For anyone who don’t know what “E3” stands for, the answer is “Electronic Entertainment Expo.” It is a convention for “electronic entertainment” like video games. Although the words “Electronic” and “Entertainment” are broad words, that can apply to any kind of industry, the strong focus of E3 is Video Games. E3 is owned by both a company and organization. “ESA” stands for “Entertainment Software Association,” and it’s a non-profit organization that promotes and advocates for Video Games. ESRB was formed in April 1994 as Interactive Digital Software Association (IDSA), and then renamed as ESRB (Entertainment Software Rating Board) in 2003 after the controversy of games like Mortal Kombat (1992), Night Trap (1992), Doom (1993), and other violent or sexual games. Congress forced the video game industry to create a “ratings board” or they’ll step in and create one themselves, IDSA was the result.
E3 has been a popular games convention since its inception. However, since 2008, ESA and E3 has been experimenting with business models for the convention after backlash from game companies about downsizing the event. 2020’s pandemic threw ESA and E3 for a loop. ESA was scrambling to restructure the event to a digital event. As if that wasn’t enough, there was a data leak in August 2019.
Recently, insiders revealed on Twitter that ESA has been e-mailing journalists, youtubers, or other media influencers, in addition to publishers, and event sponsors about a possible E32022, it was decided that, ultimately… nobody wanted to take the risk of allocating funds, scheduling time, and/or planning events around E32022. ESA was originally planning a in-person event, along with a digital event. However, it was decided that in-person event was not going to happen, and following that determination… ESA completely …completely canceled E32022. Their official excuse is the following…
E3 will return in 2023 with a reinvigorated showcase that celebrates new and exciting video games and industry innovations.
We previously announced that E3 would not be held in person in 2022 due to the ongoing health risks surrounding COVID-19. Today, we announce that there will also be no digital E3 showcase in 2022.
Instead, we will devote all our energy and resources to delivering a revitalized physical and digital E3 experience next summer. Whether enjoyed from the show floor or your favorite devices, the 2023 showcase will bring the community, media, and industry back together in an all-new format and interactive experience.
We look forward to presenting E3 to fans around the world live from Los Angeles in 2023.
Sony launched PlayStation Network in 2006 as a supplemental online service for PlayStation 3. Shortly afterwards, Sony launched PlayStation Plus in 2010 as a supplemental online subscription service for PlayStation 3. Sony acquired Gaikai in 2012, shortly thereafter, Sony re-introduced Gaikai as “PlayStation Now” at CES 2014, which was (and still is) Sony’s cloud streaming service. Microsoft launched Xbox Game Pass in 2017, but re-introduced Xbox Game Pass in a new update that included xCloud streaming style in 2020. In 2019, Microsoft merged Game Pass and Xbox Live Gold into a single subscription package – Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. Sony is doing the same with the new PlayStation Plus tiers…
Sony Interactive Entertainment re-introduced PlayStation Plus with new tiers that allows for access to cloud-based streams or downloads. The current PlayStation Plus system still exists, but will be called differently than previously.
Provides the same benefits that PlayStation Plus members are getting today, such as:
Two monthly downloadable games
Exclusive discounts
Cloud storage for saved games
Online multiplayer access
There are no changes for existing PlayStation Plus members in this tier.
Price* for PlayStation Plus Essential remains the same as the current price for PlayStation Plus.
United States
$9.99 monthly / $24.99 quarterly / $59.99 yearly
Europe
€8.99 monthly / €24.99 quarterly / €59.99 yearly
United Kingdom
£6.99 monthly / £19.99 quarterly / £49.99 yearly
Japan
¥850 monthly / ¥2,150 quarterly / ¥5,143 yearly
PlayStation Plus Essential is the current system we have with “PlayStation Plus.” The following new tiers are new, and will use the pre-existing PlayStation Now service to bring value to the ecosystem.
The other 2 tiers are as follows…
PlayStation Plus Extra
Benefits
Provides all the benefits from the Essential tier
Adds a catalog of up to 400* of the most enjoyable PS4 and PS5 games – including blockbuster hits from our PlayStation Studios catalog and third-party partners. Games in the Extra tier are downloadable for play.
Price*
United States
$14.99 monthly / $39.99 quarterly / $99.99 yearly
Europe
€13.99 monthly / €39.99 quarterly / €99.99 yearly
United Kingdom
£10.99 monthly / £31.99 quarterly / £83.99 yearly
Japan
¥1,300 monthly / ¥3,600 quarterly / ¥8,600 yearly
PlayStation Plus Premium**
Benefits
Provides all the benefits from Essential and Extra tiers
Adds up to 340* additional games, including:
PS3 games available via cloud streaming
A catalog of beloved classic games available in both streaming and download options from the original PlayStation, PS2 and PSP generations
Offers cloud streaming access for original PlayStation, PS2, PSP and PS4 games offered in the Extra and Premium tiers in markets** where PlayStation Now is currently available. Customers can stream games using PS4 and PS5 consoles, and PC.***
Time-limited game trials will also be offered in this tier, so customers can try select games before they buy.
