UHQBot

July 3, 2019

Hello jonathan,

Welcome to UnityHQ Nolfseries Community. Please feel free to browse around and get to know the others. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask.

jonathan joined on the 07/03/2019.

July 2, 2019

Hello archer111,

Welcome to UnityHQ Nolfseries Community. Please feel free to browse around and get to know the others. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask.

archer111 joined on the 07/02/2019.

July 2, 2019

Publisher: Nintendo

Developer: Level-5

Release: November 8, 2019

Platform: Switch

I haven't done a particularly good job of keeping up with the Layton series in terms of overall stories, but every so often I'll poke my head in and try and figure out what's going on. The last major inflection point for that mentality was when Layton's daughter came into the picture in a search for her father. And what better way to do that than through puzzles?

The 3DS and mobile title Layton's Mystery Journey: Katrielle and the Millionaires' Conspiracy is now coming to Switch after first releasing in 2017. Since the game was designed with a touchscreen in mind, you can play with said touchscreen in Switch portable mode. Otherwise, you can use the joycon motion control when docked.

For the most part, the Switch version will look more or less identical to the HD iOS version released a few years ago, but will have the game's entire DLC catalog, 40 new puzzles, and 50 new outfits. There should still be a few graphical touch-ups, but you're really here for the puzzles. It is unknown if the Deluxe version will expand upon the game's somewhat loose narrative and cliffhanger ending.

You can pick up Layton's Mystery Journey on November 8, just a week ahead of Pokemon, if you need something to tide you over for seven days.

July 2, 2019

Publisher: Nintendo

Developer: Marvelous Entertainment

Release: September 13, 2019

Platform: Switch

A few months ago, Nintendo and Marvelous collaborated for the fairly unusual act of releasing a demo of their upcoming mech game Daemon x Machina, months and months ahead of release. The demo was explicitly intended to get feedback for the final game, which Nintendo and Marvelous say they gathered. Now they have released a video saying exactly what that feedback yielded.

If releasing a prototype demo was an unusual move for Nintendo, then releasing a trailer showing what changed is just as strange, but you can watch it below.

There's numerous changes, like motion controls getting more sensitivity options, indications of where an enemy is shooting at you from, the speed and momentum of player movement, and many other things. As someone that was unimpressed by the initial demo, I am pretty surprised at how different the game looks to play now. It also just plain looks better graphically than it did a few months ago.

Daemon x Machina releases on Nintendo Switch on September 13.

Official site of Apex Legends

July 2, 2019

BATTLE PASS FAQ

How do I buy the Battle Pass?

The Battle Pass can only be purchased in the in-game store using Apex Coins. Launch Apex Legends, navigate to the Battle Pass tab, and purchase the Battle Pass from there. If you need to purchase Apex Coins, you can do that in the store, too.

What happens if I buy my Battle Pass late in the season?

You’ll receive all of the rewards up to your Battle Pass level (which is your current level for the season) retroactively! For example, if you’re on level 20 for the season when you buy the Battle Pass, you’ll unlock all rewards for every level up to 20, plus three special Battle Pass skins.

If you buy the Battle Pass Bundle, you’ll get the rewards for 25 levels in addition to the levels you’ve already reached. So, if you’re on level 20 for the season when you buy the Battle Pass Bundle, you’ll get all the rewards through level 45 and the three special Battle Pass skins.

Can I keep leveling my Season 2 Battle Pass after the season ends?

No, the rewards available in the Season 2 Battle Pass can only be earned until the season is over. After it ends, you won’t be able to earn additional Battle Charge content.

Do I keep my stuff after the season ends?

Yes! You keep every Battle Pass reward you’ve unlocked after the season is over.

What if I don’t buy the Battle Pass? Can I still earn rewards for free?

Yes. Even if you don’t purchase the Battle Pass, you can still earn the following items for free:

The Wattson Hot Rod skin
Five Apex Packs
Season 2 Stat Trackers for each Legend

If I buy the Battle Pass, can I also get the free rewards?

Yes! Everyone can earn the free rewards during Season 2.

What’s the most efficient way to level up my Battle Pass?

Each character earns bonus Battle Pass XP at the end of a match based on survival time, up to a weekly cap. To reach your maximum Battle Pass level the fastest, you should maximize this bonus by playing a variety of characters throughout the season. Each character can earn up to 25,000 bonus Battle Pass XP starting the first week of Season 2, and the cap increases each week.

You can also earn an extra 500 Battle Pass XP for your first kill of the day with each character (max three unique characters per day).

Finally, the premium Battle Pass reward track offers Battle Pass XP boosts for playing with friends. These bonuses stack as you earn additional boosts.

What Are Daily and Weekly Challenges?

Daily and Weekly Challenges are recurring objectives that grant bonus Battle Pass XP when they are completed. Each day, you will receive three new Daily Challenges, and each week you will receive a set of seven new Weekly Challenges. You’ll also get access to a special set of Weekly Challenges that reward you for completing other challenges in the list.

For all the details on how challenges work, check out our blog here.

If I own the Battle Pass, can I buy levels past level 100 to get the bonus items?

No, you can only purchase levels up to level 100. You must earn the final 10 levels through playtime.

Will the Battle Pass rewards ever return after Season 2?

No. All Battle Charge cosmetic rewards (excluding Apex Packs and content dropped from them) in the Battle Pass are exclusive to Season 2 and will never be available again. Players in future seasons will be jealous of your OG status.

July 2, 2019

Publisher: Niantic Labs, WB Games

Developer: Niantic Inc., WB Games San Francisco

Release: June 21, 2019

Rating: 9+

Reviewed on: iOS

Also on: Android

Harry Potter: Wizards Unite is a more interesting and polished game than Pokémon Go, yet is too much of a spiritual successor for its own good. Many of the gameplay mechanics and ideas that carry over are shoehorned in, and ultimately hurt an experience that delivers some magic in the elements that truly speak to the license’s appeal.

Like Niantic’s last AR phenomenon, Wizards Unite has you visiting real-world locations and interacting with fictional objects in order to build up a collection. Wandering the Muggle world and using various spells to round up misplaced “confoundables,” which can be characters, beasts, or wizarding items, doesn’t have the same appeal as collecting cute Pokémon, yet is the backbone of Wizards Unite. When a confoundable is captured, it ends up as nothing more than an image in a sticker book.

