What the Queen’s Death Means for the Splatoon 3 Launch Day Meta

Posted on by Jeremy Kaplowitz

Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom has passed away today at the age of 96, and devoted fans around the world are mourning her loss. But while this is a time for honoring her legacy, it is also a time to look forward. Many are asking what the Queen’s death will mean for the royal family, and more importantly, what it means for the highly anticipated launch of Splatoon 3, which lands on Nintendo Switch September 9th, 2022.

First let’s look at the playerbase. As is well established by anyone who has played Splatoon or Splatoon 2, some of the worst players you can come across are, of course, the British. Whether they’re playing with a tea and a bunch of unseasoned beans in one hand and a controller in the other, we’re not sure. But everyone knows that when you see a union jack icon on your team, you’re upset. So with the loss of their god-leader, Queen Elizabeth II, we can expect that many British citizens will simply be too depressed to turn on their Nintendo Switch, instead looking to maps of Africa and India to remember what they once had.

This means that most games you play should be more competitive, as they’ll be filled with players from non UK countries. On the other hand, however, if you do see the rare Brit show up on your squad, your best bet is to just quit the match immediately and eat the rating loss.

But what about the weapons? In Splatoon 2, the strongest weapon was easily the N-Zap 85. This gun is making a return in Splatoon 3 and is sure to be one of the more powerful weapons there as well. But those following the story about the Queen know that the legendary figure passed away today after shooting herself in the head with a home-made weapon designed to look like the Sploosh-o-Matic — her favorite Splatoon 2 gun — that she had a royal cosplayer 3D print for her. While this is absolutely tragic, because the Sploosh-o-Matic is one of the weaker Splatoon weapons, fans should expect Nintendo to strongly buff the gun in the coming days as a tribute to the late monarch.

The Sploosh-o-Matic will surely be weak for the first few days of launch, and you should still avoid it for now, but hardcore players may want to pick it up in anticipation of the upcoming buff, just to get a good feel for a weapon that they likely never really used in the old game, unlike the Queen. 

What about the stages? Those will probably stay the same. Why would that change because of the Queen dying? What? Very odd thing to expect.

Edit: Nintendo has announced an additional stage coming to Splatoon 3, which will take place at the Queen’s funeral. So that’s on us for being so mean about saying it wouldn’t matter. Sorry. Not sure why we came out so hot on that. You were absolutely right.

Well that’s all we know about Splatoon 3’s upcoming meta, as it relates to the death of Queen Elizabeth II! We will of course update this article as more information comes out this week, but in the meantime, make sure to check out the new Queen Elizabeth model of the Nintendo Switch OLED that the company just announced in the wake of her untimely passing!

MultiVersus Gizmo Patch Notes (v. 1.02): Buffs, Nerfs, & Changes

Posted on by Brad Waters

MultiVersus patch notes for Season 1’s 1.02 patch have come and brought with them some seismic changes to the game as a whole. Not just character buffs and nerfs, but entirely changed moves and overhauled systems. This is a big one, let’s dive in.

UNIVERSAL CHANGES:

  • Gizmo is added to the game!
  • Hitboxes/hurtboxes are being overhauled overall. The team state their goal is to ensure character animations are more in-line with hitboxes and hurtboxes. Hurtboxes have been updated on “every character”.

  • Projectiles are also being overhauled. In order to make them more understandable to the average player, the team are implementing systems to fix the way they interact. Opposing projectiles will now always clank, destroying both projectiles. Some projectiles are now “Heavy Projectiles“, which break other projectiles, can not be reflected and only clank with other Heavy Projectiles. Barriers and projectile-blocking buffs and perks now work more consistently. Players can now block the explosions of projectiles they already blocked.
  • Directional Attacks and Specials are now mappable to certain keys on the keyboard. 8 new keyboard binds: all 4 specials and all 4 directional attacks. This means you can now use Downward moves without having to fastfall at the same time, for instance.
  • Characters’ vertical mesh offsets have been adjusted so that their feet don’t clip into the floor as much.
  • Input handling when a Special or Attack is input at the same time as a Jump has been improved. Before, Jumps could interrupt Specials or Attacks leading to some inputs being improperly cancelled. Now, short-hop Specials and Attacks should be more responsive.
  • The Assassin Passive that caused Assassin characters to receive an additional 5% damage has been removed entirely for all Assassin-Class characters. This is most likely an attempt to buff the class.

 

STAGE CHANGES:

  • The above change has affected floor collision on the following stages: Scooby’s Haunted Mansion, Tree Fort (1v1), Cromulons, Cromulons (1v1) and every version of Sky Arena.
  • Bouncing off walls, floors and ceilings no longer restores your Dodge Meter Energy.
  • Tree/Trampoline health on Tree Fort reduced from 30 to 15. (They are much easier to destroy now.)
  • The main platform on Trophy’s E.D.G.E. has been evened out so that collision is more symmetrical.
  • A floating platform has been added to both Cromulons and Cromulons (1v1).

