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Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 Shamrock & Awe Event Items Are Not Part of Supply Stream, Gated Behind $20

  by   Alex Co  
March 12, 2019 8:50 pm in News

Earlier today, Treyarch announced and released the Shamrock & Awe special event for Call of Duty: Black Ops 4. For fans of the franchise, you might remember the event being available for Call of Duty: WWII, and even in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered.

While COD: WWII’s Shamrock & Awe event introduced new items and weapons into the game, that isn’t the same with Black Ops 4 — unless you pony up $20. In Black Ops 4, Treyarch has rolled out new game modes for multiplayer, a new Hardcore playlist for Blackout, and Hellcatraz Gauntlet for Zombies mode, but no actual items in the Supply Stream that can be earned! However, there is a “Special Offer” available for the event that includes Reserve Crates, and other cosmetic stuff that you’ll need to buy for $20 in order to obtain.

Check out the image below via Reddit user mrdoitnyce who also posted how the Shamrock & Awe content is being gated by $20.

https://imgur.com/a/v00VtP9

If you’re somehow assuming that this is the same with COD: WWII, think again. Reddit user theSlickRaccoon posted a comparison of how the Shamrock & Awe event from COD: WWII has more content than the one for Black Ops 4.

Black Ops 4 Shamrock & Awe:

– Spring update to Blackout/ Hardcore

– Op. Mods in Blackout

– Exclusive PS4 emote

– 2000 CP bundle

– Huricane Contraband

– Seasonal Stockpile

COD: WWII Shamrock & Awe:

– Shipment 1944, free for everyone

– Overhauled HQ

– Introduction of weapon charms

– New reticles

– The MG81 Lmg and M-38 Smg

– Zombies event (animated camos)

– Comunity challenge w/ free cosmetics

– Leprechaun hunt

– Tons of event themed comsetics

As you can plainly see, the COD: WWII Shamrock & Awe event runs laps around Black Ops 4’s in terms of content.

Will Activision and Treyarch cave and put some of the Shamrock & Awe items in the Supply Stream so people can earn in “normally?” Does it even matter for Black Ops 4 players? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Tags: Activision Call of Duty Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 Treyarch
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Alex Co

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

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Apex Legends Battle Pass News Coming “Very Soon,” Respawn Chimes in on Datamined Info

  by   Alex Co  
5:59 pm in News

With Apex Legends hitting it big, dataminers have dug and dug a ton of info regarding this year’s surprise hit. While we’ve gotten news regarding new Legends, and new game modes set to come out soon, Respawn has chimed in on whether we should rely on these scraps of info or not.

Over on Reddit, Community Manager Jay Frechette has mentioned that the Apex Legends Battle Pass won’t be releasing today, and that news will be coming “very soon.” He also adds that the datamined files are from an old build, and some of it are from ideas that were scrapped by Respawn.

Hey Friends,

So between the datamining and the unintentional update about Season 1 on Origin today, there’s been a lot of speculation and confusion so we wanted to give some clarity:

  • We’ll be providing details on Season 1, Battle Pass, and the next Legend very soon. It’s not coming out today.
  • There’s lots of stuff that has been datamined from Apex since launch and is swirling around the Internet. We know this stuff is fun to dig up and speculate about, but you should not treat any of that info as a source of truth. There’s stuff in there that is very old, or things we’ve tried in the past and cut–remember our design process is to prototype and play lots of ideas–and some of it may be things we’re still building for Apex Legends. Finding this stuff by no means confirms that it’ll ever come out. At best you should treat any posts about this as a rumor and the real info will come from us when we’re ready to show off what’s coming next.

Thank you to everyone for staying patient through this and hang tight. We’re excited to get Season 1 kicked off and having you grinding on that Battle Pass with a new Legend to master soon.

For more on Apex Legends, make sure to read our review, and bookmark our game hub for the latest reliable news.

Tags: Apex legends EA Respawn Entertainment
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Alex Co

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

Home > News

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 Update Today Introduces Shamrock & Awe Event, Here’s the Complete List of New Stuff & Changes

  by   Alex Co  
4:51 pm in News

If you’re playing Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 on PS4, turn on your console as a new Black Ops 4 update today has been rolled out by Treyarch via a game patch! C;ocking in at 9.8GB on PS4, this brings Black Ops 4 to version 1.14!

Chief among the new stuff is the introduction of the Shamrock & Awe event, which includes new game modes, a revised multiplayer map, and more! Note that some content are planned for this week, and not today. Check out the full list of changes below (via Reddit):

This event brings free new seasonal content to Multiplayer, Blackout, and Zombies, including new game modes, limited-time thematic updates, and some unexpected surprises. Here’s a look at what’s new:

  • Free Personalization Items
    • Visit the Black Market during the special event to receive your free St. Patrick’s Day Gesture & Calling Card.
  • Multiplayer: St. Patrick’s Stockpile
    • In this seasonal twist on Fracture from Black Ops 3, kill enemies to collect their shamrocks and deposit them at the nearest pot of gold to score points for your team.
  • Blackout: Spring Map Update + New Surprises
    • Spring has arrived in Blackout, bringing with it all-new lighting, a whole lot of greenery, and some… colorful hidden treasures. Follow the rainbow!
  • Zombies: Green-Eyed Zombies + Seasonal Easter Egg
    • May the luck of the Irish be with you against the green-eyed zombies that await in Classic Chaos story maps! Rumor has it they’re hiding a special new Easter Egg to discover at the end of the rainbow…

Wear some green, grab your friends, and enjoy Shamrock & Awe in all modes during this two-week event!

Multiplayer

Multiplayer gets a huge update this week, including our new Stockpile mode, a stormy new variant of the Contraband map for all players, Scorestreak tuning for friendly fire modes, new improvements to League Play, and more.

Here’s what coming to Multiplayer in this week’s new update:

  • Stockpile (PS4)
    • Black Ops 3’s fan-favorite Fracture game mode returns with a new twist in Stockpile, debuting today on PS4! Collect and bank enemy tags, deposit them point to score points for your team, and rack up the most points for the win.
  • Contraband Hurricane
    • The warming springtime weather has swept a tropical storm across the island map of Contraband, free for all players starting this week.
  • Scorestreak Tuning
    • The Thresher will no longer damage friendly players in modes with Friendly Fire enabled, and the Dart will no longer count toward team kill punishment in modes with Friendly Fire enabled.
  • Casino Hardpoint & Custom Game Fixes
    • Casino will now be available in Hardpoint and Custom Game playlists for Black Ops Pass holders.
  • Prestige Master Level 999 Fix
    • For those MP die-hards who’ve already reached Level 1000 Prestige Master but haven’t seen their rank update past Level 999, a fix is live for you with today’s update.

Later in Operation Grand Heist, we’re also introducing our new Barebones game mode featuring classic gameplay rules and no Specialists. Infected, Capture the Flag, and Prop Hunt are also planned for later in the Operation, along with even more gameplay improvements and tuning updates.

World League Hub

Thanks to everyone in the competitive community for the incredible reception of League Play – the numbers are in, and we’re blown away. Since launching League Play in Black Ops 4 on all platforms, we’ve seen an exponential increase in player participation compared to Black Ops 2’s League Play, making it our 2nd-most popular Multiplayer playlist behind Team Deathmatch as of last week!

League Play has constantly evolved behind the scenes since launching just a few weeks ago, thanks in large part to direct player feedback. Today, we’re excited to announce a new round of improvements kicking off today to make League Play even more competitive and rewarding:

  • Match Quit Penalty
    • When a player quits with 4 or more players on their team, that player will now receive a new penalty to their Ladder Points in addition to the standard match loss deduction, as quitting a match will also count as a loss. This is the first phase of penalties that we’re implementing for quitters in League Play, with another round of refinements planned for our next major update.
  • Daily Bonus Rollover
    • We’ve heard your feedback on the Daily Bonus system – namely, that the initial version was most advantageous to players who could get in enough matches each day to earn the maximum number of bonus points. To improve this, now your remaining Daily Bonus point pool will roll over day-to-day until the end of each League Play Event, allowing all players to max out their bonus points at their own pace. The Daily Bonus has also been reduced from 200 to 100 to better balance its impact on the overall Ladder.
  • 12 Custom Classes
    • All League Play competitors will now have instant access to all 12 Custom Classes in the World League Hub. This will allow all players to set up a full suite of custom loadouts specifically for League Play rules without first Prestiging multiple times in Multiplayer.
  • Top 5 Ladder Rewards
    • Players will now earn 4 Gems for finishing in the Top 5 of their Division, with your rank now permanently reflecting your Top 5 finishes with Gold and Silver treatments. This adds another important milestone for players to battle over between Top 10 and 1st Place in each League Play Event.
  • New 1st Place Reward
    • Players can now earn 5 Gems for finishing in 1st Place in each League Play Event (was previously 4 Gems).

We’ll continue to add more improvements and features to League Play in future updates, including additional ranks– keep your feedback coming, and watch this space for more news.

