Footage has appeared online of Nintendo's Super Mario Odyssey presentation at Gamescom 2017, including an interview with producer Yoshiaki Koizumi about the game. What may be of most interest to fans, though, is that the video features the first detailed look at the Luncheon Kingdom, along with a few other tidbits.

The first ten minutes or so of the video focus on what those who have followed the game's progress already know, but it does include an extended look at various elements from the game -- including the T-Rex cameo from this year's E3, the Cap Kingdom, and what it's like for Mario to capture a frog (in what may be a tongue-in-cheek reference to the frog suit in Super Mario Bros. 3). The latter half of the video shows off a fair amount of the Luncheon Kingdom, the Cookatiel, and some of Bowser's chef-themed minions.

According to Mr. Koizumi, the Kingdom itself was inspired by Europe, since Europe is known for its wide variety of food cultures, and the music itself is meant to evoke thoughts of Italy in particular. Goombas wear chef's caps, and the Hammer Bros. have traded in their hammers for frying pans -- but there's still plenty of familiarity for those concerned with the game's new ground, particularly in terms of gameplay.

The level shown during the interview has a similar style to those from Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Sunshine, in that it gives the player the general idea of the level, but then gives you free reign to explore and chat with the kingdom's denizens as you wish. One of the features Mr. Koizumi makes a point to show is capturing a lava bubble -- since, as he says, it allows you the most freedom to move about in lava in any Mario game. Plus, it makes use of the Joy-Cons to move about in various ways.

Image via Video Game Wallpaper

A few other details were revealed as well. One concerns the Crazy Cap Store and how different branches of the store will have different items in stock, encouraging you to check out each one. Some may also be pleased to note that Cappy's explanation about the different regional coins -- what they are and where they can be used -- does not appear every time you first pick up such a coin.

Finally, there's the depth of the kingdom itself. If you look at the display under the coin counter in the top left, you'll notice 18 dots -- one of which is filled in with the light blue color of the Luncheon Kingdom's Power Moons. Despite no official announcement of how many kingdoms or how big each one is, concerned fans can at least rest assured that there seems to be a lot to do in the Luncheon Kingdom.

There is also a second video of Luncheon Kingdom gameplay you can see above. This one covers the same cheese level, but shows off a good deal more of the level and how Power Moons can be found in unexpected places, simply by exploration and experimentation.

That's it for now, but make sure to check back for any news coming from Gamescom 2017 or updates on Super Mario Odyssey!

Today at Gamescom, Square Enix announced Final Fantasy XV: Pocket Edition, a reimagining of their latest main entry in the Final Fantasy series. The title is set to be released later this year.

Final Fantasy XV: Pocket Edition won't be a direct port of the main Final Fantasy XV title -- and one of the biggest giveaways is its art style. The game uses a chibi art style that some of the series' other spin-offs, like the Theatrhythm Final Fantasy games, have used in the past. Instead, the Pocket Edition is a "retelling" of the Final Fantasy XV story, although what that entails is not currently clear.

The combat also appears reminiscent of the main title's Active Cross Battle system, with touch controls that have been "optimized for mobile devices", according to the developer in a press release. 

And while Square Enix has produced direct mobile ports for many of their older, main Final Fantasy main titles, as well as spin-offs designed specifically for mobile devices, the Pocket Edition is the first to be of both worlds.

For those of you interested in giving Final Fantasy XV: Pocket Edition a shot, all 10 of its episodes will be available to download (with the first episode being free) later this fall on iOS, Android, and Windows 10 devices.

Stay tuned to GameSkinny for more news on Final Fantasy XV: Pocket Edition as it develops. 

Earlier this week, Tom Warren of The Verge reported that Xbox One X preorders would go live today after Microsoft's Gamescom press conference. Although Microsoft has not confirmed the date that preorders will go live, the Xbox Twitter account did reveal that preorder information would be included in the press conference.

The press conference will take place today and goes live on Microsoft's Mixer streaming service, as well as Twitch.tv and YouTube.com, at 3 p.m. EST. The event is expected to focus primarily on the new console, which is targeting 4K gaming at 60 FPS.

