If there’s one thing we can all agree on about Destiny 2, it’s that it has a lot of menus, where you probably spend lots of time managing all sorts of little things, from bounties to excess inventory, quest tracking, and more. Honestly, I think I spend a quarter of my time with Destiny not shooting aliens or exploring the surface of Europa or Nessus but just trudging through unintuitive menus laden with tabs and subpages.
But there’s a better way to play Destiny! All you need is an iOS or Android device. If you’re already a regular user of the Destiny companion app, then I don’t need to sing its praises to you, though it’s worth noting that with the Prismatic class introduced in Destiny 2’s latest expansion, The Final Shape, the app is arguably more useful than ever. For those who aren’t acquainted with how it dramatically improves and streamlines the experience of playing Bungie’s sci-fi shooter (especially on PlayStation and Xbox), let me outline a few excellent use cases for this more-than-handy tool.
This guide will only cover app functions that let you manage bounties and inventory. Clan and fireteam management, as well as other social features, are outside the scope of this piece. – Claire Jackson Read More
Elden Ring’s first and only expansion, Shadow of the Erdtree, features an exciting new storyline with dozens of hours of gameplay to experience—but accessing it isn’t a walk in the park, and data suggests that there are crucial steps many players haven’t yet taken. If you want to see what the challenging new DLC has to offer, you’ll have to find your way to a well-hidden section of the main game and defeat multiple optional bosses, including one of the toughest in the game: Mohg, Lord of Blood. – Billy Givens Read More
One of the biggest questions heading into MultiVersus’ 1.0 launch has been answered. WB Games’ crossover platform fighter dropped in Open Beta in 2022, and the plan at the time seemed to be a smooth transition to a full launch. Instead the game was temporarily shut down, despite having run multiple Battle Passes and taking real money for skins and other cosmetics. Several months later, a relaunch is right around the corner with 1.0 scheduled for May 28, 2024. So, what happens to all that purchased content, and would there be any compensation for those founding players when MultiVersus returned? The latest wave of info from developer Player First Games has laid it all out, and we’re here with the condensed version. – Lucas White Read More
Stellar Blade, the Nier: Auotmata-ish PS5 character action game, has a bunch of chests to unlock that give you all kinds of sweet rewards, from healing items to gold to crafting resources. Many of these chests require that you input a sequence of buttons in an allotted time limit, while others need a passcode to open. There’s one in Xion, the game’s main hub world, that’s like this, demanding a passcode before unlocking. It’s called Aaron’s Locker and, truth be told, you may already have what you need to get the chest opened. – Levi Winslow Read More
I love destroying things. The physical destruction of objects can be funny and cathartic. Thankfully, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth lets me indulge my desires for destruction in a limited but fun way. While in Costa del Sol, you can hop on a “wheelie,” the game’s in-world equivalent of a Segway vehicle, and smash it into restaurant tables, seats, barrels, and other property. Fun! Better still, you can earn some neat items for riding around on a wheelie, and finding ways to weave some destruction into your travels can liven up the otherwise pretty boring process of gliding around on your own personal transporter device. – Claire Jackson Read More
If you loved the Fallout TV series and want to dive into a game that’s like it, but not too like it, we curated a list for you. We’ve also got some hidden Nintendo Switch secrets to make the most of the handheld console, lingering Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth help, and yeah, we’re back into Destiny 2. Read on for the major tips of the week.
The Stellar Blade demo has been out since March 29, and if you manage to beat it, your save data will carry over to the full game when it launches as a PlayStation 5 exclusive on April 26. One thing I was curious about was the “Skin Suit,” an outfit for protagonist Eve that basically has her traversing the world in the nude and makes the game way more challenging. Surprisingly, at least in the demo, it’s an incredibly easy thing to unlock, so since I just learned how to get it, I figured I’d teach you how to get it, too. Sharing is caring, after all. – Levi Winslow Read More
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Whether you’re trying to deal with the obnoxious son of the late Shinra president and his pesky pet or just learn a cool new trick to help you tackle Final Fantasy VII Rebirth’s battles, we’ve got you covered this week. We’ve also got the lowdown on how to rank up your Fortnite Festival pass without playing the game, and lots more tips and guides for you in the pages ahead.
