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Honkai Star Rail Update 3.000 Now Available; Brings Paean of Era Navae Content

by James Lara

January 14, 2025 7:44 pm in Title Updates and Patches

[summaraize]

Developer mi-Ho-Yo has pushed out Honkai Star Rail update 3.000 on consoles and PC. Dubbed “Paean of Era Novae’ this new update adds new story content, new characters, and more, with the full info available below.

Honkai Star Rail Update 3.000 Adds New Story Content, and New Characters

Welcome to Version 3.0 “Paean of Era Nova”!

Update and Compensation Details

■ Update Time

Begins at 2025/01/15 06:00:00 (UTC+8). The update will take approximately 5 hours.

■ Compensation Details

●Server Maintenance Compensation

Compensation: Stellar Jade ×300

Eligible Recipients: Trailblazers with Trailblaze Level ≥ 4 before 2025/01/15 06:00:00 (UTC+8)

※ Please claim before the end of Version 3.0.

●Bug Compensation

Compensation: Stellar Jade ×300

Eligible Recipients: Trailblazers with Trailblaze Level ≥ 4 before 2025/01/15 06:00:00 (UTC+8)

※ Please log in to claim the mail before 2025/02/14 23:59:00 (UTC+8).

The Crew will issue the compensation via in-game mail to Trailblazers within 5 hours after the update is complete. Be sure to claim it in time.

■ How to Update

PC: Exit the game, restart the launcher, then click “Update”

Android: Enter the game and follow the instructions in the in-game pop-up window to complete the update

iOS: Enter the App Store and tap “Update”

PS5®: Enter the game and the game will automatically and install the update

▌Version Update Details

1. New Story

■ Trailblaze Mission “Amphoreus — Heroic Saga of Flame-Chase”

Amphoreus, The Eternal Land. A new horizon for Trailblaze where the Three Paths intersect, and the vortex of fate calmly awaits the sudden arrival of a small vessel…

Availability: Permanently available after the Version 3.0 update

Participation Requirement: Complete the Trailblaze Mission “Jarilo-VI — Silent Galaxy.”

※ This content can be experienced in advance through the Finality’s Vision: Leap of Trailblaze function.

※ Trailblazers are recommended to experience this content after completing the Trailblaze Mission “Penacony — A New Venture on the Eighth Dawn.”

■ Adventure Missions

Whereto Shall We Go, I Once Was In Arcadia, Disquieting Dream, and Searching for You

2. New Characters

■ 5-star The Herta (Erudition: Ice)

The Herta is a multi-target damage-dealing character that does so by enhancing her Skill. While she is on the field, ally targets’ attacks will apply special marks to enemies. The more mark stacks, the higher the DMG dealt by The Herta. During exploration, The Herta’s Technique can mark the locations of normal treasures on the map

■ 5-Star character Aglaea (Remembrance: Lightning)

Aglaea is a damage-dealing character that relies on her memosprite summon, Garmentmaker, to support her in battle. Garmentmaker can autonomously attack enemies and continuously increase its own speed. After Aglaea uses her Ultimate, she can launch a joint attack with Garmentmaker. During battle, their ATKs increase as their SPDs increase.

■ 5-Star character Trailblazer (Remembrance: Ice)

Trailblazer (Remembrance: Ice) is a Support character who summons a memosprite called Mem to battle and allows allies to deal True DMG. When fully charged, Mem immediately takes action and allows one ally to immediately take action.

3. New Light Cones

■ 5-Star “Into the Unreachable Veil (Erudition)”

Obtainable through the Brilliant Fixation: Into the Unreachable Veil Light Cone Event Warp.

■ 5-Star “Time Woven Into Gold (Remembrance)”

Obtainable through the Brilliant Fixation: Time Woven Into Gold Light Cone Event Warp.

■ 4-Star “Victory In a Blink (Remembrance)”

Can be exchanged with Lucent Afterglow at the Light Cone Manifest store.

※ Complete Version 3.0 Trailblaze Mission to obtain the Light Cone “Victory In a Blink (Remembrance)” ×1.

■ 4-star “Sweat Now, Cry Less (Remembrance)”

After the Version 3.0 update, you can select to obtain this Light Cone in the Treasure of the Starry Seas after unlocking the option via Nameless Glory.

■ 4-star “Geniuses’ Greetings (Remembrance)”

Obtainable through the “Brilliant Fixation: Time Woven Into Gold” Light Cone Event Warp and Version 3.0 “Coalesced Truths” phase 2.

■ 3-star “Reminiscence (Remembrance)”

After the Version 3.0 update, can be obtained via all event warps (except Departure Warp).

■ 3-star “Shadowburn (Remembrance)”

After the Version 3.0 update, can be obtained via all event warps (except Departure Warp).

4. New Outfit

■ Nascent Spring

March 7th (Preservation: Ice)’s outfit.

During Version 3.0, the outfit Nascent Spring can be obtained via the event “Fashion Guide of the Cosmos” and will be sold in the Contract Shop after the event concludes.

5. New Areas

■ “Eternal Holy City” Okhema

A city that worships Kephale, the Worldbearing Titan who protects this world. Under the eternal night brought by the black tide, this remains the only place where the comfort of dawn can be experienced.

■ “Strife Ruins” Castrum Kremnos

A city that worships Nikador, the Strife Titan who strikes fear into people. Now, this dilapidated fortress of the corrupted Titan perpetuates the will of conquest and strife.

■ “Bloodbathed Battlefront” Castrum Kremnos

A city that worships Nikador, the Strife Titan who strikes fear into people. The spear that brings terror upon this world is also the shield that protects it from calamity.

■ “Abyss of Fate” Janusopolis

A city that worships Janus, the Passage Titan who guides humanity, and the other Titans who control Fate. After the calamity, only the ruins of the temple remain.

■ Vortex of Genesis

The starting point of the world, hidden by the waves. A grand sanctuary that houses the primal divinity of the Twelve Titans. It’s also the promised land that will see the descent of the Miracle of Genesis, as prophesized by the oracles.

6. New Events

■ Illia Travelogue

Legend has it that Illia, the Chrysos Heir, spent his entire life wandering Amphoreus and his personal letters were eventually discovered by a wandering poet, thus giving rise to this travelogue.

Event Period: After the Version 3.0 update – 2025/02/24 03:59:00 (server time)

Participation Requirement: Complete the Trailblaze Mission “Jarilo-VI — Silent Galaxy.”

※ Trailblazers can use the Finality’s Vision: Leap of Trailblaze function to unlock Trailblaze Missions related to Amphoreus early and complete event targets.

■ Hypogeum Enigma

The explorer Damionis is preparing to explore the ancient city ruins… He seems to have forgotten to invite you?

Event Period: 2025/01/22 12:00:00 – 2025/02/24 03:59:00 (server time)

Requirement: Trailblaze Level 21 or above

※ This content can be unlocked and experienced in advance through the Finality’s Vision function.

※ It is recommended that Trailblazers complete the Trailblaze Mission “Amphoreus — Hero, Bear Thy Coreflame” before experiencing this content.

■ Enscrolled Crepusculum

A lost child has appeared in the bustling market of Okhema. She glances around, seemingly trying to find something…

Event Period: 2025/02/03 12:00:00 – 2025/02/24 03:59:00 (server time)

Requirement: Trailblaze Level 21 or above

※ This content can be unlocked and experienced in advance through the Finality’s Vision function.

※ It is recommended that Trailblazers complete the Trailblaze Mission “Amphoreus — Hero, Bear Thy Coreflame” before experiencing this content.

■ Mem’s Gift

Mem brought you a generous gift. Take it, and don’t forget to thank them.

Event Period: After the Version 3.0 update – 2025/02/26 06:00:00 (UTC+8)

Participation Requirements: Unlock Travel Log

■ Cosmic Lucky Prize

During the 7 periods of the event, you can obtain Stellar Jades or participate in prize draws in each period with a chance to become a Lucky Star and win 500,000 Stellar Jades!

Event Period: 2025/01/27 04:00:00 (server time) – 2025/02/26 06:00:00 (UTC+8)

Lottery Phase: 2025/01/27 04:00:00 – 2025/02/02 23:59:00 (server time)

※ For more details on the event rules, please read the Cosmic Lucky Prize event details.

■ Fashion Guide of the Cosmos

Log into the game during the event to claim March 7th: Preservation’s outfit Nascent Spring and its corresponding avatar.

Event Period: After the Version 3.0 update – 2025/02/26 06:00:00 (UTC+8)

Participation Requirement: Characters Unlocked

※ After the event has concluded, the outfit Nascent Spring will be available for purchase in the Contract Shop.

■ Gift of Odyssey

Log in every day during the event to obtain check-in rewards. Trailblazers can claim Star Rail Special Pass ×10 after checking in for 7 days!

※ Please refer to future announcements for information on other events.

7. Others

■ Enemies

“Savage God, Mad King, Incarnation of Strife,” “The Giver, Master of Legions, Lance of Fury,” “Furiae Praetor,” “Furiae Warrior,” “Furiae Archer,” “Furiae Philosopher,” “Furiae Troupe,” “‘Spirithief’ Bartholos,” and “Sky-Shrouding Stardevourer Swarm”

■ Gameplay

Treasures Lightward: Regular game modes Apocalyptic Shadow, Pure Fiction, and Forgotten Hall: Memory of Chaos will be refreshed alternatively. For more details, see below:

Apocalyptic Shadow: Locust’s Instigation

2025/01/20 04:00:00 – 2025/03/03 03:59:00 (server time)

When an enemy with Steadfast Safeguard is Weakness Broken, dispel control debuff for all allies, recover their Skill Points, and activate their Ultimates.

Increases the Skill DMG taken by all enemies by 25% and increases Ultimate DMG taken by 15%.

Pure Fiction: Clichéd Sayings

2025/02/03 04:00:00 – 2025/03/17 03:59:00 (server time)

After allies use Ultimate to attack enemy targets, every enemy target hit additionally accumulates 5 Grit Value for allies.

Memory of Chaos: Strife of Creation

2025/02/17 04:00:00 – 2025/03/31 03:59:00 (server time)

At the start of each Cycle, regenerates 20% Energy for all ally characters. The Energy regenerated by this effect can exceed the target’s Max Energy, and enables all memosprites on the field to immediately take action again after their next action.

■ Stage

Adds new stages to the Amphoreus maps, such as:
Calyx (Crimson): Bud of Remembrance (“Strife Ruins” Castrum Kremnos), complete the challenge to obtain all-new Remembrance Trace Materials.
Caverns of Corrosion: Cavern of Corrosion: Path of Aria, complete the challenge to obtain new Cavern Relics, Hero of Triumphant Song and Poet of Mourning Collapse.

