Gaming

Video Game Guides, Reviews, News & More

If you’re looking for the fastest and easiest way to get free spins in Coin Master you’ve come to the right place. This guide contains daily links where you can get free coins and spins in Coin Master. Use these spins to get coins fast and build your villages quickly and easily without spending any money at all. Free Spin Links for Coin Master So what do you need to do to get the Free Coins and Spins? Simply head to the buttons below while you’ve got the Coin Master game open on your phone and it will instantly be transferred to your game. Each code that we post has been tested for safety and is taken directly from the developers of Coin Master who dispense these codes on various social media channels. New Coin Master Links Each day we’ll post new codes, but don’t be afraid to try previous days codes as from time to time they do still work later. If you run out of free code links and still need some more ideas to get spins and coins, you can check out our checklist at the bottom of this article that reveals some alternative ways to getting free spins and coins in Coin Master. Below you’ll find each day’s group of Coin Master Free Spin and Coin links below the date. The more recent the links, the more likely they are to work. If you receive a different amount of spins and coins by clicking on these links, that may be connected to your level so keep on playing to increase the gains. Feel free to let us know on social media if you find that a link is no longer working and good luck in your village building quest. Daily Free Coin Master Spins & Coins links April 30, 2025 50 spins 50 spins April 29, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 75 spins 50 spins April 28, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins April 27, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins April 26, 2025 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins April 25, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins April 24, 2025 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 60 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins April 23, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins April 22, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins 75 spins April 21, 2025 75 spins 25 spins 75 spins 75 spins 50 spins April 20, 2025 75 spins 75 spins 40 spins 75 spins 70 spins 75 spins 50 spins April 19, 2025 75 spins 60 spins 75 spins 50 spins 25 spins 60 spins 75 spins 50 spins April 18, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 75 spins 50 spins April 17, 2025 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 75 spins 60 spins 50 spins April 16, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins April 15, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins 75 spins 50 spins April 14, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins April 13, 2025 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins April 12, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins April 11, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins April 10, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins April 9, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins April 8, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 75 spins 50 spins April 7, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins April 6, 2025 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins April 5, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins April 4, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins April 3, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins April 2, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins April 1, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 75 spins 75 spins 50 spins March 31, 2025 50 spins 25 spins 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 30, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 29, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 28, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 27, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 60 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 26, 2025 50 spins 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 25, 2025 50 spins 60 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 24, 2025 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 60 spins 50 spins 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 23, 2025 50 spins 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 22, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 21, 2025 50 spins 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 20, 2025 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 60 spins 60 spins 50 spins March 19, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 18, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 60 spins 75 spins 50 spins March 17, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 75 spins 40 spins 70 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 16, 2025 60 spins 75 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 15, 2025 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 14, 2025 60 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 13, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 60 spins 75 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 12, 2025 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins March 11, 2025 60 spins 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 75 spins 50 spins March 10, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 60 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 9, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 8, 2025 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 60 spins 50 spins March 7, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 6, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 5, 2025 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins March 4, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 3, 2025 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 2, 2025 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 25 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins March 1, 2025 50 spins 60 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins 50 spins

Updated: April 30, 2025 Looked for new codes! Gamers hoping to find themselves engaged in high-octane combat with some JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure flare should look into the Roblox experience Sakura Stands as quickly as possible. Alongside plenty of combat to partake in against NPC’s and other players, gamers also have the chance to get plenty of experience to level themselves up. Are there any codes for Sakura Stands that will give players a bit of a boost, or will they find themselves at the mercy of Killer Queen? Let’s get ready to live out our lives in this new world, and prepare ourselves for the ultimate form of combat. All Sakura Stand Codes Players will find all of the currently available codes for Sakura Stand below, alongside some questions asked by players of this experience. All Sakura Stand Codes (Working) ChxmeiGift – 500 Tokens (New) Arise – 1k Tokens (New) KingOfHeroes – 500 Tokens (New) MasterOfSakuraStand – 1.2k Tokens (New) BeruStand – 1.2k Tokens (New) AprilFools – 500 Tokens EnterCodeHere – 500 Tokens MeltingSnow – 500 Tokens SnowInSummer? – 500 Tokens SakuraBallZ – 1k Tokens LordOfSakuraStand – Ornament SpookySpookyPlushie – 400 Candy Corn PinPinponpon – 500 Tokens TheCornBuff – 201 Candy Corn StupidBug – 200 Candy Corn MerryChristmas – 1k Tokens IMustBeTheReasonWhy – 1k Tokens TrickOTreat – 1 Token GodGivenBurger – 2,000 Tokens LobsterActivity – 2,000 Tokens ChxmeiSavedTheDay – 1,000 Tokens SakuraStandSocialExperiment – A random reward between 1-1,000 Tokens (New Servers Only) FreeSFCValuePack – 1,000 Tokens AMMDEVSFROMHEAVENSTANDOMG – 750 Tokens DigitalCash – $10,000 SakuraFinallyAddedStand – Free rewards (Requires Mastery 3) EarlyD4C – Add 50% to Red mist gate (Requires Mastery 3) SFCSpecialCoupon – 500 Token (Requires Mastery 3) RolandAndFriends – 500 Token KuzmaToldMeToAddThisCode – 199 Tokens On ne voit bien qu’avec le cœur. L’essentiel est invisible pour les yeux. – Add 50% to Red mist gate (Requires Mastery 3) dolor ipse est amandus – Add 50% to Red mist gate (Requires Mastery 3) Accipere dolorem est amare – Add 50% to Red mist gate (Requires Mastery 3) GiftFromSFC – 500 Tokens SFCOpen4Business – 1.5k Tokens (Requires Mastery 3) Kafk-ISTHATTHEREDMIST – 1k Tokens (Requires Mastery 1) Kaiju-8 – 500 Tokens batheski – 1500 Tokens and Secret Ska shirt ArrivalOfTheSkaFilmShirt1 – 300 Tokens FreeAdjucha – Spawn 1 adjucha (5 adjuchas limit per server) (Requires Mastery 3) fidgetspinner.io – Free rewards SuddenShutdown – 500 Tokens 2monthsdelay – Free rewards (Requires Mastery 10) theSTARRK – Free rewards AnArbiterAwakens – Free rewards fixedcutscenewowowowowowowoowowowowow – 300 Tokens shutdownmb – 300 Tokens tenthousand – Boosts (Requires Mastery 5) 115KLikess – x2 EXP, 1 Stand Arrow, and 15k Cash 110KLikes – x2 EXP and 1 Token CLASSICAUDDY – random 500 – 1,500 Tokens ThisFateWasFatedForTheFatedFate – the Will of Fate title 105KLikes – 2,000 Tokens justice – Boosts (For new servers only) 100KLikes – 1,001 Token (For new servers only) BugsFix2 – Boosts BugsFix – Boosts SorryforShutdown – 250 Tokens and 75 Snowflakes TYForFollowing – Free Boosts HolidayEvent – Free Boosts FOURTHSHUTDOWN – 1000 Tokens AuddyCOOKED – 895 Tokens HeIsGONE – 1 Token WHISPERTEAM – 1000 Tokens sorryguys – 900 Tokens All Sakura Stand Codes (Expired) CodeBugFix – x2 EXP SukunaFingerIncident – x2 EXP How To Redeem Codes In Sakura Stands Players hoping to redeem a few codes in Sakura Stands may be confused about how to actually redeem the codes that are available to them, and it is easy to understand why. The Code Redemption Menu is hidden away, but follow these steps and you’ll be ready to redeem in no time. Access the Menu in the bottom, left corner of the screen Click on Settings in the new menu that has appeared on the screen Scroll to the bottom of Settings to find the “Enter Code Prompt” Enter the code and press Enter Why Aren’t My Sakura Stands Codes Working Players will want to ensure that they’ve typed the codes in exactly as they were typed on this page, and make sure to follow the capitalization. If a code is expired, this experience will let you know that it is no longer valid, but if it says the code isn’t working, there could be a small typo preventing you from claiming your bonuses. Where To Get More Sakura Stands Codes The developer of this experience is not very active on Social Media, so joining the Sakura Stand Discord Community is likely to be the easiest way to claim some new codes as soon as they go live for this particular game. Also, make sure that you have bookmarked this page, as we will be checking for new codes quite often. What Exactly Is Sakura Stands? Sakura Stands is an action game, based loosely on the JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure franchise. Players will be able to power themselves up, as well as earn plenty of unique and powerful allies from not only this franchise, but others such as Jujutsu Kaisen and more. Players can also partake in PVP battles, either in a group or via 1 on 1 battle that can be prompted at any time. Those searching for a new action title that have tired from other experiences, such as Blox Fruits may fall in love with this title. It offers quite a competitive nature, and plenty of things to do, such as side quests and a story to follow alongside. Roblox is available now on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Mobile Devices, and PC.

Get the latest Blade Ball codes and redeem them for free rewards fast!

Updated: April 28, 2025 We checked for new codes! Whenever I get nostalgic about PE classes, Blade Ball makes me feel that familiar adrenaline rush that used to accompany every dodgeball match. Well, back in the day, we didn’t have cool features such as customizable swords and explosions in our regular boring dodgeball games—features that make this Roblox experience incredibly addictive and fun. Just like in the real deal, mastering gameplay in Blade Ball is somewhat challenging at first, particularly when your opponents have powerful skills such as Wind Cloak and Freeze and you don’t. The game offers a ton of features to unlock but never enough coins. Thankfully, with some help from Blade Ball codes, you will get your hands on some of that sweet currency and other exclusive Skins and Swords. And if you don’t want the fun to end just yet, check out our Roblox Fireworks Playground Codes for more free rewards in that game as well. All Blade Ball Codes List Blade Ball Codes (Working) RAMADAN—Redeem for a free Spin (New) XMAS—Redeem for 3 Reindeer Spins (New) SPOOKYSEASON—Redeem for a free Spin DELAYBALL—Redeem for a free Sword 4BVISITS—Redeem for a free Sword SHARKATTACK—Redeem for a free Spin SUMMERWHEEL—Redeem for a free Spin BPTEAMS—Redeem for a free Spin SUMMERSTARTSHERE—Redeem for a free Spin REBIRTHLTM—Redeem for x1 Rebirth Ticket DRAGONS—Redeem for x1 Dragon Ticket ENERGYSWORDS—Redeem for a free Spin ROBLOXCLASSIC—Redeem for x1 Hacker Ticket GIVEMELUCK—Redeem for x4 Luck Boost GOODVSEVILMODE—Redeem for the Free Good vs Evil Crate DUNGEONSRELEASE—Redeem for 50 Dungeon Runes FROGS—Redeem for a Spin GOODVSEVIL—Redeem for a free Spin BATTLEROYALE—Redeem for a Storm Ticket RNGEMOTES—Redeem for a Spin FREESPINS—Redeem for a free Spin Blade Ball Codes (Expired) EASTERHYPE ZEROGRAVITY GALAXYSEASON FALLINGLTM TOURNAMENTSW LAVAFLOOR LUNARNEWYEAR ELEMENTSPIN FREEHOURLY SENTINELSREVENGE HAPPYNEWYEAR MERRYXMAS WINTERSPIN LIVEEVENTS VISITS_TY RRRANKEDDD WEEK4 SORRY4DELAY UPDATETHREE 1MLIKES HOTDOG10K 10KFOLLOWERZ 500K 200KLIKES FORTUNE 50000LIKES ThxForSupport 1000LIKES 5000LIKES 10000LIKES SITDOWN Related: Roblox Pixel Piece Codes How to redeem codes in Blade Ball To redeem codes in Blade Ball, follow the instructions below: Image: Attack of the Fanboy Launch Blade Ball on Roblox. Click on the Extra icon in the top left corner of the screen. Choose Codes when the drop-down menu appears. Enter your code into the Redeem Code text box. Press the checkmark icon to claim your rewards. How can you get more Blade Ball codes? If you want to look for codes on your own and get new updates directly from the developer, join the Blade Ball Discord Server. Devs occasionally release codes on their X account (@Blade_Ball), so feel free to give them a follow. The official YouTube channel (@Blade-Ball) exists, but the developers are not very active on there at the moment. However, the easiest way to catch the latest codes is to bookmark this page and visit it occasionally. We are constantly looking for and collecting new codes in one place, so you don’t have to waste your time and energy. Why are my Blade Ball codes not working? If you tried redeeming codes manually, you probably met Roblox players’ number one enemy—typos. Always double-check the spelling of your codes and be careful with the details, such as capitalization. Copying and pasting codes directly into the game is an excellent way to avoid this problem. It’s also possible that the code you’re trying to redeem has expired. Developers often don’t specify expiration dates for every code, so an expired one can overstay its welcome on our Working list. If you find a code that no longer works, let us know in the comments, and we’ll investigate the issue. Other ways to get free rewards in Blade Ball The more rounds you play, the more freebies you’ll get. If you click the Quests button on the left side of the screen, you’ll open a menu with three Daily Quests. That way, you can claim some extra Coins simply by progressing through the game. Tasks are usually pretty straightforward, such as completing a certain amount of matches. You can get even more Coins and Wheel Spins by playing the game for a particular amount of time. Press the Extra button in the top left corner of the screen, then click on Playtime Awards in the drop-down menu to claim your rewards. What is Blade Ball? Blade Ball is Roblox’s unique twist on dodgeball, where players can dive into competitive multiplayer matches using special abilities. The goal is simple: hit and block the ball and be the last player eliminated from the Arena. Focus and timing are the key if you want to rise through the ranks. Unlock new abilities and find the ones that most suit your game style. In need of more Roblox codes? Check out our Roblox Codes section for more free goodies in the most popular experiences across all genres!

Added a new code! Are you wondering what all Pokémon Scarlet and Violet mystery gift codes are so you can unlock free content? Mystery Gifts are an easy way to unlock content for your game and are usually free. Mystery Gifts can include a wide variety of content, like a Pikachu with a special move and Tera Type or an Adventure set with many valuable items. Here are all the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet mystery gift codes you can use to unlock free content. All Pokémon Scarlet and Violet Mystery Gift Codes Here are all current Pokémon Scarlet and Violet mystery gift codes available: Mystery Gift Code Gift Expiration Date R1LLAB00M2024TW Rillaboom July 31st, 2025 SB00KC0VER Case for your Rotom Phone (Obtainable only in Pokémon Scarlet) (New) N/A VB00KC0VER Rotom Phone (Obtainable only in Pokémon Violet) (New) N/A EU1C25SUNNYDAY Jumpluff February 28th, 2025 Y0AS0B1B1R1B1R1 YOASOBI’s Biri-Biri song of a Pawmot February 28th, 2025 P4LD3AP1CN1C5 5 Pickles, 5 Tomatoes, 5 Onions, 5 Hamburgers, 5 Eggs, and 5 Potato Salads N/A SEEY0U1NPALDEA Paldean Winds Episode 4 of a Gimmighoul November 30th, 2024 TEAMSTAR Paldean Winds Episode 3 of a Revavroom October 31st, 2024 L1KEAFLUTE Cetitan with the Ferocious Mark August 31st, 2024 SLEEPTALKW0RLDS Tomoya Ogawa’s 2023 World Winning Sylveon N/A 909TEAMUP06 Fuecoco January 31, 2025 NA1CTR1CKR00M Nils Dunlop’s Porygon2 N/A F1ARR0W23MASTER Violet Talonflame June 2, 2024 D0T1STPARTNER Dot’s Quaxly November 30, 2024 GYARAD0S2023SG Gyarados June 30, 2024 987W1THSPECS Flutter Mane May 7, 2024 Code is sent to the email of guidebook purchasers 100 x Potions None Code is sent to the email of guidebook purchasers 100 x Rare Candy S None Automatically given to Double Pack purchasers 200 x Poké Balls None Get via Internet, available to all players Adventure Set Code is sent to the email of eShop purchasers Special Pikachu We will update the above table as new Mystery Gift codes become available. How do I Redeem Mystery Gift Codes in Pokémon Violet and Scarlet? The first thing you need to do is unlock the ability to access the Mystery Gift Codes menu, which you can accomplish by reaching a Pokémon center. This will take you about 90-minutes of playtime. Once you have reached the first Pokémon center, you will gain access to the Poké Portal on the menu screen. From here, you have several options to redeem content. Here are the various options you have available to you: Get via Internet Get with Code/Password Check Mystery Gifts Check Poké Portal News Get via Internet The Get via Internet option will search for available gifts you can download. You can only download one gift at a time. This option is available for all players and is what you want to use to get the Adventure Set gift. Get with Code/Password The Get with Code/Password option allows you to enter a mystery gift code. Once the code has been entered and verified, the gift will download to your game. For example, you want this option to get a Special Pikachu gift using the Mystery Gift code you received via email. Check Mystery Gifts The Check Mystery Gifts option will display a list of all Mystery Gifts you have obtained using either of the above methods. Check Poké Portal News The Check Poké Portal News option will provide you with up-to-date news from Nintendo on anything Mystery Gift related, so check back often! Pokémon Scarlet and Violet are available now on Nintendo Switch.

Here are all the currently working Roblox Ohio codes, a popular Roblox game made by DevvGames. Your entire objective is to become the ultimate apartment builder by increasing your tenant populating, keeping them happy, and earning as much money as possible. You will begin your apartment building journey from the ground up with very little money, so earning money in any way possible is extremely important. You can use Roblox Ohio codes to earn in-game currency like Cash and Weapons, giving you a competitive advantage over other players and allowing you to survive the harsh streets of Ohio. Cash and Weapons are the two most important currencies in Roblox Ohio, so you should jump at any chance to earn them for free. Here are all Roblox Ohio codes you can redeem for free Cash and Weapons. All Roblox Ohio Codes List We have provided you with an easy-to-browse list of working and expired codes and instructions on redeeming them. You will be earning free Cash and Weapons in no time! Roblox Ohio (Working) EASTER—Redeem for $5,000 (New) LUCKY—Redeem for $10,000 (New) VALENTINE—Redeem for $5,000 (New) HYPERLASER—Redeem for $5,000 (New) CHRISTMAS—Redeem for $5,000 and a Gift SANTA—Redeem for $5,000 WW2—Redeem for $5,000 HALLOWEEN—Redeem for $5,000 and 1k Candy VOID—Redeem for $5,000 P90—Redeem for $5,000 BIOHAZARD—Redeem for $5,000 FIREWORK—Redeem for $5,000 PIRATE—Redeem for $5,000 MYSTIC—Redeem for $5,000 CRAFT—Redeem for $5,000 Easter—Redeem for $5,000 CRIMSON—Redeem for $5,000 SAKURA—Redeem for $5,000 2024—Redeem for $5,000 MERRY—Redeem for $5,000 and 1k gingerbread CHRISTMAS—Redeem for 1k Gingerbread and $5,000 WINTER—Redeem for $5,000 THANKS—Redeem for $5,000 CLAN—Redeem for $5,000 LUCK—Redeem for $5,000 HALLOWEEN—Redeem for $5,000 Cash & 1,000 Candy REAPER—Redeem for $5,000 100—Redeem for an Exclusive Skin POLICE—Redeem for $5,000 Cash TACTICAL—Redeem for $5,000 Cash MINE—Redeem for $5,000 Cash GEM—Redeem for $5,000 Cash FUTURE—Redeem for $5,000 Cash MANSION—Redeem for $10,000 Cash FIREWORK—Redeem for $5,000 Cash TRADE—Redeem for $5,000 Cash CARNIVAL—Redeem for $5,000 Cash Roblox Ohio (Expired) ALIEN—Redeem for $5,000 Cash FREE—Redeem for $3,000 Cash EASTER—Redeem for $5,000 Cash SKIN—Redeem for $5,000 Cash STPATRICK—Redeem for $2,000 Cash LUCKY—Redeem for $5,000 Cash EMOTE—Redeem for $5,000 Cash 30M—Redeem for $5,000 Cash THXFOR10K—Redeem code for $5,000 Cash HOUSE—Redeem code for $5,000 Cash JOBS—Redeem code for $5,000 Cash 10M—Redeem code for $10,000 cash MERRYCHRISTMAS—Redeem code for $2,000 cash NEWYEAROHIO—Redeem code for $2,000 cash OhioChristmas—Redeem code for a free Deagle gun OhioMoment—Redeem code for $300 Cash SKATE—Redeem code for $10,000 Cash Winter—Redeem code for $2,000 Cash How to Redeem Codes in Roblox Ohio Follow the instructions below to redeem codes in Roblox Ohio. Launch Roblox Ohio Click on the R-Mobile phone icon Select the Codes button Copy a Working Code from above Paste it into the Enter a Code… text box Hit the Submit button How Can You Get More Roblox Ohio Codes? The easiest way to get more Roblox Ohio codes is to check this guide at the beginning of every month. We will update new codes as they appear, so you are always up to date. Additionally, you can join the DevvGames Discord Server and follow @DevvGamesRblx on Twitter. Why Are My Roblox Ohio Codes Not working? Your Roblox Ohio codes may not work because they expired or were mistyped into the text box during the redemption process. Please verify that the code you are trying to redeem isn’t expired and that it was typed correctly into the text box. Other Ways to get Free Rewards in Roblox Ohio You can earn an easy $5,000 by liking the gaming and joining the DevvGames Roblox group. You must also brave the mean streets of Ohio and complete criminal activities to earn additional cash and weapons. What is Roblox Ohio? Roblox Ohio is a popular Roblox game that turns the streets of Ohio into a fun version of Grand Theft Auto. You will fight gangs, destroy robots, protect the streets of Ohio from aliens, and much more. Roblox Ohio is exceptionally violent and bloody compared to most Roblox games, so player discretion is advised.

Florida Woman Loses $52,000 in Facebook Marketplace Scam, Seller Arrested In a shocking turn of events, a woman lost $52,000 while trying to purchase an excavator through Facebook Marketplace, leading to the arrest of the alleged seller, Demetria Latimer. Detectives managed to track down the 59-year-old in Detroit, thanks to a digital paper trail. The ordeal began in November when the victim agreed to buy heavy-duty equipment from a Facebook listing. After transferring the substantial sum, she was met with silence from the seller, leaving her without the machine and with no immediate way to recover her money. The case highlights the risks associated with online buying and selling platforms, which can unfortunately attract fraudsters. Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood took on the case, emphasizing the importance of ensuring residents do not fall victim to scams. “We don’t like our residents to become victims of fraud,” he stated during a confrontation video with Latimer upon her return to Florida. Chitwood and his team utilized bank records and other resources to follow the digital trail that led them to Latimer just outside Detroit on April 8. She has since been charged with grand theft and running an organized scheme to defraud. The sheriff revealed that Latimer’s actions could be part of a broader pattern of scams, indicating, “We have probable cause to believe Demetria played a key role in laundering money not only from our victim but possibly others across the country.” This suggests she may be linked to additional fraudulent activities beyond this one instance. During her arrest, Latimer claimed, “I’m a victim myself,” a statement that baffled many and underscored the complexities of such scams. As she was taken into custody, the sheriff confirmed that the victim’s money was ultimately recovered, providing a glimmer of hope amid the financial trauma. According to authorities, the theft occurred in Orange City, Florida, a mere 40-minute drive from Orlando. Sheriff Chitwood’s office stated in a Facebook post, “Overnight we welcomed Demetria Latimer to Volusia County to face her charges of organized scheme to defraud and grand theft.” This incident serves as a stark reminder of the prevalence of online scams. Similar situations have occurred across the nation, like that of Vanessa White Fernandes from Pennsylvania, who lost $50,000 in a phone scam orchestrated by someone posing as a sheriff’s official. As digital fraud becomes increasingly sophisticated, experts urge consumers to exercise caution when engaging in online transactions. Tips from Chase Bank include being wary of deals that seem too good to be true and never sending money to someone you’ve only spoken to online. In the wake of this incident, Sheriff Chitwood’s office has underscored the efficiency of their detectives and the importance of community vigilance in combating fraud. “Any day another scammer is locked up is a good day,” he emphasized, acknowledging the crucial role of public awareness in preventing future scams. For those navigating the world of online marketplaces, seasoned buyers and sellers should remain vigilant, using secure methods of payment and verifying the legitimacy of sellers to avoid falling prey to scams like this one.

Man Injured After Jeep Runs Over Him While Sunbathing on Florida Beach A man sunbathing on Ormond Beach in Florida was seriously injured when a Jeep ran over him, according to the Volusia Sheriff’s Office. The incident occurred on Saturday, April 5, as the driver attempted to back into a parking spot, crossing over travel lanes in the process. The victim, identified as 33-year-old Coleson Janey from Ocala, suffered multiple injuries, including a broken forearm and a severe leg injury. Following the accident, Janey was transported to a local hospital, where he remains in stable condition. In an interview with NBC affiliate WESH, Janey recounted his traumatic experience, stating, “I was just screaming. Screaming my head off, screaming bloody murder, of course, because I was just in so much pain.” He detailed that he felt the tire roll over his head while he lay on his stomach. Doctors informed Janey that he broke his femur and required a titanium rod to be inserted into his leg. He narrated the confusing pain he experienced during the incident, saying, “It’s like I had two brains. One brain was just screaming and thinking about how much pain I was in. The other brain was kind of being more rational, thinking, ‘Okay, what’s broken? What’s moving?’” Janey described the aftermath, recalling that his arm was “flattened” and his leg was “mangled.” The driver of the Jeep, a 61-year-old woman, was cited for careless driving and cooperated with investigators at the scene. The sheriff’s office confirmed that the investigation into the incident is ongoing, with no further details currently available. “I’m just thankful to be alive,” Janey said after the ordeal, emphasizing the gravity of the situation as he looks forward to walking again. This incident serves as a stark reminder of the perils that can occur even in supposedly safe environments like beaches, especially when vehicles are involved. As Janey recovers, he is left with a surprising appreciation for life, despite the turmoil he has experienced.

During a Women’s History Month event at the White House on March 26, President Donald Trump raised eyebrows by calling himself the “fertilization president” while announcing the launch of a new Republican Women’s Caucus in Congress. The caucus, which Trump said will be led by Senator Katie Britt (R-AL) and Representative Kat Cammack (R-FL), is part of a broader push to spotlight women’s issues as the 2024 election approaches. “We’re gonna have tremendous goodies in the bag for women too,” Trump told the crowd, adding, “Between the fertilization and all the other things we’re talking about, it’s gonna be great,” according to journalist Aaron Rupar. Trump: "We're gonna have tremendous goodies in the bag for women too. The women, between the fertilization and all the other things we're talking about, it's gonna be great. Fertilization. I'm still very proud of it, I don't care. I'll be known as the fertilization president and… pic.twitter.com/TjLuL8lb19 — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) March 26, 2025 It’s not the first time Trump has linked himself to fertility. At a Fox News town hall in 2024, he referred to himself as the “father of IVF” after an audience member raised concerns that abortion bans could threaten access to fertility treatment. “I said, explain IVF, very IVF, very quickly. And within about two minutes, I understood it,” Trump said at the time. “We’re totally in favor of IVF.” His recent comments reference an ongoing legal and political debate stemming from a February ruling by the Alabama Supreme Court, which classified frozen embryos as protected under the state’s Wrongful Death of a Minor Act. That decision prompted some IVF clinics to pause services, fearing legal consequences. While the ruling didn’t explicitly ban IVF, it added new uncertainty to the procedure’s legal status in certain states. Trump said Britt had reached out to him directly about the ruling, describing it as an “emergency.” In February, he signed an executive order pledging to expand IVF access and reduce treatment costs, but the order offered no concrete implementation plan. It instead directed agencies to submit recommendations. Last October, Vice President Kamala Harris responded to Trump’s town hall remarks with sharp criticism, calling them “quite bizarre” “What is he talking about?” she said to PBS News. “His abortion bans have already jeopardized access to it in states across the country — and his own platform could end IVF altogether.” As Trump continues to frame himself as an advocate for fertility treatment, critics point to inconsistencies between his rhetoric and the broader implications of reproductive policies supported by his party. With IVF and reproductive rights emerging as key issues in 2024, Trump’s unusual framing—and self-appointed titles—are likely to keep drawing attention as both public scrutiny and political stakes intensify. Sources: FOX 32 Chicago, Johns Hopkins, The White House, PBS News

Andrew Tate, the controversial online personality currently facing legal scrutiny in multiple countries, has been accused of sexually violent behavior by his girlfriend, Bri Stern. The alleged incident took place on March 11 during a stay at the Beverly Hills Hotel, where Stern says she was nearly choked unconscious during a sexual encounter. According to a police report filed by Stern, the encounter escalated despite her pleas for Tate to stop. Sources told TMZ that Stern described losing control of her body and consciousness as the choking intensified. “The more she struggled, the more violent he got,” the report alleges. “She felt everything getting fuzzy, like she was fading into unconsciousness.” Stern claims the assault stopped only after Tate finished having sex and fell asleep. She then retreated to the bathroom to document her injuries, which reportedly included facial bruising. Medical records reviewed by TMZ show she was later diagnosed with post-concussive symptoms at a hospital in New York. Stern did not immediately report the incident. Sources say she waited until Tate had left the country for a court appearance in Romania before going to the police, citing safety concerns. She has since blocked him on all social media platforms, according to the same sources. Tate, who was arrested in 2022 alongside his brother Tristan for allegedly running a criminal enterprise in Romania, is currently facing ongoing sexual assault lawsuits in both the U.S. and the U.K. Neither Tate brother has been convicted of any crime to date. The allegations from Stern come amid growing public scrutiny of Tate’s behavior toward women—both in private relationships and in connection with his business dealings. According to recent reports, Tate had expressed interest in managing Stern for content creation on adult platforms like OnlyFans, raising further concerns about coercive control. The Beverly Hills Police Department has not issued a public statement on the investigation. As the case develops, it adds another layer to the legal and public controversy surrounding Andrew Tate, whose online following remains massive despite ongoing criminal proceedings and multiple allegations of abuse. Source: TMZ

What should have been a joyful night out in Dallas ended in violence for 27-year-old Canada Rinaldi, an Oklahoma bride-to-be who was brutally attacked just four weeks before her wedding. The assault occurred around 2 a.m. Sunday in the Deep Ellum, Dallas TX neighborhood as Rinaldi and her friends were walking to their Uber after a night out. According to a GoFundMe campaign launched by a member of her bridal party, Rinaldi was knocked unconscious, suffering a broken nose, three broken teeth, and a deep facial wound requiring eight stitches. Dash cam footage from a nearby Lyft driver captured the moment a man struck Rinaldi before fleeing the scene. Police have not confirmed the suspect’s identity but have reportedly identified a possible person of interest. Rinaldi told PEOPLE the development gave her “a lot of peace of mind.” Image: Canada Rinaldi She doesn’t remember the attack. “I only remember walking to my Uber and then being in and out of the ambulance and hospital,” she said. “It’s just shocking. It’s just hard to believe. It just feels like a lot of my experiences were taken away from me.” The incident also left another member of the party injured. Kelly Peralta, Rinaldi’s future aunt-in-law, was punched while trying to shield her from the attacker. “We started walking across the street to get into the Uber, and that’s when he came from behind and punched Canada,” she recalled to NBC 5 DFW. Just a day before the assault, Rinaldi had told friends she was having “the best trip of her life,” according to the GoFundMe page. That joy quickly turned into what the campaign described as “a terrifying and traumatizing night.” Despite the trauma, Rinaldi remains focused on healing. “I’m doing well,” she said, noting that her face is healing faster than expected. “I will be almost, if not fully, healed on the outside by the wedding depending on how my nose heals.” Still, the emotional aftermath lingers. “I feel like I’m not excited to plan my wedding anymore,” she admitted. “But I will still have the best day of my life with the person I love, no matter what I look like.” The GoFundMe campaign has raised over $12,900 to help cover medical costs and emotional recovery, offering a glimpse at the overwhelming support Rinaldi has received. “She is now trying to heal—not only physically, but emotionally and financially—when she should be counting down the days to her wedding,” the page reads. As of now, the Dallas Police Department has not released additional details about the investigation. Sources: GoFundMe, WFAA, NBCDFW

Meghan Markle is showing fans what life looks like post-royalty—and Prince Harry is the one behind the lens. In a recent Instagram Story, Meghan posted a brief video of birds flying in a tight V formation across a clear blue sky. It’s visually stunning. But what makes it stand out is the caption: “Flying into the week with my family ”. Followed by a quiet credit: “Thanks to my H for capturing this.” The nickname “H” isn’t new. Meghan first used it publicly in the couple’s 2019 ITV documentary Harry & Meghan: An African Journey, a moment that stood out because she wasn’t just talking about her husband—she was talking about survival, happiness, and why that distinction matters. “It’s not enough to just survive something,” she said then. “That’s not the point of life. You have got to thrive.” Image: Meghan Markle’s Instagram This latest clip continues that same throughline—soft moments that hint at something deeper. Life after royal duties hasn’t just been about peace and quiet. It’s been about control. Their terms. Their timing. Their lens. Meghan also shared footage from the kitchen, making an elaborate banana split breakfast with longtime friend Kelly McKee Zajfen. “When one of the besties reinvents a banana split for breakfast,” she wrote. The shot: candid, casual, not over-produced. Intimate without feeling staged. These posts come as Meghan ramps up promotion for her lifestyle brand—originally called American Riviera Orchard, now rebranded as As Ever. In an interview with People, she acknowledged how messy the process has been. “There are tons of twists and turns—even with the name. I was figuring it out in real time.” She doesn’t pretend to have it all figured out. “I appreciate everyone who gave me the grace to make mistakes and figure it out—and also to be forgiving with myself through that. It’s a learning curve,” she said. Sources: People

Just days after his wedding, a 44-year-old groom says he’s already considering divorce—accusing his new wife of betraying his trust by secretly asking guests for money behind his back. In a candid Reddit post that’s gone viral on r/AITAH, the groom shared how what was supposed to be a joyful celebration spiraled into emotional turmoil, leaving him feeling “angry,” “betrayed,” and deeply disillusioned. “My trust is broken,” he wrote. “We lost friends and people that I care about. I don’t see how therapy can fix this.” At the heart of his frustration was a secret campaign his 42-year-old wife allegedly launched months before the wedding: sending emails to guests asking for financial contributions—despite the couple’s agreement not to pressure anyone for money. The groom said he was completely unaware until a friend backed out of attending, revealing the ongoing requests. “She said okay but still turned around and did it anyway,” he explained. “This has been going on since the holidays, and she never included me in the emails.” The fallout was visible at the ceremony itself. According to the groom, several guests failed to show, leaving “a chunk” of empty seats in the church. “That wasn’t a great feeling,” he wrote, describing the moment as a black cloud over what should’ve been the happiest day of his life. The financial betrayal wasn’t the only point of tension. In the days leading up to the wedding, the bride reportedly dyed her hair a drastically different color—something the groom said made her look like “someone else.” He also voiced discomfort with the revealing design of her wedding dress, noting that both of their families come from “very traditional” backgrounds. While he labeled these issues as merely “aesthetic,” they contributed to the growing unease. “I just wanted our wedding to be an occasion to share our happiness,” he said. “Instead, it felt like a financial obligation to some of our guests.” The Reddit post quickly sparked debate. Most users rallied behind the groom, calling his wife’s actions a serious breach of trust. “To request money from guests is straight up weird,” one commenter said. Another added, “A wedding should be a celebration of love, not a fundraising event.” Comment byu/EstimateSeparate2647 from discussion inAITAH Still, a few users urged him not to rush into a divorce. “Maybe this is a one-off thing that she can learn from,” one person wrote, suggesting counseling before making any final decisions. Others weren’t so empathetic to the husband, citing his pointed distaste of his bride’s wedding dress. Comment byu/EstimateSeparate2647 from discussion inAITAH As the story continues to make waves online, it highlights the complex challenges couples face when values clash—especially during high-pressure milestones like weddings.

An Air France flight bound for the Caribbean was forced to turn around mid-air on Friday after a passenger misplaced their phone, delaying the journey for hundreds of travelers. Flight AF750 had departed Paris Orly Airport at around 12 p.m. en route to Pointe-à-Pitre in Guadeloupe when the crew made the decision to reverse course. The plane had been flying for nearly two hours and had just crossed into the Atlantic before looping back and landing at Orly at 2:37 p.m., according to flight tracking data from FlightAware. The reason? A missing mobile phone. According to The Standard, the aircraft turned around after an unsuccessful search for the passenger’s device—though neither Air France nor aviation officials have confirmed the specific circumstances that prompted the unscheduled landing. After a nearly two-hour delay on the ground, the flight took off again at 4:13 p.m. and ultimately completed the nine-hour trip to Pointe-à-Pitre. The detour likely added several hours to the journey, frustrating passengers and raising eyebrows over aviation priorities. The airline has yet to release an official statement, and it’s unclear what steps were taken to locate the missing phone—or how passengers responded to the sudden diversion. The incident comes amid growing scrutiny of electronic devices on flights. Air France’s policy requires mobile phones to be kept in airplane mode during key phases of flight and stipulates safety standards for lithium-ion batteries. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has reported 236 battery-related incidents on aircraft since 2006—with 85 occurring in the past year alone—highlighting the ongoing risks posed by misplaced or malfunctioning devices onboard. While the missing phone was never found mid-air, its impact grounded a plane, disrupted schedules, and left an entire cabin wondering: could it really have been that serious? Sources: FlightAware, The Standard, People

In a sorrowful development for music enthusiasts, Jesse Colin Young, the renowned frontman of the iconic 1960s counterculture folk rock band The Youngbloods, has died from a heart attack. This information was verified by TMZ, which stated that the Aiken County Coroner’s Office in South Carolina has determined the cause of death to be heart-related issues caused by atherosclerotic and hypertensive cardiovascular disease. The coroner’s report indicates that Young passed away at 3:13 PM on Sunday at Aiken Regional Medical Center, with the cause of death being classified as natural. Jesse Colin Young was 83 years old when he died. Reports suggest that emergency responders were summoned to Young’s residence earlier that day, and he was taken to the hospital, where he was declared dead soon after arriving. This news serves as a sobering reminder of how fleeting life can be, particularly for artists whose creations have profoundly influenced multiple generations. Photo by Getty Images/Bob Riha, Jr. The Youngbloods, most famous for their timeless anthem Get Together, became emblematic of the 1960s folk rock movement, embodying the era’s ideals of peace and love. In addition to his work with the band, Young had a flourishing solo career that further highlighted his musical abilities. Fans have flooded social media with messages of sympathy and personal stories about Young’s impact on music. As an artist, he not only motivated a generation with his songs but also leveraged his influence to advocate for themes of togetherness and harmony. A significant figure in the music world, Young’s passing marks the end of an influential voice that championed a countercultural ethos—using his art and lyrics to bring attention to social issues. As Jesse Colin Young leaves this world, fans are left to honor the enduring songs and meaningful lyrics that still motivate and comfort. Rest in peace, Jesse. Sources: TMZ, Rolling Stone, Los Angeles Times

In a surprising development, Sean “Diddy” Combs has publicly shown his support for Kanye West during a challenging period in the rapper’s personal and professional life. Diddy recently reached out to Kanye for a sincere and emotional conversation, especially in the wake of the media storm surrounding Kanye’s divorce from Kim Kardashian. The conversation, which reportedly happened over a prison phone due to Diddy’s current legal issues, highlights a friendship that has stayed strong despite the chaos surrounding both men. Details of the call were leaked by The Shade Room, revealing that Diddy encouraged Kanye to return to the stage and start making music again, even with all the controversies surrounding them. Diddy reportedly expressed his eagerness to be released from the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn so he could “be able to hug” Kanye once more. In a particularly touching moment, Diddy also warned Kanye to “be careful” of the “wicked sh*t out there.” This advice is likely connected to the recent developments in Kanye’s custody battle with Kim Kardashian, as she has been trying to change their joint legal custody agreement concerning their children. Kanye’s recent actions have caused concern, especially his public statements that many have called antisemitic, as well as his promotion of a casting call that involved Nazi imagery. Over the past few months, Kanye has faced criticism for his controversial comments, which included taking back an apology to the Jewish community and praising Adolf Hitler in various interviews. Photo by Kevin Mazur/Child2014/WireImage While Diddy has expressed support for Kanye, many are questioning whether he knew about Kanye’s bold casting call, which sought Black individuals with Diddy’s skin tone who would be willing to wear Swastikas for an upcoming stage project. The casting notice included specific requirements that caused alarm: participants had to be “not fat,” have “shaved heads,” and possess “Diddy’s skin tone or darker.” Related: ‘At Ease Wearing Swastikas’: Kanye Takes Down Request For Stylish Individuals Resembling Diddy The implications of this casting call have not been ignored, as it continues to spark outrage and controversy in the media. Kanye seems to be balancing on a fine line, mixing artistic expression with provocative themes that have led to significant backlash in recent months. As of now, Kanye has removed the casting call from X (formerly Twitter), continuing a pattern of him retracting controversial statements made on social media. Critics argue that these recent actions might be an attempt to take advantage of the current cultural climate, similar to the controversies surrounding figures like Elon Musk and Diddy himself, who is currently dealing with serious legal problems related to racketeering and sexual assault. Sources: Marca, Page Six, The Sun

Meghan Markle’s much-anticipated Netflix series, With Love, Meghan, premiered on March 4, but the response has been far from positive. Despite the initial excitement surrounding the Duchess of Sussex’s solo project, which focuses on her passion for cooking, gardening, and hosting, the show has been met with disappointing viewership numbers and widespread criticism. Streaming data shows that With Love, Meghan reached only 526,000 households, a significant drop compared to her previous projects. For example, the docuseries Harry & Meghan attracted a massive 2.1 million households, and Markle’s revealing interview with Oprah Winfrey also garnered a great deal of attention. This sharp contrast in audience interest has led to questions about whether Markle can maintain her appeal without her connection to the British royal family. Royal expert Kinsey Schofield, who hosts the To Die For Daily podcast, discussed these concerns in an interview with Fox News Digital. He said, “With Love, Meghan lacked the one thing that makes her interesting – the in-laws who refused to give her any access to them because they considered her untrustworthy.” Schofield pointed out that much of the public’s interest in Markle is closely tied to her relationship with the royal family, suggesting that viewers are less interested in her independent projects. Photo by Samir Hussein/WireImage The criticism goes even further. Schofield noted that while Markle has built her brand around being a victim of mistreatment by the royals, her attempt to rebrand herself as a lifestyle figure, similar to “Betty Crocker,” has been met with skepticism. “I think people have seen for themselves who Meghan Markle is, and they don’t like her,” he said. “On top of the real lack of authenticity, they’ve already made up their minds about her and don’t have the patience to be convinced otherwise.” Other experts agree with Schofield’s assessment, arguing that Markle and Prince Harry’s relevance is largely dependent on their ties to the royal family. Many believe that the British Royal Family is the “real star” of Netflix, with content about them performing much better than projects focused solely on the Sussexes. The criticism of With Love, Meghan comes at a particularly sensitive time for the couple, who are reportedly undergoing a “professional separation.” This move seems to be an attempt to revive their individual careers, especially after Prince Harry’s recent documentary, Polo, also failed to attract a large audience and didn’t make it into Netflix’s top 10. At the same time, Markle independently launched her lifestyle brand, As Ever, which has added to the speculation about the state of their relationship amid ongoing divorce rumors. As the Sussexes navigate their careers outside the royal family, it’s unclear whether Markle can change public opinion or recapture the spotlight without the draw of her royal connections. For now, one thing seems clear: authenticity and a connection to their past roles may be key to their future success. Sources: Fox, Daily Express

In a revealing episode of Bill Maher’s podcast, Club Random, former CNN anchor Don Lemon opened up about his experiences with sexual harassment during his career. The nearly two-hour discussion touched on media bias, political views, and Lemon’s unique perspective as a gay Black man. Lemon shared that he faced harassment from both men and women throughout his career, underscoring the complexities of workplace dynamics. “I’ve been harassed by women and men in the work,” he told Maher. “There are some things that are really egregious, but not everything is Harvey Weinstein-level.” One of the most uncomfortable recollections came from a moment he experienced at CNN’s cafeteria in Atlanta. A female colleague allegedly tweaked his nipples, playfully stating, “Oh, it’s cold in here!” Lemon recalled how he firmly pointed out the double standard of such behavior. “OK — you realize if I did that, they’d be walking me out the door right now?” he said. Lemon also disclosed another incident involving a different female coworker who harassed him outside the office environment. He described her as going through a divorce and noted, “It was just bizarre.” He hesitated to report the harassment to management, fearing that her higher status in the company might undermine his claim. “I wasn’t sure if I’d be believed,” he explained. Under Maher’s prodding for more details, Lemon recounted more about this particular colleague, mentioning that he felt pressured during social events. “Remember, this was a while ago, and there was no Uber or anything like that. If you are in Atlanta, the taxis aren’t available,” he said. When he attempted to leave a gathering, he was met with resistance, with the woman insisting, “Stay in the guest room.” Though Lemon didn’t elaborate on the specifics of this encounter, he noted that the aftermath was complicated, stating the CNN employee was “so mean to me afterward.” He reflected on his ability as a man to assert himself, saying, “As a man, I could say, ‘No, I’m not interested,’” but added that he recognizes the challenges women face in similar situations. The conversation took a deeper turn when Lemon revealed a personal trauma: he was molested as a child. This experience, he shared, has shaped how he navigates power dynamics. “But also someone who was molested as a child is a different thing,” he said, causing Maher to emphasize the weight of his admission. “Because you know how to deal with it, and you know what’s really important or not. And you know, like, who has the power.” As he pondered the balance of power between genders in such scenarios, Lemon concluded that he prefers to handle these situations without involving HR. “I figure as a man, I have the power to say, ‘I don’t want to,’” he explained. Sources: USA Today, Hollywood Reporter, The Wrap/YouTube

In a high-stakes battle that has taken a dramatic turn, Drake finds himself embroiled in legal disputes with his label, Universal Music Group (UMG), following a heated diss track exchange with Kendrick Lamar. The Canadian rapper has labeled UMG’s actions as cowardly after they released Lamar’s controversial track, Not Like Us, igniting tensions that have bubbled over into court. Drake has filed a lawsuit against UMG, claiming that they knowingly released a track that includes the line “certified pedophile,” which he argues is false and defamatory. According to reports from TMZ, UMG has responded by stating that Drake is “only suing after losing the rap battle” and emphasized that both artists have engaged in an ongoing feud, each releasing multiple tracks aimed at the other. UMG also pointed to Drake’s own releases that include intense critiques of Lamar, including serious allegations that question Lamar’s personal life. The label’s court documents assert that Drake escalated the dispute by dropping a second recording to compel a response from Lamar. UMG, in their filing, not only denies the defamatory nature of “Not Like Us” but is also seeking an immediate dismissal of the lawsuit. They highlighted that commentators have recognized Lamar as the “winner” of the rap battle, a verdict that poses a significant blow to Drake’s reputation. On social media, the fallout from this ongoing legal drama has sparked a flurry of opinions from fans. One user wondered why people “act like Drake is so important” when “he’s just a rapper.” Others voiced their thoughts on his handling of the situation, with one calling him “a poor loser who can’t admit that he lost. Even though the whole world knows,” while another warned UMG lawyers to “stay off Twitter” amidst the uproar. Adding another layer to this already complex narrative, Drake has cited security threats stemming from Lamar’s track and expressed concerns about his safety. He claims the diss has negatively impacted his brand and image, pointing to a series of shootings near his Toronto home, including an incident where one of his security guards was injured by gunfire. Allegations have also emerged that UMG labeled Drake’s diss track a “chart-topper” to maximize its reach, including potential promotions during the Super Bowl Halftime Show. Sources: Hollywood Reporter, Variety, TMZ

The Murfreesboro Police Department (MPD) confirmed that reports about an active gunman on Broad Street near Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU) were not true. The police department addressed the false claim on social media, asking residents not to share the misleading post. The original post had said, “A gunman is active on Broad Street near Middle Tennessee, SWAT present.” However, MPD quickly clarified that this information was wrong. “This information is not accurate,” the department stated in its message. (Murfreesboro Police Dept.) According to MPD, the confusion was caused by an incident involving a search warrant carried out by the Special Operations Unit at a home in the area. Police confirmed that a man and a woman were arrested during this operation but stressed that they do not pose any threat to the community. “This situation was handled by our Special Operations Unit and does not involve any ongoing danger to the public,” MPD explained. Given how quickly misinformation spread, the department emphasized the importance of checking such claims before sharing them. MPD’s warning highlights the potential consequences of spreading unverified reports, especially when it comes to public safety. As the community processes this news, MPD continues to have a presence in the area to ensure public safety and provide correct information. The department’s efforts to address false narratives show its commitment to maintaining trust and transparency with the public. Source: WSMV, Rutherford Source

A new website called “DOGEQUEST” has sparked widespread attention due to its controversial actions, as it claims to publish private information about Tesla owners throughout the United States. The site features a searchable map that supposedly shows the names, addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses of these owners. It also states that it will remove someone’s information if they can provide evidence that they no longer own a Tesla. However, the accuracy of the data on the site is uncertain. According to a verification report from 404 Media, while some of the people listed on the website do seem to be actual Tesla owners or supporters, it’s not clear if all the entries are accurate. “We found that some locations on the map don’t match their real-world addresses,” the report mentioned, which has led to doubts about the site’s trustworthiness. This release of information by DOGEQUEST comes at a time when protests against Tesla are increasing, creating a sense of intimidation for many Tesla owners. Every weekend, protests called “Tesla Takedown” are happening across the country, and there have been reports of vandalism at Tesla dealerships, vehicles, and supercharger stations. There are also accounts of Tesla drivers facing hostility, with even Cybertruck owners being verbally harassed in public. New from 404 Media: a site called 'Dogequest' claims to be doxing Tesla owners across the U.S. Verified that at least some of the people in there are Tesla/Musk supporters. Comes as Trump has said that violence against Tesla would be domestic terrorism www.404media.co/dogequest-si… — Joseph Cox (@josephcox.bsky.social) 2025-03-18T01:04:20.348Z The backdrop to these protests is the changing perception of Tesla in the market. Since former President Donald Trump took office, Tesla’s stock has dropped significantly, falling by 44 percent. As of Monday, the stock was down nearly 5 percent. In what seems like an effort to support the brand, Trump recently praised Tesla cars in front of the White House, while both he and Tesla CEO Elon Musk have tried to discourage the protests. Trump even suggested that violent acts against Tesla dealerships could be considered domestic terrorism, adding to the tense atmosphere surrounding Tesla’s public image. The DOGEQUEST website describes itself as the “ultimate hub for enthusiasts of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).” It includes an interactive map of what it calls DOGE landmarks and makes questionable claims about its ability to connect Tesla owners through shared contact details. “Using our advanced artificial intelligence algorithms,” the site claims, though it doesn’t explain how it collects its data. Critics have highlighted the site’s provocative design elements, such as a cursor shaped like a molotov cocktail. In a section encouraging users to creatively express their protests, the site implies that anyone wanting to vandalize a Tesla doesn’t need a map to do so, potentially encouraging illegal activities. The DOGEQUEST site states: “If you’re looking for a Tesla to express your artistic side with a spray can, just step outside—no map required!” This statement raises serious ethical concerns about the possibility of promoting unlawful behavior. In its policy section, DOGEQUEST includes a statement about data removal, promising to delete a user’s information if they can prove they’ve sold their Tesla. Sources: 404media, Joseph Cox/Bluesky

A recent report from the enterprise security company Cato Networks has sounded a warning about the security risks tied to generative AI chatbots. The findings, outlined in the 2025 Cato CTRL Threat Report, show that even people with very little technical know-how can take advantage of AI models to create harmful software aimed at stealing sensitive information stored in web browsers. The report explains that a researcher, who Cato says had “no prior malware coding experience,” managed to use AI tools like DeepSeek R1 and V3, Microsoft Copilot, and OpenAI’s GPT-4o to build “fully functional” Chrome infostealers. These dangerous tools are made to pull out saved usernames, passwords, and other private data from Chrome. “The researcher created a detailed fictional world where each gen AI tool played roles — with assigned tasks and challenges,” the report says. “Through this narrative engineering, the researcher bypassed the security controls and effectively normalized restricted operations.” Photo by Cesc Maymo/Getty Images Cato has named the method used in this attack “Immersive World,” a process that highlights weaknesses in widely used chatbot models. While DeepSeek models are already known for their weak security measures, the fact that the Immersive World technique works so easily even against systems with strong safety teams, like those at OpenAI and Microsoft, is worrying. “Our new LLM jailbreak technique […] should have been blocked by gen AI guardrails. It wasn’t,” said Etay Maor, Cato’s Chief Security Strategist, stressing how serious the issue is. Cato’s report mentions that it has shared its findings with the relevant companies. OpenAI and Microsoft confirmed they received the report, but DeepSeek did not respond. Google also acknowledged the findings but chose not to review the critical code when Cato offered it. Keeping an eye on threats from generative AI has become more important than ever, as the report describes the ability to manipulate these systems as an “alarm bell” for cybersecurity professionals. It shows how easily someone can become a “zero-knowledge threat actor,” meaning they need very little expertise to carry out successful cyberattacks. There are increasingly few barriers to entry when creating with chatbots. This means attackers require less expertise up front to be successful. To reduce the risks from AI-powered threats, Cato recommends using AI-based security strategies. Focusing on training that keeps up with the changing cybersecurity landscape can help teams handle the challenges brought by generative AI tools. Sources: PRNewswire, ZDNet, infosecurity-magazine

In a startling revelation, former ‘Bachelor’ star Sean Lowe has opened up about a series of traumatic incidents involving his rescue dog, Moose. Just three months after welcoming Moose into his home, Lowe faced three vicious attacks that left him severely injured and requiring medical attention. Lowe recounted the ordeal during an Instagram video alongside his wife, Catherine. The incident occurred last Thursday while they were barbecuing with friends. In a moment of distraction, Lowe ran inside to address a fire alarm but returned to chaos. That’s when the nightmare began as Lowe explained, detailing how Moose turned aggressive during the brief moment of inattention. In a description that might make any pet lover cringe, Lowe revealed when he grabbed a towel to wave the smoke away from the alarm, Moose suddenly nipped his finger aggressively, then started sinking his teeth into Lowe’s shoes before ripping into his arm. He emphasized that this wasn’t a simple defensive bite from a frightened dog. “I don’t mean bite and run off like a lot of dogs do when they’re scared or defensive. I mean [he] attacks me. And I feel him kind of ripping into the flesh of my arm, and at this point, I am doing everything I possibly can just to fend this dog off. … I know I’m bleeding badly. And my friends don’t know what’s going on.” He shared. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Sean Lowe (@seanloweksu) After managing to push Moose into the backyard, Lowe faced another attack when the dog returned for more after managing to get into the backyard. The injuries were serious, with Lowe recalling that the cut on his wrist was so deep that blood was “squirting several feet.” His friends quickly rushed him to the emergency room, where he received stitches on both arms. Unfortunately, the terror did not end that day. Moose escaped the next morning and targeted Lowe yet again, leading to another wrestling match and another trip to the ER for more stitches. Despite the trauma inflicted by Moose, Lowe acknowledged that the dog was not at fault, explaining that Moose had experienced a lot of trauma before being adopted by his family. However, with three children in the household, Lowe noted that they made the difficult decision to return the dog to a shelter.

Indie wrestler Vince Steele, who was known in the wrestling ring as The Jurassic Juggernaut, has died after experiencing a medical emergency during a match on Sunday. He was 39 years old. Steele was participating in a four-way match at the Brii Combination Wrestling (BCW) event when he suddenly had a “cardiac event,” as reported by PWInsider and Fightful. This led to immediate action from emergency medical teams. BCW issued a statement addressing the seriousness of the situation. “During yesterday’s event, Vince suffered a medical emergency in the ring. We want to express our deepest gratitude to the Ridgefield Park Police Department, who were on the scene within minutes and immediately provided emergency medical assistance,” the organization said in a social media post. “Despite their rapid response and the best efforts of first responders, we tragically lost Vince. This is an unimaginable loss, and we ask for patience and respect as we process this tragedy. We will share more details in the coming days on how we plan to honor Vince’s incredible legacy.” According to people who were there, it took about 45 minutes for emergency responders to arrive. During that time, medical staff at the venue worked to help Steele while the audience looked on with concern. We are heartbroken to learn about the passing of “The Jurassic Juggernaut” Vince Steele. Our thoughts are with his family, his friends, and his fans. Rest In Peace, big man. You will forever be missed. pic.twitter.com/4wCzfSf47A — Coastal Championship Wrestling (@CCWAliveTV) March 16, 2025 Steele had been a prominent figure in the wrestling world since he started his career in 2004. His death has created a significant gap in the wrestling community, where both his colleagues and fans are deeply saddened by his passing. Wrestler Emily Jaye, who was at the BCW event, shared her thoughts on the tragic incident: “Today was one of the most traumatizing things I’ve ever witnessed. Thank you for everything you did in wrestling and out.” Another wrestler, Vincent Michaels, shared his sorrow on social media, calling the day “the worst day of my career.” He added, “Vince Steele gave everything to pro wrestling and today he gave his life for it. Every single wrestler/referee/crew on hand did everything they could to keep him going and they should be proud of that. I know I am.” Steele leaves behind his wife and three children, which underscores the deep impact of his loss not only on the wrestling community but also on his family. As tributes continue to come in from fellow wrestlers and fans, the wrestling world is remembering Steele for his contributions both inside and outside the ring. BCW is expected to announce plans in the next few days to honor Steele’s legacy. Source: Vincent Michaels, NDTV, The New York Post, Dailymail

In an unexpected twist of transatlantic relations, the White House has firmly declared that there are no plans to return the Statue of Liberty to France, dismissing a recent call from a French member of the European Parliament. During a press briefing on March 17, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt responded sharply to a proposal made by French politician Raphaël Glucksmann, stating, “Absolutely not,” when asked about the statue’s return. Leavitt’s response came after Glucksmann expressed his belief on March 16 that the United States no longer exemplifies the values represented by the iconic monument. “Give us back the Statue of Liberty,” Glucksmann demanded during a speech, later adding, “It was our gift to you. But apparently you despise her. So she will be happy here with us.” Leavitt, 27, didn’t shy away from elaborating on the historical significance of the Statue of Liberty, subtly reminding those listening of the U.S. and France’s alliance during World War II. “My advice to that unnamed low-level French politician would be to remind them that it’s only because of the United States of America that the French are not speaking German right now,” she said, reinforcing the sentiment that the statue remains a representation of American values, as opposed to its perceived detachment. While Glucksmann’s comments seemed to echo a broader critique of American policies and values today, Leavitt suggested that France should show gratitude instead. “They should be grateful,” she remarked, positioning the conversation around the statue as not just historical, but a matter of current dynamics in U.S.-France relations. The Statue of Liberty, which was unveiled on October 28, 1886, was originally a gift from France to the United States, intended as a symbol of freedom, inspiration, and hope. Its significance is underscored by details such as its crown, which represents light with spikes evoking sun rays, and a tablet inscribed with the date of American independence. Politically, Glucksmann’s statement about the statue’s return appears to lack grounding in legal reality. According to Politico, the statue is formally a property of the U.S. government, rendering any demands for its return more symbolic than actionable. The uproar over comments regarding the statue could also have implications for diplomatic relations between U.S. President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron, who met in February to discuss several pressing international issues, including aid to Ukraine. Sources: Politico, AP News

John Cena shocked the wrestling world on Monday night during his return to WWE’s Monday Night Raw, taped in Brussels, Belgium, where he announced his retirement from wrestling, revealing feelings of disenchantment with his fans. Entering the arena to a mixed reception of cheers and boos, Cena quickly addressed the audience, expressing frustration over what he perceives as a tumultuous relationship with WWE fans. “For 25 years, I have been the victim of an abusive relationship,” he stated. “All I did was work hard and win. And what did I get for it? I got hate… Not one of you sons of bitches ever asked me how I feel.” The 46-year-old wrestler, actor, and television personality then declared a complete break from his fanbase. “I don’t need you. I don’t care about you, and you don’t matter to me,” Cena declared, leaving the audience in stunned silence. This dramatic statement underscores a significant shift in Cena’s narrative that has defined his career as the WWE’s perennial “good guy.” When someone is properly grounded in life, they shouldn't have to look outside themselves for approval. — John Cena (@JohnCena) March 17, 2025 Moments later, Cody Rhodes entered the ring, addressing Cena’s comments with pointed criticism. “They’ve given you their worst, but they’ve also given you their best for 25 years,” Rhodes said, defending the fans. “They did that because you were special. You could take it, you could carry it. But who are you now? This whiny b****?” The confrontation between Cena and Rhodes not only reflected Cena’s emotional turmoil but also set the stage for their highly-anticipated match against each other at WrestleMania 41, scheduled for April 19. The WWE is known for its dramatic storylines, and this latest twist adds another layer of intrigue as Cena transitions to what he has framed as the “next chapter” of his career. Cena’s remarks have stirred up conversation among fans and professionals alike about the pressures athletes face in the public eye and the sometimes overwhelming expectations placed on figures like Cena, who have been elevated to icon status. His candid expression of discontent may resonate with many who have felt the weight of public opinion. Cena’s career with WWE has spanned over two decades, during which he has been a cornerstone of the company’s brand. His unexpected statements tonight may not only redefine his legacy within the sport but also impact the narrative of his rivalry with Rhodes leading into WrestleMania. Sources: Men’s Journal, John Cena/X

San Diego Sheriff’s investigators are currently looking into a case of vandalism that took place at the Tesla dealership in Encinitas on Monday morning. Antisemitic symbols and offensive language were found written on several vehicles and the outside of the dealership, which led to a response from local law enforcement. The vandalism included swastikas and other offensive words that were written on the glass front of the dealership and at least one car, as shown in pictures shared by someone in the community. This recent incident is part of a troubling trend of similar acts of vandalism targeting Tesla vehicles, dealerships, and charging stations across the country. This incident happened at a time when Tesla CEO Elon Musk is facing increasing criticism. Musk has been making significant changes to the organization during his time as the head of the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency. Wendy Gelernter, a member of the activist group Swing Left Take Action San Diego, explained that their group is not specifically focused on Tesla but rather on political issues. “Our real activism is directed against Trump. We want him to fire Elon. We want him to dismantle DOGE, and we want him to return the power of the purse to Congress,” Gelernter said. The group recently held a protest outside the Encinitas Tesla dealership, which attracted hundreds of people who were concerned about possible cuts to important social programs like Medicare and Social Security. Gelernter explained the goal of the protest, which was to make the public aware of their concerns: “That was the main purpose of this rally, was to bring to the public’s attention what we think are very dangerous and damaging actions.” She added that the event was meant to be peaceful and strongly condemned the vandalism that happened afterward. “We’re against any form of vandalism. It goes against everything that we’re there for, which is to avoid damage, and to avoid danger, and to avoid confrontation,” Gelernter said, emphasizing the group’s dedication to non-violence. Right now, the San Diego Sheriff’s Department is actively investigating the vandalism. Authorities have confirmed that they have surveillance video related to the incident, which involved damage to several cars and windows. So far, no arrests have been made, and law enforcement is asking the public for any information that could help with their investigation. Sources: CBS, Fox

In a story that serves as a warning to parents, a mother from Lancashire, England, has shared her experience after her daughter ended up in the hospital due to drinking a slush ice beverage containing glycerol. Kim Moore, who is 35 years old, is now encouraging other parents to think twice before letting their young children enjoy these popular frozen drinks. Moore took her two daughters, Marnie, who is 4, and Orla, who is 6, to a children’s party in 2020, where she purchased refillable slushies for them. However, just ten minutes after Marnie started drinking hers, things took a worrying turn. “We ended up buying two one-liter refillable cups… but Marnie didn’t drink the full cup, probably only half,” Moore recalled. Soon after, she noticed her daughter becoming “really agitated” and then falling asleep. “I just thought she was over-tired,” she explained in an interview with Kennedy News and Media, which was published in the Daily Mail. Five minutes later, when Moore tried to wake Marnie up, she realized something was seriously wrong. “She wasn’t waking up and was actually unconscious,” Moore said. Feeling panicked, Moore knew she had to act fast. “I think it was mum’s instinct that I knew something wasn’t right,” she stressed. “She was floppy and completely unconscious.” When they arrived at the hospital, doctors discovered that Marnie’s blood sugar levels were dangerously low. The little girl was then transferred to another hospital, where she stayed for three days. “I had no clue what had caused it. She was unconscious for around 25 minutes while they brought her blood sugars up,” Moore shared. Photo: Kennedy News and Media The doctors determined that Marnie was suffering from glycerol toxicity, which was directly caused by the slush ice drink. Glycerol is a sweetener often used to give slushies their smooth texture, but it can cause serious side effects. According to Moore, symptoms of glycerol toxicity include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headaches, confusion, and loss of consciousness. “Looking back, she had every single symptom of glycerol toxicity,” Moore admitted. “I was in absolute fear. If I hadn’t taken her to hospital, it may have had a different outcome.” Thankfully, Marnie fully recovered after her hospital stay. However, Moore is now strongly opposed to the sale of slush ice drinks to young children. “So many places promote free slushies…but you’re promoting poison,” she said. “I don’t think these slushies should be allowed at all. I personally wouldn’t allow my child to drink one at all. It’s not a risk I’m willing to take.” She added, “I don’t think they should be sold to kids 12 and under in all honesty. I wouldn’t wish what we went through on our worst enemy. It was awful.” This concerning incident follows a study published on March 11 in the Archives of Disease in Children, which reported that at least 21 children between the ages of 2 and 6 in the U.K. and Ireland have been hospitalized after consuming slush ice drinks containing glycerol over the past 15 years. The study found that 93% of these children became ill within 60 minutes of drinking the slushies. The researchers recommend that children under 8 avoid these drinks entirely. The Food Standards Agency supports this warning, advising that children aged 4 and under should “not consume” slush ice drinks containing glycerol due to potential side effects like headaches and nausea, especially if consumed in large amounts. Sources: Archives of Disease in Children, People, Daily Mail

