Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 has released details on its upcoming multiplayer modes. The game is set to release with 16 launch maps pitting the Rogue Black Ops and Crimson One Factions with the various Operators, or characters, that can be selected. Contests will take place across 6v6 modes of Team Deathmatch, Domination, Search and Destroy, Kill Confirmed, Hardpoint, Headquarters, Kill Order, and Control. There's also the 8 player Free for All where it's every man for themselves and the 2v2 Gunfight mode that eliminates respawns. In addition to the standard modes we also have alternate "Face Off" 6v6 modes for Domination, Team Deathmatch, Kill Order, and Kill Confirmed. Then there is the "Hardcore mode" that enables a limited HUD, friendly fire, and significantly lowered health. 

In addition to the actual game modes, Black Ops 6 provides new and returning players with a Training Course and Firing Range to hone your skills, get accustomed to the new "Omnimovement" innovations, and test out the various gun types. Show off your highlights in Theater Mode, swapping perspectives on replays and capturing your clutch kills, but only in next-gen consoles like PS5 and Xbox One.  

For more multiplayer details, including the maps and operators themselves, check out the official blog. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 launches More news is expected to drop later this week with details on the Zombies mode, weapons, gear, and level progression. Black Ops 6 releases October 25th for PS5/PS4, Xbox One/Series X|S, and PC.

Mecha BREAK is not out yet, but the team at Amazing Seasun Games are already working on new features that will be added to the game at launch and beyond. The multiplayer mech shooter sees squads of three or six players compete in battle royale-style combat, either on the ground or in the air. You’ll be able to fully customize your pilot and mech, from cosmetics to weapon loadouts, with several classes of mech including assault, melee, sniper, recon, and support.

Some of the new features revealed today include additional customization options for both pilots and mechs, explorable space stations with a hangar to view your mech, a tactical command center, private living quarters for your pilot, a bar, a gym, and a shooting range to hone your pilot’s aim outside of the mech. Yes, that apparently means that the studio is working on a game mode (or modes) where the pilot can exit the mech suit, which is dope, and since we don’t have a new Titanfall, maybe Mecha BREAK can fill that void for us.

Mecha Break is scheduled to launch in 2025 for PC and consoles.

One of the year’s best games, Astro Bot, is not quite done yet, with developer Team Asobi announcing today plans to bring five speedrun levels to the game over the coming weeks. The first level, called Building Speed, will be released on October 17^th, with a new level releasing each subsequent week. Each of the five speedrun levels will also add two new special bots for you to rescue, including the Helldivers and Eve from Stellar Blade.

The speedrun challenges were a big hit in 2020’s Astros Playroom, so it’s nice to see them bringing them back. Of course, the best part is that these will be free content updates for Astro Bot. Here is the weekly release schedule, with each drop happening at 9:00AM Eastern Time:

• Oct 17: Building Speed  
• Oct 24: Let it Slide 
• Oct 31: Spring-loaded Run 
• Nov 7: Helium Heights 
• Nov 14: Rising Heat

In the land of PS5 pros, and video cards being released like candy, The Arcade Crew still believes in old school graphics, and old school gaming. No big dragons, or realistic playing fields. You don't have to have the best TV in the world. They're just good at taking a classic feel, or ideal, and making it into a game. Their latest seems like their imagination and Windows 95 had a PC baby. And it's called MainFrames.

Your character's name is Floppy, and you're trying to make it in the digital world. In order to do that, you must traverse through this side scrolling adventure through, you guessed it, other windows. Daemons (no spell check, Eric) are trying to keep you from doing that, putting obstacles in your path. Go meet some other friends, and find your purpose, all while going through another platforming clinic. 

I say that, because the demo starts you off pretty light. You can jump, spin and wall bounce, as platformers go. The game then tells you that you can click on windows and move them to where you need them to be. Later, you can click on windows, to make them change from floors to walls, and even ceilings. Or, nothing at all, so you can navigate through. The platforming is a little easy. Figuring out which window does what is the tricky part, for your clicks also reveal jump boosters, and sometimes crimson colored stage hazards. 

