Author name: Rejus Almole

It’s nice to have the lights off when you’re watching a movie at night, but it’s frustrating when you can’t see the buttons on your remote. Thankfully, the Lazelight Mini LED Remote Control Light offers a solution to that. The Lazelight is a small device that attaches to the remote control using its magnetic stick plate. The light comes on automatically when the LED panel swivels into position. The small light elevates above the remote, providing ample light so that you can see the buttons clearly, no matter how dark the surroundings may be. The battery is also rechargeable via micro USB. A single charge can last for weeks at a time, depending on how often the light is used. Another feature of the device is that it glows in the dark with the aid of the luminous strips on its sides which will help you easily find an attached remote or item in the dark. This mini torch also suits everyday carry for lighting up devices and dark spaces anywhere.

Experience your very own augmented reality with the DreamGlass Air Private AR Screen. Totally portable and practical, this incredible system provides you with a stunning 100-inch 2.5K screen to dive into your content. Lasting five hours on a full charge, DreamGlass Air is like having your own private movie theater that you can watch at any angle. It’s also compatible with all the most popular devices including PS4, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, iPhone, Android smartphones, PC, Mac, and so much more. Plus, it delivers high-definition, immersive content complete with vivid colors and exceptional detail. Compact and comfortable, DreamGlass Air keeps your hands totally free. Never again will you have to crane your neck or lose feeling in your arms while you prop up your smartphone. This all comes with zero latency for high-quality content. In addition to the wireless design, you can also plug and play via HDMI or USB-C. From using at home to while you’re traveling, DreamGlass Air provides an impressive 90° field of view.

Hello, and welcome back to Patch Notes! As always I grab a few bits of news from the past week and discuss them. This week we’ve got Borderlands 3, a mini-meltdown from Randy Pitchford and Valve’s brand new VR unit that will not just break your bank, but also leave it crying in a small heap.

Borderlands 3 Is Real!
Borderlands 3 officially exists! The gameplay event reveal happened this week and so we got our first official look at third game in one of my favourite franchises. To be honest, not much as actually changed but I feel like that’s a good thing. Its keeping true to its roots by focusing on the glorious, juicy loot! Normally I’d want a little more change and innovation, but quite frankly I’m happy with a visual upgrade, new classes and loads more guns.

Still, there are some tweaks to the formula. Alternate fire modes for weapons, for example, opens up a bunch of fun possibilities. And now in co-op everyone will get their own loot, finally stopping arguments over who gets the nice gun that just dropped.

Oh, and one of the new characters is an Irishman called Zane. That’s me sold right there.

Anyway, check out some gameplay from Eurogamer below.

Borderlands 3 Microtransaction Confusion
Right, now for some Borderlands 3 confusion. During the gameplay reveal event this past Wednesday Randy Pitchford clearly stated that it, ” “won’t have microtransactions” or “microtransaction-y, free-to-play junk.” It was also confirmed that there would be plenty of skins and heads for customizing the characters. This got a nice cheer from the audience. However, Creative director Paul Sage told Game Informer during an interview that, “We’re selling cosmetic items, but we’re not going to nickel and dime players,”

Right. Bit of confusion there, but no big deal. I mean, it sucks donkey bollox that there will be microtransactions but…

No, wait, here comes an angry Randy Pitchford. After Game Informer put out a simple Tweet stating, “Despite Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford’s comment about ‘no microtransactions’ in Borderlands 3 during today’s livestream, we’ve been told cosmetic items are still purchasable” Gearbox’s Randy Pitchford proceeded to chastise Game Informer. He replied to the Tweet by saying: “Come on guys – shitty clickbait headline. Literally seconds before I said that, I made it very clear we’re going to do more cosmetic stuff like we did in Borderlands 2. You know I was talking about premium currency and loot boxes kind of stuff NOT being in our game. ”

Pitchford continued his rant, Tweeting ” Why you guys would fuck me on this is beyond me… thanks a lot. ” To be clear, Game Informer’s headline simply read, “There won’t be loot boxes in Borderlands 3.”

Things got dumber, though. A Twitter user by the name of Dan Sapossnek replied to Pitchford by saying, “You said no micro transactions. Paying small sums of money for cosmetics is micro transactions. You lied. Not having loot boxes is a big plus, but be honest in how you’re monetizing a game that already costs $60.” This angered Pitchford further who replied to Dan and Game Informer by saying, “See @gameinformer – this is what your fuckwitted tweet is doing! Please correct your bullshit. This user believes and has called me a liar because of your incomplete context click bait bullshit here. You are better than this.”

Since then there have been loads more Tweets and heated words from Pitchford. Game Informer themselves have even stepped into the conversation and to their credit have remained calm. They correctly point out that nowhere did they claim Pitchford had lied nor do they say anything negative. They simply reported the facts to clarify the situation for everyone.

