Issue 13 November 16th 2019

Xbox Adaptive Controllers Are Being Used To Rehabilitate US Veterans

This is amazing. Once again, Microsoft is using its platform and technology to make the world a better place. The Adaptive controller is the gift that keeps giving. From a financial standpoint, who knows how much money this product is actually bringing in. Where Xbox wins with it is in brand awareness. I seen 10x more articles about the Xbox Adaptive Controller than any other gaming controller. News like this is what gets screen time on national news like Good Morning America and markets Xbox incredibly well. If we take the business out of it, we can just feel good knowing that our hobby is improving the lives of others. That's as good of a reason as any to keep playing games and support a culture that provides community and healing to those who need it. Cheers to Microsoft!

Image credit: Xbox Store

Load Save Is Back Again!

Before I get into this week's Load Save, I want to give a shoutout to Switch Weekly, the newsletter about everything related to the Nintendo Switch. The editor for this newsletter has been incredibly helpful with helping me start this newsletter, so make sure to check out Switch Weekly here!

Welcome back to another issue of Load Save! I'm happy to inform you that our collective dreams have come true and Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is a good game! You can check out the review roundup for that as well as Pokemon: Sword and Shield below. Aside from that, Xbox announced a ton of new games for Game Pass, Death Stranding's soundtrack was made in a weird way, and Google Stadia is launching with barely anything.

Last week I said that I would give more thoughts on Death Stranding in this edition, but unfortunately, I haven't been able to put as many hours into it as I want. But, If you want to see my (mis)adventures on a bike in-game, you can check it out here.

Thanks for stopping by! If you like the newsletter, share it with a friend! As always, enjoy the read!

Development

Google Stadia Will Be Missing Many Features Upon Nov. 19 Launch

This is just another nail in the coffin of Stadia's launch. First the news of only 12 games being released at launch, three of which are Tomb Raider games, now it's news that the majority of the features of Stadia won't be available at launch. One take I heard on this news from Greg Miller on Kinda Funny Games is that none of this would be as big of an issue if Google would have attached "Beta" to the title of this launch. This would have given time to bring in the new features and work out the kinks that will definitely be prevalent at launch. Not only is it awful that these features won't be available at launch, Google further insulted their customers by announcing this a week before the launch of the console. This information should have been shared weeks ago to let consumers know what they're getting. We'll have proper reviews of Stadia when it launches next week, but until then, have you pre-ordered it? How do you feel about this news? Let me know and I'll share it on the next newsletter!

Image credit: Google

Substantial Rumors Of A Bioshock Sequel Surface, But Is It What We Want?

I was so excited when I read this headline, then I grew more and more concerned as I read further into the article. A little background of my taste: the Bioshock series falls in the same category of the Fallout series for me. I love these games and the atmosphere they bring with the mix of old-time-charm with post-apocalyptic downfall of a capitalistic society. Last week, I wrote more in-depth about what Fallout means to me, you can read that here. WIth Bioshock, I'm afraid as to what they'll do to it with a live-service formula. To me, it's far too reminiscent of Fallout 76. Bioshock is the quintessential single-player experience. How could they seamlessly work in a live-service aspect into this type of game? To me, Bioshock games are fascinating stories that have an ending. I loved the closure, or lack-thereof, of beating a Bioshock game. Adding a "post-narrative set of systems, quests, and player progression" sounds like a perfect way to ruin a Bioshock story. Maybe this rumor is just a rumor, but I'm still worried. Let me know what you think!

Image credit: Bioshock Twitter

Anthem Developers Are Working On A Revival

One of my first links to Load Save Issue #1 was about Anthem and its sad existence. Since them, not much as happened with it. There’s been radio silence on updates and I haven’t heard a word from the Anthem community. Today marks the end of that radio silence. Chatter has revealed that Anthem Devs are working on a complete overhaul for Anthem in order to bring the game back into the spotlight and make it a better game in general. This is similar to what Destiny did and what Fallout 76 is trying to do with their NPC update (even though they’ve shot themselves in the foot with Fallout First). There isn’t confirmation on how Anthem will do this, but there’s some interesting options to consider. Will they bring in a whole new story that introduces the game’s changes and gives players a reason to come back? How will they accommodate new players who are trying it out for the first time? The possibility of a whole new game isn’t out of the question, but I think it would be in the devs best interest to update the original game and make it free to Anthem owners. Whatever they do, I hope it’s good. Anthem let a lot of people down, so I hope a complete redo can make those people happy again. Does this spark an interest in Anthem for you? You can rely on Load Save to keep you updated on Anthem.

