Introduced in 2014 with the game Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, Monolith Productions’ Nemesis system has set a milestone in video game design by allowing enemies to exist within a hierarchy and remember previous interactions with the player. This innovative system has been the subject of discussion since Warner Bros. Games closed the studio this winter, leading many to think that players may have reached the end of their relationship with this unique mechanic for over a decade. A system that copyright will not prevent […]
Introduced in 2014 with the game Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, Monolith Productions’ Nemesis system has marked a milestone in video game design by allowing enemies to exist within a hierarchy and remember previous interactions with the player. This innovative system has been a topic of discussion since Warner Bros. Games closed the studio this winter, leading many to think that players may have reached the end of their relationship with this unique mechanic for over a decade.
A system that copyright will not prevent from being used
Despite the uncertainty, industry experts have pointed out that the legacy of the Nemesis system could continue to influence future developments. Xalavier Nelson Jr., leader of the studio Strange Scaffold, commented in a recent interview that the patent of the system offers other designers a significant space to operate without infringing legal restrictions. He mentions that similar elements can be found in the Mercenaries system in Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey, which retains the idea of a hierarchical list of enemies, although it cannot replicate all the complexities of the original design due to the existing patent.
Scott Kelly, patent attorney, adds that the video game industry is built on prior ideas and suggests that developers can leverage aspects of the Nemesis system without infringing the patent. This flexibility offers hope that concepts inspired by Monolith’s mechanics will persist in future productions.
In a recent turn of events, Warner Bros. Games is working on a new intellectual property, following the cancellation of a Wonder Woman game. Although details are scarce, this new IP is expected to launch this year, which could present a new opportunity for the evolution of gaming in the ecosystem that once housed the innovative Nemesis system.
The launch of Assassin’s Creed Shadows has marked a milestone in Ubisoft’s franchise, offering an immersive experience set in feudal Japan. With its impressive open world and the dynamic between the protagonists Naoe and Yasuke, the game has not only raised graphical standards but has also captured the attention of millions of players in just three days since its release. Spectacular figures typical of the best-selling games in the franchise Since its debut, Assassin’s Creed Shadows has reached over 2 million players, a figure that surpasses the records of previous launches like Assassin’s Creed […]
The launch of Assassin’s Creed Shadows has marked a milestone in Ubisoft’s franchise, offering an immersive experience set in feudal Japan. With its stunning open world and the dynamic between the protagonists Naoe and Yasuke, the game has not only raised graphical standards but has also captured the attention of millions of players in just three days since its release.
Spectacular figures typical of the best-selling games in the franchise
Since its debut, Assassin’s Creed Shadows has reached over 2 million players, a figure that surpasses the records of previous launches such as Assassin’s Creed Odyssey and Assassin’s Creed Origins in the same period. This remarkable success includes both individual game sales and subscriptions to services that provide access to Ubisoft titles, which has contributed to Shadows’ strong start in the market.
The record for concurrent users on Steam has been another notable achievement, with a peak of 64,825 players, thus surpassing Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, which had 62,069 at its best moment. Although the exact figures on consoles are still unknown, the game has received a 4.74 out of 5 on the PS Store and has garnered over 7,500 positive reviews on Steam, reflecting a very favorable reception from the community.
With these encouraging numbers, analysts speculate whether Assassin’s Creed Shadows will be able to match the impressive sales figures achieved by Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, the best-selling title in the franchise released in 2020. The future looks bright for Ubisoft, which aims to regain its financial balance through this release, which is shaping up to be one of the most successful in its history.
The best Xbox Game Pass games you can play now, from the latest releases of this year to timeless video game classics.
One of the great gifts of this Christmas has been the Xbox. Whether it’s the Series X or the Series S, this has been a year where, thanks to the offers and a catalog that is settling, it begins to shine on its own. But let’s not fool ourselves. A good reason to switch to Xbox is GamePass. But it can be intimidating. There are many games. Too much to choose from. Where to start? Well, here we make a selection of the best games to jump into right now so you don’t have to navigate for hours without knowing what to play.
Sometimes you feel like playing a simple, sweet game that makes you feel comfortable and warm. A Short Hike is exactly that. An adventure of reaching the top of a mountain by the route that seems most suitable to us. With a simple open world, many possibilities, and never forcing us to go on a specific path or even reach the top, it is a game that encourages us to simply live in the moment.
