing to cooperate, contact the G2A Direct team.
G2A has also explained how their business works, and mentions their business model is “the same as any other big, global, marketplaces” like eBay, Amazon, etc.
G2A is a marketplace that’s all about making the prices for gamers as low as possible.
G2A’s business model is the same as any other big, global marketplaces’ like Amazon or eBay, with all its ups and downs. And just like them, we always try to maximize the ups and minimize the downs. Not only because of the law, but also because the customers require certain standards, and because the competition would beat us if we stayed behind.
Out of all marketplaces, G2A offers the best benefits for copyright owners – G2A Direct. Nobody else gives developers a percentage cut of all sales on their games sold by someone else.
G2A, like most online businesses, uses automated marketing, so every product available on the marketplace can be shown based on what the user is interested in.
If any developer suspects there are keys on the marketplace that shouldn’t be there, there’s a quick and easy way to report it. All it takes is to contact us. If any key was illegally obtained, we’ll remove it, block the seller and provide their personal data to the proper authorities.
We are and always were open for discussion, but a real one, not empty accusations and catchy slogans.
Let’s hope G2A sticks to their word on the whole payback thing and that developers take advantage of this. What are your thoughts on the matter? Let us know in the comments below.
If you’re looking forward to more assassinations in Hitman 2, you might want to give this Hitman 2 July 2019 roadmap trailer a watch. In it, IO Interactive plots out the DLC and free content heading to the action game this month.
Here’s a breakdown on what’s coming for the month:
July 4 / Escalation Contract
It’s time to stop the music, 47 style, in the Babayeva Dissonance.
In this Escalation, you’ll have to take care of the musicians and stop the music. There are 3 stages, and each one requires your particular skill sets. All from precision shooting, to a piece of certain knowledge about explosives.
And, please be gentle with the cellist.
July 11 / Challenge Pack
The “I’m with the Band” Challenge Pack is your perfect opportunity to join the famous Santa Fortuna band.
We’ve added five new band-related challenges to Santa Fortuna, and you’ll need to figure out the best way for success – with your one hit wonder, to complete them and earn the unlock.
When you’re successful, you’ll get rewarded with something all band members should have in their life. Their very own Violin.
July 18 / Featured Contracts
Inspired by this month’s content theme of Jungle Music, we’re looking for Featured Contract Submissions that fit the theme of ‘TONE DEATH’.
Our themes for Featured Contracts are purposefully open-ended to make sure that the talented Contract creators in the community are free to interpret them in many ways, ensuring some fun and varied contracts.
Head on over to the dedicated Featured Contracts Submission Thread to submit your contracts for this month’s theme. Submissions close at 9 am CEST on July 15, so get your submissions in before then!
July 19 / Legacy Elusive Target
The notorious Badboy is back!
The Badboy Legacy Elusive target is in Sapienza on July 19, for 10 days. So be sure to take care of this particular musician before that.
You’ll need to own the Legacy Pack to play this Elusive Target, so make sure you download it if you haven’t already!
Good Luck.
July 25 / Escalation Contract
The Calvino Cacophony Escalation is a hot summer celebration like never before.
You’ll have to become the menace of Santa Fortuna and you’ll definitely going to blow stuff up. But be careful – playing with explosives is a dangerous game!
High risk comes with a high reward. When completing this hot escalation, you’ll unlock the dashing and cool, Hot Summer Suit.
July 29 / IOI Monthly #5
“Hello and welcome to another episode of IOI Monthly…”
Our monthly livestream will return yet again on July 29! And as always this is going to be an exciting one full of reveals and announcements. We’ll give you developer insight into all of the content for the month, preview the July Game Update and take a look into the future with some announcements from the August Roadmap!
Key members of the team that created ‘The Prison’ will be on the stream to give you some reveals and details about what to expect from the newest Sniper Assassin Map.
July 30 / New Sniper Assassin Map (Expansion Pass)
The second Sniper Assassin map is coming to all expansion pass owners July 30th! This time, you’re going to one of the harshest and coldest places on earth.
Get full mastery in this level, and you’ll unlock the Druzhina 34 ICA Arctic to use in all of the sandbox locations HITMAN 2.
Welcome to Siberia (The Prison).
More information regarding the new Sniper Assassin Map will be revealed as we get closer to release date.
July 30/ Anniversary Outfits FREE with IOI Account
They are finally here!
