Warning: The below story contains a potential spoiler for Persona 3 and Persona 3: Reload.
The Persona series has long had issues with gay and trans panic, but Persona 3: Reload at least removes the transphobia from one scene in particular.
The Persona 3 scene in question had the party trying to hit on women at the beach, with Akihiko, Junpei, and the protagonist approaching a character referred to as “Beautiful Lady.” After some back-and-forth, Akihiko points out a bit of facial hair on her chin, to which Beautiful Lady responds, “I-I missed a spot?!” Junpei then exclaims “she’s a he?!”
The dialogue is very slightly changed in Persona 3 Portable (the character is named “Pretty Lady” instead of “Beautiful Lady”), but still includes the same trans panic.
As first reported by Kotaku and verified by IGN, however, Persona 3: Reload changes the dialogue quite a bit. The end result is the same – the party running away from the woman – but instead of it being due to her being trans, it’s because she’s actually a conspiracy theorist trying to sell them sunscreen.
In the new scene, the conversation starts to go awry after “Pretty Lady” tells them, “You know that sun in the sky isn’t real, right? That’s an artificial sun that got sent into space back into the 1980s.”
Her character name then changes to “Delusional Lady” as she tells them that “normal sunscreen doesn’t” work” against that fake sun, and tries to sell them “special” sunscreen for 300,000 yen. The gang figures out this character is a little off, and scurry. The scene’s still a little odd, but the transphobic aspect, at least, is gone in this new version.
This isn’t the first time Altus has made a change based on homophobic or transphobic content in the Persona series. In 2020, Altus changed certain scenes in Persona 5 that were considered offensive and homophobic by fans for the Western release of Persona 5 Royal.
For more on Persona 3: Reload, check out our review, where Michael Higham gave the remake a 9/10. With a stellar visual overhaul and countless small but impactful changes, Persona 3 Reload tells a timeless story of tragedy and hope with sharp emotional sincerity,” Higham wrote.
Alex Stedman is a Senior News Editor with IGN, overseeing entertainment reporting. When she’s not writing or editing, you can find her reading fantasy novels or playing Dungeons & Dragons.
Though wild speculation around metaverses has calmed somewhat in the last year, the idea is far from dead, with a number of companies still hard at work trying to find ways to integrate all their properties into one massive, interconnected space. The latest to discuss these ideas is Electronic Arts, with CEO Andrew Wilson responding to a question during today’s earnings call about a potential EA Sports metaverse with what sounds a heck of a lot like a concrete plan to make one in the near future.
During the Q&A portion, Wilson was asked if he had ever thought about “taking all of your siloed sport communities and thinking about a way to bring them all together” to “just sort of create, for lack of a better word, a metaverse?”
To this, Wilson gave a lengthy response outlining a whole lot of reasons why a publisher like EA might consider doing exactly that. He began by reiterating the enormity of the EA player community: over 700 million players, about half of which interact with the sports catalog in some way. EA Sports itself is, per Wilson, “one of the most recognizable and recognized sports brands.” And the upcoming generations Z and Alpha, he continued, often use EA Sports as an entry point to a love of sports in general.
“What we know to be true right now is our players spend on average about 90 minutes a session inside one of our games. They then leave that game experience where they’ve been deeply connected with their core friend unit, then they go and talk about that experience on another platform, then they go and create content about that experience on yet another platform, then finally they go and watch that content on another platform. We do believe we have a meaningful opportunity over the coming years to harness the power of that community both inside and outside of our games, which is really the third pillar of our core strategy, and will be led by our EA Sports brand.”
Wilson then reiterated that while he had nothing to announce today, EA sees “an incredible opportunity” in all these interconnected relationships between EA Sports’ popularity, how players behave within it and outside of it, and how it can interact with other experiences. “So best I can say is: watch this space,” he concluded.
