Category: Uncategorized

Valve Brings the Ban Hammer

With the Steam sale finally ending, people can finally spend their summer playing their new games. Unless you’ve been using hacking tools, then you’re banned. In fact, Valve has banned over 40,000 people on July 6th. This is a record high ban since October 2016 where 15, 227 accounts were banned. Anybody who was caught by Valve Anti-Cheat was instantly banned although 5000 of them are based on normal ban reviews.

Many of the accounts were banned after purchasing cheaper copies of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. All the accounts banned had an approximately $8,674 worth of cosmetic items for the game. Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is one of the few games made by Valve whose cosmetics can be sold by other players due to the rarity of certain designs. Some of them go for over $100 depending on the limited release of the item. The real lesson is to not hack to earn real money in video games. Especially not for cosmetics.

How much have you ever spent on a free game? Personally, I’ve probably spent over $200 on MapleStory in my middle school days.

Sources:

Eurogamer

Polygon

SteamDB

TLDW: Splatoon 2 Nintendo Direct. July 6, 2017

Today’s Nintendo Direct was focused on Splatoon 2. The direct included more story, guns, and gameplay. It also included more online social features and is the first game that will use the Nintendo Switch Online App.

New Equipment:

Gears are the new equipment which will include buffs for each style of clothing. There are hats, shirts, and shoes! They will affect aspects of the multiplayer game. Some examples include faster respawn time, faster movement, and adjusted speed. Gear will be sold by fun characters called: Jelfonzo, Flow and Bisk! Murch the Urchin can add more buffs to your gear or remove some as well. Clothing is more important than ever in Splatoon 2.

Weapons will still be sold by Sheldon from Splatoon. You can fast-forward through his dialogue. There are three types of weapons: Main, sub, and Special! Some of the guns have been readjusted for Splatoon 2.

  • Standard Shooters now include a dodge roll!
  • Rollers can be used vertically
  • Chargers can now store the charge while becoming a squid
  • Splashers throws a bucket of ink
  • Blasters shoot blasts of ink

New Weapons:  The Clash Blaster-short range gun that leads to explosions. Flingza Roller: It can change shape and throw even further. Goo Toober is a charger that can charge for a longer time. Dapple Dualies: lighter guns which mean more manoeuvrability around the map.

New Subweapons: Autobombs that can track enemies and Toxic Mist which creates a poison Area of Effect. There are more to come

Special: Fill the gauge to use the special. You can now see if enemies have their specials to prepare yourself ahead of time but looking at the scoreboard.

Tetra missles: lock on missile barrage. Ink Jet: Fly and shoot blasts of ink. Sting ray: a charger that can shoot through walls. Splashdown: Aoe downward smash. Inkstorm: rains ink around the map. Bomb launcher: throws a array of bombs. Ink Armor: Armors up you and nearby allies with Ink. Negates damage. Baller: giant explosive hamster ball.

Game Modes:

There are new and returning game modes for Splatoon 2. Turf War still exists and focuses on inking as much of the territory as possible. There is also a new Dancing/Rhythm game in Inkopolis Square, the new hub. Amibos will give you access to new gear and save your Squids/Kids gear setting. A horde mode called Salmon Run will grant you access to new gear if you can survive. It’ll also include unique bosses such as Steel Eel, Flyfish, and Steel Head that were revealed during the direct. During this mode, the environment, weather, and light will change.

Ranked Battles:

Ranked Matches will be held in three game modes.

Tower Control: Stay on the moving tower platform to move it towards the goal. It’ll stop at designated areas which will make for some intense action. Splatzones: King of the Hill mode. Rainmaker: Capture the flag but it’s a super weapon. Protect the weilder at all cost to earn points. Each mode will have its own rank and if you’re really good, you can move up two ranks! You can team up with friends as a pair or as a team of 4.

Of course, there are new maps: The Reef, Mussleforge fitness, Inklet Art Academy, Starfish Mainstage, Humpback Pump Track, Sturgeon Shipyard, Port Mackerel and Moray Towers. I hope you enjoy the Marine based puns as much as I did.

Two new girls: Marina and Pearl. They’ll be your new SplatFest host! In fact, the next SplatFest will be on July 15th in the free online demo. It’s Ice Cream vs Cupcakes!

The Online App: SplatNet 2

Nintendo will launch a companion app with Nintendo Switch Online App called SplatNet2. It will co-release with the game on July 21st exclusively on smartphones. The app will include online features for Splatoon 2‘s online multiplayer such as:

  • Rank Listing
  • Stats
  • Different Stage Schedules
  • How much your characters “Inked”
  • Voice Chat
  • Create Private Lobbies with friends

The service is free for the rest of the year. Once 2018 beings, it’ll cost $19.99 annually which is cheaper than Xbox and PlayStation. More info regarding the service will be announced over the upcoming months.

MiiVerse 2?

