Mac platforms have been too underpowered for virtual reality, requiring Apple diehards to bootstrap Windows for a ramshackle VR solution. But today at its annual WWDC conference, Apple announced an in-house solution: A Thunderbolt 3 GPU enclosure powered by AMD Radeon processors and a software seed in the new version of macOS. Combined, they finally make Macs VR-friendly. Wasting no time, Steam immediately launched a macOS version of its SteamVR platform, which anyone can access now while it's in beta.

Source: Steam

Tekken 7 may be working its way into my heart, but I've still been putting a ton of time into Injustice 2. The multiverse and gear system has kept me going, but I do fear it's now hitting the point of diminishing returns in some areas. NetherRealm is already making improvements, however. Red Hood (gross) is on his way soon, and an update to some of the game's inner workings is hitting today. Here are some changes sticking out to me:

• Improved AI logic for multiverse opponents & for player AI loadouts
• Corrected an issue which could cause specific Jump Attacks to not have recovery when a miss occurred
• Corrected an issue that could cause a character to jump in the opposite direction if the jump was inputted on the same frame as an opponent teleporting to the opposite side
• The level requirement on Gear will now be displayed as red if the user has not met the level requirement to equip it
• Added an indicator to opponent info in online match making screens which will display if the opponent is using a Wi-Fi connection instead of a Wired connection
• Fixed an issue which could cause players to not receive the proper rewards upon reaching levels 5/10/15/20
• Multiverse opponents and player AI loadout characters will now use sidekick and assist attacks (booooooo)
• Mr. Freeze premier skin now has a helmet
• Bronze Mother Boxes now cost 5000 Credits & Silver Mother Boxes now cost 10000 Credit

I'm so glad Captain Cold's Mr. Freeze skin is getting an improvement since it was the only one I could afford with the few Source Crystals I wrangled for free. I'm not paying ten dollars for skins, NetherRealm. Potato skins, maybe, but even that's a stretch. They'd have to be super good. 

Read over the full patch notes on Injustice 2's main page for more details. 

If you were starting from scratch with Street Fighter V on PC, you might be interested in getting the base game plus the 2016 and 2017 Season Passes. All that content will cost you a whopping $80.07 on Steam as a package dubbed the Street Fighter V Deluxe Edition, a bundle that saves you $9.90 over buying everything separately.

The steep price tag has been severely reduced at digital retailer GamersGate in its Capcom Midweek sale, which brings a historic low on that same 2017 Deluxe Edition, dropping it to only $40.

All the best deals in the sale are posted below with discounts up to 80% off list prices. All deals are for Steam keys and expire on June 8, 2017 at 7:00PM Eastern. If you're hoping to wait for a steeper summer sale, we suspect most prices found below are what we'll see later this month.

Capcom Sale

• Street Fighter V 2017 Deluxe Edition (Steam) — $40.03  (list price $80)
• Street Fighter V (Steam) — $20  (list price $40)
• Devil May Cry 4: Special Edition (Steam) — $12.49  (list price $25)
• Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen (Steam) — $12  (list price $30)
• Dead Rising 3: Apocalypse Edition (Steam) — $9  (list price $30)
• DMC: Devil May Cry (Steam) — $7.50  (list price $30)
• Ultra Street Fighter IV (Steam) — $7.50  (list price $30)
• Mega Man Legacy Collection (Steam) — $7.50  (list price $15)
• Remember Me (Steam) — $6  (list price $30)
• Dead Rising 2 (Steam) — $5.98  (list price $20)
• Lost Planet 3 (Steam) — $5  (list price $25)
• Strider (Steam) — $4.50  (list price $15)
• Lost Planet 2 — $4  (list price $20)
• Ultra Street Fighter IV Upgrade (Steam) — $3.75  (list price $15)

Note: Dragon Dogma has now made its way onto GOG and it is also available at 60% off for $12 for the DRM-free copy.

Deals from Dealzon. Sales help support Destructoid.

Sony savaged Microsoft when the pair announced PS4 and Xbox One details. Not only was the latter, still Kinect-packed, more expensive, but it required an online connection and couldn't even play used games. At E3 2013, Sony ethered Microsoft with this "used game instructional video." The Xbox One still hasn't quite recovered.

