Silicon Motion Announces SM8366 PCIe 5.0 x4 NVMe Controller and MonTitan SSD Solutions Platform for Enterprise Storage

In the lead up to the Flash Memory Summit next week, many vendors have started announcing their new products. Today, Silicon Motion is unveiling their first enterprise-focused PCIe 5.0 NVMe SSD controllers set. These controllers find themselves embedded in a flexible turnkey solutions platform encompassing different EDSFF standards. A follow-up to the SM8266 introduced in November 2020, the SM8366 and SM8308 belong to Silicon Motion’s 3rd Generation enterprise NVMe controller family.

Silicon Motion’s 3rd Generation Enterprise SSD Controllers
 
SM8366
SM8308
Host Interface
PCIe 5.0 x4 / x2 (dual-port x2+x2 or x1+x1 capable)
NAND Interface
16ch, 2400 MT/s
8ch, 2400 MT/s
DRAM
2x 40-bit DDR4-3200 / DDR5-4800
(32-bit data + 8-bit ECC per channel)
Max. SSD Capacity
128 TB
Sequential Read
14 GB/s
Sequential Write
14 GB/s
Random Read
3 M IOPS
Random Write
2.8 M IOPS
Namespaces
Up to 128, with a total of 1024 queue pairs

Hyperscalers / cloud vendors require turnkey reference designs to quickly evaluate the capabilities of new controllers. In enterprise applications, the controller hardware is only half the story. The associated firmware / SDK, and user-programmability to enable customer differentiation are also key aspects. Keeping this in mind, Silicon Motion is also putting focus on the SM8366 reference design by giving it a separate moniker – MonTitan.

The MonTitan platform refers to the turnkey design / firmware development platform based on the OCP Data Center NVMe SSD and NVMe 2.0 specifications. Hyperscalers can readily deploy the MonTitan platform into their infrastructure for evaluation, while datacenter SSD vendors can use it to make and market their own datacenter and enterprise SSDs. The platform is currently available in U.2, E1.S, and E3.S form-factors.

Silicon Motion claims that the platform’s ASIC and firmware combination architecture allows enabling of enterprise-level security without compromising on performance and QoS. Towards this, they are touting two key features – PerformaShape and NANDCommand.

NVMe SSD controllers can present the SSD as multiple distinct storage volumes each with its own I/O queue to the host system (namespaces). The PerformaShape algorithm can optimize the SSD performance differently for each namespace using per-namespace user-defined QoS settings. Silicon Motion claims true hardware isolation in this case to deliver maximum bandwidth while ensuring that latency, QoS, and power targets are met / obeyed. The NANDCommand feature refers to Silicon Motion’s use of real-time machine learning along with the LDPC engine to help with endurance (paritcularly important for QLC).

The claimed performance numbers for the SM8366 controller can vary for specific designs depending on the NAND technology, number of dice, and form-factor power limitations. The company indicated that specific numbers for different form-factor reference designs will be announced later. Sampling is slated to begin in Q4 2022.

Silicon Motion’s press release shows the usual suspects providing supporting quotes – Micron, KIOXIA, and YMTC from amongst the NAND suppliers. Alibaba Cloud has also expressed interest in evaluating the platform, which bodes well for Silicon Motion’s enterprise SSD controller efforts.

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PS5 Beta Update Adds 1440p Support, Game Lists, And More Social Features

A new PlayStation system software beta test is coming soon that adds some highly requested features and functionality to the system, including 1440p support and game lists.

Right now, these new features are limited to beta testers, but Sony plans to launch the update to the global userbase “later this year,” the company said in a blog post. Those chosen for the beta will receive an email inviting them to join the test, which begins today, July 28.

Hello 1440p

Sony is also being clear to say some features in the beta might not be included in the public launch or “may see significant changes.”

With those caveats out of the way, the PS5 beta update adds 1440p HDMI video output on compatible TVs and monitors and if the game you’re playing supports this. Users can check if their HDMI device can reach 1440p by choosing “Test 1440p Output” in the “Screen and Video” option under system settings. For those playing a game with a higher native resolution, such as 4K, Sony said they “may benefit from improved anti-aliasing through supersampling down to 1440p output.”

As for game lists, players can now create these in their Game Library to help make organizing games easier. “To start, go to the [Your Collection] tab and select [Create Gamelist]. Choose games to add to your gamelist, then decide what to name it,” Sony said.

