Microsoft States Price Increase Will Not Follow Xbox Series X|S Like Recently For PlayStation 5

In today’s current console market, obtaining one of the newer Xbox Series X or PlayStation 5 consoles is almost like a full-time job to achieve. For Xbox Series S, the $300 unit can still be found in most retailers and has even outperformed its sibling & competing systems in the past. As for the PlayStation 5 specifically, there is more uncertainty on the horizon. For one, the firm cannot meet the demand. And with the hardware Sony is selling PlayStation 5 at is a dramatic loss than prior generations. In a recent statement from CFO Horoki Totoki, he mentioned that the company has yet to decide on the pricing for the console moving forward then. On Thursday, Sony shared new pricing for the PlayStation 5 in multiple markets. According to a statement from a Microsoft spokesperson, Window Central can confirm (for now at the very least) that the Xbox Series consoles will not be changing its price anytime soon. While a decrease would be suitable in a typical console generation now, inflation and scarce supply only warrants increases on the price tag. “We are constantly evaluating our business to offer our fans great gaming options. Our Xbox Series S suggested retail price remains at $299 (£250, €300) the Xbox Series X is $499 (£450, €500),” the statement reads. It does not confirm in total confidence a price hike will come later on, but at least for the near future the original pricing will remain what we are familiar with now. From RepublicWorld, the website did report Xbox Series faced price increases in India in a unique occurrence. Additionally, Xbox Series X systems in particular over the last two months became more readily available in stores and online storefronts. But, that might not be a permanent occurrence. According to Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger, next-generation console silicon could still be in very high demand well into 2023. You can read the full report by heading here. Are you confident Xbox Series X|S will stay the same price? Source: Windows Central

PGA Tour 2K23 Announced Featuring Tiger Woods As The Official Cover Athlete

In the greater landscape of professional golf titles, there has not been a great precedent for more games over the past decade. While the 2000s is where this subgenre of games shined, the same cannot be said for the 2010s. For Electronic Arts, the firm shipped Rory McElroy PGA Tour in 2015, but follow-ups failed to pickup traction. Currently, a newly revamped EA PGA Tour is in development. Over at 2K though, the publisher shipped Golf Club and the most recent PGA Tour 2K21 previously. “Despite a lack of content, excellent community tools help PGA Tour 2K21 provide a solid foundation to build off,” Rectify Gaming gave for our review then. Most interesting is that a sequel – PGA Tour 2K22 – never came to be. But, the firm alongside Tiger Woods did sign a new agreement for future projects in the past. This week, 2K has announced PGA Tour 2K23 and World Golf Hall of Fame inductee Tiger Woods is the cover athlete for the new game. You can watch the announcement trailer in the video below: “The Clubhouse Report covers a variety of PGA TOUR 2K23 topics including the new 3-click swing option, playable pros, licensed courses, MyPLAYERS, MyCAREER, Course Designer, and more. Additional Clubhouse Reports are planned for the future to offer additional insights into upcoming announcement topics. The trailer also offers a peek at pros, courses and MyPLAYERS in action,” the press release reveals. This is not the only sport title coming out this fall from 2K. In that, Visual Concepts is cleaning up on its release for NBA 2K23 which release in September. The game features four cover athletes: Devin Brooker, Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi, and Michael Jordan. You can read the full report by heading here. Are you excited PGA Tour 2K is back once again? PGA Tour 2K23 launches October 14, 2022 for Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and PC. Source: 2K

Sony Interactive Entertainment, Spin Master Makes New Licensing Deal To Make PlayStation Toys

