8bitdo put nostalgia to practical use with the SF30 Pro and SN30 Pro, two controllers that are modeled after those of the Super Famicom and Super Nintendo. By adding modern touches, these controllers make for fully functional gamepads for the Nintendo Switch. Both connect via Bluetooth and are also compatible with Windows PC, MacOS, Android, and Raspberry Pi devices.
One controller retails for $50 USD, but you get a fully featured gamepad; even though it's modeled after the SNES pad, you get two bumpers (L, R), two triggers (L2, R2), dual analog sticks that click downward, and the home and screenshot buttons you see on Switch controllers. The SF30 Pro and SN30 Pro have motion controls as well, which is extremely important for games like Super Mario Odyssey and Splatoon 2.
Pairing either controller is seamless for the Nintendo Switch, but you should note that it only connects wirelessly. Your PC need to be able to pick up Bluetooth in order to function, and it will be recognized as a Nintendo Pro Controller. However, it does sport a USB-C port to charge, and a USB-C-to-USB 2.0 cable comes in the package. Battery life is said to last up to 16 hours after charging for around two hours; with the SF30 Pro fully charged, I never had to plug it back in after my five hours using it on the Switch.
As far as the buttons go, they all feel responsive and great to use. The classic design of these controllers do make them a bit tough to grip, but as long as you clamp the controller tightly enough on the sides, this shouldn't be too much of a problem. These aren't going to stand up to the precision and ergonomics of the official Pro Controller, but the SF30 Pro and SN30 Pro make the throwback design work surprisingly well.
The SN30 Pro (above) and the SF30 Pro (below).
By playing Zelda: Breath of the Wild, I got a feel for how these hold up in a full-fledged game. I didn't have any issues with how they function, and it was novel playing a 2017 game with a throwback gamepad. I also played a bunch of the recently ported Rocket League on Switch to get a feel for a fast-paced competitive game. Again, there were no issues playing or nailing down shots on goal. Admittedly, a Pro Controller is more comfortable for these situations, and high-level players will want the more precise triggers and analog sticks.
There is one annoyance with both controllers, however. When they vibrate, they make a high-pitched squealing sound. If you have headphones on or you're playing games in a loud room, it's not much of an issue. But the noise really picks up in a quiet setting. You can hear an audio clip of the actual sound in the video above.
Overall, the SF30 Pro and SN30 Pro are ergonomically sound and don't skimp out on any features or functions you'd want from a controller. They're not going to hold up to the design of the Nintendo Pro controller and the vibration sound is quite annoying, but this modern take on classic controllers from 8bitdo is wonderful.
Both the SF30 Pro and SN30 Pro are set to launch on December 10 for $50. Pre-orders are now live on Amazon.
Acclaimed director Quentin Tarantino has hatched an idea for a Star Trek movie that he could direct as one of his final films. This is according to Deadline, which cites sources saying he shared his idea with Star Trek reboot director JJ Abrams, and that the idea is to get writers together to listen to Tarantino's pitch and then start the process of making a film. Deadline reports that Tarantino may direct, with Abrams onboard to produce.
Deadline points out that Tarantino has never directed an entry in an established film series, so this would be new territory for the Oscar winner. But he has done that on TV, as he directed episodes of CSI and ER. As the site explains, Tarantino is known for his creative control on his projects, so working on Star Trek--which has an established framework and millions of fans--would be an interesting move.
Star Trek is produced by film company Paramount, which is owned by Sony. Tarantino is already working with the company on a film that will focus in part on the Manson murders.
The last movie that Tarantino directed was 2015's The Hateful Eight. In November 2016, Tarantino said he only plans to make two more movies before retiring, so if the Star Trek movie could be his last one.
Taraninto's eight directorial projects have included Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, Jackie Brown, Kill Bill: Vol. 1, Kill Bill Vol. 2, Inglourious Basterds, Django Unchained, and The Hateful Eight. Tarantino won Best Writing Oscars for Pulp Fiction and Django Unchained.
