Shenmue III Will Not Be The End of Series, Director Says
Shenmue III won't be the end of the game series, according to director Yu Suzuki.
Speaking with PlayStation.Blog, Suzuki revealed he wants to continue Ryo's story in more games, as it would feel too rushed to finish his journey in the upcoming third installment.
"The series will not end with Shenmue III," Suzuki said. "Rushing to tie up the plot here would have made for a flat game. And I hope to continue the series as long as people are interested."
The news might come as a bit of a surprise to fans of the series, as Shenmue III itself is the first new game in the series in 18 years. As if that long of a delay weren't enough for Shenmue fans, the planned release of the game in August was then delayed to later this month.
Everything Announced at Blizzcon 2019
Blizzard opened its BlizzCon 2019 ceremony not with an announcement but with Blizzard Entertainment's J. Allen Brack speaking in light of the recent controversy that has struck up following Blizzard's actions in banning a Hearthstone player who spoke out in support of Hong Kong.
But after a brief moment of solemn discussion, the company dove right into debuting some of its new slate of games and updates to existing ones. Read on for every major announcement during the BlizzCon 2019 opening ceremony, and stay tuned to IGN for more coverage from the show in the days to come.
Blizzard Announces Overwatch 2 at BlizzCon
Overwatch game director officially announced Overwatch 2 at BlizzCon today.
The game will feature story missions, similar to some of Overwatch's seasonal events, hero missions, replayable co-op modes, hero leveling up and hero customization. Overwatch 2 will also have a new PvP mode called Push, new maps, and multiple new heroes, including Sojourn, seen in the trailer.
The game's core competitive version will be called Push. Kaplan said the core game mode will be played in Quick Play, competitive, and in the game's esports league, the Overwatch League.
Overwatch players will get to play on the brand new Overwatch 2 maps and as heroes. Kaplan said it was a "shared multiplayer environment where no on gets left behind." Cosmetics will also transfer to Overwatch 2, so Overwatch players' progress is not lost.
World of Warcraft Classic Gets World Bosses and PvP Honor System This Month
Blizzard has announced that World of Warcraft Classic will be getting world bosses and the PvP Honor System at some point during the week of November 12, 2019.
Developing...
Hearthstone: Battlegrounds Mode Is an 8-Player Auto-Battler
Blizzard has announced Hearthstone: Battlegrounds, a new mode that is an eight-player auto battler that features 24 unique heroes.
In this new mode that launches for free alongside the Descent of Dragons expansion, players will "recruit minions, strategically position them, and watch as they battle for supremacy."
Even though Battlegrounds will be free, players will unlock optional bonus features when they acquire card packs from the most recent expansion, all starting with Descent of Dragons.
At 10 packs, players will unlock comprehensive stat-tracking in Hearthstone: Battlegrounds. At 20, they can choose from three different heroes at the start of each match instead of two. At 30, players unlock the ability to "taunt of playfully communicate with their opponents using a visual emote system."
Hearthstone Descent of Dragons Expansion Announced
Blizzard has announced Hearthstone's Descent of Dragons expansion that features the most ever dragon cards in any expansion.
Descent of Dragons will add 135 cards to Hearthstone when it launches on December 10, 2019.
This "epic conclusion to Hearthstone’s first-ever year-long story line will arm players with draconic firepower—including the ability to transform into Galakrond, the mightiest dragon in Warcraft history."
The League of E.V.I.L. is trying to "bring doom to Azeroth by resurrecting Galakrond," and all five "E.V.I.L." classes - Preist, Rogue, Shaman, Warlock, and Warrior - will feature a different transformed version of this father of all dragons, each with a unique Battlecry and Hero Power.
Arrow: Felicity Smoak to Return for Series Finale
Production is currently underway on the final episode of Arrow, and star Stephen Amell made a very exciting announcement to mark the occasion. Emily Bett Rickards will return to reprise the role of Felicity Smoak one final time.
Amell took to Twitter to announce, "There’ll be a lot of news coming out about our final episode over the next few months. I prefer when you hear it from us. Welcome back Emily."
There’ll be a lot of news coming out about our final episode over the next few months. I prefer when you hear it from us. Welcome back Emily. pic.twitter.com/YlVpgoPWLi
World of Warcraft: Shadowlands Expansion Announced
The next World of Warcraft expansion, Shadowlands, was announced today at BlizzCon 2019. It will be released in 2020.
Shadowlands was revealed by way of a cinematic trailer featuring Sylvanas Windrunner doing battle with the current Lich King, Bolvar Fordragon. Sylvanas bests Bolvar, removing the Helm of Domination and breaking it in two, leaving the Shadowlands without a Lich King for the first time.
As the title suggests, Shadowlands, Warcraft's version of the afterlife, will be the setting for WoW's eighth expansion. It features five new zones, according to Blizzard: "the gleaming fields of Bastion, the scarred battlefields of Maldraxxus, the eternal twilight of Ardenweald, the opulent keeps of Revendreth, and the horrific Maw."
The Thing Was Originally Supposed to Be in Deadpool 2
Director Tim Miller said he exited Deadpool 2 because he didn't see eye-to-eye with star Ryan Reynolds on the creative direction for the sequel, which, if Miller had his way, would have featured Fantastic Four's The Thing, a more "comic accurate" depiction of Cable, and Morena Baccarin's Vanessa Carlysle becoming Copycat.
In an appearance on The Playlist’s Fourth Wall podcast, Miller revealed his Deadpool 2 would have had a cameo of "The Thing throwing down with Juggernaut." (Colossus ended up doing that in the final version of the film directed by David Leitch.)
Miller also wanted a more comics-accurate depiction of Cable, with the mutant from the future being 6'7" in the books -- something joked about in the final film at Josh Brolin's expense.
Blizzard President Apologizes For Mishandling Hong Kong Controversy
Blizzard Entertainment president J. Allen Brack appeared on stage during the Blizzcon opening ceremonies and addressed the recent controversy regarding Blitzchung and Hong Kong. Brack appeared apologetic for the commotion the incident has caused and signaled that the ongoing protests will not be affected.
“When I think about what I’m most unhappy about, it’s really two things. The first one is we didn’t live up to our high standards that we set for ourselves. And the second is, we failed in our purpose. And for that I’m sorry, and I accept accountability,” said Brack in the opening statement.