 

PERK CHANGES/MultiVersus Patch Notes:

  • Clear The Air has had its description updated to explain that the perk’s effect only applies to Heavy Projectiles.
  • Ice To Beat You! now only applies the Ice debuff to fighters that have not already been debuffed with Ice. (This change was apparently already in place online, and has now been added to local play.)
  • I’ll Take That has had its unstacked cooldown refund decreased from 0.5 seconds to 0.25 seconds. The stacked cooldown refund has also been decreased from 1 second to 0.5 seconds. (This was also already implemented for online play, and now has been added to local play too.)
  • Make It Rain, Dog! has had its unstacked projectile speed buff reduced from 20% to 10%. The stacked projectile speed buff has also been reduced from 25% to 20%. (Description text for this patch won’t be changed until the next patch.)
  • Sturdy Dodger had an issue where the perk wouldn’t stack properly. That has now been fixed.

 

CHARACTER CHANGES:
(~ = Change, + = Buff, – = Nerf)

ARYA: (Changed)

  • –Air/Ground Up Special has been reverted to its Early Access state.
  • “We were finding that skill and counterplay was being removed from Arya with the addition of the vacuuming effect making follow ups nearly always true. This revert will give opponents the ability to affect the outcome by use of Knockback Influence (KBI) and Arya air control to compensate for the opponent’s KBI.”
  • ~Air/Ground Up Special has had a bug fixed that caused Arya’s dash on hit to stop working after Taz turns her into a chicken.
  • –Air/Ground Neutral Special has had an issue fixed with long, lingering hitboxes on Arya’s stolen face Neutral Special.

 

BATMAN: (Changed)

  • “We’re watching Batman closely. The Projectile Systems update will make it so all projectiles will properly destroy the batarang so we want to see how this plays out for a bit before further adjustments. The goal is to make Batman Batarang have understandable counterplay.”
  • ~Air Down Special has had its knockback angle changed to send opponents more horizontally.
  • ~Air Side Attack now allows you to carry the movement momentum earlier when landing.
  • +Ground Down Special has had a bug fixed that prevented Projectile Sidestep from dodging all projectiles.
  • +Ground Side Attack has had an online bug fixed that was causing the first Jab to be delayed going into Jab 2.

 

BUGS BUNNY: (Nerfed)

  • “Bugs Bunny is still a bit too safe and unpunishable due to land-cancelling recovery. The new active frames adjustment and global hurtbox updates will hopefully make Bugs Bunny’s up air attack more manageable from the opponent’s side.”
  • ~Air Side Special (Rocket) is now considered a Heavy Projectile.
  • Purple visual effect added to indicate armor-breaking property.
  • ~Air Up Special (Rocket) is now considered a Heavy Projectile.
  • Purple visual effect added to indicate armor-breaking property.
  • Cooldown attack no longer consumes all aerial special uses.
  • –Air/Ground Neutral Special (Safe) is now considered a Heavy Projectile.
  • Barriers and buffs that block projectiles now cancel the Safe’s hitbox until its hit again, which reactivates the hitbox.
  • –Air Down Attack has had its recovery land cancel window delayed by 2 frames.
  • –Air Side Attack has had its recovery land cancel window delayed by 3 frames.
  • –Air Up Attack has had the active frames on its hitbox reduced.
  • –Ground Neutral Attack has had the frame window to cancel into another Grounded Neutral Attack delayed.
  • –Weight lowered from 55 to 50.
  • –Comin’ Through Doc! (Signature Perk) has had its hitbox active duration reduced from 0.5 seconds to 0.25 seconds.

 

MultiVersus Patch Notes FINN: (Buffed)

  • +Passive: Finn’s starting gold has been increased from 100 to 200.
  • +Air/Ground Neutral Special has had an issue fixed where the the shockwave from high-fiving an ally would not hit enemies.
  • +Air Up Special has had its vacuum hitbox adjusted to more consistently combo into the final hit.
  • +Ground Down Attack has had its minimum travel distance increased.

 

GARNET: (Buffed)

  • +Air/Ground Neutral Special. When Garnet bubbles a projectile, it can no longer hit her or her teammate until the bubble pops.
  • +Air/Ground Side Special has had its projectile speed increased from 2000 to 2200. The recovery frames on this move have also been decreased to allow for more follow ups.
  • +Air Side Attack has had its on-attack cancel window on the first hit moved to earlier in the move.
  • Side Attack 1 now combos better into Side Attack 2.

 

HARLEY QUINN: (Buffed Slightly)

  • +Movement Speed: Increased from 1825 to 1875.

 

IRON GIANT: (Nerfed)

  • –Passive: Iron Giant’s RAGE mode Gray Health has been reduced from 30 to 15.
  • –Air Up Attack has had its damage reduced from 6 to 5.
  • –Air/Ground Neutral Special’s ability and ammo cooldowns are now static cooldowns. “Static cooldowns are not affected by by cooldown reduction perks or buffs. Consuming an item or Iron Giant’s art will still grant one bolt.”
  • Ability cooldown increased from 23 seconds to 25 seconds.
  • –Air Neutral Attack has had its whiff recovery increased.

