The shadowy merchant Xur is back again with a fresh batch of exotic wares to peddle in Destiny‘s Tower of Guardians, and he really doesn’t have anything too exciting this time around.

Notable selections from the Agent of the Nine’s weekly inventory include a decent Defender Titan helm, a body armor exotic engram that could drop a Heart of the Praxic Fire for your Sunsinger, and a fantastic Achlyophage Symbiote upgrade with 127 max Discipline.

Xur’s inventory selection for Week 30 lasting from April 3 – 4, 2015.

Other goodies include a decent Crest of Alpha Lupi Titan variant, as well as a ton of weapon upgrade repeats like impressive combo Bad Juju pulse rifle and the Arc-infused Thunderlord machine gun.

As far as location, for Week 30 the interstellar tradesman can be found in one of his usual haunts outside of the Speaker’s quarter.

This week Xur is in the western quadrant of the Tower, outside of the Speaker’s quarters next to the railing.

It looks like Heavy Ammo Synthesis are here to stay, priced at their usual exchange rate of 1SC per stack of five. As far as Telemetry models go, Xur has Pulse Rifle, Fusion Rifle and Rocket Launcher EXP boosters up for grabs for 1SC per five-stack.

Without further adieu let’s jump right into our analysis of Xur’s exotic wares for April 3 (Week 30) and find out if his wares are worth your hard-earned strange coins or not.

“Everything is luminous.”

The Glasshouse – 13 Strange Coins

• Class: Titan (Defender)
• Upgrade Mats: Helium Fragments, Exotic shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Type: Helmet
• Defense: 407/447
• Intellect: 110/118
• Rain Blows: Increases melee attack speed
• Quintessence Transfer: Replenish Super energy when you kill an enemy with a grenade.
• Bathed in light: Blessing of Light and Weapons of Light last longer.

Should You Buy It?

Yes, if you’re a Defender Titan.

The Glasshouse is a very useful utility-grade exotic that serves a very specific purpose: to boost your Weapons of Light for extra damage. This is particularly useful during raids like the Vault of Glass Aetheron battle or high-level Strikes where high-output damage is key.

The Quintessence Transfer mod is pretty useful too especially if you have the Magnetic Grenade equipped. Basically you’ll get something extra out of kills you’d already be getting thanks to the grenade, and get to use your shield more often.

It’s something that every Defender Titan should have in their arsenal, but it doesn’t replace the Helm of Saint-14 for everyday use. The higher-end Intellect roll is also a nice touch that further boosts your bubble shield recharge.

“Amputated from a creature that stumbled out of a Vex gate. A vestigial defensive reflex still remains.”

Don’t Touch Me – 13 Strange Coins

• Class: Hunter (Any)
• Upgrade Mats: Spinmetal, Exotic shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Type: Gauntlets
• Defense: 333/366
• Discipline: 77/83
• Special Weapon Loader: Increases reload speed of all Special Weapons.
• Inverse Shadow: Cooldown for Super Ability is reduced by 2.5 seconds per kill of minions of the Darkness.
• Defensive Reflex: Taking damage from a melee attack makes you briefly invisible.

Should You Buy It?

Maybe.

These pair of gauntlets are strictly PVE, so it depends on what kind of character your Hunter is. That being said, this particular exotic is incredibly useful during the first segment of the Crota’s End raid where you’re running blind for the lamps.

Basically every time you get smacked by a Thrall you turn invisible, which pretty much allows you to keep gaining ground without taking too much damage. And considering how many thralls there are to hit you, the part becomes pretty easy to just sneak past.

But Don’t Touch Me aren’t useful as a main item–they’re not going to replace your Mask of the Third Man or Golden Gun-adding Achlyophage Symbiote.

“When one can wield the fire of stars, what use is flesh and bone?”

Sunbreakers – 13 Strange Coins

• Class: Warlock (Sunsinger)
• Upgrade Mats: Helium Filaments Exotic shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Type: Gauntlets
• Defense: 333/366
• Intellect: 79/85
• Special Weapon Loader: Increases the reload speed of all Special Weapons.
• Serpent’s Tail: Causing damage with a melee reduces your grenade cooldown.
• Helium Cycle: Increase the duration of your Solar Grenade.

Should You Buy It?

Maybe, but there are better Sunsinger class exotics.

The Sunbreakers are good gauntlets for the Sunsinger class, but you have better options like the Heart of The Praxic Fire which makes Radiance incredibly potent. Another better option is the Claws of Dire Ahamkara gauntlets which grant you an extra Scorch charge, meaning you’ll get two opportunities to trigger your Flame Shield.

The Sunbreakers are pretty much a tier three item, and they’re okay, plus the stat roll is in the middle so if you don’t have anything else, go for it. Otherwise keep on the look out for those other items and stick with what you have for now.

“Burn the world. Burn it all.”

Dragon’s Breath – 17 Strange Coins

• Upgrade Mats: Spirit Bloom, Exotic shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Type: Rocket Launcher
• Damage: 302 (Solar Elemental Damage)
• • Smart Drift Control: Predictable and controllable recoil. Penalty to Velocity.
    • Linear Compensator: More predictable recoil. Slight boost to Velocity and Blast Radius. More recoil.
    • Confined Launch: Greatly reduced recoil. Significant penalty to Velocity.
  • Tripod: This launcher’s tube can hold three shells.
  • Upgrade Damage: Increases Attack Power, allowing this weapon to cause more damage.
  • Quickdraw: This weapon can be drawn unbelievably fast.
    • Javelin: Increases warhead velocity.
    • Heavy Payload: Increases warhead blast radius.
  • Pyromancer :Rounds fired from this weapon leave a Solar Flare upon detonation.

Should You Buy It?

No, save your coin.

The real downside with Dragon’s Breath is that it takes up your exotic weapon slot for a very conditional type of weapon. This rocket launcher is primarily used as a “area denial” solution by leaving a Solar Flare (just like the Warlock’s ability) which delivers damage over time in a specific area.

In PVP you can use it to shoot at an area you want enemies to stay away from, as the explosion leaves behind that damage-dealing flare, pretty much cutting off that particular pathway.

This rocket launcher is curious, and is more for strategic use rather than total annihilation, but it does have a huge blast radius.

Exotic Shard – 7 Strange Coins

Body Armor Exotic Item Engram – 23 Motes of Light

Armor Upgrades

Achlyophage Symbiote (Helmet)

Stellar upgrade here, buy this one if you’re in the market for an upgrade. Achlyophage Symbiote is amazing for all Gunslingers, as that extra Golden Gun shot helps in every single game mode, from PVP to PVE. The extra shot is a constant source of recurring value.

• Cost: 7177 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Hunter (Gunslinger)
• Light: 30/36
• Discipline: 119/127
• Defense: 407/447

Lucky Raspberry (Chestpiece)

Lower Intellect stat roll, so pass it up. The Lucky Raspberry is a very useful tool that arms you with more rocket and fusion rifle ammo (works with Vex Mythoclast) for PVE raids. Plus you instantly spawn with full grenade energy in PVP. And your Arc-infused grenade’s chain lightning effect stretches further outward, making it a good PVP finisher.

• Cost: 7393 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Hunter (Bladedancer)
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 121/130
• Defense: 444/488

Crest of Alpha Lupi (Chestpiece)

Proper high Intellect stat roll, so upgrade it if you have the extra shard laying around. The item’s worth is conditional, but spawning extra orbs can help out in boss fights as well as taking down Crota on Hard difficulty.

• Cost: 7547 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Titan (Any)
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 148/159
• Defense: 444/488

No Backup Plans (Gauntlets)

Middle tier Strength roll here, so pass it up for now. You don’t want to invest the Exotic Shard and Glimmer cost until you see a fantastic Strength buff. No Backup Plans are pretty useful for Defender Titans, and stack with defense melee skills to make the Force Barrier overshield a powerful extra line of defense.

• Cost: 7759 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Titan (Defender)
• Light: 30/36
• Strength: 80/86
• Defense: 333/366

Apotheosis Veil (Helmet)

The stat roll here is decent, but with a registered max of 128 Discipline, this particular RNG helmet isn’t anything amazing. The Apotheosis Veil is another conditionally useful item that is best equipped during Raids or other high-stakes activities. It allows the wearer to regenerate health from various triggers.

• Cost: 7013 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Warlock (Any)
• Light: 30/36
• Discipline: 93/100
• Defense: 407/447

Sunbreakers (Gauntlets)

Another “meh” roll here, so save your Glimmer and shards. We’ve already weighed the value of the Sunbreakers above, and the extra defense boost isn’t worth the cost.

• Cost: 7549 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Warlock (Sunsinger)
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 80/86
• Defense: 333/366

Weapon Upgrades

Bad Juju (Pulse Rifle)

Bungie has just buffed up Pulse Rifles quite a bit in 1.1.1 so now’s a good time as any to upgrade. Bad Juju on its own is pretty damn effective and is a great go-to weapon for Voidwalker Warlocks when used in tandem with the Obsidian Mind helmet. With this combo you’ll get instant reloads and build up your super after kills, and gain more energy from killing Hive enemies thanks to the Obsidian Mind.

You can also use Bad Juju effectively with the Skull of Dire Ahamkara to build some serious super energy.

• Cost: 7019 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Kinetic damage)
• Magazine: 24

MIDA Multi-Tool (Scout Rifle)

Upgrade this one. The MIDA Multi-Tool is already amazing, and with extra damage it becomes even more amazing. Essentially it’s a fast-shooting, fast-reloading mid to long-range rifle that empowers you with extra speed when equipped. And the best part is that it gives you a Third Eye that lets you see your radar when you’re scoping down the sights.

• Cost: 7459 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Kinetic damage)
• Magazine: 21

Thorn (Handcanon)

Pick this upgrade up. Even when it’s not upgraded Thorn is a very powerful weapon. Sure it’s not as good as the all-star Hawkmoon, but it does the job quite well thanks to its lingering damage and Send It perks. The extra damage is well worth restarting all over again.

Plus there’s even word that Thorn might somehow combo with the Hunter’s Tripmine-boosting Young Ahamkara’s Spine gauntlets

• Cost: 7673 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Kinetic damage)
• Magazine: 9

Patience and Time (Sniper Rifle)

Upgrading this one depends on how much you like it. That extra damage boost will come in handy to be sure, and thanks to the active camoflage, the gun is pretty flexible in a variety of situations. Basically it’s the ultimate sniper rifle for stealthy assassins.

• Cost: 7561 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302 / 331 (Arc damage)
• Magazine: 4

Thunderlord (Machine Gun)

Great opportunity to get that extra damage buff on an already amazing machine gun. The Thunderlord is a great go-to weapon in PvP or during Weeklies when Arc Burn is up, and is one of the best heavy machine guns in the game because it packs a powerful punch as well as retains accuracy.

Essentially it combines everything you’d want to see in this type of weapon: power, speedy reloads, and amazing stability. Plus the Lightning Rounds perk makes the gun become more accurate the longer you fire it. Win-win.

• Cost: 7681G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302 / 331 (Arc damage)
• Magazine: 38

Super Good Advice (Machine Gun)

Apart from the Arc-infused Thunderlord, Super Good Advice is Destiny‘s other badass machine gun. It returns missed shots to its clip with the Super Good Advice perk, deals bonus damage every time you kill an enemy, packs a Solar-powered wallop, and can reload amazingly fast.

• Cost: 7817 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302 / 331 (Solar damage)
• Magazine: 58

Curios

• Pulse Rifle Telemetry - Stack of 5x per 1 Strange Coin

• Fusion Rifle Telemetry - Stack of 5x per 1 Strange Coin

• Rocket Launcher Telemetry - Stack of 5x per 1 Strange Coin

• Heavy Ammo Synthesis - Stack of 5x per 1 Strange Coin

• Plasma Drive Vehicle Upgrade - 23 Strange Coins

• “Emerald Coil” Vehicle Upgrade - 23 Strange Coins

The post Destiny: Analysis Of Xur’s Exotic Wares For April 3 (Week 30) appeared first on VR World.

April 1st’s new Nintendo Direct is pretty hefty, and Nintendo has made some pretty sizable announcements throughout the showcase.

Join us as we take a look at the most exciting reveals and highlights from the coverage, including Nintendo 64 and DS games coming to Wii U’s Virtual Console (finally!) along with new Amiibo waves, a standalone NFC scanner for 3DS and 2DS handhelds, a brand new Animal Crossing and footage from the Shin Megami Tensei x Fire Emblem crossover.

Other goodies include a confirmed Mario Maker release date, a poll for future Super Smash Bros. characters, a Splatoon Amiibo three-pack, new portable “Amiibo cards”, an amazing new trailer for the 3DS Fire Emblem game, and more.

Without further adieu, let’s jump right in starting with the Wii U Virtual Console news.

The Wii U’s Virtual Console presence is getting a much needed expansion with N64 and Nintendo DS games.

Wii U Virtual Console News

One of the biggest announcements during the showcase was that Nintnedo 64 and DS games are officially coming to the Wii U Virtual Console.

This represents a huge opportunity for the company to expand its beleaguered cross-platform digital service, which is actually quite underwhelming in its current state.

The Wii U will have a variety of different layout options for both N64 and DS games.

But how will Nintendo 64 and DS emulation work with the Wii U Gamepad?

Nintendo will provide a host of dual-screen options for both platforms, so the same screen is mirrored across both the TV and Gamepad. But some games will be different and use your TV as the main screen, allowing the Gamepad or Pro controller to be used as the controller.

Other games will use “both screens as one connected screen”, meaning the Gamepad will be an accessory screen rather than simply mirrored.  As for Nintendo DS emulation, users can flip the Wii U Gamepad vertically to simulate the handheld’s dual-screen layout.

Custom button mapping is supported across N64 Virtual Console games.

Also Nintendo 64 games on the Virtual Console will let you map your own buttons for customized control schemes, which is a great option considering how different the Gamepad is from the original N64 controller.

The first Virtual Console games will be Super Mario 64 and Yoshi’s Island DS both priced at $10 and are available now on the Wii U’s Virtual Console shop.

Nintendo 64 games will be priced at $10-12 whereas Nintendo DS games will cost $7-10. But if you already own the games on the Wii’s Virtual Console and transfer them over to your Wii U, each game will be reduced to $2.

Other Wii U VC games include:

• Yoshi Touch & Go (DS) - April 9 – $9.99

• WarioWare Touched! (DS)- April 9 – $9.9

• Donkey Kong 64 (N64) - April 16 – $9.99

• Mario Kart DS (DS) - April 23 – $9.99

• Paper Mario (DS) - April 30 – $9.99

The post Nintendo Direct Wii U And 3DS Announcement Wrap-Up appeared first on VR World.

2015 is shaping up to be a pretty substantial year for console gaming, with each of the three leading consoles–Wii U, Xbox One and PlayStation 4–receiving a nice variety of titles.

While most games on the list are cross-platform, there are a few timed exclusives as well as console exclusives to boot, and we weigh which games look to be solid hits that gamers are anticipating.

Since the gaming industry is in a sort of creative standstill as far as original content goes, most of the hotly anticipated games are sequels and continuations of popular franchises. To start things off, though, we do have an a rather distinctive indie that’s captured our collective imaginations to redefine what a sci-fi game can be.

No Man’s Sky is one of the most anticipated games in recent memory, bringing a true sense of sci-fi and fantasy with a completely randomized universe.

1. No Man’s Sky

Release Date: TBD (2015)
Publisher: TBA
Developer: Hello Games
Platform: PS4 (timed exclusive), PC, Xbox One?
Genre: Space Sim, Procedural Universe

No Man’s Sky is one of the most impressive looking games in recent memory, taking a huge leap forward in sci-fi space sims.

Developed by indie studio Hello Games, No Man’s Sky soon took the gaming world by storm when it was revealed at Spike’s VGX 2013 showcase. The indie itself is a beyond-massive game that maintains randomized, procedurally-generated universes that are so big gamers could spend months at time exploring them.

“It’s a real place, a real planet. You can walk for days and days, or depending on the size of the planet, weeks and weeks. Players can play for months on end and still never meet,” Hello Games founder Sean Murray said.

Every planet, star system, and galaxy are unique, complete with exotic flora, fauna and bizarre sci-fi secrets hidden deep within every asteroid, sun or moon. Explore regions to snag precious materials and build up your ship, or scrap

To keep things action-packed, gamers can engage in interstellar ship-to-ship dogfights throughout the cosmos. There might even be alliances and warring factions throughout the universe, and enemies will likely be just as randomized as the environments.

The Witcher 3 is the last chapter in CD Projekt RED’s open-world RPG saga, infused with dark fantasy, magic, and medieval swordplay.

2. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

Release Date: May 19, 2015
Publisher: WB Games
Developer: CD Projekt RED
Platform:  PS4, Xbox One, PC
Genre: RPG

The Witcher series has always been the premiere dark fantasy RPG, and CD Projekt RED concludes its epic saga with The Wild Hunt.

Few games of this generation tap the raw power and potential of the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, showcasing a new era of console performance in all areas: graphics, smooth and steady frame-rate performance, sound quality, and everything else.

The Witcher 3 harkens back to what made the previous Witcher RPG games successful while also streamlining combat to a tee, adding in a wealth of new features and content that promises to keep even the die-hard Geralt fans busy for weeks on end.

Boasting over 200 hours of content, players will traverse multiple landmasses and explore regions that are rife with beauty–from rolling plains to frosty mountain ranges–and tackle a huge array of sidequests to build nobility and foster alliances that shape the world around you.

With the Witcher 3 there’s a true sense of epic magic throughout every turn, but the game makes it clear right from the get-go that this isn’t your fairtale world where princes ride off into the sunset: this is a gritty, dark and bloody world filled with murder, death and chaos, and you’re doing what you can to save it.

CD Projekt RED also wants to turn exploitative DLC on its head, and that’s why they’ve decided to pack every game with 16 packs of free add-on content. Plus they’ve done what they can to equalize performance on all systems, trying to put an end to the “console fanboy wars”, assuring that The Witcher 3 is the “same build” across PS4, Xbox One and PC.