While speculation on the metaverse has cooled in the last year, Wilson’s strategy seems far more tactical and focused than some of the more grandiose metaverse propostions floated by companies like Epic and Meta in the past. And his remarks are unshocking in light of the company’s continued EA Sports success. In today’s earnings report, EA reported net bookings of $2.37 billion and net revenue of $1.945 billion for the quarter ending on December 31, 2023, largely driven by EA Sports FC outperforming expectations with 7% year-over-year growth. Madden also remains a moneymaker, bringing in 5% year-over-year net bookings growth. And that doesn’t even get into its other properties: NHL, UFC, F1, PGA Tour, WRC, and the long-awaited EA Sports College Football. With its live services now consisting of 73% of EA’s business, it’s no surprise that EA would want to find ways to capitalize on that power, especially now that it’s proven it doesn’t need the FIFA name attached to succeed.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.
The Godzilla DLC is out right now, and what a perfect fit for Minecraft, if we say so ourselves. The idea of the dinosaur-like kaiju stomping around the blocky world of Minecraft is genius, and that’s exactly what it’ll be doing. The DLC has been developed by Japanese studio Team-KYO and Impress and introduces four new gameplay modes that highlight the history of Godzilla and its films.
Granblue Fantasy: Relink will be available on February 1 for PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4. Ahead of its release, we sat down with the General Director, Tetsuya Fukuhara, and Director Yasuyuki Kaji from Cygames to discuss the efforts that went into this title.
PlayStation Blog: As the release day approaches, tell us your feelings and thoughts about the upcoming title.
Tetsuya Fukuhara: Just like most team members, the reality hasn’t sunk in yet for me. With the support of the company, we were able to focus on the development of the game, and the demo version received a more positive response than we had hoped for, so I feel all the effort we made to make this title as exciting as possible has paid off.
Yasuyuki Kaji: I feel terrible about how long it took for us to develop Relink and for keeping our fans in limbo. That said, I truly believe our time and effort have translated well into this title. The great response we’ve received for the demo version has instilled confidence in us that players would appreciate the work we have put into Relink, but of course, I feel nervous as it gets closer to the launch.
The battle movements and tempo are quite nimble. Are there any behind-the-scenes stories on how the team decided on the battle speed and what adjustments needed to be made?
Fukuhara: From the initial concept stage, our goal was to make it so that even those still new to action games could control their character skillfully. As we refined the details like movements and hit timing, we adjusted the battle speed; Slower movement or delayed timing would ruin the exhilarating sensation, and faster movement or quicker timing would make it too difficult for the player to keep up with the movement.
Kaji: We wanted to appeal to a broader range of players. Or, more precisely, with the assumption that people who have played the original Granblue Fantasy will be playing the console version for the first time, so we wanted to avoid making the game system too strict.
With over 20 playable characters appearing in the product version of the title, each with their own unique action style and different playstyle, what mind process did you go through to create this level of difference?
Kaji: Since Granblue Fantasy characters are very popular, I didn’t want Relink to be just another game with them. We aimed to create a game that pushes the limit by bringing out the best in each character and having depth and profundity in the action.
Fukuhara: When choosing characters to include in Relink, we envisioned which characters from the original title would offer a unique play feel and contribute best to make the game more exciting. In earlier days of development, I recall reminding the team not to hold back their creativity because they seemed too focused on mirroring the animation and styles of the original title. It is true that we had to make sure that we stayed within the character images of our original Granblue Fantasy fans, but it is also true that our job was to exceed their expectations and surprise them.
The PS5 version supports the DualSense wireless controller’s haptic feedback and adaptive triggers. How are these features utilized in the game?
Kaji: One of the stages features an ether cannon that fires projectiles. When firing two types of projectiles, the adaptive trigger has different resistance, so the player feels the sensation of firing and the recoil at the tips of their fingers.
Haptic feedback, on the other hand, was fully utilized, especially in battles. As the title boasts a variety of fighting characters who use a wide range of weapons, the haptic feedback is distinctively different from slashing with a large sword to striking with a heavy fist to slicing with two swords. This is directly related to the difference in the playstyle of each character. Also, regarding the game system, when a player successfully performs a just-guard or other move, the DualSense wireless controller sendsstronger vibrations. With Haptic feedback, players can feel whether their move was a success or failure, while simultaneously allowing them to experience a sense of tactility and exhilaration.
Cygames’ graphic work excels in the new 3D iteration of the Granblue Fantasy world. How did your team work together to elevate the world, and were there any hurdles along the way?
