Author: Game Infliction

Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero – creating the Majin Buu saga

Joining us today is the main producer of the highly anticipated game Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero Jun Furutani. This game has generated a lot of buzz in the gaming community, and we are thrilled to talk with him about it.

In Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero, the team has taken this legacy series to new heights. Today, we have the privilege of peeking into the creative process behind the game, exploring the inspirations and challenges the team faced during development, and getting an inside look at what makes this installment so unique.

To understand the challenges behind this project, we will be asking Jun Furutani some questions about characters from the iconic Majin Buu saga, which will be playable for the first time in Europe at Gamescom 2024, giving attendees a first-hand experience of these beloved transformations and abilities. With that in mind, let’s dive into the details and explore what makes these characters and their transformations so special!

What challenges did you face when animating Majin Buu’s unique abilities and transformations?

First, the characters that can transform are getting stronger in the game. That’s why we have made adjustments that allow you to experience them in terms of tactile comfort, such as their speed and number of attacks, as well as their status.

However, it has been difficult to adjust so as not to upset the overall balance of the game, partly because of the large number of characters. Majin Buu has many special moves, and compared to human characters, he has many unusual movements, such as extending his arms and making his body look like a ball, so it was a little challenging. Hope you will pay attention to those points as well.

How did you ensure that the game’s combat system reflects the intensity of the Majin Buu Arc battles?

What we value is the recreation of the actions depicted in the original work. Many techniques of the characters active in the Majin Buu arc are modeled after scenes from the story. For example, Ultimate Gohan’s normal attack movements are based on his fight with Super Buu, and he has a special throw that only activates when fighting Super Buu. We have paid attention to these details so that players can recreate the original scenes and experience the excitement firsthand.

Are there any unique interactions between Majin Buu Arc characters and other characters in the game?

There are special interactions between certain characters before and after battles, and in this game, there are also characters who have interactions with characters from Dragon Ball Super. We hope you will enjoy these elements as you have in previous games.

How did you approach the storytelling for the Majin Buu Arc within the Episode Battle mode?

It’s not limited to the Majin Buu arc, but in order to deepen the experience of playing as a character, you can enjoy challenging battles against powerful enemies, and in some scenes, you can see a special ending depending on the outcome of the battle. I hope this feature will have everyone who plays wondering “What would have happened if I had done this in that battle?” and that leads them to try something new next time!

What are you most proud of in terms of the Majin Buu Arc content in Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero?

This may overlap with the previous question, but I would like you to pay attention to the detailed reproducibility of the action. I would like everyone to experience the fun of fighting through a famous scene firsthand.

How did you handle the portrayal of Majin Buu’s absorption abilities in the game?

The performance is short, but like the original work, it is designed to highlight the absorbed character. Not only do Buu’s character and techniques change, but you can also enjoy reversals in a battle like those in the story, with status boosts and ki recovery.

What was the inspiration behind the visual effects for the Majin Buu Arc characters’ attacks?

We have heavily referenced the original anime, especially scenes with distinctive actions that differ from normal movements. For example, when Super Saiyan 3 Goku deflects Majin Buu’s Kamehameha using both hands, we incorporated it into the game. In the game, when deflecting a Kamehameha with Super Perception, Goku uses both hands, unlike other characters.

Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero, the first entry in the Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi series in more than 15 years will be released October 11 on PlayStation 5, with early access opening on the October 8 when pre-ordering the Deluxe and Ultimate editions. The game is now available for both physical and digital pre-order.

Dying Light: The Beast Literally Brings Out the Big Guns for a Shooting-Heavy Spin-Off | gamescom 2024

The original Dying Light’s story ended with protagonist Kyle Crane suffering a miserable fate; either blasted to atoms by a nuclear bomb or twisted into an infected. But that, it turns out, wasn’t the end of his story. Techland’s new entry in the series, Dying Light: The Beast, appears to lock in the latter of those endings as canon, revealing Crane was held captive for 13 years, subjected to experiments by a villain known only as The Baron. Now free, Crane seeks revenge for the trials and tortures that have turned him into the titular beast. But, if what I’ve seen of this new Dying Light is representative of the entire game, it’s not the beast powers that change the game – it’s the guns.

Dying Light: The Beast began life as DLC for Dying Light 2, but developer Techland changed course after some of its work was leaked. The project bloomed into a full, standalone game (although if you did buy Dying Light 2’s ultimate edition you get The Beast for free – Techland promised DLC and intends to fulfil that promise). Perhaps because of this origin, The Beast feels very familiar. Much of what I saw in the 45-minute hands-off demo was very much a continuation of the 2022 zombie smasher, from the robust parkour, to the world design, to the ‘follow the yellow cable’ puzzles that activate UV-protected safe houses. This certainly doesn’t seem like a ‘full’ sequel, but there does appear to be enough fresh ideas to justify its transition to a standalone game.