Game lists can support up to 100 games, and users can have up to 15 lists. Players can select any game to add to a list, whether it be on a disc, digital, or streaming.

Game lists!

Other new features in the PS5 beta update include the ability to listen to and compare 3D and stereo sound and then select the one they want. Additionally, any “in-progress” activities players have in a game will be displayed “prominently” in the game hub so players can quickly find out where they left off.

As for new social features, players can now request members in their party to share their screen to watch their gameplay. “Go to the voice chat card, select the party member you want to send the request to, and then select [Request Share Screen],” Sony explained.

Additionally, players will not receive a notification when you join a party and someone in the group is playing a title they can join; users can join straight from the notification. Players can also now send stickers and voice messages in the game base card, and they can view a new friend’s profile under the Accepted Requests page.

You can check out the full blog post to learn more.

Read MoreGameSpot – Game News

Octopath Traveler: Champions Of The Continent Launches For Mobile

Square Enix has announced that its new mobile game Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent, is now available. The newly released mobile game is based on the popular series Octopath Traveler. Players will be able to experience a new original story in the world of Orsterra set a few years before Octopath Traveler.

Square Enix will be giving out the following rewards in-game for surpassing the 700,000 pre-registrations:

5,000 Leaves16 Experience Nuts (M)20 Gold Guidestones1 Pursuer’s Gloves I300 Rubies

In Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent, players are known as “the Chosen One” and will fight enemies who wish to unleash darkness upon the land. The game will feature the 2D pixel art with 3D/CG effects made popular by the original game.

Players will also have the option to pick from a roster of 64 characters in-game at launch, and they’ll be able to utilize up to eight party members in battle via swipe controls for fast-paced combat. In addition, players will also have the opportunity to add Tressa Colzione to their roster via two Guiding Lights as well as the Chosen Traveler: Tressa and the Sacred Guidance: Tressa.

Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent is free-to-play

Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent will allow players to choose their adventure and feature multiple interactions with NPCs. Depending on how you speak to them, it’ll determine how they view you. Lastly, Yasunori Nishiki, the composer who worked on Octopath Traveler, can be heard again in the latest installment with music exclusive to the game.

Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent is a free-to-play mobile game. You can download it on the Apple App Store and Google Play.

For more Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent news, check out our interview with the dev team.

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Best Internal Hard Drives: July 2022

Data storage requirements have kept increasing over the last several years. While SSDs have taken over the role of the primary drive in most computing systems, hard drives continue to be the storage media of choice in areas dealing with large amount of relatively cold data. Hard drives are also suitable for workloads that are largely sequential and not performance sensitive. The $/GB metric for SSDs (particularly with QLC in the picture) is showing a downward trend, but it is still not low enough to match HDDs in that market segment.

Since the release of the last HDD guide, Western Digital has announced retail availability of their OptiNAND-equipped 22TB drives, Toshiba has introduced Pro lines for their X300 and N300 lineups, and prices have generally shown a downward trend. Some high-capacity models have become a lot more affordable – selling prices are running around 15 – 20% lower than launch MSRPs. These make for an interesting update to our list of recommended hard drives for NAS and desktop usage.

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Forza Motorsport Release Date, Cars, And Everything We Know

The eighth Forza Motorsport–simply titled Forza Motorsport, rather than Forza Motorsport 8–is coming out in Spring 2023. It’s been in development for years by Turn 10, which considers this upcoming Forza Motorsport a reboot of the series–a change in fortune for the franchise, which makes sense, considering FM7’s lackluster reception.

Motorsport differs from its popular franchise sibling, Forza Horizon–the more loose, arcade-style racing game–by featuring cars on closed-circuit race tracks instead of an open-world setting. Here’s everything we know about the eighth Forza Motorsport.

Release date

Forza Motorsport will be released in Spring 2023. It’s the first game in the sub-series since 2017’s Forza Motorsport 7, a period which saw the release of two Forza Horizon games and the now-shuttered Forza Street mobile game. A more specific release date has not yet been confirmed, but it’s a return to the launch window of earlier games in the series, as more recent Motorsport entries have been released during the fall.