Fukuhara: Our fundamental goal was to stay true to its 2D illustrations. Achieving that in 3D took us years of trial and error until we were finally satisfied.
Kaji: There was a period of time when we would compare the finished 3D model with the original illustration and repeatedly make adjustments, saying, This part can still be better. All the textures of the background were hand-drawn. For the background illustrations in Granblue Fantasy, the amount of information is cut back for objects seen in the distance, but to reproduce this in 3D space, we walked around the world and made adjustments.
This title places a great deal of importance on the characters. How are characters portrayed in the game?
Fukuhara: Each character comes from a unique, rich background, so it was important to include the elements of their Fate Episodes from the original version. We wanted to make them easily accessible to players stepping into the world of Relink. Since the backstory of who each character is and why they are with the main character plays an indispensable role in the game, the first two episodes of each character’s ten-part Fate Episode are revealed automatically.
Kaji: It’s not a lie if I say the Link Attacks were included for the purpose of dialogue. Chain Bursts, which is also in the original game, allow the characters to talk to each other, but that alone does not give them enough opportunities to have dialogue during normal gameplay. When we were trying to develop an organic way to allow players to have dialogue with their allies instead of monologue for a more enjoyable game experience, we decided to employ the concept of fighting together.
What are your plans for additional downloadable content, new quests, and other post-launch developments?
Fukuhara: We have already announced that we will add the most challenging quest in March, two playable characters, Seofon and Tweyen, and a new quest in April. Beyond that, I cannot reveal yet, but we are planning another update in May.
Anything else you’d like to make sure players know?
Fukuhara: Each character offers a different play experience, so I recommend playing with all characters. Of course, you can enjoy the game even if you play the main character exclusively and play solo until endgame content. You’ll notice it will go smoothly when you play the story mode, but as we have carefully created every nook and cranny of the map, we hope you step away from the story and explore the map from time to time. It’s sure to give you a fresh perspective during the game!
Kaji: We designed the game to be accessible so that many people can play and enjoy this title. As each character has their own unique style of play, we successfully imbued palpable profoundness in the game. We hope you will enjoy playing the game in a way that allows you to explore each character’s unique moves. The game offers a large selection of equipment and skills, so you can master your characters how you like to fight.
Yesterday, IGN reported that Spec Ops: The Line had been delisted from Steam. Today, we updated that story with reporting that the game had also disappeared from other digital storefronts, including Fanatical, Gamesplanet, and Nuuvem. And now, we have confirmation from 2K themselves: one of the most important video games of the Xbox 360 and PS3 generation is disappearing from online storefronts for good.
2K Games sent IGN the following statement confirming The Line’s delisting:
Spec Ops: The Line will no longer be available on online storefronts, as several partnership licenses related to the game are expiring. Players who have purchased the game can still download and play the game uninterrupted. 2K would like to thank our community of players who have supported the game, and we look forward to bringing you more offerings from our label throughout this year and beyond.
While 2K hasn’t provided specifics as to what partnerships are expiring, Spec Ops: The Line contains several pieces of licensed music, including Jimmy Hendrix’s iconic rendition of the Star Spangled Banner. Expiring music licenses have been the reason for many delistings in the past, and that would seem to be a probable reason here.
The rare military shooter that critiqued the genre
The delisting is not only a huge blow to games preservation, which already faces enormous challenges, but a loss for the medium in general. Spec Ops: The Line was one of the most important and acclaimed games of the seventh console generation and one of the rare military shooters that dared to critique the genre it operated in.
In our review, we wrote, “Spec Ops is a daring experiment worth celebrating. For the first time, a game with guns doesn’t want you to be the hero – it wants you to feel terrible about trying to be one.”
As of the time of this writing, Spec Ops: The Line is still available on Good Old Games and Xbox, where it is backwards compatible. Anyone interested in purchasing it should probably do so before it disappears into the heart of an immense darkness… for good.
Will Borger is an IGN freelancer. You can find him on Twitter @bywillborger
Starfield‘s “largest update to date” is out now. It includes dozens of bug fixes across the game alongside “lighting improvements”. The update had previously been available on PC via a beta branch on Steam for a couple of weeks.
After a brief time in Steam Beta, a significant update for Starfield in 2024 is now live, and one of the most significant changes coming to the update focuses on improving the lighting for in-game locations.
