MultiVersus new update 1.040 is available now for download on consoles and PC, and this not only introduces Beetlejuice to the roster, but a lot of character balance changes are included as well.
Patch Notes:
General
Characters
New Fighter: Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice joins the Multiverse! He is available for Gleamium and character ticket purchase starting today, and he will be available for purchase with fighter currency in 3 days on August 23, 2024.
Coming soon: All fighters will be available for play in local play game modes
Netcode Updates
Performance improved during periods of low client framerate
Server better handles periods of packet loss
Fixed handling of input delay incurred from high ping
Clients have better handling for staying in line with the server
Server input overrides will return the player to neutral quicker (should address issues where lag spikes are causing players to run off the map)
Social
Friends list is now sorted alphabetically
Rifts
The “Ghost with the Toast” PvE Rift is NOW AVAILABLE!
The Crisis in Townsville Rift has been added and will unlock later in the season:
Rift Updates
Replaced the mission “Freeze an opponent” with the mission “Hit an enemy with 5 dash attacks” on Node 4a in the Upgrade War Rift
Fixed issue with Treasure Missions not processing correctly
Fixed issues with Bonus Nodes playing incorrect ambient audio
Removed yellow text from the Quiet Mind Gem effect – the bonus does not change with gem level
Fixed camera being too close to players while playing CoOp in Target Break and Adventure style levels
Rift Combat Updates
Bots are now more likely to pick up and throw items
Rift Buddy Bubble movement changed to better work with Dexter’s Lab map
Rift Jump Pads now launch players higher.
Rift Electric Fences now have a warning phase before damaging shock is active.
Rift Fireballs no longer apply stacks of ignite on contact
Maps
Teen Titans Tower Map has been added to the game!
Variants:
Teen Titans Tower
Teen Titans Tower (1v1)
Teen Titans Tower 2
General
All maps’ upper blast zone grace area has been extended 50%. This should help prevent players from accidentally jumping into a ring out while trying to escape a combo.
Throne Room (1v1)
Walls are no longer there at the start of the match.
No longer has wall and floor transition.
Now available in Ranked 1v1 map pool.
Tree Fort 2
Removed bounce pad trees.
Water Tower
Center fall-through platform and door hazard raised on all variants to address bad interactions with certain projectiles.
Main variant and 1v1 variant added back to their respective Ranked map pools
Ranked Mode Changes
Grandmaster rank returns to Multiversus! Players with a character RP in the top 100 highest RP across all characters will qualify for the Grandmaster tier. Players that finish the season in Grandmaster tier will earn a special banner.
There is a new leaderboard that shows the players that have reached the Master’s tier with the most characters. Show the world that you’re not just a character specialist by placing as many characters into the Master’s tier as you can!
Players can now choose to concede a ranked match in between games in the best-of-3
Players can now be immediately promoted out of Bronze and Silver if they win a game with a high MMR
There is now less difference in RP rewards between Gold V and Platinum V
Potential RP loss per game is now capped at all tiers. Silver and Gold players can no longer lose more than 1 game worth of RP for a loss.
Grandmaster rewards:
Combat Changes
We’re making a myriad of general combat changes in an attempt to reward more offensive gameplay. These changes affect all fighters universally, but any additional character-specific changes will be listed in the character patch notes.
Dodge Cancels
Dodge Attacks now cost only 2 units of dodge meter, down from 3 units
Dodge Attacks and Dodge Jumps now play a special visual effect to help with clarity for all players
Receiving a hit after a Dodge Cancel where the initial Dodge avoided an attack will now remove the “DODGED” text pop-up
Dodge Jump cancel window while dodge meter is empty (fatigued) delayed 18 frames; now matches fatigued Dodge Attack cancel window
Dodge Lands
Fixed an issue where fighters could sometimes dodge into the ground without Dodge Landing
Fighters now have more movement control on the ground during a dodge land
Forward Dodge Lands can now carry fighter momentum off the ledge of the main platform
Dodge Fatigue (Empty Dodge Meter)
Base dodge fatigue time increased to 10 seconds from 8 seconds
Wall Cling & Wall Fatigue
Fighters will reach maximum wall fatigue after spending 5 seconds on a wall, down from 8.5 seconds.
Fighters will begin to slide faster on a wall after 2 consecutive wall clings, down from 4.
Fighters will reach maximum wall fatigue after 8 consecutive wall clings, down from 12.
Fighters will no longer refresh their air dodges or air specials if they wall cling at maximum wall fatigue
Fighters losing dodge meter from maximum wall fatigue can no longer gain any dodge meter until the fighters land on solid ground.
*NEW* Priority Hitboxes
Certain attacks can now be classified as “low priority” hitboxes. Low priority attacks cannot trade with normal attacks. If a low priority attack connects with an enemy on the same frame the attacker is hit with a normal attack, the low priority attack will be ignored. Character-specific low priority attacks will be listed in the character patch notes.
All ground side attack combo hits (besides the finisher attack) are now considered low priority attacks.
Terrain Bounces
No longer affected by attack decay
Knockback reduced
*NEW* Automatic Ground Teching
When a fighter is the victim of a combo that includes a terrain bounce, if they are floor bounced again in the same combo they will instead perform an automatic tech. An automatic tech breaks the combo by stopping the fighter on the ground and returning them to an idle pose with invincibility frames. If the fighter holds left/right during the tech, they will move a short distance in that direction while retaining fewer invincibility frames. The automatic tech will not occur if the floor bounce happens too soon after the first terrain bounce.
This will allow us to add more power into ground bounce combos without fear of accidentally introducing infinite loops in the future.
General Bugfixes
Fixed an issue where end-of-game and mission damage dealt stats were inaccurate.
Fixed an issue where certain attacks would trade incorrectly.
Fixed an issue where fighters could perform certain actions while rung out
General Perks
Clear The Air
Reflecting a projectile now increases the projectile’s speed 25%
* Fixed an issue where the agent clone would remain idle if Smith was hit on the same frame he summoned the clone
* Fixed an issue where the agent clone would whiff grab if it hit enemies in certain positions
* Fixed an issue where the agent clone would hit enemies that were above the clone’s head
* Fixed an issue where the agent clone would not turn around at ledges.
Arya
General
– Head hurtbox size increased; will fix certain projectiles whiffing versus Arya on the ground
Dodge Land
* Fixed Arya’s neutral dodge playing the wrong animation
Ground Neutral Attack
– Hitbox active duration reduced 2 frames
+ Forward movement speed increased slightly; distance unchanged
Air Side Attack
– Charge knockback multiplier reduced to 1.25 from 1.6
Air Down Attack
– Repeat-move lockout increased to 20 frames from 8 frames
Air/Ground Up Special
– Repeat-move lockout increased to 20 frames from 15 frames
Banana Guard
We felt like Banana Guard could use more combo starter approach options so we’re making adjustments on Air Neutral Attack to serve that purpose.
Air Neutral Attack
+ On-hit cancel window advanced 4 frames
Ground Down Special
+ On-hit cancel window advanced 18 frames (after second hit)
Batman
We are trying to make the Air Down Special (“Crashing Justice” dive kick) less centralizing and more challengeable. We’re beginning to evaluate how to make Batman feel more dynamic in an upcoming patch.
Air/Ground Neutral Attack
~ Batarang will only attempt to home in towards Batman for a maximum of 3 seconds.
~ Batarang will be destroyed if Batman is still the owner of the Batarang when he is rung out
~ Batarang will be destroyed if Batman is still the owner of the Batarang when he attempts to spawn a new one
Air Down Special
– Start-up window increased 6 frames
– Leg hurtbox size increased
– Hitbox size reduced
Black Adam
General
– Weight reduced to 75 from 85
Bugs Bunny
Air Side Attack
– Hitbox size reduced so it is less likely for Bugs to hit enemies behind him
Air Side Special
~ Rocket is considered an “untechable” surface
~ Knockback made more horizontal
Air/Ground Up Special
~ Rocket is considered an “untechable” surface
Air/Ground Down Special
* Fixed an issue where the tunneling visual effects were not displaying while Bugs was underground
Finn
Finn is living up to his ideal as a speedy, combo-heavy assassin a little too well right now with his ability to carry opponents across the stage resulting in very low damage ring outs. We want to promote a little more offense from Finn by reducing his ability to charge his attacks for extended periods of time, while also making his combo game a little easier to deal with.
Ground Neutral Attack
– Maximum charge time reduced to 1.5 seconds from 4.0 seconds
– On-whiff cancel window delayed 4 frames
Ground Side Attack 1
– Maximum charge time reduced to 1.5 seconds from 4.0 seconds
– On-whiff cancel window delayed 6 frames
Ground Up Attack
– Maximum charge time reduced to 1.5 seconds from 4.0 seconds
– On-whiff cancel window delayed 6 frames
Ground Down Attack
– Maximum charge time reduced to 1.5 seconds from 4.0 seconds
Air Neutral Attack
– No longer launches Finn forward on-hit; cooldown removed
Air/Ground Neutral Special
– Maximum charge time reduced to 1.25 seconds from 4.0 seconds
Ground Down Special
+ Boots of Speed buff duration increased to 25 seconds from 10 seconds
Garnet
Ground Side Attack 2 (Side)
+ Now applies armor on start-up
Ground Neutral Attack
+ Hitbox size increased to better match visuals
+ Hitbox active duration increased 4 frames to better match visuals
Air Neutral Attack
+ Start-up window before charge reduced 3 frames
Air Up Attack
– First hit hitbox size reduced to better match visuals
Gizmo
General
– Head hurtbox size increased; will fix certain projectiles whiffing versus Gizmo on the ground
Air/Ground Neutral Attack
– Added maximum charge time of 1.9 seconds
Air/Ground Neutral Special
* Fixed an issue where holding the neutral special bind would not continue the attack
Air/Ground Up Special
– On-hit cancel window delayed 3 frames
– Knockback angle made more horizontal
+ Knockback increased to 1750 from 1500
Harley Quinn
Dash Attack
+ Made hits more consistent and the multiple hits to drop less
Ground Down Attack
* Fixed an issue where Harley could cancel the second kick on-hit by taunting
Air Up Special
– Hitbox size reduced; ground version unchanged – hitbox now better matches visuals
Iron Giant
Air Side Attack
* No-fuel knockback reduced to 2050 from 2595 – This fixes an issue where the no-fuel version had higher knockback than the fueled version of the attack
Rage Mode Ground Down Attack
– Repeat-move lockout increased to 24 frames from 17 frames
Jake
Jake has been underperforming for a while due to the over-centralizing strength of his Bite neutral special. We are looking to evaluate some quality-of-life buffs for a future patch to make his strategy less Bite-dependent.
General
* Fixed an issue where Jake’s neutral dodges were not playing their ending animations
Air Down Attack
~ A floor bounce incurred from the first hit of this attack will not count towards the automatic tech bounce threshold
Air/Ground Neutral Special
– Armor duration from eating an ally reduced to 1.5 seconds from 4.0 seconds
~ Eating an ally now interrupts their current action
Jason
Ground Up Attack
~ First hit prevents terrain bounce on knockback; final hit unchanged
Ground Down Attack
* Fixed an issue where using this attack could ring out Jason if the ground was broken during the attack
Air Neutral Special
+ Now has armor during attack start-up
“Resurrectionist” Perk
* Fixed an issue where Jason would get rung out even while Resurrectionist was active, causing a double ringout
LeBron
Congratulations to LeBron James on winning Gold! In celebration we’ve given LeBron some buffs, but only because he won. Our new Auto-Tech system allows us to prevent an infinite loop that was occuring due to being able to repeatedly ground-bounce opponents so we’re reverting the change to Air Down Special from the last hotfix patch.
Ground Side Attack 1
+ Now more consistently combos into ground side attack 2
Air/Ground Side Special
+ Land cancel window advanced 4 frames
Air Down Special
+ Start-up window reduced 5 frames; this is a revert from patch 1.2.1
Marvin
General
~ Marvin’s role is now Mage instead of Assassin
– Head hurtbox size increased; will fix certain projectiles whiffing versus Marvin on the ground
Morty
General
~ Morty’s role is now Mage instead of Bruiser
Air Up Attack
– On-hit cancel window delayed 4 frames
– On-whiff cancel window delayed 8 frames
Air Down Attack
+ Hitbox size increased to better match visuals
Reindog
Air/Ground Down Special
* Fixed an issue where Reindog fireball had no hurtbox – this will fix issues with reflection and projectile clank interactions
Rick
Rick has become very frustrating for opponents due to the large size of his jab and how often players use the move in neutral. We want to reduce the strength of his jab while also giving him better combo tools across his kit to increase diversity in his moveset.
General
* Fixed an issue where Rick could not use Instant Air Dodge Cancel to use aerial specials near the ground
Ground Side Attack 1
– Start-up window before charge increased 4 frames
– Hitbox size reduced
– On-whiff cancel window delayed 10 frames
Ground Side Attack 2
+ On-hit cancel window into side attack 3 advanced 1 frame
Ground Side Attack 3
+ Start-up window before charged reduced 1 frame
– Cancel window delayed 1 frame
+ Rocket spawn time advanced 2 frames
+ Rocket base speed increased to 3000 from 2000
+ Rocket base damage increased to 6 from 5
+ Rocket knockback increased to 1600 from 1200
+ Rocket knockback scaling increased to 22 from 19
Ground Up Attack
+ First hit now more consistently combos into second hit
Ground Down Attack
+ Bomb spawn time advanced 1 frame
+ Bomb maximum detonation delay reduced to .35 seconds from .5 seconds
Air/Ground Neutral Attack
* Fixed an issue where charged and uncharged lasers were not properly handling projectile interactions
Air Side Attack
– On-hit general cancel window delayed 6 frames; on-hit cancel window into side special unchanged
~ Now ignores player collisions during movement
Air Up Attack
+ Charge damage multiplier increased to 1.75 from 1.2
+ More upwards momentum is maintained on start-up
Air Down Attack
+ Hitbox active duration increased 2 frames; now better matches visuals
+ Hitbox size increased; now better matches visuals
Ground Neutral Special
+ Meeseeks command window advanced 3 frames
+ Up Meeseeks hitbox size increased
Air Neutral Special
– Hitbox size reduced
+ Hitstun increased
~ Now ignores player collisions during movement
Air/Ground Side Special
* Fixed an issue where fighters could dodge out of portal travel
Air Up Special
– Reduced backwards horizontal momentum during launch
* Fixed an issue where using up special near a wall would not launch Rick upwards
Air/Ground Down Special
~ Polymorph debuff now shows a timer icon for remaining duration
Samurai Jack
Samurai Jack was released as an incredibly popular new fighter, and players immediately found success with his strong side special and quick Focus Meter gain. We’re hoping to tone down his side special as a “do everything” attack and also reduce the number of times players can use his super strong Focus Meter attacks in a single game. This should bring him more in line with the rest of the cast.
General
* Fixed an issue where Jack was rotated perpendicular to terrain when terrain bouncing
* Fixed issue where Jack’s dance animation wouldn’t play when affected by Gizmo’s “Rhythm’s Gonna Getcha” perk
Passive
– Focus meter gain from hitting enemies reduced 30%
– Focus meter gain from receiving hits reduced 25%
Ground Side Attack 1
– Hitbox size reduced
Ground Side Attack 2
– Hitbox size reduced so it is less likely for Jack to hit enemies behind him
Ground Side Attack 3
– Hitbox size reduced so it is less likely for Jack to hit enemies behind him
Air Up Attack
– Repeat-move lockout increased to 15 frames from 12 frames
Air Neutral Special
– Removed armor applied on start-up; rage version unchanged
– No longer allows changing the throw direction after a successful grab
Air/Ground Side Special
– On-whiff cancel window delayed 3 frames
– Hitbox size reduced so it is less likely for Jack to hit enemies behind him on start-up
Focus Air/Ground Side Special
– On-whiff cancel window delayed 8 frames
– Hitbox size reduced to better match non-focus side special
– Attack will now only transition to multiple slashes if the first attack hits an enemy
“Shadow Step” Perk
* Fixed an issue where Jack would sometimes move behind his enemy and whiff his counter attack
Shaggy
Air/Ground Neutral Special
– Rage duration reduced to 12 seconds from 25 seconds
Rage Air/Ground Side Special
– No longer breaks armor
Rage Air/Ground Up Special
– No longer breaks armor
Rage Ground Down Special
– No longer breaks armor
* Fixed an issue where the shockwave could get stuck traveling between identical terrains
Rage Air Down Special
– No longer breaks armor
* Fixed an issue where the shockwave could get stuck traveling between identical terrains
Steven Universe
General
– Enemies can now knock back Steven to reduce stacks of bubble debuff
Air Side Attack
– Hitbox size reduced; now better matches visuals
Air/Ground Side Special
~ Shield is considered an “untechable” surface
Air/Ground Up Special
~ Shield is considered an “untechable” surface
Air Down Special
– Start-up window increased 6 frames
– Fall acceleration reduced slightly
– Hitbox active duration after landing reduced 6 frames
– Air on-hit cancel window delayed 2 frames
Stripe
Air/Ground Down Special
+ Base cooldown removed
+ Ammo cooldown reduced to 12.5 seconds from 15 seconds
Taz
General
~ Taz’s role is now Assassin instead of Bruiser
Air/Ground Neutral Special
* Fixed an issue where Taz could become permanently stuck if hit while eating certain projectiles
The Joker
Ground Side Attack 1
– Hitbox size reduced; visuals updated to match
Air/Ground Up Special
* Fixed an issue where The Joker could sometimes not ride his balloon immediately on spawn
Velma
Velma can be oppressive as a projectile zoner, but still lacks the tools to complete her combos when she gets into melee range. We are limiting the strength of her projectile tools while increasing the strength of her close-range attacks to give her a better punish-game when she finds her moment to strike. We have also given her a new attack in the form of an on-cooldown down special that she can use to start combos at close range.
