Month: September 2019

Less than two weeks to wait! Matrix Games & Slitherine today announced Close Combat: The Bloody First, the new chapter in the epic WW2 tactical RTS saga is coming to PC on October 3rd. Lead the mighty Big Red One, the 1st US infantry division from North Africa to Sicily and then in its final assault on the beaches of Normandy. Three full campaigns, 11 operations, 36 battles, in a detailed 3D world rendered in a completely new real-time strategy engine.

No mission too difficult. No Sacrifice too great. Duty First!

Watch the “What is CLOSE COMBAT: THE BLOODY FIRST in 2 minutes!” Trailer HERE.

And that’s not all. Three new gameplay trailers have also been released:

• Close Combat: The Bloody First – A First Look – Beta
• Close Combat: The Bloody First – First Look & Gameplay W/XTRG
• Close Combat – The Bloody First Beta: First Look

Close Combat: The Bloody First is not an ordinary RTS: the action is fast, but you can always pause the game and issue new orders to your troops. This will allow you to recreate complex historical actions; pin down enemy nests with machine guns, flank them with fast infantry, cover your advance with smoke barrages, target the vulnerable side armour of the German Panzers with armour piercing weapons, scout enemy positions and unleash artillery or mortar fire before they see you.

Beware of enemy fire: your troops are heroic US infantrymen but they will panic under enemy fire if caught in the open with no cover. Morale and pressure are deadly weapons.

Multiplayer at its best: despite the Close Combat saga is a classic from the 90s, thousands of gamers still play it for its unparalleled realism in multiplayer battles roday. The Bloody First keeps up with the tradition and adds a wide variety of new options.

Close Combat: The Bloody First, the upcoming title in the famous Close Combat series, will be released on October 3rd, on the Matrix Games Store, the Slitherine Store and on Steam.

By Tarinder Sandhu @ HEXUS

AMD made a graphics splash this summer when it released the Radeon RX 5700 and XT cards. Offering enough firepower from the Navi-based architecture to worry rival Nvidia, the only downsides to the reference cards were a bit too much noise and one-fits-all aesthetics. We reckoned, at the time, that add-in board partners would up the ante on both fronts.

Sapphire has done just that with its Pulse duo that offers enhanced cooling, lower noise, and a tad better performance than the basic card. Pulse is the entry gateway into Sapphire’s enthusiast kingdom, but it’s the Nitro+ and, potentially, Toxic models that really get the enthusiast excited. Just over a couple of months on from initial launch, Sapphire duly rolls out the Radeon RX 5700 XT Nitro+, and it’s rather good, so let’s explain why.

Read The Review Here

By Peter Donnell @ eTeknix

The Fractal Design product range is one often associated with premium quality and performance. Admittedly, they’ve stepped into the budget realm with a few of their more recent cases. When you think of premium Fractal Design cases, however, you likely think of the Define R5. It’s a bit old now, but it still sets a high standard even today. That’s about to change though, as the Vector RS is here, and it’s out to kick-ass and chew gum, and it’s all out of gum!

Their latest flagship case is absolutely overflowing with luxurious and premium features. sleek ARGB integration wraps around the edges of the glass panels and comes with a built-in controller. There’s a built-in fan hub for up to 9 fans, as well as three GP-14 140mm fans pre-installed! Admittedly, this case isn’t going to be cheap, but if it’s anything like previous Fractal Design cases, you’re paying for over the top build quality and performance.

Read The Review Here

Check out these latest hardware announcements for today from around the web. Also included are some hardware news bits, and on some days, a few rumors tossed in for good measure. Click on the links below to read the official press release, visit the products web page, or to an independent news source.

• AMD Confirms: Ryzen 9 3950X and Threadripper 3rd Generation Coming in November
• BIOSTAR Launches New RACING Micro ATX Motherboard with the B365GTQ
• ADATA Launches the SX8100 PCIe Gen3x4 M.2 2280 SSD
• Puro Sound Labs Brings Healthy Hearing to Gaming Market
• ADATA launches SC680 USB-C SSD
• Antec Presents the Versatile NX1000 Case
• ENERMAX Launches 120mm SquA RGB White Fan Version
• Samsung Brings Revolutionary Software Innovation to PCIe Gen4 SSDs
• GIGABYTE’s Aorus Gen4 AIC SSD 8 TB Launched: Up to 15 GB/s
• Sharkoon Elbrus 1 and Elbrus 2 Gaming Chairs Focus on Low Budgets
• GIGABYTE Guarantees Zero Bright Dots for All AORUS Tactical Gaming Monitors
• Alphacool Eisblock XPX Aurora is Now Available
• NVIDIA Could Launch GTX 1650 Ti on October 22nd

SEGA Europe Ltd. today announced Creative Assembly’s thrilling new strategy title reconstructing one of the greatest stories ever told, A Total War Saga: TROY. Inspired by Homer’s Iliad, TROY will let you forge a heroic legacy in the late Bronze Age, the furthest back in time the critically acclaimed franchise has ever traveled.

