Amazon’s Free Shooter Crucible, have faith in Shenmue IV

Xbox Series X Launch Plans

Microsoft is finally talking about launch

Microsoft is planning some kind of showcase every month until launch in a series called Xbox 20/20, which kicks off with Inside Xbox on May 7th.

Last week, Microsoft started opening up about their Xbox Series X plans and announced that the first third-party games would be showcased in a live stream on May 7th. Xbox Game Studios will show off their own work sometime in July.

• Xbox Series X and Halo Infinite will both launch this year
• All fifteen Xbox Game Studios teams are working on next-gen games
• Four titles have been confirmed for PC Game Pass: Microsoft Flight Simulator, Wasteland 3, Minecraft Dungeons and Halo Infinite
• Xbox Game Pass users will gain access to Project xCloud later this year

What’s that sound? Microsoft just dropped a short video which fans speculate features the Series X startup chime. We will probably learn the truth on May 7th. In the meantime, you can chew on this blog post.

Time For A Quick Daily Quiz?

Who showed you the ropes in Skate 3?

• Chad Muska
• Tony Hawk
• Mike Vallely
• Jason Lee

The answer will be revealed at the bottom of today’s issue. Join up with our community on Twitter and Facebook to discuss what the answer could be.

Daily Fact

Shenmue: A Long Time Coming

It took nearly 20 years for the third Shenmue game to reach fans, but that’s a bit of a series tradition.

The first game was originally designed for the Sega Saturn, acknowledged by the presence of a Saturn console in a cupboard beneath the TV in Ryo’s home. Shenmue was also supposed to feature a bicycle that would speed up traversal, but that’s just one of the many features that didn’t make the cut.

The development process didn’t exactly go smoothly – especially since the game was ported to Dreamcast midway through – and ended up costing $47 million dollars – probably playing a significant part in Sega’s retreat from the console market in the early 2000s.

Join up with our community on Twitter and Facebook to discuss today’s fact.

Shenmue IV

Yu Suzuki has faith in Shenmue IV

Shenmue creator Yu Suzuki recently talked to IGN Japan about Shenmue III, and he appears confident that Shenmue IV will happen one day, in spite of Shenmue III’s poor sales.

Suzuki claims Shenmue III was more or less pure fan service, and that’s why it didn’t manage to reach a broader audience. The solution? Speed things up a bit so more casual players can enjoy the story without all the busywork: “If it has the same amount of content as Shenmue III, then you’ll be able to move through it about 1.5 times as quickly,” said Suzuki.

• Yu Suzuki was happy to work on Shenmue III, but he really wants to do something new
• Shenmue III’s budget was around $20,000,000
• You can read a translation of the interview at Phantom Riverstone

More mainstream? Unsurprisingly, Suzuki’s remarks have angered some ardent fans and his plan is to make sure that the experience can cater to both die-hard fans and a less dedicated audience.

Amazon's Crucible

Amazon gets ready to launch Crucible

Amazon Games’ free-to-play competitive team-based shooter Crucible finally has a release date, almost four years after it was revealed at TwitchCon 2016.

Launching on May 20th, Crucible pits aliens, robots and humans against each other on a rogue planet. At launch, Crucible will feature three modes: Heart of the Hives, Harvester Command and Alpha Hunters.

Heart of the Hives puts two four-player teams up against giant bosses in a battle to collect Hearts – first team to three wins. Harvester Command is capture the flag featuring two teams of eight players, while Alpha Hunters sees eight teams of two fight to be the last team standing.

• Hunters are fighting for a valuable resource called Essence, which amplifies hunters’ powers
• Crucible is developed by Relentless Studios, led by developers formerly of Activision Blizzard, Electronic Arts and Xbox

Straight from the horse’s mouth: “In Crucible, every match is different, and players’ choices really matter,” said Christoph Hartmann, vice president at Amazon Games. “Every opponent, team, and mode poses unique dangers, and no two matches are the same, so players must constantly adapt to everything the world and the other teams throw at them.”

What Else Happened Today?

• Free Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order update for Star Wars Day introduces a New Game+ mode, a Meditation Training feature to test your might against enemies, and a bunch of cosmetics. Check out the trailer!
• Brand new Dirt game on the way from Codemasters judging by teasing on Twitter and their blog. The next game will not be developed by the Dirt Rally team
• Marty Stratton addresses the Mick Gordon controversy in an open letter. According to Stratton, Gordon spent too long mixing the soundtrack, forcing id to take matters into their own hands. Looks like Gordon won’t be scoring any future id games
• Pro Skaterboarder Jason Dill turned down Skate 3 Mobile appearance according to a recent podcast appearance. Maybe Dill would rather be in Skate 4?
• The Prince of Persia 6 domain was registered by Ubisoft according to the domain’s WHOIS page

Quiz Answer - Did You Get It Right?

Who showed you the ropes in Skate 3?

Answer: Jason Lee!

Hm, I can’t remember this episode of My Name is Earl…

Skate’s novel control scheme takes a bit of getting used to, but fortunately you got the best teacher ever: Jason Lee, appearing as Coach Frank, teaches you how to play the game and sets you on the path to skateboarding greatness. Sure, he’s a bit wack, but can you imagine a better flicking instructor?

Coach Frank wasn’t actually invented for Skate – he’s the mascot for Stereo Sound Agency, the skateboard shop Jason Lee and Chris Pastras founded together. He even appears in the Tony Hawk series: If you earn a sponsorship from Stereo Sound Agency, you unlock an ad featuring none other than Coach Frank. Talk about keeping it real!

Today’s issue of DailyBits was written by Gavin Herman, Ken McKown, Erlend Grefsrud, Christian Vaz and Jamie Davey.