Platforms

Forza Motorsport is coming to PC and Xbox Series X|S. It will also be a day one Xbox Game Pass release. As you’d expect, there will be graphical differences between Series X and S: Forza Motorsport will run at 4K 60 FPS on Xbox Series X and 1080p 60 FPS on Xbox Series S.

An Xbox One edition has not been announced, but it’s possible the game will be playable on that console via Xbox cloud streaming.

Better physics, better graphics

Forza Motorsport’s trailers thus far have focused on the graphical upgrades–“dynamic time of day” is a big buzzword–and improved physics. But in addition to trailers, tidbits of info have also dribbled from various Forza Monthly episodes and Forza blogposts.

The devs claim Forza Motorsport has “48 times the improvement in the fidelity of the physics simulation” as compared to past Motorsport titles. 4K resolution (on Series X), real-time ray tracing, shaders, and 3D material scans will add even more realism to cars and race track environments.

Where does the number 48 come from? Creative director Esaki explained in a Forza Monthly episode that “48 times the improvement” is meant to reflect the massive generational leap between Forza Motorsport 7 and 8.

“The changes we’ve made from Forza Motorsport 7 till now is more than the changes we’ve made from 4 to 7,” Esaki said. “To use our tire collision model as an example: From Forza Motorsport from 4 to 7, all of our collision model itself had a single point of contact with the track surface and refreshed at about 60 Hz.

“Our new model now, instead of one point of contact, has eight points of contact with the track surface and is running at 360 Hz. So if you’re doing the math there, it’s a 48x fidelity jump in a single tire collision itself.”

According to Esaki, the upgraded tire collision model means players can better feel the track surface, and there’s increased car-to-player communication. And while the tire model having a lot more points of contact with the road seems like an abstract idea, Esaki later clarifies–likely after seeing the memes around the number 48–that getting the tire model right is the most important aspect of FM’s physics.

Esaki also says curbs are another subtle, yet meaningful place players can feel a difference in. “In past [Forza Motorsport] games, curbs have been viewed as somewhat coarse or unsettling,” Esaki said. “And I think that has dramatically changed. They feel great to drive over now. They’re smooth and natural.”

“Fully dynamic time of day,” a feature headlining FM’s promotions, will provide a more realistic simulation of different racing tracks and will also be available on every track. Different times of day will produce different ambient temperatures, a factor that will affect track surface temperature and grip.

And for those who enjoy faithful renderings of banged-up cars, Forza Motorsport will include more realistic car damage. That means scratches on bodywork, wear on tires, and other damage marks.

Redesigned pit experience

A redesigned pit experience will also be part of the next FM. There will be a different tire and fuel management system, multiple tire compounds, and in general, more car building activities.

“In the playtest, we were offering hard, medium, and soft compounds, and are looking to expand that over time–depending on how we’re going to be running the different events,” Esaki said. “Each of our compounds has different wear and grip characteristics, leading to exciting new gameplay decisions during the race.”

Multiplayer

According to a Forza Year In Review blogpost, FM devs have been testing multiplayer in the form of a race weekend consisting of open practice, qualifying, and a featured race calendar of events. It sounds like FM’s multiplayer format is in flux and subject to change. Turn 10 says they’re considering creating qualifiers during the week and holding the featured race on the weekend, or qualifiers during the day and race at night.

Open practice will also have a corner mastery feature that will go beyond track leaderboards. Turn 10 says it hopes the corner mastery system can become a more social feature.

Tracks

A full track list is not available yet, but we do know of a few tracks that will be present. The Xbox & Bethesda FM trailer showed off five.

Maple Valley–The autumnal track in the original 2005 Motorsport will be back in the eighth Forza Motorsport.Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps–This Grand Prix location is popularly referred to as Spa. The Eau Rogue corner, a famous spot in Spa, featured in the trailer as well.Laguna Seca–This is another traditional FM track. “We laser scanned the track,” Esaki said in a June 2022 Forza Monthly episode. “[There] are tons of new details in the actual track itself, like the detail of the surface.”Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit–A South African real-life track that will be new to Motorsport. “It’s super flowy, has some technical parts to it, and has some high speed parts to it.” Esaki said. “And tons of elevation changes.”Circuit Hakone–A brand-new, original FM track set in Japan, close to Mount Fuji. It’s a more romantic setting with cherry blossoms.