But at E3 2015, Microsoft did have some response, albeit reminiscent of when you think of the perfect thing you could've said to the jerk who took your parking spot after you've already driven home: the Xbox One would play some Xbox 360 games. Which ones? Here's a list.

Sony had always supported backward compatibility in its consoles until it stripped the feature away in later PS3 models. The PS4 notably launched unable to play older games and Sony has since taken to selling PS2 games through the PlayStation Network for those who want to buy games they own, again.

Speaking to Time, Sony's head of global sales and marketing, Jim Ryan offered the following:

"When we've dabbled with backwards compatibility, I can say it is one of those features that is much requested, but not actually used much. That, and I was at a Gran Turismo event recently where they had PS1, PS2, PS3 and PS4 games, and the PS1 and the PS2 games, they looked ancient, like why would anybody play this?"

Ryan is, again, the head of global sales and marketing for Sony, a company that will happily take your $10 to play God Hand on PS4, saying the games they are still selling to you for money "look ancient" and wondering why any dumb idiot would be stupid enough to play that garbage. Hmm.

Everything Sony Told Us About the Future of PlayStation [Time]

Virtual reality wunderkind Palmer Luckey is wading deeper into the world of politics with a new company "developing surveillance technology that could be deployed on borders between countries and around military bases," according to the New York Times. Luckey, the founder of Facebook-owned Oculus, left the company this year. 

His new venture will reportedly be supported by the investment fund run by venture capitalist Peter Thiel, who recently made a more public name for himself spending over $10 million to finance lawsuits against independent media outlet Gawker before donating $1.25 million to the Trump campaign and positioning himself as a major part of Trump's transition team.

Luckey also had a meeting with Trump’s chief strategist and former World of Warcraft goldfarm slumlord Steve Bannon about using his new surveillance technology on the Mexican border. Just last month, Luckey had a meeting with US Interior Department head Ryan Zinke about "Border Wall building plans." For some reason, this meeting was set up by American Sniper author Scott McEwen, who is friends with Zinke. In April, Luckey also held a fundraiser -- in California -- for Texas senator Ted Cruz.

Texas of course shares the longest border with Mexico of any state, so it's entirely plausible that Luckey is doing typical rich guy shit of using his obscene wealth to buy political influence. In Luckey's first political dust up last year, when it was found out he spent $10,000 on a pro-Trump/anti-Hillary organization, Luckey distanced himself from the controversy stating he was a "a libertarian who has publicly supported Ron Paul and Gary Johnson" so supporting a classic neocon like Cruz doesn't make much sense. A couple months ago we found out Luckey donated another $100,000 to Trump's inaugural committee via shell-companies named for Chrono Trigger.  

The 24-year-old's new company is based in Southern California and is currently self-financed thanks to an estimated over-$730-million net worth. His handful of employees include Christopher Dycus, formerly of Oculus. According to the NYT report, his new company plans to use, "lidar -- shorthand for light detection and ranging -- as well as infrared sensors and cameras to monitor borders for illegal crossings." Sources say it would be cheaper than Trump's insane border wall, and that it could have multiple applications for "perimeter security, including military bases."

"We are spending more than ever on defense technology, yet the pace of innovation has been slowing for decades," Luckey wrote to NYT when asked for comment. "We need a new kind of defense company, one that will save taxpayer dollars while creating superior technology to keep our troops and citizens safer."

If pearl clutching over "illegal border crossings" wasn't enough, Luckey's going full neocon here, bringing bullshit Silicon Valley "innovation" buzzwords to the money spillway that is the American military industrial complex. Forget how much Luckey stands to profit as he hobnobs with the most powerful people in the world -- he's trying to keep you safe!

Not unsurprisingly, then, are some new personal details about Luckey from the Times piece. One acquaintance called him a "casual 'prepper,'" as in "doomsday prepper," the folks building bunkers in their yards in preparation for societal collapse. Another said Luckey was just a "military buff." According to the Times, Luckey owns multiple properties that house decommissioned missile silos as well as "several military vehicles" and "three helicopters." Not sure how the millennial who grew up beach-front in Long Beach taking sailing lessons at the local yacht club turned into a Far Cry 5 character. I guess limitless money will do funny things to a fella.