In a break from the usual way spring football is handled, Colorado’s head coach, Deion Sanders, is pushing for a joint spring game with Syracuse. Instead of the standard scrimmage where the team plays against itself, Sanders wants to raise the level of competition by having his team face another school. This idea has caught the attention of Syracuse’s head coach, Fran Brown. On March 17, Brown responded to Sanders’ proposal on Twitter, writing, “@DeionSanders we will come to Boulder for 3 days .” The tweet quickly went viral, gaining over 857,300 views, 1,200 retweets, and 8,900 likes in just one hour. This strong reaction shows that both coaches are excited about the possibility of making this game happen. Later that same day, during a press conference, Sanders explained his reasoning behind wanting a joint scrimmage. He highlighted the benefits of playing against an unfamiliar opponent. “To have it competitive, playing against your own guys kind of gets monotonous,” he said. “You really can’t tell the level of your guys because it’s the same old, same old — everybody kind of knows each other.” Joint practices and games are more common in the NFL, where teams often practice together before preseason games. Sanders believes this approach could bring new insights to college football, giving teams the chance to face different styles and strategies. However, he also acknowledged that emotions can sometimes get out of hand during these matchups, leading to on-field conflicts. Photo by Bryan Bennett/Getty Images Sanders is committed to making the spring game a big success. He emphasized, “We’ve got to sell this thing out and pack this thing because the way the trend is going, you never know if this is going to be the last spring game.” He expressed a strong desire to keep the tradition alive, saying, “I would like to play the spring game. Actually, I like to play against another team in the spring.” This move toward innovation comes at a time when many college programs are stepping away from traditional spring games. Concerns about player retention and tampering, driven by the NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) era and the transfer portal, have led to this shift. So far, 19 Power Four programs have canceled their spring games, replacing them with showcase events instead. For example, Nebraska’s head coach, Matt Rhule, was one of the first to announce the cancellation of his spring game, citing worries about tampering. Other programs, including Texas, Oklahoma, USC, and Florida State, have followed suit. With the current state of college football undergoing significant changes, Sanders’ idea for a joint practice could offer a fresh approach while bringing more attention to the spring football season. Colorado is coming off its first winning season since 2015 and is preparing for challenges in 2025, including the potential loss of key players like Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter, who are expected to enter the NFL Draft. Meanwhile, Syracuse finished the 2024-25 season with an impressive 10-3 record, including a bowl game victory over Washington State. However, their success came with a cost, as quarterback Kyle McCord is leaving for the NFL. Sources: SI, Fran Brown/X, On3

A reporter for The Washington Post is under close examination because of past comments she made on social media that have led people to question whether she can remain fair and unbiased when covering the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine. Heba Farouk Mahfouz, who works in the newspaper’s Cairo office, has been criticized for statements she made online in which she called Israel an “illegal state” and shared opinions that are strongly against Zionism. Mahfouz’s posts, most of which were written between 2012 and 2014, include very strong and harsh language directed at Israel. In one post, she said, “If my anti-Zionist views hurt your Zio-Nazi feelings, FUCK OFF & SHUT THE FUCK UP!” She also added, “Call me a Nazi, call me a terrorist, call me backward, but still, fuck your illegal ‘state’ of #Israel.” These comments have caused a lot of negative reactions, especially from readers who doubt her ability to report fairly on Israel and its conflicts with Hamas, the Palestinian terrorist group. In other comments, Mahfouz described Zionism as “racism” and suggested that Israel “despises #African #Jews and any dark skinned Jew.” She also made a controversial comparison between the Holocaust and how Israel treats Palestinians, writing in one post, “‘Never again,’ said the Zionist settler who is killing Palestinians now in a genocide.” Adding to the concerns about her professional role, Mahfouz has shown support for Hamas and Hezbollah, two groups that are often seen as hostile to Israel and declared terrorist organizations by the U.S. In May 2013, she wrote, “always forever will be with the resistance as long as it is against the Zionist entity.” In another post, she said, “With the resistance always and forever,” specifically referring to her support for these groups as long as they are fighting against Israel and not other Arab groups. https://twitter.com/efischberger/status/1899549551671062659? Mahfouz started working at The Washington Post in August 2016, not long after she described herself as “anti-Zionist” on her Twitter profile—a label she later removed after joining the newspaper. A spokesperson for The Post told Jewish Insider that the newspaper is “aware of the alleged social media posts” and is currently looking into the situation. The spokesperson also said that more information would be shared if there are any updates. Eitan Fischberger, a writer and activist who supports Israel, was the first to uncover many of Mahfouz’s posts last week, which sparked a public debate. After these posts came to light, Mahfouz locked her account on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, though some of her statements have been saved through screenshots. Since the October attacks, Mahfouz has written or contributed to 13 articles focusing on Israel and Gaza, which has further fueled concerns about whether her personal views might influence her reporting. The scrutiny of her past social media activity comes at a time when the newspaper’s leadership is dealing with internal dissatisfaction and external criticism about its editorial decisions and coverage, particularly regarding perceived anti-Israel sentiments. Source: JewishInsider, DNI.gov (1), DNI.gov (2)

Kanye West, the Grammy-winning artist formerly known as Ye, has sparked significant backlash after issuing an open casting call that raises eyebrows for its extremely specific and controversial requirements. The announcement, made in a now-deleted post on X (formerly Twitter), sought participants for a “Hooligan choir” that will perform a track from his upcoming 2024 album, Vultures. In the casting call, West explicitly stated that he is looking for “all males” who are “NOT FAT,” with the “skin complexion of Sean Combs and darker.” Additionally, he made the shocking demand that participants “MUST BE COMFORTABLE WEARING SWASTIKAS.” The call also asked for those “With shaved heads or must be willing to shave head if approved.” The provocative nature of West’s casting call has led to widespread criticism before it was taken down. Many commentators are raising concerns over the implications of combining Nazi symbols with a tribute to the hip-hop artist Diddy, with whom West has a complex history. Notably, West has previously referred to Diddy as his “twin” in a separate now-deleted post earlier this year. Photo by Matthias Nareyek/Getty Images This isn’t the first time West has made headlines for his divisive statements. The artist made headlines back in February 2025 when he openly declared his alignment with Nazi ideology during an interview. This statement followed a tumultuous few years in which West faced significant backlash for his antisemitic remarks, which began in October 2022. As brands cut ties with him over his comments, he attempted to make amends with the Jewish community, issuing an apology in December 2022. However, he recanted that apology in February 2025, leading to renewed outrage. Kanye’s recent actions seem to align with public sentiments about the deeply troubling implications of his rhetoric. Critics argue that West is capitalizing on current social tensions for publicity, particularly given recent surges in extremist ideologies in popular culture. Interestingly, he is not alone in courting controversy; tech mogul Elon Musk has also faced backlash over antisemitic comments in the past. In the wake of West’s casting call, numerous social media users quickly condemned him. Some have pointed to the juxtaposition of calls for “Hooligans” with overtly racist symbols as a deeply troubling mix of pop culture and hate speech that should not be entertained, particularly in an artistic setting. Sources:

In a surprising turn of events, Jason Brown, the former college football coach who gained fame through his prominent role in Netflix’s highly praised documentary series Last Chance U, has taken legal action against the streaming giant, seeking $30 million in damages. The lawsuit, filed this week in Los Angeles County, focuses on claims that Netflix and the show’s producers used selective editing to portray him in a negative and unflattering manner. Brown, who served as the head coach at Independence Community College during the filming of the series, argues that the way he was depicted damaged his reputation and hurt his financial opportunities. He asserts that the producers intentionally manipulated footage to make him appear as “a volatile, abusive tyrant for their financial gain,” which he believes has severely harmed his career. According to legal documents, Brown agreed to participate in Last Chance U in June 2017 after producers assured him that the show would present him in a positive light. He claims that an executive even told him, “Colleges will be calling you after this airs.” However, Brown says the opposite occurred. Netflix Brown alleges that, over the course of his two seasons on the show, the narrative took a sharp turn. Instead of opening doors for future coaching opportunities, the series portrayed him in a negative way, which he says led to a significant loss of income. He points to a specific incident in February 2019, when he sent a text message to a student referencing Hitler. Brown claims the show dramatized this moment in a way that caused him to lose substantial opportunities. He says that out of the $600,000 in offers he received from NCAA programs and XFL teams, all were withdrawn after the show premiered. The lawsuit outlines Brown’s financial losses, including $10 million for lost income, $10 million for damage to his reputation, and $5 million for emotional distress. He is also seeking $5 million in punitive damages, arguing that Netflix and the producers deliberately misrepresented him in a harmful way. He believes the negative depiction not only hurt his career but also took a toll on his personal well-being. Brown is not the only one who has raised concerns about Netflix’s portrayal of individuals in Last Chance U. Other former stars of the show, including Ronald Ollie, John Franklin III, and DeAndre Johnson, filed similar lawsuits in February, accusing the streaming platform of misrepresentation and harm. As of now, Netflix has not made any public statements regarding the lawsuit or the controversy surrounding it. Sources: TMZ

The online community is deeply saddened by the sudden and unexpected death of Philip Enewally, who was widely known by his YouTube username, P2istheName. Authorities are currently looking into the details surrounding his passing, but at this time, they do not believe that any criminal activity was involved. The authorities are treating the 26 year old’s sudden death as natural causes. This comes after a thorough investigation. According to law enforcement sources, Enewally collapsed outside his apartment building in Los Angeles on the afternoon of Friday, March 15. Witnesses said they saw him lying on the ground near the mailboxes, which led the property manager to call 911 for help. Emergency medical teams arrived quickly, but despite their attempts to save him, Enewally was declared dead at the location where he was found. Police have stated that “there were no immediate signs of drugs or alcohol” at the scene, which has led investigators to consider the incident as likely due to natural causes, at least for now. A source close to the investigation confirmed his death is being treated as from natural causes, though this could change as more information becomes available. View this post on Instagram A post shared by P2 (@p2isthename) The Los Angeles County Coroner has completed an autopsy, but they are still waiting for the results of toxicology tests, which may provide more information about what caused his death. As news of Enewally’s passing continues to spread, fans and other content creators have been sharing their shock and sadness on social media. Enewally, who was just 26 years old when he died, became well-known for his videos featuring gameplay from NBA 2K and Fortnite. Over time, his channel expanded to include a wider variety of gaming content, including many Let’s Plays. Beyond his YouTube career, he also started his own clothing brand, WallyCo, which helped him connect even more with his audience. RIP P2istheName. Sources: Yahoo, TMZ

Chelsea Football Club has shown its support for defender Wesley Fofana after he faced a wave of racist abuse on social media, especially on Instagram, following the team’s defeat to Arsenal on Sunday. This situation has led to strong criticism from the club, shedding light on the persistent problem of racism in sports. Fofana shared some of the offensive messages he received in an Instagram story, which led to a quick response from Chelsea. The club released a statement saying: “Chelsea Football Club is appalled and disgusted by the recent rise in online racial abuse towards our players. The abuse Wes Fofana has been subjected to following yesterday’s fixture is abhorrent and will not be tolerated. Wes and all our players have our full support.” The club also stressed its dedication to tackling this issue by adding, “We will work with the relevant authorities in identifying the perpetrators and take the strongest possible action.” It has been reported that Chelsea has already contacted Instagram to ask for the abusive content to be removed as soon as possible. The club’s players, staff, and sporting team have also shown their support for Fofana during this difficult time. Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images In the match against Arsenal, Fofana was part of several controversial incidents, including a clash with Declan Rice that might have led to a red card. He ended up receiving a yellow card for his actions during the game, which intensified the reactions from fans and online commentators. This incident occurs at a time when there is a worrying increase in online racism targeting athletes. The club’s statement highlights a growing concern in the sports community about the safety and well-being of players, especially in the face of harassment on social media. As the discussion about racism continues, Chelsea FC is taking a strong position, reaffirming their commitment to protecting their players. Sources: The Guardian, Daily Mail, Yahoo Sports

Julian Lewis, the newest quarterback to join the Colorado Buffaloes, has been making waves not just for his skills on the field but also for some fun and light-hearted moments during practice. Recently, during a team huddle after practice, head coach Deion Sanders jokingly stopped Lewis from leading the team out of the huddle. This happened because Sanders remembered that Lewis had thrown an interception earlier in the session. This playful exchange was caught on video and quickly went viral, showing off Sanders’ ability to balance holding players accountable while keeping things fun and engaging. As Lewis was about to break the huddle and lead the team off the field, Sanders teased, “Oh you out then,” which got the whole team laughing. Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images Lewis decided to join the Buffaloes after changing his commitment from USC last fall. This move shows his confidence in the direction Colorado is heading under Sanders, who has brought new energy and success to the program. Speaking to the media for the first time since committing to Colorado, Lewis shared his thoughts on why he chose the Buffs. “Honestly, I think looking at it; it was the building process of the organization, the program just trying to build up from Coach Prime getting here to them building their record and doing all the stuff they’ve done. It was hard to pass up the opportunity to come here under Prime,” said Lewis. As Sanders gets ready to transition to the NFL, the race for the starting quarterback spot at Colorado is becoming more intense. Lewis is part of a competitive group, going up against Liberty transfer Kaidon Salter, who already has a solid college football resume, with 1,886 passing yards, 15 touchdowns, and six interceptions in 2024. Interestingly, Lewis chose to reclassify and graduate high school early, joining the class of 2025. He believes this decision will help him grow as a player. “That was always the goal, to skip that last year of high school football,” he explained. “I felt like high school football didn’t have much more for me, even if it meant me coming in (to a college program) and competing for a job young. I felt it would be best for me to get in here as early as possible.” Despite the growing competition, Lewis has been enjoying his time with the team so far. “Of course, everybody thinks it is a quarterback battle and stuff like that, but we have such great quarterbacks in the room and great personalities,” Lewis said. “I just love being around the guys daily and being happy to be here.” As the Buffaloes keep preparing for the upcoming season, all attention is on the quarterback competition and how Lewis will develop as a potential leader under Coach Prime’s guidance. With spring practices in full swing, fans are excited to see how the young quarterback handles the early stages of his college career, especially with all the excitement surrounding Colorado’s football program. Source: SI

Man Set on Fire in Times Square in Shocking Incident, NYPD Investigating In a deeply troubling event early Sunday morning, a man was intentionally set on fire in New York City’s famous Times Square, leading to an ongoing police investigation to find the person responsible. The incident happened around 4 a.m. local time at the corner of West 41st Street and 7th Avenue, very close to the busy Times Square Tower. According to the New York Police Department (NYPD), the 45-year-old victim was found completely covered in flames and was quickly taken to New York Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center. As of Sunday afternoon, he is said to be in stable condition. The NYPD shared details about the shocking event, saying, “Based on statements made by the victim, there is reason to believe that the victim knew the perpetrator.” So far, no arrests have been made, and the person who is believed to have carried out the attack ran away from the scene, leaving investigators to piece together information about who he might be. Dakota Santiago / FreedomNewsTV Reports suggest that the interaction between the victim and the attacker started at a nearby food cart. Witnesses say the suspect might have used something taken from the food cart to help start the fire that burned the victim after he went into a nearby club. Video released by The New York Post shows the aftermath, with the victim sitting in an ambulance while someone he knows talks to the police. Sources told the Post that as the flames covered him, the victim was able to run about 100 feet before a bystander stepped in with a fire extinguisher. Despite how serious the incident was, he is now being treated for his injuries. The NYPD is working hard to follow leads and is reviewing security camera footage to identify the attacker, who was said to have run north of Broadway right after the attack. This fire-related incident is part of a worrying pattern in the city, reminding people of a similar event just a few months ago when a 67-year-old man was found on fire in Penn Station. Officials reported that he suffered serious burn injuries on December 27. Adding to the disturbing nature of these events, just days before the man in Penn Station was set on fire, a woman was reportedly attacked by someone who lit her on fire while she slept on a stopped subway train on December 22. In that terrifying case, witnesses said the attacker sat calmly nearby as the woman suffered from her injuries. Sources: People, The New York Post

In a surprising and tragic series of events, Quinterius Chappelle, a 24-year-old airman currently serving at Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota, has been arrested and charged with the second-degree murder of Sahela Sangrait. Sangrait’s remains were found almost seven months after she was reported missing, sparking a joint investigation that has deeply affected the local community. On March 15, authorities announced the arrest, with the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) confirming that Chappelle was taken into custody on federal charges related to Sangrait’s death. According to jail records reviewed by PEOPLE, Chappelle was placed in the Pennington County Jail on March 14 at 11:41 p.m. local time. The investigation into Sangrait’s death gained significant attention earlier this month when a hiker found her body in an area south of Hill City, South Dakota. This discovery led police to thoroughly examine the details surrounding her disappearance. The PCSO stated that investigators determined Sangrait was killed at the Air Force base and noted that “due to the jurisdiction of the crime, the case will be prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office.” This investigation has been a collaborative effort involving several law enforcement agencies, including the Rapid City Police Department, the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, the Bureau of Indian Affairs Missing and Murdered Unit, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations. GoFundMe Sangrait’s remains were identified as those of the missing 21-year-old woman shortly after the hiker reported finding a “badly decomposed body” to authorities on March 4. Sangrait was last known to be staying with a friend in Eagle Butte before she disappeared on August 10, 2024. She had plans to travel to California at the time. In a heartbreaking development, a GoFundMe campaign was launched after police confirmed her identity to help cover funeral expenses. The page described Sangrait, who was affectionately called “Shy,” as a “beautiful, inclusive, and mesmerizing spirit” who “faced life’s challenges head-on with a smile on her face.” The description also highlighted her intelligence, humor, and the positive impact she had on those around her, stating, “We are all so lucky to know her.” As the investigation moves forward, many are eager for more information about this tragic case, which has raised questions about the events leading up to Sangrait’s death and the actions that resulted in Chappelle’s arrest. At this time, it is unclear whether Chappelle has hired a lawyer to address the charges against him. Source: People, CBS News, Pennington County Sheriff’s Office, GoFundMe

In the world of mixed martial arts, undefeated fighter Dustin Lampros is making waves not just for his skills in the ring but also for his extraordinary efforts outside of it. While gearing up for his upcoming title fight at Shamrock FC on March 22, Lampros shared details about his unexpected mission to tackle child predators in his community during an interview with TMZ Sports. Lampros, who boasts an impressive 9-0 record, started this important side project two years ago after a friend introduced him to the grim realities of child exploitation. This revelation ignited a passion within him. “When he exposed it to me and brought me into that world, I instantly felt motivated to do something,” Lampros told TMZ. “I looked at him right away and said, ‘Let’s do it, let’s help down here in the community.’” At first, their plan was simple—they wanted to see how they could make a difference. But their efforts quickly grew, leading to significant involvement in the community. “At first, it was kind of like, ‘let’s see what we can do.’ Then it kind of snowballed from there,” he explained. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Dustin Lampros | Scrappy (@scrappy135mma) So far, Lampros estimates that they’ve successfully caught around 50 individuals involved in predatory behavior. While he hasn’t had to physically confront anyone, the situations have been far from safe. He described one tense moment: “A kid pulled out a little box-cutter knife, and he’s just holding it in his hand, and then we didn’t notice it until about 20-30 seconds later,” he recalled. The danger escalated further when a suspect tried to leave the scene: “I had a hunch he was going to grab something, and he did. He grabbed a handgun,” Lampros said. Fortunately, these encounters haven’t turned violent, but Lampros emphasized that safety measures are always a top priority when dealing with such high-risk scenarios. As an MMA fighter, Lampros is used to physical confrontations, but he uses that same energy to create a positive impact in his community. “I’ve had one time where a guy wouldn’t talk to me, and he just walked back to his car, and he said, ‘You better not follow me to my car,’” Lampros shared, highlighting the risks involved in his mission. Looking ahead, Lampros is set to step back into the ring at Shamrock FC 362 next Saturday, where he’ll defend his undefeated record. His dual role as a fighter and community advocate is capturing attention, with fans eager to follow his journey both inside and outside the Octagon. As Lampros prepares to face new challenges, whether in the fight world or in his community work, one thing is clear: he’s not just fighting for championships; he’s fighting for those who can’t fight for themselves. Source: TMZ

In a recent interview, Ashanti, the Grammy-winning singer and actress, talked about her new role as a mother and her plans for the upcoming “Bring It on Tour” in the UK and Ireland. The singer and her partner, rapper Nelly, welcomed their son, Karem “KK,” eight months ago. “This is a new chapter for me. Family first — being married and having a child,” Ashanti said during her conversation with Revolt. “My mind is thinking bigger and better and more out of the box, obviously.” Ashanti shared how her outlook on life has changed since becoming a mother. She mentioned that she has written a children’s book and is excited to explore more opportunities in creating content for children. “I kind of want to just dive into the lane of children now. I really do because it’s just so natural,” she said, recalling her past experience working at a daycare center. “I loved kids before, but now it’s like [times] a million.” Photo by Paul Morigi/Getty Images When asked about the most important lesson Karem has taught her, Ashanti replied, “Patience.” As she gets ready to go on tour with fellow artists Sean Paul and Fat Joe, Ashanti is figuring out how to balance her career and her new responsibilities as a mom. She acknowledged that this will be her first tour as a mother, which brings its own set of challenges. “Obviously, we need extra hands. There’s definitely going to be extra bags because I already travel with too much luggage,” she admitted. Ashanti emphasized the importance of planning each day with KK as she adjusts to this new phase of her life. “We’re going to be a lot more cognizant of time and [spend more time] preparing, because you just never know what’s going to happen,” she explained. The singer also talked about being extra protective, saying she wants to keep her baby safe from germs: “I’m definitely in Mama Bear protective mode, wanting to protect the baby.” Earlier this month, in a separate interview with People, Ashanti reflected on her journey into motherhood, calling baby KK a “blessing” and an “angel.” “It’s amazing,” she said. “My life is amazing right now. I’m super blessed, so happy. I’m insanely in love with him.” Although new parenthood often comes with sleepless nights, Ashanti and Nelly are enjoying this new chapter of their lives. Nelly, 50, joined Ashanti in sharing how their lives have changed since the arrival of their son. He mentioned that he has been able to get some rest, while Ashanti joked that she hasn’t had much sleep yet. As Ashanti prepares for the tour, she remains focused on her family while making sure her fans can still enjoy her performances. With KK joining her on the road, she is ready to embrace both her role as a mother and her career as a musician, balancing the two with passion. The “Bring It on Tour” promises to deliver exciting live performances while showcasing this new chapter in Ashanti’s life as a mother. Sources: People, Revolt

In a strange and unusual turn of events that is far from your typical convenience store robbery, local police are searching for four suspects who are accused of stealing CBD oil from a Citgo gas station while carrying pythons. Authorities have shared surveillance video in the hopes that someone can help identify the people involved. According to the Madison County Sheriff’s Office, two women and two men walked into the Citgo and reportedly took CBD oil worth $400. The suspects are thought to have escaped in a four-door sedan, which had its trunk held shut with bungee cords—a detail that caught the attention of law enforcement. Raval and his brother were working at the store during the robbery and saw the strange event happen right in front of them. “They were just waving [the pythons] around and putting them on the counter,” Raval said, describing what he saw. Madison Co Sheriff’s Office Raval pointed out how unusual the robbery was, especially the shocking way the suspects used snakes to scare people. “I think they planned to successfully come here and rob the store. The snake is a weapon, you know,” he added. He also mentioned that he believes the suspects might have taken more items if there hadn’t been so many customers in the store at the time. The pythons, which are not venomous, can grow to be anywhere from 22 inches to 33 feet long and can weigh up to 250 pounds. They are known for killing their prey by squeezing them, which makes these snakes a very unusual choice of weapon for a robbery. “The snake is a weapon, you know,” Raval repeated, stressing how serious the situation was. As the investigation continues, authorities are asking anyone with information about the robbery or the suspects to come forward. If anyone recognizes the individuals, they are encouraged to call Crime Stoppers at 731-424-8477. So far, police have not provided any updates on leads or possible arrest. Sources: People, NY Post, WREG-TV

In a moment that has fans talking nonstop, Michigan baseball player Mitch Voit caused a stir with a controversial celebration during the Wolverines’ game against USC on Sunday. After hitting a remarkable RBI triple, the junior second baseman seemed to imitate a drug-related gesture, sparking heated debates both online and offline. The incident happened in the second inning when Voit hit a pitch hard, sending the ball far into center field. He ran past second base and dove head-first into third. While celebrating the play, which drove in three runs, Voit was seen putting his nose to the chalk line and making a motion as if he were sniffing something, a gesture many interpreted as a reference to cocaine use. Michigan baseball players are used to playing in the snow pic.twitter.com/O8SrlX8gH2 — Noah Bieniek (@NoahB77_) March 16, 2025 One user, Noah Bieniek, joked, “Michigan baseball players are used to playing in the snow,” adding another layer to the discussion about Voit’s actions. While some have applauded Voit for his creativity and enthusiasm, others have criticized the gesture as inappropriate due to its potential implications. Reactions to the celebration have been divided, though so far, there is no sign that Voit will face any disciplinary action from the university or the Big Ten Conference. On the field, the Wolverines dominated with an 11-0 victory over the Trojans, with Voit having an outstanding performance, going 3-for-3 and driving in four RBIs. Fans cheered for the team’s win, even as the debate over Voit’s celebration continued to grow. Sources: TMZ, Noah Bieniek/X, Dailymail

Amiga Games

Dungeonette - The New Adventure is set in the kingdom of Amigea, Dark lord Aksnes (cough) will have to be defeated and only one person can do it, you!

Source

The post Unboxing: Dungeonette – The New Adventure On Amiga appeared first on AmigaGuru's GamerBlog.

ONIRIAM is an immersive virtual reality (VR) experience available for PlayStation VR2 (PSVR2) that transports players through a series of dreamlike landscapes, blending elements of dreams and nightmares to create a deeply personal journey.

Source

The post ONIRIAM – Living The Dream? appeared first on AmigaGuru's GamerBlog.

Sky Shapers is a high-speed, vertical-scrolling Shoot 'Em Up by Norwegian indie studio Digilicious Nibbles, making their debut on the AGA Amiga. Developed in Blitz Basic and created entirely on classic Amiga hardware, the game runs at a smooth 50 FPS and features handcrafted graphics, three expansive levels, and intense boss battles.

Source

The post A Look At: Sky Shapers appeared first on AmigaGuru's GamerBlog.

Ah, Hugo! That brings back some memories. The whole concept of using a telephone to control a game on live TV was pretty groundbreaking at the time. Did you ever play it, or was it more of a nostalgic curiosity for you?

Source

The post A Trip Down Memory Lane With: Hugo The Screen Troll appeared first on AmigaGuru's GamerBlog.

Official PlayStation Blog for news and video updates on PlayStation, PS5, PS4, PS VR, PlayStation Plus and more.

Last week, we asked to set off on the broken road of Days Gone Remastered and share epic moments of survival using #PSshare #PSBlog. Here are this week’s highlights: calisarah1998 shares Deacon standing in the middle of a desolate street itsRyanUnicomb shares a look up at Deacon’s motorcycle and the night sky tulippooh3 shares Deacon […]

Last week, we asked to set off on the broken road of Days Gone Remastered and share epic moments of survival using #PSshare #PSBlog. Here are this week’s highlights: calisarah1998 shares Deacon standing in the middle of a desolate street itsRyanUnicomb shares a look up at Deacon’s motorcycle and the night sky tulippooh3 shares Deacon walking through a sundrenched field EmperorHal shares a profile portrait of Boozer and his head tattoo Holden88805 shares a look the back of Deacon’s vest and weapons r0gues_fr0ntier shares a look at a Freaker through a broken car window Search #PSshare #PSBlog on Twitter or Instagram to see more entries to this week’s theme. Want to be featured in the next Share of the Week? THEME: Days Gone Remastered – Deacon SUBMIT BY: 11:59 PM PT on May 7, 2025 Next week, we’re sticking by Deacon’s side in Days Gone Remastered. Share portraits of Deacon using #PSshare #PSBlog for a chance to be featured.

As the May 8 release date for the PS5 and PS VR2 title The Midnight Walk creeps ever closer, we grow more and more excited to experience this unique dark first-person adventure. Making its debut at State of Play late last year, the game showcased an incredible hand-crafted “cozy horror” world filled with deformed antiques, […]

As the May 8 release date for the PS5 and PS VR2 title The Midnight Walk creeps ever closer, we grow more and more excited to experience this unique dark first-person adventure. Making its debut at State of Play late last year, the game showcased an incredible hand-crafted “cozy horror” world filled with deformed antiques, charming little freaks, and plenty of nightmare fuel. With the clock due to strike midnight very soon, we wanted to get another look at what the game will offer–and savor more of the game’s gorgeous stop-motion inspired visuals in the process. We sat down with its creator, Swedish studio Moonhood for a walk through a new section of the game. Play Video Close your eyes to sense the world around you You begin The Midnight Walk as The Burnt One, awakening in a makeshift grave you must extract yourself from. As you move down the winding road ahead and get your bearings, you learn a bit about how the world works: using matches to light fires and candles, sneaking about to escape the notice of threats, and finding and using items. One of the most unique actions is closing your eyes to focus on hearing sounds you couldn’t sense normally–and sometimes change the environment when you open them again. On the flat screen version of the game, a button press and hold will increase the volume of important objects and dangers around you. The DualSense controller vibrates to indicate how close you are to an important object. After your brief introductory trek, you’ll meet one of the other main figures: Potboy, a being with a stubby little body and a big, malformed head crowned by toasty fire. A touch from a lit match awakens him from his stasis, and he immediately flees in panic, hiding away in a large container. You’ll need to find and feed him some coal to earn his trust, and soon, you’re inseparable–well, you would be, if there weren’t so many creatures lurking in this dark world that feed upon light and fire and see Potboy as either a threat or a treat. You’re going to have to help each other out on your journey to the far-off Moon Mountain, which stands like a faraway monolith guiding you in the distance. Meet a cast of brazier buddies The lively, jauntily animated Pothead, being small and nimble, can squeeze into places and interact with the environment in ways the Burnt One can’t–but you’ll need to help guide him to the right spots. His flame can not only set objects alight, it also transforms parts of the landscape. Some elements, like flora, rebloom in vibrant life in response to the flame, while other obstacles dissipate or retract in apparent fear of the fire. Much of the puzzle-solving will come from using Potboy in tandem with items or the environment in creative ways: one puzzle we were shown involved lighting a candle to lure a hungry foe away from Potboy so that he could hit some switches without fear of becoming dinner. Eventually, you’ll meet Pothead’s friend Housy, a living abode that moves about on insect-like legs. Housy tags along on your journey and serves as a home base and collectible trove–and he looks fantastically freaky creeping along behind you. You can retreat to the safety of Housy’s insides at any time after your meeting, but you will have to go back outside eventually. While much of The Midnight Walk pacing is relaxed, allowing you to fully savor this world’s murky, off-kilter atmosphere, you’ll still find plenty of sudden surprises that demand a rapid response. Be it a gang of crooked creatures chasing you and Potboy down a narrow path or the Molgrim — a huge cone-shaped, snaggle-toothed beast with a horrifying wail and an insatiable hunger — you’ll need to make some quick decisions to fight or flee. Sometimes discretion is the better part of valor: hiding in a closet might throw a monster off your track, or sometimes just running for dear life is all you need. At other times you’ll need to make use of some tools–like the matchlock, that shoots matches at faraway candles and other contraptions. No matter what, you’ll always need to be alert, because danger is omnipresent and can strike when you least expect. Let the night envelop you Every moment in The Midnight Walk is full of intrigue. As you wander through dimly-lit, gnarled environments, you find yourself surrounded by objects that feel like an uneasy mix of the natural and the artificial, the direct result of the numerous real-life models and objects that the team at Moonhood have painstakingly scanned into the game and animated. “Shellphones” found throughout tell a story of a world that was once crafted and curated, now left seemingly to rot away. Even the characters that seem friendly–or, at least, not murderously aggressive– to you and Pothead have something “off” about them, like the citizens of Nobodyville whose bodies have long since been banished, leaving them as craniums with a distrust of limbed “Somebodys.” While the game looks incredible on a normal setup, PS VR2 fully immerses you in the strange beauty of this world. Looking around and interacting with the environment is far more intuitive and immersive: for example, instead of using a button to close your eyes, you’ll be able to actually close your eyes to make use of hypersensory hearing or environment-altering power. This mechanic isn’t just used for listening. Finding “eye symbols” hidden across the world and “meditating” on them causes the environment – and sometimes monsters – to change… Binaural sound makes every creak, flame, and roar feel more vibrant and powerful while letting you enjoy the beauty of the tense, haunting soundtrack. The developers at MoonHood were eager to tell us about how impressive the scenes we saw were on PS VR2, and we’re inclined to take their word for it. So get your matches and candles ready–you’re about to take the walk of your life.

Last month, we had breakout runaway hits, indie darlings, and a few surprises. Which game spoke to you the most?  Some of the big new releases included Blue Prince, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Forever Skies, and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered. How does it work? At the end of every month, PlayStation Blog will […]

Last month, we had breakout runaway hits, indie darlings, and a few surprises. Which game spoke to you the most? Some of the big new releases included Blue Prince, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Forever Skies, and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered. How does it work? At the end of every month, PlayStation Blog will open a poll where you can vote for the best new game released that month. After the polls close we will tally your votes, and announce the winner on our social channels and PlayStation.Blog. What is the voting criteria? That’s up to you! If you were only able to recommend one new release to a friend that month, which would it be? Note: re-released games don’t qualify, but remakes do. We define remakes as ambitious, larger-scale rebuilds such as Resident Evil 4 (2023) and Final Fantasy VII Remake. How are nominees decided? The PlayStation Blog editorial team will gather a list of that month’s most noteworthy releases and use it to seed the poll.

Hello there, PlayStation fans! That’s no moon over the Battle Royale Island — it’s a whole Star Wars Season! Also, the celebration is just getting started in LEGO Fortnite Brick Life. Over in LEGO Fortnite Odyssey, explore and battle for galactic supremacy. The fun continues in Rocket League with the new 2v2 Car Wars LTM. […]

Hello there, PlayStation fans! That’s no moon over the Battle Royale Island — it’s a whole Star Wars Season! Also, the celebration is just getting started in LEGO Fortnite Brick Life. Over in LEGO Fortnite Odyssey, explore and battle for galactic supremacy. The fun continues in Rocket League with the new 2v2 Car Wars LTM. There’s a lot to unpack, but don’t worry — these are the updates you’re looking for! Let’s dive in with what’s happening across Epic Games, starting with Fortnite Battle Royale. A shadow emerges in Battle Royale Imperial Star Destroyers exit hyperspace in formation around the Death Star, which looms with its superlaser array fixed on the BR map. Heroes from across eras are ready to strike back against the assault led by Emperor Palpatine from the shadows, and the Island’s fate hangs in the balance. Draw your lightsaber and ready your blaster May 2 in Fortnite: Galactic Battle! New places to see, returning weapons to loot Play Video Driving back the Imperial invasion will take every blaster and ship at your disposal and these new locations will help you do just that! The First Order Base, Outpost Enclave, Resistance Base, and Vader Samuari’s Solitude are all primed and ready for exploration (and looting!). Just be mindful, you never know who you’ll run into. The preferred weapon of Force users everywhere An elegant weapon for a more civilized age, the use of a lightsaber is the mark of a Jedi, though it’s also used by their sworn enemies, the Sith. Lightsabers are exceptionally handy for deflecting blaster bolts, and wielding one will allow you to sprint faster, jump twice as high, and have immunity to fall damage. You’ll have to prove yourself to earn one, though… Or just loot it off another player. How to prove yourself? Train with hologramic followers of both the light and dark sides to unlock their respective lightsaber and Force Ability. Force Push, Force Lightning, and Force Saber Throw are the Force Abilities you can learn day one, with more becoming learnable later in the Season! So anyway, start blasting As far as non-lightsaber weapons go, it’s blasters-only on day one, with the exception of the Thermal Imploder that’ll cause a blast in its own way. You’ve got your DL-44 Blaster Pistol, ACP Scatter Blaster, E-11 Blaster, and several more. Be careful about holding down the trigger, as these babies are prone to overheating! Looking to dogfight for your next Victory Royale? Pilot the Imperial TIE fighter equipped with high-powered blasters or the nimble X-wing and take to the skies! Weekly updates May 8 – The pull of the Force Sensing a disturbance in the Force, Leia and Luke will arrive on the Island alongside renowned smuggler Han Solo to offer you strategic services! Also, train with hologram Mace Windu to earn a Purple Lightsaber and be taught Force Pull. Pull in just about anything and anyone nearby with this Force Ability. Rumor has it that Sith Lord Darth Maul will also appear as a hologram, offering Red Lightsabers and teaching Force Throw, which allows you to throw nearby objects as projectiles… May 15 – Chew on this Chewbacca arrives and he’s bringing his Wookiee Bowcaster to the loot pool to aid the rebels. You’ll also find the new, powerful CA-87 Jawa Scatter Blaster in Chests around the Island! May 22 – Mandalorian Rising Mandalorians will intervene this week. Recruit a Heavy, Scout, Supply, or Medic Mandalorian to your team, and gain further advantage over your opponents with the unvaulted Mandalorian Jetpack! Also, keep an eye out for signature Mandalorian weapons: the Amban Sniper Rifle and the new dual-wield WESTAR-34 Blaster Pistols. May 29 – Star Destroyer bombardment Be the first to reach the control room of a Star Destroyer which spawns every match. Assume control of its turbolaser to lay waste from above! June 7 – The final showdown: Death Star sabotage Mobilize and take the fight to Emperor Palpatine in a live, in-game narrative event on June 7. Never tell me the odds. Get the Star Wars Battle Pass The Star Wars Battle Pass is full of treasures from across the known galaxy. The Star Wars Battle Pass has both free and premium rewards that can be claimed by earning XP in any Fortnite experience. Here are the Outfits in the Pass, available as premium rewards: Apprentice Evie: Force-sensitive vigilante spreading peace across the Galaxy. (Automatically unlocked after purchasing the Pass or accessing it through Fortnite Crew!) Poe Dameron: The finest pilot in the Resistance. Wookiee Team Leader: Growl it out. Emperor Palpatine: Leader of the Empire. Ruler of the galaxy. Kaleesh cyborg and General of the Separatist droid army, General Grievous will be a premium Outfit in the Star Wars Battle Pass later in May. Unlock Grievous by completing objectives that’ll come online further in the Season! The Pass will be available to progress in from May 2 until the Galactic Battle ends on June 7, 2025 Eastern Time. More fun begins in LEGO Fortnite Celebrate the most intergalactic time of year in LEGO Fortnite Brick Life’s Star Wars Festival, where you can grab a bite in the Durrr Burger Cantina, score goals in Death Star Soccer Ball, hang out with a Porg, and even acquire your very own Lightsaber Bench. This gathering for Star Wars fans everywhere will be going on from May 2 until June 8, 2025 Eastern Time. In a galaxy just next door, LEGO Fortnite Odyssey is launching a public matchmaking test on May 15 called Rapid Survival — an eight-player public world survival experience on the existing Star Wars Island. Load in with a pre-determined loadout that includes a Lightsaber, Macrobinoculars, a plethora of building materials, and more to aid in your journey. Even though PvP combat is on, you can also choose to team up against the Star Wars enemies! Heads-up: Rapid Survival will be open at specific four-hour windows from May 15 until May 26 Eastern Time. First Order LEGO Pass The ruthless Captain Phasma Outfit is front and center as a premium reward in the First Order LEGO Pass, available starting May 2! There’s even more precious cargo you can unlock like the premium First Order Base Build, First Order AT-AT Build, Lil’ Treadspeeder Emote, and a lot more. The First Order LEGO Pass will be available to progress in until June 8 Eastern Time, with free and premium rewards unlockable by earning XP in any Fortnite experience. Captain Phasma is automatically unlocked after purchasing the Pass or accessing it through Fortnite Crew! Shift into Hyperspace as Star Wars and Rocket League cross over once again Leading the charge in Rocket League is Car Wars, a brand new Limited Time Mode that’ll require you to channel your inner TIE pilot for any hope of victory! Also, look forward to Star Wars Challenges rewarding imperial items like the Stormtrooper Octane Decal and TIE Fighter Topper. Rocket League x Star Wars runs from May 2 at 12 PM ET to May 16, 2025, at 12 PM ET! Dark Side of the Force = Unnatural Abilities in LTMs Car Wars (May 2 at 12 PM ET – May 14 at 12 PM ET) The 2v2 Car Wars takes place at the Force Field Arena, a Star Wars-inspired twist on the Arena used for Rocket Labs’ Loophole. Target the thermal exhaust ports at each end of the Arena to score and use the lightsaber-fied Spike Rush mutator to hit your mark. G-Force Frenzy (May 2 at 12 PM ET to May 7 at 12 PM ET) Debuting in last year’s Mandalorian Mayhem event, G-Force Frenzy returns this year! This is a 3v3 mode that lets you unleash unlimited boost, cranked to five times standard power. Navigate the arena faster than the Millennium Falcon on the Kessel Run! Swear allegiance to the Empire with new Challenges Ten new items are yours to earn by completing Star Wars Challenges! Claim antagonistic accessories like the Stormtrooper Octane Decal, Stormtrooper Helmet Topper, TIE Fighter Topper, Force Lightning Boost, and more.

Wreak havoc across the dangerous new planet Kairos when Borderlands 4 launches on September 12, 2025. I’m Graeme Timmins, Creative Director at Gearbox Entertainment—and today, the team and I are thrilled to give you our deepest ever look at some explosive, carnage-filled gameplay, all running on PlayStation 5 Pro. We’re showing off two of our […]

Wreak havoc across the dangerous new planet Kairos when Borderlands 4 launches on September 12, 2025. I’m Graeme Timmins, Creative Director at Gearbox Entertainment—and today, the team and I are thrilled to give you our deepest ever look at some explosive, carnage-filled gameplay, all running on PlayStation 5 Pro. We’re showing off two of our four new Vault Hunters and some of their Action Skills, intense looter shooter gameplay with details on all kinds of new gear, the deadly regions you’ll explore on the all-new planet Kairos, and much more. Following the cataclysm seen in our teaser trailer and the contentious clash of our First Look trailer, the tyrannical Timekeeper is here to admonish us as we meet our four new Vault Hunters in this pulse-pounding Gameplay Trailer: Play Video Ever since Gearbox created the looter shooter genre nearly 16 years ago, we’ve continued to refine the formula, delivering more loot and action with every entry. I’ve worked on every mainline Borderlands game since starting out as Lead Level Designer on the original Borderlands, and my Gameplay Deep Dive co-op buddy Anthony Nicholson, Senior Project Producer on Borderlands 4, has been with the series since Borderlands 2. With Borderlands 4, we truly believe that this team is creating the best, most ambitious Borderlands game to date. This all-new adventure is the perfect entry point for new players—and for existing players, you’ll find the awesome gameplay you know and love cranked up to 11, with new movement abilities, our biggest and baddest enemies yet, a vast new planet to explore, and of course, billions of guns to loot. Play Video Wreak havoc as a Vault Hunter The Borderlands games are set in an unforgiving sci-fi universe, where life is cheap and guns are plentiful. You play as a Vault Hunter, a badass mercenary on the hunt for alien Vaults, wielding wild guns and devastating abilities. In the Gameplay Deep Dive, we’re showing off two of our four all-new Vault Hunters: Vex the Siren, who uses supernatural phase energy to empower herself and can conjure deadly minions, and Rafa the Exo-Soldier, a former Tediore trooper who wears an experimental exo-suit capable of digistructing an arsenal of weapons. Personally, I’m a huge fan of Vex’s spectral feline familiar Trouble, who can absolutely maul any enemies that try to attack my flank during a shootout. Each Vault Hunter class in Borderlands 4 offers a unique playstyle that empowers you to choose from three signature abilities that serve as your Action Skills. We’re delivering our most advanced skill tree system yet, letting you enhance your Action Skills with special augments and capstone abilities. You can choose from three branching paths of passive abilities that enable an incredibly wide variety of distinctly powerful builds. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Each Vault Hunter also has a unique Trait that shapes their playstyle; for instance, Vex’s Trait makes her Action Skills attune to the element of the weapon she currently has equipped, incentivizing an arsenal of elemental weapons to shock, burn, or freeze enemies based on the situation. One of our guiding design principles for our Vault Hunters is that playing as them should make you feel like an unstoppable force on the battlefield, that unleashes Action Skills to control the flow of combat and blast through enemies with an arsenal of outrageous weaponry. You can also flex even more skill expression during battle with a wide range of new movement abilities, including gliding, dashing, double-jumping, and point-grappling. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Welcome to Kairos In Borderlands 4, we’re dropping you into the middle of Kairos, an all-new planet rife with warring factions, deadly fauna, and desperate inhabitants. For thousands of years, the oppressive Timekeeper kept the planet hidden, controlling its inhabitants with cybernetic implants called Bolts and an army of synthetic soldiers known as The Order. But six years before the events of Borderlands 4, a rogue moon suddenly teleported into Kairos’ orbit, shattering the planet’s protective veil and plunging the world into chaos. Now the denizens of Kairos have started rising up, with some even ripping their Bolts right out of their skulls. That’s the situation our four Vault Hunters have crash-landed into: a planet with a population primed to explode, and you’re the spark. In your quest to ignite a revolution against the Timekeeper, you’ll meet unique factions that you’ll need to recruit to your cause, including a slew of new characters and some returning faces that’ll be instantly familiar to Borderlands fans. We’re delighted to be bringing back fan-favorite characters like Claptrap, Moxxi, and Zane—but we’re also so excited for you to meet some of the charming allies and loathsome adversaries that await you on Kairos. To help you get around Kairos’ sprawling, seamlessly connected spaces, you can now summon a personalized Digirunner vehicle at will and jet-boost your way towards the horizon. We’ve built a world that exudes craftsmanship and encourages you to explore it at your own pace—with the option for guidance provided by your ECHO-4 robot buddy—as you take on new enemies, encounter world events, and discover hidden treasures. From Order patrols to world bosses, there’s always something to shoot and loot as you explore Kairos. You’ll also come across short gameplay experiences and new activities that auto-grant a tracked mission whenever you discover them—like Silos, which house old, decommissioned Order tech that you can hijack for the Crimson Resistance with the help of ECHO-4. Once you’ve reclaimed a Silo, it will reveal the approximate location of a Vault Key Fragment. Collect enough fragments and you’ll unlock a hidden Vault—a high level dungeon with challenging combat and serious loot. Reclaimed Silos can also be used as Fast Travel points, or you can zipline up their hacked communications balloon to start gliding through the air towards your next objective. Wreaking havoc across Kairos is awesome alone and even better with friends—which is why we’ve made it easier than ever to jump into co-op multiplayer, whether through 2-player splitscreen or via our improved lobby system with drop-in/drop-out action for up to 4 players online, with full crossplay at launch.* Borderlands 4 is designed for co-op from the ground up, with instanced loot for each player, dynamic level scaling, individual difficulty settings, and the option to Fast Travel directly to other players to keep the party together and having fun through the whole campaign. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Gearing up for a fight In the new gameplay footage, you can watch us go on the offensive across the Terminus Range, where one of the Timekeeper’s generals, Vile Lictor, has been conducting nefarious experiments. We’re breaking into his secret blacksite with the help of Amara, an allied Siren and former Vault Hunter. You can also see the destructive power of some deadly weapons from our eight unique manufacturers: Order, Ripper, Daedalus, Tediore, Maliwan, Jakobs, Vladof, and Torgue, each boasting their own devastating strengths. Longtime Borderlands fans will notice that the first three of these manufacturers are brand new, with fresh characteristics: Order guns focus on precision with high-powered bursts Ripper guns charge up to go fully automatic Daedalus guns are easy-to-use and incorporate multiple ammo types Tediore guns are reloaded by tossing them as grenades Maliwan guns specialize in elemental damage to burn, freeze, and shock Jakobs guns can fire bullets as fast as you can shoot with ricochets on critical hits Vladof guns have a high rate of fire and huge magazines Torgue guns have heavy-duty explosive rounds that can switch to sticky projectiles. With the new Licensed Parts system, you can find guns that incorporate the behaviors and abilities from multiple manufacturers into a single weapon, fueling our wildest loot variety yet. In addition, Borderlands 4 reworks our approach to the iconic Legendary guns that have unique effects you won’t find on any other piece of gear. In Borderlands 3, Legendaries dropped too often, devaluing them and making other loot feel less special overall. In our new system, not only do all guns feel great, but now Legendary drops will truly be special events. We’ve added the magic back to our loot chase, and we know you’ll love grinding all the great gear on Kairos. Farming coveted gear is much more intuitive now that you can replay entire missions or use Moxxi’s Big Encore Machine to fight bosses whenever you’d like. Speaking of bosses, Borderlands 4 makes them bigger and better than ever—like Vile Lictor himself, a monstrosity you can glimpse at the end of the Gameplay Deep Dive. These boss fights will put all your new skills, gear, and abilities to the ultimate test, requiring that you think quickly and adapt to whatever each boss throws at you. There are also new gear slots to specialize your builds even further: Ordnance, a shared slot for Grenades and Heavy Weapons like rocket launchers, recharges on a cooldown to keep you locked and loaded during especially tough encounters Enhancements, which replace the Artifact slot seen in Borderlands 3, augment your weapons based on their manufacturer, rewarding you with extra firepower when you optimize your gear loadout Repkits add utility by letting you heal yourself or activate temporary buffs to help turn the tide of an intense battle We’re incredibly excited to unveil more Borderlands 4 when we host our first hands-on event this June, with tons to show off ahead of the full launch on September 12. Wishlist Borderlands 4 now and stay tuned as we reveal more in the coming months! *Online play requires an Internet connection, a SHiFT Account, and a PlayStation Plus subscription. Terms apply.

Get ready to light up the stage like never before – Smash Drums is launching on PlayStation VR2 on May 15, and it’s more than just an upgrade. We’ve fine-tuned the experience to take full advantage of PS VR2’s power — from razor-sharp visuals with eye-tracked foveated rendering and native 120fps gameplay, to immersive headset […]

Get ready to light up the stage like never before – Smash Drums is launching on PlayStation VR2 on May 15, and it’s more than just an upgrade. We’ve fine-tuned the experience to take full advantage of PS VR2’s power — from razor-sharp visuals with eye-tracked foveated rendering and native 120fps gameplay, to immersive headset haptics and adaptive triggers that bring the action to life. Hang on to your sticks. Here’s what’s new. Play Video Feel the upgrade: Visuals like never before PS VR2 takes Smash Drums’ visuals to the next level. We’ve enhanced environments with richer detail and better textures, while real-time lighting and shadows bring each performance to life. New effects like heat haze above the flames crank up the spectacle, making every session an explosive ride. Thanks to eye-tracked foveated rendering, visuals stay razor-sharp where you’re looking, allowing for more environmental detail and smoother performance. And with native 120fps in Performance mode, this is the cleanest, most responsive version of Smash Drums yet. Enhanced Performance on PS5 Pro Smash Drums shines on all PS5 consoles, but if you’re rocking a PS5 Pro, you’re in for an extra level of intensity. The Fidelity graphics mode delivers enhanced resolution and visual effects — all while running at a smooth 120fps, compared to 90fps on the base PS5. Lights, camera, destruction: social mode PS5 brings the power to not only rock harder, but look cooler doing it. Our new dynamic Social Mode features smooth first-person camera movement and cinematic third-person angles that turn every performance into a full-blown visual show on your TV. It’s also designed for sharing — capture gameplay that looks amazing straight out of the headset. Whether you’re chasing high scores or just vibing to the beat, you can tailor what shows up on screen: display the song title at the start, hide the interface, overlay your score and leaderboard rank, or disable the dynamic camera angles for a steady shot. Feel the rhythm, literally Smash Drums has always been about energy, chaos, and letting loose — and on PS VR2, the physical feedback takes things up a notch. Headset haptics let you feel the chaos when stage debris crashes into you, adding an extra layer of presence. And when you spin your sticks using the adaptive triggers, it’s not just a visual — it buzzes through your fingers, pulsing with every rotation. It’s magical. Turn it up: Your Smash Drums soundtrack The Standard Edition of Smash Drums features 58 rock tracks spanning punk, metal, and classic rock — delivering hours of explosive gameplay right out of the gate. Looking to expand your setlist with more iconic hits? The Premium Edition includes all currently released song packs, featuring licensed tracks from legendary artists. Each pack adds five songs, and if you’re not ready to go Premium, you can pick and choose individual packs to upgrade your Standard Edition at your own pace. Join the mayhem Legions of players already love Smash Drums on other platforms, making it a VR drumming classic and the #1 top seller in this category. The PS VR2 edition takes the experience to the next level. Whether you’re chasing leaderboard glory, vibing to the music at your own pace, or going for the Platinum Trophy, Smash Drums on PS VR2 is the loudest, hardest-hitting version yet. Wishlist now and join the mayhem when we launch on May 15. The stage is yours. Light it up.

Tame dinosaurs to survive an island paradise, mix and match card decks to win big and head to the far-future for some retro shooting action with May’s PlayStation Plus Monthly Games lineup. Ark: Survival Ascended, Balatro and Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun will be available to PlayStation Plus members from May 6.  Ark: Survival Ascended | PS5 […]

Tame dinosaurs to survive an island paradise, mix and match card decks to win big and head to the far-future for some retro shooting action with May’s PlayStation Plus Monthly Games lineup. Ark: Survival Ascended, Balatro and Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun will be available to PlayStation Plus members from May 6. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Ark: Survival Ascended | PS5 Are you ready to form a tribe, tame and breed hundreds of species of dinosaurs and other primeval creatures, explore, craft, build, and fight your way to the top of the food-chain? Your new world awaits in this survival sim, reimagined from the ground-up with Unreal Engine 5, with high-end graphic features, advanced physics systems and quality of life revamps in every area. Ark: Survival Ascended includes access to all of Ark’s worlds, including Scorched Earth, Aberration, Extinction, Ark Genesis Part 1, Ark Genesis Part 2, and more. The game supports public online multiplayer for up to 70 players, private-session multiplayer for up to 8 players, and local split-screen for 2 players. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Balatro | PS5, PS4 In this poker-inspired roguelike deck builder, it’s all creating powerful synergies and winning big. Play illegal poker hands, discover game-changing jokers and trigger outrageous combos in this roguelike strategy experience. Combine valid poker hands with unique joker cards in order to create varied synergies and builds. Earn enough chips to beat devious blinds, all while uncovering hidden bonus hands and decks as you progress. You’re going to need every edge you can get in order to reach the boss blind, beat the final ante and secure victory. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun | PS5, PS4 Load up your Boltgun and plunge into battle headfirst! Experience a perfect blend of Warhammer 40,000, classic, frenetic FPS gameplay and the stylish visuals of your favourite 90’s retro shooters. Play a battle-hardened Space Marine on a perilous mission across the galaxy, as they battle against the Chaos Space Marines and daemons of Chaos. In glorious boomer shooter style, unleash your devastating Space Marine arsenal as you blast through an explosion of sprites, pixels and blood. Run, jump and charge across huge levels to shoot, shred and slice the worst heretics across the galaxy! All three games will be available to PlayStation Plus members on May 6 until June 2. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Last chance to download April’s games PlayStation Plus members have until May 5 to add RoboCop: Rogue City, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth – Hacker’s Memory to their game library.

Get ready for a deep dive on Borderlands 4! During this special State of Play, I’ll be joined by other members of the Gearbox team to share the nitty-gritty details of how you’ll wreak havoc across Kairos and take down the Timekeeper. Catch the show live on PlayStation’s Twitch and YouTube channels on April 30 […]

Get ready for a deep dive on Borderlands 4! During this special State of Play, I’ll be joined by other members of the Gearbox team to share the nitty-gritty details of how you’ll wreak havoc across Kairos and take down the Timekeeper. Catch the show live on PlayStation’s Twitch and YouTube channels on April 30 at 2pm PT / 5pm ET / 10pm BST / 11pm CEST. Back at February’s State of Play, we unveiled the game’s Launch Date Trailer, which showcased a taste of the explosive action, fearsome enemies, and powerful loot. Since then, we’ve announced that Borderlands 4’s launch has moved up to September 12, 2025, meaning you’ll get to enjoy the looter shooter action even earlier! Play Video In this upcoming State of Play, strap in with me and Anthony Nicholson, Senior Project Producer, for over 20 minutes of developer-guided gameplay, including missions, killer weapons, exciting Action Skills, new and returning characters, and more. While you wait, check out the game’s key art, which we just revealed today, and remember to wishlist Borderlands 4 at PlayStation Store. We’ll see you on April 30. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image

Email us at PSPodcast@sony.com! Subscribe via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or download here Hey, everybody! Sid, Brett, and Tim are back this week to discuss the release date reveal and new trailer for Ghost of Yōtei. This episode also includes interviews with Doom: The Dark Ages Director Hugo Martin and Days Gone Remastered Creative and Product […]

Email us at PSPodcast@sony.com! Subscribe via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or download here Hey, everybody! Sid, Brett, and Tim are back this week to discuss the release date reveal and new trailer for Ghost of Yōtei. This episode also includes interviews with Doom: The Dark Ages Director Hugo Martin and Days Gone Remastered Creative and Product Lead Kevin McAllister. Stuff We Talked About Next week’s release highlights: Days Gone Remastered (out today) | PS5 Forza Horizon 5 | PS5 Despelote | PS5, PS4 Days Gone Remastered — New accessibility options revealed Onimusha 2 Samurai’s Destiny remaster — Developer Q&A with Capcom Ghost of Yōtei — October 2 release date, new trailer revealed F1 25 — Dev interview and new Braking Point story mode trailer Doom: The Dark Ages — New Cosmic Realm details revealed The Last of Us Complete — Now available on PS5 The Cast View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Sid Shuman – Senior Director of Content Communications, SIE View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Tim Turi – Content Communications Manager, SIE View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Brett Elston – Manager, Content Communications, SIE Thanks to Dormilón for our rad theme song and show music. [Editor’s note: PSN game release dates are subject to change without notice. Game details are gathered from press releases from their individual publishers and/or ESRB rating descriptions.]

Last week, we asked you head to the great outdoors (inside your favorite games) and share nature-filled moments using #PSshare #PSBlog. Here are this week’s highlights: Mur4dQ shares Astro Bot and a cow napping in a meadow PattyGnand shares the girls of Lost Records: Bloom & Rage dangling their legs over a lakeside overlook  Amianan_NiRaGuB […]

Last week, we asked you head to the great outdoors (inside your favorite games) and share nature-filled moments using #PSshare #PSBlog. Here are this week’s highlights: Mur4dQ shares Astro Bot and a cow napping in a meadow PattyGnand shares the girls of Lost Records: Bloom & Rage dangling their legs over a lakeside overlook Amianan_NiRaGuB shares the Shadow-cursed lands of Baldur’s Gate 3 cenrice shares riding alongside a reflective mountainside in Neva CamisGui shares a plant-like tortoise in God of War Ragnarök dlazdagaming shares the northern lights shining in Snowrunner Search #PSshare #PSBlog on Twitter or Instagram to see more entries to this week’s theme. Want to be featured in the next Share of the Week? THEME: Days Gone Remastered SUBMIT BY: 11:59 PM PT on April 30, 2025 Next week, we’re riding the broken road in Days Gone Remastered. Share epic moments from Deacon’s journey using the game’s new Photo Mode feature using #PSshare #PSBlog for a chance to be featured.

Official PlayStation Blog for news and video updates on PlayStation, PS5, PS4, PS VR, PlayStation Plus and more.

Last week, we asked to set off on the broken road of Days Gone Remastered and share epic moments of survival using #PSshare #PSBlog. Here are this week’s highlights: calisarah1998 shares Deacon standing in the middle of a desolate street itsRyanUnicomb shares a look up at Deacon’s motorcycle and the night sky tulippooh3 shares Deacon […]

Last week, we asked to set off on the broken road of Days Gone Remastered and share epic moments of survival using #PSshare #PSBlog. Here are this week’s highlights: calisarah1998 shares Deacon standing in the middle of a desolate street itsRyanUnicomb shares a look up at Deacon’s motorcycle and the night sky tulippooh3 shares Deacon walking through a sundrenched field EmperorHal shares a profile portrait of Boozer and his head tattoo Holden88805 shares a look the back of Deacon’s vest and weapons r0gues_fr0ntier shares a look at a Freaker through a broken car window Search #PSshare #PSBlog on Twitter or Instagram to see more entries to this week’s theme. Want to be featured in the next Share of the Week? THEME: Days Gone Remastered – Deacon SUBMIT BY: 11:59 PM PT on May 7, 2025 Next week, we’re sticking by Deacon’s side in Days Gone Remastered. Share portraits of Deacon using #PSshare #PSBlog for a chance to be featured.

As the May 8 release date for the PS5 and PS VR2 title The Midnight Walk creeps ever closer, we grow more and more excited to experience this unique dark first-person adventure. Making its debut at State of Play late last year, the game showcased an incredible hand-crafted “cozy horror” world filled with deformed antiques, […]

As the May 8 release date for the PS5 and PS VR2 title The Midnight Walk creeps ever closer, we grow more and more excited to experience this unique dark first-person adventure. Making its debut at State of Play late last year, the game showcased an incredible hand-crafted “cozy horror” world filled with deformed antiques, charming little freaks, and plenty of nightmare fuel. With the clock due to strike midnight very soon, we wanted to get another look at what the game will offer–and savor more of the game’s gorgeous stop-motion inspired visuals in the process. We sat down with its creator, Swedish studio Moonhood for a walk through a new section of the game. Play Video Close your eyes to sense the world around you You begin The Midnight Walk as The Burnt One, awakening in a makeshift grave you must extract yourself from. As you move down the winding road ahead and get your bearings, you learn a bit about how the world works: using matches to light fires and candles, sneaking about to escape the notice of threats, and finding and using items. One of the most unique actions is closing your eyes to focus on hearing sounds you couldn’t sense normally–and sometimes change the environment when you open them again. On the flat screen version of the game, a button press and hold will increase the volume of important objects and dangers around you. The DualSense controller vibrates to indicate how close you are to an important object. After your brief introductory trek, you’ll meet one of the other main figures: Potboy, a being with a stubby little body and a big, malformed head crowned by toasty fire. A touch from a lit match awakens him from his stasis, and he immediately flees in panic, hiding away in a large container. You’ll need to find and feed him some coal to earn his trust, and soon, you’re inseparable–well, you would be, if there weren’t so many creatures lurking in this dark world that feed upon light and fire and see Potboy as either a threat or a treat. You’re going to have to help each other out on your journey to the far-off Moon Mountain, which stands like a faraway monolith guiding you in the distance. Meet a cast of brazier buddies The lively, jauntily animated Pothead, being small and nimble, can squeeze into places and interact with the environment in ways the Burnt One can’t–but you’ll need to help guide him to the right spots. His flame can not only set objects alight, it also transforms parts of the landscape. Some elements, like flora, rebloom in vibrant life in response to the flame, while other obstacles dissipate or retract in apparent fear of the fire. Much of the puzzle-solving will come from using Potboy in tandem with items or the environment in creative ways: one puzzle we were shown involved lighting a candle to lure a hungry foe away from Potboy so that he could hit some switches without fear of becoming dinner. Eventually, you’ll meet Pothead’s friend Housy, a living abode that moves about on insect-like legs. Housy tags along on your journey and serves as a home base and collectible trove–and he looks fantastically freaky creeping along behind you. You can retreat to the safety of Housy’s insides at any time after your meeting, but you will have to go back outside eventually. While much of The Midnight Walk pacing is relaxed, allowing you to fully savor this world’s murky, off-kilter atmosphere, you’ll still find plenty of sudden surprises that demand a rapid response. Be it a gang of crooked creatures chasing you and Potboy down a narrow path or the Molgrim — a huge cone-shaped, snaggle-toothed beast with a horrifying wail and an insatiable hunger — you’ll need to make some quick decisions to fight or flee. Sometimes discretion is the better part of valor: hiding in a closet might throw a monster off your track, or sometimes just running for dear life is all you need. At other times you’ll need to make use of some tools–like the matchlock, that shoots matches at faraway candles and other contraptions. No matter what, you’ll always need to be alert, because danger is omnipresent and can strike when you least expect. Let the night envelop you Every moment in The Midnight Walk is full of intrigue. As you wander through dimly-lit, gnarled environments, you find yourself surrounded by objects that feel like an uneasy mix of the natural and the artificial, the direct result of the numerous real-life models and objects that the team at Moonhood have painstakingly scanned into the game and animated. “Shellphones” found throughout tell a story of a world that was once crafted and curated, now left seemingly to rot away. Even the characters that seem friendly–or, at least, not murderously aggressive– to you and Pothead have something “off” about them, like the citizens of Nobodyville whose bodies have long since been banished, leaving them as craniums with a distrust of limbed “Somebodys.” While the game looks incredible on a normal setup, PS VR2 fully immerses you in the strange beauty of this world. Looking around and interacting with the environment is far more intuitive and immersive: for example, instead of using a button to close your eyes, you’ll be able to actually close your eyes to make use of hypersensory hearing or environment-altering power. This mechanic isn’t just used for listening. Finding “eye symbols” hidden across the world and “meditating” on them causes the environment – and sometimes monsters – to change… Binaural sound makes every creak, flame, and roar feel more vibrant and powerful while letting you enjoy the beauty of the tense, haunting soundtrack. The developers at MoonHood were eager to tell us about how impressive the scenes we saw were on PS VR2, and we’re inclined to take their word for it. So get your matches and candles ready–you’re about to take the walk of your life.

Last month, we had breakout runaway hits, indie darlings, and a few surprises. Which game spoke to you the most?  Some of the big new releases included Blue Prince, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Forever Skies, and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered. How does it work? At the end of every month, PlayStation Blog will […]

Last month, we had breakout runaway hits, indie darlings, and a few surprises. Which game spoke to you the most? Some of the big new releases included Blue Prince, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Forever Skies, and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered. How does it work? At the end of every month, PlayStation Blog will open a poll where you can vote for the best new game released that month. After the polls close we will tally your votes, and announce the winner on our social channels and PlayStation.Blog. What is the voting criteria? That’s up to you! If you were only able to recommend one new release to a friend that month, which would it be? Note: re-released games don’t qualify, but remakes do. We define remakes as ambitious, larger-scale rebuilds such as Resident Evil 4 (2023) and Final Fantasy VII Remake. How are nominees decided? The PlayStation Blog editorial team will gather a list of that month’s most noteworthy releases and use it to seed the poll.

