New Hero, Crypto, Officially Revealed for Apex Legends
Crypto has been rumored to be Apex Legends’ next hero for a long time, and today Respawn confirmed they’ll be entering the tournament when the next season drops on October 1.
Respawn released a new Stories from the Outlands trailer today that sheds a little light on Crypto’s backstory. According to the video, Crypto was just your average, mild-mannered hacker who discovered some kind of match-rigging program developed for the Apex Legends tournament. When a mysterious organization catches onto Crypto, they hunt his friends and family down, forcing Crypto to go on the run.
You can watch the Crypto cinematic below.
While the video didn’t reveal how Crypto plays, he’s seen in the trailer as using some kind of drone to help escape from his pursuers. This drone could play into Crypto’s gameplay moveset in some way.
Tom Welling to Reprise Smallville Superman Role in Arrowverse Crisis Crossover
The upcoming Crisis on Infinite Earth's crossover just got even bigger, as another iconic Superman actor will return to play the Man of Steel. Smallville star Tom Welling will reprise his role as Superman, with the crossover exploring the fate of the character ten years after the events of Smallville's series finale.
The CW confirmed the news along with a statement from executive producer Marc Guggenheim.
“For eight years, Arrow has stood on the shoulders of Smallville. Simply put, there would be no Arrow, and no Arrowverse, without it,” said Guggenheim. “So when we first started talking about Crisis on Infinite Earths, our first, second and third priorities were getting Tom to reprise his iconic role as Clark Kent. To say that we’re thrilled would be a Superman-sized understatement.”
New Disney+ Hawkeye Explained: Who Is Kate Bishop?
Everything's coming up Hawkeye in the MCU. Not only did Jeremy Renner's tortured hero find redemption in Avengers: Endgame, he's set to star in his own Disney+ series in 2021. And Clint Barton won't be the only Hawkeye this time. The series will also introduce his teenage counterpart, Kate Bishop (with Hailee Steinfeld reportedly up for the role).
But who is Kate Bishop, and why did she steal Clint's superhero identity? We'll tell you everything you need to know about this hotheaded heroine and founding member of the Young Avengers. Here are the topics we're covering:
Get a Sneak Peek at the New Lands of Disenchantment Season 2
All September long, IGN is highlighting the best TV coming your way in the 2019-2020 season. Today we're featuring Netflix's Disenchantment, which is set to begin its second season on Friday, September 20. This is how the streaming provider describes Season 2: "Picking up where we left off, Disenchantment Part Two delves deeper into the un-fairytale’s mythology and explores faraway worlds well beyond Dreamland. But one question remains: Have we really seen the last of the beloved Elfo?" We recently spoke with executive producers Matt Groening and Josh Weinstein, via email, about how our favorite characters have evolved since Season 1, and what fascinating new worlds we can expect to see in Season 2.
Watch This Crazy Teen Titans Go! Vs. Teen Titans Music Video
The release date for DC's animated comedy Teen Titans Go! Vs. Teen Titans is almost here, and IGN has an exclusive new clip.
Check out the video player above for a look at a catchy musical number from the new movie.
As the title suggests, Teen Titans Go! Vs. Teen Titans is a crossover between both incarnations of Cartoon Network's Teen Titans franchise, as the original 2003 team meet their tinier, sillier counterparts. Teen Titans Go! has never been shy about breaking the fourth wall, and that much is readily apparent in this musical sequence that features both teams delivering some fresh '90s hip-hop beats.
The film revolves around a universe-bending confrontation between the two versions of the Teen Titans, with the teams forced to unite to confront the combined threat of two Trigons. This will be the second feature-length spinoff of Teen Titans Go!, following 2018's Teen Titans Go! To the Movies.
John Wick Hex is Coming Out in October
John Wick Hex, the official John Wick game developed by Bithell games finally has a release date. The action strategy game based on the popular action movie franchise will be released on PC and Mac on October 8.
John Wick Hex is an unexpected video game adaptation of the Keanu Reeves movie franchise. Known for its elegantly choreographed action set pieces, John Wick Hex translates the fight moves from the screen into a timeline strategy game where players can plan their moves ahead of time and see how the action, and consequences, play out.