The next in the Xenoblade line, the upcoming Wii U exclusive blends classic RPG and sci-fi sentiments for a truly unique JPRG experience.

3. Xenoblade Chronicles X

Release Date: TBD
Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: Monolith Soft
Platform: Wii U (exclusive)
Genre: Open-World RPG

Xenoblade Chronicles X represents the preeminent JRPG experience. It’s the ultimate foray into massive open-world content and stylish, innovative battle mechanics, and marries the worlds of epic fantasy with sci-fi majesty.

Monolith Soft’s indirect sequel remains one of the most anticipated and strong titles the Wii U has to offer this year, culminating in a remarkably vivid experience that’s filled with unique combat, a dazzling array of distinct worlds filled with alien flora and fauna, and a compelling story arc that absorbs players into a new frontier world.

The Wii U exclusive has so much to offer that playtesters have clocked in 300 hours of time with their playthroughs, showing just how huge the game really is.

From extremely dynamic battle sequences to deep character customizations and skill sets, XCX whisks you away to a unique world called Mira where humanity has crash-landed and must begin anew.

It’s up to you as a special BLADE operative to recover lost life force energy for the survivors at New Los Angeles, exploring and charting the strange alien planet and tackling juggernaut enemies along the way. You’re in charge in protecting the last vestige of humanity within this new bizarre frontier world, and when the menacing alien threat returns to finish the species off, it’s your duty to rise up and meet them head on.

Everything about the game looks absolutely enchanting, and it’ll assuredly be one of the strongest JRPG’s released in recent memory.

Halo 5 continues Master Chief’s legendary journey, but splinters off into a cryptic arc that delves into the mystery of the iconic hero.

4. Halo 5

Release Date: October 27, 2015
Publisher: Microsoft Studios
Developer: 343 Industries
Platform: Xbox One (exclusive)
Genre: Shooter

Halo 5 represents a bold new direction for the landmark shooter. Developer 343 Industries has spun a new story arc that weaves in a new protagonist, the ONI Spartan operative Agent Locke, who’s conscripted to search out and find Master Chief.

Set in a more cryptic tone shrouded with mystery and possible treachery, the ONI spy searches across the galaxy for the legendary warrior, who’s become a shadow throughout the years. And when Locke finally catches up to Spartan-117, things get even more confusing, as you can see in the dual trailers below.

As far as mechanics go, 343i has totally rebuilt Halo’s framework to make competitive multiplayer feel decidedly more “next-gen”.

The team has added in 7 new Spartan abilities that every player has access to that range from simple sprinting to dodge-thrusts straight out of CoD: Advanced Warfare and even a lethal, but tricky, ground-pound maneuver.

After playing the Halo 5 beta in January, I have to say that the new changes feel decidedly stylish and intuitive. These mechanics add a whole new layer of depth and strategy to the game, allowing players to tactically plan out maneuvers on-the-fly.

Not much is known about the campaign in terms of mechanics though. While the new trailers certainly sparked our interest in terms of the story, we haven’t seen any actual gameplay footage of the singleplayer mode in action, but we’ll likely see it at E3 2015.

Gamers are still dubious about trusting 343i after the travesty that is The Master Chief Collection, but for now they’ve piqued our interest and managed to build hype, and the game certainly does have its own unique and elusive flair.

Be sure to drop by Halo 5‘s new ARG #HuntTheTruth campaign for tidbits on the game’s story arc, as they’ll likely fall into place as time goes by.

The post Top 10 Most Anticipated Console Games of 2015 appeared first on VR World.

With the recent news of Dragon Age: Inquisition’s Jaws of Hakkon DLC being timed exclusive for Xbox One and PC, gamers are once again at the mercy of the strategic business tactic.

And it’s seriously aggravating the community whose paid good money for their games only to be denied content because they don’t own the competitor’s console.

If you play Dragon Age: Inquisition on PS4, then you’ll have to wait an undetermined amount of time before you get the DLC. EA’s (NASDAQ: EA) signed agreement prevents them from even delivering a timeframe, showing just how far these exclusivity deals can go.

We can not discuss when Jaws of Hakkon will be coming on other platforms

— Mark Darrah (@BioMarkDarrah) March 23, 2015

Instead of creating their own exclusive games for their respective systems, gaming titans like Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) and Sony (NYSE: SNE) have taken to a new game: buying out the rights to have multi-platform games and content come to their consoles first.

The unfortunate future of gaming

Timed exclusivity first manifested itself with Bungie’s huge multi-platform hit Destiny. Sony signed a major deal with Activision (NASDAQ: ATVI) that ensured specific content would be exclusive to PlayStation platforms up until a certain timeframe, punishing Xbox gamers to no end.

Rise of the Tomb Raider is a Xbox One timed exclusive, and no one’s sure when it’ll come to PS4.

Microsoft did the same thing with Rise of the Tomb Raider, snagging a deal with Square Enix (TYO: 9684) and Crystal Dynamics that ensured the game would release first on Xbox consoles. We still don’t know when Rise of the Tomb Raider will release on PlayStation 4.

Sony even went so far as to snag a timed-exclusivity deal over No Man’s Sky once it realized how popular the game is in the gaming community.

Then there’s Titanfall 2, which is coming to the PS4 now that Respawn Entertianment is free of the exclusivity deal it signed with Microsoft for the original Titanfall.

It’s a bad and confusing business tactic in terms of consumer relations, as timed exclusivity ultimately alienates your constituency while also building shaky brand loyalty.

So why do it at all?

No Man’s Sky has gained incredible momentum, and remains one of the most anticipated Sony timed exclusives.

Why embrace timed exclusivity?

Console game exclusives don’t have the big payoff they once did. Back in the days of the original Xbox and PlayStation 2, Microsoft and Sony were both able to fire off a ton of first-party exclusives that helped define their brands. And since the games couldn’t be played anywhere else, it worked.

But in today’s industry, multi-platform games reign supreme and exclusives have taken a backseat. The big AAA hits are more accessible than ever, and you often don’t have to have any one system to play them.

Now that multi-platform is a secure bet, publishers are less-inclined to take the risk of developing a game on a single platform, considering they’d be missing out on the revenue streams from sales across all systems.

Sony and Microsoft’s first-party publishers are reticent as well, as they recognize the dynamic shift for cross-platform consumption as a clear threat to their respective regimes.

Every new exclusive is a gamble, and sometimes they can be multi-million dollar bets that don’t pay off, leading to crumbling sales and over-extending projections.

The post Timed Exclusives Are The Future of Gaming appeared first on VR World.

The Final Fantasy XV: Episode Duscae demo is here, bringing a small taste of what’s to come in Square Enix’s hugely anticipated and long-awaited open-world RPG.

For the first time in nearly a decade we get to experience the action-oriented combat that the game has to offer, set in an amazing-looking backdrop filled with whimsy and wonder.

We’ve played a good portion of demo itself and chronicled our adventures within Duscae. detailing the basics while underlining the toils and troubles we had along the way. So without further adieu, let’s jump right in! Campfires, male bonding, and epic battles await!

The four main characters of FFXV, from right to left: Prompto Argentum, Gladiolus Amicitia, Prince Noctis Lucis Caelum, and Ignis Stupeo Scientia.

Final Fantasy XV Combat:  Targeting, weapons, MP and more

The fighting sequences in Final Fantasy XV are seamless within the open-world itself, so there’s no battle transitions that lock players into smaller environments like the old-school games. Combat is action-oriented, but it’s not as fluid as, say, Devil May Cry games where you can get away with button-mashing.

That being said you can auto-attack by holding down Square, but you’re going to have to pay attention go what’s going on around you in order to keep out of danger.

The combos in Episode Duscae aren’t your traditional button sequences. Although you do have different moves, they’re not really strung together so much as separately sequenced out. And the game doesn’t really explain how to execute the various types of attacks.

There’s also a Defensive stance that’s activated by holding L1. You can dodge attacks as well as parry while in this stance, and if you hit Square after parrying, you’ll deliver a devastating counterattack.

You can even cross-parry and cross-counter against two enemies at once.

Essentially you get a number of different attacks like Ravage, Vanquish, Crush, Counter and Descend, but you have to experiment to see how to actually do them in battle.

• Ravage - Melee barrage, executed by holding Square for constant attacks

• Crush - Initial assault, activated as the first attack when you press Square

• Vanquish - Lethal Force Strike, executed as the final killing blow on an enemy

• Blood Sword - Counter, activated when you attack after dodging

• Descend - Crushing blow from on high, executed when you attack in air

Once you enact a specific attack like Counter, which is activated when you subsequently land a blow after dodging, the battle status menu will briefly show the attack you just executed.

Players can customize which weapons they want assigned to various attacks, providing tactical strategy against different enemies.

Weapons and attack slots

Noctis has a nice array of weapons that can be mixed and matched in various ways to provide some impressive customized strategic advantage.

Remember those different attack types? Well they’re actually sort of “slots” that weapons can be assigned to. The way it works is that you can, at any time, assign any of the five weapons listed below to the battle stances.

Let’s say you have the Zweihander set in your Descent slot. This means every time you jump attack, you’ll slam down the heavy two-hander that negates defense and has quite a decent range. Also personally I like having my Blood Sword set in my Counter slot so I regain mana every time I dodge-slash.

This setup is quite tactically sound, making for an impressive array of strategem for every single battle, and you can change your loadout at any time and adapt to different enemies.

Plus every weapon has its own unique Technique attack that acts like a sort of special ability, but they tend to drain MP so you’ll want to use them sparingly.

Noctis’ weapons include:

• Avenger – Default blade with no special attacks or abilities, short to mid-range blade

• Wyvern Lance (Dragoon Jump) - MP recovery attack, long reach

• Partisan (Full Thrust) - Critical x3, MP recovery attack, longer reach

• Blood Sword (Drain Blade) - MP recovery attack x 3, Regeneration x2, mid-range blade

• Zweihander (Tempest) - Negates enemy defense, long range, slow wielding

Setting up your weapons to your attack slots is only half of the battle, and the actual combat proper is actually rather…awkward. It’s very much unlike anything we’ve seen in the series to date, despite the fact that it’s action-based like Final Fantasy Type-0.

Targeting and MP system

Final Fantasy XV‘s combat requires a steep learning curve, and to get it just right you’ll have to practice a bit. The real problem is the game’s awkward targeting system which gets kind of crazy when you’re fighting a big group of baddies.

At one point I was fighting a pack of sabertusks when all of a sudden a sortie of magitek troopers dropped in from the night sky. That’s when things started to get out of hand.

The game’s combat system seems like it was built upon 1vs1 style fights, as Noctis can only target one enemy at a time. The key to taking on groups, though, is to switch targets and whittle away HP here and there while trying to focus taking out baddies one at a time.

When you’re fighting a group you’ll need to pay attention to what’s going on around you. You can’t have tunnel vision and fight only one target, you’re going to have to switch targets quite often, dodge, and even warp to higher ground or hide to regenerate MP.

Warping to higher ground is a great way to regenerate MP, which is a significant resource in FF15.

MP is extremely important in Final Fantasy XV, and if you run out, you go into a sort of “staggered” state called Stasis. While in Stasis you can’t use your warp ability, you can’t dodge, nor can you cast techniques.

Dodging is one of the most important things you can do in the game, and you’ll be doing it a lot, but you can’t do it too much, because dodging actually takes MP. That’s right, you need MP in order to dodge.

The only ways to regenerate your MP in battle is to use Noctis’ warp ability to zap to a metal tower, hang there, and replenish your magical energy, or you can hide behind rocks, trees and other outcroppings.

This hinders that fluid, action-packed feel quite a bit, but it also does something quite important and forces players to pay attention and carefully weigh their choices in battle. You can’t just spam Dragoon Jumps or dodge every attack, and like or not you’re going to take a few hits here and there.

So what happens when you get overrun and wiped out?

The neat thing about FF15 is that you don’t “die” when your HP runs out. When you’re knocked out you can still move around–you go into a “Danger” state that’s akin to the Stagger state–and there’s a secondary health bar that can be depleted before you’re K.O.’ed.

When you’re in the Danger state one of your teammates can jump in and Rescue you, and you can always do the same for them, basically adding another level of depth to combat.

The post Final Fantasy XV: Episode Duscae Demo Impressions appeared first on VR World.

Over the last few months, the world of gaming has become a heavily polarized maelstrom of emotion, leading to a massive industry-wide rift that’s pretty much torn the community as a whole.

Sexism in gaming has become a controversial, hot-button topic for good reason: it’s something everyone feels strongly about, and thanks to a number of heavily-biased, badly-researched sensationalized articles, the term “gamer” now has a weighty stigma attached to it.

Without a doubt there is sexism in online gaming. You only have to check out the recent posts on Fat, Ugly or Slutty, a site where female gamers report and post their latest instances of harassment.

One documentary wants to shed some light on the subject, and it was created well before the consumer GamerGate movement signaled a change in the industry. It’s called GTFO.

GTFO is a doc film created by Shannon Sun-Higginson that explores how women are treated in the realm of online gaming. Funded on Kickstarter back in May 2013 for a tune of $30,000, the final version of GTFO was recently showcased at this year’s SXSW event.

Women are treated differently than men in the online gaming space, and often the abuse is frightening, obscene and completely volatile–and there’s not much anyone can say to refute it.

It does happen, as bad things happen to good people, but unlike the circumstance of the cosmos, a lot of this is in our power to help stop.

The Path to Changing the Online Space

We’ve seen women come forward and share their stories in droves, but the media has depicted their interactions in a way that’s dramatized to drive home a singular point: women are treated horribly in video games, and it has to stop.

But how do we make it stop? Can we just keep recycling outrage opinion pieces with clickbait articles over and over, stirring things up, and hope eventually harassers will just give up on their own free will?

It’s an age-old question, really, that’s plagued humanity from the get-go: how do we make people treat one another without discrimination, sexism and hate?

The answer isn’t found in the kind of stories I’m talking about.

These articles, these bits of “coverage” have been decidedly one-sided, and as a result, gaming itself has become demonized and synonymous with unsavory keywords like “misogyny” and other terms that have, unfortunately, stuck.

In an effort to steal headlines, earn clicks and improve page rankings rather than actually report information in a clear and fair way, the media has stigmatized its own constituency and self-destructed a hefty portion of interactive entertainment.

Rather than revealing a seedy dark underbelly of the anonymous online space that is online gaming, it became more about perpetuating a sort of popular socio-political agenda. The road to progressive change has been mired and muddled with soapbox-style shock-drama reports that are designed to elicit emotional responses out of the reader.

Over the course of the rift, we’ve seen a ton of articles, op-eds, videos and everything else that’s called for a reformation of games culture.

But instead of focusing on how we can change all of this, it’s focused on the threats and harassment themselves, which seems to be the major point.

As far as GTFO goes, it just chronicles the strife that some women face in everyday gaming sessions. It’s not an even playing field, and the anonymous ether of the internet ensures some people get away with the things they say and do. But that might come to an end soon enough.

I haven’t seen the full documentary, but based on the trailer, GTFO seems to follow the same kind of shocking dramatization wherein female gamers share the horrible things that were said to them online. This is an important mechanism for education, as viewers and gamers alike should know about this kind of thing, but there’s more to the story–and more to the world of gaming.

The documentary is something that should be explored. But how it’s portrayed is also important; docs like these need to examine how female gamers are treated on a whole, as the good is just as relevant as the bad.

Through online gaming, people have fallen in love and married one another–many people have met as a result of their time spent in, say, World of Warcraft.

Surveying the Playing Field

Traditionally online first-person shooters are hyper competitive realms that are dominated by male gamers, and as such, there’s tons of trash talking and online interactions that borderline on abuse on an everyday basis. And when women in gaming jump into the fray, they’re often met with unsavory and startling displays that show how much freedom the internet gives harassers.

But is that to say that every gamer is like that? Is that to say that everyone who plays Call of Duty is a terrible person? No, of course not. But then again anyone–whether it’s a woman or man–should be able to play a game without getting trash-talked and demoralized.

And does every girl gamer have these kinds of interactions in every game? Can she play, say, Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn without having to worry about someone treating her badly?

Are there any games where female gamers are safe?

Perhaps not, and in reality it feels like no one is safe in an online game–pure and total safety is something we apparently waive when we connect to the digital world–but I think that documentaries like GTFO are trying to make people question why these online spaces can’t be safe, especially for female gamers

Shannon Sun-Higginson has been working as a documentary producer and director since graduating from Wesleyan University in 2010.

Restoring the Human Element

Sadly, it seems like a lot of the time people make serious money or build fame off of the discussion rather than trying to honestly make things better–they profit from the misery of the very community they’re trying to help, which is a bizarre sort of symbiosis.

But Sun-Higginson, GTFO‘s creator, has no personal stake against GamerGate or even the gaming community. She’s not out for revenge, and she doesn’t even appear to be a gamer.

She just wants girls to be able to play games and be treated well. The reality is, though, the online gaming space isn’t savory: it’s a realm where our darker sides can run rampant without any real-life repercussions, and that kind of freedom often brings out the inner-beast within us.

The way to making online interactions more desirable for everyone isn’t going to happen by demonizing gaming, or even demonizing male gamers. Doing this only ensures you’re playing on the harasser’s playing field, which is quite dangerous.

It must be done by showing these harassers that the online avatars they’re attacking are actually people–which is something we often forget when playing online.

The human element must be restored to online gaming, and the responsibility lies in all of us–not just the game companies that create the games, or the ones that host the services.

The human element must be restored throughout gaming as a whole. It can’t come from outside, it has to come from within the community.

I think that documentaries like GTFO might be able to act as a catalyst to kickstart this, but only if they’re worried less about propelling their own fame and pushing their own agendas and worried more about actually positively helping the spaces they claim to care about.

The post GTFO Documentry Takes A Look at How Women Are Treated in Gaming appeared first on VR World.

Destiny‘s infamous starbound broker is back again at the Tower for another week of exotic goods, and this time around he’s toting one of the most powerful pulse rifles in the entire universe: the popular (and quite bloody) Red Death.

