Game Bites: Gamescom’s Big Reveals And Blizzard Pays Lip Service To Change
Happy end of August, Nerd Caliber fans and also a congrats to all the games that were shown at gamescom this past weekend. We had a lot to cover this week from gamescom as well as some updates from Pokémon GO and Blizzard.
Pokémon GO players got some good news this week. Niantic listened to fan requests and restored the distances for gyms and PokeStops from the pre-pandemic distance of 40 meters to the pandemic distance of 80 meters. As we mentioned in previous articles, fans had been protesting the decreased distance since it was both dangerous and made those locations less accessible. Niantic said on Twitter: “We’ve heard you and understand that this has been a welcome benefit to many players.”
While Niantic turned an issue around for the better, Activision Blizzard has an even worse case against them now. The California Department of Fair Employment and Housing amended its complaint against the company this week to allege that the company had suppressed evidence pertaining to the lawsuit by destroying documents. Possibly to deflect attention from this issue, Blizzard has confirmed it will be renaming Overwatch’s Jesse McCree, who currently shares his name with a now-ex Blizzard employee — one of the few mentioned by name in the Calif. lawsuit. Activision Blizzard seems to be digging itself a bigger grave each week.
Gamescom this week was completely virtual and many fans tuned in to see the world premieres and in depth reveals of new and previously announced games. Halo Infinite got a release date of Dec. 8, 2021 and Microsoft showed some gameplay. Alongside revealing the launch date, Microsoft also confirmed that there will be both a special Halo Infinite Xbox Elite Wireless Controller Series 2 and a limited-edition Halo Infinite Xbox Series X that will be released in celebration of Halo’s 20th anniversary. Elden Ring had a 15-minute gameplay reveal that included a look at gameplay features and an exploration of the lore, created by George R. R. Martin. Marvel’s Midnight Suns, Firaxis’ Marvel XCOM game, was officially announced with a release of March 2022 and the first gameplay will be revealed on Sept.1, 2021. A brand-new Saints Row was announced with a release date of Feb. 25, 2022, for PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, and PC and the first trailer gives fans a look at the new city of Santo Ileso, which appears to take inspiration from many of the casino towns in the American Southwest. Horizon Forbidden West was given a new release date of Feb. 18, 2022 after having to delay their initial 2021 release date. LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga had a new gameplay trailer and a Spring 2022 release. Metroid Dread had a new trailer revealing a look into the brand new villain for the series. Microsoft also announced that Xbox Cloud Gaming will be coming to Xbox Series X/S and Xbox One this holiday season.
A couple of big games released this week as well and brought August to a nice close with video games. Releasing on the 24th was Aliens: Fireteam Elite (PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC), Hoa (PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch, PC), I Expect You To Die 2: The Spy and The Liar (PlayStation VR, Rift, Quest, Vive), King’s Bounty II (PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch, PC) and Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2 (PlayStation 5). On the 25th, Marvel Future Revolution (iOS, Android) and Psychonauts 2 (PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC) were released and on the 26th, Myst (2021) (Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PC, Mac) was released, and Spelunky and Spelunky 2 were released for the Switch. Ending our week of releases on the 27th was Baldo: The Guardian Owls (PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch, PC, iOS), Inked: A Tale of Love (Switch, PC) and No More Heroes 3 (Switch).
That was all the news in gaming this week and we hope you have a wonderful start to your September. For all those going back to schools, stay safe and have a lovely year. Remember to follow us on on YouTube and Twitch or any other platform you like to use for reviews, articles, cosplay and so much more of the content you all love.
