My Hero Academia is my favorite new anime. There's not much I don't like about the show, which made me excited to play its first video game adaptation to make its way to North America. Unfortunately, I didn't have much fun playing it.
The hands-on demo had nine playable characters available: All Might, Shoto Todoroki, Izuku Midoriya, Katsuki Bakugo, Ochaco Uraraka, Tomura Shigaraki, Stain, Dabi, and Himiko Toga. I played as Himiko Toga just because I think she is weird as hell. There were six stages available: Gran Torino Residence, U.A. High School Building, U.A. High School Classroom, The Beast's Forest (Day), Hosu City Urban District (Day), and Hosu City Alleway. I went with Gran Torino Residence, because I liked the idea of fighting in someone's home.
You can take two characters with you as back up. The hero and villain mix doesn't matter so I took All Might and Stain with me. The first game I thought of while playing was Power Stone, which may be an exciting comparison for some, but I tired of the combat pretty quickly. The hits lacked a profound sense of impact, which is a big shortcoming considering many of the characters in My Hero Academia will put all of their strength into a single blow. The characters were also too floaty, which didn't feel great mechanically, and is also at odds with the characters. Seeing Shoto Todoroki float a little bit as he moved in for a hit looked weird because that character doesn't fly.
There were some things I liked, like the ability to run along walls, and when you hit someone hard enough, they will slam headfirst into a wall and their legs will awkwardly stick out for a few moments. Maybe more time with My Hero One's Justice will show more depth in the combat, but my initial impressions left me wanting more.

Mavericks is the next game to compete in the very competitive Battle Royale genre. It is talking a big game, and in some cases, even calling out what will likely be its direct competitor, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds.
The developer, Automaton Games, is made up of folks who have worked on games like Killzone, APB, and Wipeout among a few other impressive titles. It started out its presentation detailing some of the things it hopes will set Mavericks apart from the competition. It promised different weather effects in the environments, like snow and rain, and said it has the technical capabilities to go as high as 400 players in a match. Automaton Games also wants, long-term, to have 1,000 players broken into a collection of five-person teams. The area of play for the battle royale mode will take place on a 10 x 10 km area (as opposed to PUBG’s 6 x 6 km area), and that will only be a portion of its planned larger 16 x 16 km playable area. Basically, Automaton Games is making an MMO shooter that will have missions taking place in this large area and battle royale will just be one mode present in the larger game.
Players will impact the map as they play. One of the small examples Automaton Games offered was when you change bandages out to heal, your old bandages will be discarded on the ground. This way, other players will know someone has been there, and they’re injured. Bullet shell casings will also litter the ground, along with footprints, blood trails, and used med kits. You will also see animals in the world minding their own business.
The environment is also be destructible, with the ability to fire through thin walls, blow down doors with grenades, or even shoot the locks off of doors. You can also quietly pick those locks, too.
An area called The Capital will act as a safe hub where players will be able to collect quests, buy things in shops, or engage in player to player interaction. Automaton Games has a whole story premise for the world in place occurring after a World War III. People compete in the battle royale for a kind of limited immortality, but we didn’t get more details than that.
Automaton Games talked a big game with its long-term plans for Mavericks, and it is undeniably ambitious. It’s more MMO (or maybe Destiny would be the better comparison) than you might think, considering much of the talk surrounding the game has been related to its battle royale mode. After the presentation, we did get a chance to go hands-on with a very early version of the game.
Its built using CryEngine, so it looks sharp. The trailer released during the PC Gamer Show (seen above) uses the game’s engine, but all the animation and choreography is custom. It started raining during our demo, which looked cool, and I used a bandage and saw that I did leave behind a bandage on the ground. The destructibility was also in place, and I was able to shoot through the walls inside a random house, and shoot up into the ceiling to expose the attic. In theory, if someone is hiding upstairs and you can hear them, you will be able to shoot them from below. It had its hiccups in this early build of the game, and there was no option to go prone, but on its shooter merits (there wasn’t much opportunity to explore the larger open world) it felt pretty good.
Mavericks will enter closed beta in August <(a href="https://mavericks.gg/closed-beta">you can sign up for it here), and you can sign up for it now. In late 2018 the battle royale mode will be available, and next year Automaton Games is hoping to integrate its plans for the persistent open world, ongoing player-driven narrative, as well as player choices that will affect the larger world.
I admire Mavericks: Proving Grounds’ ambition. Automaton Games wants to make a massive shared shooter world where people can experience an ongoing narrative and level up their character while participating in battle royale. The promised tech is impressive, but it’s impossible to say if it will be able to deliver. It’s a game I will definitely be watching to see if it is able to live up to its potential.
[Editor's note: I previously listed the developer as Improbable, but the developer is actually Automaton Games. Improbable is developing the game's SpatialOS platform, the tech that makes it all work.]