Blackout

Blackout gets a new springtime makeover with this update, our hotly-anticipated Hardcore mode, a suite of new features and quality of life improvements, and more! And thanks to the community’s overwhelming support of Hot Pursuit, we’re keeping it in the mix this week while Hardcore takes the Featured Playlist slot.

New Blackout features and content with this week’s update include:

  • Spring Seasonal Map Update
    • Blackout’s map takes on an entirely new look for spring, including updated lighting, new and improved greenery, and springtime trees in full bloom throughout the map.
  • Hardcore Mode (PS4)
    • Drop into Blackout with no HUD, armor, vehicles, or zombies in our all-new Hardcore game mode. Watch the skies, as a fleet of choppers will drop flares overhead to inform players of each new circle location. You’ll need to keep your wits about you and rely on your senses if you want to make it out on top!
  • Contraband Stashes (PS4)
    • Discover Contraband Stashes in Blackout to get access to the latest weapons, including the Rampage auto-shotgun, Switchblade X9 folding SMG, and KAP 45 auto-pistol.
  • Muscle Car & SUV in Solos, Duos, and Quads (PS4)
    • Our newest land vehicles make their debut in core Blackout playlists with this week’s update. The Muscle Car and SUV bring their own distinct advantages, but their special abilities remain exclusive to Hot Pursuit.
  • Operator Weapons and Purifier
    • You’ll be able to find and wield a new class of weapons equipped with Operator Mods from Multiplayer in Blackout with this new update, as well as Firebreak’s Purifier… if you’re lucky enough to find it.
  • Weapon Inspect
    • Weapon Inspect will be available by pressing left on the d-pad. Holding left on the d-pad will still activate the Callouts menu.
  • Gestures and Callouts at the Victory Screen
    • Players can now activate Gestures and Callouts during the Victory screen, so you can celebrate your #1 spot in style.
  • Limited-Time Mode Stats
    • With this update, all Limited-Time Modes will now feed stats directly to the new “Limited-Time Modes” filter in the Barracks. Previous Hot Pursuit stats will also populate to this new stat filter.

Zombies

As we prepare for the launch of our next Zombies experience later this month with “Ancient Evil”, we’re shining the spotlight on the Aether story’s Primis crew in this update with our new “Hellcatraz” Gauntlet! Host migration for public matches also arrives along with fixes for Master Prestige players, plus stability and gameplay improvements for all players.

Here’s what’s in store for Zombies players in our newest update:

  • Hellcatraz Gauntlet (PS4)
    • Take on 30 rounds of new challenges as the Primis crew in “Hellcatraz”, our most exciting Zombies Gauntlet to date.
  • Host Migration
    • Public matches will now automatically continue with a new host if the current host drops out mid-game.
  • Prestige Master Fixes
    • We’re fixing several key issues for Prestige Master players in Zombies with this update, including XP inconsistencies and issues with properly displaying Prestige icons.
  • Stability and Gameplay Improvements
    • This update also delivers several crash fixes throughout the mode, as well as gameplay improvements across “IX”, “Blood of the Dead”, “Classified”, and “Dead of the Night”.

Read on below for this update’s patch notes:

​

The following updates are live today on PS4, with other platforms to follow:

General

  • Events
    • Shamrock & Awe Event now live on PS4 in Multiplayer, Blackout, and Zombies.
      • Players can visit the Black Market to collect their free St. Patrick’s Day Gesture & Calling Card.

Multiplayer

  • Game Modes
    • Stockpile added as Featured Playlist.
      • Kill enemies and collect their tags. Carry your banked tags to the nearest deposit point to score points for your team.
  • Shamrock & Awe Event
    • St. Patrick’s Stockpile variant live during Shamrock & Awe Event: carry your banked enemy shamrocks to the nearest pot of gold to score points for your team.

Blackout

  • Game Modes
    • Hardcore added as Featured Playlist.
      • Quads version of Blackout with no HUD, armor, vehicles, or zombies.
      • No mini-map, player information, team information, compass, player count, or killfeed.
      • Quick Equip Menu disabled.
      • Med Kits are the only available healing items (no Trauma Kits or Bandages).
      • A fleet of helicopters drops flares overhead to inform players of each new circle location.
  • Weapons
    • Contraband Stashes
      • Contraband Stashes allow access to the latest weapons: Rampage shotgun, Switchblade X9 SMG, and KAP 45 auto-pistol.
  • Vehicles
    • Muscle Car & SUV
      • Muscle Car and SUV now available in Solos, Duos, and Quads, without their special abilities exclusive to Hot Pursuit.
  • Shamrock & Awe Event
    • St. Patrick’s Day-themed map updates, plus additional loot available in Pot-o-Gold Stashes, Homunculus Leprechauns hoards, and in Mystery Boxes at the end of the rainbow.

Zombies

Gauntlets

  • Hellcatraz
    • Take on 30 rounds of new challenges as the Primis crew in Blood of the Dead for rewards at Tiers 10, 20, and 30.
  • Shamrock & Awe Event
    • Green-eyed zombies and a new seasonal Easter Egg now live in Classic Chaos story maps.

​

Xbox One & PC:

The following updates are live today on consoles, with PC to follow:

Multiplayer

  • General
    • Added the ability to change Class when joining a match in progress.
  • Maps
    • Contraband Hurricane
      • New stormy variant of Contraband added to rotation, free for all players.
    • Casino
      • Casino is now available in Hardpoint playlists and in Custom Games for Black Ops Pass holders.
      • Addressed an issue where the Sniper’s Nest could occasionally remain in the playspace after expiring in Casino.
  • Prestige
    • Addressed an issue where some users could not progress beyond Prestige Master Level 999.
    • Addressed an issue where Create-a-Class slots unlocked through Prestige could have empty Equipment slots.
  • Scorestreaks
    • The Thresher will no longer damage friendly players in modes with Friendly Fire enabled.
    • The Dart will no longer count toward team kill penalties in modes with Friendly Fire enabled.
  • Equipment
    • Addressed various instances where the Seeker could fall through the map.
    • Addressed an animation hitch when standing from crouch while holding a Trophy System.
  • Specialists
    • Outrider
      • Addressed an animation issue with Outrider’s Hawk tablet while a pistol was equipped.
  • Game Modes
    • Heist
      • Improvements made to the revive UI to match the revive UI in Blackout.
  • Customization
    • Mastercraft camos will now display on weapons in the Gun Rack.
    • Warpaint can now be seen through Seraph’s “The Professional” mask.

World League Hub

  • General
    • Players that leave a match early will now receive an increased match quit penalty.
    • Unlocked all 12 Custom Classes for players to use in World League Hub.
    • Prestige Master players now properly earn XP in League Play matches.
    • Multiplayer Challenges now properly track while playing in League Play Events.
    • Prestige icons now properly appear when leveling up in League Play Events.
  • Ladders and Rewards
    • Added a Top 5 Ladder Reward tier that awards 4 Gems.
    • 1st Place Ladder Reward now awards 5 Gems.
    • League Ladder Tile in the World League Hub now properly updates after a League Play Event ends.
    • Addressed an issue where players were able to roll over their Ladder Points between Events.
  • Daily Bonus
    • Daily Bonuses will now roll over day-to-day for the duration of the current event.
    • Reduced the Daily Bonus point value from 200 to 100.
  • Miscellaneous
    • Addressed an issue where Match Bonus was rewarding fewer XP than intended.
    • Addressed an issue with inconsistent XP being awarded to players in Search and Destroy League Play matches.
    • Addressed an issue with Specialist Stats displaying Public Match Stats instead of World League Hub Stats.
    • Addressed an issue with the Previous League Play Results screen appearing before a player had completed their Skill Evaluation matches.
    • Addressed an issue with the League Play Career tile in the Barracks not properly updating.
    • Addressed an issue with Streak Flames not appearing in some cases.

Blackout

  • Spring Map Update
    • Added updated lighting, new and improved greenery, and springtime trees in full bloom throughout the map.
  • Weapons
    • Operator Weapons
      • Operator Weapons added to Supply Drops and Stashes.
      • Weapons come with Operator Mods pre-attached, which cannot be stripped.
      • Operator Weapons glow purple for easy identification.
    • Purifier
      • Firebreak’s Purifier flamethrower can now be found in Supply Drops.
  • General
    • Players can now mute team members via the Team Scoreboard.
    • Improved visibility of items on the ground when wingsuiting and parachuting into the map.
    • Enabled prioritizing ammo pickups over weapon pickups in Blackout Options.
    • Weapon Inspect can now be activated with left on the d-pad on consoles.
    • Gestures and Callouts can now be activated during the Victory screen.
    • Added new Limited-Time Modes stats filter in Barracks.
    • All Limited-Time Modes now feed stats directly to the Limited Time Modes filter, including previous Hot Pursuit stats.
  • Miscellaneous
    • Addressed an issue where the wrong Calling Card was displayed when a player spectated or viewed the Killcam.
    • Addressed an issue where the player character was missing when joining another player in the lobby.