Hello there, PlayStation fans! That’s no moon over the Battle Royale Island — it’s a whole Star Wars Season! Also, the celebration is just getting started in LEGO Fortnite Brick Life. Over in LEGO Fortnite Odyssey, explore and battle for galactic supremacy. The fun continues in Rocket League with the new 2v2 Car Wars LTM. […]

Hello there, PlayStation fans! That’s no moon over the Battle Royale Island — it’s a whole Star Wars Season! Also, the celebration is just getting started in LEGO Fortnite Brick Life. Over in LEGO Fortnite Odyssey, explore and battle for galactic supremacy. The fun continues in Rocket League with the new 2v2 Car Wars LTM. There’s a lot to unpack, but don’t worry — these are the updates you’re looking for! Let’s dive in with what’s happening across Epic Games, starting with Fortnite Battle Royale. A shadow emerges in Battle Royale Imperial Star Destroyers exit hyperspace in formation around the Death Star, which looms with its superlaser array fixed on the BR map. Heroes from across eras are ready to strike back against the assault led by Emperor Palpatine from the shadows, and the Island’s fate hangs in the balance. Draw your lightsaber and ready your blaster May 2 in Fortnite: Galactic Battle! New places to see, returning weapons to loot Play Video Driving back the Imperial invasion will take every blaster and ship at your disposal and these new locations will help you do just that! The First Order Base, Outpost Enclave, Resistance Base, and Vader Samuari’s Solitude are all primed and ready for exploration (and looting!). Just be mindful, you never know who you’ll run into. The preferred weapon of Force users everywhere An elegant weapon for a more civilized age, the use of a lightsaber is the mark of a Jedi, though it’s also used by their sworn enemies, the Sith. Lightsabers are exceptionally handy for deflecting blaster bolts, and wielding one will allow you to sprint faster, jump twice as high, and have immunity to fall damage. You’ll have to prove yourself to earn one, though… Or just loot it off another player. How to prove yourself? Train with hologramic followers of both the light and dark sides to unlock their respective lightsaber and Force Ability. Force Push, Force Lightning, and Force Saber Throw are the Force Abilities you can learn day one, with more becoming learnable later in the Season! So anyway, start blasting As far as non-lightsaber weapons go, it’s blasters-only on day one, with the exception of the Thermal Imploder that’ll cause a blast in its own way. You’ve got your DL-44 Blaster Pistol, ACP Scatter Blaster, E-11 Blaster, and several more. Be careful about holding down the trigger, as these babies are prone to overheating! Looking to dogfight for your next Victory Royale? Pilot the Imperial TIE fighter equipped with high-powered blasters or the nimble X-wing and take to the skies! Weekly updates May 8 – The pull of the Force Sensing a disturbance in the Force, Leia and Luke will arrive on the Island alongside renowned smuggler Han Solo to offer you strategic services! Also, train with hologram Mace Windu to earn a Purple Lightsaber and be taught Force Pull. Pull in just about anything and anyone nearby with this Force Ability. Rumor has it that Sith Lord Darth Maul will also appear as a hologram, offering Red Lightsabers and teaching Force Throw, which allows you to throw nearby objects as projectiles… May 15 – Chew on this Chewbacca arrives and he’s bringing his Wookiee Bowcaster to the loot pool to aid the rebels. You’ll also find the new, powerful CA-87 Jawa Scatter Blaster in Chests around the Island! May 22 – Mandalorian Rising Mandalorians will intervene this week. Recruit a Heavy, Scout, Supply, or Medic Mandalorian to your team, and gain further advantage over your opponents with the unvaulted Mandalorian Jetpack! Also, keep an eye out for signature Mandalorian weapons: the Amban Sniper Rifle and the new dual-wield WESTAR-34 Blaster Pistols. May 29 – Star Destroyer bombardment Be the first to reach the control room of a Star Destroyer which spawns every match. Assume control of its turbolaser to lay waste from above! June 7 – The final showdown: Death Star sabotage Mobilize and take the fight to Emperor Palpatine in a live, in-game narrative event on June 7. Never tell me the odds. Get the Star Wars Battle Pass The Star Wars Battle Pass is full of treasures from across the known galaxy. The Star Wars Battle Pass has both free and premium rewards that can be claimed by earning XP in any Fortnite experience. Here are the Outfits in the Pass, available as premium rewards: Apprentice Evie: Force-sensitive vigilante spreading peace across the Galaxy. (Automatically unlocked after purchasing the Pass or accessing it through Fortnite Crew!) Poe Dameron: The finest pilot in the Resistance. Wookiee Team Leader: Growl it out. Emperor Palpatine: Leader of the Empire. Ruler of the galaxy. Kaleesh cyborg and General of the Separatist droid army, General Grievous will be a premium Outfit in the Star Wars Battle Pass later in May. Unlock Grievous by completing objectives that’ll come online further in the Season! The Pass will be available to progress in from May 2 until the Galactic Battle ends on June 7, 2025 Eastern Time. More fun begins in LEGO Fortnite Celebrate the most intergalactic time of year in LEGO Fortnite Brick Life’s Star Wars Festival, where you can grab a bite in the Durrr Burger Cantina, score goals in Death Star Soccer Ball, hang out with a Porg, and even acquire your very own Lightsaber Bench. This gathering for Star Wars fans everywhere will be going on from May 2 until June 8, 2025 Eastern Time. In a galaxy just next door, LEGO Fortnite Odyssey is launching a public matchmaking test on May 15 called Rapid Survival — an eight-player public world survival experience on the existing Star Wars Island. Load in with a pre-determined loadout that includes a Lightsaber, Macrobinoculars, a plethora of building materials, and more to aid in your journey. Even though PvP combat is on, you can also choose to team up against the Star Wars enemies! Heads-up: Rapid Survival will be open at specific four-hour windows from May 15 until May 26 Eastern Time. First Order LEGO Pass The ruthless Captain Phasma Outfit is front and center as a premium reward in the First Order LEGO Pass, available starting May 2! There’s even more precious cargo you can unlock like the premium First Order Base Build, First Order AT-AT Build, Lil’ Treadspeeder Emote, and a lot more. The First Order LEGO Pass will be available to progress in until June 8 Eastern Time, with free and premium rewards unlockable by earning XP in any Fortnite experience. Captain Phasma is automatically unlocked after purchasing the Pass or accessing it through Fortnite Crew! Shift into Hyperspace as Star Wars and Rocket League cross over once again Leading the charge in Rocket League is Car Wars, a brand new Limited Time Mode that’ll require you to channel your inner TIE pilot for any hope of victory! Also, look forward to Star Wars Challenges rewarding imperial items like the Stormtrooper Octane Decal and TIE Fighter Topper. Rocket League x Star Wars runs from May 2 at 12 PM ET to May 16, 2025, at 12 PM ET! Dark Side of the Force = Unnatural Abilities in LTMs Car Wars (May 2 at 12 PM ET – May 14 at 12 PM ET) The 2v2 Car Wars takes place at the Force Field Arena, a Star Wars-inspired twist on the Arena used for Rocket Labs’ Loophole. Target the thermal exhaust ports at each end of the Arena to score and use the lightsaber-fied Spike Rush mutator to hit your mark. G-Force Frenzy (May 2 at 12 PM ET to May 7 at 12 PM ET) Debuting in last year’s Mandalorian Mayhem event, G-Force Frenzy returns this year! This is a 3v3 mode that lets you unleash unlimited boost, cranked to five times standard power. Navigate the arena faster than the Millennium Falcon on the Kessel Run! Swear allegiance to the Empire with new Challenges Ten new items are yours to earn by completing Star Wars Challenges! Claim antagonistic accessories like the Stormtrooper Octane Decal, Stormtrooper Helmet Topper, TIE Fighter Topper, Force Lightning Boost, and more.

Wreak havoc across the dangerous new planet Kairos when Borderlands 4 launches on September 12, 2025. I’m Graeme Timmins, Creative Director at Gearbox Entertainment—and today, the team and I are thrilled to give you our deepest ever look at some explosive, carnage-filled gameplay, all running on PlayStation 5 Pro. We’re showing off two of our […]

Wreak havoc across the dangerous new planet Kairos when Borderlands 4 launches on September 12, 2025. I’m Graeme Timmins, Creative Director at Gearbox Entertainment—and today, the team and I are thrilled to give you our deepest ever look at some explosive, carnage-filled gameplay, all running on PlayStation 5 Pro. We’re showing off two of our four new Vault Hunters and some of their Action Skills, intense looter shooter gameplay with details on all kinds of new gear, the deadly regions you’ll explore on the all-new planet Kairos, and much more. Following the cataclysm seen in our teaser trailer and the contentious clash of our First Look trailer, the tyrannical Timekeeper is here to admonish us as we meet our four new Vault Hunters in this pulse-pounding Gameplay Trailer: Play Video Ever since Gearbox created the looter shooter genre nearly 16 years ago, we’ve continued to refine the formula, delivering more loot and action with every entry. I’ve worked on every mainline Borderlands game since starting out as Lead Level Designer on the original Borderlands, and my Gameplay Deep Dive co-op buddy Anthony Nicholson, Senior Project Producer on Borderlands 4, has been with the series since Borderlands 2. With Borderlands 4, we truly believe that this team is creating the best, most ambitious Borderlands game to date. This all-new adventure is the perfect entry point for new players—and for existing players, you’ll find the awesome gameplay you know and love cranked up to 11, with new movement abilities, our biggest and baddest enemies yet, a vast new planet to explore, and of course, billions of guns to loot. Play Video Wreak havoc as a Vault Hunter The Borderlands games are set in an unforgiving sci-fi universe, where life is cheap and guns are plentiful. You play as a Vault Hunter, a badass mercenary on the hunt for alien Vaults, wielding wild guns and devastating abilities. In the Gameplay Deep Dive, we’re showing off two of our four all-new Vault Hunters: Vex the Siren, who uses supernatural phase energy to empower herself and can conjure deadly minions, and Rafa the Exo-Soldier, a former Tediore trooper who wears an experimental exo-suit capable of digistructing an arsenal of weapons. Personally, I’m a huge fan of Vex’s spectral feline familiar Trouble, who can absolutely maul any enemies that try to attack my flank during a shootout. Each Vault Hunter class in Borderlands 4 offers a unique playstyle that empowers you to choose from three signature abilities that serve as your Action Skills. We’re delivering our most advanced skill tree system yet, letting you enhance your Action Skills with special augments and capstone abilities. You can choose from three branching paths of passive abilities that enable an incredibly wide variety of distinctly powerful builds. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Each Vault Hunter also has a unique Trait that shapes their playstyle; for instance, Vex’s Trait makes her Action Skills attune to the element of the weapon she currently has equipped, incentivizing an arsenal of elemental weapons to shock, burn, or freeze enemies based on the situation. One of our guiding design principles for our Vault Hunters is that playing as them should make you feel like an unstoppable force on the battlefield, that unleashes Action Skills to control the flow of combat and blast through enemies with an arsenal of outrageous weaponry. You can also flex even more skill expression during battle with a wide range of new movement abilities, including gliding, dashing, double-jumping, and point-grappling. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Welcome to Kairos In Borderlands 4, we’re dropping you into the middle of Kairos, an all-new planet rife with warring factions, deadly fauna, and desperate inhabitants. For thousands of years, the oppressive Timekeeper kept the planet hidden, controlling its inhabitants with cybernetic implants called Bolts and an army of synthetic soldiers known as The Order. But six years before the events of Borderlands 4, a rogue moon suddenly teleported into Kairos’ orbit, shattering the planet’s protective veil and plunging the world into chaos. Now the denizens of Kairos have started rising up, with some even ripping their Bolts right out of their skulls. That’s the situation our four Vault Hunters have crash-landed into: a planet with a population primed to explode, and you’re the spark. In your quest to ignite a revolution against the Timekeeper, you’ll meet unique factions that you’ll need to recruit to your cause, including a slew of new characters and some returning faces that’ll be instantly familiar to Borderlands fans. We’re delighted to be bringing back fan-favorite characters like Claptrap, Moxxi, and Zane—but we’re also so excited for you to meet some of the charming allies and loathsome adversaries that await you on Kairos. To help you get around Kairos’ sprawling, seamlessly connected spaces, you can now summon a personalized Digirunner vehicle at will and jet-boost your way towards the horizon. We’ve built a world that exudes craftsmanship and encourages you to explore it at your own pace—with the option for guidance provided by your ECHO-4 robot buddy—as you take on new enemies, encounter world events, and discover hidden treasures. From Order patrols to world bosses, there’s always something to shoot and loot as you explore Kairos. You’ll also come across short gameplay experiences and new activities that auto-grant a tracked mission whenever you discover them—like Silos, which house old, decommissioned Order tech that you can hijack for the Crimson Resistance with the help of ECHO-4. Once you’ve reclaimed a Silo, it will reveal the approximate location of a Vault Key Fragment. Collect enough fragments and you’ll unlock a hidden Vault—a high level dungeon with challenging combat and serious loot. Reclaimed Silos can also be used as Fast Travel points, or you can zipline up their hacked communications balloon to start gliding through the air towards your next objective. Wreaking havoc across Kairos is awesome alone and even better with friends—which is why we’ve made it easier than ever to jump into co-op multiplayer, whether through 2-player splitscreen or via our improved lobby system with drop-in/drop-out action for up to 4 players online, with full crossplay at launch.* Borderlands 4 is designed for co-op from the ground up, with instanced loot for each player, dynamic level scaling, individual difficulty settings, and the option to Fast Travel directly to other players to keep the party together and having fun through the whole campaign. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Gearing up for a fight In the new gameplay footage, you can watch us go on the offensive across the Terminus Range, where one of the Timekeeper’s generals, Vile Lictor, has been conducting nefarious experiments. We’re breaking into his secret blacksite with the help of Amara, an allied Siren and former Vault Hunter. You can also see the destructive power of some deadly weapons from our eight unique manufacturers: Order, Ripper, Daedalus, Tediore, Maliwan, Jakobs, Vladof, and Torgue, each boasting their own devastating strengths. Longtime Borderlands fans will notice that the first three of these manufacturers are brand new, with fresh characteristics: Order guns focus on precision with high-powered bursts Ripper guns charge up to go fully automatic Daedalus guns are easy-to-use and incorporate multiple ammo types Tediore guns are reloaded by tossing them as grenades Maliwan guns specialize in elemental damage to burn, freeze, and shock Jakobs guns can fire bullets as fast as you can shoot with ricochets on critical hits Vladof guns have a high rate of fire and huge magazines Torgue guns have heavy-duty explosive rounds that can switch to sticky projectiles. With the new Licensed Parts system, you can find guns that incorporate the behaviors and abilities from multiple manufacturers into a single weapon, fueling our wildest loot variety yet. In addition, Borderlands 4 reworks our approach to the iconic Legendary guns that have unique effects you won’t find on any other piece of gear. In Borderlands 3, Legendaries dropped too often, devaluing them and making other loot feel less special overall. In our new system, not only do all guns feel great, but now Legendary drops will truly be special events. We’ve added the magic back to our loot chase, and we know you’ll love grinding all the great gear on Kairos. Farming coveted gear is much more intuitive now that you can replay entire missions or use Moxxi’s Big Encore Machine to fight bosses whenever you’d like. Speaking of bosses, Borderlands 4 makes them bigger and better than ever—like Vile Lictor himself, a monstrosity you can glimpse at the end of the Gameplay Deep Dive. These boss fights will put all your new skills, gear, and abilities to the ultimate test, requiring that you think quickly and adapt to whatever each boss throws at you. There are also new gear slots to specialize your builds even further: Ordnance, a shared slot for Grenades and Heavy Weapons like rocket launchers, recharges on a cooldown to keep you locked and loaded during especially tough encounters Enhancements, which replace the Artifact slot seen in Borderlands 3, augment your weapons based on their manufacturer, rewarding you with extra firepower when you optimize your gear loadout Repkits add utility by letting you heal yourself or activate temporary buffs to help turn the tide of an intense battle We’re incredibly excited to unveil more Borderlands 4 when we host our first hands-on event this June, with tons to show off ahead of the full launch on September 12. Wishlist Borderlands 4 now and stay tuned as we reveal more in the coming months! *Online play requires an Internet connection, a SHiFT Account, and a PlayStation Plus subscription. Terms apply.

Get ready to light up the stage like never before – Smash Drums is launching on PlayStation VR2 on May 15, and it’s more than just an upgrade. We’ve fine-tuned the experience to take full advantage of PS VR2’s power — from razor-sharp visuals with eye-tracked foveated rendering and native 120fps gameplay, to immersive headset […]

Get ready to light up the stage like never before – Smash Drums is launching on PlayStation VR2 on May 15, and it’s more than just an upgrade. We’ve fine-tuned the experience to take full advantage of PS VR2’s power — from razor-sharp visuals with eye-tracked foveated rendering and native 120fps gameplay, to immersive headset haptics and adaptive triggers that bring the action to life. Hang on to your sticks. Here’s what’s new. Play Video Feel the upgrade: Visuals like never before PS VR2 takes Smash Drums’ visuals to the next level. We’ve enhanced environments with richer detail and better textures, while real-time lighting and shadows bring each performance to life. New effects like heat haze above the flames crank up the spectacle, making every session an explosive ride. Thanks to eye-tracked foveated rendering, visuals stay razor-sharp where you’re looking, allowing for more environmental detail and smoother performance. And with native 120fps in Performance mode, this is the cleanest, most responsive version of Smash Drums yet. Enhanced Performance on PS5 Pro Smash Drums shines on all PS5 consoles, but if you’re rocking a PS5 Pro, you’re in for an extra level of intensity. The Fidelity graphics mode delivers enhanced resolution and visual effects — all while running at a smooth 120fps, compared to 90fps on the base PS5. Lights, camera, destruction: social mode PS5 brings the power to not only rock harder, but look cooler doing it. Our new dynamic Social Mode features smooth first-person camera movement and cinematic third-person angles that turn every performance into a full-blown visual show on your TV. It’s also designed for sharing — capture gameplay that looks amazing straight out of the headset. Whether you’re chasing high scores or just vibing to the beat, you can tailor what shows up on screen: display the song title at the start, hide the interface, overlay your score and leaderboard rank, or disable the dynamic camera angles for a steady shot. Feel the rhythm, literally Smash Drums has always been about energy, chaos, and letting loose — and on PS VR2, the physical feedback takes things up a notch. Headset haptics let you feel the chaos when stage debris crashes into you, adding an extra layer of presence. And when you spin your sticks using the adaptive triggers, it’s not just a visual — it buzzes through your fingers, pulsing with every rotation. It’s magical. Turn it up: Your Smash Drums soundtrack The Standard Edition of Smash Drums features 58 rock tracks spanning punk, metal, and classic rock — delivering hours of explosive gameplay right out of the gate. Looking to expand your setlist with more iconic hits? The Premium Edition includes all currently released song packs, featuring licensed tracks from legendary artists. Each pack adds five songs, and if you’re not ready to go Premium, you can pick and choose individual packs to upgrade your Standard Edition at your own pace. Join the mayhem Legions of players already love Smash Drums on other platforms, making it a VR drumming classic and the #1 top seller in this category. The PS VR2 edition takes the experience to the next level. Whether you’re chasing leaderboard glory, vibing to the music at your own pace, or going for the Platinum Trophy, Smash Drums on PS VR2 is the loudest, hardest-hitting version yet. Wishlist now and join the mayhem when we launch on May 15. The stage is yours. Light it up.

Tame dinosaurs to survive an island paradise, mix and match card decks to win big and head to the far-future for some retro shooting action with May’s PlayStation Plus Monthly Games lineup. Ark: Survival Ascended, Balatro and Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun will be available to PlayStation Plus members from May 6.  Ark: Survival Ascended | PS5 […]

Tame dinosaurs to survive an island paradise, mix and match card decks to win big and head to the far-future for some retro shooting action with May’s PlayStation Plus Monthly Games lineup. Ark: Survival Ascended, Balatro and Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun will be available to PlayStation Plus members from May 6. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Ark: Survival Ascended | PS5 Are you ready to form a tribe, tame and breed hundreds of species of dinosaurs and other primeval creatures, explore, craft, build, and fight your way to the top of the food-chain? Your new world awaits in this survival sim, reimagined from the ground-up with Unreal Engine 5, with high-end graphic features, advanced physics systems and quality of life revamps in every area. Ark: Survival Ascended includes access to all of Ark’s worlds, including Scorched Earth, Aberration, Extinction, Ark Genesis Part 1, Ark Genesis Part 2, and more. The game supports public online multiplayer for up to 70 players, private-session multiplayer for up to 8 players, and local split-screen for 2 players. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Balatro | PS5, PS4 In this poker-inspired roguelike deck builder, it’s all creating powerful synergies and winning big. Play illegal poker hands, discover game-changing jokers and trigger outrageous combos in this roguelike strategy experience. Combine valid poker hands with unique joker cards in order to create varied synergies and builds. Earn enough chips to beat devious blinds, all while uncovering hidden bonus hands and decks as you progress. You’re going to need every edge you can get in order to reach the boss blind, beat the final ante and secure victory. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun | PS5, PS4 Load up your Boltgun and plunge into battle headfirst! Experience a perfect blend of Warhammer 40,000, classic, frenetic FPS gameplay and the stylish visuals of your favourite 90’s retro shooters. Play a battle-hardened Space Marine on a perilous mission across the galaxy, as they battle against the Chaos Space Marines and daemons of Chaos. In glorious boomer shooter style, unleash your devastating Space Marine arsenal as you blast through an explosion of sprites, pixels and blood. Run, jump and charge across huge levels to shoot, shred and slice the worst heretics across the galaxy! All three games will be available to PlayStation Plus members on May 6 until June 2. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Last chance to download April’s games PlayStation Plus members have until May 5 to add RoboCop: Rogue City, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth – Hacker’s Memory to their game library.

Get ready for a deep dive on Borderlands 4! During this special State of Play, I’ll be joined by other members of the Gearbox team to share the nitty-gritty details of how you’ll wreak havoc across Kairos and take down the Timekeeper. Catch the show live on PlayStation’s Twitch and YouTube channels on April 30 […]

Get ready for a deep dive on Borderlands 4! During this special State of Play, I’ll be joined by other members of the Gearbox team to share the nitty-gritty details of how you’ll wreak havoc across Kairos and take down the Timekeeper. Catch the show live on PlayStation’s Twitch and YouTube channels on April 30 at 2pm PT / 5pm ET / 10pm BST / 11pm CEST. Back at February’s State of Play, we unveiled the game’s Launch Date Trailer, which showcased a taste of the explosive action, fearsome enemies, and powerful loot. Since then, we’ve announced that Borderlands 4’s launch has moved up to September 12, 2025, meaning you’ll get to enjoy the looter shooter action even earlier! Play Video In this upcoming State of Play, strap in with me and Anthony Nicholson, Senior Project Producer, for over 20 minutes of developer-guided gameplay, including missions, killer weapons, exciting Action Skills, new and returning characters, and more. While you wait, check out the game’s key art, which we just revealed today, and remember to wishlist Borderlands 4 at PlayStation Store. We’ll see you on April 30. View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image

Email us at PSPodcast@sony.com! Subscribe via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or download here Hey, everybody! Sid, Brett, and Tim are back this week to discuss the release date reveal and new trailer for Ghost of Yōtei. This episode also includes interviews with Doom: The Dark Ages Director Hugo Martin and Days Gone Remastered Creative and Product […]

Email us at PSPodcast@sony.com! Subscribe via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or download here Hey, everybody! Sid, Brett, and Tim are back this week to discuss the release date reveal and new trailer for Ghost of Yōtei. This episode also includes interviews with Doom: The Dark Ages Director Hugo Martin and Days Gone Remastered Creative and Product Lead Kevin McAllister. Stuff We Talked About Next week’s release highlights: Days Gone Remastered (out today) | PS5 Forza Horizon 5 | PS5 Despelote | PS5, PS4 Days Gone Remastered — New accessibility options revealed Onimusha 2 Samurai’s Destiny remaster — Developer Q&A with Capcom Ghost of Yōtei — October 2 release date, new trailer revealed F1 25 — Dev interview and new Braking Point story mode trailer Doom: The Dark Ages — New Cosmic Realm details revealed The Last of Us Complete — Now available on PS5 The Cast View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Sid Shuman – Senior Director of Content Communications, SIE View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Tim Turi – Content Communications Manager, SIE View and download image Download the image close Close Download this image Brett Elston – Manager, Content Communications, SIE Thanks to Dormilón for our rad theme song and show music. [Editor’s note: PSN game release dates are subject to change without notice. Game details are gathered from press releases from their individual publishers and/or ESRB rating descriptions.]

Last week, we asked you head to the great outdoors (inside your favorite games) and share nature-filled moments using #PSshare #PSBlog. Here are this week’s highlights: Mur4dQ shares Astro Bot and a cow napping in a meadow PattyGnand shares the girls of Lost Records: Bloom & Rage dangling their legs over a lakeside overlook  Amianan_NiRaGuB […]

Last week, we asked you head to the great outdoors (inside your favorite games) and share nature-filled moments using #PSshare #PSBlog. Here are this week’s highlights: Mur4dQ shares Astro Bot and a cow napping in a meadow PattyGnand shares the girls of Lost Records: Bloom & Rage dangling their legs over a lakeside overlook Amianan_NiRaGuB shares the Shadow-cursed lands of Baldur’s Gate 3 cenrice shares riding alongside a reflective mountainside in Neva CamisGui shares a plant-like tortoise in God of War Ragnarök dlazdagaming shares the northern lights shining in Snowrunner Search #PSshare #PSBlog on Twitter or Instagram to see more entries to this week’s theme. Want to be featured in the next Share of the Week? THEME: Days Gone Remastered SUBMIT BY: 11:59 PM PT on April 30, 2025 Next week, we’re riding the broken road in Days Gone Remastered. Share epic moments from Deacon’s journey using the game’s new Photo Mode feature using #PSshare #PSBlog for a chance to be featured.

With graduation season approaching, a new cohort of students is embarking on next steps, aiming to use their passions and skills to make a real, tangible impact on the world. For many, this means — first and foremost — landing a job. According to a survey by Inside Higher Ed, more than 60% of students Read Article

With graduation season approaching, a new cohort of students is embarking on next steps, aiming to use their passions and skills to make a real, tangible impact on the world. For many, this means — first and foremost — landing a job. According to a survey by Inside Higher Ed, more than 60% of students are saying the rise of AI has affected their career plans. And in 2024, the World Economic Forum forecasted that global demand for AI and machine learning specialists will grow over the next several years by 40%. As artificial intelligence advances at unparalleled speeds, it’s an exciting, opportune time to kickstart a career in the industry. At the NVIDIA GTC global AI conference in March, panelists discussed how to kickstart a career in AI: Read on for top tips from NVIDIA experts for students and recent grads looking to stand out in the AI job market. 1. Integrate Diverse Skills and Be Adaptable Not everyone needs to have a computer science degree to work in AI. A diverse educational and professional background can make people more adaptable and versatile — a valuable asset, especially in the rapidly evolving field of AI. Whether a student has a studio art degree or a chemical engineering background, being an AI operator — knowing how to integrate AI into their workflows — can help them stand out from other candidates. Sadie St. Lawerence, founder of Women in Data and CEO of the Human Machine Collaboration Institute, said during the GTC panel: “Don’t worry so much about necessarily the right skills — make sure you’re integrating the use of AI in your daily workflow.” “AI allows you to branch outside your area of expertise,” added Carter Abdallah, senior developer technology engineer at NVIDIA. “AI can do some of the heavy lifting so nontechnical people can code, and technical people are now finding it valuable to lean into liberal arts education, so they can add human touches to their work in AI.” Abdallah encouraged students to use AI as a tool to enhance and enable skills they might not have had access to before. 2. Find Your ‘Why’ and Align Passions Eric Vargas, senior university recruiting manager at NVIDIA, said, “There isn’t necessarily such a thing as an ‘AI candidate,’ but there are sub-areas within AI, different domains and industries that are going to be affected by AI, which you’ll want to gain experience in, because that’s where companies are looking to implement AI.” Autonomous vehicles, robotics, gaming and healthcare are just some of the slew of areas in which AI can be applied. Students should find the industry that most aligns with their passions and gain expertise in that field. “Pick a problem that seems impossible to solve but that you’re passionate about,” added Saudia Jones, generative AI analyst at NVIDIA and a recent graduate from San Jose State University. “Connect with ‘why’ you’re driven by this, because that’s going to be the thing that leads you to overcome the challenges and innovate.” Learn more about how land an internship at NVIDIA: 3. Use AI Responsibly Use AI tools responsibly and maintain a human touch, Vargas advised, including when writing job applications, cover letters and responding to questions for a technical interview. This balance is crucial for building trust and ensuring ethical use of technology. Trustworthy AI — an approach to AI development that prioritizes safety and transparency for the people who interact with it — is key to the industry. For example, learn more about how David Martin, a technical project manager intern on the trustworthy AI team at NVIDIA, is channeling the power of artificial intelligence for social good. Growing up deaf, Martin experienced the limitations of existing technologies, such as the accuracy of closed captioning on streaming platforms. At NVIDIA, his responsibilities include advising engineering teams that are working on sign language AI applications and supporting the development of ethical dataset curation tools. This combination of showcasing one’s passion and using AI for good is key to standing out in the field. 4. Build a Network and Seek Mentorship Networking and mentorship are essential for career growth in any industry. “Building a network and seeking mentorship in the AI space has been crucial for my career growth,” St. Lawerence said. “I’ve learned so much from connecting with experienced professionals.” Students can easily connect with industry professionals on platforms like LinkedIn, she said, which uses AI to help people during job searches by recommending key words to put on resumes for specific positions and identifying transferable skills that could apply to a role. In addition, anyone can connect with experts and take training courses through the NVIDIA Deep Learning Institute, which offers in-demand skill development, hands-on experience and expert knowledge in AI, data science, accelerated computing and more. 5. Stand Out by Being Proactive Let’s say a candidate has done all of the above — how can they set themselves apart from other applicants? Carter said, “Identify a problem you can solve and take proactive steps to address it, even before being hired.” Vargas agreed and said the top three things recruiters at NVIDIA look for are: 1) a demonstration of the technical skills required for the role, 2) subject-matter expertise and 3) projects that exhibit thinking outside of the box. A student could stand out from other candidates by, for example, demonstrating a self-started robotics solution built with an NVIDIA Jetson developer kit, writing a technical article that gets many views across social media or starting an AI-related club on campus. More Resources A panel of pioneering AI researchers also discussed their career paths at GTC: They highlighted that in research, too, practical experience, a demonstration of persistence and resilience, and an interdisciplinary approach to problem-solving are what give candidates an edge. And for those already on their way with their AI job search, some interview tips and tricks from NVIDIA’s University Recruiting team include: Before: Read through the job description and practice applying the required technical skills. Be prepared to articulate relevant experiences clearly and concisely. Make a list of five or more questions about the position, project and team. During: Respond thoughtfully and enthusiastically to the interviewer’s questions. For technical interviews, talk through any thought processes at each step of the problem. Listen carefully to how the interviewer responds — they’ll often give clues when a candidate is on track or drop subtle hints if they’re straying from the solution. After: Within 24 hours of the interview, send a thank-you note to the recruiter for the role — they’ll forward it to the interviewer. After 10 business days, candidates waiting for next steps can follow up with the recruiter to inquire about their status. Explore NVIDIA GTC session playlists for students, as well as researchers and educators.

May brings more than just rainbows and sunshine — it’s also time for fresh adventures and epic battles. This GFN Thursday spotlights 20 can’t-miss games joining the cloud this month, with something for every kind of gamer. Gear up with the nine games available this week, on top of the launch of Rust’s Jungle Biome Read Article

May brings more than just rainbows and sunshine — it’s also time for fresh adventures and epic battles. This GFN Thursday spotlights 20 can’t-miss games joining the cloud this month, with something for every kind of gamer. Gear up with the nine games available this week, on top of the launch of Rust’s Jungle Biome update. Welcome to the Jungle In Rust, a multiplayer survival game by Facepunch Studios, everyone starts off with only a rock and torch and must gather resources, build bases and fend off environmental threats and other players in a harsh, open-world setting. The game features intense player vs. player combat, dynamic alliances and frequent updates. Crocodiles, snakes and tigers — oh my! The latest update introduces a new jungle biome: a lush but dangerous environment filled with crocodiles, snakes, tigers and other wildlife. Added features include new early-game weapons, like a blowpipe with venom darts, as well as unique mechanics, like regrowing jungle vines. GeForce NOW members can experience the intense survival gameplay of Rust from the cloud. Whether on an underpowered PC, Mac, smartphone or smart TV, dive into the game’s open-world chaos with smooth performance and stunning visuals. May-day Games Spoooooky. Check out Haunted House Renovator, new in the cloud for members to stream. Step into the shoes of a paranormal renovator to explore and restore haunted locations, all while dealing with mischievous spirits that can help or hinder. Whether players are exorcising spirits or taking a more forceful approach, the game offers a unique blend of ghost hunting and home-makeover fun — perfect for fans of both genres. Look for the following games available to stream in the cloud this week: Deadzone: Rogue (New release on Steam, April 29) Haunted House Renovator (New release on Steam, April 30) Far Cry 4 (New release on Xbox, available on PC Game Pass, April 30) Anno 1800 (New release on Xbox, available on PC Game Pass, May 1) Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Remastered (New release on Xbox, available on PC Game Pass, May 1. Find it on GeForce NOW in the Call of Duty experience) Blood Strike (Steam) DREDGE (Xbox, available on the Microsoft Store) LONESTAR (Steam) Soulstone Survivors (Steam) Learn how to stream supported Ubisoft games from PC Game Pass on GeForce NOW, including this week’s additions of Far Cry 4 and Anno 1800. Here’s what to expect for the rest of May: Survival Machine (New release on Steam, May 7) Revenge of the Savage Planet (New release on Steam and Xbox, available on PC Game Pass, May 8) Spirit of the North 2 (New release on Steam, May 8) The Precinct (New release on Steam, May 13) DOOM: The Dark Ages (New release on Steam, Battle.net and Xbox, available on PC Game Pass, May 15) Blacksmith Master (New release on Steam, May 15) 9 Kings (New release on Steam, May 19) RoadCraft (New release on Steam, May 20) Monster Train 2 (New release on Steam, May 21) Survive the Fall (New release Steam, May 21) Blades of Fire (New release on Epic Games Store, May 22) Tokyo Xtreme Racer (Steam) The Last Spell (Steam) War Robots: Frontiers (Steam) Torque Drift 2 (Epic Games Store) April Showers Bring More Games In addition to the 21 games announced last month, 13 more joined the GeForce NOW library: Forever Skies (New release on Steam, April 14) Hunt: Showdown 1896 (New release on Xbox, available on PC Game Pass, April 15) Crime Scene Cleaner (New release on Xbox, available on PC Game Pass, April 17) The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered (New release on Steam and Xbox, available on PC Game Pass, April 22) Ace Attorney Investigations Collection (Steam and Xbox, available on the Microsoft Store) Ace Attorney Investigations Collection Demo (Steam and Xbox, available on the Microsoft Store) Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster Demo (Steam) Diablo III (Xbox, available on PC Game Pass) Gedonia 2 (Steam) MARVEL vs. CAPCOM Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics (Steam) Path of Exile 2 (Epic Games Store) Sands of Aura (Epic Games Store) Sultan’s Game (Steam) What are you planning to play this weekend? Let us know on X or in the comments below. Which game cutscene deserves an Oscar? — NVIDIA GeForce NOW (@NVIDIAGFN) April 30, 2025

For Nicolas Simon, advancing the field of robotics is a personal mission that could change his siblings’ lives. Two-thirds of Simon’s family members use wheelchairs due to mobility challenges related to Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, an inherited genetic condition. As an engineering student and robotics club chair at France’s École Polytechnique, he saw the opportunity to build Read Article

For Nicolas Simon, advancing the field of robotics is a personal mission that could change his siblings’ lives. Two-thirds of Simon’s family members use wheelchairs due to mobility challenges related to Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, an inherited genetic condition. As an engineering student and robotics club chair at France’s École Polytechnique, he saw the opportunity to build a new device that could help his brother and other relatives walk again. His robotics startup, Wandercraft, builds mobility solutions for individuals with spinal cord injuries, stroke and other neuromuscular disorders — with the potential to support the estimated 80 million individuals worldwide who require wheelchairs for mobility. The company’s Personal Exoskeleton, currently in clinical trials, enables users to stand and walk with the support of AI-powered mechanisms for stability and movement. Users can control the robotic system with a joystick. Simon founded the company in 2012 with Matthieu Masselin and Jean-Louis Constanza, whose son also has Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease. The team is accelerating its workflows with NVIDIA technologies — enabling Wandercraft to harness the latest simulation tools and AI infrastructure to bring new capabilities to its exoskeletons. “It’s essential for the exoskeleton to be fast enough that it can be used in the real world,” said Simon. “By integrating NVIDIA AI into the device, we can someday enable users to walk at an average pace, cross the road and go up and down stairs.” Advancing Development With Physical AI Wandercraft’s first exoskeleton, called Atalante X, is FDA-cleared and already in use as a neurological rehabilitation tool in over 100 clinical and research settings worldwide, with patients taking over one million steps per month. Approved for use in the European Union in 2019 and in the U.S. in 2022, the device has helped hundreds of patients regain mobility through physiotherapy. The startup’s latest device, the Personal Exoskeleton, is aimed at everyday indoor and outdoor use. With clinical trials underway in New York and New Jersey, the Personal Exoskeleton integrates AI to continuously adapt to a user’s movements in real time, supporting smooth and stable walking across different surfaces, including concrete, carpet and tile. “It’s very important for us to use physical AI to deliver a better device and a better experience for our users, so they can move through their daily lives smoothly and efficiently,” Simon said. Laubach demonstrating the Personal Exoskeleton at NVIDIA GTC. Image credit: Wandercraft In addition to helping users gain new levels of mobility at home and in their communities, the Personal Exoskeleton could also help reduce the health impacts of being seated all day — which include increased risk of cardiovascular, skin and digestive conditions. Wandercraft is currently experimenting with NVIDIA Isaac Sim — a reference application built on NVIDIA Omniverse for simulating and testing AI-driven robotics solutions in physically based virtual environments — to accelerate its reinforcement learning pipeline. The company is also investigating the use of the NVIDIA Isaac for Healthcare developer framework for AI healthcare robotics and NVIDIA Jetson Thor, an on-robot edge computer built on the NVIDIA Blackwell architecture. With these systems for physical AI training, simulation and runtime in place, Wandercraft will have a three-computer solution for its robotics development. “The technology is there — you just have to build the device,” Simon said. “We take all the technology from the field of humanoid robotics, and we apply it to our exoskeleton. So now, the possibilities are endless.” At the NVIDIA GTC global AI conference in March, Wandercraft demonstrated the prototype Personal Exoskeleton with the help of Caroline Laubach, a spinal stroke survivor and full-time wheelchair user. The exoskeleton system was also featured in last year’s Olympic and Paralympic Torch Relay. Wandercraft aims to apply for FDA clearance for its Personal Exoskeleton immediately following completion of its clinical trial, with the goal of making it accessible to millions of wheelchair users in the U.S. with expected Medicare coverage. The company is currently recruiting additional participants for the clinical trial, which it aims to complete this year. “With this technology, we can enable people to move around and access the environment of the city,” Simon said. “My hope is to see my device in the streets — of New York at first, but in every city in the U.S.”

The quick-service restaurant (QSR) industry is being reinvented by AI. For example, Yum! Brands — the world’s largest restaurant company and parent company of KFC, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and Habit Burger & Grill — and NVIDIA announced their partnership at the NVIDIA GTC global AI conference last month, with the goal of deploying NVIDIA-powered Read Article

The quick-service restaurant (QSR) industry is being reinvented by AI. For example, Yum! Brands — the world’s largest restaurant company and parent company of KFC, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and Habit Burger & Grill — and NVIDIA announced their partnership at the NVIDIA GTC global AI conference last month, with the goal of deploying NVIDIA-powered AI solutions in 500 restaurants this year. Joe Park, chief digital and technology officer at Yum! Brands, Inc. and president of Byte by Yum!, joined the NVIDIA AI podcast to share how the company is further accelerating AI deployment with NVIDIA AI. Yum! Brands’ AI-first strategy aims to enhance every aspect of the restaurant experience, from the kitchen to customer interactions. Park discussed how Yum! Brands uses machine learning to optimize sales forecasts and inventory management, solving the costly problem of food waste and stockouts. AI can also help with kitchen management. Imagine a local pizzeria getting dozens of calls in a short time and needing to plan which orders to start first so the customers can get their pizzas as fresh as possible. “We use AI to solve for that,” said Park. “We can collect all kinds of different inputs and apply machine learning to figure out which customers’ pizzas to make now versus later, or which ones could be picked up by the delivery driver.” With more than 61,000 restaurants operating globally under the Yum! Brands banner, efficiency at scale is always a priority. So, too, is keeping things simple for restaurant managers and team members. To that end, Yum! Brands recently launched Byte by Yum!, a proprietary AI-powered platform that integrates many technologies QSRs rely on. Beyond AI-accelerated ordering, Yum! is also testing computer vision to analyze drive-thru traffic and explore new use cases for AI to perceive, alert and adjust staffing, with the goal of optimizing service speed. The team is also excited about Voice AI for order taking, including some unique edge use cases. “If you think about a Baja blast, a chalupa, a gordita — words that aren’t found in Webster’s English dictionary — partnering with NVIDIA has helped us a tremendous amount because we’ve been able to train models with our own custom words and vernacular,” Park explained, referring to common orders at Taco Bell. “AI at the drive-thru window increases accuracy and speed of order-taking, and helps make team members’ jobs easier,” Park added. Time Stamps 03:51 – Park discusses how technology and AI are transforming the QSR industry. 06:58 – Yum! Brands’ AI use cases, including sales forecasting and inventory management. 15:07 – Inside the introduction of the Byte by Yum! AI-powered restaurant technology platform. 20:47 – Park’s advice for getting started on the AI journey. You Might Also Like… Roboflow Helps Unlock Computer Vision for Every Kind of AI Builder Roboflow’s mission is to make the world programmable through computer vision. By simplifying computer vision development, they help bridge the gap between AI and people looking to harness it. Cofounder and CEO Joseph Nelson discusses how Roboflow empowers users in manufacturing, healthcare and automotive to solve complex problems with visual AI. Firsthand’s Jon Heller Shares How AI Agents Enhance Consumer Journeys in Retail Jon Heller, co-CEO and founder of Firsthand, discusses how the company’s Brand Agents are transforming the retail landscape by personalizing customer journeys, converting marketing interactions into valuable research data and enhancing the customer experience with hyper-personalized insights and recommendations. AI Agents Take Digital Experiences to the Next Level in Gaming and Beyond AI agents with advanced perception and cognition capabilities are making digital experiences more dynamic and personalized across industries. Inworld AI’s Chris Covert discusses how intelligent digital humans are reshaping interactive experiences, from gaming to healthcare.

AI-powered image generation has progressed at a remarkable pace — from early examples of models creating images of humans with too many fingers to now producing strikingly photorealistic visuals. Even with such leaps, one challenge remains: achieving creative control. Creating scenes using text has gotten easier, no longer requiring complex descriptions — and models have Read Article

AI-powered image generation has progressed at a remarkable pace — from early examples of models creating images of humans with too many fingers to now producing strikingly photorealistic visuals. Even with such leaps, one challenge remains: achieving creative control. Creating scenes using text has gotten easier, no longer requiring complex descriptions — and models have improved alignment to prompts. But describing finer details like composition, camera angles and object placement with text alone is hard, and making adjustments is even more complex. Advanced workflows using ControlNets — tools that enhance image generation by providing greater control over the output — offer solutions, but their setup complexity limits broader accessibility. To help overcome these challenges and fast-track access to advanced AI capabilities, NVIDIA at the CES trade show earlier this year announced the NVIDIA AI Blueprint for 3D-guided generative AI for RTX PCs. This sample workflow includes everything needed to start generating images with full composition control. Users can download the new Blueprint today. Harness 3D to Control AI-Generated Images The NVIDIA AI Blueprint for 3D-guided generative AI controls image generation by using a draft 3D scene in Blender to provide a depth map to the image generator — FLUX.1-dev, from Black Forest Labs — which together with a user’s prompt generates the desired images. The depth map helps the image model understand where things should be placed. The advantage of this technique is that it doesn’t require highly detailed objects or high-quality textures, since they’ll be converted to grayscale. And because the scenes are in 3D, users can easily move objects around and change camera angles. Under the hood of the blueprint is ComfyUI, a powerful tool that allows creators to chain generative AI models in interesting ways. For example, the ComfyUI Blender plug-in lets users connect Blender to ComfyUI. Plus, an NVIDIA NIM microservice lets users deploy the FLUX.1-dev model and run it at the best performance on GeForce RTX GPUs, tapping into the NVIDIA TensorRT software development kit and optimized formats like FP4 and FP8. The AI Blueprint for 3D-guided generative AI requires an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 GPU or higher. A Prebuilt Foundation for Generative AI Workflows The blueprint for 3D-guided generative AI includes everything necessary for getting started with an advanced image generation workflow: Blender, ComfyUI, the Blender plug-ins to connect the two, the FLUX.1-dev NIM microservice and the ComfyUI nodes required to run it. For AI artists, it also comes with an installer and detailed deployment instructions. The blueprint offers a structured way to dive into image generation, providing a working pipeline that can be tailored to specific needs. Step-by-step documentation, sample assets and a preconfigured environment provide a solid foundation that makes the creative process more manageable and the results more powerful. For AI developers, the blueprint can act as a foundation for building similar pipelines or expanding existing ones. It comes with source code, sample data, documentation and a working sample for getting started. Real-Time Generation Powered by RTX AI AI Blueprints run on NVIDIA RTX AI PCs and workstations, harnessing recent performance breakthroughs from the NVIDIA Blackwell architecture. The FLUX.1-dev NIM microservice included in the blueprint for 3D-guided generative AI is optimized with TensorRT and quantized to FP4 precision for Blackwell GPUs, enabling more than doubled inference speeds over native PyTorch FP16. For users on NVIDIA Ada Lovelace generation GPUs, the FLUX.1-dev NIM microservice comes with FP8 variants, also accelerated by TensorRT. These improvements make high-performance workflows more accessible for rapid iteration and experimentation. Quantization also helps run models with less VRAM. With FP4, for instance, model sizes are reduced by more than 2x compared with FP16. Customize and Create With RTX AI There are 10 NIM microservices currently available for RTX, supporting use cases spanning image and language generation to speech AI and computer vision — with more blueprints and services on the way. Available now at https://build.nvidia.com/nvidia/genai-3d-guided, AI Blueprints and NIM microservices provide powerful foundations for those ready to create, customize and push the boundaries of generative AI on RTX PCs and workstations. Each week, the RTX AI Garage blog series features community-driven AI innovations and content for those looking to learn more about NIM microservices and AI Blueprints, as well as building AI agents, creative workflows, digital humans, productivity apps and more on AI PCs and workstations. Plug in to NVIDIA AI PC on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and X — and stay informed by subscribing to the RTX AI PC newsletter. Follow NVIDIA Workstation on LinkedIn and X. See notice regarding software product information.

Agentic AI is redefining the cybersecurity landscape — introducing new opportunities that demand rethinking how to secure AI while offering the keys to addressing those challenges. Unlike standard AI systems, AI agents can take autonomous actions — interacting with tools, environments, other agents and sensitive data. This provides new opportunities for defenders but also introduces Read Article

Agentic AI is redefining the cybersecurity landscape — introducing new opportunities that demand rethinking how to secure AI while offering the keys to addressing those challenges. Unlike standard AI systems, AI agents can take autonomous actions — interacting with tools, environments, other agents and sensitive data. This provides new opportunities for defenders but also introduces new classes of risks. Enterprises must now take a dual approach: defend both with and against agentic AI. Building Cybersecurity Defense With Agentic AI Cybersecurity teams are increasingly overwhelmed by talent shortages and growing alert volume. Agentic AI offers new ways to bolster threat detection, response and AI security — and requires a fundamental pivot in the foundations of the cybersecurity ecosystem. Agentic AI systems can perceive, reason and act autonomously to solve complex problems. They can also serve as intelligent collaborators for cyber experts to safeguard digital assets, mitigate risks in enterprise environments and boost efficiency in security operations centers. This frees up cybersecurity teams to focus on high-impact decisions, helping them scale their expertise while potentially reducing workforce burnout. For example, AI agents can cut the time needed to respond to software security vulnerabilities by investigating the risk of a new common vulnerability or exposure in just seconds. They can search external resources, evaluate environments and summarize and prioritize findings so human analysts can take swift, informed action. Leading organizations like Deloitte are using the NVIDIA AI Blueprint for vulnerability analysis, NVIDIA NIM and NVIDIA Morpheus to enable their customers to accelerate software patching and vulnerability management. AWS also collaborated with NVIDIA to build an open-source reference architecture using this NVIDIA AI Blueprint for software security patching on AWS cloud environments. AI agents can also improve security alert triaging. Most security operations centers face an overwhelming number of alerts every day, and sorting critical signals from noise is slow, repetitive and dependent on institutional knowledge and experience. Top security providers are using NVIDIA AI software to advance agentic AI in cybersecurity, including CrowdStrike and Trend Micro. CrowdStrike’s Charlotte AI Detection Triage delivers 2x faster detection triage with 50% less compute, cutting alert fatigue and optimizing security operation center efficiency. Agentic systems can help accelerate the entire workflow, analyzing alerts, gathering context from tools, reasoning about root causes and acting on findings — all in real time. They can even help onboard new analysts by capturing expert knowledge from experienced analysts and turning it into action. Enterprises can build alert triage agents using the NVIDIA AI-Q Blueprint for connecting AI agents to enterprise data and the NVIDIA Agent Intelligence toolkit — an open-source library that accelerates AI agent development and optimizes workflows. Protecting Agentic AI Applications Agentic AI systems don’t just analyze information — they reason and act on it. This introduces new security challenges: agents may access tools, generate outputs that trigger downstream effects or interact with sensitive data in real time. To ensure they behave safely and predictably, organizations need both pre-deployment testing and runtime controls. Red teaming and testing help identify weaknesses in how agents interpret prompts, use tools or handle unexpected inputs — before they go into production. This also includes probing how well agents follow constraints, recover from failures and resist manipulative or adversarial attacks. Garak, a large language model vulnerability scanner, enables automated testing of LLM-based agents by simulating adversarial behavior such as prompt injection, tool misuse and reasoning errors. Runtime guardrails provide a way to enforce policy boundaries, limit unsafe behaviors and swiftly align agent outputs with enterprise goals. NVIDIA NeMo Guardrails software enables developers to easily define, deploy and rapidly update rules governing what AI agents can say and do. This low-cost, low-effort adaptability ensures quick and effective response when issues are detected, keeping agent behavior consistent and safe in production. Leading companies such as Amdocs, Cerence AI and Palo Alto Networks are tapping into NeMo Guardrails to deliver trusted agentic experiences to their customers. Runtime protections help safeguard sensitive data and agent actions during execution, ensuring secure and trustworthy operations. NVIDIA Confidential Computing helps protect data while it’s being processed at runtime, aka protecting data in use. This reduces the risk of exposure during training and inference for AI models of every size. NVIDIA Confidential Computing is available from major service providers globally, including Google Cloud and Microsoft Azure, with availability from other cloud service providers to come. The foundation for any agentic AI application is the set of software tools, libraries and services used to build the inferencing stack. The NVIDIA AI Enterprise software platform is produced using a software lifecycle process that maintains application programming interface stability while addressing vulnerabilities throughout the lifecycle of the software. This includes regular code scans and timely publication of security patches or mitigations. Authenticity and integrity of AI components in the supply chain is critical for scaling trust across agentic AI systems. The NVIDIA AI Enterprise software stack includes container signatures, model signing and a software bill of materials to enable verification of these components. Each of these technologies provides additional layers of security to protect critical data and valuable models across multiple deployment environments, from on premises to the cloud. Securing Agentic Infrastructure As agentic AI systems become more autonomous and integrated into enterprise workflows, the infrastructure they rely on becomes a critical part of the security equation. Whether deployed in a data center, at the edge or on a factory floor, agentic AI needs infrastructure that can enforce isolation, visibility and control — by design. Agentic systems, by design, operate with significant autonomy, enabling them to perform impactful actions that can be both beneficial or potentially harmful. This inherent autonomy requires protecting runtime workloads, operational monitoring and strict enforcement of zero-trust principles to secure these systems effectively. NVIDIA BlueField DPUs, combined with NVIDIA DOCA Argus, provides a framework that enables applications to access comprehensive, real-time visibility into agent workload behavior and accurately pinpoint threats through advanced memory forensics. Deploying security controls directly onto BlueField DPUs, rather than server CPUs, further isolates threats at the infrastructure level, substantially reducing the blast radius of potential compromises and reinforcing a comprehensive, security-everywhere architecture. Integrators also use NVIDIA Confidential Computing to strengthen security foundations for agentic infrastructure. For example, EQTYLab developed a new cryptographic certificate system that provides the first on-silicon governance to ensure AI agents are compliant at runtime. It will be featured at RSA this week as a top 10 RSA Innovation Sandbox recipient. NVIDIA Confidential Computing is supported on NVIDIA Hopper and NVIDIA Blackwell GPUs, so isolation technologies can now be extended to the confidential virtual machine when users are moving from a single GPU to multi-GPUs. Secure AI is provided by Protected PCIe and builds upon NVIDIA Confidential Computing, allowing customers to scale workloads from a single GPU to eight GPUs. This lets companies adapt to their agentic AI needs while delivering security in the most performant way. These infrastructure components support both local and remote attestation, enabling customers to verify the integrity of the platform before deploying sensitive workloads. These security capabilities are especially important in environments like AI factories — where agentic systems are beginning to power automation, monitoring and real-world decision-making. Cisco is pioneering secure AI infrastructure by integrating NVIDIA BlueField DPUs, forming the foundation of the Cisco Secure AI Factory with NVIDIA to deliver scalable, secure and efficient AI deployments for enterprises. Extending agentic AI to cyber-physical systems heightens the stakes, as compromises can directly impact uptime, safety and the integrity of physical operations. Leading partners like Armis, Check Point, CrowdStrike, Deloitte, Forescout, Nozomi Networks and World Wide Technology are integrating NVIDIA’s full-stack cybersecurity AI technologies to help customers bolster critical infrastructure against cyber threats across industries such as energy, utilities and manufacturing. Building Trust as AI Takes Action Every enterprise today must ensure their investments in cybersecurity are incorporating AI to protect the workflows of the future. Every workload must be accelerated to finally give defenders the tools to operate at the speed of AI. NVIDIA is building AI and security capabilities into technological foundations for ecosystem partners to deliver AI-powered cybersecurity solutions. This new ecosystem will allow enterprises to build secure, scalable agentic AI systems. Join NVIDIA at the RSA Conference to learn about its collaborations with industry leaders to advance cybersecurity. See notice regarding software product information.

As enterprises increasingly adopt AI, securing AI factories — where complex, agentic workflows are executed — has never been more critical. NVIDIA is bringing runtime cybersecurity to every AI factory with a new NVIDIA DOCA software framework, part of the NVIDIA cybersecurity AI platform. Running on the NVIDIA BlueField networking platform, NVIDIA DOCA Argus operates Read Article

As enterprises increasingly adopt AI, securing AI factories — where complex, agentic workflows are executed — has never been more critical. NVIDIA is bringing runtime cybersecurity to every AI factory with a new NVIDIA DOCA software framework, part of the NVIDIA cybersecurity AI platform. Running on the NVIDIA BlueField networking platform, NVIDIA DOCA Argus operates on every node to immediately detect and respond to attacks on AI workloads, integrating seamlessly with enterprise security systems to deliver instant threat insights. The DOCA Argus framework provides runtime threat detection by using advanced memory forensics to monitor threats in real time, delivering detection speeds up to 1,000x faster than existing agentless solutions — without impacting system performance. Unlike conventional tools, Argus runs independently of the host, requiring no agents, integration or reliance on host-based resources. This agentless, zero-overhead design enhances system efficiency and ensures resilient security in any AI compute environment, including containerized and multi-tenant infrastructures. By operating outside the host, Argus remains invisible to attackers — even in the event of a system compromise. Cybersecurity professionals can seamlessly integrate the framework with their SIEM, SOAR and XDR security platforms, enabling continuous monitoring and automated threat mitigation and extending their existing cybersecurity capabilities for AI infrastructure. NVIDIA BlueField is a foundational security component for every AI factory, providing built-in, data-centric protection for AI workloads at scale. By combining BlueField’s acceleration capabilities with DOCA Argus’ proactive threat detection, enterprises can secure AI factories without compromising performance or efficiency. Cisco is collaborating with NVIDIA to deliver a Secure AI Factory with NVIDIA architecture that simplifies how enterprises deploy and protect AI infrastructure at scale. The architecture embeds security into every layer of the AI factory, ensuring runtime protection is built in from the start rather than bolted on after deployment. “Now is the time for enterprises to be driving forward with AI, but the key to unlocking innovative use cases and enabling broad adoption is safety and security,” said Jeetu Patel, executive vice president and chief product officer at Cisco. “NVIDIA and Cisco are providing enterprises with the infrastructure they need to confidently scale AI while safeguarding their most valuable data.” DOCA Argus and BlueField are part of the NVIDIA cybersecurity AI platform — a full-stack, accelerated computing platform purpose-built for AI-driven protection. It combines BlueField’s data-centric security and Argus’ real-time threat detection with NVIDIA AI Enterprise software — including the NVIDIA Morpheus cybersecurity AI framework — to deliver visibility and control across an AI factory. It also taps into agentic AI to autonomously perceive, reason and respond to threats in real time. NVIDIA cybersecurity AI platform. Optimized AI Workload Threat Detection Enterprises are inundated with massive volumes of data, making it difficult to pinpoint real threats. The growing adoption of agentic AI, with AI models and autonomous agents operating at enterprise scale to seamlessly connect data, applications and users, brings unprecedented opportunities for gleaning insights from data — while introducing the need for advanced protection that can keep pace. DOCA Argus is fine-tuned and optimized using insights from NVIDIA’s own security team, surfacing only real, validated threats. By focusing on well-known threat actors and eliminating false positives, the framework provides enterprises with actionable intelligence, reducing alert fatigue and streamlining security operations. Argus is purpose-built to protect containerized workloads like NVIDIA NIM microservices, incorporating real-world threat intelligence and validation to secure every layer of the AI application stack. “Cyber defenders need robust tools to effectively protect AI factories, which serve as the foundation for agentic reasoning,” said David Reber, chief security officer at NVIDIA. “The DOCA Argus framework delivers real-time security insights to enable autonomous detection and response — equipping defenders with a data advantage through actionable intelligence.” Get started with DOCA Argus and meet NVIDIA at the RSA Conference in San Francisco, running through Thursday, May 1.

Oracle has stood up and optimized its first wave of liquid-cooled NVIDIA GB200 NVL72 racks in its data centers. Thousands of NVIDIA Blackwell GPUs are now being deployed and ready for customer use on NVIDIA DGX Cloud and Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) to develop and run next-generation reasoning models and AI agents. Oracle’s state-of-the-art GB200 Read Article

Oracle has stood up and optimized its first wave of liquid-cooled NVIDIA GB200 NVL72 racks in its data centers. Thousands of NVIDIA Blackwell GPUs are now being deployed and ready for customer use on NVIDIA DGX Cloud and Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) to develop and run next-generation reasoning models and AI agents. Oracle’s state-of-the-art GB200 deployment includes high-speed NVIDIA Quantum-2 InfiniBand and NVIDIA Spectrum-X Ethernet networking to enable scalable, low-latency performance, as well as a full stack of software and database integrations from NVIDIA and OCI. OCI, one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing cloud service providers, is among the first to deploy NVIDIA GB200 NVL72 systems. The company has ambitious plans to build one of the world’s largest Blackwell clusters. OCI Superclusters will scale beyond 100,000 NVIDIA Blackwell GPUs to meet the world’s skyrocketing need for inference tokens and accelerated computing. The torrid pace of AI innovation continues as several companies including OpenAI have released new reasoning models in the past few weeks. OCI’s installation is the latest example of NVIDIA Grace Blackwell systems going online worldwide, transforming cloud data centers into AI factories that manufacture intelligence at scale. These new AI factories leverage the NVIDIA GB200 NVL72 platform, a rack-scale system that combines 36 NVIDIA Grace CPUs and 72 NVIDIA Blackwell GPUs, delivering exceptional performance and energy efficiency for agentic AI powered by advanced AI reasoning models. OCI offers flexible deployment options to bring Blackwell to customers across public, government and sovereign clouds, as well as customer-owned data centers through OCI Dedicated Region and OCI Alloy at any scale. A number of customers are planning to deploy workloads right away on the OCI GB200 systems including major technology companies, enterprise customers, government agencies and contractors, and regional cloud providers. These new racks are the first systems available from NVIDIA DGX Cloud, an optimized platform with software, services and technical support to develop and deploy AI workloads on leading clouds such as OCI. NVIDIA will use the racks for a variety of projects including training reasoning models, autonomous vehicle development, accelerating chip design and manufacturing, and developing AI tools. GB200 NVL72 racks are live and available now from DGX Cloud and OCI.

Get the controllers ready and clear the calendar — it’s a jam-packed GFN Thursday. Time to revisit a timeless classic for a dose of remastered nostalgia. GeForce NOW is bringing members a surprise from Bethesda — The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered is now available in the cloud. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, the spellbinding turn-based Read Article

Get the controllers ready and clear the calendar — it’s a jam-packed GFN Thursday. Time to revisit a timeless classic for a dose of remastered nostalgia. GeForce NOW is bringing members a surprise from Bethesda — The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered is now available in the cloud. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, the spellbinding turn-based role-playing game, is ready to paint its adventure across GeForce NOW for members to stream in style. Sunderfolk, from Dreamhaven’s Secret Door studio, launches on GeForce NOW, following an exclusive First Look Demo for members. And get ready to crack the case with the sharpest minds in the business — Capcom’s Ace Attorney Investigations Collection heads to the cloud this week, offering members the thrilling adventures of prosecutor Miles Edgeworth. Stream it all across devices, along with eight other games added to the cloud this week, including Zenless Zone Zero’s latest update. A Legendary Quest Forge your path in the cloud. Step back into the world of Cyrodiil in style with the award-winning The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered in the cloud. The revitalization of the iconic 2006 role-playing game offers updated visuals, gameplay and plenty of more content. Explore a meticulously recreated world, navigate story paths as diverse character archetypes and engage in an epic quest to save Tamriel from a Daedric invasion. The remaster includes all previously released expansions — Shivering Isles, Knights of the Nine and additional downloadable content — providing a comprehensive experience for new and returning fans. Rediscover the vast landscape of Cyrodiil like never before with a GeForce NOW membership and stop the forces of Oblivion from overtaking the land. Ultimate and Performance members enjoy higher resolutions and longer gaming sessions for immersive gaming anytime, anywhere. A Whole New World Sunderfolk is a turn-based tactical role-playing adventure for up to four players that offers an engaging couch co-op experience. Control characters using a smartphone app, which serves as both a controller and a hub for cards, inventory and rules. Make game night unforgettable with the cloud. In the underground fantasy world of Arden, take on the roles of anthropomorphic animal heroes tasked with defending their town from the corruption of shadowstone. Six unique classes — from the fiery Pyromancer salamander to the tactical Bard bat — are equipped with distinct skill cards. Missions range from combat and exploration to puzzles and rescues, requiring teamwork and coordination. Get into the mischief streaming it on GeForce NOW. Gather the squad and rekindle the spirit of game night from the comfort of the couch, streaming on the big screen with GeForce NOW and using a mobile device as a controller for a unique, immersive co-op experience. No Objections Here Channel your inner Miles Edgeworth. Experience both Ace Attorney Investigations games in one gorgeous collection, stepping into the shoes of Miles Edgeworth, the prosecutor of prosecutors from the Ace Attorney mainline games. Leave the courtroom behind and walk with Edgeworth around the crime scene to gather evidence and clues, including by talking with persons of interest. Solve tough, intriguing cases through wit, logic and deduction. Members can level up their detective work across devices with a premium GeForce NOW membership. Ultimate and Performance members get extended session times to crack cases without interruptions. Tears, Fears and Parasol Spears Zeroing in on secrets. Zenless Zone Zero v1.7, “Bury Your Tears With the Past,” marks the dramatic conclusion of the first season’s storyline. Team with a special investigator to infiltrate enemy ranks, uncover the truth behind the Exaltists’ conspiracy and explore the mysteries of the Sacrifice Core, adding new depth to the game’s lore and characters. The update also introduces two new S-Rank Agents — Vivian, a versatile Ether Anomaly fighter, and Hugo, an Ice Attack specialist — each bringing unique combat abilities to the roster. Alongside limited-time events, quality-of-life improvements and more, the update offers fresh gameplay modes and exclusive rewards. Quest for Fresh Adventures Defy the monolith. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is a visually stunning, dark fantasy role-playing game available now for members to stream. A mysterious entity called the Paintress erases everyone of a certain age each year after painting their number on a monolith. Join a desperate band of survivors — most with only a year left to live — on the 33rd expedition to end this cycle of death by confronting the Paintress and her monstrous creations. Dodge, parry and counterattack in battle while exploring a richly imagined world inspired by French Belle Époque art and filled with complex, emotionally driven characters. Look for the following games available to stream in the cloud this week: The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered (New release on Steam and Xbox, available on PC Game Pass, April 22) Sunderfolk (New release on Steam, April 23) Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (New release on Steam and Xbox, available on PC Game Pass, April 24) Ace Attorney Investigations Collection (Steam and Xbox, available on the Microsoft Store) Ace Attorney Investigations Collection Demo (Steam and Xbox, available on the Microsoft Store) Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster Demo (Steam) EXFIL (Steam) Sands of Aura (Epic Games Store) What are you planning to play this weekend? Let us know on X or in the comments below. What's a game on GFN that deserves more love? — NVIDIA GeForce NOW (@NVIDIAGFN) April 22, 2025

Advancing AI requires a full-stack approach, with a powerful foundation of computing infrastructure — including accelerated processors and networking technologies — connected to optimized compilers, algorithms and applications. NVIDIA Research is innovating across this spectrum, supporting virtually every industry in the process. At this week’s International Conference on Learning Representations (ICLR), taking place April 24-28 Read Article

Advancing AI requires a full-stack approach, with a powerful foundation of computing infrastructure — including accelerated processors and networking technologies — connected to optimized compilers, algorithms and applications. NVIDIA Research is innovating across this spectrum, supporting virtually every industry in the process. At this week’s International Conference on Learning Representations (ICLR), taking place April 24-28 in Singapore, more than 70 NVIDIA-authored papers introduce AI developments with applications in autonomous vehicles, healthcare, multimodal content creation, robotics and more. “ICLR is one of the world’s most impactful AI conferences, where researchers introduce important technical innovations that move every industry forward,” said Bryan Catanzaro, vice president of applied deep learning research at NVIDIA. “The research we’re contributing this year aims to accelerate every level of the computing stack to amplify the impact and utility of AI across industries.” Research That Tackles Real-World Challenges Several NVIDIA-authored papers at ICLR cover groundbreaking work in multimodal generative AI and novel methods for AI training and synthetic data generation, including: Fugatto: The world’s most flexible audio generative AI model, Fugatto generates or transforms any mix of music, voices and sounds described with prompts using any combination of text and audio files. Other NVIDIA models at ICLR improve audio large language models (LLMs) to better understand speech. HAMSTER: This paper demonstrates that a hierarchical design for vision-language-action models can improve their ability to transfer knowledge from off-domain fine-tuning data — inexpensive data that doesn’t need to be collected on actual robot hardware — to improve a robot’s skills in testing scenarios. Hymba: This family of small language models uses a hybrid model architecture to create LLMs that blend the benefits of transformer models and state space models, enabling high-resolution recall, efficient context summarization and common-sense reasoning tasks. With its hybrid approach, Hymba improves throughput by 3x and reduces cache by almost 4x without sacrificing performance. LongVILA: This training pipeline enables efficient visual language model training and inference for long video understanding. Training AI models on long videos is compute and memory-intensive — so this paper introduces a system that efficiently parallelizes long video training and inference, with training scalability up to 2 million tokens on 256 GPUs. LongVILA achieves state-of-the-art performance across nine popular video benchmarks. LLaMaFlex: This paper introduces a new zero-shot generation technique to create a family of compressed LLMs based on one large model. The researchers found that LLaMaFlex can generate compressed models that are as accurate or better than state-of-the art pruned, flexible and trained-from-scratch models — a capability that could be applied to significantly reduce the cost of training model families compared to techniques like pruning and knowledge distillation. Proteina: This model can generate diverse and designable protein backbones, the framework that holds a protein together. It uses a transformer model architecture with up to 5x as many parameters as previous models. SRSA: This framework addresses the challenge of teaching robots new tasks using a preexisting skill library — so instead of learning from scratch, a robot can apply and adapt its existing skills to the new task. By developing a framework to predict which preexisting skill would be most relevant to a new task, the researchers were able to improve zero-shot success rates on unseen tasks by 19%. STORM: This model can reconstruct dynamic outdoor scenes — like cars driving or trees swaying in the wind — with a precise 3D representation inferred from just a few snapshots. The model, which can reconstruct large-scale outdoor scenes in 200 milliseconds, has potential applications in autonomous vehicle development. Discover the latest work from NVIDIA Research, a global team of around 400 experts in fields including computer architecture, generative AI, graphics, self-driving cars and robotics.