As with Xbox 360 games, you can pop the physical disc in your system, or you can play using a digital version from the Xbox Store. System link is supported, even between different generations of Xbox hardware, though online multiplayer is not due to support ending for original Xbox games in 2010. Achievements are also not available, given that they weren't included in the original versions. Support for 1080p, higher or more stable framerates, and faster load times are all in place according to IGN--just be aware that most of these run in 4:3 aspect ratios.
Xbox games will not be added to the backwards compatibility list on the same sort of time table as Xbox 360 games. Following this initial set of 13, the next "batch" of game will arrive sometime in Spring 2018.
The video below showcases what Knights of the Old Republic looks like running on an original Xbox versus an Xbox One S. While you're unlikely to mistake it for a newly released game, it does look noticeably better, with sharper textures and less aliasing.
When we spoke with Xbox boss Phil Spencer recently, he teased that Xbox One X owners may receive some kind of special backwards compatibility support. "There's some stuff we're going to talk about in that space in terms of how compatibility's going to work on [Xbox One] X specifically that I think people will find pretty interesting," he said. Based on the Xbox Wire post, it sounds as if that is 4K support for these games.
As one of its daily deals, Meh offers the Google Home Voice-Controlled Speaker for $79 plus $5 for shipping. That's $5 under last month's mention and the lowest price we've seen. (It's the best deal today by $25.) The Google Home is a small speaker that features far-field microphones for fielding questions and controlling your home automation gadgets. It features compatibility with both Google Play and Google Cast. Deal ends today.
Add Jotun: Valhalla Edition to your account for FREE!* Once you add the game it will remain in your account permanently, so don't miss out on this opportunity to play a great game!
Jotun is a hand-drawn action-exploration game set in Norse mythology.In Jotun, you play Thora, a Viking warrior who died an inglorious death and must prove herself to the Gods to enter Valhalla. Impress the Gods!
Microsoft offers more than 200 of its Microsoft eBooks for free during its Multi-Million eBook Giveaway. Topics include Windows 10, Office 365, Power BI, Azure, SharePoint, Dynamics CRM, PowerShell, Exchange Server, System Center, and SQL Server.
Sony confirmed today that Superhot VR is headed to the PSVR this summer.
The announcement was made during the publisher’s E3 conference pre-show, where a trailer confirming the release date was played. Superhot VR was first released for the Oculus Rift in December 2016 and was subsequently released for the HTC Vive just last month.
When Polygon went hands on with Superhot VR in December, we talked about how much we enjoyed the unique gameplay elements the VR version of the game brought and how it felt like an entirely new experience. The original Superhot was released last February for Microsoft Windows PC.
When the game comes to PSVR, players should expect the same experience that was offered to Rift and Vive players. The PSVR was...
Phantom Dust is a 2004 action game that mixes Magic the Gathering deck building and frantic arena brawling. A free remaster was released yesterday for Windows 10 and Xbox One. Heather and Chris collect magic spells and slash their way to a few victories in this archived stream.
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Set in a post-apocalyptic future, Phantom Dust straddles a line between punk aesthetics and magical fantasy. While the game does offer a single player mode, the big draw is multiplayer. Players can face off to hurl magic at each other in team battles or free-for-alls.
Phantom Dust is strange to play. Various orbs dot the battlegrounds. Collecting these orbs grants abilities with distinct effects. You much pick up magic to conjure a fiery sword or erect an iron barrier to block incoming attacks. Each ability costs “aura” which can be obtained by picking up white orbs. You need to move quickly to grab what you need.
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The catch is that you only have four ability slots and picking up a new ability or aura orb means overwriting at least one of your current spells. Matches are all about risk and reward, juggling skills and boosting your aura until you have the perfect collection of abilities to take down your opponents.
There’s still some technical quirks in PhantomDust. One of the biggest hurdles is the camera. This is a game where locking on really helps keep track of opponents. Unfortunately, it is hard to toggle between enemies. Clumsy movement also means that combat is a little stiff.