Other goodies include a decent roll on the efficient Striker-specific Insurmountable Skullfort plus some nifty Claws of Ahamkara for Sunsingers who enjoy spamming Flame Shield as much as possible. As far as upgrades, our shadowy distributor has laid out super impressive stat rolls on both Mask of the Third Man (a Blandedancer’s best friend) and Helm of Saint-14 (a Defender’s best friend) as well as a 160 Intellect max roll on the Lucky Raspberry.

The snazzy Hard Light auto-rifle joins the arsenal of weapon upgrades, accompanied by the Universal Remote, the ultra-stealthy active-camo-inducing Patience and Time sniper , and others.

Plus Xur has ammo syntheses again! Hope this becomes a regular thing–and I can’t be alone on this.

For Week 27 the fleeting vendor can be found downstairs in the Tower, past the Crucible headmasters and right next to the Vanguard handlers. He’s been known to show up here from time to time, and you shouldn’t have any problem finding the purveyor of fine goods.

Without further adieu let’s jump into our analysis of Xur’s exotic wares for 3/13 (Week 27):

“BRAINVAULT Sigma-ACTIUM-IX Cranial Dreadnought (Invincible Type)”

An Insurmountable Skullfort (Helmet) – 13 Strange Coins

• Class: Titan (Striker)
• Upgrade Mats: Relic Iron, Exotic shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Type: Helmet
• Defense: 407/447
• Discipline: 101/108
• Infusion: Replenishes health each time you pick up an Orb of Light.
• Impact Induction: Causing damage with a melee reduces your grenade cooldown.
• Improved Transfusion: Kills with Storm Fist immediately trigger health regeneration. You also respawn with full Melee energy.

Should You Buy It?

Yes, if you’re a Titan Striker.

First this Insurmountable Skullfort sports a good stat roll at 101 Discipline–it’s not great, but it’s still good. Secondly the helm has uses in both PVP and PVE, which makes a good utility item.

In the Crucible the full Discipline stat helps boost your effectiveness with grenades, and as any Striker worth their salt knows, the Titan’s Lightning Grenade tends to wreck–especially when it’s specced with Aftershocks and used in conjunction with Fists of Havoc’s Aftermath talent.

Spawning with Storm Fist at the ready is already awesome, but you’ll also trigger cooldown reduction of your ultra-powerful Lightning Grenade–and get some health back when you defeat an enemy with your melee attack. Double synergy.

In PVE you’ll get bits of health by picking up orbs which adds a nice insurance policy in the Crota’s End raid. The Improved Transfusion stat is immensely helpful because you’ll also get some HP back when you do Shoulder Charge, too.

“You can see the point, right? Who wants to team up with one?”

Knucklehead Radar (Helmet) – 13 Strange Coins

• Class: Hunter (Any)
• Upgrade Mats: Helium Filaments, Exotic shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Type: Helmet
• Defense: 407/447
• Strength: 98/105
• Light the Blade: Causing damage with a grenade reduces your melee cooldown.
• Inverse Shadow: Increased Super energy gained from killing minions of the Darkness.
• Sensor Pack: Radar remains visible while aiming primary weapons.

Should You Buy It?

Maybe.

Decent-ish stat roll here, and although the Knucklehead Radar lets you see your radar when scoped into your primary weapon, it’s still a conditional kind of item that doesn’t deliver results like the Gunslinger-specific Achlyophage Symbiote or the Bladedancer’s friend Mask of the Third Man.

It does generate super energy pretty fast when killing Hive, and you can switch your subclasses without losing any specific buffs, so there’s that. Plus the radar effect is super helpful when you’re in PvP and doubly better when you use shotguns and camp around corners, but all in all it seems a kind of so-so item.

“Look at all this life, oh bearer mine. There is so much left to burn…”

Claws of Ahamkara (Gauntlets) – 13 Strange Coins

• Class: Warlock (Any)
• Upgrade Mats: Helium Filaments, Exotic shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Type: Gauntlets
• Defense: 333/366
• Discipline: 52/55
• Strength: 56/60
• Special Weapon Loader: Increases the reload speed of all Special Weapons.
• Snap Discharge: Increases melee attack speed.
• The Whispers: Gain an additional charge for Scorch and Energy Drain.

Should You Buy It?

Yes, if you’re a Sunsinger.

Although these gauntlets technically work for both classes, they work best for Sunsingers simply because you can, as users put it “abuse the hell out of the Flame Shield” ability. Basically you get an extra Scorch charge, meaning you get two chances to activate your Flame Shield to protect you in PVP.

The Heart of the Praxic Fire should be your first choice, but these gloves amplify a nice defense measure for Sunsingers, plus you get to reload your shotguns, sniper rifles and fusion rifles faster.

If you’re a Voidwalker, you need to use different exotic gear like the Skull of Dire Ahamkara or the Obsidian Mind instead.

“Vanguard policy urges Guardians to destroy this weapon on sight.”

Red Death (Pulse Rifle) – 25 Strange Coins

• Class: Any
• Upgrade Mats: Helium Filaments, Exotic shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Attack: 302 / 331 (Kinetic damage)
• Magazine: 27
• Type: Pulse Rifle
• Accurized Ballistics: More range and impact. Increased recoil.
  • Aggressive Ballistics: More predictable recoil. Enhanced impact. Shorter range and more recoil.
  • Field Choke: More range and impact. Increased recoil.
• Unflinching: It’s easier to aim under fire using this weapon.
• Snapshot: Aiming this weapon is incredibly fast.
  • High Caliber Rounds: Oversize rounds built to stagger targets and leave them reeling.
  • Single Point Sling: Switch weapons faster. Move quicker while aiming.
• Red Death: Each kill heals you and speeds up reloads.

Should You Buy It?

Yes, yes you should.

Bungie just boosted Pulse Rifle damage and performance with a new update, making the Red Death even more lethal. But what makes it so good?

Basically the gun makes you into a vampire of sorts.

With every successive kill, you get some health and also get a reloading boost, making a kind of destructive synergy that fuels the flow of battle quite well. The Unflinching mod helps with this flow by reducing the annoying flinch that’s incurred when you’re shot, letting you aim much more effectively while under fire.

Because of this the Red Death has been rightfully called the best Pulse Rifle in the entire game.

So aiming is faster, you don’t flinch as much while you’re getting shot while aiming, and you heal and reload faster when you kill someone. Now that everyone is going to have a Red Death in their arsenal, the Crucible is going to be positively ridiculous.

Outside of PVP, the Red Death is a godsend for players trying to tackle the Crota’s End raid on Hard. Since there’s no Chalice, you can now regen life thanks to this helpful pulse rifle, improving the odds quite a bit.

Exotic Shard – 7 Strange Coins

Exotic Helmet Engram – 23 Motes of Light

Armor Upgrades

Mask of the Third Man (Helmet)

Fantastic stat roll here, so if you need to upgrade your vanilla version now’s the best time to do it. This one is a great choice for Bladedancers who love to cut swathes through enemies with their super attack in PVP, and you’ll even net some extra health from orbs along the way, making it a good PVE helm during raids.

• Cost: 7207 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Hunter (Bladedancer)
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 113/122
• Defense: 407/447

Lucky Raspberry (Chestpiece)

Astounding Intellect stat roll here, so upgrade it if you can. The Lucky Raspberry is a very useful tool that arms you with more rocket and fusion rifle ammo (works with Vex Mythoclast) for PVE raids. Plus you instantly spawn with full grenade energy in PVP. Plus your Arc-infused grenade’s chain lightning effect stretches further outward, making it a good PVP finisher.

• Cost: 7393 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Hunter (Bladedancer)
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 149/160
• Defense: 444/488

Helm of Saint-14 (Helmet)

If you happen to be a Defender Titan and don’t have this one upgraded, you need to do so asap. The max 124 Intellect is very high, plus you get that snazzy defense boost to boot. This particular helmet is a must-have for all Defenders, which pretty much makes their bubble shields into offensive weapons that are useful in all modes of play.

• Cost: 7841 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Titan (Defender)
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 116/124
• Defense: 407/444

Helm of Inmost Light (Helmet)

Low Strength roll here, and you always want to wait until you see a great stat roll before you upgrade, considering it’s going to cost you 7.4K Glimmer as well as an Exotic Shard. Either way this particular helm is a superb choice for Strikers who want to unleash as much havoc as they can with their super attack, making it an advantageous bit of armor for PvP.

I’d still hold off for a better stat roll though.

• Cost: 7451 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Titan (Striker)
• Light: 30/36
• Strength: 89/96
• Defense: 407/447

Light Beyond Nemesis (Helmet)

Stellar max Strength roll here, and Light Beyond Nemesis is a good helm to use when you’re on a raid. It’s a very conditional sort of item so I don’t think you need to upgrade unless your current version has low stats or if you really want the extra defense.

• Cost: 7159 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Warlock (Voidwalker)
• Light: 30/36
• Strength: 117/126
• Defense: 407/447

Sunbreakers (Gauntlets)

Low Intellect stat roll, and the odds are your pair have better numbers, pass it up for now. The Sunbreakers are great for the Sunsinger class, making your solar grenades last longer, and can be paired up with the Pocket Infinity to do some serious damage in PvP.

• Cost: 7549 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Warlock (Sunsinger)
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 87/93
• Defense: 333/366

Weapon Upgrades

Hard Light (Auto Rifle)

Good chance to upgrade here, as we hardly ever see this gun in Xur’s inventory. The Hard Light rifle is noted for its high-capacity magazine with 40 rounds at a high rate of fire, making it a great solution for crowd control. Sadly it was hit hard by Bungie’s recent auto rifle nerfs in the 1.1.1 update.

• Cost: 7669 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Kinetic damage)
• Magazine: 40

Red Death (Pulse Rifle)

Really no need to buy this one considering Xur is selling an upgraded version for coin. If you don’t happen to have the 25 Strange Coins to pick it up the other way, you can go this route–either way you’ll be getting an upgraded and clean gun that’s noted as the best pulse rifle in the entire game–and for good reason.

• Cost: 7669 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Kinetic damage)
• Magazine: 27

Universal Remote (Shotgun)

Even if you absolutely love shotguns, this really isn’t worth upgrading. Sure you’ll get the extra damage boost, but chances are if you love shotguns, you’ve already heavily invested in upgrading and filling out the gun’s mods. Stick with your old outdated shotty and focus on maxing out some primaries or picking up powerful gear.

• Cost: 7027 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Kinetic damage)
• Magazine: 5

Plan C (Fusion Rifle)

Another great upgrade for an already impressive gun. The Plan C is one of my favorite weapons simply because it’s so dependable in just about any situation, and it completely wrecks when Arc Burn is active. It fires very fast and has a superlative charge rate, which is pretty much the bane of fusion rifles everywhere. That damage boost is worth the upgrade, even if you’ve maxed your version out.

• Cost: 7187 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Arc damage)
• Magazine: 5

Patience and Time (Sniper Rifle)

Upgrading this one depends on how much you like it. That extra damage boost will come in handy to be sure, and thanks to the active camoflage, the gun is pretty flexible in a variety of situations. Basically it’s the ultimate sniper rifle for stealthy assassins.

• Cost: 7561 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Arc damage)
• Magazine: 4

Truth (Rocket Launcher)

Pass this by. Truth has some interesting mods, and it can help in Nightfall when Void Burn is active, but you really don’t need the extra damage so much. Focus instead on your primary weapons and gear, as mentioned above.

• Cost: 7039 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Void damage)
• Magazine: 2

Curios

• Scout Rifle Telemetry - Stack of 5 per 1 Strange Coin
• Machine Gun Telemetry - Stack of 5 per 1 Strange Coin

• Rocket Launcher Telemetry - Stack of 5 per 1 Strange Coin

• Emerald Coil Vehicle Upgrade - 23 Strange Coins

• Void Drive Vehicle Upgrade - 23 Strange Coins

• Heavy Ammo Synthesis - Stack of 5 per 1 Strange Coin

The post Destiny: Analysis of Xur’s Exotic Wares For 3/13 (Week 27) appeared first on VR World.

Our favorite intergalactic peddler is back again to clean out our Strange Coin coffers with a batch of new shiny exotics and curios to power our exploits throughout the cosmos.

This week, Week 26, has proven to be pretty special because the Nine have finally decreed that the trade embargo on Heavy Ammo Synetheses has been lifted. That’s right, Xur finally has those long-awaited ammo boosters up for sale, at the same 1 Strange Coin per 5x stack exchange rate we know and love.

Be sure to fill up while you can. For those of you that are satisfied with your gear already, you might just want to shell out your entire SC wallet on synetheses. We never know when Xur’s going to have them again.

This time around Xur can be found in the hanger, in his usual haunt downstairs underneath the Future War Cult representative and right next to the Shipwright.

As far as items go, he’s got a rather badass Helm of Saint-14 up for grabs, which is incredible for Defender Titans, and the game’s most badass all-in-one rifle, the legendary Ice Breaker, returns to the scene for 17 Strange Coins. I’m sure most of you already have it but if not now’s a good chance to join the club.

When it comes to armor upgrades, Xur has a nice helping of goodies on-hand, including a superb roll on the Bladedancer’s Mask of the Third Man helmet as well as a great Light Beyond Nemesis Warlock hat to boot.

Weapons see upgradable versions of the ultra-handy MIDA  Multi-Tool, Suros Regime, Bad Juju and even the super powerful Gjallarhorn solar rocket launcher. If you own a vanilla version of any of these now’s a good time to boost their damage.

In any case, here’s the full analysis and breakdown of our analysis of Xur’s exotic wares for 3/6 (Week 26):

“He walked out into the demon light. But at the end he was brighter.” — Paean to Saint-14

Helm of Saint-14 (Helmet) – 13 Strange Coins

• Class: Titan (Defender)
• Upgrade Mats: Relic Iron, Exotic shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Type: Helmet
• Defense: 407/447
• Intellect: 106/114
• Rain Blows: Increases melee attack speed.
• Inverse Shadow: Increased Super energy gained from killing minions of the Darkness.
• Starless Night: Your Ward of Dawn blinds enemies who enter it.

Should You Buy It?

Maybe. If you’re a Defender Titan and you haven’t got one of these helms already, then you really want to pick it up.

This is a great roll with a base of 106 Intellect, and the helmet itself is pretty much a Defender Titan’s best friend, as it literally blinds enemies who step into your bubble shield. This is tremendously useful regardless if you use Weapons of Light to do enhanced damage or Blessing of Light to boost your shields, and literally makes the bubble shield an offensive weapon.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve saved myself and the lives of my teammates by blinding nearby enemies–basically it’s like a huge flashbang went off right in front of their face, and it works every time they enter, regardless if they just ran out and ran back in again.

This helm adds in a huge layer of tactical advantage that can seriously turn the tide of any tough battle. Highly recommend this for any Titan, because you might want to try the Defender class out later on.

Plus if you picked up the No Backup Plans gauntlets that were sold last week, you can switch between these two items for maximum proficiency as a Defender.

“Give me your arm, oh bearer mine. Let me help you fill the world with teeth.”

Young Ahamkara’s Spine (Gauntlets) – 13 Strange Coins

• Class: Hunter (Gunslinger)
• Upgrade Mats: Spinmetal, Exotic shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Type: Helmet
• Defense: 333/366
• Discipline: 91/98
• Special Weapon Loader: Increases reload speed of all Special Weapons.
• Ashes to Asset: Increases the amount of Super energy when you kill an enemy with a grenade.
• Improved Tripmine Grenade: Tripmine grenades last longer when placed.

Should You Buy It?

Maybe.

This one is very conditional. The stat roll isn’t too good, but these gauntlets have a neat purpose and make your laid trip mines last for quite some time. They are most useful in PvP where tripmines can afford serious tactical advantage by sort of corralling enemies, or just laying defensive explosives around zone points.

So if you have max Discipline for grenades you’ll be spawning tripmines more often, and with this pair of gloves your mines will last longer and longer.

Plus every grenade kill you score feeds your super energy, and when used in tandem with the Unyielding Casque Hunter raid helm, you’ll get even more super power during grenade kills and even boost your melee cooldowns when doing damage with a tripmine.

There’s also word that it combos well with Thorn, but I can’t see any real relation other than the possible lingering damage mod. Maybe you shoot with thorn, poison the enemy, and corral then into a tripmine to finish them off?

Also the gauntlets look pretty badass when equipped.

“Reality is the finest flesh, oh bearer mine. And are you not…hungry?”

Skull of Dire Ahamkara (Helmet) – 13 Strange Coins

• Class: Hunter (Gunslinger)
• Upgrade Mats: Helium Filaments Exotic shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Type: Helmet
• Defense: 407/447
• Intellect: 94/101
• Energy Projection: Increases grenade throw distance.
• Quintessence Transfer: Replenish Super energy when you kill an enemy with a grenade.
• Delusions of Grandeur: You take reduced damage while using your Nova Bomb. Your siphon abilities are also improved.

Should You Buy It?

Yes, if you’re a Voidwalker Warlock.

In conjunction with the right talents and perks, this helmet will speed up and actively fuel Nova Bomb generation to the point where you’re spamming explosive balls of fury much more often than normal.

You’ll want to have Soul Rip and Embrace the Void activated so that your Energy Drain is specced to reduce the Nova Bomb’s cooldown, then you’ll get the synergized bonus from the helm. You can also use the Bad Juju pulse rifle to help charge your super attack after each kill, although it’s not as effective as when combo’ed with the Obisidian Mind helmet.

Plus like the other Ahamkara item, it looks pretty snazzy when equipped. It’s sheer utility value outweighs the mid-range stat roll, too.

Ice Breaker (Sniper Rifle) – 17 Strange Coins

• Class: Any
• Upgrade Mats: Spirit Bloom, Exotic shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Attack: 302 / 331 (Solar elemental damage)
• Magazine: 6
• Type: Sniper Rifle
• No Backpack: Cannot be reloaded. Regenerates ammo over time.
• Mulligan: Missing a shot has a chance to return ammo directly to the magazine.
• Quickdraw: This weapon can be drawn unbelievably fast.
• Ice Breaker: Ice Breaker’s victims spontaneously combust, dealing damage to others nearby.