Pitchford, though, was still pissed off. He has attempted to claim that Game Informer took what he said completely out of context and that by publishing something saying that there would be no microtransactions (which were his words) they had confused people.

So, let’s examine exactly what he said. ” “we’re gonna do some kickass campaign DLC, and I’m sure we’re going to do all kinds of fun customizations like heads and skins. But we’re not doing any of that free-to-play junk. There’s not going to be any microtransactions, there’s not going to be any of that nonsense.” To me, what he said was quite clear: there will be downloadable campaign content, presumably paid-for, and there are going to be heads and skins. And no microtransactions. In this I believe Game Informers article was spot-on. They initially reported that there would be no microtransactions based upon Pitchford’s words, then later clarified things. Meanwhile, Pitchford seems to believe that Borderlands 3’s cosmetics are not microtransactions and that things like loot boxes do not come under the heading of microtransactions.

Pitchford has had problems with the media in the past, especially in regards to Aliens: Colonial Marines. He was accused of blatantly lying about aspects of that game. And over the years he’s proven volatile, quickly angering at even the smallest things. This just seems to be another example of that. Game Informer did what their job requires of them – they reported on something they deemed interesting, and then later published information which clarified Pitchford’s statement. They didn’t paint Pitchford or Gearbox in a negative light or even offer an opinion on the matter. Randy Pitchford, though, attacked them regardless.

Valve’s New VR Headset

So, it seems that while VR sales aren’t as high as I’d personally like Valve seem to think there’s still plenty of opportunity there. This week they announced their brand new Index VR system which retails at a whopping £919 for the whole thing. Apparently despite the epic price pre-orders were sold out within 30-minutes in the US.

So surely for nearly a £1000 this should be the next step in VR? Well, no. Not really. Things like eye tracking and being wireless are true steps toward the next generation of headsets. The new Oculus Rift S, for example, doesn’t need external sensor stations.

What exactly does the Index offer, then? For starters there are two LCD screens providing 1440×1600 resolution per eye. According to Valve these custom LCD screens will provide 50% more subpixels than OLED and thus is intended to combat the screen-door effect which is when players can discern pixels due to how close their eyes are to the screens. A 140Hz refresh rate should help give the Index a smooth feeling which is vital in VR. Comparatively the new Oculus Rift S is running at 80Hz.

Oddly Valve have so far not confirmed the field of view that the Index will sport. What they have said is that it will be 20% greater than that of the Vive which has a FOV of 110-degrees.

The front of the headset has two front-facing cameras that allow you to see the real-world while wearing the headset. This opens the door for augmented reality uses, and if nothing else means you’ll be able to grab something off your table with floundering around like a moron.

There’s also new controllers which are worn instead of just held. Because of that you can properly open up your hands with 87 sensors per controller tracking the movements. During hands-on time with the headset people reported getting to play Aperture Hand Labs where they were able to shake a robots hand and even open a letter by pinching the tab. These new controllers could definitely allow for a much greater sense of immersion.

Finally, there are the new basestations which will offer a wider tracking range and a general increase in accuracy.

Now let’s chat about the pricing. £919 is the cost for the complete package, but there are cheaper options if you already own a Vive or Vive Pro. You can pick up the Index headset and controllers for £689, or pay £459 for the headset. Grabbing the controllers on their own costs £259. This is because both the controllers and the headset are fully compatible with existing Vive and Vive Pros. The Index’s basestations, though, are not backwards compatible.

Right, so what do we think of this? Well, personally I don’t think the Index is offering a true next-gen VR experience, rather its a refinement of what we have right now. Provided everything is as Valve claims then the Index should take the spot as the number one VR headset available in terms of pure quality and performance. But man, that pricetag is one hell of a barrier for entry. As amazing as the Index sounds I don’t think I could justify upgrading from my Oculus Rift. It’s certainly not a price likely to bring in VR noobs, either, rather the Index seems to be aimed at people who already own a VR headset, are sold on the idea and now want the best version possible.

My weekend has been filled with violence courtesy of my little niece who firmly believes that beating up her uncle is the greatest thing in the world. Man, five-year-old little girls can seriously do some damage. Jeez.

This week I chucked out my review for Close to the Sun, an intriguing game set in an alternate timeline where Nikola Tesla has become the richest man in the world. With all that wealth he constructed a huge ship called the Helios and then packed it with the greatest minds in the world. Of course, things go wrong, people die and we get to explore the ship in order to find out what went wrong.

All said and done I really enjoyed Close to the Sun, but the ending left me feeling entirely unsatisfied and the tension that was so well concocted early on fizzled out. Go check out my review for the rest of my thoughts.

I also put out another Patch Notes, this time talking about Randy Pitchford having a small meltdown and Valve’s brand new VR headset.