■ Relics

Cavern Relic “Hero of Triumphant Song”
Cavern Relic “Poet of Mourning Collapse”

■ System

Adds As I’ve Written. Trailblazers can complete Amphoreus’ Trailblaze Missions to obtain “Nameless Recollection” and unlock cards, peruse stories of Amphorean heroes, and obtain rewards after attaining corresponding goals in “Author’s Recompense.” As I’ve Written’s content and rewards will be expanded from time to time.
Adds Tidal Bounty. Trailblazers can collect Celestial Ambrosia via exploring Amphoreus, completing Amphoreus-related missions, and opening treasures. Submit the ambrosia at the Tides of the Basin in Vortex of Genesis to increase Offering Level and unlock corresponding rewards.
Adds the “Leveling Guide” system: Trailblazers can view the progress of the selected character’s levels, Light Cones, Traces, and Relics in Character — Leveling Guide, as well as specify a character as leveling target to quickly check and calculate the required materials.
Adds the “Smart Equip” system: Trailblazers can select system-recommended plans, high-usage plans, or custom plans to equip with a single operation in Character — Relics — Smart Equip, as well as check the currently equipped Relics’ Subsidiary Stats, character stats, and more.
Adds new items Wishful Resin and Variable Dice: During Relic synthesis, Trailblazers can combine Self-Modeling Resin with Wishful Resin to customize the Relic’s sub-stats. Using Variable Dice can reroll enhancement distribution on Relics that have been enhanced to Lv. 15 and choose the preferred result between before and after rerolling.
Adds Insight Mode to Divergent Universe: In this mode, increases DMG dealt by and decreases DMG taken by all allies. When entering a domain, receives 1 random Blessing, 1 random Curio, and 100 Cosmic Fragments. Finishing the run in Insight Mode will not grant Divergent Universe titles.
Adds the Finality’s Vision: Leap of Trailblaze function to Finality’s Vision: Allows Trailblazers who have yet to complete prerequisite Trailblaze Missions to experience the storylines of Penacony and Amphoreus. Trailblazers can select still-locked worlds in the navigation screen to commence the experience.

■ Others

New path-switching animation performances have been added to the Trailblazer’s Switch Path menu.
Adds new limited-time selectable item bundle The Herta Contract: Strategic Support and The Herta Contract: Strategic Cooperation in the Contract Shop.
Adds new Treasure Gadget such as Treasure-Gifting Band, Bio-Wave Probe, Rare Jade Claw, Wealth Keeper’s Dream, Empyrean Gaze: Use the gadgets to display 1 normal treasure’s location in corresponding maps. Trailblazers can increase the total spending or levels of Internal Purchase Officer, Underground Shop, Jeweler’s Pagoda, Clockie Statue, and Tidal Bounty to obtain the Treasure Gadgets of corresponding maps. Trailblazers who have already met the corresponding claim requirements can directly obtain this in their Inventory.
Adds new NVIDIA DLSS 2 function on PC: Trailblazers using a PC and graphic cards of NVIDIA RTX 20-series and above can enable the function at Settings — Graphics Settings.
Adds new [Volume Settings] button to story dialogues. Trailblazers can click the corresponding button in the top-left corner during story dialogues to adjust the game’s sound settings.
Adds new [Feedback] button to the mobile platform login screen.
Adds new content such as some readable items, messages, music disks, Achievements, data bank entries, and loading screen texts.

▌Adjustments and Optimizations

■ Characters and Enemies

In the description for the character March 7th (The Hunt: Imaginary)’s abilities, adds corresponding descriptions and effects when selecting Remembrance characters to be her “Shifu.”

■ Combat

Adjusts the ability usage logic for certain characters using abilities on ally characters in auto-battle.
Optimizes the logic for character Sunday (Harmony: Imaginary) to use Skill during auto-battle.

■ Gameplay

Adds new updated effect descriptions for certain Curios, Blessings, and Equations, incorporating references to the Path of Remembrance in Divergent Universe and Simulated Universe. For details, please refer to the official announcement: Divergent Universe: The Human Comedy Update Notes V3.0.
Reduces the difficulty of certain enemy targets and the recommended team level for some stages at Equilibrium Level < 6.

■ Environment Visuals

Adjusts the prerequisites for the interactive event “Psychological Test” in the “Astral Express” map. After the adjustment, it requires the completion of the Adventure Mission “Cosmic Home Décor Guide.”

■ System

Removes the “When Charmony Rings Out…” event tab from the Travel Log. After removal, Trailblazers who have completed the Trailblaze Mission “Jarilo-VI — The Return” but have not yet claimed Trailblazer (Harmony: Imaginary) can go to the “Switch Path” interface to claim it.
Adjusts the maximum number of Immersifiers to 12.
Adjusts the max Trailblaze Power to 300.
Optimizes the logic for recommending the quantity of Reserved Trailblaze Power to retrieve when Trailblaze Power is insufficient for challenging stages.
Optimizes the display of information on certain enemy species in the data bank.

■ Audio

Adjust some Korean dialogue voice lines for the NPC BananAdvisor in the Trailblaze Continuance “Penacony” — “A Clockwork Banana.”
Optimizes some Korean dialogue voice lines for the NPC Controlled Assistanana 71 in the Trailblaze Continuance “Penacony” — “Dead Banana Society.”
Adjusts some Korean voice lines for the “Interastral Peace Broadcast” in the Parlor Car map.
Adjusts and optimizes some Korean environmental voice lines in the Starskiff Haven map.

■ Others

Adjusts the display effect on the Light Cone “Ninja Record: Sound Hunt (Destruction)” in the Inventory.
Adjusts the key binding for viewing “Status Effects” when using a controller. For example, with the DualSense™ controller, the previous binding was L2. It has now been changed to require pressing L1 + L2 simultaneously. For other controllers, players can refer to the in-game prompt above the corresponding button.
Optimizes the consumed material display order when Superimposing Light Cones.
Optimizes the effect after selecting dialogue options when using a controller or keyboard.
Optimizes the entry method for the stages “Calyx,” “Stagnant Shadow,” “Cavern of Corrosion,” and “Echo of War.” After the update, Trailblazers who have not unlocked the corresponding stages can directly access the challenges through the “Interastral Peace Guide — Survival Index.” Additionally, a new “Echo of War” stage will become directly accessible with its unlock conditions removed one version after its initial introduction.
Optimizes how you can access certain battle stages for the Trailblaze Mission series “Trial of Equilibrium.” After the optimization, Trailblazers do not need to head to the map entries for certain stages, and can directly enter the stages through the mission guidance function.
Removes “Daily Mission” in the mission system. The 5000 credit rewards per day from completing Daily Missions will be combined into rewards from Daily Training. If the Trailblazer has not obtained before the update the readable items that were a part of the Daily Mission rewards, they can complete the new Adventure Mission “Searching for You” and speak with the NPC “Little Robot” in V3.0 to obtain the relevant readable items. Furthermore, adjusts the everyday dialogue content from related NPCs.

▌ Bug Fixes

■ Characters and Enemies

Fixes an issue where the character Moze (The Hunt: Lightning)’s idle animation 2 has a special effects performance error. After the fix, the special effect performance will be made consistent with the previous version.
Fixes an issue where certain expressions for the character Sunday (Harmony: Imaginary) are abnormal in Photo mode.
Fixes an issue where the character Fugue (Nihility: Fire)’s character model may behave abnormally in the character details screen under certain circumstances.
Fixes an issue where, under certain circumstances, the character Rappa (Erudition: Imaginary)’s Ultimate effect will have lingering residuals in battle.
Fixes the issue where the character Moze (The Hunt: Lightning)’s artwork is displayed incorrectly when casting his Ultimate.
Fixes an issue where special effects are displayed abnormally when certain enemies are affected by the character Misha (Destruction: Ice)’s Technique-created Special Dimension’s “Dream Prison” state.
Fixes an issue where under specific circumstances, the character “Trailblazer (Preservation: Fire)’s” Taunt effect from their Skill lasts an abnormal period of time.
Fixes an issue where under specific circumstances certain character ability effects such as Herta (Erudition: Ice)’s Talent “Fine, I’ll Do It Myself” and Aventurine (Preservation: Imaginary)’s Trace “Bingo!” have a chance of being unable of triggering normally.
Fixes issues for certain abnormal character models, visual effects, and movement effects.
Fixes an issue where the sound effects when enemies are hit glitch in some circumstances.
Fixes an issue where under certain conditions, battling the enemy “Wonder Forest’s Banacademic Office Staff” will cause a game progress abnormality to occur during the battle’s process.

■ Combat

Fixes the issue where ally character’s combat voice lines are triggered out of order during battle under certain circumstances.
Fixes the issue where, under certain circumstances, part of the Light Cone “Dreamville Adventure (Harmony)”‘s effects activates abnormally.
Fixes an issue when using a specific team to fight the enemy “Svarog” or “Svarog (Complete),” the Light Cone “Earthly Escapade (Harmony)’s” “Mask” ability has a chance of triggering an abnormality.
Fixes the issue where the enemy “Howling Casket”‘s Bloodlust stacks are abnormal.
Fixes the issue where under certain situations, part of the enemies Dreamjolt Troupe’s Sweet Gorilla’s and Dreamjolt Troupe’s Sweet Gorilla (Bug)’s abilities will abnormally deal DMG to themselves when the target does not have a Shield.
Fixes an issue where enemy Weakness UI have a chance of being displayed abnormally in battle under certain circumstances.

■ Missions

Fixes an issue where, under specific circumstances, when repairing the Big Ticker during the Trailblaze Mission “Penacony – Seabiscuit,” the game’s progress might become abnormal.
Fixes the issue where, under certain circumstances, some mission guidance is incorrect in the Trailblaze Mission “Penacony — Reality is But Dream’s Echo.”
Fixes an issue where when under specific circumstances, the Xianzhou Luofu related missions clash with other missions, making the NPC Dan Heng’s room to be inaccessible in the Passenger Cabin map.

■ Gameplay

Fixes an issue in Divergent Universe where the effects of the Equations “Bionic Messiah,” “Graveward Lunatic,” “Reminiscence Artist,” “Court of Homogeneity,” “Mausoleum of Scars,” and “Phantom Thief” did not function correctly under specific circumstances.
Fixes the issue where, under certain circumstances, the Curio “High-Calorie Diet” does not take effect abnormally during Planar Ornament Extraction in Divergent Universe.
Fixes the issue where, under certain circumstances, Equations and character action order is abnormal when battling Borisin Warhead: Hoolay (Complete) in Divergent Universe.
Fixes an issue where when you have the Curio “Absolute Failure Prescription” in the Simulated Universe, the character Luocha (Abundance: Imaginary) will be unable to create his Zone under specific circumstances when entering battle after using his Technique.
Fixes an issue where when you have the Weighted Curio “Road of Prayers” in the Simulated Universe, the character Qingque (Erudition: Quantum)’s Skill will abnormally consume additional Skill Points under certain circumstances.
Fixes an issue where when the Equation “Relative Tracer” is active and the enemy “The Past, Present, and Eternal Show (Complete)” uses the “Dance for Synchrony” ability in the Simulated Universe, there is a chance the game’s progress might become abnormal.
Fixes an issue in Simulated Universe: Unknowable Domain where, under certain circumstances, part of the Curio “Shatterbone Blade”‘s effect did not function normally.
Fixes the issue where, under certain circumstances, all points for the current stage have been obtained abnormally before the enemies are fully defeated in Pure Fiction.

■ Environment Visuals

Fixes an issue where certain combat scene performances displayed abnormally.

