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In a year already chock-full of excellent remakes like Persona 3 Reload and Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, it’s impressive that I can still call Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake one of the best I’ve ever played. That’s not because it sets out to redefine the 1988 NES original like Square Enix did with Final Fantasy VII Remake and Rebirth, but because of how it strikes a nearly perfect balance between faithfully sticking to the bones of Dragon Quest III while adding modern quality-of-life improvements and a beautiful new coat of paint that make it more fun than ever to explore and battle across its surprisingly dense overworld. Dragon Quest III is a true godfather of the RPG genre, and this immensely satisfying retelling so clearly spells out why it’s one of gaming’s essential works. HD-2D Remake is fundamentally the same adventure Dragon Quest III has always been, and it’s hard not to marvel at how well its original blueprint still holds up in 2024. This is as classic as JRPGs get – the genre boiled down to its absolute essentials of rock-solid turn-based combat, atmospheric caves and dungeons filled with monsters and treasure, and a straightforward story about good versus evil that asks you to fill in a lot of the gaps with your imagination. It evokes nostalgia for a bygone era of video games in the best ways while proving it still has the stuff to hang with the fancy, modern RPGs. Despite the unabashedly old-school design, it does manage to feel new thanks to its overhauled graphics, and Dragon Quest and the HD-2D style pioneered by Octopath Traveler are an absolute perfect combination. The ****** design is amazing, with highly-detailed sprites and animations that are a joy to look at. The late Akira Toriyama’s signature style is wonderfully realized here, and battles feel more dynamic with each ******’s lively animations for attacking and defending. Towns are delightful to explore, with stunning castles, houses, and shops that are breathtaking to look at from the outside and adorable to poke around on the inside thanks to sharp attention to detail. The dungeons all look great, too, especially with the moody lighting emitting from your hero’s lantern. Finally, the overworld feels grand to march across, and it’s all backed up with an orchestral soundtrack that fits Dragon Quest’s lighthearted, adventurous mood to a tee. HD-2D Remake doesn’t just look gorgeous, as it has great battle and class systems to match. Apart from the Hero, whose class and spot in your party is locked in from the start, the composition of the other three spots is completely up to you, including their classes, names, and appearances. I outfitted my party with a Thief, a Priest, and my personal favorite: the all-new Monster Wrangler, who became stronger as I found and recruited friendly monsters across the world, which further incentivized exploration. It’s a ton of fun constructing your band of heroes, and I’m honestly considering a full replay where I try something entirely different given how many classes I didn’t take advantage of. There are also opportunities to reclass later in the story while retaining all the abilities your characters have learned thus far, adding even more important decisions to consider. HD-2D Remake doesn’t just look good, it has great battles to match. It’s just a shame that the personalities of your party members are all silent, blank slates as a result of that mechanical flexibility. That’s the same as it was in the original, but it makes for an RPG journey that’s much more about character builds, combat, and exploration rather than relationships, camaraderie, and story. It’s completely understandable that Square Enix would stick with the old style in this instance, as it did with almost everything else, but it’s hard not to miss the wonderful personalities of my party in Dragon Quest XI or the Party Chat feature seen in most modern entries of the series by comparison. But as someone who vastly prefers a barebones story compared to an overbearing one, I still thoroughly enjoyed Dragon Quest III’s focus on engaging directly with its RPG systems. To that end, the battles themselves are fast-paced, fun, and occasionally quite difficult. Make no mistake – this is still very much a ********* NES-era RPG, and you need to use a balanced mix of strong attacks, healing spells, and buffing/debuffing abilities to beat some of Dragon Quest III’s toughest bosses. There are some real nail-biting moments, especially later on in the campaign, and I loved using unorthodox strategies to barely squeak by fights I probably wasn’t ready for yet. Random encounters in both the overworld and dungeons are a constant factor, but they’re always enjoyable and drop essential experience points and gold, which you’ll need as much of as you can get to reach the end credits. But if nervewracking turn-based battles aren’t your thing, there’s no need to worry. I’m incredibly impressed by how flexible HD-2D Remake is as a whole. Apart from three difficulty options you can switch between at any time (Including the Dracky Quest option, where your characters essentially can’t ****), there are a ton of ways to tailor the adventure to your specific playstyle. In combat, you can speed up battle animations to get through encounters faster or watch them at normal speed to really enjoy the detailed ****** animations. You’re also given complete control over how your party behaves: In classic Dragon Quest fashion, you can give individual orders to all four party members, or choose strategies for them to ******** on their own, like focusing on healing, conserving magic, or going all-out against a tough foe. It’s honestly relaxing to set the whole party to autobattle when grinding for experience points before taking control back for yourself ahead of an important boss ******. Options like these ensure the great combat ******** fresh across the roughly 30-hour adventure, even with multiple sessions of grinding. That’s partially because the Dragon Quest series is pretty good at making grinding for experience points entertaining, and this remake is no exception. If you’re a fan of the series, you know that Metal Slimes are the key to leveling up fast: Enemies with low spawn rates that drop way more experience points than the average bad guy. Discovering areas of the map where Metal Slimes are more likely to appear is exciting, and the rush of adrenaline that kicks in when you see one show up in a random encounter never gets old – like pulling a rare card from a Pokémon booster pack. Plus, apart from the occasional level grind session, Dragon Quest III’s pacing is impeccable. You’re always being ushered from one new location to the next, constantly exploring new towns and dungeons while encountering fresh foes from the huge set of over 150 ****** types. It rarely retraces any of its steps – except for one specific recurring boss I won’t spoil that admittedly rears its ugly head a few too many times. This remake also goes to great lengths to ensure you’ll never get lost or stuck. The Zoom spell lets you escape a tough situation to rest at an inn pretty much whenever you want, while objective markers clearly label what you need to do next to progress through the occasionally unclear and outdated main quests. However, if you want the classic Dragon Quest III experience, you can turn these quest markers off and discover everything for yourself by exploring and talking to townsfolk. It’s a great system that makes this aged RPG more approachable and playable than ever, while also preserving that original style for those who want it. It’s an ideal way to revisit a beloved adventure, and I love the pace at which this vast world slowly reveals its secrets to you piece by piece. I love the pace this vast world slowly reveals its secrets to you. While I was generally a big fan of Dragon Quest III’s old-school nature mixed with the HD-2D Remake’s modern improvements, there are a couple of places it could have gone a few extra steps. Inventory management is clunky, as each of your four party members only has access to their individual item bags in combat, meaning I spent a ton of time in menus transferring items from the party’s overall inventory to their individual pockets. Managing equipment comes with similar annoyances, where it’s just a bit ******* than it should be to see how equipping something will impact each character’s stats. I eventually got into a rhythm of how to fiddle with these outdated menus, but it’s one place I wish had gotten more updating. (There are also just a few ****** designs that haven’t aged especially well, and probably would have been better left in the past.) View the full article For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