Hakone is an all-new, original high speed Grand Prix circuit in the new Forza Motorsport. We can’t wait for everyone to experience it!#ForzaMotorsport pic.twitter.com/V8Bo6t8lnV

— Forza Motorsport (@ForzaMotorsport) June 15, 2022

Cars

There’s not a complete roster of cars in Forza Motorsport currently available. But between FM’s demo and the trailer, 37 cars were shown and the full list can be found over at Turn 10’s announcement page. A lot of the revealed vehicles are making their debut in Motorsport, and from a glance, there’s quite a few GT cars. Below, we’ve focused on cars that got extended time in the trailers and popular ones that will be highly anticipated.

2018 BMW #1 M8 GTE--The gameplay video centers quite a bit on the M8, likely a familiar car to most FM players. It was available in GT7 as a free download.2020 Toyota GR Supra–This car is a Forza Horizon 5 fan favorite, so it’s exciting FM will also be getting it. This fifth-generation Supra has faced some mixed reviews for its BMW-like qualities–not quite reaching the acclaim of its 1998 predecessor (we can thank Fast & Furious for the Supra’s cultural ascendancy)–but is a smooth ride overall.2020 Lamborghini Huracan EVO–The ​​2014 Lamborghini Huracán LP 610-4 was beautiful, so it’s nice to see a very new, very shiny improvement on the LP show up in-game. You can check out the comparison between Huracan EVO and LP in a YouTube video.2019 McLaren Senna–This is another popular FH5 vehicle crossing over into FM. In real-life, it’s a limited-edition car that’s really rare. Like, no exaggeration: only 75 have been made.2018 Mercedes-AMG GT3–The AMG GT3 is Esaki’s favorite. Great shape. Beautiful car. What’s not to love?2020 Nissan GT-R Nismo (R35)–Nissan’s GT-Rs are very popular–one could even say legendary–so it’s nice to see one of the newer Nissan GT-R versions come to FM.2018 Formula Drift #64 Nissan 370Z–An oldie but a goodie. This drift car first appeared in FM4.

Trailers

As we get closer to Forza Motorsport’s release date, we’ll undoubtedly see more Forza Monthly episodes with extra details. So stay tuned for future coverage on Turn 10’s highly anticipated racing sim. We’ll update here with any new info.

Read MoreGameSpot – Game News

VRChat Players Are Furious After Mods, A Critical Part Of The Game, Are Banned

The number one rule for living a peaceful life is to not mess with anime girls online–one edict VRChat has decided to break by implementing Easy Anti-Cheat, a program banning all mods.

In the initial announcement, VRChat stated Easy Anti-Cheat will address malicious modified clients that bad actors use to harass or attack other players. Even non-malicious modified clients, VRChat added, can still create moderation and support issues.

“Every month, thousands of users have their accounts stolen, often due to running a modified client that is silently logging their keystrokes as well as other information,” VRChat said. “These users–often without even realizing it–run the risk of losing their account, or having their computers become part of a larger botnet.”

Mods have always been against VRChat’s Terms of Service, so this isn’t a decision coming completely out of the blue. However, VRChat users developed a very robust modding scene over the years, and the community is, understandably, incredibly upset about EAC.

VRChat users showed up in droves to review bomb the game in Steam and to express their unhappiness in the official Discord. A blanket ban on mods without prior acknowledgement of all the helpful mods people use, be that for accessibility or quality-of-life, frustrated players.

VRChat user Foxispo gave an example of VRChat’s accessibility mods. There are movie worlds where deaf and hard-of-hearing users will use a mod to add captions, something EAC will now prevent.

@VRChat “VRC-CC” is a mod that adds closed captions to movie worlds so deaf/HH people can watch movies with their friends. VRChat is killing that today by banning all mods. They’ve done absolutely nothing to address serious accessibility gaps on their platform. Please RT pic.twitter.com/DuJSUJCb4n

— Foxipso (@TheFoxipso) July 25, 2022

So what other features will people lose? OpenVR AMD FSR, an upscaling tool, will be banned–as explicitly stated in VRChat’s FAQ. AdvancedSafety helps VRChat crash less by limiting character polygon count and other features. UIExpansion allows users to tweak the UI according to their needs, and there are also mods like IKTweaks that improve full-body tracking. There are many–so many!–other quality-of-life mod tools, a testament to the community’s many years of hard work, which overnight, are now no longer usable.

