Psychonauts 2 Will Feature An Invincibility Mode
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Psychonauts 2 is taking steps to make the upcoming squeal more accessible to all types of players.
The discussion kicked off with Xbox tweeting the following: "Beating the game on the lowest difficulty is still beating the game". As you could probably tell, the discussion of difficulty exploded and Double Fine decided to jump in and add the following: "if you beat Psychonauts 2 with the invincibility toggle on, you still beat [the game]"
They elaborated further by saying:
"uh, excuse me I beat Sword Guy Serious Time on a no hit hard mode and if didn't do that I don't respect you. and like, can you even comment on things if you're not diamond six rank in shooty mcBlam? I don't think so
cool bud. you're soooo cool! 🙃"
They added: "All people should be able to enjoy games. All ages, all possible needs. It's an ongoing and important process for our industry and a challenge we need to met.
End of the day? We want you to have fun, to laugh, to experience a story that affects you. On whatever terms you want."
I honestly love seeing the addition of mechanics that make games accessible to more players, i totally understand the discussion of wanting creators to make the games they want and playing them in those types of ways. However, I also find that extremely counterintuitive to what games are about, which is fun. As a disabled gamer who loves to play, Thank you Double FIne and Thank you to any studio that believes that games are for everyone regardless of what barriers a player may face. My life is already set to Hard Mode with modifiers, I'm gonna stick to keeping my gaming to Normal difficulty thanks.
Next Batch Of Games Coming To Xbox Game Pass In Late June
/Microsoft has announced the next batch of games coming to Xbox Game Pass for the next two weeks, it's a bit of an odd list though.
The full list of games goes as followed:
Worms Rumble (Cloud, Console, and PC) ID@Xbox – Available Today
Iron Harvest (PC) – June 24
Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered (Console and PC) EA Play – June 24
Prodeus (Game Preview) (PC) ID@Xbox – June 24
Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts (Cloud) – July 1
Bug Fables: The Everlasting Sapling (Cloud, Console, and PC) ID@Xbox – July 1
Gang Beasts (Cloud, Console, and PC) ID@Xbox – July 1
Immortal Realms: Vampire Wars (Cloud, Console, and PC) – July 1
Limbo (Cloud, Console, and PC) ID@Xbox – July 1
There's also one other game that will available earlier for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate members via the perks section in the form of Space Jam: A New Legacy – The Game available on July 1st. However it will be free for everyone on the 15th, so it's kinda early access.
This batch of games is just okay in my opinion, Gangbeasts is great but that's about it. They did just add Yakuza Like A Dragon though and that game is absolutely fantastic, so go play that instead.
In other news, the Xbox Game Pass Twitter is seemingly hinting at the possible addition of Judgment to Xbox Game Pass in the near future. Judgment is a spin-off of the Yakuza series so it would make sense to drop in the game into the service before the launch of the squeal Lost Judgment in September. I personally think August would be a great time to add that game as it would give ample time to play through the 80 hours of amazingness.
Kim Swift joins Xbox Game Studios Publishing
/Xbox Game Studios Publishing has announced that the creator of Portal Kim Swift will be joining the team.
Announced via Twitter, they said the following “Our team focuses on three pillars in our games: Community, Innovation and Inclusivity. Today, @K2TheSwift joins us in XGS Publishing to accelerate our Innovation and collaborate with independent studios to build games for the cloud.”
There’s no word on what specific games Kim Swift might be working on at Xbox Game Studios Publishing, but the focus of XGS Publishing includes games such as Microsoft Flight Simulator, Contraband and Tell Me Why.
All of the above-mentioned games have something in common, they're all third-party deals with other developers. Hopefully, this means that there will be a continued focus on making deals to get more game pass exclusives for Xbox.
Either way, the future of Xbox is looking super interesting and I can't wait to see how it all plays out.
Starfield Possibly Exclusive to Xbox & PC
/Bethesda's Starfield will apparently be an Xbox and PC exclusive, and won't be coming to the PlayStation according to recent reporting.
This comes from VentureBeat journalist Jeff Grubb, who said via Twitter that "Starfield is exclusive to Xbox and PC. Period. This is me confirming that."
Jeff Grubb later quote tweeted the following "@BlessingJr
You are right about Starfield release date." this is in reference to Blessing saying it would most likely release in Q1 of 2022, which in my opinion makes a ton of sense when you think about their game lineup for the next year.
My guess would be that Forza Horizon 5 drops in September/October followed by Halo Infinite in November and then have Starfield to kick-off 2022. They could also shadow drop Psychonaunts 2 around E3, that's a ton of Xbox games on Game Pass day and date and that's not including the possibility of third-party deals.
Jeff Grubb has a pretty great track record of being correct with these rumors though, where he previously reported on the Perfect Dark reboot and Mass Effect Legendary Edition before they were officially revealed.
Lastly, Grubb mentioned we should see more on Starfield during E3 2021 next month, hopefully, we'll get a confirmation of the release window and see some gameplay.
Knockout City coming to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate And EA Play
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EA has confirmed that the upcoming dodgeball game Knockout City will be available via EA Play and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate at launch in May.
in a post where EA celebrates the beta hitting one million downloads for the recent open beta weekend. They confirmed the game will be coming to EA Play and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate tier subscription, this also means it'll be available for players on PlayStation and PC via a standard EA Play membership as well.