Consumers will be able to purchase the new Xbox One X console for $499 from the usual retailers -- Amazon, Walmart, Best Buy, Target, and GameStop are the places to watch if you want to secure your console before it launches on November 7!

Stay tuned to GameSkinny for more Xbox One X news and information as it develops. 

The Square Enix Collective has announced its Gamescom 2017 lineup in a recent press release. Their showcase will include five indie games that are "full of contrasts" for a broad gaming experience. 

Below is a full list of all the games that will be featured on behalf of the Collective at this year's event.

Battalion 1944

Leading the lineup is Bulkhead Interactive's Battalion 1944, a multiplayer first person shooter game. The developers are seeking to recapture older styles of FPS gameplay, where skill and stats determined victory, as opposed to powerups and other add-ons. Square Enix London's  Director of Community and Indie Development, Phil Elliot, mentioned that this game has garnered quite a bit of attention and shows how popular both retro mechanics and World War II still are for gamers.

Forgotten Anne

Also featured is Throughout Games' anime adventure Forgotten Anne. Billed as a cinematic adventure with "light puzzle platforming elements", Forgotten Anne sees you take on the titular role of Anne as she tries to stamp out rebellion in the Forgotten Lands -- a place where forgotten things from socks to letters are refashioned into magical creatures called Forgotlings.

Oh My Godheads

On a lighter note is Titutitech's Oh My Godheads, a multiplayer game born out of love for classic franchises like Worms and Street Fighter. This title offers a variation of capture-the-flag where the flag happens to be a talking stone head.

Tokyo Dark

On the JRPG side of things, there's Cherrymochi's Tokyo Dark -- a title that combines psychological and anime horror. It also builds on the point-and-click visual novel style by adding various branching story paths that are uncovered based on your decisions as the main character, as you try to find your lost mentor in the darkness beneath Tokyo. 

Deadbeat Heroes

Finally comes Upstream Arcade's Deadbeat Heroes, another multiplayer title that's a 3D brawler. The goal in Deadbeat Heroes is to stop the new wave of 1970s super criminals from having their way with London -- only you play as civilians with no crime-fighting experience. You must borrow your powers from others, while "not getting shot, sliced, lasered, exploded, vaporized, eaten…"

---

All of these games are part of the Square Enix Collective -- a curated platform for indie games where developers pitch their ideas, get approved for funding, and publish through Square Enix. All the titles above, and many others, will be taking the stage at Gamescom later this month.

What do you think of the Square Enix Collective's lineup for Gamescom 2017? Let us know down in the comments!

Today, Blizzard opened a new Choose Your Champion event for the upcoming finals of the Hearthstone Global Games. The event allows players to earn free card packs from the Knights of the Frozen Throne card set by predicting which team will go home with the grand prize after the finals at GamesCom on August 26.

Any Hearthstone player that selects a champion will be awarded a free pack of cards, with a second pack being issued to anyone that correctly predicts the outcome. Champion selection is open from August 16-23 and can be accessed through a notification in the Hearthstone client or by logging into your Blizzard account on the official Hearthstone eSports website.

The Hearthstone Global Games started on April 11, with teams from 48 countries competing for a piece of the $332,000 prize pool. In the semi-finals on August 25, the United States will be facing the Czech Republic for a chance to play in the finals on August 26. The other semi-final match is between the top-ranked South Korea team and second place Ukraine team.

If you want more about Hearthstone, check out our Knights of the Frozen Throne review. We also have a guide to the best new cards, and budget decks for you to try if you would like to get in on the action!

Developer Bluehole Inc. and eSports company ESL are partnering to host PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS first LAN event at Gamescom, the leading European gaming trade fair. 

Bluehole, Inc. is inviting 80 of the top PUBG players from around the world to compete in the first Gamescom PUBG Invitational. Select attendees will be able to enter the tournament on the spot, meet the PUBG developers, and play the game's latest build. 

Over four days, players will compete in solo mode, duo mode, first-person duo mode, and squad mode. The player who earns the best score averaged from three games will be the winner. The prize pool will be set at $350,000. 