 

JAKE: (Nerfed)

  • ~Air/Ground Neutral Special, Jake will now spit all opponents out on the first spit if he eats multiple opponents.
  • Spitting no longer counts towards air special count. Jake can aerial spit even if he has exhausted his air specials.
  • Spit opponents are now properly classified as projectiles.
  • Weakened stacks applied on hit reduced to 2 from 5.
  • -Air/Ground Down Special has had its attack duration reduced from infinite to 3 seconds.
  • ~Air Side Attack has had its whiff recovery increased by 6 frames.
  • Land cancel window delayed to match increased whiff recovery.
  • On-hit cancel window moved 2 frames earlier.
  • This should give the opponent more of a window to punish Jake on a whiffed attack, while also giving Jake more of an opportunity to successfully follow up from a hit attack.
  • –Air Down Attack has had a damage reduction on the first two hits.
  • Third hit ignite duration reduced to 0.5 seconds from 1 second.

 

MultiVersus Patch Notes: LEBRON JAMES: (Buffed)

  • ~Air Down Attack’s knockback angle is now more horizontal.
  • +Basketball: Enemies can no longer hit the basketball.
  • “The basketball will always bounce back when blocked by projectile-blocking effects.”
  • +Ball Ground Neutral Special has had its ground pass projectile speed increased. (Air version has been unaffected.)
  • +No Ball Air Side Attack has had its hitbox active frame window moved 3 frames earlier.
  • +Ball Ground Up Attack has had its hitbox active frame window moved earlier.
  • On-hit cancel window moved earlier to allow for more reliable combo follow-ups.
  • +Ball Ground Down Attack has had its cancel window moved earlier.

 

MORTY: (Buffed)

  • +Passive: Ally grenade passive has been enabled.
  • ~Air/Ground Neutral Special has had its ammo cooldown increased from 12 seconds to 13 seconds.
  • Knockback scaling increased from 23 to 25.
  • Grenades can now be knocked back by teammate’s projectiles and enemy projectiles will destroy the grenades.
  • ~Air/Ground Down Special had had an issue fixed where Morty or his teammate would be randomly pulled back to the save point. This will now only trigger when the ally is near the blastzone.
  • +Air Side Special’s aim reticle now only shows for the Morty player in online matches.
  • +Ground Side Special now hits projectiles more consistently.
  • ~Air/Ground Neutral Attack has had an issue fixed where two shots would occasionally be fired.
  • Knockback direction now based on projectile velocity.
  • Knockback scaling increased.
  • +Grounded Side Attack now connects into itself more consistently.
  • +Extra Fleeb Juice (Signature Perk) Now cleans up Tom & Jerry’s Mousetrap and Garnet’s Electric Zone.

 

REINDOG: (Buffed Slightly)

  • +Air/Ground Neutral Attack can no longer be hit by enemies.
  • +Air Up Attack has had vacuum knockback applied to the first hit to help the move combo into itself more consistently.
  • –Ground Neutral Attack can no longer be cancelled by holding down and dodging to make the move less spammable.

 

SHAGGY: (Nerfed Slightly)

  • ~Rage Air/Ground Down Special. Shaggy’s Super Sandwich is now considered a Heavy Projectile.
  • ~Air/Ground Down Special: correctly branches to other attacks on hit for non rage side specials.
  • –Ground Down Attack has had its armor removed and its knockback angle adjusted to be more horizontal.
  • –Weight lowered from 76 to 68.
  • –Ground Up Special. Jump cancel in ground up air special is delayed to prevent a true combo into Air Up Special because it was killing at unexpectedly low damage.

 

MultiVersus Patch Notes: STEVEN UNIVERSE: (Nerfed Slightly)

  • -Air/Ground Up Special. Steven must now land after spawning 2 shields before he can spawn more.

 

SUPERMAN: (Nerfed Slightly)

  • ~Air Up Special has had a bug fixed where Superman could grab enemies from very far away when they bounced off walls.
  • Later startup on active hit frames.
  • ~Air Side Special has had the same bug fixed as Air Up Special.
  • Flight speed after Superman grabs an enemy has been reduced so that it won’t carry them as far.
  • –Air/Ground Down Special now has an ammo cooldown. Superman spawns with 2 ammo and regenerates 1 every 8 seconds. (“This is to prevent Heat Vision camping, where Superman would only use this attack over and over.”)
  • –Ground Down Attack has had its active frames reduced.
  • –Ground Up Attack has had its hitbox adjusted so that it no longer hits behind Superman.

 

TAZ: (Buffed)

  • ~Skins: Beachcomber Taz’s hat has been altered to look more like the profile icon.
  • ~Passive: Max Tasty stacks increased from 16 to 18.
  • Chicken movement speed decreased from 1550 to 1200.
  • Chicken maximum health decreased from 30 to 15.
  • Chicken duration reduced from 8 seconds to 6 seconds.
  • +Air/Ground Neutral Special can now eat and spit Bugs’s Safe and Rockets and Shaggy’s Super Sandwich.
  • Eating an enemy in the air now applies 2 stacks of Weaken.
  • +Air/Ground Side Special has had its on-cooldown tornado duration increased from 0.25 seconds to 0.45 seconds.
  • +Air/Ground Down Special has had its recovery frames decreased to allow for more potential follow ups.
  • Air/Ground Up Special allows cancelling to dodge and jump to be able to escape while in the air.
  • ~Iron Stomach (Signature Perk). The Anvil is now considered a Heavy Projectile.
  • Fixed issues with Taz’s item throw animation.
  • –I Gotta Get In There! (Signature Perk) has been changed so that allies can only enter the dogpile once per use now.