Of all the creatures and enemies you expect to encounter in Unicorn Overlord, a goat isn’t on that list. Yet goats abound in Vanillaware’s tactics RPG, at least on Albion, an island kingdom that players reach late in the game. These goats are friendly, and produce milk. But befriending these animals and actually getting them to produce Goat Milk is a task that Unicorn Overlord doesn’t explain to you. So, if you are pursuing certain quests, you’ll need some sooner or later. So, here’s exactly how you can get Goat Milk in Unicorn Overlord. – Willa Rowe Read More
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We get it, you’re probably very into Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth and Unicorn Overlord this week. So are we. And if you’re stuck on a tricky boss fight, unsure of who to take out on a date, or want to finish that capture quest, we’ve got you covered.
We’ve got guides on the games to play after finishing Unicorn Overlord and how to level fast in that very same game. We’ve also got tips for getting all those Cactuar Caper locations, and how not to suck at one of FF7 Rebirth’s mini games. Scroll through for all the best tips that came out of this week.
2024’s most anticipated game is finally here, and the further adventures of Cloud Strife and his besties has launched on PS5. Final Fantasy VII Rebirthexpands and enhances the middle section of the 1997 classic, and there’s a big, beautiful world to see. If you’re looking to spend a few dozen hours in Square Enix’s…
A random player and I are surrounded by giant, alien bugs who want to rip out our guts and eat our bones. We are trying to destroy their nest, which lies in a rocky crater on some backwater alien planet. Low on ammo, out of health items, and unsure of what to do next, it seems we are screwed. But this is Helldivers 2—we have powerful tools at our disposal, like a massive airstrike or auto-turret. My squadmate calls in his airstrike before I can, runs into the fray, drops it at his feet, and begins tossing grenades. “Get outta here! I’m taking ‘em with me!” he yells. I dive over an angry insect the size of a dog and skitter out of the crater, explosions and gunfire popping off behind me. Then there is one big boom. I turn around. He did it. He saved the day, killed two dozen bugs, and destroyed their vile nest. — Zack Zwiezen
This week we’re going back to school,collecting Pals, and being reborn—that’s a lot of stuff to do without some tips. Palworld, the breakout hit from developer PocketPair, got a handful of major bug fixes that will make your creature-collecting a lot easier. And Atlus’ recent Persona 3 Reloadrelease means you’ll want to make sure you’re a Grade A student and a damn good friend—luckily we’re here to help you with all of that. The week also saw the surprise-debut of a Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth demo, and with progress carrying over to the main game, you’ll want to make sure you do everything you can with Sephiroth and company.
That’s why we’ve gathered the biggest, best, and most helpful Kotaku tips of the week, all in one spot. You’re welcome.
As an expansive survival game, Palworld has a variety of stats you can increase as you level up, leading to different strengths and weaknesses over the course of your character’s life. As is customary for many games like this, you can usually alter, or “respec,” these stats later on. Palworld lets you do this by way of “Memory Wiping Medicine,” which you can craft with the right items. – Claire Jackson Read More
First introduced in 2022’s Modern Warfare II, Call of Duty currently features a nonlinear battle pass themed like a geographic map. While this allows players to choose what they want to unlock from the pass instead of going through a scripted path, it can be a little confusing to newcomers used to more traditional, linear sets of unlockables. What’s more, the “token” system that CoD uses to unlock stuff from the battle pass can be a little confusing as well, especially if you’re not sure whether you should just let the pass automatically unlock itself by spending tokens for you. – Claire Jackson Read More
It’s time for a second trip to Seattle in The Last of Us Part IIRemastered. Originally shipped in 2020, Part II amps up the scope of the series, as well as the violence. The result is a dynamic, stealthy survival horror romp that takes place decades after a world-ending pandemic. It can be a tough game to play, and Remastered also includes a new roguelike mode for those who want an even greater challenge. – Ari Notis Read More
In 2019, Capcom blew our minds with a brutal remake of 1998’s Resident Evil 2, this time with a new camera perspective, modern graphics, and the return of two classic horror protagonists: Leon S. Kennedy and Claire Redfield. Starting on January 16, you’ll be able to download this incredible remake as a part of your PlayStation Plus Premium and Extra subscriptions. – Claire Jackson Read More
Play it on:Windows Current goal: Dive into the second chapter
Having written up a bunch of fantastic boomer shooters for the site, I was reminded that the team behind the as-yet-unfinished Project Warlock II had added an awful lot of content to its Early Access build since I’d last played. In fact, previously it had only been a single, fantastic level. It’s now two full chapters, each made up of a pile of enormous, sprawling, open levels to tear around.