Spotted by various members on ResetEra and Reddit, Starfield’s Update 1.9.51.0 makes some tweaks to lighting. Specifically, the patch notes mention that Bethesda Game Studios has improved lighting at 73 locations. While it does not go into specifics, Starfield players online have begun posting before and after the update was installed in several locations.
Most notably, Reddit user DinDisco posted a gallery of these images showing what Starfield looked like in a few locations before and after. Pictures of specific areas, such as the Red Mile and mining caves, have drastic differences in lighting. The latter, for example, shows one cave replacing the greyish brown color scheme with blue minerals in favor of the entire lighting having a cool blue hue inside. According to the patch notes, lighting improvements were also made on the character creation page.
In our review of Starfield, which we awarded a 7 out of 10, we said: “Starfield has a lot of forces working against it, but eventually, the allure of its expansive roleplaying quests and respectable combat make its gravitational pull difficult to resist.”
You can check out the full patch notes below.
Starfield Update 1.9.51.0 Notes
Fixes and Improvements
Animation
Fixed player character’s eyes remaining closed instead of blinking in third person view.
Addressed rare cases where small animation pops could be seen in third person.
Creatures and Enemies
Fixed incorrectly invisible creatures on some planets.
Fixed an issue that could occur on some enemies causing them to stand instead of falling to the ground.
Crew and Companions
Fixed crew members and companions positioning near the cockpit after fast traveling to the ship.
Companions: Fixed a possible control-lock when talking to a companion without entering a dialogue while simultaneously trying to exit the ship.
General
[ADDED TO 1.9.51] Addressed a crash that could occur when changing from Fullscreen to Windowed mode. (PC)
Fixed an issue that prevented Windows users saving if their username featured certain characters (PC).
Fixed rare save game corruptions on PC (MSS and Steam).
Fixed an issue that could lead to a control lock or a crash after loading a quicksave while in the targeting mode.
Fixed player marker following the camera on the surface map.
Fixed a rare issue that could prevent access to the main menu on when prompted to “Press any button to Start” (Xbox).
Body type should no longer reset to default when loading a Starborn save from the main menu.
Fixed flickering on Neon’s Trade Tower elevator panel.
Improved the appearance of the Ryujin Kiosk material during nighttime.
Fixed rare issue with how Cydonia’s panel could display the hours without incident.
Added Optimizations to cloud syncing of save games (MSS/Xbox).
Improved how crowds behave when desired target is reserved.
Fixed an issue that could cause airlock doors to sometimes appear floating in sky when arriving at locations.
Fixed unintended text appearing on the shipbuilder’s UI.
Fixed game session not properly resuming from shutdown in Energy Save mode (Xbox).
Various stability improvements.
Graphics
Improved widescreen support (32:9, 21:9 and 16:10).
Added support for stars displaying sun disk geometry.
Shadows can now be seen on planet rings from planet surface.
Improved eyes and skin on crowd characters.
Improved reflection on water.
Improved contact shadows on character skin (Xbox and PC Medium/High/Ultra).
Improved contact shadows on character cloth (PC High/Ultra).
Improved contact shadows on first person (PC Ultra).
Improved lighting in character generation menu.
Reduced the appearance of some minor artifacts during cutscene camera transitions.
Fixed flickering on a number of VFX (Sandstorm, corrosive liquid pools, waterfall).
Fixed a rare issue where the camera would lock while in handscanner mode whenever watching flying fauna (Xbox).
Fixed potential control lock when opening a game menu a moment before triggering a dialogue with another character.
Addressed various shadow popping, flickering and artifact issues.
Improved the visibility of the sun’s lens flare during sunrise and sunset.
Fixed a rare issue where foam or grime would not show up.
Fixed rare flickering VFX that could occur in space (Xbox Series S).
Fixed rare hair flickering (Xbox Series X/S).
Fixed occasional flicker on digiframes and TV screens.
Adjusted the appearance of bloom when activating the handscanner.
Improved the appearance of clouds during weather transitions.
Fixed rare cases where alignment of grass and wind could appear disconnected.
Reduced bloom intensity effect while motion blur is active (PC).