We promised a little while ago that we’d make these suits available for purchase, but we’ve gone one better and made them FREE for everyone that signs up for an IOI Account, which is also free!
On July 30th, everyone with an IOI Account (and anyone who signs up afterwards too!) will get the full Anniversary Outfit Bundle, including characters from our classic games.
The Futo Suit
The Lynch Suit
The Freedom Phantom Suit
With an IOI Account, you’ll also receive updates on the latest HITMAN 2 news, announcements from the studio and more rewards like this!
July 30 / Contracts Mode for Hawke’s Bay
Contracts Mode is coming to Hawke’s Bay!
Come July 30, you’ll be able to play and create your own Contracts on the opening mission from HITMAN 2.
How, who, when, with what? It’s all up to you. It’s time to be creative and make that lovely beach your playground.
July 30 / Game Update
Our major update for July arrives on the same day as The Prison: July 30.
Expect a range of improvements and fixes to all aspects of the game, including issues reported by our community. We’ll have more details to share on IOI Monthly # 5 and the full release notes will be published before the game update is available to download.
While BioWare hasn’t exactly been pumping out one content drop after another for Anthem, fans do have the Cataclysm event to look forward to. Now, for those playing on PC, the event is available on the PTS (Public Test Server) where a lot of planned changes are being tested by players. If you’re looking forward to some Anthem Cataclysm PTS info, you’ve come to the right place!
First off, Reddit user InfinityEagle1 posted a three-minute gameplay clip of Anthem Cataclysm PTS gameplay, and it does look better than what we’re used to.
If that’s not enough, Anthem subreddit member xJVIayhem posted a ton of Anthem Cataclysm PTS info regarding look, new items andlots more.
GM1 Comparisons
This comparison I will admit is going to make Live seem better, but there’s also a grain of salt to be remembered in this. I have not run GM1 Cataclysms since they fixed the bug that had Cataclysms being treated as Freeplay early on. From Dev statements, it should be similar to live. Again it is not here, because This is when Cataclysms were still in an early stage, so it’s closer to GM1 Freeplay (worse than Strongholds).
Here’s the data I have from live (1.1.1, last time I tested).
Across 13 runs at 90% Luck on GM1 HOR I got the following:
7 Legendaries
Gotten over 3 Hours, or 2.3 legendaries per hour.
0.538 per run on average
2.05% of all drops
41 Masterworks
Gotten over 3 hours, or 13.67 per hour
3.154 per run on average
12.02% of all drops.
As for PTS, Across 12 GM1 Cataclysms:
2 Legendaries
Gotten over 3 hours, or 0.67 per hour.
0.167 per run on average
1.24% of all drops
15 Masterworks
Over 3 hours, 5 per hour
1.25 per run on average
9.32% of all drops
Again, devs have stated this should be roughly the same as 90% luck on Live. So this isn’t really any cause for concern.
GM2 Data
GM2 is where it get interesting. Unfortunately on Live I had a hell of a time getting groups for GM2 anything. Nothing to compare against fairly, so this will just strictly be data, make what you will of it. I will say a lot of the Cataclysms I did in GM2 were score runs, so a lot of them are ~1.5 times longer (~20-25mins vs ~30-40mins). There are some that are also shorter, from the first week or so where only 3/7 events were active. Just things to keep in mind.
This however is where I’ve spent the majority of my time on PTS, outside of the occasional GM3 score run. GM2 feels very soloable atm, rough but soloable. There’s a handful of Strongholds here too, but no too many.
I got the following for the higher tier drops:
28 Legendaries
Over 16 hours, or 1.75 per hour. (skewed slightly down from score runs)
0.757 per run on average
2.72% of all drops
149 Masterworks
Over 16 hours, 9.3125 per hour
4.027 per run on average
14.49% of all drops
Now for the sake of fairness, I’ll also cover the same as above, but only for runs after the fixes toward Cataclysm Loot.
12 Legendaries
over 7.25 hours, 1.65 per hour
1 per run on average
2.23% of all drops
79 Masterworks
over 7.25 hours, 10.9 per hour
6.583 per run on average
14.68% of all drops
From personal experience, this felt great. I was getting decent loot, while also still building up score to get crystals for better loot in War Chests (more on those later). It felt much better than spamming GM1 HoR praying for a Legendary, In fact I start to expect one per run minimum. If you didn’t care about score, you can knock about an hour off that time spent for the extra 10 minutes spent visiting secrets for more score in about 6 runs.