While some fun comes from trying to place every sticker on the book’s pages, catching the same thing over and over again is an exercise in monotony. Once a page has all of its items, you can wipe it clean and start again. The reward for this accomplishment? The page gets a new border design, and you’re asked to claim even more of the same types of things. Since these items don’t have any gameplay value (unlike Pokémon, which can battle for you in Pokémon Go), the only reason to catch them is to grind experience points. That grind becomes more pronounced the more you play. Catching the Weasley’s Clock dozens of times just isn’t fun, yet is the definition of what this game is.

To catch something like the clock (or even Luna Lovegood), a spell must be cast like. To do this, you simply trace a squiggle that appears on screen as quickly as you can. This may sound easy, but it’s a surprisingly challenging and amusing test. Any kind of deviation from the line leads to a less powerful spell, which increases the chance of the confoundable running away. You can use potions to make the encounters easier, but these resources are not bountiful, and must be concocted using ingredients found in the world. Inventory space is ridiculously tight, and the bag fills up in no time, especially given you have to keep track of 23 different items. As a result, you are frequently asked to expand the bag's size using in-game gold or real money. Wizards Unite’s microtransaction baiting is intrusive, and decisions like repeatedly telling the player to expand the bag size make the game worse. The push to spend real money is far more pronounced than it is in Pokémon Go.

This is frustrating since players are encouraged to collect everything they see, but the time it takes to brew potions with those ingredients doesn't line up with the time spent exploring. The player is better off exiting the game for extended periods to brew potions and free up some inventory space...or spend money.

Wizards Unite also delivers a respectable kind of frustration with the confoundables. Even if you happen to stumble upon a Tom Riddle or Harry Potter encounter and perform a perfect spell, they may run away. The player needs to gain more power to have a better shot against them, and this is where Wizards Unite fascinates and sinks its addictive hooks into you. It delivers a legitimate pursuit of power with relatively deep RPG systems.

When a player selects their profession, deciding to be an auror, magizoologist, or professor, they open up a skill tree offering over 130 upgrades that can enhance stamina, defense, and percentages to various things like wand damage and critical hit chances. The more the game is played, the more powerful the wizard. The grind is beneficial to gaining power, yet isn't that entertaining given just how often confoundables are repeated.

Strong RPG elements also bubble to the surface in the fortresses, which push a team to battle against a set number of beasts and wizards on each of the 20 floors. The higher the floor, the higher the difficulty, and the need increases for players to team up to provide healing, buffs, and other kinds of support. I had a blast journeying through fortresses with friends, but wish they weren’t timed. All too often our progress would come to an end because we spent too much time discussing tactics.

Up to five wizards can journey together, but each battle is a one-on-one affair. These encounters are good fun, pushing you to hover a reticle over a moving target until a meter fills and a spell can be cast. When an enemy strikes, you simply need to swipe in a specific direction to deflect some of the attack. Damage is sustained no matter how perfect the swipe is, but you can at least limit how much is dealt.

Now to the worst part of Wizards Unite: Progress for any activity can come to an abrupt end when a wand runs out of spell energy. Even if you are in the middle of a battle, the action pauses to ask you if want to spend gold to replenish the wand's energy. The only way to get it back is to visit inns, complete tasks, or cash in that rare gold. Again, Wizards Unite frustrates in its design, which often pushes for real money to be spent.

Pokémon Go was (and still is) criticized for not having enough content, and Niantic and WB Games clearly took that to heart with Wizards Unite. Although everything revolves around the casting mechanic, this game is swimming with challenges, events, and mysteries to solve. A lot of this stuff comes down to dumb luck with what spawns around you, but at least there’s some depth here to take a bit of the bite out of catching that damn clock repeatedly.

No corners were cut with Wizards Unite’s visuals. Each encounter plays out like an animated skit, with detailed character models doing different things for catches and misses. I was quick to turn off augmented reality for catching, but it is used in a clever way for Portkeys. If a player enters a Portkey, they are transported from their reality to the Wizarding World for a fun 360-degree scavenger hunt in a known location like Hagrid’s hut.

When Wizards Unite is trying to do something new, it can be good fun. Most of the content sadly ends up feeling like a strange version of Pokémon Go, giving players flimsy reasons to catch or zap ‘em all.

Score: 7

Summary: Harry Potter: Wizards Unite is a more interesting and polished game than Pokémon Go, yet is too much of a spiritual successor for its own good.

Concept: Explore the real world to cast spells on Harry Potter characters and beasts

Graphics: The detailed character models and animations are impressive, making each encounter a little more fun…until you’ve seen them all a dozen times

Sound: Familiar Potter melodies ring out in the overworld and menus, and you occasionally hear banter from the characters

Playability: Casting spells is simple, but fun and surprisingly challenging. Depth comes in the form of a skill tree and plenty of quests

Entertainment: While rich in content, a lot of the catching and questing comes down to the dumb luck of spawns

Replay: High

Check out Season 2 page and FAQ here.

July 2, 2019

Happy Season 2 Day! The update is now starting to roll out on all platforms. It's a big one so go ahead and get it started and while you're waiting, below is breakdown of what comes with the Season 2 Battle Pass. If you're all caught up you can skip down to the Patch Notes section to read through all the changes including balancing for Legends and Weapons, new hopups, lots of bug fixes and quality of life improvements and...a stats page!

Let's get to it:

BATTLE PASS

Check out the full details and FAQ. TLDR below:

To get the Battle Pass, jump into Apex Legends and head to the Battle Pass tab in the store. Grab the Battle Pass for 950 Apex Coins or the Battle Pass Bundle for 2,800 Apex Coins (containing 4,700 Apex Coins’ worth of content!), and you’re all set.

CHALLENGES

Take on Daily and Weekly Challenges to score bonus Battle Pass XP and level up even faster.

NEW CONTENT TYPES

Skydive emotes, music packs, and unique loading screens are now part of the rewards track.

MORE LEGENDARIES AND CRAFTING MATERIALS

Grab even more Legendary skins from the reward track and earn enough Crafting Materials to create a Legendary item of your choice.

FREE REWARDS

Everyone who plays Apex Legends Season 2 can earn:

Season 2 stat trackers for each Legend.
Five Apex Packs.
The Wattson Hot Rod skin.

KINGS CANYON CHANGES

The Leviathans have breached Kings Canyon and it’ll never be the same! Many areas have been affected by our new guests. Enjoy exploring the new changes!

NEW LEGEND: WATTSON

PASSIVE: Spark of Genius
- Ultimate Accelerants fully charge Wattson’s ultimate. Standing near the Interception Pylon boosts Wattson’s tactical recharge rate.
TACTICAL: Perimeter Security
- Create electrified fences by connecting nodes. Fences damage and slow enemies.
ULTIMATE: Interception Pylon
- Place an electrified pylon that destroys incoming ordnance and repairs damaged shields [can place up to 3 Pylons at one time].