Zombies

  • Host Migration
    • Public matches will now automatically continue with a new host if the current host drops out mid-game.
  • Stability
    • Global
      • Fixed a crash that could occur when a Catalyst zombie performed its special attack.
      • Fixed a crash that could occur when navigating from the Black Market to a Zombies lobby and back.
    • IX
      • Fixed a crash that could occur when a player started a Custom Mutations IX match where starting points had been adjusted in “Edit Game Rules”.
      • Fixed a crash that could occur when the player queued for a public Classic IX match.
    • Blood of the Dead
      • Fixed a crash that could occur if the player rapidly switched tabs while spectating.
    • Classified
      • Fixed an issue during the “Death-Con Five” Gauntlet where the player could be disconnected from the server and moved to the main menu when transitioning from Round 10 to Round 11.
    • Theater
      • Fixed a crash that could occur when viewing a clip made during the previous patch in Theater.
      • Fixed a potential freeze and/or crash that could occur in Theater when fast-forwarding a clip from Dead of the Night.
  • Miscellaneous
    • Global – Addressed issues where:
      • The Welling could be permanently unlocked with a Permanent Unlock Token, despite it being the starting pistol.
      • Pack-a-Punching the Swordfish while it was equipped with the Holographic and Long Barrel attachments caused the weapon to have improper animations.
      • If the player left any party lobby hosted by a player, then accepted an invite into a custom Zombies game from a second player, it would result in the player losing functionality during the First Time User Experience screen.
      • The Ethereal Razor could be seen constantly even if the player was not using the knife.
      • The player put their only weapon into the Pack-a-Punch, effectively giving them fists in first-person, but a knife would be seen in their hand in third-person.
      • After killing the Blightfather, the 25% XP boost did not give out the appropriate value with a “MKII” weapon.
    • Prestige Master – Addressed issues where:
      • A Prestige Master Level 1000 player could still see an XP bar in the After Action Report after every match, despite there being no XP left to earn.
      • Earning XP at Prestige Master Level 322 could become corrupted.
      • The Options menu during a game would display the incorrect level and amount of XP for a Prestige Master player, and would be inconsistent with the After Action Report.
      • A Master Prestige player changed their Prestige icon and other players would see the default icon in the Social menu.
    • “Death-Con Five” Gauntlet – Addressed issues where:
      • Players may lose their sprinting animation after sliding and shooting during “Slippery” in Round 2.
      • Players were able to use Elixirs while not sliding, which was inconsistent with the round description during “Slippery” in Round 2.
      • If the player rapid-fired a semi-auto weapon while sliding, they could rapid-fire the remainder of the clip after stopping during “Slippery” in Round 2.
      • Damage would persist on players while standing still during Round 5.
      • The player would lose points when they run, walk, slide, crouch, or go prone in Nova 6 Gas, despite the description only mentioning when “standing” during the “High Gas Prices” Round.
    • “Veni, Vidi, Zombie!” Gauntlet
      • Addressed an issue in Round 26 in which players could briefly see their Equipment in their hands as their weapon changed.
      • Addressed an issue in Round 26 in which the revival animation would not play when the player was reviving another player.
    • Classified
      • Addressed a visual issue near the Mystery Box in the War Room Upper Level.
      • Addressed an issue where activating the Nova Crawlers by annoying McNamara during a round transition change would cause all spawns going forward to be Nova Crawlers.
      • Closed an exploit where the player could use the Ragnarok DG-5 to jump onto a filing cabinet in Central Filing.
    • IX
      • Addressed an issue where players were unable to repair barricades in the Ra Altar room.
      • Addressed an issue where the player may notice a misaligned Challenge text box in the UI after cutting a Challenge Banner rope.
    • Blood of the Dead
      • Addressed a rare issue where the player’s Shield Key could get jammed in a door while aiming down sights.
      • Addressed an issue that could occur where the Warden that spawns on the roof could path to the Infirmary and then get stuck.
      • Addressed an issue that could occur where random barricades would become unrepairable after Round 6.
    • Dead of the Night
      • Addressed an issue where the light FX for Alistair’s Annihilator could persist on the screen when grabbed by the Crimson Nosferatu.
      • Addressed various visual issues in the Cemetery.
    • Perk Up Elixir
      • Addressed an issue where the player would only receive two Perks from the Perk Up Elixir after failing a round in any Gauntlet match by not completing the objective.
      • Addressed an issue where, if a player used the Perk Up Elixir in a Gauntlet to obtain extra Perks and then proceeded to get damaged down to 50 health, then used In Plain Sight while being attacked at 50 health, the round failed and the Perk Up Perks remained active when the player respawned in the next round.

General

  • Friendly Fire
    • Unique Friendly Fire hitmarkers will now appear when damaging friendlies in any game mode with friendly fire enabled, including Hardcore modes, Blackout, and League Play.

​For PC and Xbox One gamers, don’t forget, you’ll be able to experience the Shamrock & Awe event in seven days.

Tags: Activision Call of Duty Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 Treyarch
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Alex Co

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

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Xbox Store Sale Deals With Gold for the Week Now Live, Here’s the List of Discounted Titles

  by   Alex Co  
2:28 pm in News

It’s Tuesday, and that means another round of Xbox store sale deals are now live! This week’s Deals With Gold can be seen below with straight links to the Xbox browser store.

Xbox One

 

Game Price (USD) Sale Type
Agents of Mayhem USD 6.00 Spotlight Sales
Agents of Mayhem – Total Mayhem Bundle USD 9.00 Spotlight Sales
Agony USD 20.00 Spotlight Sales
Beach Buggy Racing USD 4.99 Deals With Gold
Boiling Bolt USD 4.79 Deals With Gold
Bomber Crew USD 15.99 Spotlight Sales
Bombslinger USD 5.99 Deals With Gold
Candleman Definitive Edition USD 7.79 Spotlight Sales
Cast of the Seven Godsends USD 1.39 Spotlight Sales
DAKAR 18 USD 35.99 Spotlight Sales
Dead Island Definitive Collection USD 10.00 Spotlight Sales
Dead Island Definitive Edition USD 5.00 Spotlight Sales
Dead Island Retro Revenge! USD 1.25 Spotlight Sales
Dead Island: Riptide Definitive Edition USD 5.00 Spotlight Sales
Deadlight: Directors Cut USD 3.00 Spotlight Sales
Dreamfall Chapters USD 6.00 Spotlight Sales
Dungeon Rushers USD 7.49 Spotlight Sales
Fallout 76 Standard Edition USD 38.99 Deals With Gold
Fallout 76 Tricentennial Edition USD 53.59 Deals With Gold
Firefighters: Airport Fire Department USD 14.99 Deals With Gold
Goosebumps: The Game USD 6.00 Deals With Gold
Illusion: A Tale Of The Mind USD 10.00 Spotlight Sales
Kingdom Come: Deliverance USD 30.00 Spotlight Sales
Knight Squad USD 3.74 Deals With Gold
KONA USD 6.00 Spotlight Sales
M.A.C.E. USD 3.49 Spotlight Sales
Metro 2033 Redux USD 5.00 Spotlight Sales
Metro Redux Bundle USD 7.50 Spotlight Sales
Metro: Last Light Redux USD 5.00 Spotlight Sales
Metropolis: Lux Obscura USD 5.59 Deals With Gold
NBA 2K19 USD 19.80 Deals With Gold
NBA 2K19 + NBA 2K Playgrounds 2 Bundle USD 26.40 Deals With Gold
NBA 2K19 200,000 VC USD 39.99 Deals With Gold
NBA 2K19 20th Anniversary Edition USD 33.00 Deals With Gold
NBA 2K19 450,000 VC USD 74.99 Deals With Gold
NBA 2K19 75,000 VC USD 16.99 Deals With Gold
Pro Fishing Simulator USD 23.99 Deals With Gold
Rock ‘N Racing Off Road DX USD 2.63 Deals With Gold
Rocket Wars USD 3.99 Deals With Gold
Saints Row IV: Re-Elected USD 5.00 Spotlight Sales
Saints Row: Gat Out of Hell USD 3.75 Spotlight Sales
Seasons After Fall USD 5.00 Deals With Gold
Shape of the World USD 7.49 Deals With Gold
Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter USD 13.75 Deals With Gold
Spencer USD 4.89 Spotlight Sales
Sublevel Zero Redux USD 4.99 Spotlight Sales
The Bridge USD 2.99 Spotlight Sales
The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing: The Complete Trilogy USD 11.24 Deals With Gold
The Long Reach USD 4.49 Spotlight Sales
This War of Mine: The Little Ones USD 5.00 Spotlight Sales
Tour de France 2018 USD 12.50 Deals With Gold
WRC 5 USD 15.00 Deals With Gold
WRC 6 USD 10.00 Deals With Gold
WRC 7 USD 20.00 Deals With Gold
Xenon Valkyrie+ USD 3.99 Deals With Gold

Xbox 360

Game Price (USD) Sale Type
Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Backwards Compatible $ 14.99 Gold
Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Backwards Compatible $ 14.99 Gold
Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Backwards Compatible $ 14.99 Gold
Cars: Mater-National Backwards Compatible $ 7.99 Gold
Dead Island $ 2.99 Spotlight
Dead Island Riptide $ 2.99 Spotlight
Escape Dead Island Backwards Compatible $ 4.99 Spotlight
Farming Simulator 15 – Jcb $ 4.99 Gold
Homefront $ 1.99 Spotlight
Itrunner – DLC $ 4.99 Gold
Killer Is Dead Backwards Compatible $ 3.99 Spotlight
Risen $ 3.99 Spotlight
Risen 2: Dark Waters $ 3.99 Spotlight
Risen 3 Titan Lords $ 5.99 Spotlight
The Bureau: Xcom Declassified Backwards Compatible $ 2.99 Gold
The Misadventures Of Pb Winterbottom Backwards Compatible $ 1.99 Gold
Toy Story 3 Backwards Compatible $ 7.99 Gold

Don’t forget to check out this month’s Xbox Games With Gold picks as well.

