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Tips & GuidesThe Best Couch Co-Op Games When You’re Stuck At Home With People
By now, you’ve probably figured out how to stay connected to your socially distanced friends. You’ve set up the Discord server. You’ve figured out which games have great online multiplayer. You’ve pinpointed a weekly time that works for everyone for a large-scale Animal Crossing visit (not that anyone’s schedules are jam-packed these days). But if…
By Ari Notis -
Tips & GuidesThe Do’s And Don’ts Of Visiting Friends In Animal Crossing: New Horizons
One of the true pleasures of Animal Crossing: New Horizons is the sense of connection. It’s not just that Nintendo’s life sim has achieved near-universal ubiquity in a matter of days. It’s the fact that you, alongside up to seven other players, can go and visit a friend’s island. There, you can do what you’d…
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Tips & GuidesThe Bravely Default II Demo Is Weirdly Hard, So Here’s How To Survive
Last week, during a surprise Nintendo Direct, Square Enix gifted the world with a demo for Bravely Default II. The demo offers a taste of everything series fans should expect: lovely sprites, marvelous hand-painted backgrounds, and a return to the ever-rewarding Brave/Default turn-based battle system. But it also brought something unexpected to the table: a…
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Tips & GuidesBorderlands 3’s ‘Door Busters’ Event Guarantees A Legendary Weapon Haul
Borderlands 3 events tend to be hit or miss. The current one, “Door Busters,” isn’t just a hit. It’s a headshot. Technically, “Door Busters” is part of a sweeping, month-long event called “Co-op Loot Drop.” Between now and April 30, if you band up with a co-op partner (or two, or three), any Badass enemies…
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Tips & GuidesQuick Tricks That Animal Crossing: New Horizons Is Too Chill To Tell You About
Face it: Animal Crossing: New Horizons is an annoying game. There. I said it. I’m sorry, but it’s true. Yes, you’re the de facto overlord of a private island brimming with adorable talkative animals. On paper, it’s a dream come true. But, in reality, Nintendo’s life simulator is a maddening nightmare. Every minute spent with…
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Tips & GuidesHow To Multitask While Playing Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Animal Crossing: New Horizons has taken the world by storm. The game has inundated social media (and this very website). It shattered Switch sales records in Japan. Even Brie Larson loves it. Now, this isn’t a bad thing. Given how awful the real world is right now, it’s nice to have a pastel-colored paradise we…
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Tips & GuidesHow To Send Doom Eternal’s Frustrating Marauders Straight Back To Hell
Last week, Doom Eternal entered the mortal plane for PS4, Xbox One, and PC. As you can imagine, id Software’s first-person shooter is a riotous, heavy-metal blast. The game offers the same frenetic fun as 2016’s Doom, but adds a bunch of new features—like a sweet grappling hook—to the core gameplay loop. It also introduces…
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Tips & GuidesTips For Playing Doom: Eternal
On paper, Doom: Eternal is a simple game. Use big guns. Kill all the demons. Rock out like there’s no tomorrow. But id Software’s hilariously metal first-person shooter—which came out last week for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC—is more than meets the eye. By making the most of the game’s various and intricate systems,…
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Tips & GuidesI Restarted Animal Crossing: New Horizons For 2 Hours Because Peaches
Animal Crossing: New Horizons, out today for the Switch, is a relaxing, slow-paced game in which you, over time, build up a thriving yet self-sufficient community of anthropomorphic animals. I wouldn’t know. I’ve started the game, but I haven’t actually played it yet. In Nintendo’s placid life simulator, you set off on an island getaway.…
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Tips & GuidesHow To Get Into Playing Video Games
So, you’re practicing social distancing. Great! It’s one of the best ways of slowing the spread of covid-19. The downside is that you might find yourself with more free time at home than you know what to do with. Those of us who play blockbuster video games probably have a huge backlog to tackle. But…
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Tips & GuidesHow To Clean And Sanitize Your Gaming Gear
As concerns about covid-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, reach a fever pitch, it’s more important than ever to do your part in beating back the spread. One effective countermeasure is what experts call social distancing—turning down event invites, cancelling non-essential travel, and, if feasible, working from home. But the single best thing…
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Tips & GuidesGames To Definitely Not Play While You’re Not Leaving The House
As the number of confirmed cases of covid-19—the disease caused by the novel coronavirus strain—tick up in the United States, companies around the country areurging employees to work from home. Even if you don’t find yourself in an official quarantine, health experts suggest one of the best things you can do to halt the illness…
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Tips & GuidesHow To Prep Your Xbox One Or PS4 For A Massive Download
If you play video games today, you’re no stranger to massive downloads. Red Dead Redemption 2 is 90 GB, before updates and add-ons. Halo: The Master Chief Collection currently clocks in at 115 GB. Sure, the base game of Destiny 2 may be just 31 GB, but if you want all of the expansions—essential for…
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Tips & GuidesHow To Increase Footstep Volume In Call of Duty Warzone
Earlier this week, Activision released Warzone for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. Warzone is a free-to-play Call of Duty battle royale, similar in structure to popular games of the genre. The gimmick of Warzone is that it’s staggeringly massive—and that it’s a stealth game, apparently, with many players complaining that the game’s footsteps are…
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Tips & GuidesTips For Dying Less In Ori And The Will Of The Wisps
Ori and the Will of the Wisps is one of 2020’s prettiest platformers, but don’t let its looks fool you. This game will destroy you. Whether it’s hyper-precise platforming or unrelenting combat, Ori has lots of chances to die. Here are some tips that should make the game a bit less of a gauntlet. Do…
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Tips & GuidesHow To Pick Your Perfect Difficulty Level In Ori And The Will Of The Wisps
Ori and the Will of the Wisps, out tomorrow for Xbox One and PC, is a meditative, poetic, beautiful platformer, with as many quiet moments as it has intense monster battles. It’s also brutally difficult. As in its predecessor, 2015’s notoriously punishing Ori and the Blind Forest, you control the guardian spirit Ori and navigate…
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Tips & GuidesHow To Unlock Saitama In The One Punch Man Game
One Punch Man: A Hero Nobody Knows, a fighting game ostensibly about One Punch Man and pals, came out last week for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. You can play as all manner of fan favorites from the One Punch Man extended universe, including Silverfang, Metal Bat, Tank Top Tiger, and, of course, Mumen…
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Tips & GuidesWhat Happens To Your Xbox Game Pass And PlayStation Now Downloads Once They Expire
For budget-conscious gamers, there are few better ways to get games than via the games-on-demand services PlayStation Now and Xbox Game Pass. Each service costs $60 per year or $10 a month and grants access to a vast library of games. Triple-A blockbusters and indie darlings both pop up on these services with some regularity,…
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CultureDeus Ex: Mankind Divided and Shenmue I & II Are Leaving Xbox Game Pass
Just like Friends left Netflix and Fringe abandoned Hulu, Xbox Game Pass is on the brink of two high-profile departures: Deus Ex: Mankind Divided and Shenmue I & II. According to a recent update on the Microsoft Store, both games will leave the popular games-on-demand service in the next two weeks. Deus Ex: Mankind Divided…
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Tips & GuidesTips For Playing Iris and the Giant
Last week, the roguelite card game Iris and the Giant came out on PC and Mac. In it, you control Iris as she climbs through various floors of an underworld inspired by Greek mythology. Soon enough, it becomes clear that this underworld is a creation of Iris’ imagination, and is in fact a metaphor for…
By Ari Notis
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