 

MultiVersus Patch Notes: TOM & JERRY: (Nerfed)

  • ~Jerry Air/Ground Up Special. Jerry no longer hits enemies immediately after the rocket explodes.
  • Jerry is now classified as a Heavy Projectile while in flight and no longer has his cooldown refreshed if he dies while attached to an ally.
  • Reduced cork ammo from 3 to 2. (Cork ammo unchanged while attached to an ally.)
  • –Air Side Attack has had 3 frames of recovery added to it.
  • Land cancel window delayed by 7 frames.
  • -Air Down Attack has had 3 frames of recovery added to it.
  • Land cancel window delayed by 3 frames.
  • –Ground Side Attack has had the active frames of its Jab 1 hitbox moved to 2 frames later.
  • –Dynamite Split (Signature Perk). Split dynamite sticks now detonate when they hit terrain.

 

VELMA: (Nerfed)

  • ~Passive: Instead of calling the police, Velma now solves the mystery and calls the Mystery Inc. gang and the Mystery Machine to take the bad guys away.
  • –Air Up Special no longer applies stacks of Weaken on hit.
  • –Air/Ground Neutral Attack no longer heals Velma when she hits an ally with a speech bubble.
  • –Movement speed reduced from 2200 to 2100.
  • –Weight reduced from 55 to 52.

 

WONDER WOMAN: (Nerfed Slightly)

  • ~Air/Ground Neutral Special (Lasso) is no longer considered a projectile.
  • ~Ground Down Attack no longer breaks projectiles while charging.
  • –Weight reduced from 76 to 71.
  • -Movement speed reduced from 2250 to 2225.

Thank you for reading our MultiVersus patch notes. Please check out our game page with additional MultiVersus guides.

Best Tom and Jerry MultiVersus Combos, Strategies, & Perks

Posted on by Parker Johnson

One of the most iconic cartoon duos, Tom & Jerry, is also one of the most fun characters to play in MultiVersus. The pair uses weapons & techniques that are fitting with classic cartoon hijinks. From mallets to slingshots, here are all of the best ways to maximize Tom & Jerry’s moveset.

Tom & Jerry Moveset Overview – Basic Attacks

Tom using a tennis racket in the air in the MultiVersus training room.

Tom & Jerry’s standard attacks stay pretty basic. Using mallets, paddleballs, and more, the dynamic duo can deal heavy damage on their enemies.

  • Neutral Ground Attack: Tom charges up a tennis racket to strike his opponents. A standard attack, with good knockback if you can afford to charge it. Can also be used in combination with Neutral Special to launch tennis balls at opponents.
  • Side Ground Attack: Tom uses a mallet to hit the opponents with a four-hit combo that launches upwards and forwards. A good attack to tack on extra damage to low-damage enemies.
  • Up Ground Attack: Tom uses a paddleball to juggle enemies above him. If Tom still has Jerry with him, Jerry is bounced instead, giving the attack a bigger hitbox.
  • Down Ground Attack: Tom charges a downward scratch to hit other grounded enemies. This attack also breaks any armor.
  • Neutral Air Attack: This is the same as Tom’s Neutral Ground Attack.
  • Side Air Attack: Tom scratches twice in front of him. This attack covers a lot of area in front of Tom, and the double-hit means it can break armor. These features make this one of the tomcat’s best options in neutral.
  • Up Air Attack: Tom slams two trash can lids together above him. This attack covers a large area and knocks enemies upwards. One of Tom’s best kill moves at high damage.
  • Down Air Attack: At a downward angle in front of himself, Tom slams a frying pan. When used onstage, it’s Tom’s best combo starter. Offstage, it’s a fantastic tool to spike enemies to their doom.

Tom & Jerry Moveset Overview – Neutral Special

Tom aiming his slingshot with Jerry ready to launch.

Where Tom & Jerry earn the MultiVersus expert classification is with their special attacks. Using his Neutral Special, Tom launches Jerry using a slingshot. Many of their special attacks change, depending on where Jerry is located, or if he’s out of commission.

  • Neutral Special (With Jerry): When Jerry is with Tom, his Neutral Special will launch Jerry in front of him with his slingshot. Jerry will stay on stage where he was launched. He has 3 bottle caps that he can fire at enemies. These bottle caps always fire whenever Tom attacks, in the direction he attacks. When deployed, Jerry can also be picked up by his ally, which then gives him two additional bottle caps to launch.
  • Neutral Special (Jerry Deployed): Tom slingshots a tennis tennis ball, which Jerry hits back. This ball doesn’t do any damage from the initial launch. However, it can be hit back by Tom using his Neutral Ground Attack or Neutral Air Attack to be launched back as a damage-dealing projectile.
  • Neutral Special (No Jerry): If Jerry has been defeated or launched off the map, Tom simply launches a tennis ball forward. This ball can be hit with the same attacks as with Jerry deployed to give the ball power.

