Fallout 76 Controversy: Gang Violence in Online Gaming

Fallout 76, the game that has caused more problems than benefits two new issues: gang violence on the pvp servers and duping.  Duping is when players take an existing item and, using in-game systems in a way not originally intended, duplicate it, creating an infinite stream of powerful items. It’s a serious problem, and it has created a completely out of control economy. 

Players are creating new alternate characters to serve as pack mules, roaming Appalachia with thousands of pounds of legendary weapons and stashes full of caps, Fallout’s currency.  Players who try to go about pvp who or are hunted down by dupers, however, quickly find themselves in a pickle. 

Even players in the non-violent Pacifist Mode are reporting being one-shot killed due duping powerful items like bobble heads, which temporarily increase stats. 

Some gamers have reported being held hostage by gangs claiming to be the authorized to take vigilante actions against duping players. This game is getting out of hand and soon will be shutdown for non sense.

Ark Survival Evolved Expansion and How to Access Beta

The rumors are confirmed there is a mega update for Ark Survival Evolved on PC available now and a large update coming to all consoles on January 15, 2019.

What’s new 

Changes:

• Made structure quick pickup time configurable in ini file (ServerSettings -> StructurePickupTimeAfterPlacement, default = 30)
• Added new ini config option to ignore the duration and always allow quick pickup (ServerSettings -> AlwaysAllowStructurePickup, default = false)
• Improved quick pickup HUD text to avoid overlapping other text, and to format durations as timestamps if over 60 seconds to support very long times if configured for that
• Enabled structure quick pickup for ALL structures. For structures that previously had pickup disabled, they now auto-disable quick pickup as soon as the player interacts with the structure in any way (unless AlwaysAllowStructurePickup is set to true)

New structures/variants:

• Added 'smooth' sidewall textures variants (like the stone foundation) to the stock square foundations [Adobe, Metal, Stone, Tek, Thatch, Wood]
• Triangle foundations [Adobe, Metal, Stone, Tek, Wood]
• Triangle ceilings [Adobe, Metal, Stone, Tek, Wood, Greenhouse]
• Triangle roofs [Adobe, Metal, Stone, Tek, Wood, Greenhouse]
• Large (4x height) walls [Adobe, Metal, Stone, Tek, Wood]
• Flexible pipe [Stone, Metal]
• Flexible electrical cable
• Stairs (with freely swappable ramp variant) [Adobe, Metal, Stone, Tek, Wood]
• Double door frames [Adobe, Metal, Stone, Tek, Wood]
• Double doors [Adobe, Metal, Stone, Tek, Wood]
• Dedicated storage (Tek structure that allows storing a large amount of a single resource)
• Fence supports (allows you to build fences that are level along the top) [Adobe, Metal, Stone, Tek, Wood]

Kibble changes that will be in the beta branch:

All eggs have been assigned a value based on the size and rarity of the egg. These sizes include: Extra Small, Small, Medium, Large, Extra Large, and Special. The eggs are used in a recipe to create kibble of a coinciding value: Basic, Simple, Regular, Superior, Exceptional, and Extraordinary.This new system will make it so that creature kibble desires are based on the quality levels instead of specific creatures, which should greatly decrease the number of tamed creatures needed for the purposes of taming.

Regarding previously crafted kibble:

• Old kibbles will not be wiped, and will inherit their new "value/color" appropriately.
• Old kibbles will still work to tame their appropriate creatures.
• Old kibble will no longer be craftable, only the new types will be craftable.

We will be taking your feedback into serious consideration regarding both of these changes so we invite you to communicate with us on our social media, the forums, reddit, etc with your opinions and critique. Once we're happy with where these features are at, we will be bringing them over to the PC main game and then to all platforms (Xbox and PS4).

How to access the Beta necessary introduction

As a quick starting note: Before accessing a beta branch you should create a backup of any single player games, characters, or server files that you may have for ARK to prevent any corruption or loss of player data from occurring. When you’re done playing with the beta you’ll need to navigate back to the branch selection dialogue and opt-out of the beta (choose NONE). You cannot access your official server while on the beta because they are not the same version. Depending on your internet connection this process could take some time so if you’re doing anything time sensitive on your official server, be cautious of swapping!

How to access the beta:
From your Steam games library, right-click on ARK: Survival Evolved and choose Properties. From this new window you’ll click on BETAS at the top. Here is where you’ll swap between the beta version and the live version of the game. 

Choose the beta called qolbeta_public from the drop down list and then close the Properties window once the window says it has successfully accessed the beta. Your Steam client will begin to download the beta (at the time of this post, v290.103). 

Depending on your internet connection this process could take some time. You can tell you are successfully on the beta when [qolbeta_public] appears next to ARK: Survival Evolved on your Steam games list. 

Providing feedback:
In order for us to effectively analyze feedback from beta users we have set up two separate threads, one for Structures Plus related feedback and one for the Kibble changes. Please use these threads linked below when reporting issues, bugs, and feedback to us.