Financial services has long been at the forefront of adopting technological innovations. Today, generative AI and agentic systems are redefining the industry, from customer interactions to enterprise operations. Prem Natarajan, executive vice president, chief scientist and head of AI at Capital One, joined the NVIDIA AI Podcast to discuss how his organization is building proprietary Read Article

Financial services has long been at the forefront of adopting technological innovations. Today, generative AI and agentic systems are redefining the industry, from customer interactions to enterprise operations. Prem Natarajan, executive vice president, chief scientist and head of AI at Capital One, joined the NVIDIA AI Podcast to discuss how his organization is building proprietary AI systems that deliver value to over 100 million customers. “AI is at its best when it transfers cognitive burden from the human to the system,” Natarajan said. “It allows the human to have that much more fun and experience that magic.” Capital One’s strategy centers on a “test, iterate, refine” approach that balances innovation with rigorous risk management. The company’s first agentic AI deployment is a chat concierge that helps customers navigate the car-buying process, such as by scheduling test drives. Rather than simply integrating third-party solutions, Capital One builds proprietary AI technologies that tap into its vast data repositories. “Your data advantage is your AI advantage,” Natarajan emphasized. “Proprietary data allows you to build proprietary AI that provides enduring differentiated services for your customers.” Capital One’s AI architecture combines open-weight foundation models with deep customizations using proprietary data. This approach, Natarajan explained, supports the creation of specialized models that excel at financial services tasks and integrate into multi-agent workflows that can take actions. Natarajan stressed that responsible AI is fundamental to Capital One’s design process. His teams take a “responsibility through design” approach, implementing robust guardrails — both technological and human-in-the-loop — to ensure safe deployment. The concept of an AI factory — where raw data is processed and refined to produce actionable intelligence — aligns naturally with Capital One’s cloud-native technology stack. AI factories incorporate all the components required for financial institutions to generate intelligence, combining hardware, software, networking and development tools for AI applications in financial services. Time Stamps 1:10 – Natarajan’s background and journey to Capital One. 4:50 – Capital One’s approach to generative AI and agentic systems. 15:56 – Challenges in implementing responsible AI in financial services. 28:46 – AI factories and Capital One’s cloud-native advantage. You Might Also Like… NVIDIA’s Jacob Liberman on Bringing Agentic AI to Enterprises Agentic AI enables developers to create intelligent multi-agent systems that reason, act and execute complex tasks with a degree of autonomy. Jacob Liberman, director of product management at NVIDIA, explains how agentic AI bridges the gap between powerful AI models and practical enterprise applications. Telenor Builds Norway’s First AI Factory, Offering Sustainable and Sovereign Data Processing Telenor opened Norway’s first AI factory in November 2024, enabling organizations to process sensitive data securely on Norwegian soil while prioritizing environmental responsibility. Telenor’s Chief Innovation Officer and Head of the AI Factory Kaaren Hilsen discusses the AI factory’s rapid development, going from concept to reality in under a year. Imbue CEO Kanjun Qiu on Transforming AI Agents Into Personal Collaborators Kanjun Qiu, CEO of Imbue, explores the emerging era where individuals can create and use their own AI agents. Drawing a parallel to the PC revolution of the late 1970s and ‘80s, Qiu discusses how modern AI systems are evolving to work collaboratively with users, enhancing their capabilities rather than just automating tasks.

As AI models evolve and adoption grows, enterprises must perform a delicate balancing act to achieve maximum value. That’s because inference — the process of running data through a model to get an output — offers a different computational challenge than training a model. Pretraining a model — the process of ingesting data, breaking it Read Article

As AI models evolve and adoption grows, enterprises must perform a delicate balancing act to achieve maximum value. That’s because inference — the process of running data through a model to get an output — offers a different computational challenge than training a model. Pretraining a model — the process of ingesting data, breaking it down into tokens and finding patterns — is essentially a one-time cost. But in inference, every prompt to a model generates tokens, each of which incur a cost. That means that as AI model performance and use increases, so do the amount of tokens generated and their associated computational costs. For companies looking to build AI capabilities, the key is generating as many tokens as possible — with maximum speed, accuracy and quality of service — without sending computational costs skyrocketing. As such, the AI ecosystem has been working to make inference cheaper and more efficient. Inference costs have been trending down for the past year thanks to major leaps in model optimization, leading to increasingly advanced, energy-efficient accelerated computing infrastructure and full-stack solutions. According to the Stanford University Institute for Human-Centered AI’s 2025 AI Index Report, “the inference cost for a system performing at the level of GPT-3.5 dropped over 280-fold between November 2022 and October 2024. At the hardware level, costs have declined by 30% annually, while energy efficiency has improved by 40% each year. Open-weight models are also closing the gap with closed models, reducing the performance difference from 8% to just 1.7% on some benchmarks in a single year. Together, these trends are rapidly lowering the barriers to advanced AI.” As models evolve and generate more demand and create more tokens, enterprises need to scale their accelerated computing resources to deliver the next generation of AI reasoning tools or risk rising costs and energy consumption. What follows is a primer to understand the concepts of the economics of inference, enterprises can position themselves to achieve efficient, cost-effective and profitable AI solutions at scale. Key Terminology for the Economics of AI Inference Knowing key terms of the economics of inference helps set the foundation for understanding its importance. Tokens are the fundamental unit of data in an AI model. They’re derived from data during training as text, images, audio clips and videos. Through a process called tokenization, each piece of data is broken down into smaller constituent units. During training, the model learns the relationships between tokens so it can perform inference and generate an accurate, relevant output. Throughput refers to the amount of data — typically measured in tokens — that the model can output in a specific amount of time, which itself is a function of the infrastructure running the model. Throughput is often measured in tokens per second, with higher throughput meaning greater return on infrastructure. Latency is a measure of the amount of time between inputting a prompt and the start of the model’s response. Lower latency means faster responses. The two main ways of measuring latency are: Time to First Token: A measurement of the initial processing time required by the model to generate its first output token after a user prompt. Time per Output Token: The average time between consecutive tokens — or the time it takes to generate a completion token for each user querying the model at the same time. It’s also known as “inter-token latency” or token-to-token latency. Time to first token and time per output token are helpful benchmarks, but they’re just two pieces of a larger equation. Focusing solely on them can still lead to a deterioration of performance or cost. To account for other interdependencies, IT leaders are starting to measure “goodput,” which is defined as the throughput achieved by a system while maintaining target time to first token and time per output token levels. This metric allows organizations to evaluate performance in a more holistic manner, ensuring that throughput, latency and cost are aligned to support both operational efficiency and an exceptional user experience. Energy efficiency is the measure of how effectively an AI system converts power into computational output, expressed as performance per watt. By using accelerated computing platforms, organizations can maximize tokens per watt while minimizing energy consumption. How the Scaling Laws Apply to Inference Cost The three AI scaling laws are also core to understanding the economics of inference: Pretraining scaling: The original scaling law that demonstrated that by increasing training dataset size, model parameter count and computational resources, models can achieve predictable improvements in intelligence and accuracy. Post-training: A process where models are fine-tuned for accuracy and specificity so they can be applied to application development. Techniques like retrieval-augmented generation can be used to return more relevant answers from an enterprise database. Test-time scaling (aka “long thinking” or “reasoning”): A technique by which models allocate additional computational resources during inference to evaluate multiple possible outcomes before arriving at the best answer. While AI is evolving and post-training and test-time scaling techniques become more sophisticated, pretraining isn’t disappearing and remains an important way to scale models. Pretraining will still be needed to support post-training and test-time scaling. Profitable AI Takes a Full-Stack Approach In comparison to inference from a model that’s only gone through pretraining and post-training, models that harness test-time scaling generate multiple tokens to solve a complex problem. This results in more accurate and relevant model outputs — but is also much more computationally expensive. Smarter AI means generating more tokens to solve a problem. And a quality user experience means generating those tokens as fast as possible. The smarter and faster an AI model is, the more utility it will have to companies and customers. Enterprises need to scale their accelerated computing resources to deliver the next generation of AI reasoning tools that can support complex problem-solving, coding and multistep planning without skyrocketing costs. This requires both advanced hardware and a fully optimized software stack. NVIDIA’s AI factory product roadmap is designed to deliver the computational demand and help solve for the complexity of inference, while achieving greater efficiency. AI factories integrate high-performance AI infrastructure, high-speed networking and optimized software to produce intelligence at scale. These components are designed to be flexible and programmable, allowing businesses to prioritize the areas most critical to their models or inference needs. To further streamline operations when deploying massive AI reasoning models, AI factories run on a high-performance, low-latency inference management system that ensures the speed and throughput required for AI reasoning are met at the lowest possible cost to maximize token revenue generation. Learn more by reading the ebook “AI Inference: Balancing Cost, Latency and Performance.”

An AI agent is only as accurate, relevant and timely as the data that powers it. Now generally available, NVIDIA NeMo microservices are helping enterprise IT quickly build AI teammates that tap into data flywheels to scale employee productivity. The microservices provide an end-to-end developer platform for creating state-of-the-art agentic AI systems and continually optimizing Read Article

An AI agent is only as accurate, relevant and timely as the data that powers it. Now generally available, NVIDIA NeMo microservices are helping enterprise IT quickly build AI teammates that tap into data flywheels to scale employee productivity. The microservices provide an end-to-end developer platform for creating state-of-the-art agentic AI systems and continually optimizing them with data flywheels informed by inference and business data, as well as user preferences. With a data flywheel, enterprise IT can onboard AI agents as digital teammates. These agents can tap into user interactions and data generated during AI inference to continuously improve model performance — turning usage into insight and insight into action. Building Powerful Data Flywheels for Agentic AI Without a constant stream of high-quality inputs — from databases, user interactions or real-world signals — an agent’s understanding can weaken, making responses less reliable and agents less productive. Maintaining and improving the models that power AI agents in production requires three types of data: inference data to gather insights and adapt to evolving data patterns, up-to-date business data to provide intelligence, and user feedback data to advise if the model and application are performing as expected. NeMo microservices help developers tap into these three data types. NeMo microservices speed AI agent development with end-to-end tools for curating, customizing, evaluating and guardrailing the models that drive their agents. NVIDIA NeMo microservices — including NeMo Customizer, NeMo Evaluator and NeMo Guardrails — can be used alongside NeMo Retriever and NeMo Curator to ease enterprises’ experiences building, optimizing and scaling AI agents through custom enterprise data flywheels. For example: NeMo Customizer accelerates large language model fine-tuning, delivering up to 1.8x higher training throughput. This high-performance, scalable microservice uses popular post-training techniques including supervised fine-tuning and low-rank adaptation. NeMo Evaluator simplifies the evaluation of AI models and workflows on custom and industry benchmarks with just five application programming interface (API) calls. NeMo Guardrails improves compliance protection by up to 1.4x with only half a second of additional latency, helping organizations implement robust safety and security measures that align with organizational policies and guidelines. With NeMo microservices, developers can build data flywheels that boost AI agent accuracy and efficiency. Deployed through the NVIDIA AI Enterprise software platform, NeMo microservices are easy to operate and can run on any accelerated computing infrastructure, on premises or in the cloud, with enterprise-grade security, stability and support. The microservices have become generally available at a time when enterprises are building large-scale multi-agent systems, where hundreds of specialized agents — with distinct goals and workflows — collaborate to tackle complex tasks as digital teammates, working alongside employees to assist, augment and accelerate work across functions. This enterprise-wide impact positions AI agents as a trillion-dollar opportunity — with applications spanning automated fraud detection, shopping assistants, predictive machine maintenance and document review — and underscores the critical role data flywheels play in transforming business data into actionable insights. Data flywheels built with NVIDIA NeMo microservices constantly curate data, retrain models and evaluate their performance, all with minimal human interactions and maximum autonomy. Industry Pioneers Boost AI Agent Accuracy With NeMo Microservices NVIDIA partners and industry pioneers are using NeMo microservices to build responsive AI agent platforms so that digital teammates can help get more done. Working with Arize and Quantiphi, AT&T has built an advanced AI-powered agent using NVIDIA NeMo, designed to process a knowledge base of nearly 10,000 documents, refreshed weekly. The scalable, high-performance AI agent is fine-tuned for three key business priorities: speed, cost efficiency and accuracy — all increasingly critical as adoption scales. AT&T boosted AI agent accuracy by up to 40% using NeMo Customizer and Evaluator by fine-tuning a Mistral 7B model to help deliver personalized services, prevent fraud and optimize network performance. BlackRock is working with NeMo microservices for agentic AI capabilities in its Aladdin tech platform, which unifies the investment management process through a common data language. Teaming with Galileo, Cisco’s Outshift team is using NVIDIA NeMo microservices to power a coding assistant that delivers 40% fewer tool selection errors and achieves up to 10x faster response times. Nasdaq is accelerating its Nasdaq Gen AI Platform with NeMo Retriever microservices and NVIDIA NIM microservices. NeMo Retriever enhanced the platform’s search capabilities, leading to up to 30% improved accuracy and response times, in addition to cost savings. Broad Model and Partner Ecosystem Support for NeMo Microservices NeMo microservices support a broad range of popular open models, including Llama, the Microsoft Phi family of small language models, Google Gemma, Mistral and Llama Nemotron Ultra, currently the top open model on scientific reasoning, coding and complex math benchmarks. Meta has tapped NVIDIA NeMo microservices through new connectors for Meta Llamastack. Users can access the same capabilities — including Customizer, Evaluator and Guardrails — via APIs, enabling them to run the full suite of agent-building workflows within their environment. “With Llamastack integration, agent builders can implement data flywheels powered by NeMo microservices,” said Raghotham Murthy, software engineer, GenAI, at Meta. “This allows them to continuously optimize models to improve accuracy, boost efficiency and reduce total cost of ownership.” Leading AI software providers such as Cloudera, Datadog, Dataiku, DataRobot, DataStax, SuperAnnotate, Weights & Biases and more have integrated NeMo microservices into their platforms. Developers can use NeMo microservices in popular AI frameworks including CrewAI, Haystack by deepset, LangChain, LlamaIndex and Llamastack. Enterprises can build data flywheels with NeMo Retriever microservices using NVIDIA AI Data Platform offerings from NVIDIA-Certified Storage partners including DDN, Dell Technologies, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Hitachi Vantara, IBM, NetApp, Nutanix, Pure Storage, VAST Data and WEKA. Leading enterprise platforms including Amdocs, Cadence, Cohesity, SAP, ServiceNow and Synopsys are using NeMo Retriever microservices in their AI agent solutions. Enterprises can run AI agents on NVIDIA-accelerated infrastructure, networking and software from leading system providers including Cisco, Dell, Hewlett Packard Enterprise and Lenovo. Consulting giants including Accenture, Deloitte and EY are building AI agent platforms for enterprises using NeMo microservices. Developers can download NeMo microservices from the NVIDIA NGC catalog. The microservices can be deployed as part of NVIDIA AI Enterprise with extended-life software branches for API stability, proactive security remediation and enterprise-grade support.

AI is rapidly reshaping what’s possible on a PC — whether for real-time image generation or voice-controlled workflows. As AI capabilities grow, so does their complexity. Tapping into the power of AI can entail navigating a maze of system settings, software and hardware configurations. Enabling users to explore how on-device AI can simplify and enhance Read Article

AI is rapidly reshaping what’s possible on a PC — whether for real-time image generation or voice-controlled workflows. As AI capabilities grow, so does their complexity. Tapping into the power of AI can entail navigating a maze of system settings, software and hardware configurations. Enabling users to explore how on-device AI can simplify and enhance the PC experience, Project G-Assist — an AI assistant that helps tune, control and optimize GeForce RTX systems — is now available as an experimental feature in the NVIDIA app. Developers can try out AI-powered voice and text commands for tasks like monitoring performance, adjusting settings and interacting with supporting peripherals. Users can even summon other AIs powered by GeForce RTX AI PCs. And it doesn’t stop there. For those looking to expand Project G-Assist capabilities in creative ways, the AI supports custom plug-ins. With the new ChatGPT-based G-Assist Plug-In Builder, developers and enthusiasts can create and customize G-Assist’s functionality, adding new commands, connecting external tools and building AI workflows tailored to specific needs. With the plug-in builder, users can generate properly formatted code with AI, then integrate the code into G-Assist — enabling quick, AI-assisted functionality that responds to text and voice commands. Teaching PCs New Tricks: Plug-Ins and APIs Explained Plug-ins are lightweight add-ons that give software new capabilities. G-Assist plug-ins can control music, connect with large language models and much more. Under the hood, these plug-ins tap into application programming interfaces (APIs), which allow different software and services to talk to each other. Developers can define functions in simple JSON formats, write logic in Python and quickly integrate new tools or features into G-Assist. With the G-Assist Plug-In Builder, users can: Use a responsive small language model running locally on GeForce RTX GPUs for fast, private inference. Extend G-Assist’s capabilities with custom functionality tailored to specific workflows, games and tools. Interact with G-Assist directly from the NVIDIA overlay, without tabbing out of an application or workflow. Invoke AI-powered GPU and system controls from applications using C++ and Python bindings. Integrate with agentic frameworks using tools like Langflow, letting G-Assist function as a component in larger AI pipelines and multi-agent systems. Built for Builders: Using Free APIs to Expand AI PC Capabilities NVIDIA’s GitHub repository provides everything needed to get started on developing with G-Assist — including sample plug-ins, step-by-step instructions and documentation for building custom functionalities. Developers can define functions in JSON and drop config files into a designated directory, where G-Assist can automatically load and interpret them. Users can even submit plug-ins for review and potential inclusion in the NVIDIA GitHub repository to make new capabilities available for others. Hundreds of free, developer-friendly APIs are available today to extend G-Assist capabilities — from automating workflows to optimizing PC setups to boosting online shopping. For ideas, find searchable indices of free APIs for use across entertainment, productivity, smart home, hardware and more on publicapis.dev, free-apis.github.io, apilist.fun and APILayer. Available sample plug-ins include Spotify, which enables hands-free music and volume control, and Google Gemini, which allows G-Assist to invoke a much larger cloud-based AI for more complex conversations, brainstorming and web searches using a free Google AI Studio API key. In the clip below, G-Assist asks Gemini for advice on which Legend to pick in the hit game Apex Legends when solo queueing, as well as whether it’s wise to jump into Nightmare mode for level 25 in Diablo IV: And in the following clip, a developer uses the new plug-in builder to create a Twitch plug-in for G-Assist that checks if a streamer is live. After generating the necessary JSON manifest and Python files, the developer simply drops them into the G-Assist directory to enable voice commands like, “Hey, Twitch, is [streamer] live?” In addition, users can customize G-Assist to control select peripherals and software applications with simple commands, such as to benchmark or adjust fan speeds, or to change lighting on supported Logitech G, Corsair, MSI and Nanoleaf devices. Other examples include a Stock Checker plug-in that lets users quickly look up real-time stock prices and performance data, or a Weather plug-in allows users to ask G-Assist for current weather conditions in any city. Details on how to build, share and load plug-ins are available on the NVIDIA GitHub repository. Start Building Today With the G-Assist Plugin Builder and open API support, anyone can extend G-Assist to fit their exact needs. Explore the GitHub repository and submit features for review to help shape the next wave of AI-powered PC experiences. Plug in to NVIDIA AI PC on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and X — and stay informed by subscribing to the RTX AI PC newsletter. Follow NVIDIA Workstation on LinkedIn and X. See notice regarding software product information.

About 15% of the world’s population — over a billion people — are affected by neurological disorders, from commonly known diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s to hundreds of lesser-known, rare conditions. BrainStorm Therapeutics, a San Diego-based startup, is accelerating the development of cures for these conditions using AI-powered computational drug discovery paired with lab experiments Read Article

About 15% of the world’s population — over a billion people — are affected by neurological disorders, from commonly known diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s to hundreds of lesser-known, rare conditions. BrainStorm Therapeutics, a San Diego-based startup, is accelerating the development of cures for these conditions using AI-powered computational drug discovery paired with lab experiments using organoids: tiny, 3D bundles of brain cells created from patient-derived stem cells. This hybrid, iterative method, where clinical data and AI models inform one another to accelerate drug development, is known as lab in the loop. “The brain is the last frontier in modern biology,” said BrainStorm’s founder and CEO Robert Fremeau, who was previously a scientific director in neuroscience at Amgen and a faculty member at Duke University and the University of California, San Francisco. “By combining our organoid disease models with the power of generative AI, we now have the ability to start to unravel the underlying complex biology of disease networks.” The company aims to lower the failure rate of drug candidates for brain diseases during clinical trials — currently over 93% — and identify therapeutics that can be applied to multiple diseases. Achieving these goals would make it faster and more economically viable to develop treatments for rare and common conditions. “This alarmingly high clinical trial failure rate is mainly due to the inability of traditional preclinical models with rodents or 2D cells to predict human efficacy,” said Jun Yin, cofounder and chief technology officer at BrainStorm. “By integrating human-derived brain organoids with AI-driven analysis, we’re building a platform that better reflects the complexity of human neurobiology and improves the likelihood of clinical success.” Fremeau and Yin believe that BrainStorm’s platform has the potential to accelerate development timelines, reduce research and development costs, and significantly increase the probability of bringing effective therapies to patients. BrainStorm Therapeutics’ AI models, which run on NVIDIA GPUs in the cloud, were developed using the NVIDIA BioNeMo Framework, a set of programming tools, libraries and models for computational drug discovery. The company is a member of NVIDIA Inception, a global network of cutting-edge startups. Clinical Trial in a Dish BrainStorm Therapeutics uses AI models to develop gene maps of brain diseases, which they can use to identify promising targets for potential drugs and clinical biomarkers. Organoids allow them to screen thousands of drug molecules per day directly on human brain cells, enabling them to test the effectiveness of potential therapies before starting clinical trials. “Brains have brain waves that can be picked up in a scan like an EEG, or electroencephalogram, which measures the electrical activity of neurons,” said Maya Gosztyla, the company’s cofounder and chief operating officer. “Our organoids also have spontaneous brain waves, allowing us to model the complex activity that you would see in the human brain in this much smaller system. We treat it like a clinical trial in a dish for studying brain diseases.” BrainStorm Therapeutics is currently using patient-derived organoids for its work on drug discovery for Parkinson’s disease, a condition tied to the loss of neurons that produce dopamine, a neurotransmitter that helps with physical movement and cognition. “In Parkinson’s disease, multiple genetic variants contribute to dysfunction across different cellular pathways, but they converge on a common outcome — the loss of dopamine neurons,” Fremeau said. “By using AI models to map and analyze the biological effects of these variants, we can discover disease-modifying treatments that have the potential to slow, halt or even reverse the progression of Parkinson’s.” The BrainStorm team used single-cell sequencing data from brain organoids to fine-tune foundation models available through the BioNeMo Framework, including the Geneformer model for gene expression analysis. The organoids were derived from patients with mutations in the GBA1 gene, the most common genetic risk factor for Parkinson’s disease. BrainStorm is also collaborating with the NVIDIA BioNeMo team to help optimize open-source access to the Geneformer model. Accelerating Drug Discovery Research With its proprietary platform, BrainStorm can mirror human brain biology and simulate how different treatments might work in a patient’s brain. “This can be done thousands of times, much quicker and much cheaper than can be done in a wet lab — so we can narrow down therapeutic options very quickly,” Gosztyla said. “Then we can go in with organoids and test the subset of drugs the AI model thinks will be effective. Only after it gets through those steps will we actually test these drugs in humans.” View of an organoid using Fluorescence Imaging Plate Reader, or FLIPR — a technique used to study the effect of compounds on cells during drug screening. This technology led to the discovery that Donepezil, a drug prescribed for Alzheimer’s disease, could also be effective in treating Rett syndrome, a rare genetic neurodevelopmental disorder. Within nine months, the BrainStorm team was able to go from organoid screening to applying for a phase 2 clinical trial of the drug in Rett patients. This application was recently cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. BrainStorm also plans to develop multimodal AI models that integrate data from cell sequencing, cell imaging, EEG scans and more. “You need high-quality, multimodal input data to design the right drugs,” said Yin. “AI models trained on this data will help us understand disease better, find more effective drug candidates and, eventually, find prognostic biomarkers for specific patients that enable the delivery of precision medicine.” The company’s next project is an initiative with the CURE5 Foundation to conduct the most comprehensive repurposed drug screen to date for CDKL5 Deficiency Disorder, another rare genetic neurodevelopmental disorder. “Rare disease research is transforming from a high-risk niche to a dynamic frontier,” said Fremeau. “The integration of BrainStorm’s AI-powered organoid technology with NVIDIA accelerated computing resources and the NVIDIA BioNeMo platform is dramatically accelerating the pace of innovation while reducing the cost — so what once required a decade and billions of dollars can now be investigated with significantly leaner resources in a matter of months.” Get started with NVIDIA BioNeMo for AI-accelerated drug discovery.

Traditionally, data centers have relied on air cooling — where mechanical chillers circulate chilled air to absorb heat from servers, helping them maintain optimal conditions. But as AI models increase in size, and the use of AI reasoning models rises, maintaining those optimal conditions is not only getting harder and more expensive — but more Read Article

Traditionally, data centers have relied on air cooling — where mechanical chillers circulate chilled air to absorb heat from servers, helping them maintain optimal conditions. But as AI models increase in size, and the use of AI reasoning models rises, maintaining those optimal conditions is not only getting harder and more expensive — but more energy-intensive. While data centers once operated at 20 kW per rack, today’s hyperscale facilities can support over 135 kW per rack, making it an order of magnitude harder to dissipate the heat generated by high-density racks. To keep AI servers running at peak performance, a new approach is needed for efficiency and scalability. One key solution is liquid cooling — by reducing dependence on chillers and enabling more efficient heat rejection, liquid cooling is driving the next generation of high-performance, energy-efficient AI infrastructure. The NVIDIA GB200 NVL72 and the NVIDIA GB300 NVL72 are rack-scale, liquid-cooled systems designed to handle the demanding tasks of trillion-parameter large language model inference. Their architecture is also specifically optimized for test-time scaling accuracy and performance, making it an ideal choice for running AI reasoning models while efficiently managing energy costs and heat. Liquid-cooled NVIDIA Blackwell compute tray. Driving Unprecedented Water Efficiency and Cost Savings in AI Data Centers Historically, cooling alone has accounted for up to 40% of a data center’s electricity consumption, making it one of the most significant areas where efficiency improvements can drive down both operational expenses and energy demands. Liquid cooling helps mitigate costs and energy use by capturing heat directly at the source. Instead of relying on air as an intermediary, direct-to-chip liquid cooling transfers heat in a technology cooling system loop. That heat is then cycled through a coolant distribution unit via liquid-to-liquid heat exchanger, and ultimately transferred to a facility cooling loop. Because of the higher efficiency of this heat transfer, data centers and AI factories can operate effectively with warmer water temperatures — reducing or eliminating the need for mechanical chillers in a wide range of climates. The NVIDIA GB200 NVL72 rack-scale, liquid-cooled system, built on the NVIDIA Blackwell platform, offers exceptional performance while balancing energy costs and heat. It packs unprecedented compute density into each server rack, delivering 40x higher revenue potential, 30x higher throughput, 25x more energy efficiency and 300x more water efficiency than traditional air-cooled architectures. Newer NVIDIA GB300 NVL72 systems built on the Blackwell Ultra platform boast a 50x higher revenue potential and 35x higher throughput with 30x more energy efficiency. Data centers spend an estimated $1.9-2.8M per megawatt (MW) per year, which amounts to nearly $500,000 spent annually on cooling-related energy and water costs. By deploying the liquid-cooled GB200 NVL72 system, hyperscale data centers and AI factories can achieve up to 25x cost savings, leading to over $4 million dollars in annual savings for a 50 MW hyperscale data center. For data center and AI factory operators, this means lower operational costs, enhanced energy efficiency metrics and a future-proof infrastructure that scales AI workloads efficiently — without the unsustainable water footprint of legacy cooling methods. Moving Heat Outside the Data Center As compute density rises and AI workloads drive unprecedented thermal loads, data centers and AI factories must rethink how they remove heat from their infrastructure. The traditional methods of heat rejection that supported predictable CPU-based scaling are no longer sufficient on their own. Today, there are multiple options for moving heat outside the facility, but four major categories dominate current and emerging deployments. Key Cooling Methods in a Changing Landscape Mechanical Chillers: Mechanical chillers use a vapor compression cycle to cool water, which is then circulated through the data center to absorb heat. These systems are typically air-cooled or water-cooled, with the latter often paired with cooling towers to reject heat. While chillers are reliable and effective across diverse climates, they are also highly energy-intensive. In AI-scale facilities where power consumption and sustainability are top priorities, reliance on chillers can significantly impact both operational costs and carbon footprint. Evaporative Cooling: Evaporative cooling uses the evaporation of water to absorb and remove heat. This can be achieved through direct or indirect systems, or hybrid designs. These systems are much more energy-efficient than chillers but come with high water consumption. In large facilities, they can consume millions of gallons of water per megawatt annually. Their performance is also climate-dependent, making them less effective in humid or water-restricted regions. Dry Coolers: Dry coolers remove heat by transferring it from a closed liquid loop to the ambient air using large finned coils, much like an automotive radiator. These systems don’t rely on water and are ideal for facilities aiming to reduce water usage or operate in dry climates. However, their effectiveness depends heavily on the temperature of the surrounding air. In warmer environments, they may struggle to keep up with high-density cooling demands unless paired with liquid-cooled IT systems that can tolerate higher operating temperatures. Pumped Refrigerant Systems: Pumped refrigerant systems use liquid refrigerants to move heat from the data center to outdoor heat exchangers. Unlike chillers, these systems don’t rely on large compressors inside the facility and they operate without the use of water. This method offers a thermodynamically efficient, compact and scalable solution that works especially well for edge deployments and water-constrained environments. Proper refrigerant handling and monitoring are required, but the benefits in power and water savings are significant. Each of these methods offers different advantages depending on factors like climate, rack density, facility design and sustainability goals. As liquid cooling becomes more common and servers are designed to operate with warmer water, the door opens to more efficient and environmentally friendly cooling strategies — reducing both energy and water use while enabling higher compute performance. Optimizing Data Centers for AI Infrastructure As AI workloads grow exponentially, operators are reimagining data center design with infrastructure built specifically for high-performance AI and energy efficiency. Whether they’re transforming their entire setup into dedicated AI factories or upgrading modular components, optimizing inference performance is crucial for managing costs and operational efficiency. To get the best performance, high compute capacity GPUs aren’t enough — they need to be able to communicate with each other at lightning speed. NVIDIA NVLink boosts communication, enabling GPUs to operate as a massive, tightly integrated processing unit for maximum performance with a full-rack power density of 120 kW. This tight, high-speed communication is crucial for today’s AI tasks, where every second saved on transferring data can mean more tokens per second and more efficient AI models. Traditional air cooling struggles at these power levels. To keep up, data center air would need to be either cooled to below-freezing temperatures or flow at near-gale speeds to carry the heat away, making it increasingly impractical to cool dense racks with air alone. At nearly 1,000x the density of air, liquid cooling excels at carrying heat away thanks to its superior heat capacitance and thermal conductivity. By efficiently transferring heat away from high-performance GPUs, liquid cooling reduces reliance on energy-intensive and noisy cooling fans, allowing more power to be allocated to computation rather than cooling overhead. Liquid Cooling in Action Innovators across the industry are leveraging liquid cooling to slash energy costs, improve density and drive AI efficiency: Vertiv’s reference architecture for NVIDIA GB200 NVL72 servers reduces annual energy consumption by 25%, cuts rack space requirements by 75% and shrinks the power footprint by 30%. Schneider Electric’s liquid-cooling infrastructure supports up to 132 kW per rack, improving energy efficiency, scalability and overall performance for GB200 NVL72 AI data centers. CoolIT Systems’ high-density CHx2000 liquid-to-liquid coolant distribution units provide 2MW cooling capacity at 5°C approach temperature, ensuring reliable thermal management for GB300 NVL72 deployments. Also, CoolIT Systems’ OMNI All-Metal Coldplates with patented Split-Flow technology provide targeted cooling of over 4,000W thermal design power while reducing pressure drop. Boyd’s advanced liquid-cooling solutions, incorporating the company’s over two decades of high-performance compute industry experience, include coolant distribution units, liquid-cooling loops and cold plates to further maximize energy efficiency and system reliability for high-density AI workloads. Cloud service providers are also adopting cutting-edge cooling and power innovations. Next-generation AWS data centers, featuring jointly developed liquid cooling solutions, increase compute power by 12% while reducing energy consumption by up to 46% — all while maintaining water efficiency. Cooling the AI Infrastructure of the Future As AI continues to push the limits of computational scale, innovations in cooling will be essential to meeting the thermal management challenges of the post-Moore’s law era. NVIDIA is leading this transformation through initiatives like the COOLERCHIPS program, a U.S. Department of Energy-backed effort to develop modular data centers with next-generation cooling systems that are projected to reduce costs by at least 5% and improve efficiency by 20% over traditional air-cooled designs. Looking ahead, data centers must evolve not only to support AI’s growing demands but do so sustainably — maximizing energy and water efficiency while minimizing environmental impact. By embracing high-density architectures and advanced liquid cooling, the industry is paving the way for a more efficient AI-powered future. Learn more about breakthrough solutions for data center energy and water efficiency presented at NVIDIA GTC 2025 and discover how accelerated computing is driving a more efficient future with NVIDIA Blackwell.

Whether at sea, land or in the sky — even outer space — NVIDIA technology is helping research scientists and developers alike explore and understand oceans, wildlife, the climate and far out existential risks like asteroids. These increasingly intelligent developments are helping to analyze environmental pollutants, damage to habitats and natural disaster risks at an Read Article

Whether at sea, land or in the sky — even outer space — NVIDIA technology is helping research scientists and developers alike explore and understand oceans, wildlife, the climate and far out existential risks like asteroids. These increasingly intelligent developments are helping to analyze environmental pollutants, damage to habitats and natural disaster risks at an accelerated pace. This, in turn, enables partnerships with local governments to take climate mitigation steps like pollution prevention and proactive planting. Sailing the Seas of AI Amphitrite, based in France, uses satellite data with AI to simulate and predict ocean currents and weather. Its AI models, driven by the NVIDIA AI and Earth-2 platforms, offer insights for positioning vessels to best harness the power of ocean currents. This helps determine when it’s best to travel, as well as the optimal course, reducing travel times, fuel consumption and carbon emissions. Amphitrite is a member of the NVIDIA Inception program for cutting-edge startups. https://blogs.nvidia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/amphitrite-suez-canal.mp4 Watching Over Wildlife With AI München, Germany-based OroraTech monitors animal poaching and wildfires with NVIDIA CUDA and Jetson. The NVIDIA Inception program member uses the EarthRanger platform to offer a wildfire detection and monitoring service that uses satellite imagery and AI to safeguard the environment and prevent poaching. Keeping AI on the Weather Weather agencies and climate scientists worldwide are using NVIDIA CorrDiff, a generative AI weather model enabling kilometer-scale forecasts of wind, temperature and precipitation type and amount. CorrDiff is part of the NVIDIA Earth-2 platform for simulating weather and climate conditions. It’s available as an easy-to-deploy NVIDIA NIM microservice. In another climate effort, NVIDIA Research announced a new generative AI model, called StormCast, for reliable weather prediction at a scale larger than storms. The model, outlined in a paper, can help with disaster and mitigation planning, saving lives. Avoiding Mass Extinction Events Researchers reported in Nature how a new method was able to spot 10-meter asteroids within the main asteroid belt located between Jupiter and Mars. Such space rocks can range from bus-sized to several Costco stores in width and deliver destruction to cities. It used NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), which was tapped for views of these asteroids from previous research and enabled by NVIDIA accelerated computing. Boosting Energy Efficiency With Liquid-Cooled Blackwell NVIDIA GB200 NVL72 rack-scale, liquid-cooled systems, built on the Blackwell platform, offer exceptional performance while balancing energy costs and heat. It delivers 40x higher revenue potential, 30x higher throughput, 25x more energy efficiency and 300x more water efficiency than air-cooled architectures. NVIDIA GB300 NVL72 systems built on the Blackwell Ultra platform offer a 50x higher revenue potential, 35x higher throughput with 30x more energy efficiency. Enroll in the free new NVIDIA Deep Learning Institute course Applying AI Weather Models With NVIDIA Earth-2. Learn more about NVIDIA Earth-2 and NVIDIA Blackwell.

Gold prospecting in Venezuela has led to a malaria resurgence, but researchers have developed AI to take a bite out of the problem. In Venezuela’s Bolivar state, deforestation for gold mining in waters has disturbed mosquito populations, which are biting miners and infecting them with the deadly parasite. Venezuela was certified as malaria-free in 1961 Read Article

Gold prospecting in Venezuela has led to a malaria resurgence, but researchers have developed AI to take a bite out of the problem. In Venezuela’s Bolivar state, deforestation for gold mining in waters has disturbed mosquito populations, which are biting miners and infecting them with the deadly parasite. Venezuela was certified as malaria-free in 1961 by the World Health Organization. It’s estimated that worldwide there were 263 million cases of malaria and 597,000 deaths in 2023, according to the WHO. In the Venezuelan outbreak, the area affected is rural and has limited access to medical clinics, so detection with microscopy by trained professionals is lacking. But researchers at the intersection of medicine and technology have tapped AI and NVIDIA GPUs to come up with a solution. They recently published a paper in Nature, describing the development of a convolutional neural network (CNN) for automatically detecting malaria parasites in blood samples. “At some point in Venezuela, malaria was almost eradicated,” said 25-year-old Diego Ramos-Briceño, who has a bachelor’s in engineering that he earned while also pursuing a doctorate in medicine. “I believe it was around 135,000 cases last year.” Identifying Malaria Parasites in Blood Samples The researchers — Ramos-Briceño, Alessandro Flammia-D’Aleo, Gerardo Fernández-López, Fhabián Carrión-Nessi and David Forero-Peña — used the CNN to identify Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax in thick blood smears, achieving 99.51% accuracy. To develop the model, the team acquired a dataset of 5,941 labeled thick blood smear microscope images from the Chittagong Medical College Hospital, in Bangladesh. They processed this dataset to create nearly 190,000 labeled images. “What we wanted for the neural network to learn is the morphology of the parasite, so from out of the nearly 6,000 microscope level images, we extracted every single parasite, and from all that data augmentation and segmentation, we ended up having almost 190,000 images for model training,” said Ramos-Briceño. The model comes as traditional microscopy methods are also challenged by limitations in accuracy and consistency, according to the research paper. Harnessing Gaming GPUs and CUDA for Model Training, Inference To run model training, the malaria paper’s team tapped into an RTX 3060 GPU from a computer science teacher mentoring their research. “We used PyTorch Lightning with NVIDIA CUDA acceleration that enabled us to do efficient parallel computation that significantly sped up the matrix operations and the preparations of the neural network compared with what a CPU would have done,” said Ramos-Briceño. For inference, malaria determinations from blood samples can be made within several seconds, he said, using such GPUs. Clinics lacking trained microscopists could use the model and introduce their own data for transfer learning so that the model performs optimally with the types of images they submit, handling the lighting conditions and other factors, he said. “For communities that are far away from the urban setting, where there’s more access to resources, this could be a way to approach the malaria problem,” said Ramos-Briceño.

NPR explores the latest in games and gaming culture — from the latest digital titles to what's on our tabletops.

The newest Fatal Fury fighting game will include a curious choice of playable characters, including soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo and Bosnian-Swedish DJ Salvatore Ganacci.

The newest Fatal Fury fighting game will include a curious choice of playable characters, including soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo and Bosnian-Swedish DJ Salvatore Ganacci.

Music can change a person's entire gaming experience. That's the case with South of Midnight, now available on Xbox. Juana Summers talks to the game's composer about how his vision came to life.

Music can change a person's entire gaming experience. That's the case with South of Midnight, now available on Xbox. Juana Summers talks to the game's composer about how his vision came to life.

There are 25 new additions to the Library of Congress collection. They include albums by Elton John, Miles Davis, Amy Winehouse, and the original cast recording of Hamilton.

There are 25 new additions to the Library of Congress collection. They include albums by Elton John, Miles Davis, Amy Winehouse, and the original cast recording of Hamilton. (Image credit: Amy Sussman)

Studios have struggled to get younger generations into the theaters for years. Could more immersive experiences be their golden ticket?

Studios have struggled to get younger generations into the theaters for years. Could more immersive experiences be their golden ticket? (Image credit: Courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures)

Nintendo canceled U.S. preorders for the Switch 2 after President Trump announced sweeping global tariffs. We discuss the challenges facing the console release with Nintendo of America President Doug Bowser.

Nintendo canceled U.S. preorders for the Switch 2 after President Trump announced sweeping global tariffs. We discuss the challenges facing the console release with Nintendo of America President Doug Bowser. (Image credit: Nintendo)

The video game industry is huge. Last year alone it generated an estimated $187 billion dollars in revenue.

But it's also facing a host of serious issues: massive layoffs, the advent of A.I., games that take years to be released, and a schism between big and small developers.

This week's Reporter's Notebook takes us inside this evolving industry with NPR's Vincent Acovino, who recently covered the annual Game Developer's Conference in San Francisco.

For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

The video game industry is huge. Last year alone it generated an estimated $187 billion dollars in revenue. But it's also facing a host of serious issues: massive layoffs, the advent of A.I., games that take years to be released, and a schism between big and small developers. This week's Reporter's Notebook takes us inside this evolving industry with NPR's Vincent Acovino, who recently covered the annual Game Developer's Conference in San Francisco. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

We played hours of Nintendo Switch 2 games the same day President Trump announced new global tariffs. Despite the hefty price tag, it's a solid evolution of one of the world's most popular consoles.

We played hours of Nintendo Switch 2 games the same day President Trump announced new global tariffs. Despite the hefty price tag, it's a solid evolution of one of the world's most popular consoles. (Image credit: NPR)

At the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, indie studios showed off ambitious games made by small development teams.

At the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, indie studios showed off ambitious games made by small development teams. (Image credit: Annapurna Interactive, Mighty Yell)

Assassin's Creed Shadows, out Thursday, might be big enough to reverse Ubisoft's crumbling fortunes. But the game faces headwinds.

Assassin's Creed Shadows, out Thursday, might be big enough to reverse Ubisoft's crumbling fortunes. But the game faces headwinds. (Image credit: Ubisoft)

Game studios have cranked out surprising hits ranging from cooperative platformers to historical epics. NPR staff and contributors round up the latest from a promising 2025.

Game studios have cranked out surprising hits ranging from cooperative platformers to historical epics. NPR staff and contributors round up the latest from a promising 2025. (Image credit: Hazelight Studios, Capcom, Obsidian Entertainment)

Games. Culture. Criticism.

The code for “A Game About Digging A Hole” we got from PressEngine didn’t work. We tried reaching out to the publisher through PressEngine and got no response. We tried reaching out to PressEngine and got no response. We even sent a DM to one of the people who created […]

The code for “A Game About Digging A Hole” we got from PressEngine didn’t work. We tried reaching out to the publisher through PressEngine and got no response. We tried reaching out to PressEngine and got no response. We even sent a DM to one of the people who created PressEngine and got no response. PressEngine shows us as having received code and we are obligated to cover it, yet we never got a code that worked and could not get in touch with anyone to resolve it. So, I created this post and submitted it to PressEngine’s automated coverage page as a way of trying to show that we did our due diligence and were unable to proceed. I guess the lesson here is that limiting and automating all avenues of PR contact might not be the most effective idea.

In this episode, Brad covers: Promise Mascot Agency – REVIEW Starless Abyss Steredenn: Binary Stars – REVIEW Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 …And more! You can also hear the show on iTunes and Spotify! Please send feedback and mailbag questions to SoVideogamesPODCAST (at) gmail (dot) com, or post them in the comments section below. Thanks!

HIGH Addictive gameplay loop, fast action, slick controls.

LOW Backtracking. Some major gameplay elements need better explanations.

WTF If I time travel, shouldn’t my tech be shockingly over/underpowered based on where I go?

I Could Sure Use A Break From Reality HIGH Addictive gameplay loop, fast action, slick controls. LOW Backtracking. Some major gameplay elements need better explanations. WTF If I time travel, shouldn’t my tech be shockingly over/underpowered based on where I go? Is there anything less satisfying than defeating an enormous mob or particularly fearsome boss, only to see a bunch of trash scatter out from the death throes, instead of the lovely loot one was expecting? What if there were a game that understood the plight of players plagued by terrible loot and allowed players to say “No thank you, I’d prefer something else.” What if it also allowed players to alter enemies on the fly or rewrite dialogue, allowing the narrative to progress in a different direction? Dream no more, fellow gamers, for it now exists in the form of the new space flight ARPG/SHMUP called Reality Break. The game tells the story of an unsuccessful mercenary pilot escaping from raiders by the skin of their teeth. With their ship damaged and funds at a minimum, our hero limps to a local starbase where a friend awaits with an offer to snag a piece of ancient technology from a mysterious region. After acquiring the “Fate Core”, the player gains the ability to reconfigure reality, adding boosts and upgrades to equipment, as well as changing events at key points. Luckily, our hero won’t have to go it alone. Friendly scientists and starbase commanders aid the journey by offering missions and technology, snarky ship-based AI provides intel on enemies, and there’s a voice in the player’s head giving cryptic advice about the fate of the universe… Reality Break is a fast-paced action roleplayer/loot collection roguelike. The gameplay loop is simple, but addicting and effective. The player begins by warping to a mission area, exploring that portion of the galaxy from a top-down perspective, destroying enemies, completing objectives, and finding a ludicrous amount of loot along the way, which allows for new and powerful weapons to destroy tougher enemies, which then completes more objectives, which earns more loot, and so on. Between sorties, the player returns to a hub area to buy and sell items, purchase upgrades (things like equipping drones or repairing damage more quickly) and learn more about the Fate Core — Reality Break‘s biggest hook. For example, let’s say I found an item that was too large to fit on my ship’s frame but does a staggering amount of damage. I could use the Fate Core to rewrite the item, making it small enough to fit my ship. Or, say I encountered an unbeatable enemy during a story mission. I could rewrite enemy dialogue, allowing me to skip the battle (at least, for the time being.) It’s a tricky thing to understand at first — and frankly, the tutorials could explain things better — but after a few missions, it becomes second nature. It doesn’t stop there, though — Reality Break offers even more customization. Using the Fate Core allows players to change the difficulty of play, as well as the amount and rarity of loot that can be obtained. At certain points in the narrative, the player completely breaks from the timeline and gains access to “Reality Points” which are spent on permanent upgrades that bend things even further, although in order to maximize the effect, the player might have to end their current run and being a new one with the changes in place — it is a roguelike, after all. On the plus side, Reality Break lets players skip all previous dialogue and gets to the good stuff faster on later runs, but those not used to this kind of structure may find it offputting. Otherwise, the controls in Reality Break are tight and the ship is incredibly responsive, there’s a ton of stuff to blow up at any time, and there’s loads of post-game content, including the ability to unlock the “proper” ending which will take… some time. Reality Break is simply a blast to play and fight/loot/repeat loop is incredibly satisfying, wheter it’s the first run or the fifth. For fans of roguelikes, shoot’em ups or original ideas, this is one break definitely worth taking. Rating: 8 out of 10 Buy Reality Break: PC Disclosures: This game is developed and published by Element Games, LLC. It is currently available on PC. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the PC. Approximately 18 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was completed. There are no multiplayer modes. Parents: This game is not rated by the ESRB. The game features simulated ship-to-ship combat in space. There are instances of humans implicitly being killed in the aftermath of an explosion, but no explicit violence takes place. The word S### is used sparingly in dialog (I saw it once). I’d be fine letting kids play this. Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available. Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: This game offers subtitles. The subtitles cannot be altered and/or resized. All audio cues have an accompanying visual cue. Some enemies spawn with a distinctive sound and begin attacking immediately. The visual cue for this is perhaps a split second after the sound, but there’s no notable effect on gameplay because of this. While the subtitles cannot be altered, the game HUD can be moved and resized. I’d say this is fully accessible. Remappable Controls: Yes, this game offers fully remappable controls.

HIGH Interesting visuals.

LOW The arena combat sections.

WTF Uploading your daughter's consciousness into AI seems like a bad idea.

To Sneak, Or Not To Sneak? HIGH Interesting visuals. LOW The arena combat sections. WTF Uploading your daughter’s consciousness into AI seems like a bad idea. Hi everyone! Eugene Sax here with another review from GameCritics.com. If a floating robot woke me up a thousand years in the future and told me I needed to use my father’s research to defeat a rogue AI in order to save the world, I’d be… concerned. Ironically, this wild nightmare scenario is exactly where players find Zoe, the star of Steel Seed, and Earth’s survival hangs in the balance. Steel Seed is a stealth action-adventure where player control Zoe as she tries to restore a technology-ravaged Earth. With her drone friend Koby, they’ll sneak around the world to find pieces of her father’s research that will wake up the surviving humans who are currently in stasis and lead them back to prosperity. This tale of humanity versus robotics is a common one, and unfortunately, there wasn’t anything particularly interesting here to make it stand out. In terms of gameplay, players will run, glide, and stealth their way around a robot army and titanic mechs eager to end humanity. They’ll mostly be platforming and using Koby to remotely trigger switches. Combat can be handled a couple of different ways. If players can sneak up behind an enemy, they can perform a stealth attack that will kill most foes instantly. If players are caught in the open, Zoe has an electric sword and can defend herself if needed, though players don’t have a lot of health, so it’s better to stay in stealth when possible. Koby can chip in as needed by throwing mines or shooting energy blasts to deal damage or knock off enemies into an abyss. This is a good, basic foundation, but the problem is neither stealth nor combat feel enjoyable. For starters, the stealth is hard to engage with and it doesn’t make a lot of sense. If players are controlling Zoe, enemies aggro to Zoe, not to Koby, so it feels so strange to have an enemy staring directly at Koby, and yet they’re never alarmed. Also, most currency comes from defeating enemies, so players will have to stealth kill frequently instead of ever sneaking past to avoid combat. Players can control Koby and aggro enemies, but Koby drops so quickly that he doesn’t provide much assistance on his own outside of platforming. As for the combat itself, Zoe isn’t as powerful and Steel Seed is punishing if players get caught out. Zoe dies in two or three hits from most enemies, and even after some damage, health, and special move upgrades, Zoe still feels underpowered, even against basic enemies. This is especially problematic in the later portions of the campaign when there’s often no stealth option and players must be in open combat from the start. Koby’s not much help, either — he uses a shared ammo pool for all of his powers that doesn’t refill over time, it’s possible to hit a money crunch and not have enough cash to load him back up for the next skirmish. Aesthetically, I did enjoy exploring Steel Seed‘s world. From the lava filled foundry to the oil ocean beneath a titanic driller mech, there is some impressive screenshot material here and there’s a good amount of exploration and openness in each area without being overwhelming, but not so much that returning to find collectibles feels like a chore. While it’s got some nice aspects, especially the visuals, Steel Seed feels like it never reaches its full potential because it can’t decide between being a stealth or combat experience, and ends up being great at neither. For me, Steel Seed gets 5 titanic robot attacks out of 10. Buy Steel Seed — PC Disclosures: This game is developed by Storm in a Teacup and published by ESDigital Games. It is currently available on PC. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the PC. Approximately 10.5 hours of play were spent playing the game, and the game was completed. There are no multiplayer modes. Parents: This game is not rated by the ESRB. Players will use an energy blade to sneak up and attack robot enemies, as well as using their android partner to shoot energy bolts and mines at enemies as well. Enemies will attack the player with the same weapons. Defeated enemies will dissolve into particles, but there is no gore, and no foul language in the game. Zoe is in a tight-fitting suit, but no skin below the face is shown. Colorblind Modes: There are colorblind modes. Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: There is text in-game, but the text is resizable. Audio is not needed for gameplay. The game is fully accessible. Controls: Controls are fully remappable.

The past few years have demonstrated a disturbing trend in game development — the rise of generative AI. Developers have used advanced software to generate background art and dialogue, though it’s not always popular among players.

The past few years have demonstrated a disturbing trend in game development — the rise of generative AI. Developers have used advanced software to generate background art and dialogue, though it’s not always popular among players. Generative AI just isn’t the same and nowhere as good as carefully-crafted content coming from real, live human beings who pour their blood, sweat and tears into something. AI isn’t skilled at emulating the conversation flow between people, resulting in robotic and clunky dialogue. The visuals often have a generic and telltale ‘look’ to them that lacks soul and inspiration. Computer-generated content of this kind is becoming more prevalent, and it recently hit close to home. Recently, one of my friends recommended I play The Great Rebellion, a 2D cyberpunk title he praised for its excellent music and humor. We’ve played games together for years, so I typically trust his opinion. When I went to Steam to read its reviews, a disappointing “AI-generated” content disclosure stopped me in my tracks. Though I broke down and bought the game to appease my friend, I returned it less than an hour later and got a refund. Admittedly, run-and-gun titles aren’t up my alley anyway, but I found The Great Rebellion’s graphics especially underwhelming. The developers used generative AI to create a few background images and props. While humans manually edited the graphics, they still used AI to generate that art, which left a bad taste in my mouth. Maybe I’m biased, but there’s no substitute for human-made visuals. Though I think the AI trend has gone too far, it’s unfortunately become an industry-wide reality. From Steam to Epic, the AI takeover of videogames on the market is glaringly apparent, and I wish we could return to the days of human-led ingenuity. The best gaming experiences come from developers who pour their passion and talent into projects. From Team Fortress 2 to the Grand Theft Autoseries, humans are capable of creating masterpieces. We understand nuance and emotion more than a computer ever will, so I hope people lead the way instead of abdicating our role to advanced algorithms. It only takes a cursory glance to see online stores have seemingly given their stamp of approval to low-effort, AI-generated games. For Steam specifically, the change came in January 2024 when it announced a policy allowing such content. Since then, the Steam homepage has become flooded with AI-tinged content. Players can easily find titles with AI disclosures in the “featured” and “recommended” sections. The platform even promotes them through special events and sales. For example, my Steam homepage suggested the game Stellaris when its ninth season recently became available. Like other content nowadays, this title included a dreaded AI disclosure: “We employ generative AI technologies during the creation of some assets. Typically, this involves the ideation of content and visual reference material. These elements represent a minor component of the overall development. AI has been used to generate voices for an AI antagonist and a player advisor.” The developer can describe AI as a “minor component,” but voiceover work is significant. Using a computerized voice means a human doesn’t get paid to put their time and talents into the project. I also felt bamboozled by Nintendo, as it’s traditionally been among the world leaders in original game creation. Last year, the company said it would not rely on technology alone to achieve its content goals when discussing generative AI. Still, one look at the eShop tells me that AI is part of their priorities despite not having disclosures on their games. Bimfli & His Time Travels: Japan has AI-generated artwork and dialogue boxes that feel less authentic than human-created art. Unfortunately, the eShop’s AI train doesn’t stop there. Now, computer-generated content has joined forces with shovelware games to create truly awful content for the Switch. Ecchi games are all over Nintendo’s online store, and their suggestive AI artwork isn’t something I want kids — especially mine — to see when they search the eShop. Bimfli is only available on Nintendo consoles, which raises doubts about the company’s quality control. Exclusive titles can often be representative of a console’s library, which makes me wonder who’s responsible for monitoring the eShop and whether Nintendo will eventually crack down on AI-generated content. As much as I love Nintendo, my loyalty will only go so far if they continue to enable AI like this. At the very least, I’d like to see them put a disclosure on the titles. While Steam and Nintendo are seemingly tiptoeing around the issue, Sony might be the worst offender. In a recent interview, Asad Qizilbash, the head of PlayStation Productions, said AI will become a more significant part of its future productions. “In terms of gaming’s future, I envision games becoming more personalized due to advances in technology and AI, enabling customized experiences for each player,” said Qizilbash. He later said technological advancements will enhance emotional depth and make characters more expressive. However, those qualities are not the strengths of generated dialogue, and that sort of writing isn’t what players want. When I play, I want to feel like I’m talking to a human — not a machine like ChatGPT. So if generated content can’t measure up to something created by a human — and in my book, it can’t — then why use it at all? A common rationale for some developers is that their studio is small and they have limited resources. For example, This Girl Does Not Exist is entirely AI-generated, from voice acting to the story creation. Play entails letting users solve jigsaw puzzles and select characters from the gallery. Its developers used Midjourney to create the characters’ images after entering prompts. Besides that, not much human work was necessary for the game. Such low-effort, low-quality titles are starting to litter Steam and other distribution services, and I think it’s time to push back. The argument that AI can benefit smaller studios ultimately holds no water when larger game developers use this excuse. Sadly, many of them have resorted to AI-generated content despite the considerable resources at their disposal. I was shocked to see Activision use generative AI for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 and Black Ops 6. From banners to emblems, it’s obvious how much AI influence the esteemed Call of Duty series has had. For Black Ops 6, Activision said, “Our team uses generative AI tools to help develop some in-game assets.” Surely, a company with a $74 billion market cap could afford to expend some capital on humans and creative resources, right? In late 2024, Activision unveiled season 1 Reloaded and featured new artwork for the Christmas theme. One of the loading screens featured a zombie Santa Claus with six fingers clearly displayed toward the front of the image. I’m not the best at math, but I can count to six. Paying a real artist might have helped them avoid this embarrassing mistake. While disappointing, that wasn’t the only issue. Another loading screen depicted a hand with only four fingers, omitting the thumb. Generative AI can struggle with such artwork because of the unique shapes and the number of fingers visible in the images it trains on. I have a hard time believing a human would’ve incorrectly drawn these hands. Black Ops also used AI to create prestige icons with visible errors. For example, a zombie is holding an oddly shaped gun with no stock, and its arm appears to have multiple sleeves. Within the gameplay, there’s wall art with morphed fingers — another slip-up they could have steered clear of by hiring a person. These days, I appreciate developers’ hard work more than ever, especially those who work for indie houses. However, the rise of AI-generated content makes genuine, human-created productions much harder to find. Part of the problem lies with storefronts for promoting such titles, and part lies with the developers who use the technology. However, the consequences will be dire for nearly everyone. The ramifications start with artists and developers losing their jobs in favor of AI-generated content. Companies like Activision can and will lean on AI if it means they can cut personnel and production costs. Research indicates about 268,000 people in the U.S. work in the video game industry. Then, we must consider those working in Japan and other integral locations. What will they do if they get laid off? While some may find different roles in their company, others might have to leave the industry entirely. Therefore, we won’t get to benefit from some of the best creative minds in the business. In 2025 and beyond, companies will rely on fewer employees to get the job done. The Game Developers Conference (GDC) quantified the layoffs in its annual report, and the numbers aren’t pretty. The report said 11% of game developers were laid off in the past 12 months, and 41% said the layoffs impacted their teams. Unfortunately, nearly 60% of respondents said they were concerned about more reductions in 2025. While some developers can find another spot in the industry, others have left entirely. Recent stories have shown former employees going back to school or working in the restaurant business. In other words, they’ve been kicked out of their desired field due to reduced budgets and the AI takeover. Even those who keep their jobs have already seen their efforts suppressed as they take a back seat to computer-generated content. The GDC’s report said one in three developers are using generative AI to streamline game development. One-third of the process is a big deal, as somebody will be pushed out of the process to favor AI-powered software. While we should fear the future of AI in gaming, it’s becoming worse right now. Fifty-two percent of the surveyed developers said their company has implemented generative AI. What’s worse? About 36% of them use AI tools in some capacity. 41% of developers said the technology has spread to production and team leadership. However, those affected won’t only be our friends and family who work in game development — AI impacts all life on Earth. For example, companies require significant energy usage for their computers and the massive datasets that power generative AI. When developers increase their usage of this technology, they burn more fossil fuels and strain existing energy grids. Therefore, more greenhouse gases enter the atmosphere, raise surface temperatures and adversely affect food and agriculture. Industry leaders must realize how much energy standard game development requires. For example, generating images uses as much energy as charging your smartphone. Despite this, we’re seeing developers increasing their AI usage nearly across the board. The data centers AI models rely on already consume about 4.4% of all U.S. electricity, and experts say AI’s energy demands will grow by 50% each year until 2030, so stopping the rise of this technology goes beyond game development. Limiting or eliminating the use of AI will benefit the environment through a lower carbon footprint. So, how can we prevent it from taking over the industry entirely? It starts with listening to experts who have worked with AI and game development. Gamers like me are cynical about the generative AI trend in video games, but industry professionals are also raising the alarm. Chris Knowles, whose past work includes Runescape, told the BBC that indie developers are less enthusiastic about AI because of cloned games. People are becoming smarter and discovering how to copy another person’s creation using AI-powered software. It’s not yet possible with just AI, but the days are coming soon. “Anything that makes the clone studios’ business model even cheaper and quicker makes the difficult task of running a financially sustainable indie studio even harder,” he said. The video game industry is at a crossroads, and I hope it chooses the correct path. AI-generated content isn’t worth the hype because it devalues the product and will likely cost hardworking people their jobs. Human-created content has worked for over four decades, so I see no reason to stop using it. Generative AI gave us This Girl Does Not Exist, Oasis and Genie 2, while hands-on developers produced unforgettable experiences like Super Mario Odyssey, Portaland Red Dead Redemption. For myself and for the industry, I know which path I’d rather go down. — Jack Shaw

Welcome to This Is Not A Review. In these articles we discuss general impressions, ideas and thoughts on any given game, but as the title implies, it’s not a review. Instead, it’s an exercise in offering a quick recommendation (or dismissal) after spending enough time to grasp the ideas and gameplay of a thing without necessarily playing it from A to Z. The subject of this installment: Pathologic 3: Quarantine, developed by Ice-Pick Lodge and published by HypeTrain Digital.

Welcome to This Is Not A Review. In these articles we discuss general impressions, ideas and thoughts on any given game, but as the title implies, it’s not a review. Instead, it’s an exercise in offering a quick recommendation (or dismissal) after spending enough time to grasp the ideas and gameplay of a thing without necessarily playing it from A to Z. The subject of this installment: Pathologic 3: Quarantine, developed by Ice-Pick Lodge and published by HypeTrain Digital. The original Pathologic is a survival experience that challenged players to withstand twelve days in a small town of the Great Steppe that’s been wracked by a deadly (and possibly sentient) plague. The task is to contend with infection, obviously, but also with the societal decay that such an epidemic invites, all while searching for a possible cure and making difficult choices about whose lives to prioritize along the way. It’s survival horror in perhaps the most literal sense and a singular experiment in storytelling through mechanics and systems. The premise is unique enough that the series’ trajectory since has been to revisit and expand upon the same setting and themes. Pathologic 2 was essentially a remake of the first entry, and it’s one of the best games I’ve ever played, but it only features one of the original three playable characters. Developer Ice-Pick Lodge originally intended to add the other two as DLC, but that project appears to have grown into yet another standalone entry in the series. So, later this year we’ll be returning to the Steppe once again in Pathologic 3 to see how the updated engine affects the Bachelor’s side of the story. In the meantime, a free prologue, subtitled Quarantine, serves as an appetizer. A full Pathologic campaign takes a couple dozen hours to complete and adheres to its own schedule, allowing players to largely travel where they want, when they want, even if it means missing key story events. Quarantine, which takes only a couple of hours of complete, is a much more rigidly guided experience. We’re given pieces of the story as we jump to various points on the timeline — before, after and during the outbreak — and we’re introduced to some new mechanics that differentiate the Bachelor’s path from that of the Haruspex in the previous entry. Since the Bachelor is a doctor, his methods are more scientific than those of the Haruspex, who divines by examining entrails. As such, the standout sequence of Quarantine has us diagnosing patients by compiling lists of symptoms through both interviews and physical examination, giving us a glimpse of how we might save lives in this particular rendition of Pathologic. The rest of Quarantine reminds me of the shortform Marble Nest that was released in the lead-up to Pathologic 2. Many of the strengths of the full game are evident here — particularly the script’s sharp wit, bolstered by an exceptional translation — but they feel somewhat muted without the chance to see Pathologic‘s systems evolve and interact on a large scale over an extended period of time. Pathologic being fatiguing is part of the experience, and it’s something we just don’t get in a prologue that can be completed in a single sitting, which is why it’s hard to judge Quarantine as a complete work. Given that it’s short and free, though, it’s worth a look for anyone interested in Pathologic 3, if only as a vibe check — and if the third entry is successful enough, perhaps we’ll finally be able to play as the Changeling again in a prospective Pathologic 4. Play Pathologic 3: Quarantine now for free – PC

HIGH The sound design rocks.

LOW So many bugs.

WTF Those zombies dressed as pigs standing still, doing nothing.