That said, the core concept is so interesting that I’m eager to return for more matches of magic and mayhem. And hey, it’s free! That’s a pretty great price tag for the chance to blast some folks with badass magic.
The studio confirmed that Hardy will play Eddie Brock in the film, which is set to hit theaters in October 2018 and begins shooting this fall. In Marvel's comic books, Brock is a photographer and rival to Peter Parker, who becomes a host for the parasite and sets about to destroy him.
Sony announced Hardy's involvement with a photo of the actor wearing a Venom T-shirt:
Tom Hardy is Eddie Brock in #Venom, the upcoming film from Sony’s Marvel Universe releasing October 5, 2018 – production starts this fall. pic.twitter.com/OZQqDEvoum
This isn't the first time that Hardy has played a villainous role in a superhero movie--in 2012 he portrayed Bane in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises. He will reunite with Nolan this summer in the World War 2 adventure Dunkirk.
Venom will be directed by Ruben Fleischer, who previously helmed the horror comedy Zombieland. It is unknown if there will be any connection between Venom and this year's Spider-Man: Homecoming. Sony holds the movie rights to Spider-Man and associated characters, and Marvel had to strike a deal with it to allow Spidey to become part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe for Homecoming and last year's Captain America: Civil War.
Plans for a Venom movie actually predate the Marvel deal, and the film was originally intended to be part of the ongoing Spider-Man franchise that starred Andrew Garfield. That series ended after just two movies. Venom previously appeared in 2007's Spider-Man 3, in which Eddie Brock was played by Topher Grace.
GOG offers downloads of Mount & Blade for Windows for free. That's the lowest price we could find by $10. (We last saw it for free in 2014.) Deal ends May 21 at 9 am ET.
SCDKey cuts an extra 5% off select game keys via coupon code "SKdealnews11", as listed below. Deal ends May 24. The offers, with prices after the coupon:
Call of Duty Ghosts Xbox One CD Key for $9.85
Call of Duty Black Ops 2 Steam CD Key for $11.41
Doom Steam CD Key (pictured) for $11.93
Tom Clancy's The Division Xbox One Digital Code for $14.84
Overwatch Origins Edition Battle.net CD Key for $38.93
Xbox Live 12 Months Gold Membership Card (Global) for $43.08
Participating Outback Steakhouse locations take $5 off the purchase of two dinner entrees or $4 off the purchase of two lunch entrees via this printable coupon. Some exclusions apply.
Of note, the coupon alternatively takes $2.50 off a single dinner entree or $2 off a single lunch entree.
For April Fools’ Day, Call of Duty turned its players into literal trash. And now fans are begging to become garbage again.
Over the weekend, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered, the upgraded version of the 2007 game packed in with some editions of last year’s Infinite Warfare, introduced a game mode called “Prop Hunt.” Based on a popular game mode in Garry’s Mod, Prop Hunt lets one team disguise themselves as props on a map—cardboard boxes, dumpsters, trash cans—and tasks the other team with finding them.
Folks, it was the most fun I’ve had with Call of Duty in years. And I’m not alone. Over 50 percent of the game’s active player base joined the “Weekend Warfare” to try out this mode, and they’re asking Activision and developer Raven Software to make it a permanent addition to the game.
Prop Hunt, as executed in Modern Warfare was a six-versus-six match. The team on offense had 3:30 to discover and kill the prop players.
This garbage can has a good killstreak goin.
The players on the prop team only received 30 seconds to blend into the map’s scenery before the hunt began. However, prop players weren’t left completely defenseless. They could change their prop twice during the match, and were armed with flashbang grenades that could temporarily incapacitate the hunters.
The hunters were tasked with eliminating all prop players to win the round, and the prop team achieved the win if at least one player remained incognito until the time ran out.