In Civilization 7, unlike previous games in the series, any leader can lead any civilization. So your choice of civilization is completely independent, allowing for a huge set of possible bonuses. And while your chosen leader will follow you all the way to the end, you'll choose a new civilization for each of the three acts: Antiquity, Exploration, and Modern. Each civ comes with a unique ability, unique civics, at least two unique units, and one or more unique infrastructures (which is basically the new name for unique buildings). They also specialize in two of the six civ attributes (Cultural, Economic, Diplomatic, Expansionist, Militarist, and Scientific). Here are all of the civs we know about so far:.. Read more.View the full article

In Civilization 7, unlike previous games in the series, any leader can lead any civilization. So your choice of civilization is completely independent, allowing for a huge set of possible bonuses. And while your chosen leader will follow you all the way to the end, you'll choose a new civilization for each of the three acts: Antiquity, Exploration, and Modern. Each civ comes with a unique ability, unique civics, at least two unique units, and one or more unique infrastructures (which is basically the new name for unique buildings). They also specialize in two of the six civ attributes (Cultural, Economic, Diplomatic, Expansionist, Militarist, and Scientific). Here are all of the civs we know about so far:.. Read more.View the full article

Strinova has got a very clear game plan - take the competitive, tactical shooter gameplay from the likes of Valorant and Counter-Strike 2, make it third-person, and turn every character into anime eye candy. Is it a recipe for success? To an extent. The shooter's first 24 hours on Steam have gone well when it comes to player counts, but on the other side of the coin, it's suffering from a real mixed bag of user reviews. Read the rest of the story... RELATED LINKS: New FPS Strinova is Valorant with anime ****** and a huge twist View the full article

Baldur's Gate 3 has been making waves among the console community for its recent patch that added mod compatibility. This is a breath of fresh air for console players who typically don't get many games that provide mod support. Baldur's Gate 3 will continue to have mods updated far into the future, which will sustain the game's lifespan for a very long time. View the full article

One of the most important things you will do in Disney Dreamlight Valley's Storybook Vale expansion is work with the Lorekeeper, a large sentient book that contains the story puzzles you'll need to solve by re-ordering them. To re-order the stories, however, you'll first need to find all the required Snippets for each one. View the full article

