2023-09

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Mortal Kombat co-creator Ed Boon made an unexpected appearance on the popular interview show Hot Ones to talk about Mortal Kombat 1 and the series as a whole. As Boon sweats through increasingly spicy wings, we also get a glimpse at the previously announced Jean-Claude Van Damme skin for Johnny Cage.  For the unfamiliar, Hot Ones is a 1-on-1 interview show in which celebrity guests are asked questions while devouring wings that get gradually spicier as the interview progresses (usually to humorous results). Boon’s discussion delves into his entry into the game industry, Netherrealm's decision-making process when selecting cross-over fighters, the studio's approach to storytelling, and other topics. Boon is one of, if not the first, video game developer to appear on the show, and watching him share his fighting game knowledge while simultaneously fighting for his life is an entertaining treat.  During...

Overwatch 2 hit PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, and PC last October and with the one year anniversary coming soon, Blizzard has announced its plans around the celebration. It will feature returning event game modes, new challenges, returning skins, and a brand new game mode called Hero Mastery.  The anniversary celebration starts later this month on September 19 and brings plenty of updates like hero tweaks, bug fixes, map changes, and more. But leading the celebration charge is the aforementioned Hero Mastery. Blizzard describes it as "a new, single-player game mode that allows players to test their skills with individual heroes on custom courses" and it's available starting today. Each hero can be played on three unique courses of increasing difficulty, and you can unlock up to five stars on each course. Hero Mastery courses are scored based on time, eliminations, heals, escorts, and...

One of the most succinct yet exciting announcements from last year’s D23 Expo was Gargoyles Remastered, a modernized facelift of the classic (and challenging) side-scrolling Sega Genesis title based on the popular ‘90s cartoon. A new trailer revealed the game’s new presentation and an October release date. Gargoyles Remastered takes the 1995 game and repaints it with a coat of new enhanced visuals more faithful to the series (and you can instantly toggle between the new look and the classic 16-bit graphics). It also includes the usual bells and whistles for remastered Disney games, such as an instant rewind, wide-screen presentation, and achievements. The original soundtrack has also been remastered. Check out the game's first trailer below.  If you’re a Gargoyles fan looking to fight evil as Goliath and his friends again, you can pick up Gargoyles Remastered on PlayStation 4, Xbox...

Last month, Nintendo revealed longtime Mario voice actor Charles Martinet will no longer voice the character. The company stopped short of revealing who is taking over the role, although it did say we’d find out in the upcoming release of Super Mario Bros. Wonder, which does not feature Martinet as Mario.  Now, Nintendo has released a new video featuring Martinet and Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto discussing their history together, the role of Mario, and Martinet’s new role, Mario Ambassador.  You can watch the video in full below, but we’ve transcribed most of it for your reading as well: Here’s a special video message from Shigeru Miyamoto and Charles Martinet regarding the change of Mario’s voice actor, announced on 8/21. pic.twitter.com/4mOpD2Cx3a — Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) September 7, 2023 Shigeru Miyamoto: "It has been quite a long time since I first met you,...

E3 2023 was canceled back in March, and PAX organizer ReedPop was in charge of organizing the event, the first of a multi-year contract. However, E3's overseer the ESA has announced this partnership will not continue. According to GameIndustry.biz, the ESA and ReedPop have come to a mutual decision to part ways. On top of that, E3 2024, which is still planned to take place, will not be held at its traditional venue, the Los Angeles Convention Center. This had been previously reported by the city itself. There’s no word on where E3 will be held, but the site reports that the ESA is also looking to completely reinvent the show in 2025.  “We appreciate ReedPop’s partnership over the past 14 months and support their ongoing efforts to bring industry and fans together through their various events,” said ESA president...

We’re more than six years into the Switch's lifecycle. While the console has proven capable of providing great games still to this year – looking at you, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom – you’d be hardpressed to find a player who isn’t ready for Nintendo’s next console. While rumors continue to swirl about what the Switch successor could be and when it might be released, new reports from Eurogamer and Video Games Chronicle say the company showed it to developers behind closed doors at Gamescom last month.  Eurogamer says its sources say Nintendo showed partners tech demos designed to demonstrate how well the Switch successor runs. Specifically, one of the demos shown was reportedly a “souped-up version” of the Switch launch title, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Eurogamer notes this was just a tech...

Mortal Kombat 1’s roster already has a few returning names from the series’ 3D era in the forms of Ashrah and Havik, and another long-lost favorite joins the fight. Nitara is making her long-awaited return, and it’s such a big homecoming that NetherRealm has enlisted actress Megan Fox to voice her. Nitara is a vampire that made her debut in 2002’s Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance. She’s only been playable in a couple of entries, had a small cameo in Mortal Kombat 11, and appeared in the 2021 Mortal Kombat film. Despite having only a few appearances to her name, she’s endured a favorite among fans who grew up with the 2000s era, and she looks as deadly as ever in MK 1.  Megan Fox brings Nitara to life, and you can get a sample of her performance in the trailer...

During my cover story trip to Ubisoft Bordeaux in France, my hands-on time consisted of Baghdad exploration and contracts. The former was good fun – Baghdad feels almost like a 2023 spiritual reimagining of Jerusalem in 2007’s Assassin’s Creed, with plenty of rooftops and parkour paths to hit from objective to objective. But the latter was the highlight of my experience.  I completed three contracts during my hands-on time, each at different levels of progression for protagonist Basim Ibn Is’haq. Contracts are essentially mini-missions that task you with eliminating a target, obtaining an item, or doing something like moving a boat to a specified location. You must scout an area out, find your target, determine the path of least resistance to them or it – Basim is all about stealth and speed, of course – and kill or obtain your...

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