The Tomb Raider reboot has been about building up Lara Croft from a determined but inexperienced explorer to the hero we know today. During our E3 demo of Shadow of the Tomb Raider, we got to play her as a full-on predator, culminating in a chilling scene that shows her confronting – and dismissing – any remaining fears or lingering insecurities.
Unlike , which featured a gunfight that didn’t end until either Lara or her Trinity adversaries were dead, today’s demo was more flexible. It’s set in a Peruvian jungle, with multiple routes and paths to explore. Lara moves through a dirt trail, as a radio crackles to live with a warning that “Croft is heading to your location.” She climbs a tree, and sees a trio of enemies below her. Jumping down and taking them out with her knife would be a dangerously stupid thing to attempt, so I draw my bow and fire a new fear arrow into the neck of the closest goon.
The projectile hits its mark with a satisfying “Thwack!” and the victim looks around. He begins firing wildly at his comrades, clearly under its spell, taking them both out. A few seconds later, his panic turns to distress as he finally succumbs to the poison and hits the ground dead. It’s reminiscent of the berserk darts and similar toxins from the Assassin’s Creed games, but that familiarity doesn’t make the effects any less enjoyable. Ahead, I use the same tactic to eliminate a cluster of four enemies. The fear arrows are a limited resource, and they’re also not effective on armored enemies, so I take advantage while I can.
Lara is agile as ever, and climbing trees and getting the drop on enemies remains a solid approach. When a Trinity soldier gets too close to me on a patrol, I use a stealth kill that has Lara fire a rope arrow at him, drop from the tree, and string him up. I’m doing so well that I start to get a little cocky; I try to deactivate a generator while a guard is coming back, and he notices me – even though I stopped by a puddle a bit earlier and covered myself in mud.
The fighters are aggressive and relentless. I try to juke their attacks, but it’s hard to avoid bullets with fancy footwork alone. I do manage to scramble away and backtrack to a vine-covered wall, where I can hide in its greenery. It’s enough to fool the guards into thinking I’m gone for good. That was a mistake. I find a gas can in an elevated spot, and throw it on the ground near several guards. They react the same way they do when I chuck bottles at them: firing blindly at the sound. It’s a fatal error, as their shots detonate the container and the explosion clears out the stragglers.
Lara radios for her friend Jonah, and hears an unfamiliar voice. Jonah’s dead, the voice taunts, and his body can be found in the refinery. “I’m coming for you,” she replies.
Lara moves past a gate, and the jungle gives way to a dustrial setting. Steel drums and vehicles are scattered along the path, which leads to the refinery. She’s midway across a bridge when a spotlight blasts on face, mounted on a helicopter. Stealth is no longer an option. An army of Trinity thugs open fire, and an extended platforming sequence begins. We’ve all seen the basic elements here before – collapsing catwalks, rails that bend and swing when grabbed, and death-defying leaps – but the graphical fidelity and effects from the now-flaming refinery keep it exciting.
The demo ends with Lara falling into the water, and her body is limp as it sinks. A montage of audio memories plays; people from her past and Lara herself doubt her resolve. But she refuses to give in. Her eyes open, and she slowly rises from the water, standing tall as walls of flame flicker behind her. A wounded guard is on the dock, and Lara methodically bears down on him, knife ready. It’s a powerful moment, and the screen cuts to black before we see how it ends. I can only imagine it’s not going to be good for him, for Trinity, and possibly for Lara herself. 
Look for Shadow of the Tomb Raider on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC on Sept.  14.

From Eurogamer: "My legs are still aching, but what an amazing weekend I've just had. I'm just back from Pokémon Go's first big live event of the summer, in Dortmund, Germany, where a Safari Zone full of ludicrously generous Pokémon spawns attracted hundreds of thousands of players - some of whom had travelled from all over the world."

Amazon has discounted For Honor Deluxe Edition, South Park: The Fractured but Whole, Steep, Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Wildlands Deluxe Edition and Watch Dogs 2 Gold Edition at up to 70% off on Xbox One.

Imagine a game which changes every day with you, a game which grows as you play it, and most importantly you become a part of it. Dota 2 is one such game with fascinating challenges and amazing gameplay.

Red Candle Games made minor waves with last year's release of Detention, a set in 1960s Taiwan. Now, the studio is sticking with Taiwan but jumping ahead a couple decades for its new game, Devotion.
A short teaser shows distorted '80s game show imagery, blazing out of a TV in an otherwise empty apartment. Red Candle has promised that players will explore the apartment's many haunted nooks and crannies and solve puzzles to progress the game. 
Devotion doesn't have a release window or supported platforms announced yet, but the previous title by the studio came out on Switch, PS4, and PC.

E3 2018 had much of the wind taken out of it sails thanks to numerous leaks, with Walmart Canadas being the most impactful, ahead of the conference. While multiple major titles were unearthed prematurely by the retailer, some notable inclusions in the leak remained unseen at the conference. Now, Amazon Italy is asking for pre-orders for some unannounced games that includes Bloodborne 2, Sunset Overdrive 2 and even a brand new Splinter Cell.

Some high profile, unannounced games have popped up on Amazon Italy.

E3 2018 had much of the wind taken out of it sails thanks to numerous leaks, with Walmart Canadas being the most impactful, ahead of the conference. While multiple major titles were unearthed prematurely by the retailer, some notable inclusions in the leak remained unseen at the conference. Now, Amazon Italy is asking for pre-orders for some unannounced games that includes Bloodborne 2, Sunset Overdrive 2 and even a brand new Splinter Cell.