Beginning August 3, PUBG players can purchase vanity items that will contribute toward the Gamescom prize pool and benefit charities of Bluehole's choice. 

Both Bluehole and ESL have weighed in on the success of the game. ESL CEO Ralf Reichert said:

"The game's been a smash hit and its natural evolution into a competitive title has been incredibly exciting to watch. We're looking forward to working with Bluehole on this, and many more events to come."

The Gamescom PUBG Invitational will be at Gamescom in Cologne, Germany, from August 23-26. 

Bluehole and ESL will broadcast the event daily at 4 p.m. CEST through PUBG's official Twitch, Facebook, YouTube, Mixer, and Twitter accounts. Viewers will be able to engage with the players. 

More details will be announced in the next several weeks. Stay tuned to GameSkinny for all upcoming Gamescom and PUBG-related news.

Hey, GameSkinny readers! For those of you that recognize the name, yep it's the same, little ol' BTide, back at it again. For those of you that don't, let's get you filled in. A while ago I participated in the Journalist Training Program (JTP) here on GameSkinny and became a Program Mentor. Rather than returning for a third stint in the program, I began to focus my efforts on my YouTube page, BlackTideTV, becoming relatively inactive on GameSkinny.

Recently I proposed a collaborative project with the website: a weekly news roundup show on my YouTube channel. The video above is the first of said video series. For "GameSkinny Spotlight," I'll be collecting an assortment of articles from the writers here on GameSkinny that I find will be suitable for my audiences, and expanding on the topics provided. I may provide alternate opinions, extra information, added examples, etc.

In exchange for the boosted exposure to the journalists here on GameSkinny, my only request is that anyone who finds these videos enjoyable visit my YouTube channel and give it a chance. I'm currently producing a ton of Call of Duty content and doing my best to expand my horizons. That being said, I hope you enjoy the weekly videos and don't forget to check out the original articles mentioned in this week's show for more information by heading to the bottom of this description.

• Uncharted 4: A Thief's End Review // Chris Bowring
• Red Dead Redemption 2 May Be Announced, Not at Gamescom // David Martinez_1224
• Resident Evil 7 Gamescom Trailer // Captain Booya
• Mass Effect Andromeda & Trilogy Remastered News // Anne-Marie Coyle
• No Man's Sky Review // HomelessRanger

nXile Entertainment and Techland Publishing have announced that their science-fantasy cRPG Torment: Tides of Numenera will be released simultaneously on Playstation 4 and Xbox One in early 2017. Funded through a very successful Kickstarter campaign, the indie game was originally only slated for PC release. However, inXile and Techland worked behind the scenes to also include a console release.

As the player, you will be journeying across the Ninth World, a place where morality is much more complicated than just right and wrong. Choices you make along your journey change the narrative, offering a philosophical experience. Battle various enemies using stealth, social interaction, and environmental puzzles. Wielding magic and using new and unpredictable items, there are many ways you can complete your journey.

The console versions are going to be showcased at Gamescom 2016. There will not only be public viewings, but press will have access to never-before-seen-gameplay at a special demonstration. Stay tuned for more information as it becomes available.

ESLGaming will be hosting the Overwatch Atlantic Showdown at this year's Gamescom in Cologne, Germany. Gamescom will take place on the weekend of August 18th-21st. 

The tournament will feature open qualifiers which start the first weekend in July and take place on each subsequent weekend for the rest of the month. The 8 teams that make it through qualifiers, 4 from NA and 4 from EU, will jet off to Germany to compete for a six figure prize pool. 

Overwatch's upcoming Competetive Mode will be used for the tournament. In order to have some variance in what maps are played, there will be a rotation of six maps that shift weekly with at least one of Overwatch's four game modes in each set. There will be no map vetoes, but the loser of the first game in best of three or five formats will be able to choose what map is played next.

For a game that has only been out for a month, a six-figure prize pool is a good deal of money, but it isn't extremely surprising because of how much hype the game's received around the world and the amount of marketing that Blizzard has done.