Addressed issues with concealment effect not always applying when using the handscanner.
Fixed visible edge of the ocean in the distance when seen from a very high point of view.
Fixed rare white flickering dots around characters’ hair during cut scenes.
Fixed a readability issue in the Starmap when using large menu font mode.
Fixed inventory menu occasionally failing to generate previews when using a mouse (PC).
Fixed a brief Depth of Field issue that sometimes occurred when aiming, alt-tabbing or leaving a dialogue screen.
Fixed occasional lighting transition issues after loading or exiting a location.
Fixed an issue that could cause intermittent bands to appear in distance fog.
Fixed a rare issue that could cause fog color to appear inconsistent.
Fixed a rare issue that could cause rocks to disappear near the player on the surface of a planet.
Fixed a crash that could occur when switching to DLSS with dynamic resolution active (PC).
Fixed flickering and delayed shadows sometimes occurring after unpausing the game.
Fixed various FSR2 and DLSS artifacts (noise, black dots, ghosting).
Fixed flickering when using the handscanner with DLSS enabled.
Fixed initial lighting conditions when landing on a planet.
Improved lighting at 73 locations.
Fixed various geometry, texture, and ghosting issues.
Outposts
Fixed a rare missing terrain issue that could occur after fast traveling to an outpost near New Atlantis.
Fixed an issue that could cause bulldozed objects to reappear when returning to an outpost.
Fixed an issue that caused hazard damage to remain even when the hazard was removed by bulldozing in outposts.
Fixed an issue where outpost’s cargo links would be removed from the terminal list if connected, disconnected, then reconnected to another cargo link during the cargo ship landing sequence.
Fixed an issue where weapon cases built by the player in an Outpost would populate with weapons and ammo after reloading the game.
Powers
Fixed a rare issue that could cause the Phased Time power to remain enabled.
Fixed the extreme speed that could occur in zero G when using the Phased Time power.
Solar Flare Power now accounts for critical hits.
Quests and Random Encounters
Absolute Power: Fixed missing slate in the safe preventing from completing the optional objective “Locate Evidence to Extort Ayumi Komiko”.
Background Checks: Fixed possible control-lock that could occur if caught by security.
Derelict Ship: Fixed an issue preventing the player from reaching the pilot seat if they did not have access to advanced locks.
Drinks on the House: Fixed rare occurrence where the door to Sub 12 could remain locked.
Echoes of the Past: Fixed Delgado getting stuck at bottom of stairs during “Continue Exploring the Lock” that could occur if The Lock was left during Delgado’s history dialogue.
Echoes of the Past: Resolved an issue that could cause Mathis’ and Delgado’s guns to be invisible.
Eye of the Storm: Fixed an issue that could cause data transfer to not start after placing the Data Core.
Eye of the Storm: Fixed an issue where the docking prompt would be missing on the Legacy ship if the player undocked with the Legacy and then reloaded a save before having started the mission.
Executive Level: Fixed an issue where players could get stuck on a chair in the Ryujin Industries HQ conference room.
Failure to Communicate: Fixed an issue that prevented the player from finishing the quest if they downed all the members of the defense pact (Alban Lopez, Jacquelyn Lemaire, and Chanda Banda).
Further Into the Unknown: Fixed a rare crash that could occur when trying to dock with The Eye.
Groundpounder: Fixed an issue where the door to Lezama could sometimes be locked if the player left the location during the quest and came back later.
Hostile Intelligence: Fixed blocked doors in the Steam Tunnels room where the Terrormorph transformation occurs.
Into the Unknown: Fixed a rare issue that could prevent the quest from starting after completing The Old Neighborhood.
Into the Unknown: Fixed a rare issue where a Temple location might not populate when receiving the “Go to” objective.
Legacy’s End: Fixed an issue that could prevent interacting with Delgado when he was behind the glass inside in the command center of The Key.
Legacy’s End: Fixed a debris pile where to player could become stuck while trying to reach the Mess Hall.
Missed Beyond Measure: Fixed a dialogue between Sarah and Walter not playing at The Lodge.
No Sudden Moves: Fixed companions not following player during personal quests.
On The Run: Fixed various issues related to Mei Devine becoming inaccessible the objective updated to “Listen to Mei Devine’s Introduction”.