All this is wrapped around the narrators of the game, who are going back and forth on how to present this game to you. They've removed all the talking, and context, because they just want you to play it. When the demo ends, and your brain is mush, then they tell you that that was the demo, goodbye. Your save file goes away, and you get to wishlist it. I had a whole bunch of computer puns for this article, but the game toward the end warped my fragile little hard drive. If you don't want to spoil it for yourself, then don't watch the video below, as I went through the entire thing. You can watch as I short circuit toward the end, if you're a masochist. Otherwise, go grab it now, and boot it up. (There it is.)

After being teased for the past few weeks, 2K has announced that they have released a version of WWE 2K24, titled the Bray Wyatt Edition. This comes with the new version of "The Fiend", Bray Wyatt's final vision of the character before he passed away. This pack also sold separately, includes Bo Dallas as Uncle Howdy, an updated version of the already in game superstar. In addition, you get the Fiend championship belt, the Firefly Funhouse manager card, and 15,000 VC.

Here's the breakdown of pricing.

If you don't already own the game, you can get the Bray Wyatt pack, all the DLC superstars, with their my faction cards, the 40 years of Wrestlemania version, the fast track unlock from the showcase of the immortals, the Nightmare Family pack, and 67,000 VC, it's going to run you $140. This is not bad considering all the stuff from the deluxe edition, including the season pass, and the VC.

Option 2 for if you don't already own the game, you can get it, and the Bray Wyatt pack with 32,000 VC, and nothing else, for $80. So base game, and this package. That's it. 

If you have the game, and just want to add the Bray Wyatt pack regardless of what edition you purchased, that comes with 15000 VC, and it's $10, which is fantastic in my opinion. 

My Faction also gets an update, which includes persona cards of CM Punk, including him in a mask, and his Straight Edge Society variant. King Booker is also available, and if you use locker code SINGLTSTYL2K24, you'll get a deluxe pack from the Singlet Supreme collection. 

"This may surprise you, but in 50 years of D&D, we've created a lot of lore." Lead Dungeons & Dragons designer Chris Perkins isn't kidding. Keeping it all straight is the Lore Glossary in the upcoming D&D 2024 Dungeon Master's Guide. Some of the iconic characters and locations that are covered:

• Acererak: appearing on the cover of the old 2014 DM's Guide
• Adamantine
• Alustriel Silverhand: with a pronunciation guide saying it's uh-loose-tree-uhl
• Ashardalon: a D&D 3e threat that eats pre-incarnate souls and has a Baylor for a heart
• Baba Yaga: the mother of witches, synonymous with the boogeyman
• Bahamut/Paladine/Fizban: father of metallic (good) dragons
• The Companions in the Hall
• Demogorgon
• Elder Evils: a catch-all term for "weird, ancient, horrible, evil things"
• The Great Modron March: Every 17 x 17 years, modrons sweep through the multiverse ("no one" knows why, and Chris Perkins isn't talking)
• Heroes of the Realm: the 1980s D&D cartoon characters
• Lloth: appearing on the alternate cover of the new 2024 DM's Guide
• Mithral: Not "mithril" lest ye be sued by the Tolkien Estate
• Niko the Cleric: one of the '80s Heroes of the Realm but only recently introduced in 5e
• Prince of Frost: a D&D 4e spoiled rich kid Son of the Summer Queen
• The Raven Queen: D&D 4e God of Death, who has lived on where much of 4e is forgotten
• Tasha: of Tasha's Cauldron of Everything fame
• Tiamat/Takhisis: mother of chromatic (evil) dragons
• Vlaakith: Githyanki lich queen made better known through the Baldur's Gate 3 video game

Many of these people, places, and things have appeared in D&D sourcebooks and adventures with little or no context. Publisher Wizards of the Coast expected knowledge of these things to exist in players' and DMs' shared knowledge—or that the Internet would fill in those gaps. Thankfully, they now see fit to collect this knowledge into one place. This is so the DM's Guide will no longer be that one book nobody reads.

For instance, Adamantine appears in the 2014 Player's Handbook, but you're never told what Adamantine is. Now it appears in the Lore Glossary, which also points you to Adamantine armor and weapons in chapter 7.

Hopefully Alustriel Silverhand is cross referenced with several other people in the Lore Glossary. Chris Perkins rattles off the top of his head that Alustriel is one of the Seven Sisters who counts Drizzt Do'Urden and Elminster among her friends. These are folks appearing in lots of new D&D 2024 Player's Handbook art, so this Lore Glossary is where you'd go to find out who they are. 