Activision has fixed a major Call of Duty: ****** Ops 6 problem by restoring account progress and saves, particularly for Multiplayer and Zombies gamers. Since the first major Call of Duty: ****** Ops 6 update, some Zombies fans have reported progression resets, but this should now be resolved. View the full article

"It shouldn't be this hard to play the best version of one of Japan's great roguelikes today," PC Gamer contributor Kerry Brunskill wrote earlier this year in a retelling of her long ****** to get her hands on a PC copy of 2002's Shiren the Wanderer: Monster of Moonlight Village. She also expressed hope that the latest game in the series, the Nintendo Switch-exclusive Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island, would eventually make its way to PC. Good news for Kerry—it's on the way, and you won't have to get someone in Japan to mail it to you... Read more.View the full article

Many ****** Friday deals are already live at retailers, and we've rounded up the best deals you can find today. These include PlayStation 5 Consoles, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Metaphor: ReFantazio, SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless, Elden Ring, Astro ****, iPad (10th Generation), and more. PlayStation Console Deals Are Now Live There are many PlayStation 5 console bundles on ***** today, with the start of early ****** Friday deals, making this the best time of 2024 to pick up a new console. You can purchase a PlayStation 5 Digital Edition for $374.99, saving $25 and scoring a free game at no extra cost. Or, you can opt for the PlayStation 5 Disc Console, which is priced at $424.99. Sony also has the PlayStation VR 2 on ***** today, with the Horizon Call of the Mountain Bundle priced at $349.99 at Best Buy. Final Fantasy VII Rebirth for $39.99 Final Fantasy VII Rebirth was one of 2024's biggest games, continuing the story from 2020's Final Fantasy VII Remake. Cloud, Tifa, Aerith, Barret, and Red XIII begin their journey outside Midgar, meeting characters like Yuffie, Vincent, and Cid alongside the way. This experience offers well over 100 hours of content, with 36 sidequests and a main story over 40 hours long. Plus, there are dozens of minigames to discover. Metaphor: ReFantazio for $49.99 Metaphor: ReFantazio is the latest game from Persona 3, 4, and 5 Director Katsura Hashino and the team at Atlus' Studio Zero. For the first time since launch, you can score the game at a discount, saving $20 this ****** Friday. In our 9/10 review, we stated, "Refining the Atlus RPG formula of weaving tough turn-based combat into compelling social sim mechanics, Metaphor: ReFantazio doesn’t just send a powerful message across its political drama, it becomes a beautiful expression of the real impact storytelling can have on all of us." 50% Off SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless The SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless Headset is perfect for any PC or PlayStation gamer. This model includes a wireless base station, which allows you to connect two devices at once and simultaneously switch between them. Additionally, the Arctis Pro Wireless supports hot-swappable batteries, so you can swap and continue playing with no downtime needed for charging. Elden Ring for $19.99 Elden Ring is on ***** for an all-time low price today at Amazon, with PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and Xbox copies available for $19.99. Additionally, Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree Edition is $30 off. This package includes the base game and the Shadow of the Erdtree expansion. In our 10/10 review, we said "Elden Ring is a massive iteration on what FromSoftware began with the Souls series, bringing its relentlessly challenging combat to an incredible open world that gives us the freedom to choose our own path." Astro **** for $49.99 Astro **** is on ***** for the first time since launch, and there has never been a better time to pick up one of the PlayStation 5's best games. Building off Astro's Playroom, Astro **** features many new abilities and bosses to ******, with over 300 bots to rescue across the galaxy. You'll find planets modeled after beloved PlayStation games like Ape Escape and Uncharted, and even surprise third-party bots like Leon S. Kennedy from Resident Evil 2. Ghost Cipher Special Edition Xbox Controller for $49.99 Best Buy has the Ghost Cipher Special Edition Xbox Controller for just $49.99 today. This is one of the best Xbox controllers you can buy, as it offers a unique design and maximum comfort. Not only can you use this controller with Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S, but you can also pair it with a PC or mobile device. With its transparent design, this is sure to be a talking point for any Xbox fan. JBL Quantum 360 Headset for $59.95 Right now, you can save over 50% off the JBL Quantum 360 Wireless Gaming Headset. This headset features a detachable ***** mic, memory foam ear cushions, and a 22 hour battery life. Plus, there is a game audio / voice chat control on the side, allowing you to get a perfect balance between the two. Both the Xbox and PlayStation editions of the headset are available on *****, so you can pick accordingly depending on your console of choice. iPad (10th Generation) for $249.99 The Apple iPad can be an incredibly useful device if you're needing something ******* than a phone. Powered by the A14 Bionic, you can sketch, create presentations, and watch content all day long, with up to 10 hours of battery life supported. The 10th Generation iPad includes support for Touch ID, Apple Pencil, Magic Keyboard Folio, and more. View the full article For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

