If you’ve got even a passing interest in Pokemon lore, you’ll know that Sinnoh is based on Hokkaido – the northernmost island in Japan. A cursory look at the region’s geography shows it matches up with its real-world counterpart pretty well. We’ve even got an official map for Hisui that reinforces Game Freak’s somewhat local inspiration. So it goes without saying that Hisui’s legacy is going to be somewhat based on Japanese history, rather than anything more international (we’re not going to see anything based on the US, UK or France here, as we did in Unova, Galar and Kalos, respectively)....

This development, first reported on by The Gamer, has largely been spurred on by unpleased customers on social media. Reddit, a hub for Pokemon discussion, has been a particular hot spot for complaints and refund requests, with several users posted their anecdotal stories of financial recovery on the forums. “If you genuinely are disappointed with the game, I’d strongly urge you to do this instead of complaining or trying to raise awareness of the game’s issues....

Let’s begin with the best of the month, and the most surprising, shall we? Predator: Hunting Grounds Predator: Hunting Grounds took me by complete surprise. After being thoroughly unimpressed with the accessibility in Illfonic’s Friday the 13th, I wasn’t expecting much from Predator. Upon launching it, I was shocked to see that not only did it have comprehensive subtitle options with text size scaling and background opacity options, but it had full controller remapping too!...

Today, Slightly Mad announced a release date of August 28 for Project Cars 3. The game features the largest car roster in the franchise’s history, new tracks, and venues such as the Brazilian Grand Prix, Interlagos, and the roads of Tuscany. It also features a career mode that takes you on a driver’s journey “from weekend warrior to racing legend.” Also, new to the franchise, is authentic car upgrades, customization, and personalization options for both cars and drivers....

Project xCloud preview is available for iOS users through the TestFlight program in the US, UK, and Canada. Space is limited to 10,000 testers, and due to App Store policies, it does not include Xbox Console Streaming at this time. Only Project xCloud is being tested. The only game available at present is Halo: The Master Chief Collection, again, due to App Store policy. If you want to be included, invites will be sent on a first-come-first-served basis....

Sure, these three triple-A RPG games are a fantastic entry point for anyone jostling to get into the series for the first time. You can even come in at the ground floor, play Yakuza 0, and get to know gangland heartthrob Kazuma Kiryu and his stomping grounds of Kabukichō. For the sake of the headline at the top of this piece, this is Good. Being able to play the first three full chapters of the Yakuza series (with the promise of the rest of the saga to come to PS Plus later) is objectively Good....

Spending on hardware was down 35% this January compared to the same period in 2019. Likewise, total spending across all gaming hardware, software, accessories, and game cards saw a drop by 26% compared to last year. “An interesting takeaway from the US NPD report is that PS4 and XB1 hardware sales in Jan 2020 are considerably lower than PS3 and 360 were in Jan 2013,” writes Niko Partners analyst Daniel Ahmad over Twitter....

Right on schedule, Sony just rolled out firmware update 21.01-03.00.00.38 for PlayStation 5 consoles worldwide. The update’s main features were revealed yesterday, chief among them the ability to store PS5 games on external USB drives. The new firmware also revamps the Game Base menu, adds a multitude of party and voice chat options, allows owners to hide games from their libraries, and makes it possible to tweak automatic Trophy screenshot and video capture settings....

How to find captured gameplay and screenshots on PS5 Instead of the DualShock 4’s Share button, the DualSense has a new Create button on the left hand side of the of the touchpad, symbolised by three lines appearing above the button like a flash, unlike the Options on the right that’s just three horizontal lines, identical to the Menu button on the Xbox controller. Whatever you’re doing, pressing the Create button brings up options at the bottom of the screen, much like the Control Centre when you press the PlayStation button....

This year’s QuakeCon will not take place at its usual spot in Dallas. Instead, it’s going to be a digital-only affair called QuakeCon at Home, and it’s back on August 19 (with the whole thing set to wrap up on August 21). During the event, you can expect livestreams featuring updates on existing and upcoming games, tournaments, charity fundraising, puppies, giveaways, and more besides. But today, as per a specific and updated schedule courtesy of Bethesda, it looks like we could be getting something else, too: a possible Quake project from MachineGames....