Source: Reddit

Tags: Deals Deals With Gold Xbox
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Alex Co

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

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PlayStation Store “PlayStation Hits” Listing Posted by Sony, and Has Critically Acclaimed Games in One Place (Update)

  by   Alex Co  
12:29 pm in News

For the PlayStation Store sale this week, which is focused on EA-published titles, click here.

Update:

It seems this isn’t an actual sale but rather, Sony just putting a lot of critically acclaimed games in one link! Nonetheless, the full list of games included in this “PlayStation Hits” link are below.

As for this week’s PlayStation Store sale, it’s for EA-published games! Check out the full list here. Don’t forget, Sony also dropped a PSN flash sale last week, which you can check out here.

Tags: Deals PlayStation playstation store sale
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Alex Co

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This Week’s PlayStation Store Sale Is the EA Publisher Sale, Here’s the List of Games

  by   Alex Co  
12:22 pm in News

For the PlayStation Store sale this week, we get another publisher sale, and this time, it’s EA’s turn! Check out the complete list of discounted games from EA below!

The EA sale on PSN is live until March 26, 8 a.m. PT!

Game Price % Off
A Way Out $17.99 40%
Battlefield 4™ $4.99 75%
Battlefield 4™ Premium Edition $9.99 75%
Battlefield World War Bundle $44.99 55%
Battlefield™ 1 & Titanfall® 2 Ultimate Bundle $23.99 60%
Battlefield™ 1 Premium Pass $14.99 70%
Battlefield™ 1 Revolution $9.99 75%
Battlefield™ Hardline Premium $19.99 60%
Battlefield™ Hardline Ultimate Edition $15.99 60%
Battlefield™ V $29.99 50%
Battlefield™ V Deluxe Edition $39.99 50%
Battlefield™ V Deluxe Edition Upgrade $9.99 50%
Burnout™ Paradise Remastered $4.99 75%
Dragon Age™: Inquisition – Game of the Year Edition $9.99 75%
EA SPORTS™ 19 Bundle $49.99 50%
EA SPORTS™ NHL® 19 $19.79 67%
EA SPORTS™ UFC® 3 $13.19 67%
EA SPORTS™ UFC® 3 Deluxe Edition $19.79 67%
Fe $4.99 75%
FIFA 19 $19.79 67%
FIFA 19 – NHL® 19 Bundle $31.99 60%
FIFA 19 Champions Edition $26.39 67%
FIFA 19 Ultimate Edition $32.99 67%
FIFA The Journey Trilogy $34.99 50%
Madden NFL 19 $14.99 75%
Madden NFL 19 – FIFA 19 Bundle $31.99 60%
Madden NFL 19: Hall of Fame Edition $19.99 75%
Mass Effect™: Andromeda – Deluxe Recruit Edition $9.99 75%
Mass Effect™: Andromeda – Standard Recruit Edition $7.49 75%
NBA LIVE 19 All-Star Edition $3.99 90%
Need for Speed™ $4.99 75%
Need for Speed™ Deluxe Edition $6.24 75%
Need for Speed™ Payback $9.99 50%
Need for Speed™ Payback – Deluxe Edition $14.99 50%
Need for Speed™ Rivals $4.99 75%
Peggle 2 Magical Masters Edition $2.99 80%
Plants vs. Zombies™ Garden Warfare 2 No-Brainerz Upgrade $7.49 50%
Plants vs. Zombies™ Garden Warfare 2 Super Fertilizer Upgrade $7.49 50%
Plants vs. Zombies™ Garden Warfare 2: Deluxe Edition $4.99 80%
Plants vs. Zombies™ Garden Warfare 2: Standard Edition $3.99 80%
STAR WARS™ Battlefront™ Ultimate Edition $4.99 75%
STAR WARS™ Battlefront™: Hoth Bundle $7.49 75%
The Sims™ 4 $7.99 80%
The Sims™ 4 Bundle $24.99 50%
The Sims™ 4 Bundle – Get to Work, Dine Out, Cool Kitchen Stuff $24.99 50%
The Sims™ 4 Cats & Dogs $19.99 50%
The Sims™ 4 City Living $19.99 50%
The Sims™ 4 Deluxe Party Edition $9.99 80%
The Sims™ 4 Dine Out $9.99 50%
The Sims™ 4 Get to Work $19.99 50%
The Sims™ 4 Parenthood $9.99 50%
The Sims™ 4 Vampires $9.99 50%
Titanfall® 2: Ultimate Edition $7.49 75%
Unravel $4.99 75%
Unravel Two $4.99 75%

You can check out the PSN Flash sale that started last Friday right here.

Tags: Deals EA PlayStation playstation store sale
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Alex Co

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

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Anthem Patch 1.05 Included Unannounced Changes and Here They Are

  by   Alex Co  
11:56 am in News

This past weekend, BioWare released Anthem patch 1.05 that included a lot of changes and tweaks to the loot shooter. If you noticed a few things happen that weren’t in the patch notes, don’t fret! It’s you and not them.

BioWare has seemingly included a few things in the latest patch that weren’t documented in the patch notes. BioWare says that it was not the studio’s intent to do this, and has since released the list of changes that should have been included in the Anthem patch 1.05 patch notes but weren’t!

Masterwork Universal Components added in 1.0.3 – drop from GM1+

  • Symbiotic Surge – Increases javelin armor by a large amount. Increases all damage for a short duration when picking up a repair pack.
  • Softened Blows – Increases javelin shields by a large amount. Increases damage resistance for a short duration when shields run out.
  • Thermal Cooling – Increases the javelin’s heat capacity to allow the javelin to fly more effectively. Reduces time you stay overheated significantly.
  • Rejuvenating Ammo – Increases reserve ammo for all equipped guns. Replenishes armor by a small amount when picking up an ammo pack.
  • Emergency Power – An inscribed component that augments javelin Ultimate gear and increases damage. Ultimate meter refills instantly when armor is critically damaged.

Masterwork Embers from harvesting nodes – I checked with the team and this was indeed bugged. The team is working on getting a fix in tomorrow (March 12th). This will be a hotfix and won’t require any patch to download.

Other changes:

  • Colors now apply to launchers for the Ranger and Colossus javelins in the Forge.
  • Current values for daily, weekly and monthly challenges are intended. The values were different last month since Anthem launched on February 22nd and the team wanted players to be able to still be able to obtain the rewards that month.

The following items have values that were not intended and will be changed back in and upcoming patch. If you see any other items with decreased values it’s likely a bug since there were no nerfs in this update.

  • Special Arms damage component changed from 30% to 15%. (BUG)
  • Epic Special Arms Ammo Universal component changed from 30% to 15%. (BUG)
  • Truth of Tarsis crit multiplier changing. (BUG)
  • Winter’s Wrath (Ice Storm) ability damage is incorrect. (BUG)
  • Chaotic Rime (Ice Shards) damage is incorrect. (BUG)
  • Amulet of Winter damage reduced from 40% to 20%. (BUG)
  • Winter’s Wrath recharge was increased to 5 from 4. (BUG)

In other Anthem news, the community is banding together and asking other players to stop playing the game for a week as a sign of protest to BioWare’s recent changes to the loot drop system.

Source: Reddit

Tags: Anthem Bioware EA
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Alex Co

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Battlefield V Firestorm Trailer Dropping This Week, Here’s the Rest of the Week’s Planned Events

  by   Alex Co  
March 11, 2019 6:08 pm in News

Over the weekend, we reported that a new Battlefield V trailer is set to drop this week, though DICE didn’t say what it was for at the time. Given the recent leak regarding the game’s battle royale mode called Firestorm, we assumed the new trailer set to be released this week would be connected, and to no one’s surprise, it is.

Over on Reddit, DICE Community Manager Jeff Braddock outlined what to expect this week in terms of Battlefield V news and announcements, and the highlight is none other than the confirmation of a new Battlefield 5 Firestorm trailer dropping this Thursday, as well as the mode’s landing page being activated on EA’s website.

