Category: Video Gaming

512GB Micro SD cards have continued to come down in price, and today we’ve spotted a great deal on a 512GB option from Integral that offers read speeds up to 180MB/s. It’s available for £39.99, down from £48, which is the best price we’ve seen for this spec.

That makes this Micro SD a premiere option for Steam Deck owners, who will benefit from faster copying times when transferring game directories from the internal storage to Micro SD or downloading from the internet, and game load times should also be as speedy as anything with this A2-rated drive.

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If you’re finding today’s Wordle (opens in new tab) a bit tough, then you’re in the right place because you’ll find everything you need to solve the April 8 (658) game right here. There’s a helpful clue just below if you’d like a pointer, links to our archive of past answers and handy guides, and even a quick clickable link to today’s answer too.

Today’s Wordle turned out alright in the end, although the first two guesses couldn’t have gone much worse if I’d tried. There’s nothing quite as crushing as typing out a really great, balanced opener… and seeing not a single letter turn yellow. Still, it’s unexpected situations like these that help make every Wordle answer so much fun to find.

Wordle hint

A Wordle hint for Saturday, April 8

Joseph Staten, the Halo veteran brought on board by Microsoft to creatively direct Halo Infinite, has left after nine years at the company.

IGN first broke the news, with Staten confirming his departure on Twitter. Staten thanked his colleagues at Xbox and did not reveal where he’s heading next.

“We’re grateful for Joseph’s contributions to the Halo franchise and Xbox as a whole,” Xbox said of Staten’s exit to IGN. “We wish him all the best in his new adventure.”

Staten worked on the first three Halo games at Bungie, and left Bungie for Microsoft in 2014. He served as senior creative director for Xbox publishing, and in 2020, joined 343 Industries to help develop Halo Infinite. The hiring announcement said that Staten would be “focused on supporting the campaign team’s existing, talented, creative leaders and ensuring they have everything they need to create an awesome Halo game.”

Microsoft laid off over 10,000 employees in January, and 343 Industries was heavily impacted. Staten left 343 Industries at the time and rejoined Xbox publishing.

As for the future of 343 Industries, studio lead Pierre Hintze said the team will continue to develop Halo. Phil Spencer also said 343 Industries is “critically important to” Microsoft.

When it comes to PC games, Steam is the biggest name in the business. Now that the Steam Deck has continued to grow in popularity, more and more people are logging on to Steam every day to play. Because of this, Steam is one of the greatest sources of information about what PC gamers are actually playing at any given time.

Steam offers interesting data on the top selling and top played games on the platform week to week, but if you’re wondering what were the most-played games last month, we’ve got you covered. Here are the top 10 most-played Steam games of March 2023, based on total players.

1. Counter Strike: Global Offensive

Counter Strike: Global Offensive

Counter Strike: Global Offensive is a free-to-play team-based shooter that is consistently at the top of Steam Charts every month. Initially released back in 2012 as an expansion of the multiplayer gameplay from Half-Life: Counter-Strike, it has continued to grow over the years. Valve has also recently announced Counter-Strike 2 will be arriving at some point this summer. The popularity of the game on Steam isn’t overly surprising given that it was created by Valve and you need to be logged on to steam to play online multiplayer.

Read our review of Counter Strike: Global Offensive.

2. Dota 2

Dota 2

Another free-to-play game developed by Valve, Dota 2 is a wildly popular blend of online RTS and RPG action. Originally released in 2013, its free-to-play status has kept it at the top of steam charts throughout the years. And while it costs nothing to start playing the game, the learning curve is very high and it can be hard to get into without learning all of the nuances to strategy and mechanics.

Read our review of Dota 2.

3. Apex Legends

Apex Legends

When it comes to battle royale games, Apex Legends is one of the best in the business. It’s got a mix of exciting characters, great gunplay, and fairly consistent updates that make it a worthy live-service game. If you are looking for something similar, but different than Fortnite, Apex Legends is a great option. Plus, its free-to-play status allows for all kinds of gamers to join the fray.

Read our review of Apex Legends.

4. PUBG: Battlegrounds

PUBG: Battlegrounds

PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds is one of the most influential battle royale games and helped to establish the genre when it first came out in 2017. Considering it’s the original battle royale, and is free to play, it’s still a highly popular game. However, it has become less popular than newer titles like Apex Legends and Fortnite.