If you're interested in signing up for Overwatch Atlantic Showdown, you can check out ESL's North American and European websites for the tournament.

Frostlord Rexxar

For our last previewed skin, we don't yet have a backstory - but it's clear he's supposed to be a frost giant of some kind.  His abilities have taken on a northern theme to match.

In a game like Heroes of the Storm, with characters from a variety of franchises, skins are all the more intriguing for being able to take what we know of these classic characters and turn that on its head.  The result is usually more interesting than the standard "joke" skins, since the mental dissonance of seeing Thrall as a Fel orc or Malfurion as the Betrayer is actually greater than Stiches in a bathing suit....

What skin are you most excited about? Are there any alternate universe skins you'd like to see in the future? Let us know in the comments!

Judgment Uther

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Despite surviving Arthas's brutal assault, Uther was unable to prevent Lordaeron's fall. Now under Varian's banner he leads the Silver Hand into Northrend to mete out justice.

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For our next alternate universe (or Altered Fates, as they have been called officially) we have bitter, defeated, and possibly crazy Uther, wearing decidedly villainous looking armor.  This skin was actually teased way back in the game's Alpha phase, but never materialized.  It was displayed on the game's official site for the longest time before being replaced, suggesting it had been scrapped.  It's quite nice to be wrong, because as I said in the last slide, every hero should have a skin with a darker leaning. 

His abilities now have a more martial tone - the holy light being more in line with holy fire and his Divine Storm replaced with a sword instead of hammers.

Earthbreaker Thall

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The weight of the world hangs upon the Aspect of Earth, a burden no mortal can bear. As Thrall embraced its power, he was consumed by living rock and forever changed.

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All but one of his abilities match his theme - chain lightning has been changed to fire, windfury gives a burning aura, and the wolf spirit is outfitted in armor of molten rock.  The earthquake heroic gives a different symbol as well, but Sundering couldn't really be changed for obvious reasons.

However, it's the lore that makes this skin so compelling for me.  Presumably, this is what Thrall would look like had he taken Deathwing's place as the Aspect of Earth, flat out joined Deathwing, or simply gone too far with his shamanic bonding with Azeroth. 

While I would normally be leery of two "evil" skins in a row (as much as I love them and think every character should have one), this was just too good of an opportunity to pass up.  Plus he's one of Blizzard's most iconic "good guys", so re-imagining him as a villain won't get old any time soon.

Sgt. Doomhammer

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"The Iron Demolisher is the pride of the orcish war machine. Sgt. Grimina Doomhammer was given the honor of piloting it in recognition of her years of service in the Arathi Basin battlefield."

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I've always been partial to the Horde aesthetic of tusks, spikes and wolves - and this new model utilizes all of these to look amazing. Not only that, all her spell effects have been altered to fit the Warcraft universe - her heroic fires an iron star, her mines are barrels, and her napalm is horde-themed.  I've never played her but I just might after seeing this new skin for Sgt. Hammer.

While we always tell ourselves that skins have no real gameplay value, we know that's not true. A cool skin for your favorite hero can make you feel awesome (and maybe even alleviate a little of the guilt over the money you spent), and it's common knowledge that feeling good about yourself can make you play better.  With that in mind, here a few of the new...confidence boosters that Blizzard has slated for upcoming release.

Bethesda is really pulling out all the stops when it comes to creating the hype for Fallout Shelter and Fallout 4. From sneak peak views at Gamescom to advertising their game on the dating app Tinder, the Bethesda marketing team is making a name for themselves, and it's purely awesome.

Tinder Profile for Vault Boy, 25

The magical Tinder profile created by Bethesda features a Vault Boy at age 25, describing his 'Likes', which all correlate to Fallout Shelter. Your dreams of building a community can come true by swiping right, where a night in the Vault would consist of sharing a Nuka Cola together while getting radiation poisoning. 

While it can be considered a little strange to make a profile on Tinder advertising a video game, it's worked out very well for Bethesda; even a trend on Twitter is taking over called #dateadweller. 