Watch her in action here.

RANKED MODE

Check out the full details on our goals, how Ranked Mode works, and more here.

WEAPONS

New Airdrop Weapon: L-STAR EMG [ watch it in action here ]

Fires large high-damage plasma projectiles
Will overheat if player fires for too long
Comes with its own limited ammo supply
Only available in Airdrops

New Hop-Up: Disruptor Rounds

Increased damage to shielded targets.
Compatibility: Alternator / RE-45

New Hop-Up: Hammerpoint Rounds

Increased damage to unshielded targets.
Compatibility: P2020, Mozambique.

New Attachments: Energy Mags

Increased magazine capacity.
Increased reload speed at rare and above.
Compatibility: Havoc, Triple Take, Devotion.
Reduced default mag sizes on compatible weapons.

Skullpiercer Hop-Up: Upgraded to gold tier & increased rarity.

Weapon Buffs

Flatline: damage 16 -> 19
P2020: damage 12 -> 13
Triple Take x Precision Choke: choke time 1.5 -> 1.1
Alternator:
- damage 13 -> 15
- recoil mitigation increased for all barrel attachments.
Kraber:
- damage 125 -> 145
- headshot scale 2.0 -> 2.05
- leg damage scale 0.76 -> 0.8
- slightly increased rarity

Arc Star Tweaks

Increased ignition delay from 2.5 to 2.8 seconds.
Sticking a full health player with no armor will now down them.
Players at the edge of the explosion no longer get their shields completely shredded.

Ammo Stack Sizes

Shotgun max stack reduced from 64 to 16. Players now need multiple stacks of ammo to run a shotty.
Energy max stack increased from 60 to 80; now matches Light/ Heavy ammo.

Rotated Gold Weapons

Flatline
Alternator
RE45
Mozambique
P2020

Airdrop Weapon Spawn Rates

L-STAR added to airdrop weapon loot tables.
Airdrop weapon spawn rates now change based on early/ mid/ late game. For example, early game will spawn more Krabers, end game will spawn more Mastiffs.

Performance Optimizations

Improved performance when firing weapons, especially for multi-projectile weapons like shotguns and Triple Take.
In our testing this has contributed to delivering a smoother overall experience on both server and client, particularly during early game combat situations.

Bug fixes

Fixed exploit where players could use weapon inspect to cancel out other weapon behaviors.
EVA-8: ADS recoil now resettles back to starting point instead of a randomized offset of the starting point.
Thermite Grenades: fixed an issue where players downed with thermite could be invincible to thermite after being revived.

General

Fortified [ Gibraltar, Caustic ]
- Damage reduction increased: 10% -> 15%
- Fortified Legends are now immune to slow effects from weapon fire.
Low Profile [ Wraith, Lifeline, Pathfinder ]
- Low Profile increases incoming damage by 5%.

Bloodhound

Eye of the Allfather
- Enemies scanned now are tracked in real time instead of leaving a ghost image behind. The tracking lasts for 1.5 seconds.
- Increased the angle of the scan to 110 from 90.
Tracker
- Increased clue duration to 90 seconds from 60 seconds.
- Fixed a bug where energy weapons wouldn’t leave behind weapon fired clues.
- Fixed a bug where movement clues would sometimes not be generated.

Mirage

Vanishing Act
- Mirage can now cancel out of his ultimate cloak early.
- Mirage now has a small delay when disabling cloak.

Caustic

Nox Gas
- The magnitude of the slow is reduced by 50% when effecting teammates.

Gibraltar

Dome of Protection
- Increased the duration by 3 seconds.

Pathfinder

Updated the hit box to better conform with the base model.
We are also planning to make adjustments so hitbox better reflects Legendary Skins as well for cases where it’s not matching up.

Lifeline

D.O.C. heal drone now gets destroyed after 2 damage ticks by the circle.

STATS PAGE

Added a stats page. You can access it by hovering over your name while in the Lobby and clicking it to inspect. The page will show you your overall account stats as well as access to your stats for each season and Ranked Series.
We're sure you all will have feedback on other stats you'd like to see here. What we're shipping with Season 2 is just the start and we're planning to build on it. We won't promise anything but definitely let us know what other stats you want shown after you've played around with it.
KNOWN ISSUES: There will be some stats [like assists for example] that will start counting for Season 2 but won’t account for progress before that. This is because until we added the feature, this stuff wasn’t being counted. We’re looking at future improvements to retroactively update these areas that we hope to address down the road.

THE RING

With Season 2, we’ll trying out new circle closing speed, size, and damage that now applies to both Ranked Leagues and the normal Apex Queue.
- Ring Damage is now the following:

- - Round 1: 2% damage taken per tick.
  - Round 2: 5% damage taken per tick.
  - Round 3: 10% damage taken per tick.
  - Round 4: 20% damage taken per tick.
  - Round 5: 20% damage taken per tick.
  - Round 6 and beyond: 25% damage taken per tick.

- Ring start and closing speed is now the following:

- - First Circle
    - Starts closing after: 3 minutes.
    - Time to close: 2 minutes.
  - Second Circle
    - Starts closing after: 2 minutes 30 seconds.
    - Time to close: 2 minutes.
  - Third Circle
    - Starts closing after: 2 minutes 15 seconds.
    - Time to close: 2 minutes.
  - Fourth Circle
    - Starts closing after: 2 minutes.
    - Time to close: 2 minutes.
  - Fifth Circle
    - Starts closing after: 1 minute 30 seconds.
    - Time to close: 1 minutes 40 seconds.
  - Sixth Circle
    - Starts closing after: 1 minute 30 seconds.
    - Time to close: 1 minutes 40 seconds.
  - Seventh Circle
    - Starts closing after: 2 minutes.
    - Time to close: 1 minute 20 seconds.
  - Eighth Circle
    - Starts closing after: 20 seconds.
    - Time to close: 1 minute 20 seconds.

- Ring radius for the first circle has been slightly reduced [it’s about 9% smaller than it was before].