The new map is more rural, with something of a ‘village’ feel. Yes, there are still buildings and rooftops to leap and vault across, but these are surrounded by dense woodland. The demo showed Kyle creeping through tall grass in an effort to avoid nighttime horrors (which, once again, are much stronger than the zombies that appear during the day). Kyle notably doesn’t seem to suffer from the same infection Adien did in DL2 – there’s no immunity gauge ticking down on the HUD – so he can seemingly stay out in the dark as long as he wants. His own mutations mean he can see the illuminated skeletons of approaching foes, Batman: Arkham detective vision-style, which should aid with stealth encounters.

In beast mode Kyle can perform a ground pound that sends damaging ripples through the concrete.

The most significant new idea, though, is a more prominent use of guns. If you’ve played Dying Light 2 with its recent Firearms update then you already know a little of what to expect – the pistol, shotgun, and assault rifle featured in this demo were all the same as those added to DL2 earlier this year. But they seem key to the experience here, not just a powerful accessory. The Baron’s henchmen are all paramilitary types with body armour and rifles of their own. That means combat encounters with them are very, very different from the melee scraps with zombies and raiders that Dying Light has previously almost exclusively survived on. The Techland employee playing the demo for us used grenades to flush out entrenched gunmen and flanking tactics to snipe others. These encounters were lengthy, too; Kyle seems able to carry more than enough ammunition to chew through multiple squadrons.

Techland’s franchise director, Tymon Smektala, emphasised that Dying Light hasn’t been turned into a shooter. But I’d estimate nearly half the demo was played as an FPS. I don’t think that’s a bad thing, though, provided the combat encounters, associated level design, and weapon feedback all prove successful. It’s a smart way to provide a new spin on Dying Light’s otherwise largely unchanged formula. Not being able to play myself means I can’t say how good all this actually is, but it at least looked like a competent shooter – hardly Call of Duty, but solid enough.

The search for The Baron led Kyle into an underground lab where some kind of huge creature had torn its way out of a cage. A scientist there revealed it could be lured by a special gas, and so a cylinder of it was loaded onto a flatbed truck and driven to a junkyard. Yes, driving returns from Dying Light: The Following, although the truck doesn’t look quite as fun as the expansion’s buggy. Still, being able to hit and run zombies looks as enjoyable as ever, as their undead bodies burst and splatter against the headlights.

Releasing the gas in the junkyard summoned the Behemoth, a hulk-like freak with an inflated health bar and the strength to hurl cars. Firearms were effective at whittling that HP down, but when ammunition ran dry it quickly became clear that melee weapons wouldn’t cut it. And so, with just a few minutes of the demo left, Kyle let the titular beast out of its cage.

In beast mode Kyle becomes stronger and faster. He can pick up stone blocks and hurl them at enemies, as well as perform a ground pound that sends damaging ripples through the concrete, Hulk style. Easily tearing through the Behemoth’s remaining health, the battle concluded with Kyle ripping the monster’s head from its shoulders in a gory victory move. Safe to say beast mode looks very powerful, but also quite similar to the infected powers Aiden had in Dying Light 2. Unlike Aiden, though, it seems like Kyle can transform into the beast freely rather than only at specific story moments.

I’m surprised that Techland left the titular power to the very end of the demo. It meant there was little room to properly explore why the beast is so central to the game, so much so that I do wonder if it actually is as important as the title suggests. Instead, I left more interested in how guns and soldier enemies will change the overall rhythm of Dying Light. Hopefully they’ve been smartly woven into the campaign and feel fully integrated rather than awkwardly tacked on. If so, The Beast could well prove a worthy standalone game rather than just a respectable DLC sold separately.

Matt Purslow is IGN’s Senior Features Editor.

Cupiclaw wants to do for claw machines what Balatro did for poker

Gamescom is exploding all around us, but there is still time to lower a pincer into the pile of Steam indie game announcements and reel up the occasional treasure. In this case, it’s the demo for Cupiclaw, which is possibly the first ever “roguelike deckbuilding claw machine game”. You know how Balatro made you feel about Joker cards? Well, this game wants to make you feel the same about claw machines. It’s a terrible turn of events, frankly. I’m sorry for inflicting yet another potential bingeplay upon you. Here’s a trailer.