Should you buy it?

YES. 

Ice Breaker is a must-have, I repeat, must-have item for any Guardian. It is one of the most useful items in the entire game, and delivers on all fronts: damage, accuracy, dependability, and just about any other quantifiable measure you can think of.

The beauty of this gun is that it has infinite ammo, but it only has a six-shot magazine. The ammo slowly replenishes over time, about one bullet per 4-5 seconds, and you can’t pick up special weapon ammo packs to refill it.

Essentially it refills its rounds, not its magazine.

It’s a bit strange using the gun at first, but it truly is one of the most powerful items in the game. While it’s mostly effective against Solar shields (you really won’t do much against an Arc shield), headshots against broken-shielded enemies are incredibly devastating–in the 6k+ damage range.

If you only have 17 Strange Coins, pick this up. You don’t want to pass on this one.

Exotic Shard - 7 Strange Coins

Exotic Chestpiece Engram* – 23 Motes of Light

*Since there are a tons of exotic chestpieces like the Heart of Praxic Fire, Voidfang Vestments, The Armamentarium or even the Lucky Raspberry, you should buy as many as these as you can.

Armor Upgrades

Achlyophage Symbiote (Helmet)

Bad roll on an expensive upgrade, so I’d say pass it up, especially if you upgraded it last week. The extra defense isn’t worth wiping out your current version–unless, maybe, you just got it and it’s clean. It’s true the Achlyophage Symbiote is amazing for all Gunslingers, as that extra Golden Gun shot helps in every single game mode, but hold off for now.

Chances are Xur will have a better roll next week, considering this helmet has been up for two weeks in a row now.

• Cost: 7177 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Hunter (Gunslinger)
• Light: 30/36
• Discipline: 97/104
• Defense: 407/447

Mask of the Third Man (Helmet)

This is a pretty decent Intellect roll (just 2 points shy of last week’s) so you should consider going with the upgrade.

Mask of the Third man goes great for PvP Bladedancers who love to wreak havoc in the ring. You’ll generate more super charge more quickly, and be sure to use the Encore talent with the helmet equipped for even more tactical advantage.

• Cost: 7207 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Hunter (Bladedancer)
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 116/125
• Defense: 407/447

Helm of Inmost Light (Helmet)

Semi-decent Strength roll here, but you always want to wait until you see a great stat roll before you upgrade, considering it’s going to cost you 7.4K Glimmer as well as an Exotic Shard. Either way this particular helm is a superb choice for Strikers who want to unleash as much havoc as they can with their super attack, making it an advantageous bit of armor for PvP.

I’d still hold off for a better stat roll though.

• Cost: 7451 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Titan (Striker)
• Light: 30/36
• Strength: 100/107
• Defense: 407/447

An Insurmountable Skullfort (Helmet)

A better Discipline stat roll than last week’s abysmal rate, so there’s that.

The Insurmountable Skullfort is pretty useful in a variety of situations across both PvE and PvP, seeing as you can grab extra bits of health recovery from teammates’ spawned orbs (great in a raid situation). Plus you spawn with full melee energy giving you quick explosion of Arc damage via Storm Fist (extremely helpful when Arc Burn is up) and you’ll also regen health when you kill with that particular lightning punch.

Also the straight Discipline buff synergizes very well with Lightning Grenades stacked with Aftermath and Aftershock talents. a variety of uses.

• Cost: 7283 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Titan (Striker)
• Light: 30/36
• Discipline: 95/102
• Defense: 407/447

Light Beyond Nemesis (Helmet)

Stellar Strength stat roll here, and Light Beyond Nemesis is a good helm to use when you’re on a raid. It’s a very conditional sort of item so I don’t think you need to upgrade unless your current version has low stats or if you really want the extra defense. If you’ve maxed out the one you have, just pass on, seeing as it’s such a conditional helm.

• Cost: 7159 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Warlock (Voidwalker)
• Light: 30/36
• Strength: 111/119
• Defense: 407/447

Sunbreakers (Gauntlets)

Low Intellect stat roll, and the odds are your pair have better numbers, pass it up for now. The Sunbreakers are great for the Sunsinger class, making your solar grenades last longer, and can be paired up with the Pocket Infinity to do some serious damage in PvP.

• Cost: 7549 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Warlock (Sunsinger)
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 86/92
• Defense: 333/366

Weapon Upgrades

SUROS Regime (Auto Rifle)

Since the only thing you’re upgraded on a weapon is it’s damage, you’re going to want to pick and choose which items you plan on using the most and upgrade accordingly.

The Suros Regime is a great go-to weapon with tons of potential in all gametypes, providing accuracy as well as consistent damage along the way, but it really doesn’t combo too well with skills and classes the way items like Bad Juju and Thorn do. That being said there’s nothing wrong with Suros, and it’s a solid choice for any Guardian.

• Cost: 7789 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Kinetic damage)
• Magazine: 33

Bad Juju (Pulse Rifle)

Bungie has just buffed up Pulse Rifles quite a bit in 1.1.1 so now’s a good time as any to upgrade. Bad Juju on its own is pretty damn effective and is a great go-to weapon for Voidwalker Warlocks when used in tandem with the Obsidian Mind helmet; basically you’ll get instant reloads and build up your super after kills, and gain more energy from killing Hive enemies thanks to the Obsidian Mind.

You can also use Bad Juju effectively with the Skull of Dire Ahamkara to build some serious super energy.

• Cost: 7019 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Kinetic damage)
• Magazine: 24

MIDA Multi-Tool (Scout Rifle)

Upgrade this one. The MIDA Multi-Tool is already amazing, and with extra damage it becomes even more amazing. Essentially it’s a fast-shooting, fast-reloading mid to long-range rifle that empowers you with extra speed when equipped. And the best part is that it gives you a Third Eye that lets you see your radar when you’re scoping down the sights.

• Cost: 7459 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Kinetic damage)
• Magazine: 21

Plan C (Fusion Rifle)

Another great upgrade for an already impressive gun. The Plan C is one of my favorite weapons simply because it’s so dependable in just about any situation, and it completely wrecks when Arc Burn is active. It fires very fast and has a superlative charge rate, which is pretty much the bane of fusion rifles everywhere. That damage boost is worth the upgrade, even if you’ve maxed your version out.

• Cost: 7187 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Arc damage)
• Magazine: 5

Thunderlord (Machine Gun)

Great opportunity to get that extra damage buff on an already amazing machine gun. The Thunderlord is a great go-to weapon in PvP or during Weeklies when Arc Burn is up, and is one of the best heavy machine guns in the game because it packs a powerful punch as well as retains accuracy.

Essentially it combines everything you’d want to see in this type of weapon: power, speedy reloads, and amazing stability. Plus the Lightning Rounds perk makes the gun become more accurate the longer you fire it. Win-win.

• Cost: 7681G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Arc damage)
• Magazine: 38

Gjallarhorn (Rocket Launcher)

Chances are if you don’t have an upgraded Gjallarhorn you haven’t been playing very much (either that or you’re a non-DLC player). Either way do yourself a favor and upgrade this beastly rocket launcher. It’s pretty much a must.

Curios

• Auto Rifle Telemetry - 1 Strange Coin per stack of 5

• Shotgun Telemtry - 1 Strange Coin per stack of 5

• Rocket Launcher Telemetry - 1 Strange Coin per stack of 5

• Plasma Drive Vehicle Upgrade - 23 Strange Coins

• Stealth Drive Vehicle Upgrade - 23 Strange Coins

• Heavy Ammo Synthesis (FINALLY!) - 1 Strange Coin per stack of 5

The post Destiny: Analysis of Xur’s Exotic Wares For 3/6 (Week 26) appeared first on VR World.

Xur, Agent of the Nine is back again for another week of Exotic item sales, and we’ve dug deep into his inventory to show you if his wares are worth your hard-earned coin.

For Week 25 from Feb. 27 – March 1, Xur has some interesting toys up for grabs, namely the interesting Universal Remote primary shotgun, a new Hunter skullcap that not only looks awesome but sports some nice tactical Golden Gun buffs, and a familiar Warlock armor set that taps into the innate powers of the Sun to decrease cooldowns.

Plus Xur also has an Exotic Helmet Engram for sale. About time, right? Sadly he’s not selling Heavy Weapon Syntheses. Big surprise right?

This week Xur can be found in the Tower North, right outside the Speaker’s quarters. This is one of his usual haunts and it’s nice to see him outside of the Hangar and nearby a scenic view.

As far as upgrades go, our shady merchant has some decent gear with some decent stat rolls, like An Insurmountable Skullfort for Titan Strikers, Mask of the Third Man for Bladedancers, and Skull of Dire Ahamkara for Warlock grenade-tossers.

Interestingly enough Xur also has upgraded versions of the full-auto exotic bounty shotgun Invective, Bad Juju (goes perfect with the new pulse rifle buff with Update 1.1.1), the amazing Thunderlord machine gun, and a seventh upgrade: the Monte Carlo.

Yeah. He’s upgrading the Monte Carlo.

Anyway, let’s jump right into the analysis, shall we? Below you can find our full run-down for Xur’s exotic wares for 2/27 thru 3/1:

“No ammo? No problem.”

No Backup Plans (Gauntlets) – 13 Strange Coins

• Class: Titan (Defender)
• Upgrade Mats: Relic Iron, Exotic Shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Light: 30/36
• Strength: 89/96
• Item Type: Gauntlets
• Defense: 333/366
• Mod 1: Special Weapon Loader: Increases the reload speed of all Special Weapons.
• Mod 2: Rain Blows: Increases melee attack speed.
• Mod 3: Improved Disintegrate: Increases the duration of Force Barrier by 5 seconds. This can stack with the Relentless skill.

Should You Buy It?

If you’re a Defender Titan, then definitely. Even though the Strength roll is…meh.

Force Barrier is a life saver for every Defender–I can’t tell you how many times I’ve avoided death by strategically planning out my last-hit melee saves with this ability. It effectively gives you an overshield that pretty much saves you while you’re in a pinch, and has a multitude of uses.

You’ll have to give up your exotic armor slot, which means no blinding enemies in your bubble shield with the Helm of Saint-14, so you’ll want to plan accordingly.

Oh,and No Backup Plans’ Improved Disintegrate mod stacks with the Defender’s Relentless talent, meaning your Force Barriers are going to be extra strong and last quite long.

“Advanced tactical sensorium. Induced hallucinations integrate broad-spectrum targeting data.”

ATS/8 Arachnid (Helmet) – 13 Strange Coins

• Class: Hunter (Gunslinger)
• Upgrade Mats: Spirit Bloom, Exotic Shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Light: 30/36
• Discipline: 44/47
• Strength: 44/47
• Item Type: Helmet
• Defense: 407/447
• Mod 1: Light the Blade: Causing damage with a grenade reduces your melee cooldown.
• Mod 2: Ashes to Asset: Replenish Super energy when you kill an enemy with a grenade.
• Mod 3: Arachnid Sensorium: Your Golden Gun zooms in for accuracy when aimed.

Should You Buy It?

Maybe. This helm looks pretty snazzy, and basically turns the Gunslinger’s Golden Gun ability into a sniper rifle. You get an effective zoom capability to aim at long-range targets while using the ability, adding an interesting new mechanic for PvE and PvP (mostly the latter).

But there’s conditions: you have to have the Over the Horizon or Deadeye perks activated to really get the most out of the helm. While the Achlyophage Symbiote is pretty much your go-to helmet for a Gunslinger, this one does add new interesting possibilities to the mix, so I’d pick it up if you like to experiment and try new things.

“In that last moment she seemed as wholly luminescent as the Sun, and I wished to be so brave.”

Heart of the Praxic Fire (Chestpiece) – 13 Strange Coins

• Class: Warlock (Sunsinger)
• Upgrade Mats: Spinmetal, Exotic Shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Light: 30/36
• Discipline: 129/139
• Item Type: Chestpiece
• Defense: 444/488
• Mod 1: Fusion Rifle Ammo: Increases the amount of Fusion Rifle ammunition you can carry.
• Mod 2: Heavy Weapon Ammo: Increases the amount of Heavy Weapon ammunition you can carry.
• Mod 3: Praise the Sun: Decreases the cooldown of all abilities when Radiance is active.

Should You Buy It?

Yes, if you’re a Sunsinger Warlock.

First of all we have a decent Discipline stat roll. Secondly the Heart of the Praxic Fire basically turns your Warlock into a grenade-throwing machine, provided you have Gift of the Sun activated (and you probably do).

Essentially you get an extra cooldown reduction modifier ontop of Radiance, and if you time your grenade throws just right, you can get off quite a few explosive lobs.

“To the untrained eye, this beast is a junker. To the trained eye however, this junker… is a beast.”

Universal Remote (Shotgun) – 17 Strange Coins

• Class: Any
• Upgrade Mats: Relic Iron, Exotic Shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Item Type: Shotgun
• Damage: 302/331 (Kinetic)
• Magazine: 5
• Mod 1: Can be used in the primary weapon slot.
• Mod 2: Crowd Control: Kills with this weapon grant bonus damage for a short time.
• Mod 3: Universal Remote: Range and Precision damage increases greatly while aiming down the sights.

Should You Buy It?

Maybe. Do you love shotguns? Do you love the idea of using two shotguns on the same character? Then pick this one up.

As most of us know, the Universal Remote can be used in your primary weapon slot, meaning you can equip another shotgun in your special weapon slot for double shotgunning carnage.

Plus it has a nice Crowd Control modifier that boosts damage after kills, has upgraded damage right off the bat thanks to Xur, and using the Snapshot perk’s super-quick aiming, you can sprint-slide and cap off an enemy’s skullcap before he even knows you’re there.

Also shotguns received a nice boost thanks to Destiny‘s 1.1.1 update so you’ll be doing even more damage with your double shotty combo.

Exotic Shard – 7 Strange Coins

Exotic Helmet Engram – 23 Motes of Light

Armor Upgrades

Achlyophage Symbiote (Helmet)

Pretty good stat roll here on a helmet that’s pretty much a must-have for any Gunslinger. Chances are you already have an upgraded version, but if not, considering picking it up. But if you’re a Gunslinger you might want to buy the ATS/8 Arachnid from Xur and do some experimenting.

• Cost: 7177 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Hunter (Gunslinger)
• Light: 30/36
• Discipline: 110/118
• Defense: 407/447

Mask of the Third Man (Helmet)

This is a pretty decent Intellect roll so you might want to consider upgrading. This particular helmet is fantastic for Bladedancers who love wrecking shop in PvP, letting you use your super more often while preserving energy in the process. Stack it up with the Encore talent for some serious carnage.

• Cost: 7207 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Hunter (Bladedancer)
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 118/127
• Defense: 407/447

An Insurmountable Skullfort (Helmet)

Low Discipline roll, but this is a fantastic helmet that has a variety of uses. It’s replenish health when picking up orbs is fantastically helpful during a raid, and spawning with full super energy is incredible for the Striker’s super attack that totally destroys in PvP. Also the straight Discipline buff synergizes very well with Lightning Grenades stacked with Aftermath and Aftershock talents.

Since Xur is selling an Exotic Helmet Engram chances are you might be able to roll your own upgraded version, so pick up an engram before you upgrade.

• Cost: 7283 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Titan (Striker)
• Light: 30/36
• Discipline: 88/95
• Defense: 407/447

Crest of Alpha Lupi (Chestpiece)

Decent Intellect roll on this piece, so it could make a good upgrade if you have a spare Exotic Shard laying around. The item’s worth is conditional, but spawning extra orbs can help out in boss fights as well as taking down Crota on Hard difficulty.

• Cost: 7547 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Titan
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 129/138
• Defense: 444/488

Skull of Dire Ahamkara (Helmet)

Middle grade stat roll. This particular helm is pretty great to begin with, and upgrading right now depends on how badly you want that extra defense boost. Of course be sure to check and see if your vanilla version compares stat-wise, and if it’s lower than 114 base INT, then by all means get it upgraded.

The Skull of Dire Ahamkara has a slew of advantages for Voidwalkers. When used in tandem with specific perks like Siphon, Embrace the Void and Soul Rip the helm can seriously boost Nova Bomb frequency for some pretty entertaining havoc.

Plus it has improved Energy Drain which in turn reduces the cooldown of Nova Bombs and grenades, making the helm a formidable strategic asset.

• Cost: 7907 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Warlock (Voidwalker)
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 114/123
• Defense: 407/447

Voidfang Vestments (Chestpiece)

Decent Strength roll here, so if you’ve got a set with lower mods and really want that extra defense, think about picking it up.

It pretty much depends on how much you like using grenades as a Warlock, and if you use a Handcannon and are tired of running out of special ammo to boot. The “spawn with grenade energy” perk applies to all Warlock grenade types so you can effectively use it to toss Sunsinger grenades with Gift of the Sun right as you respawn.

Plus you get an extra voidseeker bolt when you use Axion Bolt.

• Cost: 7457G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Warlock (Any)
• Light: 30/36
• Strength: 125/135
• Defense: 444/488

Weapon Upgrades

Bad Juju (Pulse Rifle)

Bungie has just buffed up Pulse Rifles quite a bit in 1.1.1 so now’s a good time as any to upgrade. Bad Juju on its own is pretty damn effective and is a great go-to weapon for Voidwalker Warlocks when used in tandem with the Obsidian Mind helmet; basically you’ll get instant reloads and build up your super after kills, and gain more energy from killing Hive enemies thanks to the Obsidian Mind.

You can also use Bad Juju effectively with the Skull of Dire Ahamkara to build some serious super energy.

• Cost: 7019 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Kinetic damage)
• Magazine: 24

Thorn (Handcanon)

Pick this one up. Even when it’s not upgraded Thorn is a very powerful weapon. Sure it’s not as good as the all-star Hawkmoon, but it does the job quite well thanks to its lingering damage and Send It perks. The extra damage is well worth restarting all over again.