Oculus Founder Plots a Comeback With a Virtual Border Wall [New York Times] 

What's that? You weren't able to sit through nearly three hours of Apple news earlier today as the company kicked off this year's installment of WWDC? No worries. We've condensed all of the watchOS, macOS, iOS, MacBook, iMac and iPad news into a convenient 15-minute clip. And yes, we made room for that newfangled Siri speaker, the HomePod. Sit back, relax, and catch up on what you missed without sacrificing a of couple hours to the task.

Get all the latest news from WWDC 2017 here!

Mountain Dew and video games are a match made in Stereotype Heaven that we see from time to time. It's common knowledge that Gamers need Gamer Fuel, and Mountain Dew is the creme de la creme of Gamer Fuels. There's just something about the way the effervescent, radiant liquid washes down the Dorito dust.

Forza Horizon 3 has a partnership with Mountain Dew for a new car pack, and it's incredibly restrained in its execution. None of the vehicles are plastered with tacky logos like it's NASCAR meets the Outback. This is Mountain Dew in name only.

The cars included in this pack are: the 2016 Lotus 3-Eleven, the 1951 Holden FX Sedan, the 1996 Ferrari F50 GT, the 2013 Dodge Dart GT, the 1971 Chevrolet Vega GT, the 1973 AMC Gremlin X, and the 1995 Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX. A trailer for the add-on is embedded above.

However, the restraint comes at a literal price. Unlike most sponsored content, the Mountain Dew Car Pack isn't free. A price wasn't announced, but other similar Forza Horizon 3 packs have been set at $7. What's more, the developer notes in the Forza forums that this add-on exists outside the car pack season pass, so it's not included with any other purchase. Everyone has to buy this individually.

The Mountain Dew Car Pack releases tomorrow, June 6. It's not the intrusive branding machine you'd expect. It's not a reminder of how dumb sponsored video game content can be. Somehow, that makes me just a little bit wistful. 

Hello! This week's Comments of the Week will be run by me, Gmana.

You might not know me since I don't comment on the front page, but I know all of you. Your comments are the main reason I lurked around here for so long and finally joined, and now it is my honor to be able to wade through them and hand-pick the very best ones.

How do you get into Comments of the Week? Leave a comment that makes me laugh, cry, or is even vaguely Nintendo related. It's really not that hard. Just make sure it's better than everyone else's!

Let's go!

Reactionary Scrabble knockoff Words With Friends added "covfefe" to its list of playable words, playing off of President Donald Trump's middle-of-the-night typo that led many to surmise the president choked on a kielbasa and died on the toilet mid-tweet. 

Now playable in #WordsWithFriends! #covfefe - "Autocorrect fails you at 3am" http://pic.twitter.com/YRILzWVOT9

— Words With Friends (@WordsWFriends) May 31, 2017

"Despite the constant negative press cofveve," the now-deleted, unfinished thought read. It was left up for hours without explanation, though Trump finally deleted it and offered a tongue-in-cheek response to the nut job conspiracy theorists who thought an errant, late-night typo from a brainless, always-online president was some kind of secret trigger word to activate the nuclear matryoshka mech the Russians have been building under the White House.

Who can figure out the true meaning of "covfefe" ??? Enjoy!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 31, 2017

It's amusing that the "covfefe" tweet was deleted, given that the president's long-running Twitter feed is filled with loads of surreal, dumb tweets about Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart's relationship or wishing "all haters and losers (of which, sadly, there are many)" a happy Memorial Day or all the criticisms of Obama that match up perfectly to Trump's own decisions.

Amazing how the haters & losers keep tweeting the name “F**kface Von Clownstick” like they are so original & like no one else is doing it...

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 3, 2013

The Viera race (not to be confused with a planed community in Florida), part of the on again off again world of Ivalice, have garnered a fanbase around them ever since they debuted in Final Fantasy Tactics Advance. So much so in fact that people have been clamoring for them to appear in Final Fantasy XIV, which evidently there is hope for at some point.

