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Giannis “The Greek Freak” Antetokounmpo is the cover athlete for NBA 2K19

Posted on July 2, 2018 by John Scalzo

Giannis Antetokounmpo has been making life difficult for play-by-play announcers since his NBA debut in 2013. But “The Greek Freak” has also built up an impressive highlight reel over the years, and 2K Games had plenty of reasons to select him as the official cover athlete for NBA 2K19. The publisher’s basketball simulation is celebrating its 20th anniversary this Fall, and Antetokounmpo will be the first international player featured on the cover.

“I am honored to be the first international player featured on the cover of NBA 2K19,” said Antetokounmpo. “I love playing NBA 2K so this means a lot to me. I have worked hard to earn recognition in the NBA and being on the cover of NBA 2K19 is a dream come true.”

You can sneak a peek at Antetokounmpo’s NBA 2K19 cover in the short trailer embedded above.

NBA 2K19 will be released for the PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One on September 11. Fans who pre-order the basketball sim will receive a few in-game bonuses including 5,000 Virtual Currency, 10 MyTeam Packs, and a Giannis Antetokounmpo Sapphire MyTeam Card. But players looking to get a head start in MyCareer can download the NBA 2K19: The Prelude demo for the PS4 and Xbox One beginning on August 31.

And in case you missed it, 2K Games previously announced that the Lakers-bound Lebron James will be the cover athlete for the 20th Anniversary Edition, which will come packaged with even more in-game items when it launches on September 7.

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Capcom’s Resident Evil 2 remake wins “Best of Show” at E3 2018 from Game Critics Awards

Posted on July 2, 2018 by John Scalzo

The “media and influencer outlets” represented by the Game Critics Awards have selected this year’s Best of E3 winners. Capcom crawled away with “Best of Show” thanks to the Resident Evil 2 remake.

Meanwhile, Media Molecule’s Dreams won “Best Original Game,” while fellow Sony stablemate Marvel’s Spider-Man won “Best Console Game” and “Best Action/Adventure Game.” The Game Critics Awards honored a rather diverse slate of games this year, giving “Best PC Game” to BioWare’s Anthem, “Best AR/VR Game” to Tetris Effect, and “Best RPG” to Kingdom Hearts III.

Unsurprisingly, the massively-popular Super Smash Bros. Ultimate took home “Best Fighting Game.”

Among non-playable games, a “Special Commendation for Graphics” was awarded to CD Projekt Red’s Cyberpunk 2077, Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us Part II, and Sucker Punch’s Ghost of Tsushima. The Last of Us Part II also received a “Special Commendation for Sound” and Cyberpunk 2077 also collected a “Special Commendation for Innovation.”

The full list of winners can be found after the break. (more…)

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Wolfenstein II, Crash Bandicoot Trilogy, Inside, more coming to Nintendo eShop this week

Posted on June 28, 2018 by John Scalzo

Nostalgia, Nazis, and a few side-scrollers make this week’s Nintendo eShop update an interesting place to be…

Bethesda’s Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus will make its way to the Switch this week, and players will get the chance to help BJ Blazkowicz kick a little Nazi ass on American soil this time around.

Also available to download this week for the Switch is Activision’s Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy, which brings the first three games from the franchise (Crash Bandicoot, Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back, and Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped) together in a single package.

Playdead will also make its Switch debut this week as the developer will bring their award-winning pair of puzzle-platformers (Inside and Limbo) to Nintendo’s newest console.

And speaking of side-scrollers, 13AM Games’s wildly colorful runner, Runbow, will also arrive on the Switch this week.

You can learn more about the rest of this week’s additions to the Nintendo eShop (including MotoGP 18, The Journey Down: Chapter Two, Waking Violet, and more) after the break. (more…)

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Anthem nabs five nominations in Game Critics Awards’s Best of E3 2018 roundup

Posted on June 28, 2018 by John Scalzo

Every year, the Game Critics Awards, a consortium of more than 50 major publications that cover the video game industry, gets together to choose the best games at the E3 Expo. The nominees for “Best of E3 2018” were announced this morning, and BioWare’s Anthem lead the way with five nominations (including “Best of Show”).

From Software’s Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is also in the running for “Best of Show,” and it’s standing close behind Anthem with four total nominations. After that, a mob of games collided in third place with three nominations apiece (including Battlefield V, Dreams, Marvel’s Spider-Man, Resident Evil 2, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate). All but Battlefield V and Dreams are also up for “Best of Show.”