  • Monday, 3/11/2019
  • Tuesday, 3/12/2019
    • Weekly Community Highlight – Best Only in Battlefield Moment of the Week- Hot new OIB moment coming in with a new weekly winner! Think you’ve got a winner? Send it our way on any of the Battlefield channels. Each weekly featured clip will be awarded a Best Community in the World emblem!
    • Last Chance for Weekly Mission Reward – Give the ToW Mission a final push if you haven’t completed it yet.
  • Wednesday, 3/13/2019
    • Battlefield V Quality of Life Tracker Update
    • Chapter 2: Weekly Event Tips
  • Thursday, 3/14/2019
    • Battlefield V: Firestorm Cinematic Trailer Releases – The first official trailer for Battlefield V: Firestorm goes live.
    • BFV:F Landing Page on ea.com/battlefield goes live
    • Chapter 2: Weekly Event Starts
    • DISCUSSION: Vehicles in Battlefield V – Whether it’s tires, propellers, or tracks, Battlefield V has some iconic vehicles to get you around and engage the enemy. What is your goto tank setup? For you pilots, what ensures you will win the dogfight? What needs some work? And finally, what would you like to see in Battlefield V?
  • Friday, 3/15/2019
    • Weekly Debrief – Your one-stop destination for all the blogs, videos, and major news that happened in the week.

Let’s hope this new trailer isn’t the one that got leaked, since we’ve already seen it, and I’m sure a lot of other Battlefield fans have too.

Tags: Battlefield battlefield v DICE EA
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Alex Co

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

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Anthem Boycott for a Week Being Pushed by Community Due to Loot Drop Concerns

  by   Alex Co  
3:35 pm in News

When Anthem launched, BioWare rolled out a loot drop nerf that didn’t go exactly well with the community. While this chatter has died out somewhat, it’s on the table once again after the most recent patch released by the studio.

Unfortunately for BioWare, it seems the existing player base means it this time, as an Anthem boycott (or blackout) is being asked by the community as a protest for the low loot drops.

Protest to revert Loot drop changes. Bring back the Bug and let us taste the Lootshower. Stop Playing From 03/11/2019-03/15/2019 or 11/03/2019-15/03/2019 for us Europeans. to make a Point. Show them what we think by sheer player numbers alone!
by inAnthemTheGame

At the time of this writing, the post regarding the Anthem boycott is already at over 10,000 upvotes. In case you can’t see the Reddit submission, players are being asked to band together and stop playing from March 11 to March 15 as a sign of protest for the loot drop nerfs slapped by BioWare.

Given how another loot shooter is being released this week, I suspect Anthem players won’t have any shortage of games to play. And I wouldn’t be surprised if BioWare caves in, either, since this is a very large portion of their community that is clearly upset at what the studio has done in terms of loot drops and the like.

If you’re a current Anthem player, will you partake in this Anthem boycott? Do you think gamers are overreacting or the loot drops really are that bad?

Tags: Anthem Bioware EA
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Alex Co

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

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Report: The Division 2 Game Crashing Issue Reported If Two Players Are on the Same Network, Workaround Detailed

  by   Alex Co  
1:27 pm in News

With The Division 2 now officially out worldwide (if you have the Gold and Ultimate editions), it seems some players have already ran into issues with game crashing. For those who play loot shooters like The Division 2 with a friend or loved one, and you’re on the same network, you might want to take notice.

Reddit user eternal702000 has posted that he has suffered The Division 2 game crashing issues whenever he and his wife are logging on to the game within the same network!

My wife and I are in Japan and are fine playing solo, but if I attempt to join her group, all of the enemies on her side don’t move and she can’t interact with them at all, but she still sees loot and objective updates. If she attempts to join me, same thing happen.

Basically whoever joins the other player’s instance takes over their instance and the host becomes a ghost with no interaction on their side.

One interesting thing, in Japan our external IP is the SAME from outside our network. But this wasn’t an issue during our beta. So some patch has destroyed MP. Haven’t tested with other players yet.

This isn’t an isolated case, either. as ShakeForProtein has encountered this same bug as well.

Fortunately, there’s a workaround for this! User eternal702000 has found it and has posted how to do it!

 WORKAROUND! Join groups, game breaks, both players alt-F4 and reconnect. You will still be in a group. On this reconnect, games are synced properly. Leaving the group and rejoining again this time did NOT cause a break. I will test some more and check in. For others, please let me know if this also worked for you!

We’ve reached out to Ubisoft regarding this, and whether there’s an official fix recommended or coming, and will update the article if we hear back.

Have you encountered any issues with The Division 2? If so, share ’em in the comments below.

Stay tuned to MP1st’s review of The Division 2! We’re playing the game in real-world servers, and once we get enough game time with it, we’ll give it the score it deserves.

Related The Division 2 Reading:

Tags: The Division the division 2 Ubisoft Ubisoft Massive
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Alex Co

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

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Here’s a The Division 2 Character Customization Sneak Peek

  by   Alex Co  
March 10, 2019 5:47 pm in News

While The Division 2 is first and foremost, a loot shooter, it also has RPG elements baked in, and one of them is character creation/customization. If you’re curious how The Division 2 character customization works, here’s our first look at it given we didn’t get a chance to try it in the beta.

Not bad, right? Stay tuned to MP1st’s review of The Division 2, and we’ll be posting news and info once the servers are up this coming March 12!

In other The Division 2 news, you can check out the file size and the day one patch details right here. For those worried about endgame content, Ubisoft laid out what we should expect, and here’s a detailed look at it.

Tags: the division 2 The Divsiion Ubisoft Ubisoft Massive
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Alex Co

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

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Apex Legends Wingman Nerf Comparison Video Shows Us How the Weapon Changed

  by   Alex Co  
3:31 pm in News

Just a few days ago, Respawn Entertainment released a server-side patch that nerfed the Wingman pistol, among other things. Given how popular the heavy pistol is in the game due to its versatility and damaging power, some might be wondering how much of a nerf it got.

Well, it seems, not that much. Don’t get me wrong, there’s an obvious nerf, it’s still a deadly weapon! Just don’t expect it to fire as fast. Check out the Apex Legends Wingman nerf comparison video below (via Reddit user DrHatsby).

Not that much, no? Of course, as is with any weapon in almost any game, the kit is only as effective as its user.

In other Apex Legends news, Respawn has banned over 355,000 players on PC! Don’t expect a reconnect feature to be implemented anytime soon either, and here’s why.

Tags: Apex legends EA Respawn Entertainment
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Alex Co

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

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The Division 2 File Size, Day One Update Details Revealed, Physical Disc Owners Will Need to Download a Lot

  by   Alex Co  
1:32 pm in News

With The Division 2 set to become available in just 24 hours for the Gold Edition, some might be wondering how big The Division 2 file size is, and how big the day one update is (since every online game needs a day one patch nowadays).

Thankfully, we don’t have to guess as Ubisoft has announced the details over on its support site! Those who are buying the game via disc (physical), prepare to download a LOT — especially PS4 gamers.

Xbox One and PC:

– If you purchased a physical copy of the game, begin by installing the game. You will then be prompted to download and install Title Update 1; expect a 48-52 GB download, depending on your region and preferred language. Whether you installed the game from a disc or bought it digitally, the final HDD install size, including the patch, will be 48-52 GB.
 
PS4:
– If you purchased a physical copy of the game, begin installing from the disc. Provided you are online, your console will simultaneously download Title Update 1 while you install it. Expect a 88-92 GB download, depending on your region and preferred language. Whether installed from a disc or downloaded digitally, the final HDD install size will be between 88-92 GB.
In addition to that, the The Division 2 day one patch will bring the game client to 1.5 status, and will be a 2GB download. This day one patch will mainly address issues with audio missing or cutting out, which was experienced by some in the open beta that concluded just a week ago.
For more on The Division 2, check out this detailed look at what sort of endgame content players will be in for once they hit the level cap of 30.
Tags: The Division the division 2 Ubisoft Ubisoft Massive
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Alex Co

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

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Report: Google Console Controller First Look Leaked via Patent

  by   Alex Co  
12:31 pm in News

It’s been rumored that Google would be entering the gaming space, and it will do so via an announcement at GDC 2019, which is set to take place later this month.

Well, it seems we now have our first look at the Google console controller before the announcement happens! Thanks to a patent filed by Google back in 2018, we can see how the Google console controller will look like, as well as a few mock up images below.

Note that the images above are mock ups based on the unearthed patent by Twitter user Reps. What’s weird here is how the actual controller is shaped. It looks quite uncomfortable with its angular design. And what’s more, the buttons seem to eschew the traditional A, B, C, D (or X, O, Square, Triangle) naming method used by Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo, for what looks like colored rings, which unnecessarily complicates things.

Of course, we might get a different gaming controller once the console’s actually announced, so bear that in mind, too. You can read up on the full patent filing here.

What do you make of the controller so far? Do you think there’s enough space in the gaming industry to have another hardware maker enter the fold? Will this be the new must-own console or go the way of the Ouya? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Source: Raps (Twitter) via ShackNews

Tags: GDC 2019 Google
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Alex Co

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

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Latest Anthem Patch Introduces Quite a Number of New Bugs, Here’s Some of ‘Em

  by   Alex Co  
March 9, 2019 4:44 pm in News

Earlier today, BioWare dropped a massive patch for Anthem, which was aimed to not only tweak some of the gameplay elements, but also fix some of the technical issues the game is currently suffering through.