Speaking to Finder about the possibility, Yoshida responded in a typically cute manner, "I don't think you should give up hope. I mean we're hoping Final Fantasy XIV will have a very long lifespan. With that being said. Fran and the Viera race have a very high heel and trying to depict that in Final Fantasy XIV is challenging. They won't be able to wear any shoes that exist in Eorzea right now."

It's particularly possible because of the direction of Stormblood, which is incorporating several elements of the Ivalice universe -- when the expansion arrives it'll have a massive 20-person raid dedicated to it. Remember when Ivalice even included Vagrant Story? Good times.

Final Fantasy XIV [Finder] [Image credit]

Some inquisitive gamers have done a bit of digging through the files on the PC version of Tekken 7 and found a list of potential DLC packs. The absence of Tekken Bowl is going to make a lot of sense now, especially since it is seemingly scheduled to be the $10 mode added this summer.

As for who the extra characters are, no names were present in the data. There were placeholder files to get ready for the eventual drop, but the only real data that could potentially clue us in to who is getting added is that the first character has a meter system similar to Akuma and Eliza. Does that mean another Street Fighter character will be added to the game?

Regarding the costumes that Namco Bandai intends to add, it looks like an Idolmaster pack, Swimsuits and School uniforms are all we're going to be getting. I remember when those were free for Tekken Tag Tournament 2, so I don't know why anyone would suddenly want to pay for that. Those costumes were also in the Arcade version of Tekken 7, so this seems kind of underhanded to be ripped out and sold back to gamers.

All the PS4 exclusive content is also present in the data files, leading many to believe it will be a timed exclusive on the platform. I don't think that is the case; this same thing happened with Street Fighter X Tekken in that all the PlayStation content was in the other versions of the game. I get the feeling that Namco Bandai was just too lazy to fully remove the files.

Whether or not this ends up being true, it doesn't paint a nice picture for Tekken 7's season pass. A lot of people are tired of the constant barrage of DLC we see in triple A games, but DLC's reputation gets hurt when nonsense like this happens. Adding legitimate extra stuff that wasn't present in previous games would go a long way to making people feel happier about paying for costumes or characters.

T7 DLC files found in PC version's data [Reddit]

If you threw down in the Global Testpunch demo for Arms, you might already have a sense for this, but the number-one character? That's none other than Ninjara, according to the Nintendo's player stats.

ウデだめし後半戦、集計の結果…
なんと、ニンジャラが人気者1位の座を防衛しました！2位に初参加のツインテーラ！いやあ、ニンジャラ愛されていますね！
しかしまたも、勝率1位は逃したようです…続報を待て！ http://pic.twitter.com/v7j7LYEA7I

— ARMS（アームズ） (@ARMS_Cobutter) June 5, 2017

I didn't participate in the Testpunch over the weekend (holy hell, Hedlok!), but Ninjara was the character I most frequently lost to in the first event. Needless to say, I've got a grudge on my hands.

My time away has me feeling even more eager for launch. How'd the second Testpunch go?

[Via Siliconera]

A. Verdin (name redacted for privacy) isn't the only person who has allegedly scammed review keys from video game PR representatives and developers, but he's one of the few who got caught.

Verdin – AKA "BattlefieldAxe," "Airo95," "RaphaAaron," and "James Rodriguez" – has a reputation among publishers and PR reps for running game key scams; a con where the scammer falsifies some manner of credential in order to score free download keys for video games, often indie titles. In Verdin's case, he's almost certainly impersonated a member of Twitter's verification team and the PlayStation UK team, as well as allegedly impersonated representatives from EA, Square Enix, Bethesda, and Friday the 13th developer Gun Media. Although it's unclear how falsifying Twitter credentials figured into his alleged scam, Verdin reportedly obtained "about 50 keys" for the Friday the 13th: The Game beta as well as multiple Battlefield beta keys.

Since then, he's allegedly posted a since-deleted apology on Twitter, where he offered to reimburse the companies he's scammed via PayPal. This was approximately seven months ago, back in October 2016 – based on this screenshot. Although most of the screenshots we've obtained have been from second-hand sources, we've been able to conclusively verify that Verdin's current Twitter account once went by the handles accused of key scamming. The only thing we've been unable to confirm is whether Verdin ever apologized.