Players can send each other pictures that they’ve drawn into private mailboxes. They can also be displayed in the game similar to Splatoon on Wii U. They’ll be displayed Inkoplis Square and certain maps in the game. The pictures can be shared across connected social media as well.

Future Content

Splat Brella Gun which can shield and dash all in one weapon. Bubble Blower that creates floating landmines that can spread the ink around the map. Of course, there will be new gear and new stages. There is scheduled to have about a year of updates and 2 years of Splatfest! Nintendo has been doing a great job of keep their IP’s fresh and keeps fans in for a longer time than most companies these days. So this game will continue to be updated so don’t get cooked…Stay off the hook!

 

Sources:

Splatoon 2 Direct

Nintendo’s Twitter 

Kotaku

Polygon

Crash Bandicoot HD is even harder?!

Crash Bandicoot was a difficult platformer. Unique camera angles, fast action, and small spaces to run made the game difficult. The Crash games definitely had his own charm. His design, levels, cute animal friends, difficulty, and was a PlayStation 1 exclusive which made it quite popular in the late 90’s. Fans clamoured for a return to the original Playstation 1 trilogy and they delivered. However, the Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy is harder for different reasons.

As a note, the Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy is not an up-rez version of the original Playstation 1 classic. Unlike Shadow of the Colossus, ICO, the Metal Gear Series, and Silent Hill HD which were the Playstation 2 games with improved graphics but still the same game, Crash had to be remade from scratch. Everything from the model, environment, and textures were redone by Vicarious Visions in Unity. However, they did not copy everything. Crash’s hitbox is shaped differently than the original. A hitbox is an invisible space around the object that dictates how large it is in the game environment and how it’ll interact. This will dictate if something touches the object. Crash and his sister’s hitbox is more “pill-shaped” which means it needs more space for him to land than before. He also jumps faster which makes jumps feel different from before. Platforms required stricter jumps to land precisely. Overall, the classic hard platforming of Crash Bandicoot is even harder than before. For a visual look, you can check the tweet below.

A hitbox is an invisible space around the object that dictates how large it is in the game environment and how it’ll interact. This will dictate if something touches the object. Crash and his sister’s hitbox is more “pill-shaped” which means it needs more space for him to land than before. He also jumps faster which makes jumps feel different from before. Platforms required stricter jumps to land precisely due to the hitbox of the characters. You’re more often miss the jumps and die than before. Overall, the classic hard platforming of Crash Bandicoot is even harder than before.

Despite the difficulties, it has received positive reviews overall. If you really did enjoy Crash as a kid, you need to purchase this game. Naughty Dog won’t support a new release unless this sells well. I know this because I spoke with the developers at PlayStation Expo 2016 in Anaheim. Remakes’ sales are an indication to game developers to continue making the series. If you want more Crash, then buy Crash and tell your friends.

Sources: Polygon

Gamesradar

Halo PC Fan Game lives!

Most fangames don’t make it. Fan projects involving IP’s like the Metroid 2 remake, Chrono Trigger, Pokemon Uranium, Bid for Power, Shadow Moses, and more are never released. Often, Video Game companies will send a Cease and Desist to the creators to inform them to stop the release of the fan game or face legal actions. They’ll usually send it after the fangame is nearly finished. Fan games are usually created based on communities’ desires for a remake or a new entry in a series that has changed. Despite fan outcry, most fangame developers have their project stopped before they can release them to long awaiting fans due to Video Game companies lawyers. Mostly because they didn’t listen to the wise words of Woolie Madden. (Sarcastic, video game companies have every right to send a cease and desist).

However, a fan project named Installation 01, a fan made Halo game, will aim to bring Halo Multiplayer to PC gamers. I personally love the Halo Trilogy and Reach. The developers have spoken closely with Microsoft and have operated under their rules. Every asset is created from scratch and not taken from any of the Halo series. Thanks to close conversations as well as agreeing to not earn a single dollar, donation, or profit from Installation 01 has kept the fan project alive.

The project leader, Church, stated “Through these interactions, we have been ensured that Installation 01 is not under imminent legal threat, provided we remain non-commercial in nature and scope and continue to follow Microsoft’s Game Content Usage Rules to the letter.

We are now able to say with certainty that Installation 01 will never be accepting donations. We also will not be selling i01 or Halo related merchandise. This is to keep a respectful distance between us and Microsoft’s intellectual property. It is also important to note that these rules and assurances from 343 are specific to Installation 01 as a project, and should not be interpreted to apply elsewhere. Through ongoing communication with 343 Industries we hope that we, as a fan project, can continue to be a positive driving force within the Halo community.”

I’ve spent countless hours with my cousins and friends playing the multiplayer and story mode. However, we stopped playing after Reach and we weren’t interested in buying a Xbox One just to play Halo 4. But having an old school Halo game on the PC is giving me the itch to play some more! You can watch the cinematic trailer down below.

Source: Eurogamer

installation01.org/