In response to the backlash, VRChat has updated its initial announcement. The company will change its internal development plans to address accessibility concerns, in addition to finding out what quality-of-life additions the community wants. VRChat, however, will not roll back EAC. It remains to be seen how VRChat’s decision will affect its future.

VRChat is a social virtual reality game where users can walk around in avatars and create unique online worlds. It released in 2017 and is currently the most popular social VR game.

Read MoreGameSpot – Game News

Apex Legends Mobile Conqueror Of Kings Event Guide

Apex Legends Mobile‘s latest limited-time event, Conqueror of Kings, launched this week, challenging players to “conquer” various POIs on the Kings Canyon map in return for free cosmetic rewards and in-game currency.

The event requires players to collect Crowns by completing three daily missions. Players who collect all 55 Crowns will gain five free rewards, including a mobile-exclusive skin for Pathfinder. Keep reading for a closer look at the event along with some tips to help you finish it as quickly and efficiently as possible.

Getting started

When you first log in, you’ll be greeted with several splash screens. Select “Go!” to be taken directly to the event hub. If you accidentally skip past the splash screen, select the “Season Event” banner on the right side of the main lobby screen. Once there, select the “Limited-Time” tab on the top of the screen, then the “Conqueror of Kings” tab, which is located in the middle of the vertical event list on the right side of the screen. The event hub itself is deceptively sparse, with no event description and only a single sentence serving as the event’s directions: “Dominate the different areas of Kings Canyon to win prestigious awards.” But unlike prior mobile events, selecting the “Go!” option at the bottom of the Conqueror of Kings screen will not automatically load you into a match–instead, it will take you to the actual Conqueror of Kings event hub, which displays the event’s challenges and rewards.

Locations and challenges

When you navigate to the event hub, an animation will play, displaying a map of Kings Canyon and zeroing in on a specific POI. That OI is the area you must “conquer” by completing daily POI-exclusive challenges.

Each day, a new series of three challenges will appear in the event hub. Each day’s challenges will be tied to a specific POI. You do not need to complete all challenges the day they appear–just make sure you complete them before the event ends.

The main event hub, featuring map locations, challenges, and prizes

The currently unlocked POIs and their respective challenges are as follows:

Slum Lakes

Deal 1,000 damage at Slum Lakes in Kings Canyon Mode*Kill 5 enemies at Slum Lakes in Kings Canyon ModeLand at Slum Lakes at the start of a match in Kings Canyon Mode

Airbase

Deal 1,000 damage at Airbase in Kings Canyon ModeDeal 500 damage in a single match in Kings Canyon ModeOpen 5 Supply Bins at Airbase in Kings Canyon Mode

Repulsor

Deal 1,000 damage at Repulsor in Kings Canyon ModeKill 5 enemies at Repulsor in Kings Canyon ModeKill 3 enemies in a single match at Repulsor in Kings Canyon Mode

There are still four POIs that have not yet unlocked:

Skull TownArtilleryWetlandsThe Supply Ship (which will be hovering between Water Treatment, Skull Town, and Thunderdome)

*Kings Canyon mode seems to refer to vanilla, non-ranked battle royale mode.

Crowns and rewards

Completing all three of a POI’s challenges will “conquer” that area and net you 10 Crowns. You will need a total of 55 Crowns to obtain all free rewards, but the good news is that completing every single event challenge will net you a total of 80 Crowns, meaning it’s only necessary for you to “conquer” six out of the event’s eight POIs to gain enough Crowns for all rewards.

The Conqueror of Kings event rewards–and the amount of Crowns required to redeem them–are as follows:

10 Crowns – Red Beau Mirage banner frame (Rare)25 Crowns – Standard Syndicate Pack35 Crowns – Molten Core Charge Rifle weapon skin (Rare)45 Crowns – 5,000 Seasonal Currency, used to unlock mobile-exclusive skins in the Seasonal Store55 Crowns – Flare Bright Pathfinder character skin (Rare)

You can also gain 100 Flux for sharing the event on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram via the share button located in the bottom right corner of the event hub.

The mobile-exclusive Flare Bright Pathfinder character skin

Tips

Choose your battles. If there’s a POI you absolutely hate, focus on one you’re more comfortable with. While the Supply Ship challenges have not yet been revealed, they are likely to be some of the most challenging, due to the chaotic nature of landing on the Supply Ship, and the luck involved in completing challenges that require you to kill a certain number of enemies in one specific area.