Called the Archaeans, this alien parasite has taken over four key regions in the United States: New York, San Francisco, Alaska, and New Mexico. Your objective is to head into these regions, gather intelligence within their three contaminated zones, push back the threat, and extract your squad safely. As part of REACT (Rainbow Exogenous Analysis and Containment Team), you will be able to pick between 18 of the Rainbow Six operators and each one has a specific set of weapons, special abilities, and their own progress track....

Once again, Ubisoft decided to bring Rainbow Six Siege to its E3 2021 showcase, Ubisoft Forward. The game’s segment, which aired moments ago, brought us more than the usual boasting of player numbers. Users will be able to queue for matches together and have unified account progression across those platforms. Then, in early 2022, players on Xbox and PlayStation platforms will be able to team up and face off as crossplay comes to consoles and cross-progression launches across all platforms....

Over the weekend, Rainbow Six Siege achieved a new concurrent player record on Steam. The game had over 180,463 players online at the same time, which is well above all of its previous records. Siege is currently on sale, so that certainly helped, but it typically breaks all-time concurrent records during free weekends. It’s impressive to see it doing this over four years after release, but it’s hardly a surprise....

The world’s most infamous Lobax and his robot companion just can’t stop getting in the headlines, can they? Even though the PlayStation 4 reboot of Ratchet & Clank was launched back in 2016, Insomniac and Sony are rolling out a new update for the game that will allow it to run at 60fps on PS5. In a tweet, the developer announced that the patch will be coming ‘in April’ and no specific date has been mentioned....

The asymmetric multiplayer game will be bundled along with the upcoming Resident Evil 3 remake, but it won’t be considered canonical. Instead, Capcom is calling it a “fun online experience with connections to the RE Universe.” Speaking to Official PlayStation Magazine (via GamesRadar), Resident Evil 3 producer Peter Fabiano explains that certain events within the 4v1 game make it “impossible to fit in the actual timeline.” But thematically speaking, Project Resistance slots right in to the franchise....

In a new update over on the official Japanese Resident Evil site, Capcom has announced that a Resident Evil RE: Verse beta will be available on consoles and PC (via Steam) in April. Similar to the closed beta that took place earlier this year, everyone that wants to take part will need a Capcom ID, and you’ll be able to access the test from April 7 until April 10 if you sign up for the service....

A new video from the folks at Game Informer has revealed how players will be able to use the various items and materials in Resident Evil Village to upgrade protagonist, Ethan Winters. Canny hunters will be able to track down and kill mammals, fish, and birds in order to gather materials that can be cooked up into meals in The Duke’s Kitchen. Depending on the animal, you’re liable to encounter some resistance – go in to kill a ram and expect to be headbutted, for instance....

The Riders Republic beta will be held August 23-25 on PlayStation and Xbox systems, as well as PC on both Ubisoft Connect and the Epic Games Launcher. It will be available for pre-load from August 21, and players will be able to send a beta invitation to two friends. During the beta, testers will be given a glimpse of three careers such as Bike Races, Snow Tricks, and Air Sports....

It is not a stretch to say that Ripple Effect Studios (formerly DICE LA), has had a lasting effect on the Battlefield series. The once small support studio turned Battlefield 4 around. It fixed many of its problems, built a solid feedback mechanism with the community in the process, and supported the game well beyond what anyone had expected. Ripple Effect has contributed to other Battlefield games since, but the team has built up a lot of goodwill with Battlefield players and fans over the years in large part because of that work on Battlefield 4....

SaGa Frontier Remastered, Square Enix’s rerelease of the 1998 PlayStation RPG classic, is set to hit mobile, console, and PC next year. Complete with updated graphics, events, cutscenes, enhancements – alongside an all-new protagonist – the release of the remaster will bring the title to fans in Europe for the first time in its history. How these new events and features will be rolled into the scenario exactly remains to be seen, but the trailer below gives us a good overview....