Review: Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin

Developer – Capcom Publisher – Capcom Platforms – Nintendo Switch, Steam Today we are taking a look at Capcom’s long awaited follow up to their surprise hit, Monster Hunter Stories. Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin is the classic “sequel” in every sense. It takes everything the first game did, how it looked and felt, and built upon it that foundation. It has improved visuals, an overhaul to several systems and for the most part improves on the experience the first game provided. And what did that first game provide? It was easily the best Pokemon style game at a time when many games were struggling in early access or trying to build that kind of game with a fresh universe, such as Temtem. The sequel doesn’t stray far from the path the original set. You begin by creating a character, and you explore the same world from the original title. Many of the games locations, characters and events are referenced quite frequently, but never to the point of new players becoming lost. You quickly meet some new characters, get thrust into becoming a rider and off you go. You then slowly work and build up your collection of monsties to the best of your abilities. This part of the game is probably the area that contains the biggest improvement from its predecessor. The user interface for managing monsties, editing genes to create the perfect creature and managing upgrades are all streamlined and extremely snappy to get in an out of. The entire interface for handling all of the deep strategic choices you will make mid to late game are very perfect. Everything is only a couple of clicks away, and all of the information you need about monster type , weapon weaknesses and weaknesses and strengths are easy to see and allows you to focus on what your party needs for the next big hunt. Many systems from the first game return as well, things like Monsties, grabbing as much crafting mats in the open world possible and using your creatures on various field actions such as jump, breaking barriers or reach normally inaccessible areas. The moment to moment gameplay does feel largely the same, with a rock paper system that alleviates frustration by avoiding randomized attacks or patterns. approaching combat in this turn based combat system is just like the standard Monster Hunter titles. The first time you battle a creature, you won’t know much. You won’t even have access to their life bar. Learning each creatures attack patterns, what they do when enraged, that’s all a part of the combat loop. The hunter guide keeps track of all the fine details, from weaknesses to biomes that specific monster is found it. The most obvious improvement are the visuals. By coming out on Switch and PC, the presentation gets a huge facelift and pushes it past it’s mobile predecessor. New cel-shaded graphics bring the world to life, and each egg hatching is always a joy to see, due to the fabulous chibi design of some of the series most fearsome beasts. Co-op is easily my favorite aspect of Wings of Ruin. Being able to play with a friend and go out into open hunting expeditions is pretty incredible. As your kinship rank moves up, new multiplayer hunting quests open up. These special field area’s usually have harder than normal monsters and crafting mats to scavenge. Each player can only bring three monsters each, so coordinating with a friend to specialize for each hunt will go a long way. The story is fairly straightforward, and that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The cast of characters, some new and most returning, all come together for a fun, lighthearted story that never takes itself too serious, but still provides enough motivation to push through and see the next new region or marquee creature to face. Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin is a bigger, better version of the previous game that should win over people who couldn’t get past playing it on mobile devices.

Mass Effect Legendary Edition Director Tells The Series Fits Better As A TV Series Over A Film Adaptation

For those that were longing for a new fix for Mass Effect can now indulge in the recent release that is Mass Effect Legendary Edition. Combining the original trilogy, BioWare reworks much of the classic releases to better suit the new hardware that shipped years following the releases of its prior work. However, there is other plans for the series as well. In that, BioWare back in December teased a new entry is on the way. However, the team does not elaborate on the basis of the release nor does it offer any expectations for when it will arrive. But, there is other speculation as to another reveal for the IP. According to one potential tease from The Witcher star Henry Cavill, a Mass Effect television series could be on the way. Recently, Mass Effect Legendary Edition director Mac Walters remarked on the foiled plans of a film adaptation for the series. But, he does elaborate on the more complementary approach for a TV show to better suit the IP instead. Although, Walters does not acknowledge the previous hinting from Cavill. “Not a matter of if, but when”, Walters tells Business Insider. It’s such an expansive world, and so many people I know in the TV and film industry have reached out to ask me when we’re going to do it and saying we’ve got to do it. When we build out a ‘Mass Effect’ game, we have a backbone, or an overall story that we want to tell, but each level or mission is like its own TV episode. It doesn’t get written ahead of time. It gets written at the time that we get to it. So it gets added to the main story and sometimes the main story gets adjusted because we did something really cool in that ‘episode.’ So long-from storytelling is a great place for game franchises. Walters continues by explaining that the new change of leadership for Legendary Edition swayed the preference for a television show manifested alongside the continuous complications for the IP to be adapted to one film. “It felt like we were always fighting the IP. What story are we going to tell in 90 to 120 minutes? Are we going to do it justice? But then it never picked up again after that, not for lack of trying.” In a previous interview with IGN, Walters did hint at possibly resurrecting the multiplayer for Mass Effect 3 in Legendary Edition. “I would never say no to that — we want to see what kind of reception the Legendary Edition gets and what the demand for the multiplayer is.” As for the overall sense for Mass Effect Legendary Edition, you can read our full review for the game. Our critic David Rodriguez explained, “Mass Effect Legendary Edition is one of the best packages ever made, and if you have yet to experience the story buckle in and prepare for a thrill ride.” You can read the review by heading here. Are you hoping to see Mass Effect branch outside of video games? Source: Business Insider