Amazon Music HD Launches in the UK with a 90-Day Free Trial
Amazon has launched a new premium music streaming service, featuring high-quality Ultra HD music for less than £15 per month.
In celebration of this new HD tier, Amazon is giving customers the chance to try out the audio streaming platform with a free 90-day trial. Featuring millions of quality lossless audio tracks, this is a great opportunity to check out Amazon's vast music library, if you haven't already.
Amazon Music HD — Free 90-Day Trial
BioWare Abandons Anthem Post-Launch Plans
Plans for more post-launch content in Anthem have been put on ice so the development team can focus on updates and thoroughly review core issues surrounding gameplay.
Bioware's head of live service, Chad Robertson, announced the decision in a blog post that detailed some of the changes the development team had made to Anthem following player feedback. These include combat balancing, more reward crate types, and tips in load screens to better explain Cataclysm mechanics.
See what we thought of Anthem when it launched back in February in our review video above.
But he acknowledged that those tweaks weren't enough, saying, "We hear your concerns on core issues in Anthem and are acting on it. Those systems require a more thorough review and re-working versus quick fixes. We’ve got a team working on that now, and early results are promising.
Control’s Elaborate Ending, Explained
Control is heavily inspired by the Weird Fiction genre. So, it’s only right that the story of Control is less about answering questions and more so about asking them. And there are plenty of questions left unanswered, even after the credits roll (twice!).
Luckily, Remedy left us with at least some answers about its mysterious world, and plenty of tantalizing threads to dissect before Control’s story DLC expansions are released next year.
Spoilers ahead
Control’s Ending
At the center of Control’s story is Jesse Faden and her brother Dylan. Jesse’s search for Dylan led her to the Federal Bureau of Control (FBC) and the Oldest House. As it turns out, both of the Faden siblings were singled out as potential “directors” by the FBC following the destruction of their hometown of Ordinary before the events of Control.
The Legend Of Zelda: Link’s Awakening Review – A Respectable Remake
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening is a trip back to a simpler time, when handheld game systems had monochromatic screens and two buttons were all you needed to go on a grand adventure. The new Switch remake marks the second revival of the Game Boy classic, and it brings the quirky Koholint Island back to life in style. Without taking any wind out of the original game's sails, the revisions drastically enhance the look and feel of the environments and characters, all the while map layouts and puzzle designs remain incredibly faithful to the source material. Nintendo has implemented a few other new features and some new collectibles that will keep veteran players on the hunt, but the renewed presentation is easily the star of the show.
Having been transformed from little pixelated people to shiny, cartoony toys come to life, everyone in Link's Awakening brings newfound energy. It's equally true for monsters and bad guys as well. Game Boy games have retro appeal, but the remake casts aside ancient aesthetics for something entirely different that works on its own terms. That which existed only in our imagination before comes through in new animations, accompanied with lively sound effects and music that make you feel like a kid again. It's the sort of look that grows even more attractive over time, and you might, like I did, start to imagine what other Nintendo properties would benefit from a similar visual upgrade.
It can, also, be the one thing about the game that irks, as the frame rate takes a noticeable hit when most scenes load into memory. The problem seems to be tied to the game's pronounced depth-of-field effect, which employs an exaggerated blurring effect to enhance the miniature-toy feel of the presentation. Don't get me wrong, this is more of a minor annoyance than anything--which should tell you a lot about the quality of everything else.
Link's Awakening will no doubt feel old-fashioned, which is fair considering the original version is over a quarter century old at this stage. It feels wrong to make any comparisons between it and Breath of the Wild, but in the case that 2017's game of the year was your first foray in Link's boots, kiss the open-ended quests and sprawling Hyrule goodbye. Link's Awakening is a tightly designed adventure on a small but dense map. Eight puzzle-filled dungeons comprise the bulk of your journey, but you're also required to meet and greet the inhabitants of the quirky island. Link washes ashore after a calamitous boating accident to find himself stranded in paradise--or it would be, if not for the Nightmares residing in the aforementioned vaults.