High Charisma training in action #DateADweller #SwipeRight http://t.co/ETi56sFJ5H pic.twitter.com/54M0mbRYKA

— Fallout (@Fallout) August 17, 2015

Swiping Right for Vaulties

If you happened to come across this profile while using Tinder, there was an option to swipe right and attempt to take Vault Boy on a romantic wasteland date. Though that's an impossible case, Bethesda did add a link to download Fallout Shelter if you found Vault Boy's likes extremely compelling. 

Find someone sweet and take a Nuka Cola break #DateADweller #SwipeRight pic.twitter.com/7cTqdgaC7W

— Fallout (@Fallout) August 17, 2015

Secrets Vault Boy Won't Tell on the First Date

While Vault Boy is being very straight forward with his profile, there's one thing he won't tell you about his beloved Fallout Shelter. That big secret is that you can get it on your Windows Phone by using a side-loading hack. It's one of the biggest secrets that Bethesda and Vault Boy want to hide, and for more details refer to our article on how to get Fallout Shelter on your Windows phone with side-loading hack.

What do you think about Bethesda's use of Tinder? Will it become a big trend in video game advertising? Would you swipe right for Vault Boy? 

Infernal Shrines, the second map of the Heroes of the Storm Eternal Conflict event, is expected to hit live servers next week, along with Kharazim, the Diablo III monk.  

The goal of Infernal Shrines is to use the map's namesakes to summon a powerful boss - a Punisher.  One of the shrines (there are three, one for each lane) will periodically activate and can be triggered by either team. 

Once triggered, Shrine Guardians will appear to defend it and the team who defeats 30 Guardians first gets the Punisher. So far, the purpose of this map sounds fairly similar to several other battlegrounds, including the most recent, Battlefield of Eternity - race the enemy team to an objective to receive a lane pusher. 

The difference, according to the official Gamescom annoucement, is that the Punisher will be less concerned with demolishing enemy fortifications than "hunting down enemy heroes".  Considering all map bosses - both AI and player-controlled - have been primarily geared towards destroying buidings, one to combat enemy heroes directly would be quite interesting.  While the others are powerful, their abilities are meant to keep the opposing team out of the way more than anything else (the Dragon Knight's kick, the Garden Terror's polymorph or the Grave Golem's stun, for example).

If it's going to be chasing heroes, the Punisher is going to need a few tricks up its sleeves.  Diablo III players will recognize the elemental properties it spawns with to augment its attacks. But thankfully, unlike the elite mobs in Sanctuary, it can only have one of the following three:

Arcane

The Punisher emits rotating beams of energy.

Frozen

The Punisher shoots shards of ice that will explode and freeze you.

Mortar

The Punisher launches rapidfire fireballs that explode on impact.

It's entirely possible that the color of the shrines will indicate what affix the Punisher will spawn with - purple for arcane, orange for mortar, and blue for frozen - as shrines in preview images have all been one of these.

The map itself looks good, but that should come as no surprise, because so did Battlefield of Eternity.  Infernal Shrines uses the same tileset(s) as the Heaven versus Hell theme. Though it's cool, it is a slight pity considering that when I first heard "Punisher", I began hoping for a Westmarch or city map, since punishers are an enemy encountered the Diablo III expansion, Reaper of Souls.

In keeping the map base the same, Blizzard has all but confirmed that they're making a point of having at least two battlegrounds share a visual and thematic style. This mostly shown in the architecture, such as the forts and core, but there can be more subtle ways to show the same "world" in the Nexus, such as minion and overall environment design.  Currently, Blackheart's Bay is the only odd one out with a clear nautical theme that's not shared by any other maps, so it's likely we will see another original Nexus battleground at some point in the future.

Will you be playing this new Diablo-themed map? Let us know in the comments!

For those of you who have been closely following any news concerning Star Wars Battlefront, you know that the game will not feature a single-player campaign. At Gamescom 2015, GameSpot took the opportunity to interview Peter Moore on the matter, and he explains in a very simple way why EA chose this path.  

"[...] very few people actually play the single-player on these kinds of games. That’s what the data points to."

There is your statement; it's a simple as that. And technically, Peter Moore is not wrong.