QUALITY OF LIFE

Pings
- When pinging a closed door, the player will now say “closed door here”.
- When pinging an open door, the player will now say “someone’s been here”.
- When a player requests a hop up, if the gun only accepts one kind of hop up, the player will callout that specific hop up they are looking for. If the gun accepts multiple hop ups, the player won’t vocalize it but all possible hop ups requested will show up in the feed.
Arc stars that are stuck to players should no longer fail to do damage when the part of the player it is stuck to is intersecting another object.
Made visual improvements to the Legends while in the Lobby and character select.
Added improvements and polish to the Legend’s animations while skydiving.
Improved melee hit detection on the hover tank while it’s moving.
Server optimizations.
Improved server and client performance when firing weapons, especially for multi-projectile weapons like shotguns and TripleTake.
Large doors and Supply Bins can now be used while viewing them from more extreme angles.
Slow Effects will now slow players equally regardless of their controller settings.
Wraith’s Heirloom will now more reliably show its lightning visual effects.
Heal items will now more reliably show the correct model when switching between different types.
General optimizations to improve framerate.
Fixed issue with geometry sometimes flickering when viewed from a long distance.
Death Box rarity colors are now more visible from a distance.
“Send Friend Request” tool-tip now shows up when hovering over teammates Banners while viewing the “Squad Eliminated” screen and “Squads” tab during a match.
Made it so that your weapon won’t play its priming animation when you pull it out after skydiving.
Fixed issue with skydive continuing to loop falling soundFX after landing.
Apex will no longer swap from full screen to windowed mode automatically if you shift to focus on other applications while Apex is booting up.
Fixed issue with players seeing their Origin friends listed as offline when they aren’t.
Made improvements to voice chat for PC.
Fixed issue where you could lose your Steam friends list after restarting Apex on PC.
Fixed issue where sometimes players would get a black screen during character select.
Added “Flash Hider” description to the Gold Barrel Stabilizer attachment. It always did this but the information wasn’t provided well so we added it to the description when inspecting the attachment.

BUG FIXES

Fixed a hit registration bug that could occur if you fired your weapon while being damaged by an enemy shotgun.
Fixed a bug where sometimes load screens would not appear properly and players would temporarily see the training map before loading into a match.
Fixed issue with players not always hearing selected quip dialogue when performing a finisher or being executed.
Fixed issue with Apex not working correctly when SLI or Crossfire is enabled.
Fixed bug with the consumables wheel sometimes appearing blank.
Fixed bug where players would sometimes get stuck on the Battle Pass Level screen.
Fixed bug where The Unlock button would be greyed out when it shouldn’t be when trying to view rewards.
Fixed bug where players would sometimes be unable to exit the Battle Pass tab after selecting it from the Lobby.
Fixed an exploit where players could jump while downed.
Fixed issue where sometimes the client would crash to the Dashboard when entering character select on Xbox One.
Fixed a bug where pinging a sniper stock in your inventory would show up as “looking for Grip”
Fixed a bug that caused players and loot to begin sliding permanently or launching inconsistently onto Supply Ship surfaces after doing melee attacks against the Supply Ship walls.
Fixed bug that could cause players to shift to a location under the map when switching between players while spectating.
Fixed bug for cases where performing a melee attack while inspecting an item would cause the attack to slow down and not deal damage.
[X1 only] Fixed bug where players were not being rewarded “The Player” achievement after hitting level 50. If you have reached level 50 and not received it in the past it should now be awarded retroactively.
Fixed the bug that sometimes caused Apex to crash when plugging a PS4 controller into your PC while the game is active.
Fixed bug that caused an “Out of Bounds” warning and timer while riding the Supply Ship over certain areas of Kings Canyon.
General improvements to game stability related to various script errors.

LEGENDS

- Bloodhound
  - Fixed bug where players wouldn’t create movement evidence markers unless they were sprinting.
  - Fixed bug where sometimes energy weapons wouldn’t create ‘weapon fired’ evidence markers.
- Wraith
  - Fixed bug where Wraith’s jetpack boosters could still be seen while phasing.
  - Fixed issue where in some rare cases, performing a Finisher while down player is entering a Wraith Portal.
  - Fixed an exploit that allowed players to place extra Dimensional Portals.

- Octane
  - Fixed a bug that caused throwable items to bounce off a jump pad without actually touching it.

(Source) (Join the discussion!)

July 2, 2019

Hello kunonguyen,

Welcome to UnityHQ Nolfseries Community. Please feel free to browse around and get to know the others. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask.

kunonguyen joined on the 07/01/2019.

July 2, 2019

Hello hgfdjubjhgfhjgfjhgf,

Welcome to UnityHQ Nolfseries Community. Please feel free to browse around and get to know the others. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask.

hgfdjubjhgfhjgfjhgf joined on the 07/02/2019.

July 2, 2019

Battle Charge Launch Trailer

Battle Charge Gameplay trailer

Meet Wattson!

New Weapon: The L-Star

July 1, 2019

Hey everyone! We’re some of the Apex team responsible for Ranked mode (Tangentiallogic, pinedsman, and SpamminBandies), and we’re here to talk about the new Ranked Leagues feature in Apex Legends. Let’s dive into our philosophy, goals, and the nuts and bolts of how Ranked Leagues will work when they launch with Season 2 on July 2.

We believe that Apex is a dynamic game that takes time and effort to master. Ranked Leagues should be the place where competitive players (or players who feel competitive now and then) can go to prove their skills and gain recognition for their efforts.

Goals for Ranked Leagues

With Ranked Leagues, we want to bring something new to Apex Legends that makes the game even more fun for our players. Let's talk a little about our goals for the Ranked League feature overall.

Reward competitive players for the time they invest in Apex Legends. We do this through a ranked ladder that shows how you stack up against the rest of the playerbase. Additionally, you will receive in-game rewards at the end of the season based on the rank you achieve.
Ensure competitive integrity through skill-based matchmaking. No one can really say they’re the best if all they do is stomp n00bs in Skulltown, so matchmaking in Ranked Leagues is focused on putting players of similar skill in the same match. You won’t always be playing against players of your exact tier (Silver players may compete with Gold players, for instance) but it will be as close as possible for your region and time of day.
Create a space at the top of the ladder for the best players to establish a high-skill meta without forcing a playstyle. We do this by rewarding match placement and kills, with some specific limits. After all, support or strategic players shouldn’t be rewarded less because they’re not getting 15 kills a game. We’re approaching scoring with an even hand that ensures the focus is on winning above all else.
Create a true measure of skill in Apex Legends. We’re starting out with a score-based ranked system (detailed in the Scoring section below), but we don’t intend for this to last forever. We’ll be watching Ranked players closely to see what determines success on the ladder, what types of players climb the quickest, and how the high-skill metagame plays out. Our goal is to take data from the launch of Ranked Leagues and adjust the system over time. So, players should expect seasonal soft-resets where your ranks get pushed back down for a new season, as well as changes to the scoring system, matchmaking system, and ultimately the ranked format entirely over the course of future seasons.

