Everyone has a fighting chance
The latest Camelot Unchained newsletter has arrived and, as usual, it is packed with information about what the team has been up to over the past month. In this issue, the community is told that it has “a sense of being on the cusp of landing a bunch of different awesome chunks of the game and making big strides forward”.
A terminally ill 14-year-old teenager named Maddox Hyde will be participating in his first, and probably last, Extra-Life gaming marathon throughout the day today to raise funds for the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh Foundation. Maddox’s goal is “to be remembered as an inspiration to others, and as a Champion for other kids like [him]”. Maddox’s #FortheKids campaign will begin today at 8:00 am Pacific / 11:00 am Eastern
A little while ago it was revealed that Bandai Namco and Qanba were teaming up to produce a pair of limited edition fight sticks in honor of the 2018 Tekken World Tour; these controllers are now out in the wild, and we had the opportunity to try them out for ourselves. Not only do they shine as collectibles for the hardcore Tekken fan, but as expected from Qanba, they are excellent controller options as well — for any fighting game, not just Tekken 7, of course! Both of these sticks are compatible with the PlayStation 3 and 4 consoles, and the Obsidian also has a PC setting.
The Tekken World Tour Edition of the Qanba Obsidian is no different than the original model (aside from the new panel art, of course), which I looked at in detail in my prior review. For the unfamiliar, the stick comes equipped with a square-gated Sanwa Denshi JLF lever, and Sanwa Denshi pushbuttons. It features aluminum case elements and LED lighting on the side panels. The new art (designed by Kaydie) is a bit unusual compared to what we’re used to for licensed panel art: rather than the usual Tekken promo artwork, it’s a spread of cute little pixel-art versions of the Tekken 7 cast. And it suits the sleek, clean design of the Obsidian perfectly. It adds a ton of personality to the stick’s look without overpowering its style, and it’s pretty much impossible to see the panel and not start hunting for your favorite fighters in the mix.
Having spent more time with this controller, there are a few practical points about it I’d like to revisit. I initially worried the stick would be too big and unwieldy to carry around at a tournament; I still feel that way, unless you have a decent stick bag — the combination of the two made the Obsidian my favorite event controller. I have since learned that it isn’t too difficult to change the panel artwork after all (not exactly relevant for this model, I would hope), but it is still tricky. My only operational complaint about the Obsidian is very minor: I would prefer a physical toggle switch for the LED setting. It can be switched between flashing for joystick and button inputs, flashing from vibration feedback signals, always-on, or turned off — and it would be nice to be able to lock your preferred setting (the input-flashes are the default setting, and it will always reset to that when the stick loses power).
The performance of the Sanwa Denshi components are well-known to be top-notch, provided you like their feel. The lever and/or buttons can be easily swapped out on the Obsidian with only a couple of screwdrivers. The responsiveness of the Obsidian PCB has scored well in past testing, generally showing less input latency than HORI models, though not as fast as Razer or Brook boards. The Obsidian has become a common sight in professional play.
The Qanba Drone is marketed as an entry-level, “discount” fight stick, with its small size being a selling point for the sake of portability. It lives up to this creed while actually still being a decent controller for fighting game play. The joystick and pushbuttons on the Drone are Qanba-made, not Sanwa Denshi like its big brother. However, for being arguably lower-grade components, they hold up alright in gameplay. The square-gated joystick feels very similar to a Sanwa JLF in terms of resistance, but the switches aren’t quite as sensitive as a JLF — it’s not quite as good at picking up light motions. I had to be more forceful than usual to get consistent dashes and sidewalking than on my usual stick. The buttons are a bit “clunkier” than Sanwa or HORI pushbuttons, but I found them to respond very well. I found using the Drone more comfortable than expected; it’s small and light, but not too small and light. I particularly like the textured, angled palm rest. Of course, if you don’t like the stock Qanba components, you can modify the Drone — but it isn’t designed for easy modding. Expect to bring out the soldering iron if you want to change the buttons and/or lever. It’s worth noting that the Drone does not have a touch pad, like most larger sticks (the Obsidian does).
The artwork on the TWT Drone is also not your typical promo art: it features the chibi “crying Heihachi” icon that has made its appearance on other Tekken merchandise and in-game customization items. It’s certainly eye-catching, and seems to suit the little fight stick well. Why is Heihachi crying? Because not enough of you are playing Tekken 7! Or maybe because his family hates him. Or both. It’s tough being a Mishima.