In A World of Trash, Be The Dumpster Fire HIGH The sound design rocks. LOW So many bugs. WTF Those zombies dressed as pigs standing still, doing nothing. Dead Trash is another post-apocalyptic game. I say another because there are elements here that could promise a more thrilling experience, but Dead Trash ends up being an unremarkable work — and that’s fine. It doesn’t seem to be trying for something exceptional, just a simple FPS, and if that’s its premise then it succeeds… although just barely. Dead Trash is a retro first-person shooter and reminds us of when the genre emerged, so it’s with nostalgia that we can observe 2D objects in 3D space and experience the entire campaign with little rendering, seeing almost everything pixel by pixel. It clearly takes inspiration from titles like the very first Doom or Wolfenstein 3D, and like these classic games, Dead Trash also tries to recreate an oppressive atmosphere with thrilling shooting against enemies who deserve to be shot. In this case, anarchist gangs and zombies in a chaotic, post-apocalyptic world where our character needs to survive in ruined suburbs filled with crumbling houses and abandoned streets brimming with trash and nuclear waste. This effort is named Dead Trash because many of the items we must pick up, like medicine and ammunition, are in trash bags, and trash bags are everywhere. Every street and corner has trash bags, and this is not mere decoration of degraded society, but a constant supply of items needed to progress. The controls in Dead Trash are good. We can’t lock on to targets, but the aim is stable and the hitboxes are reliable. However, controls are just a basic starting point in crafting an FPS experience and many other aspects don’t feel up to snuff. For example, the shooting distances are completely off (pistols have the range of a sniper rifle) and the cover system is awful — often when we hide behind wooden boxes or stone columns, enemy bullets pierce through and hit us). These details can be frustrating, and bring down the experience. Also, enemy variety is disappointing and few of the foes are memorable. The difficulty curve is dizzying, and we’ll regularly end up in areas full of enemies jumping and shooting. It’s a little rough, but what can really add frustration at times is darkness — particularly in the first area — and the way that enemies that hide in it and take potshots from miles away. It’s common to arrive in an area where enemies are shooting and we don’t know where the shots are coming from. Since the cover system doesn’t work most of the time, this brings the entire FPS experience down a notch. I understand that the developers used darkness as an element to increase suspense, but, it’s more accurate to say that it’s an impediment to enjoyment. On the other hand, I found the level design good. The campaign is linear, but each section leaves room for a bit of exploration that is rewarded with healing items, new weapons, keys to hidden paths, and weird encounters. I’d also say that the overall pace of play is solid, and the soundtrack is easily the best thing in Dead Trash, adding haunting and spooky ambiance for a more thrilling experience. Dead Trash is in an early phase and needs to be polished with updates. It still has many bugs, like when our character dies it doesn’t trigger a game over screen, and sometimes the reload doesn’t happen and we need to press many buttons hoping for a reaction or, ultimately, we just have to restart. Plus, I’ve been stuck in two areas, enemies get bugged on some objects (like tires and pillars) and they don’t crouch to pass through small tunnels, as their bodies get caught. However, this review is based on the official launch version, so we can only hope that improvements will come. Although rough around the edges, Dead Trash is exactly what it sounds like — a dumpster fire of suspenseful moments, shooting, and post-apocalyptic death everywhere. For those who are feeling nostalgic and need something short and edgy, Dead Trash might be the ticket as long as expectations are tempered. Buy Dead Trash – PC Rating: 5.5 out of 10 Disclosures: This game is developed by Crowhill Studios and published by DOSMan Games. It is currently available on PC. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the PC. Approximately 4 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was completed. There are no multiplayer modes. Parents: As of press time, this game was not reviewed by the ESRB. This game contains violence and presents visceral themes with horror moments. It’s about killing people and monsters by shooting fire guns and using hand weapons. Although the game is very pixelated, we can still see the blood, bodies exploding and hear the screams of suffering. This game is not recommended for kids below 10 years old. Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available. Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: There is no dialogue in this game, and the only text that appears is in the transitions between levels, where we have a comic book style transition. These texts cannot be altered or resized. Playing the game without sound can be challenging, because there are sound cues that alert us that an enemy is approaching in the darkness. If we don’t hear these sounds, we can’t anticipate enemies, and our gameplay has to be slower and more cautious. In this sense, it is not fully accessible. Remappable Controls: Yes, this game offers fully remappable controls.

When I played Slay the Spire and Into the Breach for the first time, I knew each one would exert major influence, and that many devs to come would offer their own spin on the mechanics canonized in these titles. What I didn’t expect, however, was that developers would take these two very different games and fuse them together. However, the Tactical Roguelite Deckbuilder is here to stay.

When I played Slay the Spire and Into the Breach for the first time, I knew each one would exert major influence, and that many devs to come would offer their own spin on the mechanics canonized in these titles. What I didn’t expect, however, was that developers would take these two very different games and fuse them together. However, the Tactical Roguelite Deckbuilder is here to stay. Starless Abyss is the first title from Amsterdam-based Konafa Games. It’s an interesting, maximalist, messy take on this young sub-genre, larded with systems and ideas and quirks, all held together by a viscous peritoneum of star-encrusted Lovecraftian cosmic pulp. The Starless story, so far, has not grabbed me, but for context — players assume the role of a starship pilot who’s been shunted into another dimension, in the hopes that they can save the galaxy from encroaching monstrous cosmic entities. They do this by proceeding through a series of encounters (events, shops, and combat) in the hopes of beating back the Outer Gods and their rogues gallery of degenerate invertebrates. Combat is the main course here, and while the easy shorthand would be to say “Into the Breach with a deck,” that doesn’t quite encompass the unique flavor imparted by the many concepts and mechanics laid on top, tucked underneath, and squeezed into all the little gaps of that framework. To jump to a more terrestrial metaphor, what we have here in Starless Abyss is some good ol’ fashioned Lasagna Game Design, with many layers to consider during each encounter. The setup will be familiar to those who know the genre — enemies position themselves and telegraph an attack, then the player takes their turn before the attacks land. Players control a squad of three spaceships which can all move once, but all other actions are dictated by cards drawn from a single shared deck and played from a shared hand. Any ship can use as many cards as desired, as long as the player has energy to use them. Each ship has multiple stats — health, shield, movement points, a heat gauge, artifact slots for specialized buffs, and sometimes innate special properties, once the player buys or finds better ships than the basic beater. A ship called the Brawler, for instance, gets a bonus to all damage, but reduces the maximum range of all attacks to two hexes. The field of battle, a hex grid, presents additional considerations, like debris fields that cost extra movement to enter, but provide a damage reduction to any ship within them. When a corporeal (as opposed to a phantasmal) enemy is killed, it leaves a massive smear of starbeast offal where it dies, blocking line of sight. There’s also a strong board game influence here. Throughout the run, players acquire “D.I.C.E.,” which are dice used during non-combat events. Unlike Spire, where the outcome of an event is simply a matter of clicking on the choice desired, Starless Abyss choices can fail — playing a high enough D.I.C.E. (D.I.E.?) will guarantee success, but lower-value D.I.C.E. will only yield a 50% chance of gaining the desired result. I’m still wrapping my head around the way Starless Abyss’s multiple systems mesh, but I can detect sweet, nourishing tactical density here. Mechanics aside, this project has obviously been made with love. The visuals are just great, with blocky, saturated, chunky pixels barrel-aged in a very fine bowling alley carpet color palette featuring blossoms of purple, eructations of neon green, and powder-white nebulae foliating against violet-black expanses speckled with stars and tentacles. There’s too much in Starless Abyss for me to render a verdict at this early stage, but I can safely say that anyone who vibes with this sub-genre should be paying attention to this thing. It’s an Abyss worth gazing into. Buy Starless Abyss – PC

HIGH An excellent upgrade of a beloved PS1 classic!

LOW A bit too faithful to the decades-old original.

WTF One boss is a merger of a lizard and a cactus?!

Crocs Really Can Jump! HIGH An excellent upgrade of a beloved PS1 classic! LOW A bit too faithful to the decades-old original. WTF One boss is a merger of a lizard and a cactus?! It was 1997 when Croc: Legend of the Gobbos made waves as one of the most noteworthy 3D platformers on Sony’s PlayStation 1 console. As a member of the “gamers-in-midlife-crisis” category, I actually have memories of playing the original release back in the day, though Croc 2 pulled me in more — and fingers crossed that one gets a revamp too! Now, almost three decades after the fact, the little light-green crocodile that likes to exclaim “Ker splat!” when doing a tailwhip is back with an improved control scheme, the same selection of awesome tunes, tons of behind-the-scenes content, and… the same discouragingly high difficulty. So, those who are old enough or retro enough to already be familiar with Croc know what to expect from the remaster — it’s the exact same game, save for the removal of tank controls that have been replaced with a far more intuitive control scheme. This time around, Croc actually goes where we point the analog stick — a crazy concept back in 1997! As for newcomers, Croc: Legend of the Gobbos Remastered features the titular character who aids the tribe of Gobbos (small furry creatures who raised him as their own) by standing in the way of Baron Dante’s evil plans to conquer all of Forest Island. To do so, Croc has to complete a handful of jumping-challenge oriented stages spaced across four distinctive biomes. Croc: Remastered’s presentation is fitting given the setting — the cute, colorful theme immediately put me in a good mood, and I also cherished that all of the extra content is unlocked from the get-go. Players can freely inspect a hefty opus of developer video interviews, sketches of the potential (but never realized) Croc TV show, listen to the soundtrack, or check what types of merchandise and other promotional material were produced to bolster the original release. As a result, even those who come across Croc for the first time will instantly get a good sense of how big a deal the game was back in ’97. More importantly, they will also find out why it remains beloved to this day. In my opinion, Croc: Legend of the Gobbos is one worthy of being called a classic — it’s not just an old title that gets a free pass due to being a member of a dying breed. Even in 2025 (albeit, thanks to the greatly improved and modernized control scheme) controlling Croc is infectiously entertaining. Clearing chains of increasingly-difficult platforming sections is satisfying due to the healthy amount of challenge present throughout, and there’s a varied scope of enemies, too. Some move in obvious patrolling routes (like bees and worms) while others hold their ground and wait for Croc to make the mistake of landing just in front of them – then they fire a magic blast! Similar to the ‘rings’ system in Sonic the Hedgehog, Croc can carry up to 100 diamonds in his backpack, and if he gets hit, they spill in all directions. He might not get them all back, but he can grab at least a few before they disappear forever. Of course, getting struck while no diamonds are on Croc’s person will result in loss of a life, but collecting 100 more diamonds grants us another chance. Croc can also scour the levels to find extra lives, although they do tend to remain well hidden. While Croc has a lot going for it, especially for those who can enjoy the games of previous generations, it’s not a total home run. For instance, most of the bosses are far too simple to be memorable, and a good chunk of the later levels rest on a “trial-and-error” philosophy, practically forcing the player to fail once or twice before finally making it through — though to be fair, none of the levels overstay their welcome. It’s also worth noting that for a game ostensibly created with younger audiences in mind, the set of challenges needed to unlock the ‘real’ ending is far too much. During the endgame, the final pickup of the stage is usually locked inside an elaborate challenge map that must be completed as fast as possible, and we are only given a single try to do so. If we do not reach the goal in time, we cannot attempt the challenge again unless we opt to replay the entire level from scratch. Needless to say, this puts an immense amount of pressure on the player as the final levels are no joke. Thankfully, completing these gauntlets is not necessary to roll credits. In addition, Croc‘s four biomes don’t merely introduce a new color coating — they all come with fundamental characteristics and ‘flavors’, making exploring them a joy. For instance, the snowy levels make controlling Croc much more difficult due to slippery, frozen surfaces, while the last biome (by far the best one, in my opinion) hides the most diverse set of stages, adding ‘haunted castle’ ideas into the mix beautifully. All in all, Croc: Remastered is a lovingly crafted, updated version of a high-quality 3D platformer that should please players even without the nostalgia factor. While there are no gameplay changes or new levels, the phrase “if it ain’t broken, don’t fix it” holds true here. Rating: 8 out of 10 Disclosures: This game was developed by Argonaut Games and published by Titanium Studios. It is currently available on Switch, PS4/5, XBO/X/S, and PC. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the Switch Lite. Approximately 5 hours of play were devoted to the game, and it was completed 100%. This is a single-player-only title. Parents: This game has received an E rating by the ESRB and contains Mild Fantasy Violence. Croc: Legend of the Gobbos was definitely made to attract younger players, but some of its challenges are quite… challenging. It’s pretty standard platforming hop-and-bop stuff except for the steep difficulty at times. Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available. Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: There is no written or recorded dialogue in this game — all characters are anthropomorphic animals who communicate via pointing and physical contact. Remappable Controls: This game offers a controller diagram, but the controls cannot be altered. The control scheme is very intuitive, though, with the analog sticks controlling movement and the camera, and the face buttons are for jumping and attacking.

HIGH Clever level design. Throwback one-bit style. Unsettling sci-fi and horror elements.

LOW Missed opportunities for world-building, wonky controls, tedious trial and error gameplay.

WTF No mouse controls whatsoever?

Intriguingly Monotonous HIGH Clever level design. Throwback one-bit style. Unsettling sci-fi and horror elements. LOW Missed opportunities for world-building, wonky controls, tedious trial and error gameplay. WTF No mouse controls whatsoever? At first glance, REPOSE could be mistaken for an untouched classic CRPG, as it’s rendered in starkly monochromatic one-bit graphics with a square aspect ratio. Upon further observation, there’s a lot more going on than one would find in a stock dungeon crawler from the ’80s. This title offers a creepy, Giger-esque art style, leagues of claustrophobic, labyrinthine corridors, gameplay that demands careful management of one’s stamina and an oppressive atmosphere established by the crestfallen NPCs, all of whom work for a sinister, mysterious corporate entity — “The Company.” The player’s job is grim but simple — Gather oxygen tanks from dead employees whose corpses can be found collapsed on the floor, sitting mutilated in office chairs or hanging from cables throughout the Company’s space station. The tutorial turns out to be a dream from which the player wakes, only to find themselves sitting in a booth at a cafe an NPC named Cynthia. She informs the player that she also works for the Company, and it’s clear from her dialogue that the Company is some sort of spacefaring mega corporation with a penchant for placing profit over people, much like Weyland-Yutani in the Alien universe. The original Alien’s iconic tagline, “in space, no one can hear you scream,” could just as easily be applied to REPOSE as the player sets forth from the bustling cafe and descends into the desolate lower levels where they will find a host of humanoid monstrosities – all the more horrifying for their indeterminate features with cables writhing around like tentacles. With such threats lurking around every corner waiting to one-shot the player, they must be careful to take their journey one step at a time – literally. Like the classic OG dungeon crawlers REPOSE was inspired by, the player assumes a first-person perspective and moves by taking one step after another (rather than fluid movement) which might feel archaic to players who unfamiliar with the genre, or nostalgic to those who grew up playing such games. In an interview with DreadXP, Hungarian developer Bozó Attila Bertold explained how REPOSE started out as a sword and sorcery game in the same vein as the genre-defining dungeon crawler, Wizardry, but gradually, it felt more natural to change tack and make it sci-fi/horror-themed which is also reflected in his art. However it’s not just an homage piece, as some mechanics work differently than one might expect. For instance, while the combat is as simple as can be, stamina does not exist in the traditional sense. Rather than losing and recovering stamina as one does in many modern games, the player has a specified number of steps they can take (pivoting to look in a different direction does not count) before they hear a radio-like screech and they collapse. It’s crucial to mind this mechanic, as it forces the player to carefully plan their route ahead of time based on what they learned from their last venture. One might say that REPOSE‘s greatest challenge is making the most out of every move. One way that players can recover stamina is by drinking flasks of tea which can sometimes be found between areas, but these do not allow the player to save. It’s only once the player manages to make it to the next bed (they serve as checkpoints) that they can replenish their stamina and save their progress. The beds are often spread out between 40 and 50 paces away from each other so as to offer a variety of ways that the player can go about reaching the next bed, but sometimes, the player has far less steps to work with and must think carefully to figure out what the most efficient route is. Often, the route to the next bed is blocked by obstacles or doors that must be opened elsewhere, and sometimes, opening the right door can create a shortcut back to a bed from earlier in the campaign, allowing the player to have more steps to work with. Inevitably, the player will die many times before they find the way forward, so they must be careful not to lose their save codes as REPOSE will not autosave or autoload — saving is done the old-fashioned way by physically writing down a code somewhere, or by taking a screenshot. This could be infuriating for some, but it does add to the sense of retrofuturism by being required to ‘input a code’ as an ’employee’ of the company. With that said, this feature can also be turned off, if one so chooses. While these nods to retro sensibilities will be well-received by the right players, one of REPOSE‘s most polarizing features may be its maze-like level design. I was often struck by how much thought and effort must have gone into the layouts as the paths I took wound around, up, down and back to somewhere ages before. However, impressive as it was, it didn’t take long before I lost my sense of where I was supposed to go and with it my motivation to continue the cycle of trial and error. Something I was irked by was there was no option to rebind controls to the mouse. Personally, I would have preferred right clicking over having to hold a button for the windup attack as that felt less natural to me. Navigating menus or submenus is also inconsistent, alternating between WASD and the arrow keys, which isn’t a big deal, but it does seem strange to not have chosen to pick one or the other. While I didn’t finish REPOSE, I did make it far enough to have unraveled some of the mysteries surrounding the Company, and it’s all fairly interesting — but I also felt that there could’ve been more opportunities for engagement with the NPCs and the lore that appeared in a few areas. My attention did start to wander at times and perhaps more of a story hook would have boosted that engagement. Overall, I enjoyed visiting the world of REPOSE because I appreciate the retro look and feel, but the gameplay loop of stomping around looking for oxygen tanks, running out of stamina and respawning at the last bed before venturing out again is more tedious than it is challenging. I’m sure there’s plenty of wandering left to do and there are more questions to be answered, but I’ll leave the Company to its devices and the corpses of its employees undisturbed. Rating: 6 out of 10 Buy Repose – PC Disclosures: This game was developed and published by Bozó Atilla Bertold and published by Akupara Games. The game is currently available only on PC. It was obtained via publisher and reviewed for PC. Approximately 1.5 hours were devoted to the campaign mode. The game was not finished. There is no multiplayer mode. Parents: This game is not rated by the ESRB, but if it were me, I would rate it T for disturbing imagery and violence. The player will find dead NPCs in different stages of decomposition and have to kill or be killed by various weapons. Colorblind Modes: The presentation is strictly black and white which makes it colorblind-friendly. Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: The dialogue is all text-based and the gameplay does not rely on audio cues making it fully accessible. Remappable controls: The keybindings are remappable, but there’s no option to rebind to mouse controls.

Fixes, Tutorials and Guides for Games

Minecraft is a popular sandbox video game enjoyed by millions worldwide, but it seems like Minecraft Launcher Error Code 0x87e5003a is giving headaches to a wide range number of fans. If you are facing this error, don’t worry; this guide will walk you through some proven methods to fix it and get you back to […]

The post Minecraft Launcher Error Code 0x87e5003a: Try These Fixes appeared first on Games Errors.

Minecraft is a popular sandbox video game enjoyed by millions worldwide, but it seems like Minecraft Launcher Error Code 0x87e5003a is giving headaches to a wide range number of fans. If you are facing this error, don’t worry; this guide will walk you through some proven methods to fix it and get you back to your block-building adventures. What is Minecraft error code 0x87e5003a? When encountering the Minecraft Launcher Error Code 0x87e5003a, users are often met with a pop-up error message indicating that the game failed to start, accompanied by the error code. This particular error code emerges and presents the gamer with the following message: “This game is already running. If you just quit the game, it should be ready to launch again in a moment”. While this could potentially be a passing glitch, more often than not, this generally indicates that the ability to partake in the game will remain unavailable even following a waiting period. How can I fix Minecraft Launcher Error Code 0x87e5003a? Check the live status Force closing the game Use an old Minecraft Launcher Reinstall Minecraft 1. Check the live status Open a web browser on your device. In the search bar, type Minecraft server status or a similar query and press Enter. From the search results, select a reliable website or service that offers real-time or updated information about Minecraft server status. Popular options include Minecraft Server Status or Mojang Status. On the chosen website, you may need to enter the server address (IP address or domain) you want to check. Click on the Check or Submit button to initiate the server status check. The website will then provide you with details about the server’s current status, whether it’s online, offline, or experiencing any issues. Review the information presented on the website to understand the current status of the Minecraft server. It might also display additional details about server performance and any ongoing incidents. If you want to cross-reference the information, you can also check official Minecraft community forums, social media accounts, or other community-driven platforms for updates on server status. 2. Force closing the game Time needed: 2 minutes It seems like forcing closing any active related instances is one of the best solutions to get rid of our today’s issue. Use the following keyboard shortcut: Windows + X Choose Task Manager. Make sure you’re in the Processes tab. Search for Minecraft or Minecraft Launcher, then select it, and click on the End task button. Restart your PC or console and check if you managed to get rid of the Minecraft Launcher Error Code 0x87e5003a. 3. Use an old Minecraft Launcher If the error persists on your display, you might consider utilizing the previous version of the Minecraft launcher. If you lack familiarity with this option, you can access the Minecraft alternatives to acquire comprehensive details, along with discovering alternative Minecraft launchers. 4. Reinstall Minecraft Hit the Windows key, then type Control Panel, and open the first result. Under the Programs section, choose to Uninstall a program. Locate and click on Minecraft in the list of installed apps, then click on the Uninstall button, just as we show you with the LoL example in the picture below. Follow the on-screen prompts to remove Minecraft from your system. After uninstalling, open the Microsoft Store and search for Minecraft. Click on the Install button to download and install Minecraft again. Once the installation is complete, launch the game to see if the error is resolved. Related articles: Minecraft Won’t Update: How to Force it to Update Properly Minecraft Packet Loss: How To Fix & Avoid It For Good Minecraft Error Code Creeper: Fix It Effortlessly Minecraft Error 403: How To Fix It Using Quick Solutions Minecraft Exception_Access_Violation 0xc0000005: How To Fix By following the methods mentioned in this guide, you should now be able to fix the Minecraft Launcher Error Code 0x87e5003a. Now, you can dive back into the fascinating world of Minecraft and enjoy your adventures without any hindrance. Happy gaming! In case you encounter any additional questions, feel free to leave a comment in the dedicated section below. The post Minecraft Launcher Error Code 0x87e5003a: Try These Fixes appeared first on Games Errors.

Fortnite has captivated millions of players with its exciting gameplay and vibrant world. However, encountering errors, like Fortnite Error code 0, can be frustrating and disrupt your gaming experience. It seems like this error is pretty popular among worldwide users, so have no fear! There are plenty of solutions to fix it without effort. In […]

The post Fortnite Error Code 0: Fix It Now appeared first on Games Errors.

Fortnite has captivated millions of players with its exciting gameplay and vibrant world. However, encountering errors, like Fortnite Error code 0, can be frustrating and disrupt your gaming experience. It seems like this error is pretty popular among worldwide users, so have no fear! There are plenty of solutions to fix it without effort. In this comprehensive guide, we will walk you through various troubleshooting steps to help you fix Error 0 and get back to the Battle Royale action. How can I fix the Fortnite error code 0? Before getting into our main solutions, we recommend trying these fast fixes: Check your system specifications to see if it is meeting at least the minimum requirements to run the game. Because this error might occur due to missing or corrupted files, you should verify the integrity of game files in Epic Games Launcher. Now, in case you didn’t manage to solve the problem, move to the following solutions: Check the game server status Update the game Reset network settings Temporarily disable your antivirus software or any unnecessary apps 1. Check the game server status Navigate to the official Epic Games status website and check if the Fortnite status is Operational. You can also try to visit the official Fortnite social media channels and search for any notifications pertaining to server downtime or scheduled maintenance. If there’s a server issue, you may need to wait until it’s resolved. In the meantime, you can follow Fortnite’s social media for updates. 2. Update the game Open your Epic Games Launcher client. From the bottom left window pane, choose Settings. Go to the Manage Games section, then ensure to checkmark the box next to the Allow Auto-Updates option. Expand the menu for Fortnite, then make sure it has its Auto-update box checked. 3. Reset network settings Time needed: 3 minutes Resetting your network settings seems to be one of the most efficient solutions to fix Fortnite error code 0. Use the following keyboard shortcut to open Windows Settings: Windows + I. From the left window pane, click on the Network & Internet option. Then, look at the right side of the window and choose Advanced network settings. Now, navigate to Network reset. Once you reach the new window, click on the Reset now button. In the pop-up window, confirm the process by clicking on Yes. Wait a bit, then restart your PC. 4. Temporarily disable your antivirus software or any unnecessary apps Simultaneously press these keys: Windows + X. Select Task Manager from the pop-up menu. Make sure you’re in the Processes tab. Select each app/program you don’t necessarily need, then choose to End task. The error code 0 in Fortnite could refer to a variety of issues, such as problems with game files, network connectivity, or other technical glitches. Some users might suggest disabling antivirus software as a way to rule out the possibility that the antivirus is interfering with the game’s functionality. Related articles: How to Make Fortnite Run Better on PC: 7 Expert Tips to Try Fortnite This Client is Not Compatible: Why & How to Fix Fortnite Successfully Logged Out: Fix It in 3 Minutes Fortnite Unexpected Error Occured on Xbox: How to Fix Fortnite Update Stuck at 100% Xbox One [Easy Fix] Fortnite Error code 0 can be a minor setback, but with the troubleshooting steps provided in this guide, you should be able to fix the issue and jump back into the action-packed world of Fortnite. The below comment section is dedicated to you, so make sure you use it in case of having any other related questions or curiosities. The post Fortnite Error Code 0: Fix It Now appeared first on Games Errors.

Fortnite is a highly popular and addictive online battle royale game played by millions of players worldwide, but the 0xc0000005 error seems to sometimes generate headaches among fans. Like any other software, it can encounter various errors and issues that disrupt the gaming experience. The 0xc0000005 error is one of the most common occurrences for […]

The post Fortnite 0xc0000005 Error: Try These Fixes appeared first on Games Errors.

Fortnite is a highly popular and addictive online battle royale game played by millions of players worldwide, but the 0xc0000005 error seems to sometimes generate headaches among fans. Like any other software, it can encounter various errors and issues that disrupt the gaming experience. The 0xc0000005 error is one of the most common occurrences for some players. If you’re facing this error while trying to play Fortnite, don’t worry! This guide will walk you through several troubleshooting steps to help you resolve the issue and get back into the game. What is error code 0xc0000005 in games? Error code 0xc0000005 is a common Windows error that can occur when running various applications, including games. This error is officially known as the Access Violation error and indicates that an application attempted to access a memory address that it was not allowed to access. In simpler terms, it means that a program tried to read or write to a memory location that it doesn’t have permission to use, resulting in a crash or termination of the application. There are several reasons why this error can occur in games: Corrupted Game Files: If some game files are corrupt or missing, the game may try to access an invalid memory location, triggering the 0xc0000005 error. Outdated or Incompatible Drivers: Graphics drivers, audio drivers, or other hardware drivers that are outdated or incompatible with the game can lead to memory access issues. Faulty RAM: Problems with your computer’s RAM (Random Access Memory) can cause memory access violations in games, resulting in the error code 0xc0000005. Third-Party Software Interference: Certain third-party software, such as antivirus programs or system optimizers, may interfere with the game’s memory allocation and cause access violation errors. Compatibility Issues: Some games may not be fully compatible with certain versions of Windows or specific hardware configurations, leading to access violation errors. How can I fix the error code 0xc0000005 in Fortnite? Before going deeper into the main solutions, we suggest first ensuring these quick steps: Check if your system meets at least the minimum requirements to run Fortnite. Verify the game files on Epic Games Launcher, by using our expert guide. Now, if none of the above options worked, let’s discover some additional solutions you can try to get rid of the Fortnite 0xc0000005 Error. Update your drivers Run an SFC scan Scan PC with Windows Defender Disable third-party software 1. Update your drivers Time needed: 5 minutes Simultaneously hit the Windows and X keys, then choose Device Manager from the shown menu. Now, look for the Disk drivers section, then double-click on it. Once the section is expanded, right-click on the needed component, then choose to Update driver. Now, choose to Search automatically for drivers (Just as we show you in the example below). Wait until the process is completed, then check if our today’s issue is gone. 2. Run an SFC scan Hit the Windows key, type cmd, then choose to Run as administrator. In the opened window, type the following code, then press Enter: SFC/scannow Because the process might take a while, we recommend being patient until it is completed. 3. Scan the PC with Windows Defender Navigate to Windows Settings by using this keyboard shortcut: Windows + I. Go to Privacy & Security, then to Windows Security. Choose Virus & threat protection. Scroll down until you see the Current Threats option, then choose to perform a Quick Scan. You can also go for Scan options. There, you’ll find multiple alternatives from which you can choose. Initiate the scanning process. After completion, restart your system and follow additional instructions for virus removal in case any is detected. Then, run Fortnite and check if you’ve managed to get rid of the 0xc0000005 error. 4. Disable third-party software Open Task Manager by pressing simultaneously the following keys on your keyboard: Ctrl + Shift + Esc. There, make sure you’re in the Processes tab. Then, look for any app or program you don’t necessarily need or use while running Fortnite, and choose to End Task. Related articles: How to Make Fortnite Run Better on PC: 7 Expert Tips to Try Fortnite Successfully Logged Out: Fix It in 3 Minutes Fortnite This Client is Not Compatible: Why & How to Fix Fortnite Unexpected Error Occured on Xbox: How to Fix Encountering the Fortnite 0xc0000005 Error can be frustrating, but armed with the right troubleshooting steps, you can swiftly overcome this hurdle and get back to the exhilarating world of Fortnite. In case of facing any additional questions, feel free to use the comment section listed below. The post Fortnite 0xc0000005 Error: Try These Fixes appeared first on Games Errors.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (MW3) is a cornerstone of the CoD franchise, offering intense multiplayer action and a gripping campaign. However, the gaming experience can sometimes be ruined by various errors, one of which is the notorious Dev Error 12502. This technical problem can stop players in their tracks, leaving many to wonder […]

The post How to Fix Dev Error 12502 in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 appeared first on Games Errors.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (MW3) is a cornerstone of the CoD franchise, offering intense multiplayer action and a gripping campaign. However, the gaming experience can sometimes be ruined by various errors, one of which is the notorious Dev Error 12502. This technical problem can stop players in their tracks, leaving many to wonder about its nature and, more importantly, how to fix it. In this guide, we’ll explore what Dev Error 12502 is and provide you with reliable methods to get you back into the action as swiftly as possible. What is Dev Error 12502 in MW3? Dev Error 12502 is a common issue that players of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 might encounter. This error generally signifies a problem related to the game’s files or settings that prevents it from running smoothly. It can be triggered by a variety of factors, including corrupted game files, outdated graphics drivers, or incorrect game settings. How Can I Fix MW3 Dev Error 12502? To resolve Dev Error 12502 and restore your gaming experience, consider the following preliminary solutions: Run the game as an administrator Close unnecessary background tasks Repair the game files Table of contents 1. Update the game 2. Adjust Your System’s Paging File Size 3. Disable Game Overlays 1. Update the game Updating your game is a crucial step in resolving MW3 Dev Error 12502, as developers often release patches to fix bugs and improve game performance. Here’s how you can ensure that Modern Warfare 3 is up to date: Open Your Game Launcher: Begin by launching the platform you use to play MW3, such as Steam, Battle.net, or your console’s home screen. These platforms typically manage game updates automatically. Navigate to Your Game Library: In your game launcher, locate your library or list of owned games. Here, you’ll find Modern Warfare 3 among your collection. Check for Updates: Highlight Modern Warfare 3 and look for any prompts or options indicating an available update. Launchers like Steam and Battle.net display update statuses directly on the game’s library entry. For consoles, selecting the game usually prompts an update check. Initiate the Update Process: If an update is available, you’ll typically see an “Update” button or similar. Click or select this to start downloading the update. On consoles, updates may start automatically upon selecting the game or may require you to confirm the update. Wait for the Update to Complete: Download and installation times will vary based on the update’s size and your internet connection speed. Ensure the process completes without interruption. On PC, avoid using other bandwidth-intensive applications to speed up the download. Launch the Game: After the update is installed, open MW3 to check if Dev Error 12502 has been resolved. Updated game versions often include fixes for common errors and might resolve your issue directly. Keeping MW3 and your game launcher updated ensures you have the latest content and fixes. If automatic updates are disabled in your launcher, consider enabling them to automatically receive these improvements in the future. 2. Adjust Your System’s Paging File Size Adjusting your system’s paging file size can be an effective way to fix MW3 Dev Error 12502, especially if the error is related to insufficient system memory. Follow these detailed steps to adjust your paging file size for Windows: Press Windows Key + R: This will open the Run dialog box. In the box, type sysdm.cpl and press Enter. This command opens the System Properties window. Navigate to Advanced System Settings: Once the System Properties window is open, click on the “Advanced” tab. Here, you’ll find performance, user profiles, and startup and recovery options. Access Performance Settings: Under the Performance section, click on “Settings” to open the Performance Options window. This window allows you to adjust various settings related to your computer’s performance. Modify Virtual Memory: In the Performance Options window, switch to the “Advanced” tab, and then click on “Change” under the Virtual memory section. Virtual memory is where your computer supplements its physical RAM by temporarily storing data on the hard drive. Adjust Paging File Size: By default, the “Automatically manage paging file size for all drives” option is selected. Uncheck this box to manually adjust the paging file size. Then, select the drive where your game is installed (typically the C: drive). Set Custom Size: After selecting the drive, choose the “Custom size” option. Here, you will input the initial size (MB) and maximum size (MB) for your paging file. It’s recommended to set the initial size to the amount of RAM your system has and the maximum size to double the amount of RAM. However, these values can vary based on your system’s specifications and the requirements of the game. Apply and Set: After entering your custom sizes, click on “Set” and then “OK” to apply the changes. You may be prompted to restart your computer for the changes to take effect. Restart Your Computer: Save any open files and close all applications, then restart your computer. This will ensure that the changes to the virtual memory settings are properly applied. Launch the Game: Once your computer has restarted, try launching MW3 again to see if the Dev Error 12502 has been resolved. Adjusting the paging file size can help accommodate games that require a lot of memory, like MW3, especially if you’re running several applications simultaneously or have limited RAM. If you’re unsure about the best settings for your system, it’s a good idea to consult Windows’ recommendations in the Virtual Memory window or seek advice from a knowledgeable source to avoid system instability. 3. Disable Game Overlays Disabling game overlays can significantly improve game performance and potentially resolve MW3 Dev Error 12502. Many gaming applications provide overlays that offer convenient features like FPS counters, instant messaging, and live streaming, but they can also cause conflicts or use valuable resources. Here’s how to disable the most common game overlays: For Nvidia GeForce Experience: Launch Nvidia GeForce Experience: Open the GeForce Experience application on your computer. Access the Settings: Click on the gear icon in the upper right corner to go to the settings. Disable In-Game Overlay: Find the “In-Game Overlay” option and toggle it off. This will disable the overlay that GeForce Experience provides in games. For Discord: Open Discord: Start the Discord app on your PC. Go to User Settings: Click on the cog icon near your username at the bottom left to access settings. Navigate to Overlay Settings: Select “Overlay” in the App Settings section. Toggle Off the Overlay: Ensure the “Enable in-game overlay” option is toggled off to disable Discord’s game overlay. For Steam: Open Steam: Launch the Steam client. Access Settings: Click on “Steam” in the upper left corner, then “Settings”. Find the In-Game Settings: Go to the “In-Game” tab in the settings menu. Disable the Steam Overlay: Uncheck the box labeled “Enable the Steam Overlay while in-game”. For Xbox Game Bar (Windows 10/11): Open Settings: Press the Windows key and type “Settings”, then press Enter. Navigate to Gaming: Click on “Gaming” to access the game bar settings. Go to Xbox Game Bar: Select “Xbox Game Bar” from the side menu. Toggle Off: Ensure the “Enable Xbox Game Bar for things like recording game clips, chatting with friends, and receiving game invites” is set to Off. For AMD Radeon Software: Launch AMD Radeon Software: Open the software through your desktop or search function. Access the Settings: Look for the gear icon or a similar settings menu. Disable Overlay: Find the overlay option and toggle it off to disable AMD’s overlay feature. After disabling these overlays, restart your game to see if Dev Error 12502 persists. Turning off these features can not only solve compatibility issues but also free up resources for a smoother gaming experience. If you’re not using a particular overlay feature, keeping it disabled during gameplay is generally a good practice. Conclusion Tackling Dev Error 12502 in Modern Warfare 3 feels a bit like detective work, doesn’t it? You’ve got your list of potential problems—outdated game versions, mischievous system settings, those sneaky overlays—and it’s all about patiently ruling them out one by one. The key is to keep calm and troubleshoot on, starting with the basics like ensuring your game is up to date, then maybe diving into the more techy stuff like tweaking your virtual memory settings if needed. And, if you ever feel lost, remember that Activision’s official support is like the detective’s handbook, always there to guide you with the latest insights. By methodically following these steps, you’re not just trying to fix an error; you’re ensuring your gaming setup is as robust as can be, ready for uninterrupted action. Here’s to smoother gaming ahead! The post How to Fix Dev Error 12502 in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 appeared first on Games Errors.

The Call of Duty series has been a staple of the first-person shooter genre, offering players intense combat scenarios and a rich, narrative-driven experience. However, like any complex games, it’s not immune to technical problems. One such issue that has been a thorn in players’ sides is the MW3 Dev Error 5433, especially within the […]

The post MW3 Dev Error 5433: How To Fix It Easily appeared first on Games Errors.

The Call of Duty series has been a staple of the first-person shooter genre, offering players intense combat scenarios and a rich, narrative-driven experience. However, like any complex games, it’s not immune to technical problems. One such issue that has been a thorn in players’ sides is the MW3 Dev Error 5433, especially within the game’s zombie mode.. This error can abruptly halt your gaming session, leaving you searching for solutions. What is Dev error 5433 in Modern Warfare 3? Dev Error 5433 in Modern Warfare 3 typically indicates an issue within the game’s system that prevents it from operating correctly. Such errors usually relate to problems with game files, graphics settings, system configurations, or compatibility issues with hardware or drivers. How to fix Dev error 5433? To fix Dev Error 5433, try disconnecting and then reconnecting your internet connection. This quick fix has helped some users, although it may not be a long-term solution. Additionally, run the game as an administrator and remove unnecessary background tasks. Table of contents 1. Verify the game files 2. Update the game 3. Update Windows & Drivers 4. Set Game Priority to High 5. Optimize your internet connection 1. Verify the game files Corrupted game files are a common cause of MW3 Dev Error 5433. Regularly checking the integrity of your game files can help prevent this issue. Here’s a simplified process: Open your game launcher and locate the executable file for MW3. Right-click on the file and choose “Properties.” Navigate to the “Local Files” tab within the Properties window. Select the option to “Verify the integrity of game files.” Allow the launcher to check and repair any corrupted files. Restart your game after the verification process to see if the error has been resolved. This method ensures your game files are intact and can often clear up errors related to file corruption. 2. Update the game Ensuring your game is up to date is another key strategy in resolving MW3 Dev Error 5433. Game developers frequently release updates that fix bugs and errors. Follow these steps to update the game: Open the game launcher (like Steam, Battle.net, or the console’s home screen). Navigate to Modern Warfare 3 in your game library. Look for any available updates. If there’s an update option, select it to initiate the update process. Wait for the update to download and install, which may take some time, depending on the size of the update and your internet speed. Once the update is complete, launch the game to see if the error persists. Keeping the game updated ensures you have the latest fixes and game improvements, potentially resolving the Dev Error 5433 and enhancing your gaming experience. 3. Update Windows & Drivers Keeping your operating system and drivers up-to-date is crucial for fixing MW3 Dev Error 5433. Updates often include patches for software bugs that could be causing the error. Here’s how to go about it: Update Windows: Go to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update, and click on “Check for updates.” Install any available updates and restart your computer. Update Drivers: Specifically, your graphics card drivers should be kept up to date. You can do this by visiting the manufacturer’s website (e.g., NVIDIA, AMD, Intel) and downloading the latest driver for your model. Alternatively, you can use the device manager in Windows to check for driver updates. These updates can enhance system compatibility and performance, potentially resolving the Dev Error 5433 in MW3. 4. Set Game Priority to High Adjusting the game’s priority to high in your system’s task manager can potentially resolve MW3 Dev Error 5433 by allocating more system resources to the game. Here’s a simplified guide: Launch Modern Warfare 3. Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open the Task Manager. Go to the “Details” tab, find the game process (it might be listed as ModernWarfare3.exe or something similar). Right-click on the game process, hover over “Set priority,” and then select “High.” This action tells your computer to prioritize MW3’s operations over less critical processes running in the background, which could smooth out performance issues and mitigate the dev error. 5. Optimize your internet connection Optimizing your internet connection can play a critical role in preventing MW3 Dev Error 5433, especially in online play where a stable connection is vital. Here’s how to ensure your internet is in the best shape for gaming: Wired Connection: If possible, use a wired connection instead of Wi-Fi. Ethernet connections are generally more stable and offer faster speeds. Restart Your Router: Simply turning your router off for a minute and then back on can refresh your connection and improve stability. Limit Bandwidth Usage: Ensure no other devices are using the network for bandwidth-heavy tasks like streaming or downloading large files while you play. Update Router Firmware: Check your router’s manufacturer website for firmware updates that can improve performance and security. Adjust Game’s Bandwidth Settings: Some games allow you to limit how much bandwidth they use. Lowering these settings can make your connection more stable. Use a Gaming VPN: A VPN designed for gaming can sometimes reduce ping and packet loss by routing your traffic more efficiently than your ISP. Contact Your ISP: If you consistently have connection issues, your Internet Service Provider (ISP) may be able to help optimize your connection or troubleshoot problems on their end. By following these steps, you’re not just addressing Dev Error 5433 but also enhancing your overall online gaming experience. Fixing Dev Error 5433 on PS5 Restart Your PS5: Sometimes, a simple restart can clear temporary glitches causing the error. Check for Game Updates: Ensure MW3 and your PS5 system software are up to date. Go to the game on your dashboard, press the options button, and select ‘Check for Update.’ Rebuild Database: Boot your PS5 in Safe Mode and select the ‘Rebuild Database’ option. This can fix issues without deleting your data. Reinstall the Game: If the error persists, try uninstalling and then reinstalling MW3. This can resolve corrupted game data issues. Improve Internet Connection: Use a wired connection if possible and restart your router to ensure a stable online experience. Adjust PS5 Settings: Some users find that tweaking network settings or restoring default settings in the PS5 can help. These steps target the common causes of Dev Error 5433 on PS5, focusing on system and game software health, as well as network stability. Conclusion Navigating through the annoyance of Dev Error 5433, whether on PS5 or PC, requires a mix of system checks, game updates, and internet optimization. Each suggested solution targets a potential root cause, from software glitches and outdated files to unstable network connections. Implementing these fixes not only aims to resolve the specific error but also enhances the overall gaming experience by ensuring your system and network are optimized for performance. Remember, persistence is key; if one solution doesn’t work, move on to the next until you find the right fix for your situation. Happy gaming, and may your sessions be error-free! The post MW3 Dev Error 5433: How To Fix It Easily appeared first on Games Errors.

Many believe that Gaming and Esports industry has taken a hard hit as the offices reopened after COVID-19, and the downfall of this industry has begun. While we can say this about just the Esports industry, the Gaming industry is still booming, and if you are wondering how big it is, you can have a […]

The post Gaming vs. Movie Industry Revenue: Striking Revenue Gap Revealed appeared first on Games Errors.

Many believe that Gaming and Esports industry has taken a hard hit as the offices reopened after COVID-19, and the downfall of this industry has begun. While we can say this about just the Esports industry, the Gaming industry is still booming, and if you are wondering how big it is, you can have a look at the comparison between the revenue generated by the Movie Industry, which is widely considered as the wealthiest entertainment sector vs. Gaming Industry. Gaming vs. Movie Industry Revenue: Which Is Bigger? Gaming vs. Movie Industry Revenue Comparison. (Image via S-GAME/Universal Pictures) As per the report by SuperData Research, the Gaming Industry was valued at $159.3 billion in 2020; however, on the other side, the Movie Industry was worth $19.1 billion, which makes the Gaming Industry around eight times bigger than the Movie Industry. Moving forward in 2022, even though the global games market took a small hit of -5.1%, as per Newzoo, it was still the second biggest entertainment industry after the TV industry as it was worth $182.9 billion and once again surpassed the revenue generated by the Movie and Music Industry combined. Global Games Market Revenue in 2022. (Image via Newzoo) Some of the highest-selling video games include Animal Crossing, GTA 5, Minecraft, Call of Duty, and more; however, mobile games had the highest percentage of revenue (around 50% in 2022, as per Newzoo) among all. The reason behind this is the portability of mobile devices and their affordability compared to other gaming devices available out there. There are a bunch of other factors that contribute to the success of the Gaming Industry in comparison to the Movie Industry. One of the biggest factors is the immersive and attractive experience games offer. Unlike watching movies, playing video games will let you control your character in the game and experience the stories as you like, making it a more immersive experience than just consuming content through eyes and ears. Apart from this, it’s a social platform that will connect players from around the world and let them make friends across countries which is not possible in movies. Even in 2023, Activision Blizzard’s Diablo 4 made over $666 Million in just five days after its launch that became their fastest-selling game till date, while on the other hand, Modern Warfare 2 grossed $1 billion in 10 days after it got released, giving us an idea on how well the industry is performing. Global Games Market Revenue Forecast till 2025. (Image via Newzoo) Not only this but as per Newzoo’s report, the Gaming Industry will be worth $206.4 billion by 2025. Thus, it is safe to say that the Gaming Industry massively dominates the Movie Industry and is only projected to grow in the coming years. Related articles: The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom: What is Different? Japanese Games VS Western Games: Understanding the Key Differences Diablo 4 Monetization: Microtransactions Discovered by Fans Diablo 4 Release: 5 Most Irritating Issues You May Encounter The post Gaming vs. Movie Industry Revenue: Striking Revenue Gap Revealed appeared first on Games Errors.

Apex Legends vs Fortnite. Which one is more popular and better? This question can arise in your mind. But, without proper analysis, it’s not possible to answer. Both of these games are known for their amazing multiplayer experience. But that’s not the complete story. We have looked far deeper than you can imagine and found […]

The post Apex Legends vs. Fortnite: Assessing Popularity in 2023 appeared first on Games Errors.

Apex Legends vs Fortnite. Which one is more popular and better? This question can arise in your mind. But, without proper analysis, it’s not possible to answer. Both of these games are known for their amazing multiplayer experience. But that’s not the complete story. We have looked far deeper than you can imagine and found many surprising facts. In this analytical article, you will learn about fantastic stats, facts, and graphics that will satisfy your curiosity. Note: We’re excited to share an excellent article comparing Apex Legends and Fortnite. Our dedicated writer spent an incredible 10 hours crafting this outstanding research piece. The extensive research and knowledge poured into this exceptional article will captivate you. Apex Legends vs. Fortnite: A complete overview of Popularity Before we dive deeper, we should have some idea about the nature of these two games: System requirements Both of these games have apparent system requirements that give us a clear idea about the optimization level of these titles. Here are the system requirements for Apex Legends: Processor: Core i3 6th Gen/AMD FX-4350 or Better RAM: 6GB Graphics Card: NVIDIA GeForce GT 640/Radeon HD 7730 Disk Space: 22 GB+ Operating System: Windows 7 or higher After knowing the required specifications, you can see that a PC with basic hardware can run Apex Legends without any problem. Even the obsolete Windows 7 OS is also compatible. Though we don’t know for how long Windows 7 support will exist. Looking at Fortnite, we can see that this game is also compatible with PCs with basic hardware. Here are the system requirements for Fortnite: Processor: Core i3 3rd Gen RAM: 8GB Graphics Card: Intel HD 4000 on PC/AMD Radeon Vega 8 Disk Space: Not specified, but maybe around 40 GB Operating System: Windows 10 64-bit or Mac OS Mojave 10.14.6 Unlike Apex Legends, Fortnite doesn’t run on Windows 7. Also, it needs more disk space. But AL needs at least 6th gen Intel core i3 processor, whereas Fortnite can be played using the older i3 3rd gen processor. In fact, gamers can play both of these titles on very basic computers with minimum GPU power. Gameplay Mechanics Although both of these titles have many similarities, some key differences have made them unique from each other. Apex Legends is a First-Person shooter game, while Fortnite is Third-Person. This characteristic has created many more contrasts, particularly in the shooting, movement, and overall game mechanics. Fortnite has a built-in defense against enemy shootings. But, in the AL, the player needs to be more skillful to protect themself from enemy shooters. The movement mechanics in Fortnite is very basic. You can easily move and play. However, in Apex Legends, a gamer must be an expert and do more to move and fight. Both of these titles with cross-platform play capacity. Also, these two are getting regular updates which improve the stability and add new features to the game. Now, at this point, AL and Fortnite are not the same compared to the time when these were released. Total number of gamers Currently, Apex Legends have a total of approximately 136 million registered accounts and 114,580,698+ active players. On the other hand, Fortnite holds an estimated around 550 million registered accounts and 234,546,282+ active gamers. We have tagged a gamer active if he/she has played the game within the last 30 days. We may not get the whole story after seeing the active players. So, we have made some very specific statistics that represent the changes in the number of total players over the years in different ways. Source: ActivePlayer.IO, EsportsDriven Total number of registered gamers over the last 4 years: Here are the data of total registered player accounts in Million since 2019: Year Apex Legends Fortnite 2019 70 250 2020 90 350 2021 100 390 2022 130 450 2023 136 550 For your convenience, we have featured a graph that gives you a clear view of the total number of players in millions on both Apex Legends and Fortnite. The number in the above graph represents the total number of registered players in both games. This statistic may not be 100% accurate as no precise data is available on the official sources. So, based on the many unofficial sources and our analysis, we have estimated these numbers. The latest data is not precisely available on any recognizable forums or sources. So, we have made our estimation for 2023’s data in some cases. Source: reuters.com, Business of Apps, Statista The number of active gamers changes every month: In the following graph, you can see the number of active players over the years in every month. It shows the trend of the popularity of Fortnite and Apex Legends. The above graph is clearly showing that Apex Legends is slowly gaining popularity. On the other hand, Fortnite is losing its place even though it’s still the most popular battle royal game and far ahead of AL. However, to understand the scene from an even closer position, you should look at the other factors featured in the next parts of this post. Peak players by year: We may see different data if we look at the number of players who are active in the peak hour. Year Apex Legends Fortnite 2020 13,093,785 191,302,008 2021 67,563,911 338,845,462 2022 99,458,463 312,730,506 2023 17,333,097 71,906,471 The following smooth line graph shows the trend of active peak players over the last three years. However, we can exclude the 2023 part, as it’s the middle of the year. The above statistic clearly shows that if we exclude 2023, the number of active peak players of Apex Legends’ is increasing. But the opposite is happening for Fortnite. This information is based on the data available on ActivePlayer.IO. We have used data till April 2023. Average time spent by players: There is no exact data available about the average time spent by players on both of these games. However, according to various unofficial sources, on average, for both Apex Legends and Fortnite, gamers spent a few hours a week on these games. In Fortnite, most of the active players spend 6-10 hours a week; on Apex Legends, it’s around 7 or 8 hours. Platform preferences: Both Fortnite and Apex Legends are available on mobile, PC, and console. If we look at Fortnite, we can see that 69% of players play it on Console, which includes both Xbox and PlayStation. The PS is the most popular platform for this title, with around 40% of gamers. 46% of the players play on smartphones, and 28% play on PC. This percentage seems wrong to you. It is because some players play this title on both PC and Console or even all of these three platforms. Apex Legends’ player count per device has not yet been released by any official or unofficial channel. So, we are unable to give you an insight. Geographical distribution for Apex Legends and Fortnite: Undoubtedly, these two games are very popular around the world. In the USA, Apex Legends has 38.92% of its total number of players; for Fortnite, it’s 21.63%. We have also collected the percentage of other mentionable countries as well. Based on it, we can easily find an estimated number of gamers playing these titles in specific countries. And we did it. After calculation, we have found the following data Country Apex Legends Fortnite USA 44M 51M UK 8.2M 12.1M Russia 6.7M 18M Brazil 6.3M 13M For your convenience, we have made the following graph. It will help to understand the popularity of these two games in the countries mentioned in the above table: We can see that both of these games are very popular in the USA. Apex’s user count is particularly closer to Fortnite in this country. So, we don’t know if Fortnite can hold its position in the United States of America in the upcoming years or not. Demographical distribution for Apex Legends and Fortnite: 62.7% of Fortnite players are young. They belong to the 18-24 years age group. The 25-34 years age group’s percentage is 22.5, and the 35-44 is 12.7. On the other hand, Apex Legends doesn’t have this many statistics available. However, according to various sources, most of the players are below 18. The 18-34 age group has a significant number of players. The Apex Legends also don’t have any clear statistics on player count based on gender. But, it is indeed a male dominant FPS multiplayer where a significant number of gamers are also female. In Fortnite, 72.4% are male players, and 27.6% are female. Source: Exploding Topics Number of tournaments and prize pools for Apex Legends and Fortnite Each year, gamers attend tournaments for both Apex Legends and Fortnite. Some of these events are official. Here are some interesting stats and graphs about these events: The total number of tournaments: According to the Esports Charts, both Apex and Fortnite had many official and unofficial tournaments. The following tables show the number of tournaments for these two games from 2019 to 2022. Year Fortnite Apex Legends 2019 58 28 2020 109 155 2021 54 268 2022 72 293 2023 7 73 The above table shows that the number of Apex Legends tournaments is increasing each year. Even as of May 2023, this game has more tournaments held compared to Fortnite. In the following column chart, we have excluded the data from 2023. It will help to compare the number of the tournament for these two games over the last few years. Source of information: Esports Chart’s Apex Legends and Fortnite page. Prize Pool: Apex Legends vs Fortnite: If we look at the total prize pool per year for these two popular multiplayer games, we find the following data: Year Apex Legends Fortnite 2019 $2.1M $51.9M 2020 $6.6M $5.24M 2021 $5.3M $5.75M 2022 $1.71M $12.62M 2023 $2.27M $0.5M We can see that the tournament prize pool is very attractive for these two games. Fortnite is ahead. But Apex Legends’ ones are also impressive. The above data is based on the information found on Esports Chart. There may be errors as no precise information is available now. Revenue and Profit Margins: Since the release of Apex Legends, EA has made over 2 billion USD revenue from this game. Fortnite is much ahead. It’s making several billion a year. Here is the list of revenue in billion for these two popular battle royal games per year: Year Apex Legends Fortnite 2019-2020 0.4 5.1 2020-2021 0.6 5.8 2021-2022 1 6 The following scatter chart will help to understand the increasing trend in terms of revenue: For this statistic, we have used information from Thcsngogiatu.edu.vn, Demand Sage, Epic Games, and Statista. We have excluded the year 2023 as no complete data is available for this year yet. There is no clear information about the profit for these two titles. However, It’s hard to determine which one is more successful in increasing revenue. According to The Verge, Fortnite made $9 billion in revenue in its first two years, which is much higher than Apex’s 2 Billion in the first three years. During that period, Battle Royal games experienced a sudden spike in popularity which is also a factor. Most popular skin and character Two of these Battle Royal games have a wide range of choices when it’s skin and characters. If we look at the Apex Legends, Pathfinder, Octane, Wraith, Bangalore, Bloodhound, and Ballistic, are the most picked characters. On the other hand, if we look at Fortnite, The Foundation, Jonesy, The Visitor, Leviathan, Midas, The Reaper Fortnite Skin, Drift, etc., are very popular. Source: Dexerto, SportsKeeda, Fiction Horizon. Most viewed and streamed content If we look at the most viewed content for Fortnite, we find Travis Scott and Fortnite Present: Astronomical (Full Event Video) as the most watched content on any platform. It has gained 204 Million views. On Twitch, Fortnite Esports (0.372M views) and Kid jerks off in the Fortnite arena (0.86M views), getting the highest views. For Apex Legends, 【悲報】釈迦、漏らす – Twitch (1.99M views), LOVE_FuryXD Dies!?! (0.46M views); these are the two most popular Twitch content. If we compare the top 3 most watched videos on Twitch related to these two battle royale games, we can see the following data: Rank Fortnite Apex Legends 1 863,669 1,984,064 2 372,305 459,372 3 351,263 331,306 For your convenience, here is the graphical representation: To get an even better idea, we can have a look at the following graph based on the average views in thousand on Twitch: The above graph shows how the average monthly view counts have changed over the last three years. We can see that since January 2020, Apex Legends’ content has gotten more average views than Fortnite. Source: twitchmetrics.net and buzzrank.io, TwitchTracker Average Time-to-Kill (TTK) and Time-to-Survive (TTS) Determining the average TTK and TTS for these two games is tricky, as these depend on several factors. For Apex Legends, killing a player with 200 HP health takes 2.7 seconds on average and 2.4 seconds for 175 HP. For Fortnite, no such information is available right now. If we look at the Time-to-Survive data on Apex Legends, it may vary from player to player. Generally, a player’s survival time can be from a few seconds to several minutes. Fortnite is from a few to 20+ minutes, depending on many things. Factors that work behind the Popularity Apex Legends: We will find some interesting facts behind the scene of Apex Legends’ popularity. These are: Surprise release and announcement: Apex Legends was launched suddenly and surprised everyone. At that time, Fortnite and some other battle royal games were going through prime time. Apex Legends was a new addition with many unique and different features. That attracted young gamers. As a result, it gained a large player base within a few weeks of its release. Influencer partnerships: EA has partnered with many influencers and streamers for Apex Legends. This battle royal game was a very attractive choice for their many followers. Free-to-play model: Since Apex Legends was launched as a free-to-play game, anyone could test this title. Therefore, this title got a considerable player base within a short time. Other factors: Else, active social media presence, developer responsiveness to the players’ feedback, in-game rewards, and the amazing gameplay mechanisms developed by Respawn Entertainment hugely contributed to Apex Legends’ popularity. Fortnite: Like Apex Legends, Fortnite also got the advantage of being a free-to-play game. Apart from this, the following factors also have a significant role in its popularity: Early access and beta testing: The Fortnite beta was released before releasing the full version. That created hype among battle-royale lovers. Celebrity endorsements: To gain more player base, Epic Games have made deals with several mentionable celebrities like DJ Marshmello, Keanu Charles, Travis Scott, and many other people. Often we saw that gamers were playing Fortnite with celebrity skins and faces. In-game events and collaborations: Fortnite held many in-game events and collaborated with many popular franchises, including Marvel, DC, Star Wars, John Wick, etc., to bring their skins, themes, and characters into the game. Community Engagement: Epic Games’ engagement with the Fortnite community effectively increased player engagement. Cross-platform: One of the coolest things is Fortnite is available on multiple platforms, and gamers can have a cross-play facility, which also has increased its popularity. Else, cultural impact and social media integration, in-game challenges, community-created content, etc., have made a huge impact on Fortnite’s popularity. Fortnite has made a huge contribution to the increasing battle royal game in the industry. Apex Legends is not too far. While Epic Games is still enjoying the benefits of owning the most popular battle royal title even in 2023, EA is making its strategy to make its title more attractive and unique. We may see many interesting changes in the upcoming years when we compare Apex Legends vs Fortnite. But, the truth is Fortnite is still the most played and popular battle royal title in the industry. The post Apex Legends vs. Fortnite: Assessing Popularity in 2023 appeared first on Games Errors.

Packet loss severely impacts Counter Strike 2 and its players globally. Experiencing high ping and packet loss while playing CS2 can lead to frustrating delays and lagging. Aware of this problem, I made this guide to show you how to fix CS 2 Packet Loss. Unfortunately, I dealt with this problem a few times since […]

The post Fix CS2 Packet Loss Easily [Simple Instructions] appeared first on Games Errors.

Packet loss severely impacts Counter Strike 2 and its players globally. Experiencing high ping and packet loss while playing CS2 can lead to frustrating delays and lagging. Aware of this problem, I made this guide to show you how to fix CS 2 Packet Loss. Unfortunately, I dealt with this problem a few times since CS:GO turned into Counter Strike 2, but the solutions below helped me fix it in no time. What causes packet loss in CS2? Playing CS2 can be incredibly frustrating if you’re experiencing high ping and packet loss. These issues can cause lag and delay, making it difficult or impossible to play the game smoothly. Various factors could cause packet loss: Server issues Slow and unstable internet connection Corrupted game files DNS server issues Too many programs running in the background How do I fix packet loss in CS2? To fix packet loss in CS2, first make sure that your internet connection works as it should without any interruptions. We recommend starting with these simple steps: Check the Counter Strike 2 service status page. If servers have issues, you must wait until the servers are fully operational. Power cycling your network device. Ensure that your internet connection is steady and without any interruptions. Check with your ISP to see if the issue is on their side of the connection or above them in the network distribution company. Verify and repair game files. If you still encounter packet loss in Counter Strike 2, apply these tips: Update your network driver Flush your DNS Use launch options for the game Use a VPN 1. Update your network driver Packet loss in CS2 may indicate that you are using an outdated network driver. I encountered this problem on one of my older devices. To fix it, update your network driver as follows: Press the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box. Type; “devmgmt.msc” and hit Enter to open Device Manager. Double-click on the Network adapters to expand. Right-click on your network card, and select Update driver. Follow the on-screen guide for installing the latest network driver. Disclaimer: We are affiliated with the following Driver Update Tool. We suggest utilizing PC HelpSoft to streamline the laborious process of updating your computer’s system drivers. This tool automates the task, guaranteeing a quicker and more dependable solution without requiring manual updates or scouring the internet for authentic drivers. ⇒PC HelpSoft 2. Flush your DNS If you are experiencing packet loss in Counter Strike 2, you can attempt to resolve the issue by flushing your DNS to clear the cache. This will remove any saved IP addresses and DNS records that may be causing connectivity issues. Follow these steps: 1. Press Win+R to show the Run dialog box. 2. Type; “cmd” and press Ctrl+Shift+Enter keys to open Command Prompt as administrator. 3. Type “ipconfig /flushdns” and press Enter. 4. Type “ipconfig /registerdns” and press Enter. 5. Type “ipconfig /release” and press Enter. 6. Type “ipconfig /renew” and press Enter. 7. Type “netsh winsock reset” and press Enter. 8. Reboot the PC, launch CS2, and check if the issue is gone. 3. Use launch options for the game Time needed: 1 minute We recommend entering commands in the game launch options that promote an efficient and stable connection to optimize the communication between your PC and the CS2 server. Open Steam launcher Right-click on the CS2 and choose Properties. Set Launch Options Enter the following command in the Launch Options: rate 128000 cl_cmdrate 128 cl_interp 0 cl_interpratio 1 cl_lagcompensation 1 Relaunch Steam Play CS2 to check if the issue is gone. 4. Use a VPN Improve your gaming experience with a reliable VPN like ExpressVPN. It can lower ping, avoid packet loss, and provide fast and stable connectivity. Choose from many servers in different countries for playing with friends online. It should be noted that a VPN can solely enhance your ping if your ISP imposes limits on your connection. 1. Download and install ExpressVPN. 2. During installation, provide your email address; you will get the code to access your ExpressVPN dashboard. 3. Click on Sign In. 4. Connect to a desired server. 5. Launch CS 2 and check if the issue is gone. Do you still have CS2 packet loss? Then, consider these extra methods: Update Windows to the latest version. Update DirectX, .NET Framework, and VCRedist. Update CS 2 Close unnecessary apps and downloads that are running in the background. Temporarily disable Windows firewall or antivirus. If you use WiFi, disable any devices that reduce your bandwidth. Use a wired connection instead of a wireless one. Use public DNS servers like Google’s. Reinstall CS2 Perform clean boot. Conclusion If you’re playing CS 2 and experiencing packet loss, it’s recommended that you first check for any server or internet connection issues. Other possible solutions include flushing your DNS, updating your network driver, using launch options for the game, disabling any unnecessary background apps, or utilizing a trustworthy VPN service. If you have any additional solutions, feel free to add them to the comments. We will test them on our devices, and add them to the list. The post Fix CS2 Packet Loss Easily [Simple Instructions] appeared first on Games Errors.

Get a Bolt of Gaming Now!

Even with a smaller team, Sandfall Interactive's critically acclaimed debut RPG puts major triple-A publishers to shame.

After the immense hype and excitement around The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered, seeing more people try Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is cathartic. Though there was concern about launching around the same time and on the same subscription service, it sold one million copies in just three days. That doesn’t even include Game Pass players, which means the overall number who are aware of and possibly enjoying Sandfall Interactive’s debut title is much higher. Not only is it the highest-rated game of the year per Metacritic, but various industry veterans have offered extensive praise. Former Dragon Age writer David Gaider says that it is to JRPGs as Baldur’s Gate 3 was to CRPGs, adding that it’s “beautiful, polished and well-written.” Danganronpa creator Kazutaka Kodaka called it an “amazing tribute to classic JRPGs,” and reminded everyone that his latest game, the also acclaimed Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy, will still be there for those who want to try it. Several fans have called out Square Enix for its abandonment of turn-based combat in Final Fantasy (though still very prevalent in franchises like Dragon Quest) and how Clair Obscur proves there are still fans of the same. After pouring some 40-odd hours into the game, ecstatically tackling the story and all the side content, at times exclaiming incredulously, “How much did they put into this,” the positive reception is heart-warming. However, it’s interesting to see the conversation shift to other topics like the development and potential influence on the industry. There’s the collective bewilderment at how such a game is even possible. How could Sandfall Interactive, composed of 33 developers (and Monoco, the Happiness Manager, who is also a dog), create something so incredible? How could an independent studio’s title rival and even surpass triple-A developers in production values, story-telling, and so on? When you compare what Expedition 33 offers, it’s easy to get annoyed at major publishers and their output. Of course, there have been further clarifications on how many people worked on the game based on the credits. About 78 other developers from other studios, including HUWIZ and QLOC have contributed in a big way. This doesn’t include performance capture, the voice cast (English and French) or even the instrumentals for the soundtrack. Essentially, the core team comprises 33 developers, but they’re not the only ones working on the game. Right away, it’s important to note the contributions of these other developers in making such an incredible title. It also highlights how important contract workers, co-development studios, and so on can be when developing a game. Just because their names aren’t front and center during the marketing or they’re not the face of the studio doesn’t mean their contributions mean any less. However, this still doesn’t take away from Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and how it’s embarrassing the industry. Why? Because major publishers are also using outsourcing and contract workers to go with massive development teams and still deliver subpar experiences. Remember Halo Infinite? Remember that ambitious ten-year plan that went nowhere? Due to Microsoft’s reliance on contractors, which it would continuously cycle out, development suffered immensely. Staffing issues were only one of the major problems that led to the alleged Breath of the Wild-style campaign transitioning into what players got at launch – which most hardcore fans agree to be a generally awful story. Then there’s Starfield, and much as I don’t want to beat a dead, bug-ridden horse, it had 500 developers spread across four Bethesda studios, not including outsourcing. What should have been a pivotal moment for the company, and the debut of a new franchise to rival its previous greats, is now forgotten with barely 4K peak concurrent players on Steam. Even the most diehard fans are growing tired of Bethesda’s general lack of communication for the future. There are numerous examples of this, but it all boils down to the fact that outsourcing doesn’t always contribute to smooth development, let alone a good game. Exceptions always abound, but there’s no denying that the so-called triple-A games industry has been lacking while smaller developers and studios have been thriving. It’s all the more stark when considering the industry’s attempts at live service games despite numerous failures. Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, MultiVersus, Star Wars: Hunters, Concord – the list goes on and doesn’t even cover the number of projects cancelled before they even saw the light of day. When a smaller developer can employ the same methods as bigger teams with much larger budgets and create incredible experiences, something has gone seriously wrong in the system. I always think back to Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier, discussing how mismanagement is a major culprit in so many games becoming so expensive, whether it’s terrible workflows, “lacking a clear creative vision,” and, my favorite, “insecure executives.” And when these games fail, the developers suffer, as seen with the closure of Monolith Productions and hundreds of layoffs in the past two years (even more recently with Electronic Arts and Respawn). If there’s any silver lining to this, games like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 exist, especially when several developers are formerly from the house that Assassin’s Creed built. A more agile team can execute its vision and deliver a story unlike any other – one that legitimately angered me with one of its plot twists, only to peel the curtain back and show how brilliant it all is. It’s also a studio with incredible art direction – even as it started with just a handful of developers tinkering with Unreal Engine 5’s assets, systems, and visual scripting, the team has delivered exceptional environments, enemies, bosses, and cinematic moments. There are obvious limits to the experience, whether it’s the scale and overall exploration possible in some environments (which, as I noted in my review, becomes more complex and ingenious as you progress) or the lip-syncing. I also feel like some elements, like the bonding system, could have used more nuance. Nevertheless, it’s such a joy to play and interact with the characters and explore the overworld for brand-new locations that are fully fleshed out and house incredible secrets to an almost mystifying degree. The fact that it can offer that without wasting your time or bogging down the narrative is also exceptional. Few games provide such a lean, focused narrative. Even fewer tack on ample amounts of side content that feel special for only $49.99. No microtransactions, advanced access or other nonsense. If anyone points to Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 as a lesson the industry could learn from, it’s only because they’re generally frustrated. If such incredible games are possible without the ample amount of hang-ups that the industry is known for, that too at a reasonable price point, then what is the triple-A industry even doing (besides appeasing shareholders)? It’s one thing to focus on graphics and push the envelope of presentation, motion capture and fidelity. However, it’s another thing to devote hundreds of millions of dollars on something because there’s no clear direction or sense of what’s happening. Silver linings, though, because even if the bigger publishers fumble, games like Clair Obscur will still emerge and prove that creativity, cohesion, and fun gameplay are what matter most.