• Cost: 7673 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Kinetic damage)
• Magazine: 9

Invective (Shotgun)

If you completed the “A Dubious Task” exotic bounty then chances are you’ve wanted to upgrade your Invective for quite some time.

The shotgun is already pretty beastly, being able to fire full-auto and dealing huge bonus damage with the last round in the mag, and on top of that it can regen its own ammo like the Ice Breaker. The extra boost in damage is amazingly welcome, and you can always use a Shotgun Telemetry to boost EXP progression if you have one.

• Cost: 7927 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Solar damage)
• Magazine: 4

Universal Remote (Shotgun)

No real need to shell out an Exotic Shard to buy this when you can just pick it up from Xur’s main inventory for 13 Strange Coins. Either way you’ll be getting a freshly upgraded primary shotgun, but this way you’ll have to pay 7K Glimmer on TOP of the Exotic Shard.

• Cost: 7027 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Kinetic damage)
• Magazine: 5

Thunderlord (Machine Gun)

Great opportunity to get that extra damage buff on an already amazing machine gun. The Thunderlord is a great go-to weapon in PvP or during Weeklies when Arc Burn is up, and is one of the best heavy machine guns in the game because it packs a powerful punch as well as retains accuracy.

Essentially it combines everything you’d want to see in this type of weapon: power, speedy reloads, and amazing stability. Plus the Lightning Rounds perk makes the gun become more accurate the longer you fire it. Win-win.

• Cost: 7681G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Arc damage)
• Magazine: 38

Super Good Advice (Machine Gun)

Apart from the Thunderlord, Super Good Advice is Destiny‘s other badass machine gun. It returns missed shots to its clip with the Super Good Advice perk, deals bonus damage every time you kill an enemy, packs a Solar-powered wallop, and can reload amazingly fast.

• Cost: 7817 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Solar damage)
• Magazine: 58

Monte Carlo (Auto Rifle)

Buy it. The Monte Carlo is an amazingly tactical weapon that can reap pretty savage combos when used with certain gear. You can team it up with An Insurmountable Skullfort Titan helmet to pretty much trigger Storm Fist over and over, or even tag it up with the No Backup Plans gauntlets to make sure your Force Barrier triggers as often as possible, effectively giving you an overshield.

There are so many possibilities with Monte Carlo’s perks, plus it doubles as an all-in-one mid-range utility firearm great for both PvP and PvE.

• Cost: 7919G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Kinetic damage)
• Magazine: 36

Curios

• Fusion Rifle Telemetry – Stack of 5x for 1 Strange Coin
• Sniper Rifle Telemetry – Stack of 5x for 1 Strange Coin
• Machine Gun Telemtry – Stack of 5x for 1 Strange Coin
• Emerald Coil Vehicle Upgrade – 23 Strange Coins
• Void Drive Vehicle Upgrade – 23 Strange Coins

The post Destiny: Analysis of Xur’s Exotic Wares For 2/27 (Week 25) appeared first on VR World.

Xur, Agent of the Nine is back again to peddle his exotic wares for Week 21, from Feb. 13 – 15.

This week Xur is selling the Ice Breaker again, but it’s not exciting considering just about everyone already has one. But if you missed out a few weeks ago, now’s your chance to join the club and absolutely wreck shop when Solar Burn is active.

The remainder of Xur’s gear is drab and unexciting; we have the Crest of Alpha Lupi which is pretty much bleh, along with Light Beyond Nemesis (another bleh item), followed up with the exceptional Helm of Inmost Light.

But I think just about every Striker has the helm already, considering it’s been featured on Xur’s list many times over.

Things get pretty baffling once we take a look at the upgrades. Xur is selling no less than three redundant upgrades this time around; both the Helm of Inmost Light and the Hunter and Titan flavors of the Crest of Alpha Lupi are upgradeable.

And for some mind-boggling reason the Ice Breaker is upgradeable. Just in case you felt like spending Exotic Shards instead of Strange Coins. Now I do like the idea of Bungie making items available for players who might not have enough Strange Coins or Exotic Shards, respectively.

But this feels like lazy randomization to me, and signifies yet another clumsy handling of Destiny‘s in-game structure.

To make things worse, Xur isn’t selling Heavy Ammo Synthesis. Again. How many weeks in a row is that? I’ve lost count. Oh and Exotic Engrams aren’t available either.

For Week 21 our shadowy merchant can be found in his usual haunt far beneath the Tower, underneath the Future War Cult handler and past the Shipwright.

Interestingly enough, Bungie has seen to it that non-DLC owners will actually get to buy things this time. Xur’s full inventory is purchasable by gamers who didn’t buy The Dark Below, but as we all know, a lot of the items are unremarkable gear we’ve seen a million times over.

In any case, below we have our in-depth analysis of Xur’s exotic wares for Week 21.

Helm of Inmost Light – 13 Strange Coins

• Class: Titan (Striker)
• Upgrade Mats: Spinmetal, Exotic Shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Light: 30/36
• Discipline: 97/104
• Type: Helmet
• Defense: 407/447
• Mod 1: Rain Blows: Increases melee attack speed
• Mod 2: Invigoration: Reduces melee cooldown each time you pick up an Orb of Light.
• Mod 3: Recklessness: Provides Death from Above and Headstrong for Fist of Havoc.

Should You Buy It?

Maybe. If you’re a Striker Titan and really really like wreaking havoc with Fists of Havoc, then this helm is tailor-made for you.

The only problem with this particular roll is that it’s low on Strength, so I’d only pick it up if you really want that Recklessness mod–remember since it’s tier 3 it’s at the end side of the upgrade tree–which really helps out.

The helm is great for PvP as the Striker’s super power is one of the most powerful (and quite annoying) abilities that can wipe out an entire team in one slam.

Crest of Alpha Lupi (Chestpiece) – 13 Strange Coins

• Class: Hunter
• Upgrade Mats: Spirit Bloom, Exotic Shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Defense: 444/488
• Light: 30/36
• Strength: 133/143
• Mod 1: Revive teammates faster. Spawn more orbs.
• Mod 2: Carry more ammo for Special Weapons
• Mod 3: Carry more ammo for Hand Cannon

Should You Buy It?

No. The Crest of Alpha Lupi might sound neat in theory; who doesn’t want to be able to respawn enemies quicker or spawn more orbs? And we both know you can never get enough Hand Cannon ammo.

But the reality is that the extra revive timer isn’t really negligible and you won’t really notice it. As for the more ammo for special and handcannons, this is just for the ammo pool itself, and it won’t raise your round ammo.

And although it’s a decent roll with 133 base Strength, the item’s use is very conditional and is only helpful in boss fights where you need all the health regen you can find.

Even still you don’t want to take up your only Exotic armor slot with this one; stick with the essential Achlyophage Symbiote helm that adds an extra Golden Gun shot, or even the Knucklehead Radar that lets you see your radar when aiming down the sights.

• Class: Warlock
• Upgrade Mats: Spirit Bloom, Exotic Shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Defense: 407/447
• Light: 30/36
• Strength : 107/114
• Mod 1: Snap Discharge: Increases melee attack speed.
• Mod 2: Infusion: Replenish health whenever you pick up an Orb of Light.
• Mod 3: Keeper of the Pack: You revive fallen teammates faster and they revive you faster. Your super also spawns additional Orbs for teammates.

Should You Buy It?

EDIT: Maybe. The Light Beyond Nemesis isn’t a good helm for a Warlock in terms of DPS or support, and there are so many better helms to choose from.

Items like Obsidian Mind, which combos exceptionally well with Bad Juju to allow Voidwalkers to shoot out a ton of Nova Bombs, or the notable Skull of Dire Ahamkara.

That being said, this helm does regen health quite efficiently, which is very helpful when you’re vulnerable during Crota’s End hard runs. Warlocks in general are vulnerable, and all in all there’s better helms out there, but this could could be useful.

It’s use is conditional so I advise you to stick with your Legendary helm for now and pass this one up unless you have the coins for it. And even if you do, don’t expect it to be an all-purpose utility item.

Ice Breaker (Sniper Rifle) – 17 Strange Coins

• Class: Any
• Upgrade Mats: Spirit Bloom, Exotic shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Attack: 302 / 331 (Solar elemental damage)
• Magazine: 6
• Type: Sniper Rifle
• No Backpack: Cannot be reloaded. Regenerates ammo over time.
• Mulligan: Missing a shot has a chance to return ammo directly to the magazine.
• Quickdraw: This weapon can be drawn unbelievably fast.
• Ice Breaker: Ice Breaker’s victims spontaneously combust, dealing damage to others nearby.

Should you buy it?

YES. 

Ice Breaker is a must-have, I repeat, must-have item for any Guardian. It is one of the most useful items in the entire game, and delivers on all fronts: damage, accuracy, dependability, and just about any other quantifiable measure you can think of.

The beauty of this gun is that it has infinite ammo, but it only has a six-shot magazine. The ammo slowly replenishes over time, about one bullet per 4-5 seconds, and you can’t pick up special weapon ammo packs to refill it.

Essentially it refills its rounds, not its magazine.

It’s a bit strange using the gun at first, but it truly is one of the most powerful items in the game. While it’s mostly effective against Solar shields (you really won’t do much against an Arc shield), headshots against broken-shielded enemies are incredibly devastating–in the 6k+ damage range.

If you only have 17 Strange Coins, pick this up. You don’t want to pass on this one.

Armor Upgrades

Knucklehead Radar (Helmet)

The Knucklehead Radar is pretty useful, but don’t upgrade unless your current version has lower Strength. Remember your Exotic Shards are limited, and sure you can buy more from Xur, but you’re better off saving them to max out great items like the Ice Breaker, Achlyophage Symbiote, or the infamous Hawkmoon.

• Cost: 7331, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Hunter
• Light: 30/36
• Strength: 101/108

Crest of Alpha Lupi (Chestpiece)

Low Intellect stat roll, and ontop of that the item itself isn’t really that useful. Pass it up and save your Exotic Shard.

• Cost: 7547 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Titan
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 121/129
• Defense: 444/488

Helm of Inmost Light (Helmet)

Don’t upgrade. Just buy the same exact helm from Xur and dismantle your previous helmet and get the defense upgrade and an extra Exotic Shard to boot.

• Cost: 7451 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Titan
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 113/121
• Defense: 407/447

Crest of Alpha Lupi (Chestpiece)

As with the case of Hunter’s Crest of Alpha Lupi, just pass this up. I don’t see why Bungie has three different variations of the same piece of armor on Xur’s inventory, but that’s what happens when they just randomize everything, right?

• Cost: 7547 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Titan
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 121/129
• Defense: 444/488

Apotheosis Veil (Helmet)

Really this helm is only good for certain situations, perhaps boss fights or Nightfall runs where staying alive is key. But since it’s an item with such conditional use, I wouldn’t pick it up unless you really want it or see a specific use for it right away.

• Cost: 7013 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Warlock
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 100/108
• Defense: 407/447

Sunbreakers (Gauntlets)

Incredibly bad Intellect roll. The defense upgrade isn’t worth being stuck with these bad stats–and you also lose out on an Exotic Shard if you upgrade. Stick with the pair you have.

• Cost: 7549 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Warlock
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 77/83
• Defense: 407/447

Weapon Upgrades

The Last Word (Handcannon)

The Last Word is a fantastic handcannon for all uses, and is an excellent PVP weapon that has high-damage output along with ultra-fast firing. And it barely has to be aimed when it’s fully maxed. Pick this up.

• Cost: 7559 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331
• Magazine: 8

Ice Breaker (Sniper Rifle)

• Cost: 7477 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Solar damage)
• Magazine: 6

There’s absolutely no reason to waste your Exotic Shard and the 7.4k Glimmer on upgrading your current Ice Breaker. Just buy a fresh one from Xur. Again, this is another redundant item (that makes three for this week).

Patience And Time (Sniper Rifle)

This sniper is pretty conditional too. You really want to save your Glimmer and Exotic Shards for surefire bets, items that you can use often and frequently rather than gear that will only help you out in certain situations.

I’d pass it up, and we’ll likely see this sniper up again sometime soon.

• Cost: 7561 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Arc damage)
• Magazine: 4

Super Good Advice (Machine Gun)

This is one of the best Machine Guns out there, so do yourself a favor and buy an upgraded version. When the Weeklies have Solar burn you will be wrecking shop and destroying enemies in droves. Plus it makes for a good utility weapon for PVP.

• Cost: 7817 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (SolarArc damage)
• Magazine: 58

Gjallarhorn (Rocket Launcher)

Not much can be said about Gjallarhorn besides it’s awesome. The launcher’s rockets splits into clusters that literally track enemies, making it near-impossible to miss.

• Glimmer Cost: 7933 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Solar elemental damage)
• Magazine: 2

Truth (Rocket Launcher)

Skip it. The novelty wears off fast, and you really don’t need that damage upgrade as the launcher does good enough damage on its own.

• Glimmer Cost: 7039 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Void elemental damage)
• Magazine: 2

Curios

• Scout Rifle Telemetry - 1 Strange Coin /5 stack
• Handcannon Telemetry - 1 Strange Coin /5 stack
• Fusion Rifle Telemetry - 1 Strance Coin / 5 stack
• Plasma Drive Vehicle Upgrade - 23 Strange Coins
• Emerald Coil Vehicle Upgrade - 23 Strange Coins

The post Destiny: Analysis of Xur’s Exotic Wares for 2/13 appeared first on VR World.

Amid the sea of overhyped gameplay footage and misleading bullshots, the new Persona 5 trailer is a breath of fresh air that might just be the most stylish bit of preview footage I’ve ever seen.

And based on the wildly enthusiastic reception from most of the gaming world, I’d say I’m not alone in this verdict. In just three days the Persona 5 trailer has been consumed by almost 2 million people (the current YouTube stats total up to 1,986,744 hits).

Wow.

The trailer is a pure extension of the Persona series’ distinct stylish flair that seamlessly and effortlessly blends the worlds of gaming and anime together for 3 minutes of eye-popping wonder.

The merger of these two worlds often leads to superlative works of art that deliver a truly unique and original representation that carries viewers off to another world of fancy, whismy, and badass demon-slaying JRPG action.

Right from the start the footage whisks us away to an artistic rendition of Tokyo that enraptures our eyes. We’re carried off the main character’s Persona, a mask-clad thief known as the Phantom, as he takes on his latest heist.

Like the entire trailer, the Phantom has a kind of liquid grace that flows with the animations, capturing Persona 5‘s new protagonist in a memorable and stylish way.

Then the intro proper takes us across a beautifully rendered monochrome rendition of Tokyo contrasted by a blood red sky. The Phantom leaps like a daredevil in the sky, performing one death-defying stunt after another, his motions sure and quick and perfect.

Then everything just starts to flow, creating a pure visual treat that marries so many different mechanics–from comic-like tearaways during character intros to perfect frame-to-frame transitions. Every single scene is like a work of it in itself, and it plays altogether like a block of some fantastic radical lucid dream.

Throughout the footage our ears are treated to some jazzy bass-lines and guitar solos that bring have a decidedly Cowboy Bebop vibe, with upbeat orchestrations to match its funky licks.

And then there’s the menus. Oh those beautiful menus.

It’s almost as if everything about Persona 5 is going to stand out when compared to the backdrop of today’s humdrum AAA lineup.

Even the in-game menus are works of art, animated with such pizzazz and vitality that it’s hard not to be amazed and bewildered as to why this kind of thing isn’t in other games.

Likewise the in-game footage is presented with that same stylish flair, making even monotonous classroom lectures into entertaining expenditures.

Cast in the dazzling neon glow of Tokyo proper, Persona 5 also makes the everyday cityscape into something dazzlingly beautiful, turning a train ride home into a memorable occasion.

But things get truly interesting once Shujinko and his team cross over into the realms of Personas, showcasing combat sequences and hinting at some mechanics that quick-eyed viewers might be able to catch.

Persona 5 takes place over a year in the life of an everyday student who has a unique ability to summon Personas, that is facets of his personality that manifest in the real world, and eventually allies with others who have the ability.

Gameplay traditionally marries the “real” world with that of the “Persona” world to deliver fantasy-like interactions.

As this game focuses on the main characters being thieves, the party wears masks and takes on heists, but also traditionally battles demons along the way in turn-based JRPG combat.

Many of the characters have thief-like abilities to fit in with their roles. For example, we see Phantom teleport to cover in rapid succession, hinting that there might be an emphasis on stealth.

Also players will be fighting what look to be demons in knight armor rather than the swirling Shadow enemies.

And the quick look at combat revealed that characters have multiple weapon types for each Persona–it’s been known that Phantom will be able to use melee weapons as well as a gun

Persona 5’s cast from left to right: Ryuuji Sakamoto, Anzu Takamaki, Morgana the black cat, and Phantom, the player character protagonist.

Now let’s take a look at Persona 5‘s cast.

First we have the Phantom (aka Shujinko), the leader and protagonist/player character; Anzu Takamaki, a blonde-haired who’s Persona could give Catwoman a run for her money; Ryuji Sakamoto, another agile masked thief who is also Shujinko’s classmate; and then we have Morgana, a whimsical black cat.

All of the characters are presented with highlights of their own unique personalities and traits as part of the stylized footage, but we still don’t know much about them despite getting glimpses at their real-life and Persona depictions.

At the very end of the trailer things get pretty interesting.

From the looks of it Phantom, the main character, somehow transcends into a wicked demonic manifestation of himself. Could this be the a new evil Persona adaptation that’ll be featured in the game? How does this transformation link to the story?

Did Shujinko’s master thief Persona somehow “stick” to his real self?

No one knows for sure, but we do know one thing: everyone who’s seen the trailer can’t wait to find out.

Persona 5 is slated for a release in 2015 across North America, Europe and Japan for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3. For more information be sure to visit the game’s official website.

The post Persona 5 Might Be The Most Stylish Game I’ve Ever Seen appeared first on VR World.

Yesterday Nintendo (TYO: 7974) announced the Nintendo Creator’s Program, an initiative that “shares” a portion of advertising revenue with YouTubers who showcase the publisher’s content.