I played the recent demo and I came away from it lukewarm, I enjoyed aspects of the game but I also found the matchmaking overly frustrating. Every match I played over the course of the beta weekend had one team with fewer players than the other which made it extremely one-sided.
Knockout City will be available on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and PC on May 21.
Additionally, the game will have access to cross-play across all platforms.
Dragon Quest Builders 2 coming to Xbox Series X|S via Xbox Game Pass
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Dragon Quest Builders 2 is coming to Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S according to a Microsoft Store listing.
The listing confirms that the Xbox version will come with all the DLC and will also be available via Xbox Game Pass on the console.
Dragon Quest Builders 2 launches for Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One and will be available via Xbox Game Pass on May 4, 2021.
Next Batch Of Games Coming To Xbox Game Pass For April 2021
/Microsoft has announced the final few games coming to Xbox Game Pass for April.
The Games Go As Followed:
April 22
Phogs! (PC)
April 28
Second Extinction (console, PC, cloud)
April 29
Destroy All Humans! (console, PC, cloud)
April 30
Fable III (cloud)
Fable Anniversary (cloud)
April has been a pretty fantastic month for the game pass with games like Outriders and MLB The Show 21 launching day and date, but also great Xbox Series X enhanced games like Judgement.
Xbox Game Pass has had a great few months and I hope Xbox can keep the train rolling into May.
Xbox Cloud Gaming for PC and iOS begins limited beta testing for Some Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Members
/Xbox has announced that it will be finally be holding a limited beta for Xbox Cloud Gaming on PC and Apple devices.
Announced via a post on the Xbox News Wire, a number of subscribers of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate will be invited to help test the service for Windows 10 PCs and Apple phones and tablets via web browsers. Those invited players will get access to a new website where they'll be able to play "over 100 Xbox Game Pass titles" through web browsers including Edge, Google Chrome, or Safari.
you'll need a Bluetooth or USB-connected controller to play a majority of games but some also have Custom Touch Controls enabled like Viva Pinata.
Additional invites will continue to be sent out as the test progresses, with players from across 22 supported countries invited to test and give feedback, which will be evaluated by Xbox to continue to improve the service.
Xbox Game Pass First Batch Of Games Coming In April
/Microsoft has revealed a ton of upcoming games coming to Xbox Game Pass with some games making a return to the service.
Here's the list of games coming soon:
April 8
Grand Theft Auto V (Cloud and Console)
Zombie Army 4: Dead War (Cloud, Console, and PC)
Disneyland Adventures (Cloud)
Rush: A Disney/Pixar Adventure
April 12
NHL 21 (Console) EA Play
April 15
Rain on Your Parade (Cloud, Console, and PC)
Pathway (PC) ID@Xbox
April 20
MLB The Show 21
April is looking like a pretty great month if your an Xbox Game Pass subscriber with new games like Outriders, MLB The Show 21, and Judgement joining the service. May hasn't had any big reveals as of yet but hopefully, they'll have some exciting announcements for next month soon.
Xbox Game Pass Additions for February 2021
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Xbox has announced a batch of games coming to Xbox Game Pass for the first half of February.
It's looking like a pretty great start to the month for Xbox Game Pass subscribers and I've personally still not gotten to the games from January. Fingers crossed, I'll magically find some time to play all these video games or you know maybe get some sleep. There's not a ton of that lying around The Ghostly household, especially with a newborn and a toddler.
Anyway here's the list of the announced games coming to Xbox Game Pass in February:
Ghost of a Tale (PC) ID@Xbox – February 4
Project Winter (Android, Console, and PC) ID@Xbox – February 4
The Falconeer (Android, Console, and PC) – February 4
Final Fantasy XII The Zodiac Age (Console and PC) – February 11
Jurassic World Evolution (Android and Console) – February 11
Stealth Inc. 2: A Game of Clones (Android and Console) ID@Xbox – February 11
Wolfenstein: Youngblood (Android) – February 11
Second Batch Of Games Coming To Xbox Game Pass In January
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Xbox has announced the next wave of games being added to Xbox Game Pass for the second half of January.
Here's the list of all the upcoming games coming to Xbox Game Pass in the coming weeks:
Control (PC) – January 21
Desperados III (Console, PC, and Android) – January 21
Donut County (Console, PC, and Android) ID@Xbox – January 21
Outer Wilds (Android) ID@Xbox – January 21
Cyber Shadow (Console, PC, and Android) ID@Xbox – January 26
The Medium (Xbox Series X|S and PC) ID@Xbox – January 28
Yakuza 3 Remastered (Console, PC, and Android) – January 28
Yakuza 4 Remastered (Console, PC, and Android) – January 28
Yakuza 5 Remastered (Console, PC, and Android) – January 28
It's looking like a pretty fantastic month of games on Xbox and I'm extremely excited to play some more Yakuza, I write this as I'm currently playing through Yakuza Like A Dragon.
Xbox also announced the games that will be leaving the service on January 29th, so here's that list of games:
Death Squared (Console)
Death’s Gambit (PC)
Final Fantasy XV (Console and PC)
Fishing Sim World: Pro Tour (Console and PC)
Gris (PC)
Indivisible (Console and PC)
Reigns: Game of Thrones (PC)
Sea Salt (Console and PC)