Read our review of PUBG: Battlegrounds.

5. Destiny 2

Destiny 2

Destiny 2 is a winning combination of story-driven campaigns and solid multiplayer options. It’s a first-person shooter that delivers sci-fi gameplay and that came as a direct sequel of Destiny, which was widely popular when it first came out. With continued DLC and excellent multiplayer options, Destiny 2 has continued to be a top game on Steam. With the addition of the Lightfall expansion last month, the game saw a spike in players once again.

Read our review of Destiny 2: Lightfall.

6. Goose Goose Duck

Goose Goose Duck

Goose Goose Duck is another free-to-play game, but it is quite different than the rest of the games on this list. It’s a social deduction game that started gaining traction thanks to popularity on Twitch. It’s essentially just Among Us, but with geese. You work together with friends to complete your mission and watch out for any suspicious geese that are actually malicious ducks in disguise.

7. Grand Theft Auto V

Grand Theft Auto V

The latest entry in the GTA series, Grand Theft Auto 5 has consistently been one of the most popular games since back in 2013. It’s an enormous game with a lot to love. Based in San Andreas, there are three main characters you can play as. And with the addition of GTA Online shortly after the game was first launched, it’s no surprise so many people are still enjoying this title. There’s even a GTA 6 on the horizon.

Read our review of GTA 5.

8. Lost Ark

Lost Ark

Lost Ark was originally released in North Korea back in 2019 and wasn’t brought over to the U.S. until February of 2022. It grew wildly popular before it even went free-to-play, quickly becoming one of the most-played games of all time on steam shortly after launch. There was a new update on March 15 last month that brought more players back to the game.

Read our review of Lost Ark.

9. Naraka: Bladepoint

Naraka: Bladepoint

Although Naraka: Bladepoint features many similar battle royale elements as some of the top free-to-play games on this list, but with some key differences. First of all, the game is not free. Second of all, the actual battles you have in the PvP look and feel more like a fighting game than a Battle Royale. It’s filled with mythical action that focuses on martial arts inspired combat and medieval weapons.

Read our review of Narak: Bladepoint.

10. Rust

Rust

Rust is one of the most popular survival games of all time, and for good reason — it’s quite challenging. It is an entirely multiplayer game that includes factions, raids, an electricity system, and a huge variety of vehicles. With a rather robust player base and fairly frequent updates, it’s a great game to play with friends. As long as you don’t mind spending all of your time struggling to survive in a PvP and PvE environment where everything is trying to kill you, this is a solid game to get into.

Read our review of Rust.

Looking for a free-to-play game that focuses less on multiplayer? Check out our guide on how to play The Sims 4 for free.

Everyone at Polygon who’s seen The Super Mario Bros. Movie came away with the same impression — it has its ups and downs, but Jack Black as Bowser entirely steals the show. Whether the character is crooning a heartfelt impromptu piano ballad to Princess Peach or viciously threatening Luigi’s mustache, Black throws himself into the role with a goofy, over-the-top passion that too much of the rest of the movie lacks.

That holds true for all the ways Black has gone about promoting the movie, from navigating a ridiculous CG platformer level on Instagram to showing up in Bowser cosplay at the movie’s Los Angeles premiere. He’s been pulling ridiculous, over-the-top stunts to promote this movie for months now, and the best part is that he authentically seems to be having fun with it.

There are bound to be people who don’t appreciate this approach, or the specter of a grown-ass man mugging for the camera and rolling around on the floor in a bright-green suit, howling the lyrics to his “Peaches” anthem at a cartoon portrait of the princess herself. It’s undignified. It’s commercial. It’s very, very silly.

But that’s a big part of the reason why it’s so much fun to watch. His commitment to the bit so clearly crosses the line from “contractual studio promo obligation” into “adult at play.” His utterly shameless energy is an open invitation for Very Serious Adults to feel like kids again, to embrace this kind of egoless goofery around whatever still sparks joy in their lives. It characterizes pretty much all his appearances on social media these days, not just Super Mario Bros. Movie-related ones. And it’s refreshing and kind of adorable.