Two months after the apology, Verdin allegedly went back to his old ways by implying he was a member of the Friday the 13th: The Game development team on Twitter. Verdin initially responded to request for comment, but went silent after asking me what my plans were for the article.

The Electronic Entertainment Expo is a mere week away, and that's important because, amid all the pomp and circumstance, it's where we find out the short-term plans for most video game companies. Sony is no exception, as it seems poised to make its traditionally-big impact on E3. And, while everyone is getting excited for things to come, Sony's running a deal that makes it a little easier to pull the trigger on joining the PlayStation ecosystem.

According to a report from USA Today, the PlayStation 4 Slim will be discounted from $300 to $250. The sale will be temporary, from June 9 through June 17 -- the dates surrounding E3. It's also said that there will be "additional discounts on software and accessories." There's no mention of what stores will honor the deal, but these kinds of things tend to take effect at all major retailers.

What's more, it sounds as if the recently-rumored gold PS4 will be included as part of this price slashing. It's real, it's gaudy, and it's slightly more affordable than usual.

Although the promotion isn't yet being advertised on any of PlayStation's social media channels or the PlayStation Blog, a representative from Sony Interactive Entertainment America independently confirmed it to Destructoid. The marketing ramp-up will certainly happen in the days to come. So, for anyone looking to pick up a new PS4, you may want to hold out just a tiny bit longer.

'Breaking Bad' VR experience coming to Sony PlayStation VR [USA Today]

A few months ago Destiny got the update that veterans had been waiting over a year for -- Age of Triumph. It made old raids relevant again with updated difficulty tweaks and new gear, giving hardcore players something to do about they had conquered Aksis' hard challenge mode time and time again.

But as Bungie hinted around the time of its release, that's basically all she wrote for the original Destiny. Speaking on their weekly update post, community manager Deej states, "All hands at Bungie are committed to making Destiny 2 the sequel that this community deserves. We have a Beta this summer that will demand your bug reports. This fall will begin an entirely new cycle of updates for a brand new game that we think will be the best answer to the feedback you’ve give us since the original launch of Destiny.”

Other than cleaning up some major bugs (mostly to the infrastructure of Bungie.net and not in-game), don't expect anything else from the original through the sequel's launch, or possibly ever again. Destiny 2 will be out on September 8.

This Week at Bungie [Bungie.net]

Straight out of left field, Sony has announced that they are teaming up with writer/director Vince Gilligan to create a "Breaking Bad VR Experience" for PlayStation VR. While this will be available on PS4, it is decidedly a non-gaming experience. Sony Interactive Entertainment America President Shawn Layden says this deal came about because of the shift of the PlayStation Group's HQ from Tokyo to California. "Having the epicenter of PlayStation closer to Hollywood and closer to where all the online action is has been really beneficial," Layden states.

Even though this new "experience" isn't going to be a game, it is likely that whatever happens with this project will be rendered with 3D graphics instead of live action video. Sony's global chief executive, Andrew House, said, "I think this could be another interesting way to see how VR can drive towards the mainstream."

As for other projects along the lines of Breaking Bad VR, House said that Vince Gilligan was not the only creator that Sony has scouted. Purportedly writer/producer David Shore and Battlestar Galactica creator Ron Moore tinkered around with Sony's VR headset for a day. "They just played around with VR. Several of them were intrigued," claims House, "but Vince was the one who said, 'I really want to do something with this. I want to experiment with this."

I'm not quite sure what VR could bring to Breaking Bad that hasn't already been done on the show, but I guess fans looking for more of Heisenberg will be happy to know they can get one step closer than just another episode.

'Breaking Bad' VR Experience Coming to PlayStation VR [Glixel]

For any of our fútbol fans, you'll be happy to know that FIFA 18 is coming September 29, 2017. That shouldn't be surprising, considering that the past seven games have released in the same month, but confirmation is always nice. In addition to that, EA Sports has announced that this new version of FIFA will be dropping the Xbox exclusive "Legends" mode in favor of something called "Icons."