The concept sounds silly, but you don’t know fun until you’ve been spotted as an out-of-place trash can, hopping across the map and throwing flashbangs to make your great escape. You also don’t know the hilarious defeat when a table clutches a 1-v-6 on District. That’s right: a tiny table in a café clutched against six players armed with guns. (Tables and chairs, in general, turned out to be particularly difficult to kill.)
Fans have already tweeted to Raven Software in hopes of seeing Prop Hunt added to the permanent playlist. When popular YouTube personality Ali-A tweeted in favor of keeping the mode,the tweet gathered over 14,000 Likes.
If Prop Hunt returns, I highly recommend giving the mode a test drive. You’ll giggle like mad as the opposing team circles you, completely unaware you’re a tree. As the hunting team, paranoia will set in as you realize you never really paid attention to how many trees are supposed to exist on the map. You know you’re being watched, and you’ll likely do a double take around each corner. Did that dumpster just move?
Andromeda is an entirely new galaxy, and exploring it can be overwhelming. Here’s what you need to know to make the most out of the latest Mass Effect game.
Don’t try to do everything at once
Mass Effect: Andromeda throws a lot at you from the get-go, and stopping to immediately make sense of every piece of it won’t work. Take a breath, and take it one step at a time.
Prioritize your missions
Priority Ops are main missions, which you’ll want to tackle now and again. Beyond that, I found that the best quests were typically under the “Allies” menu. You’ll also want to make sure to do missions about Angaran politics, as these will help you appreciate your new alien neighbors. Planet-wise, I particularly appreciated the Kadaran slum quests, and Elaaden’s Krogan quests. If a crew member from your ship asks you to do something, you probably should—especially loyalty missions. Finally, get crackin’ on finding those lost arks, they are important.
Talk to everyone
NPCs out in the world have things to say, yes, but you’ll want to be especially aware of your crew. Just know that your squadmates occasionally move around on your ship, so you’ll want to check your map to make sure you do the rounds rounds properly. Keep an eye out for your crewmates while you explore cities, too. You can count on new dialogue after major story missions, ally missions, and anything with political or personal significance.
Check your email
There is a console on the Bridge, behind Suvi, as well as on your desk on your personal quarters. Some of the best writing and characterization happens in these emails, and they’ll also contain quests / updates on missions, so don’t miss them!
Customize your clothes
In a console on the left side of your personal quarters, you can deck out Ryder’s civilian clothes.
You can respec
Don’t like how you built your Ryder? Good news, there’s a re-spec station in the back of the Medbay, on the bottom floor of your ship. You can tweak your own character (or your teammates) for some credits, not bad.
Look at your map
While exploring planets, your map will point out potential areas of interest, as well as tell you where missions take place.
Flirt
There’s a reason people talk about Mass Effect romance so much. You’ll note that the game will give you flirty dialogue options immediately after meeting folks, but unless you want to make a fool of yourself, don’t greet folks by laying it on thick. After your initial encounter, though? If you have your eyes set on someone, pick that heart icon. Note that while some characters will demand exclusivity, others are cool with casual encounters, so tread carefully.
Mix and match abilities
While Andromeda asks you to pick a “profile,” you aren’t chained to whatever abilities fall under that specific tree. If you want a combat ability, a tech ability, and a biotic ability, go nuts.
Bring allies you like on missions
Don’t overthink individual combat strengths. Everyone is capable, so you might as well pick whoever you’re fond of—you’ll get to hear more of their banter and get special dialogue.
Prime combos
Certain moves can be chained together for massive damage: for example, you can start with “Pull” and immediately follow it up with “Concussive Shot” for a killer combo. Your options will depend on your specific build.
Use the right ammo
If your enemy has armor, use Incendiary ammo. If your enemy has a shield, use Disrupter ammo.
Dash everywhere
It’s faster!
Aim for the head, or visible weak spots
This is a video game.
Look out for health and ammo containers
They are everywhere, and they will save your life/keep you out of a pickle.
Run from overworld enemies
There are a lot of errant Kett/raiders/scavengers hanging out on planets. You don’t have to stop and fight all of them if they aren’t a part of a quest, so feel free to just drive or dash through ‘em. Unless you want extra XP, though I got to a nice level without having to grind.
