Month: March 2020

The critically acclaimed Half-Life series making a return nearly 13 years later as the virtual reality-exclusive Half-Life: Alyx was a shock to some fans. The VR medium is still a bit of a niche market in 2020, whereas Half-Life appeals to a wider audience. There are plenty of VR headsets available to buy now, but there’s still the issue of affordability, accessibility, and the type of open space requirements and commitment that only serious VR consumers may be willing to accommodate. And then there’s the issue that Valve level designer Dario Casali refers to as VR’s “chicken and egg” situation.

In an interview with GameSpot, Casali broke down some of Valve’s priorities when it comes to developing for VR, and how its choice to make Half-Life: Alyx a VR exclusive plays into that strategy.

“[When] we were working on the Vive and The Lab, we really believed in the VR platform,” Casali told GameSpot. “We looked around and noticed that a lot of the content that was available for [VR] was not as we would traditionally see as AAA, completely full games… how we would traditionally define a Half-Life product.”

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Developer Infinity Ward has opened up about everything new coming to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One this week. And one of the latest additions is a brand-new Operator who brings along a very good dog that will spice up your finishing move.

Talon is the new operator to join both Modern Warfare and the game’s standalone battle royale Call of Duty: Warzone. He brings along two legendary blueprints and two Battle Pass tier skips, as well as his dog buddy Indiana, which can be commanded via Talon’s Finishing Move. The Talon bundle hits the Call of Duty store on Tuesday, March 24 and Indiana is “one of [the] many items [available to Talon].”

Call of Duty’s free-to-play battle royale experience Warzone finally has a dedicated Solo mode for those lone wolves who want to test their mettle against 149 other players. Sometime in the future, according to Infinity Ward, Warzone’s player count could eventually jump up to 200 per match.

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In an unprecedented move, the International Olympic Committee has revealed that this summer’s Olympic Games, which were set to take place in Tokyo, Japan, are being postponed. The move is the latest cancellation in the face of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic.

Speaking to USA Today, IOC member Dick Pound said, “On the basis of the information the IOC has, postponement has been decided. The parameters going forward have not been determined, but the Games are not going to start on July 24, that much I know.”

As for when the games are postponed until, that has yet to be decided. “We will postpone this and begin to deal with all the ramifications of moving this, which are immense,” Pound explained.

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Virtual reality isn’t the most accessible platform. It can be expensive, it’s unfamiliar to the majority of the game-playing market, and it’s more physically demanding than traditional games, with very few ways to accommodate. Half-Life: Alyx‘s developers are optimistic about the future of VR, but they’re also aware of the challenges the platform faces. They have their own ideas about the “chicken and egg” situation when it comes to VR’s financial investment, they took careful measures to make sure Alyx wasn’t an overwhelming experience for new players, and they’ve included some accessibility options for players with disabilities.

GameSpot had the chance to speak with Valve level designer Dario Casali and programmer Kerry Davis about Half-Life: Alyx, including some of the ways they’ve tried to make the game a more enjoyable experience for all types of players.

“We definitely wanted to appeal to as many people as we could,” Casali tells GameSpot.

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If you’re in need of an extra controller for your Nintendo Switch, then there are some great deals available right now. PowerA’s budget-minded controller line makes it easy to accrue controllers for Players 2, 3, and 4, and at the moment, Best Buy and Amazon have discounted a selection of its best. If you’re looking for solid, cheap controllers, Best Buy currently has a deal on three of PowerA’s wired Switch controllers. They’re discounted to $15, down from $25, and you have your choice between three different themes: Mario, Pikachu, and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.

Some of PowerA’s controllers come with an extra pair of back buttons that you can remap to different inputs, though it’s important to note these wired controllers do not feature said buttons. Thankfully, if you’re interested in a pad that does come with them–or even a GameCube-inspired controller–PowerA has a bunch of different options.

PowerA’s controllers work well with most of the Switch’s games, and with the recent release of the latest Animal Crossing game, it’s the perfect time to get a new one. GameSpot’s Animal Crossing: New Horizons review-in-progress scores the game an 8/10, with reviews editor Kallie Plagge praising its expressive villagers, character customization, and impressive new Nook Miles system.