PlayStation Plus Deluxe (Select Markets) For markets without cloud streaming, PlayStation Plus Deluxe will be offered at a lower price compared to Premium, and includes a catalog of beloved classic games from the original PlayStation, PS2 and PSP generations to download and play, along with time-limited game trials. Benefits from Essential and Extra tiers are also included. Local pricing will vary by market.
The new subscription tiers will launch in June, though, the launch plans are in phases, according to Sony…
As this is a massive launch effort, we’re rolling out the new PlayStation Plus offering in a phased regional approach. In the June timeframe, we’ll begin with an initial launch in several markets in Asia, followed by North America, Europe and the rest of the world where PlayStation Plus is offered. We aim to have most PlayStation Network territories live with our new PlayStation Plus game subscription service by the end of the first half of 2022. We also plan to expand our cloud streaming benefit to additional markets, and will provide more details at a later date.
Activision delayed Season Two until February 14, 2022. By now, Season Two was released, and now we are currently experiencing Season Two Reloaded…
Activision and Sledgehammer Games released a new gameplay trailer for Call of Duty: Vanguard’s and Warzone’s Season Two Reloaded. To learn what is included in Season Two Reloaded – Activision posted a blog post about the update, and a guide.
New Weapon, Modes, Map Updates and More Locked in for Season Two Reloaded
Season Two Reloaded for Call of Duty: Vanguard and Warzone is set to reinforce the fight. From a new mode featuring vehicular combat to Rebirth Island’s biggest update since its launch, Operators may need to call for backup even with all of Task Force Yeti on the scene… and as the smoke clears, you may even find the OG known for going under “deep cover” Snoop Dogg.
The action will begin in both games following two updates: one for Vanguard at 9 AM PT on March 22, and one for Warzone at 9 AM PT March 23.
Here is the gameplay trailer for Call of Duty: Vanguard and Warzone’s Season Two Reloaded…
If you’d like to learn more about the new Season Two Reloaded update, Raven Software posted patch notes for the new update. Season Two Reloaded is available now.
Sega and Paramount released Sonic The Hedgehog in 2020. Sonic The Hedgehog (The Movie} was successful enough to have garnered $319.7 Million at the box office. It was so successful, Sega and Paramount agreed to do a new sequel to the first film. In December 2021, SEGA and Paramount started promoting Sonic 2, and then, on December 9, 2021 – they released the official reveal trailer for Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (The Movie)…
On March 14, 2022 – Sega and Paramount released the final trailer for Sonic The Hedgehog 2 (The Movie)…
Sega and Paramount Pictures is set to release Sonic The Hedgehog 2 on April 8, 2022 in theatres, and Dolby Cinema.
It has been a while since Capcom last announced a new game. Capcom launched a countdown on February 13, 2022, which counted down to coincide with the Capcom Pro Tour’s 2021 Season Final. The announcement featured two game reveals. One is a fighting compilation that is arriving to most current and next generation consoles…
The first announcement is a game called “Capcom Fighting Collection,” which is coming to PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC. The compilation comes with the following games…
– Darkstalkers – Night Warriors – Vampire Savior – Vampire Hunter 2 – Vampire Savior 2 – Red Earth / War-Zard – Cyberbots – Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo – Hyper Street Fighter II – Super Gem Fighter MiniMix
Along with the announcement, Capcom released a trailer for the game…
Capcom Fighting Collection will be released on June 24, 2022. The second announcement was shrouded in controversy, because it’s more of a teaser than it is anything else. Street Fighter 6 was announced, but no more information was released. Capcom says they’ll reveal more in the Summer. Here is the teaser trailer that was unveiled during Capcom Pro Tour 2021 season final…
It has been a while since Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (reboot/2019) released. The Modern Warfare reboot was released on October 25, 2019, to incredible acclaim from fans, critics, and prospective customers. It sold 30 Million copies worldwide, Infinity Ward recently confirmed. Warzone has a larger fanbase of 70 Million players installed. On February 11, 2022 – Activision briefly announced small nuggets of Call of Duty 2022 and Warzone 2 information. That’s not all…
A selected group of content creators were invited to a roundtable discussion with staff at Infinity Ward. Pat Kelly hosted the call with content creators, and some folks from Infinity Ward, and Raven Software were available to answer some questions after a speech done by Patrick.
Infinity Ward confirmed that Call of Duty 2022 is in fact the sequel to Modern Warfare (2019).