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Best Xbox Game Pass Deals and Bundles Right Now (August 2024)

With a price hike for existing Xbox Game Pass users coming on September 12, there’s no better time than now to stock up on cheap codes to save some cash. If you’re wondering where to find deals like this, don’t worry, we’re here to help you track down the best offers available on Game Pass right now, like this deal on 3 months of Game Pass Ultimate at Woot that’s still holding strong at just $33.49 (with code VIDEOGAMES). You can learn more about that deal and other discounts available on Game Pass below.

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Best Xbox Game Pass Deals

At the moment, our favorite deal on Game Pass is over at Woot (an Amazon company). They still have an incredible offer available where you can score 3 months of Game Pass Ultimate for just $36.49. This is a great deal on its own, but then you can get an additional $3 knocked off that price by using the code ‘VIDEOGAMES’ at checkout, bringing it down to $33.49! This price definitely won’t stick around for long, so act fast to secure these codes before they’re gone for good.

Considering the new price of Game Pass Ultimate is $19.99/month, you’re saving $26.48 with this 3-month deal. This is the best way to avoid the upcoming Xbox Game Pass price hike in September. By stacking these codes, you can set yourself up to play all of the upcoming Game Pass releases at a lower price. You can prepay for up to 36 months for Game Pass Ultimate, so there’s no better time to stock up.

What’s Coming Soon to Xbox Game Pass?

Game Pass has a nice rotation of new titles to play every month. If you’re curious about what’s in store for the latter half of August and start of September, we’ve got you covered there as well. The Xbox Game Pass August wave 2 lineup is:

Another massive piece of Game Pass news is that Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is officially available to play on Game Pass right now for console, PC Game Pass, and Game Pass Ultimate users. This features the full package for CoD fans: the campaign, multiplayer, and Zombies. Subscribers can also expect to see Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 day-one on Game Pass when it releases on October 25. However, for those subscribing to the new Standard tier (available for $14.99/month), this does not give Game Pass users access to day one releases, meaning Black Ops 6 will likely not be available to those on that tier.

What Games Are Leaving Xbox Game Pass?

Unfortunately, with new games joining the catalog, it means a few must take their leave. Below, we’ve listed the games that’ll be leaving Xbox Game Pass on August 31.

Biggest Games Releasing on Xbox Game Pass

Xbox’s Summer Showcase back in June was a massive success, showcasing an incredible amount of new titles coming to the platform. Alongside the aforementioned Black Ops 6, their showcase also included Doom: The Dark Ages, Perfect Dark, Fable, Gears of War: E-Day, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, and so many more. But which of these titles will appear as day-one releases on Game Pass? Thankfully, quite a few! Including all of the previously mentioned titles.

While most of the games listed above have release dates in 2025, or no release dates at all at the moment, the one to keep an eye on for now alongside Black Ops 6 is Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. Gamescom’s Opening Night Live revealed that Indy’s latest adventure will be available to play on December 9 for Xbox users, so there’s truly no better time to hop on the Game Pass bandwagon to add this one to your library in the future.

If you’re looking for even more savings on all things Xbox, have a look at our roundup of the best Xbox deals. There, we’ve highlighted all of the latest and greatest discounts on the platform, from incredible game deals to fantastic offers on high-quality headphones. Or, if you’d rather see what’s going on with other platforms, check out our roundups of the best PlayStation deals, the best Nintendo Switch deals, and our overall roundup of the best video game deals.

Hannah Hoolihan is a freelance writer who works with the Guides and Commerce teams here at IGN.

Microsoft Announces October Release Date for All-Digital Xbox Series X

Microsoft has announced two new Xbox Series X consoles and one new Xbox Series S console will be released on October 15, 2024, including a digital-only Xbox Series X.

The consoles, which are now available to preorder, were outlined on Xbox Wire, where Microsoft confirmed the impending simultaneous release for the All-Digital Xbox Series X, the Special Edition 2TB Xbox Series X, and the 1TB Xbox Series S in Robot White (previously only available in Carbon Black).

The All-Digital Xbox Series X is only available in Robot White and comes with a 1TB SSD hard drive for $449.99, down $50 from the launch Xbox Series X which has a disc drive installed. The Robot White 1TB Xbox Series S, meanwhile, costs $349.99, the same as the Carbon Black version already available.

The Special Editon Xbox Series X is available in black but speckled with green and white, and its 2TB hard drive and inclusion of a disc drive ramps the price up to $599.99. The controller has a black front and green back, though the speckled design seeps into the directional pad too.

