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‘Fortnite’ is getting a Batman crossover
Batman Day, an event to mark the Caped Crusader's 80th anniversary, takes place this Saturday. Epic Games is getting in on the fun by bringing aspects of the iconic superhero's world into Fortnite.
'Apex Legends' is getting physical editions with exclusive cosmetics
While Apex Legends is a free-to-play game, you'll soon be able to get your hands on a physical version for PC, Xbox One and PS4. There are two editions, focused on Bloodhound and Lifeline respectively.
Epic added the hated mechs to 'Fortnite' so more players could win
When Fortnite's Season X started two weeks ago, developer Epic Games introduced a new mechanic that significantly changed how matches play out. The two-player B.R.U.T.E. mechs caused uproar, with many players suggesting the machines are overpowered. They have large health pools, are able to leap around the map with ease and can quickly delete structures and players with a devastating volley of rockets. Epic reduced the frequency of the mechs in Fortnite's competitive modes, but it now says it added them precisely to help more players rack up kills and wins.
'Apex Legends' gets a limited-time solo mode next week
Since Apex Legends burst onto the battle royale scene in February, there's been an ever-present request near the top of players' wishlists: a single-player mode. Until now, matches have taken place entirely in teams of three, but for a limited time, you'll be able to drop into King's Canyon and rely purely on your own skill and abilities in search of a victory -- with no teammates to back you up.
'PUBG' update brings destruction and better visuals to the original map
Erangel, the map in which the battle royale craze truly began in PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, is getting a major overhaul for season 4. PUBG Corp said the update brings Erangel in line with more recent maps, adding new buildings, revamping terrain and improving graphics.
Snapchat's battle royale game is out now
Snapchat is getting in on the battle royale craze with Tiny Royale, which you can play right now. The Zynga-developed top-down shooter expands the lineup of available multiplayer Snap Games.
'Avengers: Endgame' event is coming to 'Fortnite' this week
Epic Games is again linking up with the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the developer has teased a Fortnite and Avengers: Endgame crossover. We don't know many details yet, other than a start date of April 25th, the same day the movie hits theaters, and that it might have something to do with Captain America's shield.
'Call of Duty: Black Ops 4' gets a second battle royale map tomorrow
Call of Duty: Black Ops 4's Blackout battle royale mode is about to get a new map. The second arena in which players will duke it out for supremacy is Alcatraz. The map hits PS4 tomorrow and will arrive on other platforms later.
'Apex Legends' has banned 500,000 accounts for cheating
Apex Legends season 1 is now underway, and beyond the updates previously Respawn had revealed would be included in today's patch (including a new character, balance changes and character hitbox fixes), it revealed 499,937 accounts have been banned for cheating so far. You'll have a better way to report cheating and abuse, which you can do from the spectate view after your character dies or from the Squad tab.
'Battlefield V' 64-player battle royale arrives March 25th
After months of waiting, Battlefield V's long-promised (but conspicuously absent) battle royale mode is nearly here. DICE and EA plan to make Firestorm available on March 25th to all players, and they've shed more light on what the mode will involve in a reveal trailer (below). The 64-player experience will take place on the largest Battlefield map to date, Halvoy, and will grant access to some rather unusual advantages if you complete objectives. Apparently, a farm tractor carrying artillery is one of your options. You can also expect helicopters, tanks and one-time perks like V-1 strikes.
EA reportedly paid Ninja $1 million to stream 'Apex Legends'
It's no secret that EA paid top streamers to promote (and to some extent, influence) Apex Legends, but how much did those streamers make? In one case, it might have been quite a lot. A Reuters source claimed that EA paid Ninja (aka Tyler Blevins) a cool $1 million to play the game on February 5th. He might not have been obligated to play for long, either. An EA spokesperson told Kotaku that any streamed gameplay after "midday" on February 5th was "completely organic" -- that is, they wanted to keep playing.
'Apex Legends' already has 50 million players after one month
Apex Legends might not be growing at quite the breakneck pace it enjoyed during its first week, but it's still climbing at a very healthy rate. Respawn and EA have confirmed that the battle royale shooter now has more than 50 million total players worldwide after just over a month since the surprise release. They haven't revealed the number of simultaneous players, but its first weekend saw upward of 2 million people playing at the same time.