In the past, we witnessed partnerships with platform holders take many forms – mainly for the sake of creating unique releases for the console at the time. But, there are others that are a little more tangible. Most commonly with PlayStation, the firm has worked closely with Nike for its platform. The latest of this is the PG 5 PlayStation 5 colorway which are named after the titular video game console. Additionally, toys are slowly entering the market as well through licensed sellers as well. We witnessed this back in the spring with Guerrilla Games. In that, the developer & Lego teamed up for Horizon Forbidden West featuring a minifigure Alloy alongside a Lego-made Tall Neck which shipped this past May. Now, Sony Interactive Entertainment has made an arrangement with a new partner. A few weeks back, Sony Interactive Entertainment shared it will be partnering with Spin Master to create toys based off of PlayStation IPs. Spin Master is most noted for its work with Teck Deck, Bakugan, Hatchimals, Orbeezs, and Rubik’s to name a few. The PlayStation brand is always looking for new and exciting ways to provide gamers with the most extraordinary experiences possible, what we call ‘remarkable play. We are committed to creating the highest quality gameplay experiences for our community of global fans and finding new ways to bring our most beloved characters to new audiences. Working along with Spin Master, we are excited to continue our reach in presenting our gaming IP through authentic and innovative toys and games to our passionate PlayStation community around the world. Grace Chen, Sony Interactive Entertainment Vice President of Network Advertising, Loyalty & Licensed Merchandise “Both SIE’s PlayStation and Spin Master share a common goal, to inspire and entertain consumers through the relentless pursuit of innovation. Together we will bring the interactive storytelling of Sony’s immersive PlayStation games to life in an all-new way, extending the fandom from digital to reimagined physical play,” Spin Master’s President of Toys and Chief Commercial Officer Chris Beardall said.  The press release reads on to mention, “Spin Master will be the global master toy licensee for the SIE’s PlayStation brand and SIE-owned PlayStation titles, including but not limited to God of War, Horizon Zero Dawn, The Last of Us, and UNCHARTED, and will develop products in the action figure, collectible, playset, plush, roleplay, vehicles, RC, and games & puzzles categories.” The line is said to begin in Spring 2024. Are you interested in what toys Spin Master will create from this new arrangement? Source: Spin Master

NHL 23 Will Have Cross-Platform Matchmaking, A First In The Series

EA Sports has officially revealed a glimpse of what NHL 23 looks like and it came with a few new goodies. As we expected some new features were shown and announced during this reveal trailer and that includes cross-platform matchmaking debuting in the EA Sports NHL franchise finally. NHL 23 will be available on Xbox Series XlS, Xbox One and PlayStation 4 & 5 so that means you can play with your friends that are on the opposite platform as you are. Obviously as we found out the cover features Trevor Zegras and Sarah Nurse and in the trailer they showed off “Mixed Teams In HUT”. That means you can have professional men players from the NHL and professional women hockey players play on the same team and they’ll have their own Hockey Ultimate cards. NHL 23 is launching on October 14 and pre-orders are currently up for the Standard & X-Factor edition. We expect to see more news for NHL 23 in the near future as we get closer to launch.

Konami Partners With World Baseball Softball Confederation To Bring New Baseball Video Game

Although the big juggernauts are there for annual sports titles like EA Sports with Madden, FIFA, NHL and 2K with NBA & WWE, there are more projects on the way. In that, Electronic Arts has previously announced plans to return the PGA Tour series. The game was slated for 2022 originally, but appears to be pushed to next year. Not only that, but collegiate football and possibly even MLB is also on the table as well for EA Sports. As for 2K, the firm is collaborating with NFL once more to resurrect its annual football titles once more. And similar to Electronic Arts, PGA is already underway at the publisher. But what is more surprising is that Tiger Woods licensed titles are set to make a comeback as well in a previously announced partnership. Well, Konami is expanding its apparatus for sport titles as well outside of just eFootball. In that, the Japanese publisher & the World Baseball Softball Confederation announced a new arrangement to work on a new baseball video game. We are delighted to be working with the WBSC on this new global esports initiative. We have been taking on challenges to develop eSport by hosting events such as the ‘eBASEBALL Pro League’ and adopting the title for the Asian Games demonstration event. We wish to continue to support the development of the baseball and softball communities around the world through our games by utilizing our experiences in games and eSport. Hideki Hayakawa, Konami Digital Entertainment Representative Director President Riccardo Fraccari World Baseball Softball Confederation adds, “Following our partnership and immense success at the inaugural Olympic Virtual Series last year, the WBSC is proud to work with a video-game publishing giant like KONAMI on this exciting new project, which has unlimited potential to further grow our sport and connect with audiences that we’ve not yet reached before. “The WBSC, together with KONAMI, aims to harness eSport to expand the baseball population worldwide while adding another powerful tool for National Federations to attract and make our sport relevant to new audiences and players/gamers in their respective countries and territories.” Are you interested in what this new partnership will develop? Source: World Baseball Softball Confederation