Overwatch 2 recently teased future Overwatch: Classic game mode ideas, including one that could take hero balance back to where it was before the original game launched. If Overwatch 2 were to do this, players could try out hero abilities that never actually made it to the game, such as Bastions Configuration: Sentry shield or Remote Mine. View the full article

The Wild Area 2024 event is here, which means additional opportunities to catch rare and powerful Pokémon in Pokémon Go. There are certain Pokémon you’ll want to seek out, especially if you’re looking to complete the Electric and Poison Collection Challenges. These Collection Challenges are available during the Wild Area event, starting on Nov. 24 at 10am and ending Nov. 25 at 6:15pm in your local area. You can use this time to catch at least one of every Pokémon featured in these Collection Challenges, unlocking the fantastic rewards featured in their respective collections. The rewards are worthwhile for any Pokémon Go collector, as they feature some of the more elusive Pokémon Niantic has introduced to the mobile game. View the full article

Outside a plethora of bugs at launch, STALKER 2 is proving to be a success among fans. Of course, for those who played the original trilogy, especially at launch, bugs are not a surprise. However, for newer players who aren't accustomed to the haunting world of the STALKER universe, it may feel a little alienating. The harsh survival horror gameplay loop may seem appealing, but newcomers may be wondering whether it's accessible. View the full article

The Double Pump Shotgun is making a comeback once Fortnite's upcoming OG mode drops. There are various exciting developments underway for Fortnite players as the release of the next Chapter of the game gets closer. Many fans are excited to see what will change in the new update for modern Fortnite, which is rumored to feature traditional ********* theming, but players are also excited about Fortnite OG, which is set to be a nostalgic shakeup to what gamers have become familiar with. View the full article

Two of Pikachu’s iconic costume forms are returning in Pokémon Go for the first time since 2021’s Go Fest, and they are bringing their Shiny forms with them for the first time in the game’s history. Pop Star Pikachu and Rock Star Pikachu are set to re-debut during Pokémon Go Wild Area Global, but finding the pair of them is a lot more scarce than you might think. They are both incredibly rare spawns, which sucks if you are trying to get both of them as a Shiny to add to your ever-growing Shiny Pikachu collection. View the full article

Primal Kyogre is a rare Pokémon that occasionally appears in Pokémon Go, and you don’t have long to hunt it down. When you do catch it, the next step is figuring out which moveset to teach it so you can optimize it for raids and fighting Team Rocket. Because of Primal Kyogre’s impressive strength, it’s an ideal fit for nearly any raid encounter. Its best attacks are similar to Kyogre’s; if you already have a suitable Kyogre in Pokémon Go, its moveset will be good for Primal Kyogre and you shouldn’t have to change much at all. View the full article For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

When it comes to taking on Primal Kyogre in Pokémon Go, several Pokémon are ideal for the job. It’s all about knowing which Pokémon are best to counter Primal Kyogre and its weaknesses. Although Primal Kyogre will be a tough ****** for any Pokémon Go player, having other players alongside you helps your chances. You should expect at least five other Pokémon Go players fighting with you to take down Primal Kyogre, especially if you’re trying to catch it before it disappears. View the full article For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

In Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake, players have the option of reclassing their party members into other Vocations. This is done so that players can experiment with new abilities and create incredibly strong characters. Multiclassing characters will make them much stronger than sticking with one Vocation the entire time, as they will have access to more abilities and have higher stats. View the full article

If you're a lover of expansive space games like Starfield or No Man's Sky, Star Citizen is probably going to be right up your street. Sure, the enormous MMO may have a bit of reputation to shake, and it's about ten years and hundreds of millions of dollars deep in development. But, there's still plenty to enjoy. If you've always wanted to give it a go, now's your chance - starting today, Star Citizen will be free-to-play for a limited time. Read the rest of the story... RELATED LINKS: Star Citizen spinoff Squadron 42 shares an hour of new gameplay, aims for 2026 Star Citizen dev shares new update on the long-awaited Squadron 42 New Star Citizen engineering system will turn the space MMO into FTL View the full article

Five years since it was originally announced, Path of Exile 2 is finally a few weeks out from its early access launch. Developer Grinding Gear Games dumped four hours of information yesterday on a stream, including what classes you can play, the length of the campaign, and what you can do at max level in its meaty endgame... Read more.View the full article

