December’s My Nintendo Rewards Include More Free 3DS And Wii U Games And Discounts

A handful of new rewards have been added to the My Nintendo program. While most of the rewards come in the form of discounts on select 3DS and Wii U titles, as per usual, they also include full game downloads for a couple of well-received indie titles on both platforms.

For a limited time, My Nintendo members can redeem their Gold points for four possible games–two across each console. 3DS owners can choose from Toki Tori 3D (20 Gold points) and Retro City Rampage DX (80 Gold points). Those with a Wii U, meanwhile, can exchange their points for the shoot-’em-up XType Plus (30 Gold points), as well as the stylish pop-up book adventure game Tengami (80 Gold points). Each reward will only be available until January 27, 2018.

In addition to the aforementioned titles, December’s batch of rewards also includes discounts on several Wii U and 3DS titles from Nintendo. On Wii U, members can get 30% off of Nintendo Land (50 Gold points); 3DS owners can get a 20% discount on Poochy & Yoshi’s Woolly World (60 Gold points) and 50% off Tokyo Crash Mobs (270 Platinum points).

You can also still find discounts on several classic Zelda games, which were added to the rewards catalog earlier this month to commemorate the release of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Explorer’s Edition and the Link Edition 2DS bundle. Members can trade their points for 40% off Tri Force Heroes (120 Gold points), Skyward Sword (50 Gold points), Majora’s Mask 3D (120 Gold points), and A Link to the Past (250 Platinum points). You can find the full rewards catalog on My Nintendo.

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Avengers: Infinity War Sets New Record for Most Views in First 24 Hours

The first trailer for Avengers: Infinity War has set a major new record.

Marvel Studios announced on Twitter Infinity War’s debut look is now the most-viewed trailer debut ever. As of writing, the trailer is currently up to 230 million views in its first 24 hours since release on November 29.

Stephen King’s IT most recently held the record, garnering 197 million views in its first 24 hours earlier this year. Make sure to check out IGN’s breakdown of the Infinity War trailer below for a look at some of the details and secrets you might’ve missed.

The trailer finally gives fans a proper look at Thanos battling some fan-favorite Marvel superheroes, including Spider-Man and Iron Man.

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Guillermo Del Toro Says Turning Down Dark Universe Is His Biggest Regret

The career of director Guillermo del Toro is an incredibly impressive one, especially if you’re as big of a fanboy as del Toro is himself. With movies like Hellboy, Pacific Rim, Pan’s Labyrinth, Cronos, and the upcoming The Shape of Water under his belt–not to mention The Strain novel series and its TV adaptation–he essentially gets to create his own geeky franchises, while also playing with his favorite properties.

That doesn’t mean the director has no regrets, though. During a TimesTalks interview, del Toro recalls the one thing he wishes he didn’t turn down: Universal’s Dark Universe. Before Tom Cruise starred in The Mummy, which flopped at the box office, and The Bride of Frankenstein was put on an indefinite hiatus, Universal Studios had big hopes for its relaunch of the classic monster movies. Those hopes centered around none other than del Toro.

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“I’ve said no to things that are enormous and I’ve never looked back. The only time I repent I didn’t do something was in 2007, when Universal in an incredibly gentle and beautiful manner said, ‘Do you want to take over the Monster Universe?'” the director remembers. “And they gave me the reins of several properties, and I didn’t do it. That I repent. So this is a confessional moment, I repent. That’s the only thing.”

Given how what’s been seen of the Dark Universe has turned out, it’s not hard to blame del Toro for that particular regret. With his adoration of the horror genre and unique style of storytelling, the possibility of a franchise of monster movies with del Toro as the architect sounds like a dream.

Sadly, it never came to pass. Then again, given how the current universe has turned out, who’s to say they can’t reboot the movies again and try to correct the course? If Spider-Man can start over several times, so can Count Dracula.

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PUBG On Xbox One X Will Be 60 FPS But Creator Says FPS Is “Not That Important”

PUBG is finally coming to Xbox One in December. On Xbox One X, you can expect the Hunger Games-style shooter to run at 60 FPS, creator Brendan Greene said in a new interview. But on the standard Xbox One, which has less power, the frame rate could be halved.

“Definitely on Xbox One X, 60 FPS,” Greene said in the latest issue of GamesTM, as reported by Wccftech. “On [the standard] Xbox One, we’re not sure. We may have to limit it at 30 FPS, maybe, but the last time I saw it, it was running at about 30 to 40.”

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Greene, who is the Playerunknown from the game’s title, added that developer Bluehole is “constantly improving” the game before launch, with an aim of hitting 60 FPS on both the standard Xbox One and the Xbox One X. One of the reasons why PUBG is launching on Xbox One through Game Preview program is to allow the developer the opportunity to improve the game in a test environment before its official launch. Overall, Greene said he has “great faith” that PUBG will hit 60 FPS on both.