Under Youtube’s copyright policies Nintendo previously took in all ad profits generated by all user-created content that featured footage of their games, across all generations–from NES to Wii U.

The new program opens up an avenue for YouTubers to finally earn from their Nintendo videos, and on the surface it looks like a good idea. But at a closer glance the new policy looks like it goes against the viral nature of YouTube in an attempt to earn revenue.

With the new model the publisher pays out 70% of ad revenue to registered channels and keeps 30% for itself. That’s not such a bad split. But the real problem is how long it takes to be paid.

The new policy clearly outlines restrictions, rules, and rather unappealing red tape for interested YouTubers.

According to the FAQ, it can take “up to two months for payments to be sent to your PayPal account”, meaning Nintendo doesn’t pay out until it gets its revenue. And like most agreements of this nature, Nintendo holds the right to adjust these rates at any time.

Those are hardly agreeable terms. But if you want to earn cash on your Nintendo-based content, you have no choice.

Ontop of that, YouTubers only have access to a limited pre-approve list of games. Super Smash Bros., Nintendo’s huge cash crop, is noticeably absent from this list.

This new plan could have number of chain reactions that could very well sabotage the company as well as Nintendo-specific YouTube videos.

To understand how the Nintendo Creator’s Program could backfire, we have to take a quick look at Youtube’s current gaming trends, and how they impact the gaming industry.

Super Smash Bros., a franchise that helped bolster Nintendo’s recent earnings, can’t be monetized by YouTube videos.

‘Let’s Plays’ are a win for gamers and publishers alike

Let’s Play videos are extremely popular for many reasons, and quite honestly they are a win-win scenario for both gamers and publishers/developers.

In a viewer’s perspective, the genre is not only entertaining but informative, as gamers can see any particular game in action. As every LPer has different playstyles, watching multiple videos on the same game can answer a ton of questions as well as provide the viewer with a solid grasp of the game’s quality.

You get to see the game in action, see how the LPer reacts and interacts within the game’s world, essentially providing an entertaining preview.

In the perspective of publishers, Let’s Play videos are pretty much “free press”. If a high-profile LP’er like NorthernLion or perhaps even Total Biscuit plays your game on their channel, odds are people will be interested–even if the game is portrayed as bad.

And of course positive sentiments lead to sales. But more importantly, YouTube is a massive outlet for exposure, which is the life’s bread for any game developer or publisher. In many ways LP’ers are unsanctioned PR reps, and gamers have formed a strong bond with their judgements.

As more and more YouTubers commit to Let’s Plays, the more exposure and content is generated, fueling an aspect of the games economy that’s been present for quite some time.

Going viral

Despite it’s apparent “good” intentions, the Nintendo Creator’s Program forcibly jeopardizes the established YouTube-gaming society, and shows just how out of touch the company is with the current trends of the gaming industry.

Nintendo’s empirical reign over its own content is technically just within the margins of the law, but being “right” in this case only threatens to break gamers’ trust as well as alienate LPers.

The company trying to inherently control and profit from every single monetized video is reminiscent of the ISP and cable lobby trying to profit from Netflix traffic, and it’s caused an uproar within the gaming community.

But what’s so bad about the initiative? What’s so wrong with Nintendo wanting to make money off of content it rightly owns? When you buy a game, after all, the publisher is “leasing” you the right to play the game.

Essentially the program goes against basic tenets of the spirit of YouTube in itself, a sort of free-roaming gamer-centric public platform focused on a nexus of ever-churning content.

Anyone can make a YouTube video, and anyone can play a game. That’s the beauty of it; Let’s Plays are so accessible, and give millions of people an outlet for creativity as well as a means to share their experiences.

Thanks to YouTube’s inherently viral nature, it’s responsible for propelling games into mega-stardom. Games like Minecraft, for instance, exploded because of the ever-growing wave of user-created content. In many ways YouTube feels like the very spirit of indies.

When Nintendo put huge restrictions on what LPers could and couldn’t make money off of, it seriously hurt this spirit. Nintendo came in and clamped down an iron gate over videos.

And now they’ve lifted the gate, only a little, but they reserve the right to have it crash back down at any time.

Amid questionable moves, Nintendo has seen success with its Amiibo line of figures.

Pushing LPers away

The infamous YouTube celebrity PewDiePie, who rakes in millions every year thanks to his fame, completely disagrees with Nintendo’s approach.

“This is why a tiny one man indie game like Minecraft could grow into a 2.5 billion dollar deal,” Kjellberg said. “That’s 2.5 billion… Made possible largely because of YouTube!”

PewDiePie goes on to make a superlative point that specifically outlines how Nintendo’s current plan can backfire.

Kjellberg notes that the move is like a “slap in the face” to YouTube channels specifically devoted to Nintendo games, and ultimately LPers will naturally gravitate away from focusing on Nintendo titles.

“I also think this is a slap in the face to the YouTube channels that does focus on Nintendo game exclusively.

“The people who have helped and showed passion for Nintendo’s community are the ones left in the dirt the most. And finally, when there’s just so many games out there to play. Nintendo games just went to the bottom of that list.

“Everyone loses in this scenario that Nintendo has created. That’s why I’m against it.”

This of course reduces exposure for the Japanese console-maker, and Nintendo needs all the exposure it can get.

Many LPers live off the money they make from ad revenue. It’s a serious profession to them, and they have an obligation to their fans. In many ways it’s like being a one-man TV show; host, writer, author, screener and every other job rolled up into one.

So when a publisher comes in and starts mandating full control over your proceeds, making you sign a contract just to get paid, it’s only natural to simply pull away and move on.

But the most disappointing factor is that Nintendo has unwittingly sabotaged its own playerbase, hurting its own devoted and dedicated YouTubers in the process.

The Nintendo Creator’s Program is a step in the right direction. That has to be said. But it also has to be said that the company should never have tried to completely administer control over its own content within the free-market basis of YouTube, which resulted in the alienation in many content creators and fans alike.

Nintendo has so much to gain from the free exposure that YouTube’s LPers offer, and it’d be wise to simply embrace this model without trying to rake in a quick buck. Yes Nintendo owns the games. And yes they can legally do this. More importantly, yes, they need the money.

Even still, the company should be encouraging anyone and everyone to make YouTube videos based on their games, simply for the love of the brand itself. Sure they’ll rake in some cash, but when the cost is pushing away a good portion of popular games personalities and loyal fans, is it really worth it?

This confused plan shows that Nintendo is still detached from its own changing industry, and is yet another example of the company’s clandestine approaches, and if it’s not careful, it could very well crumble its own niche market.

The post Will Nintendo’s New YouTube Monetization Policy Backfire? appeared first on VR World.

Xur’s weekly visits to the Tower of Guardians used to be something worth looking forward to. You never knew what the shadowy merchant would have next, and the anticipation was exciting.

But like most of Destiny‘s content, buying items from Xur has become a stale endeavor. There’s simply not enough exotic items in the game to bring any more surprises, leading to repetitive rotations that have become increasingly predictable.

Week 21 lasting from Jan. 30 – Feb. 1 is no different.

Also Bungie has once again locked all non-DLC owners out of buying any new exotics from Xur. This, along with Xur’s inventory, really isn’t surprising,and at this point I would say that most of the people who still play Destiny have the DLC anyway.

Oh, and for the third week in a row, Xur doesn’t have Heavy Ammo Synths. Great way to punish your players here, Bungie.

On the other hand, he does have some Handcannon and Rocket Launcher telemetries that are perfect for leveling up your Hawkmoons, Thorns and Gjallarhorns. Don’t forget the Fusion Rifle telemetries that boost exp for your new shiny upgraded Pocket Infinity.

In any case, below we have a full expansive breakdown analysis of Xur’s current wares. This week the dark otherworldly purveyor of goods can be found in one of his usual haunts, this time right outside the Speaker’s quarters.

“Pardon me. Coming through.”

Mk. 44 Stand Asides (Boots) - 13 Strange Coins

• Class: Titan (Striker)
• Upgrade Mats: Spirit Bloom, Exotic Shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Light: 30/36
• Strength: 134/144
• Type: Boots
• Defense: 296/345
• Mod 1: HeavyWeapon Ammo: “Increases the amount of Heavy Weapon ammunition you can carry”
• Mod 2: Be Somewhere Else: Increases the duration Shoulder Charge remains active.

Should You Buy It?

No. Stay away from these boots. There are a ton of better exotics for a Titan to use that have much better uses–the Helm of Inmost Light comes to mind, as does the Helm of Saint-14 or the Glasshouse. If you’ve got Strange Coins burning a hole in your pocket, just wait it out. The boost in heavy weapon ammo is a nice touch, but overall they don’t offer much use and take away your precious exotic armor slot.

“Amputated from a creature who stumbled out of a Vex gate. A vestigial defensive reflex still remains.”

Don’t Touch Me (Gauntlets) – 13 Strange Coins

• Class: Hunter
• Upgrade Mats: Helium Filaments, Exotic Shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Light: 30/36
• Discipline: 76/82
• Type: Gauntlets
• Defense: 333/366
• Mod 1: Special Weapon Loader: Increases reload speed of all Special Weapons.
• Mod 2: Inverse Shadow: Increased Super energy gained from killing minions of the Darkness.
• Mod 3: Defensive Reflex: Taking damage from a melee attack makes you briefly invisible.

Should You Buy It?

Maybe. These gauntlets have a high utility, but their effectiveness is situational. They’re great for running by baddies when you’re getting overwhelmed, as you’ll get three seconds of precious invisibility on a melee hit, which can be boosted thanks to the Bladedancer’s Shadowjack talent.

But this particular pair have a lower stat roll, so it’s iffy, and it definitely depends on what other exotics you have in tow. It’s good to have a backup pair of these laying around, so pick them up if you have the extra Strange Coins, but don’t expect to use them too much.

“13.4 billion years ago, the first stars kindled out of darkness, seeding the future of all life.”

Starfire Protocol (Chestpiece) – 13 Strange Coins

• Class: Warlock
• Upgrade Mats: Helium Filaments, Exotic Shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 134/144
• Type: Chestpiece
• Defense: 444/488
• Mod 1: Fusion Rifle Ammo: Increases the amount of Fusion Rifle ammunition you can carry.
• Mod 2: Heavy Weapon Ammo: Increases the amount of Heavy Weapon ammunition you can carry.
• Mod 3: Starfire Protocol: Gain an additional Fusion Grenade.

Should You Buy It?

Maybe. This piece of armor is ideal for Sunsingers who also have a great fusion rifle in tow (Pocket Infinity, Plan C and even the Vex Mythoclast all synergize well here). Plus you get an extra Fusion grenade to boot, but sadly it won’t stack with the subclass’ Gift of the Sun passive.

Pick it up if you have the coins or don’t have anything better for your Sunsinger (like the Sunbreakers, for example) but otherwise save them up.

“Burn the world. Burn it all.”

Dragon’s Breath (Rocket Launcher) – 17 Strange Coins

• Class: Any
• Upgrade Mats: Spinmetal, Exotic shard (last tier)
• Min Level: 20
• Attack: 302 / 331 (Solar elemental damage)
• Magazine: 2
• Type: Rocket Launcher
• Mod 1: Tripod: This launcher’s tube can hold three shells.
• Mod 2: Pyromancer: Rounds fired from this weapon leave a Solar Flare upon detonation.

Should You Buy It?

Maybe. If you have the extra strange coins, the Dragon’s Breath is a decent Solar-powered rocket launcher. The only trade-off is that it takes up your exotic weapon slot, and odds are you’d use it for specific situations like when Solar Burn is added to Weekly Nightfall Strikes.

Stick with legendary rocket launchers for everyday use, but it’s always good to have a powerful launcher in your arsenal just in case.

Armor Upgrades

Some interesting armor upgrades are available, but overall it’s more of the same. We have some junkers–like the Mask of the Third Man–but there’s a particularly good Helm of Inmost Light on the market, along with a pair of decent Sunbreakers on the off-chance your Sunsinger needs some new fiery gloves.

Mask of the Third Man (Helmet)

Glimmer Cost: 7207 G, 1 Exotic Shard
Class: Hunter
Light: 30/36
Intellect: 104/112
Defense: 407/447

Pass on this one. The upgrade is a waste of a shard, with a low roll for an item that already has bland appeal.

Helm of Inmost Light (Helmet)

• Glimmer Cost: 7451 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Titan
• Light: 30/36
• Strength: 118/127
• Defense: 407/447

Pick it up. This is a great opportunity to upgrade this fantastic Striker helmet, with a strong max 127 Strength roll along with the other obvious bonuses.

Young Ahamkara’s Spine (Gauntlets)

• Glimmer Cost: 7127 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Hunter
• Light: 30/36
• Discipline: 80/86
• Defense: 333/366

Pass. Low stat roll for an item that’s pretty much a waste of an exotic slot when compared to the ultra-useful Achlyophate Symbiote helmet.

Crest of Alpha Lupi – Titan (Chestpiece)

• Cost: 7547 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Titan
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 124/134
• Defense: 444/488

Another lower Intellect roll, and in all honestly this one won’t really do you any favors. The asking price is too much for an upgrade, and chances are you’re better off scrapping this armor if you should find it. Stick with the Armentarium or a dual-stat Legendary instead. You don’t want to take away from the great Titan exotic helms out there.

Skull of Dire Ahamkara (Helmet)

• Cost: 7907 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Warlock
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 111/119
• Defense: 407/447

Stellar stat roll here, but the best Voidwalker exotic is the Obsidian Mind. Pass this up despite the great roll, as the price tag is hefty. Also equipping this helmet takes away your exotic armor slot, so you won’t be able to use interesting pieces like the Voidfang Vestments.

Sunbreakers (Gauntlets)

• Cost: 7549 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Class: Warlock
• Light: 30/36
• Intellect: 103/110
• Defense: 333/366

Pick it up. If you’ve yet to upgrade your pair of Sunbreakers, then now’s a good opportunity to do so. Keep in mind you can snag an extra shard by trading in your motes for an exotic engram, and then break it down (assuming you don’t get an even better pair of Sunbreakers).

Weapon Upgrades

This week’s weapon upgrades are unimpressive with a ton of staples we’ve seen time and time again.

Then again it’s hard to keep things fresh when there’s so few exotics available. Even still, it’d be nice to see Bungie do something special for non-DLC owners, as they can only buy items in the upgraded sections this week.

Suros Regime (Auto Rifle)

• Glimmer Cost: 7789 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331
• Magazine: 33

Pick it up. The Suros Regime is a fantastic go-to auto rifle that has a ton of utility and firepower that naturally compliments any play style.

Thorn (Handcannon)

• Glimmer Cost: 7673 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331
• Magazine: 9

Pick it up. The Thorn handcannon is a great solution to a number of Destiny’s problems, whether it be PvP or PvE solutions. It packs quite a bit of punch, and the Mark of the Devourer mod adds a poison-like bleed effect that deals damage over time. But seeing as you have to have the gun to upgrade it, you probably know that already.

Universal Remote (Shotgun)

• Glimmer Cost: 7027 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Solar elemental damage)
• Magazine: 5

Personally I’d pass on this one. Shotguns can be great for PvP, but they aren’t really an all-around weapon of wide use. Keep your shards for something better–like the Hawkmoon (if it ever comes back around in Xur’s upgrades).

Pocket Infinity (Fusion Rifle)

• Cost: 7309 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Solar elemental damage)
• Magazine: 3

Definitely upgrade this one. The upgrade is a significant boost even if it doesn’t feel like it, and it makes one of the best weapons that much better.

This weapon is your go-to gun for PVP, as it wrecks the opposition with merciless force. Part of its devastating capacity owes to its ability to fire in “full out”, dishing out utter havoc. And when you use it while wearing Lucky Raspberry, you’ll not only have more ammo thanks to the armor, but you’ll find more ammo thanks to the gun’s own mods.

Ice Breaker (Sniper Rifle)

• Glimmer Cost: 7477 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Solar elemental damage)
• Magazine: 58

Since Xur sold these not so long ago, odds are you probably don’t need to upgrade it. But just in case you do, now’s the perfect time to get that awesome damage boost on an already staggeringly powerful gun.

Super Good Advice (Machine Gun)

• Glimmer Cost: 7817 G, 1 Exotic Shard
• Attack: 302/331 (Solar elemental damage)
• Magazine: 58

Maybe. This gun is swell enough without that extra bit of damage, and chances are you won’t be using it very often anyway. On the off-chance you have a Guardian who finds tons of Heavy Ammo, Super Good Advice could very well be a fantastic tool in your arsenal. It just depends on your play style.

Curios

Xur has some great curios this time around. But as we mentioned before, for some reason Bungie doesn’t want anyone to have heavy ammo stacks–probably because of items like the Mk. 44 Stand Asides or the Relic Wings are on the market.

You should pick up at least one stack of each type of telemetry, as they’ll compliment your new snazzy upgraded weapons. Plus you’ll have some exp boosters left over for next week’s possible upgrades, too.

• Exotic Shard - 7 SC
• Gauntlets Exotic Engram - 23 Motes of Light
• Handcannon Telemetry – 1 SC for stack of 5
• Fusion Rifle Telemetry – 1SC for stack of 5
• Rocket Launcher Telemetry – 1SC for stack of 5
• Plasma Drive – 23 SC
• Emerald Coil – 23 SC

The post Destiny: Analysis Of Xur’s Exotic Wares For 1/30 appeared first on VR World.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) has reported its best fiscal quarter ever, with revenue and profit figures surpassing analyst expectations. The numbers speak for themselves, both in nominal terms and with respect to year-on-year growth. In fact, this is the most profitable quarter in corporate history, surpassing the quarterly earnings records of Gazprom, Royal Dutch Shell and ExxonMobil, which were previously in the top three.

For the first fiscal quarter of 2015 (ending December 31, 2014), Apple reports a quarterly profit of $18 billion from revenue of $74.6 billion, a year-on-year revenue growth of 29.5% and profit growth of 27.2%. In this fiscal quarter, diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $3.06, a 47.8% increase from last year’s $2.07 diluted EPS. This surpasses analyst expectations of $2.60 earnings per share.