Rift Of The NecroDancer Reveal With New Gameplay Trailer

For many, Crypt of the NecroDancer was a unique spin on the dungeon crawler subgenre as it brings a more literal spin on music and how it plays with the game. Even more is when Brace Yourself Games announced Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the NecroDancer – an official Nintendo licensed take on the approach. The game went on to receive three official post-launch add-ons which only expanded the release for fans still hungry for more. But what of the property? Surely there is a franchise that can be made of Crypt of the NecroDancer. Well, Brace Yourself Games recently announced Rift of the NecroDancer. However, no details were shared then. But this week a reveal trailer was uploaded sharing the new gameplay coming to this standalone experience. You can watch the full trailer in the video below: “The NecroDancer’s back in a brand new rhythm game spinoff! Help Cadence navigate the modern world while repairing the rifts that have torn her life apart. Do rhythmic battle via rift mode, minigames, and boss battles! All to the beat of a brand new soundtrack from Danny Baranowsky & friends,” the description on the Steam reads for the game. The game is also said to include three game types: “Rift Mode — A rhythmic battle against streams of monsters pouring out of the Rift!, Mini Game Mode — Help Cadence overcome the challenges of the modern world via rhythmic mini games!, and Boss Battles Mode — Defeat powerful bosses using a one-two punch, to the rhythm of the beat!” Are you excited for Rift of the NecroDancer? Rift of the NecroDancer is listed for PC.

The Dark Pictures Anthology: The Devil in Me Receives Release Date Slated For November

From the developer that brought the PlayStation 4 exclusive Until Dawn nearly a decade ago, it is surprising to understand the game studio is now working solely on multiplatform releases. The team at the start of the summer shipped The Quarry: a new interactive thriller starring familiar actors like David Arquette, Justice Smith, and Brenda Song. The game most recently was reported to be the previously promised Stadia project before the arrangement was shuttered. Additionally, the game studio is still working on The Dark Pictures Anthology. In a finding from @the_marmolade on Twitter, Bandai Namco filed trademarks for five more entries: The Craven Man, O Death, Directive 8020, Intercessions, and Winterfold. But before we jump the gun on those titles, The Dark Pictures: The Devil in Me is still expected to release later this fall. In a new announcement this week, Supermassive Games reveals The Dark Pictures: The Devil in Me is scheduled to release a few weeks after Halloween. You can watch the new trailer in the video below: “A group of documentary film makers receive a mysterious call inviting them to a modern-day replica of serial killer H.H. Holmes’ ‘Murder Castle’. It’s an opportunity that’s too good to pass up and could be just the thing they’re looking for to win some much-needed public interest,” the overview from Steam reads. “The hotel is the perfect set for their new episode, but things aren’t quite as they seem. The crew discover they’re being watched and even manipulated, and suddenly there’s much more at stake than just their ratings!” Recently, Nordisk Games fully acquired Supermassive Games. For the future of The Dark Pictures Anthology, it is expected the arrangement with publisher Bandai Namco will carry onward like prior. You can read the full report by heading here. What are you most excited for The Dark Pictures: The Devil in Me? The Dark Pictures: The Devil in Me launches November 18, 2022 for Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and PC.

Alexa Game Control Brings Voice Commands Feature To Games, Dead Island 2 Confirmed