No firm release date was confirmed for Call of Duty 2022, but the developers said it’d arrive in Fall 2022.
Call of Duty 2022 is built on an entirely new engine that developers has been working on for years.
Infinity Ward’s intention with Call of Duty 2022 and the next iteration of Warzone is to improve players’ experience.
The next iteration of Warzone is being developed in tandem with Call of Duty 2022.
According to the developers, Warzone was never intended to go beyond the first update. It was always intended to be a “one-off” project, kinda like BlackOut.
The developers said that Warzone was in a broken state, so with that in mind, they developed Warzone 2 to work seamlessly with Call of Duty 2022.
Kelly said that Warzone 2 will have some Battle Royale disruption(s), and innovations. Kelly boasted that Warzone is a “massive evolution of Battle Royale.” He took it further, and elaborated that Call of Duty 2022 and/or Warzone will feature a “incredibly ambitious sandbox mode.”
If you like audio, or video, PrestigeIsKey did a recap of the whole call, and Q&A session…
It has been a while since Nintendo did their full, long-form Nintendo Direct. On February 8, 2022 – Nintendo revealed that they are hosting a roughly 40-minute livestream to talk about what they’re going to release for Nintendo Switch in the late half of 2022. Not much is known, but the livestream will go live in the afternoon of February 9, 2022. By the time you read this, it’ll be live. So, go watch the new Nintendo Direct now…
Tune in on February 9, 2022 for a 40-minute Nintendo Direct livestream focused mainly on Nintendo Switch games being released the first half of 2022. The livestream starts at 2:00pm PST/5:00pm EST.
After the release of Call of Duty: Vanguard and Warzone Season One, players were stumped with how poorly released Season One was. They took to Social Media to speak about their displeasure about the update. Developers were on holiday break, but all hell broke loose during Christmas break. So much in fact, the developers returned to work inundated with complaints from the community. In time, they fixed the issues with patch updates. And even delayed Season Two until February 14, 2022.
To coincide with the blog post, Activision released a new cinematic video to YouTube to hype up the release of Season Two of Call of Duty: Vanguard & Warzone…
Activison opened their blog post with a major announcement: Season Two is the season of Armored Machines. So, you’ll be able to use vehicles in certain parts of the new Season Two update. Motorcycles, tanks, armored trucks, and so on….
Get Ready for Armored War Machines
Tilted on its Axis, the world is once again threatened by this resurging nefarious power, one hell-bent on choking the life out of the Allies.
On Caldera, Captain Butcher and company uncover Axis intel on something called “Nebula V.” Among these documents, Butcher not only discovers reported locations of this chemical weapon around the island…
…but also a stockpile of it, located in a hidden stronghold thousands of meters above sea level in the Swiss Alps.
Forming another team in Task Force Yeti —consisting of a trio of alpine warfare and close-quarters combat experts — Butcher invades the Axis hideout to eradicate stragglers and recover more Nebula V for Allied research.
As the squad corner a surviving commander, however, they soon find out just how devastating this weapon can be if released into the world…
Activision further clarified that Season Two will be released on Valentine’s Day (February 14, 2022) and will feature various fixes, quality of life improvements, and other new features…
This is Season Two of Call of Duty: Vanguard and Warzone, where armored war machines and chemical weapons bring global conflict to a new level.
The latest season of free and additional content within Call of Duty: Vanguard and Warzone will see its first full day of action on February 14, following updates to Vanguard and Warzone. These updates will be available to download at 9 AM PT on February 10 for Vanguard and at 9 AM on February 14 for Warzone, after which both updates become live. Once both updates are downloaded, you can enjoy Double XP opportunities across both games to celebrate the launch of this new season.
These updates will include various fixes, quality of life updates, and other features that all studios worked on in the lead-up to Season Two. Such improvements will be similar to those leading up to this new season: a recent Vanguard update addressed low visibility issues due to smoke and fire, along with nerfs to shotguns like the Double Barrel (when Akimboed). And as promised, you can expect communications across all lead studios addressing exact changes coming with this update in the week ahead.
In addition to patch notes from Sledgehammer Games and Raven Software, a special broadcast from Treyarch and the Call of Duty League, and other blogs on the Call of Duty website to come over the next few days and weeks, this is what you need to know – for now – about Season Two of Vanguard and Warzone.
Furthermore, the update has new features, weapons, modes, etc….
New Features: Nebula V, Redeploy Balloons, and More. Nebula V Ammo and Bombs create new offensive tactics, while Portable Decontamination Stations offer temporary refuge. Alternatively, take to the skies with Redeploy Balloons and Bomber planes.
Explore the Chemical Factory and underground Chemical Weapon Research Labs, Watch for Armored Transport. Fresh points of interest in Caldera are here to shake up those rotations. Axis soldiers patrol these new areas and are found around the island in vehicles…Defeat them for powerful rewards.
