Rocket League goes free-to-play on September 23. Along with this transition, developer Psyonix has confirmed that Season 1 will begin that same day. Season 1 introduces a new Rocket Pass, competitive season reset, and several in-game changes.
The new Rocket Pass (Rocket League’s version of a battle pass) is the main attraction of Season 1, introducing over 70 tiers of items to unlock, most of which are inspired by Rocket League’s five-year history. Like previous Rocket Passes, the premium track of the Season 1 Rocket Pass begins with a new battle car. Buy the pass and you’ll immediately unlock the Harbinger, which can be seen in the trailer embedded below.
The competitive season reset officially begins a little bit after 3 PM PT / 6 PM ET on September 22, so you can actually get a bit of a head start on working your way up through the ranks if you buy Rocket League or already own it ahead of the game going free-to-play.
Fortnite, including both the battle royale and the Save the World modes, is no longer receiving updates on Mac computers. Epic Games said that Apple isn’t letting it push updates to the platform.
“Apple is preventing Epic from signing games and patches for distribution on Mac, which ends our ability to develop and offer Fortnite: Save the World for the platform,” Epic Games said in a post on their official site. “Specifically, our upcoming v14.20 release will cause bugs for players on v13.40, resulting in a very poor experience. Since we are no longer able to sign updates and release fixes for these issues, beginning September 23, 2020, Fortnite: Save the World will no longer be playable on macOS.”
Fortnite’s battle royale mode will still be playable on Mac devices, but Epic said that it will “no longer [receive] version updates due to Apple’s actions.” Mac players will be stuck playing in the v13.40 Fortnite build.
Dauntless has received a major update, adding new content to the free-to-play action game on Switch, PS4, Xbox One, and PC. The new update is called Untamed Wilds, and it adds several new challenges and items to the game.
The major addition is the Terra Escalation, which will be added to the Hunt screen. This takes players to the Arbourhome island chain and takss them with battling their way to–and then defeating–the Agarus Behemoth. You’ll want a good squad to take this beast out, because it’s good at isolating and poisoning Slayers.
The first time I beat the final boss in Hades, I felt an enormous sense of relief. I’d been fighting to see this ending for hours (months, technically, if you count my time in early access), and in roguelikes, it feels better than usual to see an ending. But while I was definitely a little too proud of putting together a set of abilities and perks that shredded the boss after they wrecked me just a few tries ago, that wasn’t why I felt tears welling up. I’d gotten so caught up in the story of my character, Zagreus, and the heroes, villains, and gods that had helped him here that I was elated to have finally gotten him to the end of his journey. What sets Hades apart isn’t just that it’s a great roguelike with the kind of repeatable depth that makes it engrossing to play for hours, but also how it uses its structure to tell an ongoing story about family, secrets, and resolution.
That Hades’ narrative is so entwined with its combat is nothing new for the developers at Supergiant Games, who’ve established themselves as masters of putting your actions in sync with the stories they tell. In a roguelike such as Hades, it means playing as Zagreus, a god of rebirth. Tired of living under his father Hades’ thumb and seeking answers about where he comes from, he sets out to escape to the world of the living, battling various undead monsters, living creatures, and mythological figures on his way out.
Hades captured on Nintendo Switch
Your godliness justifies the endless runs through the depths of the underworld, since dying and coming back to life is par for the course in Greek myth. One of the best parts of Hades, in fact, is returning to the House of Hades time and again after you die. It’s not just a pit stop on the way to the next run–it’s the centerpiece Hades hinges on. There, figures such as Achilles, Hypnos, and Nyx console you after your deaths, praise you for making progress, and confide in you about one another. You chat with them, undertake side quests, and exchange gifts to deepen your relationships. Eventually, they become vital allies on your quest, even if they’re not in the thick of combat with you.
Hyper Scape, the new battle royale game from Ubisoft, is offering a double XP promotion this weekend. Now through Sunday September 20, players on all platforms will be doubly rewarded with experience, so it’s a good time to check out the game or return to it.
Ubisoft also confirmed that the newly revealed Turbo Mode, which speeds up matches by making all loot max level and increasing the speed of health regeneration, will be available throughout the double XP weekend and beyond. The limited-time mode will be available until Tuesday, September 22.
Developer Ubisoft Montreal has been steadily supporting the PS4, Xbox One, and PC game with extra content and new events, and you can check out the mid-season roadmap here to find out what will be available through the start of October.
Fitness Boxing 2 will yet again task you with performing boxing moves in time with music. The game will now let you turn off certain boxing moves that you don’t want to perform, and features new tracks and instructors. There are 66 courses and 23 songs to choose from.
Otherwise, it looks very similar to the first game, but hopefully there will be improvements to motion tracking. Save data carries over, so if Fitness Boxing is part of your fitness routine, you can continue tracking your progress.
Microsoft’s next-generation strategy is not focused around any one console, or even a console at all. While Microsoft is releasing two next-generation systems in November–the Xbox Series X and the Xbox Series S–the company has bolder plans to reach potentially billions of players through its cloud streaming service, xCloud.
Xbox boss Phil Spencer has now spoken more about Microsoft’s approach and how the company does not want to “build walls around Xbox.”
Life is Strange 2 debuted back in 2018, and if you’ve held off on diving in until now, you can check out a full fifth of the game for free now. Episode 1 of Life is Strange 2 is now completely free to download on Steam, PS4, and Xbox One, letting you check the game out and earn Trophies and Achievements at no cost.
In episode 1, brothers Sean and Daniel Diaz are forced to go on the run following a family tragedy. The series deals with some very heavy themes and asks the player to make choices that will impact the narrative.
The first episode debuted September 26, 2018, almost two years ago. It received a 9/10 in GameSpot’s review, with critic Jess McDonell calling it “a triumphant first chapter, featuring a narrative that fearlessly reflects the lives of two Latino brothers living in our politically-charged climate.”
Before you play the first episode of Life is Strange 2 for free, you should check out another free standalone Life is Strange experience–The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit, which is available on the same platforms. It’s a prequel to the events of Life is Strange 2.
Developer Dontnod recently released Tell Me Why, another episode adventure series. Their next game is Twin Mirror, which releases on December 1. If there’s a third game in the Life is Strange series, it will feature an all-new story.