Dodge Land
* Fixed an issue where Velma was unable to Dodge Land
Ground Side Attack 1
+ Start-up window reduced 2 frames
– On-whiff cancel window delayed 3 frames
Ground Side Attack 2
+ Hitstun increased
Ground Up Attack
+ Hitbox added to Velma’s chest; should help with hitting smaller characters more consistently
Ground Down Attack
+ Start-up window reduced 2 frames
– On-whiff cancel window advanced 8 frames
Air Side Attack
+ Uncharged damage increased to 9 from 8
– Uncharged knockback reduced to 1300 from 1450
+ Uncharged knockback scaling increased to 18 from 12.5
– Maximum charge knockback multiplier reduced to 1.15 from 1.5
~ Visuals now better match hitbox
Air/Ground Neutral Special
– Homing speech bubbles now stop homing if the target enemy dodges the speech bubble
– “Sass” speech bubble maximum lifetime reduced to 2.5 seconds from infinite
~ “Sass” speech bubble knockback angle made more horizontal and backwards towards Velma
– Ally-empowered “Toodles” speech bubble maximum lifetime reduced to 8 seconds from 10 seconds
* Fixed an issue where the ally-empowered “Toodles” speech bubble could home towards Mojo Jojo on the Townsville map
* Fixed an issue where speech bubbles would home towards certain characters’ feet rather than their midpoint
Ground Down Special (Mystery Machine)
– Mystery Machine capture hitbox is now low priority
+ Can now re-hit enemies that have dodged the capture hitbox after one second
Air Side Special
~ Movement and knockback have been completely revamped. This attack now moves Velma farther and knocks back enemies into her path, allowing her to use this attack as a combo starter.
Air Up Special
+ Vertical movement increased
Air/Ground Down Special (Book)
+ Book spawn location moved closer to Velma; should prevent close-range whiffs
*NEW* Air/Ground Down Special (Cooldown)
~ Down special can now be used while on cooldown to spawn a short-range book projectile. The projectile can be used as a combo starter in air and on ground. The projectile does not grant any buffs to Velma or her allies.
Wonder Woman
Ground/Air Neutral Special
– Armor duration on hitting an ally reduced to 0.5 seconds from 2.25 seconds
Ground/Air Down Special
– Armor duration reduced to 2.25 seconds from 3.7 seconds
Beetlejuice! Beetlejuice! Beetlejuice! Say that name three times, and the ghoul with a soul will come a-knockin’! Player First Games has done just that with MultiVersus update 1.40! This is the mid-season patch for the brawler, and aside from Beetlejuice, there are Rift updates, gameplay updates and more, all listed in the official patch notes.
MultiVersus Update 1.40 Patch Notes for Mid-Season Patch 1.2.2:
General
Characters
New Fighter: Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice joins the Multiverse! He is available for Gleamium and character ticket purchase starting today, and he will be available for purchase with fighter currency in 3 days on August 23, 2024.
Coming soon: All fighters will be available for play in local play game modes
Netcode Updates
Performance improved during periods of low client framerate
Server better handles periods of packet loss
Fixed handling of input delay incurred from high ping
Clients have better handling for staying in line with the server
Server input overrides will return the player to neutral quicker (should address issues where lag spikes are causing players to run off the map)
Social
Friends list is now sorted alphabetically
Rifts
The “Ghost with the Toast” PvE Rift is NOW AVAILABLE!
The Crisis in Townsville Rift has been added and will unlock later in the season:
Rift Updates
Replaced the mission “Freeze an opponent” with the mission “Hit an enemy with 5 dash attacks” on Node 4a in the Upgrade War Rift
Fixed issue with Treasure Missions not processing correctly
Fixed issues with Bonus Nodes playing incorrect ambient audio
Removed yellow text from the Quiet Mind Gem effect – the bonus does not change with gem level
Fixed camera being too close to players while playing CoOp in Target Break and Adventure style levels
Rift Combat Updates
Bots are now more likely to pick up and throw items
Rift Buddy Bubble movement changed to better work with Dexter’s Lab map
Rift Jump Pads now launch players higher.
Rift Electric Fences now have a warning phase before damaging shock is active.
Rift Fireballs no longer apply stacks of ignite on contact
Maps
Teen Titans Tower Map has been added to the game!
Variants:
Teen Titans Tower
Teen Titans Tower (1v1)
Teen Titans Tower 2
General
All maps’ upper blast zone grace area has been extended 50%. This should help prevent players from accidentally jumping into a ring out while trying to escape a combo.
Throne Room (1v1)
Walls are no longer there at the start of the match.
No longer has wall and floor transition.
Now available in Ranked 1v1 map pool.
Tree Fort 2
Removed bounce pad trees.
Water Tower
Center fall-through platform and door hazard raised on all variants to address bad interactions with certain projectiles.
Main variant and 1v1 variant added back to their respective Ranked map pools
Ranked Mode Changes
Grandmaster rank returns to Multiversus! Players with a character RP in the top 100 highest RP across all characters will qualify for the Grandmaster tier. Players that finish the season in Grandmaster tier will earn a special banner.
There is a new leaderboard that shows the players that have reached the Master’s tier with the most characters. Show the world that you’re not just a character specialist by placing as many characters into the Master’s tier as you can!
Players can now choose to concede a ranked match in between games in the best-of-3
Players can now be immediately promoted out of Bronze and Silver if they win a game with a high MMR
There is now less difference in RP rewards between Gold V and Platinum V
Potential RP loss per game is now capped at all tiers. Silver and Gold players can no longer lose more than 1 game worth of RP for a loss.
Grandmaster rewards:
Combat Changes
We’re making a myriad of general combat changes in an attempt to reward more offensive gameplay. These changes affect all fighters universally, but any additional character-specific changes will be listed in the character patch notes.
Dodge Cancels
Dodge Attacks now cost only 2 units of dodge meter, down from 3 units
Dodge Attacks and Dodge Jumps now play a special visual effect to help with clarity for all players
Receiving a hit after a Dodge Cancel where the initial Dodge avoided an attack will now remove the “DODGED” text pop-up
Dodge Jump cancel window while dodge meter is empty (fatigued) delayed 18 frames; now matches fatigued Dodge Attack cancel window
Dodge Lands
Fixed an issue where fighters could sometimes dodge into the ground without Dodge Landing
Fighters now have more movement control on the ground during a dodge land
Forward Dodge Lands can now carry fighter momentum off the ledge of the main platform
Dodge Fatigue (Empty Dodge Meter)
Base dodge fatigue time increased to 10 seconds from 8 seconds
Wall Cling & Wall Fatigue
Fighters will reach maximum wall fatigue after spending 5 seconds on a wall, down from 8.5 seconds.
Fighters will begin to slide faster on a wall after 2 consecutive wall clings, down from 4.
Fighters will reach maximum wall fatigue after 8 consecutive wall clings, down from 12.
Fighters will no longer refresh their air dodges or air specials if they wall cling at maximum wall fatigue
Fighters losing dodge meter from maximum wall fatigue can no longer gain any dodge meter until the fighters land on solid ground.
*NEW* Priority Hitboxes
Certain attacks can now be classified as “low priority” hitboxes. Low priority attacks cannot trade with normal attacks. If a low priority attack connects with an enemy on the same frame the attacker is hit with a normal attack, the low priority attack will be ignored. Character-specific low priority attacks will be listed in the character patch notes.
All ground side attack combo hits (besides the finisher attack) are now considered low priority attacks.
Terrain Bounces
No longer affected by attack decay
Knockback reduced
*NEW* Automatic Ground Teching
When a fighter is the victim of a combo that includes a terrain bounce, if they are floor bounced again in the same combo they will instead perform an automatic tech. An automatic tech breaks the combo by stopping the fighter on the ground and returning them to an idle pose with invincibility frames. If the fighter holds left/right during the tech, they will move a short distance in that direction while retaining fewer invincibility frames. The automatic tech will not occur if the floor bounce happens too soon after the first terrain bounce.
This will allow us to add more power into ground bounce combos without fear of accidentally introducing infinite loops in the future.
General Bugfixes
Fixed an issue where end-of-game and mission damage dealt stats were inaccurate.
Fixed an issue where certain attacks would trade incorrectly.
Fixed an issue where fighters could perform certain actions while rung out
General Perks
Clear The Air
Reflecting a projectile now increases the projectile’s speed 25%
* Fixed an issue where the agent clone would remain idle if Smith was hit on the same frame he summoned the clone
* Fixed an issue where the agent clone would whiff grab if it hit enemies in certain positions
* Fixed an issue where the agent clone would hit enemies that were above the clone’s head
* Fixed an issue where the agent clone would not turn around at ledges.
Arya
General
– Head hurtbox size increased; will fix certain projectiles whiffing versus Arya on the ground
Dodge Land
* Fixed Arya’s neutral dodge playing the wrong animation
Ground Neutral Attack
– Hitbox active duration reduced 2 frames
+ Forward movement speed increased slightly; distance unchanged
Air Side Attack
– Charge knockback multiplier reduced to 1.25 from 1.6
Air Down Attack
– Repeat-move lockout increased to 20 frames from 8 frames
Air/Ground Up Special
– Repeat-move lockout increased to 20 frames from 15 frames
Banana Guard
We felt like Banana Guard could use more combo starter approach options so we’re making adjustments on Air Neutral Attack to serve that purpose.
Air Neutral Attack
+ On-hit cancel window advanced 4 frames
Ground Down Special
+ On-hit cancel window advanced 18 frames (after second hit)
Batman
We are trying to make the Air Down Special (“Crashing Justice” dive kick) less centralizing and more challengeable. We’re beginning to evaluate how to make Batman feel more dynamic in an upcoming patch.
Air/Ground Neutral Attack
~ Batarang will only attempt to home in towards Batman for a maximum of 3 seconds.
~ Batarang will be destroyed if Batman is still the owner of the Batarang when he is rung out
~ Batarang will be destroyed if Batman is still the owner of the Batarang when he attempts to spawn a new one
Air Down Special
– Start-up window increased 6 frames
– Leg hurtbox size increased
– Hitbox size reduced
Black Adam
General
– Weight reduced to 75 from 85
Bugs Bunny
Air Side Attack
– Hitbox size reduced so it is less likely for Bugs to hit enemies behind him
Air Side Special
~ Rocket is considered an “untechable” surface
~ Knockback made more horizontal
Air/Ground Up Special
~ Rocket is considered an “untechable” surface
Air/Ground Down Special
* Fixed an issue where the tunneling visual effects were not displaying while Bugs was underground
Finn
Finn is living up to his ideal as a speedy, combo-heavy assassin a little too well right now with his ability to carry opponents across the stage resulting in very low damage ring outs. We want to promote a little more offense from Finn by reducing his ability to charge his attacks for extended periods of time, while also making his combo game a little easier to deal with.
Ground Neutral Attack
– Maximum charge time reduced to 1.5 seconds from 4.0 seconds
– On-whiff cancel window delayed 4 frames
Ground Side Attack 1
– Maximum charge time reduced to 1.5 seconds from 4.0 seconds
– On-whiff cancel window delayed 6 frames
Ground Up Attack
– Maximum charge time reduced to 1.5 seconds from 4.0 seconds
– On-whiff cancel window delayed 6 frames
Ground Down Attack
– Maximum charge time reduced to 1.5 seconds from 4.0 seconds
Air Neutral Attack
– No longer launches Finn forward on-hit; cooldown removed
Air/Ground Neutral Special
– Maximum charge time reduced to 1.25 seconds from 4.0 seconds
Ground Down Special
+ Boots of Speed buff duration increased to 25 seconds from 10 seconds
Garnet
Ground Side Attack 2 (Side)
+ Now applies armor on start-up
Ground Neutral Attack
+ Hitbox size increased to better match visuals
+ Hitbox active duration increased 4 frames to better match visuals
Air Neutral Attack
+ Start-up window before charge reduced 3 frames
Air Up Attack
– First hit hitbox size reduced to better match visuals
Gizmo
General
– Head hurtbox size increased; will fix certain projectiles whiffing versus Gizmo on the ground
Air/Ground Neutral Attack
– Added maximum charge time of 1.9 seconds
Air/Ground Neutral Special
* Fixed an issue where holding the neutral special bind would not continue the attack
Air/Ground Up Special
– On-hit cancel window delayed 3 frames
– Knockback angle made more horizontal
+ Knockback increased to 1750 from 1500
Harley Quinn
Dash Attack
+ Made hits more consistent and the multiple hits to drop less
Ground Down Attack
* Fixed an issue where Harley could cancel the second kick on-hit by taunting
Air Up Special
– Hitbox size reduced; ground version unchanged – hitbox now better matches visuals
Iron Giant
Air Side Attack
* No-fuel knockback reduced to 2050 from 2595 – This fixes an issue where the no-fuel version had higher knockback than the fueled version of the attack
Rage Mode Ground Down Attack
– Repeat-move lockout increased to 24 frames from 17 frames
Jake
Jake has been underperforming for a while due to the over-centralizing strength of his Bite neutral special. We are looking to evaluate some quality-of-life buffs for a future patch to make his strategy less Bite-dependent.
General
* Fixed an issue where Jake’s neutral dodges were not playing their ending animations
Air Down Attack
~ A floor bounce incurred from the first hit of this attack will not count towards the automatic tech bounce threshold
Air/Ground Neutral Special
– Armor duration from eating an ally reduced to 1.5 seconds from 4.0 seconds
~ Eating an ally now interrupts their current action
Jason
Ground Up Attack
~ First hit prevents terrain bounce on knockback; final hit unchanged
Ground Down Attack
* Fixed an issue where using this attack could ring out Jason if the ground was broken during the attack
Air Neutral Special
+ Now has armor during attack start-up
“Resurrectionist” Perk
* Fixed an issue where Jason would get rung out even while Resurrectionist was active, causing a double ringout
LeBron
Congratulations to LeBron James on winning Gold! In celebration we’ve given LeBron some buffs, but only because he won. Our new Auto-Tech system allows us to prevent an infinite loop that was occuring due to being able to repeatedly ground-bounce opponents so we’re reverting the change to Air Down Special from the last hotfix patch.
Ground Side Attack 1
+ Now more consistently combos into ground side attack 2
Air/Ground Side Special
+ Land cancel window advanced 4 frames
Air Down Special
+ Start-up window reduced 5 frames; this is a revert from patch 1.2.1
Marvin
General
~ Marvin’s role is now Mage instead of Assassin
– Head hurtbox size increased; will fix certain projectiles whiffing versus Marvin on the ground
Morty
General
~ Morty’s role is now Mage instead of Bruiser
Air Up Attack
– On-hit cancel window delayed 4 frames
– On-whiff cancel window delayed 8 frames
Air Down Attack
+ Hitbox size increased to better match visuals
Reindog
Air/Ground Down Special
* Fixed an issue where Reindog fireball had no hurtbox – this will fix issues with reflection and projectile clank interactions
Rick
Rick has become very frustrating for opponents due to the large size of his jab and how often players use the move in neutral. We want to reduce the strength of his jab while also giving him better combo tools across his kit to increase diversity in his moveset.