■ Audio

Fixes an issue where certain sound effect performances are glitched in some circumstances.
Fixes an issue where certain ally character battle voice overs play erroneously.
Fixes certain missing English dialogue voice lines for character Robin (Harmony: Physical) in the Trailblaze Mission “Penacony — A New Venture on the Eighth Dawn.”
Fixes some erroneous Japanese dialogue voice lines for the NPC Controlled Assistanana 71 in the Trailblaze Continuance “Penacony” — “Dead Banana Society.”

■ Others

In-game texts for the 13 languages have been adjusted, optimized, and fixed. These changes do not affect the actual effects. Trailblazers can switch the game language through “Phone — Settings — Language” and view the corresponding changes in the announcement.
Fixes and optimizations in English include the following (they have no impact on the actual in-game effects):
Optimizes the ability description for Fugue (Nihility: Fire)’s Talent.
Adjusts and optimizes the descriptions for certain character Techniques with relation to “Dimension Effects.”
Adjusts and optimizes texts related to various cutscene dialogues, readable items, Messages, item summaries, Relic sources, Status Effect descriptions, hint notifications, and in-gameplay texts.
Fixes the issue where certain texts are not fully displayed in the Store recommended interface in specific conditions.

[Source: HoYoverse]

Tags: Honkai: Star Rail miHoYo

James Lara

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.

Home > News

Diablo 4 Season 7: Season of Witchcraft Starts January 21

by James Lara

5:56 pm in News

[summaraize]

Diablo 4 is starting its year with a bang, as Blizzard has officially announced that Diablo 4 Season 7, aka, Season of Witchcraft, is arriving in less than a week. Blizzard has given an in-depth look at the upcoming season with a developer overview.

Alongside that, we have a short summary of what to expect as well.

New Witch Powers Are Coming to Diablo 4 Next Week

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In a lengthy blog post, Blizzard detailed every big content drop and significant changes set to arrive with Season 7 of Diablo 4. Some of the highlights included a new seasonal questline, new witchcraft powers, new runes, armory updates, and so much more. They go over some of the key highlights of the update in the video above, along with providing a detailed image overview which you can view below.

WITCHCRAFT: From the teachings of the Witches of Howezar, players can channel the power of the Swamp. Explore three different schools of Witchcraft Powers to find the ability combination that suits your playstyle, whether you seek supernatural strength, are a practitioner of connected mind and spirit, or wish to balance healing and harming skills. By finding and equipping the new Seasonal Legendary Gems, Occult Gems, you can harness devastating and iconic abilities, some of which harken back to Diablo III.
HEADROTTEN BOSSES: Cut from the Tree of Whispers, the Stolen Heads have mutated into ghastly abominations, desperate to become whole and human again. New Headrotten Bosses and enemies await as you follow the Whispers of the Dead. By completing the new endgame Headhunts, players can hunt down Headrotten and claim their heads in exchange for Occult Gems. If you’re lucky, you might find a “Headed” Headrotten Boss, a rare boss variant that grants even more valuable rewards.
ARMORY: The long awaited new armory feature allows players to quickly save and swap complete character loadouts. Save and overwrite different builds for your heroes as you please; all Gear, Skill Points, and Paragon Points will be automatically applied when swapping.
SEASONAL REWARDS: Season of Witchcraft adds additional Uniques and Legendaries to the loot pool. Vessel of Hatred players can also experience three new Runes and many updates to existing Runes. Those who seek more drops can ascend tiers of the Coven’s Favor, earn rewards like a Raven Pet via the Season Journey, or progress through the Battle Pass.

Again, their blog post details a lot more than this, and I highly recommend visiting it for a more in-depth breakdown. Otherwise, what you see above is too long and didn’t read version of it.

Diablo 4 Season 7: Season of Witchcraft officially kicks off January 21 on all major platforms. Once the patch is live, we’ll be sure to let our readers kow.

Tags: Blizzard Entertainment diablo diablo iv

James Lara

Home > News

PowerWash Simulator VR Version Loses Support From Studio, But for Good Reason

by James Lara

4:59 pm in News

[summaraize]

FuturLab, the developer of the highly popular and acclaimed PowerWash Simulator, has announced that it can no longer support the VR version of the game. According to the studio, one of the main driving factors was the cost and the need to ensure that their developers still have a place to work.

Read on for the full announcement.

FuturLab is Simply Looking Out for Its Employees

Taking to X, FuturLab’s CEO Kirsty Rigden broke some rather disappointing news to PowerWash Simulator fans, specifically to those playing the game in VR. In the statement, Ridgen confirmed that they could no longer support PowerWash Simulator VR. As big of a shock and disappointment as that was to many, the reasoning behind the drop in support was that it cost more to run the VR version than it earned them. That put the studio in a tough situation: continue losing money and risk layoffs, or drop support entirely.

“DEAR VR WASHERS

I am so sorry to let you know that we won’t be continuing support of PowerWash Simulator VR. We absolutely love and believe in VR, so this doesn’t mean that we won’t support it in the future but we aren’t able to continue with support right now. We have been faced with a crossroads: we have a truly excellent and kind VR team who were working on a platform which costs us more than it makes, while also having a list of job openings that were looking to be filled on other projects. We took the decision to redeploy our VR team into those other projects/roles. Whilst I would love to live in a world where we could support PowerWash Simulator on every platform going, I will always choose job security for my team. Every time. While I know that you must be so disappointed, I also know that if you were in my position you would have made the same decision.

-Kirsty Rigden, CEO, FuturLab”

Given how last year was plagued with layoffs and this year is already starting off with three studio closures, I think it’s safe to say that Rigden made the right call here. As much as it pains me to know that the VR version won’t be getting any new updates for the foreseeable future, I think knowing that the team behind it is still over there doing what they love doing is well worth the sacrifice.

The studio clarifies that the VR version of the game, along with all its current DLC, is still available to purchase; don’t expect anything new to come to it.

Tags: FuturLab PowerWash Simulator

James Lara

Home > Title Updates and Patches

The Sims 4 First Update of 2025 Refreshes Main Menu, Performance Improvements and More

by Alex Co

2:24 pm in Title Updates and Patches

[summaraize]

Maxis has pushed out The Sims 4 update 2.05, and this is the first title update of the game for 2025. This is a big patch that not only houses bug fixes, but also slaps a visual refresh of the main menu, adds ni performance improvements, and various tweaks to the gameplay, too.

There’s a lot to take in, so scroll down to see the complete The Sims 4 update today patch notes.

The Sims 4 Update 2.05 Slots in Host of Improvements to the Base Game

Update 1/14/2025

PC: 1.112.481.1030 / Mac: 1.112.481.1230

Console: 2.05

What’s New in The Sims 4 ?

Base Game Updates

Main Menu Visual Refresh

To start off with, we have a brand-new Main Menu visual refresh! We’ve pushed aside the clutter to make space for your Sims! New Game / Resume Game has moved from right to left, as have a few of the other navigation options. Home, Events and Store can be found at the top, along with the Options panel in the far right. It may take a moment to get used to the New Game / Resume Game new location, I know it took a moment for some of us. A few other changes to mention:

The visual update includes a bit of fresh paint, a little less clutter, with the desire to keep information clear and discoverable for you!
The Sims in the center are your last played household Sims, all of them!
And important updates and information from The Sims are focused on the right side.

Speaking of the Main Menu, you’ll receive a message about the upcoming Blast from The Past Event.

Starting on February 4th, this birthday event will feature rewards inspired by iconic items from the 2000s, such as a milk carton, telephone, alarm clock, triple-tiered birthday cake, and inflatable chair and loveseat.

Performance and Memory Improvements

Smoother Gameplay
- We’ve optimized mouse movements, preventing slowdowns and making gameplay more responsive on PC, Console, and Mac.
Improved Graphics and Performance – On Mac and PS4, we’ve optimized how graphic data is handled, resulting in smoother and more efficient rendering and overall performance.
Memory Efficiency
- Various enhancements have been made to save memory across all platforms, helping the game run more smoothly and reducing crashes.

Base Game Townie Home Refresh

New year, new homes! All Townie Homes in Willow Creek and Oasis Springs have been updated and renovated to breathe some fresh life into classic lots.

Willow Creek Homes: Cypress Terrace, Ophelia Villa, Pique Hearth, Garden Essence
Oasis Springs Homes: Sultry Springside, Affluista Mansion, Cacti Casa, Slipshod Mesquite
- Both the Legacy and Updated Lots are automatically available in the “My Library” tab.
New Saves
- Players who start a New Game will automatically see the updated lots in the world!
Existing Saves
- Players who would like to see the update in their existing saves must manually update the homes by placing the new lots from the “My Library” tab.

Bug Fixes

Console

Potion Color Issue on Consoles – Fixed a bug where potion colors in cauldrons would change to gray after loading a saved game.
Texture Reloading Optimization – Improved the texture reloading process on Xbox One to reduce “out-of-memory” crashes, and providing more efficient loading of game lots.

Base Game:

[AHQ] Fullscreen Minimization Fix
- We resolved an issue where you couldn’t minimize the game in Fullscreen mode using DirectX 11. Now, key combinations like Alt + Tab and the Windows key will work as expected.
“Work in Off hours” interaction does not clear the Tense buff for workaholic Sim.
[AHQ] Fixed cases of really high Bills. Lot Taxes will now only count the property value and household_net_worth not add value from anything in inventories.
[AHQ] “Try for baby” in shower will now fill the Hygiene motive.
[AHQ] Inspired Sim will no longer mix drinks excessively.
Discomfort Relief Value is no longer missing for Bath tubs.
“Purchase Garlic Seeds“ has its own interaction and should be categorized/available under the “Purchase Seeds“ interaction.
[AHQ] Outgoing and Socially Awkward traits cannot be selected together. If one is selected, the other will appear greyed out and cannot be chosen.
[AHQ] Female frame facial hair on Male Sims will no longer disappear.
[AHQ] Shoes are now replaced with barefoot when a Styled Look with barefoot is applied.
[AHQ] Neon signs no longer break due to rain.
[AHQ] Water puddle VFX animation will no longer appear on the ground floor when Sim is swimming on the second floor.
“Revive” is now available on a dead Cowplant.
Ponds properly display water textures in Map View.
Comfort Value attribute is no longer missing for Toilet objects.

Affecting Multiple Packs

[AHQ] Sims’ weight and muscle levels are now properly affected by Bike Riding, Horse Riding, Jog here and Rock Climbing.
[AHQ] Thumbnails of Guidry and Temperance Sim are visible in relationship panel, Sims profile, Manage HH.
Sim no longer has the option to give the toddler fertilizer as food from inventory.
[AHQ] Sim can now set the waffle/pizza oven/stand mixer for sale in a retail store.
“Invite to Hangout at Current Lot“ interaction is no longer available for Infants in the Sim profile.

Get Together

Clubs are now under the default section under the social groups interface.

City Living

[AHQ] “Play with emotion“ interaction is now greyed out when the piano keyboard breaks.

Cats & Dogs

[AHQ] Dog and Cats with the fire obsession perk are far less obsessed with the fireplace.
[AHQ] Sims no longer gain Fitness skill when cleaning the litter box.