So if you’re willing to risk spending the next several days with Bowser’s song “Peaches” stuck in your head, dive into Black’s latest celebration of silliness, as he sings the song while wearing yet another Bowser-respecting costume, banging on a peach-colored piano in a mockup of a giant mushroom-shaped room, and ultimately flinging himself onto the floor to just really shout it all out. May the rest of us all someday get the chance to love something the way Jack Black loves emoting.

The best thing about DDR4 RAM is that you really don’t need to spend much at all to get a good-speed kit at almost any capacity. Normally we’ve covered 32GB and 64GB kits in the past, but today it’s time to look at the mainstream, entry-level option: a 16GB dual-channel kit, comprising of two matching 8GB sticks. Normally we’d expect to pay around £50 for these, but now it’s possible to pick up one for just £35 thanks to the Ebay code APRIL10.

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The boomer shooter genre grew a little bit larger today with the early access release of Supplice (opens in new tab), a game that began life as a total conversion for Doom before evolving into a standalone shooter built in the GZDoom engine by members of the Doom modding community.

The story in Supplice is very Doom-like: Humanity develops technology that enables it to travel to the stars, but unfortunately the galaxy is not an overly welcoming place. The exocolony Methuselah has been overrun by terrifying alien creatures, and it falls to you to either chase them away or wipe them out.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie is out now, so naturally, this episode of All Things Nintendo is dedicated completely to the first movie to come out of the collaboration between Nintendo, Illumination, and Universal Pictures. First, Brian sits down for some quick interviews with actors Chris Pratt, Charlie Day, and Seth Rogen, before transitioning to a longer interview with the directors of the film, Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic. Finally, Krysta Yang of The Kit & Krysta Podcast joins to deliver a spoiler-free review, followed by a spoiler-filled review.

If you’d like to follow Brian on social media, you can do so on his Instagram @BrianPShea. You can follow Krysta on Twitter: @breath0air. You can also find the Kit & Krysta Podcast on Patreon here.

The All Things Nintendo podcast is a weekly show where we can celebrate, discuss, and break down all the latest games, news, and announcements from the industry’s most recognizable name. Each week, Brian is joined by different guests to talk about what’s happening in the world of Nintendo. Along the way, they’ll share personal stories, uncover hidden gems in the eShop, and even look back on the classics we all grew up with. A new episode hits every Friday!

Be sure to subscribe to All Things Nintendo on your favorite podcast platform. The show is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and YouTube.

00:00:00 – Introduction
00:01:14 – Chris Pratt and Charlie Day Interview
00:05:28 – Seth Rogen Interview
00:13:13 – Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic Interview
00:41:32 – Attending the Mario Movie Premiere
00:59:04 – What It’s Like Interviewing Shigeru Miyamoto and Koji Kondo
01:10:19 – Spoiler-Free Thoughts of The Super Mario Bros. Movie
01:16:25 – Spoiler-Filled Review of The Super Mario Bros. Movie

If you’d like to get in touch with the All Things Nintendo podcast, you can email AllThingsNintendo@GameInformer.com, messaging Brian on Instagram (@BrianPShea), or by joining the official Game Informer Discord server. You can do that by linking your Discord account to your Twitch account and subscribing to the Game Informer Twitch channel. From there, find the All Things Nintendo channel under “Community Spaces.”

For Game Informer’s other podcast, be sure to check out The Game Informer Show with host Alex Van Aken, which covers the weekly happenings of the video game industry!

Melon Journey: Bittersweet Memories on PC

Story-driven games have always been known to add a few twists and turns, exciting the player enough to want to play more. But, in the case of Melon Journey: Bittersweet Memories, it instead gives a new meaning to unexpected moments with its surprising outcomes and dark-humoristic dialogue scenes.

If you aren’t familiar with Melon Journey, the game originally made its debut in 2012, in which it eventually became a cult classic as an RPG maker. It would then lead to a rise in popularity for the developers, Froach Club, who continues to make even more adorably designed games over the years. And now, they are returning to the classics with the re-imagination of Melon Journey, featuring a green-tinted 2D pixelated world from the publishers XSEED Games and Poppy Works.

Although the main storyline doesn’t offer anything too sustainable, the energetic presence of Hog Town is where the heart of the narrative truly lives, from the chaotic Cavity Crew gang to the power couple Kitten Princess and Strong Dog. Each time I had a discussion with a resident, I would be thrown off guard by every word they said, given how blunt and anomalous characters can be. You can see an excellent example of this at the start of the game when a co-worker belittles you for not knowing where your workplace is, differing from standard tutorial phases that try to help you in the beginning.

