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Games Inbox: What do you think of the Black Ops 4 Battle Royale reveal?

Call Of Duty: Black Ops 4 – will Blackout be the next big thing?

The evening Inbox wonders what Epic Games will do with all its new-found riches, as one reader starts a conspiracy theory about Half-Life 3.

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13 long seconds

I know it was only 13 seconds but I thought the Black Ops 4 trailer told us quite a bit really. They made sure to put vehicles front and centre (theyre not really a massive part of PlayerUnknowns Battlegrounds and are barely in Fortnite at all) when they didnt really have to and I think the desert location and the shots of the road were all meant to imply a giant open world map.

A clever bit of marketing really, which I guess is just what youd expect by this point (or maybe not if you remember back to Infinite Warfare). But I think it definitely shows theyre on the right track and that the mode has every chance of being a major success.

My only concern at the moment is that Call Of Duty has never had much of a distinctive art style. All the characters in the games are just plain looking military types. Fortnite is obviously quite cartoonish and varied in its look and even PUBG has more of a casual dress style. If both Call Of Duty and Battlefield V end up being nothing but soldiers in dull-coloured clothing it might all start to get a bit dull. Id add in a bit of a colour and a bit more pizzazz.
Ricker

One hit wonder?

Just crazy to think how much money Fortnite is making for Epic Games now. They could be a major player if they manage to keep this level of success or even expand on it. With $14 billion they could buy so many major companies and still have plenty of change (I know saying a company is worth $14 billion isnt the same as it actually having $14 billion, but even so).

With that amount of money theyre bigger than any Japanese publisher, they could probably buy the entire Japanese games industry. I cant find EAs net worth on Google but it looks like they could definitely buy Activision and Ubisoft already. I mean, theyre not going to, obviously but thats the kind of money and power they wield now. Its crazy.

They better hope they dont end up like the Angry Birds guys though and just fade away to nothing after their cash cow wears out. Fortnite was obviously an accident (it wasnt even supposed to be Battle Royale at first) so the question is can they ever do it again?
Ippon

The word

Heres an interesting thing. Michael Pachter (I know) claims that Death Stranding is a cross-generational game, meaning that itll be released on PlayStation 4 and 5. Given all the theories about The Last Of Us Part II and Ghost of Tsushima also being cross-generational I wonder if God Of War will end up be the last proper PlayStation 4 exclusive.

It does make you wonder what the point of a new generation is though, if the games are all going to be the same anyway. I know this happened this gen as well but it wasnt so blatant, where the new games were all being announced two or three years out.

Everyone wants the best graphics but I just dont see the need here. They got lucky last time because they could bang on about HD and then 4K but theyre going to need one hell of a buzz word to make the next consoles seem worth buying. Although maybe that buzz word will be streaming…
Cranston

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Secret sequels

I will never even begin to understand what happened to Valve. I remember when they were constantly being described as the Pixar of gaming, back when that was a real compliment and then they gave it all up to be shopkeepers. Im sure theyre all super rich now, but dont they just feel a bit bored with it all?

All that money and in terms of a company they dont spend it on anything interesting. Unless… what if they made Half-Life 3 and Portal 3 years ago and they just keep it to themselves and didnt let anyone else play it! The monsters, I bet thats it…
Doshin

Two years later

I was surprised to see No Mans Sky didnt show up in the top 10 sales chart this week, which doesnt bode well. I know its an online kind of game but with so little out at the moment youd think it wouldve knocked the dial at least a bit.

I agree with the other reader who said that Hello Games shouldve used the tech in another game. The name No Mans Sky is already tarnished and its just going to take too long to make it what everyone was expecting. Sure, they might get there in another two years but will people care? Well, maybe if they call it No Mans Sky 2 I guess.
Sagat

Legendary remake

I wonder if Nintendo will consider another Zelda remaster, to fill in the gap between Breath Of The Wild and whatever theyll do next. It seems the obvious move but which one? Skyward Sword wont work (or be as interesting) without motion controls and theyve already done Twilight Princess and The Wind Waker recently. They could port the remasters but I dont think thats going to move the needle much on anything.

As you can see that doesnt really leave anything in terms of 3D games except the N64 games. I thought the 3DS remakes worked really well, but not updating the graphics too much and keep the same look and feel. Thatd never work on the Switch but would Nintendo put all that effort into a new remake?

I dont see it to be honest. The only thing I can think of that comes close to that amount of work is the Crash Bandicoot games and they were simple, linear platformers. Zelda is the absolute opposite. So maybe we wont be getting another one after all! Unless they do a HD-2D remake of A Link To The Past…
Onibee

Doomed multiplayer

I really dont see how Doom Eternal not having a multiplayer option makes it any better. Bit of a strange thing to wish for.

The last one had one and was still a great single-player experience.
Anthony Daniels

GC: Multiplayer modes dont grow on trees. The time, money, and staff used to make the multiplayer could have been used on the single-player instead. Its a common argument against games that have both single and multiplayer but only excel at one or the other.

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Im Lara

I agree that some people are being a bit harsh on Shadow Of The Tomb Raider. I too have been very impressed by some of the recent trailers and its obvious that this is going to be one of the best-looking games of the year. Its obvious its not one of the most hyped though, Ill give you that, and I put that down to it simply being a busy Christmas/autumn.

It probably wouldve been better if itd come out at the same time as the movie/if they movie had been a bigger hit but I am still very keen to see how it turns out.

That said I think theyre right to say this is the end of this current trilogy. This whole of the Tomb Raider business has been a bit weird, as if she goes around saying, Im the Tomb Raider like Batman. For the next one I think we need to see an older and wiser Lara and one that thats a bit less… murder-y?

Id love to see a new game with little to no violence, not because Im squeamish but because I think thats the most interesting and unique parts of the game.
Benjy Dog

Inbox also-rans

Just to let everyone know it was the 20th anniversary of Radiant Silvergun on Sunday. To me it seems like it should be even longer than that, but I guess 2D shooters were already old fashioned even then.
Rocko

I wish Konami treated Silent Hill as well as Capcom does Resident Evil. It was always my favourite, but I dont think its ever come back now.
Cranburry

This weeks Hot Topic

The subject for this weekends Inbox was suggested by reader Grackle, who asks what game have you given up on the quickest after playing it?

It doesnt matter when it was, or on what format, but what game have you abandoned the fastest and why? Try and keep your example to something you actually bought or were actively anticipating, and explain why it failed to live up to your expectations.

Did you ever go back to the game and try again and has the same thing ever happened with any other games? Are you often surprised or disappointed with games youve been looking forward to and have you found a way to avoid being upset in the same way?

E-mail your comments to: [email protected]

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