Passengers and crew are being tested aboard a cruise ship being held off California’s coast.
Coronavirus: Starbucks bans reusable cups to help tackle spread
Customers with personal cups will still get a 25p discount – but drinks will be served in paper cups.
Destiny 2: Obscure, Two Year-Old Puzzle Just Solved
A Destiny 2 player has solved one of the game’s puzzles two years after the mystery was first added.
User Javano posted the solution to Twitter, which they discovered with the help of another player, Bachmanetti. The puzzle in question is part of the Rasputin ARG that was added as part of the Warmind expansion. The puzzle features six icons that, when deciphered, provides three cipher keys that help decode a message which reveals a real-world location. That location has (or rather, had) a stash of Destiny goodies, which have long since been looted because the ARG was solved ages ago. Well, sort of.
[ignvideo url=”https://www.ign.com/videos/2018/05/13/destiny-2-warmind-review”]
Two of the cyphers were discovered, but the final one – the world ‘MECHANIZED’ – was worked out through dogged determination and trial-and-error by the Destiny community. And so while the ARG was solved, one part of the puzzle was never truly answered. Until Bachmanetti figured it out, that is.
Javano posted a transcript of his IM messages with Bachmanetti on Twitter, showing them backtrack from the answer in hope of discovering the true solution. The only clue they had was the icon – a diamond – and the suggestion that it was related to a weapon. They had a hunch that it was the Sleeper Stimulant, presumably because it’s a Rasputin pattern exotic introduced in Warmind.
A 2-year-old Destiny puzzle was JUST solved with the help of @bachmanetti.
A single puzzle from the Warmind ARG had its solution (“Mechanized”) bruteforced, but the puzzle itself was never properly solved… until today.
The answer is found when aiming the Sleeper at this wall. pic.twitter.com/p8Kco3Xrre
— Javano (@Javano_) March 5, 2020
Bachmanetti quickly realised that the diamond icon in the puzzle is identical to the reticle of the Sleeper Stimulant’s sight, and then made the connection with a warning sign seen on the wall of one of the Mars environments. The community believed the sign was part of the puzzle, as other clues on the map led to it. Within the next five minutes of making the connection, Bachmanetti jumped into the game, took the Sleeper Stimulant to the sign, and solved the puzzle. By lining up the scope with an identical diamond shape on the sign, the calibration lines on the edge of the reticle underlines letters, which when rearranged spell out MECHANIZED.
[widget path=”global/article/imagegallery” parameters=”albumSlug=the-most-addictive-online-games&captions=true”]
Bachmanetti and Javano may not receive a prize for their discovery – the real life stash of Warmind engraved coins was discovered in May 2018 – they have finally found the missing piece of a two year old puzzle.
For more on Destiny 2, check out our regular podcast Fireteam Chat, as well as the news that Bungie will remove paid-for loot boxes.
[poilib element=”accentDivider”]
Matt Purslow is IGN’s UK News and Entertainment Writer. You can follow him on Twitter.
Amnesia: Rebirth Is The Original Developer’s Terrifying Return To The Series
Amnesia: The Dark Descent became a quick hit with the YouTube Let’s Play community for its terrifying atmosphere and tone. Developer Frictional Games didn’t develop its follow-up Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs, but the studio is back for the third game, Amnesia: Rebirth, and it’s due to arrive later this year.
Amnesia: Rebirth will feature a new protagonist, setting, and story, but it’s being made in the spirit of the original game. That means a focus on scaring you above gameplay or systems innovation, and Frictional is focusing on delivering new types of horror in place of mere jump-scares.
“Set in the desolate landscape of the Algerian desert, the game will focus on new character Tasi Trianon as she sets out on a harrowing journey through devastation and despair, personal terror and pain, while exploring the limits of human resilience,” Frictional Games said in the announcement.
IGN UK Podcast #529: Our Favourite PS2 Games
Are you ready? Are you ready for love? Matt is. He’s also very excited to play Final Fantasy 7 Remake after having a bash on 3 hours of it. Joe has the unenviable task of trying to describe exciting new shooter Quantum League, and Cardy has been battering people with carrots and fish in Bloodroots. We also forward to the future of PlayStation by casting our Last of Us TV show leads, as well as reminiscing about our favourite PS2 games following the console’s 20th birthday.
As if this bumper edition wasn’t enough, we’ve got a brand new Endless Search game plus a healthy dose of feedback to read out.
Remember, if you want to get in touch with the podcast, please do: ign_ukfeedback@ign.com
IGN UK Podcast #529: Our Favourite PS2 Games
[widget path=”global/article/imagegallery” parameters=”albumSlug=ign-uk-podcast-episode-500-photos&captions=true”]
- IIGN UK Podcast #528:Spunky Ticker
- IGN UK Podcast #527: Mother: Unleashed
- IGN UK Podcast #526: Are There Hedgehogs on the Moon?
- IGN UK Podcast #525: The Fantabulous Emancipation of One Vincent D’Onofrio
- IGN UK Podcast #524: Final Fantasy 7 Remake Hype
[poilib element=”accentDivider”]
Final Trailer For Scoob! Gives A Closer Look At Mark Wahlberg’s Blue Falcon
The final trailer for Scoob! is out, and it splits the gang up. Shaggy and Scooby-Doo are captured by an alien spaceship that they later find out is manned by Blue Falcon. The superhero is a Hanna-Barbera character from the 1976 show Dynomutt, Dog Wonder, and will be voiced by Mark Wahlberg. The other members of the investigation squad, Velma, Fred, and Daphne, try to figure out what happened to Shaggy and Scooby-Doo and are determined to get them back.