Birdbox Official Reveal at What the Monsters Look Like

If you watched bird box and got confused by the chalk sketchings by the “psychologist” of the monsters, then here is your opportunity to see the official drawing for the demons in the movie.  According to a producer for the film, the scene where boy and girl were born was suppose to be the opportunity where we see the monsters for the first time.  For some reason the director went against the book and said it was better to leave some content out.  Below is the official photo of the birdbox monster:

Bungie and Activision Split: Bungie Keeps Destiny

After a lot of lawsuits and controversy, Bungie has separated and split from Activision.  This is big news because of the scandal caused by greed and monetarization scheme that doomed the hot selling game Destiny.  I mean, this was not expected but a blessing in disguise bc Bungie was an independent developer that came to a larger publisher like Activision for help.  It’s been drama every since they got together and the games Bungie have published reflected that. Marked by greedy monetarization, an array of anti-consumer practices, and gameplay regressions that ruined much of what fans loved about Destiny.  Without Activision’s greedy executives breathing down Bungie neck, I wonder what the franchise can do to salvage its reputation and regain the high quality content and loyal followers again?

Bungie released an official press statement last night to explain the split and what is next for Destiny and other publications the Bungie and Activision share:

When we first launched our partnership with Activision in 2010, the gaming industry was in a pretty different place. As an independent studio setting out to build a brand new experience, we wanted a partner willing to take a big leap of faith with us. We had a vision for Destiny that we believed in, but to launch a game of that magnitude, we needed the support of an established publishing partner.

With Activision, we created something special. To date, Destiny has delivered a combination of over 50 million games and expansions to players all around the world. More importantly, we’ve also witnessed a remarkable community – tens of millions of Guardians strong – rise up and embrace Destiny, to play together, to make and share memories, and even to do truly great things that reach far beyond the game we share, to deliver a positive impact on people’s everyday lives.

We have enjoyed a successful eight-year run and would like to thank Activision for their partnership on Destiny. Looking ahead, we’re excited to announce plans for Activision to transfer publishing rights for Destiny to Bungie. With our remarkable Destiny community, we are ready to publish on our own, while Activision will increase their focus on owned IP projects.

The planned transition process is already underway in its early stages, with Bungie and Activision both committed to making sure the handoff is as seamless as possible.

With Forsaken, we’ve learned, and listened, and leaned in to what we believe our players want from a great Destiny experience. Rest assured there is more of that on the way. We’ll continue to deliver on the existing Destiny roadmap, and we’re looking forward to releasing more seasonal experiences in the coming months, as well as surprising our community with some exciting announcements about what lies beyond.

Thank you so much for your continued support. Our success is owed in no small part to the incredible community of players who have graced our worlds with light and life. We know self-publishing won’t be easy; there’s still much for us to learn as we grow as an independent, global studio, but we see unbounded opportunities and potential in Destiny. We know that new adventures await us all on new worlds filled with mystery, adventure, and hope. We hope you’ll join us there.

See you starside.

Resident Evil 2 Remake Better than Ever?

Following the success of Resident Evil 7, developers have taken the RE7 engine and remade a cult classic Resident Evil 7.  Being a fan of the Resident Evil movie and gaming franchise, I know I’ll give it a try, and I’ll tell you why...

Resident Evil 2 gets us familiar with the franchise’s main two protagonists Leon and Claire.  In RE2 Leon and Claire are wide eyed rookies tempered by the hard realities of a corrupt local government condemns, corporate politics, and medical experimentation.  For those of you like me that came into the series around RE4, Leon and Claire are not the same calm and experienced zombie slaying experts that make good decisions under pressure.  Leon and Claire are pure rookies that are scared and learning their purpose in life and accepting their destiny to forever fight a war against the Umbrella Corporation.

Leon and Claire have no chance to save the day in this game, instead we are challenged with escaping Raccoon City.  Well that being said, developers added some new challenges to the game to keep consumers invested in the same product they made for an old platform decades ago.

I know most of you were like me and said this game was bad and hard to play in 1998

So why should I give it a chance in 2019?  Here are the reasons why:

Changes from 1998 to 2019

It features a host of changes and improvements over the original, such as a new over-the-shoulder camera, revised puzzles, and modernized controls.

To meet modern expectations, the team attempted to make the remake more realistic; for example, Leon no longer wears large shoulder pads, which were added to distinguish his original, low-polygon model. Though they strove to make a "modern, accessible" game, they focused on horror over action, hoping to preserve a claustrophobic feel.

Producer Tsuyoshi Kanda acknowledged the difficulty of making zombies scary, as they had became ubiquitous in entertainment media since the release of the original Resident Evil in 1996. By removing the fixed camera angles, the team had to use different ways to conceal enemies, using elements such as room layout, lighting, and smoke.

The new camera system also affected the sound design, as it no longer made sense for sound to come from a fixed source.

Resident Evil 2 is scheduled for release on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Windows worldwide on January 25, 2019.[12] The game supports enhancements on the PlayStation 4 Pro and Xbox One X, offering either 4K resolution or 60 frames per second.

Resident Evil 2 will be getting a "1-Shot" demo on Jan 11, 2019 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Steam.