I’m so glad I’ve gone back to it. This is a screamingly fast FPS game, where you move like an ice cube skidding across a kitchen floor, facing down dozens of enemies at a time. What makes it feel different from the many other retro-FPS games is the sheer scale of the levels, which are far more open than the genre normally offers. Think of those times you got to go outside in the original Unreal, but far more densely packed with enemies, secrets, and loot.
Those secrets are a blast to find, and worth pursuing too, since they offer tokens for upgrades in the betwixt level zone. There are three different areas you can upgrade, with each weapon possible to adjust in two different ways (one shutting down access to the other), and then this upgrade boosted. Then there are affinities to improve, such as whether you want to improve your melee talent, firepower, or indeed your power with fire—you gain spells that let you do things like blast torrents of fire from your palms. And finally you can then specialize even further with—er—VHS tapes you can buy when you’ve increased your ability in a specific attack style, that enhance them in specific ways.
This is all then taken back to the next level, where enemies that were previously boss-like can now appear in gangs and be quickly taken care of. In this, it reminds me of the excellent enemy handling in the original Serious Sam. My plan this weekend is to get stuck into the second chapter, that has a whole other player character, with their own set of skills, perks, spells and weapons. — John Walker
Try out Project Warlock 2’s free demo on Steam
Neo-retro vibes of the “boomer shooter” variety got your interest? Good news: You can download a free demo of Project Warlock 2 to get shootin’ like it’s the mid ‘90s all over again
Image: Ubisoft, Atlus, Rockstar Games, Mundfish / Shedworks / Nintendo / Claire Jackson / Kotaku, Screenshot: Remedy Games / Kotaku
If you’re stuck on a tricky boss fight or a challenging puzzle, or just want to make the most of your time with a new release, we’ve got you covered. Here are some of the tips we found most helpful this week.
The Best Resident Evil Goes VR And More New Releases | The Week In Games
Massive Entertainment’s upcoming open-world Star Wars game, Outlaws,is coming to PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S sometime in 2024. The game doesn’t follow Jedi and deal with The Force, but instead will give us a look into the seedier side of life in the Star Wars universe as it follows the exploits of a smuggler and scoundrel in an open-world format encompassing multiple planets. Let’s take a look at everything we know about the next trek to a galaxy far, far away. – Kenneth Shepard Read More
Persona 3 Reload, the from-the-ground-up remake of Atlus’ beloved PlayStation 2 role-playing game, is coming out on February 2. But while the 2006 classic is getting a modern retouching very soon, it won’t include everything added to the original in the updated Persona 3 Portable and Persona 3 FES editions, the former of which is on Game Pass right now for Xbox and PC. So if you want to play one of the best additions to the base game, you still have a chance before Persona 3 Portable leaves Game Pass on January 14. – Kenneth Shepard Read More
If you’ve been playing Grand Theft Auto V or GTA Online via Game Pass lately, you might need to pony up and buy a copy to sustain your criminal enterprise. Rockstar’s crime saga is expected to leave Xbox Game Pass in about two weeks. – Claire Jackson Read More
Image: Mundfish / Shedworks / Nintendo / Claire Jackson / Kotaku
Happy new year! This week the Kotaku weekend guide returns with a brisk list of games for your consideration. Maybe some of these you hadn’t considered playing before, or perhaps others have been sitting on your backlog. In that case, consider this your reminder to get working on that stubborn list of yours. – Claire Jackson Read More
If you’ve been eyeing (or playing) Alan Wake II lately but haven’t yet played any of the other titles in Remedy Games’ growing “Remedyverse” of connected stories, then you might want to take a look at the Epic Games Store right now. During its “Developer Spotlight” sale, Alan Wake Remastered, Alan Wake American Nightmare, Control, and both the standard and deluxe versions of Alan Wake II are all available for some pretty generous discounts. – Claire Jackson Read More
Think the first week of January is a slow one for news? Think again. A 13-year-old Tetris phenom has boldly gone where no one has gone before, beating the NES version of the classic puzzler by reaching a “kill screen” on level 157. Steam announced the occasionally baffling results of its annual players’ choice awards, and The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall got a free-to-play, fan-made remaster.
