Weekly Recap #409 May 29th – Crucible’s Rough Start, Crowfall Now in Alpha, and Cthulu in SMITE!

JamesBl0nde recaps the MMO gaming news for the week of May 29, 2020! Transcript and timestamps follow.

League of Legends goes live with an all new Volibear, Crowfall comes out of the woodworks and into alpha, Armored Warfare has a new futuristic battle path and apparently League of Maidens has plus sized their customization options.

Whats up guys! JamesBl0nde here with the weekly recap for gaming news and announcements for the week of May 29th 2020.

Crucible updates players on launch issues and future content: 0:19

To start off we need to do a rewind – last week we derped and missed covering the launch of Amazon Game’s free-to-play action shooter, The Crucible. Unfortunately it looks like the game got off to a very rocky start, with Steam Reviews very solidly mixed and a lot of fair criticisms lining up to be addressed. Amazon has been pushing updates almost every day to try to fix the issues and has recently promised to fix some of the most pressing concerns players have, so hopefully they’ll be able to turn it around before it’s too late. If nothing else, maybe Amazon Game Studios will learn from this launch when they get ready to release New World.

Project Genesis Launches on Steam Early Access: 1:06

Next up, let’s talk about two games that just hit Steam Early Access. The first is Project Genesis, a team-based PvP shooter that features third person ship to ship battles, and first person, close quarters combat on board in the same match. Ships use free look to aim and fire rather than the traditional airplane style controls, and players can also try a “breach and board” tactic to take down the ship from inside. It’s supposed to be a bit like a fusion of Dreadnought and Destiny. There’s also some exclusive Founder’s Packs available only during this early access period, so if you like the game, support the devs if you can.

Quantum League Early Access Launch Trailer: 1:44

Second on the Early Access list this week is Quantum League. This unique arena shooter with a time loop mechanic just broke out of beta this past week with a few updates, including a new 1v1 map, improvements to weapon feel and hit registration, a rework to the competitive League system and matchmaking system, and more. While this isn’t a F2P game it’s doing really well and it’s pretty affordable. Might be worth checking out.

Kickstarted MMORPG Crowfall moves from pre-alpha to alpha: 2:11

Meanwhile, MMO fans might be happy to hear that Crowfall is finally moving forward and has gone to an official alpha state. This is just after the game built out its guild versus guild campaign called the Dregs. During alpha, which is currently only available to backers, ArtCraft is focusing on optimization and stabilization. After that the game can finally move into closed beta. After a few years of delays it’s great to see this independent MMO start moving forward to a playable release.

The Elder Scrolls Online – The Dark Heart of Skyrim Launch Cinematic: 2:48

For those of you who have missed playing Skyrim or getting lost in Blackreach, good news – The Elder Scrolls Online has launched its Dark Heart of Skyrim: Greymoor expansion on desktop, with Xbox One coming on June 9 and Stadia coming June 16. The Greymoor chapter features two new zones – Western Skyrim and Blackreach – a new storyline, a new Trial, the introducing of the Antiquities system and much more. There’s also a free update to the base game that offers a rework for Vampires and other miscellaneous improvements.

War Thunder ‘Starfighters’ Update Trailer: 3:23

And in other news, War Thunder launched its Starfighters update this week. Despite what that sounds like, no, you’re not headed off to fight in space. Instead this update introduces the Italian naval fleet, along with dozens of other vehicles including the F-104 Starfighter and the Mirage IIIC. The update also has improved the Kursk and Italy map, now called Campania, along with many other improvements, so make sure to check out the link below for all the details.

Armored Warfare – Enigma’s Legacy Teaser: 3:53

In other war games, Armored Warfare has released a teaser for its upcoming futuristic battle path, called Enigma’s Legacy. During this players can complete missions and daily challenges to earn Battle Coins, which can then be exchanged to progress on the Battle Path. Rewards for this event include Tier 5 through Tier 10 premium tanks and armored vehicles. When the path releases on June 2, it will also feature Workshop support and changes to progression that makes unlocking missions easier while also requiring using the path’s vehicles to even the playing field.

Operation Blackwood – Warface Video Diaries: 4:27

Meanwhile Warface released a new developer vlog showcasing the new Operation Blackwood. This operation continues the Vega-5 storyline in a brand new volcanic region with a vast open area. This special operation features a more dynamic event flow, underground areas, new enemies and bosses, new boss mechanics, and many other new gameplay features. Naturally this will also include some exclusive weapons and other rewards too to entice players to participate.

SMITE: Cthulhu Has Awakened: 4:55

Well, SMITE has done something that few would have predicted – they’ve announced that the next god to be released will be none other than the Lovecraftian horror, C’thulu. Part of a new Great Old Ones pantheon, Cthulu is a Guardian with a special torment and insanity mechanic, slows and stuns, and even a team buff. Cthulu, along with Grim Omens Chapter 4, is set to launch on June 16. Make sure to check out the full patch preview linked below.

League of Legends Volibear Gameplay Preview: 5:23

And from one MOBA to another; League of Legends has been testing its Volibear rework for a while and have finally launched him to the live game. There’s some interesting changes to his kit in this rework.  His old ultimate which granted him attack speed and chain lightning has become his new passive, for instance, while his new ultimate lets him disable towers for a short period of time. Riot’s even giving away a free Eldritch-inspired skin to anyone who owned Volibear before patch 10.11 or buys him during 10.11 as a nod to a story featured on Universe.

Legends of Runeterra Heart of the Fluft Trailer: 5:58

Also with Riot Games, their League based card game, Legends of Runeterra, has pushed out patch 1.2, which focuses mainly on the game’s live balance and meta, as well as clarity on some cards. There’s also some new cosmetic stuff, including a free rainbow Poro guardian and emote that you can grab in the store until July 7.

League of Maidens Character Customization Preview: 6:20

And where would we be this month without a development update from the busty League of Maidens? Prepare to warm up the boob sliders because this week they’ve shown off their character customizer and I have to say, it’s really impressive. This may not quite be Black Desert levels of customization but it’s really extensive, and not just in the boob and butt sliders. If only we could get more MMOs to adapt this level of customization.

Deals of the Week: Steam, Epic Games, & Twitch Prime (May 28, 2020): 6:52

Finally let’s wrap up with the deals of the week! Just a quick blast to let you know that this weekend on Steam you can play Darkest Dungeon, Cultist Simulator, Genesis Alpha One, and PixArk for free. That’s a really good selection of games to try out! Of course contending with that, the Epic Games Store is giving away the Borderlands Handsome collection free this week, that gives you Borderlands 2 and the Pre-Sequel with all the bonus add-on content, all for the price of free. Uhh yeah that’s a no-brainer pick up if you don’t have it already.

And with that said, that’s about it for all the major news and announcements for this week. Be sure to stay safe, and keep your families healthy! Like always you can find more information on the news topics, linked in the description below, feel free to discuss the news or even more news in the comments below and don’t forget to like, subscribe, wash your hands a bunch, hit that little bell icon to get notifications and of course share this video! But until next time guys that’s going to be it for me… I’m JamesBl0nde… see ya out there gamers!