Discover University

[AHQ] Sim with the Gym Rat trait will no longer lose hygiene while juggling a soccer ball.
[AHQ] Frequency of getting electrocuted from Robotic Workstation has been considerably reduced.

Eco Lifestyle

[AHQ] Roaches are removed from the dumpster after Sim successfully performs the “Try to clear roaches” interaction.

Snowy Escape

[AHQ] Seaweed Ramen recipe is now available from the fridge cooking menu.
Sim’s Hygiene motive will now increase when using a Hot Spring.

Cottage Living

[AHQ] Sims can now use Hot Pot with the Simple Living Lot Challenge.

High School Years

[AHQ] When Sims switch from an outfit created in Thriftea to a regular outfit, they no longer revert back to the Thriftea outfit when showering/bathing.
[AHQ] Notification badges no longer displayed when phone is in silent mode and when Social Bunny has notifications turned off.
[AHQ] Bronze prom reward now unlocks correctly in B/B catalogue.
“Hide from Paparazzi“ interaction is available for Sims with Fame level 3 and below.

Growing Together

[AHQ] Fixed an issue where some Life Milestones wouldn’t be achieved when the Sim is off lot,, including milestones for toddlers’ movement skill.

Horse Ranch

[AHQ] ‘Drink an Aged Nectar’ Want fulfils when Sim drinks the aged nectar bottle

For Rent

[AHQ] A serving of Vegetable Chili from the Pressure Cooker will no longer turn into 8 servings.

Spa Day

[AHQ] Applied Pedicure will no longer vanish when a Manicure is requested.

Dine Out

Sparkling Water is now available under the “Fizzy” category.

My First Pet

[AHQ] In new saves Sim will no longer receive “Baby whisked away” buff and TNS suggesting that Rattigan passed away when Rattigan is still alive.

Nifty Knitting

[AHQ] Knitting now counts towards Arts & Crafts for Scouting.

Crystal Creations

[AHQ] Last Exception error will no longer trigger when Ring is placed on the Mystical Moonlight Crystal Grid and the household is reloaded.
[AHQ] Option to order Crystals is now available on the computer.

Whew! That’s one massive changelog! While we don’t get patches for The Sims 4 as frequently as we did before, it’s nice to know that the devs are still collecting feedback and implementing these sweeping changes from time to time.

Tags: the sims the sims 4

Alex Co

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

Home > News

Report: Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Remake Will Be More Than a Visual Upgrade, New Systems Mentioned

by James Lara

1:31 pm in News

[summaraize]

Last year, we reported on how Ubisoft confirmed that they are working on multiple Assassin’s Creed remakes. One of these remakes is said to be of Assassin’s Creed Black Flag. While the publisher has not officially announced the title, it seems the rumor is real, and we have the first info about it.

Based on the information we’ve collected, this will be more than just a visual upgrade; gameplay mechanics and elements have also been upgraded.

Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Looks to be More Than Just a Graphical Update

Last year, Ubisoft’s CEO, Yves Guillemot, wrote a lengthy blog post detailing the company’s upcoming portfolio and the future of the Assassin’s Creed franchise. One of the comments that stood out was that fans could look forward to remakes that would allow players to revisit past locations, only with a modernized touch.

“Firstly, players can be excited about some remakes, which will allow us to revisit some of the games we’ve created in the past and modernize them; there are worlds in some of our older Assassin’s Creed games that are still extremely rich. Secondly, to answer your question, there will be plenty of experience variety. The goal is to have Assassin’s Creed games come out more regularly, but not for it to be the same experience every year. There are a lot of good things to come, including Assassin’s Creed Hexe, which we’ve announced, which is going to be a very different game from Assassin’s Creed Shadows. We’re going to surprise people, I think”

Well, it seems like one of those remakes (plural, as he put it) happens to be 2013’s Assassin’s Creed Black Flag. We’ve seen and heard plenty of rumors about the title’s potential, which are probably true, but if you need an “official” confirmation, look no further. The title has appeared on one of the game’s designers’ online profiles. Of note, this is the same game developer that accidentally confirmed the existence of The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remake, which we recently reported about. After our report went live, the game developer (which we still won’t name) has nuked their website and online profile to scrub any mention of both games. Thankfully, we have a screenshot of it saved:

To no one’s surprise, the Black Flag remake is being built on the upgraded Anvil Engine. The studio has used this engine for the franchise since the first Assassin’s Creed game, and upcoming games in the series are still using it.

Now for the small “juicy” bits of information. As listed in the project’s description, the Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Remake will feature new systems, with combat and ecosystems around wildlife specifically mentioned. There’s not much else to mention beyond the team hoping that these new systems will make the classic an “outstanding game to rebirth as the next-gen AAA game.”

However, this confirms that the remake of Black Flags will be more than a graphical update. How much new content will be added remains to be seen, but at least those who have played the game will have something to look forward to beyond the visuals.

Insider Gaming previously reported that the title could be released in November 2025, much sooner than online chatter speculated. In their report, they said they’d seen gameplay of the remake in action, though for obvious reasons, they could not share the footage.

Either way, the title appearing on a developer’s work history confirms the remake’s existence. How long will we wait for it to be announced and shown off officially? Well, considering that Ubisoft just delayed Assassin’s Creed Shadows again, this time to March 20, 2025, I wouldn’t count on an announcement until after that game is released.

Tags: Assasin's Creed IV Assassin's Creed Assassin's Creed Black Flag Assassin's Creed Black Flag Remake exclusive Ubisoft

James Lara

Home > Title Updates and Patches

Destiny 2 New Update 3.48 for Version 8.1.5.3 Implements Balance Changes to Classes and Weapons

by Alex Co

1:09 pm in Title Updates and Patches

[summaraize]

With today’s Destiny 2 maintenance, Bungie has also rolled in a new patch for the game, which slots in various balance changes related to classes, weapons and more. Those on consoles you should see this as Destiny 2 update 3.48 on PS4/XB1, while current-gen gamers will see this as update version 1.143.

The complete patch notes are available below, straight from Bungie. Aside from balance changes, there are also technical fixes as well.

Destiny 2’s Patch 8.1.5.3 Brings the First Balance Pass for 2025

Activities

Crucible

General

Fixed an issue where some ability kills could generate a Special ammo brick.

Dungeons & Raids

Vesper’s Host

Raneiks Unified
- Fixed an issue where using Hunter’s Shadowshot Super ability on Raneiks Unified could result in the encounter crashing.
- Reduced the number of active servitors that appear when splitting the boss during DPS.
  - Rebalanced boss health values to compensate for the reduced number of servitors.
- Re-enabled Hunter’s Shadowshot Super ability in the activity.
Infiltration
- Fixed an issue that allowed nuclear cores from the traversal to be used outside of the encounter.

Gameplay and Investment

Exotic Armor

Titan

Stoicism
- Spirit of Alpha Lupi
  - Reduced heal impulse when using Thruster to 30 HP.
- Crest of Alpha Lupi
  - Reduced heal impulse when using Thruster to 60 HP.

Warlock

Ballidorse Wrathweavers
- Fixed an issue where Ballidorse Wrathweavers could increase the damage dealt by shattering targets frozen with Winter’s Wrath far more than intended.
Mantle of Battle Harmony
- Fixed an issue where Mantle of Battle Harmony’s perk could be activated during Song of Flame to extend its duration.
Stormdancer’s Brace
- Fixed an issue where Stormdancer’s Brace would not refund energy if the player was in Transcendence during their Stormtrance Super.

Hunter

Celestial Nighthawk
- Fixed an issue where Golden Gun incorrectly was receiving the boosted roaming Super recharge benefits while Celestial Nighthawk was equipped.

General

Fixed an issue where the “Iron Intent” armor set was missing the “Iron Lord’s Pride” intrinsic perk.
Fixed an issue where Solar Weapon Boost x4 was unable to be applied via Exotics such as Mantle of Battle Harmony, Foetracer, or Path of Burning Steps to weapons besides Two-Tailed Fox.
- The Daito manufacturer extends a heartfelt apology to all Guardians for this error.

Weapons

Weapon Archetypes

Sidearms
- Heavy Burst
  - Increased body shot damage from 30 to 33.
  - Increased critical hit damage from 48 to 52.8.
Submachine Guns
- General
  - Increased magazine size by 10-15% depending on magazine stat and rate of fire.
Pulse Rifles
- High-Impact – Now requires six crits on all resilience levels above 1.
  - Reduced body shot damage from 22 to 21.5.
  - Reduced critical hit damage from 39.6 to 38.7.
  - Reduced Aim Down Sights (ADS) damage falloff scalar from 1.7 to 1.6.
- Lightweights
  - Increased body shot damage from 17 to 20.4.
  - Increased critical hit damage from 31.45 to 31.6.
Scout Rifles
- Lightweights
  - Increased body shot damage from 32 to 38.
  - Increased critical hit damage from 64 to 64.6.
Auto Rifles
- Rapid Fires
  - Increased body shot damage from 13.5 to 13.6.
  - Increased critical hit damage from 23 to 23.1.
Hand Cannons
- Precisions
  - The intrinsic Hand Cannon Precision Frame now reduces your ADS movement speed penalty by 10%.
Sniper Rifles
- Reduced the camera roll component of flinch against players by 20%.
Heavy Ammo Grenade Launchers
- Reduced self-damage by 50%.

Perks

Skulking Wolf (Iron Banner Origin Trait)
- Now activates in PvE and, when active, makes enemies slightly less accurate when targeting you.
Target Lock
- Reverted the Update 7.3.5 specific tuning for Sub Machine Guns.

Exotics

Graviton Lance
- Reverted its RPM to 300.
Whisper of the Worm
- Reduced the camera roll component of flinch against players by 50%.
Ace of Spades
- Fixed an issue where the Firefly perk on Ace of Spades was dealing Kinetic damage instead of Solar damage.

General

Fixed an issue where the Scavenger’s Fate Shotgun unintentionally received Demolitionist. This perk will be replaced with Slideshot, with enhanced versions of Demolitionist being replaced with Enhanced Slideshot.
Fixed an issue where the Omniscient Eye Sniper Rifle did not have access to Enhanced Precision Instrument at the Relic Crafting table.
Fixed an issue where the Season of Arrival’s version of Crimil’s Dagger had incorrect stats.
Fixed an issue that allowed the Harmony and Discord perks to be activated by using certain abilities or getting onto vehicles.

Platforms and Systems

Fixed an issue where audio could cut out during some cinematics.
Fixed a server crash that caused a high frequency of #Guitar errors across many activities and destinations.

That’s not a bad patch to kick off 2025, right? Once Bungie releases another one, we’ll let our readers know.

Tags: Destiny Destiny 2

Alex Co

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

Home > News

Zenless Zone Zero Version 1.5 Arrives January 22; Here Are the Details

by James Lara

12:00 pm in News

[summaraize]

The next chapter in the Zenless Zone Zero saga has a release date! Fans are excited to see where the story goes after the climactic conclusion of Version 1.4 and will be excited to learn that Zenless Zone Zero Version 1.5 is launching this month.

Zenless Zone Zero Version 1.5 Brings New Stories, Agents, PvE Mode, Events, and So Much More

Zenless Zone Zero’s Version 1.5, which is dubbed “Astra-nomical Moment,” is launching on January 22, and it’s bringing loads of new content with it. To give us a sneak peak, developers miHoYo have released a lengthy teaser, showing off some of the things you can expect!

