Episode 49 – Cigarettes fully censored in Gears 5

recorded 7/19/2019

Cigarettes to be fully censored in Gears 5 cuz of Youth Anti-Tobacco Org (reddit, PCGamesN)

• Rod Ferguson, the creative director of the Gears of War franchise, stated the following:
• “I’ve always been anti-smoking and have pushed back on having it in Gears since day one. There was no smoking to remove from Gears 4 or 5 because there never was any smoking to begin with. And as long as I’m in control, there never will be. Sorry for the confusion.”  “I didn’t want to glamorize something that is addictive and kill you,” Further adding “Wasn’t trying to be any moral police, just reflecting my beliefs after losing friends to lung cancer. If you had the ability to create a world, what would you change?”

Nintendo to release a refreshed version of the OG Switch with much better battery life (Kotaku)

• The battery life of this refreshed Switch will last between 4.5 and 9 hours compared to the OG Switch battery life which is 2.5 to 6.5 hours; will be the same price
• This coincides with the FCC filing found last week, this model may hit stores mid August
• New Joy-Con colors announced are Neon Blue, Yellow, Purple, Orange

The Gears 5 tech test starts today at 1pm ET and ends July 22nd at 1pm ET (GamesRadar+)

• Get access If have Game Pass, Game Pass Ultimate subscriber or pre-order the game

Some more Google Stadia news was released per a reddit AMA yesterday (Engadget)

• Stadia Pro will not be a “Netflix for games” instead is closer to Xbox Live Gold or PS Plus
• Stadia Pro $10/month = 4k/HDR streaming, 5.1 sound, discounts, 1 free game/month
• The free plan of Stadia only gives you access to use the service, that is all
• The Stadia controller will not support bluetooth audio at launch in November
  • The controller does have a headphone jack though
• Can continue to use games even if Stadia gets discontinued
• Stadia’s initial social aspects include, friends list, parties, platform level voice chat
  • In the future, there will be achievements, family sharing, and more early next year

Rapid Fire News

According to Alvin Liu (Spokesperson for CD Projekt Red) it is hinted that there are more hollywood talent than just Keanu in the game. But we dont know who! (comicbook.com) 

• He did say it won’t be Britany Spears or Lady Gaga so we can cross those off

Trinity mode announced for Hunt: Showdown and will be a squad of 3 people (resetera)

Ubisoft unveils list of games on UPlay+ at launch and they are the major franchises (Ubisoft)

• This service will be available through Stadia at launch

Playstation will hold a China Joy conference on August 1st and will be 2 hours long (resetera)

Newark International Airport is using Xbox Kinects for surveillance…..lol (TechSpot) 

Project xCloud start public tests at GamesCom in August and preview in October (neowin.net)

Sony and Microsoft will be at GamesCom so look out for some hot news (GamesRadar+)

GameStop is revamping stores in a desperate attempt to stay relevant. (DualShockers)

• Retro gaming center and Local Tournaments
• Will function more as your local “mom & pop” game store

EA announced that Plants vs Zombies 3 is currently in development (Engadget)

Gears of War: Ascendence = book series that ties into Gears 5 and releases this year (resetera)

Tim Willits, id software studio head, is leaving id software after 24 years (PC Gamer)

Psychonaughts 2 is delayed to 2020. Devs want the game to be “as good as possible” (Gamesradar+)

Upcoming Releases and Deals

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order releases today to a middling 74 metascore

Wolfenstien: Young Blood releases July 26 which is next Friday…grab a buddy and shoot

Luigi’s Mansion 3 will launch exclusively on Nintendo Switch on October 31 (Nintendo)

Xbox Live Summer Sale started Tuesday and ends July 31 with a ton of games (resetera)

PSN flash sale for US started yesterday and ends July 22 (Wario 64)

Tetris Effect comes to PC and will be exclusive to the Epic Store on July 23 (resetera)

Vampyr is coming to the Switch sometime in October (Focus Home Interactive)

DC Universe Online lands on Nintendo Switch on August 6 (DC Universe Online)

Rumor Mill

August PS Plus games may have leaked and coube be Star Wars Battlefront II and EA UFC 3

PS5 next gen VR headset patents will be wireless, have eye tracking, and costs $250 (Inverse)