GM3 Comparisions
Okay, so this might be slightly unbalanced, but it’s the best I have to go on for now. Live GM3 Freeplay (as of 1.1.1 at least), vs PTS GM3 Freeplay, Cataclysms and Strongholds. I visted each part a little bit here, but unfortunately, I am unable to solo the new Conjunction Events in Freeplay, which probably had a negative impact on my Freeplay loot.
Worth noting, that while collecting data in Freeplay, I’m not going for Raw MW/Legendaries per hour, rather how many I can get before i fill my inventory. So these numbers may not seem the absolute best or indicative of what you might see with a different playstyle or collection method.
90% Luck GM3 Freeplay (1.1.1):
8 Legendaries
over 3.25 hours, ~2.46 per hour
2 per run on Average
3.81% of all drops
20 Masterworks
over 3.25 hours, ~6.1 per hour.
5 per run on average
9.52% of all drops
PTS GM3 Content:
17 legendaries
over 10 hours, 1.7 per hour
1 per run on average
2.88% of all drops
128 Masterworks
over 10 hours, 12.8 per hour
7.529 per run on average
21.66% of all drops
Again, I also want to just highlight my run in GM3 Cataclysms from after the changes, despite this being only handful of runs. Across those runs it’s actually been pretty consistent for me.
6 legendaries
over 2.5 hours, 2.4 Legendaries per hour
1.5 per run on average
2.83% of all drops.
44 Masterworks
over 2.5 hours, 17.6 per hour
11 per run on average
20.75% of all drops.
Now it’s hard to honestly say if it’s worth it. personally i think it is. Running a Cataclysm for 25-30 minutes (about how long completion would take, running through all events) vs spamming strongholds on GM1 for an hour. I’d rather take the more challenging and rewarding content honestly!
Crystals, War Chests and New Items
Now regarding loot, there’s one key thing to keep in mind here. Cataclysms also reward you with Crystals which can get you a selection of things from the new Seasonal Store. For reference, a High score run, which takes ~35-40m regardless of difficulty rewards varying amount of crystals, depending on difficulty.
I’ll talk more about the events and scoring later, the important thing to know are what are currently the potential maximum scores, with all the events active (supposedly they won’t be right from the start). This ends up being around 8 million score in Gm2 and close to 12 million in GM3. You get 1 Minor Crystal per 1,000 score, so this equate to ~8k and 12k minor Crystals Specifically.
War Chests Grant you an Item that is either Masterwork (Power 66) or Legendary (Power 80). Each of these War Chests costs 1100 Minor Crystal, or 1 Major (costs 1k minor, can also get from dailies/weekly) and 100 Minor. So far from all of my pulls, the legendary chance has been bouncing between 10-15%. So I’ll just say 12.5% average for the sake of the maths coming up.
With a cost of 1,100 minor Crystal, this means you get ~7 Pulls from Gm2 Score runs, and ~11 from Gm3. With those War Chests, This means you have the potential to get another Legendary item from those runs. ~61% for a GM2 run and ~77% for a GM3 run to get a legendary from the given rolls. This does not account for any crystal from Dailies (which every clear due to a repeatable daily grants enough for an extra pull) or other means of crystal.
According to the poster, players shouldn’t expect to get the items they want in War Chests. These things are categorized, however, which makes farming for specific classes easier. Currently there are three boxes that are available, which are for Support, Melee and Weapon Slots. Each box will have eight, eight, and six items respectively, and they contain only new items.
While we have to wait to see the new weapons, check out some of the melee examples below.
As for melee here’s some images and for those that can’t view the images, the details are also included!
Colossus Melee
Type A: Seismic Glove (Current melee) Name: Earthshaker Type/Combo: Physical, Detonator MW Perk: Sends out a shockwave that damages enemies in front of you.
Type B: Inferno Glove (New!) Name: Meteor Smash Type/Combo: Fire, Primer MW Perk: Cracks the earth, igniting flames around your feet that burn nearby enemies. (creates a Fire DoT on the ground) This is the melee you may have seen earlier in this post about the new Cataclysm weather effects.
Interceptor Melee
Type A: Twin Blades (Current) Name: Blades of Warding Type/Combo: Physical, Detonator MW Perk: Hitting an enemy grants 10% increased damage resistance for 10 seconds. Stacks to 5.