Guidance for second fiscal quarter indicates that Apple is likely to earn $52 to $55 billion in revenue. The company has announced cash dividends of $0.47 per share, payable in February.

In this quarterly report, we can glean a few things about Apple’s business so far. In gist, the company performs well during holiday seasons. The iPhone has been the biggest driver of revenue for the company in this quarter, so far, even amid the iPhone 6 having a slow start. The iPad, however, has performed dismally. And in a surprising twist, China has become a big driver of growth for the company, even with some initial hiccups in the launch and sales of the iPhone 6.

iPhone in the stocking. Apple’s best quarters prior to this one had been the first quarters of fiscal years 2012, 2013 and 2014, which fall in the months of October through December. This suggests that, as expected, holiday sales are a big revenue driver.  For Q1 FY2015, Apple sold 74.5 million iPhones, up from 51 million in the same period last year — a 46% year-on-year growth.  This is the first full fiscal quarter after Apple launched the iPhone 6 and 6 plus, and even with some initial concerns about the whether the bigger form factor of the plus will sell, as well as supply issues at the start of the iPhone 6’s product cycle, sales figures for Apple’s smartphones will suggest that it’s a runaway hit.

Will the iPad be sustainable? The short answer is “yes” — at least Apple CEO Tim Cook thinks so. For this quarter, iPad sales actually fell 21% year-on-year, which may be an indication that the company’s latest tablet lineup has weakened, even as the prices for previous-generation iPad Air and iPad Mini models have been reduced. One school of thought will say that iPad sales are being cannibalized by the iPhone 6 Plus on the low-end and the MacBook air on the higher-end. However, Cook is still optimistic about the product line, and that these sales figures are still within expected range. Cook admits that “the upgrade cycle is longer” compared to smartphones, speaking during investor guidance. “I believe that over long arc of time that the iPad is the great business, I also have visibility obviously of what’s in the pipeline and feel very, very good about that,” he adds.

Scaling the great wall. Apart from record-breaking revenues and profits in the past quarter, Apple is also seeing promise in a market that had been considered difficult for western firms to break into: China. Today’s largest economy is also the fastest-growing market for Apple’s goods. Revenue for this market amounts to $16.1 billion, comprising 21% of the company’s earnings during the period. This is a 70% growth from the same quarter in Fiscal Year 2014, and a 157% quarter-on-quarter growth.

This means Apple was able to bounce back after a disappointing iPhone 6 launch, in which the product was severely delayed in the market. Another feather on Apple’s cap: the iPhone has taken top spot in smartphone shipments in China, according to Canalys, even beating Xiaomi.

Watch out for April. Since taking over the reins, there has always been question whether Tim Cook will live up to his predecessor’s legacy. It was, after all, during the second tenure of Steve Jobs as chief executive when Apple bounced back with the iMac, then followed up by other revolutionary products like the iPod, iPhone, iPad, MacBook Air and the like. This record quarter is testament to Cook’s ability as a strategist, even as Apple has only been continuing existing product lines, so far.

This April, however, Apple expects to launch its first wearable, the Apple Watch. “The creativity and software innovation going on around Apple Watch is incredibly exciting and we can’t wait for our customers to experience them when Apple Watch becomes available,” says Cook. It may be argued that Apple is already coming late in the smartwatch game. But perhaps the quality of the platform and ecosystem will be the main differentiator, just as the apps and the App Store had been a game changer in the smartphone industry in 2007. “The number of developers that are writing apps more for it are impressive and we’re seeing some incredible innovation coming out there,” Cook adds.

Will 2015 be Tim Cook’s year? With an expanding business, impressive cash stockpile and an ambitious foray into the wearables market, it looks like an exciting year ahead for Apple.

The post Apple’s Q1 FY2015: Most Profitable Quarter in Corporate History appeared first on VR World.

It’s no question that social networking has had a significant impact in the way people communicate today. While email had been the killer app of the Internet in the mid-1990s, and thereafter search and then user-generated content, we live in an era in which connectedness plays a highly significant role in both online and real-world economies.

Such is the case with Facebook (NASDAQ:FB), which recently claimed it has generated $227 billion in economic impact globally in 2014, with 4.5 million jobs attributed to activity arising from Facebook use. This is, of course, distinct from the actual business that the company reports on its own. The economic impact is cited as activity borne out of using Facebook as a platform for commerce, or at least as an enabler of business and business activities.

This figure is reported by a Deloitte study commissioned by Facebook itself. Indicators included the value of “Likes”, and the business generated by events organized through the platform, among others. The study even made a correlation between Facebook activity and smartphone sales. In fact, Deloitte attributes a sixth of the value of smartphone sales worldwide in 2014 to users’ desire for mobile access to the social network. “[I]t is assumed that 16% of the value from unique devices purchased in the given year which are used to access Facebook may be attributable to Facebook,” the study says.

Correlation vs. causality

Economists do agree that Facebook — and social networking in general — do have a positive economic impact to some extent. However, it is argued that the $227 billion figure may be overstated. Attributing smartphone sales figures to Facebook usage alone may likewise be unfair. There is a difference between correlation and causality, of course. While Deloitte (or Facebook) might argue that people want to buy smartphones to access Facebook, the reverse could also be the case — that more people are able to access Facebook due to the prevalence of cheap smartphones and data plans.

Causality is a point of contention here. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Stanford economist Roger Noll attributes Facebook’s meteoric rise as an effect of the growth in Internet usage, and not a cause. “Facebook is an effect, not a cause, of the growth of Internet access and use,” he says. Still, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg says the social network is one of the primary reasons people buy smartphones today, citing that Facebook access is “one of the main drivers of why people buy phones, particularly in the developing world.”

There is no question that Facebook is now a viable platform for B2C and even B2B marketing for anyone from small businesses to large enterprises. Businesses pay for sponsored listings. Facebook pays for wages, utilities and services. Facebook-owned startups and companies account for their own activities. Individuals get to use the platform to market their small businesses. Employers use Facebook to check out job applicants. It’s quite complicated to peg a value to all the business and economic activity arising from the social network itself.

Value added?

One thing that Facebook and Deloitte forgot to account for is the productivity loss that can be attributed to unnecessary Facebook and social network usage in the work setting. How many aggregate man-hours are lost from sharing viral cat videos, incessant selfie-posting, and falling victim to clickbait headlines and personal chats on company time? How much bandwidth do companies unnecessarily consume (and often pay for) with such activity? How many students waste valuable time stalking exes instead of studying for potentially better grades and subsequently improved earning potential in future? By some rough estimate, productivity loss can be estimated at around $28 billion annually. This is an un-scientific estimate, but the logic follows — there are both benefits and losses.

If anything, then the net economic impact of Facebook may be closer to neutral than the hundreds of billions a year that the company claims. There is increase in consumption and activity, but one might question the value added of these activities. Are we using Facebook to build things, or are we wasting our time on trivial pursuits through the platform?

The post Facebook Claims $227B Global Economic Impact, but Doubts Prevail appeared first on VR World.

In the past, we’ve seen some pretty underhanded moves by big-name developers and publishers concerning how DLC is handled, namely at the hands of infamous industry figures as Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: EA), Ubisoft (EPA: UBI) and of course Activision (NASDAQ: ATVI)

These tactics, which have pervaded the industry with unfair practices that ultimately push gamers to buying more and more content, have become commonplace occurrences.

Whole portions of games have been cut out and set aside, locked behind DLC paywalls, rather than being included in the actual game.

This practice manifests itself in the dreaded Season Pass setup, which not only milks gamer’s wallets but also promises discounts or in-game exclusives and other incentives when pre-ordering–and when gamers actually get access, they find watered down content.

The Dark Below is the first of Destiny’s expansions, and we may see similar disconcerting trends continue in the upcoming House of Wolves DLC.

A lot of the time these exploitative practices aren’t obvious and don’t really push too hard, but given time, gamers are pretty much coerced into buying extra content if they want to continue playing a game. And ultimately, non-DLC owners are locked out of a significant portion of the game altogether.

Now we’re seeing this trend quite blatantly exercised with Destiny, Bungie’s popular MMO-esque online shooter.

Since the game’s new The Dark Below DLC pack launched in December, gamers have been pushed by both Bungie and Activision more and more to buy the $20 add-on.

To ensure gamers buy their DLC content, Bungie and Activision have periodically taken away access to a big portion of Destiny‘s end-game activities, and they’ll likely continue to do so until everyone either quits playing or buys The Dark Below.

Interestingly enough, Destiny’s new DLC is actually already in the game’s files; users are just buying the right to access the content.

DLC Paywall Phase 1: End-Game Activities

The first instance of the “DLC push” took place on the week of The Dark Below‘s actual launch, when it was revealed that non-DLC owners were locked out of that week’s Weekly Heroic and Nightfall Strikes.

Guardians who didn’t own The Dark Below couldn’t jump into some of Destiny‘s few endgame content, and they were effectively locked out behind a paywall. If you wanted in you had to cough up $20, or buy the Season Pass to “save money” and get access to another DLC pack later on.

To understand why this is such a big deal, we have to take a look at how Destiny is set up. The game is essentially a MMO-style gear-grind where random RNG drops are rewarded after completion of certain missions and activities.

After you beat the game’s story there’s only a few things you can actually do to progress, and most of them involve collecting and upgrading gear.

When the Dark Below DLC launched, it locked out all non-DLC players from participating in Weekly Nightfall or Heroic Strikes, denying access to a big portion of the game’s endgame content.

Every week Bungie rotates new Weeklies, including Heroic/Nightfall Strikes and resetting rewards on Raid progression.

Apart from the Raid, the rotating weekly Nightfall and Heroic Strikes remain one of the most important parts of continual player progression. After completing these activities, players earn special currency called Strange Coins which can then be exchanged to Xur, a merchant who shows up at the end of every week with an inventory of random exotic goods.

Weekly Nightfalls are much more special; they can award players with some of the most powerful Exotics in the game.

If you make it so players can’t complete Weekly Nightfall or Heroic Strikes, they can’t earn the bounty of Strange Coins to trade to Xur to get new gear. And they miss out on a potential Hawkmoon drop, too.

Furthermore, a lot of dedicated players have three Guardians they use to complete these activities to rack up serious Strange Coins, and maximize drop chances. If you beat Nightfall with three characters, that’s three chances of something good dropping, not to mention a total of 27 Strange Coins per week.

If you didn’t own The Dark Below DLC, you were locked out of all of this. You were cut out of a significant portion of the game, simply because you didn’t opt to buy the new add-on.

Bungie has once again rotated non-DLC owners out of Weekly Heroic and Nightfall Strikes for the week of Dec. 30 – Jan. 6, proving that until you buy the add-on you might be temporarily unable to participate.

Now Bungie has done it again. Destiny players who don’t own the DLC are once again locked out of both Heroic and Nightfall Strikes for this week (Dec. 30 – Jan. 6), adding further insult to injury as well as a very noticeable shove to buy the $20 add-on.

But as Activision said, these activities will periodically be rotated out in favor of expansion content, and we can expect this kind of thing to continue.

“All existing strikes and maps are still accessible. Specific activities like nightfall will periodically feature expansion 1 content on the week the newest content is live.”

And this time they’ve one-upped the coercive push. They’ve actually locked non-DLC owners out of one of the last vestiges they had besides the Raid: buying new Exotic items from Xur.

If you haven’t bought the new DLC, then Xur won’t be accepting your Strange Coins this week: all of his purchasable Exotics are exclusive to DLC owners, but you can still upgrade gear.

DLC Paywall Phase 2: Xur

When Xur, Agent of the Nine showed off his Exotic goods for Week 17 (Jan. 2 – 4), I was particularly surprised. His entire inventory was full of gear emblazoned with “The Dark Below”.

Odd. So did this mean that players of the original game sans DLC couldn’t buy any new gear from Xur? Or did Xur have a separate list of items for non-DLC players? Surely Bungie wouldn’t deny players access simply because they didn’t want to fork over $20.

Puzzled, I took to Reddit to find some answers. The truth was startling, but then again it wasn’t surprising. I’ve come to expect this kind of thing from Destiny; things like creating the illusion of progress through clever subterfuge.

According to multiple users who don’t have Destiny‘s first expansion pack (including a few of my PSN friends) Xur didn’t have a separate list available for them.

They simply weren’t able to buy anything from Xur with their Strange Coins.

If you don’t have the DLC you can’t buy any of his four available Exotics because they’re all specific to The Dark Below.

It’s interesting to note that if you don’t have The Dark Below you can in fact find expansion items out in the wild. You just can’t ever buy them from Xur, and this becomes a major problem with the weekly merchant is only selling DLC gear.

This didn’t come as a surprise to me. As someone who pays close attention to what Xur, Agent of the Nine has up for grabs every week, I noticed an interesting trend: the number of DLC-required Exotics had increased steadily on a week-by-week basis.

On Week 14, The Dark Below‘s launch week, Xur had approximately one DLC-specific item: the Ruin Wings Titan gauntlets. For Week 15 Xur had increased his DLC-required gear count two items: the Ruin Wings returned along with the Claws of Ahamkara.

In Week 16 there were only two expansion items, the Claws of Ahamkara and the interesting primary sniper rifle No Land Beyond. Keep in mind every added DLC item takes away an item slot from non-expansion players to buy, so for this week non-DLC players could only buy two items.

Week 17, however, jumped all the way up to four DLC exotics. Oddly enough Xur usually has five items up for grabs, but the Exotic gauntlet engram appears to have taken up an item slot.

So not only will players randomly be locked out of easily earning Strange Coins, they won’t even be able to spend the ones they already have.

Longtime Guardians know that apart from the Raid, Xur and Weeklies are basically all you have to do in the game.

With this Bungie has found a way to segregate its players into two groups, temporarily shutting off access to high-level content to gamers who opted not to buy the DLC.

This segregation is a lot like Destiny‘s platform exclusives, which awarded bonus content like Strikes and in-game gear to PlayStation gamers.

So on one hand we have a form of isolation that’s global, then another oppressive stance that locks content out for gamers on the Xbox platform. The DLC continued this awkward trend by incorporating an extra Strike mission for PlayStation owners.

Non-expansion Guardians will never know when they’re locked out. It’ll happen randomly, on rotation. You’ll never know when you’ll be discarded behind a paywall, spurned and pushed out simply because you didn’t want to shell out even more money on an overhyped, thinly veiled online experiment.

These means of exploitation, segregation and coercion are part of a pathetic scheme that only perverts the nature of money-grubbing in this industry of ours, and both Bungie and Activision need to be made aware that this isn’t acceptable.

By rotating an entire portion of players out of specific content, Bungie is clearly manipulating gamers into buying the expansion; a trend that will likely carry on as new DLC’s are released.

DLC Should be Optional, Not Obligatory

In one fell swoop Bungie has pretty much punished a portion of its own audience simply to push a $20 add-on. This is the kind of thing that needs to stop. It’s an abysmal practice, and honestly I can see many players simply giving up.

By doing this, Bungie and Activision have both made a clear point: that they care more about peddling their wares than they do about creating a long-lasting community.

Sure they do, they’re companies; this is an industry, of course. But the actual magic of gaming is being eroded by these practices, and if left unchecked, it’ll be these kinds of trends that ultimately ruin it altogether.

So what’s next? Where does it end?

Will the House of Wolves DLC do the same thing and rotate gamers out of the loop once again unless they buy the expansion? This sets a very grim tone for the future of Destiny, and if it continues, gamers are apt to wonder why they’re wasting their time.

So far Bungie has handled Destiny’s DLC in a rather exploitative manner, putting profits first and gamers second.

There’s a simple fix: give DLC and non-DLC owners separate playlists and separate Xur inventories. When Bungie released Halo maps back in the day, they had separate playlists for gamers who didn’t have the maps.

Those people could still play and participate in the same playlists even if they didn’t have the new content.

That’s the way DLC should be. It should be optional, not obligatory. It should be the player’s choice, made freely, without any coercion, pressure or manipulation. Are those days over? Have big-name companies finally stopped respecting the gamers who have built this billion-dollar industry?

Serious, dedicated Guardians have spent hundreds of hours of time grinding and trying to find the ultimate gear for their respective Hunters, Warlocks and Titans. Will their dedication wane and ultimately break under this kind of pressure? How much longer until Bungie pisses off the entirety of its constituency by doing things like this?

You don’t take away or lock people out of content to get them to buy DLC. You show them legitimate reasons why they should spend their money; $20 is, after all, a third of Destiny‘s original asking price which we all paid at the beginning.

Dedicated players like this high-level Warlock are actually quite common, as gamers have invested quite a bit of time into Destiny. But will this change as a result of unfair DLC practices?

Don’t manipulate us, and treat us like walking wallets: treat us with respect, make us want to buy it out of excitement rather than frustration to keep or participate in activities that are part of the original game to begin with.

It’s this reason (among many, many others) that Destiny is starting to feel less like a game, and more like a giant experiment to see what Activision/Bungie can and can’t get away with. And it’s shocking to see that they’re able to get away with this, considering just about everyone owns the DLC.

If we let this kind of thing go, we’ll likely see Season Passes pervade gaming even more than they already do.

Rather than being a way to introduce new interactive content to games, they’re being used instead to simply milk more money out of gamers’ wallets, while offering stale, watered-down content that actually draws away from the power of the game itself.

We’ve seen it with Destiny, and we’ll likely see it with more and more games. But if we, as gamers, stand up to these practices, it’ll be much harder for big companies to sucker us in.

In this state, DLC is a mockery of gamers as well as the industry, and is a clear example of something that needs to be completely overhauled.

The post Destiny's DLC Paywalls Are A Mockery, And They Need To Stop appeared first on VR World.

Something big happened yesterday.

Remember that iconic disc-spinning console that defined many of our teenage years? The one that you spent hundreds of hours smashing enemies with Knights of the Round in Final Fantasy VII, or mastering Bryan Fury’s 10-hit combos against your best friend in Tekken 3?

