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A guitarist NPC from Cyberpunk 2077.

Doublejump Digest: July 21, 2019


This week in gaming: Nintendo updates the regular Switch, Netflix shows off The Witcher, Fortnite channels Power Rangers, and more!


In the spirit of keeping our readers up to date with what’s happening in the video game industry, the Doublejump Digest is a brief collection of the major news stories from the past week. Keep an eye out for the Digest every Sunday night, and head on into the archive for news from weeks gone by!


FROM DOUBLEJUMP: 

  • John loved his original time with The Messenger, and the game’s Picnic Panic DLC delivered more fun ninja action for him to enjoy.

MAJOR NEWS: 

Nintendo confirms better battery life in newly-revised Switch models: 

Less than a week after announcing the Nintendo Switch Lite, the Japanese gaming giant updated its Switch product listing page (via Engadget) to confirm that it has developed an updated version of the regular system that boosts much-improved battery life. The new “HAC-001 (-01)” model should last between 4.5-9 hours on a single charge compared to the outgoing “HAC-001” model that lasts between 2.5-6 hours. Nintendo claims that the new model should last approximately 5.5 hours when playing The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild compared the the previous one’s 3 hour total. While Nintendo has not revealed much about the cause of the improved battery life, but a recent filing with the FCC points to the benefits of using a newer NVIDIA Tegra X1 processor. Nintendo of Japan noted that the new model is slated for an August release.

Here’s our first look at The Witcher TV series: 

Netflix treated eager Witcher fans at San Diego Comic-Con to the debut trailer for its live-action television adaptation of Andrzej Sapkowski’s fantasy novel series. As expected, the trailer shows off Henry Cavill as an extra buff Geralt of Rivia, sets up Yennefer as a Witcher-hunting magician, and Ciri as a young woman that all the bad guys are after.

During an interview following the show’s Comic-Con panel, Showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich noted (via GameSpot) that the show’s first season will adapt the first book in the series, The Last Wish, and that Netflix has no current plans to adapt the popular games.

“I’ve played the games, but really our stories are coming from the books,” the showrunner said. “I think there’s a lot of concern, will the television show be for game fans as well? And I absolutely think so. I mean, if you think about how adaptations work, the games are adaptations of the same source material that we’re using.”

“If you come to the games and love the characters and love the kinds of stories that you find there, I think you’re going to love the show too.”

So, a Giant Mech and a Kaiju fought each other in Fortnite

Epic Games channeled its love for Voltron, Power Rangers, and Godzilla by hosting a special in-game event within Fortnite: Battle Royale that saw a giant cat-like mech nicknamed Doggus duke it out with a dog-like monster nicknamed Cattus on the island. We could spoil the results of the fight, but we feel like it would be better if you watched the whole thing for yourselves.

CD Projekt RED discusses Cyberpunk 2077’s accessibility and Hardcore Mode: 

Speaking with Wccftech, User Interface (UI) Coordinator Alvin Liu explained how the Polish studio is aiming to cater to a broad variety of players when designing the Cyberpunk 2077’s visual interface and shooter gameplay.

“The most fun one I think will be the Hardcore setting where we turn off the UI you live as well. And that will be a real challenge for a lot of players. Also, at the same time, if you want to play more casually for the story and maybe you’re not experienced with shooters, which was a real big concern for us, he explained. “We want to tell a story and maybe you’re a big fan of The Witcher and you’re not comfortable playing a shooter, we have settings available for that. We even have weapons for that.”

He added that the “Smart Gun” is specifically designed to help players who struggle with the precise aiming required when playing traditional shooting games.

“If you recall from last year’s demo, we had a weapon called the Smart Gun, which helps you aim. The bullets were much slower and usually a bit weaker,” he said. “But if your aiming isn’t your forte, you can always pick up the smart gun.”

PLAYERUNKNOWN’S BATTLEGROUNDS is getting some notable updates: 

PUBG Corp. has revealed that the game’s fourth season of content will bring alongside it a major update to Erangel that will brings its visual quality and destructibility in line with that of the newer maps.

Furthermore, the company has just released a new cinematic trailer that sets up a ridiculous premise for the game’s battle royale setting.

The SA government is helping Sony set up shop in Adelaide: 

The South Australian has announced that it will invest US$480,000 from its Economic and Business Growth Fund to help Sony Interactive Entertainment open an office in Adelaide. The state’s Liberal government expects to see the office’s founding as an opportunity for 32 new engineering jobs.


NOTABLE GAME RELEASES: 

  • Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order (Switch)

VIDEOS AND TRAILERS:

Borderlands 3 – “So Happy Together”:

As if you’d thought that a Borderlands-themed music video would be any less fun than this?

FIFA 20 – Official Gameplay Trailer:

A new year, a new FIFA, and a slew of new gameplay features.

Overwatch – Developer Update | Role Queue:

Game Director Jeff Kaplan explains what Blizzard has done to make matchmaking a more rewarding experience.

Destiny 2: Shadowkeep – Bungie Developer Insights – Return to the Moon:

The Hive have really done a number on the Moon since the original game.

Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz HD – Announcement Trailer:

Those affable apes are back for more ball-based shenanigans!

Dauntless – Island of Trials:

Lady Luck is inviting us all to find a place on the Wall of Champions.


OTHER NEWS:

  • PES 20 will be the only football game this year to feature Juventus: Eurogamer
  • Iron Banner is returning to Destiny 2: Forsaken next week: Bungie
  • This year’s Overwatch Summer Games are now on: Official
  • Streets of Rage 4’s soundtrack is gonna feature some stellar composers: Engadget
  • Microsoft has confirmed that it’s going to let Xbox Live Gold users upgrade to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for US$1: Xbox Wire
  • Sonic has found an unlikely crossover in OK K.O.: GameSpot

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