The Week in Gaming for 22nd October 2021

Rockstar reveals Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy- Definitive Edition release date, price and trailer

The title will be released digitally on the 11^th November 2021 and physically on the 7^th December 2021. It will be coming to Rockstar Games Launcher, PlayStation and Microsoft storefronts for £54.99. The Nintendo Switch version will be a little cheaper at £49.99 and exclusively includes Gyro aiming and touch screen camera zooming and menu selection.

Rockstar revealed the first trailer and screenshots from the games and promises that the new additions will include ‘new GTAV- inspired modern controls, plus across-the-board visual enhancements such as resolution upgrades and improved visual fidelity across the world.”

Additionally, San Andreas will be coming to Xbox Game Pass on 11^th November and GTA III will be available on PlayStation Now from the 7^th December. 

The trailer can be watched here.

Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pass- New Details and Pricing

In the Animal Crossing Direct on the 15^th of October, Nintendo revealed the pricing and contents of its Expansion Pass tier to Nintendo Switch Online.

In the UK the new expansion pass tier will cost £34.99 whilst in the USA it will cost $49.99, and in Europe it will be €39.99. There is also a family membership for £59.99/$79.99/€69.99 which includes access for up to 8 accounts. The Expansion Pack will launch on the 26^th of October. For existing members, you will receive a discount depending on how many days you have left on your current Nintendo Switch online membership.

The new Expansion Pass includes access to a selection of N64 and Mega Drive games and the new Animal Crossing New Horizons expansion: Happy Home Paradise (which would cost £22.49/$24.99/€24.99 separately and launches on 5^th November).

Sony reveals UNCHARTED movie trailer

Sony has revealed a trailer for the UNCHARTED movie which will release on Friday 18^th February 2022 in Cinemas.

Starring Tom Holland and Mark Wahlberg as Nathan Drake and Sully respectively, the trailer seems to tease things from all the UNCHARTED games. They have recreated the scene in UNCHARTED 3 where Nathan Drake needs to climb up the cargo hanging out of a plane before it crashes down in the desert. There is also a mention of Nathan’s brother Sam who appears in UNCHARTED 4.

The film will be directed by Ruben Fleischer of Venom and Zombieland fame.

Uncharted 4 A Thieves End and Lost Legacy will release on PS5 and PC in early 2022

Naughty Dog’s other recent blockbuster series The Last of Us is also getting the cinematic treatment in the form of an HBO TV series which is also expected to air next year.

Grasshopper Manufacture has been purchased by a Chinese publisher.

Suda51’s studio Grasshopper Manufacture, best known for their titles such as No More Heroes and Lollipop Chainsaw, has been purchased by NetEase games.

The agreement was signed on 31^st May 2021 and was announced on 22^nd October 2021 by NetEase in a press release.

Suda51 had this to say on the matter “As we all know, NetEase Games has developed many excellent games in the past and I have long been aware of NetEase’s creative capabilities. When talking with NetEase about ‘developing more unique console games together', we resonated. After a lot of thoughts, we’ve unanimously decided to ‘get together' in the long term through deeper cooperation to create more good content for gamers.”

Grasshopper Manufacture recently release No More Heroes 3 on Switch which was published by Nintendo back in August.

FIFA and EA have a public spat as both sides want more money

EA is currently mulling over whether to renew the license deal over the name of their FIFA series. Their current licence, which lasted 10 years, is set to run out after the Qatar 2022 World Cup.

According to the New York Times, FIFA has asked for $2.5 billion for EA to continue to use their name as the title of the series. EA has already extended their deal to use professional footballers names and likenesses, however, they are thinking of rebranding the series to avoid paying for the expensive name.

As such on the 7^th of October 2021, in a statement retrieved from VGC, EA said “we’re… exploring the idea of renaming our global EA Sports football games. This means we’re reviewing our naming rights agreement with FIFA.”

FIFA released a statement saying it was set to widen its gaming and esports portfolio. The sporting body said it was “engaging with various industry players, including developers, investors and analysts to build out a long-term view of the gaming, eSports and interactive entertainment sector.” Whilst not stated specifically, this seems to be FIFA saying it is happy to license its name to other developers if EA decides to not play ball.