Type B: Venomous Blades Name: Deathstalker Blades Type/Combo: Acid, Primer MW Perk: Deals Additional damage against enemies below 50% health
Ranger Melee
Type A: Shock Mace (Current) Name: Transmuting Volt Type/Combo: Electric, Primer MW Perk: Hitting an Enemy adds 3 Ultimate Charge.
Type B: Seismic Mace Name: Rampager Type/Combo: Physical, Detonator MW Perk: Hitting an enemy grants 10% increased damage for 10 seconds. Stacks to 5.
Storm Melee
Type A: Explosive Strike (Current) Name: Searing Blast Type/Combo: Fire, Detonator MW Perk: Sends out a fireball that seeks Enemies (Discount Living Flame, basically. Does not Prime/Detonate currently, just extra damage)
Type B: Shocking Strike Name: Lightning Surge Type/Combo: Electric, Primer MW Perk: Hitting an Enemy restores 40% shields.
Finally, it’s time to dive into the Cataclysm event itself. Note that if you play Anthem and absolutely do not want anything spoiled, don’t read any further.
The Cataclysm
Now it’s time to talk about the main course, if you will. The Cataclysm itself. It’s been stated the Cataclysm will start a 3 events and the boss, and work it’s way up to the full 7 with boss adding 1 event per week. (this is subject to possible change though).
The Cataclysm functions as an open-ended Stronghold, more or less. Each area has a different task or puzzle to complete. Some are just kill events, others are simple puzzles, some use Echoes for a bit of complexity. Each event you complete within the Cataclysm rewards you with Extra time in the Cataclysm, extra time your javelin can be in the Cataclysm safely without use of a protective area and most importantly, loot.
The area itself is littered in secrets and bonus points. So exploration is very worthwhile, especially if you want more crystals to open more War Chests.
As you may have seen earlier, there have also been massive visual improvements to the Cataclysm. Overall, it’s looking fantastic now compared to the early build on the devstream.
I have a Complete Text guide for the Entirely of the Cataclysm and it’s events/secrets over on AHQ Boards. Worth checking out if you want a better idea. Currently in progress of adding images to the guide and updating the map with a newer look with the release of the July 3rd update adding the probably final map.
The Story
Along side this even are a few new Story quests that lead into the events of the Cataclysm. I won’t say much on them to avoid spoiling them, but they were pretty good imo. They feature a couple cinematics, and explain the general story behind the cataclysm, how it starts, how you get there and why you want to stop it. One of the quests actually has you fighting quite a few Apex monsters (you might want to run that one on the highest difficulty you can).
It was decently enjoyable and a good intro to the Cataclysm itself.
The Mechanics
Once you leave the initial starting bubble, you get ~30 seconds of protection from the Cataclysm. After this, you start taking about 10% of your Armor as damage every second. There are a few way to migrate this damage though. Obviously you can still heal via components and repair packs. You can also recover your protection in one of two ways, Anthem Energy (which drops from killed enemies), and the Bubbles you can shoot which cover the whole event arena. These will also recover your Stability in addition to protecting you, but you get less score for kills while in these bubbles.
As far as scoring, you get 10 point per normal enemy, 100 per Elite and 1000 per Legendary/Named enemy. There are also several tiers of Anthem Energy which also reward score when picked up. Green (exclusive to kills) gives 10 points, blue is 200, Purple 300, and Orange (exclusive to secrets) 500.
These base point values are then multiplied by your current score multiplier, which starts at 1x, and increases by 1 for each event completed. This multiplier is doubled while in the storm (not in a protective bubble). The highest Multiplier you can achieve is 16x, one all events are completed.
Once you Kill Vara, your Score is doubled, then multiplied by a given difficulty modifier. Currently in GM2 this is ~5x, Gm3 is ~7.5x. The final score you get as a result of this is divided by 1,000 and given to you as Minor Crystals.
So the goal is to complete as many events as you can, then kill Vara for maximum score.
Finally, there will be freeplay events set to be rolled out whenever Cataclysm is released as well. There’s what the user calls a “mini-horde” mode that are timed, which lasts roughly 15 minutes. Once you complete a horde, you’re given time to rest and regoup before another one starts somewhere else on the map.
Well, there you have it. This is the most detailed info we have of the Cataclysm and what’s coming with it so far. Will this be enough to bring back Anthem? For BioWare’s sake, let’s hope this is a good start.
