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July 26, 2017
If you've been keeping an eye on the Xbox One X, formally known as the Xbox Scorpio, then you'll know that the console is set to hit homes around the world very soon.
While Xbox is planning to push out the Xbox One X to retailers as soon as possible, pre-orders for the new console have not yet been opened.
Thankfully, Xbox's Phil Spencer has confirmed that he plans to bring the Xbox One X pre-order page online very soon. Phil Spencer took to Twitter to write, "Our plan is set for this. All approvals are done so now just landing the announce with all the info, won't be too much longer."
This means that the Xbox One X should be on sale very soon. With all of the hype that's lead up to the Xbox One X, we wouldn't be surprised if the console sells out very quickly, so you may want to keep an eye out on Phil Spencer's Twitter page for more updates.
The Xbox One X is set to launch on November 7 across the globe. The console will be going for $500 USD. Other countries
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July 24, 2017
While MotoGP eSports hasn't really been a thing before, it is now - a brand new eSports championship for MotoGP has started and it'll give players a chance to win a brand new car.
The new MotoGP eSports championship started on July 27th. The event will start with six challenges.
The first challenge will be a time trial on the Circuito de Jerez track. Players must play as Marc Marquez on the HRC Honda. If players beat the qualifying time, they'll be taken to the next challenge.
In total, there are 5 more challenges like the first one. By the end of it all, players will be taken to the MotoGP Challenge - a chance for all players that have made it through the challenges so far to race against others.
The players with the quickest cumulative time in the MotoGP Challenge will have a chance to qualify for the Grand Finals.
The Grand Final event will only see two of the fastest players out of the entire event. The final will be held in Valencia on November 11,
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July 21, 2017
EVO 2017 has now slowly shifted to a halt, and the winners for both Super Smash Bros. for Wii U and Super Bros. Melee have now been revealed.
If you don't want spoilers, you can check out recaps on the EVO 2017 Twitch channel before reading our EVO 2017 finals overview below.
We'll first start with the least surprising turnout of the event. In the Super Bros. Melee tournament at EVO 2017, Armada and Mang0 ended up facing up against each other in the grand finale.
Armada managed to pull out an almost clean 3-1 victory over Mang0 to take the grand final win after coming from the winner's bracket. This is now the third year in a row that Armada has made it to the EVO 2017 grand finals.
In 2016, Armada came second after losing in the grand finals. Armada also took the 2015 EVO Smash Bros. Melee win.
The results for the EVO 2017 Smash Bros. for Wii U tournament were a little more interesting.
As expected, ZeRo made his way to the grand finals after staying
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July 19, 2017
Two more games have been listed as 4K supported titles for those that pick up the Xbox One X.
The new games include The Evil Within 2, and Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus. If you visit the Xbox Games Store link for either of these two games, you'll now notice a number of logos to showcase their 4K support.
These logos include "Xbox One X Enhanced," "HDR," and "4K Ultra HD" and are often used on games that have had texture reworks for the Xbox One X.
With The Evil Within 2 and Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus joining the Xbox One X launch party, the list of games with Xbox One X and 4K support is starting to grow.
Other games recently announced for Xbox One X include the unreleased Crackdown 3, Assassin's Creed: Origins, Forza Horizon 7, and Sea of Thieves.
A number of developers and publishers have teamed up with Microsoft to launch 4K support for their existing games, as well.
Some of these upgrades to existing games include Gears of War 4, Forza
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July 14, 2017
If you've played Playerunknown's Battlegrounds, (Or seen other people play it), you'll know that the game features an option for both third person and first person.
Despite the option between the two, players will often spend the majority of their game in the third person. To keep things dynamic, the development team behind Battlegrounds has confirmed that they'll be a bringing a first person only mode to the game.
To begin with, the first person only mode will be limited to solo and duo games in the North America and Europe servers. If the game mode is received well, the development team will open up more servers for all regions and for squad mode.
It should hopefully mean that by the time Playerunknown's Battlegrounds comes to the Xbox One, the first person only mode will be available for all regions and for all group sizes for those that are interested in it.
