Assassin’s Creed entries are perhaps most identifiable by their respective settings, so we’ll start there first. AC Origins is set in Egypt just before the turn of the first Century. Alexandria was still the trade capital of the world, and known figures were reigning, making this a ripe time and place for an AC game. Before Exploring Origins’ depiction of Egpyt itself though, let’s reminisce on the brilliant traversal used to get from point A to point B.

Just like many open world games, you have a mount to travel long distances with. Except with Origins, you get a wide variety of mount types, from camels to unicorns and even … a chocobo?!? Yes, you can ride a chocobo in AC Origins. The mount controls feel natural and intuitive with automatic movement in the direction you aim, freeing you up to examine the environment and initiate mounted combat. Camels are best suited for combat while horses have better stamina and speed for long-distance journeys. Like Breath of the Wild, the mount seeks roads automatically without the game fighting your control away. Of course, the main character Bayek is no slouch himself, with a tight turn radius and snappy run-and-jump controls that feel breezy.

Exploring Egypt in Assassin’s Creed Origins is a sublime treat, not only because of the intuitive and snappy controls, but the environments. AC Origins may have the most beautifully diverse environment out of all the games in the storied franchise to date. There’s the obvious deserts and pyramids you’d expect from the Egyptian setting, and they’re recreated with stunning realism in AC Origins. But then, there’s the Nile River and its surrounding swamps and jungles, which are filled to the gills with crocodiles and other native species. The density of animals and how they’re portrayed is brilliant in AC Origins. Flocks of flamingos scatter away realistically as you approach them, and vultures characteristically circle their prey. Seriously, this is the Assassin’s Creed game to experience if you want diverse African wildlife; it’s got it in spades. Heck, you can even tame the wildlife, using lions and hippos to temporarily fight for you; how fricken’ cool is that?

The cities of Thebes, Memphis, and Alexandria are no less jaw-dropping than the surrounding wildlife. AC Origins retains that classic density that the series is known for as you brush dense crowds aside on your way to a tall building begging to be lept off of. The realization of Egypt was so well executed in Origins that a Discovery tour mode was added serving as a guided tour of various key locations detailing their potential stories. Discovery Tour is a master class on how you do interactive learning. This mode lets you control a wide selection of NPCs as you walk through the locations and listen to narrations in a safe environment. Entries can be re-read in the archives. Discovery Tour would later be used for AC Odyssey and AC Vahalla.

And then there’s the thing that made AC Origins really stand out from previous entries: the eagle. You use your eagle friend, Senu, for aerial reconnaissance in AC Origins. When I first saw this mechanic being shown off in previews, I thought it would make the game too easy, essentially giving us even more superhuman abilities as an assassin, but the execution works out splendidly. As you return to Bayek’s perspective, you see enemy outlines and routes through buildings and obstacles. The top-down ‘preview’ of the terrain, via your eagle, provides an element of memorization and strategy that past games in the series didn’t quite have. The extra reconnaissance tools at your disposal in Origins are similar to the high-tech gadgetry available to you in games like Splinter Cell or Deus Ex. You can pre-plan assassinations and ambushes using the eagle’s lay of the land in a more comprehensive way than ever before, making you feel like a tactical mastermind. Far from destroying the sense of difficulty, this literal eagle vision is balanced well with the more involved action combat that Origins introduced.

Bayek is something of a Renaissance man when it comes to combat style. There are four types of bows, from the shotgun-style Warrior Bows to the long-range Predator Bow, and there’s an even wider variety of melee weapons. The DPS stat is the most reliable way to tell how good a weapon is, but there’s many other parameters like reach and status ailments that you want to keep an eye on too. It’s a blast to create your own unique build in Assassin’s Creed Origins, something you could never do until this entry in the series. Want to be a close-range shotgunner with a long spear for range attacks? Or, does a sniper with duel swords sound more pleasing to you? You can also ignore builds entirely and just focus on skilled shield blocking and parrying to get through the game; the choice is yours.