While there’s a laundry list of fixes that BioWare has made to the game so far, it seems the studio has also introduced a few new ones as well. Not only that, but some of the planned fixes haven’t been fixed at all.

Over on the Anthem subreddit, a bunch of people in the community have outlined some of the new Anthem bugs introduced via the game patch released earlier today.

That’s not all of it, even! If you want to read the rest, head on over here.

Have you encountered any Anthem new bugs with today’s patch? If so, share what you’ve experienced — or currently experiencing — in the comments below.

Related Anthem Reading:

Tags: Anthem Bioware EA
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Alex Co

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

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Next Battlefield V Patch Already at 7 Pages Long, New Trailer Dropping Next Week

  by   Alex Co  
3:14 pm in News

While we just had a chunky Battlefield V patch just a few days ago, it seems DICE is already hard at work on the next Battlefield 5 patch, and it’s going to be quite a big one once again, it seems.

Over on Twitter, Producer Jaqub Ajmal revealed that the next Battlefield 5 patch is already at seven pages long!

That not enough to get you hyped? As part of the studio’s communication with the Battlefield V player base, DICE Community Manager Jeff Braddock also outlined what to expect next week in terms of Battlefield V news and announcements, and it includes a new mysterious trailer!

Sneak Peek into Next Week – Week of March 11th

  • Blogs
    • Battlefield V Quality of Life Tracker Update
    • Chapter 2 Event #5 Tips & Tricks
    • Behind Closed Doors – Criterion
  • Discussions – We’ll be hosting discussions on Reddit & the Forums to get your feedback.
    • Vehicles – One of the key distinctions of Battlefield from other FPS games is the vehicular warfare component. In Battlefield V, we have some iconic WW2 vehicles – planes, tanks, transports, towable AA cannons, and more. Let’s talk about the vehicles of Battlefield V – what’s great, what needs some tweaks, what’s the worst, and what’s missing.
  • Trailer
    • You’ll see.

​

Please note: This is an early schedule and items could shift or be moved out. We’ll have more details in our weekly This Week in Battlefield on Monday.

Q&A with DICE

Unfortunately, we didn’t get a Q&A done this week, but we’re pretty sure what a lot of those questions would be, considering some things we’ve seen on the ‘net this week. Trust us, we have a lot of Battlefield V: Firestorm information coming and we’ll be teaming up with our Criterion Devs to get some A’s for your Q’s.

This “you’ll see” trailer will most likely be about Battlefield V’s battle royale mode called Firestorm. If so, let’s hope this isn’t the same trailer leaked the other day since, well, we’ve already seen it. Hopefully, it’ll include lots of gameplay, details and more.

Speaking of which, go check out this info post regarding Firestorm based on the game’s datamined files.

​

Tags: Battlefield battlefield v DICE EA
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Alex Co

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

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Apex Legends Cheaters Banned at 355K Players on PC Alone, Reconnect Feature Unlikely to Be Introduced

  by   Alex Co  
2:07 pm in News

If you’re a PC Apex Legends player, chances are you’ve come across a cheater or two while playing. Thankfully, Respawn is on the case! In the latest Respawn developer update, the studio has announced that it has banned 355,000 Apex Legends cheaters, and the studio will even add a report feature for PC players that will go directly to Easy-Anti-Cheat.

CHEATERS

As of today we’ve banned over 355K players on PC through Easy-Anti-Cheat. The service works but the fight against cheaters is an ongoing war that we’ll need to continue to adapt to and be very vigilant about fighting. We take cheating very seriously and care deeply about the health of Apex Legends for all players.

We are working on improvements to combat cheaters and we’re going to have to be pretty secretive about our plans. Cheaters are crafty and we don’t want them to see us coming. With that said, we can share some high levels things we’re doing:

  • We are reaching out and working directly with experts, both within and outside of EA, in this area that we can learn from.
  • Scaling up our anti-cheat team so we have more dedicated resources.
  • We are adding a report feature on PC to report cheaters in game that goes directly to Easy-Anti-Cheat.

In addition to that, the studio is also looking to mitigate the spamming issue some players annoyingly do at the character select screen!

SPAMMERS DURING CHARACTER SELECT

We are very aware of the cases of players spamming during character select and the drop and then disconnecting shortly after. We’re keeping a lot of our strategy close to the chest so offenders don’t have time to build workarounds before we implement changes. Solutions won’t happen right away but we’re on it.

Related Reading: Apex Legends Review – Hero Royale

CRASHES

Next week AMD will be at the studio and just like we did with Nvidia visit, we’ll be working together to improve stability and performance on PC. In the next client patch on PC we will be addressing some of the known crashes, but there will still be work to do as we haven’t nailed down all crashes yet. In Season 1 we’ll be adding improved reporting that should help us in identifying and squashing more PC crash issues.

I’ve seen it shared here but in case anyone missed it, Nvidia has released a driver update for RTX users that have been experiencing the DXGI_ERROR_DEVICE_HUNG crash specifically for GeForce RTX cards and we’re continuing to work with Nvidia to improve performance and stability.

Finally, for those requesting a reconnect feature for disconnects that happen due to the game, don’t count on it as Respawn thinks this will heavily be abused!

RECONNECT FEATURE?

We’ve heard the suggestions from you folks asking for a reconnect to match feature. We are currently not pursuing this for a couple reasons:

  1. It opens a lot of risk for players to abuse it.
  2. We believe the resources needed to build, test, and release it are better spent focused on fixing stability issues so that the feature isn’t necessary.

SLOW SERVER PERFORMANCE AT THE START OF MATCHES

We’ve seen these reports and are narrowing down causes and making improvements. If this could be fixed by spending money on faster/more servers we would do it, but unfortunately there is no silver bullet on this one. We’re just rolling up our sleeves and digging in. We’ll keep you updated on any progress we make.

I have to say, I side with Respawn regarding this Apex Legends reconnect feature being a reality. I can already see how some players will abuse the heck out of it, or even find ways to work around it.

Tags: Apex legends EA Respawn Entertainment
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Alex Co

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

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How to Make a Browser-Based Multiplayer Online Game

  by   Alex Co  
1:00 pm in News

For beginner game developers, creating browser-based games can be a great way to get your foot into the game industry, and offer a potentially lucrative hobby. There’s quite a few ways to monetize browser games, which we’ll touch on later in this article. Unlike the AAA game industry, simple browser games fare much better than mind-blowing graphics.

If you take a look at some of the most popular browser games, or browser games that went viral and earned massive revenue, you’ll notice a few trends.

    • Ultra simple gameplay: Browser games can be complex, but many of the most popular ones are simple sidescrollers or strategy games. Fireboy and Watergirl, for example, are a series of puzzle-based sidescroller games, where you basically control two characters simultaneously. One character is controlled with WASD, the other with the arrow keys. You need to navigate both characters through puzzles and obstacles, solving puzzles using one character for the other to progress, until both clear the level. You can check out Fireboy and Watergirl on Crazy Games.

 

  • Remaking of classic games: Snake io games like the one you can play here, for example, are pretty much a modern take on the old Snake game, with multiplayer gameplay. These kinds of games are incredibly easy to build – Slither.io was developed in 6 months, most of the development spent on tweaking server handling – and earned $100k in daily revenue for its creator.

So now that we have some examples out of the way, how do you go about creating your own browser-based multiplayer game? There’s a lot that goes into it, so we can’t offer you a step-by-step guide, but we’re going to explain the concepts and point you towards a lot of useful resources

For starters, you need to decide how you want to create your game. Most simple browser games are created using HTML5/Javascript, so an engine framework is a great place to start. There are a lot of frameworks out there for getting started with creating HTML5/Javascript games, but two of the most popular:

  • Phaser.io: Possibly the most popular framework for beginners, Phaser.io allows you to develop games that target browser and mobile with Canvas and WebGL technology. It is geared towards 2D games.
  • PlayCanvas: A cloud-based HTML5 engine, PlayCanvas is geared towards creating 3D games.

There are a lot of game engines out there, some more complex than others. Once you become a bit more advanced in game development, you can also consider Unity, which is mostly for native desktop and mobile games, but can export to WebGL and be used for browser games. The popular browser-based first person shooter Bullet Force was created in Unity.

As many devs will tell you, creating a game isn’t the hard part. It’s actually quite simple once you become comfortable with scripting, level editors, and basic gameplay elements. The hardest part about creating multiplayer browser games is the networking.

If you create a multiplayer game, you can’t have thousands of players all in one room, or even one server. I mean you could, but it’d likely be a horrible experience for everyone. You have to take into account network code, data transfer…in fact, let’s break it down.

Say you have 64 players in close proximity to each other. Each chunk of data (player movements, game updates, etc) needs to be broadcast to each player. So if you only had 2 players, you would need 1 chunk of data per frame per player (so 2 chunks per frame).

Now you start increasing your amount of players. At 4 players, you’ve increased your network to 16 chunks per frame (4*4). Now keep scaling up, and you get the picture. Eventually, your servers going to get choked up, either due to bandwidth limitations, or poor network code. This is why many online games, like first person shooters, limit games to about 16 – 30 players per server. AAA companies can afford a bit more, hence why games like Battlefield 4 can have up to 64 players.