At the same time, Greene acknowledged that frame rate “isn’t that important” for a game like PUBG compared to a twitch-based shooter like Call of Duty.

Also in the interview, Greene spoke generally about bringing PUBG to console. He said he’s happy to have partnered with Microsoft for the initial launch because “Xbox is synonymous with gaming.” Greene said there is the opportunity to see “incredible numbers” on console. Indeed, the huge success of the PUBG-like Fortnite Battle Royale seems to suggest console gamers are thirsty for the Battle Royale experience.

Greene told GameSpot earlier this year that he wants the Xbox One X version of PUBG to use 4K assets, but he wasn’t sure if this would be possible. That still seems to be the case, as Greene told the magazine that these 4K assets “don’t exist yet,” adding that “it’s going to take us some time to get them, but we do have a plan.”

Whatever the case, no matter which platform you’re playing on, Greene said he wants to ensure that the experience is similar on all systems. “There shouldn’t be an advantage to buying one console over another,” Greene explained.

While PUBG’s only current announced console platform is Xbox One, Microsoft has said the game is a “console launch exclusive” for Xbox. That seems to suggest a PlayStation 4 release may follow. PUBG launches on Xbox One on December 12.

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Free Steam PC Game Available Now Courtesy Of Humble Bundle

Humble Bundle is offering some free Cold War intrigue for a limited time. Right now, you can get The Bureau: XCOM Declassified on PC for free over at the Humble Store, but the deal will end in less than two days.

The Bureau is a third-person tactical shooter set in 1962, at the end of the Cold War. John F. Kennedy is president and the U.S. public at large is afraid of a nuclear war with Russia. At the same time, the US government is establishing a secret organization to combat this threat. As it turns out, it’s not the Russians who invade, it’s aliens.

In GameSpot’s The Bureau: XCOM Declassified review, Kevin Van Ord celebrated the game’s retro-futuristic period atmosphere and plot developments, while calling out some of squad management issues and storytelling. You can check out the video review above, and then try the game yourself for free.

This free version of The Bureau, normally $20, is available for Steam (you will need an account to play). Anyone who picks up the game gets a coupon for 10% off a Humble Monthly subscription, which gives you a selection of mystery games every month. You also get a free copy of H1Z1 for signing up.

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Star Wars: The Last Jedi Director Nearly Made Luke Skywalker Blind

While the presence of Luke Skywalker loomed large over Star Wars: The Force Awakens, he only appeared for seconds at the end of the movie. We might find out more about what Luke has been up to in the 30 years since Return of the Jedi when The Last Jedi hits theaters in a couple of weeks. But thanks to director Rian Johnson, we do know there was the possibility that Luke had gone blind.

In an interview with Rolling Stone, Johnson spoke about going back to one of the original influences on the Star Wars series–Japanese samurai movies. “I had a brief idea I was chasing where I was like, ‘What if Luke is blind? What if he’s, like, the blind samurai?'” he explained. “But we didn’t do it. You’re welcome. Didn’t stick.”

Of course, the Star Wars series now has its own blind character–Chirrut Imwe, played by Donnie Yen in last year’s Rogue One. But Johnson states that his idea for a blind Luke predated this.

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The Last Jedi hits theaters on December 15 and also stars Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Adam Driver, Carrie Fisher, Oscar Isaac, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, and Andy Serkis. There has been plenty of promotional activity for the movie over past couple of weeks, including a TV spot in which Chewie smacks a Porg, and another that focuses on Luke’s relationship with Rey.

Earlier this week, Ridley, who plays Rey in the new Star Wars movies, revealed that she plans to leave the series after Episode IX in 2019. “I am really, really excited to do the third thing and round it out, because ultimately, what I was signing on to was three films,” she said. “So in my head, it’s three films. I think it will feel like the right time to round it out.”

In related news, it was revealed this month week that Johnson will write and direct a new Star Wars trilogy. Work on the next set of movies will begin after the release of JJ Abrams’ Episode IX in 2019. In addition, Disney is planning a live-action Star Wars TV show, which will be available on its upcoming streaming service.

Speaking to Rolling Stone, the Star Wars 8 director opened up about going down the well-trodden Star Wars path of Samurai influences, including having a sight-impaired mentor:

Since we know nothing about what he’s been up to in the 30 years since Return of the Jedi, fans are expecting to

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Paladins Players Angry Over Updated Loot Box Progression

Paladins developer Hi-Rez Studios recently announced an updated progression system for its free-to-play hero shooter, and many players are angry over its apparent similarities to Star Wars Battlefront 2’s Star Card system, arguing it is pay-to-win.

Previously, stat-boosting cards needed to be unlocked either through randomized loot boxes called chests or by crafting specific ones. Under the reworked system, dubbed Cards Unbound, all cards are available to all players, but have also been split into levels ranging from one to five, with higher-level cards offering better bonuses.

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