While AC Origins wasn’t technically the first game in the series to have a skill tree, it is the first to fully flesh the skill tree out among its various weapon categories. Unity and Syndicate gave you skill points as you progressed the main story, but Origins followed a more traditional action game approach with skill points being rewarded based on experience gain. The RPG-ification of the series really started with Origins, for good and ill; and Origins did it best with its wide selection of weapon styles, balanced experience point gain, and fleshed-out skill tree.

Of course, you can still opt to play a pure assassin in AC Origins, only striking from the shadows with your hidden blade using Senu for reconnaissance. I had the most fun combat-wise when using Senu’s intel to devise stealth routes as I took out unsuspecting enemies and exited the scene undetected. But you can just as well go guns blazing as a bersker without any stealth whatsoever if you so wish. Origins balanced old-school stealth and action combat well, remaining unrivaled in its fusion of styles to this day.

Assassin’s Creed Origins exists as the true nexus point for the series, retaining much of what made the genre so loved (stealth) while injecting action RPG mechanics that the series would go on to live by. The next entry would abuse the existence of experience points and upgradable stats by aggressively gating content behind a heavy grind wall, clearly pressuring players to either pay for levels or grind side content. This stat-gating would continue with Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, with some major difficulty curves mandating further exploration of the map and/or purchase of level-up DLC. But Origins hit a good balance with a smooth experience rate and a campaign that wasn’t gated by artificially padded enemies. Assassin’s Creed Origins hit the sweet spot between stealth and action RPG elements really well, and we’re hoping the series returns back to this brilliant balance of styles with the upcoming Assassin’s Creed Shadows.

Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, GamingBolt as an organization.

Released in September 2020 for PS4, Xbox One and PC before coming to Xbox Series X/S and PS5 in March 2021, Marvel’s Avengers faced scrutiny for its combat, numerous bugs, poor design choices, monetization and much more. It would receive free updates, including new heroes like Hawkeye and Black Panther, but failed to make an impact.

Such was its poor performance that it and Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy reportedly resulted in $200 million in losses for Square Enix in two years. The latter would sell Crystal Dynamics and Eidos Montreal to the Embracer Group, with the end of support announced shortly after.

Check out our initial review of the game here. You can also read up on its final major patch, which unlocked the Marketplace and provided permanent bonuses to XP.

https://twitter.com/PlayAvengers/status/1707726954265276518

Pre-ordering the game seems to grant The Child of Two Worlds Pack, providing a character cosmetic set and weapon skin. When pre-orders go live remains to be seen, but Ubisoft may be setting things up ahead of an announcement at E3 2023. The publisher has confirmed its presence at the show with a “strong line-up” promised.

Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora is coming to Xbox Series X/S, PS5 and PC. It’s been in production for at least five years, with Massive working with Lightstorm Entertainment (James Cameron’s studio) to bring a “new part of Pandora” to life. Despite rumors last year about the game being in rough shape, Ubisoft is internally expecting it and Assassin’s Creed Mirage to sell “incredibly well.” Stay tuned for more updates in the meantime.

https://twitter.com/ScriptLeaksR6/status/1638355106021228544

When the announcement for Stadia’s closure was made, Google said it would continue to offer its cloud streaming technology to third parties, however, as reported by Axios’ Stephen Totilo on Twitter, it turns out Google has put an end to that as well.

What this means for the future of Google’s cloud streaming plans for games remains to be seen, but it’s become abundantly clear – not that it wasn’t clear already – that the Stadia experiment has unequivocally failed, nearly on all fronts.

Something not in my story but that may clear up some confusion:

Google is not offering its Stadia-style game-streaming to clients. While it had offered that for some business deals (like steaming a Batman game to AT&T 5G users), that's endedhttps://t.co/KYBErYfiv8

— Stephen Totilo (@stephentotilo) March 8, 2023

Dani’s playstyle is all about meeting zombies head-on and dealing massive damage. Bloodlust grants her health after quickly slaying multiple zombies, and Thunderstruck causes her Heavy Attacks to generate a forceful explosion. Jacob is more about hitting quickly and dealing more damage with time. Feral provides a minor damage boost that stacks when attacking continuously.