There are a few clever design elements that really show that the Drone is made for easy portability. The USB cable can be tucked right into an open compartment in the front of the stick’s case. And to help pop your Drone into your bag or backpack, you can remove the lever via a circular hatch on the base without having to open the entire controller case (you’ll still need a flat-headed screwdriver — or very strong fingernails).
Basically: it’s hard to go wrong with Qanba controllers these days. They’ve earned their spot as one of the top choices for arcade sticks on the current market. The Obsidian is a fantastic stick with only a few minor quibbles, as evidenced by its increasing popularity. The Drone is a great option for portability, and offers something with an entry-level price tag — though both sticks fall into what I would consider a reasonable price range for their build and performance. As limited editions, the TWT Edition Drone is a bit easier to find, while the Obsidian seems to already be getting scarce — head over to Newegg to grab a TWT Drone for $79.99 USD or a TWT Obsidian for $199.99 USD before they’re gone. I expect demand for these might spike a bit this weekend!
Now, get ready for some good-ass Tekken when the Tekken World Tour Global Finals kick off tomorrow!
Qanba USA provided Shoryuken with samples of the TWT Edition Obsidian and Drone controllers for the purpose of this review.
Qanba and Bandai Namco join forces to release new Tekken World Tour fight sticks
The Tekken World Tour Global Finals will take place on December 1 and 2, 2018
Shoryuken review: Qanba Obsidian fight stick for PlayStation 4
These days, it’s pretty much expected for games to receive a day one patch as soon as they launch. As such, it should come as no surprise that Super Smash Bros. Ultimate will be getting one. In an interview with Famitsu, via ComicBook, creator Masahiro Sakurai confirmed the existence of the day one patch for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
One of the reasons for the patch, he states, is to fix an issue with the game’s replays. That said, he also confirmed that the patch was only for the physical release of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Players who bought the digital version will already received the patched version of the game. The digital version of the game itself clocks in at around 13 gigabytes, so players should be sure to clear enough space for it.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate launches on December 7, 2018.
Source: ComicBook
ARIKA’s Fighting EX Layer is finally out on Steam. For those who’ve been patiently waiting for the game to hit the platform, ARIKA has a special incentive for you to pick it up right now: a launch sale. ARIKA’s excellent fighter is currently subject to a 26% discount on Steam. This means that players looking to pick the game up can now do so for only $29.59 instead of $39.99.
Unlike the PlayStation 4 version, there’s only one edition of Fighting EX Layer available on Steam. The package here is analogous to the “Standard Version” on PlayStation 4, meaning it comes with Hokuto and 15 Gougi Decks. This means that — even on its regular price — it only costs as much as the “Light Version” on Sony’s console, making it an absolute steal with the current sale.
Source: Steam
Infamous Brazilian leaker and dataminer X-Kira has recently been giving out “Christmas presents” on his Twitter account, teasing a massive amount of Crossover Costumes that could be arriving to Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition during Season 4 in 2019 — as he claims to know 70% of future outfits arriving in 2019.
As usual he tweeted pictures of various Capcom characters, including: Batsu Ichimonji and Kyosuke Kagami from Rival Schools, (he previously tweeted pictures of Hinata Wakaba, and the Taiyo High School emblem, which all three attend) Captain Commando’s Baby Head and Mack the Knife, Asura’s Wrath’s Asura, Plasma Sword’s Hayato Kanzaki, Fou-Lu, Ryu and Nina from Breath of Fire, Dead Rising’s Frank West, Tron Bonne from Mega Man Legends, Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams’ Kaijin no Soki, Red Earth/Warzard’s Tessa/Tabasa and Leo, Marvel vs. Capcom 2’s Ruby Heart, Jin Saotome from Cyberbots, Regina from Dino Crisis, as well as the trio of D.D., Rook, and Death from the canceled Capcom Fighting All-Stars: Code Holder. X-Kira also specifies that some of these outfits will be for the new challengers in Season 4.