"Icons" will be present in every version of the game (PC, PS4, PS3, Xbox One, Xbox 360 and Switch), though more details weren't given. At least if you pre-order (on PC, PS4 and Xbox One), you can get all kinds of worthless crap that amounts to $120 somehow, along with three day early access. The first "Icon" is famed player Cristiano Ronaldo, widely considered the best player in the world.

If that wasn't enough to get you pumped, how about this trailer?

Facebook is determined to become a destination for gaming videos, and that includes when you're lounging on the couch. It's adding a dedicated gaming tab to its TV app that will highlight videos from the games, developers, eSports teams and personalities you like on Facebook. If you want to catch a tournament highlight or a new game trailer, you won't have to pull out your phone or leave the living room.

I do love a good surprise launch. The mind-bending mobile puzzler Monument Valley now has a follow-up and it's out today on iOS as a timed exclusive priced at $4.99.

Despite this being a numbered sequel, developer ustwo says "you don't need to have previously played Monument Valley to enjoy Monument Valley 2." This time, players will "guide a mother and her child as they embark on a journey through magical architecture, discovering illusionary pathways and delightful puzzles as you learn the secrets of the Sacred Geometry."

Considering Monument Valley 2 was unveiled earlier today at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference, I suspect we won't see it on Android all that soon.

Monument Valley 2 [Apple]

Several years ago, Natsume released Harvest Moon: My Little Shop on WiiWare. At the time, I jokingly referred to it as ‘baby’s first Harvest Moon’ which it was in a way. The game simplified the franchise’s design down to essentially an introduction course into the farm sim genre, only to ruin it with a misguided real-time clock.

Harvest Moon Lil’ Farmers, out now on iOS and Android, is an even more simplistic rendition of the formula. Unlike that last game, this one is far more successful in what it sets out to do.

Monument Valley is one of the greatest mobile games ever released, a brilliant puzzle jaunt through an MC Escher landscape punctuated with lovely chimes and audio accents. Nobody expected a sequel to come around any time soon, so Apple nonchalantly announcing the game at WWDC today is a delightful surprise. Monument Valley 2 is officially live on the App Store for $5.

Source: Monument Valley 2 (App Store)

As one Destructoid reader pointed out, Malthael is one of the most requested characters for Blizzard's Heroes of the Storm.

While I wouldn't have thought that an expansion for a relatively new Diablo game would have beaten out a number of classic Warcraft, StarCraft, and even other Diablo heroes, the 2.0 update for the game that Reaper of Souls ushered in seems to have garnered a lot of goodwill. It was all worth it too, as he's pretty fun to play.

I was at the very end of Fear Effect Sedna's Digital Dragons demo when I came across a puzzle that I couldn't quite solve. The first major puzzle in Sedna forced me to explore the environment to defuse a bomb, and I actually kinda liked that! It felt like I was playing an adventure game from the early aughts – which sounds about right, considering that's when the first Fear Effect came out.

But yikes, that last server puzzle. Even the positive reviews on Steam mention the puzzle as a low point, and it's not hard to see why. The textures in this particular level either don't have the solution, or obfuscate the answer so well that you're stuck looking at the servers for a solution.

Looking at the code input screen, what do you think the answer is? At first, I thought it was 351682; eliminate the red numbers and just input the green digits from each block of numbers. Nope. 356182; read the numbers horizontally? Nope. 315268; organize each block of numbers in ascending order based on the icons in the upper right? Nope. I'll give you a hint: it's not any permutation of those six numbers.

I've got a fairly strong ego, so I've never been averse to asking for help during previews. Except that didn't do me a lick of good, because all three people manning the Fear Effect booth weren't able to figure out the puzzle either. We puzzled and puzzled until our puzzlers were sore – poking around the environment, trying all the permutations mentioned above, the whole business. There were four video game professionals working on this and we still couldn't figure it out. Eventually, one of the reps texted a member of the development team looking for the answer. The word came back: "481376."

"Huh," one of the reps said. "That doesn't make any sense."