There are tools and resources that make handling the network side of things a bit easier.

  • Nengi.js: A tool for deploying games to an Ubuntu server, with a focus on high performance and low bandwidth consumption. The developers claim its possible to have up to 100+ on one screen.
  • Socket.io: A flexible server-side and client-side component which ties into Node.js seamlessly.
  • Node.js: A cross-platform JRE (Javascript Runtime Environment) for providing real-time communication between clients (players) and the main server. It has a large development community so there’s a lot of support available.

Here’s a good blog that explains the basics of setting up a multiplayer network using Socket.io and Node.js, for an HTML5 game.

Once you have a game developed, monetization for browser-games is typically through ad revenue – getting traffic to your game. You can try to do this on your own, but many developers like to license their games out to game portal websites, and share ad revenue.

Tags: sponsored post
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Alex Co

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

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Anthem Update 1.05 Now Out on All Platforms, Here’s the Complete List of Changes

  by   Alex Co  
12:14 pm in News

As mentioned yesterday, Anthem update 1.05 is now out on all platforms! Clocking in at 3.6GB on PS4, the title update brings a ton of technical fixes, gameplay tweaks and lots more.

Check out the full Anthem update 1.05 patch notes:

High level fixes and changes

  • Respawn restrictions have been removed – Respawn timers are now based on the activity a player is in. Crit-Path, Agent Missions and other non-end game missions now have a respawn timer of 10 seconds. Strongholds, Legendary Contracts, and other end game missions now have a respawn timer of 30 seconds. The respawn timer Freeplay remains unchanged.
  • Loot Changes – Common (white) and Uncommon (green) drops will no longer appear for players that are level 30.
  • Improved stability for all platforms – this includes fixes for a number of issues that were causing crashes or connection problems
  • Audio Improvements – Fixed a number of issues that could cause audio to drop out

​

General Fixes and Improvements

  • Fixed a number of issues that were blocking players from accessing the Forge
  • All missions should now properly end when all conditions have been met
  • The inbox now properly displays information on PC (the inbox is found in the newsfeed)
  • Fixed an issue that would cause players to be unable to interact with NPCs in Fort Tarsis
  • The vault is no longer accessible from the Forge. This change was made to improve performance
  • Fixed an issue that would cause the game to hang when entering menus while on an expedition
  • Titans will no longer respawn on missions after they are defeated. Example: if players defeat 2 out of 3 titans and then wipe on the third, the first two will not reappear when players respawn during a mission
  • Server shutdown messages should now appear less often
  • The ability to Quickplay into a Stronghold has been added back to the game
  • Mouse button 4 is no longer bound to the back button for PC players
  • Crashes that occurred while selecting certain conversation options when interacting with an NPC have been fixed
  • Players should no longer get stuck at the end of the “Tomb of General Tarsis” mission
  • Players should now run into less issues during Quickplay missions. Additional improvements to Quickplay will be coming in future updates
  • Players should no longer get stuck behind fogwalls on missions or in strongholds as often
  • Players should now receive credit for the “There Be Giants” challenge when they are downed and when the event is active
  • Improved the audio when defeating creatures to provide better feedback
  • Changed wording for server shutdown messaging to better indicate that it is just the players server shutting down, not the entire game server
  • Players may now launch an expedition from anywhere within the launch bay and Fort Tarsis.
  • PS4 led lights will now change based on the javelin being used
  • It should now be harder for players to get stun locked by certain enemy compositions
  • The values on max flight time inscriptions have been increased
  • The appearance of the N7 vinyl on Legion of Dawn armor has been improved
  • Haluk will now properly face players during certain dialogue scenes
  • The message “Open the Cortex to track the legionnaire Challenges” will no longer pop up after completing the appropriate challenges

​

Strongholds

  • Fixed an issue that would cause players to get stuck at the entrance to the sewers in the Temple of the Scar Stronghold

​

Creature Updates

  • Titans: We have made several balance changes to all variations of Titans
    • Reduced overall damage mitigation from 100% to between 70% and 75% depending on the damage type.
    • Increased the time that weakpoints are exposed.
    • Fixed an issue that prevented effects from applying and thus preventing combos.
    • Increased the damage the Titan takes from weakpoint hits.
    • Lesser Titan’s weakpoint’s have been changed to always be active.
    • Improved the collision on the ring and seeking projectile attacks. This should make them easier to dodge.
    • Decreased the radius of the seeking projectile attack.
    • Decreased the damage done by the self-destruct ability.
  • Frozen Scar Enforcers and Scrappers can no longer move or attack while frozen.
  • The Monitor’s health has been greatly reduced in the Heart of Rage Stronghold.
  • Force
    • Players will be less likely to be repeatedly staggered by heavy attacks.
    • Adjusted the force applied by some creature attacks down which will lower the frequency of player’s being staggered.

​

Damage and Item Scaling Changes

  • Adjusted the damage scaling of secondary damage sources. These now scale with Average Item Power. This will allow these damage sources to better scale in the Grandmaster Difficulties. This will increase the scaling of the following:
    • Melee Damage
    • Combo Damage
    • Ultimate Damage
    • Status Effects
    • Item Procs (e.g. Proc from Yvenia’s Thunder)
  • Item Power scaling has changed to better reflect the actual power of the item based on its rarity. This is applied to all items retroactively. Players will see the Power of their items go up.

​

Gameplay Bug Fixes

  • The Ultimate ability bar will no longer appear full at the start of a mission when it isn’t actually full
  • Weapon recoil will now stop once an exo is looking straight up
  • Fixed a number of animation issues that could occur when the Colossus was using its shield
  • It should no longer be possible for the Interceptor to become Frozen while starting up their ultimate
  • Interceptor Aura damage will now deal the correct type of damage based on the active aura
  • Players can no longer equip abilities from one javelin to another
  • The Colossus can now use gear faster after being attacked by a heavy hit from enemies
  • The Colossus can now shield charge through destructible objects such as explosive canisters or harvest nodes
  • The Colossus now recovers faster after crashing into walls

​

Item Balance Updates

  • Increased the base health of Wind Wall and Bulwark Point to provide better scaling in higher difficulties. The duration of these has been reduced to 20 seconds, down from 60 seconds
  • Burst Mortar’s damage has been increased to 300, up from 145 and its cooldown has been reduced to 6 seconds, down from 10 seconds. Its description has also been fixed
  • Flak Cannon’s damage has been increased to 42, up from 30
  • Battle Cry’s description has been updated to explain that it also reduces the resistances of affected targets
  • Wraith Strike’s damage has been increased to 250, up from 200 and it will now apply elemental effect to targets based on the active aura
    • Note: Description text for Wraith Strike will be updated in 1.0.4.

​

Item Bug Fixes

  • Wind Wall should no longer block or interfere with other player abilities
  • Ranger Grenadier Component will now correctly lower the cooldown of grenade abilities
  • Fixed an issue where certain weapons were not firing where the crosshairs were aimed
  • The Ice Blast ability for the Storm javelin now has the primer icon correctly displayed

​

Inscription Bug Fixes

  • The Thruster Delay Recovery inscription is now correctly applying a bonus
  • The Overheat Delay Recovery inscription is now correctly applying a bonus
  • The Weapon Reload Bonus inscription is now correctly applying a bonus
    • Note: These will have non-updated text values until the next patch (1.0.4)

​

Masterwork Item Balance Updates

  • Increased the base damage of the following Masterwork Weapons.
    • Ralner’s Blaze
    • Rolling Carnage
    • Cycle of Pain
    • The Last Stand
    • Glorious Result
    • Insult and Injury
    • Sentinel Vengeance
    • Gnosta’s Balm
    • Vassa’s Surprise
    • Soothing Touch
    • Renewed Courage
    • Artinia’s Gambit

​

Masterwork Item Bug Fixes

  • Ralner’s Blaze – Will no longer roll with incorrect inscriptions
  • Ablative Shielding now provides the proper boost in shield and armor
  • Badge of Devastation will now generate more ultimate charge when triggered
  • It should no longer be possible to stack the effect from Gunslinger’s Mark more than once

​

In addition to the above updates, we wanted to let you know of some other known issues that the team is working on fixing:

  • When loading into the game for the first time after a patch the Shields and Armor on a javelin will be incorrect. The first time a player enters and exits Freeplay or any other activity the issue will fix itself.
  • Players are not receiving their level 20 Match Consumables. Players were granted item blueprints instead of the recipes when they hit this level previously.
  • Some players may experience audio crackling while in Fort Tarsis.
  • There may be some instances where players are unable to quit out of a Quickplay mission through the map UI.
  • A number challenges may not be tracking properly, such as the objectives under the “Legendary Freelancer” challenge.
  • Some players may encounter a bug where they are unable to interact with any objects or players.
  • Visual effects on javelin thrusters are not functioning properly while stormy weather is present in game.
  • Inactivity messages may not be able to be dismissed after a player returns from being away.
  • There are a number of Origin error messages that some PC players may encounter, including Origin showing that it is offline when it actually online.
  • The UI may not display events for some players when an event has spawned nearby in Freeplay.
  • There is a bug where armor pips can change in between activities. This is both a display and gameplay issue.