Dragon Age: The Veilguard launched on October 31, and we've already got a tiny window into how well it's selling. It debuted at No.6 on Circana's report of the top selling games in the US for the full month, just after Metaphor: ReFantazio. But its placement on a single chart doesn't quite tell the full story. We reached out to analyst Mat Piscatella at Circana following the report to get a little more info on just how well Veilguard was doing, and he offered some context. Though it might look like Dragon Age is being soundly beaten by a number of other debut titles for the month of October, he notes that Dragon Age launched on October 31, and the chart tracks through November 2. So Dragon Age only had three days of sales reflected in the chart, while most other games on it had significantly more. Additionally, Piscatella pointed out that EA does not provide Steam data for the best-selling titles charts, so while other games (including Metaphor) had Steam digital sales reflected, Dragon Age's numbers are only for PlayStation and Xbox. "Were Dragon Age: The Veilguard's PC volume included it would have placed higher on the best-selling titles chart — perhaps as high as 3rd overall," he says. "Unfortunately, however, digital sales are included in these specific charts only at the discretion of the publisher." For more info, we asked Piscatella if there was any way to compare The Veilguard's launch sales to its Dragon Age predecessors, but Circana's weekly data only goes back to 2018, so no dice there. However, Piscatella did have some analysis to add about how things were going: "Just looking at the first days of sales and initial engagement levels via Circana's Player Engagement Tracker, it's been a good - but not great - launch," he said. "Dragon Age: The Veilguard did not reach the launch week sales levels of either Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth or Dragon's Dogma II, and it will be a bit of an uphill battle to reach Inquisition's lifetime sales. But again, it's very early and a lot of the story is left to be told. November will give us a much better read." Though we don't have sales numbers for Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth, Square Enix has said they did not meet their internal expectations. Meanwhile, Capcom reported that Dragon's Dogma 2 was a success for them, having passed 2.5 million copies sold as of this past April. We do have a bit more comparison context through sales numbers in the ***, [Hidden Content]. Dragon Age: The Veilguard debuted at No.7 on *** sales charts, but its first week sales were over 18% lower than those of Dragon's Dogma 2 and nearly 21% below those of Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth. We gave The Veilguard a 9/10 in our review, writing that it "refreshes and reinvigorates this storied series with enjoyable action combat, a fantastic cast of companions, and moving character writing." Opinions on it have varied, though, including among our own staff. You can form your own opinion if you haven't yet, as Veilguard is already getting a price drop for ****** Friday. Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You can find her posting on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Got a story tip? Send it to [email protected]. View the full article For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

Don’t be fooled by There is No Game’s shenanigans. There actually is a game, but to beat it, you’ll have to put on your thinking cap and get up to some tricks of your own. Like Trace, There is No Game is a point-and-click title on Cool Math Games, a site that hosts browser-based games. When you first load it up, you’re greeted with a short credits screen followed by a title card. A narrator will inform you there’s no game and that you should leave the screen. But don’t believe his deception: There’s more to this than meets the eye. View the full article

The Special Research for the Pokémon Go Wild Area event is available, and you’ll have a chance to catch several Electric and Poison-type Pokémon. This Special Research, An Accomplished Trainer, comes with various tasks and rewards you must complete before the event concludes. Grabbing this ticket for those who want to participate in the Wild Area 2024 event gives you several bonuses alongside the tasks and rewards you need to work on. It would be best to work through this during the event weekend, which means you have until Nov. 24 at 6:15pm in your local area to complete everything. These rewards are exclusive to those who complete An Accomplished Trainer, and we’ll be breaking down every task and item you get in Pokémon Go. View the full article

Blizzard has recently revealed the ****** Friday 2024 deals for Diablo 4, which include amazing discounts for the base game, the Vessel of Hatred DLC, and the entire expansion bundle with both. This is a great opportunity for fans of action RPGs who have not purchased Diablo 4 yet or want to upgrade and acquire the DLC. View the full article For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

fter some confusion as to whether the storied "A-Life" simulation system was still present in Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl, GSC Game World has confirmed that it is—and also that, yes, it's got some issues, and also yes, they're working on it... Read more.View the full article

There are two choices you have to make during the Pokémon Go Wild Area event, and it comes with the Special Research you get for the event. Here, you’ll have to pick if you want to go down the Amped or Low Key path, which offer distinct rewards. These rewards are given to you throughout the event, which is what you’ll be working on throughout the weekend. You have until Nov. 23 at 6:15pm in your local area to complete all tasks. These vary in difficulty and reward, and the type of rewards and Pokémon you encounter can also be different. Knowing what you want to get from the Wild Area event is important, and that also helps you select the Electric or Poison path for the Special Research in Pokémon Go. View the full article