Remember battling demonic monstrosities in Castlevania: Symphony of the Night‘s inverted castle, or teaming up with a bud for some top-down dungeon crawling in the original Diablo?

Of course you do; how could you ever forget?

Well that gaming system turned 20 years old yesterday. Has it been that long already? My how time flies when you’re having fun.

To celebrate two decades of PlayStation gaming, Sony (NYSE: SNE) crafted a special PS4 to mark the occasion. The 20th Anniversary Edition PlayStation 4 mirrors the classic PlayStation’s color scheme perfectly, painted in the cool grey we know and love.

This new iteration is pictured with a PS4 console, a DualShock 4 controller, a PlayStation Camera and a stand, so we’re assuming that’s what is included in the set.

But the best detail of the retro-style PS4 is only spotted when you look up close. All across the console’s surface are hundreds squares, X’s, circles and triangles indented into its surface: the four-button medley that represents fun.

The DualShock 4 is also stylized to match the original superlight non-analog PlayStation controller and features an altered PS button colored in the logo’s instantly recognizable red-yellow-blue-turquoise scheme.

The touchpad also has the signature face buttons emblazoned upon its glossy surface.

According to the PS Blog there will be “very limited supplies” of the 20th Anniversary PS4’s, and taking a gander at the unboxing video above reveals there may be as little as 12,300 units available. Pricing hasn’t been revealed, but the default PS4 is $399 with the PS Camera

Pre-orders for the special edition PlayStation 4 will start Saturday, Dec. 6th, and specific details will be announced during the PlayStation Experience keynote in Las Vegas.

To give justice to 20 years of PlayStation, we have to take a journey through the annals of gaming history, beginning with the namesake console that started it all.

20 Years of Play: An Indomitable Legacy

On December 4, 1994 the PlayStation was launched in Japan. Over the next year it made its way to the rest of the world, ushering in a new era of entertainment to gamers everywhere.

Right from the start the PlayStation was a game changer. It could play CD’s, it was accessible, portable, and had a simplistic design–and I still remember using a converter chip to play Japanese imports like Dragon Ball GT: Final Bout on my system.

Over the next few years the console was armed with titles–CD-ROM discs no less!–that soon established the PlayStation as a titular icon of the fifth generation of console gaming.

Games and franchises like Final Fantasy VII, Crash Bandicoot, Tekken, Resident Evil, Gran Turismo and Metal Gear Solid were the walls that the house of PlayStation was built with, and all became immortal classics that are celebrated even to this day 20 years later. Right from the start Sony was on its game, and throughout the years it introduced a dazzling array of

Little did they know it at the time, but Sony had just helped build the foundations for modern gaming, starting a legacy that would last for decades.

PlayStation 2: The King of Sixth-Gen

On March 4, 2000 Sony unleashed its magnum opus: the PlayStation 2.

The PlayStation 2 was the powerhouse of the sixth generation of consoles, and remains the best-selling system of all time with an estimated 155 million units sold to date. The PS2’s popularity continued for almost 13 years, making it the longest-running console.

Part of the reason for the console’s success was its amazing functionality. The PS2 was backwards compatible with original PlayStation games, and apart from that it could play DVD’s as well as CD’s, making it into a combination gaming and multimedia system.

The main reason the PS2 excelled was its gaming library, which totals up to nearly 4,000 games to date.

The list of PS2 games is a mighty one: we had classics like Tekken Tag Tournament (still my favorite fighting game), Rockstar’s superhits Grand Theft Auto III, GTA: Vice City and the gangster crime parody GTA: San Andreas, the beloved fan-favorite Shadow of the Colossus and Dave Jaffe’s landmark platform exclusive God of War.

Other memorable games bring to mind the engaging and memorable J-RPG Final Fantasy X, the ultra-creepy bizarre horror hit Silent Hill II as well as Resident Evil 4 , Star Wars: Battlefront II, the lovable Disney mashup Kingdom Hearts, Metal Gear Solids 2 & 3 and a smattering of Gran Turismo racing games–among hundreds and hundreds of others.

These games were the culmination of many of our formative years of gaming, and for many of us it kindled our respective beloved genres. This was the era of true gaming magic, and will always be remembered fondly by millions of gamers.

Even today the PlayStation 2 is enjoyed by many a gamer, and you can pick one up over at GameStop for just $50.

PlayStation 3: Sony’s Stutter-Step

Coming off of the enormous success of the PlayStation 2, Sony tried to go bigger and better with the PS3, but the system saw a lackluster launch due to its high $499 – $599 price tag.

When the PS3 launched in November of 2006, gamers weren’t too keen on paying upwards of $500 for a gaming system. Even still there were many benefits to buying an early system, as first- and second-gen PS3’s could play select PS2 and PS1 games, which later iterations were only limited to PS3 games.

The PS3 can also play Blu-ray discs, and utilized the same format for its games, allowing more content to fit on a single disc. DVD’s and CD’s were also playable.

And it introduced a breakthrough new innovation called Remote Play, which linked the console to a handheld PlayStation Portable (as well as PS Vita) gaming system.

PlayStation Move was also refined to a fully-fledged interactive peripheral that mirrored a portion of the Wiimote’s functionality, allowing gamers to actually project virtual control across a number of games.

Despite its high asking cost the system ultimately paved the way for Sony’s unified online ecosystem, being the first console to implement and utilize Sony’s landmark online service: the PlayStation Network.

With PlayStation Plus, the PlayStation Network’s premium membership service, gamers were treated with exclusive free content, which over the  years became the juggernaut of amazing value we know today.

DLNA streaming allowed gamers to stream videos, pictures and music from other devices connected to their home network, effectively turning the console into an enhanced multimedia system. The PS3 also had an amazingly dynamic Xcross UI which made navigation a breeze.

But there were some stutters too. The console’s powerful Cell processor was incredibly intricate and complex, making it a nightmare for developers. Even still devs were able to craft some high-profile and memorable games for the PlayStation 3.

Notable PS3 games include The Last of Us, the Uncharted series, Metal Gear Solid 4, the Resistance franchise, Elder Scrolls, the BioShock series, Fallout 3, Demons Souls, Infamous games, Little Big Planet, Killzone titles, the Shadow of Colossus HD collection, Heavy Rain, Ratchet and Clank, God of War 3, and the superlative artistic indie Journey.

Even with Blu-ray playback and a host of exclusives and cross-plat titles, the PS3 was eclipsed by Microsoft’s (NASDAQ: MSFT) Xbox 360 in terms of sales and overall popularity.

The system was a stutter-stop for Sony, but it allowed the company to work out the kinks to pave the way to the PS4.

Thanks to a number of tweaks, iterations and price reductions, the PS3 remains very popular even a year into the current eight console gen. Although many new games are released on the PS3, there remains a huge back-catalog of yesteryear games for PS3 via PlayStation Plus’ free games per month, giving console owners plenty of titles to choose from.

PlayStation 4: Greatness is Here

The PlayStation 4 was released in November 2013 to much fanfare and acclaim across the gaming world, and quickly asserted itself as the dominant force in eighth console generation. Sony claimed its top-spot on the next-gen zenith and has remained there ever since.

The PS4 represents the culmination of 20 years of growth and momentum for Sony as well as the center of a dynamic ecosystem of devices and entertainment.

As far as hardware, Sony’s modern console is a powerhouse. Armed with a customized APU that combines graphics and a CPU, the system can deliver native 1080p resolution and consistent frame-rates thanks to its 8GB of unified GDDR5 RAM memory.

Developers benefit from the console’s computer-like x86 architecture, which essentially makes development much more friendly then the PS3’s messy infrastructure.

But power isn’t everything.

The PS4 sports a number of innovative exclusive features like Share Play, which allows you to stream or share control of a gaming session with a friend on PSN. Remote Play with the PlayStation Vita handheld returns in full force as well.

Sharing is another big aspect of the PlayStation 4, and with the press of a button gamers can easily share screenshots or custom video across Twitter, Facebook and now YouTube.

Media playback is there, but not in full force: DLNA is absent, but Blu-ray playback is in. Sony’s new update also introduced music playback via USB.

No console is worth its salt without games. Sony has dropped the ball when it comes to first-party exclusives, with titles like The Last of Us: Remastered and the launch game Killzone: Shadow Fall picking up the slack for the abysmal launch of Driveclub and the lackluster Infamous: Second Son. 

But Sony has found a way around this by included exclusive content within multi-platform games. Destiny is a prime example, as PlayStation owners get access to guns and in-game activities that are locked for Xbox owners until 2015.

Multi-platform games like Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, Dragon Age: Inquisition, Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, Far Cry 4, Grand Theft Auto V, Destiny and Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor prove to be big hits across the PS4 and all serve as great reasons to pick up the console.

Sony has some big exclusives in the pipeline, with a new Uncharted sequel underway along with a host of planned reveals for this weekend’s PlayStation Experience event in Las Vegas.

Then there’s Project Morpheus, the PS4-ready virtual reality headset. And Sony is also bringing live TV to PlayStation devices via PS Vue. The Japanese console-maker has huge plans for the console that revolve around the PS4 being the nexus for a webwork of entertainment solutions, from gaming to TV and media playback.

The PlayStation 4 has sold an estimated 13.5 million units to date and shows no signs of stopping, and there’s a good reason for that.

Conclusion

Over the last 20 years we’ve seen and peesonally experienced the evolution of the PlayStation brand, and it’s been a long winding adventure to say the least.

All of us are responsible for building the brand as much as Sony, and for the past 20 years gamers have been

The legacy of PlayStation is responsible for some of the most iconic games in the history of the industry, and served as the home for countless hours of enjoyment for millions of players. The classic PS1 era was wholly instrumental and defined a number of key genres by cementing distinct frameworks into place–many of which are still used even today.

It’s safe to say that the original PlayStation ultimately gave rise to the modern gaming console, bringing forth a new revolution in living room entertainment.

While the glory days for a lot of gamers took place during the PS2 era where microtransactions, DRM and DLC paywalls didn’t exist, the modern PlayStation age has its merits.

But reliving those age-old classics is an adventure in itself, and its something that Sony has tried to capture with HD remakes and backwards compatibility with the yet-to-be-finished PlayStation Now service.

So far nothing quite replaces old-school physical game libraries and the nostalgic thrill of firing up your old Final Fantasy VII saves from 1998 and taking on endgame bosses for the umpteenth time.

Sony will continue to form and evolve PlayStation as gaming and technology propel forward, and it’ll be interesting to see where the brand will take us in the next twenty years.

The post Celebrating 20 Years of PlayStation appeared first on VR World.

Here is the daily roundup from Japanese consumer tech and tech business websites for Nov. 26, 2014.

Lenovo Enterprise Solutions Center publicly opens

Lenovo Japan (HKG:0992) recently held a press conference and facility inspection for its newly opened Lenovo Enterprise Solutions Center. The opening ceremonies were completed yesterday, and the company began to lay out its business model for the newly opened facility at the event.

The opening of Lenovo Enterprise Solutions Center was hinted as early as mid-November, as the company announced the separate establishment of Lenovo Enterprise Solutions. This new business arm was planned to be Lenovo’s gateway to Japan’s PC server market, with the company offering various related business solutions, many of which were introduced in the press conference.

The Lenovo Enterprise Solutions Center will mainly function as a directory hub for the company’s IT service oriented business operations, as well as being a center for various tech seminars and training workshops.

Japan looks at 30% decrease in PC sales according to research

A recent research business analysis by the Japan Electronics and Information Technology Industries Association (JEITA) has been revealed that domestic PC shipments in Japan have decreased by about 30% since last year.

The general figures were derived from the number of PCs distributed in the country last month. At just about 632,000 units during the month of October, the numbers were just about 66.1% of the number of units shipped last year during the same month. The figures were further divided into desktop PCs and notebook PCs, both having 186,000 and 446,000 units shipped respectively.

As for sales figures, the numbers have specifically shown a 29.2% decrease over the last assessment period. The total amount recorded for October for all PCs was about $460 million.

West JR to offer free Wi-Fi

Starting December, limited express line Haruka will now be offering free Wi-Fi services, according to an announcement made by West Japan Railway Company (JR).

The project will be the first time for the company, and will be a collaborative effort between UQ Communications, and Wire and Wireless Co. Ltd. While Wi-Fi connections have been a standard service in most developed cities worldwide, this project has a particular focus on providing foreign customers with an easy-to-access internet hotspot. Passengers may simply access the feature by connecting to the train’s network and entering a guest code.

West JR plans to complete equipping all 63 railroad cars within the limited express line with Wi-Fi networks as early as July next year.

The post Lenovo Center, PC sales decrease, Train Wi-Fi: The Headlines in Tokyo for Nov. 26 appeared first on VR World.

Sony (NYSE: SNE) and Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) have a very big problem with digital downloading on their next-gen consoles.

Both the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One suffer from some of the most ill-designed handling of digital content in any generation of gaming, making what was once a convenient feature into a troublesome waiting game.

Instead of being straightforward and streamlined, downloading a full game on next-gen systems is awkward, clunky and utilizes some very nasty underhanded tactics. Often gamers are surprised mid-game by having their session interrupted because their download hasn’t finished, or spend hours upon hours staring at a barely moving progress bar on a home screen.

First let’s take a look at how the PlayStation 4 handles digital downloads.

Play as you download: Crutch or convenience?

Usually PS4 games will be bigger than Xbox One games — Dragon Age: Inquisition clocks in at 44.28 GB on PS4 and 41GB on Xbox One — and as we all know, a bigger game means more waiting. The sheer size of next-gen games like Wolfenstein: The New Order‘s 51GB’s is the main reason to stay away from digital, as you’ll be spending a lot of time waiting for the downloads to complete.

There’s nothing more frustrating than spending the same amount of money and then having to wait half a day to play your game.

It’s also important to remember that having an ultra-fast internet connection doesn’t always translate to super-fast downloads.

Digital games are hosted on Sony’s PlayStation Network servers, which control the maximum bandwidth — that is the transfer rates of the downloads themselves — capping your download speeds by default. So in essence your speed does come into play, but it can’t top the designated cap set by Sony’s servers.

In my experience the PlayStation Network is quite bad. The downloads have taken needlessly long -- Wolfenstein, for example, took most of a day and a night to complete — and it’s something that will vary from person-to-person, but all-in-all Sony doesn’t have a very optimized network environment.

The main problem with the PS4’s digital downloads isn’t the speeds, however: it’s the play-as-you-download feature.

Play-as-you-download was meant to be a huge innovation for digital gamers. But as we’ve seen in the past, Sony’s big ideas are often handled badly in terms of actual execution, and this is certain the case here. The big frustration is that the PS4 only shows you the minimum required download to play as soon as possible–in other words, it shows you how little you need to download in order to jump right in the game.

But it doesn’t tell you the actual full download size.

Instead of being upfront and just informing gamers that there’s about 40GB left to go, it lets you jump right in and start playing. Little do you know that you only have about 10% or so of the game on your console; it tricks you into thinking the full game is ready to go.

Shortly enough you’ll be met with an error prompt that interrupts your game by informing you that the game isn’t done downloading. Huh. So you check the Notifications–> Downloads section, but there’s nothing there.

This is where things get really underhanded. You actually have to navigate to the main PS4 menu and check Settings –> Application Saved Data Management –> and then check the game in the listing. Only then will you see what you’ve actually downloaded.

So not only does the PS4 make you believe you’ve got the full game by letting you play, but it doesn’t even tell you how much you’ve downloaded. You have to prod through menus and search in tedious trial-and-error methods just to get the information you want.

Why can’t the PS4 just tell you both the play-as-you-download install as well as the full game install? Why do gamers have to jump through hoops? Oddly enough the new system update patches haven’t addressed this at all, and it still is a sort of “hidden” feature that irks gamers.

The physical install speeds are incredibly fast. You only need to stick the disc in and you’ll be playing in no less than 3 minutes or so — sometimes it takes as little as one minute — with the full game zipped right onto your hard-drive. No hassle, no mess, just gaming.

The post The Problem With Digital Downloads on the Xbox One And PS4 appeared first on VR World.

Zynga (NASDAQ:ZNGA) has recently published its third quarter 2014 financial report, and the results are bleak. The game developer’s losses are widening, amid change in consumer preference toward mobile games rather than browser-based ones.

For the quarter ended September 30th, 2014, Zynga reported a loss of $57.1 million, a stark difference from the $68,000 loss reported in the same period last year. Loss per share for Q3 2014 was $0.06 per share, widening from the $0.01 per share loss in the same period the previous year. The company actually beat analyst expectations for revenue, with $176.6 million compared to the expected $171.7 million. Quarterly revenue fell 13% compared to Q3 2013, however.

According to CEO Don Mattrick, the company has been focusing on improving its mobile bookings — sales of in-game items and mobile ad impressions. In fact, this has increased 10% sequentially in Q3 2014, and such mobile bookings make up 55% of the total across the company’s browser- and mobile-based assets. The company expects total bookings for the year to be between $695 to $725 million — a figure adjusted down from an initial estimate of $770 to $810 million.

However, Zynga is still struggling in maintaining its user base. The number of daily active users shrank 13% year-on-year to 26 million, down from 30 million in 2013 and 60 million in 2012, when the company’s share value peaked on high hopes of launching another hit game series like Farmville.

Zynga also released updates to its game titles in September, which it says has contributed to the decline in popularity, given user difficulty in adjusting to new user interfaces, as well as non-support for some older mobile devices. With this in mind, Mattrick says the company will need to “We need to  improve our execution in terms of product quality and audience growth,” he said during investor guidance.

So far, Zynga has launched a new version of Poker and Words With Friends, as well as new title NFL Showdown. The company has also introduced Looney Tunes Dash into select markets and plans a wider release during the year. Even with these efforts, however, the former hit-maker has yet to find another means to revitalize its business. While Zynga had been the star of the show on social networks in its heyday, the struggle today is finding its niche — and another hit — amid the rise of mobile devices as the best platform for reaching out to a wide audience. Analysts believe the stock is a risky proposition, given the company’s mounting losses and challenges.

Feature image credit: 360b / Shutterstock.com

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