Tom & Jerry’s Other Special Attacks

  • Side Special: Tom casts a fishing line our in from of him. The lure can bring the enemy in to Tom to combo with his Side Ground Attack.
  • Up Special (With Jerry, On Ground): Tom straps Jerry to a small rocket that is remote controlled. Can be useful to hit distant enemies, but leaves Tom vulnerable while controlling.
  • Up Special (With Jerry, In Air): Launches Jerry on the rocket in a small, curved arc above Tom.
  • Up Special (Jerry Deployed): Tom launches a rocket that locks onto Jerry
  • Up Special (No Jerry): Tom launches a small rocket for a short distance above him. This is the same whether Tom is in the air or on the ground.
  • Down Special (On Ground): Tom places an explosive mouse trap on the ground. A small cooldown applies.
  • Down Special (In Air): Tom drops dynamite from the air. Can be hit with Neutral Ground and Neutral Air attacks to launch the dynamite horizontally. Has two charges that each have a short cooldown.

Tom & Jerry’s Best MultiVersus Combos

Tom using his frying pan in the training room.

The cat & mouse duo have a good collection of combos they can utilize. Tom’s Down Air will be key to start many of these combos. However, using the duo’s wealth of projectiles, these basic combos can be combined with projectiles to fantastic effect.

  • Down Air into Up Ground Attack (low damage): One of Tom and Jerry’s best combos is Down Air into Up Ground Attack. After using Down Air, charge Up Ground Attack for a short time, then release. This will make it so Up Ground hits both in front of and above Tom.  Usually deals 16 damage.
  • Down Air into Up Air: Another pretty basic combo. At high damage, this can be used to K.O. most enemies.
  • Side Ground Attack (first 3 hits) into Neutral Special: After the first two hits of this combo, it can be useful to instead use Neutral Special. This provides plenty of knockback, and also deploys Jerry onstage to use bottle caps.
  • Side Ground Attack (first hit) into Neutral Ground Attack: At high damage, after the first hit of Side Ground Attack, the opponent bounces off the ground. This gives an extra window that your adversary will still be in hitstun. This is a good opportunity to use Tom’s Neutral Ground to charge his tennis racket and deal a finishing blow to a high damage enemy.

How to Win Teams Battles as Tom & Jerry

Tom and The Iron Giant on a victory screen.

Despite being overshadowed in the projectile meta by Bugs Bunny, Tom & Jerry is a great complementary combatant for many characters on the roster. He thrives when paired with a rushdown character. Many Tanks and Assassins will be great characters to team with the feline and his frenemy:

  • The Iron Giant (Tank)
  • Arya Stark (Assassin)
  • Wonder Woman (Tank)
  • Superman (Tank)

When teamed with a rushdown character, Tom & Jerry can work from the backlines. Strategic use of Jerry will be key to victory. After you launch him, pay attention to whether he’s with your teammate or not, if he still has bottle caps, and if he’s under attack from enemies. Then, use this awareness to maximize the use of projectiles to disrupt the opposition.

Remember that Jerry launches his bottle caps to the side Tom is facing. Also keep in mind that these launch whenever Tom attacks. If you’re lucky, your rivals will forget about this facet of Tom & Jerry’s moveset. Take advantage to interrupt attacks at unexpected times and throw off combos on your close-combat teammate.

How to Win 1v1 Battles as Tom & Jerry

Tom on a solo victory screen on Scooby's Mansion.

In one-on-ones, Tom & Jerry become a little more involved. Using short hops will be critical for these two. When you approach, utilize the Side Air Attack to attack in front of you and clear a path. Down Air will also be key in your arsenal to start combos.

It is usually best for this pair of frenemies to stay distant in duos. But when put in a one-on-one situation, you’ll find they are still more than capable as solo combatants. Using the basic combos, combined with mixing up with projectiles and traps, will make you a formidable foe for any players you might face online.

Best MultiVersus Perks – Tom & Jerry

Tom & Jerry on the perk selection screen.

Tom & Jerry have a few perks in their loadout that simply make sense to use in nearly every situation. Of course, you can also use your judgement to switch up perks to stack with teammates or fit your individual playstyle. Regardless, here are the best perks to start with as Tom & Jerry:

  • Make It Rain, Dog! (unlocked at level 2)
  • That’s Flammable, Doc! (unlocked at level 4)
  • Deadshot (can be trained at level 9)
  • Signature Perk: Dynamite Split (unlocked at level 8)

Tom & Jerry’s best perk loadout enhances their projectiles. Make It Rain, Dog! increases projectile speed, making it even easier to catch the opposition off-guard with Jerry. That’s Flammable makes projectiles give opponents an ignite effect, if it’s followed by a melee attack. Deadshot increases the base damage of all projectiles.

The most useful of these perks is Dynamite Split. With this perk equipped using Tom’s tennis racket (Neutral Ground/Air Attack) on his dynamite (Aerial Down Special) will cause the dynamite to split into three separate dynamite sticks. This, combined with increased projectile speed, makes the dynamite cover a much wider area. This makes the attack very effective for suppressing your enemies when they try to approach.

Tom & Jerry – Gizmo Patch Changes

Tom & Jerry and Iron Giant on the Teams' perk selection screen.

