Opinion: Marvel Comics Needs Conan the Barbarian

Of all the possible announcements Marvel Comics could have made to kick off the new year, I certainly didn't expect the news that they've reacquired the rights to Conan the Barbarian. Outside of Star Wars and Dark Tower, Marvel hasn't focused a great deal on licensed properties in the last couple decades. This new acquisition suggests that Marvel's publishing strategy may be shifting in 2018. And honestly, that may be for the best. A little Conan could be just what Marvel needs right now.

Art by Esad Ribic. (Marvel Comics) Art by Esad Ribic. (Marvel Comics)

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Opinion: Marvel Comics Needs Conan the Barbarian

Of all the possible announcements Marvel Comics could have made to kick off the new year, I certainly didn't expect the news that they've reacquired the rights to Conan the Barbarian. Outside of Star Wars and Dark Tower, Marvel hasn't focused a great deal on licensed properties in the last couple decades. This new acquisition suggests that Marvel's publishing strategy may be shifting in 2018. And honestly, that may be for the best. A little Conan could be just what Marvel needs right now.

Art by Esad Ribic. (Marvel Comics) Art by Esad Ribic. (Marvel Comics)

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Facebook Announces Pilot Program for Twitch Competitor

Facebook has announced a pilot program for its own game streaming platform.

The focus of Facebook's new Gaming Creator Pilot Program, according to the announcement post, will be capitalizing on its already massive audience to create a thriving community for gaming content creators.

The platform will allow creators to livestream in 1080p/60fps, and Facebook has committed to add additional features based on input from creators. Facebook is also examining monetization options, which will be available to participants in the initial pilot program.

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Facebook Announces Pilot Program for Twitch Competitor

Facebook has announced a pilot program for its own game streaming platform.

The focus of Facebook's new Gaming Creator Pilot Program, according to the announcement post, will be capitalizing on its already massive audience to create a thriving community for gaming content creators.

The platform will allow creators to livestream in 1080p/60fps, and Facebook has committed to add additional features based on input from creators. Facebook is also examining monetization options, which will be available to participants in the initial pilot program.

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Ubisoft Addresses Rainbow Six Siege Pricing Concerns

Following the reveal of new pricing for Rainbow Six Siege yesterday, Ubisoft has issued an official statement on the Rainbow Six subreddit, the biggest reveal of which was that the Standard Edition of Siege would no longer be getting a price increase.

The statement primarily concerns itself with issues brought up by Siege's veteran players. "We have seen the frustration from our veteran players rise to the top of the discussion," Ubisoft said.

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Ubisoft Addresses Rainbow Six Siege Pricing Concerns

Following the reveal of new pricing for Rainbow Six Seige, Ubisoft has issued an official statement on the Rainbow Six subreddit.

The statement primarily concerns itself with issues of note for Rainbow Six's seasoned players. "We have seen the frustration from our veteran players rise to the top of the discussion," Ubisoft said.

To help assuage their concerns, Ubisoft is giving away the "upcoming Ash Sidewinder Elite skin for free" to veteran players who play before March 6.

For new players and fans "concerned about introducing your friends to the game," Ubisoft is leaving the pricing on the Standard Edition where it is, rather than the original we will be keeping the Standard Edition in the store at the current price.

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The Sea of Thieves Beta Has Me Equal Parts Concerned and Hopeful

Update: It appears that the "You're Too Early" issue isn't actually fixed. I currently don't recommend pre-ordering if your goal is to partake in the closed beta on PC, regardless of your retailer.

SeaofThieves

My preliminary hours with the Sea of Thieves closed beta were spent wrestling the Microsoft Store into submission and pondering question after question about the game’s progression, replayability, and the PC version. It wasn’t a pretty start, but the more time I spent with Sea of Thieves the more enamored I became with its emergent potential. Somewhere between stumbling onto a magical weeping chest that flooded my hold with tears, and my first successful player versus player piracy I realized that no matter how many hours Sea of Thieves proves capable of providing me at launch, it will be time well-spent.

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The Sea of Thieves Beta Has Me Equal Parts Concerned and Hopeful

My preliminary hours with the Sea of Thieves closed beta were spent wrestling the Microsoft Store into submission and pondering question after question about the game’s progression, replayability, and the PC version. It wasn’t a pretty start, but the more time I spent with Sea of Thieves the more enamored I became with its emergent potential. Somewhere between stumbling onto a magical weeping chest that flooded my hold with tears, and my first successful player versus player piracy I realized that no matter how many hours Sea of Thieves proves capable of providing me at launch, it will be time well-spent.

Sea of Thieves has a lot going for it: a unique immersive setting, a surprisingly accessible learning curve, and possibly the best looking water of all time (which you can witness in glorious detail in the videos below.) But not even the dazzling glimmer of that perfect ocean can outshine the radiance of the game’s most outstanding quality: its impeccable multiplayer design, which coerces cooperation and inspires emergent gameplay. Nowhere is this more apparent than onboard your chosen vessel. Here, controlling your speed, navigating to your destination, and indeed staying afloat all necessitate communication and coordination between you and your crew. This reliance on your fellow pirate is enhanced by a nearly nonexistent HUD, which is blissfully free of waypoints or a minimap. All of these elements add up to a dynamic and thoroughly enjoyable multi-crew vessel experience, where no one is idle for long and no task feels like busy work.

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Celeste Dev Gives Update on TowerFall Ascension Switch Port

Developer Matt Makes Games concurrently announced both its latest hit release Celeste as well as its previous great archery combat game TowerFall Ascension for the Nintendo Switch last year. And while it may have seemed a TowerFall port would likely be released first, it still has yet to be released — but don't worry, it's still on its way.

Speaking to IGN as part of a larger discussion about independent games on the Nintendo Switch, developer Matt Thorson explained that he always intended to release Celeste before porting over TowerFall.

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