Overwatch’s New Character Gets Her First Nerf
Overwatch’s next hero, Orisa, has been nerfed for the first time ahead of a full release.
Orisa’s Fusion Driver weapon has had its magazine size lowered from 200 to 150, and her Supercharger ultimate ability – which deploys a device to increase the team’s damage output – has had its cost increased by 15 percent.
Of course, this kind of change is precisely why new Overwatch features are added to the Public Test Realm servers before release, as it gives Blizzard a much broader pool of results to work with. It's entirely possible that Orisa will return to her original state, or an entirely new one, when she hits the main game on all platforms.
Orisa isn’t the only hero getting a nerf in the next phase of public testing. Ana’s Biotic Rifle has had its damage reduced from 80 to 60, and, likewise, her Biotic Grenade has seen its impact damage reduced from 60 to 30, as well as its impact healing reduced from 100 to 50.
Mass Effect: Andromeda DLC Multiplayer Maps Will Be Free
BioWare has confirmed that any multiplayer maps added to Mass Effect: Andromeda will be released for free.
Company GM, Aaryn Flynn (as spotted by WWG) outlined the idea in a reply to a fan question on Twitter:
@DJSrules @N7Follower @DiscoBabaloo It's going to be just like ME3
— Aaryn Flynn (@AarynFlynn) March 5, 2017
Nintendo Switch: Wi-Fi Connection Issues for Some Players
Switch Launch Sales in the Americas Surpass Wii Launch
Nintendo’s new Switch has reportedly enjoyed the best first 48 hours of sales in the Americas in the company’s history. The news comes via New York Times reporter Nick Wingfield on Twitter, following an interview with Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aimé.
2. Fri-Sat sales for Nintendo Switch exceeded first 2-day sales in Americas for any system in Nintendo history. Next biggest was Wii.
— Nick Wingfield (@nickwingfield) March 6, 2017
Gravel Is Milestone’s New Off-Road Racing Game
Italian racing specialists Milestone (best known for its Superbike games, and previous home of the WRC series) has announced its new off-road racer: Gravel.
Gravel will feature dynamic time-of-day and weather effects across a range of open environments and tracks set around the world, “including forests, snowy mountains, dunes, and deserts.”
Racing will take place over four disciplines: cross country checkpoint chases, track-based sprints, jump-filled stadium events, and “combative races.”
Gravel will feature over 50 vehicles, with a garage representing off-road vehicles from the ’70s right up to 2017. Interestingly Milestone has even secured Porsche, joining a modest list of racing game developers working with the iconic manufacturer since its long-running exclusivity deal with EA concluded last year.
Sega Acquires Crytek Black Sea, Expands Creative Assembly
Sega Europe has announced today it has acquired Crytek Black Sea and added the studio to the ranks of Halo Wars 2, Total War, and Alien: Isolation developer Creative Assembly, reports GamesIndustry.biz.
The studio, based in Bulgaria’s capital, will now be called Creative Assembly Sofia.
Crytek Black Sea was established in 2008 after Crytek’s purchase of Black Sea Studios (Knights of Honor, Worldshift). Crytek Black Sea was developing Crytek’s free-to-play MOBA Arena of Fate up until their closure in December 2016. The studio was one of five shuttered by Crytek following a lengthy period of financial strife for the German software company.
Top Comics to Buy This Week
With dozens of comic books to choose from, let us show you which are the best coming out this week. Take a look at this list spotlighting our favorite comics that we know are money-well-spent and new books that look cool and are backed by some top-tier talent.
Check out our picks, then head to the comments to let us know what you’ll be buying this week!
By writers Charles Soule & Jeff Lemire & artist Leinil Yu | Marvel
Marvel Comics Teases New X-Men Team
Marvel Comics tweeted a teaser for what appears to be a new X-Men team comic. The tweet reads "The comic series fans have been demanding! Coming June 2017." and boasts the ResurrXion hashtag, which is the branding for the new line of X-Men comics after Inhumans vs. X-Men ends.
Archangel and Old Man Logan are the first members. (Marvel Comics)
Send Us Your Fashionable Links From Breath of the Wild
Tons of armor sets, clothing, and customization options make the Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild one of the most fashionable in the series.
We've already shared our favorite screenshots from Breath of the Wild, but now we want to give you the chance to share something with us.
Send us screenshots of Link looking particularly fashionable in your Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild game, and you could be included in our round-up of best-looking Breath of the Wild outfits.
For now, check out our favorite screenshots from Breath of the Wild in the gallery below. Spoilers will be marked.
PAX East Xbox Custom Controller Giveaway
PAX East is right around the corner, and IGN is partnering with Microsoft to provide fans a chance to win one of twelve Xbox custom controllers.
In addition to a special IGN-themed controller, these custom controllers feature designs inspired by new and upcoming Xbox One games, including Halo Wars 2, Sea of Thieves, Crackdown 3, Gears of War 4, Mass Effect: Andromeda and more, all of which can be seen in the galley below.
- Option 1: Follow @Xbox and retweet @Xbox's PAX East #XboxSweepstakes post
- Option 2: Follow @Xbox on Twitter or Instagram and post a photo from the Xbox booth of your favorite controller design and include #XboxSweepstakes