These console variants don’t come with any extra power or features but are simply alternatives to Microsoft’s current offerings, likely targeted at brand new buyers. Increased hard drive space is becoming increasingly more relevant, however, as the size of video games continues to rise.

The release of these three new Xbox consoles comes amid plummeting sales of the Xbox Series X and S, which lag behind competitor PlayStation 5 as both sets of consoles near their fourth birthday, and tough questions over Microsoft’s committment to the console business from its hardcore fans.

At gamescom 2024, Xbox boss Phil Spencer explained Microsoft’s decision to release upcoming first-party game Indiana Jones and the Great Circle on PS5, and indicated more Xbox games will make the multiplatform jump.

In our 8/10 launch review of the Xbox Series X, IGN called it “a quiet, compact, laser-targeted games machine that should make 4K/60fps gaming the wonderful new norm” that “still lacks as many must-play games as the competition.”

The Xbox Series S received a 7/10 in our review, though its base storage of 512GB was raised as an issue even then. “The Xbox Series S has its place and could shine as a second console, but it’s hard to recommend as your primary gaming platform due to its 1440p resolution and claustrophobic storage capacity,” we said.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.

Nintendo Museum Tickets Will Feature Your Mii

One for Mii, please.

When the Nintendo Museum opens up on 2nd October 2024, we’re sure a bunch of fans will be piling through the doors, eager to get a look at all of the beautiful exhibits and play with the interactive stations. But, if you’re one of the lucky ones who manages to snag a ticket, there will be a delightful little surprise even before you enter the museum.

Spotted by Nintendo Wire, your unique entry ticket — if you get one, that is! — will show your Mii on the front. That’s a superb little touch, especially given that you need a Nintendo account to grab tickets to the museum.

Read the full article on nintendolife.com

Capcom Reveals Who’s Voicing Frank West in Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster

Dead Rising fans rejoiced a few months back when Capcom announced that it was remastering the first game in the series. But many were surprised that Capcom had recast the voice of beloved protagonist Frank West. After weeks of speculation, Capcom has finally announced the new West: Jas Patrick.

Speaking to IGN in a recent interview, the development team behind Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster confirmed that Patrick would voice Frank West. Patrick is best known for his work on Octopath Traveler 2, where he voiced Partitio. Additionally, Patrick has lent his voice to other projects, such as Genshin Impact, Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure, and the 2023 version of the Rurouni Kenshin anime, to name a few, as shown on his YouTube account and listed on his IMDb page.

“Jas Patrick is the new voice of Frank West for Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster. We’re very pleased with the work he’s done for this project,” the Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster Development Team confirmed to IGN in the interview.

Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster was announced in late June. The first teaser trailer revealed that T.J. Rotolo, the original voice actor for Frank West, was not voicing the character. Following the trailer’s release, Rotolo revealed to a fan on Instagram that he was not reprising his role in Deluxe Remaster because Capcom did not contact him, and “the reasons are the producers’ own.”

When we asked them about this, the development team said they regret that “[they] were unable to have TJ Rotolo reprise his role in Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster.” However, Capcom added that the studio “sincerely” appreciates all of the work Rotolo did for the Dead Rising series.

Frank West is just one of many characters who received a new voice actor in Deluxe Remaster. Nevertheless, as I mentioned briefly in an episode of Unlocked, Frank West’s new voice grew on me.

Dead Rising Dexlue Remaster is the second remastering of the 2006 original. Powered by the RE Engine, Deluxe Remaster improves the lighting, in-game backgrounds, and environments. More importantly, a ton of quality-of-life changes have been introduced, such as the ability to move while aiming and improved survivor AI. Some things have also been removed, such as the “Erotica’ genre in the photography mini-game.

Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster will be released on September 19 for digital storefronts, while the physical version will be released on November 8. For more, check out our hands-on preview and a video comparing Dead Rising (2006) to Deluxe Remaster.

Taylor is a Reporter at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.

Splitgate 2 remains a portal-hopping FPS delight, but it really needs to lighten up

Now, I never played quite as much as our Brendy did of the original Splitgate. But I had a fun time with its mixture of Halo-esque trigger pulling and portalling around! So I was intrigued to give the alpha version of Splitgate 2 a go and see if it had a little more substance to it than its initial reveal, which gave off a, “it’s Splitgate but with more money” feel.

Well, I think it’s… a bit serious? It certainly has more polish and some extra additions, yet I didn’t come away from it thrilled by its more competitive, class-based FPS leanings. I think it just needs a bit more time, perhaps, for a portal to open and some silly rocket launchers and baseball bats and zombies to come tumbling out of it.

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