Image credit: EA

Reviews

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order Review Roundup

Hurray for the success of Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order! The reviews are in, and people are enjoying it! There are issues, as there is with every game, but it sounds like a lot of them can be fixed through patches. The concerning problems are those that will be harder to fix, such as things like being permanently stuck in an area because you went the wrong way, or missing an elevator and having to respawn from the checkpoint. I hope that these issues will be fixed or improved by the time that I get to this title, which will probably be around Christmas. But it's tough being on a Star Wars kick and not being able to become Jedi! If you picked this one up, let me know how you're liking it! If you haven't yet, are you planning on it?

Image credit: Epic Games

Pokemon Sword And Shield Review Roundup

Reviewers seem to enjoy Pokemon: Sword and Shield! This comes as a relief to me, as I was worried that this would be a half-baked product. There was a lot of speculation that Game Freak, the game devs, didn't put as much effort into this entry after reports of reused character models and other issues leaked before launch. Luckily, it seems like we're in store for another great Pokemon adventure! If you've picked it up, let me know what you think about it!

Community

Twitch Streamer's Attempt To Break Streaming Record of 569-Hours Brings Up Discussion Of Streamer Health

This article focuses on the little known issue of choosing streaming success over health. This was the first time that I heard about up-and-coming streamers forsaking health in order to get more viewers and make streaming a full-time, financially stable job. I've heard of the issues of taking time off as a streamer and how detrimental it can be to your subscriber count, which is so sad when you think about personal life events that many popular streamers have to struggle with. Either they enjoy a holiday or family event and lose a couple hundred subscribers or they choose their job over their personal life. This article gets into the dark, often untold, truths of full-time streaming. In a world where so many gamers want to stream full-time, articles like this should be mentioned to show the dedication and sacrifice that it requires. As someone who has wanted to stream for a long time and has considered attempting to do it full-time, this article opened my eyes. I would rather stick with a Monday to Friday, 9-5 job where I can do what I want after work instead and be allowed to take time off than choose this tough streaming lifestyle. I would love to hear your opinion on this: do you think this barrier to entry for professional streaming makes sense? Or should streamers fans be more forgiving when they need to take time off to focus on family and health?

Image credit: Twitch Twitter

Roundups

Xbox Announces Obsidian's Next Game & 10 Final Fantasy Games For Game Pass

Xbox came in like a storm this past week by announcing a surprising amount of huge news at their Inside Xbox presentation at X019. X019 is described as “A global celebration of all things Xbox,” and man, did they have a celebration. Just when you think Game Pass couldn’t get any better, Xbox announces a huge lineup coming up in the near future. Before the end of this year, we’ll get The Witcher 3, which is an incredible game for anyone who hasn’t experienced it. Before the end of 2020, Final Fantasy 7 - 15 will be available on Game Pass. After some quick math, that’s over $200 of Final Fantasy games alone. So if you like FF, or you’re looking to get into it, Game Pass is the best way to do it. Honestly, Game Pass is becoming the best way to try out most games these days. There were a ton of other games and news about xCloud announced, so read the roundup and let me know what you’re most excited about!

Image credit: Xbox.com

Long Read

Death Stranding's Soundtrack Includes Fans, Pipes, and Hitting Pianos With Sledgehammers

PSA: This article is best read when listening to the Death Stranding soundtrack, which can be found here.

If you're anything like me, you love the sounds of media. My love started with movie music, then I began to realize video game music holds just as much, sometimes even more, sentimental value than the movies. If you're playing Death Stranding, you've definitely noticed the music. Even if it's just the original songs by Low Roar or CHVRCHS, you should know that feeling music brings. For me, I never notice how impactful a game's soundtrack is until I listen to it outside of playing the game. This was the exact case with Death Stranding (I'm listening to the soundtrack as I write this). You can't be disappointed by a composer named Ludvig, and Joel Corelitz, the author of this article, did a great job working with Ludvig to bring a bizarre, perfectly sci-fi soundtrack to Death Stranding. If you play this game for three hours, listen to the soundtrack away from it and close your eyes, you can perfectly imagine the world of DS. It's such a strong aesthetic and atmosphere, and I think that's why I love it so much.

Image credit: PlayStation

Before You Go

The Wrap-up of 2019

Thanks for stopping by! The release of Pokemon and Star Wars marks the end of the big releases of 2019. Next week, we'll be able to see the reviews for Stadia, which I'm not sure is something to look forward to, but it will still be interesting news! If there's any releases you're still hype for, let me know and I'll be sure to cover it!

I'll see you next time!