This setup suggests that Koholint is but a trite land compared to the embattled and sacred Kingdom of Hyrule--an inconvenient pitstop for old Link, if you will. Yet, Link's Awakening never feels like it's trying to butt up against the series' more epic entries. It works, instead, as a fanciful side story, and it ultimately stands out for its playful attitude and moments of bittersweet melancholy.
By and large, the flow of the game is managed in a clear fashion. A sage-like owl helps guide Link from one primary task to the next. With each dungeon comes a musical instrument, and with them all, says the wise owl, Link can secure his way off the island. It always appears at just the right time, when one task ends and the other is about to begin, but you're also afforded advice from a shy man named Ulrira. Chat with him at any of the numerous phone-booth trees scattered around the island; just don't bother him in person--he will sheepishly ask that you stick to the phone, anyway. For the remake, you also have the new option of revisiting past conversations via the map menu, and the ability to mark locations on the map using a small selection of different icons.
This may prove useful for several reasons, most notably while you're hunting for collectible items like seashells and pieces of heart. There are more of each in the Switch remake than in the original Game Boy game, and though you may have a clear sense of where some are, many will remain inaccessible until you discover new gear that extends Link's capabilities.
With the Switch's expanded button count, Link's Awakening is a lot easier to play now because you have access to more items at once without jumping in and out of your inventory. In the past, you could only have two items in hand at any given moment. On Switch, Link's sword, shield, dash, and Power Bracelet strength are always ready to use, and two configurable slots for other items let you juggle even more in any given moment. This greatly diminishes the annoyance of constant menu-flipping and can make certain boss encounters feel easier than ever. For players that want a challenge in battle, a Hero mode exists, where enemies don't drop health replenishments and Link takes twice as much damage as usual.
Largely, however, the more manageable enemy encounters aren't to the game's detriment. Link's Awakening is primarily focused on testing you with its circuitous dungeons and an overarching item-trading quest line that requires you to take a closer look at the people who call Koholint home. Their identities and stories aren't all that deep, but your interactions and exchanges help shape the identity of the locale and brighten up your time spent outside of dark and dreary dungeons. Some of the multi-floor dungeons can take the better part of an hour to figure out, with fluctuating obstacles and subtle environmental cues ensuring that the final stages will either test your memory of the original game or your present observation and deduction skills. There are times when you suspect that you've explored every option yet can't find the path forward. As is par for the course, you probably need to take a closer look at your tools and surroundings. Even if it won't test your fighting spirit, Link's Awakening's most challenging puzzles will test your intellect in surprising ways.
Like many of the best Zelda games, Link's Awakening gives you a sense of purpose, motivates you with discovery and growth, and delights you with its charming personality. These qualities, unfortunately, don't carry over to the remake's other big addition: the dungeon maker mode. Here, with the help of the series' favorite gravedigger, Dampe, Link can create virtual dungeons derived from rooms seen throughout his adventure. Amiibo can also factor in, either as portable storage for sharing your dungeons with other players--no, you can't upload them online--or as a means of unlocking special additions for your custom dungeons. The Link's Awakening Amiibo, for example, will introduce Shadow Link as a mini boss. Defeating him, or simply playing dungeons, will net you extra consumables, like bombs and arrows, and a bounty of rupees. These are good options to have, and there's some delight that comes with laying out your own dungeon, but because you are limited to premade room tiles and disposable rewards, the dungeon maker mode is easy to dismiss. It's a curiosity at best, and definitely not the Zelda Maker you might be waiting for.
Though the remake has a couple of blemishes, it's still an easy game to recommend. People speak of Link's Awakening as the secret best Zelda game. That's a tough call to make, but it's definitely one of the best. If you haven't touched a classic Zelda game in a while, Link's Awakening will almost instantly transport you back to the '90s. It's simple, in many ways, but the orchestrated journey still conveys a sense of adventure, and this new version is without question the best way to experience it. And more than anything else, it will put a smile on your face. Remakes are a dime a dozen nowadays and often easy to overlook. Don't make that mistake with Link's Awakening.