Sorcerers are elemental masters. They command primal energies and lay waste to armies with tornados of fire, lightning, and ice. With the flick of a wrist, they make giants tremble. During our recent cover-story visit to Blizzard, we went hands-on with the game for two days. Here’s a quick overview of what we learned about the Sorceress class in that time. 

“The Sorceress is about, 'I’m using your elements to really manipulate these monsters,'” says lead animator Nick Chilano. “In the demo, you can see one freeze monsters until they slow down and then get frozen before they finally just shatter. You can start to really manipulate the enemies around you until you’re at range and you’re safe, which is really cool.”

For more on Diablo IV, be sure to check out our online coverage hub, which includes deeper dives into the Barbarian and Druid classes.

Sorcerers are elemental masters. They command primal energies and lay waste to armies with tornados of fire, lightning, and ice. With the flick of a wrist, they make giants tremble. During our recent cover-story visit to Blizzard, we went hands-on with the game for two days. Here’s a quick overview of what we learned about the Sorceress class in that time. 

“The Sorceress is about, 'I’m using your elements to really manipulate these monsters,'” says lead animator Nick Chilano. “In the demo, you can see one freeze monsters until they slow down and then get frozen before they finally just shatter. You can start to really manipulate the enemies around you until you’re at range and you’re safe, which is really cool.”

Ice Blades: Conjure ice blades for a few seconds that rapidly slash enemies and chill them.Hydra: Summon a three headed hydra for a few seconds. Each head spits fire at nearby enemies.

Druids are one with nature – and that nature is deadly. Over the course of a single combat encounter, they can rapidly shapeshift between bear, werewolf, and human forms. Using a mix of magic and brute strength they are an imposing force. During our recent cover story visit to Blizzard, we went hands-on with the game for two days. Here’s a quick overview of what we learned about the Druid class in that time.

“What’s nice about the druid is you get this interesting mix of melee and ranged, and you get this really cool visual when you’re switching between forms,” says lead animator Nick Chilano. “I think that, from a visual side, we’re excited about the fact that you cast cataclysm, you’re in druid form, you’re like boom and become a bear and then you’re a werewolf which is visually super exciting.”

For more on Diablo IV, be sure to check out our online coverage hub, which includes deeper dives into the Barbarian and Sorceress classes.

Druids are one with nature – and that nature is deadly. Over the course of a single combat encounter, they can rapidly shapeshift between bear, werewolf, and human forms. Using a mix of magic and brute strength they are an imposing force. During our recent cover story visit to Blizzard, we went hands-on with the game for two days. Here’s a quick overview of what we learned about the Druid class in that time.

“What’s nice about the druid is you get this interesting mix of melee and ranged, and you get this really cool visual when you’re switching between forms,” says lead animator Nick Chilano. “I think that, from a visual side, we’re excited about the fact that you cast cataclysm, you’re in druid form, you’re like boom and become a bear and then you’re a werewolf which is visually super exciting.”

For more on Diablo IV, be sure to check out our online coverage hub, which includes deeper dives into the Barbarian and Sorceress classes.

At Blizzcon 2019, I went hands-on with Hearthstone's auto battle mode, Battlegrounds. I also had the chance to play for this month's cover story gauntlet, so be sure to check out the upcoming issue for more. So what makes 8-player FFA brawl different than say, Teamfight Tactics or Dota Underlords? While it still has many of the core tenets of the genre, like family synergies (mechs, beasts, murlocs, etc), Battlegrounds has some key elements that make it stand out. The most important of these elements is the concept of the hero (although Underlords now has this feature in some respect, but it's quite different here). At the beginning of each match, players select from a few different hero options from a giant pool of 24 characters - many of which players may remember from single-player missions.

These can be accents that simply buff your minions or provide you with more options or resources over the course of a match - or they can be quite zany and game defining. One example is A.F. Kay, who works both from a flavor and function standpoint, as you essentially skip your first few turns in exchange for a significant boost in power afterwards. You can quite literally get up from the keyboard! Others allow you to "lifetap" for bonus coins, shoot out Ragnaros fire blasts, toss hats, and many other interesting effects.

At Blizzcon 2019, I went hands-on with Hearthstone's auto battle mode, Battlegrounds. I also had the chance to play for this month's cover story gauntlet, so be sure to check out the upcoming issue for more. So what makes 8-player FFA brawl different than say, Teamfight Tactics or Dota Underlords? While it still has many of the core tenets of the genre, like family synergies (mechs, beasts, murlocs, etc), Battlegrounds has some key elements that make it stand out. The most important of these elements is the concept of the hero (although Underlords now has this feature in some respect, but it's quite different here). At the beginning of each match, players select from a few different hero options from a giant pool of 24 characters - many of which players may remember from single-player missions.

These can be accents that simply buff your minions or provide you with more options or resources over the course of a match - or they can be quite zany and game defining. One example is A.F. Kay, who works both from a flavor and function standpoint, as you essentially skip your first few turns in exchange for a significant boost in power afterwards. You can quite literally get up from the keyboard! Others allow you to "lifetap" for bonus coins, shoot out Ragnaros fire blasts, toss hats, and many other interesting effects.

In celebration of Bayonetta's 10-year anniversary, we're taking a look back at this stylish-action game, which is every bit as bonkers, over-the-top, and fun as we remember. This series, which will soon be welcoming a third entry exclusively on Switch, is created by Platinum Games under the supervision of Hideki Kamiya, one of the visionaries behind Devil May Cry.

We dedicate the entire episode to this classic game, and have a nice discussion about its place in gaming and what we are hoping to see in the next chapter. Enjoy the episode, and we'll be back in seven days (hopefully live) for another look back at a game from yesteryear.

In celebration of Bayonetta's 10-year anniversary, we're taking a look back at this stylish-action game, which is every bit as bonkers, over-the-top, and fun as we remember. This series, which will soon be welcoming a third entry exclusively on Switch, is created by Platinum Games under the supervision of Hideki Kamiya, one of the visionaries behind Devil May Cry.

We dedicate the entire episode to this classic game, and have a nice discussion about its place in gaming and what we are hoping to see in the next chapter. Enjoy the episode, and we'll be back in seven days (hopefully live) for another look back at a game from yesteryear.

This Halloween Nintendo is giving gamers a special treat: After more than 18 years Luigi’s Mansion will finally be returning to consoles in the form of Luigi’s Mansion 3. It’s a game filled with secrets ripe to discover. To ensure you’ll be pulverizing poltergeists with ease, we have compiled a list of helpful tips and tricks. May your stay at the Last Resort, the games eponymous mansion, be both pleasant and rewarding. 

This Halloween Nintendo is giving gamers a special treat: After more than 18 years Luigi’s Mansion will finally be returning to consoles in the form of Luigi’s Mansion 3. It’s a game filled with secrets ripe to discover. To ensure you’ll be pulverizing poltergeists with ease, we have compiled a list of helpful tips and tricks. May your stay at the Last Resort, the games eponymous mansion, be both pleasant and rewarding.