He then goes on to state that Dark Sakura and Cyber-Akuma from Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter will be appearing in Extra Battle in the near future, and that dedicated Yoga Masters will finally be able to enjoy Dhalsim’s Nostalgic costume as a Premium attire next year. X-Kira mentions that Season 4 will be “a season of love and hate,” with “a strong grappler joining the roster.” Kira then goes on to say that the Season 2 and 3 cast could be seeing some cleaner, more refined animations next year, before noting that a number of characters and variants can be faced in a new mode that will let us face NPCs (perhaps the Boss Rush mode X-Kira spoke about in the past.), including:
Finally, X-Kira made it clear that his recent findings haven’t been datamining, as he actually has access to Capcom’s QA servers, and that the company is looking to “shut him down” in 2019. Most notably, he mentions that the recent reveal of Street Fighter V Type Arcade, “automatically confirms another version of the game, since other builds are being made and Arcade Edition will be replaced … Super Street Fighter V is the final version of SFV,” claiming it will be released in December 2019, with Arcade Rival cutscenes, similar to Street Fighter IV, also being added. According to Kira Season 5 will be the last for the game, with General Story Volume 2 also in the works.
You can see all of the relevant tweets below, but keep in mind this is all unconfirmed, so only time (and Capcom) will tell how much of these predictions/teases come true.
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 23, 2018
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 23, 2018
Extra Battle: Dark Sakura pic.twitter.com/JLLFaxCOTm
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 27, 2018
Extra Battle: Cyber Akuma pic.twitter.com/tC3cX39o5r
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 27, 2018
Nostalgia Dhalsim costume coming in 2019.
Listed on QA1.
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 27, 2018
This automatically confirms another version of the game, since other builds are being made and Arcade Edition will be replaced … Super Street Fighter V is the final version of SFV. pic.twitter.com/ArLaSc8ZO6
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 27, 2018
I hereby make it very clear that i do not do datamining for a long time.
Everything i posts, comes straight from the Capcom QA servers, this is not datamining, i have access to the server with username and password …
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
A Season of Love and Hate, many e
will like it and many will hate…— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
Capcom will leave some animations and will leave the characters of Season 2 and 3 more natural and fluid, they will make things better and drop the beta content aside.
Falke; It come without any refining whatsoever it was same during beta tests, as it was in the pipeline.
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
The Extra Battle challenges that I quoted last year are coming soon, there are already their requests on the CFN server… for example;
Fool Battle: vs. Sheng Long.
ATT: X-Kira
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
Some of the Cosplay i posted are for Season 4 characters #RiseUp
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
Challenges of level 8 and with new Moveset of the Extra Battle same Shadow "Nash"$$
Arthur
Asura
Bison SFII (Dictator)
Balrog SFII (Boxer) "Rainbow Edition"
Cyber Akuma
Dark Sakura
Evil Ryu
Guile "Rainbow Edition"
Mech Fang
Mech Juri
Mech Zangief
Rockman X
Sagat SFII
Sheng Long— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
Giant Battles of Level 8;
Abigail
Alex
Brandnew (*****)
Dan (Fool and Weak)
Mech Zangief
Phantom Bison (Dictator)
Peter
Soldier Rank's (Various)— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
Strange Battles level unknown ;
Doll's
Insivible Character (Various)
Nadeshiko
Vega II (Dictator) "Same from SFEX"
?— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
Extra Battle: Vega II "Shin-Bison" (Dictator) Psycho Cannon & Knee Press Nightmare same on SFEX. pic.twitter.com/BdxA7qu6O1
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
One of the surprises that a Capcom is up to is General Story Volume 2…
Merry Christmas early to all.
— X-Kira Datamining (@XKiraDatamining) November 29, 2018
Source: X-Kira Datamining (Twitter)
According to a new post on the CCP site, the company has put the brakes on alpha testing for its competitive 6v6 shooter Project Nova. The game was first announced at EVE Vegas as the “spiritual successor to DUST 514”. Since then, the game has been through a “number of player research sessions with external partners, tirelessly playtested the game internally and brought community stalwarts in to help us evaluate the project”. Devs feel that PN does not live up to CCP’s vision at the moment.
While the upcoming movie, Dragon Ball Super: Broly might be a couple months away, releasing on January 16, 2019, in the U.S., Bandai Namco Entertainment is already announcing new DLC for Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 to hype up the upcoming film.
While the title character, Broly, is no surprise, Gogeta, who has until this moment remained a non-canon fusion of heroes Goku and Vegeta, is now recreated with new moves, an even cooler sense of confidence, and a Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan (SSGSS or Super Saiyan Blue) transformation.
While potentially spoiling some of the fun for fans wanting to wait until the film releases, Bandai Namco Entertainment already shared a new trailer for the film showcasing the canon iteration of Gogeta to promote the new Broly being added to the mobile fighter, Dragon Ball Legends.