Play the right legend. In addition to choosing the map areas you are most comfortable with, it’s also a good idea to choose a legend you’re comfortable with. That said, some have more perks than others when it comes to this event.

Loba is a great choice, as her abilities will allow you to select the gear you prefer and jump right into the action, with the added bonus of an easy escape via her Jump Drive ability. When it comes to accumulating knockdowns and damage, you can’t go wrong with Caustic. His abilities are perfect for accumulating passive damage and effortless knockdowns while keeping enemies at bay. Finally, Rhapsody serves as a well-rounded option that provides scan protection while still allowing you to monitor enemies via sound, along with providing you and your squad with a speed-boost that’s perfect for making a quick escape if things go sideways.

Play as a team. While this is always good advice when it comes to Apex Legends, it is absolutely vital if you want to complete this event. A well-coordinated team will make completing event challenges far easier, so we suggest you squad up with some friends, whether you know them IRL or stumbled across them in the lobby.

Even if you’re stuck playing with randoms, make sure to communicate. Let them know which POI you intend to focus on and which specific challenges you’re trying to complete, and when you need them to watch your back while you complete a finisher or any other action that leaves you exposed. Don’t forget to return the favor, either–if you come across a particularly helpful teammate, ask them if they have any Conqueror of Kings event challenges they need help completing.

The Conqueror of Kings event will be live until August 7 at 5 PM PT / 8 PM ET. Don’t forget to check out Season 2’s other challenges and complete your weekly user survey for an extra 500 Seasonal Currency.

Apex Legends Mobile is available for download on iOS and Android.

Read MoreGameSpot – Game News

The Lord Of The Rings Gollum Release Date, Gameplay, And Everything We Know

It’s a big year for The Lord of the Rings, as Peter Jackson’s Oscar-winning Two Towers celebrates its 20th anniversary and Amazon’s TV show, The Rings of Power, debuts in September. But that’s not all. Daedalic’s new video game, The Lord of the Rings: Gollum, is also on the way in the near future, though its release date has now been delayed. We’re rounding up everything we know about the new game ahead of launch.

Platforms and release date

The Lord of the Rings: Gollum is coming to PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. The game was originally scheduled to be released on September 1 (just a day before The Rings of Power premieres), but it has been delayed “a few months.” Depending on what Daedalic means by a “few,” the game could still launch in 2022. A Nintendo Switch version was previously announced for release on November 30, but that date may have shifted, too.

Who is developing LOTR: Gollum?

The Lord of the Rings: Gollum is developed by Daedalic Entertainment, a German studio known for the Deponia franchise, among others. It’s being made in partnership with Middle-earth Enterprises, the holding company that controls the rights to the series. The story is officially canon and sheds new light on Gollum’s quest to reclaim the One Ring.

What is the story?

The Lord of the Rings: Gollum, as its name suggests, follows the hobbit-turned-creature Gollum in a story that takes place in parallel with the early chapters of The Fellowship of the Ring. At this point, Gollum has lost the ring and is on a mission to get his precious back.

“He has seen things that others can not imagine, he has survived things that others would not dare mention. Torn by his split personality, he can be vicious and villainous as Gollum, but social and cautious as Sméagol,” reads a line from the game’s description.

Gollum is a central character in JRR Tolkien’s writing, but many elements of Gollum’s quest have not been covered in much detail, which is where LOTR: Gollum comes in. The story will cover Gollum’s time in the Dark Tower and his time with the elves of Mirkwood.

Gallery

Why Gollum?

Of all the major Middle-earth characters, few would have guessed that Gollum would get his own video game. Daedalic said in an FAQ that it chose Gollum because he is “one of the most fascinating characters” that Tolkien ever came up with.

“Despite his looks he’s also an agile creature that can climb, leap, and grapple his way past dangers or into advantageous spots,” the studio said. “This makes for an epic adventure through exciting never-seen-before parts of Middle-earth, and leads the player to interesting moral choices, and varied gameplay, alternating platforming and stealth.”

Gollum doesn’t look like the Andy Serkis depiction of Gollum from Peter Jackson’s film series, and that’s on purpose. “While all of us enjoy the previous adaptations of the stories Tolkien created, we wanted to create our own unique interpretation of the world and its characters. As such, The Lord of the Rings: Gollum is original while being true to the literary source material,” Daedalic said.