General
* Fixed an issue where Rick could not use Instant Air Dodge Cancel to use aerial specials near the ground
Ground Side Attack 1
– Start-up window before charge increased 4 frames
– Hitbox size reduced
– On-whiff cancel window delayed 10 frames
Ground Side Attack 2
+ On-hit cancel window into side attack 3 advanced 1 frame
Ground Side Attack 3
+ Start-up window before charged reduced 1 frame
– Cancel window delayed 1 frame
+ Rocket spawn time advanced 2 frames
+ Rocket base speed increased to 3000 from 2000
+ Rocket base damage increased to 6 from 5
+ Rocket knockback increased to 1600 from 1200
+ Rocket knockback scaling increased to 22 from 19
Ground Up Attack
+ First hit now more consistently combos into second hit
Ground Down Attack
+ Bomb spawn time advanced 1 frame
+ Bomb maximum detonation delay reduced to .35 seconds from .5 seconds
Air/Ground Neutral Attack
* Fixed an issue where charged and uncharged lasers were not properly handling projectile interactions
Air Side Attack
– On-hit general cancel window delayed 6 frames; on-hit cancel window into side special unchanged
~ Now ignores player collisions during movement
Air Up Attack
+ Charge damage multiplier increased to 1.75 from 1.2
+ More upwards momentum is maintained on start-up
Air Down Attack
+ Hitbox active duration increased 2 frames; now better matches visuals
+ Hitbox size increased; now better matches visuals
Ground Neutral Special
+ Meeseeks command window advanced 3 frames
+ Up Meeseeks hitbox size increased
Air Neutral Special
– Hitbox size reduced
+ Hitstun increased
~ Now ignores player collisions during movement
Air/Ground Side Special
* Fixed an issue where fighters could dodge out of portal travel
Air Up Special
– Reduced backwards horizontal momentum during launch
* Fixed an issue where using up special near a wall would not launch Rick upwards
Air/Ground Down Special
~ Polymorph debuff now shows a timer icon for remaining duration
Samurai Jack
Samurai Jack was released as an incredibly popular new fighter, and players immediately found success with his strong side special and quick Focus Meter gain. We’re hoping to tone down his side special as a “do everything” attack and also reduce the number of times players can use his super strong Focus Meter attacks in a single game. This should bring him more in line with the rest of the cast.
General
* Fixed an issue where Jack was rotated perpendicular to terrain when terrain bouncing
* Fixed issue where Jack’s dance animation wouldn’t play when affected by Gizmo’s “Rhythm’s Gonna Getcha” perk
Passive
– Focus meter gain from hitting enemies reduced 30%
– Focus meter gain from receiving hits reduced 25%
Ground Side Attack 1
– Hitbox size reduced
Ground Side Attack 2
– Hitbox size reduced so it is less likely for Jack to hit enemies behind him
Ground Side Attack 3
– Hitbox size reduced so it is less likely for Jack to hit enemies behind him
Air Up Attack
– Repeat-move lockout increased to 15 frames from 12 frames
Air Neutral Special
– Removed armor applied on start-up; rage version unchanged
– No longer allows changing the throw direction after a successful grab
Air/Ground Side Special
– On-whiff cancel window delayed 3 frames
– Hitbox size reduced so it is less likely for Jack to hit enemies behind him on start-up
Focus Air/Ground Side Special
– On-whiff cancel window delayed 8 frames
– Hitbox size reduced to better match non-focus side special
– Attack will now only transition to multiple slashes if the first attack hits an enemy
“Shadow Step” Perk
* Fixed an issue where Jack would sometimes move behind his enemy and whiff his counter attack
Shaggy
Air/Ground Neutral Special
– Rage duration reduced to 12 seconds from 25 seconds
Rage Air/Ground Side Special
– No longer breaks armor
Rage Air/Ground Up Special
– No longer breaks armor
Rage Ground Down Special
– No longer breaks armor
* Fixed an issue where the shockwave could get stuck traveling between identical terrains
Rage Air Down Special
– No longer breaks armor
* Fixed an issue where the shockwave could get stuck traveling between identical terrains
Steven Universe
General
– Enemies can now knock back Steven to reduce stacks of bubble debuff
Air Side Attack
– Hitbox size reduced; now better matches visuals
Air/Ground Side Special
~ Shield is considered an “untechable” surface
Air/Ground Up Special
~ Shield is considered an “untechable” surface
Air Down Special
– Start-up window increased 6 frames
– Fall acceleration reduced slightly
– Hitbox active duration after landing reduced 6 frames
– Air on-hit cancel window delayed 2 frames
Stripe
Air/Ground Down Special
+ Base cooldown removed
+ Ammo cooldown reduced to 12.5 seconds from 15 seconds
Taz
General
~ Taz’s role is now Assassin instead of Bruiser
Air/Ground Neutral Special
* Fixed an issue where Taz could become permanently stuck if hit while eating certain projectiles
The Joker
Ground Side Attack 1
– Hitbox size reduced; visuals updated to match
Air/Ground Up Special
* Fixed an issue where The Joker could sometimes not ride his balloon immediately on spawn
Velma
Velma can be oppressive as a projectile zoner, but still lacks the tools to complete her combos when she gets into melee range. We are limiting the strength of her projectile tools while increasing the strength of her close-range attacks to give her a better punish-game when she finds her moment to strike. We have also given her a new attack in the form of an on-cooldown down special that she can use to start combos at close range.
Dodge Land
* Fixed an issue where Velma was unable to Dodge Land
Ground Side Attack 1
+ Start-up window reduced 2 frames
– On-whiff cancel window delayed 3 frames
Ground Side Attack 2
+ Hitstun increased
Ground Up Attack
+ Hitbox added to Velma’s chest; should help with hitting smaller characters more consistently
Ground Down Attack
+ Start-up window reduced 2 frames
– On-whiff cancel window advanced 8 frames
Air Side Attack
+ Uncharged damage increased to 9 from 8
– Uncharged knockback reduced to 1300 from 1450
+ Uncharged knockback scaling increased to 18 from 12.5
– Maximum charge knockback multiplier reduced to 1.15 from 1.5
~ Visuals now better match hitbox
Air/Ground Neutral Special
– Homing speech bubbles now stop homing if the target enemy dodges the speech bubble
– “Sass” speech bubble maximum lifetime reduced to 2.5 seconds from infinite
~ “Sass” speech bubble knockback angle made more horizontal and backwards towards Velma
– Ally-empowered “Toodles” speech bubble maximum lifetime reduced to 8 seconds from 10 seconds
* Fixed an issue where the ally-empowered “Toodles” speech bubble could home towards Mojo Jojo on the Townsville map
* Fixed an issue where speech bubbles would home towards certain characters’ feet rather than their midpoint
Ground Down Special (Mystery Machine)
– Mystery Machine capture hitbox is now low priority
+ Can now re-hit enemies that have dodged the capture hitbox after one second
Air Side Special
~ Movement and knockback have been completely revamped. This attack now moves Velma farther and knocks back enemies into her path, allowing her to use this attack as a combo starter.
Air Up Special
+ Vertical movement increased
Air/Ground Down Special (Book)
+ Book spawn location moved closer to Velma; should prevent close-range whiffs
*NEW* Air/Ground Down Special (Cooldown)
~ Down special can now be used while on cooldown to spawn a short-range book projectile. The projectile can be used as a combo starter in air and on ground. The projectile does not grant any buffs to Velma or her allies.
Wonder Woman
Ground/Air Neutral Special
– Armor duration on hitting an ally reduced to 0.5 seconds from 2.25 seconds
Ground/Air Down Special
– Armor duration reduced to 2.25 seconds from 3.7 seconds
Heads up! Texas Chainsaw Massacre update 1.000.030 is now available for download on current-gen platforms, and this fixes the login issues players have been dealing with since last week when the Private Match patch was released. Those on PC, Xbox, this should also fix the issue when it comes to loading into public matches.
Patch Notes:
Here’s the latest announcement from Gun Interactive:
This hotfix is set to start rolling out across all platforms shortly.
Be sure to close out of the game and restart it to download the update. https://t.co/NIwicXQh9y
— The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (@TXChainSawGame) August 20, 2024
Outside of the login issues, this does not bring any new content or player-facing changes.
For those on PC, this should resolve the issue wherein players can’t load into pubic games:
This rapid patch should resolve issues reported where players are unable to load into public games for Microsoft PC players.
If you are still experiencing any issues after downloading the update, please submit a ticket to our support team!https://t.co/hUfc4QtVoQ
— The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (@TXChainSawGame) August 20, 2024
Last week’s patch had the following in it:
Family House – Blood Moon out for a limited time
New cosmetics (free and paid)
Private Matches can be started with only one person
Following the patch released last week that enabled private matches for solo players, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre ran into a major issue that prevent players from logging on. It took a few days, but a rapid fire hotfix has been released, which console gamers will see as The Texas Chain Saw Massacre new update 1.28, and this should fix the issues on all platforms.
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre New Update 1.28 Patch Notes for Aug. 20:
Here’s the latest announcement from Gun Interactive:
This hotfix is set to start rolling out across all platforms shortly.
Be sure to close out of the game and restart it to download the update. https://t.co/NIwicXQh9y
— The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (@TXChainSawGame) August 20, 2024
Outside of the login issues, this does not bring any new content or player-facing changes.
For those on PC, this should resolve the issue wherein players can’t load into pubic games:
This rapid patch should resolve issues reported where players are unable to load into public games for Microsoft PC players.
If you are still experiencing any issues after downloading the update, please submit a ticket to our support team!https://t.co/hUfc4QtVoQ
— The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (@TXChainSawGame) August 20, 2024
Last week’s patch had the following in it:
Family House – Blood Moon out for a limited time
New cosmetics (free and paid)
Private Matches can be started with only one person
Guardians, Bungie is about to roll out another patch for Destiny 2, and that means the servers need to go offline for a bit. Those who are having issues logging in, it’s due to the Destiny 2 servers being down for maintenance this August 20.
Expect patch version 8.0.5.2 to be released on all platforms later today.
Destiny 2 Servers Down and Offline Status for August 20:
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.
6:45AM PDT
-7 UTC
Destiny 2 will be brought offline for expected maintenance.
Players will be removed from activities and won’t be able to log back in until 10 AM PDT.
Ongoing Destiny maintenance is expected to conclude at 12 PM PDT.
10:00 AM PDT
-7 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.
Clan features may remain offline until maintenance is complete.
12:00 PM PDT
-7 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.
We should have the patch notes later and will provide a link to it once it’s live. As for the server downtime, we are not expecting anything to change, however things do happen, and if the maintenance is extended, we’ll be sure to update the article with Bungie’s latest announcements.
Stay tuned to the weekly reset as well, and you can keep track of our Destiny 2 articles here.
After releasing the Season 3 update for TopSpin 2K25, players ran into issues in the MyCareer mode on all platforms. Thankfully, that seems to have been resolved with TopSpin 2K25 new update 1.13 that just got released on all platforms! Those on current-gen will see this as TopSpin 2K25t update 1.013, and should include the same fix.
TopSpin 2K25 New Update 1.13 Patch Notes:
While no actual patch notes have been released yet, the official TopSpin 2K Twitter account announced the following last week:
TopSpin Community, we are aware of a small number of players experiencing reported issues when entering MyCAREER on all platforms.
We’re working hard to resolve this as quickly as possible. Thank you for your patience and understanding.
Over on the game’s subreddit, it has been confirmed that the MyCareer issue has been fixed. Once Hangar 13 releases the complete patch notes, we’ll update the article with the info.
For those unaware of what got added in Season 3, here’s a quick recap:
NEW PLAYABLE PRO:
• Adding Caroline Garcia to the roster.
NEW GAME CONTENT:
• Adding Laver Cup to men’s MyCAREER.
• Adding 2 Laver Cup venues (Berlin and San Francisco) in Exhibition Modes.
• Added a new G.O.A.T. (Greatest of All Time) status in MyCAREER with new goals and rewards.
Omeda Studios’ Predecessor update 1.38 (PS5 version 1.038) is here and this is the full release of the game. The update is officially tagged as v1.0 and it comes with tutorial improvements, new loading screens, better animations as well as character balance changes and more. Check out the patch notes for August 20 posted down below.
Predecessor Update 1.38 for v1.0 Patch Notes:
PS5 version 1.038
Introduction
Greetings Champions!
The moment we’ve all been waiting for, the culmination of nearly two years in Early Access and countless additional years of closed development is about to come to fruition. Predecessor’s full release, V1.0 is here!
We couldn’t release an update this big on our own though. We still need a little… Support!
That’s right, Zinx is pouncing into battle, ready to help her allies with her incredible healing abilities!
That’s not all though, V1.0 is our most feature heavy game update to date, packed full of exciting new features. Whether that’s tutorial improvements, new loading screens, comms wheel improvements or gameplay automations, there’s something for everyone.
There’s no time to paws though, so let’s at long last dive into the V1.0 patch notes!
New Hero: Zinx – The Augmented Ally!
Biotech Prodigy, Zinx, bursts into battle!
An expert in giving others a taste of their own medicine, Zinx joins Predecessor, ready to help and hurt in equal measure!
A capable medic, Zinx is a potent healer able to top up her allies health pool in even the direst of circumstances. She’s also anything but powerless however, capable of prescribing deadly doses of pain on top of being able to resurrect fallen allies using her cutting edge medicinal might!
Abilities:
Triage Protocol [Passive]:
CD: 17 (-0.75 per Level)
Zinx gains a stack for 5s when damaging Enemy Heroes with Basic Attacks or Abilities, up to a maximum of 5.
At maximum stacks, Triage Protocol activates granting Zinx 40% decaying movement speed and 50% increased Infuse Healing for 5s.
Stacks cannot be gained while Triage Protocol is on cooldown.
CD: 15 Cost: 75 Effect: Zinx throws an electromagnetic disk dealing 80/110/140/170/200 (+40% Magical Power) magical damage and Stunning for 1.1/1.15/1.2/1.25/1.3s.
The disk can ricochet to the closest nearby target within 650u, up to 5 times, dealing its damage again and Stunning each Target for 50% of the original duration.
The disk will not ricochet to previously hit Targets.
Bad Medicine [Secondary]:
CD: 10/9/8/7/6 Cost: 60 Effect: Zinx shoots the ground, forming a pool of radiation that deals 35/50/65/80/90 (+25% Magical Power) magical damage and Slows by 30% for 0.75s.
After 0.75s, the radiation erupts dealing 50/80/110/140/170 (+45% Magical Power) magical damage and Slowing all Enemies hit by 50% for 0.75s.
Infuse [Alternate]:
CD: 10/9/8/7/6 Cost: 80/90/100/110/120
Effect: Zinxfires a healing bolt at an Ally that restores 50/70/90/110/130 (+40% Magical Power) health, increased by up to 50% based on their missing health.
Passive: Zinx’s Basic Attacks deal an additional 12/18/24/30/36 (+15% Magical Power) magical damage over 3s.
Neural Regenesis [Ultimate]:
CD: 140/120/100 Cost: 100 Effect: Apply cellular restructuring to Yourself or an Ally Hero, granting 40% decaying movement speed and Revival for 4.5s.
If the Target takes lethal damage within this time, they Resurrect with 40%/50%/60% Health and Mana after 2.5s.
Store News
More Uses for Amber
At long last Premium Hero Affinity tracks can now be purchased with Amber!
Visit the Affinity tab of any of your favourite Heroes and click ‘Purchase Affinity’ where you’ll be prompted to pick your preferred payment method, Platinum or Amber!
In addition to Hero Affinities, you’ll also now be able to buy two select bundles using Amber too! Scroll down to the Bundles section to see more.
New Skins
Star Queen Zinx [Uncommon]
Guard the galaxy and take your healing to the stars above, with the Zinx’s debut Star Queen skin!
Undertow Riktor [Legendary]
Embrace the Eldritch forces of the deep as you swap chains and gears for terrifying tentacles and rotting ropes with Riktor’s stunning new Undertow skin! Complete with all-new visual effects, sound effects, voice over and a tentacular recall animation!
Undertow Feng Mao [Legendary]
Breach the briny depths with Feng Mao’s undead new Undertow skin! Swing your sea-stained anchor to summon a surge of salty suffering, complete with all-new visual effects, sound effects, voice over and a bone-chilling recall animation!
Undertow Gideon [Legendary]
A fearsome fan-favourite captain crosses the threshold, with Undertow Gideon at last making his debut voyage in Predecessor! A skeleton dredged from the murky wrecks, Undertow Gideon brings stunning unique visual effects, sound effects, voice over and a rib-ripping new recall animation!
Undertow Zarus [Rare]
Conquer the seven seas from the turbulent tides and creeping currents below, with Undertow Zarus! Bask in his sinister subaquatic style!
Undertow Rampage [Rare]
Bite back at the bitterness of the brine beneath, with Undertow Rampage! Prey on all who dare to swim too far from the safety of the shallows!
Undertow Grux [Rare]
The shoreline offers no reprieve thanks to Undertow Grux’s snapping new skin! Just try not to get too shell-ous of his belt or backpiece!
New Bundles
Different Bundles may be available for different amounts of time. Limited availability Bundles are marked in Store, and will be removed in a future update.
Star Queen Zinx Bundle
Get everything you need to protect the cosmos, all in one handy bundle!
Bundle Contents:
◆Zinx [Hero]
◆Zinx [Hero Premium Affinity]
◆Star Queen Zinx [Skin]
◆Star Queen Zinx [Spray] (Exclusive)
◆Star Queen Zinx [Banner] (Exclusive)
◆Star Queen Zinx [Profile Icon] (Exclusive)
Undertow Bundles
Grab one of our assorted Undertow Bundles and build your motley crew of pirates and plunderers!