Three Things We Learned From The Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Demo
Before Starfield, before Skyrim, before Fallout 3 and Oblivion, before your parents even knew how to make you, there was The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall. It was, and remains, Bethesda’s biggest-ever game, and now a fan-made rebuilding of the entire vast world in Unity has reached its 1.0 release. Oh, and it’s entirely free, and won’t be destroyed by lawyers! This new Daggerfall is an almighty achievement, and exactly the excuse you needed to return to Tamriel. – John Walker Read More
The results of 2023’s Steam Awards are in. Each year, Steam turns to the community to vote on the year’s best games across a wide variety of categories. This year saw Larian Studios’ RPG Baldur’s Gate 3 grab game of the year, while Lethal Company, a first-person cooperative horror game,got the “Better With Friends Award” for its co-op gameplay. The Last of Us Part I snagged Best Soundtrack, which seems odd because it came out in 2013, but it technically wasn’t added to Steam until 2023. – Claire Jackson Read More
Just two months after the third-person action-horror game Stray Souls came out, developer Jukai Studio abruptly shuttered its doors, citing myriad issues including poor game sales and multiple cyberattacks from an unknown perpetrator.The developer took to X/Twitter on December 22 to announce the sudden closure. Part of the problem, Jukai Studio said, was Stray Souls’ abysmal reception and sales, which made the team “completely unable to sustain the company.” – Levi Winslow Read More
Classic puzzle game Tetris has been around for over three decades, and in that time, plenty of people have reached its various endings, usually by clearing four rows of bricks at once like a digital demolitioner. That’s a challenge in and of itself, but now, someone has taken the concept of “beating Tetris” to the extreme by playing the NES game so hard it straight-up crashed, a phenomenon also known as the “kill screen.” – Levi Winslow Read More
Forever-in-development space sim Star Citizenmight not be finished after over a decade of dev work and announcements, but it does already contain a lot of expensive ships you can buy and fly around in. And if you want all of those ships in one big DLC pack, Star Citizen has an option for you. Just be prepared to spend over $48,000. – Zack Zwiezen Read More
Here’s something unironically wonderful. Via a post by Larian Studios writer Rachel Quirke, we’ve just learned of a deeply moving tribute to a player’s father that appears in the studios’ award-winning RPG Baldur’s Gate 3. In October 2020, a member of the Larian forums posted to thank the developer for releasing the first act of the game in Early Access, because it allowed them to enjoy one last adventure with their father, who had recently been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. – John Walker Read More
Screenshot: Ubisoft Massive Entertainment / Kotaku
Star Wars Outlaws, Ubisoft’s upcoming action-adventure game that follows scoundrel Kay Vess between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, previously had no release date beyond a very broad “2024” window. Today, however, a Disney Parks blog post quietly announced that it would launch in “late 2024.” This didn’t last long, as Ubisoft promptly swooped in to correct the record and re-assert the general 2024 timeframe. – Levi Winslow Read More
City of Heroes was a beloved MMORPG that launched in April 2004 and lasted just over eight years. In that time it won a dedicated community of players who, even after the game died, kept playing the MMO via private servers that existed in a weird legal gray area. But now, the developers behind City of Heroes have given one private server the official thumbs-up to keep on keeping on. – Zack Zwiezen Read More