On The Run: Fixed a possible control lock when sitting at the table to talk to Jade MacMillan.
One Small Step: Fixed a rare issue that could prevent Lin / Heller from exiting the airlock.
Operation Starseed: Fixed a bad view that could occur if the Beagle was boarded after a long idle.
Power From Beyond: Fixed an issue that caused missing Starborn temples and scanner disturbances that could prevent obtaining all Starborn powers from that universe.
Rough Landings: Resolved an issue that could occur during the “Meet up with Milena Axelrod” objective that could prevent ships from appearing at the desired location.
Shadows in Neon: Fixed an issue that could occur when repeatedly using the door to Jaylen Pryce’s office before he progressed to Neon Core.
Supra et Ultra: Fixed a control lock that could occur when entering the Flight Simulator while a guard is attempting arrest.
Tapping the Grid: Fixed inaccessible junction boxes that could occur after the Hunter attacks the Lodge.
The Best There Is: Fixed an issue that could prevent objective from advancing when talking to Naeva and Jasmine in the engineering room.
The Empty Nest: Fixed and issue that could cause Sam Coe’s gun to be invisible when inside Jacob’s house.
The Heart of Mars: Fixed another location that could potentially prevent recovering The Heart of Mars.
The Pale Lady: Fixed rare case of inaccessible ship crew log data slate making it impossible to complete the encounter.
Top of the L.I.S.T.: Phil Hill should now accept survey data for Sumati.
War Relics: Resolved an issue that could prevent Kaiser from moving to the mission site.
Where Hope is Built: Fixed a crash that could occur with a specific set of player behaviors.
Ships and Ship Customization
Fixed another case that could cause an asteroid to follow a ship in space.
Fixed ship hatch being marked inaccessible after swapping to a new home ship.
Fixed an issue where the ship could end up in an unintended state by simultaneously attempting fast travel during a grav jump.
Fixed a view issue that could occur when fast traveling during ship targeting mode.
Fixed an issue that could occur when entering Ship Targeting mode immediately after selecting a Grav Jump.
Fixed an issue that caused non-functional ladders to appear when the player modified their ship with a Taiyo All-In-One Berth Top A and a Deimos 1×1.
Fixed an issue where the Legendary ship could take too long to resume firing after the weapons were repaired.
Space combat should now match ground combat difficulty increase with successive trips through the Unity.
Fixed an issue where loading an exit save made while docked to a space station could cause names of ships to change.
Fixed marker not pointing to the current home ship after performing a save/load between different ships.
Fixed in issue that could cause the Frontier to incorrectly appear if a non-home ship was removed from a landing pad.
Skils
REJUVENATION: Rejuvenation skill VFX no longer replay whenever the handscanner is opened in third person.
SURVEYING: Fixed surveying challenge progress issue with mineral resource.
TARGETING CONTROL SYSTEMS: Fixed inconsistencies with level 3 and 4.
Weapons and Items
Fixed incorrect reload amounts that could occur when consuming a Trauma Pack.
Fixed FOV and zoom issues with weapon scopes.
Fixed weapon sound effects occasionally continuing to play after killing an enemy.
Fixed turret state not being restored properly after and save and load.
Fixed an issue that could cause the helmet light to not reappear in third person after a save and load.
Taylor is a Reporter at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.
AMD’s best value graphics card is the RX 7800 XT – stop me if you’ve heard this one before. Today American customers have a great chance to pick up a powerful Gigabyte Gaming OC model of this card for just $480 thanks to a discount code at Newegg.
For the reduced price use BYJDN2823 at the checkout. As well as the graphics card, you’ll also pick up a complimentary copy of Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, which is nice too.
MLB The Show 24 has been announced today, along with its release date. The game will be launching on Switch (and all other platforms) on 19th March 2024, with this year’s cover star revealed to be Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of the Toronto Blue Jays.
Revealed on PlayStation.Blog and through Nintendo’s Twitter, MLB The Show 24 brings back last year’s acclaimed Storylines mode and also promises to be a feature-rich version of the game, just as MLB The Show 23 was. New features for the latest entry in the series will be revealed on Twitch and YouTube in the run-up to the game’s release.
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