Monthly Archives: September 2019
The OnePlus 7T Gives You High-End Smartphone Specs for $600
A few months ago, OnePlus introduced a whopper of an Android phone with the OnePlus 7 Pro, but we never got its smaller sibling, the regular OnePlus 7, here in the states. Well, now OnePlus is announcing we’re all getting a new OnePlus 7T complete with a 90Hz screen, triple camera setup, and a new processor.
The OnePlus 7T really is a better OnePlus 7 Pro squeezed into a smaller package. The phone has been upgraded with 90Hz Fluid AMOLED display that also hits a 1,000-nit peak brightness to meet the latest HDR10+ certification.
Why The Last of Us Part 2 Isn’t Open World
Naughty Dog didn’t intend to make its biggest game ever with The Last of Us Part II, but according to Creative Director (and co-writer) Neil Druckmann, the ambitions of the story necessitated it.
“We didn’t set out to make the biggest game we’ve ever done, we set out to tell this really ambitious story that became the biggest game we’ve ever done. And that’s why we took as long as we have,” Druckmann told me after my recent hands-on time with The Last of Us Part II.
“The story we laid out four years ago is really complex, has a large cast of characters. The core of it is simple, but where it goes and the twist and turns are complex,” he said. “We needed more time for cinematics, we needed more locations, we needed more types of enemies. So the scope of it kept growing.”
Why The Last of Us Part 2 Isn’t Open World
Naughty Dog didn’t intend to make its biggest game ever with The Last of Us Part II, but according to Creative Director (and co-writer) Neil Druckmann, the ambitions of the story necessitated it.
“We didn’t set out to make the biggest game we’ve ever done, we set out to tell this really ambitious story that became the biggest game we’ve ever done. And that’s why we took as long as we have,” Druckmann told me after my recent hands-on time with The Last of Us Part II.
“The story we laid out four years ago is really complex, has a large cast of characters. The core of it is simple, but where it goes and the twist and turns are complex,” he said. “We needed more time for cinematics, we needed more locations, we needed more types of enemies. So the scope of it kept growing.”
The Last of Us Part 2 Creative Director on Joel’s Role in the Sequel
The Last of Us Part II’s release date trailer gave us our first proper look at the first game’s protagonist, Joel, as he appears in the upcoming sequel. And given Joel’s relative absence in footage so far, as well as in the more than two hours I played of The Last of Us Part II, I was curious if that implied a downsized role or importance in the sequel.
So while speaking to Neil Druckmann, Naughty Dog Vice President and Creative Director of The Last of Us Part 2, I asked whether we should take Joel’s smaller role so far as indicative of his importance to Ellie in the sequel. Watch the video above to see his full response, plus some new gameplay from the sequel.
“Their relationship is strained. Some of it is because teenagers will be teenagers, and some of it is because of their history, which is why you haven’t seen them together a lot,” he said. “So much of The Last of Us is about this duo and their dynamic and how they are together, how they play together. I will say Joel plays a major part of this game.”
The Last of Us Part 2 Creative Director on Joel’s Role in the Sequel
The Last of Us Part II’s release date trailer gave us our first proper look at the first game’s protagonist, Joel, as he appears in the upcoming sequel. And given Joel’s relative absence in footage so far, as well as in the more than two hours I played of The Last of Us Part II, I was curious if that implied a downsized role or importance in the sequel.
So while speaking to Neil Druckmann, Naughty Dog Vice President and Creative Director of The Last of Us Part 2, I asked whether we should take Joel’s smaller role so far as indicative of his importance to Ellie in the sequel. Watch the video above to see his full response, plus some new gameplay from the sequel.
“Their relationship is strained. Some of it is because teenagers will be teenagers, and some of it is because of their history, which is why you haven’t seen them together a lot,” he said. “So much of The Last of Us is about this duo and their dynamic and how they are together, how they play together. I will say Joel plays a major part of this game.”
The Last of Us Part 2: What We Think After 2 Hours of Play
After just over two hours of my first hands-on time with The Last of Us Part 2, I finished my last encounter, and let out one of the longest-held breaths of my gaming life. Following many tense battles with clickers and humans alike, I’m absolutely confident in Naughty Dog’s impressive, brutal combat, set in a richly-detailed world. And I’m equally intrigued by the teases of The Last of Us Part 2’s story I glimpsed throughout my demo, including a knockout performance by returning lead Ashley Johnson as Ellie.
This preview for The Last of Us Part 2 will clearly mark story-focused elements, for those who wish to know nothing about the narrative content shown in our demo. Also, be sure to watch the video preview above, which features new gameplay from The Last of Us Part 2.
The Last of Us Part 2: What We Think After 2 Hours of Play
After just over two hours of my first hands-on time with The Last of Us Part 2, I finished my last encounter, and let out one of the longest-held breaths of my gaming life. Following many tense battles with clickers and humans alike, I’m absolutely confident in Naughty Dog’s impressive, brutal combat, set in a richly-detailed world. And I’m equally intrigued by the teases of The Last of Us Part 2’s story I glimpsed throughout my demo, including a knockout performance by returning lead Ashley Johnson as Ellie.
This preview for The Last of Us Part 2 will clearly mark story-focused elements, for those who wish to know nothing about the narrative content shown in our demo. Also, be sure to watch the video preview above, which features new gameplay from The Last of Us Part 2.
Here are the Best Xbox Deals Online Right Now
Some of the best deals on Xbox One happened during Amazon Prime Day, but you didn't miss out entirely. There are still plenty of chances to save. Microsoft is running an Xbox sale right now, offering Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for $1 for 1 month, or $14.99 for 3 months. Those Xbox deals are running out soon, though.
Here are the best current deals on Xbox One hardware. As always, the best prices are in Xbox One bundled deals.
Best Xbox One X Bundle Deals
Xbox One X Fallout 76 Bundle for $336.69
Destiny 2: Shadowkeep Preview – An Exciting Reset
The second you hop into Shadowkeep you notice that things under the hood are different. The less visually apparent Artifact, Armor 2.0 and mod changes will have a huge impact on how you choose to craft your play style and its necessity becomes immediately apparent when you first arrive on the moon.
Called here by Eris Morn, a glowy green-eyed friend of the Vanguard, you’ll find that the location is less than hospitable, even if you ended the last expansion as the strongest of guardians. The first enemies you encounter upon landing are well above your level as indicated by the sword icons above their head. I took that as a message from Bungie that they wanted us to hear loud and clear. This Season is going to challenge you. This is a new Destiny. Several times during our exploration we found enemies we couldn’t even damage in locations like the Temple of Crota, or even just off the beaten path from main story quests. Experience points, gear, and leveling will play a bigger part than ever before and I love this new layer of complexity and challenge that's being added.
Destiny 2: Shadowkeep Preview – An Exciting Reset
The second you hop into Shadowkeep you notice that things under the hood are different. The less visually apparent Artifact, Armor 2.0 and mod changes will have a huge impact on how you choose to craft your play style and its necessity becomes immediately apparent when you first arrive on the moon.
Called here by Eris Morn, a glowy green-eyed friend of the Vanguard, you’ll find that the location is less than hospitable, even if you ended the last expansion as the strongest of guardians. The first enemies you encounter upon landing are well above your level as indicated by the sword icons above their head. I took that as a message from Bungie that they wanted us to hear loud and clear. This Season is going to challenge you. This is a new Destiny. Several times during our exploration we found enemies we couldn’t even damage in locations like the Temple of Crota, or even just off the beaten path from main story quests. Experience points, gear, and leveling will play a bigger part than ever before and I love this new layer of complexity and challenge that's being added.