That’s All Folks

As 2024 has come to a close it’s time for our first monthly newsletter recapping some of the stories we shared on socials and put a cap on this year once a for all.

Fortnite Added A New Counter Strike Inspired Mode

With the goal of being the everything game, Fortnite added a first person 5v5 mode called “Ballistic”. The mode launched on December 11th with a ranked and unranked mode and one map at launch.

The launch is considered early access and works with existing Fortnite purchases and cosmetics. The mode is similar to Counter Strike and Valorant, a round based economy to manage, bomb to plant/defuse, and limited weapons to choose from.

While there is no heroes or classes, there are special gadgets players choose at the start of each match and can purchase before each round starts.

Game Awards Preview

The 10th annual Game Awards aired earlier this month and this year there were 29 categories. The nominees for Game of the Year were Astro Bot, Balatro, Black Myth: Wukong, Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, and Metaphor: ReFantazio with Astro Bot taking home the award.

We also saw showings from Mafia The Old Country, the next Borderlands, a new Tekken DLC character, and the next game from Hazelight, creators of It Takes Two. A few bigger announced moments from the show included a look at the next Witcher, a new project from Naughty Dog called Intergalactic, and a shock sequel to Okami.

For more coverage of The Game Awards check here.

A First Look At The Switch 2 Via Dbrand

Popular hardware case maker Dbrand has taken it upon themselves to show off the first look at what the Switch 2 will look like. Although it very much looks like the original it does come with one new thing.

Located on the right Joy-con is a new “C” button. At this moment no one, including Dbrand, knows exactly what this button does. Dbrand does however have the exact dimensions for the handheld as the new “Killswitch 2” case is designed for the console.

It won’t be until sometime later this year when we will officially see the Switch 2, but Nintendo probably isn’t enthused with this being the first look at the Switch 2.

Capcom Looking To Revive More Dormant IP

After making two surprise announcements at The Game Awards with new Okami and Onimusha entries, Capcom says it’s working to bring back more of its dormant IP in more modern forms.

“Capcom is focusing on re-activating dormant IPs that haven’t had a new title launch recently”. Okami was remastered in 2012 and the original Onimusha was remastered in 2018 after its original publishing in 2001 and slowly fell off after 2006.

There isn’t word on what Capcom will bring back next, but the most vocal are looking forward to a Dino Crisis return after its 21 year hiatus.

XDefiant To Shutdown In 2025

Earlier last month, Ubisoft announced that in mid 2025, XDefiant will be shutdown and the game has started sunsetting on the 3rd of December meaning now more content can be purchased.

At the moment servers will remain active until June 3rd 2025 and players who purchased the Ultimate Founder’s Pack will receive refunds. Content from future seasons has been brought forward and Season 3 will be the last in game season.

A small team is working to finish the games last content including an Assassin’s Creed integration before the game is shuttered for good.