How It Works

We’ve been running simulations on the scoring system using actual player data from Season 1 to calibrate our approach to Ranked Leagues. Based on that data, here’s how our first Ranked Series will work:

SERIES AND RESETS

Ranked Leagues run in competitive periods that we’re calling “Series”. The first is scheduled to run for the duration of Season 2 (July through September). Future Ranked Series may not be in sync with the larger Apex Seasons as we may need more time for players to settle on their true skill level. We’ll talk about the Series cadence as we near the end of Season 2.

RANKS

Ranked Leagues features six competitive tiers: Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, and Apex Predator. All of the tiers except Apex Predator have four divisions; Gold IV, Gold III, Gold II, and Gold I, for example, with Gold I being the top division in Gold tier. All players will start in Bronze IV for the launch of Ranked Leagues, but future Series should have a starting placement if you’ve climbed the ladder in previous Series.

SCORING

Players climb the ladder using a set scoring system, and we’ve tried to keep the system transparent so you can focus on what it takes to rank up. Scores are tracked via Ranked Points (RP) and your score moves up and down throughout the season.

Each Ranked match will cost RP to play based on your tier:

Bronze matches are free
Silver matches cost 1RP
Gold matches cost 2RP
Platinum matches cost 3RP
Diamond matches cost 4RP
Apex Predator matches cost 5RP

During the match you earn RP based on performance. Kills are worth 1RP up to a maximum of 5RP per match. Placing Top 10 is worth 2RP, Top 5 is 4RP, Top 3 earns 7RP, and a win will bank 12RP. Each placement score is exclusive, so if you finish in the Top 5, you won’t earn 6RP for a Top 10 and Top 5 finish combined. That means the maximum score you can earn per match is 17RP, before the match entry fee.

PLAYING WITH FRIENDS

Ranked Leagues will require each player to be level 10 or higher to join. When you queue up with other friends in your lobby, the matchmaker will find a match for the highest ranked player in that lobby, but each player will pay the appropriate match cost for their current rank. This is intended to not let high-ranked players completely carry their lower-ranked friends. If you queue up with your Diamond II friend as a Bronze III player, get ready for a difficult match!

LADDER MOVEMENT

For the launch of Ranked Leagues, we’re starting everyone in Bronze, and as you score you climb and fall within a tier. There is currently no demotion if you drop into a lower tier, so if you earn your way into Platinum IV, no amount of losses will demote you back to Gold I – you are guaranteed to finish that Series in Platinum. However, demotion is possible between divisions, so if you’re Gold II and fall below 380 RP, you will move back down to Gold III. (We may revisit demotions in the future based on data we get from our first Series.)

Matches become more difficult the higher you climb, so we expect to see many players find their actual skill level and plateau towards the end of the first Series.

REWARDS

Ultimately, the best reward in a ranked system is the recognition of your skill and the rank you achieve. That being said, we also want to reward people who really put in the time and compete on the ladder. We’ll be giving out Series 1 rank badges to every player based on the tier they reach by the end of the Series. We’re still working on other rewards that will let you show off your accomplishments, and we will share more details on the rest of the rewards later in Season 2.

PENALTIES

We regard Ranked as a high-stakes, high-reward environment. This means that we are expecting players in Ranked to show a higher level of commitment to playing out their matches, even when things aren’t necessarily going their way.

Players who abandon their teammates will be hit with a matchmaking penalty in both regular and Ranked matches. Penalties will result in a player being barred from joining a match for escalating amounts of time based on how often they have abandoned in Ranked. An abandon is defined as leaving the game before the match is over for you; this includes leaving during character select, leaving while you are alive, and leaving when you are dead but can still be respawned by teammates.

Penalty times start out at five minutes, and repeat abandons will increase that time up to a week.

LOSS FORGIVENESS

Similar to the Elite queue, there will be loss forgiveness in Ranked. Loss forgiveness is defined as zeroing out any potential losses in RP for a match. For example, in a Diamond match where you came in last place but had two kills, you would normally have a -2 adjustment to your RP (-4 from the Platinum entry cost, +2 for kills, for a net loss of -2). With loss forgiveness, however, you would have a net loss adjusted to 0. However, this will only apply if you stand to lose RP from the match – if you had five kills and loss forgiveness, your RP would still be net +1.

We will grant players loss forgiveness when their matchmade teammates abandon the game, and for other cases where we determine you are not to blame for leaving a game e.g. client errors. We plan to be more lenient at the start of the Series but will be vigilant in monitoring player behavior. We will become stricter about granting loss forgiveness if we detect it is being abused.

MATCHMAKING UPDATES

We’ll be watching matchmaking data constantly and making updates on the fly. This should help us answer questions like how long players should wait for a match with only players in their own tier, how large the gap between ranks represented in a match should be, etc. We will be providing updates as and when this happens through our usual communication channels (Reddit / Twitter).

That’s what we have planned for the first Series of Apex Legends Ranked Leagues. As with everything else in Apex, expect us to learn as we go and make changes to the system over time. We’re sure to learn a bunch as you all start climbing the ladder. As always, hit us up on the usual channels to ask questions or give feedback. See you in the arena!

Tangentiallogic, pinedsman, and SpamminBandies

(Source) (Discussion)

July 1, 2019

Hello Axe,

Welcome to UnityHQ Nolfseries Community. Please feel free to browse around and get to know the others. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask.

Axe joined on the 07/01/2019.

July 1, 2019

Hello ZubEr,

Welcome to UnityHQ Nolfseries Community. Please feel free to browse around and get to know the others. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask.

ZubEr joined on the 07/01/2019.

June 30, 2019

Hello Generalroa,

Welcome to UnityHQ Nolfseries Community. Please feel free to browse around and get to know the others. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask.

Generalroa joined on the 06/30/2019.

June 30, 2019

Hello quavertz,

Welcome to UnityHQ Nolfseries Community. Please feel free to browse around and get to know the others. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask.

quavertz joined on the 06/30/2019.

June 28, 2019

Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios

Developer: Sumo Digital

Release: February 15, 2019

Rating: Mature

Platform: Xbox One, PC

When Crackdown 3 came out earlier this year, people were a little conflicted about the game for different reasons. Some felt that there just wasn't enough variety in the gameplay minute-to-minute and it looks like the developers have heard that feedback. While there's no huge overhaul to the game or anything like that, those that enjoy or were on the cusp of enjoying Crackdown 3 might just be thrilled by the new Flying High update.