The trailer also rehashes scenes of Shaggy and Scooby-Doo’s origin story from other previews. Young Shaggy had a picnic on a beach once upon a time, and a sandwich lured Scooby-Doo to him, thus marking the beginning of a wonderful friendship. When a cop attempts to take Scooby-Doo to the pound for being a stray, Shaggy intercedes and claims that Scooby-Doo is his dog. He impromptu comes up with a name for the dog by looking at a box of crackers named Scooby-Doo.
Zac Efron, Amanda Seyfried, Gina Rodriguez, and Will Forte will voice Fred, Daphne, Velma, and Shaggy respectively. Frank Welker, who has voiced Scooby Doo since 2002’s A Scooby-Doo! Christmas, will take on the iconic canine role again. Ken Jeong will voice Dynomutt, Dog Wonder.
First-Party Nintendo Switch Games Will Get Great Discounts For Mario Day
Over the past few years, March 10 has become a special day for Super Mario fans much like May 4 is a punny celebration for Star Wars fans. It’s unknown who happened upon the fact the platforming hero’s name resembles this date when stylized as MAR10, but Nintendo started embracing the holiday in 2016. Ever since then, Nintendo and major retailers have been offering discounts on Mario games and merchandise throughout Mario Day week. Target’s latest ad reveals the first batch of Mario Day deals that go live Sunday, March 8, which includes discounts on first-party Nintendo games, accessories, and Mario plushies.
Three of the four Switch games that are discounted to $40 released just last year. The big one is Super Mario Maker 2, which rarely goes for under $50. The create-your-own 2D Mario game has a seemingly endless supply of user-created levels while also boasting an impressive single-player campaign designed by Nintendo. Super Mario Maker 2 is joined by the adorable Yoshi’s Crafted World, and a pair of multiplayer-focused titles, Super Mario Party and Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.
Target is also offering a two-pack of Joy-Con wheels ($15 value) with the purchase of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, but it appears the game will be sold for its full $60 price.
Is Something Behind The Waterfall? A New Twitter Account Investigates
Waterfalls in video games are like Groucho glasses. Everyone knows they’re hiding something, but we’re never quite sure what it is. A new Twitter account called Is Something Behind the Waterfall? is helping to solve this problem by curating the best waterfall secrets across all sorts of games.
Created by the same user behind Can You Pet the Dog?, the Is Something Behind the Waterfall? account began a few months ago and not only reveals if there is a secret behind a game’s waterfall, but what that secret happens to be. In The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, for instance, you can find a treasure chest behind this particular waterfall.
There is a treasure chest under the waterfall in The Witcher III: The Wild Hunt pic.twitter.com/1qrWMlqAeD
— Is Something Behind the Waterfall? (@VGWaterfalls) March 5, 2020
There are only a few posts on the account so far, but they vary between newer games and retro ones. If you’ve ever missed a waterfall in Earthbound, you can correct that more than 25 years later, and even find a secret skull in the original Halo. The game just came to PC as part of Halo: The Master Chief Collection.
Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX Review Roundup
Pokemon Sword and Shield are getting big chunks of DLC this year, but Nintendo’s blockbuster monster-catching series isn’t going a year without a new packaged release. This time it’s Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX, a remake of the classic Red and Blue Rescue Team games from Game Boy Advance. The new game combines these with a lovely new art style.
As with the other Mystery Dungeon games, Rescue Team DX is a roguelike dungeon-crawler, where you and a companion Pokemon explore areas like caves to defeat monsters and collect treasure. The spin-off series has been secondary to the main Pokemon RPGs, but GameSpot’s Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX review argues that it deserves its own place in our hearts.
“When the original pair of Pokemon Mystery Dungeon games were released in 2006, they were received as the ugly Duckletts of Pokemon spin-offs,” wrote Cian Maher. “Now, almost 15 years later, it is clear how wrong we were to write off Spike Chunsoft’s ambitious take on the titanic series: Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX for Switch is wondrous to play and, in a way, boasts a substantially more resonant fable than most other recent Pokemon games.”
How The Final Fantasy 7 Remake Treats Female Friendships
Final Fantasy 7 was home to one of the most famous video game love triangles of all time, between Cloud and the two female leads, Tifa and Aerith. For the FF7 Remake, the introduction of these characters and their blossoming friendship has been further fleshed out with an extended period in Midgar. In an interview with GameSpot, the voices behind the characters say, as a result, the story and relationship feel refreshingly current.
“I asked a lot of questions cause I didn’t understand. Are we rivals, competing for Cloud? What’s happening?” said Britt Baron, who voices Tifa. “And what I ended up learning, at least in this iteration, I love the relationship that they have. They’re friends. They’re on the same team. It’s not about these two women who could hate each other and be at each other’s throats. [They] end up working together and becoming friends and fighting side by side. So I think coming out at a time like this, I was so happy for it and it’s a really good lesson that women don’t have to tear other women down.”
Erica Lindbeck, who voices Jessie, added that the friendship between her character and Tifa is similar in tone. “I loved the relationship between Jessie and Tifa too,” she said. “It was so sweet. I was like, ‘Oh, this is dope. Girlfriends, girl power.'”