Modern day FPS games have been more and more concentrated on multiplayer versions rather than single-player campaign modes. When multiplayer was introduced, it was an added feature - a little something extra that allowed you to play against your friends and shoot out your frustrations. But not anymore.

Solo needs to learn to play with friends

Today, single-player campaigns are much shorter than they once were, and games like Star Wars Battlefront are beginning to abandon them altogether. Multiplayer is getting bigger and better, and it has become the main focus of FPS games these days.

Statistics point out that solo campaigns aren't played as often anymore, and that's not all that surprising, in the end.

However, a different kind of single player mode has been confirmed for Star Wars Battlefront. DICE stated that bots on the map would allow gamers to play Missions by themselves. 

Quick reminder - Star Wars Battlefront will be released on November 17th on PC, PS4 and Xbox One. 

Professional gaming and eSports have taken steps to reform the leagues and demand random drug testing for the competitors. A major league in Europe called the Electronic Sports League announced that they will be using random drug tests for their competitions in the future.

While ESL is only one league among many eSports organizations, many others will either follow suit or ignore the drug testing.

Drugs in eSports

Although eSports may not be part of the original sports venues, some competitors have admitted to taking prescription drugs during tournaments, which may or may not have been prescribed. Recently, after the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive tournament held by ESL, player Cory Friesen and his team admitted to taking Adderall during a tournament they participated in. Llike many pro-athletes do in nationwide sports, even the eSports competitors are willing to risk disqualification to increase their performance.

The upcoming drug test initiative will comply with substances deemed prohibited by the World Anti-Doping Agency. The initiative will remain effective from the first day of the tournament throughout its duration until the last day. 

Many questions have been popping up around the drugs will be allowed in competitions: drugs prescribed by a doctor, who has given prior authorization for its usage, will be allowed. Drugs that fall under this circumstance do include Adderall and many focus-enhancing drugs that are used to treat illnesses like ADD, ADHD, Epilepsy, and others.

Whether or not the random drug testing will become a uniform requirement throughout eSports all national and international competitions, it's a start to a worthwhile initiative to help even the playing field among the competitors. 

What do you think about random drug testing in eSports?

While Hidetaka put focus on creating a dark fantasy land, they also put emphasis on combat, story-line, and adding terrifying foes. One specific story-line addition are the small gravestones that give the player an option to "offer a flame", that gives hints to the plot.

Dark Souls III is set to come out in early 2016 for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. 

When Dark Souls III was first announced during E3 2015, Hidetaka Miyazaki said that not only was the world supposed to be dark, but contain a withered beauty within it. 

Shields will work differently with the Weapon Arts feature, but will require the use of a two-handed weapon or a large shield such as kite or round. 

Torches as a light-source work in a way that's sort of limitless. To light a torch there isn't a specific source that other games have like flint, and they remained lit for an unlimited amount of time. 

A new feature has been added called Weapon Arts, which consists of a special move that gets the user in a "Ready Stance" using the left trigger on the controller.

While there are many new differences from the previous additions in the game, one of the most memorable to the demonstrators at Gamescom was the combat speed. 

Last week at Gamescom, some attendees were lucky to try out some of the Dark Souls III gameplay that was available. While the game won't release until the first half of 2016, many gamers have been waiting with heavy hearts on this fourth installment developed by From Software and Bandai Namco Entertainment. 

Dark Souls III will be playable on the PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.

A few lucky attendees at Gamescom were presented with Fallout 4 footage never before seen by the general public; where one viewer recorded some tidbits of gameplay that's been spreading around the internet like the plague.

After being taken down by websites such as YouTube, the footage has found a home amongst the Pornhub website. 

Terrible footage output, but such an uproar

While the footage filmed at Gamescom isn't the best format and honestly very shotty, hardcore Fallout fans have been gushing over the partial screen view that this ballsy attendee filmed. The video has been removed from all file-sharing websites and YouTube upon its discovery, but somehow it's remained intact on the Pornhub website under the title "HIDDEN CAMERA SHOWS AUDIENCE TEASED BY BIG BUTT MAN IN TIGHTS LIVE." For decency reasons we won't link the video here, but you're free to check it out for yourself, but know that there will be some inappropriate content for young viewers and the work environment. 