In TROY, the fate of Aegean civilization will be in your hands; each choice you make will shape the lands from the mythical heights of Mount Olympus to the arid deserts of Lemnos. Experience history as it may have happened or shape the legend for yourself in this unique chapter of Total War.

Watch the announcement trailer HERE.

Homer’s Iliad is rich with myth, legends, gods and monsters. TROY casts these stories through a historical lens to consider what might have really happened but ultimately lets you decide which heroes will fall in battle and which will be immortalized in legend.

The battlefields will tremble under the feet of renowned warriors like Achilles and Hector but it will take more than brute force alone to lay claim to the legendary city of Troy. You will need to deftly manage a barter economy, conduct diplomacy among friends and foes, and curry the very favor of the Gods themselves before etching your name in the annals of history.

Total War Saga titles channel the grand strategy and real-time battles of a core Total War game into an intense flashpoint in time, letting you determine the outcome of pivotal moments in history. This change in scope and perspective makes Total War Saga the perfect home for innovation, often leading to new ideas that go on to influence future tentpole titles.

A Total War Saga: TROY will release on Steam for PC in 2020.

The second Nation Pack DLC will be out on 31st October; on the same day, all of the existing Armored Brigade content will be made available on Steam.

Saint-Hubert, 18th September 1985. The Red Tide smashed NATO force and conquered West Germany in a matter of weeks. T-72s and Hind 24s are now heading to Paris: will France be the next Nation to fall under the Soviet invasion?

With the new Nation Pack: France – Belgium DLC, Armored Brigade, the tactical RTS set in the Cold War era, will receive two new armies (200+ new units) and a vast new map set around Bastogne.

French formations tactics in the 70s were similar to the US Armored Cavalry Regiments: they were not intended for holding ground, but to operate like the earlier dragons portes, locating the enemy, delaying their forces and setting up the situation for a deadly counter strike by the heavy tank regiments. During the 1980s the French forces saw the addition of VAB-equipped units to the infantry divisions, and an increased number of mechanized regiments. The France Army is perfect for seek-and-destroy mobile tactics.

On the contrary, Belgian forces were getting old and tired at the time: the main battle tank, the Leopard 1(BE) was a vintage vehicle from the 60s and its M75 and AMX-13 Mod 56 APCs, as well as its Alouette II helicopters were almost museum-pieces from the 1950s. However, the Army went through a modest re-equipment program through the 80s, and was supplemented by a regiment of elite para/commandos. The Belgian Army of the Cold War is an extremely interesting and challenging faction, due to its weakness and old-style tactics.

Get more information about Armored Brigade Second Nation Pack: France and Belgium from its official webpage.

Ace Combat wouldn’t be Ace Combat if it didn’t feature over-the-top missions & bosses and the next batch of heart-pounding missions that are on the way will be packed with explosive action. The missions will feature a myriad of mission types and enemies, including the appearance of a submersible aircraft carrier that’s sure to wreak havoc in the skies of Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown. The next Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown DLC mission, “Unexpected Visitor” is coming to the Americas on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PCs via STEAM on September 25, 2019.

Watch the new Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown Season Pass: SP Missions Trailer HERE.

Now suit up and strap in, Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown is about to hit the afterburners!

To find out more about Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown, head over to the games official website.

With just weeks to go until the highly anticipated release of Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon© Breakpoint, Ubisoft has announced that an Open Beta phase will run from September 26th-29th. The Open Beta will be available for everyone to play and test the game for free ahead of its worldwide launch on October 4th, on Xbox One, PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system and Windows PC. Players can begin pre-loading the Open Beta from September 24th 11am BST on Xbox One, PlayStation®4 and Uplay, and 4pm BST on the Epic Store. In addition, Ubisoft is kicking off the game’s launch campaign with the release of a new live-action trailer starring Grammy Award-winning artist Lil Wayne.

Open Beta
Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Breakpoint Open Beta will offer new and exclusive content that wasn’t available in the Closed Beta. Players will be able to discover 3 extra main story missions, allowing them to delve deeper in the game’s storyline, 2 new regions (called New Argyll and Infinity) in addition to the 4 regions already unveiled during Closed Beta, and play intense competitive Elimination matches with their friends in Breakpoint’s PvP mode, Ghost War. 4 PvP tailored-maps will be available for these 4vs4 showdowns: the PMC Camp, Port, Cold War Bunker and Harbor. Additionally, with 4 new daily missions, players will now be able to complete up to 12 daily Faction Missions during the Open Beta. Gathering players’ feedback following the Closed Beta, the development team of the game have been hard at work to deliver the best quality experience possible to all players. More information can be found here.