Undertow Riktor Bundle
◆Riktor [Hero]
◆Undertow Riktor [Skin]
◆Undertow Riktor 1 [Spray] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Riktor [Banner] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Riktor [Profile Icon] (Exclusive)
Undertow Feng Mao Bundle
◆Feng Mao [Hero]
◆Undertow Feng Mao [Skin]
◆Undertow Feng Mao 1 [Spray] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Feng Mao [Banner] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Feng Mao [Profile Icon] (Exclusive)
Undertow Gideon Bundle
◆Gideon [Hero]
◆Undertow Gideon [Skin]
◆Undertow Gideon 1 [Spray] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Gideon [Banner] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Gideon [Profile Icon] (Exclusive)
Undertow Zarus Bundle
◆Zarus [Hero]
◆Undertow Zarus [Skin]
◆Undertow Zarus 1 [Spray] (Exclusive)
Undertow Rampage Bundle
◆Rampage [Hero]
◆Undertow Rampage [Skin]
◆Undertow Rampage 1 [Spray] (Exclusive)
Undertow Grux Bundle
◆Grux [Hero]
◆Undertow Grux [Skin]
◆Undertow Grux 1 [Spray] (Exclusive)
Undertow Spray Bundle*
These sprays are different to the sprays included in the individual Undertow Hero Bundles!
◆Undertow Riktor 2 [Spray] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Feng Mao 2 [Spray] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Gideon 2 [Spray] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Zarus 2 [Spray] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Rampage 2 [Spray] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Grux 2 [Spray] (Exclusive)
Undertow Skin Bundle
◆Riktor [Hero]
◆Feng Mao [Hero]
◆Gideon [Hero
◆Zarus [Hero]
◆Rampage [Hero]
◆Grux [Hero]
◆Undertow Riktor [Skin]
◆Undertow Feng Mao [Skin]
◆Undertow Gideon [Skin
◆Undertow Zarus [Skin]
◆Undertow Rampage [Skin]
◆Undertow Grux [Skin]
Undertow VFX Bundle
◆Undertow Recall [VFX]
◆Undertow Jump Pad [VFX]
Undertow MEGA Bundle
◆Riktor [Hero]
◆Feng Mao [Hero]
◆Gideon [Hero
◆Zarus [Hero]
◆Rampage [Hero]
◆Grux [Hero]
◆Undertow Riktor [Skin]
◆Undertow Feng Mao [Skin]
◆Undertow Gideon [Skin
◆Undertow Zarus [Skin]
◆Undertow Rampage [Skin]
◆Undertow Grux [Skin]
◆Undertow Riktor [Banner] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Feng Mao [Banner] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Gideon [Banner] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Riktor [Profile Icon] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Feng Mao [Profile Icon] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Gideon [Profile Icon] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Riktor 1 [Spray] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Feng Mao 1 [Spray] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Gideon 1 [Spray] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Zarus 1 [Spray] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Rampage 1 [Spray] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Grux 1 [Spray] (Exclusive)
◆Undertow Recall [VFX]
◆Undertow Jump Pad [VFX]
Summer Spray Bundle*
Spooky undead pirates and aquatic predators not your thing? Why not check out our ad-orb-able new Summer Spray bundle!
Bundle Contents:
◆Summer Floatie [Spray] (Exclusive)
◆Sunglasses [Spray] (Exclusive)
◆Sunbathing [Spray] (Exclusive)
◆Life Guard [Spray] (Exclusive)
◆Ice Cream [Spray] (Exclusive)
Bundles marked with a * can be purchased with either Platinum or Amber.
Price Changes
Just over a year on from his Predecessor debut, we’re making some price adjustments to Zarus in the Hero Store.
Hero
Old Price
New Price
Zarus
1000 Platinum or
8,600 Amber
800 Platinum or
6,020 Amber
Exclusive Skins
That’s right, 1.0 brings even more skins than we’ve already mentioned!
These skins won’t be available in the store however; each will be made available in unique and exclusive ways!
Ace Mechanic Gadget [Skin]
The original tinkerer returns!
This skin will be exclusively available as a FREE reward for connecting an email address to your Predecessor account! For more information scroll down to the Account Linking section.
Lumin Undertow Rampage [Skin]
Light the depths with deadly and dazzling luminescence!
This skin will be made available as part of a platform collaboration. Keep an eye on our socials for more information!
Hunter Shadow Ops TwinBlast [Skin Variant]
Who said covert couldn’t also be colourful?
This skin will be made available as part of a platform collaboration. Keep an eye on our socials for more information!
Ranked Mode
Availability
With 1.0 arriving we’re expanding the availability of Ranked Mode. The following will be the new hours for Ranked Mode as of August 20.
EU:
Weekends 10 UTC – 00 UTC (14 hours total)
+1hr before and +1hr after
Weekdays 13 UTC – 00 UTC (11 hours total)
+1hr before and +2hr after
NA
Weekends 15 UTC – 06 UTC (15 hours total)
+1hr before and +2hr after
Weekdays 18 UTC – 06 UTC (12 hours total)
+1hr before and +3hr after
Improvements
Following our recent hotfix, we’re still working on ironing out some small bugs in the Ranked game mode.
1.0 will address another of these issue, this time rebalancing VP values at certain ranks, to remove cases where players losses a lot more VP then they gained.
Account Linking
Our first implementation of Account Linking is finally here!
Shortly after our 1.0 update you’ll notice a new button on the Predecessor website; “My Account”.
Clicking this button will take you to the Predecessor Social Portal, our first iteration of your player account portal. As time goes by and we add more features we’ll also work on polishing it up a bit.
For now all you’ll be able to do is add an email address to your account, and connect it to Discord and Twitch.
Doing so will unlock exclusive rewards:
Connecting to Discord will grant you the highly anticipated Early Access Support role if you purchased an Early Access Bundle.
Connecting to Twitch will let you earn Twitch rewards, granting you exclusive sprays, icons, skins and more just for watching your favourite creators.
Connecting your email will sign you up to the Predecessor mailing list, and grant you access to the exclusive original Gadget skin, Ace Mechanic.
The team are still hard at work adding the option to link game accounts between Xbox, Steam, Epic and PlayStation. We weren’t able to deliver this in time for 1.0 but we hope to update the Account Linking portal with this extra functionality soon.
Role Select Improvements
The first decision many of us make in Predecessor is which role we want to play. It’s crucial therefore that players feel informed at this early stage of gameplay, especially for new players who might need a little more information.
We’ve overhauled the Role Select process, making the whole thing much more visual and informative. You’ll now be told which side of the map you’ll be playing for, and be presented with an interactive map overview showing which lane each role is associated with and some of the more important objectives and buffs you should be considering.
Additionally we’ve added handy tips to make it easier to understand each role’s play styles, and when playing against AI newer players will be prompted to first ‘unlock’ (at no cost) the Jungle and Fill roles to make it clearer that these roles are more complicated than others.
Draft Improvements
New MOBAs can be tricky to wrap your head around, especially if you’re new to the genre. We’ve used this opportunity to make a number of improvements to the Hero selection process, such as:
Recommended Heroes
Clearer class categories (Mage, Tank etc)
Better Hero sorting
Tabs to replace filters
New icons for Heroes on free rotation
Simplified information about Hero Abilities
Added controller support for easier navigation
Added flavour text for each Hero
New Pre-Match Loading Screens
We do our best to ensure Predecessor loads nice and quickly, but inevitably there’s going to be times when you’re faced with a, gulp.. loading screen!
We want these screens to be helpful for new players and existing players alike, giving you the information you need alongside handy tips and an estimate of how long until you’ll get into the match.
Here’s some of what we’ve done:
Added tips specific to the role you’re playing
Added a loading bar and text to explain what’s going on behind the scenes
Added the map, so you can see which lane you need to focus and relevant objectives
Added which side you’ll be playing on
Added the map name and game mode
Added which role each player is playing in and who they’re up against
Added new loading backgrounds that change based on the game mode you’re playing
Map Improvements
When you spend as much time on a game map as we do you know it’s important to feel immersed in it.
All game maps now have official, canon names.
Classic 5v5 = Sanctuary
Brawl = Canyon
Practice = Sirio
We’ve also been busy making some improvements to the Sanctuary map!
We’ve removed many invisible boundaries that previously blocked traversal above many of the internal walls. Characters with high mobility can enjoy more freedom and verticality than ever!
We’ve overhauled the foliage across the map! The Jungles now feel more vibrant and densely vegetated, with specific prominent flowers to help differentiate each one. Not a fan? You can toggle this feature off too!
We’ve added a new tree in the rivers to provide a little more protection and vision blocking from those pesky Middle to Side-lanes!
There’s been some minor adjustments to the map in a few places to help with traversal and gameplay flow.
We’ve improved some of the textures and lighting to really let the map shine like never before!
There’s various other improvements to reflections, textures and more, so head in game and check it out!
Improved Gameplay Automation Systems
As previously mentioned, MOBAs like Predecessor can pose quite the learning curve for new players. We’re excited to release new gameplay automations that’ll take the edge off of that learning experience, letting new players instead focus on learning the map, their character and the overall controls and gameplay of Predecessor.
Added new gameplay automations
Automatic Hero Levelling
Automatic Crest Selection
That’s not all though, we’ve made these automations much more visual than ever before. Now you’ll now get notified in game with fancy little pop ups every time the game takes an action on your behalf. Respawned and noticed your Gold count just went down? You’ll now be told exactly what has been bought and for how much!
Added new pop ups to communicate the gameplay automations
These new automations are on by default for new players and can be toggled individually in the settings menu.
Assist Indicator
We think it’s important that everyone gets fairly credited for their contributions in a fight, even if all Muriel did was poke at the enemy and then run for the hills after.
1.0 adds little indicators after a kill to show you who helped secure the takedown, giving you not only more opportunities to celebrate your own teamwork, but handy game knowledge if you’re keeping tabs on who in the enemy team left their lane to help kill one of your own…
Communication Wheel Improvements
It’s great to play with friends, but sometimes you can find yourself hurtling into the fight with someone you’ve never met before, with no time to type in chat.
Enter the ping wheel!
Many of you already make good use of this feature, so we’ve taken the opportunity to give it a little more oomph, adding complete voice over support for each of the messages you can select, as well as adding a few new ones too for communicating key information like Blink availability!
Worried about hearing GOOD JOB spammed passive aggressively over and over? Fret not! There’s cooldowns on the voiceover to reduce spam and you can turn it off altogether in the settings.
In-game System Chat Messages
Knowing what’s going on is crucial to making informed decisions in the heat of the moment. With this in mind, we’ve added a bunch of helpful new chat messages that pop up each time a player does something noteworthy that we think you might need to know about.
Slayed another Hero? That’s going in chat, along with how much Bounty you earned doing it.
Enemy taken one of your towers? That’s going in chat too, specifically detailing which one too.
Fangtooth spawned? You’d best believe that’s also going in chat. Never lose track of when Objectives spawn in, or what they do thanks to handy new messages.
Obviously there’s a great deal more to be found so we encourage you to keep an eye on the chat logs in your next match to see how much handy information you can find there now.
Post-Match Improvements
The post match sequence is also getting some love in 1.0, with a clearer breakdown of who you played with and what roles they played.
That’s not all however, you can also now select a player in this screen and report them as you would normally do in game!
There’s more visual improvements to be found in these screens, with polish and upgrades across the board to the players and stats screens you encounter after each game. Take a look and let us know what you think!
Twitch Drops
We’ve added Twitch Drops functionality to Predecessor!
Now you can unlock in game rewards just for supporting your favourite content creators on Twitch!
Our first collection of Twitch Drops will become available on August 20 alongside the game update, and will feature the highly anticipated Blueberry Punk Countess Skin Variant featured in a previous key art but never released until now!
This skin, alongside a spray and profile icon, will be exclusive to Twitch Drops, so be sure to tune in if you want to get your hands on these freebies before they’re gone!
We’ll be making a dedicated webpage here on predecessorgame.com with more information on how to participate in Twitch Drops, so watch our socials for more and go follow some of our awesome Predecessor streamers over on Twitch!
Additional Features
The Tutorial now has additional Voice Over and Narration.
We hope this will help make the tutorial more accessible, memorable and more easily understood by new players joining us for 1.0.
This is just the start of our improvements to our tutorials, so keep an eye out for more improvements in the coming months!
Attack Range Text Improvements
Attack Range “Out of Range” Text now dynamically scales and changes to “Move Closer” with subsequent misses.
Minimap Size Options
The Minimap may now be scaled larger or smaller in the Settings menu.
Targeting Visual Improvements
Target outline boldness has been increased, and can now be scaled in the Settings menu.
Code Redemption
We’ve added a new menu to the Store where you can put special codes in to get free goodies! Follow our socials, play community tournaments and become a positive influence in the Predecessor community to earn codes!
Xbox Achievements
Xbox Achievement hunters assemble! 1.0 brings official support for Achievements, letting you rack up that all-important Gamerscore just for playing Predecessor!
PlayStation trophies didn’t quite make it in in time for 1.0, but rest assured Trophy hunters, you’ll be able to earn a Predecessor Platinum Trophy soon!
Xbox Localisation
We’ve brought Xbox up to parity with PC, adding localisation options for languages such as French, German and Italian! More languages are coming, as well as support for PlayStation, so watch this space for more!
Performance & Connection Stability Improvements
We’ve been hard at work under the hood to make Predecessor more stable and performative than ever before!
Gameplay Balance Changes
Overview:
◆Jungle Monster Durability decreased slightly in the mid/late-game.
◆Minion Movement Speed increased in the mid-game.
◆Outlier Hero and Item Adjustments.
◆Support Item Cost reductions.
◆New Stat allocations for: Ashbringer, Nuclear Rounds, Earthshaker and Mistmeadow Buckler.
◆And more!
Minions:
General:
We’re changing the way Minions ramp up their Movement Speed throughout a match, with them now becoming slightly faster from approximately the 20-minute mark onwards. This will reduce the waiting time for a Minion Wave to progress through the Map, better allowing teams to capitalise on their advantageous windows when looking to push into Enemy territory.
Minion Movement Speed changed from 695/710/730/760/790 at Levels 1/7/10/13/15 to 695/710/730/750/770/790 at Levels 1/7/9/11/13/15.
Melee:
Melee Minion Physical Armor Growths could result in some unnatural scenarios under Towers where the normal last-hitting patterns would not play out as expected, with Melee Minions requiring an additional hit. By reducing the Physical Armor present on Melee Minions in the early game we are reducing the likelihood of this occurring, bringing further consistency back to last-hitting behaviour under Towers.
Physical Armor decreased from 0 (+1 per level) to 0 (+0.55 per level).
Super:
Super Minions are seeing an increase to their Magical Armor, meaning Magical Heroes can not as easily clear them, especially in those late-game siege scenarios where wave-stalling can become too effective.
Magical Armor increased from -65 to -40.
Towers:
Towers possessed an issue where their ramping damage would be “forgotten” if the Target managed to get outside of their range upon being hit, such as Blinking out at the last moment. This has now been resolved, bringing greater consistency to the damage Towers can dish out in dive scenarios.
[Bugfix] Fixed an issue where ramped-up Tower Damage would instantly reset if the Target is hit while out of range.
Jungle:
The Majority of generic Jungle Monsters are receiving decreases to their Health as a match progresses, allowing Junglers some increased speed when clearing them, better allowing them to juggle their time between keeping up in farm and being present on the map as the mid/late-game rolls around and Objectives become more relevant to contest.
Red Buff:
Health per Level decreased from 150 to 120.
Blue Buff:
Health per Level decreased from 150 to 120.
Black Camp (2):
Large:
Health per Level decreased from 95 to 80.
Small:
Health per Level decreased from 70 to 55.
Grey Camp (3):
Large:
Health per Level decreased from 100 to 85.
Small:
Health per Level decreased from 45 to 40.
White Camp (4):
Large:
Health per Level decreased from 95 to 80.
Medium:
Health per Level decreased from 70 to 60.
Small:
Health per Level decreased from 30 to 25.
Brown Camp (5):
Medium:
Health per Level decreased from 85 to 70.
Small:
Health per Level decreased from 40 to 35.
Hero Balance Changes
Argus is receiving a slight reduction to his early Particle Shredder cooldown, allowing him more windows to swap between the Minion Wave and Heroes when looking to take trades.
Particle Shredder [Alternate]:
◆Cooldown decreased from 6/5/4/3/2 to 5/4.25/3.5/2.75/2.