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Many of us currently have more time on our hands than we know what to do with, and finding things to keep yourself entertained while stuck indoors is crucial. It’s a great time to own a console or gaming PC, as the first big games of the year are coming out just as we’re all desperate for something to play. And fortunately, you can find some fantastic deals on games from the past few years if you’re looking to save some money. Amazon’s latest batch of deals slashes the prices on PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch games, including critically acclaimed hits like Divinity: Original Sin 2 – Definitive Edition and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. (While the sale focuses on console games, you can find some fantastic PC discounts at GOG, Fanatical, Green Man Gaming, and other PC-focused sites right now.)

PS4 players will find a lot of good stuff on Amazon right now, including console exclusives like Horizon Zero Dawn: Complete Edition and The Last of Us Remastered for $15 each along with Marvel’s Spider-Man: Game of the Year Edition for $20. Journey to the Savage Planet, a colorful first-person adventure game released in January, is down to $20 on PS4. You can also snag our 2019 Game of the Year, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, for $37.49. Meanwhile, Death Stranding is on sale for just $30 on PS4, the best price yet for Kojima Productions’ debut title.

Outside of PS4-specific deals, you can snag Borderlands 3 and Divinity: Original Sin 2 – Definitive Edition for $20 each on both PS4 and Xbox One. If you somehow don’t own Grand Theft Auto V by now, its Premium edition is just $18 for Xbox One and comes with a bunch of extra content and upgrades. Fighting game fans can jump into the action in Mortal Kombat 11 for $25 on Xbox One or $27 on Switch or PS4. The newest single-player Star Wars adventure, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, is also on sale for $40 on PS4, Xbox One, and PC.

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Animal Crossing has always allowed you to plant a toilet in the middle of your house, but they were always more decorative than functional. However, this latest entry New Horizons is a next-gen experience, and they wanted to add in the features that fans have been clamoring for. That’s right: You can now poop.

To be clear, however, you must meet certain conditions in order to achieve your digestive dreams. In New Horizons, if you eat fruit, you gain energy that allows you to perform feats of strength, like digging trees out of the ground. Once you sit on the toilet, your energy will slowly drain to zero, accompanied by a slightly upsetting sound effect. However, once you’ve made the decision to poop, you cannot cancel it, so be careful out there.

This isn’t the only surprise addition to New Horizons, however. The game allows you to get free items by playing the mobile spin-off Pocket Camp, some of which are exclusive.

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Pokemon Sword and Shield‘s latest Max Raid events are coming to an end very soon. The events are scheduled to wrap up this Wednesday, March 25, at 4:59 PM PT / 7:59 PM ET, making this your last chance to catch some rare Gigantamax and version-exclusive Pokemon.

There are two concurrent Max Raid events going on now, the first of which features Gigantamax Snorlax, Machamp, and Gengar. All three of those Pokemon are currently appearing in Max Raid dens in both games. Since Gigantamax Pokemon are normally incredibly hard to find, this is a good chance to catch to catch them before their spawn rates return to normal.

On top of that, developer Game Freak recently kicked off a second Max Raid event that makes a handful of version-exclusive Pokemon available in the opposite game. Galarian Corsola, Ponyta, Oranguru, and female Indeedee are appearing in Max Raids in Pokemon Sword, while Galarian Farfetch’d, Darumaka, Passimian, and male Indeedee are appearing in Shield. This event likewise ends on March 25.

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For some clowns mean big smiles, floppy feet, and lapel adornments that spray water into your face unexpectedly. For others, however, the sight of make-up adorned children’s entertainers is traumatic. When it comes to phobias, clowns are surprisingly common. At the very least, a great number of people will agree that there’s something unsettling about them.

This, in some part, has to do with the fiction that surrounds them. Whether it’s Pennywise from Stephen King’s It or Twisty from American Horror Story (a more recent, but equally scary entry into the pantheon of killer circus performers), media has reinforced the idea that clowns should be feared. It’s no wonder then, that they exist as a terror to both children and adults.

But where did this fear of clowns come from? Well, it actually came from a very real, very horrific string of murders perpetrated by a man in a clown costume.

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