The seven-minute long video has been hidden under the radar from Bethesda by using tagged categories such as "big ass," "POV," and "homemade."

While it's gained popularity with over 100,000 views, it's hard to grasp the hype about the video due to the terrible visuals and audio. While it is giving out some gameplay information, it does lack quality.

Fallout 4 Hype Products

There is still just under two months left before Fallout 4 launches on November 10th, and Bethesda has been doing their job in building hype among their fans. A few ways Bethesda has been keeping everyone on their toes includes some retail items they've been announcing that accompany the gameplay for Fallout 4.

One of the giant products Bethesda has launched is the Fallout 4 Vault Dweller's Survival Guide for assistance in the game, and the Fallout Anthology that includes all released games up until Fallout 4. 

Do you think this quality of video is worth the hype that's been going around the internet?

Today during Gamescom, Microsoft announced they have no plans to create a PC gaming distribution platform. With the launch of Windows 10 on July 29th, it is understandable that Microsoft would be under speculation as competition, but they'll be leaving the PC gamers to Steam. 

Microsoft's Comments at Gamescom

Kevin Unangst, Senior Director for PC gaming at Microsoft gave a comment to PC Gamer at Gamescom describing how Microsoft feels about Steam's popularity and Microsoft's intentions.

"We are not intending to compete with Steam,

"If anything, we want Steam to be even more successful – they’ve done great things for PC gamers in terms of having a single store."

Since Steam has become such a popular necessity to many PC gamers, it's very wise that Microsoft isn't going to try to compete with them for the PC game distribution standpoint. Steam features many games from numerous developers, whereas Microsoft would most likely market their own games and not those of their competitors. Unangst continued to go on and discuss how competition is a thriving standpoint for business, and that having Steam run great on Windows 10 is their main goal.

"Over time do we want more developers to come over to our store and offer it in addition to Steam? Absolutely. Is competition good for people? Absolutely. But our goal right now isn’t to do anything else other than support Steam and help it run great on Windows 10." - Kevin Unangst, Microsoft

While I do believe Microsoft was sincere in their decision to leave the platform hub to Steam, I wouldn't be surprised if in the future Microsoft tried to dip their toes in community management and platforms. With Xbox and Windows 10 under their jurisdiction, the experience required has been met. 

Do you believe Microsoft will stay true to their word?

It's been announced that the portable Steam machine device formally known as the Steamboy will be available for pre-purchase on November 10th, but the shipping will be post-dated until the fourth quarter of 2016. Smach announced that the new project name is the Smach Zero.

The pre-purchase date may already be marked on your calendar because yes, it is the same day that the other Steam Machine products manufactured by Alienware and Cyberpower hit the stores. It is truly an important day for Valve.

Details from Smach, producers of Smach Zero

The company that will be producing the Smach Zero is known as Smach, has given out a few details on the arrival of the "Steamboy". But during Gamescom this past weekend they announced that the price will be $299 and €299 in Europe.

That price tag is only for the pre-purchase amount and it is unknown if the price will fluctuate upon the public release date. Smach announced that there will be over 1,000 games that will play on the Smach Zero upon its release in 2016.

Hardware and Functionality

Some of the hardware that is known to be put on the Smach Zero includes:

• Two touch pads
• Control stick
• Seven buttons on the front
• Six buttons on the back
• AMD embedded G-Series SoC "Steppe Eagle" with Jaguar-based CPU and GCN-based Radeon graphics
• 4 GB memory
• 32 GB internal memory
• SD card slot
• USB OTG
• 5-inch Touch Screen - 720p Resolution
• Tacticle configurable gamepads
• HDMI video output connection
• Wi-Fi
• Bluetooth

With all of the above coming with the basic model, a PRO model will be available with the option of 4G mobile network connectivity. As a handheld gamer I'm very impressed with the idea of a portable Steam machine, and will be following it personally for when it releases in 2016. It'll be very interesting on the games that will be playable on it, and hopefully some high-end games such as the Sims 3 and the Assassin's Creed series will be available. 