Aurora has been a strong performer since her release, largely due to her general damage output, and at higher levels of play, the strength of her Ice Wall and all the ways it can disrupt fights. Alongside some general damage hits, to ensure Aurora does not over perform at higher levels of play, Glacial Charge is having its Cooldown adjusted, now triggering once the Ice Wall has disappeared from the world, rather than on cast. This means she will have more limited uptime on the ability and must be more selective with its use, no longer getting an effective 5s reduction each time she casts the ability, and reducing the overall effectiveness of Ability Haste in her builds.
Glacial Charge [Primary]:
◆Cooldown decreased from 26/24/22/20/18 to 25/23/21/19/17.
◆Cooldown now starts when the Ability Ends.
Cryoseism [Ultimate]:
◆Damage decreased from 120/240/360 to 120/210/300.
◆Explosion damage decreased 60/120/180 to 60/105/150.
◆Cooldown increased from 130/120/110 to 145/130/115.
Countess currently struggles in the Mana department, even in the mid-late game where Mana should no longer be as scarce. To ensure Countess is not forced to invest in Mana Itemisation, we’re granting her some general increases to her Mana economy, especially in the case of Blade Siphon, which tends to eat up a lot of her budget due to its frequent use both in lane and in teamfights.
General:
◆Mana Regen Growth increased from 0.12 to 0.2.
Shadow Slip [Primary]:
◆[Bugfix] Fixed an issue where Countess could be unable to reactivate Shadow Slip if Disrupted mid-way.
◆[Bugfix] Fixed an issue where Countess could get stuck in her invisible return loop if Disrupted mid-way.
Blade Siphon [Alternate]:
◆Mana Cost decreased from 60 to 50.
Crunch struggles to survive in many teamfight scenarios, especially in the later stages of a match where he is often bursted down before he has a chance to unleash his combos. Some additional scaling durability in the form of Health and Physical Armor Growth is being granted to allow him a greater chance at contributing in the end game.
General:
◆Health Growth increased from 127 to 130.
◆Physical Armor Growth increased from 3.15 to 3.4.
Dekker’s general damage profile currently has her functioning more as burst Mage, rather than the disruptor/catcher she’s intended to be. Some additional damage and uptime is being taken out of her kit to ensure her damage contribution is not overly high, given the amount of utility she already provides to her team.
Stasis Bomb [Alternate]:
◆Damage decreased from 90/120/150/180/210 to 80/110/140/170/200.
Ion Strike [Ultimate]:
◆Damage decreased from 180/290/400 to 170/275/380.
◆Cooldown increased from 100/90/80 to 110/95/80.
Drongo’s combination of general safety, burst damage potential and Tank shredding capabilities currently allows him to serve as a strong jack of all trades. While we wish to maintain his general burst damage profile as a more ability-centric Carry, some general ability uptime and damage is being stripped back. This will result in less one-shot scenarios when Shrapnel Cannon is thrown into the mix and better allowing Tanks to hold up to the damage when focused by him.
Wastelander [Passive]:
◆Max Health Damage decreased from 2.5% to 2%.
◆Monster Max Health Damage Cap decreased from 0.4% to 0.3%.
Shrapnel Cannon [Ultimate]:
◆Damage decreased from 200/320/440 to 180/290/400.
◆Cooldown increased from 110/95/80 to 120/100/80.
Feng Mao has struggled to find presence in the Jungle Role, often preferring to exist in the Offlane instead. To better facilitate him in the Jungle without impacting Offlane too heavily, his Hamstring is receiving some damage increases, allowing for faster Jungle Clears and a stronger early game damage spike. In return, his general Mana efficiency is taking a hit in the early levels, meaning he cannot overwhelm opponents in the Offlane with repeated Hamstrings as easily due to a smaller Mana budget.
General:
◆Mana decreased from 375 to 350.
◆Mana Growth decreased from 55 to 50.
◆Mana Regen decreased from 1.6 to 1.5.
◆Mana Regen Growth increased from 0.1 to 0.2.
Hamstring [Secondary]:
◆Damage increased from 90/120/150/180/210 to 95/130/165/200/235.
Gadget has risen as a strong performer as of late, with her possessing a suite of tools such as strong wave clear tools, control, anti-dive, long range and strong general damage output and scaling. In many cases it can feel too difficult to punish Gadget, even when she mis-positions. As a result she is receiving a range of small individual nerfs, with the overall result being a decrease in her survivability with less uptime on her Shock Absorber Shield allowing for more windows of punishment, and a lower general damage output and ability uptime throughout a match.
Additionally, Seek and Destroy had an issue where it would not always deal the correct 10 instances of damage. This has been rectified and its damage has been further adjusted to ensure she does not receive any free damage from the fix.
General:
◆Health Growth decreased from 125 to 123.
Shock Absorber [Passive]:
◆Cooldown increased from 30-9.6 (-1.2 per Level) to 45-14.4 (-1.8 per Level)
Sticky Mine [Primary]:
◆Magical Power Scaling decreased from 80% to 75%.
Security Gate [Secondary]:
◆Damage decreased from 100/145/190/135/280 to 100/140/180/220/260
Seek and Destroy [Alternate]:
◆[Bugfix] Now correctly always deals 10 ticks of damage, instead of 9.
◆Damage decreased from 140/190/240/290/340 to 120/170/220/270/320.
◆Magical Power Scaling decreased from 110% to 100%.
◆Cooldown increased from 14/13/12/11/10 to 15/14/13/12/11.
Tesla Dome [Ultimate]:
◆Total Magical Power Scaling decreased from 220% to 210%.
◆Magical Armor Shred decreased from 5% to 4%.
◆Cooldown increased from 120/100/80 to 130/115/100.
Similar to Gadget, Gideon has suffered from an issue where his Ultimate would not always deal the correct 10 instances of damage. This has now been rectified and the damage values have been shifted around to ensure there is no meaningful gain or loss in damage output, with a largely neutral final result.
Black Hole [Ultimate]:
◆[Bugfix] Black Hole now correctly deals 10 instances of damage, instead of 9.
◆Damage per Instance decreased from 45/65/85 to 41/58/75.
◆Magical Power Scaling per instance decreased from 29% to 26%.
◆Total Damage changed from 405/585/765 to 410/580/750.
◆Total Magical Power Scaling decreased from 261% to 260%.
Greystone can struggle to reliably land his Assault the Gates on Enemy Heroes due to the lower radius the ability covers and how difficult it can be to predict enemy movement accurately. To help bring some greater consistency and aggression to the ability, Assault The Gates is receiving a small hitbox increase, as well a higher refund amount on successful Hero hits, alongside some other small changes.
Sacred Oath [Secondary]:
◆Bonus Physical Power Scaling increased from 20% to 25%.
Assault The Gates [Alternate]:
◆Cooldown Refund On Hit increased from 35% to 40%.
◆Damage Radius increased by 8%.
◆[QoL] Impact VFX increased to better match hitbox size.
Stone Forged Soul [Ultimate]:
◆Cooldown increased from 160/130/100 to 160/135/110.
Grim stands tall as one of the strongest lane bullies in the game. While this is in-theme, currently it can feel on the oppressive side and needs stripping back. As a result, Grim is receiving decreases to his general early game damage output and stats to ensure his early-game is more manageable to fight against, with less potential for Slowing his targets and running them down, as well reduced poke potential with a more limited Mana Pool. On top of this, with Grim uniquely dealing significant amounts of consistent Magical Damage, his BAT is increasing, meaning his general Attacks per Second will not scale as aggressively with Attack Speed purchases, therefore lowering his general Basic Attack DPS.
General:
◆Physical Power decreased from 62 to 60.
◆Health decreased from 780 to 770.
◆Mana decreased from 420 to 380.
◆Mana Growth increased from 35 to 38.
◆BAT increased from 1.15 to 1.25.
Displacement Blast [Primary]:
◆Damage decreased from 110/150/190/230/270 to 100/140/180/220/260.
Assault Mode [Secondary]:
◆Slow decreased from 10/12.5%/15%/17.5%/20% to 8%/11%/14%/17%/20%.
Energy Shield [Alternate]:
◆Shield Duration decreased from 1.5s to 1.25s.
Howitzer can struggle to succeed in the early game unless he routinely lands his R2000 Missile and Land Mine. Likewise, his Slow Grenades can feel underwhelming as a disruption tool until the later stages of a match due to the low potency of the Slow at rank one. Due to these factors, we’re shifting around some of Howitzer’s strength, slightly increasing his physical durability and increasing the value of smart Slow Grenade usage to bring more emphasis to the ability and a more accessible early game, while decreasing the upfront damage of Land Mine to ensure his raw damage output is in check.
General:
◆Physical Armor increased from 19 to 22.
Land Mine [Secondary]:
◆Damage decreased from 115/145/175/205/235 to 100/130/160/190/220.
◆Magical Power Scaling increased from 35% to 40%.
Slow Grenades [Alternate]:
◆Slow increased from 15%/20%/25%/30%/35% to 20%/25%/30%/35%/40%.
Kallari is receiving some additional Guillotine damage in the earlier ranks to allow her for greater early game all-in threat, providing her a better chance at securing a lead as she can often find herself struggling to make a significant impact before the mid-game rolls around.
Guillotine [Ultimate]:
◆Damage increased from 200/350/500 to 220/360/500.
Khaimera has significant impact in the earlier stages of a match, but has a tendency to struggle in the later stages as his durability begins to fall off, often relying on Orb Prime and Primal Fang to reliably close out a match. To help offset this, Khaimera is receiving some late-game improvements, with increased survivability and more Ambush and Invigorate uptime, thereby being less Ability Haste reliant in his Itemization and better able to dip into alternative options. In return, his early game efficacy is taking a hit, providing a more levelled power progression through a match.
General:
◆Health Growth increased from 120 to 124.
◆Physical Armor decreased from 25 to 24.
◆Physical Armor Growth increased from 3.25 to 3.4.
Unleash [Primary]:
◆Damage increased from 10/16/22/28/34 to 13/19/25/31/37.
◆Total Physical Power Scaling decreased from 45% to 40%.
Invigorate [Secondary]:
◆Cooldown decreased from 22/20/18/16/14 to 22/19.5/17/14.5/12.
◆Max Health healing changed from 8%/9%/10%/11%/12% to 7%/9%/11%/13%/15%.
Ambush [Alternate]:
◆Damage decreased from 85/110/135/160/185 to 80/105/130/155/180.
◆Cooldown changed from 10/9.5/9/8.5/8 to 11/10/9/8/7.
Kira thrives in multiple ways, possessing significant early game all-in threat thanks to the follow-up threat of Dusk, as well as strong late-game Scaling. However her Ultimate often feels underwhelming to use due to its lower relative damage output compared to her Basic Attacks. To provide for more counterplay, we’re reducing Kira’s early-game all-in threat with reductions to her durability and Dusk damage, while offering Purge some additional punch, increasing its general use-cases.
General:
◆Health decreased from 760 to 750.
◆Attack Speed Growth decreased from 2 to 1.7.
Dusk [Primary]:
◆Damage per stack decreased from 10/14/18/22/26 to 10/13/16/19/22.
◆Max Damage decreased from 95/129/163/197/231 to 95/123/151/179/207.
Purge [Ultimate]:
◆Total Damage increased from 240/345/450 to 240/405/570.
◆Total Physical Power Scaling increased from 345% to 360%.
Lt. Belica struggles to keep pace in the Mid Lane, often out pressured and struggling to reach her later power spikes. Rather than simply buffing up her early laning strength, we believe there is room to reinforce her mid-game spike and further double down on her strong scaling, offering her a more significant mid-game spike from Seismic Assault and Neural Disruptor to better bridge the damage gap between early and late-game.
Seismic Assault [Primary]:
◆Damage increased from 100/145/190/235/280 to 100/150/200/250/300.
Neural Disruptor [Ultimate]:
◆Damage increased from 190/280/370 to 190/300/410.
◆Magical Power Scaling increased from 55% to 60%.
Morigesh is receiving some changes to her general mobility with a decrease to her base movement speed, but additional movement speed being granted to Swarm to better differentiate windows of strength based on the Swarm’s availability in the later stages of a match.
General:
◆Movement Speed decreased from 665 to 660.
Pestilence [Passive]:
◆Passive Max Health Damage decreased from 0.5% to 0.4%.
Swarm [Secondary]:
◆Bonus Movement Speed increased from 20% to 20%/22.5%/25%/27.5%/30%.
Murdock is receiving some small durability increases in the early game to better allow him to stand his ground during the laning phase.
General:
◆Health increased from 735 to 745.
◆Physical Armor increased from 20 to 22.
Following the trend of decreasing early game ability damage among Carries and Supports in the previous few patches, Muriel is receiving a small damage reduction to Serenity, ensuring she also does not contribute to too much poke or all-in threat from one or two casts.
Serenity [Primary]:
◆Damage decreased from 90/130/170/210/250 to 85/125/165/205/245.
A quick bump up in Ability Haste granted by Phase’s Ultimate, better allowing her to pair up with other Heroes that do not benefit from Attack Speed as heavily.
Hyperflux [Ultimate]:
◆Ability Haste increased from 35/55/75 to 40/60/80.
Rampage has struggled to keep up with other Heroes since the transition to Six Items, with his general durability, build paths and damage potential lacking compared to others. To remedy this, not only are we offering an increase to his bonus Health and Regeneration while under the effects of Behemoth, we are also granting him a Health Scaling on his Rumble. While this is about neutral in the early game in terms of damage output, the new Health Scaling better incentivises tankier builds paths, further allowing Rampage to scale up from investing in Health. Naturally, this is met with a decrease in Physical Power Scaling to ensure Fighter itemisation does not become too strong as it typically possesses a combination of Health and Physical Power.
Rumble [Secondary]:
◆Damage increased from 40/70/100/130/160 to 55/85/115/145/175.
◆Total Physical Power Scaling decreased from 90% to 65%.
◆Damage now Scales with 6% Bonus Health.
◆Damage Radius increased by 8%.
Behemoth [Ultimate]:
◆Bonus Health increased from 200/400/600 to 200/450/700.
◆King Of The Jungle Health Regeneration modifier increased from 4x to 4.5x.
Revenant, while strong in his own right, lacks the consistency to be able to succeed in many matches, often being too fragile to deal with tankier divers or hold his own in a 1v1 box scenario, alongside frequently running out of Mana prematurely in the mid-game. To further resolve this, we’re granting Revenant some additional Health and Mana Growth throughout the match which allows for some additional individual agency, as well as offering some additional Hellfire Rounds damage to ensure he’s adequately rewarded for landing a well-timed final shot.
General:
◆Health Growth increased from 124 to 128.
◆Mana Growth increased from 40 to 50.
Hand Cannon [Primary]:
◆[Bugfix] Fixed an Issue where Revenant would not automatically reload if Scar or Reckoning were used immediately after using his final shot.
Hellfire Rounds [Alternate]:
◆4th Shot Missing Health Damage increased from 4.5% to 5%.
A quick bump to Riktor’s Attack Speed, better allowing him to last-hit in the Offlane, take trades, or keep pace in his Jungle Clears.
General:
◆Attack Speed increased from 105 to 110.
Similar to Riktor, Sevarog is also gaining some additional Attack Speed with the primary goal of providing him with a smoother experience when prepping Minions and Monsters for Stacks.
General:
◆Attack Speed increased from 100 to 105.
Since her release, Terra has been seen to dominate many Offlane matchups, especially in the early levels thanks to the combination of offence and defence offered by Ruthless Assault and Wild Rush. As a general theme, Terra will be receiving reductions in her early game potency to ensure her Offlane opponents are not unfairly pressured in the first few recalls, thereby reducing the ease at which she can achieve a snowball and run over a match.
Ruthless Assault [Primary]:
◆Damage decreased from 45/65/85/105/125 to 40/60/80/100/120.
◆Empowered Damage decreased from 55/85/115/145/175 to 50/80/110/140/170.
Wild Rush [Alternate]:
◆Max Charge Damage decreased from 120/180/240/300/360 to 100/150/200/250/300.
◆Base Bonus Physical Power Scaling increased from 75% to 80%.
◆Max Charge Bonus Physical Power Scaling decreased from 225% to 200%.
◆Mana Cost increased from 70 to 80.
◆Shield Duration decreased from 4s to 3.5s.
Unstoppable Force [Ultimate]:
◆Cooldown increased from 130/110/90 to 140/120/100.
TwinBlast’s Physical Power Growth is on the lower end, contributing to the feeling of a low Basic Attack damage output compared to other Carries – made more relevant due to the fact he must track and hit 2 individual shots to receive full value. A small increase is therefore being granted to close the gap.
General:
◆Physical Power Growth increased from 2.8 to 3.2.
Wraith demands a high level of mastery in order to fully excel, but even when this condition is met, he can still struggle to make an impact due to his lower survivability and self-peel. Alongside some general stat increases, the Slow Duration of Peekaboo! Is increasing, providing Wraith with a longer window to snipe Marked Targets, with the added benefit of it stifling aggressive Enemy plays for longer.