Players can catch a five-second teaser for the new character below, shared by Dragon Ball personality, Rhymestyle. While five seconds is certainly brief, even when compared to the seemingly short 30-second trailers for Dragon Ball FighterZ, the teaser captures the essence of the new blue Gogeta and his original techniques. Gogeta’s fast blue energy blasts remind me of Broly’s own Blaster Shell technique with his own spin.
Gogeta Blue 5 second teaser pic.twitter.com/UuXkxz4r00
— Dino (@Rhymestyle) November 30, 2018
Not to be overpowered by the azure fusion fighter, Broly (Super Saiyan Full Power), not to be confused with the community named mastered state from Dragon Ball Z of the same name, is also heading to Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 as part of the Extra Pack 4 DLC set.
If Broly wasn’t already intimidating enough, this new iteration of the character is power incarnate. With new duds and his familiar green glow, Broly is bound to be a worthy opponent (or partner) in any Xenoverse mission.
Broly (Super Saiyan Full Power) is coming to #dragonballxenoverse 2 ahead of the launch of Dragon Ball Super: Broly movie!
Featured as part of Extra Pack 4 coming this winter, Broly fights with a pure Battle instinct that even exceeds that of Goku.
Ready to handle his raw power? pic.twitter.com/NcyJonYNbO— BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment Europe (@BandaiNamcoEU) November 21, 2018
There’s always a ton to look forward to with Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 in terms of both paid and free content and Extra Pack 4 will be no different. On top of receiving the two powerhouse fighters, players who purchase Extra Pack 4 will also obtain the Tournament of Power Arena from the last arc of the Dragon Ball Super anime as a playable stage.
While not explicitly stated, one can assume, as it has been done with all DLC packs for the title, players will also have the ability to learn Gogeta and Broly’s new moves through additional parallel quests that add even more wacky time traveling stories to the title. I’m hoping for a classic Broly vs. New Broly showdown alongside a Vegito Blue vs. Gogeta Blue smackdown, what about you?
Never to be left without a gift for the holiday, all players regardless of whether they purchase Extra Pack 4 or not will gain access to the Santa outfit and Broly’s wig for their custom characters. There’s bound to be more free content as well so keep your senses heightened.
Super Saiyan Broly & the Tournament of Power Arena will be in Extra Pack 4! And as part of a separate free update players will receive a Santa outfit + Broly's wig!
DRAGON BALL #XENOVERSE2 is out now on PS4, X1, Steam & Switch: https://t.co/DSGgWFF3ca (More surprises to come!) pic.twitter.com/Nck83uh51g
— Bandai Namco US (@BandaiNamcoUS) November 21, 2018
Expect more information and a full-length trailer showcasing both of the Dragon Ball Super: Broly characters and the rest of the additional content coming to Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 through Extra Pack 4 and the free update to be released in the near future.
Those who can’t wait to add more content to Xenoverse 2 can download even more music from the anime through the recently released Anime Music Pack 2, which is also downloadable for Dragon Ball FighterZ.
Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 is available on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC.
Source: Bandai Namco; Rhymestyle
The Twitter for Elder Scrolls: Blades, the mobile game based on the popular franchise, has announced that the game will be delayed until “early 2019” for both iOS and Android devices. However, players can still sign up for early access. The game was originally planned for a 2018 release and no reason has been cited for the delay.
Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition has gained a lot of Crossover Costumes since Extra Battle mode was introduced. Over most of the month of December, you’ll be able to complete challenges to earn any of five prior costumes you might have missed on their first pass: Viewtiful Joe (Rashid), June (Chun-Li), Captain Commando (Nash), Nameless Super Soldier (Guile), and the fairly-recent Fiona (Cammy).
Henshin-A-Go-Go, baby! Five Crossover Costumes are returning to Extra Battle Mode from November 30 to December 27!
Viewtiful Joe (Rashid)
?♀️ June (Chun-Li)Captain Commando (Nash)
✈️ Nameless Super Soldier (Guile)Fiona (Cammy) pic.twitter.com/0HYZGSnpdp
— Street Fighter (@StreetFighter) November 29, 2018
As per usual, you’ll need to cough up some Fight Money and complete a challenge each week to earn the outfits — though if you completed any challenges previously but fell short of finishing all four for a costume, you’ll only need to earn the pieces you missed.
Source: Street Fighter (Twitter)