“Squad Up ft. Lil Wayne” Live-Action Trailer
The live action sequences were shot in Vancouver, Canada, directed by David Leitch (Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw and Deadpool 2) and produced by Minted Content in Los Angeles. Ubisoft worked with San Francisco–based agency Argonaut on the development of the concept and overall creative direction and execution of the “Squad Up ft. Lil’ Wayne” campaign. “More than anything, the key point of all action is to tell a story, and in this spot we’re telling a story with these characters in the world of the game and also the characters in their worlds at home,” said David Leitch. “We wanted to make sure we have these distinct characters that jump off the page and that the action defines them in a real particular way. We have this fun juxtaposition with the different characters and their voices too, which is a great conceit.”

Watch the Squad Up ft. Lil Wayne Live Action Trailer HERE (NSFW).

Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Breakpoint will be available October 4th on PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system, the Xbox One family of devices including the Xbox One X, Windows PC and UPLAY+, Ubisoft’s subscription service. Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Breakpoint will also launch on the new generation gaming platform, Stadia.

For the latest news about Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Breakpoint, please visit ghost-recon.ubisoft.com.

Source: Blue’s News

A post on the Activision Blog discusses the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare beta that’s about to come to Windows. This offers a detailed rundown of PC-specific features that will allow players to fine-tune the game to their control preferences and system. Speaking of systems, this includes minimum and recommended system specifications:

Here are the minimum specs needed to play the Beta:

• Requires DirectX 12 compatible system
• OS: Windows 7 64-Bit (SP1) or Windows 10 64-Bit (1709 or later)
• CPU: Intel Core i5 2500k or AMD equivalent
• Video: Nvidia GeForce GTX 670 2GB / GTX 1650 4GB or AMD Radeon HD 7950
• RAM: 8GB RAM
• HDD: 45GB HD space
• Network: Broadband Internet connection
• Sound Card: DirectX Compatible

And here are recommended specs:

• Requires DirectX 12 compatible system
• OS: Windows 10 64 Bit (latest Service Pack)
• CPU: Intel Core i7 4770k or AMD equivalent
• Video: Nvidia GeForce GTX 970 4GB / GTX 1660 6GB or AMD Radeon R9 390 / AMD RX 580
• RAM: 16GB RAM
• HDD: 45GB HD space
• Network: Broadband Internet connection
• Sound Card: DirectX Compatible

Update 0.8.8 brings two new battleships and in-game rewards ahead of birthday stream on September 20 featuring sneak peek into future plans

Wargaming is celebrating World of Warships’ fourth birthday with the arrival of update 0.8.8 today, which brings two new ships next to a variety of rewards for dedicated players of the popular online game to unlock. To keep in the festive mood, the renowned developer and publisher has also announced that a global birthday stream, lifting the veil on future plans, will go live on Friday the 20th of September at 16:00 UTC time.

A teaser video can be viewed here.

World of Warships celebrates its 4th anniversary by giving players the opportunity to earn supercontainers for their first victory aboard Tier X ships in the new update 0.8.8. First wins on lower tier ships will also give players valuable rewards, such as special signals and an exclusive Anniversary camouflage. New combat missions have been added for the occasion, and completing them will reward prospective commanders with three additional supercontainers, as well as a container unlocking a random Tier VI Premium ship.

Update 0.8.8. also features two new Tier X ships: the British Thunderer and the American Ohio battleships. The Thunderer is an alternative take on its close cousin, the Conqueror, and sports 457 mm guns with very high shell damage, have good accuracy and a fast reload time. The new British battleship comes with a less effective Repair party consumable than that of the Conqueror but will be able to use it once more than its sister-ship. The American Ohio battleship features eight 457 mm guns and powerful secondary armament. This, combined with a shorter reload on the Repair Party consumable, as well as its decent armor make the Ohio a well-suited ship for close to medium range skirmishes.

Furthermore, update 0.8.8. features two Ranked Sprints, each allowing players to earn up to 10 000 coal to be exchanged in the Armory for Premium ships. Clans will also get their share with two Clan brawls opposing teams of 3 players on smaller maps for especially intense naval combat. Finally, a host of modifications and improvements are included, with a massive overhaul for the sound system for more realistic and immersive battles, a large increase in the Armory’s stock with the addition of multiple premium ships, and updated maps with new lighting models.

A global birthday stream for World of Warships will go live on Friday the 20th September with a fun retrospective on the past year, as well as a sneak peek on what’s to come for World of Warships. For the anniversary, multiple gifts will be given out during the stream, with a chance for players to earn a premium ship. The global stream can be watched from 16:00 UTC time on World of Warships official YouTube channel.

Further details on the Update 0.8.8. can be found here.

Visit the official World of Warships website now to sign up and play World of Warships for free!