Nintendo is set to unveil new details for the upcoming Nintendo 3DS Exclusive Pokemon: Sun & Moonthis Friday but leakers have other plans for the company’s announcements. Just 24 hours after scans of an early copy of Japanese gaming magazine CoroCoro appeared online spoiling some of the fun, clips & screen grabs from the upcoming Pokemon Sun & Moon trailer appeared online.
Here’s what has leaked so far:
A new water type Pokemon called Wishiwashi which has both solo & school forms. The school form is actually several discrete combined WishiWashi that form one giant fish – kinda like a PokeFish version of Voltron.
Giant cuddle monster Raichu gets a brand new form thanks to its surfing capable variation which also comes with a new Psychic / Electric type combination.
Morelull is a new fairy/grass type Pokemon whose aesthetic is best described as one big purple umbrella and two smaller ones.
Who is going to oppose the teenage protagonist this time around? It looks like Team Skull will be our adversaries in this brand new Pokemon adventure and one of their new members, Plumeria is described as “Team Skull’s big sister” as well as a “Team Skull Admin”.
Pokemon Sun & Moon will be released on November 18th. Check out screengrabs from this 4chan/Neogaf leak below:
It looks like GWENT, the digital collectable card game based upon The Witcher universe will need a bit of extra time in development before beginning its closed beta phase of testing. Originally CD Projekt RED had promised perspective players a September release for the closed beta but it looks like plans have been pushed back until October 25th.
The GWENT development team sent out a press release earlier this morning. Here is what they had to say:
“We know we can make a first impression only once, and want to be sure everything is ready before we blast off. Delivering a good game is more important to us than keeping a deadline. Still, that doesn’t mean we don’t realize that delays can be disappointing, and we apologize for making you wait. The Closed Beta will now begin on October 25th.”
GWENT is a fast paced strategy card game where players go ahead to head assuming control of two different armies. After the first turn is decided by coin toss players draw ten cards and discard two in order to begin their battle against one another. Combat in GWENT is varried, with Unit cards coming in a number of different varieties – Close Quarters, Ranged & Siege as well as Spies. Other types of cards also have an effect on the battlefield – the forces of nature come into play as Weather Cards and commanders can strengthen up their forces with Muster and Morale boosters.
The strategy action of GWENT first appeared in The Witcher III: Wild Hunt but will be expanded upon for the Free-To-Play GWENT title coming to PC, Xbox One and PlayStation sometime in the future.
Several more games are getting the Nintendo Selects treatment in just a few weeks, with right more game being added to the value roster. Starting on August 26th, some of Nintendo’s biggest hits will drop to a suggested retail price of $29.99 CAD.
“These back-to-school deals are some of the best and most varied we have ever offered,” said Doug Bowser, Nintendo of America’s Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing. “Now is clearly the best time to get started on your essential Nintendo game collection.”
Check out the full list of games being added to the Nintendo Selects collection below:
The Roccat Sova is a handsome black illuminated PC keyboard and mouse pad for your lap. It’s designed to deliver the same control you’d expect from a normal desktop setup, but in your lap. Either while you’re sitting on the couch or anywhere else you might have a flat surface. It meets this goal admirably as long as you’re using it on a PC with Windows. It does not have linux at the time of this review, beyond simple USB keyboard typing.
The full glory of the SOVA (couch not included)
The styling of the Sova is black and sleek, but it’s by no means undersized. It’s made of thick, very sturdy, black plastic. The design wouldn’t be out of place stashed next to any modern gaming PC. The mousepad features a large grey-on-black Roccat logo and there are several other Roccat logos subtly embossed into the plastic in various places. If there’s one thing that you want in a lapboard, its comfort, and the Sova delivers it. The keyboard is a full-sized keyboard but without a number pad: this leaves more space for the mouse pad. The unit had plenty of spare space for mouse use, while still sitting comfortably in my lap. The keyboard itself measures 300mm long by 120mm tall.
10The blue illuminated keys make it easy to find the key you’re looking for, even in the dark. Unfortunately, the model I was delivered was stuck in “breathing mode” for its backlighting. However, the backlighting is supposed to have multiple modes, and 6 different levels of illumination. The keyboard itself seems very high quality for a membrane keyboard. The keys are as high quality as the best membrane keyboards I’ve used, but of course it cannot compare to a mechanical keyboard. The upside of the unit having a membrane keyboard is that it’s quieter. The keys do not make any kind of clicking or clacking noises when pressed. There is a mechanical version of the Sova available for an extra $50 US, however.
Just the keyboard is affixed to the unit, the rest pops off quite easily
The Sova has a great system for keeping pesky mouse cables out of the way. There are long channels molded into the back. These channels are designed to route cables through. In addition, a mouse-cable holder snaps onto a variety of positions along the back of the keyboard. This holder grips your mouse cable and brings it up to the top of the board, ensuring you always have just enough cable for your mouse. This is a great feature which means there’s no worry that your mouse cable will get caught or trapped and prevent you from making the perfect head-shot.