This section is a robust collection of D&D's 50-year history. But there's still an element of the unknowable to many of them, especially the gods or Elder Evils. That's part of the fun: leaving room for interpretation, or keeping details completely obscure. This gives a Dungeon Master—for whom this sourcebook is written—to come up with their own versions and interpretations. 

Chris Perkins goes on to say that the Lore Glossary makes apparent how "wacky" and "elastic" D&D is. This is a showcase of D&D's flexibility, variety, and identity, without ever making it feel generic. 

The D&D 2024 Dungeon Master's Guide releases November 12, 2024.

The RIG 600 Pro headset is pretty much the best $100 headset I've ever used. In fact, the unit that I reviewed back in September of 2023 is sitting on my head as I type this. It is now my primary work and PC gaming headset, and I've not had any reason to switch it out or upgrade it. The sound is amazing and the utility of the unit is flawless. Given the fact that it's so comfortable that I wear it all day, every day, the 600 Pro is one of my favorite pieces of tech.

RIG today announced that it has upgraded the unit, and dropped the price by ten bucks, which makes it even more of a no-brainer. The RIG 600 Pro Acid Camo will retail for $89.99 when it releases on November 1st, and it now features earpads supplied by Wicked Cushions, a premium earpad replacement company. The headset will be released with an "Acid Camo" paintjob, with the cushions designed to match.

The headset features an awesome battery and a really cool flexy headband that is virtually unbreakable. If you are looking for a new gaming headset, you could do far worse than this one. The RIG 600 Pro Acid Camo will be available exclusively through GameStop - but I can confidently say that it will be worth the trip. 

Developer Polaris Team, a spin-off of indie developer Variable State, has announced a new Steam Next Fest demo for its co-op PvE sci-fi shooter, Polaris, in addition to dropping a new gameplay trailer. The demo is available now until Tuesday, October 22^nd as a part of the Steam event, with players able to hop-in free of charge to check out the game. Polaris features a fully destructible dynamic environment, which means that buildings can be blown apart, craters can be left in the terrain, and more. Also, apparently you can get behind the wheel of fighter planes, which is dope.

There’s no release date yet for Polaris, but it will be available on PC only at launch, with possible support for Steam Deck coming down the road (pretty please?). You can download the demo now from the game’s Steam page, or check out the rather lengthy gameplay trailer below.

Bandai Namco is gearing up for the release of it's action adventure, called Unknown 9: Awakening, and I personally want to report that there is a female protagonist with super powers after using a portal to another world, and taking down multiple enemies. Haroona is a Quaestor, with a dimension hopping power known as the Fold. With it, she can slow time to dodge bullets, and even take control of enemies to fight others. She can shoot energy at her antagonists and more. It's an action adventure game spamming across lands in 19th century Portugal.

The game is part of a Storyworld, spanning across a comic, a scripted podcast (whut), and a trilogy of novels. I'm not sure you have to know anything about these other entries to play the game, but I'm sure you're already saying the out loud thing, out loud. I mean, if fits the bill of another forespoken hero, using powers, to run across a land, to defeat someone. The game is $49.99 USD, so you know, you don't have to buy it. But at least play it before you dunk on it. I've posted the cinematic trailer, as well as the overview, so you can form your own opinion before it releases on PS4/5 and Xbox One/Series. 

Along with the Powerpuff Girls DLC, it was announced that another Wonder Woman was entering the ring. Nubia has been added to the Free to play Multiversus. Described as a close combat damage dealer, she uses a spear to smack her opponents around. The lasso of truth is to Wonder Woman, as the Spear of understanding is to Nubia. The Assassin class fighter also comes with her variant, the Future State skin. Nubia, for those who don't know, debuted in 1973, but has had huge story arcs in 2021, and 2023. She is currently the Queen of the Amazons, and refers to Diana, as her sister. This is all news to me. 

As you can dive back into the comics she's a part of on the DC Universe Inifinite site, you can play as Nubia starting October 15th. With Nubia also comes the Townsville destroyed stage. Multiversus has still been going strong since it's resurgence. Agent Smith, Beetlejuice, Samurai Jack, The Powerpuff Girls, and now Nubia. I want Static Shock, Black Lightning, and Poison Ivy from the new cartoon, if Warner Bros. is taking requests. If Martian Manhunter is announced, I need all the shape shifting the game can handle.