What do you think of this portable Steam machine? Will it be on your wishlist? 

Gamescom brought many announcements to the gaming world last week, one of which included Microsoft providing confirmation on Xbox One's upcoming DVR feature. We now know it'll release in 2016, and we found out a few other interesting tidbits about access.

This release is only going to be available for Xbox One owners in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Other countries will be given release details "at a later date."

The DVR feature has been one of the top requested additions to the Xbox One, and soon it will arrive, but along with it come some criteria and limitations that make the DVR function a bit different than what some consumers may expect.

Xbox One DVR requires an external hard drive.

Unless you have purchased and connected a USB 3.0 external hard drive, then the DVR feature won't work. The initially provided Xbox One 500GB of basic storage can barely be enough for gaming, so it makes sense to provide additional space.

However, the external hard drive isn't a recommendation - you'll need one to record your shows at all. "DVR functionality will not record TV footage to the console's internal hard drive," according to Richard Irving.

If you record a lot of shows, you may still be limited in space with the external hard drive available, but Microsoft and Seagate have partnered to provide a 2TB external hard drive for both the Xbox One and Xbox 360.

The DVR feature only records "over-the-air TV."

While Microsoft has promised source-level quality, including 1080p broadcasts, "over-the-air" suggests that this is a DVR feature only for standard television channels, not broadcasts provided through cable or satellite.

In light of this limitation, Xbox One users across Europe and North America will also need to purchase a digital TV tuner like the image above, already available for sale. Recording these shows will also be subscription free.

Upside? You can watch your Xbox One DVR on the go.

If you meet the criteria of having your portable device and your Xbox One both updated to their Windows 10 versions, then you can check out your shows on the go. Because both devices need Windows 10, this means that those running mobile devices on Android or iOS will not receive this feature.

Microsoft confirmed that there will be a complete Xbox One system update, complete with new interface for better viewing and the option to transfer the files to your shows to your portable device while on your home network. The file transfer will allow you to watch them on your device later while offline.

This new update is scheduled to arrive by the end of the year.

Header Image Source:  hardcoregamer

PlayStation Europe President Jim Ryan has said that more PS3 games are likely to make their way to the PS4.

Ryan was asked in a Gamescom interview with PlayStation Germany if there will be more remasters coming to PS4, he had this to say:

All the time we’re looking at our great library – we’re now 20 years old and we have some great games over the various generations – looking at what might make sense to transition from PS3 to PS4. Because we know that there are many PS4 owners who either have never played games before, or used to have an Xbox, used to have a Nintendo, who haven’t had the chance to play something like the Uncharted trilogy.

You can check out the interview below, where Ryan tours Gamescom answering questions about Street Fighter V, Until Dawn, Project Morpheus, Horizon: Zero Dawn, Uncharted 4: A Thief's End, and more.

The interview is worth checking out if you missed Sony's presence at Gamescom:

Sony has been avid about bringing PS3 classics to the PS4 so far this generation, with The Last of Us, Journey, Heavy Rain, Beyond: Two Souls, The Unfinished Swan, God of War III, Flower, and the upcoming Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection.

And that's not to mention the third-party remasters; Tomb Raider, Sleeping Dogs, Metro Redux, GTA V, Borderlands, and many more.

Fans have been critical of the abundance of remastered games on PS4 and Xbox One this generation. Much of the criticism seems to originate from wanting new games, however, it's important to keep in mind that the studios making said games, i.e. Bluepoint Games, are often dedicated port studios; these studios don't make original games anyways.

Naughty Dog isn't wasting valuable time by remastering the Uncharted games, Bluepoint is working on that.

So, given that more remasters are very likely coming to the PS4, which games should be ported? Our picks are the first two Infamous games. These are prime candidates because the Infamous series is one of PlayStation's crown jewels and a large audience that jumped from 360 to PS4 probably missed out on Cole McGrath's adventures. For more potential remasters, check out our list of games that should be remastered!

Which games do you think should come to PS4 next? Are you happy with remasters or really sick of them?