So I’ve been putting some time into Days Gone and so far I’d have to say it’s pretty damn good, though the opening couple of hours don’t do it any favours. But what I wanted to talk about here is what’s up with the bikes? Or my exactly, why is everybody on bikes and why are they all choppers? I mean, I’m totally on-board with having a bike in a zombie apocalypse, but a chopper is the worst choice possible. They’re clumsy, hard to move around and suck for off-roading. Yet everyone is riding them, with not a dirt-bike in sight. Weirder is how the roads are littered with cars and especially chunky 4x4s that would be superb for mowing down Freakers. Why does nobody drive those as well? I don’t think the game ever tries to explain it, either. Huh.

My Mortal Kombat 11 review should be up in the next few days, so I won’t say too much about it. I’ve actually had to re-write a chunk of the review due to some of the recent updates, which is a good thing because the game has been improved.

I’d also recommend checking out Kasual to Kompetitive, a handy guide to the game that you can find below. There’s a series of these videos, and once you’ve watched this one you should go and look at their combo guide.

Obviously last week Game of Thrones aired the third episode in the final season. Its fair to say that opinions were somewhat divided. I’m going to offer up some quick thoughts on it, so be warned we’re going into spoiler territory.

First, let’s tackle the Night King himself. I agree with the general feeling that after 8 seasons of build it was a shame to see him go out so…quickly. I’m not upset about Jon Snow not fighting him head-on, though. While it would have been cool to see, it wasn’t something I assumed would happen. Plus, we don’t even know if the Night King was any good with a blade. We never saw him fight, and he seemed disinterested in doing so. He shrugged off Jon’s challenge earlier in the episode, after all. He may never have had to properly fight one-on-one. He has no reason to.

With that said, Arya was a bit of a surprise, but a welcome one in my eyes. I like how they used the episode to remind of us of her various skills. I really enjoyed the library sequence and how she was shown to be so quiet that it was a drop of blood that eventually gave her away. The callback to her to move against Brienne from last season was also superb, and I liked that she snuck up on Jon in the exact same place the episode prior.

But man, the Night King needs to get himself some better bodyguards. The white walker generals kind of suck. At everything. Not only do we never see them do anything, they failed to protect their master from the small blur of a girl.

Speaking of useless, what the fuck Bran. Just…man, you’re useless.

A lot of people are unhappy with the idea of Cersei and the battle for the throne being the final boss fight in Game of Thrones, assuming that the Night King story is actually over. I think I’m okay with it because I had always figured that the battle for the throne would probably be the finale. Game of Thrones, at least the TV show, has always been about two storylines: winter coming, and political backstabbing. Realistically, the threat of the walkers had to be dealt with first. Although I have to admit that having the North tackle Cersei first then trying to hold off the Night King with a shattered army would have been cool.

As for the rest of the episode, I did notice that a lot of people found it too dark. It’s a valid complaint, I reckon, but personally the darkness worked for me. I loved that you couldn’t see the undead until they were right on top of people. It gave the battle a horror tinge.

I also thought they did a fantastic job of taking a 90-minute battle and keeping it interesting. They constantly changed the pace up, from chaotic war to character moments to creepy sections and sombre sequences. The entire piano and slow motion sequence toward the end sent chills down my spine.

In the midst of all that chaos, though, it was a bit strange that none of the major characters died. I think Game of Thrones has fundamentally changed since the show caught up with the books. One of the defining aspects of the books and show, to me, was that characters would die in believable ways. If they made poor decisions in the game (of thrones) or found themselves in tough situations it usually resulted in death. But since diverging from the books it feels like characters are able to get away with a lot more. Jon Snow and co. being surrounded in the middle of the lake from last season is a prime example. In earlier Game of Thrones at least a few of the big characters in that episode would have died. But thanks to Gendry being a champion runner they pulled through with only one minor death. Going back to The Long Night we had multiple characters being completely surrounded or inept yet surviving. Sam is a character I love, but he should have gotten killed several times over. Likewise, we saw Brienne, Jaime and Podrick all being squashed by dozens of walkers but by time we come back to them they’re fine again.

And then, of course, we have the strange Dothraki charge. I’m still not sure why they were at the front, or why the catapults were also right on the front line and did practically nothing. It seems like the Dothraki were sacrifices or something, though, because none of them appeared to be wielding dragonglass weapons that I could see. Maybe we’ll get some sort of crazy explanation this week as to why they all went charging off to their deaths. But man, at least the scene with all the fiery swords going out was awesome.