Ah Sony. Ever since the (mostly warranted) hubris of the "this is how you share games on PlayStation" video they've been sticking it to Microsoft directly, and indirectly, Nintendo's Wii U.

While Microsoft is shying away from sales numbers Sony is giving them out nearly every month, and sent out yet another reminder going into E3. To date, the publisher claims "almost" 60 million in sales for the PS4, which is a follow-up of their 60 million shipped number at the end of March. Also, they've pushed one million PSVR headsets (915,000 were sold in the first three months, so sales have been tapering off like crazy), and Horizon: Zero Dawn sold 3.4 million copies. Sony also notes that "one in five" PS4s sold since November have been a PS4 Pro.

This is only good news going into E3 for them, as they'll no doubt have plenty of announcements to push their sales even further. Sony needs to kick it into gear to top the Wii's 101.63 million in lifetime sales and crack the top five best selling console list -- it'll be an interesting ride.

PS4 [Business Insider]

At the Digital Dragons expo in Poland last month, Justin Bailey (not that one), the CEO and founder of the investment/crowdfunding platform Fig, spoke about the decline of crowdfunding. Bailey compared the history of video game crowdfunding to the history of the Ultima games, calling the past two years "The Age of Armageddon."

Keeping with the Ultima metaphor, Bailey attributes campaigns like the Broken Age or Shenmue 3 Kickstarters to creating the "The Age of Enlightenment," where many high-profile campaigns earned millions of dollars and garnered worldwide press coverage. Bailey has even seen the current build of Shenmue 3 during a recent trip to Japan. "It's a beautiful game," Bailey said. "It looks great."

"But although [Shenmue 3] was a very successful campaign, the whole narrative of a major publisher, specifically Sony, using crowdfunding to fund a campaign, and them being the ones to profit off it didn't go too well." Early rumblings of this exact sentiment first appeared during both Penny Arcade Kickstarters – especially the DLC Podcast campaign, which had a goal of $10. Although neither campaign was for a specific video game, they were both ostensibly video game adjacent considering Penny Arcade's influence on the video game industry. Bailey argues that Shenmue 3 was one of the factors behind the crowdfunding "Age of Armageddon," alongside "crowdfunding fatigue."

"I think probably the worst thing that's lead to crowdfunding fatigue is a correlation with the actual budget and the campaign goal; there basically is none. A lot of times, when developers are coming up with [a campaign goal], they're engineering backwards from what they think they can get and then reducing that so they can end up with a multiple on top of that to get press coverage," Bailey said. "Which leads me to my next part: there's not as much press coverage anymore."

Bailey notes that since the explosion of Kickstarter campaigns, press coverage has significantly dropped. Anecdotally, as a reporter for a relatively popular video game site, the word "Kickstarter" in a press release will often ensure I skip that particular email. Not only is there less coverage from press or social media, Bailey also claims there are fewer big-money donors. "This is by no means scientific, I'm definitely going to use some anecdotal parts of this, but the data I have seen indicates the higher tiers have been drying up for the last few years," Bailey said. "Where people used to throw down a thousand bucks and they'd have dinner with the developer or a party or something, that's not happening anymore."

Found by some astute folks at NeoGAF, a skincare company over in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, has adapted a very peculiar logo that you don't typically associate with healthy skin -- the Umbrella Corp. symbol.

Plastered all over their site with happy employees and patients, the symbol isn't just a spinoff or unique take on the fake evil organization, but an exact replica, as the coloring is a 1:1 match. It brings me back to the days when Avon was promoting the first film with a pretty clever T-Virus vial.

Following up on the internet's explosion, the Medcare Skin Centre's Facebook page posted a reply, noting that they were "very surprised" with the feedback, and that a "hired third-party" chose the logo.

Medcare Skin Centre [Medcare via NeoGAF]

With the Omega Collection, Sony has assembled WipEout HD (PS3), WipEout Fury (the expansion to HD), and WipEout 2048 (PS Vita), touching them up to feel more at home on PlayStation 4.

You probably don't need me to tell you that it's a must-play for long-time fans, so I'll just add that even if you have little to no nostalgia for these anti-gravity racers, this is a tremendously good value.