The Last Of Us First Season Confirmed To Air 10 Episodes, Says Writer

Upon grasping just how much has revealed for the upcoming The Last of Us television show for HBO, it is surprising how much of that will unpack for just one season when the series finally airs in the coming future. Most recently, it was revealed online by actor Gabriel Luna that production has finally commenced as previous reports indicated filming to kickoff in Calgary this month. Additionally, more news on casting has surfaced in recent weeks. Most notably is the addition of Marlene voice actor Merle Dandridge. The actress’ likeness influenced the character’s appearance in-game and Dandridge is now reprising her role for the character in the coming production alongside Pedro Pascal casted as Joel and Bella Ramsey for Ellie. According to the latest installment of the Scriptnote Podcast, Craig Mazin that penned the script for the television show announces there will be a total of 10 episodes for the first season of the show. Of course, many presumed as such with the longevity for each season from other HBO-produced series in the past. More interestingly is how many seasons will follow the first. Currently, there is only one confirmed to hit HBO, of course. But, with the direction that the series is following as it does not directly adapt the video game series could bring more than anticipated. Previously, The Last of Us executive producer Neil Druckmann told the show to deviate from the source material in one interview. Recently, Jasmila Žbanić and Ali Abbasi were confirmed to direct the first season of The Last of Us. While Mazin goes on to verify that the two alongside three more directors to helm the role for the total of 10 episodes in the recent podcast, he does not iterate on which episodes the individuals will direct or how many to handle. You can read the initial report by heading here. Are you fine with 10 episodes for The Last of Us HBO series? Source: Scriptnote Podcast

Sony Scheduled PlayStation State Of Play For Thursday July 8 As God of War, Horizon Forbidden West, And PlayStation VR Confirmed To Be Absent

The recent wavelengths being administered by Sony Interactive Entertainment comes as a result for its purchases of two new PlayStation Studios acquisitions. Firstly, Returnal developer Housemarque is now officially under the same banner as the likes of Naughty Dog, Sucker Punch Productions, and Asobi Team. The following purchase is for Nixxes Software. While not a new team to develop unique releases, Sony Interactive Entertainment does frame the purchase to be significant for the quality of its first-party titles. “Nixxes will be a strong asset for everyone across PlayStation Studios, helping our teams focus on their most important goal, which is to create unique PlayStation content at the best possible quality,” says PlayStation Studios head Hermen Hulst. Now in a new announcement on Tuesday, the PlayStation company announced a new PlayStation State of Play is planned to take place this week. The coming livestreamed presentation is told to feature new information on the upcoming Arkane Lyon’s Deathloop alongside featuring more independent studio releases as well. However, there is some clarifying from the blog post. “This showcase will not include updates on the next God of War, Horizon Forbidden West or the next generation of PlayStation VR. Stay tuned throughout the summer though, as we’ll have more updates soon.” So fans hoping to get direct information on the coming anticipated releases from Sony Interactive Entertainment teams are likely to be disappointed this time around. Recently, developer Guerrilla Games confirmed that God of War: Ragnarok is to ship next year for 2022. With the game being a cross-generation release as well, it is understandable the hesitation to share new details so soon. The previous announcement also included the same fate for Gran Turismo 7. You can read the full report by heading here. Are you excited for the coming PlayStation State of Play? PlayStation State of Play is to go live on July 8, 2021 at 2 PM PST / 5 PM EST. Source: PlayStation Blog

