New Game "Tuesday" - June 2020

June 2020 has arrived, and I almost don't feel like that's a good thing as the year does not seem to be improving. Today's NGT is a day delayed due to Black Out Tuesday. Game Infinite took part in the social media black out in a stance against the violence and racism happening today. I have never seen more stressful world events happening so consecutively. We still are in the midst of a pandemic, some of us haven't seen our family or friends in months. Getting emergency notifications on my phone every night ordering me home, not for a still very real and dangerous virus, but for riots happening in my own city. I urge anyone reading, to protest peacefully, to stay home if possible or still wear a mask if you must go out. yesterday the protests escalated with the at least one of the first deaths. Retired police officer David Dorn was murdered by rioters. Our hearts go out to the families of the victims during these trying times.

We will get through this. A few days ago, I took to my personal twitter and peacefully spoke out against the tragedy of George's death, and the following deaths and violence happening in the world since. We lost a GiFriends member over it. I can't imagine being so hateful, so racist, so judgmental, that a message of peace and love from an owner is enough to make you quit a brand you previously supported.

We have been separate physically. We are being separated further by social media and the Media. Perhaps these games can serve as a small way to bond and connect with each other. I challenge any reader, use this month as an opportunity to reach out to a friend. Play something online with someone. Open your mind to new creators who look and maybe even more importantly, THINK differently than you. I challenge you to stand up to injustice, but remember to not hate.

"New Game Tuesday" showcases some major game releases on the first Tuesday of the month! Scroll down to see if any of the major releases appeal to you!

1. The Last of us Part II

Release Date: June 19th

Platforms: PS4

Developer: Naughty Dog

Publisher: Sony

Delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and Sony feeling like they wouldn't be able to ensure a quality launch, decided to push back the game a few weeks. With June 19th quickly approaching the highly anticipated game is almost upon us. I still am trying to finish the first game so that I'll be able to enjoy this game this year. I know it will inarguably be a GOTY contender so I want to be able to play this asap. Unfortunately, TLOU2 received story leaks across the internet spoiling the games biggest moments for some, and Naughty Dog was rightly upset about this event. Story Spoiler Leaks are some of the worst kind of leaks, and can hurt the hard work put in by developers, not to mention spoil the game for fans. If you see TLOU2 story leaks make sure not to spread them around, and let your fellow gamers enjoy this game the right way.

2. valorant

Release Date: 6/2

Platforms: PC

Developer: Riot Games

Publisher: Riot Games

Valorant is the latest attempt at the Overwatch/CS Go/Rainbow Six Siege tactical/hero shooter genre that has seen rise in recent years. It hit its popularity before it even launched with a super popular "invite only" closed beta that artificially boosted its Twitch views by only giving access to the game via Twitch streams. I will say it is one of the most cleverly, and honestly kind of manipulative, marketing tactics I have ever seen that frankly I am surprised EA didn't think of it. Valorant released as a closed beta, but you couldn't sign up for it, you had to watch other people play it for the hopes of getting access yourself. It is a way to artificially make the game seem more popular on twitch, solidifying its "esports streamer-cred" but also making people want to play it more with its artificial scarcity tactic.

I never played the beta because this game is a PC exclusive. I wrote out an entire opinion article about how much I hate AAA PC exclusives, and why I think they make no business sense, but I figured I'd save that for a separate article. All I will say here is that no matter how successful Valorant ends up being, it will never reach the highest of other similar games that release multi-platform. Purposely marginalizing the game to just the PC sector is missing out on tens of millions of potential fans. As big as it ever gets, it could have been three times as big. Graphically speaking, this game's cartoon graphics could even run on a Switch or even mobile. Studios a fraction of the size of Riot Games have made cross-platform, cross progressing, cross-gen, and cross-play games. Why is Riot stuck in 2000? Time will tell if it was worth it.

Valorant left its beta late last month and launched on June 2.

3. disintegration

Release Date: 6/16

Platforms: PC, Xbox One, PS4

Developer: V1 Interactive

Publisher: Private Division, Take-Two Interactive.

Boy did Disintegration fall in our laps out of nowhere. They went from announcement to release in just 9 months, with no word or much news between then. There was a close beta that didn't have enough spots for every one who applied (like ourselves), but all of a sudden it received a release date right around the corner during last month's Inside Xbox. You may not have heard of V1 Interactive, but Disintegration is being made by Ex-Halo developers that was what intrigued me 9 months ago. This robot infused future game looks beautiful and is also being published the same publisher from last years popular and critically successful Outer Worlds. I am very much looking forward to this game; however, I am disappointed by it's digital only release. There was no word if this was due to COVID-19 with a future physical copy around the horizon, as my research has shown no evidence of it as something on the horizon. While I am hesitant mainly because I prefer physical copies because of my collection, it is mainly because games north of 50$ by lesser known but not indie developers launching digital only make me worried. Indie Games it makes business sense. AAA almost always have physical games when they are paid. The in-between group of games are what sometimes struggle. They have less visibility to players by being digital only, and also have a higher than average price than cheaper indie games. I am getting flashbacks to Lawbreakers from a few years ago which launched full price and (mostly*) digital only and struggled to its ultimate collapse. Paid-online games always run the risk of becoming unplayable down the road if they fail, but digital only from smaller developers always have a higher than average risk. Hopefully Disintegration will be both successful and good.

4. grounded (Partial preview release)

Release Date: 6/8* - 7/28

Platforms: Xbox One, PC

Developer: Obsidian Entertainment

Publisher: Xbox Game Studios

Grounded, the game that promises to let us relive our "Honey I Shrunk the Kids" childhood memories. Watching the various gameplay and story trailers made me excited for this small scale adventure. The game is launching in full next month, but a partial single-player preview as part of Xbox Insider Flight and Steam Game Festival is launching on June 9th.

5. fortnite chapter 2 season 3 (Possibly further Delayed)

Release Date: ?

Platforms: Xbox One, PS4, PC, iOS, Android, Nintendo Switch

Developer: Epic Games

Publisher: Epic Games

Fortnite C2 S3 has seen some delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and while we have neither a confirmed date or trailer yet, we do know it is coming in June as of this writing. Activision has already delayed Modern Warfare Season 4 as well as other gaming studios have delayed several gaming announcement events due to the current social situation with the protests. Rumors are already circulating of another delay, but since that is yet unconfirmed and could still release sometime in June, we have it here.

6. call of duty Modern warfare Season 4 (Delayed)

Release Date: ?

Platforms: Xbox One, PC, PS4

Developer: Infinity Ward

Publisher: Activision

Activision has already delayed Season 4 of Modern Warfare, due to the protests, but with the update being ready, I don't imagine Activision waiting too long to release, so we could still see the update launch sometime this month.

As always, stay tuned here on Game Infinite News for the latest gaming news! Check back next month for New Game Tuesday!