You can check out the trailer for it below.

The update includes the aforementioned wingsuit, ring challenges for the new suit-vehicle, a flare for airstrikes, a new mass-explosion grenade, and more. All this comes with sixteen new achievements for those that S-ranked the game and want a reason to play more.

Crackdown 3 is available on Xbox One and PC.

June 28, 2019

Publisher: Triternion

Developer: Triternion

Release: April 29, 2019

Rating: Not rated

Reviewed on: PC

Over the past few years, medieval-themed melee games have been gaining popularity. The multiplayer-focused Mordhau struts onto a field crowded by titles like For Honor, Chivalry: Medieval Warfare, Warhammer: Vermintide 2, and Kingdom Come: Deliverance. With its intriguing combination of realistic combat and kooky physics-based chaos, Mordhau stands out among its peers and in the entire contemporary multiplayer landscape.

In Mordhau, combat is a grisly, amusing affair. Blades cleave limbs, clubs smash heads to pulp, arrows tear through eye sockets, catapult stones send bodies ragdolling through the air – you can even get on a horse and impale a foe by charging at them with a lance. You have to work to be the inflicting party for a lot of these moments, but every kill you deal feels like a small, bloody miracle. I sent a foe’s head flying off his body with a mighty swing, and I celebrated with a fist-pump and cheer. Some nice goofy opportunities are sprinkled among the gore for the good measure, like scoring a kill by bonking someone in the head with a pathetically tiny blacksmith hammer before playing your lute to mock their corpse. You can also trap someone on a ladder by building a small wooden fort around it and then setting them ablaze with a firebomb. The humor of these interactions helps give Mordhau its own sense of identity; among grim deaths, entertainment and chuckles prevail. Even when you’re on the losing side of a match, the doldrums of defeat are whisked away by the fantastic events happening around you that make you feel like you’re in the middle of a massive and lively battle as opposed to a small skirmish.

The multiplayer suite is composed of three modes: battle royale, horde, and frontline. Battle royale is absolutely what it sounds like, with 64 players roaming a map in search of weapons to kill one another until only one warrior is left standing. Horde has a group of players defending a fort and trying to survive against waves of enemy soldiers that grow increasingly powerful. With the player able to buy weapons and better armor between rounds, horde is essentially a medieval take on Call of Duty’s zombies mode. While both of these modes are fun enough, they’re ancillary, with frontline being where Mordhau shines.

Frontline pits two teams of 32 against each other as they vie for control points on a map. At the start of each round, you select a “class” but really, you’re just selecting weapon loadouts. A brigand, for example, carries a huge axe and two throwing axes, while a knight has a giant broadsword capable of cleaving foes in half. Weapon selection is vital to your success on the battlefield.

Once you have your weapon in hand you quickly learn that the key to victory lies beyond slashing frantically and hoping for the best. Every weapon has different strengths and weaknesses that you have to learn by heart. A polearm, for example, has a long reach but its vertical slash isn’t worth much, and the window of vulnerability after unleashing an attack is a long one. This means that if you aren’t precise and miss your foe entirely, you’ve just opened yourself up to a fatal blow, especially if you're not wearing much armor. Alongside the weapons’ strengths and weaknesses, you also have moves like feints and kicks to trick your enemies into attacking early or breaking their guard. It’s an intimidating system to learn, but one that can lead to dazzling displays once someone has mastered it. One of my favorite movements in Mordhau was watching in awe as another player took on three rushing enemy players on their own at the same time with a halberd, skillfully blocking, dodging, and slaying all of them within seconds. Of course, getting to that level can be a grind.

My first hour of Mordhau, even after its lengthy tutorial, was mostly filled with failure. I’d try going toe-to-toe with foes only to make a foolish mistake and pay with my life. However, after committing myself to one weapon instead of jumping from class to class in search of a magical fit, I improved rapidly. Learning how to time blows and parries, knowing when to dodge to the left of an attack and slash to deliver a decapitation, was quite satisfying. The transition from lowly fodder who can’t swing a sword to decent axeman racking up kills is exciting, and every increment of improvement is rewarded with spectacular displays of violence.

For all my enthusiasm for Mordhau’s combat, I wish the progression system was more interesting. You earn gold and equipment points as you go from rank to rank, earning XP from playing matches. With those two currencies, you buy various cosmetics as well as weapons and armor types in order to build a custom class for frontline. However, the cosmetics aren’t that impressive, with lots of leather pads and various dull suits of armors and making a custom class shouldn’t be an enticement but something the player is given off the bat so that they’re free to experiment without arbitrary restrictions. None of this is a significant deterrent considering Mordhau’s fun moment-to-moment action, but the lack of compelling rewards doesn’t provide much incentive to return after combat loses its luster.

Mordhau is not for those who want a multiplayer experience that’s easy to drop into and utterly destroy foes. However, the joy of mastering its challenging system as well as memorable moments of violent ballet make these engrossing battles unique.

Click image thumbnails to view larger version

Score: 8.5

Summary: Mordhau balances brutal realism and goofy battlefield antics to great effect.

Concept: Prove your worth on the medieval battlefield by mastering a brutal and intricate combat system

Graphics: From its diverse environments to impressive character models, Mordhau looks fantastic

Sound: The music is forgettable, but the clanging of swords and the squishy sounds of dismemberment make battles feel alive

Playability: Learning the ropes of combat takes time. This is not a game for those unwilling to confront failure in order to progress

Entertainment: If you can push past the steep learning curve, Mordhau’s brand of chaos is addictive and hilarious

Replay: High

June 28, 2019

Hello dudalb,

Welcome to UnityHQ Nolfseries Community. Please feel free to browse around and get to know the others. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask.

dudalb joined on the 06/28/2019.

June 28, 2019

Publisher: Bigben Interactive

Developer: Frogwares

Release: June 27, 2019

Rating: Mature

Reviewed on: Xbox One

Also on: PlayStation 4, PC

Frogwares has made a name for itself with wannabe detectives through a run of imperfect-but-entertaining Sherlock Holmes adventure games built around deductive reasoning. However, the developer’s interest in this unique brand of puzzle-solving extends beyond the world-famous consulting detective. The Sinking City is Frogwares’ latest and most ambitious adventure game to date, setting players loose in a Lovecraftian open world with a journal full of twisted cases. The expanded scope and greater emphasis on action introduce issues, but as a whole, The Sinking City still presents a mystery worth unraveling.