Stay on the roads
They are there for a reason. While you’ll be tempted to use the Nomad to go through mountain ranges, more often than not, those “shortcuts” just made things infinitely more complicated and difficult.
Upgrade your vehicle
Specifically, you’ll want upgrades to your shield, so you can withstand more damage, and your boosting abilities, so you can get around quickly.
Fast travel
Once on a planet, you can use Forward Stations to warp around on the map. Forward stations are also useful for changing your loadouts and crew, depending on the mission at hand.
Explore
Andromeda does hide some secrets and quests that you can’t find unless you explore. In cities, make sure to visit every locale. On planets, investigate any special icons on your map, and keep an eye out for any visible phenomena in the distance. Things that might seem like ambient details might actually be something cool.
Look for anamolies
If Suvi says she detects an anomaly, it means you can scan the wider system to find something. Usually, it’s raw materials, but sometimes, you’ll find some other neat stuff out there.
Find Alec’s memories
The payoff is worth it, even if the mission and initial cutscenes seem silly. Whenever you get to a new planet or locale, chances are good that there are new memories to collect.
Watch out for the water in Remnant areas
Stepping in it will wreck your shields and badly damage you.
Sell your salvage
Whenever you go to a shop, you can get some good credits by offloading salvage. You don’t need it for anything, so.
Buy Remnant Decryption keys
The first few Remnant puzzles aren’t bad, but they can become a major drag as you progress through the story. You can avoid the headaches by purchasing a special item. It’s expensive, but worth it.
Make weapons and armor
To craft gear, you need blueprints. Some blueprints you pick up from doing quests and looting enemies and crates, but you can also make some through the “development” option on the Research Station in the middle of your ship. Blueprint in hand, you can craft whatever you’d like on the “Development” menu, provided that you have the right materials. Materials can be purchased from vendors, or mined on Forward Stations. Planets can be scanned for resources, though they will often be random. Any planet you can set foot on will tell you what specific resources it holds before you land on it, so keep an eye out for that.
All gear can be augmented with more benefits, like added power, depending on what you have on hand. Augments can also be picked up randomly, or purchased from vendors, though I did fine with what I found naturally.
Personally, I loved crafting Remnant weapons the most, because they don’t require ammo and are pretty powerful. You might find other types of weapons more viable for your own playstyles, though.
Reclaim planets
Terraforming planets—that is, unlocking the Remnant Vaults—allows you to more freely explore hostile planets, gives you access to more quests, and also unlocks AVP bonuses.
Collect AVP bonuses
It’s easy to forget about AVP, but remember, you always have some extra goodies waiting for you, depending on what settlers you defrost. I was partial to the traders, who gave me credits and gave me better deals at shops.
Hyper Light Drifter is backbreaking, but never needlessly so. The dash-and-slash game is in equal parts elegantly designed and punishing, posing the fairest challenge I’ve ever encountered in a game. A year post-release, Hyper Light Drifter’s clean (and ball-busting) gameplay still has me addicted to the adrenaline rush.
I picked up Hyper Light Drifter a little after it came out last March. Its simple mechanics were an immediate pull: one button to dash, one button to attack with a sword. By slashing monsters, you charge your gun. There are upgrades and things, but those three moves define the gameplay. Menus are easily avoided, for the most part.
Hyper Light Drifter follows a mysterious protagonist, a Drifter, through the north, south, east and west zones, each with their own set of monsters and dungeons. Often, the Drifter is enclosed in small spaces with dozens of enemies, which he has to dodge, slash and shoot in perfect rhythm. I die, a lot. The music doesn’t even pause.
A year later, I’ve come back for this rhythm. I’m playing through the boss fights, savoring each challenge in all its sadism. On the North map, a vulture boss takes turns sending hordes of minion birds at me and cracking open floor tiles with his staff, which I barely dodge. Slashing the birds and charging my gun, I became absorbed in the rhythm of shoot, dodge, slash that I try over and over to perfect. Hyper Light Drifter is so polished that dying never feels unfair, building up a fierce adrenaline rush. When I finally win and come up for breath, after fifteen tries, that rush is unparalleled.