A breakdown of what is coming to Zenless Zone Zero with Version 1.5:

df
All-new Special Episode – Astra-Nomical Moment
All-new Agent: Astra Yao, with Evelyn arriving later in the season.
All-New Agent Story (Ellen): It’s Me….Leave A Message
All-New Combat Showcase for Astra Yao and Ellen
New Outfit for Astra, Ellen, and Nicole
All-New Partner Archives
New W-Engines – Elegant Vanity and Heartstring Nocturne
All-New Bangboo
New Giveaway Events
New Events
- The Day of Brilliant Wishs
- Elpis Ultimate Angler Championship
- Godfinger Ultimate Showdown
- Click Click Hollow Reporter
- Hollow Zero: Cleanse Calamity
- Today’s Recommended Film
- 141 Going Green For Everyone
- A Dream Come True At Last
Version Event
- Data Bounty: Combat Simulation – During the event simulation, rewards will be doubled.
- Advanced Bounty: Routine Cleanup – During the event, Routine Cleanup rewards will be doubled.
New Gameplay Modes
- Endless Tower: The Last Stand
- Mach 25 Arcade game
- Bizarre Brigade: Shared Dream – New 2-player PVE co-op mode.
New Gameplay Update
- Notorious Hunt- Simplies the weekly challenge by removing the elite enemy wave.
New System Update
- Dialogue update – Several dialogue boxes have been repositioned.
- Dynamic Wallpaper – Adds partner archive and ridu snapshots tab. Adds a multi-select random playback mode.

These are just the major highlights of the update, and you can expect it to include bug fixes and other improvements. We’ll have the full patch notes once they’re available, so stay tuned for those!

Tags: Zenless Zone Zero

James Lara

Home > Title Updates and Patches

Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League Gets Last Content Update With Episode 8

by Alex Co

10:44 am in Title Updates and Patches

[summaraize]

Following the patch roll out last month that introduced offline mode for Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, Rocksteady has today released Episode 8 for the game. Console gamers will see this as Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League update 1.022, and this brings bug fixes, and let’s players explore more of the medieval Elseworld map.

There’s also new gear to check out as well, with more details available in the patch notes below.

Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League Epsiode 8 Patch Version 1.022 Is the Last Content Update Planned

MEDIEVAL GENIUS

You’ll be able to explore more of the medieval Elseworld in Episode 8: Balance, with twists on familiar sights and new locations too. Take your quest to The Quarry, a fortified citadel you’ll have to besiege if you wish to triumph over the tyrant Brainiac. The Arena is the perfect place for jousting tournaments or interdimensional warfare, and the statues of King Jor-El and Queen Lara Lor-Van will be sure to inspire awe for this age of chivalry and honor.

NEW GEAR IN EPISODE 8:

Libra Infamy Set
Complete Silence
Doctor Sivana’s Magic Bullets
Chronos’ Equilibrium

GAMEPLAY CHANGES

Reduced the duration of Deathstroke’s Suicide Strike against certain enemies, to be closer in line with other characters’.

BUG FIXES

Fixed a bug for players in the Japan region that caused LuthorCoin to expire prematurely.
Fixed a bug that prevented the Raising Hell Playlist from updating when playing in Episodes other than Episode 7.
Fixed a bug that prevented players from correctly receiving bonus XP from Critical Kills and from killing Infused enemies.
Fixed a bug that prevented B-Technology Resources from being rewarded upon completing certain missions.
Fixed a bug that prevented new personal bests in Killing Time from registering on the Leaderboards.
Fixed a bug in the Episode 7 Mayhem Mission that caused the kill counter to display incorrect values.
Fixed a bug that sometimes caused Lootinauts to disappear when killing the host they were hiding inside.
Fixed a bug during the Episode 7 Mayhem Mission that sometimes caused Green Lantern Constructs to immediately reappear after being destroyed.
Fixed a bug that caused Harley Quinn’s Shorten Rope Traversal Ability to not be usable while using the Trigger Happy controller layout.
Fixed a bug that caused Captain Boomerang’s ‘Captain On Deck TFX Pack’ to charge the wrong amount of LuthorCoin.
Fixed a bug that occurred upon purchasing the Joker Emote Bundle that caused one of the emotes to appear to not be owned.
Fixed a bug that caused Gorilla Grodd’s Tier 2 ‘Mind Over Matter’ Infamy Set to deal 500% bonus damage to non-Crazed enemies, instead of correctly requiring them to be Crazed.
Fixed a bug with Orphan’s Heartseeker whereby nearby enemies failed to receive 50% of Suicide Strike damage when performed on a Marked enemy.
Fixed a bug with Brain’s Teaser whereby killing a Burning enemy with the weapon’s Alt-Fire did not always apply burn to nearby enemies.
Fixed a bug that caused issues for players navigating around pikes in the Medieval Elseworld.
Various crash fixes.
Various UI fixes.
Various SFX fixes.
Various gameplay bug fixes.
Various performance improvements and fixes.
Various animation and cinematic fixes.
Various audio fixes.
Various environmental fixes.
Fixed several incorrect or untranslated text strings.
Fixed instances of enemies spawning incorrectly.

Rocksteady also notes that a known issue and workaround for it:

When attempting Riddler challenges from an Episode other than the one currently selected, progress can sometimes be tracked incorrectly. To correct this, exit out of your current session back to the main menu.

While there are no content drops planned, there is a chance Rocksteady releases another patch for bug fixes or balance changes. If we do get one, we’ll be sure to let our readers know.

Tags: suicide squad: kill the justice league

Alex Co

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

Home > News

Destiny 2 Servers Undergo Maintenance for Patch 8.1.5.3

by Alex Co

10:04 am in News

[summaraize]

Bungie is conducting the first maintenance of the Destiny 2 servers in 2025. If you’re trying to log in but are having issues connecting, this is the reason why. The Destiny 2 downtime is triggered so the studio can release patch version 8.1.5.3 on all platforms on January 14, 2025.

Destiny 2 Servers Are Down for Patch Roll Out

Tuesday, January 14, 2025 — Update 8.1.5.3

6:30 AM PST	-8 UTC	Destiny 2 will undergo maintenance. Sign-on and game integration features will be unavailable on web, mobile, third-party apps, and the Bungie Store. Players who observe issues should report to the #Help forum.
7:45 AM PST	-8 UTC	Destiny 2 and all APIs will be brought offline for expected maintenance. Players will be removed from activities. Destiny 1 may be impacted.
9:00 AM PST	-8 UTC	The latest Destiny 2 update will be available across all platforms and regions. Players will be able to log back into Destiny 2. Players logging into the game may be placed in a queue and may experience sign-on issues as background maintenance is still ongoing. The Destiny 2 API will be brought online. Clan features may remain offline until maintenance is complete.
11:00 AM PST	-8 UTC	Destiny 2 maintenance is expected to conclude. Console players who encounter issues updating should restart their console and try downloading the update. Players who observe issues should report to the #Help forum.

Once the patch notes are out, we’ll add it to the article via a link. If there are any changes to the Destiny 2 downtime schedule, we’ll update the article.

We’ll be posting the details for update 8.1.5.3 once the download is live.

Tags: Destiny Destiny 2

Alex Co

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

Home > News

Skate Playtests Now Extended to Consoles

by Alex Co

6:55 am in News

[summaraize]

Electronic Arts’ skateboarding sim simply titled “Skate” was announced in June 2020, with playtesting for PC initiated a few years ago. For those on consoles who want to test it out, you can now be part of it (provided you’re picked), as developer Full Circle has now included consoles as part of the playtests.

The announcement was made in the latest Q&A for the game where it was pointed out that playtests for consoles were originally promised to kick off in Fall 2024.

EA’s Skate Has Been In Development For More Than Four Years

if you haven’t been selected yet to participate in the playtest, hang tight. we will continue to invite new players who are registered as we go.

— skate. (@skate) January 9, 2025

Remember, this is not the demo or a beta, so expect bugs and issues to be part of the experience. According to Full Circle’s FAQ for the playtest, “we’re still in the development stages of skate. and are bringing insiders like you into the game much sooner than is the norm in our industry. We’re incredibly passionate about skate. and want to ensure we’re building the best possible game, and that’s why we want you playing and providing valued feedback ahead of a worldwide launch.”

Entering the playtest does not guarantee that you’ll be able to play it. Full Circle will send invites based on “varying factors.” If you’re interested, you can register here to test the game before launch.

The console playtests include the PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S. A mobile playtest is also planned, but it is currently paused.

Skate is the debut game from Vancouver-based developer Full Circle, and is planned to be a free-to-play game due for release in Early Access this year. It is the fifth game in EA’s Skate series, with the last mainline titled “Skate 3” released on PS3 and Xbox 360 in 2010.

Another tidbit of info that should be good news for Skate fans, for the latest Skate game in development, EA brought back Deran Chung and Cuz Parry who created the original Skate games.

Tags: skate Skate 4

Alex Co

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

Home > Title Updates and Patches

Helldivers 2 Patch 1.002.005 Fixes Soft-Lock Issues and More

by Alex Co

5:19 am in Title Updates and Patches

[summaraize]

Arrowhead Game Studios has released the first patch for Helldivers 2 available for download now on PC and PS5. Players will see this as Helldivers 2 patch 1.002.005, and while this doesn’t bring any new content, it does fix a few (literal) game-breaking issues.

The Helldivers 2 update deployed this January 14 includes various technical fixes, and the official patch notes are available below.

Helldivers 2 Soft-Lock and Crashes Fixed in Update Version 1.002.005

Overview

Crash fixes
ADS jitter fix
Miscellaneous fixes

Fixes

Crash Fixes and Soft-locks:
Fixed a crash caused by Illuminate ships despawning
Fixed some potential crashes when the player quits the game

Miscellaneous fixes

Fixed an issue with jitter when aiming through scopes
Fixed an issue with the STA-X3 W.A.S.P Launcher’s targeting not properly working when using one owned by another player
Reduced disconnections in Illuminate missions

That’s it from Arrowhead Game Studios‘ latest patch. Expect another major patch to be announced soon and once we know more of that, we’ll let our readers know.

Tags: Helldivers helldivers 2

Alex Co

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

Home > Title Updates and Patches

Fortnite Update 1.000.163 for Version 33.20 Brings Hatsune Miku

by Damien Seeto

4:28 am in Title Updates and Patches

[summaraize]

Epic Games has released the first big update for Fortnite in 2025 with patch 33.20 heading to all platforms. This is Fortnite update 1.000.163 for those playing on current-gen platforms One of the biggest additions is that the popular character Hatsune Miku is coming to Fortnite Festival Season 7. Local co-op is also now available in Fortnite Festival too.

Read on for more details about today’s update down below.

Hatsune Miku and More Added in Fortnite Update 1.000.163

Virtual Artist Hatsune Miku Beams into Fortnite Festival for Season 7!

Mikufans, it’s time to grab your glowsticks (or should we say leeks?!).Hatsune Miku (初音ミク), one of the biggest virtual pop stars in the world, is bringing her futuristic sounds to Fortnite as the Icon for Festival Season 7!