Rockstar Games has finally ripped the bandaid off and delayed the open-world title to next year. Here's what you should know.

Almost 1.5 years after no new trailer and months of “Will they, won’t they,” Rockstar Games has made it official: Grand Theft Auto 6 has been delayed. And no, it’s not coming a month later than expected or launching in Winter 2025. It’s now set for release on May 26th, 2026, almost a full year from now. So yes, if you’re keeping score, we really did get – among many other things – a GTA 6 delay before GTA 6. In its statement, Rockstar said it was “very sorry that this is later than you expected” and thanked fans for their “interest and excitement.” It also reiterated its goal to “try and exceed your expectations” with every game released and that Grand Theft Auto 6 is “no exception.” “We hope you understand that we need this extra time to deliver at the level of quality you expect and deserve.” It looks forward to “sharing more information with you soon,” though “soon” could be next month or the next quarter. One would think that a new trailer would drop at Summer Game Fest or somewhere in the middle of the whole Summer of Gaming, but that seemed reasonable when it was still coming this year. The Game Awards in December looks more realistic, and even that’s not guaranteed. Those who have followed Rockstar for a long time will attest that this is nothing new. Flashback to Grand Theft Auto 5, meant to launch in Spring 2013 but facing a delay to September that year. Red Dead Redemption 2 suffered not one but two delays, from later in 2017 to the first half of 2018 and then again to October 2018. The reasons in both cases are remarkably similar – more time for polish was required. In the case of Grand Theft Auto 6, it seemingly goes deeper. Apparently, developers at Rockstar didn’t believe a Fall 2025 release window was possible “for a very long time,” per Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier. The alleged reasoning is straightforward enough: “Too much work, not enough time.” “GTA 6 slipping to 2026 has seemed inevitable for months if not longer.” Management is also keen on avoiding “brutal crunch,” which has been the rumored goal for quite some time now, especially following the whole kerfuffle with Red Dead Redemption 2’s development. Interestingly, in September 2024, Schreier spoke to six employees who hadn’t heard of a delay but clarified, “It’s a big, ambitious game and could very well slip! Too much time left to say anything definitive.” Game development, by its very nature, is constantly in flux and if there was no internal announcement, only the highest of the higher-ups would have been privy to such details. Considering Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick went from reaffirming the Fall 2025 window multiple times to suddenly saying, “There’s always a risk of slippage,” the possibility for a delay likely arose around then. There are all sorts of possibilities on what could have changed. The sheer work necessary to bug test and polish the game could take longer than expected. There may be critical issues with anything from NPC AI to performance on current-gen consoles to whatever is going on with the supposed online component that requires more time than initially estimated to deal with. It’s understandable, especially if Grand Theft Auto 6 is going even bigger with its AI interactions and realism or attempts to portray graphical fidelity close to anything seen in the first trailer at a decent frame rate. However, those who have followed rumors around the game over the past several years or so will remember whispers of trouble. Development was allegedly restarted in early 2020, with seemingly numerous changes to the gameplay and narrative since before that. At one point in 2021, an insider noted that fans should be worried if it’s announced that year or even in early 2022 without going into too many specifics. Stephen Totilo also reported in 2022 that plans for four protagonists and multiple cities covering North and South America were whittled down to the current Vice City setting. Regardless of all this, for a project apparently in the works since 2014, it’s easy to get antsy about potential problems, especially when a lengthy delay has been announced. Also, remember that this is likely accounting for marketing time, just like every other game release. Internally, Rockstar could aim for a much more polished build by early 2026, after which marketing, advertising, previews, and whatnot could kick off in earnest. If it’s not reportedly on track by then, another delay, albeit shorter, wouldn’t be very surprising. At least, not any more surprising than the current delay. Not that Take-Two would mind since Zelnick expects record net bookings in fiscal year 2027, which GTA 6’s new release date falls under. That he’s touting it as “a ground-breaking, blockbuster entertainment experience that exceeds audience expectations” and that the company is “steadfast in our commitment to excellence” indicates that it’s comfortable giving Rockstar as much time as needed. One could point to their continued losses or even their current stock falling after the delay announcement, but Grand Theft Auto 6 is probably their biggest release in the past decade and the next. You better believe it will take as much time as it needs to ensure it launches without a hitch and makes all the money. Ironically, this delay may be a blessing in disguise for the company, especially with the new $80 price point for games sweeping the industry. Nintendo and now Microsoft have inspired incredulity by opting into these prices, and Sony will likely follow suit. By the time Rockstar’s epic launches, $80 may well be considered the new norm for such high-production triple-A releases (for better or worse). Considering how major publishers were allegedly worried about dating their games this year due to GTA 6, you have to wonder how they feel about its new window. But that’s a question for another time. This delay will probably hit hardest for those clawing for more details and extensive gameplay since December 2023. But look at it this way – 2025 has been absolutely packed with high-quality releases and isn’t even at the halfway point. There are still plenty of big titles to come, like Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, Elden Ring Nightreign Ghost of Yotei, DOOM: The Dark Ages, Hollow Knight: Silksong, Mafia: The Old Country, Ninja Gaiden 4 and Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater. That’s not even considering all the announcements coming in June when the usual showcases roll out. If nothing else, revisit Red Dead Redemption 2 and Grand Theft Auto 5. Either way, there’s enough to keep you busy until 2026 and the inevitable hype cycle that GTA 6’s release will bring.

CEO Strauss Zelnick says it promises to be "a ground-breaking, blockbuster entertainment experience that exceeds audience expectations."

With Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto 6 delayed to May 2026 (allegedly to avoid crunch), no one would be more affected than parent company Take-Two Interactive. The latter has taken losses for several quarters while forecasting strong bookings for when the open-world title finally launches. While this marks a setback to its plans, CEO Strauss Zelnick said the company fully supports Rockstar taking more time. “We support fully Rockstar Games taking additional time to realize their creative vision for Grand Theft Auto 6, which promises to be a ground-breaking, blockbuster entertainment experience that exceeds audience expectations. “While we take the movement of our titles seriously and appreciate the vast and deep global anticipation for Grand Theft Auto 6, we remain steadfast in our commitment to excellence. As we continue to release our phenomenal pipeline, we expect to deliver a multi-year period of growth in our business and enhanced value for our shareholders.” While Take-Two expects “record levels” of net bookings in fiscal year 2027, it’s also planning for the same in the current fiscal year. It may sound farfetched, but there are still two major upcoming releases – Mafia: The Old Country in August and Borderlands 4 in September. The former will receive a new trailer on May 8th, which is also when pre-orders are likely to go live. The latter received numerous details during State of Play, including new weapon manufacturers and the option to replay story missions. As for Grand Theft Auto 6, Rockstar said it’s looking forward to sharing more information “soon.” Stay tuned in the meantime.

"Nobody I’ve talked to at Rockstar has believed Fall 2025 was a real window for a very long time," reports Bloomberg's Jason Schreier.

Rockstar finally announced a release date for Grand Theft Auto 6, its next open-world magnum opus, which is good. Unfortunately, it’s delayed past 2025. The developer noted that it’s taking the extra time to “deliver at the level of quality you expect and deserve,” but it reportedly didn’t have much hope of launching this Fall. Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier said on Bluesky, “Nobody I’ve talked to at Rockstar has believed Fall 2025 was a real window for a very long time. Too much work, not enough time, and what appears to be a real desire from management to avoid brutal crunch.” He also noted that a slip into 2026 seemed “inevitable for months if not longer.” What about those delay rumors back in September 2024, which Schreier debunked and called “nonsense?” At the time, six unnamed employees said they had not heard of a delay. However, he noted, “It’s a big, ambitious game and could very well slip! Too much time left to say anything definitive.” And while nothing was announced internally at the time, plans could have changed, at least among management, in the months since. Grand Theft Auto 6 is launching on May 26th, 2026, for PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. While Rockstar didn’t have an exact date for revealing new details or gameplay, it’s looking forward to sharing more “soon.” Stay tuned for more updates in the meantime.

The open-world action-adventure title launches on October 2nd for PS5 and takes place over 300 years after Ghost of Tsushima.

Pre-orders for Sucker Punch Productions’ Ghost of Yōtei are now available on the PlayStation Store. Two editions are available – Standard, which costs $69.99, and Digital Deluxe, retailing for $79.99. The Digital Deluxe Edition includes the base game, The Snake (one of the Yōtei Six) armor set, a Gold sword kit, a Charm, a dye for the starting armor, and a dye for your horse and saddle. You can also unlock the Traveller’s Maps early, which helps to locate statues that upgrade skills. You can learn more about the physical Collector’s Edition here. Ghost of Yōtei launches on October 2nd for PS5. It follows Atsu on a quest for revenge against a gang of outlaws known as the Yōtei Six for the murder of her family. She traverses Ezo, completes bounties and follows leads to find and hunt each member. Promising the developer’s biggest and most open world yet, the sequel introduces new weapons like the kusarigama, yari, and more. However, the katana remains essential to the experience. Stay tuned for more details in the coming months.

A new overview trailer for the co-op rogue-lite outlines how the Nightfarers drop into Limveld and prepare to fight the Nightlords.

Unveiled in a detailed showcase, Elden Ring: Nightreign introduces players to a grim, war-torn realm consumed by eternal night. Set in the fallen country of Limveld, now rotting under a curse of darkness, players become “Nightfarers”, elite warriors sent into Limbo to reclaim the land and take down powerful Night Lords. Each mission in Nightreign spans three in-game days, growing more dangerous as time passes. Players begin as level-one characters and must quickly gain strength by exploring, looting, fighting, and completing objectives before the night fully descends. Players can prioritize hunting enemies to level up, infiltrate enemy bases for intelligence, seek powerful weapons, or challenge elite foes for major rewards. But time is always ticking. As darkness spreads, movement becomes restricted, enemies grow stronger, and dramatic environmental events (including meteor strikes, volcanic eruptions, and corrupted forests) can upend even the best-laid plans. Limveld is procedurally dynamic. Every expedition alters base layouts, enemy placements, treasure locations, and environmental hazards. Players may face sudden ambushes, surprise volcanic activity, or waves of corruption mid-mission. This ensures no two runs feel the same, demanding players adapt on the fly. Revival mechanics allow for tactical rescues. Players can revive downed allies with melee attacks, ranged tools, or magic, further reinforcing the emphasis on team survival. At the Roundtable Hold, players can equip relics recovered from Limbo, which offer various effects, from stat boosts to skill modifications. A mysterious merchant sells useful items, and a fitting mirror unlocks new costumes using earned currency. Players can also recover lost memories throughout the campaign. These fragments unlock backstories, character motivations, and objectives, enriching the lore surrounding each Night Farer and the fall of Limveld. The third and final day of each run culminates in a confrontation with the Night Lords. These battles are the ultimate challenge, testing every tool, skill, and tactic gathered across the expedition. Players are encouraged to find weapons with specific attributes, synergize relics, and adapt their playstyles to each Nightlord’s strengths and weaknesses. Elden Ring: Nightreign is out on May 30th for PS5, Xbox Series X | S and PC.

MotoGP 25 is a challenging, and highly authentic racer held back by weak presentation and repetitive commentary.

The MotoGP game series has been something of a mixed bag over the past several years. MotoGP 20, for example, delivered exactly what it promised: a strong, detailed simulation for hardcore enthusiasts, but very little beyond that. For that specific audience, it delivered in spades; for everyone else, your motorcycle racing fix was likely better found elsewhere. MotoGP 21 continued Milestone’s slow crawl of iterative tweaks and refinements, acceptable for fans, but still short of being a truly universal recommendation. MotoGP 22 showed more promise and improved on several fronts, but still left much of its potential untapped. Last year’s entry, MotoGP 24, was the series’ tightest and most polished entry, but it also felt like just another incremental update. So that brings us to this year’s release: MotoGP 25. The question is, does it finally take the series to new heights? Let’s get one very important thing out of the way. The racing in MotoGP 25 feels absolutely realistic as you compete against other racers on world-famous tracks, battling for position and looking out for that perfect overtaking opportunity. There’s a genuine sense of speed and aggression, especially when you’re jostling with other riders. Go too aggressive, and the rear of your motorcycle might lose control, sending you into a crash; play it too safe, and you’ll be swallowed up by the competition in no time. The bikes in MotoGP 25 are perhaps the most realistic the series has ever seen, with every element from the tires’ grip and braking to acceleration, playing a vital role in how each race unfolds. "On the gameplay modes front, MotoGP 25 provides a solid range of options to choose from." The game offers two distinct riding styles: Pro and Arcade. As expected, Pro mode leans into authenticity, demanding mastery, while Arcade mode offers a more forgiving, streamlined experience that still feels fast but is less punishing. Even so, newcomers to the franchise will likely face a steep learning curve, as the controls and physics can be challenging to learn. Thankfully, the game includes a range of assist options to help ease the learning process, but don’t expect an easy ride if you’re unfamiliar with the series. For returning players, however, these two modes provide a great way to jump in based on your history and skill level. One of the standout improvements in MotoGP 25 is the AI behavior of your competitors. This year, the drivers feels genuinely smart and, thankfully, don’t rely on rubber-banding to overtake you. Your opponents race fairly, adjusting their behavior based on how you drive, thanks to the game’s adaptive difficulty system. You can, of course, turn off this setting and set the AI to any fixed percentage you prefer, but leaving it on makes races far more exciting. The game learns your racing style and tweaks the behavior of other riders accordingly, adding a sense of unpredictability to every race. It’s a clever system that I truly appreciate for keeping each race feeling competetive and engaging. On the gameplay modes front, MotoGP 25 provides a solid range of options to choose from. You have your classic Grand Prix mode, where you can pick any track and driver of your choice, opt for a full race weekend, or jump straight into the race. Then there’s the MotoGP World Championship mode, where you step into the shoes of an existing rider and take part in races across the full calendar. As expected, it’s a straightforward experience: score points, help your team in the constructors’ championship, and ultimately aim to be crowned world champion. "There’s also a neat layer of on-track driver interaction. Race too aggressively and some rivals may start disliking you." Beyond that, there are smaller treats to enjoy, like Time Trials (beat the clock, simple and sweet) and the MotoGP Academy, where you can earn medals by setting the best sector times across different tracks. The game also offers side activities like Flat Track (dirt racing focused on sliding), Motard (asphalt racing with tight corners), and Minibike events (precision-focused races using lightweight bikes). These extra modes aren’t revolutionary, they’re the kind of expected additions you’d hope for by now, but they serve as enjoyable “snack-sized” distractions from the main championship mode. However, the real meat and potatoes of MotoGP 25 is undoubtedly the Career Mode. Players can start their journey in any of the three main tiers: Moto3, Moto2, or the premier MotoGP class, and work their way up. A big part of the experience involves developing your bike by being in constant touch with your engineer. You can request improvements to specific components, like the engine or the frame, and as you complete objectives and progress through the career mode, your bike evolves alongside you. There’s also a neat layer of on-track driver interaction. Race too aggressively and some rivals may start disliking you. Drive cleanly, and they may begin to respect you. Stay neutral, and they’ll remain indifferent towards you. Adding to this is a social media feed, where other drivers may comment on your on track activities. In one of my races, I crashed, and a rival actually called me out in the post-race feed and I could respond with a couple of options. It’s a small touch, but it does a great job of building driver relationships over time. The better you perform and the more objectives you meet, the faster the game will open you up to new technology and bigger team opportunities. All of this works quite well, but there’s one major drawback: the lack of voice acting or spoken dialogue. It makes the mode feel more like a text-heavy management sim than an immersive career experience. Now, I’m not expecting full-blown cutscenes, but even light voice acting would’ve added a lot to the immersion. Despite this shortcoming, the Career Mode provides a well-paced and rewarding progression system for both your rider and the bike. When it comes to sound design, MotoGP 25 is a mixed bag. The motorcycles themselves sound absolutely fantastic, arguably as close to their real-life counterparts as you can get in a game, and are paired with slick riding animations that really sell the sense of speed. Unfortunately, the commentary is where things fall flat. It’s repetitive, dull, and hearing the same lines before and after every race gets old fast. It’s disappointing that a series with so much racing history still can’t deliver engaging commentary. Graphically, MotoGP 25 continues that mixed streak. Let’s get this out of the way: the motorcycles look stunning. From their high resolution textures to the various camera angle to every little detail, it’s clear that Milestone loves these motorcycles, and it shows. The rider models, with their sponsor-heavy suits, are also well done, and the tracks themselves are generally well detailed. However, some trackside details and NPCs remain as underwhelming as ever. Yes, I know that no one is really watching them, but how long do racing games keep getting a free pass for bland visuals outside the racing line? That said, the game is a real visual treat during wet weather. Rain effects and other weather details not only look great but also affect your bike’s handling in meaningful ways. On the performance front, we played on PC at 4K with every setting maxed out. The performance was largely stable, although there were occasional frame drops during heavy rain. Overall, it ran pretty smoothly and we didn’t encounter any major bugs or crashes. For players who are in to deep customization will also have plenty to dig into. MotoGP 25 offers hundreds of customization options including but not limited to stickers, helmets, gloves, suits, and more. It’s incredibly deep, and I can easily see hardcore fans spending hours polishing every visual detail of their rider. Personally, it wasn’t something I got into much, but I completely see the appeal for players who enjoy that level of personalization. "On the performance front, we played on PC at 4K with every setting maxed out. The performance was largely stable, although there were occasional frame drops during heavy rain." So, the big question on everyone’s mind: does MotoGP 25 deliver, and is it better than its predecessors? As far as pure racing is concerned, it absolutely does. The sense of speed, the realistic physics, the excellent AI that learns and adapts from your on track behavior, and the plethora of modes make this one of the best MotoGP games to date. Add in the superbly detailed bike models, the depth in weather physics and customization, and racing enthusiasts will find a lot to love here. However, noticeable flaws like the disappointing commentary, the underwhelming presentation in Career Mode and the weak trackside graphics keep MotoGP 25 from reaching true greatness. If you can overlook those shortcomings, though, you’ll find a racing experience that captures the speed, and thrill of MotoGP better than almost any racing game out there. This game was reviewed on the PC.

Between id Software's highly-anticipated DOOM prequel and FromSoftware's epic co-op rogue-like, players are spoiled for choice in May.

If you’re already reeling from all the games in April, May looks even more unrelenting. Between the one first-person shooter that everyone is dying to play, there are indie platformers, action-adventure titles, that one rogue-like action RPG everyone else is itching to play, and even some Gundam, for good measure. Check out 14 of the biggest games launching in May 2025. The Midnight Walk A claymation adventure with stop-motion visuals, unfolding in a dark fantasy world where you must protect a lantern being and its flame from monsters in the dark – say what you will, but The Midnight Walk offers a solid premise. Offering five tales of tense chases, puzzle solving, stealth and simply awe-inspiring visuals, The Midnight Walk launches on May 8th for PS5, PC, PlayStation VR2 and SteamVR. Spirit of the North 2 Following the underrated original, Spirit of the North 2 again sees players venturing through a gorgeous open world as a fox. Your goal is to cleanse the guardians and defeat Grimnir, a dark shaman, but each biome promises extensive secrets, including powerful runes and abilities. For those seeking a more laidback adventure, Spirit of the North 2 launches on May 8th for Xbox Series X/S, PC and PS5. The Precinct Remember American Fugitive, which offered an old-school GTA-like experience? The Precinct is from the same studio, but this time, you’re a police officer in Averno City, upholding the law. It’s an intriguing twist, as tasks range from ticketing vehicles to pursuing suspects in high-speed chases. With extensive degrees of crime, the ability to call for backup, and a living sandbox, The Precinct may live up to its inspiration when it launches on May 13th for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC. DOOM: The Dark Ages Perhaps the month’s biggest release, DOOM: The Dark Ages is id Software’s largest campaign yet, packed with new weapons, tools, enemies (including the cosmic horror variety), and mechanics. Between the sandbox nature of some levels, oodles of secrets, heavier story focus with sleek cutscenes, more extensive difficulty options, and the incredible gameplay loop, it could end up an all-timer. The Dark Ages begin on May 15th for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC alongside Game Pass. RoadCraft After Expeditions: A MudRunner Game, Saber Interactive is taking the franchise in a different direction with RoadCraft. As part of a disaster recovery company with heavy machinery, your job is to repair bridges and roads, remove debris, and much more to effectively save the day. There are over 40 vehicles to operate and eight maps available, but best of all, you can haplessly coordinate with up to three other players. RoadCraft arrives on May 20th for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC. Mobile Suit Gundam SEED: Battle Destiny Remastered Gundam games can be hit or miss, but you can’t deny the sheer thrill of not knowing what’s cooking next. Bandai Namco’s next release is actually a remaster of the Japan-only PS Vita title, Mobile Suit Gundam Seed Battle Destiny, with high-res visuals, difficulty adjustments, new control settings, and a revamped UI. However, the basic gameplay remains the same as players complete missions based on the anime, partaking in high-octane battles, and unlocking new suits. It’s out on May 22nd for PC and Nintendo Switch. Blades of Fire With Souls-like mechanics, a massive fantasy world to explore, and in-depth blacksmithing mechanics, Blades of Fire is proving more than just a spiritual successor to Severance: Blade of Darkness. Available on May 22nd for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC, players control Aran, who ventures through the world, battling the forces of Queen Nerea to end her tyranny. This requires forging one’s own weapons, carefully tempering stats to fit your preferred play style, unlocking new recipes, and using the right tools against specific enemies. Onimusha 2: Samurai’s Destiny After Onimusha: Warlords returned from the dead in all its HD glory, it’s now the sequel’s turn. Jubei’s journey through Feudal Japan will retain the same level of challenge when it arrives on May 23rd for PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and PC. However, you can up the difficulty further with Hell Mode, where a single hit kills. For the more quality of life-minded, you can now access various mini-games from the beginning; auto-save is supported; and you can now control when Onimusha form is activated. Deliver At All Costs Even without Konami publishing it, Deliver At All Costs looks like a delightfully chaotic action title with an incredible atmosphere. You play as a delivery driver, Winston Green, transporting all kinds of bizarre packages (including a bomb) by any means necessary. Pilot various vehicles or travel on foot, tear through fully destructible streets and escape angry citizens across three Acts in 1959. Deliver At All Costs is available on May 22nd for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC and will also be free on the Epic Games Store for a week. Elden Ring Nightreign Few developers could pivot from an immensely successful open-world Souls-like action RPG into a spin-off with battle royale and rogue-like mechanics, but this is FromSoftware. Nightreign sees you venturing into Limveld, an alternate dimension version of Limgrave. After three days and three nights. And facing multiple bosses. And dealing with a moving ring of death. Even if it’s not an offline experience, it’s still unmistakably FromSoft and promises plenty of hardcore Souls-like action when it launches on May 30th for Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PS4, PS5, and PC. Revenge of the Savage Planet As a sequel to Journey to the Savage Planet, your purpose is simple: Take revenge on the greedy corporate heads. There are multiple planets to explore this time with numerous locations, flora, fauna, and more, and co-op is fully supported for another player. With new gear and extensive exploration options, Revenge of the Savage Planet looks to expand on everything that made the original so great. It’s out on May 8th for Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5, and PC. F1 25 It wouldn’t be a year without the usual slate of yearly EA titles, and F1 25 from Codemasters is no exception. The jury is out on how everything will feel, especially after last year’s divisive handling changes, but Braking Point returns with more player agency and drama, and My Team 2.0 promises new Owner Perks for greater specialization. F1 25 launches on May 30th for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC, so there’s plenty of time to learn more. JDM: Japanese Drift Master If Tokyo Xtreme Racer wasn’t enough, JDM: Japanese Drift Master may be the ticket. Launching on May 21st for PC, it depicts Japan’s street racing culture with an extensive open world to explore (dynamic weather and day/night cycles included), extensive customization of real-world brand cars, and, of course, plenty of drifting. There’s even a story depicted through manga with over 40 events. Sonic Rumble The good news: Sonic is getting a new game. The worrying news: It’s a party battle royale title developed with Rovio of Angry Birds fame. For now, the visuals look bright and appealing with up to 32 players partaking in modes like Co-Op Battles to fight the Death Egg Robot or Run Battles with the classic Sonic mechanics. There’s potential, but we’ll see how it pans out when it launches on May 8th for iOS, Android, and PC.

Dismembering enemies significantly change their behaviors and attacks. You can even behead some of them to devastating effect.

This month has some heavy hitters like DOOM: The Dark Ages, but there’s plenty of opportunity for AA titles like MercurySteam’s Blades of Fire. Game Informer debuted some new gameplay today, showcasing more of the combat and revealing new details about dismemberment. Check it out below. Though it’s inherently a hack-and-slash title, Blades of Fire forces you to consider which weapon to use against which enemy, including mini-bosses like the Troll. Stunning enemies allow for chopping off limbs, which changes their strategy. For example, removing the Troll’s left arm will take away its club. It’s also possible to behead the beast, causing it to attack frantically, even if it can’t see you. Another interesting tidbit is that Adso, the scholar who follows you around, noting details about enemies, can be sent back to base if you’re not a fan of the constant chatter. However, sometimes there’s no choice since he may discover an artifact that must be studied. Blades of Fire launches on May 22nd for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC. Learn more about the different types of damage here or brush up on how blacksmithing works.

Originally set for this Fall, Rockstar Games says the extra time is to "deliver at the level of quality you expect and deserve."

Rockstar Games has announced that Grand Theft Auto 6 will launch on May 26th, 2026, skipping the initial 2025 release calendar. The developer apologized for the delay and thanked fans for their excitement, which has been “truly humbling for the entire team.” It also noted that it tries to “exceed your expectations” with every new game and that extra time is needed to “deliver at the level of quality you expect and deserve.” As for when fans can look forward to more information, it’s expecting to share more “soon.” Grand Theft Auto 6 was officially revealed in December 2023, with the first trailer garnering nearly 252 million views. However, updates have been lackluster ever since. Take-Two Interactive assured fans of the announced Fall 2025 window, though CEO Strauss Zelnick said there’s “always the risk” of slippage earlier this year. Grand Theft Auto 6 is in development for Xbox Series X/S and PS5 (with a PC version yet to be confirmed). A new report from Insider Gaming will seemingly shed light on its multiplayer component in the coming weeks, so stay tuned for more details.

The Best Anime RPG Games For Girls

Hey sweeties, So, the Nintendo Switch 2 finally got its big reveal and… whew. I have a lot of feelings. Some good. Some not-so-good. Some why even bother bro. Let’s just rip the band-aid off: I’m kinda disappointed. I mean yeah, there’s some exciting stuff in the mix—a new Zelda (yes please), a new Donkey...

Read More “Nintendo Switch 2 Reveal – Excited? Disappointed? A Little of Both.” »

Last night, I had the chance to see the dress rehearsal for Sailor Moon Super Live in Pittsburgh, and it was a surprisingly fun and memorable experience! A Night of Good Food & Magical Nostalgia The evening started off with an amazing dinner at Gaucho Parrilla Argentina—highly recommend it if you’re ever in Pittsburgh! Great...

Read More “Review: Sailor Moon Super Live – North America Tour (Pittsburgh, PA)” »

The Long Wait is Over: AIR Officially Releases in English A Shocking, Unbelievable Surprise Imagine my utter shock, surprise, and amazement when I clicked to start exploring a Steam queue—and there it was. I had heard nothing about its release, and just days or weeks ago, I was literally chatting with a friend about how...

Read More “AIR is Finally in English—A Dream Come True for Visual Novel Fans” »

2025: The Best Year EVER for Gamer Girls! OMG, fellow gamer girls, I have NEVER been this excited for a year in gaming! 2025 is absolutely stacked with amazing releases, re-releases, and next-gen consoles that will make our hearts burst with happiness! Whether you’re into visual novels, JRPGs, or cozy simulation games, this year has...

Read More “Is 2025 The Best Year Ever For Gamer Girls? I Think So. Here’s Why:” »

So you may be wondering why I haven’t updated my website lately. I’ve been using most of my free time to create AI Generated Music using an app called Suno AI. I have been using Suno for about 6 months now and here are my thoughts and some of my favorite creations so far. I’m...

Read More “Can AI Music Create an Emotional Response From The Listener?” »

Omg, I loved Here with Tom Hanks! Critics and fans might give it low ratings, with scores around 20-30% out of 100, but I’m here to say, don’t let that fool you! This movie is not garbage at all—it’s thought-provoking, moving, and exactly the type of film that makes you think. If you’re the type...

Read More “Movie Review: Here Starring Tom Hanks – A Deeply Emotional and Philosophical Journey” »

Do not read this review if you do not want to hear spoilers for the new 2024 Joker 2: Joker folie à deux. Again this will contain spoilers Leave now this is your last warning. Spoiler Warning: This review contains major spoilers and personal reflections on Joker: Folie à Deux. We went to see Joker:...

Read More “Joker 2: Joker Folie a Deux Review: SPOILER WARNING” »

Apple’s recent event was packed with exciting new releases and updates across its product lines. Here’s a roundup of everything announced, including details on the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro, the new Apple Watch models, updated AirPods, and iOS 18. iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro We’re all excited about the new color options...

Read More “Apple’s Latest Event: IPhone 16 and All the New Announcements You Need to Know” »

Hold onto your hats, ghost lovers! The ending of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is so bonkers it’s igniting some of the wildest theories on the internet. Did Lydia really marry Beetlejuice? Is Astrid a figment of Lydia’s imagination, or—get this—is Lydia actually dead and doesn’t know it? Spoiler Warning! This article is packed with juicy details and...

Read More “Is Lydia Deetz Dead? Crazy Fan Theories About Beetlejuice Beetlejuice That Will Change How You See the Movie Forever!” »

Introduction: When I first heard about A Ghost Story (2017), the hype was real. The critics were raving, the trailer hinted at deep existential themes, and the movie seemed to have collected awards like a ghost in a haunted house. But does it live up to the buzz? I dove in, prepared for an emotional...

Read More “A Ghost Story Review: A Bizarre Journey to an Unexpectedly Profound Ending” »

Welcome to Fields of Mistria, a game that captures the essence of ’90s JRPGs and fuses it with the best elements of farming sims to create a unique, cozy experience. From the moment you step into its pixel-perfect world, the game feels like a nostalgic journey back in time, yet it offers a fresh twist...

Read More “Is Fields of Mistria the Ultimate Nostalgic Farming Sim for ’90s JRPG Fans?” »

Nintendo recently announced that Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp, the popular mobile game, will be shutting down its online services on October 31, 2024. While this news may come as a disappointment to many fans, there’s a silver lining—your progress and campsite aren’t going anywhere. Nintendo is launching a new offline version of the game, allowing...

Read More “Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp is Shutting Down—Here’s What You Need to Know About the Transition and the Future of the Franchise” »

Sailor Moon Cosmos has finally landed on Netflix in North America, and for fans of the beloved franchise, this marks a monumental moment. Whether you’ve been a Sailor Moon devotee since the 90s or are just now discovering the magic, this two-part film adaptation of the final arc, known as “Sailor Stars,” promises to be...

Read More “Sailor Moon Cosmos: An Ultimate Guide for Fans Old and New—What Makes It Shine?” »

The Debate Over Machine Language Translations: A Look at Hanaemu Kare to & Bloom on the Japanese Nintendo eShop The world of otome games is vast and full of unique titles that often remain exclusive to Japan. As an avid fan of this genre, I’ve always faced the challenge of accessing games that never make...

Read More “How Machine Translations Are Giving Small Japanese Developers a Chance to Reach English-Speaking Gamers” »

The Ultimate Guide to the Best Laptops for InZoi – Perfect for Gamer Girls As the release date for InZoi draws near, it’s time to start thinking about upgrading your gaming setup to ensure you’re ready for the ultimate experience. Whether you’re a casual gamer or a hardcore enthusiast, having the right laptop is essential...

Read More “Top Laptops That Can Run InZoi: Minimum and Recommended Specs Explained” »

Welcome to GeekySweetie.com! Today, we’re diving deep into the world of the 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M3 Pro chip, focusing on what makes this machine an excellent choice for gamer girls, creatives, and anyone who loves a balance of power, portability, and style. This review will cover everything from the unboxing experience to the...

Read More “Unboxing and Setup Overview: MacBook Pro (14-inch, M3 Pro) for Gamer Girls” »

Top 20 80s Anime with Complex Relationships and Tragic Romance The 1980s was a golden era for anime, offering a range of series that delved into the depths of human emotions, complicated relationships, and often tragic romances. For fans of intricate storytelling, these anime are a must-watch. Here are the top 20 80s anime that...

Read More “Top 20 80s Anime with Complex Relationships and Tragic Romance” »

I’ve had the Steam Deck since its launch, and it’s been a mostly positive experience. However, a few quirks and challenges remain. Here’s my take after using it for a few years. Finding The Sims 4 CC Custom Content Mod Folder One thing that many players, especially Sims 4 fans, might wonder is where to...

Read More “Is the Steam Deck Still Worth It in 2024? A Cozy Gamer Girl’s Guide” »

Welcome to Geeky Sweetie! Today, we’re diving into The New Denpa Men on the Nintendo Switch, a delightful free-to-play RPG that offers a unique blend of adventure, customization, and cozy gameplay perfect for female gamers who love a touch of whimsy and creativity in their games. Personal Experience and Unique Denpa Men My Starter Denpa...

Read More “What Is The New Denpa Men on Nintendo Switch? In-Depth Review of Unique Creatures, Customization, Events, Exploration, RPG Dungeon Crawling, and Cozy Gameplay” »

As a lover of all things cute, kawaii, and cozy, I often find myself exploring Kickstarter for new and exciting games to support. Here are some of the delightful projects I’m currently backing. Many are already funded, but some need a little extra push to reach their goals. If any of these games pique your...

Read More “New Upcoming Indie Games I’m Backing on Kickstarter: Cute, Kawaii, Cozy Sims and RPGs” »

The Gaming Blog

Whether it’s Aragorn showing up with his army of the dead in Lord of the Rings, the shot of the rescue team breaking through to the trapped people in the disaster movie, or a hero saving an innocent victim from a mugging or kidnapping, there are few things that capture the spirit of heroism as […]

Whether it’s Aragorn showing up with his army of the dead in Lord of the Rings, the shot of the rescue team breaking through to the trapped people in the disaster movie, or a hero saving an innocent victim from a mugging or kidnapping, there are few things that capture the spirit of heroism as much as saving someone from peril. But “rescue” is a surprisingly broad basis for a scenario and can encompass all sorts of things, so when planning a rescue operation for your game, it pays to think ahead. Who or What Needs Rescuing? This is the first thing to think about when working on a rescue scenario, because depending on the answer, everything that follows will go very differently, and there are a number of underlying considerations as well. Is the target of the rescue an individual or a group? In either case, what is their relationship to the party? An operation to rescue friends or innocents is a heroic classic, but what if an enemy needs rescuing? This is also the time to think about why the PCs would want to rescue the target in the first place. How helpless or capable is the target of the rescue? Rescuing people who are wounded or otherwise out of commission (trapped, pinned under rubble, or sick, for example) will be different from bailing out capable people who are temporarily in over their head(s). How cooperative is the party to be rescued going to be? Put another way, do they want to be rescued? Sometimes stubborn types may need to be convinced to leave. If the PCs show up to take them away, will they gratefully come along or insist on staying unless the PCs do something for them? How much information do the PCs have? What is the scope of the operation? There’s a world of difference between “you need to infiltrate this prison and extract this person from this cell” and “save as many people as possible from this flooded town.” In some cases, the thing that needs rescuing is not a person at all. Cute kittens, endangered rhinos, critical data and priceless artifacts sometimes need saving. To spice this up a little, it can be fun to mix and match; maybe you need Dr. Sanders and her kaiju data, because she’s the only one who can interpret it. Furthermore, she’s relatively helpless now because she’s trapped in a civilian science lab that’s sinking into the ocean, but if you give her a weapon, she can use her military training to help you. Where Will the Rescue Happen? The environment of a rescue operation will influence what a rescue looks like. If you’re searching for the survivors in a collapsed building, you’ll probably have access to things like roads and possibly cellular networks and electricity (depending on the technology of the setting and the extent of the infrastructure damage) whereas if you’re looking for a plane that went down in northern Canada or a carriage that broke an axle in the Barovian countryside, even paved roads can’t be assumed. Virtually any place can function as the backdrop for a rescue; a person kidnapped by an evil corporation might be held in a skyscraper. Dwarves could be trapped in a collapsed mine. Explorers could have their ship wrecked in the antarctic. This also covers the amount of travel the party will need to reach the target of their rescue. Northern Canada is vast and may require days of travel, vehicles like aircraft or snowmobiles, and may require the rescuers to camp out as they travel. A specific neighborhood in cyberpunk Neo-Mumbai can probably be reached by hopping on public transit. The people screaming for help in the burning building are just steps away. Prisons and other fortified environments merit special mention: if your rescue is a prison break or an infiltration into (or assault on!) another secure facility of some type like an evil R&D lab, you will want to think about the security measures and how many of them the PCs can discover ahead of time. Generally, if you’re looking for a heist-like scenario that uses pre-planning or flashback mechanics like a GUMSHOE system preparedness test, it’s better to make lots of information available to your PCs. If it’s a more action-oriented game, lots of info might be counter to the feel you want and it’d be better to narrate the security they encounter on the fly. The rescue site needn’t be stationary! Trains, planes, spaceships, convoys, motorcades, submarines, and sailing ships can all hold a rescue target on the move. Locations that require special means of travel to reach can also add spice to a scenario. Examples include pocket dimensions and caves that require swimming through water-filled tunnels. Here, also combining multiple elements can be fun; perhaps you need to rescue your target from a military convoy moving through dense jungle; you’ll almost certainly have the element of surprise, but you’ll also have to deal with the jungle itself including the heat, wildlife, disease, and the fact that cover and concealment work both ways. What Does the Target Need to be Rescued From? The second major set of considerations concerns the reason why rescue is needed in the first place. While the actual possibilities are almost limitless here, I think they actually boil down to two broad categories: Targeted threats are something that is after or affecting the rescue target specifically. Examples here can be things like assassins, kidnapping, imprisonment, or enslavement, pursuing forces, monsters or predators, or even aggravating paparazzi. Anything that will deliberately thwart the rescue if unchecked. Rescue from these threats usually requires combat, stealth, or escape of some kind, whether that’s an invisibility spell, a getaway car, or a medevac helicopter. If you want to add a chase or combat to the rescue, one of these threats is a good way to do it. Generalized threats don’t know or don’t care about the party that needs to be rescued. This is the purview of things like invading hostile forces (from Mongols to Martians), natural disasters like earthquakes, hurricanes, volcanoes, meteor strikes, and flooding, kaiju, rampaging swarms of nanotech like the Iron Wind in Numenera, and large-scale accidents like the great molasses flood or a gas line explosion. This can include hostile environments in general, too, like the Australian outback or The Mournland. A space station or disabled space ship that’s beginning to disintegrate and deorbit is a classic sci-fi trope. Consider also whether a generalized threat is stationary (like the aftermath of an earthquake or terrorist attack) or is moving (like a hurricane, invading army, or wildfire) and if it is moving, how predictably, how fast, and in which direction(s). In the case of these generalized threats, usually either the party or thing to be rescued is already in the threat’s area of effect, or the hope is that you can get who or whatever it is out of the path of the onrushing threat before it arrives. Remember, you’re not limited to a single threat or a single type of threat. Trying to save people being stalked by werewolves as a forest fire sweeps toward you all would be tense and dramatic! Remember that for a lot of rescues, getting to the target and helping them is the easy part. Getting out is where it gets dicey; needing to sneak or fight past security, carry wounded people to safety, cross a hostile border, or evade pursuers can make the back end of a rescue just as tense as the beginning, if not more so. Getting wounded crash survivors out of a swamp full of gators and piranhas is way harder than getting in! What Complicating Factors Exist? Most rescue operations have some sort of complication. Otherwise, you have an errand, not a rescue. The most classic and universal complicating factor is time pressure. This can be measured in minutes or weeks and still be tense; a race through an occupied city to rescue a downed helicopter crew has a tighter timetable than looking for survivors of a shipwreck before they starve, but both are urgent. Hostile forces are another; if someone or something else is trying to reach your target before you, that adds additional pressure. A low-stakes version of this is another team competing to rescue the endangered party first rather than seeking to harm them. The opposition can also ignore the target of the rescue completely and come straight at the PCs; enemy security forces in a controlled area and territorial wildlife are examples. Don’t neglect environmental factors! Something as simple as obscuring weather like fog, rain, or a sandstorm can add a whole new dimension to the problem, or with planning and preparation could be an asset to rescuers that need to rely on stealth. Exotic environments might have magical forests with shifting pathways or toxic/corrosive atmospheres. And there’s also the old standbys of extreme heat or cold. Other parties may try to “attach” themself to a rescue; this is especially common in prison break scenarios where inmates the PCs may not want running around will try to force the PCs to free them along with the PCs’ intended target. Changing conditions are a good complication, especially with enough warning to let the PCs adapt, but not start over from scratch. For example, they get a call from base that the wind has picked up and the wildfire is moving towards them faster than expected. Now they need to either get to shelter or find a safer extraction point. Scant resources can sometimes be fun, but it can also be satisfying for some deep-pocketed authority to say “this is important. Tell us what you need.” Remember that for a lot of rescues, getting to the target and helping them is the easy part. Getting out is where it gets dicey; needing to sneak or fight past security, carry wounded people to safety, cross a hostile border, or evade pursuers can make the back end of a rescue just as tense as the beginning, if not more so. Getting wounded crash survivors out of a swamp full of gators and piranhas is way harder than getting in! As with previous sections, don’t be shy about using more than one of these or different types, as long as it doesn’t add up to frustration for your players. GMing Pitfalls For Rescue Scenarios Because the concept of a rescue is so broad and because it tends to run on a specific set of emotional resonances (time pressure and a desire to help chief among them), there are a few specific pitfalls to watch out for when running a rescue. Pacing is important for a rescue. If things start to bog down at the table, do what you can to clear logjams proactively and dispel confusion as quickly as possible. Nothing kills the tension of a race against time like a lengthy rules discussion. On the flipside, you should give your players sufficient time to brainstorm and plan. Large or difficult rescue operations can require heist-like levels of preparation, and more spontaneous ones may require some impromptu planning as complications manifest. Rescue operations are a great place for a “fail forward” approach to mechanics. Failed a check to climb? You’re up there, but the ladder fell behind you as you stepped off. Failed a check to find your target? You found them after all, but the situation has worsened due to the delay. While mixing and matching elements from the different sections of this article is a good idea, you shouldn’t have so many moving parts that the scenario becomes hard for players to hold in their head. You also want to avoid presenting such a dire situation that your players are overwhelmed. Final Thoughts Rescue scenarios are among the most versatile and dynamic missions you can run. They typically have a good mix of tension, drama, variety, and challenge, and there are fewer things that feel more heroic than swooping in to save someone. You can also combine rescues with other mission types very easily and spontaneously – drop a friendly prisoner in a cell during a dungeon crawl or infiltration mission, have an NPC ally get dragged off by a monster during an exploration, have a team member get caught during a heist – all of these can add stakes and tension to an existing scenario. Have you ever run a rescue operation in one of your games? Do you have any tips for them not covered here? Tell us below!

This past weekend, my gaming group did not reach quorum, and I was staring down another blown session. There has been a string of them with this group, and we have struggled to get games going. I was itching to run something. Rather than canceling the session, I told the remaining players we could play […]

This past weekend, my gaming group did not reach quorum, and I was staring down another blown session. There has been a string of them with this group, and we have struggled to get games going. I was itching to run something. Rather than canceling the session, I told the remaining players we could play another game (Mutants in the Now), and that I could throw something together quickly. Then all sorts of things came crashing into my schedule, and the time I was going to use to prep the game went from plenty to some. My resolve to not cancel was strong. This game was going off, but with less prep time than I was expecting. So, I had to be discerning in my prep. That’s what I want to talk about today: how to prep when your time is limited. What is Prep? Let’s define prep. If you are a long-time reader of mine or a listener of my various podcasts, you know this definition. Prep is what you need to feel comfortable bringing the game to the table. Prep can take all sorts of forms, and what you need for a given game will be defined by the game you are playing, the stories you are telling, your GM weaknesses and strengths, and the group you run for. What that looks like is going to take a lot of forms. It could be fully detailed notes, it could be some stat blocks and an outline, a post-it note, it could be some index cards and a handful of minis, or just some time organizing a few thoughts in your head. As long as what you prep makes you confident to run the game, then that is your prep. A quick aside about ‘prep is bad’ There is nothing I can’t stand more in this hobby than people bad-mouthing prep. When people say that you don’t need to prep or that prep is bad, they are either trying to brag, gatekeep, or are “one true way” gamers. That kind of thinking can fuck right off. If you need to prep, you prep. I have run fully detailed prep games, and I have run totally ad lib-ed games. What I choose to prep for a given game is based on the things above. Prep what you need…the way you want. Exit soapbox. Prepping with limited time With a limited amount of time, which we will define as less time than you would normally need to produce your normal prep, we have to get judicious with what we prep. Instinct is going to say start at the beginning and get as far as you can before time runs out. I disagree. What that gets you is a very detailed start that trails off over time. Good starts are nice, but they are not often the most memorable parts of the game, which tend to fall around the middle and towards the end. Rather than prep chronologically, prep by priority. Rather than prep chronologically, prep by priority. What I mean is to prep the game based on what parts you need the most support with. This way, you have invested your time and focus into the parts that will be the biggest help at the table, while you leave less detail to the parts that you feel more comfortable running unsupported. Here is an approach based on prepping by priority: Building a Foundation The first thing we need is some kind of understanding about the overall session. This can take several forms. It could be a formal outline, it could be a series of questions, or my personal favorite, the What’s Going On document. For attribution, this was inspired by Fear The Boot’s What’s Really Going On document. The What’s Going On document is a summary of what will happen in the game if the characters were not involved. What would the adversaries do? What things would go unchecked? This document crystallizes, for me, what the story is about and where it is trying to go. Often, by the time I have this written, I also have a pretty good outline of the story. This document is often a few paragraphs to a page of text. What Support Do You Need? Now that you have a story in mind, what do you need to prep to best support yourself running this story? Do you need a list of NPCs? Some stat blocks? A list of clues? A map? Do you need some tokens or minis? What are the things that you will struggle doing on the fly at the table, or make you hesitant to go to the table without them? Take a few moments of introspection and then make a list. Prep Your Priority List Now, prep your priorities, and don’t worry about making a fully chronological adventure. Start by putting the priorities down and invest the time into them to make them as functional as possible for yourself. Prep The Non-Essentials If you have time remaining, fill in the rest of the prep any way you like. This is the stuff you could have made up on the fly, but with a few extra minutes, you can add some extra details, some specific lines of dialogue, a few tactics, etc. Doing this for my Mutants in the Now game I started with a short What’s Going On document, with a few paragraphs about a rendezvous that would turn into a rescue mission. I then thought about what I needed for prep. Mutants in the Now is pretty crunchy and has a strong emphasis on fighting, so I knew I needed some stat blocks for the adversaries that the characters would encounter. I also needed to quickly rough out a layout for the location where the rescue operation would take place. There was also a small amount of investigation needed for the rendezvous to turn into a rescue, so I listed out some possible clues. In OneNote, I made a quick outline of the major scenes. Then I jumped into filling in the priority sections, listed above. I wound up having some extra time, and I then went back through and jotted a few sentences for the other sections. In all, it was less than I would normally prep for a session, but it was more than enough for me to run the game. I had the prep I needed and was relaxed coming to the table. The game went off great, and we all had a lot of fun. For A Limited Time In an ideal world, we will always have enough time to prep our games. Sadly, life is not like that, and even when we budget our time carefully, things will happen and steal that time away. Rather than canceling a session because we could not do our full prep, we can prep by priority, using the little time we have to get the most bang at the table. It’s possible that one could just always prep this way, and perhaps some of you already are. It takes a bit of getting used to, but it can be a big time saver. By the way, if you do want to learn how to cut down your prep, check out my book Never Unprepared. What do you do when you are short on time and need to prep?

https://polygamero.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/CG_211_Continuityconcerns.mp3 Join Ang along with Chris and Phil as they talk about managing continuity for you and your players in your campaigns. Does it matter? How much attention do you need to give it? What if you’re running an Actual Play for an Audience? LINKS: Buckeye Game Fest Panda’s Talking Games Dragon Week on YouTube

https://polygamero.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/CG_211_Continuityconcerns.mp3 Join Ang along with Chris and Phil as they talk about managing continuity for you and your players in your campaigns. Does it matter? How much attention do you need to give it? What if you’re running an Actual Play for an Audience? LINKS: Buckeye Game Fest Panda’s Talking Games Dragon Week on YouTube

All images were taken from the Dialect game, store, and KS page I was invited over to a friend’s house with some other friends. There, I knew two of my regular players, and two other folks with little to no experience in TTRPGs, were going to be spending the afternoon with me. Looking to test […]

All images were taken from the Dialect game, store, and KS page I was invited over to a friend’s house with some other friends. There, I knew two of my regular players, and two other folks with little to no experience in TTRPGs, were going to be spending the afternoon with me. Looking to test out a game I have had in my backlog for a while, and intending to bring something unique to the table, I grabbed Dialect. A brief idea of what Dialect actually is Dialect is a game that got Kickstarted in 2016, far surpassing the initial goal. The game is GM-less for 3-4 players, intended to be played in a single 3-4 hour session. Developed by linguists Hakan Seyalioglu and Kathryn Hymes, one could know from the start that this was not just another game about creating a story, but one that would focus on dialect and language, and the beauty of it. The real challenge is finding a way to make such a complex topic interesting for the general audience. So adding a bit of roleplay aspects similar to games like Fiasco or For The Queen was a great choice. If you have tried those games before, this one follows the same gameplay style, being depicted as a “story game” instead of a TTRPG. Together with the other players, you will be worldbuilding and focusing mostly on how language and dialect affect the other aspects of worldbuilding. These will go back to impacting the dialect, causing an endless cycle between the two parts until the end of the game. This is a story about language, and how it dies, so you know for a fact that what you create will not survive. Now, let’s delve deeper into why I think this is a game I believe you should try. Art & Layout Even if this white book doesn’t draw as much attention, the people at Thorny Games managed to make each piece of art stand out. The layout is gorgeous, and the art shows perfectly how to play the game while also providing beautiful imagery to keep you interested in continuing reading. The full-page spreads are filled with colors that make this book instantly become one of the most beautiful ones in my collection. Additionally, the uses of colors by changing the background color from white to red allow readers to fully understand where you should be looking. This is not an artbook, and the layout is quite simple, but it works amazingly and makes it very comfortable to read without spending thousands on art. Definitely a book I will be looking at when designing my own products. The Rules As indicated above, this story game involves the players building a dialect together. This might sound super complex, but I assure you it is much simpler than you think. The game includes a summary of the rules that you can download, but to be honest, I found them a bit cumbersome. I would have preferred a single page to print that had all the difficult-to-remember parts. Still, the game recommends learning the game as you go, as some details are difficult to fully grasp just by reading. The examples of play provided, however, do a fantastic job at explaining how each rule is used and how it interacts with the other aspects of the game. During the entirety of the session, players will be advancing within Ages that show the progress of not only the story, but of the evolution of the language. To start with, players choose a Backdrop that they find interesting, a starting point with all the introductory questions to rapidly get started. The rules provide 4 Core Backdrops, as well as 12 other Contributed Backdrops created by other designers. These last ones are more recommended for players who already have some experience in the game. Even if you play the same Backdrop, you will most certainly live a very different game experience. The randomness instantiated from the cards, as well as people’s thought processes and mood, will always create different results, as it happens with other story games. This guarantees endless replayability, which is always something very cool to find. However, this also means that this game will feel spectacularly well with some player groups, while it may not shine as much with some others. Aspects and Characters When you start a game of Dialect, you grab the deck of cards included with it (more on that later) and deal Archetype cards to the players. In addition, players answer the questions from the Backdrop to create Aspects. Aspects are the important points from the community that will affect the dialect you are creating. If we are talking about a community in a tundra region, by answering the questions, it would not be surprising if the Aspects end up being Extreme Cold, Dangerous Fauna, and Lack of Signal. When creating your character by using your archetype, you are tasked to have connections with the existing Aspects in your community, or as this game calls it, your Isolation. Aspects are the main focus in the game, which will help the players constantly come up with new terms to play with. Gameplay Loop Once players have prepared the game using the chosen Backdrop, they get to head into the gameplay loop: Make a Connection Build a Word Have a Conversation In the first step, players choose one card to use from the cards they receive at the start of an Age. They have to tie it to one of the already existing Aspects, thus making a connection. Let’s say the received card is “Friend”, so everyone at the table must brainstorm how to connect that card with one of the Aspects, the player who used it having the final say. Let’s connect Friend with “Lack of Signal”, indicating that in an Isolation like this, having no signal and living in such a hostile environment, it is always vital to have a Friend go with you anywhere you go in case you need help. For the second step, now that we have developed a connection, we need to determine amongst everyone which word we can use to define this particular kind of friendship. Why not name these special friends “Beacon”? I can see that term starting to be applied to these people. Lastly, it is time to do a bit of roleplaying. The card played indicates a kind of scene to be played out. The one using the card must select the other player characters that make sense to appear in the scene, and the new word must come up in some way, cementing it as an existing word for the players. That last step of the creation, I saw it as something silly at the beginning, but as the game progressed and new words were created, it was fascinating getting to see us players incorporate all the new words and phrases into our vocabulary in the roleplay scenes. It really is a very unique experience. Ages As players keep repeating the gameplay loop, many words end up becoming part of the dialect. Once each player has gone once, the game advances to the next Age. When that happens, something changes for the Isolation; specifically, an Aspect. The Aspect of the players’ choice evolves, following what is prompted in the chosen Backdrop at the start, which will slowly lead to the dialect’s extinction. Once an Aspect is evolved, the rest remain as they are, and the game goes back to the gameplay loop again. For each of the Ages, new cards are dealt to the players to make a connection. These cards are categorized by the Age they are from, making the game slowly lead you to the death of the dialect. The Cards A plethora of cards are part of the Language Deck, offering the Archetype cards to be used within the many ages, and the Legacy cards to use at the end of the game to close the story off. Just like the book, these have an elegant, simple layout, with their back featuring gorgeous art that makes it easy to identify each card type. Most of the cards will not end up being used, granting a huge amount of replayability. Additionally, some cards interrupt the usual gameplay loop, having special rules appear. For example, the card Misunderstanding allows a player to indicate that a word from the dialect has always been misunderstood and, from now on, it will mean a new thing, altering the entirety of how the dialect might work. You have to create a reason why this happened, adding even more depth to the worldbuilding. The Aspects affect the dialect, which affects the world, which itself affects the dialect and the Aspects again, creating an endless loop of continual worldbuilding. Playing in a Different Language As some of you know, I am from Argentina, and we here speak Spanish. With the entirety of the game being in English, the book offers many sections that help create words easily in the English language using the reasoning linguists use. Playing in a different language meant that we could only use some of those tools, but that also helped me better understand how different languages work and how different words are created in each of them. The words we created in Spanish probably wouldn’t be easily created in English, and that is a wondrous experience in itself. My Experience I played with these 4 players I indicated above, and we used the Outpost Backdrop, which is the recommended one for first-time players. Our Isolation was located on Mars, and has been there for the past 5 years, but we have been cut off from communication. The 3 Aspects chosen were “Extreme Cold”, “Mental Health”, and “Terraformation”. 5 characters were defined then: The Artist, creator of ice sculptures for the wealthy; The Mediator, cook of the Isolation that kept everyone together and sparsed rumors; The Star, leader of the Mars Expedition that intended to start life over on the red planet; The Healer, medic of the group and specialist in biology for the terraformation process; and The Fool, bringing some comedy and leisure to the inhabitants here. Through the creation of words, we understood that the Star started to use the word “calid” to talk about happiness, which got adopted by the inhabitants of the place. With time, the haters of this Star, who was commanding everyone to work harder for a better future, started using the word in a negative way, or to talk down to the wealthy. Some additional words started to appear, talking about the scarcity and surprising findings of resources, having an origin that came from the original aspects. For example, the scarcity of something ended up being the equivalent in English to “undrinkable”, coming from how little drinkable water there was on the planet, which in itself originated from the glaciers at the poles of the planet. By the start of the second Age, we found out that Earth had already been taken over by AI, and that the machines sent an early stash to Mars with weapons that showcased they were coming to invade the red planet. While the Star kept telling everyone to work hard, promising that people would be able to live together with the machines, a new word was formed “Mullerism” (coming from the Star’s surname Muller), a movement that was all about the need to prepare Mars and prepare for robots to live together with humans. In the meantime, the Fool found that allying with the Artist, they could get access to bonding with the Star and begin their ultimate plan: a huge joke business coming from the inside, while staying on the side of the ruling people. This was immediately seen as part of the Mullerism movement, with people adopting this big joke as a sense of belonging. Meanwhile, the other players took a more active role in acting as the people acted and started a rebellion against the Mullerism and the machines. The Artist and the Fool had made of the Star an icon by now, creating more new terms to have the people of Mars see her negatively, and as a menace to society. The term of Mullerism rapidly changed from a positive movement to a sign of weakness and deceit, with new terms that started to become part of the rebellion to talk about how they would overthrow the people in power. By Age 3, the robots finally arrived, starting a new era of humans and machines. This was also the moment Mullerism died, with the Isolation rebelling against the Star and overthrowing her entirely, with the Fool and the Artist as the leaders of the operation, betraying who they once worked for. The machines able to live with ease on the dangerous red planet merged their community with that of our Isolation, having humans lastly combine themselves with machines to endure it. The dialect we have worked so hard to build amongst our 5 hours of play slowly started to disappear with the passing of generations. Now, only my 5 friends and I are left speaking this dialect. Conclusion Dialect is a marvel of a game, creating a very harsh story that grows in a very interesting way while also teaching players about the importance of Language. I found myself becoming much more interested in how a language is built and the impact it creates in society. I didn’t even get to detail that about half of the book is about teachings about language, and how important it is, as well as how to easily start building your own dialect in a more “realistic” way. I haven’t fully gotten to read through all of it as they are not integral for playing the game, but it is definitely something I want to check out soon, and play again with that new knowledge! Now, the game as I said before is not for every group. It can easily lean towards a silly side with some groups, while others can delve into a much more harrowing path with a very depressing ending. However, you will find a ton of fun either way. You can buy Dialect at Thorney Games’ official website: GET DIALECT

Friends The main reason I play tabletop role playing games is for the friends I have at the table. I’ve been gaming with the members of my current group for between 7 and 25 years, depending on which member I’m accounting for. They’re great people. They’re great friends (during and between sessions). We’ve helped each […]

Friends I’ve known some of my group for over 2 decades! The main reason I play tabletop role playing games is for the friends I have at the table. I’ve been gaming with the members of my current group for between 7 and 25 years, depending on which member I’m accounting for. They’re great people. They’re great friends (during and between sessions). We’ve helped each other move between houses. We’ve helped each other with social/emotional support through ups and downs. They truly are friends, and if my phone rings with one of them on the other end, I’m very likely to drop everything I have in hand right now to help them with whatever they may need. When I’m not gaming with my regular group, odds are I’m at a convention table amongst near or total strangers. While there with these folks, I do my best to be friendly toward them. I fully expect the same attitude to be reflected toward me as well. There’s no room for player antagonism at the table, regardless of setting or familiarity with the other people. Escapism Reality Bites I get enough of reality in heaping doses as it is. I suspect the vast majority of other gamers are in the same boat. During the hours I’m at the gaming table, very little of the real world matters to me. I’m not there anymore. I’m off in some magic-filled fantasy land, aboard a spaceship with FTL travel, hacking through some VR-styled networks, or ripping clips down range at very bad people. Regardless of the genre, system, setting, or game that I’m playing, I’m immersed in it. I’m not stuck in the real world or my forty-hour-a-week job or trying to fix computers or building web sites or whatever. I’m elsewhere. I’m also someone else doing cool things that I normally couldn’t do myself. Heroism Be the Big Damn Hero. Which brings in the next point. A very small percentage of people in the real world are true heroes, but I get to be one while immersed in my imaginary worlds. I’m (as Ang puts it), a Big Damn Hero, and I get to act like one. The accomplishments and actions I go through are amazing, fulfilling, and heart-warming. I get to save children, put down bad people, defeat mythic monsters, and make amazing discoveries that might change the world (or galaxy or universe) around my character. Entertainment Do it right by having fun. There’s a saying that goes, “If you’re having fun, you’re doing it right!” I completely agree. Games should be entertaining. Your character should be fun to play. The people you surround yourself with should be amazing to be around. The game mechanics you interact with should be engaging. The world, NPCs, monsters, bad folks, and other interactions within the game should be interesting. RPGs are, at their core, entertainment. Anything that detracts from this should be carefully examined and changed (or removed). Sense of Accomplishment Go accomplish something. Through my character in the game, I get to do incredible feats. I pull off stunts that no mere mortal should be able to do. I get to shoot a laser blaster. I get to swing intelligent swords. I get to perform magic. I get to heal faster than Wolverine. I get to survive wounds and events that would crush the real me like a rotten grape. I also get to take on quests, missions, heists, jobs, and adventures that produce thrilling stories that even the best authors in the world would envy as storylines. Unexpected Storytelling Surprise yourself and others. As with any group effort, it’s not just about me. It’s about us as a whole. This means there are many times at the table that someone else (GM or player) will come up with an idea that will absolutely amaze or surprise me to the core. These unexpected turns of events in the storytelling jazz me up. Sometimes, I’ll sit there in shocked silence with my mouth agape. Other times, I get a broad smile on my face at the sheer audacity of the concept that was just presented. These twists almost always amuse me, and I love seeing how they play out and conclude. Math/Mechanics Enjoy the math. Yeah. I’ll admit it. I’m a math geek. RPGs aren’t just about the storytelling and collaboration and events and friendships and amazing feats. It’s about the math as well. I’m not a min/maxer, but I would consider myself an optimizer. I like having effective characters, but I also enjoy flawed characters. No one (even an imaginary person) is perfect, and I like keeping this true. Regardless of the flaws my characters have, I love how their set of skills and abilities intersect with the game mechanics, world, bad folks, monsters, other characters, and the special parts of the setting. There’s just something fun about doing the math to determine if a random chance of success turns out good, bad, wonderful, or ugly. Conclusion There are lots of reasons people play RPGs. The above are mine. What are yours? Why do you play RPGs? What jazzes you about getting together with your group and rolling some dice while playing make believe? Drop me a note on my socials or as a comment here. (PS: You can find links to all of my socials at https://jtevans.net/ in the blue bar at the top of every page. All of my social posts related to Gnome Stew are public and open for comments.)

In the D&D cultural zeitgeist, the paladin is often characterized as a stick-in-the-mud or worse, a narq, but there's so much more to this trope beyond the memes. So let's take a closer look and figure out how to use the fantasy of a stalwart champion to create absorbing character arcs.