Caldera Clash at Launch, Rebirth Reinforced Midseason. The massive team fight returns — rank up those weapons and fight for Caldera outside of traditional modes. Meanwhile, there are rumors of a resurgence at Rebirth Island…and we’re not talking about the game mode.
Season Two will also feature updates to Warzone…
Outside of traditional Battle Royale and Plunder modes, Season Two will feature two limited-time experiences built by High Moon Studios and Beenox:
Caldera Clash — Level Up and Conquer Major Areas in This Team Deathmatch Twist
Developed by High Moon Studios, Caldera Clash pits two teams of up to 48 Operators (divided into Quads) in a Deathmatch with wild events and power-ups.
An evolution of Clash on Verdansk ’84 — and Warzone Rumble before it — Caldera Clash allows Operators to drop in with their Custom Loadout, which can have any weapons from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare to Vanguard, and a Field Upgrade. Each kill earns their team a point, with the first team to reach a set number of points, or the team that has the most points when the time limit expires, claiming victory for their massive faction.
This mode features three power-ups, Contracts, Buy Stations, the Domination Capture and High Value Target events, and other features from the original Clash, as well as two new events: Double Point zones and Bonus Point crates. These can help a team come back from a kill deficit or run away with victory, but with dozens of Operators per side, the name of the game is keeping that kill-to-death ratio above 1.0.
Rebirth Iron Trials — Prove Your Presence Later This Season
Developed by Beenox based on Raven Software’s Iron Trials ’84, Rebirth Iron Trials is a Battle Royale variant custom-made for highly competitive players.
Featuring its own set of weaponry (from Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War) and numerous rule changes to increase time-to-kill (TTK), this mode is built for the most hardcore members of our community. However, players of all skill levels who want a change of pace within Warzone should participate!
Those who can’t wait to learn more about this mode needn’t worry: this is a Duos mode — 20 squads of 2, for 40 Operators total — and uses a similar Circle Collapse size and speed. You can read up on the Iron Trials rule set, as well as strategies for surviving match, here.
Claim victory and receive a unique Animated Calling Card, a true sign of mastery over the Iron Trials.
Expect more information to come later this month when these Iron Trials are expected to begin in Warzone.
Activision made a follow up post, further confirming the three operators coming from Task Force Yeti…
Deep in the Swiss Alps, Captain Butcher and the three members of Task Force Yeti—Anna Drake, Thomas Bolt, and Gustavo dos Santos—assault a German stronghold in search of a shipment known to them only as Nebula V. He has chosen these elite alpine warriors for their unmatched courage and tenacity along with their intimate knowledge of the difficult terrain.
Deploying in Season Two of Call of Duty: Vanguard and Call of Duty: Warzone, Anna Drake, Thomas Bolt, and Gustavo dos Santos are perfectly suited for the task at hand. Now let’s get to know the cast of Special Operations Task Force 007: Yeti.
As I was writing this article, the gameplay trailer for Season Two was released….
Microsoft shocked the Video Games industry with a blockbuster announcement that they’ve acquired Activision Blizzard, makers of franchises like Call of Duty, Diablo, and World of Warcraft, etc. On January 31, 2022 – Sony responded with an acquisition of their own…
Sony Interactive Entertainment and Bungie jointly announced that they’ve agreed to a transaction for Sony to outright acquire Bungie, Inc. The deal is currently pending approval(s) from Bungie shareholders, investors, and the government. Hermen Hulst, head of PlayStation said that Bungie is an independent company, and will remain “hands-off” with decision-making. Sony is just offering more funding for Bungie’s projects, whether it is Destiny, or Destiny 2, or games currently in development, or future games. They also said that Bungie’s current or future titles will continue to be multi-platform…
The transaction between SIE and Bungie is valued at $3.6 Billion. Sony doesn’t have a First Person Shooter studio or franchise, and this move fills a void where Sony is able to design a First Person Shooter. Microsoft acquired Bungie, to design the Halo franchise, which has made $5 Billion for Microsoft since Halo’s inception on the original Xbox console. Bungie also has expertise in server infrastructure, and microtransaction(s), so this move is a perfect fit for what Sony wants to do in the years to come.
It has been a while since Crytek announced the Crysis Remaster. Crytek then announced the other Crysis Remasters: Crysis 2 Remastered, and Crysis 3 Remastered. On January 26, 2022 – Crytek’s C.E.O., Avni Yerli took to their Crytek blog to announce the 4th installment in the Crysis franchise. They embedded a video to the blog to hype the announcement of Crysis 4. They say it’s a working title, but I think they’ll keep to the naming convention. No release date known, no console known, and they said they’ll update us as they have more to share…