'Apex Legends' team plans to fix player hitbox issues
Apex Legends is a success by most measures, but that doesn't mean it's without problems. A Respawn community manager said the developer is aware of and "discussing" multiple complaints that the hitboxes (the invisible shapes that determine whether or not a hit counts) are inconsistent between characters and could give you an unfair advantage. Some Legends appear to have disproportionately large hitboxes that make them easier targets (Gibraltar's is 140 percent bigger than Wraith's, for example). Others, meanwhile, have more precise hitboxes -- you can shoot between the legs of Bloodhound, but trying the same with Pathfinder registers a hit.
'Apex Legends' racks up 25 million players in its first week
For a game that was announced and launched just a week ago, Apex Legends is doing well for itself. Respawn has revealed that its stab at the battle royale genre now has over 25 million total players, and had "well over" 2 million simultaneous players during the weekend. That's still a far cry from Fortnite's numbers (Epic's shooter has over 200 million players and 8.3 million concurrent), but it's a huge figure for a title that boasted 10 million players just a few days earlier.
EA's 'Apex Legends' already topped 10 million players
It has only been a few days since EA and Respawn Entertainment's battle royale entry appeared, and so far Apex Legends is getting a decent reception. Respawn CEO Vince Zampella announced that it has already attracted over 10 million players in three days on PS4, Xbox One and PC, with more than one million people playing at the same time. That still leaves it with considerable ground to make up on the game it most closely mimics, Epic's also free-to-play Fortnite, which last reported a peak concurrent user count of over 8.3 million, and may have topped that with 10 million during a live concert last week. While a vocal group online has expressed their disappointment that the game isn't Titanfall 3 -- EA said there is something new in that franchise on the way -- our impressions have been mostly positive so far. Now, whether or not it has staying power among the heap of similar shooters that includes Call of Duty: Blackout, PUBG and, of course, Fortnite, remains to be seen.
‘Apex Legends’ isn’t ‘Titanfall 3’, and that’s okay
There is no Titanfall 3. Respawn Entertainment producer Drew McCoy broke the news in a Eurogamer interview yesterday, extinguishing any hope that the futuristic mech-shooter could return to PCs and modern consoles. Instead, the EA-owned developer is offering a free-to-play game called Apex Legends. Is it worth your time? Yes, though for reasons you might not expect.
Respawn's 'Apex Legends' battle royale is available now
As was widely expected, EA-owned Titanfall developer Respawn has launched its free-to-play battle royale game, Apex Legends. The fundamentals are pretty familiar: drop into an enclosed map with teammates, gear up with the best loot you can find and take out all the other teams, all while the play area keeps shrinking. What sets the latest entrant into the genre apart from formidable rivals such as Fortnite, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds and Call of Duty: Black Ops 4's Blackout mode is its use of character-specific special abilities.
A battle royale game is coming from the creators of 'Titanfall'
Rumors have swirled all weekend of Titanfall creator Respawn developing its own battle royale game, and... well, they're true. Geoff Keighley and pro player Myth have confirmed the existence of Apex Legends, a last-one-standing game to be unveiled and released on February 4th. They're not saying more at this stage, to no one's surprise, but esports consultant Rod Breslau understood it would be a free-to-play game with classes, up to 60 players in total, three players per team and no Titans -- sorry, folks, you won't pilot a giant robot to victory.
Fortnite’s legal battles probably won’t result in big payouts
As Fortnite continues its astronomical rise, the legal troubles keep piling on for its developer, Epic Games. With more than 200 million players on Fortnite: Battle Royale (which reportedly earned over $1 billion in 2018), the title isn't just a cultural phenomenon -- it's also a serious cash cow. And, as the great Notorious B.I.G. once said, "mo' money, mo' problems." For Epic, those problems have been caused by Fortnite's Emotes, a collection of real-world-inspired dance moves that players can use with their avatar in the game.
'Fortnite' Ice Storm event blankets the map in snow
Fortnite has had its share of map-changing events, but its latest might be the most conspicuous to date. Epic kicked off its Ice Storm event on January 19th through an in-game spectacle where the mysterious ice sphere (added with the recent 7.20 patch) broke open to reveal the Ice King, who promptly blanketed the entire map in snow and populated it with undead Ice Fiends. Unlike some events, it won't matter where you prefer to drop -- you'll be more conspicuous (unless you have the right outfit, that is) and may have to fend off zombie adversaries.