Gollum is voiced in the game by Wayne Forester, who also did voice work for Elden Ring and Sniper Elite 5 recently.

Gollum’s abilities

Just like he’s described in Tolkien’s writing, Gollum is known for being a stealthy creature in the video game. He likes to avoid going head-to-head with enemies and instead opts to sneak around to get the upper hand. As we covered in our LOTR: Gollum preview, there is a lot of climbing and sneaking in locations like Cirith Ungol and Mirkwood.

The game also features a mode called Gollum Vision that highlights hiding spots, enemies, and can help guide you toward your objective.

Split personality

The Lord of the Rings: Gollum plays into the split-personality element of Gollum/Smeagol. In the game, players will be faced with the struggle in the creature’s mind between Gollum and Smeagol. Players can, in certain parts of the game, make choices that lean into Gollum’s darker side or make more honorable choices that lean toward more what Smeagol might have done. “One mind, two egos–you decide,” reads a line from the game’s description.

For lots more on LOTR: Gollum, check out GameSpot’s preview in which Lord of the Rings super-fan Lucy James covers seven things we learned about the game.

Read MoreGameSpot – Game News

Ubisoft’s Fighting Game Brawlhalla Adds Assassin’s Creed Heroes Ezio And Eivor

Ubisoft’s free-to-play fighting game, Brawlhalla, is adding two popular characters from the publisher’s Assassin’s Creed series. Ezio and Eivor, some of the oldest and newest heroes from Ubisoft’s stealthy-stabby series, are now available in Brawlhalla as part of the game’s latest Epic Crossover event.

Brawlhalla players can buy Ezio for 7200 Gold or 100 Mammoth coins, while skins for Ezio (Revelations Ezio, Armor of Brutus Ezio, and Asgardian Ezio) are available for 140 Mammoth coins each.

Some of Ezio’s abilities include one where he whips out his wrist blade and another where he projects a holographic image of himself that charges forward and stabs his opponent.

As for Eivor, players can purchase both the female and male Eivor for 300 Mammoth coins, and one purchase gets you both. The update also introduces a new Bounty game mode where players take part in three different modes: Rooftop Rumble, Ghost Rooftop Rumble, and Assassin’s Brawl. New maps, Florence Rooftop and Florence Terrace, are also new to Brawlhalla today.

Brawlhalla’s latest crossover characters, Eivor and Ezio, have arrived

Gallery

Elsewhere, the Brawlhalla update adds a new KO effect featuring the Assassin’s Creed desynchronization screen, a new Leap of Faith emote, and eight new avatars.

Brawlhalla has reach more than 80 million players, and Ezio and Eivor are just the latest addition to the character roster that now stretches past 50 characters. The game is available now on PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, and PC, as well as iOS and Android.

2022 is the 15th anniversary of the Assassin’s Creed series, and Ubisoft has more in store. The publisher is holding an event in September where it will reveal “the future of Assassin’s Creed,” and this may include details on the next games in the series.

Read MoreGameSpot – Game News

GTA Online Cops N Crooks Mode Was Canceled After George Floyd Protests – Report

A new report discussing workplace conditions at Rockstar Games also claims that a piece of content for GTA Online was quietly canceled in light of the George Floyd protests.

Earlier today, a report from Bloomberg discussed details of how Rockstar has supposedly changed its workplace culture, as well as touching on some Grand Theft Auto 6 details. The report also spoke of a piece of planned content called Cops ‘n’ Crooks that was meant to come to GTA Online, though according to the report, it was shelved without any fanfare.

Senior executives reportedly felt concerned over how the content might be viewed in general due to generally rising mistrust of American police at the time of the 2020 George Floyd protests. And according to those familiar with its development, there aren’t any plans to bring it back.

The mode was apparently planned to be a twist on the children’s game, organizing players into “good guys” and “bad guys,” which sounds fairly reductive when it comes to such a nuanced issue, especially at a time like that.

As noted by Bloomberg, this follows a number of changes at the company that appear to be more conscious of the general state of politics in the US at this point in time. Earlier this year it was found that the new-gen remasters of GTA 5 had cut transphobic content in the game, and new reports indicate that a Latina woman will be one of the lead playable characters in GTA 6, a major first for the series.

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