The PS4 was the most-honored platform with 58 nominations, followed by the PC (with 55), the Xbox One (with 51), and the Switch (with 10).

Several games that clicked with fans at home during the pre-E3 press conferences (including Cyberpunk 2077, Death Stranding, The Last of Us Part II, and many others) weren’t eligible for nomination because they weren’t available to play by the judging panel.

But most of those games will likely get another shot next year (especially since I expect to be old and gray before Death Stranding is released), and you can find all of this year’s nominees after the break. The winners will be announced this coming Monday, July 2. (more…)

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Nintendo adds Labo Motorbike support to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

Posted on June 26, 2018 by John Scalzo

If you’ve ever thought it would be fun to sit in front of a cardboard motorcycle and play some Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, don’t worry, Nintendo’s got you covered.

A new update for the kart racing game will add a new controller option for the “Toy-Con Motorbike” from the Nintendo Labo: Variety Kit. After players construct the Motorbike using the included cardboard pieces, and slot in their Switch console and Joy-Con controllers, they’ll be able to vroom vroom their way through Mario Kart 8 Deluxe in an entirely new way.

After downloading the update for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, simply select the “Nintendo Labo” icon on the game’s title screen to access a menu where you can select Toy-Con as the control type. When racing, turning the handlebars changes direction, twisting the right handlebar accelerates, and the various Joy-Con buttons are used for items, brakes and drifting. Up to four players can play at the same time with Toy-Con Motorbike with their own Toy-Con and Joy-Con controllers.

Be sure to check out the teaser trailer embedded above to get an idea of what it’ll look like.

The consolemaker also promised that additional games will receive support for Nintendo Labo creations in the future. So that’s something to look forward to.

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New Retail Releases: The Crew 2, Crash Bandicoot Trilogy, Wolfenstein II, More

Posted on June 25, 2018 by John Scalzo

Ubisoft is racing for the horizon this week as The Crew 2 brings its cross-country race to the PS4 and Xbox One this week. This time around, the franchise’s vehicular options have expanded to include “exotic cars, bikes, planes, and boats,” and players will be able to travel where their heart takes them all across the United States.

But it’s possible that the open world racing game will be overshadowed by a big batch of re-releases this week, including the Switch and Xbox One debut for Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy. In addition to giving players the chance to relive Crash Bandicoot, Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back, and Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped on modern platforms, the N. Sane Trilogy now includes two never-before-seen bonus levels (“Stormy Ascent” and “Future Tense”).

Three other games will also be making their Switch debut this week including Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus, Bethesda’s alternate history shooter sequel; Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana, the newest entry in Falcom’s long-running Action RPG series; and Brawlout, a Smash-like party fighter from Angry Mob Games.

And finally this week, Aksys Games will bring Psychedelica of the Ashen Hawk, a “suspense-filled” visual novel about a mysterious young woman, to the Vita.

That’s all for now, but we’ll be back later this week with a look at all the new additions to the PlayStation Store, Xbox Games Store, and Nintendo eShop.

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Dragon Ball FighterZ will be released for the Switch on September 28

Posted on June 21, 2018 by John Scalzo

Bandai Namco has announced that Dragon Ball FighterZ will be released for the Switch on September 28. But that’s not all.

Fans who pre-order Dragon Ball FighterZ on the Switch will receive instant access to SSGSS Goku and Vegeta at launch. And the publisher will also gift pre-order purchasers with a downloadable copy of Dragon Ball Z: Super Butoden (a Super NES game that was never released outside of Japan) as soon as you press the “Buy Now” button at your favorite online retailer.

And in case you missed it, you can view Dragon Ball FighterZ’s E3 Trailer from earlier this month after the break. (more…)

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State of Decay 2 rises as the best-selling game of May 2018

Posted on June 21, 2018 by John Scalzo

I think we can all agree that the Xbox’s two biggest franchises are Halo and Gears of War. But it looks like Microsoft can add the State of Decay series to the list, as The NPD Group (via Game Informer) has confirmed that State of Decay 2 was the best-selling game of May 2018.

The zombie survival sim beat out other several other May releases including Detroit: Become Human (#3), Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (#5), Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition (#7), and Street Fighter: 30th Anniversary Collection (#17).

While it might have seemed like a slow month for new releases, The NPD Group confirmed that increased hardware sales gave the game industry a 13% bump over May 2017’s retail figures.

The complete Top 20 for May 2018 can be found after the break. (more…)

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