I feel safe in the state of heightened “flow” Hyper Light Drifter inspires. Rarely does a game feel so smooth that there is nothing separating me from complete immersion. Rarely do victories and defeats feel so straightforward and entirely deserved. I’ll come back to this game for years seeking that same rush, and I know that Hyper Light Drifter will not let me down.
A good remake of a retro gaming classic has to evoke the feeling of playing the original while making the game feel fresh and new. Blaster Master Zero for the Nintendo Switchis a very good remake of a retro gaming classic. So good.
You may have seen the name on release lists. You may have seen the listing in the Switch eShop and wondered what the hell this pixelated anime nonsense was.
I was a bit thrown by this myself.
Blaster Master Zero is a fine recreation of the 1988 Sunsoft classic for the NES. They’ve taken some liberties with the story, which might upset some fans, but when you consider the North American version of the first game was about a boy looking for his frog and the Japanese version is about a boy piloting a mech to defeat a space emperor, they’ve got some wiggle room. The main character, Jason, is still after a frog named Fred, but his interest is scientific rather than any sort of friendship. In the middle of his adventure he is joined by a girl named Eve, who becomes the mechanic for the tank he’s piloting, Sophia 3rd.
The gameplay is intact, which is what really matters. Jason drives Sophia through maze-like game levels, searching for his escaped frog. At any time he can exit his ride, which can be handy for unlocking doors or searching for vehicle upgrades to help them get to the next area, Metroidvania style.
That’s the side-scrolling platformer section of the game. Littered across the levels are dungeons, which Jason takes on by himself in top-down shooter fashion.
There’s a whole bunch of new stuff in Blaster Master Zero—new bosses, new sub-weapons and such. But what’s even better is what’s been improved over the original. Control is much better than it ever was, particularly while driving Sophia, which was a bit of a floaty mess in the original. And while the infamous grenade glitch (players could launch a grenade at a boss, hit pause and have it continue doing damage) is gone, the shooting controls are really tight, making it easy to fire, even on a diagonal.
As for the inclusion of Eve, a character who didn’t appear in the original game but eventually wound up being Jason’s in-canon wife (with an appearance at the end of the Wii version), it’s nice to have a little banter before a big battle.
Blaster Master was one of my favorite games on the NES, right up there with Super Mario Bros. 3. I’ve played the original recently, and while the nostalgia factor was there, the satisfaction I felt with it as a teenager wasn’t quite there. I found it again in Blaster Master Zero.
Blaster Master Zero is available for $9.99 on the Nintendo Switch eShop. It’s also available for 3DS, though I couldn’t imagine playing it on a tiny screen after rocking that tablet.
As one of its daily deals, Meh offers the Google Home Voice-Controlled Speaker for $79 plus $5 for shipping. That's $5 under last month's mention and the lowest price we've seen. (It's the best deal today by $25.) The Google Home is a small speaker that features far-field microphones for fielding questions and controlling your home automation gadgets. It features compatibility with both Google Play and Google Cast. Deal ends today.
Microsoft offers more than 200 of its Microsoft eBooks for free during its Multi-Million eBook Giveaway. Topics include Windows 10, Office 365, Power BI, Azure, SharePoint, Dynamics CRM, PowerShell, 
GOG offers downloads of Mount & Blade for Windows for free. That's the lowest price we could find by $10. (We last saw it for free in 2014.) Deal ends May 21 at 9 am ET.
SCDKey cuts an extra 5% off select game keys via coupon code "SKdealnews11", as listed below. Deal ends May 24. The offers, with prices after the coupon:
Participating Outback Steakhouse locations take $5 off the purchase of two dinner entrees or $4 off the purchase of two lunch entrees via this printable coupon. Some exclusions apply.