The Sova includes a two-port usb hub. One of the ports is for your mouse, and the other is for your cell phone or other accessory. Unfortunately, connecting a cell phone to the keyboard is just like connecting a cell phone your computer. Because, this is a data transmitting USB port, the phone will recognize the keyboard as a computer. Phones only request 500 milliamps from computers so as to not stress the power supplies. This means it will only charge the cell phone very slowly. Roccat’s website indicates that eventually a cell-phone-holder accessory will be made available which clips onto the back of the Sova.
The USBs go in the back.
The keyboard and USB hub connect to your PC via a single long “breakaway” USB cable. The cable uses a 4-pin mini-DIN connector rather than a standard USB connector. If you misplace or break your Sova’s USB cable you will have to order a new one from Roccat. The USB cable also has two plugs and is meant to take up two USB ports. I suspect this is to provide extra power to ensure that the keyboard, mouse, and third device can all be powered without overloading a port on your PC. However, Roccat doesn’t explain this anywhere that I can find.
The mouse pad, wrist rest, and lap cushions are all removable, and according to Roccat replaceable. However, the keyboard doesn’t come with any replacements, so you’ll have to buy those separately if yours wear out. The mouse pad and wrist rest are both held in with magnets The lap cushion snaps in with plastic tabs. I like the use of magnets, because it makes it easy to detach things, but they still feel secure. The keyboard is built into the Sova and cannot be removed. Since it’s on the left, and the mouse pad is on the right, if you use a mouse left-handed, the Sova will not work for you.
The “rail” on the back of the keyboard currently holds the mouse cord holder, but Roccat has promised that more accessories will come later.
The mouse pad is, quite honestly, the best mouse pad I’ve ever used. My mouse glides so smoothly over the surface it’s almost like it was floating on air. Combined with the mouse cord holder, this delivers an incredibly smooth mouse feel. I also tested it with Roccat’s own Kova mouse, and the experience was equally good. Right now Roccat is giving everyone who preorders the Sova a free Kova mouse.
Features like n-key rollover, (anti-ghosting) and illumination control do not work without the Windows drivers installed. So, if you’re looking for a lapboard keyboard to play on consoles or to control a home-theatre media PC that isn’t Windows, the Sova isn’t going to work as advertised. In fact, until you set the key illumination up with the Roccat software, it’s stuck in a pulsing mode that would be quite distracting while watching a movie. I was never able to get it out of pulsing mode, but I assume this is something that will fixed with a driver update. Unfortunately, I was unable to obtain drivers for the Sova via Roccat’s Swarm software. I can’t confirm any of Roccat’s claims about n-key rollover (anti-ghosting), illumination control, polling rate, or any of the other advanced features. Hopefully the drivers and features will be available when the Sova is officially released.
After reaching out to Roccat’s community manager Tuan Mai I recieved this “the driver (with the features you mentioned) will be available when the product ships.” The version we reviewed is the cheaper version with a membrane keyboard (not a mechanical keyboard) and with only global illumination control. The more expensive version has per-key lighting control. At the time of writing, the Sova is available for pre-order from NewEgg in the United States for $150.
Roccat also claims that CAD (computer-assisted design) files for people with 3D printers will be made available. The idea is that owners with 3D printers would be able to print their own accessories that snap on to the Sova in the same way the mouse cable holder does. One accessory I’d like to see would be a clip to hold my TV remote control.
The Sova is designed for one thing: gaming comfortably, and it delivers that. It’s robust, made out of sturdy plastic with many removable pieces. Just don’t spill your drink on it. The biggest problem with the Sova is that it currently lacks driver support. Overall, I’d recommend the Sova for anyone looking for a simple solution for gaming on the couch.
Battle grounds is developer Bluehole’s newest game. The veteran developer of the popular MMORPG, TERA is working in collaborate with PLAYERUNKNOWN to bring you an all new experience in the world of Battle Royale. Battlegrounds will be a battle royal style game. Over 600 players participated in the test sessions, with overwhelmingly positive feedback on the game’s progress after just four months of development—particularly with regard to the project’s core gameplay, responsiveness and stability. Additional tests will take place every six to eight weeks as the game advances.
In development for PC using Unreal Engine 4, the standalone game will expand the core Battle Royale experience enjoyed by millions of players into a highly competitive player vs. player (PvP) game in a dynamic open world. Playerunknowns Battlegrounds will put up to 64 players on a remote island for a winner-takes-all showdown where strategic gameplay is as important as shooting skills. Players will enter a last-man-standing battle where they try to locate weapons, vehicles and supplies in a graphically and tactically rich battleground that eventually forces players into a shrinking safe area as they engage in a tense and spectacular fight to the death.
“The enthusiastic response of the players after experiencing the bare bones of the game tells me we are on the right track for strong gameplay set in a realistic open world,” said Brendan Greene, aka PLAYERUNKNOWN. “Our Bluehole team has made amazing progress and everyone is fired up for the next play test when we’ll have more of the game to show.”
Bluehole and PLAYERUNKNOWN are committed to an Open Development philosophy for the game, sharing regular updates with the passionate community base, providing early assets and information, answering questions and taking in feedback. This spirit of collaboration is integral to the game’s success, as the online game will grow and thrive with the participation of its player community.
I for one cant wait to get in on the beta of this game, I love these types of games, and King of the Kill is a major player in my game rotation. Hopefully I will get to see and play it at PAX WEST.