In the new patch that released on September 8, along with new character Gizmo, huge overhauls came for many characters. Tom & Jerry’s changes, unfortunately, were nearly all nerfs. Here’s all of the new things to know about Tom & Jerry:

  • Jerry now only has two corks of ammo to launch from his bottle instead of three.
  • Air Side and Air Down Attacks have additional frames of recovery.
  • Ground Side Attack has a longer time before it becomes active.
  • Down Special dynamite now explodes when hitting the stage if split by the Dynamite Split signature perk.

Overall, Tom & Jerry is a very fun duo to play as. While currently overshadowed by other projectile characters like Velma and Bugs Bunny in the current meta, don’t overlook these two. The expert label may scare some away, but once you get the hang of them, Tom & Jerry is an incredibly rewarding character to play as.

 

Marvel Confirms Chris Pratt Will Appear in Your Home

Posted on by Camden Brazile

LOS ANGELES — Marvel Studios teased upcoming news for the next phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with Kevin Feige officially confirming that Chris Pratt, the MCU’s Starlord, will in fact appear in your home.

“As we get closer and closer to the next phase of Marvel, I can finally tell everyone this,” Feige began in a press junket. “Chris Pratt has officially signed on to appear in your home. Fans were spreading rumors about his involvement in your childhood bedroom, and I’m glad I can put those rumors to rest. It’s tough managing the schedules of these huge stars, but between wrapping on Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 and meetings for upcoming Avengers, we’re pleased to say we found the time to squeeze a Starlord cameo into the palace where you falsely believe you are safe.”

Feige went on to explain why Chris was chosen for this lucrative new property

“We were so pleased with the character of Starlord and his growth, so it was a no-brainer to give him a solo project,” Feige said. “While we pitched him his own television show or spin-off movie, he came in with the fascinating idea of going to your apartment, forcing entry and waiting until you fall asleep and doing wacky Starlord things like rifling through your belongings and destroying all sentimental objects, or watching you sleep and seeing if he can score a sniff of you without you waking up.”

Pratt expressed his positive feelings about the upcoming Marvel endeavor.

“It’s so much fun, I’m so excited to be attached to this project,” a blank-faced Pratt told reporters. “I’m sorry, I’d love to tell you more, but your family is about to get home from work and school and I need to nestle into my hiding place before that happens.”

At press time, leakers noted that Dave Bautista was hinted to appear in the project when several people reporterted the wrestler appeared in their bed in the morning without warning.

Walton Goggins Spends Hours Contorting and Morphing Face to Prepare for Fallout Role

Posted on by Walker MacDonald

LOS ANGELES — In preparation for his role in Amazon Studios’ Fallout adaptation, actor Walton Goggins has gone to great lengths to get into the skin of his character by spending several hours meticulously contorting and morphing his facial features.

“This is the most challenging as well as the most engaging role I’ve ever had,” said Goggins, standing in front of a bathroom window and repeatedly stretching and shortening his nose like a chimp playing with Silly Putty. “Other parts, you might do some reading, or talk to some folks that have done your character’s job. But how many gigs let you spend inordinate amounts of time cycling through like, 15 sick-ass face tattoos instead of taking action and engaging with the story? It’s true artistic freedom.”

While confident in the casting of Goggins, showrunners Geneva Robertson-Dworet and Graham Wagner are running short on patience for the actor’s exploratory research.

“It’s a fucking nightmare,” said Robertson-Dworet. “We haven’t shot one page. He was a full three hours late to his call time this morning because he was ‘this close to looking just like Mel Gibson’ and it would be ‘mad fucking tight’ if he got it right.”

“Yesterday we walked in on him giggling, just pushing his eyes to the edges of his face with a picture of the sloth from Ice Age open on his phone for reference,” Wagner added. “He’s one of this industry’s finest talents but for fuck’s sake, we have hundreds of hours and dozens of storylines to get into, and he’s more invested in eyebrow scars than an entire nuclear wasteland.”

Executive producer and Bethesda director Todd Howard, however, remains fully confident in Goggins’ extraneous methods.

“I’m comfortable leaving Mr. Goggins to his devices. He understands the importance of thorough preparedness, and if there’s one thing I know, it’s the importance of taking all the time necessary to ensure something is fully functioning and free of any faults or problems before you even think about showing it to the public,” Howard said candidly. “Which is why on behalf of both myself and Bethesda, we are proud to announce that the first season of Fallout will be available next week.”

The series was later delayed after Goggins decided he’d rather go for a melee build, requiring Amazon to start the production over from the beginning.

“Shots Fired 293 North, He’s One-Shot, Hitting Me With DMR, Gonna Push,” Shouts 35-Year-Old Man Battling Child in Fortnite

Posted on by Jeremy Kaplowitz

SAN FRANCISCO — Local Fortnite player Lyle Lennon, 35, reportedly shouted several positional call-outs to squadmates during a game of Zero Build Squads today, not realizing he was battling a child, according to those familiar with the situation.

“Shots north, Vegeta on me. Pushing now, hit him for 100, hit him for 50, shields cracked—agh, I’m down! He’s one shot! He’s one shot! On me, on me, on me!” Lennon shouted over Discord chat to three of his college roommates from 2006, unknowingly sweating it out with a 6-year-old playing on his phone while his father drove him home from soccer practice. “Nice fucking kill, bro. Dumbass tried to kamehameha! People are so goddamn stupid. Res me, res me.”