Players take on the role of Charles Reed, a private detective whose horrific visions have brought him to Oakmont, the titular sinking city ravaged by a mysterious flood and the supernatural terrors it has unleashed on the beleaguered population. As you undertake cases for various influential families and factions, Reed is quickly ensnared in Oakmont’s politics and power struggles. Like everything in Oakmont, no case is ordinary or straightforward, such as helping the rich and strangely simian Robert Throgmorten track down his missing son, or investigating a faction of fish-like Innsmouthers whose generous food donations to starving citizens may hide an ulterior motive. Once again, Frogwares exhibits a deep understanding and appreciation for the source material, touching on many of the tenets of Lovecraftian horror while weaving its own unique tale.

You gather clues from various locations and crime scenes, and then piece them together through deductive reasoning to solve each mystery, much like the Sherlock Holmes games. You may find yourself with only a name or a scrap of a letter to go on, and it’s up to you to figure out how to proceed. Perhaps searching through patient records at the hospital will give you another lead, or cross-referencing dates and locations in the local paper might turn up another witness. These player-driven puzzles and deductions are the heart of The Sinking City, and are just as entertaining and rewarding without the deerstalker and calabash pipe.

This time around, some of the deductions are also subjective, requiring you to make a call and live with the consequences. Is that character a cold-blooded murderer, or was he possessed by some cosmic horror (a real possibility in Oakmont) and not responsible for his actions? Should you turn him over to the authorities, or let him go free? The consequences of your decisions aren’t particularly far-reaching from a narrative perspective, but they are often memorable, and your inability to get through every case without getting your hands dirty fits with the grim world and themes. While Reed himself remains a bland and forgettable cypher, the evolving mystery behind Oakmont’s curse and its eventual fate kept me engrossed for the long run.

While that world-building and atmosphere is where The Sinking City really shines, traveling around said world isn’t as fun. Getting from one area of the city to the next is a time-consuming process, often requiring hopping between roads and boats to get where you’re going. And you always have a lot of places to go; in addition to the aforementioned hospital and newspaper headquarters, you’ll be visiting the police station, city hall, and library to drum up more leads, and it’s not always clear which location you need to visit. Fast travel helps with this process, but it isn’t particularly fast, requiring you to first find and run to a phone booth, then wait through a lengthy load time.

Click image thumbnails to view larger version

As you’re traveling to various locations, eldritch monsters occasionally spring up, leading to survival-horror combat. Simply put, the stiff and sluggish gunplay is not fun, and frustrates more than it excites. However, the grotesque enemy creatures introduce an ever-present threat and tension that heighten the Lovecraftian world you’re exploring. Ultimately, The Sinking City’s combat is a necessary evil that I’m glad Frogwares included, even if its implementation leaves a lot to be desired.

The Sinking City also suffers numerous technical problems. In addition to the long load times, screen-tearing is a persistent distraction from exploring Oakmont’s creepy locales on console (Frogwares says it’s working on a patch to correct this), and uneven voice performances and cutscenes also take their tolls on the immersion. The main quest is a little too long for its own good, but those who can overlook the game’s shortcomings will find a wealth of solid side quests to keep them hanging around.

The Sinking City shares all of the same problems of Frogwares’ previous games, but it also capitalizes on the same strengths. Reed’s cases offer up surprising twists and memorable moments, and flesh out a twisted world and cast of characters that I enjoyed learning about. The combat and repetition may elicit the wrong kind of madness, but fans of Lovecraftian horror should still consider visiting The Sinking City.

Score: 7.5

Summary: A rich theme and atmospheric world shine through forgettable gameplay.

Concept: Solve Lovecraftian mysteries while fending off eldritch monsters in a half-sunken open world

Graphics: Frogwares has crafted some intriguing and atmospheric locales, but screen-tearing is a constant issue on console

Sound: An understated musical score helps build tension. The voice performances are passable at best

Playability: The gunplay is stiff and rarely satisfying. Investigation mechanics are well done, but eventually grow repetitive

Entertainment: The Sinking City succeeds at creating a memorable world and twisting narrative that pulls players beyond its mediocre gameplay

Replay: Moderately Low

June 28, 2019

Find out how Daily and Weekly Challenges will accelerate your Battle Pass XP gain.

Hey all,

Lead Product Manager Lee Horn (Leeeeeee-RSPN) here with an overview of the Season 2 Battle Pass Challenges system. We heard your feedback on the Season 1 grind and created a system which should allow for significantly greater Battle Pass progress with less grind over less time for players who return on a regular basis and maximize their Challenge resets.

With the launch of Season 2, you’ll be able to complete Daily and Weekly Challenges to level up your Battle Pass. As we’ve previously mentioned, we’re endeavoring to balance gameplay purity with variety and fun, so none of this Season’s challenges will require a YouTube tutorial to figure out.

More than half of your Weekly Challenges will grant an entire Battle Pass level as a reward. The remaining Daily & Weekly Challenges grant STARS which, combined with match XP, contribute to a repeatable Weekly Challenge that grants a full Battle Pass level with each completion. STARS are XP specific to Battle Pass, meaning STARS do not impact Account Level progression.

Daily Challenges

Each day, you will receive three new Daily Challenges chosen randomly from a pool of over two hundred. These challenges range from “Deal 200 Damage in Bunker” to “Play 1 game as Lifeline” and are intended to be achievable in a short play session. Complete your daily challenge and earn 3,000 STARS each.

Your challenge pool will reset every day, so be sure to check back regularly to maximize Battle Pass progress.

Weekly Challenges

Each week, you will receive a set of seven new Weekly Challenges. These challenges are intended to take several play sessions to complete and range from "Get 20 Kills as Gibraltar, Bangalore, or Mirage” to “Loot 100 Epic items.” Four of the Weekly Challenges are worth 6,000 STARS each (24,000 STARS total) and three of the Weekly Challenges grant an entire Battle Pass level each upon completion.

Starting the season late? No problem – you’ll get access to all previous Weekly Challenges at one. So, if you start in Week 3, you’ll get access to Week 1, 2, and 3 challenges immediately (21 in total).

Weekly Resetting Challenges

Each week, you’ll have an additional set of three special resetting Weekly Challenges. These are the same every week and refresh even if you haven’t completed them. Keep a careful eye on these to make maximum Battle Pass progress.