Currently, Playerunknown's Battlegrounds is only on the PC. It has quickly become the third most played
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July 14, 2017
A number of teams have now been chosen to participate in the Overwatch League. More details are provided in the article.
When the Overwatch League was first announced, it had high ambitions to turn their eSports league into a league similar in proportion and style to the NFL or the NHL. Blizzard had hoped to allow cities and popular locations across the world to host their own teams, just like in the NHL and NFL.
Some of the first teams in part of this new formula have now been announced, with some of the teams being backed by some very well-known (and wealthy) individuals.
To begin with, Robert Kraft, owner of the New England Patriots, recently purchased an Overwatch team for the Boston area.
Jeff Wilpon, the COO of the New York Mets, is looking to build a team for the New York area.
It's not just traditional sports names getting involved with the Overwatch League, either. Noah Whinston, CEO of Immortals, has confirmed that he's building a team for the
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July 03, 2017
One of the biggest mechanics in Destiny isn't coming back to Destiny 2 and it has split the community in two.
In the original Destiny, each weapon drop can have stats randomly assigned to it. With this approach, it means players were encouraged to grind missions over and over again for a chance to get a more powerful version of their favorite weapons.
However, in Destiny 2, this randomly assigned stats mechanic will be removed.
This random stat mechanic has been used in similar games for years - it's a system that's been used in Borderlands and Diablo, and it's been something that has fueled the addictive nature of these types of loot-focused games. With the random stats gone in Destiny 2, getting good gear is still rewarding, but once you've got the best weapons in the game, you'll know that there isn't a chance to get even better gear.
This has the potential to reduce the replayability of Destiny 2, especially if there isn't enough content added to the game.
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June 29, 2017
Nintendo has always been an important player in esports. While the spotlight in recent years has quickly been focused on PC titles like Counter Strike: Global Offensive, Overwatch, and League of Legends, Nintendo has always been giving out love to its grass roots esports communities.
If you've ever been part of a Smash Bros. event, whether it's as a competitor or a spectator, you'll know that the eSports communities surrounding some of Nintendo's games are some of the best communities in the world.
Despite the healthy scenes that exist for some of Nintendo's top titles, they still haven't broken out to the mainstream audiences as massively as Counter Strike or League has in recent years.
Nintendo wants to work to bring their eSports titles to mainstream audiences, and they're interested in taking a different approach to get there.
Nintendo of America's president Reggie Fils-Aime has got a few words to say about Nintendo on eSports. He shared his ideas in a recent
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June 26, 2017
What is Sonic Mania? We've explained exactly what the new Sonic game is in this blog, as well as providing details about its release date.
Sonic Mania is a brand new Sonic game that's planned to launch later this year. Sonic Mania will be available for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and the PC. The game will first be available starting from August 15.
Sonic Mania is not the new Sonic Forces game. Instead, Sonic Mania is a celebration of 25 years of Sonic the Hedgehog - it's a throwback to the fans and it's a 2D re-imagination of the original Sonic the Hedgehog.
The graphics style for Sonic Mania is exactly what you'd expect for a retro re-imagination. The background music fits in perfectly as well, as does the gameplay. Sonic Mania is a new game, but you'll be convinced it isn't - it includes old levels from the original Sonic the Hedgehog, as well as 'remixed' versions of those same levels.
Players will be able to play as Sonic the Hedgehog, Knuckles
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June 25, 2017
You may not have heard of Tencent yet, but if you're into eSports, you'll certainly be introduced to them during the next few years.
Tencent is a Chinese internet investment company that has purchased or invested in some of the biggest names in internet and video game history. Tencent has subsidiaries including Riot Games (League of Legends), Supercell, (Clash Royale) Epic Games, (Gears of War) and a range of other internet companies.
Over the next five years, Tencent has pledged to invest close to $15 billion dollars in the eSports industry. This $15 billion will go towards running tournaments across the globe, improving prize pools and payouts, developing new talent, and helping to lay the groundwork for the future of eSports and providing tools for upcoming teams and organizations to get off of the ground.
Tencent hasn't given too much information about what exact plans they have prepared for the next five years, but they seem very dedicated to turning eSports into