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey
Sometimes you feel like playing a simple game, sometimes you feel like embarking on a dozens of hours epic where you can get lost and feel like you will never get out of there if you don’t want to. That’s what Assassin’s Creed Odyssey offers you, a huge game, full of collectibles, mysteries and most importantly: a great story and even better characters. The best Assasin’s Creed to get into today, and it’s even available on GamePass.
Cocoon
During this year that is ending in Xbox Game Pass, some great games have appeared. One of them has been Cocoon. An excellent third-person puzzle game created by the designer of Limbo and Inside. It lasts only five or six hours, but it is designed with an absolutely insane finesse. And if you want more, you also have Limbo and Inside on the platform.
Although nostalgia is a trap, sometimes you can make a burrow in the trap. That happens with GoldenEye007. The version available on Xbox Game Pass not only serves to check how shooters have evolved in the last twenty-five years, but also to enjoy a game that you may have enjoyed during your childhood. The first shooter that, for many, was the excuse to get together with friends and shoot each other.
Hi-Fi Rush
Although surprise releases are becoming more common, surprise announcements and releases are still extremely rare. Even more so in a game the size of Hi-Fi Rush. But it turns out that this game from Tango Gameworks, a mix of action and rhythm game, is an absolute delight. Fun, clever, and very dynamic, it’s the perfect game to spend a weekend laughing and rocking out.
Jusant
Sometimes all you need is a game with excellent mechanics and a carefully crafted environmental narrative. Although we could be talking about a game from From Software, we are actually talking about a game from Don’t Nod. Because Jusant perfectly accomplishes both things: introducing perfect climbing mechanics that make you want to keep going forever, and a delicate and well-thought-out narrative that rewards paying attention and taking your time with the game. A delight that you shouldn’t miss.
Lies of P
Talking about From Software games, this year there has finally been a studio capable of making a Soulslike that can satisfy us. Andits name is Lies of P. With an extravagant reinterpretation of Pinocchio’s story, it builds a very satisfying Dark Souls-style game that has its own twist based on those foundations. Adjusted through patches, it is still not as good as From Software’s games, but it is almost as good as them. And that’s not saying little.
Although it hasn’t turned out as we expected, Starfield is a very interesting game if you are a fan of Bethesda games. Although “Skyrim in space” is a title that is too big for it, it is true that, after 40 hours of story, a universe of very interesting possibilities opens up in a game that is somewhat lacking in all its aspects. Bad? Not exactly. But even more than Skyrim, it is a game that you have to discover how to find fun in it. And if you are capable, it can be fun like no other.
Wolfenstein: The New Order
We live in a problematic world in certain aspects, so it’s okay to be able to immerse ourselves in power fantasies that allow us to do what we can’t in reality. For example, Wolfenstein: The New Order. A game where we embody a soldier who faces the Nazis after they have won the Second World War. In this game, MachineGames managed to perfect a heavy and brutal shooter style that, even today, remains extremely satisfying. That, and killing Nazis, is clearly the ultimate power fantasy for 2024.
Yakuza: Like A Dragon
The Yakuza saga has gained a lot of popularity in recent years. The problem is that knowing where to start can be very complex. We’ll make it easy for you: play Yakuza: Like A Dragon. That will leave you ready to play the next installment of the saga, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, and jump into the previous titles of the franchise. All of them available on GamePass, so you can immerse yourself in literally 200 or 300 hours of an epic yakuza epic, if that’s what you want. Or just stick with the new ones, because they are semi-independent.
The latest trick that Ubisoft has deliberately played on the players of ‘Assassin’s Creed Odyssey’ and it is simply too much.
The issue of ads in video games is starting to stink. Yes, we’ve all gotten used to mobile games—especially free-to-play ones—having ads here and there, but the possibilities, sadly, are endless. The proof is in the latest trick that Ubisoft has slipped into ‘Assassin’s Creed Odyssey’ players, which is simply too much, as if they didn’t want to acknowledge it.
The advertising odyssey
If you’re a fan of ‘Assassin’s Creed’, you might not be able to play much else because Ubisoft churns out new games for the franchise at a breakneck speed. In fact, since ‘Odyssey’, they’ve already released ‘Valhalla’ and ‘Mirage’, with new installments soon to follow. If you want to play through the entire saga, get ready for quite a few hours, as it already totals 30 titles, including 13 console games and 17 mobile or virtual reality spin-offs, all in just 15 years. Whew.