Complete five Daily Challenges – Rewards one Battle Pass level
Complete 10 Daily Challenges – Rewards one Battle Pass level
Earn 9,000 STARS and/or match XP – Rewards one Battle Pass level
- This quest may be repeated an unlimited number of times each week.
- Each completion increases the STARS and/or match XP required for the next by 9,000, up to a maximum of 54,000. You need 9,000 for the first level, 18,000 for the second level, etc. This challenge resets to 9,000 each week.

We hope the Battle Pass progression structure for Season 2 feels way more rewarding! As always, we appreciate all the support and feedback from the community as we continue to iterate and improve Apex Legends.

- Leeeeeee-RSPN

(Source) (Discussion)

/Atic

June 28, 2019

Publisher: Hi-Bit Studios

Developer: Hi-Bit Studios

Release: June 20, 2019

Reviewed on: PC

The ‘80s were hugely influential years in video game history, and we see that reflected in the abundance of modern games that appeal to our nostalgia for the era. With new twists on old formulas, many current titles are inspired by the ’80s, but they don’t necessarily feel like they belong there. That’s where 198X is different. This gauntlet of arcade experiences doesn’t try to put a clever spin on the games of that decade as much as it tries to replicate them. With five levels that imitate five retro classics, 198X admirably succeeds in capturing the authenticity it strives for. However, in that hyper-focused effort, its depth of gameplay and narrative suffer.

If you have fond memories of the heyday of arcades, 198X brings them to the surface through a series of familiar genres. Every stage is modeled after a different old-school game (Final Fight, R-Type, Outrun, Strider, and Phantasy Star), and when taken together, they convey an aesthetic moment in time incredibly well. Detailed sprites, colorful backgrounds, and an impeccable soundtrack nail the vibe and make you feel like you are playing fragments of games that could have existed in the 1980s. Plus, they capture similar moments and thrills, like a giant laser-spewing robot appearing in front of your tiny spaceship, or the sense of speed as your sword-slashing ninja barrels forward.

I enjoyed how each of these games felt immediately familiar and comfortable. They aren’t exactly carbon copies of the source material, but any muscle memory you have definitely transfers. If you don’t have experience with the originals, the controls are accessible and intuitive enough to help you feel at home. However, 198X can’t escape the shallowness of these brief jaunts. The games are built directly on 30-year-old templates, and their mechanics are too simple to give you a sense of mastery or escalation. That problem is magnified by how quickly you are shuffled from one level to the next; the whole game only takes an hour or two to finish, so no stage type gets enough time to shine.

Click image thumbnails to view larger version

The story tying the various levels together is also disappointing. It’s presented as a coming-of-age tale that chronicles how a teenager called Kid discovers video games in a dingy arcade, and the freedom that comes from these digital worlds. However, the theme is mainly explored through cutscenes full of obvious teenage observations about isolation and belonging. Nothing actually happens, since the game doesn’t have plot points or character development. No narrative threads bind the different game genres either, so the levels you’re playing feel disconnected. Only in the Outrun-style game, which is bookended by musings about freedom, is there a smooth transition between the story and action.

198X is part one of a two-part tale (with the second part scheduled for release next year), which explains the incompleteness to a point, but the story doesn’t establish the foundation necessary to build true excitement for what comes next. However, I am eager to see what new old games the next chapter holds; the team at Hi-Bit Studios clearly understands the landscape surrounding iconic ‘80s games and the many facets of their appeal. 198X reminds players that even simple arcade experiences (or their recreations) can provide an interesting escape.

Score: 7

Summary: In 198X's hyper-focused effort to emulate popular '80s staples, its depth of gameplay and narrative suffer.

Concept: Capture the look and feel of the ‘80s with five convincing imitations of retro games, then wrap them up in a vague coming-of-age narrative

Graphics: The detailed and colorful pixelated style skillfully straddles the line between being original and invoking the classics

Sound: Excellent arcade-appropriate music (along with atmospheric synth) conveys the era well. Contributions from composer Yuzo Koshiro seal the deal

Playability: Controls are straightforward and easy to pick up, though none of the stage types have enough complexity to require much skill

Entertainment: 198X is exciting as a stroll down memory lane, but its simplicity and abbreviated story leave it short on substance

Replay: Moderately Low

June 27, 2019

Apex Legends developer Respawn released a Season 2 trailer today, in which we get to see upcoming new character Wattson and an EMP exploding in Kings Canyon. Leaked trailers on Reddit, one of which has now been officially released by Respawn, reveal even more changes coming to the game when Season 2 launches on July 2.

Link's Bunny Business

While on the subject of A Link to the Past with director Takashi Tezuka, I asked why Link turns into a rabbit when he first goes to the Dark World. "I really wanted to create a striking distinction between what Link normally looks like, so I wanted to create that severe distinction in his looks," he says. "If I think of sort of a fantastic dream world, one of the first things I think about are rabbits."

Aonuma, who took the reins of the Zelda franchise following Link's Awakening, loved being able to play it as a fan. "Link's Awakening is a game where I was not involved in the development, I was just playing it as one player," he says. "It left a very strong impression. The original Game Boy version was released 26 years ago, so it's a little bit hard to get your hands on it these days. I've always wanted to reimagine this title."

Just as Tezuka enjoyed the development process of Link's Awakening over A Link to the Past, Aonuma says Link's Awakening had a bigger impact on subsequent entries than its SNES counterpart. "When I was playing Link's Awakening, I was very influenced by what the game offered," Aonuma says. "It definitely transferred to the other Zelda games I developed. I was recently playing through it and everything felt very nostalgic. I was like, 'Oh right, this is something I took and maybe incorporated into Ocarina of Time!' There were a lot of things like that where I was inspired."

It has been previously reported that when Tezuka included various non-Zelda Nintendo characters in Link's Awakening, that he didn't ask permission, assuming that he was OK to use them simply because they were Nintendo characters. However, when we ask him to confirm this story, he tells us a slightly different version. "I was the person who was in the position to say if that was okay, so I didn't have to ask permission," he says with a smile.

However, Aonuma took a different stance on the situation when working on the remake of Link's Awakening. "Yes, I made sure to get permission," he says with a laugh. "When I made these characters into 3D, I went to Mr. Tezuka and asked for his permission specifically."

However, that doesn't necessarily mean we'll encounter all the same non-Zelda characters we ran into in the original Game Boy version. "All the Mario characters are in there, but all the other characters, you'll just have to play and find out," Aonuma says.

For more from our session with Tezuka, check out our rapid-fire interview with him. For more from Aonuma, you can read about his philosophy on remaking and remastering Zelda games, or hear him tell us everything he can about the recently announced sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening launches on Switch September 20.