The singing synthesizer turned global superstar is featured in more than 100,000 songs and has beamed her way onto stages around the world. Now she’s heading to the Festival stage!

Unlock a Hatsune Miku Outfit, Instruments, and more in the Music Pass, which is now a single track of both free and premium rewards (matching the other Passes in Fortnite). You’ll still unlock free rewards by earning XP in any Fortnite experience, and purchasing the Music Pass will enable you to unlock premium rewards the same way as you do free rewards. You can purchase the Music Pass for 1,400 V-Bucks or get it through Fortnite Crew!

The sound of the future is almost here: Fortnite Festival Season 7 begins with v33.20 on January 14 and comes to a close on April 8, 2025.

Meet on the Main Stage in Local Multiplayer

Fortnite Festival Local Multiplayer

The launch of Festival Season 7 comes with a new local multiplayer feature on PlayStation and Xbox! In a local play session of Festival Main Stage, up to four players can play together on the same console. All of the players need to party up in the Lobby then enter the Festival Main Stage together.

Each local player must be signed in with both an active Epic Games account and platform account to use this feature. (Players cannot play using platform guest accounts.) The Epic Games account you’re signed into must allow T-rated experiences. Get the band back together!

May Your Digital Dreams Come True in the Season 7 Music Pass

Fortnite Festival Season 7 Music Pass

As mentioned previously, the Music Pass is now a single track of free and premium rewards. This is part of the new unified progression system where you can progress all Passes in Fortnite by earning XP in any experience you want to play! Check out the Progress Your Fortnite Passes by Playing Any Experience blog post for a recap.

Free Rewards

Fortnite Shatter Sonic Guitar

Deliver the perfect fusion of style and tone with the Shatter Sonic Guitar, the final free reward in the Music Pass. The Pass also includes four Jam Tracks as free rewards, including two tracks from Harmonix’s Dropmix and FUSER and a new Epic original!

Epic Games – “Cherry Cordial”
Epic Games – “Dexting”
Epic Games – “First Person”
Epic Games – “Not Without a Fight”

If you already own “Not Without a Fight” as a Lobby Track, you’ll receive a one-time V-Bucks grant equivalent to the amount you paid for it. You’ll receive the Jam Track version too 🎵

Fortnite Cherry Cordial, Dexting, First Person, and Not Without a Fight Jam Tracks

As you progress through the Music Pass, let the music light the way with the Paper Lantern Aura. Drop the bass — figuratively, not literally, because this one looks fancy — with the traditional Shamisen Electric Bass!

Fortnite Shamisen Electric Bass Guitar

The Break Emote also awaits as a free reward. Who says drummers can’t kick their feet up every once in a while?

Fortnite The Break Emote

Premium Rewards

Pick up the Music Pass for 1,400 V-Bucks — or get it through Fortnite Crew — and you’ll immediately unlock the iconic Neko Hatsune Miku Outfit. (This Outfit has a LEGO Style for LEGO experiences!) At the end of the Music Pass is Neko Hatsune Miku’s Brite Hatsune Miku Style inspired by Brite Bomber and the Fortnite Battle Royale Supply Llama.

Show the crowd what the future of music sounds like with the Neko Miku Keytar and light up the stage with the Neko Miku Guitar. Fancy a change of color? Be bubbly in purple instead of pink with the unlockable Miku Brite Style of the Neko Miku Keytar!

Fortnite Neko Miku Keytar, Neko Miku Guitar, and Miku Brite Style

Hatsune Miku’s performed at some of the biggest musical festivals in the world, and now her most iconic tunes are coming to the Fortnite Festival. Unlock the M@GICAL☆CURE! LOVE ♥ SHOT! Jam Track feat. Hatsune Miku by SAWTOWNE near the end of the Pass.

Fortnite Magical Cure Love Shot Jam Track

You’ll also find these anthems from other artists waiting for you as Jam Tracks:

Britney Spears – “Work Work”
Cake – “Short Skirt/Long Jacket”
Jennifer Lopez – “Love Don’t Cost A Thing”

Please note! 🎵 The Music Pass rewards are not exclusive to the Pass, as they may become purchasable in the Shop at a later date.

New Battle Stage Modes!

Fortnite Festival Season 7 Battle Stage

The Battle Stage is getting four new modes that test your expertise on specific song parts — allowing players to compete on a more even playing field:

Lead Only – Only the Lead and Pro Lead parts are available.
Drums Only – Only the Drums part is available.
Vocals Only – Only the Vocals part is available.
Bass Only – Only the Bass and Pro Bass parts are available.

These new modes also have scoring that’s more consistent with how song parts work on the Main Stage, so be careful not to break that 6x score multiplier on Bass or Vocals!

Equip Instruments as Pickaxes and Back Blings

Fortnite Festival Season 7 Jam Stage

Starting with v33.20, you can equip some purchased or earned Guitars, Basses, Keytars, Mics — and the drumsticks from some of your Drums — as a Pickaxe or Back Bling. Check your Locker to see which of your Instruments can be equipped in new ways!

Mesmerizing Miku Items in the Shop

Hatsune Miku Bundle

Want more Miku? Collect another Hatsune Miku Outfit with the Hatsune Miku Bundle! This bundle is packed with:

Hatsune Miku Outfit (with a LEGO Style)
Pack-sune Miku Back Bling
Miku Live Emote
Miku Miku Beam Emote
Miku Light Contrail
Hatsune’s Mic-u
Miku’s Beat Drums
“Miku” Jam Track by Anamanaguchi, Hatsune Miku

Fortnite Hatsune Miku Outfit, Pack-sune Miku Back Bling, and Miku Light Contrail

Individually in the Shop, you’ll also find the “Daisy 2.0” Jam Track by Ashnikko ft. Hatsune Miku plus the “World Is Mine” Jam Track from ryo (supercell) that also features Miku!

Hatsune Miku Cyclone Bundle

Take the show on the road with the Hatsune Miku Cyclone Bundle* including:

Cyclone Car Body (has 13 paint colors)
Miku Rider Beam Decal
Miku Rider Lite Decal
Bat Boy Decal
Flames Decal
L-ITA 99 Decal
Silver Decal
Stripes Decal
Whiteout Decal

*The Decals in the Hatsune Miku Cyclone Bundle are usable only with the Cyclone Car Body.

Fortnite Festival Content Creation

Fortnite Festival Season 7 Main Stage

Starting with Festival Season 7, monetization of VOD content featuring eligible Jam Tracks will be limited to the first seven days of the Season. No takedown notifications should occur during or after the seven days.

Beyond this initial monetization period, content creators should expect to receive monetization claims by the respective rights holders.

The eligible Jam Tracks for Season 7 are:

Ashnikko ft. Hatsune Miku – “Daisy 2.0”
Anamanaguchi, Hatsune Miku – “Miku”
ryo (supercell) ft. Hatsune Miku – “World Is Mine”

More info:

In order to monetize your Festival content, you need to link your YouTube and Support-A-Creator (SAC) accounts.
IMPORTANT: When uploading the content to YouTube, be sure to upload it as Unlisted or Public. If you upload the video as Private, it’s possible you could receive a monetization claim on your video.
For uploading the content on other platforms, refer to the channel’s platform policies for tips on how to avoid copyright strikes.

Fortnite v33.20 Datamined Content:

FORTNITE UPDATE DROPS TONIGHT AT 4 AM ET / 9 AM UTC 🔥

• HIGHLIGHTS: Hatsune Miku & Godzilla
• Leaked Original Bundles & Collabs to return
• New FREE Rewards, ICON Emotes & Cosmetics
• New Hatsune Miku Festival Season w/ 2 Skins
• Festival Instruments as Pickaxes &… pic.twitter.com/KwpIOVVSNl

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 13, 2025

GODZILLA MYTHIC MOST LIKELY COMING TOMORROW 🔥

• Fortnite Teaser: “Gear up to slay a titan, or become one!”
• In the trailer 4 players run into a portal, then 3 run away and one of them apprently turns into Godzilla

[Spotted by @W1qAnimations] pic.twitter.com/6wOq4BdZgO

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 13, 2025

Ninja’s Skin Returns right before the MASSIVE Update 🔥

NEW SHOP: https://t.co/F53x8ToIxN

Use code “HYPEX” if you’d like to support me, appreciated ❤️ #EpicPartner pic.twitter.com/2ewDUi74jX

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

HATSUNE MIKU LEGO STYLE ‼️

[VIA @FNBRNewsJP] pic.twitter.com/SbjEdHQiiR

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

HATSUNE MIKU MIC & DRUMS – The Mic & Drumkit can be used as Pickaxes according to Fortnite 🔥 pic.twitter.com/JmLhJsMPS3

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

NEW FORTNITE LOGIN SCREEN w/ MIKU & NEW MODES 🔥

[VIA @LeakPlayer & @SpushFNBR] pic.twitter.com/aKXj7baKVZ

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

THE RAIL GUN HAS BEEN NERFED & WILL RETURN THIS UPDATE ‼️

• Damage Nerfed from 90/95/99 to 85/90/95 pic.twitter.com/yuLVpozrdW

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

HATSUNE MIKU x FORTNITE SKIN 🔥 pic.twitter.com/NkRqfPw7s6

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

NEW BLUE GODZILLA!!! pic.twitter.com/YmhYPqek5p

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

BETTER LOOK AT HATSUNE MIKU NEKO & FESTIVAL REWARDS ‼️

[VIA @Layla_Leaks] pic.twitter.com/P9t9WSOhfv

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

THA ZAPATRON HAS BEEN UPDATED – POSSIBLE RETURN FOR OG VERY SOON 🔥 pic.twitter.com/H52U4eYnNX

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

BATMAN WHO LAUGHS & DEATHSTROKE RETURN SOON!! pic.twitter.com/gBpNQ1Md31

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

NEW OG EDIT STYLE FOR RENEGADE & AERIAL!! pic.twitter.com/dOtHV1TLcA

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

MIKU LIVE EMOTE ‼️

[VIA @FNBRintel] pic.twitter.com/lmUiU8pUBQ

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

BATMAN PACK RETURNS THIS UPDATE!! pic.twitter.com/AL8PwNEnCu

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

DREAMER RETURNS TO FORTNITE SOON!!! pic.twitter.com/eiGNL7dPwN

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

THE SNOW IS GONE!! pic.twitter.com/uSdkUb7VDI

— SpushFNBR (@SpushFNBR) January 14, 2025

Make sure to refresh the page; we will add more content to the article as the update goes live.

[Source: Fortnite]

Tags: Epic Games Fortnite

Damien Seeto

Home > Title Updates and Patches

Fortnite Patch 4.52 Released for v33.20 as Servers Undergo Maintenance

by Alex Co

4:05 am in Title Updates and Patches

Epic Games has rolled out the first major update for Fortnite in 2025 and this brings Hatsune Miku into the game. Before players can dive into the new content from Fortnite patch 4.52, the servers are being pulled for maintenance this January 14.

Aside from the new content from what Epic Games calls the v33.20 patch for Fortnite, we’ve also included a host of datamined content that were dug up by reliable people within the community.

