The patch is now live for The Ascent on Steam, and is currently going through the deployment process for Windows Store and Xbox console, developer Neon Giant said in a post on Steam. The most important part of the patch for me is it targets performance improvements for the PC version, specifically the Windows Store version. As I reported this week, The Ascent’s Windows Store version is a bit of a mess....

However, Nintendo’s most recent Mario Kart update does not address MK8. Rather, it’s for its predecessor - the 3DS’s Mario Kart 7. This update - or, to give it its official name, the version 1.2 update - is the first update that this game has received in a little over 10 years. Here are the full notes from Nintendo - “Several issues have been addressed to improve the gameplay experience”....

It’s available on the Nintendo eShop priced £12.80. Sports Story is developer Sidebar Games’ much-expanded follow-up to its delightful 2017 sporting RPG Golf Story. It was originally announced at the tail-end of 2019, promising to bolster the golf-y business of the first game with tennis, fishing, football, volleyball and more, all with support for multiplayer. Its story-driven RPG half gains the likes of dungeon crawling, mini-games, treasure-hunting, and espionage, as players embark on their studies at a renowned tennis academy in a bid to enter the famed Decasportathon....

But alas, even after this warning, and the Wii-era experiences predating this time in our lives, it turns out that many still need to be reminded about the Joy-Cons handy little wrist straps, and why they are actually there. Specifically, when taking part in Nintendo’s latest offering: Switch Sports. Nintendo Switch Sports came out several days ago, and in that time, many have been streaming their own exploits in the fitness themed world it provides....

The top-level stuff we already knew about; as Hello Games boss Sean Murray told Eurogamer earlier this week, Waypoint - which arrives alongside a new Switch port for No Man’s Sky - is less about big new additions and more about major quality of life improvements. To that end, Hello Games had previously teased a bunch of rejigging and streamlining intended to turn No Man’s Sky’s last six years of updates “into a more cohesive whole”, as well as a new, less grindy Relaxed mode, a Survival mode revamp, plus extensive options for custom games....

Nintendo’s fighter has been a mainstay of the Evolution Championship Series, but in a statement on Twitter the organiser confirmed the game will not be returning. “While we’re thankful for all the amazing games joining us later this year in Las Vegas, we want to let you know in advance that Super Smash Bros. will not be making a return appearance,” it reads. “Since 2007, we’ve seen historic Super Smash Bros....

Want to hear my origin story? Or part of it, anyway. At university in York in the 90s, I wrote for Vision, one of the two student newspapers - the big, award-winning, sort-of-upmarket, would-be Guardian one. It had a scrappier, punchier rival called Nouse. One of the things I did for Vision was review gigs, and one of the gigs I reviewed was by the confrontational singer-songwriter Tori Amos at the York Barbican - home of the world snooker championships - on 24th April, 1994....

There is often a quirk to learning magic, even the very simple non-magic magic of the Charlier cut. I am bad at card tricks in general, but deeply, perhaps foolishly, enthusiastic: I have learned enough bits and pieces now to know that I should always be surprised at what makes something come together for me. This sense of surprise is perfectly captured in one of my very favourite novels. In fact, if the mark of how much you love a book is how often you buy it for other people, this must be the book I love the very most of all....

The website will now redirect to PlayStation.com, a message reads. Online multiplayer modes, player stats and ranking data for Killzone Mercenary and Killzone Shadow Fall are unaffected, but you can no longer create or manage clans in Shadow Fall. “We apologise for this inconvenience,” Guerrilla said. “Thank you to Killzone.com’s many fans and visitors throughout the years for their enthusiasm and support.” It’s been over seven years since the last Killzone game came out: PlayStation 4 launch title Shadow Fall....

Once you finish Outriders’ campaign, the Expeditions portion of People Can Fly’s looter shooter presents itself. This is Outriders’ endgame - what will keep people playing for months on end. The video below explains how Expeditions work. There are 15 unique missions here, each housing high-end loot. Layered on top is the Challenge Tier system, which affects the difficulty of the enemies you face and the loot level. Additionally, the faster you complete an Expedition, the higher the chance you have of nabbing high quality items (the percentage chance of a legendary drop increases, for example)....