The paladin is a staple of fantasy TTRPGs. Initially introduced in 1975 as part of the Greyhawk campaign setting, they’ve shown up in various forms in all of the subsequent editions. Sometimes as a subclass. Sometimes with hard restrictions on their actions. Sometimes they’re powerful caster/fighter hybrids. Other times, not so much. But regardless of their mechanics the idea of a strong champion of a cause has seated itself firmly in our fantasy brains. For this article, though, I’m not going to be talking about the class of paladin. I’m going to be talking about the trope. In the D&D cultural zeitgeist, the paladin is often characterized as a stick-in-the-mud or worse, a narc, but there’s so much more to this trope beyond the memes. So let’s take a closer look and figure out how to use the fantasy of a stalwart champion to create absorbing character arcs. The Paladin Whether it’s truth and justice, holy orders, or an assassin’s code, the paladin is the one who makes an oath and keeps it. The Fantasy: The paladin is the one with a code. A set of rules they’ve sworn to uphold. These rules can come in a variety of forms. If we’re thinking of the stereotypical “good guy” paladin, then these rules could look like divine dogmas, moral frameworks, or even local laws. But here’s the thing, “good guys” aren’t the only ones with codes of conduct. In The Professional, Léon’s “No women, no kids” rule puts him squarely into the paladin camp. Criminal organizations have rules, and people who enforce those rules. The fae courts, as chaotic as they can seem to some, are sticklers for contracts. Hell (literally), even some versions of demons act the same way. The point is, the fantasy of a paladin isn’t about alignment, it’s about believing in and following the rules of something bigger than themself. Examples: Wonder Woman, DC Comics Steve Rogers, Marvel Comics Prince Zuko, Avatar the Last Airbender Furiosa, Mad Max Jack Reacher, Lee Child’s Jack Reacher novel series Amy Santiago, Brooklyn 99 Why This Doesn’t Work in a TTRPG: I don’t know if you’ve ever noticed this, but a good number of TTRPG sessions usually end up with the PCs breaking at least one local rule or city ordinance. Dragging a tried and true rule-follower along on a heist can often feel like bringing your mom to a high school kegger. Not ideal and definitely not comfortable. On the paladin’s end of things, it can be hard to square your character’s actions with the party dynamics if the party is dead set on crime (regardless of their intentions). In the worst situations, you might run into a situation where the paladin feels they have to stop the other PCs from doing the thing they’re going to do. Having a player trying to shut down other players’ actions is a recipe for PvP or worse, hard feelings among the players themselves. Making it Work: Long-time readers of Gnome Stew will already know the answer to this problem lies in a good session zero. If you were already thinking that while reading the last section, congratulations. Get yourself a treat the next time you’re out and about. You deserve it. Here are some questions to ask your would-be paladin player during session zero. They’ll help you set expectations for the campaign, and they’ll also give you the hooks you’ll need to make the paladin’s story interesting and satisfying. Do they want to be tempted by the “dark side”? – If the trope fantasy is all about following a code, then find out how much they want to test the limits of that code. How far are they willing to explore the alternatives to their oaths? This is probably the most important question when working with the paladin trope. Do they want to fall from grace? – Parlaying off of that first question, do they want to bend their code so far that they actually break it? A lot of meaty character stories are about whether or not the person who lives by a simple set of rules will ever break those rules. If they fall from grace, do they want to be redeemed? – This could be a “play to find out” question, but if they have a definite answer at the start, it’s good to know. How much PvP is everyone comfortable with? – And I’m not just talking about combat here. If the paladin’s code is going to run up against other characters, make sure everyone’s on the same page when it comes to the conflict that could arise. Challenging the Trope: As you might have guessed, the key to creating interesting story conflict for a paladin is challenging their code of conduct. Think of it as Chekhov’s Oath. Their rules are set out from the very beginning; all you have to do is put the paladin into situations where following or breaking those rules is the central conflict. But here’s the thing, you can’t just toss them into a moral quandary right off the bat, because it’s easy for a freshly minted character to stick to their rules and reject your temptation. Start out with simple challenges. Easy, binary thinking stuff. An obvious right answer. And use those to establish how the paladin reacts in the best circumstances. Then, over the course of the campaign, make the choices harder and harder, slowly turning up the heat and adding layers of complexity to the situations until you hit them with a moral dilemma that rocks them to their very foundation. Will they break their code to save their friends? What about saving the day or even the world? Stopping a mugger who just robbed an elderly person? Easy set up for a first session challenge. Finding out that the street urchin they’ve been helping has been stealing bread to feed her family? A little grey, but still probably a pretty easy choice to make. Finding out that same urchin (whom they’ve been helping and mentoring for half the campaign) is fated to destroy the world unless she’s sacrificed to reset the cosmic balance? Now that’s a campaign-defining choice dilemma right there. Here’s the secret sauce that will really level up your storytelling — don’t stop with the choice. Play out the consequences and ask, “what happens next”? How does the paladin change after they’ve made their choice? How does their party’s perception of them evolve? And what happens to the rest of the world after they’ve decided? Your Decision If you want to see more articles like this, check out the one I wrote on The Loner trope. What character tropes do you think I should cover next? Drop your recommendations in the comments!

https://polygamero.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/GC_210_System_Screen_Burn_final.mp3 Join Ang along with Josh and JT as they talk about how to navigate having multiple game systems embedded in your brain. Notice? Perception? Awareness? Which does this system use!? LINKS: Han Cluster Crowd Funding How to Build a Custom GM Screen Monster Overhaul 60th Nebula Award Nominations

https://polygamero.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/GC_210_System_Screen_Burn_final.mp3 Join Ang along with Josh and JT as they talk about how to navigate having multiple game systems embedded in your brain. Notice? Perception? Awareness? Which does this system use!? LINKS: Han Cluster Crowd Funding How to Build a Custom GM Screen Monster Overhaul 60th Nebula Award Nominations

In a turn of unfortunate news, Stewart Grytman has decided to step down from writing for Gnome Stew. We are sad to miss out on all the articles he could have provided. We wish Stewart the best of luck. We’re sure his future will be delicious.   Comic PDF available HERE Artwork by @thecrystalauthor on […]

In a turn of unfortunate news, Stewart Grytman has decided to step down from writing for Gnome Stew. We are sad to miss out on all the articles he could have provided. We wish Stewart the best of luck. We’re sure his future will be delicious. Comic PDF available HERE Artwork by @thecrystalauthor on X, Instagram Story by Matt Neagley and Various Gnomes

  Ang Here at The Stew, we have a turnover rate that would make any corporate grindhouse proud. To that end, we have to keep the ground chuck flowing, which of course brings us to our newest gnome. Why don’t you tell us about yourself Chuck? It’s Stewart actually. Anyway, as they say, I was […]

Ang Here at The Stew, we have a turnover rate that would make any corporate grindhouse proud. To that end, we have to keep the ground chuck flowing, which of course brings us to our newest gnome. Why don’t you tell us about yourself Chuck? It’s Stewart actually. Anyway, as they say, I was born wherever gnomes are born, usually in winter. I was introduced to RPGs at a pretty young age, sort of against my will. My big sister Brie and her friends were introduced to the game via the HeartQuest novels and forced me to play Muddfoot, their characters’ pack mule and torch bearer, sometimes by literally sitting on me and refusing to let me leave. Stewart Ang Brie huh? Do you keep in contact with her much anymore? I’m surprised that an introduction to the hobby like that didn’t turn you sour to the whole game. What inspired you to keep going? Well, there were occasional fun moments, and truth be told, I had a crush on the DM. Her name was… god, this was so long ago… Julienne. Well, she asked me to help her collate her notes after the game one session, and that, as they say, was that. You should have seen the look on Brie’s face when in the middle of a hard fight deep in the dungeon, Muddfoot the pack mule just walked away carrying all the party’s loot, the map to the surface, and of course the only light source. This was back in the day when PCs needed a light source to see and monsters never did, so that fight didn’t exactly work out in their favor. Stewart Ang Sounds like you played with a lot of intriguing folks. And I think the young love angle is adorable. Several of the Gnomes met their partners through gaming. So after that, how did you end up on the other side of the screen? Well, after Julienne let Muddfoot get away with all the treasure and leave the party to die, Brie and her friends gave me the silent treatment for weeks. For Julienne though it was even worse. They pretty much “Mean Girls”ed her for the rest of high school. DnD was such a big passion for her, and with few friends left, she and I kept meeting at the local library to play. But she had a hard time DMing after that. It made her miss everyone too much, so I suggested she make a character and I ran games for her. She made a tough as nails fighter type, I don’t remember the character name. I wasn’t a very good GM, who is to start with? But I got better with practice. Stewart Ang So what ever happened to her? You must have been pretty good friends after that, Well, like many high school friends, college happened. She was a few years older than me remember, so she went off to school… University of Michigan I think, and by the time I graduated, we had mostly lost touch. I did hear that she published some RPG stuff of her own, but I don’t really think it would be fair to her to dredge up ancient history just because I want to name drop, so we can leave all that alone. Stewart Ang That’s very thoughtful of you Stewart. So where did your GM career go after she left for Michigan? I ran a few pick up games during the last few years of high school, tried a few new systems. I think I had the distinction of “running” a Traveller game where every single character died in character creation. But for the most part, the people I tried to run for didn’t really “get” how I was trying to run. This was back in the 80s, where everything was hack and slash dungeon crawls, but of course I had been introduced to the hobby indirectly through romance novels. When I was running solo campaigns for Julienne I was half just DMing the way I had seen her DM for Brie and her friends and if I’m honest, half trying to flirt with her by having NPCs flirt with her character. That’s generally a bad idea, but it worked because we were somewhere between good friends and crushing on each other so neither of us minded. Anyway, picture it if you can: a table of teenage boys playing hack and slash dungeon crawl in the late 80s, they come to the temple for healing and the DM, another teen boy starts RPing the priestess flirting with one of their characters. It did not go over well. Stewart Ang Honestly, that sounds downright revolutionary for the era. Maybe unwanted flirting RP wasn’t quite the way to do it, but I don’t think that style of play would be commonplace till the early 90s. I think it’s one of those unique little islands of play that came about pre-internet. Every game table had their own reading of the rules and the intent of play and aside from writing into trade magazines and talking with locals at your FLGS, who was to say if you were right or not? Stewart Ang So you weren’t well received in high school, but where did you go from there? By the time I got to college I had learned that not everyone wants to flirt, but people are generally cool with other relationship building, so I was leaning on that as a major component of my games. Then it was 91’ and the lid blew off the whole “Lounge around wallowing in RP Angst” scene and I was in my element. I had never been a proper goth. I was a pretty upbeat kid, and I never really got the fashion, I don’t know how many eye rolls I got for mixing a black dress shirt with a wallet chain, but it didn’t matter because if people wanted to play in my game, they had to make fun of my abysmal fashion sense out of earshot. Stewart Ang So now with the flood of modern narrative based games, what are your current favorites? What are you running these days? Right now I’m running Brindlewood Bay. Think Murder She Wrote meets Call of Cthulhu. I’ve fiddled with a handful of PbtA games. I like their easy narrative lens and their focus on the actions of the characters and the consequences of those actions. Stewart Ang Now that you’re a gnome, what kind of content are you planning on adding to the stew? I figure I’ll start with what I know best: Building NPCs that will make players want to emotionally invest themselves. Building complex relationship webs, maintaining headspace and rapidly switching between NPCs, that sort of thing. Stewart Ang And to think, all this started because your sister’s friends used to sit on you. Well, you know, play your cards right… Stewart Ang And that reminds me. I have a conduct agreement you have to sign.

In November, I paused my Mutants in the Now game because my campaign’s content clashed with the rising political climate, and I was not in a place where I thought I could run the game and maintain my self-care. Time has passed, and having done some work on myself to better protect and manage myself […]

In November, I paused my Mutants in the Now game because my campaign’s content clashed with the rising political climate, and I was not in a place where I thought I could run the game and maintain my self-care. Time has passed, and having done some work on myself to better protect and manage myself and self-care, I feel like I am in a place to run the game again. But that was nearly 4 months ago. So, how do you dust off an old campaign and start it up again? Let’s talk about it. Taking An Extended Hiatus Plenty of campaigns take breaks. My group used to take a holiday hiatus between Thanksgiving and Christmas every year and restart our games in January. Others will take a break during convention season, during the semester, or some time when their day job has high demands. I think an extended hiatus is something that lasts more than a month; about the time for everyone to unload the memories and knowledge of the system and setting from their short-term memories. That is the challenge with coming back from an extended hiatus: at one point in time, the system, setting, and the ongoing story was fresh in your mind, but now that has all faded. How do you balance the game being new-ish while also being somewhat familiar? Take into account that this game has history, and you might not all remember it. How to Re-start A Campaign Ok, so we are going to dust off an old campaign and restart it. Just how do we go about doing this? There is no true way but there are some things you should think about. Interest Level This was kind of assumed at the onset of the article, but to be proper, the first thing you need to do is to determine if your group is interested in returning to the game. This can be a simple discussion, nothing complicated or fancy here. Confirm that the group is excited about coming back to the campaign. If you have time, discuss what things are exciting about coming back to this campaign. Is it a chance to return to the characters? Is it unfulfilled stories from the original run? Is it revenge against someone in the first campaign? Jot down what these are, because they will inform you of what you should work into the restart. Re-learn the rules Next up, time to re-learn the rules. Depending on how long you have played the system in the past and your level of mastery, you are going to need to invest some time relearning the system. Crack open the books and get reading. If you are restarting a campaign in a system that you play all the time, then this won’t be an issue, but if your campaign is in a system that you do not play often, you are going to restart your system mastery journey. Some of it will come back to you quickly. Some of it will take a bit more work. There is a good chance you will discover a mechanic that you were doing wrong in the past campaign. Review what has happened At the same time or after you review the system, find your notes about the old campaign and review them. Depending on how you prep your sessions, your campaign management, your in-session note taking, and how your players took session notes, you could have few or many sources of information to review. Here is a short list of possible sources: Session Prep (what you prepped for the game)- this could also be published adventures Session Notes (any notes you took about the session while you were running it) Campaign Notes NPC lists Player notes/journals Recordings (for those that record their sessions) Go through those materials and make yourself familiar with what previously happened. Make a note of events that never had consequences addressed, NPCs who may have an agenda to fulfill, etc. These are things you can use in the new campaign to help tie it to the old one. Re-Orient the Players Similar to the work above, you also need to get your players back up to speed on the campaign. You may not want them to access all the same materials you were looking at, so you may need to create some kind of summary for them or have a time when you can get together and recap what happened previously. For them to be able to resume play in the new campaign, it will help if they can remember details from the previous campaign. For them to be able to resume play in the new campaign, it will help if they can remember details from the previous campaign. Clean up your campaign notes For those of us who do keep campaign notes, if they are not all neat and complete, now is a good time to do a little campaign maintenance and clean up your notes, write down any campaign elements that got created during sessions but never made it into your campaign materials, etc. This is also a nice time to perhaps do some world-building and create some new elements based on what has previously happened. Start a new Arc It has been my experience that after a long hiatus you should not resurrect an old story arc, but rather start a new one at a time after the previous one. If you were able to end that previous arc cleanly before your hiatus, then this will be the natural thing to do. But if your hiatus happened in mid-arc, you should still consider doing a new arc. The reason is that the tension you were building in the previous arc is likely gone, and any conclusion to that arc will be anti-climatic. Instead, get together and narrate an ending to that arc that makes sense, and then start a new one. I like to start a new arc after several months or years from the last arc. It gives you some distance from the previous (old) arc and room for some things to evolve. Also, it gives the feeling that not much has happened during the time you were not playing. You first adventure back Having dusted everything off and gotten everything restarted, it’s time for your first session of the new campaign. Here are a few quick tips to make your return as successful as possible: Introduce the characters Take time at the start of the game for the players to re-introduce their characters. Do it like you were playing a new game: name, description, role, etc. Introduce the setting Your first adventure should re-introduce the players to the setting. Do a little of this up front with some kind of Previously in this campaign… But also work in various campaign elements (locations, events, NPCs) throughout the adventure. Let them go to their favorite locations, have a conversation with their favorite city guard, etc. Give them the time and the scenes to re-immerse into the setting. Practice the rules In your first adventure, make sure you take the rules out for a spin. Include all the base rules for the game: some skill checks and light combat. Give the players a chance to roll some dice, look things up on their sheets, and get re-familiarized with the system in a low-stakes (see below) story. Do a one-off adventure before your arc Walk before you run. Have your first adventure be a stand-alone story before you immerse them in a new arc. Let them spend that first adventure getting reacquainted with the system and the setting before you kick off a new arc. This adventure should be like a tutorial for a video game: a bit of excitement but nothing too dangerous. Welcome back to the land of the livin’ Campaigns go on extended hiatuses for all sorts of reasons, and bringing one back requires a bit of care. Take time to refresh yourself on the story, setting, and past events. Help your players do the same. Take the time when re-starting the campaign to do a bit of campaign maintenance. Then for your first session back, ease the players back into the system and setting with a low-stakes one-shot that helps everyone to re-learn the game and setting. Do all that, and your old campaign may be new again. Have you brought back a campaign from the past? How did you do it?

All things Indie Games

If most adventures in video games take you out and about into exotic locales, Leila...

The post Preview: Leila – Into an Everyday Woman’s Psyche appeared first on Into Indie Games.

If most adventures in video games take you out and about into exotic locales, Leila... The post Preview: Leila – Into an Everyday Woman’s Psyche appeared first on Into Indie Games.

Welcome to the Into Indie Games walkthrough for The Darkest Files. For more information on...

The post The Darkest Files Walkthrough – The Insurgent (A New Job, The Widow) appeared first on Into Indie Games.

Welcome to the Into Indie Games walkthrough for The Darkest Files. For more information on... The post The Darkest Files Walkthrough – The Insurgent (A New Job, The Widow) appeared first on Into Indie Games.

Remember the 90s? All the talking robots, the ghosts, and of course, who can forget...

The post Preview: Elroy and the Aliens – Return to 1993 in this Cosmic Adventure appeared first on Into Indie Games.

Remember the 90s? All the talking robots, the ghosts, and of course, who can forget... The post Preview: Elroy and the Aliens – Return to 1993 in this Cosmic Adventure appeared first on Into Indie Games.

What mysteries lie in the midst of the enchanted forest? Koira is the debut game...

The post Preview: Koira – A Puppy to Protect at All Costs appeared first on Into Indie Games.

What mysteries lie in the midst of the enchanted forest? Koira is the debut game... The post Preview: Koira – A Puppy to Protect at All Costs appeared first on Into Indie Games.

Update: March 28, 2025 Post Trauma’s release date has been delayed to April 22nd, 2025,...

The post Preview: Post Trauma – Surreal and Nightmarish Survival Horror appeared first on Into Indie Games.

Update: March 28, 2025 Post Trauma’s release date has been delayed to April 22nd, 2025,... The post Preview: Post Trauma – Surreal and Nightmarish Survival Horror appeared first on Into Indie Games.

Welcome to the Into Indie Games walkthrough for Carmen Sandiego. For more information on Carmen...

The post Carmen Sandiego Walkthrough – The Space Race Caper appeared first on Into Indie Games.

Welcome to the Into Indie Games walkthrough for Carmen Sandiego. For more information on Carmen... The post Carmen Sandiego Walkthrough – The Space Race Caper appeared first on Into Indie Games.

Welcome to the Into Indie Games walkthrough for Carmen Sandiego. For more information on Carmen...

The post Carmen Sandiego Walkthrough – The Signal Boost Caper appeared first on Into Indie Games.

Welcome to the Into Indie Games walkthrough for Carmen Sandiego. For more information on Carmen... The post Carmen Sandiego Walkthrough – The Signal Boost Caper appeared first on Into Indie Games.

The Darkest Files is set in 1956, when Germany was a country divided in two,...

The post Preview: The Darkest Files – Bringing Former Nazis to Justice appeared first on Into Indie Games.

The Darkest Files is set in 1956, when Germany was a country divided in two,... The post Preview: The Darkest Files – Bringing Former Nazis to Justice appeared first on Into Indie Games.

Welcome to the Into Indie Games walkthrough for Asylum. In this part, we meet the entity in the catacombs and finally end this nightmare.

The post Asylum Walkthrough – Conclusion appeared first on Into Indie Games.

Welcome to the Into Indie Games walkthrough for Asylum. In this part, we meet the... The post Asylum Walkthrough – Conclusion appeared first on Into Indie Games.

Welcome to the Into Indie Games walkthrough for Asylum. In this part, we explore the 3rd floor theater, church and piano room.

The post Asylum Walkthrough – 3:00 AM appeared first on Into Indie Games.

Welcome to the Into Indie Games walkthrough for Asylum. In this part, we explore the... The post Asylum Walkthrough – 3:00 AM appeared first on Into Indie Games.

Gaming Reviews, News, Tips and More.

Another Tuesday, another drop of three new Star Wars: Andor episodes. This time in the Rogue One prequel series, Bix and Cassian dealt with the struggles of being rebels while we learned more about Ghorman and its own fight against the Empire.

Read more...

I wanted to share this with you. The image above is a real screenshot of Fortnite featuring Darth Sidious aka the Emperor aka Sheev Palpatine from Star Wars holding an assault rifle. I thought you would want to see this, so I’m sharing it with you.

Read more...

It’s been a week, huh? It looks like we’ll be paying a whole lot more for consoles and games as well as reading and watching a whole lot less great gaming journalism, and on top of all that, GTA 6 isn’t even coming out this year!

Read more...

Across all of the Star Wars saga we’ve seen a whole lot of Stormtroopers. These armored soldiers are the Empire’s main fighting force and show up in just about every piece of Star Wars media out there, including games, books, comics, and of course movies. But they aren’t all the same. There are many variants of these…

Read more...

Somehow, with all the other wild shit happening in the early going in Clair Obscur, a golem made of bits of wood and burlap sacks who beats people to death with his dead partner who’s a living paintbrush comes off as just another day at the office. Problem is, getting caught underestimating that thing is a quick and…

Read more...

1. Best HDR loadout
2. Best HDR-based class

Read more...

At the start of this week you could snag a used Xbox Series S in the U.S. for around $250. Just days later, Microsoft hiked the price of new Series S units to $380, and the Series X all the way to $600. The tech giant blamed “market conditions,” AKA President Trump’s trade war with China. But tariffs will come for all…

Read more...

Have you heard the news? Grant Theft Auto 6, which was announced with a 2025 release window, has been delayed until May 2026. A year away. Yikes! But actually, that’s okay, because 2025 has been so jam-packed with good games (and more are coming) that we didn’t really need GTA 6 anyway.

Read more...

1. Finding Jar’s ‘light’
2. Should you attack Jar?

Read more...

1. Best attachments
2. Best perks

Read more...

Whelp, Grand Theft Auto VI isn’t coming out in 2025 after all. Many are shocked but not surprised. Big games often get delayed, though GTA VI is the biggest of them all and had executives promising it wouldn’t slip its fall launch as recently as February. It’s a terrible bait and switch for fans, but potentially a…

Read more...

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is now 17 years old and boasts a catalog of 36 movies and counting. With Captain America: Brave New World and Thunderbolts* wrapping up Phase Five in the ongoing superhero saga before Fantastic Four: First Steps arrives this summer to kick off Phase Six, we thought we’d take a look back…

Read more...

Rockstar has announced that GTA 6, the most anticipated game of 2025, has been delayed until May 2026. In a statement posted to its social media, the company has said it needs more time to create the game.

Read more...

The video game website Polygon has been sold to click-farm powerhouse Valnet and much of its masthead has been laid off, Kotaku has learned. The sale was subsequently announced in a press release. Multiple staff members have posted online about losing their jobs or about colleagues now being out of work.

Read more...

Last week, Xbox and Bethesda shadow-dropped a fancy remaster of 2006 open-world RPG The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion and it promptly took over the world. However, it also made some people worried that a long-in-development fan mod which also aims to recreate the aging RPG would face legal issues or be overshadowed when…

Read more...

If you ever needed proof that all things feed into one another, look no further than somebody making Marvel Rivals kits in Overwatch 2. NetEase’s hero shooter has long been compared to Blizzard’s, with several of its heroes being almost exact copies of characters Overwatch popularized. But despite the comparisons and…

Read more...

Giant Bomb’s future is uncertain following a showdown with parent company Fandom, which also owns GameSpot, over editorial interference. Creative director Dan Ryckert announced on a recent livestream that he would no longer be appearing on the Giant Bombcast and co-host Jeff Grubb confirmed on social media on Thursday…

Read more...

Read more...

Epic Games v. Apple judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers has ruled that, effective immediately, Apple can no longer take a cut from purchases made outside apps and has blocked the tech giant from restricting how developers can point people to third-party payment options. The judge was also not happy that Apple has seemingly…

Read more...

Overwatch 2’s new season is one of its most robust. On top of adding the new Stadium mode and the game’s 43rd hero, the crossbow-wielding Freja, Blizzard also implemented hero bans for competitive play. Players who are queuing up for ranked matches can now vote to ban four heroes, with only two of them being allowed…

Read more...

1. Spellsword
2. Custom class

Read more...

How exhausted are you by stagger? It’s unironically the worst status affliction in video gaming history. Thankfully, it’s not much of an issue in Assassin’s Creed Shadows—at least for the player. The action-adventure from Ubisoft does have a similar status effect—Daze—but you’ll most often be the one inflicting it…

Read more...

Grand Theft Auto 6 is set to launch later this year. Maybe in October? Regardless of when it arrives, it seems very likely now—after Nintendo and Microsoft have both announced $80 games—that the open-world sequel will cost at least $80 as well, if not more.

Read more...

Naoe and Yasuke’s ongoing journey through the Wide Wide World of Bastards continues with The Naginata, a panicky, flopsweaty stooge who doesn’t even have the honor of fighting an old drunk one-on-one given the opportunity.

Read more...

Read more...

An Xbox Series X with 2TB of storage now costs more than a PlayStation 5 Pro. The next Call of Duty could be Microsoft’s first $80 game. Microsoft announced major price hikes for the entire Xbox ecosystem on Thursday and fans are in shock.

Read more...

Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown’s developers got done dirty. The side-scrolling Metroidvania entry into the 36-year-old series sold an extraordinary 1.3 million copies, and yet despite this, Eurogamer reported last year that the internal team at Ubisoft Montpellier that had created the game had been disbanded and…

Read more...

Monster Hunter Wilds has a habit of keeping things vague when it comes to various mechanics or how items work. Not everything can be as obvious as how to interact with Wounds. No matter if you find it charming or frustrating, you’re bound to be confused here and there. A great example of this is Commission Tickets,…

Read more...

Microsoft has announced it will be raising the prices of all Xbox consoles, accessories, and games, and the increases are huge. Console and peripheral prices will go up today, May 1, by an enormous amount, while new first-party game prices will all hit $80 by the holidays.

Read more...

Today, we learned a lot more about Borderlands 4 during a roughly 20-minute PlayStation State of Play dedicated exclusively to Gearbox and 2K’s upcoming sci-fi looter shooter sequel.

Read more...

Atari has put out updated versions of multiple classic consoles in recent years, following up its Atari 2600+ replica console from 2023 with the 7800+ in late 2024, all accompanied by honest-to-god physical cartridge releases containing classic Atari games like Berzerk, Space Duel, and Ninja Golf. However, the retro…

Read more...

Assassin’s Creed Shadows, Ubisoft’s latest entry in its long-running historical fiction franchise, is set to receive some big updates over the next few months as explained in a new content roadmap released on April 30.

Read more...

I can already feel how much sleep I’m about to lose when Balatro becomes one of the free monthly games for PlayStation Plus in May. The 2024 GOTY contender and viral high score chase sensation is only a year old and about to win over a whole new group of converts to its Joker-worshipping cult.

Read more...

Earlier today racing game developer Codemasters announced that it was no longer developing any future dirt rally racing games, ending a 25-year run that started back in 1998.

Read more...

The Nintendo Switch received a major firmware update today that paves the way for its integration with the Switch 2 and institutes a less than stellar new regime of virtual game sharing. But firmware version 20.0.0 also made some other equally notable but less advertised changes, including a major shift to how…

Read more...

A Minecraft Movie is a box office juggernaut and has convinced loads of kids and teenagers to go out to the movies again (and cause chaos). And a song from the the live-action adaptation of the hit video game has set a new record: it’s the shortest track to ever make it on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Read more...

It all began with Cube Escape back in April 2015. Two mobile games were released simultaneously, Cube Escape: The Lake and Cube Escape: Seasons. Each, at first glance, appeared to be part of the current trend for both digital and real-world escape room games, in which you solved puzzles to set yourself free from some…

Read more...

Evil Dead: The Game arrived in 2022 to mixed reviews but strong fan support for its asymmetric multiplayer. Now, just three years later, the survival horror game is disappearing from store shelves, presumably because of expiring licenses.

Read more...

Some players adore realism in their racing games, including mechanical and cosmetic damage that forces them to drive perfectly or risk breaking down mid-race. Other folks enjoy a more leisurely racing experience that lets them get away with being a bit more reckless (or a lot more reckless).

Read more...

They say that giving is better than receiving. I say that depends on what’s being given or received. But it’s definitely great that Forza Horizon 5 gives you the ability to gift cars to your friends or random folks in the game. I mean, surely you’re not planning on driving literally every car you obtain in the game,…

Read more...

Star Wars Andor is back just over two years after its first season ended on Disney+. The first three episodes of season two premiered on Disney+ on April 22 and the show is just as good as before, with lots of great dialogue, intense action, and a whole bunch of tension. And sprinkled throughout Season 2 are some…

Read more...

Lune’s already a boon to us all for being the person to shake Gustave out of his post-massacre fugue state and get this Expedition on the road. But now that you’re a dynamic duo, you have a whole new set of options in battle.

Read more...

People in the center of the Overwatch and Gundam Venn Diagram got some fantastic news last week when Blizzard announced the collaboration of the iconic mecha anime with one fo the most popular hero shooters out there. Overwatch 2’s Gundam Wing event starts on April 29, 2025, celebrating the 30th anniversary of Gundam…

Read more...

The Nintendo Switch just got a major update to prepare for the arrival of Switch 2 in June. Ver. 20.0.0, released overnight, adds system transfers to Switch 2 as well as support for the new console’s GameShare feature and the sharing of virtual game cards. Players have quickly discovered a major caveat for that last…

Read more...

As “Sinners” remains at the number one spot at the box office, it’s getting major love from some major stars, namely Tom Cruise. And his latest move—and what he’s telling people to do is just further proof of that.

Read more...

Last year, Stardew Valley received a massive free update because its creator, Eric Barone, didn’t want to stop improving the beloved cozy farming game even eight years after it had launched. But now, he sounds committed to moving on from Stardew Valley for a few years while he finishes up his previously announced next…

Read more...

A humble piece of sushi cleans mold off leftovers in the fridge. That’s the premise of Moldwasher, a small pixel art curio with serene ambient tunes that is coming to Steam later this year. It recently landed on the the r/powerwashingporn subreddit where it became a mini-sensation.

Read more...

Between Apex Legends, the Star Wars: Jedi series, and other projects, Respawn Entertainment has a lot on its plate, so it’s a little shocking to hear that EA is laying off even more members of the studio this year. The cuts come amid hundreds of new layoffs at the publisher which reportedly canceled a Titanfall…

Read more...

Marvel Contest of Champions, a long-running fighting game from mobile developer Kabam, is getting an official PC port and Steam release in the near future.

Read more...

Originating from folklore and legends across different cultures and centuries, the supernatural creatures with a lust for blood and a fear of garlic and crucifixes have become some of the most iconic figures in horror and popular culture. And some of the most popular. The Twilight film series alone grossed over $3…

Read more...

Thunderbolts, the next big Marvel Cinematic Universe movie, lands in theaters this weekend. But after a few misfires and meh movies, like February’s Captain America: Brave New World, it started to feel like the MCU couldn’t score a home run. Thankfully, according to critics, Thunderbolts might be the return to form…

Read more...

AMD TechTalk provides insight on data center to edge innovation that helps IT managers optimize today's deployments and tomorrow's infrastructure planning. Hosted by AMD's director of server competitive marketing, Jim Greene, and featuring leading technologists from AMD and the industry, AMD TechTalk features discussion on servers, cloud computing, AI, HPC and more.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene, Director, EPYC Product Marketing, chats with Jon Stevens, CEO of Hot Aisle about his journey from pioneering large-scale Ethereum mining to founding Hot Aisle, a company focused on democratizing enterprise compute power. Discover how Jon's vision is reshaping the data center space, his insights on AMD's role in AI innovation, and the future of scalable infrastructure

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with Piotr Weglicki, Global Telco Lead in AMD’s Server Business Unit, about the biggest telecom trends at MWC 2025—from AI-driven infrastructure to energy-efficient compute.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with Carrie Wang, data center lead at Giga Computing, about the evolving demands of AI infrastructure, the future of data center cooling, and how Giga Computing and AMD are collaborating to drive data center computing innovation.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with Arun Nandi, Head of Data and Analytics at Unilever, about the rise of AI tokens, the impact of DeepSeek, and how tokenization is reshaping enterprise AI adoption.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene sits down with Elio Van Puyvelde, founder and CEO of ElioVP, to discuss how deep hardware optimization can enhance AI performance, improve efficiency, and reduce power consumption. They discuss the evolution from GPU overclocking to AI workload tuning, the challenges of AI infrastructure, and the future of AI model efficiency.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with Madhura Maskasky, Co-Founder & VP of Product at Platform9, about the future of private cloud, seamless VMware migrations, and optimizing AI-ready infrastructure.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with Arun Nandi, Head of Data and Analytics at Unilever, about how AI and Gen AI are driving smarter decision-making, optimizing sustainability, and creating real business impact across Unilever’s global operations.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with Neeraj Kumar, Chief Data Scientist at PNNL, about how AI is accelerating discovery across scientific research, energy efficiency, and healthcare.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with Iddo Kadim, Field CTO at NeuReality, about the rapid evolution of AI, the future of enterprise deployment, and the infrastructure changes driving innovation.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with Todd Koelling, Senior Director of Product and Solutions Marketing at Synopsys about how AI is reshaping the semiconductor industry and how the partnership between AMD and Synopsys led to the fastest ramping product in AMD history.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with Steen Graham, founder of Metrum AI, to explore the evolving world of AI infrastructure, testing, and enterprise solutions.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with Mahdi Ghodsi, Director of Engineering at Aupera Technologies about how edge AI is transforming video processing across industries like retail, security, and smart cities.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with Eric Herzog, CMO of Infinidat about how it leverages cutting-edge technology to revolutionize enterprise storage, AI, and cybersecurity.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with Linda Yang, the Senior Solution Manager at Supermicro about the transformative impact of AI on computing infrastructure and the sustainable innovative solutions Supermicro is providing to meet these demands.

TechTalk Host Jim Greene chats with Meena Arunachalam, AMD's AI Systems Engineering Director and Fellow, about how RAG is paving a simpler path to AI adoption in the enterprise and delivering capability to ensure an enterprise-class reliability to AI solutions.

Tech Talk host Jim Greene chats with Alan Czeszynski, VP of Product at BeeKeeperAI, about how BeeKeeperAI's EscrowAI platform enables secure collaboration between algorithm developers and data stewards, preserving data privacy and intellectual property. Jim and Alan explore the technology, its applications across industries, and the future of AI and data security.

TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with Robert Daigle, Director of Global AI Business at Lenovo about how AI is evolving in the enterprise, challenges organizations are currently facing to deploy AI solutions, gaps in sustainable infrastructure solutions, and how Lenovo is positioning itself to help customers deploy technology right sized for responsible delivery of AI at scale.

TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with Oii co-founder and CEO, Bob Rogers, about how his organization is tapping AI to bring new levels of insight and control to supply chains, and how infrastructure optimization is critical to fully unleash the potential of Oii solutions.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with the VP of Sales and Alliances at RadiusAI, Robert Hubbard, about how they're transforming the retail checkout game with AMD EPYC CPUs. With AI-assisted checkout, RadiusAI is lowering shrink and food waste, and increasing employee retention and customer satisfaction.

AMD TechTalk host talks with Oracle's VP of Mission-Critical Database Product Management, Ashish Ray, about how his organization is shaping the future of enterprise data management and how Oracle is tapping AMD EPYC processors to deliver the performance required by enterprise customers.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with Chaos' Director of Media and Entertainment and Strategic Products, Albena Ivanova about how her company is disrupting the world of media and entertainment with new software capabilities that tap AMD EPYC performance.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with Geico's Rebecca Weekly about how her organization tackles compute innovation to serve corporate requirements and customer needs and how AI's advancement represents new opportunity for IT innovation

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with GigaIO CEO Alan Benjamin about his company's unique take on delivering SUPERNODE, a scalable platform alternative that fast tracks company deployment of AI workloads.

TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with IronYun's Paul Sun about how his company is infusing AI into analytics solutions that yield breakthrough results for customers and how the IronYun team has worked with AMD to deliver improved performance and efficiency for customer deployments.

TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with Ateme's Director of Technology and Standards, Jan Outters, about how the company is transforming media delivery with AI infused encoding innovation.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with Altair's Fatma Kocer-Poyraz about how her company is driving unique engineering solutions to market by tapping the confluence of AI and data science.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with Ansys's Wim Slagter about how his company is tapping AI to improve simulation and comments on the deep collaboration between Ansys and AMD in driving the highest performance solutions to customers.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene sits down with Cadence's Dan Lee to discuss the Spectre simulation suite and how the company is helping to advance silicon design with the help of AMD EPYC processor performance.

TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with AMD's Server Solutions Group CVP Ravishankar Kuppuswamy about changing computing requirements in the AI era and how AMD EPYC processors will deliver core capabilities to customers as they implement generative AI models.

AMD Tech Talk host Jim Greene chat's with Hexagon's Vicky Tsianika about the company's multi-physics and fluid dynamics solutions, how these markets are being re-shaped by AI, and how Hexagon has tapped AMD EPYC processors to fuel improved performance for their customers.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with security expert Sally Eaves on the latest requirements for data center security in the AI era and how a hardware root of trust is becoming even more important for trusted environments.

AMD TechTalk host Jim Greene chats with IT veteran Ramki Balasubramanian about challenges facing IT professionals with today's workloads and how his organization approaches infrastructure modernization including use of AMD EPYC processors.

TechTalk host Jim Greene chat's with Clarify 360 analyst Jo Peterson on her view of the state of data center security, new opportunities and threats posed by AI, and how a hardware root of trust can help data center managers best protect their organizations.

AMD Tech Talk host Jim Greene chats with Cloudflare VP Rebecca Weekly about her organization's challenges in delivering to customer demands at the edge, where industry innovation is headed to deliver the performance required to fuel AI workloads, and how her company has tapped AMD EPYC processors to fuel innovation.

AMD Tech Talk host Jim Greene chats with Charles Luzzato, SIMULIA Industrial Equipment Industry Process Director, at Dassault Systèmes about how SIMULIA taps data to improve data center performance and efficiency, and how AMD EPYC processors deliver a performance foundation for SIMULIA deployments.

AMD Tech Talk host Dylan Larson sits down with tech guru Jason Collier to chat about the realities of managing virtualized environments and how AMD EPYC platforms can help IT managers drive innovation into the enterprise.

In this episode, TechTalk host Dylan Larson chats with Lynn Comp, AMD Vice President of Server Technology Marketing, about the unique opportunity new infrastructure represents in freeing IT resources for innovation.

TechTalk host sits down with the TechArena's Allyson Klein to discuss performance characteristics of multi-cloud environments and infrastructure evolution with the shift to distributed computing environments across cloud and edge.

AMD TechTalk host Dylan Larson chat's with CTO Advisor Keith Townsend on the hidden costs of IT inaction in modernizing data center infrastructure and what can be done to spur innovation.

In this episode AMD TechTalk host Dylan Larson chats with AMD's Server System Architect Mahesh Wagh about disruptive innovation coming to server platforms and how technologies like CXL will create new opportunity for memory capacity scaling and system design flexibility. Learn more at www.amd.com

Video Game Reviews, Features, and Gaming News

Spring has sprung! I think, actually the weather here kinda sucks. But all the more reason to stay inside and play a bunch of cool indie games that would never have been greenlit by a giant publisher. Let your dollars actually contribute to a developer’s well-being by checking out these bomb indie titles, wishlisting, and […]

Wētā Workshop shares how they brought the charm of Hobbit life to interactive form in a new dev video—and it’s as cozy as a second breakfast. If you’ve ever dreamed of living in a hobbit hole, Tales of the Shire: A The Lord of the Rings Game might be exactly your kind of adventure. Ahead […]

South of Midnight is a Southern Gothic platforming game about the legends and myths of the Deep South, and it’s okay! South of Midnight Developer: Compulsion Games Price: $40 Platforms: Xbox Series X|S, and PC (reviewed) MonsterVine was supplied with a Xbox code for review Set in a fictional town in the American South, South […]

Interview suspects, question reality, and uncover the truth in Raw Fury and Spooky Doorway’s eerie detective tale, now playable in a limited-time demo. If you’re a fan of ghost stories, sharp dialogue, and supernatural sleuthing, you might want to pencil in The Séance of Blake Manor. This supernatural mystery game from The Darkside Detective developers […]

Tara Gaming’s first project promises a mythic, AAA action-adventure grounded in Indian history and powered by legends from cinema, literature, and games. India is stepping into the AAA gaming spotlight with The Age of Bhaarat, a new action-adventure game developed by Tara Gaming Limited. Revealed today with a sweeping new trailer, The Age of Bhaarat […]

Teenage angst meets pom-pom-powered justice in Ra Ra BOOM, a four-player beat ‘em up landing on PC, Xbox, and PlayStation this August. Earth’s in trouble again, and this time, it’s climate change’s fault—kind of. In Ra Ra BOOM, a well-meaning AI built to save the planet has gone full Skynet, turning on humanity in the […]

Race rivalries, drift domination, and sushi deliveries? A new gameplay video for JDM: Japanese Drift Master gives fans a raw look at the story-driven racing action coming May 21. The latest deep dive from developer Gaming Factory showcases uncut footage from the end of Chapter 1 in JDM: Japanese Drift Master, revealing a tense race […]

Bandai Namco Entertainment America is teaming up with Terrible Posture Games and Nerd Ninjas to unleash Battle Train, a bombastic new roguelite deckbuilder, on PC and Nintendo Switch on June 18. Described by its creators as “the world’s most ridiculous dueling train game,” Battle Train blends fast-paced card strategy with explosive rail-based combat. Players lay […]

Sometimes, games defy the tendency to put them into a reviewable rubric. How do I compare an ostensible action-RPG (kinda) where you dismember yourself to satisfy angry trees and advance the story with, say, a Diablo game? I previewed Moroi, and the full game didn’t exactly make things any clearer than the preview. So let […]

Detective Kathy Rain returns to the scene this spring in Kathy Rain 2: Soothsayer, a gripping new point-and-click mystery launching May 20 for PC. The game is developed by Clifftop Games and published by Raw Fury. Set in 1998, Soothsayer follows Kathy as she investigates a chilling string of murders in the bustling city of […]

N4G: news feed

NoobFeed editor Ragib writes - A virtually perfect remaster that maintains the spirit of the original while significantly boosting its visual and mechanical authenticity. Cyrodiil is more inviting and enjoyable than ever. Its an RPG experience not to be missed in 2025.

TELUS launches the GameRx wellness gaming platform, offering science-backed game recommendations for mental and physical health.

Popular third-party developer PMDG released today its rendition of the Boeing 777-200ER for Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 and MSFS 2020.

Previously announced for PC - both flatscreen and VR - Remnant Protocol is now also coming to Meta Quest headsets.

Cultured Vultures: You love the SNES, we love the SNES, so lets look at the best SNES games ever together.

I had some hands-on time with the Nintendo Switch 2 at an event in Toronto. From what I played, the system's launch will be a strong one.

The Nacon Revolution X Unlimited is a premium, precision-built controller made for serious competitive gamers.

The Horror at Highrook's cheerful approach to classic cosmic horror tropes turns creeping fear into cozy vibes.

The First Descendant developers revealed that the Battle Pass for Season 3 will have one significant improvement compared to the others.

NoobFeed editor Faviyan writes - Your experience with The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy will leave you eager to dive back into its blend of story and strategy. Your choices shape the narrative in this game and remain a compelling fusion of narrative depth.

Your source for news, information, product releases, events, sports, entertainment & exclusive content relating to Xbox

The post Next Week on Xbox: New Games for May 5 to 9 appeared first on Xbox Wire.

Category: Next Week on Xbox May 2, 2025 Next Week on Xbox: New Games for May 5 to 9 Mike Nelson, Xbox Wire Editor Welcome to Next Week on Xbox! In this weekly feature we cover all the games coming soon to Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Windows PC, and Game Pass! Get more details on these upcoming games below and click their profiles for further info (release dates subject to change). Let’s jump in! Age of Empires II: DE – The Three Kingdoms Xbox Game Studios ☆☆☆☆☆ ★★★★★ $19.99 $16.99 Pre-order Age of Empires II DE: The Three Kingdoms (Console and PC) – May 6 Dive into the epic Romance of the Three Kingdoms with the latest expansion for Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition, where history and legend collide in a battle for supremacy! Battle your way across China with three new campaigns, commanding the forces of Shu, Wei, and Wu, each with their unique units, technologies, and heroes with devastating abilities. Additionally, explore medieval history on the fringes of China with two new civilizations: the Jurchens and Khitans! King Arthur: Legion IX NeocoreGames ☆☆☆☆☆ ★★★★★ Get it now King Arthur: Legion IX – May 6 Optimized for Xbox Series X|S A turn-based, character-centric tactical RPG in the King Arthur: Knight’s Tale universe – a dark fantasy version of the Arthurian myth. King Arthur: Legion IX welcomes new players to the mythical land of Avalon with an all-new story and heroes, also offering tough challenges to returning veterans. Metal Eden Deep Silver ☆☆☆☆☆ ★★★★★ Get it now Metal Eden – May 6 Optimized for Xbox Series X|S The advanced Hyper Unit Aska is sent on a suicide mission to rescue the citizens’ Cores from the vast monolithic city Moebius once a hopeful new home for humanity now turned into a deadly trap. Blast your way through the Internal Defence Corps in cybernetic warfare, confront the Engineers and uncover the mysteries of the project Eden. Bartender Hustle Ultimate Games S.A. ☆☆☆☆☆ ★★★★★ Get it now Bartender Hustle – May 7 Optimized for Xbox Series X|S / Smart Delivery Craft stunning cocktails with precision and creativity as you rise through the ranks of the bartending world. Unlock a variety of unique venues, from cozy neighborhood bars to high-end cocktail lounges, all while immersing yourself in a rich, narrative-driven experience that puts your skills and charisma to the test. Submarine Survivor Eastasiasoft Limited ☆☆☆☆☆ ★★★★★ Get it now Submarine Survivor – May 7 Optimized for Xbox Series X|S / Smart Delivery Get ready to dive into the ocean’s depths, face fearsome sea creatures and collect experience crystals in roguelite action game Submarine Survivor! As you face the blue unknown, you’ll have to upgrade your submarines with various combinations of weapons and chips to become the Lord of the Ocean. Submarine Survivor balances exploration with highly customizable combat across 2D maps packed with mission nodes. Empyreal Secret Mode ☆☆☆☆☆ ★★★★★ Get it now Empyreal – May 8 Optimized for Xbox Series X|S Empyreal is a complex, challenging, feature-rich action RPG. In a far-flung corner of the galaxy an Expedition arrives on a hitherto unexplored planet to find a colossal Monolith built by a lost civilization. Venture inside the Monolith and face the automatons that yet remain, remnants of the impossibly ancient civilization that built this unknowable structure. Survive and uncover revelations that transform our understanding of humanity itself. Penguin Flight: Beyond The Clouds Xbox Bundle Afil Games ☆☆☆☆☆ ★★★★★ Get it now Penguin Flight: Beyond the Clouds – May 8 Optimized for Xbox Series X|S In Penguin Flight: Beyond the Clouds, join the determined penguin on his quest to defy gravity! This 2D pixel art platformer offers challenging levels, creative obstacles, and high-flying action. Sharpen your reflexes and perfect your timing to master jumps, dashes, and new mechanics as you progress. Each stage presents unique surprises and challenges—all to reach the balloon that lifts you to the next level. Revenge of the Savage Planet Standard Edition Raccoon Logic Studios Inc. ☆☆☆☆☆ 16 ★★★★★ $39.99 Pre-order Revenge of the Savage Planet – May 8 Game Pass / Optimized for Xbox Series X|S In a future knocked off its axis by corporate greed and stupidity, you have been made redundant and abandoned on the far edge of space with little gear and no safety net. You must explore every nook and cranny, collect dozens of upgrades, and turn over every mysterious alien rock if you want to get revenge on your former employer and return to Earth. Spirit of the North 2 Silver Lining Interactive ☆☆☆☆☆ ★★★★★ $29.99 $25.49 Pre-order Spirit of the North 2 – May 8 Optimized for Xbox Series X|S Embrace the Aurora, save the Guardians. In an ancient world left in ruin, embark on the journey of an isolated fox far from home. With the help of a wise Raven companion, seek out the lost legendary guardians and release them from the grasp of the dark shaman Grimnir. The Abandoned Planet Snapbreak Games ☆☆☆☆☆ ★★★★★ $14.99 Pre-order The Abandoned Planet – May 8 Optimized for Xbox Series X|S / Smart Delivery When a wormhole tears open in space, an astronaut is hurled down and crashes on a distant planet. Solve the puzzle and piece together the mystery in this 2D, pixel art, first person, point and click adventure. Inspired by games like Myst and Riven with a dash of the LucasArts adventures of the 90s, The Abandoned Planet is sure to scratch that old-school, adventure game itch. Truck Simulator Cargo Driver 2025 – USA GOGAME CONSOLE PUBLISHER ☆☆☆☆☆ ★★★★★ $19.99 Pre-order Truck Simulator Cargo Driver 2025 – USA – May 8 Optimized for Xbox Series X|S Truck Simulator Cargo Driver 2025 – USA invites you to fire up your engines and embark on an authentic adventure across America’s vast roads! In this game, you’ll have the chance to experience the thrill and challenge of being a truck driver. You’ll take on missions that involve transporting different types of cargo, ensuring that you reach your destination on time and with minimal damage to your truck. AMAZE! QubicGames S.A. ☆☆☆☆☆ 3 ★★★★★ $4.99 Get it now Amaze! – May 9 Xbox Play Anywhere Pop and move the ball while you paint! Paint your way across a variety of maze puzzles which sounds easy, but you must be super strategic to color and fill every square. Eyes: The Horror Game QubicGames S.A. ☆☆☆☆☆ ★★★★★ $4.99 $3.99 Pre-order Eyes: The Horror Game – May 9 Discover the secrets of an abandoned homestead, try to survive in a haunted hospital and walk the corridors of the possessed school. There are traps on every side, you can’t feel safe anywhere. Collect runes – eyes – painted on the walls. Thanks to them, you gain the ability to see through the eyes of your opponent, and you can try to predict his movements. Related Stories for “Next Week on Xbox: New Games for May 5 to 9” Category: Next Week on Xbox Next Week on Xbox: New Games for April 28 to May 2 Category: Next Week on Xbox Next Week on Xbox: New Games for April 21 to 25 Category: Next Week on Xbox Next Week on Xbox: New Games for April 14 to 18 The post Next Week on Xbox: New Games for May 5 to 9 appeared first on Xbox Wire.

The post The Past, Present, and Future of Overwatch 2’s Stadium appeared first on Xbox Wire.

The post The Past, Present, and Future of Overwatch 2’s Stadium appeared first on Xbox Wire.

When Everafter Falls was released almost a year ago, we always knew that the game was going to be changing – what we didn’t know was how different it would look after talking with our players. Today, we released a new major content update, which went to some surprising places. Before talking about what’s new […]

The post Everafter Falls 2.0 – A Year in Listening and Twisting appeared first on Xbox Wire.

When Everafter Falls was released almost a year ago, we always knew that the game was going to be changing – what we didn’t know was how different it would look after talking with our players. Today, we released a new major content update, which went to some surprising places. Before talking about what’s new in the update, I think it is important to go back about a year and talk about the initial release of Everafter Falls. And just to introduce myself: I’m Joseph Shockley, otherwise known as Riv Otter, the Community Manager for Akupara Games. Everafter Falls is the first farming sim we ever released, and we saw feedback from a wide variety of players. To gather feedback, I opened a channel in the Everafter Falls Discord where people could discuss, suggest, and see the thoughts of what other players were after. I also kept an eye on the Steam forums and stayed active in them to show that we care about their feedback and that we will take it seriously. Because Everafter Falls was developed by just one developer, we knew that getting insight from players was going to be core to the game’s release. Our first surprise came from the completionists in the community. They talked about how hard and frustrating it is to collect every item and raise every insect to finish out the journal. There wasn’t a way to improve your chances of finding what you needed, so the more players put hours into collection, the harder it became to clear out every last item. Some people were just getting super unlucky and failing to get that missing item after retrying for hundreds of times, and there wasn’t a way to improve those odds. As soon as we noticed the bottleneck this was creating for completionist players, it was clear we needed to add something to help. In the version 2.0 patch, there are two new items that should help completionists gather the last missing items they need: The Golden Shroom Terrarium: a prize item and will give you a 100% chance to get a shroom you haven’t already gotten. The Epic Critter Terrarium: lets you breed only insects you haven’t currently found. Specifically, creating hard-to-craft late-game chase items that can help players fill out their collections was an easy way we could answer the call for this. In Everafter Falls, players can decorate their farm and house with different ornamentation. We always knew that giving players purely cosmetic options for their farms would be helpful, but the community was so excited for all the different options they had to really express their creativity in their farm. Even positive feedback can be used as a guide to improve the game in a content patch, which is why, with positive feedback on the variety of decorations that Everafter Falls had, this content update added an abundance of new adornments, and we’ve already seen players adding them to their farm and house. We received a ton of feedback, which I categorized as quality of life requests. Things that don’t directly affect the game but are nice to have for certain tasks, and can make the events more accessible for people. For example, there is an achievement in the game to craft every single item; however, at release, there was no way to keep track of which items you had crafted, making the achievement annoying to try to shoot for. In version 2.0, we remedied that by adding a blue star in the crafting menu for any item the player has crafted. No more Google Sheets or pen and paper tracking needed! There are countless things I could talk about in this content update and how player feedback shaped the way this was developed. Learning how to take the feedback players give you and using them to guide a content update really scratches the itch that designers have to create engaging experiences with their games. I’m glad that I could help shape the course of the Everafter Falls 2.0 update, which is out now on Xbox! Everafter Falls Akupara Games ☆☆☆☆☆ 12 ★★★★★ $19.99 Get it now Free Trial You once had a serene and peaceful existence right here in Everafter Falls. Don't you remember? You wake up to discover your previous life was nothing but a simulation. You've no memory of this place, your quaint animal neighbors, the refreshing wind and fragrant flowers, the little farm you had tucked away just outside town, none of it. But once you spend a little time with your forgotten friends and your helpful pet, doesn't Everafter Falls just feel perfect? Isn't it where you always wanted to be? Sure, you'll need to farm, fish and fight your way back to prominence in the tiny, cozy town, but you know your way around a sword, right? You know how to water your farm and progress through the dungeons. You know how to upgrade your stats and beat back tougher and tougher enemies, don't you? Just give those cards a good chomp and you'll have everything you need! Of course, if you need a little help, don't worry! Automated drones can expand your inventory, tend to your harvest, and even help you fight. And your pet missed you more than anything while you were under. They're here to help out around the farm, learning all sorts of neat things, like tilling your soil, watering your crops, and even teleporting you across the map. What? You've never heard of a teleporting cat before? It's Everafter Falls! Things are peaceful here. There's nothing to worry about… right? The post Everafter Falls 2.0 – A Year in Listening and Twisting appeared first on Xbox Wire.

The post Free Play Days – Forza Motorsport and The Escapists appeared first on Xbox Wire.

Category: Games May 1, 2025 Free Play Days – Forza Motorsport and The Escapists Kyle Ocean, Marketing Manager, Xbox Spring is in the air and May kicks off with a double feature! The Escapists is available this weekend for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, Standard and Core members to play from Thursday, May 1 at 12:01am Pacfic until Sunday, May 4 at 11:59pm Pacific. Additionally, Forza Motorsport is free for all Xbox members to try during the same time (Xbox Game Pass Game Pass Ultimate, Standard and Core membership not required). How To Start Playing Find and install the games on each of the individual game details page on Xbox.com. Clicking through will send you to the Microsoft Store, where you must be signed in to see the option to install with your Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, Standard and Core membership. To download on console, click on the Subscriptions tab in the Xbox Store and navigate down to the Free Play Days collection on your Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S. Keep The Fun Going Purchase the game and other editions at a limited time discount and continue playing while keeping your Gamerscore and achievements earned during the event! Please note that discounts, percentages, and title availability may vary by title and region. Free Play Days (Xbox Game Pass Membership Required) The Escapists Team17 Digital Ltd. ☆☆☆☆☆ 780 ★★★★★ $19.99 $3.99 Get it now The Escapists The Escapists is an award winning prison break simulation that provides players the opportunity of experiencing a light-hearted insight into everyday prison life. Master the routine, plan your strategy then execute your Escape. Free Play Days For All Forza Motorsport Xbox Game Studios ☆☆☆☆☆ 438 ★★★★★ Get it now PC Game Pass Xbox Game Pass Forza Motorsport Optimized for Xbox Series X|S, Xbox Play Anywhere Immerse yourself in a world of competition in Forza Motorsport! Download and play the game for free this weekend with Xbox’s Free Play Days for All and get up to a 50% discount! Race over 500 cars and enjoy the latest game updates and features, including Proximity Radar, Drift mode, and more. Make every lap count across 29 world-famous tracks with fan-favorite locations Bathurst, Nürburgring Nordschleife, and Sunset Peninsula – each featuring live on-track scoring and dynamic time-of-day with weather. Invite your friends and we’ll see you at the track! Don’t miss out on these exciting Free Play Days for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, Standard and Core members! Learn more about Free Play Days here and stay tuned to Xbox Wire to find out about future Free Play Days and all the latest Xbox gaming news. The post Free Play Days – Forza Motorsport and The Escapists appeared first on Xbox Wire.

The post Fortnite: Draw Your Lightsaber and Ready your Blaster in Star Wars Season: Galactic Battle appeared first on Xbox Wire.

The post Fortnite: Draw Your Lightsaber and Ready your Blaster in Star Wars Season: Galactic Battle appeared first on Xbox Wire.

Ra Ra Boom is coming to Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One this summer, as part of what we consider the summer of beat ‘em ups. As beat ‘em up fans, we can’t wait to play some of the great titles that will make this probably the biggest year for beat ‘em ups since Castle […]

The post Ra Ra Boom Celebrates Couch Co-Op with Some New Twists appeared first on Xbox Wire.

Summary Ra Ra Boom comes to Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC this summer. Stop the threat of the rogue AI as one of four ninja space cheerleaders in a fully voiced story. Fun new twist on classic couch co-op, including shoot ‘em up mechanics. Ra Ra Boom is coming to Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One this summer, as part of what we consider the summer of beat ‘em ups. As beat ‘em up fans, we can’t wait to play some of the great titles that will make this probably the biggest year for beat ‘em ups since Castle Crashers launched forever ago. If you’re a fan of beat ‘em ups, you’re in for a great summer. And we hope you consider adding Ra Ra Boom to your list of must plays. In Ra Ra Boom, you and up to three friends play as one of four ninja space cheerleaders. There’s Aris (the leader), Ren (the blade), Vee (the shield), and Saida (the cyborg). Zoi, an AI gone rogue, has overtaken earth and our four heroines are the only ones who can stop it. Beat ‘em Up/Shoot ‘em Up Mash Up As the saying goes, you don’t bring pom poms to a boss fight. So, we had to ensure our heroines were armed for the AI menace they were facing. Where most beat ‘em ups focus on melee with limited-use ranged options, we did things a little different. Ra Ra Boom can be played as a pure beat ‘em up. Each character has their own melee attack and you can be effective with them. Or you can play it as a pure shoot ‘em up, because you also have an effective ranged attack with unlimited ammo. But it’s best to mix the two, getting into your flow and finding the attack combos that suit the moment. We think that after you play Ra Ra Boom, with its speed and fluid mix of melee and ranged combat, it will be hard to go back to the standard we’ve all gotten used to. Play the Lanes Most beat ‘em ups you’ll play today are in 2.5D, meaning that you don’t just move your character left and right, but also can move up and down on a flat plane. This adds more freedom to dodge and position yourself. The challenge we’ve found from past games is that it’s often hard to tell if you’re lined up right with an enemy. If you’ve ever thought, “Why did that hit me?” you’re not alone. In Ra Ra Boom, we’ve color-coded the lanes and designed the levels to make use of these clear indicators. It was harder than you might imagine for us to implement, but it makes a big difference in your effectiveness while giving enemies a beat down. Fully Voiced Story Hearing characters helps make them come to life. Whether that’s in the 2D cinematics you watch between levels, or the many quips heard while playing, you’ll get to know the personalities and quirks of our heroines. We wanted to provide a meaningful story for players about four individuals thrust into an impossible situation. It’s a coming-of-age tale amidst an AI apocalypse and it was important that each hero had their own moments, so you could get to know and care about them. But When Can You Get It? Good question. Ra Ra Boom is coming this summer. We’re not ready to announce the official release date just yet, But you can wishlist Ra Ra Boom today to be the first to hear the latest updates. Ra Ra BOOM Gylee Games ☆☆☆☆☆ ★★★★★ Get it now Gear up for 4-player co-op action with a modern twist! Ra Ra BOOM rockets you to a future Earth overrun by rogue AI. Battle waves of enemies and upgrade your ninja cheerleader’s skills as you beat ‘em up, shoot ‘em up, and smash through the chaos! Even ninja space cheerleaders know you don’t bring a pom-pom to a boss fight. Whether you’re cracking skulls with close combat or blasting bots from across the screen, Ra Ra BOOM has your back. Play it like a classic side-scroller, treat it like a shooter, or mix it up for combos so smooth, even evil AI can’t keep up. The only wrong way to fight is not bringing your A-game—because these overlords don’t mess around. HOMEWORK CAN WAIT Who needs perfect grades when rogue AI is trashing Earth? The planet’s in pieces, robots are running wild, and only four ninja space cheerleaders have the moves to save it. Silly when it can be, heartfelt when it needs to be, Ra Ra BOOM delivers a beat ‘em up with a story that hits harder than your math final. PLAY THE LANES Why settle for chaos when you can dominate with precision? Ra Ra BOOM’s combat lanes make every fight smarter and slicker. Dodge fire like a pro, pick your targets with ninja-like accuracy, and decide where to strike for maximum impact. BECOME THE ULTIMATE NINJA CHEERLEADER Aris, Saida, Ren, and Vee are more than just pompoms and sass—they’ve got branching skill trees that let you mold them into your perfect hero. Customize your squad to fit your playstyle, because the fate of the world—and your team’s vibe—is in your hands. NBD. The post Ra Ra Boom Celebrates Couch Co-Op with Some New Twists appeared first on Xbox Wire.

The post The Brutal, Unforgiving, and Unforgettable Monstrous Bosses of Wuchang: Fallen Feathers appeared first on Xbox Wire.

Category: Games April 30, 2025 The Brutal, Unforgiving, and Unforgettable Monstrous Bosses of Wuchang: Fallen Feathers Stephen Takowsky, Community Manager, Wuchang: Fallen Feathers In Wuchang: Fallen Feathers, a brutal Soulslike action RPG set in a dark reimagining of Ming Dynasty China, danger waits in the shadows — and at the heart of it all stand the game’s unforgettable bosses. Each encounter is a test of skill and resolve, with foes drawn from myth, history, and nightmare alike. From corrupted monks to towering beasts, every boss fight offers its own punishing challenge, rewarding players who press forward through the crumbling world of Shu. With pre-orders now live on the Xbox Store and launch set for July 24, 2025, on Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, and day one with Game Pass, you can now get a deeper glimpse of what awaits. The latest trailer highlights a fearsome showdown against the Perfect Bride, a nightmarish foe whose corrupted beauty hides monstrous power. Alongside this reveal, you can explore a full breakdown of pre-order and Deluxe Edition bonuses, featuring exclusive outfits, enchanted weapons, and gameplay-enhancing rewards that will shape your journey when Wuchang: Fallen Feathers arrives. Meet the Foes That Await Beyond every crumbling temple and bloodstained battlefield in Wuchang: Fallen Feathers, terrifying foes stand between you and the truth. Each boss you encounter tells a story of decay, obsession, or betrayal — and overcoming them will be key to surviving Shu’s collapse. Perfect Bride – Fang Ling Clad in an ornate phoenix crown and ceremonial gown, Fang Ling embodies a corrupted dream of love and legacy. Once a symbol of hope, she now haunts the land as a spectral bride twisted by Feathering, wielding deadly grace and devastating magic against all who cross her path. Master Raider – Man-eating Dhutanga Leader of a ruthless gang of tomb raiders, Dhutanga carved his stronghold into the Hanguang Zen Temple. A brutal warrior with a surprising love for opera, his ceremonial robes and fearsome painted mask signal both cultural reverence and lethal cunning. Feathered Priest – Lu Bingzhang Once a revered priest, Lu Bingzhang now serves a darker power. His golden mask and bronze staff, inspired by the ancient relics of Sanxingdui, channel twisted sorcery drawn from forgotten gods. Defeating him will demand mastery over both blade and spirit. Blightweaver – Great Centipede Deep beneath Shu festers the Great Centipede, a grotesque fusion of corrupted monks and mutated flesh, driven mad by Red Mercury. Able to burrow, poison, and wield spells once sacred to the monks it devoured, this abomination turns ancient knowledge into monstrous power. Reborn Treant – Soulwood Born from death and ritual, the Soulwood grew as corpses piled beneath the sacred Immortal Tree. Now, it roams with haunting shrines embedded in its bark, entwining the hopes, prayers, and lingering souls of a shattered town into one relentless force of nature. Bo Sorcerer The master of forbidden rites, capable of warping reality itself with devastating magic. Facing her is not only a test of combat skill but of mastering the battlefield before he bends it to her will. Monstrous Toddler – Bai Kru The third child of Bai Tingzhao, Bai Kru has become twisted by Feathering and the ambitions of his father, he has become a nightmarish figure, an eerie blend of innocence, brutality, and tragedy. Ming General – Liu Cheng’en A loyal eunuch to the Emperor and master manipulator, Liu Cheng is adorned in python-embroidered robes and a noble Sanshan hat, he commands authority and terror in equal measure, a final test of strength and will. Pre-Order Bonuses and Deluxe Edition Details The journey through Wuchang: Fallen Feathers will test your resolve, but you can prepare to embark with greater style, deeper customization, and a more personal touch to your legend. Pre-order today to receive exclusive rewards that enrich your experience across the land of Shu. Pre-orders will unlock two unique Enhanced Costume Sets: the White Spectre and Night Spectre, reimagining ceremonial garb into hauntingly beautiful attire that reflects the game’s dark world. In addition, the Vermillion War Club (Axe) offers a fierce new weapon to master, and the Glistening Red Mercury Skill Upgrade Item provides an early boost to help refine your character’s fighting style. If you’re seeking an even richer adventure, the Deluxe Edition offers an expanded array of treasures. This edition includes four legendary outfit sets, Soul Ritual Robe, Tiger of Fortune, Overlord’s Regalia, and Draconic Resurgence, each woven with lore and symbolic power. You will also receive four rare weapons: the Dragoncoil Lance (Spear), Eternal Sovereignty (Dual Blades), Moonlight Dragon (Sword), and Watcher’s Gaze (Sword), each designed to add new layers of depth to combat. The Deluxe Edition also grants the Blood of Changhong, a significant Skill Upgrade Item to further personalize your abilities. Whether you’re drawn to Wuchang’s corrupted world by elegance, strength, or legend, the pre-order and Deluxe rewards are designed to enhance your journey and help you carve a story that is truly your own. Wuchang: Fallen Feathers launches July 24, 2025, on Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, and day one with Game Pass. Pre-orders are available now. WUCHANG: Fallen Feathers Deluxe Edition Pre-order Bundle 505 Games ☆☆☆☆☆ 25 ★★★★★ $59.99 Pre-order Pre-order WUCHANG: Fallen Feathers to receive the Night & White Pack. The WUCHANG: Fallen Feathers Deluxe Edition Pre-order Bundle includes: – WUCHANG: Fallen Feathers Base Game – Night Spectre Enhanced Costume Set* – White Spectre Enhanced Costume Set* – Tiger of Fortune Costume – Draconic Resurgence Costume – Soul Ritual Robe Costume – Overlord’s Regalia Costume – Vermillion War Club (Axe) – Watcher’s Gaze (Sword) – Dragoncoil Lance (Spear) – Eternal Sovereignty (Dual Blades) – Moonlight Dragon (Sword) – Blood of Changhong Skill Upgrade Item (Large) – Glistening Red Mercury Skill Upgrade Item (Medium) *Each Enhanced Costume Set includes 5 costume pieces. **Some items will be sold separately at a later date. WUCHANG: Fallen Feathers Deluxe Edition includes: – WUCHANG: Fallen Feathers Base Game 4 Costumes: – Tiger of Fortune Costume – Draconic Resurgence Costume – Soul Ritual Robe Costume – Overlord’s Regalia Costume 4 Weapons: – Watcher’s Gaze (Sword) – Dragoncoil Lance (Spear) – Eternal Sovereignty (Dual Blades) – Moonlight Dragon (Sword) 1 Skill Upgrade Item – Blood of Changhong Skill Upgrade Item (Large) WUCHANG: Fallen Feathers is a soulslike, action RPG set in the land of Shu during the dark and tumultuous late Ming Dynasty, plagued with warring factions and a mysterious illness spawning monstrous creatures. Become Wuchang, a skilled pirate warrior struck by amnesia, who must navigate the uncertainties of her mysterious past while afflicted by the horrific Feathering disease. Explore the depths of Shu, enhancing your arsenal and mastering new skills harvested from fallen foes. Evolve your fighting style by sacrificing elusive Red Mercury and further develop new techniques obtained throughout your action-packed journey. Augment the weapons in your repertoire with powerful enchantments, allowing for a unique approach to combat and strategy that suits your personal style. Battle against grotesque abominations, drawing on ancient lore to challenge the creeping darkness that threatens the humanity that remains. Your quest for truth will take you through forgotten temples, overgrown ruins, and shadowed paths fraught with peril. As you piece together Wuchang's lost memories, your choices will lead you to one of several endings—each determined by the choices made, secrets unearthed and the allies you choose to trust. Immerse yourself in a rich storyline, dynamic combat system, and breathtaking visuals that offer an unforgettable adventure through lands veiled in chaos and death. Will you reveal the truths of Wuchang's curse and bring peace to Shu, or will you succumb to the encroaching horrors? The fate of the land rests in your hands. WUCHANG: Fallen Feathers Pre-order Bundle 505 Games ☆☆☆☆☆ 25 ★★★★★ $49.99 Pre-order Pre-order WUCHANG: Fallen Feathers to receive the Night & White Pack. The WUCHANG: Fallen Feathers Pre-order Bundle includes: – WUCHANG: Fallen Feathers Base Game – Night Spectre Enhanced Costume Set* – White Spectre Enhanced Costume Set* – Vermillion War Club (Axe) – Glistening Red Mercury Skill Upgrade Item (Medium) *Each Enhanced Costume Set includes 5 costume pieces. **Some items will be sold separately at a later date. WUCHANG: Fallen Feathers is a soulslike, action RPG set in the land of Shu during the dark and tumultuous late Ming Dynasty, plagued with warring factions and a mysterious illness spawning monstrous creatures. Become Wuchang, a skilled pirate warrior struck by amnesia, who must navigate the uncertainties of her mysterious past while afflicted by the horrific Feathering disease. Explore the depths of Shu, enhancing your arsenal and mastering new skills harvested from fallen foes. Evolve your fighting style by sacrificing elusive Red Mercury and further develop new techniques obtained throughout your action-packed journey. Augment the weapons in your repertoire with powerful enchantments, allowing for a unique approach to combat and strategy that suits your personal style. Battle against grotesque abominations, drawing on ancient lore to challenge the creeping darkness that threatens the humanity that remains. Your quest for truth will take you through forgotten temples, overgrown ruins, and shadowed paths fraught with peril. As you piece together Wuchang's lost memories, your choices will lead you to one of several endings—each determined by the choices made, secrets unearthed and the allies you choose to trust. Immerse yourself in a rich storyline, dynamic combat system, and breathtaking visuals that offer an unforgettable adventure through lands veiled in chaos and death. Will you reveal the truths of Wuchang's curse and bring peace to Shu, or will you succumb to the encroaching horrors? The fate of the land rests in your hands. Related Stories for “The Brutal, Unforgiving, and Unforgettable Monstrous Bosses of Wuchang: Fallen Feathers” Category: Next Week on Xbox Next Week on Xbox: New Games for May 5 to 9 Category: Games The Past, Present, and Future of Overwatch 2’s Stadium Category: ID@Xbox Everafter Falls 2.0 – A Year in Listening and Twisting The post The Brutal, Unforgiving, and Unforgettable Monstrous Bosses of Wuchang: Fallen Feathers appeared first on Xbox Wire.