When it comes to the server downtime, Fortnite’s servers will be down starting at 4 am, according to Epic, and it should take 2-3 hours before they’re back up again if past maintenance periods are anything to go by.

Fortnite’s Latest Update 4.52 Sees Hatsune Miku Introduced

Virtual Artist Hatsune Miku Beams into Fortnite Festival for Season 7!

The singing synthesizer turned global superstar is featured in more than 100,000 songs and has beamed her way onto stages around the world. Now she’s heading to the Festival stage!

The sound of the future is almost here: Fortnite Festival Season 7 begins with v33.20 on January 14 and comes to a close on April 8, 2025.

Meet on the Main Stage in Local Multiplayer

Fortnite Festival Local Multiplayer

May Your Digital Dreams Come True in the Season 7 Music Pass

Fortnite Festival Season 7 Music Pass

Free Rewards

Fortnite Shatter Sonic Guitar

Epic Games – “Cherry Cordial”
Epic Games – “Dexting”
Epic Games – “First Person”
Epic Games – “Not Without a Fight”

If you already own “Not Without a Fight” as a Lobby Track, you’ll receive a one-time V-Bucks grant equivalent to the amount you paid for it. You’ll receive the Jam Track version too 🎵

Fortnite Cherry Cordial, Dexting, First Person, and Not Without a Fight Jam Tracks

Fortnite Shamisen Electric Bass Guitar

The Break Emote also awaits as a free reward. Who says drummers can’t kick their feet up every once in a while?

Fortnite The Break Emote

Premium Rewards

Fortnite Neko Miku Keytar, Neko Miku Guitar, and Miku Brite Style

Fortnite Magical Cure Love Shot Jam Track

You’ll also find these anthems from other artists waiting for you as Jam Tracks:

Britney Spears – “Work Work”
Cake – “Short Skirt/Long Jacket”
Jennifer Lopez – “Love Don’t Cost A Thing”

Please note! 🎵 The Music Pass rewards are not exclusive to the Pass, as they may become purchasable in the Shop at a later date.

New Battle Stage Modes!

Fortnite Festival Season 7 Battle Stage

The Battle Stage is getting four new modes that test your expertise on specific song parts — allowing players to compete on a more even playing field:

Lead Only – Only the Lead and Pro Lead parts are available.
Drums Only – Only the Drums part is available.
Vocals Only – Only the Vocals part is available.
Bass Only – Only the Bass and Pro Bass parts are available.

These new modes also have scoring that’s more consistent with how song parts work on the Main Stage, so be careful not to break that 6x score multiplier on Bass or Vocals!

Equip Instruments as Pickaxes and Back Blings

Fortnite Festival Season 7 Jam Stage

Mesmerizing Miku Items in the Shop

Hatsune Miku Bundle

Want more Miku? Collect another Hatsune Miku Outfit with the Hatsune Miku Bundle! This bundle is packed with:

Hatsune Miku Outfit (with a LEGO Style)
Pack-sune Miku Back Bling
Miku Live Emote
Miku Miku Beam Emote
Miku Light Contrail
Hatsune’s Mic-u
Miku’s Beat Drums
“Miku” Jam Track by Anamanaguchi, Hatsune Miku

Fortnite Hatsune Miku Outfit, Pack-sune Miku Back Bling, and Miku Light Contrail

Individually in the Shop, you’ll also find the “Daisy 2.0” Jam Track by Ashnikko ft. Hatsune Miku plus the “World Is Mine” Jam Track from ryo (supercell) that also features Miku!

Hatsune Miku Cyclone Bundle

Take the show on the road with the Hatsune Miku Cyclone Bundle* including:

Cyclone Car Body (has 13 paint colors)
Miku Rider Beam Decal
Miku Rider Lite Decal
Bat Boy Decal
Flames Decal
L-ITA 99 Decal
Silver Decal
Stripes Decal
Whiteout Decal

*The Decals in the Hatsune Miku Cyclone Bundle are usable only with the Cyclone Car Body.

Fortnite Festival Content Creation

Fortnite Festival Season 7 Main Stage

Beyond this initial monetization period, content creators should expect to receive monetization claims by the respective rights holders.

The eligible Jam Tracks for Season 7 are:

Ashnikko ft. Hatsune Miku – “Daisy 2.0”
Anamanaguchi, Hatsune Miku – “Miku”
ryo (supercell) ft. Hatsune Miku – “World Is Mine”

More info:

In order to monetize your Festival content, you need to link your YouTube and Support-A-Creator (SAC) accounts.
IMPORTANT: When uploading the content to YouTube, be sure to upload it as Unlisted or Public. If you upload the video as Private, it’s possible you could receive a monetization claim on your video.
For uploading the content on other platforms, refer to the channel’s platform policies for tips on how to avoid copyright strikes.

Fortnite v33.20 Datamined Content:

FORTNITE UPDATE DROPS TONIGHT AT 4 AM ET / 9 AM UTC 🔥

• HIGHLIGHTS: Hatsune Miku & Godzilla
• Leaked Original Bundles & Collabs to return
• New FREE Rewards, ICON Emotes & Cosmetics
• New Hatsune Miku Festival Season w/ 2 Skins
• Festival Instruments as Pickaxes &… pic.twitter.com/KwpIOVVSNl

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 13, 2025

GODZILLA MYTHIC MOST LIKELY COMING TOMORROW 🔥

• Fortnite Teaser: “Gear up to slay a titan, or become one!”
• In the trailer 4 players run into a portal, then 3 run away and one of them apprently turns into Godzilla

[Spotted by @W1qAnimations] pic.twitter.com/6wOq4BdZgO

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 13, 2025

Ninja’s Skin Returns right before the MASSIVE Update 🔥

NEW SHOP: https://t.co/F53x8ToIxN

Use code “HYPEX” if you’d like to support me, appreciated ❤️ #EpicPartner pic.twitter.com/2ewDUi74jX

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

HATSUNE MIKU LEGO STYLE ‼️

[VIA @FNBRNewsJP] pic.twitter.com/SbjEdHQiiR

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

HATSUNE MIKU MIC & DRUMS – The Mic & Drumkit can be used as Pickaxes according to Fortnite 🔥 pic.twitter.com/JmLhJsMPS3

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

NEW FORTNITE LOGIN SCREEN w/ MIKU & NEW MODES 🔥

[VIA @LeakPlayer & @SpushFNBR] pic.twitter.com/aKXj7baKVZ

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

THE RAIL GUN HAS BEEN NERFED & WILL RETURN THIS UPDATE ‼️

• Damage Nerfed from 90/95/99 to 85/90/95 pic.twitter.com/yuLVpozrdW

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

HATSUNE MIKU x FORTNITE SKIN 🔥 pic.twitter.com/NkRqfPw7s6

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

NEW BLUE GODZILLA!!! pic.twitter.com/YmhYPqek5p

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

BETTER LOOK AT HATSUNE MIKU NEKO & FESTIVAL REWARDS ‼️

[VIA @Layla_Leaks] pic.twitter.com/P9t9WSOhfv

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

THA ZAPATRON HAS BEEN UPDATED – POSSIBLE RETURN FOR OG VERY SOON 🔥 pic.twitter.com/H52U4eYnNX

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

BATMAN WHO LAUGHS & DEATHSTROKE RETURN SOON!! pic.twitter.com/gBpNQ1Md31

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

NEW OG EDIT STYLE FOR RENEGADE & AERIAL!! pic.twitter.com/dOtHV1TLcA

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

MIKU LIVE EMOTE ‼️

[VIA @FNBRintel] pic.twitter.com/lmUiU8pUBQ

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

BATMAN PACK RETURNS THIS UPDATE!! pic.twitter.com/AL8PwNEnCu

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

DREAMER RETURNS TO FORTNITE SOON!!! pic.twitter.com/eiGNL7dPwN

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) January 14, 2025

THE SNOW IS GONE!! pic.twitter.com/uSdkUb7VDI

— SpushFNBR (@SpushFNBR) January 14, 2025

Don’t be surprised to see a smaller patch be released for fixes. If that happens, we’ll be sure to let our readers know.

Tags: Fortnite

Alex Co

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

Home > Title Updates and Patches

Metaphor ReFantazio Update 1.11 Applies Quality-of-Life Features and Fixes

by Alex Co

1:59 am in Title Updates and Patches

[summaraize]

Atlus has released the first-ever patch for Metaphor ReFantazio this 2025. Players can now download Metaphor ReFantazio update 1.11 on all platforms, as this patch includes specific changes to PC. Those on PS5/Xbox Series X|S. this patch should show up as version 1.011 and include the same list oc changes.

Players can expect various quality-of-life additions to be part of the title update. Possibly the biggest addition is players can now use the main menu and equip screen to change lineups and swap party members.

Metaphor ReFantazio Gets a New Wave of Bug Fixes in January 2025

Here’s what’s new as translated by DeepL given Atlus has only released the Japanese changelog so far.

Platform/Version

Xbox Series X|S Version 1.112.0
PlayStation®5 Version 1.11
PlayStation®4 Version 1.11
Windows 1.0.112.0Steam 1.0.11.0

Fixes

Common to all platforms

The main menu and EQUIP screen can now be used to change lineups and swap party members.
Cursor category jump operation has been added at specific locations in the main menu and ITEM screen.
Fixed a bug that caused the game to become inoperable when certain operations were performed in the main menu.
Other minor fixes

Common to both Windows and Steam versions

Analog stick controls for the character and cursor have been adjusted.
Fixed a bug that slowed down the camera movement when using the mouse in some cases.
Fixed an issue where the frame rate was fixed for certain operations.
Fixed a bug in which certain operations would cause the player to lose progress during command battles.
Fixed a bug in which certain operations in Magura’s Hole would cause the game to become inoperable.
Fixed a bug in which controller input would not be accepted under certain conditions in Windows 11.

That’s about it for this title update. If you’re curious what we thought of the RPG, head on here for our review.

Tags: Metaphor: ReFantazio

Alex Co

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

Home > News

Hyper Light Breaker Early Access Launch Trailer Gives a Look at What’s Coming Tomorrow

by James Lara

January 13, 2025 7:58 pm in News

[summaraize]

In case you missed the news, Hyper Light Breaker early access is launching tomorrow on Steam! To celebrate, Heart Machine has released a new launch trailer showing some of the content players can play when the game launches.

Hyper Light Breaker Early Access Looks Loaded With Action

Starting tomorrow, fans of the Hyper Light games will finally get to see the next chapter in the series as Hyper Light Breaker will officially kick off its early access. To help you get the hype up and give you a glimpse into what’s dropping with it, here’s the official launch trailer!

Alx Preston, Heart Machine Founder and Creative Director. also shared a statement about the launch, expressing how thrilled the team is that they managed to reach this point and excited to see how the community grows and shapes the future of the game.

“The time has come for everyone to play Hyper Light Breaker in Early Access and enter the Overgrowth for the very first time,”“After all the twists and turns of the past couple of years, this is such a major and just incredible moment for all of us at Heart Machine – and we’d like to thank our fantastic community, friends and colleagues for the loving support to get us to this point. But things don’t stop here, we’d love for as many players as possible to jump in the game and share their feedback with us! Player feedback is incredibly important to us, so we’re really looking forward to working with the community to continue to evolve Hyper Light Breaker throughout Early Access to make it the best it can be before we bring it into 1.0.”