Critical Gains moderately boosts Critical Damage when his Stamina is low and causes Critical hits to regenerate Stamina. Finally, Amy specializes in throwing weapons and fighting one-on-one. Relief Pitcher grants Stamina after a successful weapon throw on a zombie, and Divide and Conquer grants a small damage boost against isolated zombies.

Dead Island 2 is out on April 28th for Xbox One, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC. Head here for some more extensive gameplay.

Having released the update, Google has updated its help pages for the Stadia Controller with details on how players can pair the controller with a PC through the use of Bluetooth. According to the official website, the update will be available to users until December 31.

The Stadia Controller’s Bluetooth mode comes with a few caveats, however. Since it uses Bluetooth Low Energy mode for its connections, its 3.5mm audio jack doesn’t allow for pass-through audio wirelessly. On the other hand, the controller allows for remapping the Google Assistant and Capture buttons.

Google announced the update for the Stadia Controller just last week. Google Stadia is slated to go offline today at 11:59pm PT. When announcing the closure, the company announced that everyone who had made a Stadia purchase would be refunded.

While those who bought games on Stadia are set to get complete refunds on any games they may have purchased, several studios are offering ways for players to get their progression and save data from Stadia on to other platforms.

Destiny 2 players, for example, can enable cross-save and link their account from another platform with Destiny 2 to get their progression transferred. Ubisoft, on the other hand, is offering free copies of its games on PC.

Google Stadia’s shutdown was announced back in September 2022. Unfortunately, the platform’s closure was considered to be a long time coming owing to a lack of faith in Google brought on by the company shutting down first-party studios following a poor launch that had trouble getting more users on to the platform.

It’s also planning cost reduction to the tune of $200 million, which includes “natural attrition” and “divesting of non-core assets.” In the midst of all this, Skull and Bones, which faced delays for years and years, has been delayed again. Though Ubisoft mentioned an “upcoming beta phase,” it also noted the title would release in “early 2023-24.”

It seems to indicate a release sometime between April 1st, 2023, to March 31st, 2024, much like Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora. Skull and Bones was announced to release last year in November before being delayed to March 10th. It has a history of development troubles and a reported development budget of $120 million (as of July 2021, so it could be even higher now). Time will tell when, if ever, it could release.

Uhh…. Skull & Bones delayed again, it seems. Ubisoft mentions "upcoming beta phase," adding "Skull and Bones will now be released early 2023-24."

— Stephen Totilo (@stephentotilo) January 11, 2023

In a new preview, GamesRadar spoke to creative director Magnus Jansén, who revealed that the project has been in production for at least five years. “The time has been spent building a brand new part of Pandora and creating the tools needed to bring it to life on the latest generation of console and PC hardware.” The process involved working with Lightstorm Entertainment, James Cameron’s production company.

“At the heart of this effort is Snowdrop – our game engine. When we first met with Lightstorm (the James Cameron-led production company), Snowdrop showed our partners that we were willing to push the envelope of technology, just like they do in the films. It was and still is the key foundation of our ongoing collaboration.”

Throughout the process, Ubisoft Massive has been learning from Lightstorm and Disney. Along with soaring through the sky, players explore the jungles of Western Pandora, a “living and reactive play space.” Along with your character’s progression, you’ll track the time and weather while also taking on the RDA.

Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora is out sometime between April 1st, 2023, and March 31st, 2024, for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC. Reports indicated that development was in “rough shape,” which presumably led to a delay. More recently, Ubisoft Massive has been hiring monetization specialists for its projects. Head here for more details.

Retaliation provides a moderate force boost when Ryan blocks or dodges an attack. Seesaw will regenerate some of his health every time a zombie gets knocked down. These two skills combine to provide a tanky play style, which goes well with his stubbornness.

Dead Island 2 is out on April 28th for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and PC (via the Epic Games Store). Set in Los Angeles and San Francisco following a zombie outbreak, players must fight for their lives to survive. It’s not an open-world game, though. For more details on what to expect, check out our feature here.