A man plays Fortnite in darkness on a PC computer.
Lennon’s call-outs proved to be crucial in his squad’s battle against the child they were facing off against.

Asked about the battle, 6-year-old Samuel Hurley said he was just happy to get to play the game.

“I like Fortnite. It has all my friends,” Hurley explained. “When you shoot at the bad guys sometimes they disappear. But sometimes you disappear. I like the guns that are blue because blue is my favorite color. Sometimes it’s hard to see the game because my daddy drives so bumpy hehehe.”

“OK I think it’s time for somebody to get home and eat some dinner!” said Hurley’s father. 

According to Lennon’s squadmate Elaina Pemberton, the team is just casually dipping its toes back into Fortnite.

“We took a long break from Fortnite because the building got so ridiculous. So we played a ton of Apex and Warzone, but the no-building mode really changed the game for us, so we’re back in it,” said Pemberton. “It’s nice not having to grind out battles with a bunch of tryhards. We just look up the gun and item tier lists before we play each day to make sure we’re on top of the meta and watch a lot of streamers so we know all the best locations and tricks. From there, it’s a pretty casual game! We’ve been wracking up the dubs too — turns out we’re pretty good at this game. I don’t know if it’s the decades of playing shooters together or the fact that we’re all on high-end gaming PCs or what, but I’m guessing it’s just a skill thing.”

At press time, the squad reportedly found themselves caught in a major argument after placing second due to losing a fight with a squad full of high schoolers.

‘The Wizard of Oz’ Digital Remaster Finally Adds Dead Actor Swinging From Tree in Background

Posted on by Kyle Erf

LOS ANGELES — A new digital remaster of The Wizard of Oz has finally digitally added the  dead actor swinging from a rope in the background from the urban legend, sources have confirmed.

“Finally, Victor Fleming’s vision is complete,” said Arnold Rutherford, a film historian in charge of the film’s restoration. “There has been a rumor for decades that an actor portraying a munchkin hung himself on set, and that it can actually be seen in the background of the finished film. The truth is that the director of photography missed that shot, and Fleming never forgave him. The same people that swear they’ve seen it are the same ones that swear they show Gwyneth Paltrow’s head in a box at the end of Se7en. It’s just good film-making that makes you think you saw it, but it was never actually in there.” 

“But now it’s in there for real,” he added. “You can totally see a dead guy in the background now.” 

Cinephiles rejoiced as the long rumored detail was finally included.

“I can’t believe they finally put the dead munchkin in Oz,” said Al Maginsky, an outspoken Twitter user that focuses on film. “If we didn’t somehow bully HBO into putting the Snyder Cut up last year I’d say it’s the craziest thing we’ve pulled off in a while. A lot of people have asked me what’s next, and I think it’s clear that the only place to go from here is The Butthole Cut of Cats!” 

However, others have argued that the process was unnecessary and insist that the often repeated urban legend is true. 

“No, that’s totally in there,” said Todd Maginsky, Al’s dickhead older brother. “That’s no bullshit. You can fuckin’ see it. Me and Dave and Dave were over at Dave’s stepdad’s house and he fuckin’ showed it to us. Dude just fuckin’ hanging there in the background. They say he did it because he loved the guy in the lion costume but he was already married to one of the witch ladies. Or something. I don’t fucking know. Get out of my room.” 

As of press time, HBO Max had pulled the new restoration of The Wizard of Oz from its platform with no immediate plans to reupload it.

Hey, Welcome to Hard Drive! Need Help Finding Anything or Just Looking Around?

Posted on by Christoph von Münchow

Hey! Welcome to Hard Drive! Need help finding anything or just looking around? My name’s Regis, if you have any questions or assistance, but most people call ‘Reg,’ or ‘the Reginator,’ haha. 

We mostly do articles here, but you probably already knew that. Have you seen this one yet? It’s one of my favorites. Oh and you gotta check this one out. I’ve been reading it all day. People think we only write about video games, but we actually write about a ton of stuff across the nerd and pop culture ecosystem/zeitgeist, you know? Anyway, I would definitely consider clicking on the link and reading the whole thing, because that’s how we keep the lights on. But most people think we only do headlines, which is crazy haha. Sorry, are you just browsing? That’s cool, that’s cool. I actually used to think Bowser from Mario was called Browser for a few years when I was a little kid. Isn’t that funny?

Oh, we also sell merch! It’s pretty rad too, might I add. Like this one here: it’s a beer koozie that says “Banjo-Koozie” on it. Like the game! I took mine to the beach this summer, and my friends said it was pretty cool. There’s also this t-shirt we’ve got that says “I’d Rather be Playing SEGA Bass Fishing,” but I don’t think I need to spell that one out for you if you’re a gamer like me — and I think you are. Video games are so sick.

If you’re in the mood for something different, we just opened up Minus World. We’re actually starting to write up some guides there, too. I’m starting to get into the MultiVersus scene, and this one’s been pretty helpful for me. If only I could get my girlfriend to start playing the game, too, but she’s not really into games which can kind of be a bummer, not gonna lie. Hell, sometimes she won’t even admit she’s my girlfriend. She’s such a tease! Sorry, sorry, I know you said you were just looking around. I’ll leave you alone.