Hyper Light Breaker Key Features:

EVER-CHANGING WORLDS TO EXPLORE

A world in disarray, with mysteries to solve, vicious enemies to fight, and fully 3D environments to explore
A vast, ever-changing world awaits with large scale open biomes and deep labyrinths
Worlds are procedurally generated with unique layouts, enemies, loot and rewards leading to multiple playthroughs.
Traverse landscapes with incredible freedom with a variety of abilities; wall-dashing, hoverboard, glider and more

JOIN THE BREAKERS

Battle through the Overgrowth alone or as a team in online co-operative play
Face hordes of enemies and brutal bosses in frenetic third-person combat
Rise to the increasing challenges stacking through every run

EXPLORE, COLLECT AND DESTROY

Discover and unlock a wide arsenal of weapons, items and upgrades to create the ideal build for new runs
Learn more about the Overgrowth from the fragmented memories of its mysterious defenders, the Crowns
Bring back resources to help the settlement flourish over the course of your journey

Early access is only but a step in the road to the 1.0 release, and though there’s plenty of content to experience, be that alone, or with a group of friends, Heart Machine has promised a lot more is coming with a planned roadmap set to be revealed in the coming weeks. The roadmap will detail the first major drop, along with its release timing.

Hyper Light Breaker Early Access will be available on Steam starting tomorrow. For a limited time (1/14-1/28) for those who purchase early access, you’ll also be given a copy of Hyper Light Drifter.

Tags: Hyper Light Hyper Light Breaker

James Lara

Home > News

The Blood of Dawnwalker Cinematic Trailer and First Gameplay Teaser Impresses

by James Lara

5:18 pm in News

[summaraize]

Last month, Rebel Wolves, the studio comprised of former CD Projekt RED staff, announced that they would be debuting their first game, The Blood of Dawnwalker, this month. That time is today, and not only did we get a cool-looking CGI trailer, but there’s even some snippets of gameplay as well.

The presentation was livestreamed on Twitch, but we know you want to see what kind of game this is. The CGI trailer brings the vibe, and the super-short gameplay teaser looks fantastic.

The Blood of the Dawnwalker Impresses in First Trailer

Per Rebel Wolves, the game’s story synopsis is as follows: “You play as Coen, a young man turned into a #Dawnwalker, forever treading the line between the world of day and the realm of night. Use your skills and combine vampiric strength with human resolve as you take on a quest to save the ones you love. Face your foes – be they human, monster, or the ticking clock itself. But remember – the real evil may bask in the sun’s light, and the most loyal of allies could lurk under the cover of night.”

No release date is set for this yet, but it is planned for PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. Rebel Wolves calls this the first chapter of their single-player open-world dark fantasy action-RPG.

Based on what we’ve seen today, we cannot wait to see more of what the studio has cooking.

Tags: Rebel Wolves The Blood of Dawnwalker

James Lara

Home > News

Exodus Devs Wanted to Create a Civilization That Was “Just Evil;” In-Game Journeys Can Last Decades Affecting Relationships

by Alex Co

2:51 pm in News

[summaraize]

In case you didn’t know, former BioWare devs formed a new studio called Archetype Entertainment, and their latest project is a sci-fi action-RPG that looks epic in scale titled “Exodus.” Sounds familiar, right? However, major differences between Exodus and the Mass Effect franchise are slowly coming to light.

In the studio’s latest Development Update Q&A, the studio’s founders James Ohlen (Creative Director), and Chad Robertson (Executive Producer) have shared details on the game’s story and mechanics.

Exodus’ Journeys Will Affect In-Game Relationships

According to Archetype Games, in Exodus, players will have a major hub called Persepolis, which will be your take-off point for Exodus Journeys. When players leave the hub, an Exodus Journey can take decades to complete (in-game time, obviously) and when a player returns, their relationships will be different given the time difference.

Ohlen shares, “You go off on your Exodus Journeys and you leave behind your city and some of your friends and maybe even family members, and you make choices about them.”

One example given was, “Not everyone has to come on an Exodus with you. You might leave some behind and when you come back it could be a decade later, it could be four decades later, and those choices will have impacted your relationships with people that are now a decade older or three or four decades older.”

While Mass Effect featured a lot of intergalactic travel, it didn’t exactly take decades to explore a planet, city or any area you’re in. This new mechanics by Archetype seems like something that would be interesting in concept.

Exodus’ Villains Will Be Celestial Evil Beings

Continuing with the Q&A, Archetype talked about the reveal trailer’s villains called the Mara Yama and how creepy they are. According to Robertson, “They’re quite creepy and we did want a Celestial civilization that was just evil.”

Well, they certainly look the part. If you’re unfamiliar with the game, I suggest checking out the gameplay trailer, which should make you a believer.

There is no release date for Exodus just yet, but it is confirmed to be coming to the PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.

Tags: Archetype Entertainment Exodus

Alex Co

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

Home > News

Nvidia CEO Defends RTX 5090’s High Price, Says ‘Gamers Won’t Save $100 by Choosing Something a Bit Worse’

by Taha

1:25 pm in News

[summaraize]

Nvidia has moved beyond just making graphics cards for gaming and is now a big name in AI technology. Still, gaming remains a key focus for them, with features like DLSS showing how AI improves gaming experiences. At CES, Nvidia revealed its new 5000 series, including the RTX 5090, which has caused a lot of discussion because of its high price.

The tech giant revealed the staggering price of the RTX 5090, and it’s a whopping $2,000! Yes, you read that right.

Jensen Huang Defends RTX 5090’s High Price

The RTX 5090’s price pint of $2,000 is double the cost of the RTX 5080. In an interview, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang explained, “Once someone wants the best product, they will always choose the best. You know, the market isn’t so segmented. And our enthusiasts, if they want the best, they won’t settle for something slightly better or save $100 by choosing something a bit worse. They just want the best.”

Huang admitted the price is high but said it is aimed at users who already spend a lot on high-end PC parts, sound systems, and monitors. Nvidia also pointed out the 5000 series’ standout feature: an eightfold boost in performance for rendering, thanks to Multi Frame Generation Technology.

He said, “Ofcourse, $2,000 is not a small amount, and it’s certainly a high value. But keep in mind that this technology is being used in your home theater-level PC setup. And that PC—where you’ve probably already invested around $10,000 in your monitor and sound system—will definitely need the best GPU. So many of our customers are simply after the absolute best.”

The RTX 5090, built on Blackwell architecture, comes with 32GB of GDDR7 memory, twice the bandwidth of the 5080, over 21,000 CUDA cores, and 92 billion transistors. The prices in the series start at $549 for the 5070, $749 for the 5070 Ti, $999 for the 5080, and $1999 for the 5090.

Huang said the price reflects the RTX 5090’s powerful features and that it’s designed for users who want the very best. He also seemed confident that the price is justified given the advanced and unique features of the card.

Tags: Jensen Huang NVIDIA Nvidia GeForce RTX 5000 Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 rtx 5090

Taha

Television kills your vision.

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COD: Black Ops 6 & Warzone New Update 1.066 Fixes Loading Screen Crash, But Breaks Matchmaking

by Alex Co

1:02 pm in Title Updates and Patches

[summaraize]

Treyarch has pushed out (Call of Duty) COD: Black Ops 6 and Warzone new update 1.066 on all platforms. While this aims to fix the loading screen issue and other bugs, it also caused problems with matchmaking.

Players who are having issues connecting or finding matches, it’s not just you, as gamers on all platforms are experiencing this after applying today’s patch.

Call of Duty’s New Update Version 1.066 Fixes the Loading Screen Freezing and Crashing

BUG FIXES

Fixed an issue where loading screens were causing instances of freezing or crashing.
Fixed an issue with bullet trajectory on the AMR Mod 4.
Fixed an issue in Resurgence where a player dying out of bounds would lose functionality of their field upgrades and killstreaks.
Fixed an issue where models weren’t visible for ammo boxes, self revives, and throwing knives.
Fixed an issue where players would not have a death icon when dying to Red Light Green Light.

While the bug fixes are welcome, what’s not is the connection issues that are affecting gamers once the patch is installed.

Black Ops 6 and Warzone’s Latest Patch Is Causing Matchmaking Issues

Multiple players are have reported on how after applying today’s patch, players are now stuck in matchmaking queue purgatory.

Another bricked update.
byu/Head-Inspector-9487 inblackops6

Trouble finding a match in ranked after last update
byu/RustCohle2012 inblackops6

Activision has acknowledged the issue, though only said that players might be seeing “longer than usual” matchmaking times due to the update.

📢 #BlackOps6 #Warzone

As we roll out the current update, players may temporarily notice longer than usual matchmaking times.

— Call of Duty Updates (@CODUpdates) January 13, 2025

If the servers take a turn for the worse, or they’re fixed, we’ll let our readers know. Hopefully, this is the last issue players will face with the game with today’s patch. If Activision releases another statement about the update, we’ll let our readers know.

Tags: Call of Duty Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Call of Duty: Warzone

Alex Co

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

Home > Title Updates and Patches

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Update 1.66 Released, Breaks Matchmaking for Players

by Alex Co

12:42 pm in Title Updates and Patches

[summaraize]

It’s not easy to be a Call of Duty fan these days, and that issue seems to have been exacerbated even more today. Treyarch released Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 update 1.66 on all platforms this January 13, 2025, and while it’s aimed to fix an issue, it seems to have brought in a rather literal game-breaking one.

If you can’t connect to a match, the servers aren’t really down, but rather, the update seems to have caused issues with Black Ops 6 (and Warzone’s) matchmaking.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and Warzone Matchmaking Stuck in Queue After Applying Update 1.66

Update: The complete patch notes are available below.

BUG FIXES

Fixed an issue where loading screens were causing instances of freezing or crashing.
Fixed an issue with bullet trajectory on the AMR Mod 4.
Fixed an issue in Resurgence where a player dying out of bounds would lose functionality of their field upgrades and killstreaks.
Fixed an issue where models weren’t visible for ammo boxes, self revives, and throwing knives.
Fixed an issue where players would not have a death icon when dying to Red Light Green Light.

Multiple players are have reported on how after applying today’s patch, players are now stuck in matchmaking queue purgatory.

Another bricked update.
byu/Head-Inspector-9487 inblackops6

Trouble finding a match in ranked after last update
byu/RustCohle2012 inblackops6

Activision has acknowledged the issue, though only said that players might be seeing “longer than usual” matchmaking times due to the update.

📢 #BlackOps6 #Warzone

As we roll out the current update, players may temporarily notice longer than usual matchmaking times.

— Call of Duty Updates (@CODUpdates) January 13, 2025

What’s worse is, there are no notes on what this update actually does. Call of Duty account Charlie Intel mentions that this patch was supposed to fix the loading crash issue, though we can’t even test it now, since, y’know, matchmaking is broken.

We’re waiting on the patch notes, and once we have them, we’ll add them to the article. The same goes for any changes to matchmaking. If things get worse or are resolved, we’ll let our readers know.

Tags: Call of Duty Call of Duty: Black Ops 6

Alex Co

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