Rolling out across “select countries” and currently only for those playing on PC, Blizzard says the new tech is “only for reports of disruptive behaviour” and any “temporary audio recordings” - which “no one listens to” - will be “quickly deleted after being transcribed”. “The audio transcription feature has been added with a limited rollout for PC players in select countries,” Blizzard explained via a blog post. “As a piece of our Defense Matrix initiative, audio transcriptions allow us to analyse a transcript from a temporary voice chat recording of a reported player....

Wester admitted to the incident in a series of messages posted to Twitter this morning, following last week’s leak of a damaging union-led employee survey that revealed widespread “mistreatment” at the studio, such as “bullying and gender discrimination”. Wester does not detail the exact nature of the incident he is admitting to, though says he wants to acknowledge it now “in the name of transparency and clarity”. When approached for more information by Eurogamer, a Paradox spokesperson declined to share more “out of respect for the privacy of the person involved”....

Here it is, nestled in the fake introduction, which suggests that this careful clockwork novel you’re about to read is in fact a true story, a haphazard manuscript that has fallen into the hands of an academic, who has merely provided a translation: “[In] almost a single burst of energy, I completed a translation, using some of those large notebooks from the Papetiere Joseph Gilbert in which it is so pleasant to write if you use a felt-tip pen....

Tonight’s Gamescom Opening Night Live trailer for the game showed off the game’s new feline addition (though also stated his voiceover and background music aren’t in the game). We also got a brief glimpse at the 12 party games included in Banana Mania. (Don’t worry, Target is of course there.) The full list includes Monkey Target, Baseball, Tennis, Racing, Fight, Bowling, Golf, Billiards, Soccer, Shot, Boat and Dogfighting. Other characters in the game will be available for free, such as Sonic, Tails and Beat from Jet Set Radio....

Now, we have more details on what this elusive game actually is - and what it is, is an online co-op combat game that is set in a fantasy version of London. Speaking via the SIE Blog, co-studio heads Stuart Whyte and Tara Saunders shared more details about this currently unnamed game, which they call the team’s “most ambitious project to date”. In addition to this, they also shared some new artwork for it, showing a battle against a dragon as the face of Big Ben glows in the distance (see header image above)....

Thankfully, there are a number of ways to catch Axew during Go Fest 2022 Finale, so it’s the perfect opportunity to add Axew, and its evolutions, to your Pokédex in Pokémon Go. Below you’ll discover how to get Axew during Go Fest 2022 Finale, along with Axew’s counters and weaknesses in Pokémon Go. On this page: Axew will be appearing more frequently during the Ultra Incursion: Buzzwole hours, which runs between 12pm to 2pm (local time)....

To celebrate this latest anniversary, Pokémon Go maker Niantic has released another of its annual celebratory artworks - which regularly tease what the next 12 months may bring. Pokémon fans have been poring over the image, though the most noticable additions here are two brand-new characters - potentially the game’s next two NPCs. Pokémon Go does not introduce new characters very often, and the arrival of the mysterious Rhi, who is linked to the recently-released Ultra Beasts, marked the first such addition in several years....

Each event will see increased spawns of the Pokémon for a limited time, and give them an exclusive Community Day move for their final evolution - and several other bonuses you can take advantage of during the event itself. This page features not only the next Community Day date and time and highlighted Pokémon, but also a Community Day list of all previous events and their respective exclusive moves. On this page: As well as increasing spawns of the highlighted Pokémon, there are bonuses during that period of time - such as double XP, Stardust or Lure Modules - as additional incentives to get out there and playing, including the highlighted Pokémon having an increased chance of being shiny, and the ability to reach the highlighted Pokémon’s evolution an exclusive move....

The global event will be held on Saturday 4th and Sunday 5th June, and also offer a “bonus finale event” on Saturday 27th August. Sandwiched in the middle of all that will be three distinct city-focused events held in Berlin, Seattle and Sapporo. If you fancy attending in Berlin, you’ll be able to do so from Friday 1st to Sunday 3rd July. Seattle’s dates are Friday 22nd to 24th July....

The billboard is situated in Tokyo - specifically, outside Shinjuku station - and features Pikachu, Meowth and a variety of other cat Pokémon. Alternatively, you can just watch the billboard from the perfect angle yourself via the video below. To accompany the advert, Pokémon Go will feature a menagerie of cat Pokémon spawns in the Shinjuku area, plus event-specific tasks and raids. These will feature Meowth in its Kanto, Alolan and Galar forms, Skitty, Glameow, Purrloin, Espurr and Litten....