General:
◆Attack Speed Growth increased from 1.8 to 2.
◆Physical Armor Growth increased from 3.05 to 3.2.
Peekaboo! [Primary]:
◆Slow Duration increased from 0.75s to 1s.
Knock, Knock! [Alternate]:
◆Damage increased from 95/120/145/170/195 to 100/125/150/175/200.
Zarus’ Coliseum uptime allows him to overly thrive in the Jungle Role, allowing for plenty of high-impact gank opportunities. The rank one cooldown is seeing an increase to ensure his map presence does not remain as overwhelming, and combined with the subsequent hit to Augmentation described later on, he should become less of a pick-priority.
Coliseum [Ultimate]:
◆Cooldown changed from 145/125/105 to 160/130/100.
Item Balance Changes
Crests:
Titan and Goliath Crest now evolve 20 stacks faster, saving Tanks an additional minute of time before their final Crest comes online and better matching the progression of other Crest types.
Stacks to Evolve decreased from 300 to 280.
Stacks to Evolve decreased from 300 to 280.
A small decrease in Brutallax’s cooldown to make it more attractive compared to other Fighter Crests when an answer is needed to CC-heavy compositions.
Purifying Rage Cooldown decreased from 150 to 135.
Epoch provides incredible safety and can stifle many aggressive plays by Enemies. A hit to the cooldown is needed to ensure Mages cannot as frequently use it as a get out of jail free card in fights.
Stasis Device Cooldown increased from 120 to 135.
Liberator is receiving a small hit to its Shield, reducing the overall safety the Crest provides given its Cleanse already provides significant safety for Carries.
Purifying Guard Shield Bonus Physical Power Scaling decreased from 150% to 135%.
Similar to Brutallax, Witchstalker is receiving a small decrease to its cooldown to make it more attractive compared to other Assassin Crests when an answer is needed to CC-heavy compositions.
Purifying Strike Cooldown decreased from 150 to 135.
T2:
Nether Shard is receiving some additional Monster Damage, allowing it to be serve as power spike for Junglers looking to farm the map more efficiently. Alongside this, we’re squashing both the Cost and Magical Power, allowing it to be purchased with more ease on a first recall.
Cost decreased from 1250 to 1100.
Magical Power decreased from 35 to 30.
Monster Slayer Bonus Damage increased from 8% to 10%.
Carry:
Absolution does not provide enough Magical Armor to serve as a singular bump in Magical Defence, often needing to be paired with another Magical Armor Item. We’re granting it some additional Magical Armor to function better as a standalone defensive purchase.
Magical Armor increased from 20 to 25.
Ashbringer is having its Stat profile adjusted, now granting Attack Speed on top of its existing Stats. This will better allow it to function as a bridging option for Heroes such as Drongo that are both ability reliant and looking to add some Attack Speed to their build, opening up new build possibilities.
Physical Power decreased from 45 to 20.
Ability Haste decreased from 25 to 15.
30% Attack Speed added.
Recipe: Robust Arbalest + Temporal Ripper.
Nuclear Rounds is also receiving Stat adjustment, no longer granting Attack Speed or Mana and gaining some Ability Haste in return, better defining it as an Item for Ability-heavy Carries. In terms of build order, the Mana granted by Nuclear Rounds often fell off in relevancy by the time many builds pick it up, and the Attack Speed, while nice as a bridging Stat, muddies the identity of the item as it is doing too many things at once.
There is more work to be done when it comes to providing clearer Item identifies and Stat profiles, especially in the Carry Item subgroup where it is not always obvious why you might wish to buy Item A over Item B. But for now, Nuclear Rounds will be one of the first to receive a clearer identity, and will be tuned accordingly as an alternative to Imperator for Ability Heavy Heroes until we can dive into further improvements for the entire suite of Carry items.
Cost decreased from 3200 to 3100.
Physical Power increased from 40 to 45.
15 Ability Haste added.
250 Mana removed.
20% Attack Speed removed.
Recipe: Claymore + Temporal Ripper.
Resolution is gaining some additional Attack Speed, bringing more emphasis to its power spike when purchased, while also letting it serve as a better 1-stop purchase to satisfy a Hero’s Attack Speed needs.
Attack Speed increased from 15% to 20%.
Once again we’re hitting Sky Splitters Current Health damage effect, bringing it even closer into parity with other damage options, thereby reducing it’s “must-buy” status and ensuring tankier targets do not get unnaturally melted.
Rend Current Health Damage decreased from 3.5% to 3%.
Stormbreaker is receiving an increase in cost to better match up with its general strength, and ensure the Power Spike it provides requires appropriate investment relative to Crit’ options.
Cost increased from 3000 to 3100.
We are reverting the increase to Vanquisher’s physical Penetration that was recently granted. While it was initially done to offset some of the additional Physical Armor all Heroes were granted to keep the item feeling like a relevant spike in power, it has become apparent it was unneeded, with the additional Penetration contributing to too much all-in power in the early game.
Physical Penetration decreased from 9 to 8.
[Bugfix] Fixed an issue where Annihilate would not Execute its Target when they were damaged by other Item effects, such as Infernum or Malady.
Assassin:
Even when needed, Dread can feel difficult to slot into builds partly due to its price point. It is receiving a small reduction in cost to make it feel more accessible for those matchups where it is required.
Cost decreased from 3000 to 2900.
Envy’s ability to Silence its Target is incredibly potent and has too much up-time for how strong the effect is. As a result Hush’s cooldown is receiving an increase to ensure there is adequate downtime between activations.
Hush Cooldown increased from 45 to 60.
Infernum, though intended to be a strong anti-Tank tool for Assassins and Duelists to opt into, contributes heavily to the feeling of Tanks not being durable enough. In large-part, this is due to Cinder having the ability to be reapplied while it is already burning its Target, leading to a buildup of excessive damage over a short fight for the Heroes that can apply it quickly (TwinBlast and Morigesh).
The intention for the item is not to serve as a consistent DPS tool, but supplementary damage to short trades. As a result, Cinder can no longer be reapplied if the Target is already affected by its burn effect, creating more downtime between activations, skewing it closer towards its intention of supplementary burst, and allowing us to buff it in future if needed without as much concern for unhealthy Hero interactions.
Cinder Max Health Damage decreased from 4% to 3.5%.
Cinder Max Health Damage Bonus Physical Power Scaling increased from 1.25% to 1.5%.
Cinder No longer generates stacks of Kindling against a Target while they are currently affected by Cinder’s Damage effect.
Mindrazor is trading some of its Cleave strength for additional Physical Power, reducing its unhealthy wave-clear interactions in return for more raw Combat strength.
Physical Power increased from 45 to 50.
Razor Cleave Total Physical Power Scaling decreased from 30% to 25%.
Nightfall also struggles to find its place within many Item builds, with its effects not providing enough bang for their buck to justify their purchase. There is room to increase its defensive capabilities, allowing it to serve as an alternative to Mutilator when Assassins are looking for a sustain option.
Eclipse Ability Healing increased from 10% to 12%.
Dusk Reaver Shield on Takedown increased from 200-400 to 200-450.
Omen also sits in the “difficult to buy” category compared to other options. While this is partly due to cooldown reduction capabilities not providing enough impact (a problem to address in the future), in the short-term we are decreasing its cost to ensure it is more competitive.
Cost decreased from 3100 to 3000.
Trident is an exceptionally strong anti-heal option in the late game once enough Physical Penetration is purchased but struggles to hold up as an earlier purchase due to its Woundseeker’s reliance on Scaling. Some additional Ability Haste is being offered to let it serve as a nicer bridging stat-stick if purchased in the earlier stages of a match.
Ability Haste increased from 10 to 15.
Some additional Physical Penetration is being granted to Perforator to better differentiate it from Demolisher, and further suit it to the needs of its Assassin buyers.
Physical Penetration increased from 6 to 7.
Fighter:
Since the return to Total Physical Power Scaling, Augmentation True Strike effect has overperformed in the damage department. A small decrease is needed to ensure that Time To Kill is not overly shortened in the fights where Augmentation is present.
True Strike Total Physical Power Scaling decreased from 40% to 35%.
Berserker’s Axe is another item that contributes to high burst-damage in the earlier stages of a match. Following the loose trend of decreasing the incidental damage offered by Item effects and letting Hero kits drive combat more, it is also receiving a small bump down to Blitz’s damage.
Blitz Damage decreased from 40 to 30.
A quick cost reduction for Draconum alongside some additional Takedown Healing, making it more attractive to its buyers and better allowing it to facilitate chain-kill scenarios.
Cost decreased from 3050 to 3000.
Flow Missing Health Healing increased from 4% to 5%.
Earthshaker is also receiving a Stat shift, now granting some extra Ability Haste and better allowing it to fit into various build paths. In return it is losing some Health and Attack Speed, which were previously inflated to make up for the lack of Haste.
Health decreased from 400 to 300.
Attack Speed decreased from 30 to 25.
10 Ability Haste added.
Recipe: Ironwood Warbow + Violet Brooch.
Small reduction in Cost for Legacy to better match competing options.
Cost decreased from 3050 to 3000.
Mistmeadow Buckler is the final item receiving a Stat shift. Though strong, it suffered from the same problem as Earthshaker, with many Heroes wanting to pick it up but struggling to fit it into their build until the late-game due to the absence of Ability Haste. Now that Mistmeadow grants Haste, it can better act as a defensive option against heavy magical burst when required without stifling build paths. In return, the Omnivamp has been removed to provide for a clearer identity.
The strength of Azure Core’s Shield effect could often result in Mages being more durable than intended, with low room for punishment even when they mispositioned. A hit to its potency is required to ensure focusing a Mage remains a viable option in fights.
Spirit Shield Max Mana Scaling decreased from 25% to 20%.
Flowing over from the changes to Nether Shard, Spirit Of Amir also gains the increase to Monster Damage.
Monster Slayer Damage increased from 8% to 10%.
Soul Binder struggles to compete with other first-buys, even for the Mages that are best suited to activating its condition such as Howitzer, Grim.exe and Gadget. To improve its consistency, we’re not only granting it some additional Arcane Salvo damage to better compete with the likes of Combustion, but also reducing its activation range to allow for more consistent stack gains.
Arcane Salvo Damage increased from 8% to 10%.
Arcane Salvo Activation Range decreased from 1500+ to 1450+.
Tainted Scepter is another item that contributes to high burst damage scenarios in the early game, especially when picked up by a Support. To combat this, Malice is receiving a decrease to its upfront damage, but is receiving some additional Magical Power Scalings to ensure it still remains attractive to Mages that invest in additional damage itemization.
Malice Damage per Stack decreased from 4 to 3.
Malice Magical Power Scaling per Stack increased from 1% to 1.5%.
[Bugfix] Malice no longer draws Minion aggro when damaging Enemy Heroes.
Support:
Several Support Items are receiving price cuts ranging from 50-150g, alongside some Stat shifts. The goal is to better differentiate the cost-point of Support Itemisation away from other subclasses, increasing the price jump between them and reducing the need for Supports, especially Frontliners, to invest in more expensive Items to stay on curve. On the Stat side of things, some of the less common Items have received mild increases, and others have received decreases to reflect the power granted when accessing their Passive Effects faster.
Cost decreased from 2600 to 2500.
Cost decreased from 2650 to 2550.
Cost decreased from 2600 to 2500
Health decreased from 300 to 250
Base Health Regen increased from 75% to 100%.
Crusader Bonus Attack Speed increased from 20% to 25%.
Cost decreased from 2600 to 2500.
Physical Armor increased from 20 to 25.
Cost decreased from 2650 to 2600.
Cost decreased from 2700 to 2550.
Health decreased from 400 to 350.
[Bugfix] Fixed an issue where Frostwave would not correctly go on cooldown when it activated but did not deal damage to an Enemy Hero.
Cost decreased from 2600 to 2550.
Cost decreased from 2650 to 2550.
Base Health Regen increased from 100% to 125%.
Lunaria specifically was an Item designed with Heroes like Zinx in mind. Now that she has arrived to the battlefield, it became apparent through internal testing that Lunaria synergizes extremely well with her and some decreases to Incandescence’s potential healing output were needed. This lost healing is partially being redistributed to Heal & Shield Power to make Lunaria more relevant to other Enchanters Heroes.
Cost decreased from 2650 to 2600.
Heal & Shield Power increased from 8% to 10%.
Incandescence Additional Healing decreased from 100-360 to 100-300.
Cost decreased from 2700 to 2550.
Magical Power increased from 40 to 45.
Cost decreased from 2700 to 2650.
Cost decreased from 2650 to 2550.
Cost decreased from 2600 to 2500.
Magical Power increased from 45 to 50.
Tank:
Since the previous changes to Fire Blossom’s Passive, it has struggled to justify its spot in builds compared to other Tank options. To bring it in closer contention, some additional Health Scaling is being granted to Heatwave to provide for better synergy with tankier builds.
Heatwave Damage Bonus Health Scaling increased from 1% to 1.25%.
Void Helm does not meet the mark when it comes to providing enough Magical Armor in a single slot, especially for the healing Heroes that should synergize well with it. Some additional Magical Armor is being granted to ensure the likes of Rampage and Khaimera can access it as a valid alternative defensive choice instead of needing to always rely on the likes of Crystalline or Bastion, and not feel the need to stack multiple Magical Defense options when facing a singular Magical threat.
Magical Armor increased from 35 to 40.
Bug Fixes
Fixed a range of localisation issues for various languages.
Fixed an issue where Terra’s “Hoorah!” Emote had the incorrect Rarity.
Fixed an issue where Terra’s Prestige Skin had the incorrect Rarity.
Fixed an issue where in-game Player names could disappear after reconnecting.
Fixed an issue where Impact SFX on Monsters could incorrectly play after reconnecting.
Fixed an issue where selecting multiple elements in quick succession during Draft could sometimes cause drops in frame rate.
Fixed an issue where viewing different tabs on frontend and on the settings menu could sometimes cause significant drops in frame rate.
Fixed an issue where Wraith’s Back It Up! Would not go on cooldown when used on Spell Immune targets.
Fixed an issue where Wraith’s Sonar Drone would not display the correct VFX when first walking over it.
Fixed an issue where Narbash’s Wallop would display the incorrect description when purchasing some Critical Strike Chance.
Fixed an issue where Iggy’s Inferno Menu description would incorrectly state it knocks back all Targets.
Fixed an issue on Consoles where Blocking existing Friends would have no effect.
Fixed an issue where unlocking a Premium Affinity on Controller would duplicate the selection indicator.
Fixed an issue where Aurora’s Frozen Simulacrum would not deal increased damage with Wroldbreaker’s Fiend effect.
Fixed an issue where Aurora’s Glacial Charge could spawn its Wall without committing the cooldown when interrupted mid-cast.
Fixed an issue where Aurora’s Cryoseism could affect Enemies who were under a Stasis effect.
Fixed an issue on PlayStation where sending an invite via the New PS5 Game option would not send a notification.
Fixed an issue where Drongo’s Gag Grenade could be thrown under floors.
Fixed an issue where Crests could be used during Stasis Effects, such as Greystone’s Stone Forged Soul.
Fixed an issue where Objective Healthbars could become stuck on the HUD after dying.
Fixed an issue where the Social Tab would not show the correct number of Online Friends.
Fixed an issue where Users would continue to appear as Online when leaving the game via Console closure.
Fixed an issue where Console Users would not appear as Online correctly to Friends already in the game.
Fixed an issue where incoming Friend Requests could incorrectly show the sender’s status as “In Menus”.
Fixed an issue where Objective Healthbars could disappear when rejoining a match.
Fixed an issue where The Fey’s Nature’s Vengeance would trigger on suicide.
Fixed an issue in Brawl where disconnected players could get stuck in a pathing loop into the Jump Pad.
Fixed an issue where repeated Kills against the same target would not count towards Multi-kills.
Fixed an issue where Dekker’s Stasis Bomb could bounce off of Minions and Monsters.
Fixed an issue where Projectiles would visually keep travelling when dealing the killing blow to a target.
Fixed an issue where HUD Objective/Tower Health Bars could overlap with one another.
Fixed an issue where Hero Portraits would show in the incorrect order on the HUD upon reconnecting to match.
Fixed an issue where Shinbi’s Line Tempo would not state the correct Cooldown decrease on rank-up.
Fixed an issue where Sevarog’s Subjugate would not state the correct Mana Cost increase on rank-up.
Fixed an issue where Recall SFX would continue to play for Spectators when they Respawn.
Fixed an issue where Drongo’s Gag Grenade would not state its Damage increase on rank-up.
Fixed an issue where Grux’s Bloodlust was granting 2x damage on the first stack.
Fixed an issue where Steel could Shield Slam through the Dawn Base Floor (we’ll get them all, eventually!)
Fixed an issue where Explosive Flowers would not interrupt Movement Abilities when Knocking Up targets.