However, no matter how much variety the franchise offers, when you’re immersed in a video game, you expect it to isolate you from the rest and not remind you that, deep down, it’s a product and you’re just a consumer. Nevertheless, Ubisoft has decided that upon opening the map in ‘Assassin’s Creed Odyssey’, before accessing it, a fabulous Black Friday offer promoting… ‘Assassin’s Creed Mirage‘ appears.
Users have responded in a way far from enthusiasm: with threats to uninstall the game and even return it, swearing off any future titles from the series (something we know will likely change when ‘Assassin’s Creed Codename Red,’ or whatever it’s finally called, hits the market). And it’s true that a company should only let marketing possibilities go so far: Ubisoft has clearly crossed the line, and fans are far from happy with the decision.
We’ve grown accustomed to practices like these, but it’s always surprising that games, always pushing cosmetic microtransactions, DLCs, and other easy money-grabs, continue to want to accumulate more and more, even if it means ruining the player’s experience. Hopefully, in the future, we’ll see less of these practices… if the data doesn’t turn out as positive as they expect. Fingers crossed.
Get great games like Borderlands: The Handsome Collection, Witcher III, and Shadow of the Tomb Raider for a low price!
The Steam summer sale is here! You can click here to see the full list of deals, but you probably don’t want to sift through 1,322 pages. Luckily, we found the best deals of the sale just for you!
With over 20 games released on everything from the Wii U to the Xbox One, Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed series is maybe one of the most prolific franchises in gaming. With such a huge list of titles to choose from, where should new players jump in?
With over 20 games released on everything from the Wii U to the Xbox One, Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed series is maybe one of the most prolific franchises in gaming. The games are set in various eras of history and chronicle the age-old conflict between two ancient secret societies, the Assassins and the Templars. With such a huge list of titles to choose from, where should new players jump in? Fear not: we’ve compiled a list of the five games essential for players who are new to the series.
1. Assassin’s Creed II
The second title in the series introduces players to Ezio Auditore da Firenze, an Assassin during the Italian Renaissance and perhaps one of the game’s most beloved characters. A marked improvement on the first Assassin’s Creed, this is a perfect introduction to the franchise, and perhaps one of its strongest entries. Players can explore gorgeously rendered Italian cities such as Venice and Florence while familiarizing themselves with the game’s trademark stealth mechanics, pulling off spectacular assassinations, and meeting up with historical icons like Leonardo Da Vinci.
Brotherhood is an immediate follow-up to Assassin’s Creed II, and the first game in the series to feature a multiplayer mode. In the main story, players again return as Ezio as he begins building the Assassins into a truly powerful organization. Familiar characters from the second game return, endowing Ezio with new equipment and abilities. Players can also command teams of Assassin recruits, using them to achieve an edge in combat or sending them on missions across the globe to find new weapons, armor, and treasures for Ezio to use.
3. Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag
Black Flag is set during the Golden Age of Piracy. This time, players take control of Edward Kenway, a pirate and reluctant Assassin. Players can explore an absolutely massive map of the Caribbean, sailing from island to island as they customize their own ship and build up their pirate hideout. The ship combat is easily one of the best parts of this game. Players can attack small merchant vessels for supplies or go after larger warships to add to their fleet, and can either attack from a distance or jump aboard disabled ships for some tense swordfights worthy of “Pirates of the Caribbean.”
Industrial Revolution-era London is the backdrop for the story of brother-and-sister Assassins Jacob and Evie Frie. Players can swap back and forth between these two characters at pretty much any time, and each offers their own unique character and play style. Being one of the most modern games in the series, some distinctly-steampunk gadgets such as a grappling hook offer fun new assassination opportunities. The highlight of this game, though, is London itself. Though previous games in the series have been set in the tense confines of large cities, this game perfects that atmosphere. Exploring the city’s dark streets and beautiful architecture is one of the most memorable aspects of this entry, and nothing makes you feel more like an Assassin that pulling off a perfect silent assassination in a foggy, cobblestoned London back alley.
The latest game in the series is also one of the best. Like the name implies, this game lets players explore the origins of the feud between the Assassins and Templars against the backdrop of ancient Egypt. The combat system received a total overhaul for this title, allowing for much more fluid fights. The addition of a shield means players will have to play defensively just as much as offensively. An addition of a standalone arena mode allows this new combat system to really shine, and offers hours of additional fun while letting players fight unique and spectacular bosses and unlock equipment for use in the main story.
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, the latest game in the series, is slated for an October release. This means there’s still plenty of time to catch up and embrace your inner assassin. Just remember: nothing is true; everything is permitted.