If you notice anything not included in the patch notes, feel free to let us know what they are in the comments.

Tags: Anthem Bioware EA
Avatar photo

Alex Co

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

Home > News

Anthem Upcoming Patch Notes for Title Update Set for Tomorrow Revealed

  by   Alex Co  
March 8, 2019 10:40 pm in News

It looks like BioWare is working overtime for the next Anthem patch. Before the day’s done, the studio has announced that the next Anthem patch is set to drop tomorrow — yes, on a weekend! Not only that, but the studio has also revealed the Anthem upcoming patch notes, and it’s a big one!

According to BioWare, the patch will be released between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. Central Time on March 9! Check out the full Anthem upcoming patch notes (via Reddit):

High level fixes and changes

  • Respawn restrictions have been removed – Respawn timers are now based on the activity a player is in. Crit-Path, Agent Missions and other non-end game missions now have a respawn timer of 10 seconds. Strongholds, Legendary Contracts, and other end game missions now have a respawn timer of 30 seconds. The respawn timer Freeplay remains unchanged.
  • Loot Changes – Common (white) and Uncommon (green) drops will no longer appear for players that are level 30.
  • Improved stability for all platforms – this includes fixes for a number of issues that were causing crashes or connection problems
  • Audio Improvements – Fixed a number of issues that could cause audio to drop out

​

General Fixes and Improvements

  • Fixed a number of issues that were blocking players from accessing the Forge
  • All missions should now properly end when all conditions have been met
  • The inbox now properly displays information on PC (the inbox is found in the newsfeed)
  • Fixed an issue that would cause players to be unable to interact with NPCs in Fort Tarsis
  • The vault is no longer accessible from the Forge. This change was made to improve performance
  • Fixed an issue that would cause the game to hang when entering menus while on an expedition
  • Titans will no longer respawn on missions after they are defeated. Example: if players defeat 2 out of 3 titans and then wipe on the third, the first two will not reappear when players respawn during a mission
  • Server shutdown messages should now appear less often
  • The ability to Quickplay into a Stronghold has been added back to the game
  • Mouse button 4 is no longer bound to the back button for PC players
  • Crashes that occurred while selecting certain conversation options when interacting with an NPC have been fixed
  • Players should no longer get stuck at the end of the “Tomb of General Tarsis” mission
  • Players should now run into less issues during Quickplay missions. Additional improvements to Quickplay will be coming in future updates
  • Players should no longer get stuck behind fogwalls on missions or in strongholds as often
  • Players should now receive credit for the “There Be Giants” challenge when they are downed and when the event is active
  • Improved the audio when defeating creatures to provide better feedback
  • Changed wording for server shutdown messaging to better indicate that it is just the players server shutting down, not the entire game server
  • Players may now launch an expedition from anywhere within the launch bay and Fort Tarsis.
  • PS4 led lights will now change based on the javelin being used
  • It should now be harder for players to get stun locked by certain enemy compositions
  • The values on max flight time inscriptions have been increased
  • The appearance of the N7 vinyl on Legion of Dawn armor has been improved
  • Haluk will now properly face players during certain dialogue scenes
  • The message “Open the Cortex to track the legionnaire Challenges” will no longer pop up after completing the appropriate challenges

​

Strongholds

  • Fixed an issue that would cause players to get stuck at the entrance to the sewers in the Temple of the Scar Stronghold

​

Creature Updates

  • Titans: We have made several balance changes to all variations of Titans
    • Reduced overall damage mitigation from 100% to between 70% and 75% depending on the damage type.
    • Increased the time that weakpoints are exposed.
    • Fixed an issue that prevented effects from applying and thus preventing combos.
    • Increased the damage the Titan takes from weakpoint hits.
    • Lesser Titan’s weakpoint’s have been changed to always be active.
    • Improved the collision on the ring and seeking projectile attacks. This should make them easier to dodge.
    • Decreased the radius of the seeking projectile attack.
    • Decreased the damage done by the self-destruct ability.
  • Frozen Scar Enforcers and Scrappers can no longer move or attack while frozen.
  • The Monitor’s health has been greatly reduced in the Heart of Rage Stronghold.
  • Force
    • Players will be less likely to be repeatedly staggered by heavy attacks.
    • Adjusted the force applied by some creature attacks down which will lower the frequency of player’s being staggered.

​

Damage and Item Scaling Changes

  • Adjusted the damage scaling of secondary damage sources. These now scale with Average Item Power. This will allow these damage sources to better scale in the Grandmaster Difficulties. This will increase the scaling of the following:
    • Melee Damage
    • Combo Damage
    • Ultimate Damage
    • Status Effects
    • Item Procs (e.g. Proc from Yvenia’s Thunder)
  • Item Power scaling has changed to better reflect the actual power of the item based on its rarity. This is applied to all items retroactively. Players will see the Power of their items go up.

​

Gameplay Bug Fixes

  • The Ultimate ability bar will no longer appear full at the start of a mission when it isn’t actually full
  • Weapon recoil will now stop once an exo is looking straight up
  • Fixed a number of animation issues that could occur when the Colossus was using its shield
  • It should no longer be possible for the Interceptor to become Frozen while starting up their ultimate
  • Interceptor Aura damage will now deal the correct type of damage based on the active aura
  • Players can no longer equip abilities from one javelin to another
  • The Colossus can now use gear faster after being attacked by a heavy hit from enemies
  • The Colossus can now shield charge through destructible objects such as explosive canisters or harvest nodes
  • The Colossus now recovers faster after crashing into walls

​

Item Balance Updates

  • Increased the base health of Wind Wall and Bulwark Point to provide better scaling in higher difficulties. The duration of these has been reduced to 20 seconds, down from 60 seconds
  • Burst Mortar’s damage has been increased to 300, up from 145 and its cooldown has been reduced to 6 seconds, down from 10 seconds. Its description has also been fixed
  • Flak Cannon’s damage has been increased to 42, up from 30
  • Battle Cry’s description has been updated to explain that it also reduces the resistances of affected targets
  • Wraith Strike’s damage has been increased to 250, up from 200 and it will now apply elemental effect to targets based on the active aura
    • Note: Description text for Wraith Strike will be updated in 1.0.4.

​

Item Bug Fixes

  • Wind Wall should no longer block or interfere with other player abilities
  • Ranger Grenadier Component will now correctly lower the cooldown of grenade abilities
  • Fixed an issue where certain weapons were not firing where the crosshairs were aimed
  • The Ice Blast ability for the Storm javelin now has the primer icon correctly displayed

​

Inscription Bug Fixes

  • The Thruster Delay Recovery inscription is now correctly applying a bonus
  • The Overheat Delay Recovery inscription is now correctly applying a bonus
  • The Weapon Reload Bonus inscription is now correctly applying a bonus
    • Note: These will have non-updated text values until the next patch (1.0.4)

​

Masterwork Item Balance Updates

  • Increased the base damage of the following Masterwork Weapons.
    • Ralner’s Blaze
    • Rolling Carnage
    • Cycle of Pain
    • The Last Stand
    • Glorious Result
    • Insult and Injury
    • Sentinel Vengeance
    • Gnosta’s Balm
    • Vassa’s Surprise
    • Soothing Touch
    • Renewed Courage
    • Artinia’s Gambit

​

Masterwork Item Bug Fixes

  • Ralner’s Blaze – Will no longer roll with incorrect inscriptions
  • Ablative Shielding now provides the proper boost in shield and armor
  • Badge of Devastation will now generate more ultimate charge when triggered
  • It should no longer be possible to stack the effect from Gunslinger’s Mark more than once

​

In addition to the above updates, we wanted to let you know of some other known issues that the team is working on fixing:

  • When loading into the game for the first time after a patch the Shields and Armor on a javelin will be incorrect. The first time a player enters and exits Freeplay or any other activity the issue will fix itself.
  • Players are not receiving their level 20 Match Consumables. Players were granted item blueprints instead of the recipes when they hit this level previously.
  • Some players may experience audio crackling while in Fort Tarsis.
  • There may be some instances where players are unable to quit out of a Quickplay mission through the map UI.
  • A number challenges may not be tracking properly, such as the objectives under the “Legendary Freelancer” challenge.
  • Some players may encounter a bug where they are unable to interact with any objects or players.
  • Visual effects on javelin thrusters are not functioning properly while stormy weather is present in game.
  • Inactivity messages may not be able to be dismissed after a player returns from being away.
  • There are a number of Origin error messages that some PC players may encounter, including Origin showing that it is offline when it actually online.
  • The UI may not display events for some players when an event has spawned nearby in Freeplay.
  • There is a bug where armor pips can change in between activities. This is both a display and gameplay issue.

Let’s hope that this patch fixes the issues PS4 gamers have been experiencing so far. Once the patch is out tomorrow, we’ll be sure to let our readers know.

Tags: Anthem Bioware EA
Avatar photo

Alex Co

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

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