Fixed an issue where Ambient SFX could stop playing when reconnecting to a match.
Fixed an issue where Users would be unable to interact with the Play widget if they disconnected during the loading screen in Player vs AI.
Fixed an issue where Phase’s Energy Lance would continue to shake the Users Camera if cancelled mid-way.
Fixed an issue where Phase’s Energy Lance reticle would display as Red even if the Target is out of range.
Fixed an issue where Narbash’s Song Of My People would not always display its VFX correctly.
Fixed an issue where refreshing Slow effects would not correctly update the Status Bar duration on Hero Healthbars.
Fixed an issue where Crest Menu text could become incorrectly aligned.
Fixed an issue where Kwang’s Judgement of the Heaven’s Tether effect would extend further on vertical targets.
Fixed an issue where Fangtooth and Orb Prime would be invisible to Spectating Players while dead.
Fixed an issue where Muriel’s Reversal Of Fortune animation could break when confirmed repeatedly.
Fixed an issue where Howitzer could Displace himself with Land Mine while in his Make It Rain state.
Fixed an issue where Kwang could activate his Ultimate while Tehtered/Rooted, breaking the animation.
Fixed an issue where Highlight Focus could be lost in the In-Game Settings when scrolling up.
Fixed an issue where Iggy’s Inferno SFX could sometimes fail to play.
Fixed an issue where Kwang’s Abilities would gain extended range while under Hero enlargement effects.
Fixed an issue where Murdock’s Shots Fired range indicator did not match actual range.
Fixed an issue where Pings could appear in the incorrect location when attempting to ping objects at a distance.
Fixed an issue where the Scoreboard could be unable to be closed when swapping between Controller and Keyboard inputs types.
Fixed an issue where the Mini Prime Buff Timer would display the incorrect value upon reconnecting.
Fixed an issue where Dekker’s Stasis Bomb Targeting could be interupted when using Rocket Boots.
Fixed an issue where Dusk Offlane Inhibitor could be shot from outside of its Attack Range.
Fixed an issue where Serath’s Heaven Fury would show her as Visible mid-cast.
Fixed an issue where Serath’s Heaven’s Fury would not always cancel when her Target enters an Unselectable state.
Fixed an issue where Items Icons in the Inventory could jitter when long keybinds were assigned.
Fixed an issue where Hero Names could replace Player Names on the loading screen when reconnecting to a match.
Fixed an issue where Revenant’s Hellfire Rounds Ability Icon could become briefly distorted after reloading.
Fixed an issue where Active Item pop-ups could play twice for a single activation.
Fixed an issue where the Skin Select SFX could play twice on selection.
Fixed an issue where the Online and Offline Friend Count would not show.
Fixed an issue where the On My Way Left Ping SFX was inconsistent to other similar commands.
Fixed an issue where Kira’s Purge Decal could remain in the world if immediately Stunned on use.
Fixed an issue where The Fey’s Targeting SFX would not always play correctly.
Fixed an issue where Respawn VFX would not play correctly for certain Heroes when returning to base.
Fixed an issue where Primal Fangtooth’s Buff Notifier stated the incorrect text.
Fixed an issue where Buff Description Prompts would display before killing them when in their proximity.
Fixed an issue where Kallari’s Death Mark SFX would trigger even if the Mark was Cleansed.
Fixed an issue where Sentry’s range would increase with size enlargement effects.
Fixed an issue where Gadget’s Seek and Destroy would incorrectly play an Explosion VFX when observed at long-distance.
When the next update hits, our readers will be the first to know.
Helldivers 2 new update 1.001.004 has been pushed out on PS5 and PC, and this houses crashing fixes, weapon and stratagem fixes, soft lock fixed and more. The complete details are available in the patch notes below.
Update: For those looking for the emergency hotfix released by Arrowhead this Aug. 21, head on over here.
Overview
Crash Fixes
Weapon & Stratagem fixes
Fixes to the impaler & explosion radius
Soft lock fix
Fixes
Crash Fixes:
Fixed a crash when dropping into a game joined by invite while previously hosting.
Fixed a crash that would occur after being kick for being AFK
Fixed a crash that could happen when dropping down into a mission.
Fixed crash that could occur if shutting down the game during boot.
General Weapon and Stratagem fixes
Fixed an issue where flamethrower particles would ignore enemies.(Improvement towards our 60 day plan)
Mines can now be shot and blown up while near a dangerous object.
Enemy fixes:
Reduced the explosion radius of Tentacles Stabbing ability and Light Rockets
This should alleviate the excessive ragdolling caused by the Impaler and Automaton enemies using light rockets. We are still working on improving the ragdoll behavior overall.
Fixed a bug where the Impaler’s tentacles could chase you indefinitely in some cases.
Miscellaneous fixes:
Fixed an issue that could cause soft-lock during drop-in after the host left.
Known Issues
Players may not receive Friend Requests sent from another platform.
“Invite only” games created by a friend can still be seen on the Galactic War map but cannot be joined.
“Conduct Geological Survey” mission may become incompletable if a player calls in “Seismic Probe” and immediately leaves the game or disconnects.
Bile Titan sometimes does not take damage to the head.
Enemies that bleed out do not progress Personal Orders and Eradicate missions.
Most weapons shoot below the crosshair when aiming down the sights..
Chain-link fences block flamethrowers’ fire.
Stratagem beam might attach itself to an enemy but it will deploy to its original location.
“Guard Dog Rover” does not overheat when firing continuously.
Players are able to pick up empty expendable weapons like EAT-17 or MLS-4X
Reinforcement may not be available for players who join a game in progress.
Service Technician on the ship cannot be interacted with – they complained they were bothered too much and could not do their work efficiently
As for what’s incoming, Arrowhead Game Studios has outlined the update plans for the next 60 days, which you can read about here.
While we reported yesterday that Black Myth Wukong has already Cyberpunk 2077’s record for most pre-loads on Steam, GameScience’s debut game has established another record on the platform today, as it is now the fastest game to hit one million concurrent players on Steam!
Now at over 1.4 million concurrent players on the platform, Black Myth Wukong managed to breach the one million mark in just 60 minutes after launch! The previous title holder was Cyberpunk 2077, which managed to do it in 160 minutes back in 2020.
Note that this number should be considerably higher given we cannot track the PS5 playercount. Chances are, we should be hearing something about this amazing achievement soon via GameScience’s PR team.
Of note, given Black Myth Wukong does not have an online or multiplayer component, don’t expect this number to stick around for long, especially once more and more players finish the game. If it does lose a significant amount of concurrent players, that doesn’t mean it’s fading or the game bombed, but rather, it’s simply due to, y’know, people actually finishing the game and moving on.
In other Black Myth Wukong news, recent developments have surfaced that GameScience’s guidelines for streamers listed that the content creators cannot talk about politics, feminist propaganda and other topics about the game. Even with that negative press attention, it seems it hasn’t affected the game’s ability to sell a boatload of copies.
Stay tuned to our Black Myth Wukong PS5 review hitting the site at some point. For those on Xbox, there’s no word on when Black Myth Wukong will be released on the platform given Microsoft’s latest vague statement about it.
Cygames has released Granblue Fantasy Versus Rising update 1.51 (PS5 version 1.510) which adds Versusia as a DLC fighter, a new stage, being able to play mini games in online lobbies while waiting for a match and more. The complete patch notes are available below couresty of the studio for what they call patch 1.50.
New DLC Character
• Versusia has been added as a playable character.
• Versusia has been added as a Premium Avatar.
• A music track, weapon skins, badges, titles, card design, sticker, and Figure Studio poses and expressions for Versusia have been added.
– Versusia must be unlocked as a playable character to access these features (except stickers).
• Versusia has been added to the Rupie Shop under Special Content.
– Purchases made via the Special Content tab do not come with a bonus serial code.
• (PS5/PS4 only) Versusia Purchase Bonus added to the Serial Codes screen in the Options menu.
Battles and Online Matches
• A new stage, Point Zero (Twilight), has been added.
It can be unlocked by finishing Episode 82: When Tomorrow Comes in Story Mode.
• Grand Master Versus Rank added
Held by the ten players with the highest Master Point rankings for each character.
Master Points are earned after reaching Master rank with a character.
Master Points will be reset with the addition of Grand Master after this update.
• A Battle Season system has been implemented. Battle Seasons will reset periodically along with any Master Points accumulated. Players who have maintained their Grand Master Versus Rank when a season resets will earn special rewards.
• An RTT indicator allowing players to see connection ping quality before matches has been added to online lobby match stations.
• A player’s current online lobby is now displayed under Status in the Follow List
• Players can now select “Jump to Same Location” in the Follow List to join the same lobby as another player.
• A new mini-game, Robomi: Epic Clash, has been added to online lobbies along with mini-game stations
• Players can now play mini-game station mini-games in online lobbies while on standby for a match.
• Players detected to be abusing matchmaking will be penalized, in addition to investigations conducted on prior offenders.
Arcade Mode
• Upon fulfilling certain conditions, Versusia will appear as a boss character.
• Players can now continue after losing against Lucilius.
Story Mode
• A new episode, Episode 82: When Tomorrow Comes, has been added.
• A partner will join you in battle in Episode 79: Endless Light.
Grand Bruise!
• A new game mode, Slime Blaster, has been added. It can appear as the second stage.
• Players can now hold down the attack button to repeatedly attack.
This option can be toggled in the Grand Bruise! Button Configuration menu.
• Game selection odds for the third stage have been adjusted.
• Pause menu can now be opened during cutscenes and screen transitions.
• Appearance rates for items have been adjusted based on in-game ranking.
• Appearance rates for random items have been adjusted.
• The time to determine random item selection has been reduced.
• The hit box size for charged attacks when not holding an item has been expanded.
• Properties for the following items have been adjusted:
Sword: hit box expanded, attack speed increased, cooldown reduced
Sword (charged): hit box expanded, now temporarily invincible
Gun: now plays sound effect for other players
Bow: cooldown reduced
Bow (charged): now fires three shots
Axe: hit box expanded, cooldown reduced
Axe (charged): hit box expanded for a larger area of effect
Staff: hit box expanded during giant mode
Staff: added a hit box when diving during giant mode
FRIED SHRIMP: no longer deals damage to the user
Flawless Prism (charged): throw range increased
Smoke: uses reduced
• Balance adjustments have been made to Rising Royale:
Fixed an issue where certain items could not be placed on the disappearing stairs. Updated the appearance of the disappearing stairs
A notification now appears on the left side of the screen when a player reaches the goal
(Final stage version) Added wind effect near the goal to increase unpredictability
(Final stage version) Time limit set to 2:00
(Final stage version) If a player was unable to reach the goal within the time limit, their ranking will be determined based on proximity to the goal
Fixed an issue where progress checkpoints would not be set correctly
• Balance adjustments have been made to Gold Brick Hoarder:
Owlcat Animas now appear for all teams when 30 seconds are left
Invincible characters will be forcibly moved when a large item box falls on them.
The number of items that appear at your base has been increased from 4 to 7.
The interval for items to appear at your base has been reduced from 20 seconds to 12 seconds.
FRIED SHRIMP set by teammates will no longer effect other teammates.
• Balance adjustments have been made to Golem Defense Force:
Health for boss Owlcat and Gray Golem reduced
Healing areas now appear upon defeating boss Owlcat and Gray Golem
Turn speed no longer reduced when attacking
Water gun ammo increased
Movement speed when carrying water gun or laser increased
Movement speed no longer reduced when attacking with water gun or laser
Store
• New weapon cutouts added
Can be obtained by exchanging Draw Tickets from the Main Menu
Others
• Partner voice and animation timing adjusted—when selecting a new Partner, a voice line will now play when returning to the main menu.
• New template message added: “Mini-game time.”
• Fixed text bugs
Battle and Character Adjustments
The philosophy for these adjustments is to refine overall game balance. Along with adjustments being made to universal actions, we’ve made individual changes to the entire roster.
Our primary focus was to highlight their individual strengths while carefully evaluating the balance of risk and reward. This also meant weakening some powerful characters and exploitable tools that minimize the opponent’s agency, reaping rewards disproportionate to the risk taken. Since these adjustments involve significant changes to the game’s overall balance, we will continue to fine tune things while incorporating player feedback.
Not only did Konami reveal a new story trailer for the upcoming Silent Hill 2 remake, but a bunch of info has also surfaced as well. There’s a lot of new Silent Hill 2 info to sift through, so read on!
Check out the story trailer below to see three minutes of footage that bridges the gap between nostalgia and creepiness.
Silent Hill 2 Remake New Gameplay Details:
The info below have been collected from the hands-on preview that have been shared by various publications, which we’ve linked below.
Exploration:
There are more explorable buildings in town compared to the original that may have extra items hidden inside, as well as monsters – welcome addition that encourages exploration
Gorgeous” game, lots of detail in grime, grotesquerie, and yes, lots of fog
Expanded areas: Neely’s Bar, for example, “no longer feels like merely a small, derelict cube, but looks like an actual abandoned bar”
Layouts of areas like the Wood Side and Blue Creek Apartments have changed ‘significantly’ in order to challenge returning players
Improvements:
Original composer Akira Yamaoka returns, with the soundtrack reworked but still familiar, “wrapped in all-new layers of dissonance, static, synth, and intensity”
New puzzles that have you collecting multiple items in order to solve, some have clever references to the original game
No loading screens when traversing between rooms anymore, monsters can ambush you if you’re not careful
You can set the difficulty for puzzles separately
All original endings included + brand new ones in NG+
60fps mode confirmed
New puzzles confirme
Zones have been expanded and item locations moved around
Combat:
Dodge button and aiming reticle added to make combat smoother
Monsters are more aggressive and can counter attack
The boss encounter with Pyramid Head now takes place in a larger, ‘more intense’ warehouse like area
Combat is smoother, although Bloober Team stresses SH2 is not a combat oriented game
Some enemies can now counter-attack between the player’s attacks; you can dodge these counter-attacks and time your retaliation
Combat “actually feels perfectly in service to the rest of the game”; like the original, it’s not combat-oriented, but sensible improvements have been made to make it more fluid
Robust amount of accessibility options (“pages of them”), like color and boldness of your reticle, alternate color palettes, text settings, etc
Overall, the previews have been quite positive, as it’s being referred to as a faithful adaptation, and how the game in’t focusing on combat that much. Bloober Team is aware how the game’s quiet moments help establish that sense of dread in the original, and aren’t straying from that.
Silent Hill 2 is set for release this October 8, and you can check out the different editions and pre-order bonuses players can expect here.
While we’re still deep in Season 1 of XDefiant, it seems whatever the folks at Ubisoft San Francisco is cooking is appealing to the top brass at the company, as more devs are being added to the shooter!
This was confirmed by XDefiant Executive Producer Mark Rubin over on Twitter/X, where he also shared some of the planned changes to the game.
Will be back updating soon. Was in Florida seeing my mom for possibly the last time and then when got back dealing with team restructure and adding more devs to the project.
When it comes to changes, Rubin confirmed that they are thinking of remaking the spiderbot ability entirely! While nothing has been set in stone, Rubin mentioned that they are thinking of replacing it with something that can counter the Cleaner faction’s Firebomb ability, or some sort of EMP-like skill or a jammer of sorts.
Thinking about remaking the spider bot to be a completely different skill. No more face hugging but will do something else. Will take time to do. But I really want a spiderbot face hugging MVP animation.
As you can see, nothing is concrete just yet, but based on Rubin’s replies, it looks like the Dedsec’s spiderbot might change to something that prevents players from using their abilities. Of course, the faction’s other ability enables it to hack, and while it might seem like something that fits the faction’s background, it does seem a little redundant.
As for Ubisoft adding more devs to the game, it’s not that surprising given it did exceed expectations, though we are curious how many players are logging in everyday across all three platforms XDefiant is available on.
We’re inching nearer to Season 2, though the faction and new stuff incoming with it has been datamined already.
There’s a new patch out for Pacific Drive that’s available on PC and consoles, and this includes a fix for the settings bug and more. Players can now download Pacific Drive update 1.006.005, which is for patch version 1.6.5. The complete patch notes and even known issues are listed in below.
Version 1.6.5 – Highlight
Settings not being applied/saved once adjusted has now been fixed on both PC and PS5! This one was tricky to nail down as it wasn’t happening to all players, but we’re happy to confirm that the problem has been solved – settings now apply correctly from within the pause menu and from the main menu.
Bugs and UX Fixes
Adjusting volume on Jukebox no longer also uses a healing item if one is in inventory.
Fixed Detailing Station occaisionally displaying very small text.
Fixed car parts being deleted when retrieving from the same car part from a Car Parts Locker Storage with full inventory.
Olympium door mirrors now properly show reflections.
Fixed the Hotbar getting stuck cycling when using a controller.
Fixed a potential rare crash on level change
Fixed settings sometimes not saving, or applying.