Fighting games are like some sort of detox. After playing game after game where I’m living a power fantasy playing a fighting game can be a slap to the face, a reminder that I’m not as good as I think. One on one there are no excuses. Failure needs to be owned. Lessons must be learned. Inventive swear words must fill the air like so many angry, foul-mouthed bees. And my favourite fighting game series in history is Mortal Kombat. I’ve been playing them since Mortal Kombat 2, and now we’re up to the 11th numbered game in the series. For a while things were rough, but then NetherRealm made an epic comeback in 2011. Since then, Mortal Kombat has been better than ever. But Mortal Kombat 11…well, it’s a little trickier.

The Story & Characters
The story mode is lavishly made with detailed cutscenes, awesome fight sequences and even some strong voice acting in places, provided you don’t count the awkwardness that is Ronda Rousey voicing Sonya Blade. We open with Raiden having gone off the deep end. Determined to keep Earth Realm safe he’s now willing to go to any lengths to achieve that. Unhappy with the way things have gone a character by the name of Kronika pops up and starts messing with the timeline. Suddenly earlier versions of the Mortal Kombat cast start popping up. Young, cocky Johnny Cage is interact acting with his older, wiser self. Cassie Cage has to deal with meeting the earlier versions of her parents. It’s prime material for some klassic Mortal Kombat cheesiness.

Platforms: PC, Xbox One, PS4

Reviewed On: Xbox One X

Developer: NetherRealm

Publisher: Warner Bros.

Do be warned, though; if you can’t help but nit-pick stories then Mortal Kombat 11 might just drive you crazy. The thing that typically bothered me the most is how both heroes and villains would knock their deadly opponent’s out and then just leave them there. In a game that features incredibly violent killing animations, loads of blood and more violence than an average Saturday night in Glasgow it’s strange that so many lethal threats are left alive.

In short, there are a lot of plot holes involving the time -travelling shenanigans, but the story is surprisingly good fun. The only real complication is that keeping track of the Mortal Kombat timelines requires a college degree. This is the second sequel to the 2011 Mortal Kombat which served as a reboot for the series. Mortal Kombat X bumped the storyline along 25-years, thus introducing characters like Cassie Cage, the daughter of Johnny Cage and Sonya Blade. Throw in time travel and lots of references to prior games and you’ve got one confusing mixture.

Time travel also gives the developers an excuse to mix up their character roster. Old classics make a most welcome return, such as Sub-Zero, Scorpion, Noob Saibot, Liu Kang and Johnny Cage. Then there are the newer members like Cassie Cage and Erron Black. Finally, there are a selection of characters introduced in Mortal Kombat 11. There’s Geras, the hulking servant of Kronika, and Citrion, the daughter of Kronika who can wield the elements. It’s a good mix of characters, and the roster will only get expanded. But with that said, holding Shao Kahn back as a pre-order bonus was a dick move.

Fighting Mechanics & Changes
Look, I’m no expert at fighting games so this isn’t going to be a review that approaches the combat from a technical perspective. This is just going to be from the view of someone who likes punching virtual opponents in the face. On the surface this is still the typical Mortal Kombat experience where you dial combos and special moves and watch the blood fly. Hits feel impactful, the controls are responsive and the game looks fantastic.

Probably the most obvious change is that running has been ditched entirely, so the intense rushing of Mortal Kombat 10 is thankfully gone. Instead, its back to dashing, though players have already found an insane method using dashing that lets them hop across the screen in seconds. Despite the intense on-screen violence the pace actually feels more thoughtful and methodic.

Then there’s the inclusion of Krushing Blows, painful slow-motion moves that show of your opponent’s bones and organs being decimated. Every character has access to a few of these, but the way they’re triggered varies. Sometimes they need to be used as a counter, for example. Each one can only be used once in a fight, so to get the most out of them you need to vary attacks. I like these, because at first I didn’t even think about them and only occasionally hit one by accident, but over time knowing how and when to use them became more important.

Perhaps the most divisive tweak to the way fights play out are Fatal Blows. When your health is low a quick pull of both triggers activates a Fatal Blow, which is basically a super attack animation complete with spikes going through eyeballs, ice-axes being driven into chests and so much more gloriously over-the-top forms of violence. They’re fun the first time around, but after that the lengthy animations disrupt the flow of a fight and each character only has a single Fatal Blow animation. They can also just feel like a cheap way of balancing out fights, so that someone getting hammered can suddenly pull of an immensely damaging move. However, the wind up for a Fatal Blow does give the opponent a good amount of time to block. Plus, a Fatal Blow can only be used once per fight.

I have to say, though, that Fatal Blows in the story mode are hilarious. In the opening scenes you play as Cassie Cage and must battle her mother Sonya Blade to prove she is capable of leading a squad. Mid-way through the fight I activate Fatal Blow and suddenly loving daughter Cassie Cage proceeds to break Sonya’s jaw, put a bullet through each of her knees and then finish up with several rounds into her gut. Then the match ends and both people act like all they had was a demonstration bout. Only in Mortal Kombat.