Oh, and you should definitely check out our socials! We’ve got a discord that’s pretty insane, if you wanna hang out with other members of the community. It’s freaking crazy over there with the memes sometimes. I actually met a buddy of mine through there and we’re gonna hang out soon, but he lives in Tampa, so I’m thinking about flying down there for Labor Day weekend. We’re also active on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, too. 

What else, what else…

Oh yeah! Here’s a bunch of other cool stuff we’ve got going on at the moment:

VIDEO — If you prefer your HD content in video format. They don’t call ‘em written games, right? They call ‘em video games. That’s just a little joke I like to say around here.

REVIEWS — What can I say, we like to stay up-to-date with the newest releases haha. We even just did one about that new Kirby game. It’s pretty cool if you like little kid stuff, I guess. I’m more into more brutal games like Shin Megami Tensei. But actually I tried the Kirby game and it’s pretty cool too.

TWITCH — We’ve been streaming video games on there when we’re around. It’s a pretty good time. I don’t think I need to spell that one out for you if you’re a gamer like me — and I think you are. Sorry, did I say that already? They told me I’m supposed to say that.

That’s pretty much it! You can let the guy at the front know that Reg helped you out today. And if you’re interested, we have a Rewards card—wait where are you going? Come back!

Steam Activity Page Reveals Which Friends Going Through Rough Patch

Posted on by Kyle Erf

BELLEVUE, Wash. — Valve has revealed that in addition to monitoring your own play habits and records, their activity page can also be a great way to see which friends of yours are going through a rough patch. 

“It’s really not hard once you know what to look for,” said Gabe Newell, president of Valve. “Are they buying games but still just playing something that clearly brings them a sense of nostalgic happiness? Boom, there you go. Be on the lookout for your friends to sink into games that don’t so much provide fun as they do a way to escape a couple more dark and lonely hours on this Earth. Stuff like that!” 

Many gamers have since confirmed the effectiveness of the tactic Newell spoke of. 

“Oh yeah, you have to keep an eye on your friends,” said Rod Eisenhauer, who spoke of a similar experience. “I saw that my boy Nate was playing Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time every night for like three fucking weeks and I was like, ‘Okay, that games fun, but what’s going on, bro?’ I went and checked in on him and yeah, he had just found out his parents were getting a divorce. Suddenly all he plays is shit from 2003.” 

Some gamers maintained that their eclectic tastes are not a reflection of any larger issues going on in their lives. 

“Naw, I’m totally fine,” insisted Tyler Holton, a gamer that disagreed with Newell’s assertion. “I can’t help it if I get overwhelmed by all of my modern gaming options and really just life in general and end up booting Stardew Valley up to go stand around in the woods in a way that won’t get me sick. I think that’s fairly normal behavior, don’t you?” 

As of press time, Valve revealed the friends of yours that set their activity to private are the ones you should be especially worried about.

Masahiro Sakurai’s YouTube Channel Reveals What Was Inside Those Eggs

Posted on by Kevin Podas

TOKYO — Legendary game designer and creator of the Kirby series and Super Smash Bros. Masahiro Sakurai recently launched his personal YouTube channel titled “Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games,” in which he shares insights into the gaming industry, such as what was inside that dog’s weird eggs in the HAL Laboratory logo.

“Hello, everyone! People ask me this question all the time,” began Sakurai in his latest video. “What are inside those dog’s eggs in our company logo? Who is that dog? Why does a dog have eggs? Yes, all very interesting questions indeed…”

The video quickly cut to a diagram of the inside of a dog’s body.

“As you can see here, it is impossible for a dog to lay eggs,” explained Sakurai in a voice-over. “While some mammals can in fact lay eggs, a dog is simply unable to do so. So when I worked at HAL, we all thought it would be funny to imagine such a thing, until my wife brought our dog into the office one day, who shockingly produced three white eggs.”

The video cut back to a stern-looking Sakurai, addressing the audience directly from his living room.

“We had no choice but to nurse the animal, as it had some sort of mental hold over us,” stated Sakurai. “We found a pile of hay for it to lay on, and it commanded our every action for the next several months. It’s hard to describe in words exactly what did eventually hatch from those eggs, but for everyone wondering what the explanation was for the eldritch horror-style final bosses in Kirby games… well there’s your answer.”

Sakurai’s fans responded to the news with joy that the age-old mystery was finally solved.

“I’m just glad it wasn’t three Fire Emblem characters,” said one commenter. “That would have really pissed me off.”

“Did the eldritch beasts that came from the dog eggs also force him to add tripping to Brawl?” said another. “Just saying.”

“OK I am 100% sure that he’s making up this story and actually referencing the fact that Dr. Eggman from Sonic will be the first character revealed in the next Smash Bros. games,” said a third commenter. “In fact, I think we’re getting a trailer within the next week.”

At press time, Sakurai was seen entering a shrine and offering sacrificial eggs to the dog on its altar of worship, doomed to live in perpetual fear of the beast he had created in jest.