Known Issues
AMD Driver 24.7.1 sometimes causes the game to crash on launch, has performance issues
– Temporary solution: Roll back drivers via AMD Adrenalin to earlier working version.
That’s about it for this Pacific Drive update. Once another one is released, we’ll let our readers know.
The debate over microtransactions in premium games has been heating up, with developers and gamers increasingly voicing their disapproval. Many feel that adding microtransactions to games, especially those with a hefty price tag, detracts from the overall experience and unfairly targets consumers.
In a recent survey conducted at Devcom 2024, almost 90% of developers echoed this sentiment, stating that microtransactions should not be a part of premium titles. The survey, which gathered responses from 100 developers, revealed that a significant majority believe premium games can be financially successful purely through sales without the need for in-game purchases. This perspective aligns with the growing dissatisfaction among players, who feel that microtransactions often hinder the full enjoyment of a game.
The survey also touched on the role of AI in game development, with 31% of developers preferring minimal AI usage in their work. While some see potential in using AI for tasks like coding and production, a cautious approach seems to dominate, with many developers focusing on maintaining creative control over their projects.
Developers also voiced concerns about the future of the gaming industry. According to the survey, 57% anticipate more layoffs in the coming year, while 43% believe the industry might stabilize.
Despite the strong opposition to microtransactions, removing them from games seems unlikely, given that a large portion of gamers continues to engage in these purchases. Nevertheless, some studios, like CD Projekt RED, remain committed to keeping microtransactions out of their single-player games.
What do you think? Should microtransactions have a place in premium games, or should they be left out entirely? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
Those looking to get as much trophies/achievements in Star Wars Outlaws when it launches later this month, you can check how hard (or easy) it’ll be right now, as the Star Wars Outlaws trophies list has surfaced today!
Not only that, but the game’s Season Pass trailer has been released by Ubisoft officially, which gives us a glimpse of some of the post-launch plans incoming. Before diving into the trophies list, note that some of it will be touching on spoiler territory, so take heed before proceeding, alright?
Star Wars Outlaws Trophies List:
Name
Description
Outlaws
Unlock all Star Wars Outlaws trophies
It wasn’t me
Bribe an Imperial Officer to clear Wanted Level 5
They live up to the name
Clear Wanted status by completing a death trooper confrontation event
Shoot first
Defeat 6 enemies simultaneously using Adrenaline Rush
No match for a good blaster
Fully upgrade a blaster module configuration
Got you something
Collect all Nix treasures
Galactic gourmet
Sample all galactic street food
Good listener
Listen to the longest sob story in the galaxy
Experience outranks everything
Complete all Expert quests
Adventure and excitement
Discover all planet areas
Give me the good stuff
Buy an item from a merchant’s VIP stock
Hidden Trophy
Continue playing to unlock this trophy.
Honest work
Complete 40 contracts
Cut-throat politics
Reach maximum reputation with the Pyke Syndicate
Cloak and dagger
Reach maximum reputation with Crimson Dawn
What you see is what you get
Reach maximum reputation with the Hutt Cartel
The Queen’s word is law
Reach maximum reputation with the Ashiga Clan
Think I had a choice?
Reach the lowest possible reputation with a faction
Hidden Trophy
Continue playing to unlock this trophy.
Stay on target
Complete your first Intel chain
Easy pickings
Pickpocket a customer in a cantina on each planet
Against all odds
Win your first fixed fathier race
No such thing as luck
Cheat and win a Sabacc game against Lando
There is no try
Get a high score in an arcade game
Right back at you
Defeat 20 enemies using items fetched by Nix
How rude!
Blind 30 enemies with Nix attacks
Punching up
Defeat each syndicate’s capital ship without taking hull damage
Might want to buckle up
Fly into space in a fully upgraded Trailblazer
I’ll bet you have
Defeat 20 enemies distracted by Fast-Talk
The heavier they fall
Defeat a Raider to clear Wanted status
Sometimes I amaze even myself
Defeat an enemy ship after doing a loop maneuver
Never tell me the odds
Defeat an enemy ship without dealing the finishing blow with lasers or missiles
Into darkness
Destroy 10 enemy ships inside the Kijimi nebula
Like a bantha
Perform a perfect landing with the speeder
Galaxy drift
Perform a 30 second powerslide drift
Don’t get cocky
Defeat 5 enemies with Adrenaline Rush on the speeder simultaneously
Into the main frame
Slice 10 advanced terminals
Slice like you
Slice 20 terminals
Now you see me, now you don’t
Disable an alarm using a security terminal while the alarm is active
Get rhythm
Pick 20 locks with the data spike
Made it somehow
Acquire a blaster, a starship, and a speeder
Tip the scales
Complete all main quests on Toshara
One job at a time
Complete all main quests on Kijimi
Making friends
Escape from Jabba’s palace
Rare friends
Complete all main quests on Tatooine
Spiked
Liberate the original Super Viper Droid
Best of the best
Complete all main quests on Akiva
The Director
Learn Sliro’s secret
Eye on the score
Complete all main quests in Canto Bight
Calling in some favors
Destroy the Revelator
Check out what’s in store for gamers if they purchase the Season Pass in the trailer below, which is the same content revealed in the roadmap.
At Launch:
Exclusive Mission – Jabba’s Gambit
Character Pack – Kessel Runner
Fall 2024:
Story Pack 1: Wild Card
Cosmetic Bundles: Hunter’s Legacy, Cartel Ronin
Spring 2025:
Story Pack 2: A Pirate’s Fortunte
Star Wars Outlaws looks to continue Ubisoft’s open-world expertise, and we’re hoping there’s not a lot of bugs accompanying it when it launches this August 30 on PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC.
After a leak has seemingly confirmed it, its now official: Final Fantasy 16 is headed to PC via Steam! Not only that, but there’s a demo out today as well, and it’s live right now! The Final Fantasy 16 PC version releases this September 18, and there’s also a set of pre-order bonuses for those willing to plunk down some dough early!
Additional Notes: 60FPS at 1080p expected. SSD required. VRAM 8GB or above.
There’s also the Complete Edition up for sale today as well which is $69.99 and this includes the two expansions released.
Final Fantasy 16 Complete Edition Contents:< Game Content:
– FINAL FANTASY XVI Base Game
– “Echoes of the Fallen” DLC
– “The Rising Tide” DLC
(The products included in this bundle are both available for separate purchase, as well as contained in other bundles. Please be careful to avoid making duplicate purchases.)Redeemable Weapons & Items:
– Buster Sword
– Curtana
– “Away (1987)” Orchestrion Roll
– “Torn from the Heavens” Orchestrion Roll
– “Through the Maelstrom” Orchestrion Roll
Our review of the PS5 version was very flattering with reviewer James Lara stating, “Those looking for the series’ return to glory, rejoice! Final Fantasy XVI is that game, and this is one fantasy you’ll want to make sure you’re a part of.”
While the Delta Force franchise hasn’t seen a proper “core platform” release since Black Hawk Done in 2003, that’s about to change with Delta Force; Hawk Ops — developer TiMi Studio’s first foray in the AAA shooter market. Luckily, we don’t need to wait long to experience it, as the studio has the game running on PC via closed alpha test.
MP1st was invited to dabble our fingers into this still-in-development shooter, and we’ve played enough to formulate our hands-on impressions so far. Curious how this upcoming free-to-play game compares to the competition? Is this the Battlefield replacement fans have been looking forward to? Read on to find out.
Party Like It’s 2042?
By now, you’ve probably seen plenty of other outlets and content creators throw the word “Battlefield killer” around. It’s not something I entirely agree with myself, but I fully understand why the terminology (outside of view chasing) is being thrown around so quickly. I mean, look at Delta Force: Hawk Ops, and then look at Battlefield 2042. They look pretty darn similar, and if anything, Delta Force: Hawk Ops could easily pass off as Battlefield 2042 if you placed them side by side.
However, unlike Battlefield 2042, the lead-up to Delta Force: Hawk Ops has nearly zero expectations. That meant TiMi Studio wasn’t bound by some rules that would instantly receive backlash if deviated from, as the last Delta Force title was released over 15 years ago. DICE, on the other hand, has had a series that has always followed a specific formula, seemingly losing its way as new iterations dropped, with Battlefield 2042 being the biggest departure as it felt more of a trend chaser, removing key features that made Battlefield, well, Battlefield.
Sure, it may puzzle many in the community why there’s so much praise for Delta Force: Hawk Ops when it can be summed up as a better Battlefield 2042, a game that practically everyone has criticized, but it’s because it does certain aspects better that makes it a far more enjoyable experience to many.
It’s not a trendsetter or some innovative experience that’ll break new grounds, but it does borrow many mechanics, not just from Battlefield but also from the likes of Call of Duty, Escape From Tarkov, and other shooters, and tidies it up in a well-packaged experience.
The gunplay and general movement especially stand out as being snappy and responsive, yet with enough weight to give it a bit of a military sim feel. Mind you, this is more on the arcade side of gameplay, but it’s nowhere near as quick as Call of Duty. Mouse input feels fantastic, with hit registration that actually works, making firefights fun to be in. Even if I end up losing in most situations, for the most part, it feels more of a skill issue rather than the net code deciding to act up.
The maps available are also very well designed. They’re massive and perfectly suited for 64 players, with a spawn system that ensures you’re kept in action with no massive periods of roaming around. And even then, should you find yourself in an open field, there’s plenty of coverage to take, whether in the environment or some manmade structures like a small barricade or partially demolished building.
It helps that the game modes help keep the pacing of the maps flowing, with Havoc Warfare akin to Battlefield’s Breakthrough and Rush modes, with capture points to defend and attack, and map progression tied to them. I especially like the setups of each map, especially Ascended, which sees attackers riding on boats to storm a beach, drawing clear inspiration from WWII’s D-Day Operation. It’s the most cinematic-like experience you could get from a multiplayer shooter, all being done in-game without and all in the hands of the players. Things get crazier on the map as you progress through it as an attacker, going from open zone combat to close quarters, Operation Metro-like scenarios, with tanks and helicopters getting in the strangest spots to wreak havoc. Yes, it does feel like something straight out of Battlefield, though I don’t expect any large-scale destruction of any kind.
I’m not much of a fan of the extraction shooter genre, but there is a mode called Hazard Operations that is extraction-based. It’s alright, mostly does what you’d expect from an extraction game. Whether that’ll be a massive success is hard to tell, but it will be interesting to see how the studio balances out two modes, as both are geared towards completely different players.
As a free-to-play game only in the alpha stage, there’s also a level of polishing you’d expect to see from a AAA studio. That’s not to say don’t expect any bugs, because I’ve seen quite a few in the alpha test, but those mostly pertained to visuals and odd physics. As stated, The gameplay and character movement all felt very responsive and on point, almost as if it was in its final stages of development and nearing launch. That may change, of course, but the current mentality doesn’t feel like one of a studio saying to ship it now and hope to fix it later, but instead, something that they possibly feel confident about, with the alpha solely being to weed out bugs before they’re ready for release.
Again, I don’t think this is so much a Battlefield killer, as it’s primarily being compared to Battlefield 2042; a game many felt couldn’t be further from being a Battlefield game. But TiMi Studio clearly took what could be learned from Battlefield 2042 to help craft Delta Force: Hawk Ops, making an experience that one could rally behind and be more accepting of. Based on the alpha, I think TiMi Studio is “succeeding” where DICE failed to envision Battlefield 2042, proving that perhaps it wasn’t a bad idea; it just had to find the right franchise to do it with.
Off to a Promising Start…
But that does make Delta Force: Hawk Ops lack a bit in the identity department, as the go-to comparison is Battlefield 2042. It doesn’t help that many UI elements and general art direction look like it was taken right from Battlefield 2042. That’s very unlikely to change by the time the game comes out, and while I think it does look pretty, it’s hard to move past the comparison and not think about Battlefield 2042 when playing.
Still, as a free-to-play game, Delta Force: Hawk Ops looks very promising and, as it currently stands, looks to be lined up for quite a success. There’s little for me to really complain about the title outside of wanting to know what the content pipeline looks like because if it’s going to chase after what DICE tried to succeed at, it’s going to need a very robust and steady stream of content.
MP1st was given early access to try the game’s alpha build on PC. Delta Force: Hawk Ops is set for release on PC, PS4, Xbox One, PS5, Xbox Series X|S and even mobiles, but has no firm release date set yet.
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.
Black Myth: Wukong has set a remarkable milestone even before its official release. The highly anticipated action RPG from Game Science triggered a record-breaking surge in Steam’s bandwidth usage during its pre-load phase, surpassing the previous record held by Cyberpunk 2077.
During the pre-load period, Steam witnessed a peak bandwidth usage of 70Tbps. A massive influx of downloads from Asia drove this surge, accounting for 59.3 Tbps of the total bandwidth. In contrast, Cyberpunk 2077 peaked at 51Tbps during its launch in 2020, making Black Myth: Wukong’s achievement all the more impressive.
Steam’s bandwidth usage spikes to a record 70 Tbps during Black Myth: Wukong pre-load.
This extraordinary demand highlights the global anticipation for Black Myth: Wukong, particularly in the Asian market. The game promises 40 hours of gameplay filled with boss battles, stunning visuals, and much more.
The significant interest in Black Myth: Wukong has been evident since the release of its benchmark tool, which drew thousands of players. Now, with the record-setting pre-loads, it’s clear that the game is poised to be one of the biggest releases of 2024.
After multiple attempts to release the patch last week, which was delayed to bugs, Bohemia Interactive has released DayZ update 1.69 for consoles and PC! This is called the Stable 1.25 Update 4, which plugs game exploits, alongside crash fixes. Read on for what’s new for DayZ in the game’s official patch notes for August 19.
DayZ Update 1.69 for August 19:
PC Patch Notes:
PC Stable 1.25 Update 4 – Version 1.25.158593 (Release on 19.08.2024)
FIXED
Fixed a server crash
Applied mitigations to game exploits
Console Patch Notes:
Console Stable 1.25 Update 4 – Version 1.25.158593 (Release on 19.08.2024)
FIXED
Fixed a server crash
Applied mitigations to game exploits
Note that this title update brings a character wipe on PC, and for consoles, it’s map + character wipe. So far, Bohemia Interactive has not mentioned what exploits were fixed, though we’re hoping that changes within the day.
While there’s no release date for patch 1.26 just yet, you can read the experimental patch notes for it here to see what’s being cooked by the studio so far.
F1 24 new update 1.08 is now available for download on both consoles and PC, and this is for version 1.8! Players can expect a host of improvements ranging from a fix to the HDR bug, crashing fixes after completing a League race, and more! There’s a lot to take in, so read on for what’s new.
F1 24 New Update 1.08 Patch Notes:
Highlights
Fixed a rare instance where the game could crash when entering another session after completing a League race
Fixed an issue in Two Player Career where if both players negotiated a contract longer than one season, they could become stuck on the Negotiation screen
HDR Settings will now remain the same after the game has been rebooted
Fixed an issue where the ERS bar could flicker if trying to use Overtake after the player has already reached full deployment and full harvest for the lap
Multiplayer
The Invites and Requests option has been added to the pause menu in single player session types
Fixed an issue which could prevent the Flying Lap and Return to Garage options from being available in Single Player sessions after previously exiting from a multiplayer session
Fixed a rare issue in Multiplayer races where a player could be disqualified from the race after being removed from the Formation lap
Fixed an issue where the incorrect Qualifying session type would be shown in a Multiplayer lobby if the host switched from an F1 to an F2 rac
Graphics/Visuals
AI vehicles in F1 World Series and Solo Events will now use a wider variety of liveries and badges
Detached wheels will now stay closer to the car as wheel tethers have been shortened
Tracks
Corrected the Pit Lane speed limit at Jeddah to 80kph
Some changes have been made to prevent exploiting off-track areas to record faster times at certain circuits in Time Trial
Fixed a rare issue where a player on the track could incorrectly receive a blocking penalty when another car was in the Pit Lane exit and not directly behind them
Career
In Career modes, AI teammates can now purchase Upgrades on the last day of a season if they have enough Resource Points
Peripherals
Added support for additional Moza bases on Xbox when using the Moza Racing ES steering wheel
Added support for Telemetry on the Turtle Beach VelocityOne™ Race Wheel for Xbox consoles
Miscellaneous
“True Fan” Achievement/Trophy will now correctly unlock when the player has accumulated 10,000 Fanzone points
Fixed an issue where the goal of “Achieve three purple sectors during a race weekend” could sometimes not pass despite the requirements being met
Dynamic Objectives involving Engine Temperature will no longer pass or fail incorrectly due to rounding up decimal places during calculations
Given the AI drivers a good talking to, so they will no longer celebrate a victory too early and potentially lose the race
Various UI improvements in many areas of the game have been made
General Stability Improvements
Various Minor Fixes
Make sure to bookmark our F1 24 game hub to know when another update is out.