As we can gather from Amazon’s effort for the video game industry, the firm is still establishing its Luna cloud streaming platform. However, the firm is also tackling other avenues relevant to that as well. For one, the company’s entertainment branch for Amazon Prime is working on a Fallout TV series. Additionally, Mass Effect is also said to be in the pipeline as well for that initiative. Upon other ambitions, the team worked with its Alexa technology to bridge gaming and voice commands together. We saw this with the ‘Skyrim: Very Special Edition’ years ago. Even Ubisoft cashed in on this with Assassin’s Creed Odyssey back in 2018. Microsoft went even further enabling the product to work in hand with Xbox Game Pass just over a year ago. In a new reveal this week, Amazon shares Alexa will be launching a new feature ‘Alexa Game Control’ which welcomes voice commands that can be used directly in-game when playing. In the past, we witnessed this attempted by Microsoft with the Xbox One Kinect, but this is the first that a widespread product implements the feature. Use your voice to interact with NPCs, swap your weapons, and much more on your favorite PC and Xbox games. Play with any microphone or headset, no Alexa device required. And Alexa is still there to make sure you can stay in the game with smart home control, reminders, and even food ordering. Using voice commands enables the most natural and human gaming experiences. Talk directly to NPCs with natural dialogue and issue commands to your virtual teammates with your voice. Alexa Game Control enhances the gameplay of each game to make the experience feel more natural. “Use the power of your voice to get more deeply immersed into your favorite games. Fewer distractions and extraneous controller inputs means you can focus your attention where it belongs – on the game. Possibilities are endless when gameplay is easy and intuitive. Play through your games with fewer interruptions and unlock your full potential with simple, voice-activated shortcuts. No need to say ‘Alexa’ for in-game actions. It goes on, “Go beyond the game by connecting with everything Alexa has to offer – no extra devices required. Control your smart lights to set the mood for your game, set a timer to pull yourself out of the game when essential, and even place a food order through Alexa without stopping your game. All the power of Alexa within your favorite games, starting with Dead Island 2.” So far, it appears the feature will only be available to Xbox & PC owners. Atop of that, Dead Island 2 is the only release supporting the feature. However, future titles that do support Alexa Game Control will offer free support, Amazon confirms. Even more, the feature will not require an Amazon Prime subscription or even an Amazon Echo/Alexa for this feature believe it or not. Are you excited for more games to support Alexa Game Control? Source: Amazon

Microsoft Flight Simulator’s 40th Anniversary Edition Is Arriving This November

Microsoft Flight Simulator is one of Xbox’s many games being played at Gamescom 2022 and the game was first up on the Xbox Booth at Gamescom Live Stream. The developers of Flight Simulator shared new updates coming to the game including its first city update and new details on the games 40th Anniversary Edition. The first-ever city update for Microsoft Simulator is for Hanover, Dortmund, Dusseldorf, Bonn, and Cologne. Players will even be able to spot the famous Koelnmesse, home to the renowned gamescom show. This update is available to be downloaded from the Flight Simulator Marketplace.  Microsoft Flight Simulator’s 40th Anniversary Edition also got new information including its November 11, 2022 release date. Those who have Xbox Game Pass will receive this update for free or of course if you own Microsoft Flight Simulator as well. The update will include for the first time since 2006, Helicopters and Gliders along with another highly requested community feature, a true-to-life airliner, the sophisticated Airbus A-310. In total here is everything coming with the 40th Anniversary Edition: 4 classic commercial airports 10 glider airports 12 new aircraft 14 heliports 20 classic missions from the franchise’s past Microsoft Flight Simulator is available for Xbox Series XlS, Xbox One, PC with Xbox Game Pass and PC Game Pass, Steam, Windows and on mobile devices through Cloud Gaming.  Source: Xbox Wire

DreamHack Atlanta 2022 Tickets Are On Sale Now, More Details Coming For The Event Soon

DreamHack Atlanta is making the return this year and tickets are officially on sale for the big gaming festival. The event is taking place November 18-20 at the Georgia World Congress Center. The “early bird” pricing for tickets starts at $24 for a one-day pass, and $85 for a three-day experience. You can purchase tickets here. DreamHack creates an arena where the community can come to connect, explore, win, play a part, and be yourself through the gaming lifestyle experience. Whether festival-goers are admiring cosplay costumes, participating in tournaments, watching pros compete, learning to stream, testing technology at the Expo, DreamHack offers an unforgettable experience. “We are super excited to bring DreamHack back to the great city of Atlanta,” said Shahin Zarrabi, VP Strategy & Growth at DreamHack. “These last two years of the pandemic have been so hard for so many, but gaming has always brought communities together both online and in person. So it is especially meaningful to bring our event back to Atlanta for the first time in three years. The DreamHack experience truly has no equal — we can’t wait to once again share it with Atlanta.” We don’t know the full list of leagues and tournaments that will be at DreamHack Atlanta this year, but we can expect the Fighting Game Championships to be there yet again, Collegiate Competitions, Bring-Your-Own-Computer (BYOC) three-day LAN party; Cosplay Championship; Magic: The Gathering Atlanta Showdown; Panels; Indie Games and the expo itself. Rectify Gaming asked about the full content details for the event and it was shared by a representative from DreamHack that more information will be released in the coming weeks for sure. Stay tuned for more news for what’s to come to DreamHack Atlanta 2022.