Ubisoft Confirms New Assassin’s Creed Infinity Project, A Collaboration To Transition The Series Into A Live-Service

Although the original Assassin’s Creed IP spans across more than a decade of releases and close to a dozen entries in the series, Ubisoft is not slowing down on more for the franchise. For the sake of the current Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, Ubisoft Montreal recently pressed that the game is to experience the longest ongoing, post-launch support with another year of promised content leading forward. Additionally, the series is also expanding with a new live-action television show as well. In that, the production is being held over at Netflix with the recent announcement of Die Hard writer Jeb Stuart to be involved with penning the script for the upcoming series. However, there is still uncertainty as to when the show will drop as unsettled tides are still prevalent following the underwhelming live-action film based on the series years prior. Now according to Bloomberg, the Assassin’s Creed franchise is going into the route of live-service. While it is already understood to be the new direction for the lineage of releases the past few years, Ubisoft is forming a collaborative project between other internal team to create Assassin’s Creed Infinity. The unannounced project is said to “exceed expectations of fans who have been asking for a more cohesive approach,” one spokesperson told Bloomberg. Now in a separate blog post, Ubisoft Quebec Managing Director Nathalie Bouchard and Ubisoft Montreal Managing Director Christophe Derennes officially reveals Assassin’s Creed Infinity. Along with our announcement of new content coming for Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, we wanted to share some key updates on the talented and creative minds that will now be working in a collaborative, cross-studio structure between Ubisoft Montreal and Ubisoft Quebec that will guide, grow, evolve, and define the overall future of Assassin’s Creed that includes an important upcoming, early-in-development project codenamed Assassin’s Creed Infinity. The new cross-studio, collaborative structure will be led by Marc-Alexis Côté, who will serve as executive producer of the Assassin’s Creed franchise. One of the founding members of Ubisoft Quebec, Côté began his Assassin’s Creed career working on Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood before becoming creative director on Assassin’s Creed Syndicate, and most recently senior producer on Assassin’s Creed Odyssey. Côté will be joined by Ubisoft Montreal’s Étienne Allonier, brand director for Assassin’s Creed for the last 10 years, and their respective teams in ensuring the Assassin’s Creed franchise continues to exceed the expectations of fans who have been asking for a more cohesive approach to its development over the past several years. “Joint production efforts on Assassin’s Creed Infinity will be headed up by Ubisoft Montreal’s Julien Laferrière who has been named senior producer, overseeing production at both studios. Laferrière brings along extensive experience with the franchise, having worked on Assassin’s Creed since 2007 before most recently becoming producer on Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. “Creative leads for Assassin’s Creed Infinity will be a cross-studio collaboration, as well. Jonathan Dumont and Clint Hocking will share leadership as creative directors, overseeing their respective teams at Ubisoft Quebec and Ubisoft Montreal. Dumont was previously world director on Assassin’s Creed Syndicate at Ubisoft Quebec before becoming creative director on Assassin’s Creed Odyssey. “Meanwhile, this moment marks Hocking’s return to Ubisoft Montreal, having started at the studio in 2001 as a level designer, game designer, and scriptwriter on the original Splinter Cell before becoming creative director on Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory, Far Cry 2, and most recently Watch Dogs: Legion.” This is not the first significant live-service approach that Ubisoft has revealed already for its most popular IPs, however. Previously, the publisher unveiled The Division Heartland which is framed to be a free-to-play experience. Gathered from the titling is said to be a new setting set in the ‘heartland’ of America AKA the Midwest. Elsewhere, claims continue to circulate on a new collaborative project, ‘Battlecat’. The title is said to combine three Tom Clancy franchises into one multiplayer experience: The Division, Ghost Recon, and Splinter Cell. You can read the full report by heading here. Are you interested to learn more about the upcoming Assassin’s Creed Infinity? Source: Ubisoft