As the story goes, you’ll learn that melons are essentially a drug that causes many harmful side effects. While Hog Town deems it illegal, Ham Town relishes its sweet flavor and produces a soda factory to use it for profit. Players will take on the role of a marketing employee of this sugary establishment as they decipher the mystery of what happened to their missing friend, Cantaloupe.

You’ll mostly search for your companion at Hog Town, a strange place with unique characters and locations. When exploring the grounds, I was surprised at every turn since nothing was quite like it seemed. Sometimes I would stumble upon a Cheese Cult in a cemetery, and other times, I would find a dog expressing its admiration for the shape of a hydrant. 

If you’re the type who wonders why video game characters get away with breaking and entering, you’ll undoubtedly enjoy what happens every time you enter a house in Melon Journey: Bittersweet Memories. In most cases, residents will not take kindly to players going inside their homes and will call them nosy or downright weird. I found it refreshing to see this side, as it offers a more realistic and comedic take on this typical game mechanic.

There’s also a hint of fourth-wall-breaking moments in various scenes that often made me question what was real or not. In particular, when interacting with a specific object, you’ll get the basic ‘Do you want to pull the lever?’ prompt, only to find out that it’s actually the lever talking to you and not the game itself. 

The gameplay mechanics are relatively easy to follow since it primarily focuses on exploration and decision-making tasks. As you may expect, choices heavily impact the story’s outcome, even if it may seem minor or inconsequential. Something as simple as grabbing a bowl of chili could help you later down the road and open the door to alternative narratives for side characters. 

I occasionally ran into trouble when I wasn’t sure where to go due to the absence of a map and mission tracker system. However, it didn’t take me too long to figure out the next plan while roaming around, and sometimes it would lead me to one of the character’s questlines for achievement completions.

The outcomes from decisions may also surprise you because they never really go as planned. For instance, a “good” decision could lead to a horrendous accident, while an “evil” interaction could turn into a heroic act. Just when I think I’ve figured it out all out, the game throws me a curve ball and makes me question my decision in a virtualized world.

Melon Journey: Bittersweet Memories’ traveling mechanic may come off as slow at first, but you’ll get to unlock Rollerblades to make the process much quicker and entertaining. Players can also expect others to join their party, providing them with funny scenarios that the group frequently gets themselves into. On top of that, the outline of the small screen can change throughout your journey, where it takes on many forms and expands further during horror-esque instances. 

Don’t worry; it’s not a scary game in a way, considering that it mainly lies within the cozy game genre. Melon Journey: Bittersweet Memories even has an electronic and jazz-inspired LoFi soundtrack to make the overall experience relaxing and fun to play. With over 90 songs, I would bob my head or fall asleep to the soothing sounds of the game’s composer, markeryjane.

At its core, the characters are what truly drive the story, with all their bizarre dreams, complicated relationships, and riveting origins. My personal favorite is Ham Ghost Jr., who started as an annoying character until he eventually wormed his way into my heart. There are still, of course, a variety of other residents that I enjoyed talking to, and I’m confident that every player will at least find one of their own favorites with each passing act.

Those who are achievement hunters will have some fun with the game’s story-driven and hidden trophies. I spent about three hours in total with the Melon Journey: Bittersweet Memories, and I still have yet to do another playthrough to get a few that I missed. The achievements are also relatively unique compared to other games, as you have to think outside the box to earn them.

In a gaming world filled with violence and war, it’s nice to sit back and relax in an adorable universe like Melon Journey: Bittersweet Memories. So, if you are looking for your next cozy game, you should absolutely pick it up for a meager price and get to know all these adorable characters. But be sure not to overindulge too much in those sweet, juicy melons.

Melon Journey: Bittersweet Memories

Reviewer: Kristina Ebanez | Award: Editor’s Choice | Copy provided by Publisher.

Pros

• Eccentric and cute cast.
• Oddly funny dialogue moments.
• A surprise at every turn.

Cons

• No directional map to guide players.
• Side stories overshadow the main storyline.

Release Date
April 6, 2023

Developer
Froach Club & Poppy Works

Publisher
Poppy Works & XSEED Games

Consoles
PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S