It’s common for video games to put players in the shoes of a heroic character. Whether it be Link fromThe Legend of Zeldaor Master Chief of theHalofranchise, video game fans are accustomed to their characters having entire narratives centered on them. However, in a few cases,players instead control characters with less impact on the story. In these titles from across video game history, players take control of a character who doesn’t carry as much narrative weight as non-playable characters in the same game....

Quick Links Vicar Amelia is the secondmandatory boss players will face inBloodborne. The nearest lantern players will need to reach is the Cathedral Ward, which is found right after beating Father Gascoigne, though the path will need to be opened first. Bloodborne often has long distances between Lanterns and bosses, but shortcuts are hidden throughout the world to make consecutive attempts against a boss much easier. Here is the path to Vicar Amelia along with the shortcut to make it back easier on later attempts....

Quick Links Snowdrop Anemones are a type of flower inFields of Mistriathat can be sold for some Tesserae. During Spring, you’ll receive a sidequest asking for a Snowdrop Anemone. Since you’ll want to raise Renown to increase Mistria’s rank, it’s recommended you complete any sidequest you accept inFields of Mistria. While the quality of the reward for “Request for a Snowdrop Anemone” will vary from player to player, it’s worth completing if only for the small friendship points and Renown....

Summary There are hardly any gamers who haven’t heard ofStardew Valley, the indie darling that aimed to capture everything the classicHarvest Moongames offered and more. However, solo developer Eric “ConcernedApe” Barone isn’t done creating games yet as he’s hard at work onHaunted Chocolatier, an RPG-simulation game that has been likened tobeing the moon toStardew Valley’s sun. While there are plenty of potential placesHaunted Chocolatiercould go that have fueled speculation, it seems that the game may still be quite a ways off....

Summary TheWorld of Warcraft: The War WithinPre-Patch event has unique Alliance and Horde-themed Shield, Off-Hand, and Back transmogs players can get – but only as random drops on characters below level 70. These items cannot be purchased from the vendor, and instead must be obtained by chance on low-levelWorld of Warcraftcharacters participating in the Radiant Echoes event. On July 30,World of Warcraftbegan the Radiant Echoes Pre-Patch event forThe War Within, which has players battle memories of iconic monsters and bosses fromWoWhistory in order to obtain exclusive mounts, pets, and transmogs....

Summary Xbox and PlayStation gamers are currently able to grabFuzzBallfree of charge. The multiplayer game normally retails for just under $10 on both the PlayStation andXboxStores. Developed by Kfar-Sava, Israel-based Shadow Lair Games studio,FuzzBallis aparty gamefor up to four players. It was originally released in August 2020, priced at $18.49. Four months later, it received a permanent discount that saw its price drop to $9.99. FuzzBall Gets a 100% Discount Without Any Fanfare FuzzBallreceived a 100% discount on the Xbox and PlayStation Stores in late August 2024....

Summary Xbox Game Passis losingNBA 2K24and two more games later today, August 31. Following these departures, the number of titles that have been removed fromXbox Game Passin August 2024 will rise to seven. Microsoft’s subscription service generally removes games from its library every two weeks. The most recent of these catalog rotations happened on August 15, whenXbox Game Pass lost four titles:Shadow Warrior 3,Airborne Kingdom,Offworld Trading Company, andThe Texas Chain Saw Massacre....

Summary Xboxhas unveiled a new adaptive joystick controller that allows for more accessibility options while gaming. More people are playing video games than ever before, and developers have taken note of this by adding options to help players who normally wouldn’t be able to enjoy games onXboxor any other system. This includes special color filters that allow colorblind gamers to better see in-game objects, auto descriptions and screen readers for cutscenes and in-game text, and additional subtitles and captions for players who are deaf or hard of hearing....

Zenless Zone Zerointroduced new features that fans haven’t seen in other HoYoverse titles. For one, the combat and tag-out system is similar to fighting games, specificallyStreet Fighter 6. Apart from the Agents,Zenless Zone Zero’s teams also include Bangboos to help out in battle. Bangboos are intelligent devicesthat were originally created to assist New Eridu residents with Hollow disaster evacuations. They’ve since evolved into more comprehensive and versatile individuals who can help with everyday tasks in New Eridu and advanced Hollow operations....

Summary There is a whole demographic of anime fans who haveBleachas their gateway anime, the show that brought them into the community. Bleach has returned to the limelight with the anime for the thousand year blood arc which has been a smashing success so far. With a large cast of characters,Bleachhas a lot of stories to tell, unfortunately, this also means that some characters get left behind and do not receive astory arcwhich helps fans get to know them better....

People play video games for a lot of reasons. Some like the challenge that comes with some of thehardest video games, and others like to enjoy some casual games after a hard day at work. Video games don’t need to have a great story to be successful, and sometimes, all a player needs is an escape from the real world into a virtual world of their choice. If that virtual world is well-crafted, immersive, and creates a believable setting, it’s more than enough for most gamers....

Summary A vocal section of theElden Ringfandom has recently banded together to lament FromSoftware’s decision not to make any changes to Ranni’s questline inShadow of the Erdtree. Although the recently releasedElden Ringexpansion avoided altering the base game altogether, some fans believe Ranni’s quest left room for an obvious change that would have been impactful without necessarily being a huge time sink to implement. Elden Ring and Shadow of the Erdtree endgame spoilers ahead....

Quick Links Fighting enemies for their material drop can be quite a chore inGenshin Impact, so facing a powerful foe is a nice change of pace. Starting from version 4.0 during Fontaine’s release, players can find some Local Legends, which possess both a challenge and an achievement worth fivePrimogems inGenshin Impact. Just like in Fontaine, Natlan alsohas its own set of Local Legends. This time, each Local Legend offers three tiers of achievement for a total of 35Primogems....