The post Indie Selects for April 2025: Fresh but Familiar Vibes appeared first on Xbox Wire.

Category: ID@Xbox April 30, 2025 Indie Selects for April 2025: Fresh but Familiar Vibes Raymond Estrada, Nick Zuclich, Deron Mann, Oscar Polanco, Steven AllenID@Xbox Style Coordinators Sometimes you just can’t put your finger on it. You want something familiar and comforting, but also something just a little different. You want to mix it up with some excitement, but still maintain a sense of connection to what you already know and love. Something balanced. Well, aren’t you in luck! This month the ID@Xbox team has handpicked six Indie Selects that have immaculate vibes. We give you a bit of intensity with a co-op heist and gliding down mountains; chill out with heartfelt narratives over some tea and a bit of sticker commerce; and, finally, run some very strange errands while strategically expanding your universe. Perfection! Here’s what we’ve got for you this month (in no particular order): Wanderstop From the creator of The Stanley Parable and The Beginner’s Guide, Wanderstop is a narrative-centric cozy game about change and… tea. Playing as a fallen fighter named Alta, you’ll manage a tea shop within a magical forest and tend to the customers who pass through. But Alta does not want to be here. And if she gets her way, the tea shop will be nothing but a brief and painful memory. While this year’s Game Developers Conference was incredibly energizing and inspiring, it was also stressful and overwhelming at times. I needed a meditative escape after I got home, and Wanderstop was the perfect game to help me recharge. It’s beautiful, whimsical, magical, and deals with emotional themes that I found both cathartic and uplifting. The narrative touches on shame, burnout, personal growth, satisfaction, and introspection. There are low stakes here, no stressors, no time limits, and there are no fail states. The game actively encourages players to enjoy the moment, to take a breath, to reflect inward and delight in simple pleasures. At the same time, it has a strong and compulsive loop. Players grow plants, harvest fruits, acquire trinkets, make friends, and brew increasingly in-depth tea recipes (and other types of brews) with off-the-wall ingredients for an ever more diverse and colorful cast of characters, all who have powerful stories to share and lessons to bestow. I loved this game and will absolutely be playing through again in the future. This is a fantastic example of games as an artform for me, and I feel fortunate that we get to experience creations like this. Wanderstop Annapurna Interactive ☆☆☆☆☆ 15 ★★★★★ $24.99 Get it now Wanderstop is a narrative-centric cozy game about change and tea. Playing as a fallen fighter named Alta, you’ll manage a tea shop within a magical forest and tend to the customers who pass through. But Alta does not want to be here. And if she gets her way, the tea shop will be nothing but a brief and painful memory. Wanderstop is a tea shop management ritual. Grow and harvest the ingredients needed for tea, and then mix them together in an unusual tea-making contraption. Along the way, speak with the many travelers who pass through the shop, learn their stories and make tea that’s just right for them. In your downtime, you might tidy up around the clearing, decorate the shop in your style, or just sit on a bench with a cup of tea and listen to your own thoughts. Maybe doing nothing at all is okay. The shop demands patience, it rejects those who have come only in the pursuit of growth unchecked. And that’s why Alta can’t be here. It’s why she’ll never make it. This isn’t who she is. No, she’s a fighter! Why would anyone insist on turning the world’s greatest championship warrior into a docile shopkeeper?! With everything she’s capable of?? No no no, she won’t, she won’t do it… she can’t… Wanderstop is a game from the team at Ivy Road, including Davey Wreden (creator of The Stanley Parable and The Beginner’s Guide), Karla Zimonja (co-creator of Gone Home and Tacoma) and Daniel “C418” Rosenfeld (the music of Minecraft). Promise Mascot Agency What genre is this? Unhinged? I mean let’s be fair: What do you call a mascot management/relationship management sim/open world driver/Yakuza mystery narrative, with the most bizarre cast of characters you will ever come across? Fantastic, you call it fantastic. Promise Mascot Agency is unlike anything I’ve played. The plot may seem bizarre, but the narrative is surprisingly wholesome. You’re a former Yakuza “fixer” sent out to a small town to run a local brand ambassador business. Accompanied by your mascot companion (who is… a living severed finger) and beat-up truck, you drive across town in effort to earn profit, all while uncovering a range of political conspiracies undermining it. This game is about a lot of things, but it really centers around optimism and adapting to new circumstances when things go awry. Very, very awry. Oh my goodness, do I love this game. I literally could not stop playing. At its core, the game has you finding and recruiting a variety of mascots. You negotiate their benefits package, find clients that would employ them for events and send them out on jobs hoping that they won’t mess up, and inevitably get attacked by a demon, or some other hilariously random incidents that trigger a card-based minigame. On the one hand, the game is a very chill experience driven by a lot of narrative quests and casual management sim tracking and efficiency gameplay. On the other hand it’s an exploration driving game with few limits and plenty of ways to profit. The difficulty ramp on either side is gradual and not overwhelming. Overall, the gameplay loop was absolutely built for my short attention span and general weirdness, and the writing had me fall out of my chair laughing. On top of the that, the cast of mascots you meet are incredibly likeable in their own little, weird way. You’re bound to find a favorite. As chaotic as this all may seem, this experience was incredibly cozy and heartwarming. The gameplay is, indeed, fairly simple, but it’s so unique in its presentation that it kept me glued. I think people who enjoy the Yakuza series would especially enjoy this, but honestly I’d want everyone to play this totally preposterous game about you and your giant finger friend helping a town become whole again. Promise Mascot Agency Kaizen Game Works Limited ☆☆☆☆☆ 27 ★★★★★ $24.99 Get it now From the creators of Paradise Killer comes a mind-bending open-world narrative adventure mascot management simulator where mascots are more than just symbols – they’re unpredictable forces of nature! Step into the chaos, unravel the conspiracies, drive a tiny truck and try to keep it all together in Promise Mascot Agency! Welcome to the Mascot Hustle You thought mascots were just fluffy, innocent brand ambassadors? Think again. The Mascots are all living, breathing, fully formed personalities, with dreams, fears, and the occasional breakdowns of their own- just like us! Whether it’s Trororo, a charming cat who’s a little too obsessed with "adult video" or sweet, silken To-Fu, who can’t stop sobbing, your job is to befriend, mentor, and (hopefully) get these mascots to finish their jobs without causing a major catastrophe. Play Your Cards Right Sending your mascots out to work is never as easy as it sounds. One minute they’re promoting delicious food, the next they’re stuck in a doorway or starting a kitchen inferno. Need help? Good thing Kaso-Machi is full of intrepid everyday heroes ready to lend a hand (if you’ve managed to befriend them, of course). Unlock Hero Cards, featuring Kaso-Machi’s lovable local weirdos like Captain Sign, Japan’s only road-sign superhero (don’t ask questions), or Mama-San, a bar owner with a serious latex collection. These heroes will step in to provide help when your mascots inevitably lose control. Tear Through Town in Your Upgradable Kei Truck Kaso-Machi is a town full of secrets, and Michi isn’t just stuck in an office managing mascots – he’s on the road in his rusty (but upgradeable!) Kei Truck. This nifty little ride may look like a heap of junk, but with a few tweaks, it’ll have nitro boosts, glider wings, and even the ability to launch Pinky☆ – Michi’s maniacal mascot assistant – like a missile. Use your truck to explore the strange, forgotten town, unlock collectibles, and uncover hidden mysteries. Who knew a Kei Truck could be your best friend in a town where literally everything else hates you?! Crime! Drama! A Walking Finger?! Exiled after an ambush that left his clan in shambles, Michi finds himself piecing together the mystery of what really happened, while the town seems to actively conspire against him. Nightmare spirits seem a little too interested in your business, and there’s an ever-present sense that something’s very, very wrong in this place… Think you can resist? Think again. The mascots know where you live. Step into the world of Promise Mascot Agency and claim your place in this brave new world of mascot domination. Monaco 2 Monaco 2, the sequel to a beloved, Xbox Live Arcade classic, is a top-down stealth-action game where you and up to three others cooperate as a band of thieves tasked with pulling off “perfect” heists. The flow of the game is relatively simple – players select a mission, go through a quick, narrative driven debriefing, select one of four unique characters, strategize through an interactable overview of the level’s layout through Blueprint Mode, and proceed to the mission. Where it gets complicated is when you actually enter the premises. You can create the most elaborate plan ever, but it can (and almost always will) fall apart once someone is detected by a guard or walks through a laser, triggering an alarm. I spent most of my time in the single player mode, which was fine since the game offers the ability to switch between characters at various checkpoints. I was able to squeeze by the first few missions as one character, but you’ll quickly realize the strategic advantages of leveraging the whole cast as missions become progressively more elaborate. My favorite character is Sake since I not only loved her design, but her emphasis on speed and stealth. She’s perfect for beginners as, when situations get too sticky, you can count on her dodge roll to avoid attacks. Of course, there’s also Una who doesn’t really care about the game’s rules – opting for combat over stealth with her ability to knock guards out. I found the most fun weaving in and out of strategic stealth to cat and mouse chases. Getting caught and leveraging shadows, barriers and furniture to juke and loop the guards, only to return undetected, felt extremely satisfying every time. While I did have fun solo, I recommend firing this up with friends whether online or locally! Monaco 2 Humble Games ☆☆☆☆☆ 6 ★★★★★ $24.99 Get it now Monaco is a city overflowing with luxury and greed, which makes it a perfect target for you and your international gang of criminal masterminds. The best of the best have been assembled, and they’ll need to work together using their unique abilities to rob the city blind. Do you and your friends have what it takes to bring the city of Monaco to its knees? New characters mean all new ways to play! Assemble your team from a selection of eight playable characters, each with their own unique abilities and playstyles. Need to adapt? Switch your character mid-run to overcome whatever obstacles stand between you and untold riches! Every heist requires careful planning. With Blueprint Mode, you can look at the level’s layout before you start the mission, allowing you to case the joint before you and your friends fleece it for all its worth. They say there’s no honor among thieves, but they’ve never met your crew! Team up with up to three other players in local or online multiplayer and plan your heist. However, nothing ever goes exactly according to plan in Monaco, so you’ll need to work together and improvise if you want to get away with your haul of riches. Monaco 2 offers a new level of immersion with an updated 3D art style and a procedurally generated level design system. Complete the structured campaign or test your skills against the hundreds of seeded levels, proving once and for all that you and your friends are the ultimate thieves! Sledders Sledders is an open-world snowmobiling simulator that captures the true spirit of backcountry freedom and exploration. Unlike other entries in the genre, it offers less arcade-style gameplay and instead focuses on realism. It features physics-based snow environments and a robust catalog of fully licensed snowmobiles – including some awesome retro models. If you ever daydreamed about carving through untouched powder, discovering new trails, racing for bragging rights, or trying out new tricks, Sledders might just be your next favorite ride. What stood out the most to me is how the sleds handle. They don’t just glide over the snow, they dig in, sink under the weight, and fight back like they should. You have to shift your weight, ease into the throttle, and use your skills to navigate the terrain. It’s challenging at first, so be prepared to fall often. But don’t worry, sticking to the trails is a great way to familiarize yourself with your sled before heading off into the wild. Once you find your rhythm, it’s addictive. Whether you’re a weekend warrior looking for a peaceful solo ride, hosting a private session with friends, or a hardcore sledhead ready to challenge the world, Sledders meets you where you are with multiplatform cross-play support for up to 32 players. You can customize every detail of your sleds in the garage, and it offers plenty of options to style your character with gear that matches your look. If you’re looking for a game that lets you ride on your own terms and at your own pace, Sledders delivers an experience that will stay with you long after the snow melts. Sledders Bonus Stage Oy ☆☆☆☆☆ 207 ★★★★★ $34.99 Get it now Shred your sled in open-world backcountries. Sledders is a realistic, physics-based snowmobile simulator. Manoeuvre the big open terrain, plow through tons of fresh snow, conquer the mountains, and reach the peak faster than your friends! Sit back, relax, and enjoy as you rip around on one of the sleds speeding between trees and throwing it around at the ridges. The limits are only set by you so let loose and show us what you can accomplish! The game offers a big map for you to explore and play around in. It contains steep hills, mountains, lots of trees, and open areas ready to be ridden by you (yeah, there's a plenty of jumps, and also water…)! It will take ages for you to ride from one corner to another, that's how big the map already is. And who knows what the future holds, our plans include bigger, better, and many more maps to come (we hear you ditch bangers, snow crossers, tricksters, trail riders, and all!). The snow in Sledders feel as real as possible, so you better sharpen up your powder skills or you'll just keep on digging deeper and deeper into the snow! Freeriding in backcountries means a lot of snow to plow and riding in it is way different than on other terrains. You must master the steering by shifting your weight around, making turns with your throttle, counter steering with your skis, and many other new skills. Once you master the skills needed in the backcountries, you're unstoppable and no pow will make you stuck. – Freeride snowmobile simulator with real-world physics in deep-snow backcountry – Ride with and against your friends in epic freeriding experience – Online, crossplatform multiplayer takes you ride around the world with a likeminded community of sledheads Sticky Business I used to love stickers as a kid, but I never thought about designing and showing off my own creations. Enter Sticky Business, a cozy, small business simulator game where your motivation is to run a small business designing, selling, and packing stickers for a variety of customers. No end of the world scenarios, no final boss to violently fight off, and no heart stopping action. The game is as advertised: cozy as it comes and twice as wholesome. After naming your store, you start at your desk and begin designing stickers for customers. You have hundreds of parts and options to choose from, and they can be meticulously layered to make some truly ridiculous stuff. Illustration sizes, text colors, outline sizes, and other options can tweaked and changed rather easily. You don’t have the option to use individual letters to make your own words (which makes sense, even though I really just want to make a wholesome Wu-Tang sticker). Still, there’s some pre-made words that you can put together, so I’m a bit proud of my line of “Cozy Metal” stickers with various combinations of animals and instruments. Yes, it’s dumb, but I do enjoy them very much. Once your design is finished, you can pay coins to print them on different types of sheets. You have to be extremely thoughtful about how you to fit the stickers to the sheet because a single sheet costs the same regardless of how many stickers you can fit on it. More stickers, more profit. You then package everything up exactly how you want it and send it off to make some cold hard cash (and hearts) which you can use for upgrading and unlocking more designs. Unlike most games, the story doesn’t revolve around you. Instead, it’s entirely focused on your customers, who write you about their lives and how stickers fit into their narratives. Some are heartwarming, some are ridiculous. You’ll find that different stickers attract different customers and there will be some requests for specific types of stickers that you’ll need to fulfill. It’s a great, short Etsy-sim that’s super soothing and chill. Especially if you have younger kids, nieces, or nephews that are into design, this a great find. Sticky Business Assemble Entertainment ☆☆☆☆☆ 3 ★★★★★ $9.99 Get it now Create, pack and sell your own unique sticker creations! Experience the joy of running your own cozy small business: Create stickers, pack orders and hear your customers’ stories. Time to build the cutest shop on the internet! You want a collection of cat stickers? A witch-themed shop? Or add a derpy face to all of your creations? Combine dozens of elements to create your own collection and sell them to like-minded people. Different stickers attract different customers! You can add some sparkles or holo effects to make them even more special! Pack orders and hear more about your customers' stories every time they buy stickers! My Little Universe My Little Universe by Estoty is a delightful blend of adventure and simulation that invites players to create and explore their own miniature worlds. This charming game falls into the genre of sandbox adventure, where creativity and exploration are key elements. Players start with a small plot of land and gradually expand their universe by gathering resources, crafting tools, and unlocking new areas. From the moment I started playing, I was enamored by the game’s whimsical art style and engaging mechanics. The process of building and expanding my universe felt incredibly rewarding. Each new discovery, whether it was a hidden treasure or a new biome, added layers of excitement and curiosity. The game strikes a perfect balance between relaxation and challenge, making it easy to lose track of time as you immerse yourself in your little universe. One of the standout features of My Little Universe is its intuitive gameplay. The controls are gratifyingly simple, allowing players of all ages to jump right in and get creating. There’s no need for a lengthy tutorial or complex button combinations. You gather resources with a simple tap, craft tools with a few swipes, and expand your universe with ease. This simplicity makes the game incredibly accessible and enjoyable for players of all ages. It also offers a variety of customization options, enabling you to personalize your world to reflect your unique vision. Whether you’re a fan of games like Minecraft or Terraria, you’ll find familiar elements here, but with a fresh and charming twist. My Little Universe is a must-play for anyone who enjoys creative and exploratory games. It’s a perfect escape from the hustle and bustle of everyday life, offering a serene yet stimulating experience that will keep you coming back for more. So, grab your tools and start building your own little universe! My Little Universe SayGames ☆☆☆☆☆ 33 ★★★★★ $14.99 Get it now Go above and beyond the cosmos! The universe is vast and filled with adventures, mysteries to solve, and enemies to fight… who knows, you might even meet a few friendly faces along the way. Better yet, invite up to three of your friends to join you in the split-screen local co-op mode because it’s always more exciting with friends! EXPLORE! 9 mythical worlds and 65+ different dungeons, from mythology-inspired lands to hostile alien worlds await you and your friends. Filled with wonder and plunder, challenges and adversaries, your task is to restore these beautiful worlds to their former glory! GATHER RESOURCES! The worlds are filled with rich minerals ready to be harvested by your trusty tools, and mythical artifacts of untapped power guarded by powerful foes. Use more than 70 different gatherable resources to recreate lands long lost to a mysterious threat. RISE UP TO THE CHALLENGE! The universe won’t be restored that easily, and each challenge requires the proper tools for the job. Equipped with your trusty pickaxe, sharp sword, and sturdy axe, you’ll be thrown against 150+ different adversaries including mythical creatures, alien horrors, and even demigods! UPGRADE YOUR GEAR! With each planet comes new challenges and because of that, you have to stay prepared by upgrading to the newest and freshest tools, which will always keep you one step ahead of your opponents! Improve your weapon, tools, and armor up to 30+ levels! Just Enjoy The Adventure. Get entranced by the game’s cozy atmosphere, enjoy the relaxing soundtrack, and fall in love with the simplistic yet charismatic visuals. After all, it’s all about the journey and the friends we make along the way! Related Stories for “Indie Selects for April 2025: Fresh but Familiar Vibes” Category: Next Week on Xbox Next Week on Xbox: New Games for May 5 to 9 Category: ID@Xbox Everafter Falls 2.0 – A Year in Listening and Twisting Category: ID@Xbox Ra Ra Boom Celebrates Couch Co-Op with Some New Twists The post Indie Selects for April 2025: Fresh but Familiar Vibes appeared first on Xbox Wire.

The post Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and Warzone Season 03 Reloaded: All the Details appeared first on Xbox Wire.

The post Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and Warzone Season 03 Reloaded: All the Details appeared first on Xbox Wire.

The post Towerborne Arrives on Xbox Today – Five Tips to Help You “Ace” Your Adventure appeared first on Xbox Wire.

Category: Games April 29, 2025 Towerborne Arrives on Xbox Today – Five Tips to Help You “Ace” Your Adventure Danielle Partis It’s finally time –Towerborne arrives on Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, Xbox Cloud and with Game Pass today! To celebrate the looter-brawler’s entrance into Xbox Game Preview, we’ve compiled some tips and tricks to get you started on your Ace adventure. Experiment! While Towerborne is easy for anyone to pick up and play, there is a satisfying depth to its combat systems – and combinations of skills and attacks you’ll only uncover by experimenting with each of the four classes. While each class has a “theme” defined by the weapon type, there’s versatility in how you can play with them. Even if you think you’ll prefer a certain loadout, it’s worth giving them all a go, and with Towerborne’s frictionless class-swapping and re-spec options, changing your mind (and your build) is an absolute breeze. Build for Success The new Class Mastery Update (which we covered in-depth last week) gives even more versatility to each class in Towerborne. There’s now countless more ways to play with each weapon, with the addition of new skill trees that let you hone a specific playstyle. Sentinel can be a fast and offensive frontline attacker, but it can also be sturdy and defensive. Some builds can focus heavily on dealing raw damage, while others can lean more towards a support build, lifting your teammates. Here’s a few examples across each of the available classes: Bleed Build: The Sentinel class comes with several skills that deal or enhance bleed, which deals slow damage to enemies you’ve hit over time. The ‘Bloodlust’ skill lets you deal 10% more damage against bleeding enemies, and the ‘Sanguine Burst’ skill enables your heavy combo to consume all bleed stacks, triggering an explosion that deals massive damage. Sear Build: The Pyroclast is all about inflicting burndamage, but there’s a few ways to build upon that. The skill ‘Persistent Pyre’ will increase the duration of your Sear damage, and when your Sear skill is active, you’ll be able to pull off moves like ‘Ember Cyclone’, a stylish airborne attack, and ‘Ember Spike’, which delivers a long-range tremor that explodes on the closest enemy. Powderkeg Build: The Rockbreaker already packs a punch, but you can amplify its impact even more now. Stacking “Quick Charge” skills to make your Powderkeg Punch charge faster, which is always great. The skill “Cracking Skulls” gives you a fully charged Powderkeg Punch if you break an enemy’s Break Bar. Couple that with “Cracking Knuckles” and you’re able to gain a full charge by Block Breaking an enemy. You can even do the weapon mechanic in the air now or transform it into a lunging attack with the “Bare Knuckles Blast” skill. If you’re a fan of big punches, then this is a great way to build your Rockbreaker. Projectile Frenzy Build: This is a super fun Shadowstriker that revolves around the power of projectiles. The “Shooting Stars” skill unlocks a handful of kunai, and the “Shadow Feint Ammo” skills increase your ammo count so that you can use your Weapon Mechanic more often, allowing you to launch projectiles all over the place. The “Shadowsting” Skill is what really sets this build apart though – this modifies your Weapon Mechanic in a way where you no longer teleport, but it costs half the weapon meter to use and deals poison. If you’re the type of player who likes to alternate between mid to long range combat, this is the skill set for you. Support Build: Healers are the underrated heroes of any party, but in Towerborne, any of the four available classes can spec out into a support character. There are skills that can upgrade how much health your healing flasks give back, increase how many you carry, and even an ability that lets other players benefit from your healing if they’re nearby. Anyone can pick up these skills providing they’re a high enough level, and the ability to swap and change skills at the click of a button means no one is indefinitely locked into that support role (unless you want to be, of course!). Take Your Time, Memorize The Moves Gobos are not stealthy or subtle creatures, but some of the nastier ones do pack quite a punch. In more difficult fights, there’s no shame in holding back for just a moment to work out how your enemy is going to attack, and what you can do to combat it. Lots of Gobo moves come with signals that indicate what they’re about to do, whether it’s a long-range projectile, a swift claw hit or a sluggish tail thwack. Keeping an eye on the battlefield and recognising their patterns means you’ll be able to dodge and weave, find windows to attack, and most importantly, avoid taking damage so you can save your Mender’s (healing) Flasks for more unpredictable battles later in the mission. Taste of Their Own Medicine It’s not just your weapons that can deal damage to gobos and goons – you can take advantage of their gear too. As an example, some gobos carry bombs to throw at you, and a swift enough hit will knock them off course, causing them to drop the projectile at their own feet. The gobos also won’t move to avoid the damage, instead opting to cover their eyes and pray, so it’s a great way to finish a few off, or buy some time while you’re cleaning up the field. Some levels will also include environmental hazards, like thorns or exploding barrels. Baiting a gobo into hitting a barrel will not end well for them, and that’s another way to deal big damage if your weapon is preoccupied with other targets. It’s also just extremely satisfying, every single time. Umbra Abilities Not only are Umbra cute little companions, they also come loaded with different powerful abilities that’ll assist your Ace in battle. Your first Umbra, Iska, offers a long-range projectile to complement the close-range combat that most classes start with. As you progress, you’ll uncover opportunities to earn new Umbra. Pox, for example, unlocks new aerial combos, while Picus can ignite the environment around them in a ring of fire. Each one is super unique, and their abilities can either enhance your playstyle, or add a refreshing contrasting perk to your skillset. We can’t wait to see you in the Belfry and hope these tips will aid you well on your first adventures throughout the world of Towerborne. Play Towerborne now on Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC in the Xbox App, Xbox Cloud, via Game Pass, and on Steam. Towerborne (Game Preview) Xbox Game Studios ☆☆☆☆☆ 208 ★★★★★ Get it now PC Game Pass Xbox Game Pass Towerborne is a new kind of Looter Brawler, combining side-scrolling combat with action RPG loot progression and endless customization.* You are an Ace, born anew from the spirit realm with special skills, grit, and determination. Unite with other Aces** and fight as one to defend the Belfry, humanity’s last refuge, from the dark forces outside its walls. Can you become the Ace humanity needs to survive? Explore, fight, and grow stronger – together Explore Together – With an evolving world map and ongoing updates, your adventure continues with new enemies, regions, rewards, and story. Venture solo or with up to three other Aces** and recruit Umbra allies with unique abilities to join your fight. Return to the Belfry to reforge gear and continue your journey. Fight Your Way – Jump into satisfying, pick-up-and-play brawler combat that's easy to learn but challenging to master. Towerborne delivers fast-paced, thrilling battles with deep, evolving strategy. Every fight is a chance to sharpen your skills and face tougher challenges. Endless Customization* – Customize your Ace's appearance, gear, and weapons. Set your preferred danger level in the Wilds, wield powerful weapons with special moves, and mix gear and Umbra companions to create a playstyle that's uniquely yours. This game is a work in progress. Some content and features may change over time before full release of the game. Please purchase only if you are comfortable with the game in its current state. Full details on the latest status of the game, and how you can give feedback and report issues can be found at https://www.Towerborne.com/. * This game includes optional in-game purchases of virtual currency that can be used to acquire virtual in-game items. **Online console multiplayer requires Xbox Game Pass Ultimate or Game Pass Core (subscriptions sold separately). Related Stories for “Towerborne Arrives on Xbox Today – Five Tips to Help You “Ace” Your Adventure” Category: Next Week on Xbox Next Week on Xbox: New Games for May 5 to 9 Category: Games The Past, Present, and Future of Overwatch 2’s Stadium Category: ID@Xbox Everafter Falls 2.0 – A Year in Listening and Twisting The post Towerborne Arrives on Xbox Today – Five Tips to Help You “Ace” Your Adventure appeared first on Xbox Wire.

Gaming news, reviews, previews, and coverage from around the world

During a recent interview at a Comicon panel held in Naples, Italy, Dragon Quest series creator Yuji Horii seemed to casually let slip that a Chrono Trigger remake is in development. Attendees cite that after the comment, Horii “covered his mouth” as if to indicate he had said something unintentionally. All smiles, Horii received a […]

The post Rumor: Yuji Horii hints a Chrono Trigger remake is in development (Update: no he didn’t) appeared first on Nova Crystallis.

Recently announced during the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct, Bravely Default HD Remaster is an update of the original 2012 3DS game for the company’s newest handheld console. It will release exclusively for the platform on its launch day: June 5, 2025. The game will be developed by Cattle Call, who worked with Square Enix on […]

The post Bravely Default HD Remaster details new features and system overviews appeared first on Nova Crystallis.

Final Fantasy XIV players will once again venture into the sea of stars in a new update available today. Crafting and gathering jobs will travel to the moon in the first stage of Cosmic Exploration where they will take part in missions to build a base of operations and start harvesting and building materials. To […]

The post Final Fantasy XIV 7.21 introduces Cosmic Exploration in new update today appeared first on Nova Crystallis.

Stop me if you’ve heard this lately: “it’s a very good time to be a Final Fantasy XIV raider.” With the Dawntrail expansion, arguably until next week once Cosmic Exploration finally launches, that’s been the refrain every player has lamented about the state of the game. “Unless you raid, there ultimately hasn’t been that much […]

The post Cruiserweight Savage is proof that raiding has a bright future in Final Fantasy XIV appeared first on Nova Crystallis.

If you’ve heard one thing about SaGa Frontier 2 through the years, it might well be that it’s a messy RPG. I encountered that sentiment aplenty when I was growing up, and over the past week or so, I’ve seen it said at least ten times as folks hop back into a game that they […]

The post SaGa Frontier 2 Remastered Review appeared first on Nova Crystallis.

Final Fantasy VII Ever Crisis has a new story update due out April 16th, 2025 for iOS, Android, and Steam. This update includes a new chapter for The First Soldier: Episode II scenario. The free-to-play gacha-style RPG includes stores from throughout the FF VII universe, including new ones. This chapter continues the travails of young […]

The post Final Fantasy VII Ever Crisis next story update “The Arduous Path to the Blade” arrives April 16, 2025 appeared first on Nova Crystallis.

Pure Nintendo and Pure Nintendo Magazine are your sources for the latest news on the Wii U, 3DS, and all things Nintendo.

This week on the Pure Nintendo Podcast, Jemma and Kirk discuss the Switch 2 pre-order situation that occured in North America last week.

Last week, we dedicated the entire

The post How was our Switch 2 pre-order experience? Pure Nintendo Podcast E109 appeared first on Pure Nintendo.

This week on the Pure Nintendo Podcast, Jemma and Kirk discuss the Switch 2 pre-order situation that occured in North America last week. Last week, we dedicated the entire episode to Mario Kart World. This huge iteration of the long-running series looks absolutely amazing, and although we still have many questions about various aspects of the game, we’re certainly excited to get our hands on this latest outing when the Switch 2 launches in June. By the way, that’s only 38 days away now! With that in mind, this week we begin counting down to the Switch 2 release on June 5. Pre-orders finally opened in North America last week, and it was a mess to say the least. There were online issues aplenty, and we go through our experience to find out whether we actually managed to snag a pre-order. We also dive into the topic of game-key cards. What are they are how do they work? And why is everyone so upset about them? Since recording this episode, we also found some very useful information about game-key cards on Nintendo’s website. We talk about the new Pro Controller, as well as a fun Switch 2 commerical, plus we make time for some games we’re playing, including Star Overdrive and The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy. With over 100 episodes down, we’re excited to bring you more Nintendo content over the coming months and years. There’s so much to look forward to in 2025 alone with the Nintendo Switch 2 due for release on June 5. So be sure to tune in each and every Monday for the latest dose of all things Nintendo on the Pure Nintendo Podcast! And don’t forget to follow us on Blue Sky to keep up to date with our news, and support us over at Patreon.com/PureNintendo! You’ll receive a magazine in the mail for your trouble. Until next time, game on everyone! The post How was our Switch 2 pre-order experience? Pure Nintendo Podcast E109 appeared first on Pure Nintendo.

Star Overdrive is an action-adventure game for the Nintendo Switch. We first caught a glimpse of this speedy indie title during a Nintendo Partner Showcase in 2024. Now that it’s

The post Review: Star Overdrive (Nintendo Switch) appeared first on Pure Nintendo.

Star Overdrive is an action-adventure game for the Nintendo Switch. We first caught a glimpse of this speedy indie title during a Nintendo Partner Showcase in 2024. Now that it’s here, how does this hoverboarding sci-fi fare? Turns out it fares pretty well. You play the role of a young adventurer traveling through space. A distress signal compels our hero to land on an alien planet to find a missing girl. Wielding a keyboard guitar and a hoverboard, it sets the scene for exploration as the player follows the clues to the girl’s whereabouts. This sci-fi intro is neat and fast, providing just enough information to guide you into the proceedings without being overbearing. Details emerge via further messages discovered as you progress, unfolding the story piece by piece. It keeps the pace of narrative flowing nicely. Your initial goal is to power up several sites dotted around the map. These create a simple puzzle mechanic as you ascertain the source for each cable. Once activated, you dive into an underground area that’s strongly reminiscent of those numerous Shrines in Tears of the Kingdom and Breath of the Wild. Each presents some simple 3D platforms to navigate, enemies to defeat, and puzzles to solve. There are more Zelda vibes on offer. One of the first powerups discovered is a magnetic grabber, which feels a lot like Ultrahand. It even sports the same eerie green glow as Link’s power. In a way, this makes it easy to use since it feels so familiar. Thankfully, Star Overdrive adds enough of its own in other ways to keep it feeling fresh while still paying homage to outings like The Legend of Zelda. The main mechanic that sets Star Overdrive apart is the hoverboard, acquired early in the game. This contraption serves as a fun and fast way to travel across terrain. It seems so obvious, it’s a wonder we haven’t seen something like this before. A simple tap of the R button sets you up for surfing the sand dunes of this desolate planet in style. It can be cumbersome to control at first, but the fluidity and jump tricks make it an enjoyable experience. You can soar over cliffs and rotate your board Tony-Hawk-style before you land to gain a boost. What’s more, your board is completely customizable thanks to a robust crafting mechanic. Wherever you go, you’ll find items to pick up. Collecting these is vital to upgrading your board, performed at various crafting stations. Throw in a mix of ingredients and you’ll enhance your board across five areas: speed, boost, gravity, power, and bond. You can even target certain physical parts of your board, like the engine or wings. Plus, you can customize the look to make it truly unique with colors and prints. These are terrific elements that further help bring this game to life. The audio is a treat, particularly if you enjoy guitars. There’s a rocking soundtrack to accompany your surfing. You can also discover cassette tapes (how old school!) and play those whenever you like to switch things up. The combat is a little lacklustre. Enemies—even early on—present a difficult scenario. It’s hard to put a finger on, but fighting in general feels a little hit and miss. It’s not terrible, it’s just not Star Overdrive’s strength. Once you unlock more abilities, things do become easier. I’d rather just avoid the enemies, but they keep at you until you dispose of them. Plus, it’s worth the dispatch to earn those upgrades. Graphically, Star Overdrive is impressive. Given the fast-paced nature of this title, there’s always the question of performance on the humble Switch. Thankfully, things move along rapidly and smoothly with no noticeable slow down or stutter. The environment also looks lovely, with excellent use of texturing that creates a smooth effect without losing too much detail. Overall, color me impressed with this indie dev’s prowess of the Switch’s capabilities. Overall, Star Overdrive is a fun adventure with some cool mechanics. Despite some obvious homages to other titles, there’s enough on offer here to make this one stand out. The fast-paced action and puzzle elements make this an adventure worth playing. The post Review: Star Overdrive (Nintendo Switch) appeared first on Pure Nintendo.

This week’s eShop roundup includes the co-op stylings of Sunderfolk, which brings four local players together using mobile devices as a controller. Put your tactical RPG skills to the test

The post Sunderfolk joins this week’s eShop roundup appeared first on Pure Nintendo.

This week’s eShop roundup includes the co-op stylings of Sunderfolk, which brings four local players together using mobile devices as a controller. Put your tactical RPG skills to the test with this dynamic adventure where even the classes have been reimagined. You’ll find the likes of Bard, Rogue, and Berserker on offer as you traverse the land and compete quests together. Sounds fun! Meanwhile, there’s a massive eShop sale on this week that ends very soon. It features some excellent titles for a terrific price, like Tunic, Vampire Survivors, and Balatro, among others. Let us know if you’ve picked up any bargains with this latest round of sales. This week’s addition to Nintendo’s own music-streaming service is the wonderful Fire Emblem Engage. If this isn’t a good enough reason to check out the app, we don’t know what is. Was it enough for Pure Nintendo’s own Fire Emblem enthusiast, Kirk? We’ll ask this very question on the next episode of the Pure Nintendo Podcast, so stay tuned. There’s also a long list of new titles to consider, so check out the details below. What will you be playing this week? Nintendo eShop highlight Sunderfolk – Rediscover game night with the magic of Sunderfolk, a shared turn-based tactical RPG adventure where your mobile device becomes the controller and your Nintendo Switch system becomes your guide to the Sunderlands. Up to four players can play in this couch co-op adventure using their own devices. Choose from one of six classes, including Arcanist, Bard, Berserker and more. Help improve your home village of Arden between missions by unlocking different local vendors and building relationships with other Sunderfolk to earn in-game rewards. Don’t forget to outfit your characters with new skills, weapons, trinkets and more before heading out on your next run! Sunderfolk is available now. Game Boy Advance – Nintendo Switch Online Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones – The kingdom of Renais lies shattered by a sudden invasion. Use cunning strategy to guide the royal heirs Eirika and Ephraim on their twin quest to rebuild their home. Take advantage of the terrain and the weapon in your hand, attacking enemies from afar using magic or up close with your sword. Each weapon has its own strength and weakness, so choose wisely when attacking your opponent – if a soldier perishes on the battlefield, they’re gone forever! Upgrade your troops to different classes, each with their own skills and weapons, and save the land from the forces of darkness. Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones is available now for Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack members. Nintendo Music Chorale of Heroes – Engage in the audio journey of a Divine Dragon with the Fire Emblem Engage soundtrack, available now on Nintendo Music – the smart-device app for Nintendo soundtracks. Experience tracks that evoke the world of the game, from the Somniel’s dulcet tones to the heart-pounding battle beats played across the continent of Elyos! Nintendo Music is exclusively for Nintendo Switch Online members. For more info, visit: https://www.nintendo.com/us/switch/online/nintendo-switch-online/nintendo-music/. Activities F-ZERO 99 1.6.0 Update – A new update for the F-ZERO 99 game boosts onto the speedway! Race in newly added Ace League Mirror tracks, play Classic tracks added to the Ace League, unlock color variations for select machines and more. This patch also introduces the Mini World Tour event, where pilots will compete in seven consecutive races to compete for the top rank. Check it out when the first Mini World Tour starts on May 5! Creator’s Voice – Hogwarts Legacy – The next installment of the “Creator’s Voice” video series is here, featuring Hogwarts Legacy. Hear from the game makers as they dive into the development process and unveil how they brought the magic behind Hogwarts Legacy to life on the Nintendo Switch 2 system. You can watch the video here: https://youtu.be/ur6uDhYq8yU. For more information on the series, visit https://www.nintendo.com/us/gaming-systems/switch-2/featured-games/creators-voice/. Nintendo eShop sales Last Chance to Save With the Partner Spotlight Sale! – Time is running out to save up to 50% on select Nintendo Switch games! From now until April 27 at 11:59 p.m. PT, don’t miss your chance to save on a dazzling selection of hit digital games when you shop on Nintendo.com or Nintendo eShop on your device. For more information and to view the full list of games, visit https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/sales-and-deals/. Also new this week 9th Dawn Remake Adventures In Time & Space – Available April 29 Aha! Spot the Change Brain Teaser Arcade Archives Tatakae! Big Fighter Atama Bee Flowers: Royal Garden Blazing Trail – Available April 30 Bosorka – Available April 29 Brain Challenge Spot the Real One! Brain Teaser! Spin & Build Castle Capy’s Quest – Available April 25 Cats Visiting Historical Times Cave of Illusions Clash of Rivals Cooking Companions – Available April 29 Deep Deep Deep Nightmare DOKAPON! Sword of Fury Dungeon Slide Escape game R00M03 Gnomes and Knights – Available April 25 JALECOlle Famicom Ver. Magic John & Totally RAD Kao The Kangaroo + Urban Trial Playground Love Live! Nijigasaki High School Idol Club TOKIMEKI Roadmap to Future Masters Bowling Monster Popper MotoGP25 – Available April 30 Munchy Mammals Ogu and the Secret Forest – Available April 29 Out of Moves Plot of the Druid Sakura Bunny Girls – Available April 25 Seedsow Lullaby – Available April 30 Silent Mist Sixtar Gate: STARGAZER Splatter Blocks – Available April 26 Spot the Difference Detective Spot the Difference with Masterpieces Sprint for Survival Spy Guy Jigsaw Fun – Available April 25 Sunseed Island – Available April 25 Super Technos World: River City & Technos Arcade Classics The Fairy’s Secret – Available April 25 The Hundred Line -Last Defense Academy- The Safe Place Where’s That Person? Witching Stone – Available April 30 夢現しろっぷ – Dreamy Syrup – The post Sunderfolk joins this week’s eShop roundup appeared first on Pure Nintendo.

Did you get your pre-order in for the Nintendo Switch 2 last night / this morning? If you were one of the lucky ones, you may be pleased to learn that Sonic will now be amongst the popular characters making an appearance on drop day.

The post Sonic joins the Nintendo Switch 2 launch day lineup appeared first on Pure Nintendo.

Did you get your pre-order in for the Nintendo Switch 2 last night / this morning? If you were one of the lucky ones, you may be pleased to learn that Sonic will now be amongst the popular characters making an appearance on drop day. SEGA has announced that SONIC X SHADOW GENERATIONS will be available June 5th. Sonic joins Yakuza 0 Director’s Cut and Puyo Puyo Tetris 2S as Nintendo Switch 2 launch day titles. Physical and digital pre-orders for all three games are now open. SONIC X SHADOW GENERATIONS – Play as Shadow in a brand-new story campaign featuring never-before-seen abilities that prove why he’s known as the Ultimate Life Form! Also included is a complete remaster of the highly acclaimed Sonic Generations, a time-traveling adventure featuring a greatest-hits collection of 3D and 2D Sonic stages, now with upgraded visuals and new bonus content. Puyo Puyo Tetris 2S – Get ready to Hard Drop onto all the exciting puzzle action in Puyo Puyo Tetris 2S! Players can expect a brand-new “Puyo Tetris Doubles” mode where they can compete in 2v2 battles with pairs using a single board to pull off devastating combos; a bounty of local and online modes featuring support for up to 4 players; and a packed roster of 40 playable characters, including Sonic the Hedgehog, each with their own stats and abilities. Yakuza 0 Director’s Cut – The definitive edition of the critically acclaimed origin story of Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio’s Yakuza series, enhanced for Nintendo Switch 2! This updated release includes new, never-before-seen story cutscenes; a brand-new “Red Light Raid” online multiplayer mode where you can join forces with friends to take down hordes of enemies; and the addition of English and Chinese VO plus French, Italian, German, and Spanish, and Simplified Chinese subtitles. Preorders are also open for RAIDOU Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army (releasing June 19). Two Point Museum will join the lineup later this year. For more information on SEGA’s Switch 2 lineup, visit www.sega.com. The post Sonic joins the Nintendo Switch 2 launch day lineup appeared first on Pure Nintendo.

Beyond the Ice Palace 2 is an action platformer for the Nintendo Switch. It actually serves as a sequel to the 1988 Atari title, Beyond the Ice Palace. After such

The post Review: Beyond the Ice Palace 2 (Nintendo Switch) appeared first on Pure Nintendo.

Beyond the Ice Palace 2 is an action platformer for the Nintendo Switch. It actually serves as a sequel to the 1988 Atari title, Beyond the Ice Palace. After such a long break, was it worth the wait? The original Beyond the Ice Palace was a side-scrolling action title in the vein of Ghosts ‘n Goblins. This time around, we’re treated to a Castlevania-esque approach, complete with whip-like weapons and an undead vibe. When I started playing, I immediately appreciated the homage to Castlevania. I hadn’t heard of the original title, but some quick YouTube research shows a much simpler adventure. The plot sees our nameless hero crowned as King following his victory against a witch in the palace of ice. Although peace has now spread across the land, it’s short-lived. When a cursed arrow is fired at the hero, the land is overrun by a demonic army led by the King’s own Paiges. The King is resurrected by sages to seek revenge against these traitors. The game begins with our hero in chains. Once he’s freed himself, these lengthy metal rings serve as both weapon and tool in a whip-like fashion à la Simon Belmont. It adds to the strong Castlevania comparison, but it works well and fans will feel right at home. Whips (or chains that act as whips) open up many possibilities in terms of gameplay. While it’s nothing we haven’t seen before, our hero can use his chains to latch on to special rings dotted around the environment to reach higher areas. He has other moves at his disposal, too, including a force field of sorts that deflects attacks. This move uses energy, which recharges automatically. A separate power gauge also fills up over time, allowing you to unleash a burst of extra power. Tip: It’s useful to save this full meter for boss fights. Graphically, Beyond the Ice Palace 2 sports a dark retro look. The 16-bit style includes settings such as a corrupted swamp and graveyard. The murky colors help set the scene without being anything special. The enemies vary from skeletal warriors to giant bugs, with some tough foes along the way. Oh, and let’s not forget boss fights. These are plentiful and memorable, with some hideous, gigantic creatures to test your skills. Speaking of skills, be sure to level up as often as possible. This is achieved via the collection of special stones, known as Power Crystals, which can be traded in for boosts to your health, strength, and other stats. One of the most fun aspects of Beyond the Ice Palace 2 is seeking out these gems in the game’s many hidden rooms. It adds an element of exploration to proceedings with some hard-to-reach areas just begging to be discovered. Of course, that’s on top of the combat, which is tricky to say the least. There are no difficulty settings, helping to keep things old-school. If you like the feeling of dying repeatedly and restarting levels, then you’ll feel right at home. There are save points, and the levels aren’t overly long, so it doesn’t become too frustrating, thankfully. Beyond the Ice Palace 2 is a sequel to a game I hadn’t heard of from systems I never played. While it has traded in its weapon choice, the dark style remains intact. This sequel, 35 years in the making, may not necessarily appeal to fans of the original, but Castlevania fans should find enjoyment here. The post Review: Beyond the Ice Palace 2 (Nintendo Switch) appeared first on Pure Nintendo.

There's a lot I want to say about The Hundred Line: The Last Defense Academy, I just don't know how to say it. This is partially because the premise and gameplay are so off the rails that it's hard to wrap your head around everything. But good Lord, what fun it is to try!

The post Review: The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy (Nintendo Switch) appeared first on Pure Nintendo.

There’s a lot I want to say about The Hundred Line: The Last Defense Academy, I just don’t know how to say it. This is partially because offering any kind of story detail would spoil the surprises that hit very early. It’s also because the premise and gameplay are so off the rails that it’s hard to wrap your head around everything. But good Lord, what fun it is to try! Published by Marvelous (XSEED), the game comes to us from Kazutaka Kodaka and Kotaro Uchikoshi—names you may know from the Danganropa and Zero Escape series, respectively. If so, that should give you some inkling of what to expect, but I liken The Hundred Line’s flow more to games such as 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim and Yurukill: The Calumniation Games. Grab the demo, and you’ll quickly see what I mean. The story centers around Takumi Sumino, a teenaged boy who’s become bored with life in the Tokyo Residential Complex—a domed city plagued with two unfortunate realities. First, the lighting is terrible; imagine living under a sky lit up like a high school cafeteria. That’s my complaint, though, not Takumi’s. His is that sirens occasionally announce a mysterious danger level, during which the residents must retreat to underground shelters. This includes Karua Kashimiya, a childhood friend Takumi swore to protect after she lost her father during such a raid. When the two eventually find themselves above ground during an attack, Takumi finds his oath put to the test by a strange, ghost-like creature who tells him he can save Karua if he’ll just, you know, stab himself in the chest with a strange dagger called the Infuser. It’s not a spoiler to say he does this (we do have to get the game moving), after which he’s transported to The Last Defense Academy with a host of other high schoolers who also have no idea what’s happening. Here, I have to start talking about the story. Half the fun of The Hundred Line is learning what’s going on, and that’s teased and twisted throughout the game. Quite often, when you think you’re about to figure something out, the game either goes in a different direction or finds a way to leave you dangling just a little bit longer. The review guide provided by Marvelous (XSEED) included five slides worth of plot points we aren’t allowed to reveal; that has to be a record of some kind. So, what can I talk about? Well, the Last Defense Academy is an actual school defending…something. Takumi and his fellow classmates aren’t told exactly what it is, just that it’s very important to humanity’s survival and that they’ll have to defend it for 100 days. They’re also told they’re trapped on school grounds by “undying flames” that can’t be extinguished except in small sections with a special extinguisher. The good news, though, is that Takumi and the others can be brought back to life provided they die on school grounds (more on that in a bit). So, they fight, right? Wrong. Confused and frightened, they do more arguing than anything else, with only a few of the combatants willing to step up…albeit not always for noble reasons. These students aren’t just eclectic, they’re bonkers straight away. The various personalities are not anime tropes, they’re purposeful caricatures of anime tropes, and they’re all so much fun. You know their character flaws are eventually going to receive a moment of exposition, but the writers are clever about this and use them in unexpected ways. The cast members also get their own abilities to use on the battlefield. The enemies attack in waves, often requiring you to defend the academy on a Fire Emblem-like grid. Some characters move further than others, some have better defense, some offer important buffs, some are very tough against single targets, while others are more effective against groups of enemies. The nuances are numerous and complex, and being strategic with them is, of course, the key to victory. It can actually be quite overwhelming early on, but two development decisions help you out. First, you can restart battles from any wave, so bad decisions don’t force you back to the start. Second, you’re given the option to restart with your voltage meter jacked up to maximum. This meter allows characters to use special attacks that not only do significant damage but also provide you with more action points (AP) so you can get more moves in on your turn. The coolest feature of combat, however, is that it’s often beneficial to kill off your own teammates. I mentioned that they come back to life, right? So, if a character is about to die, you can sacrifice him or her to cause extensive damage to the enemy while increasing the abilities of the remaining characters. The sacrificed character returns in the next wave or at the end of battle. Be careful who you kill off, though; you may need a specific specialty for the remaining enemies. Thankfully, 100 days at the academy doesn’t mean 100 battles. Most of the time, you’re working through the game’s visual novel component and deciding how to level up your characters. There are perhaps too many ways to do this. You can create gifts for characters, hang out with them, study in a library, improve your weapons, and more. You can even engage in a random-chance board game where you can harvest materials for your various power-ups. It’s a lot to consider, and I wish the game did more to explain the impact of all the options. I also wish the developers had done a better job of fleshing out the occasional persuasion mini-game. Here, you need to say the right thing in order to get someone to, for example, agree to fight. But the right answers are achieved by guesswork, and the game doesn’t tell you how many options there will be or when they expire. Perhaps to compensate, if you get an answer wrong, the event just starts over until you get it right. It’s a weird component that doesn’t need to exist. Visually…well, the Aniplex logo appears when booting up the game, so you know how this game is going to look. It has a ton of style, with the graphics rising to match the game’s attitude and sense of humor. Speaking of which, The Hundred Line knows exactly what it is and mocks itself throughout. Some of the jokes may be a bit too meta, sure, but they’re still very funny, and that helps to move things along during the moments when the visual novel aspects carry on a bit too long. Still, there wasn’t a moment when I didn’t have a blast playing The Hundred Line: The Last Defense Academy. And when it’s done, it’s not done. Your first playthrough is pretty linear, but subsequent sessions allow you to explore different story branches. Again, we’re p rohibited from detailing these branches, but I can say you’ll definitely want to work through them. All this considered, The Hundred Line: The Last Defense Academy is my favorite game of 2025 thus far. Its anime-like violence and off-color sense of humor may not be for everyone, but the turn-based strategy and visual novel elements combine effectively for an over-the-top romp that will keep you on edge for all 100 days. The post Review: The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy (Nintendo Switch) appeared first on Pure Nintendo.

A new twist on an old IP

Anyone at least in their 30s who loves run and guns should be familiar with the super popular SNK IP, Metal

The post Review: Metal Slug Tactics (Nintendo Switch) appeared first on Pure Nintendo.

A new twist on an old IP Anyone at least in their 30s who loves run and guns should be familiar with the super popular SNK IP, Metal Slug, from the ’90s. The games were originally released for SNK’s home console, the NeoGeo AES, and the MVS arcade cabinets. The series hosts several zany, over-the-top cartoon animated pixel art characters running around and blowing practically everything up on the screen with an insane amount of sprites all over the screen. The first five games were released originally for the Neo-Geo and then ported to most 4th-generation consoles like the PlayStation and Sega Saturn. Enough of the history, though. What’s up with the “Tactics” portion of the title? The developer, Leikir Studio, decided to take the series in a completely different direction. It made a top-down isometric tactical sim very similar to games like Final Fantasy Tactics. The story doesn’t deviate much from the original series but expands the world. The evil general has escaped, and it’s up to the misfit band of spec op troopers to save the day…. I told you it didn’t deviate much, lol. In keeping with the original art design of the characters and environments, there is no mistaking that this is a Metal Slug game. Metal Slug Tactics is very different from the other games with tactical aspects in some ways. There have been other offshoots, like a tower game and Metal Slug Commander that, in truth, I’m not familiar with, but remember hearing about some years back. There was also an MMO in the early 2000s in development, but it was scrapped. However, the tactical style gameplay isn’t very different from others in this genre. It’s a grid-style turn-based strategy with multiple levels in height and environment. Each mission has different criteria for victory, some not requiring total annihilation of your enemies like the run and guns did. There are different loadouts from the shop on the base that you can purchase with the cash you earn from missions. Character growth gets tracked by level individually, and skills are learned from experience gained in combat. Each player has their own unique abilities and weapon specialization. As you progress, other characters can be recruited, giving a variety of styles and strategies to implement in each mission. While the artwork hasn’t changed, the music is much better. Composer Tee Lopes did the soundtrack for Metal Slug Tactics, and boy, did they nail it. It has that military vibe with a heavy snare drum and percussive arrangements, and totally sets the tone. While Metal Slug Tactics doesn’t do anything that hasn’t been done it’s still great. My main gripe is that the game uses a fixed camera angle that can’t be changed, so some details get lost because they’re hidden. A rotation feature would be so nice, and give better perspective when planning out moves and player deployments. I had a lot of fun doing this review, as I like tactical games and love the Metal Slug series. Plus, this game was seriously challenging, with many missions taking multiple attempts before I figured out what worked best. I haven’t completed it in full yet, but I intend to. Overall, the fun gameplay had depth, and the quirky story was both engaging and humorous. Metal Slug Tactics is a cool twist and does a great job of keeping the series relevant. Had the game employed a camera rotation feature, I might’ve scored it even higher. The post Review: Metal Slug Tactics (Nintendo Switch) appeared first on Pure Nintendo.

This week on the Pure Nintendo Podcast, Jemma, Kirk, and Trev delve into the latest Nintendo Direct, this time featuring Mario Kart World.

Last week, we dicsussed the tricky

The post Mario Kart World Direct – we have questions! Pure Nintendo Podcast E108 appeared first on Pure Nintendo.

This week on the Pure Nintendo Podcast, Jemma, Kirk, and Trev delve into the latest Nintendo Direct, this time featuring Mario Kart World. Last week, we dicsussed the tricky topic of Switch 2 pricing. This week, we begin with some good news: the Switch 2 will be open for pre-orders in the US on 24 April. Finally! But this episode is mainly dedicated to Mario Kart World and the Nintendo Direct featuring this launch title. We were actually shown a lot during the 16-minute presentation: new characters, courses, modes, and costumes, not to mention missions and Yoshi’s Diner. But it felt rushed, and we somehow came away with even more questions. Like is that really how you pronounce “Kamek”? With over 100 episodes down, we’re excited to bring you more Nintendo content over the coming months and years. There’s so much to look forward to in 2025 alone with the Nintendo Switch 2 due for release on June 5. So be sure to tune in each and every Monday for the latest dose of all things Nintendo on the Pure Nintendo Podcast! And don’t forget to follow us on Blue Sky to keep up to date with our news, and support us over at Patreon.com/PureNintendo! You’ll receive a magazine in the mail for your trouble. Until next time, game on everyone! The post Mario Kart World Direct – we have questions! Pure Nintendo Podcast E108 appeared first on Pure Nintendo.

I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream is set in a future world where only five humans are left alive, living inside a computer that has godlike power, hates humans, and exists only to torture these people. It’s not a happy tale, no.

The post Review: I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream (Nintendo Switch) appeared first on Pure Nintendo.

Based on the classic Harlan Ellison story, I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream is set in a future world where only five humans are left alive, living inside a computer. Small problem; the computer has godlike power, hates humans, and is entirely insane. It exists only to torture these people, which it has been doing nonstop for 109 years. It’s not a happy tale, no. This is a port of the 1995 point-and-click adventure game, with the late Ellison himself playing the voice of the mad computer, “AM.” As the player, you take each of the humans, one by one, through the nightmarish landscape AM has created for them. Each scenario has been constructed to play on the traumas they suffered before the apocalypse. I won’t get into those here, as discovering them (along with the characters) is part of the game. But the situations are all rendered in a fantasmagorical way. One character wakes up on a giant metal ship filled with rotting food, bloody tablecloths, and no other people. Another has to explore an ancient Egyptian temple made out of technological waste. Jungles, haunted castles, and concentration camps must be explored in their low-res, ’90s glory. The interface is simple; you move from room to room, interacting with objects, picking things up, and putting them together in various combinations to solve puzzles, both obvious and obscure. I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream uses commands like TALK, SWALLOW, PUSH, LOOK AT, which can be accessed by mousing with the L/R sticks or by the ABXY buttons. The L/R sticks can be a bit cludgy, especially when you have to interact with a very small object or dialogue choice in which case you can use the directional buttons for finer control. It being a retro adventure game, failure is expected. As you go through each room trying to figure out which variation of > USE BLUE KEY ON HAMBURGER will get the damn door open, you will sometimes die. This presents no problem in the story, as AM has been killing and resurrecting the humans for over a century. You then go back to the first screen, where you select which character to play, but every time you go back to one you played before, the scenario resets itself completely. It’s a hell of a story, which is why the original remains a sci-fi/horror classic, and why this ’90s game has been revived. I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream does a good job of capturing the tightrope walk of the characters who live in a hell that they cannot escape even through death, but who are nonetheless spurred on by the hope that maybe they can beat AM. That maybe they can overcome their trauma. That maybe they can find a scrap of food to eat. And AM uses that hope to crush them over and over and over. The ’90s graphics obviously have their retro charm now, and the jankiness only serves to make the landscapes all the more surreal. (Is that a dirty bed or the remains of a corpse?) Further, the voice acting is really good, with all the characters coming across as unique, and very flawed, people. Ellison seems positively giddy as AM, always assuring you that no, really, this time he’s going to play fair. If the game has a flaw, it’s one inherent to all games of this type—that some of the puzzles are so cracked out it’s almost impossible to reason how they work. Trial and error is the point, after all. The other issue is that sometimes objects are virtually impossible to see on-screen. After consulting a walkthrough in frustration, I learned that a seemingly useless piece of technology was holding another, smaller, object that I needed to grab. But I wasn’t even able to tell that it was there until I was told it existed. I Have No Mouth, And I Must Scream is unsettling at times. Ellison’s original tale played on the idea of having your sense of identity ruined by an evil god, and of having the most depraved sins of humanity played out for its amusement. The game doesn’t back away from that. But being a game, it does offer a way out that AM never would; though there are a lot of bad endings to the game, it is possible to win when played perfectly. It’s just going to take a lot of dying and despair to figure out how. For those who love point-and-click adventures that are a.) very challenging and b.) confined to a very dark sandbox, I Have No Mouth, And I Must Scream is going to scratch that itch. The post Review: I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream (Nintendo Switch) appeared first on Pure Nintendo.

Retail pre-orders for Nintendo Switch 2 are set to open on April 24, 2025, in the U.S. and Canada. The other good news is that the prices remain unchanged. The same can't be said for accessories, however...or for the future.

The post Switch 2 retailer preorders open in North America April 24th appeared first on Pure Nintendo.

Almost immediately after unveiling the Switch 2’s release date, Nintendo postponed preorders of the new console in the U.S. and Canada because of Donald Trump’s tariff nonsense. Don would eventually postpone the tariffs until after the Switch 2’s release, and Nintendo has finally announced when North American buyers will get to begin their race against the scalpers. Retail pre-orders for Nintendo Switch 2 are set to open on April 24, 2025. The other good news is that the price for console remains unchanged: $449.99 for the Switch 2 on its own and $499.99 for Switch 2 + Mario Kart World bundle. Pricing for both physical and digital versions of Mario Kart World ($79.99) and Donkey Kong Bananza ($69.99) will also remain unchanged at launch. But it’s not all good news. Prices for Nintendo Switch 2 accessories will be adjusted from their original April 2nd price announcements “…due to changes in market conditions.” Also… Other adjustments to the price of any Nintendo product are also possible in the future depending on market conditions. Product and pricing information can be found at www.nintendo.com. That may technically always be the case, yes, but current circumstances in the U.S. make it a much more likely possibility. Regardless, it’s good to finally know when we’ll all get the chance to stake our claim on the Nintendo Switch 2. And be sure to register to preorder at Nintendo.com (if you qualify) so you’re covered if the scalpers win next Thursday. The post Switch 2 retailer preorders open in North America April 24th appeared first on Pure Nintendo.

All Steam news, all the time!

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include: Added missing string for the PNG filter when using the Decal Tool Added missing newline to the 'Unable to initialize sound capture' console message Added IsNextBot() method (GitHub fix from Bitl) Added support for custom mission briefings in vsh and zi game modes (GitHub fix from Gamer_X) Added convar to control max Mann vs. Machine robots (GitHub fix from ficool2) Added prediction for Thermal Thruster + self-stun (GitHub fix from wgetJane) Fixed crash with game_round_win in KOTH (GitHub fix from doclic) Fixed Mann vs. Machine status HUD not using the mini boss background for enemies in the Support group Fixed Medieval Mode Auto-RP not matching lowercase input unless it begins with an 'a' Fixed backpack page buttons putting the 'New' label behind the button Fixed character info panel not being positioned correctly Fixed The Front Runner using the wrong team color for the headset on the Stylin' style Fixed Announcer VO with static at the end of the sound (community fix from Lindon) Fixed missing lightwarp setting for the Conniver's Kunai and The Half-Zatoichi (community fix from Lindon) Fixed The Bazaar Bargain's scope being painted when using the Elfin Enamel war paint Fixed commentary text not displaying Fixed TFBot VScript methods SetBehaviorFlag, ClearBehaviorFlag, IsBehaviorFlagSet, SetMission, SetPrevMission, GetMission, GetPrevMission, and HasMission using 'unsigned int' by mistake Fixed overlapping internal font names causing one font to overwrite the other for Linux clients (GitHub fix from RoseyLemonz) Fixed Casual late-joiners seeing Competitive logo on Match Status HUD doors (GitHub fix from rabscootle) Fixed Spy bots using human voice lines in Mann vs. Machine (GitHub fix from John Kvalevog) Fixed crash on VGUI menu bar button cursor entrance (GitHub fix from RGBACatlord) Fixed Mann vs. Machine bomb carrier voice line playing during normal CTF with bots (GitHub fix from mastercoms) Fixed organ props spawning from non-Vita-Saw damage (GitHub fix from Thomas Kain) Fixed uninitialized field use in CParticleEffectBinding (GitHub fix from Thomas Kain) Fixed type cast warning caused by pointer size mismatch (GitHub fix from SanyaSho) Fixed typo in Mann vs. Machine score calculation (GitHub fix from HalfMatt) Fixed missed break in logging character field save data causing incorrect logging (GitHub fix from Dmitry Tsarevich) Fixed Engineer bots soft locking on CTF maps (GitHub fix from AwfulRanger) Fixed middle mouse kicking you in PASS Time (GitHub fix from ficool2) Fixed radial fog not being enabled in 3D sky on official maps (GitHub fix from ficool2) Fixed PLAYER_FLAG_BITS truncating m_fFlags sent to clients (GitHub fix from copperpixel) Fixed prediction for jumping when The Huntsman is charged/released (GitHub fix from wgetJane) Fixed prediction for Force-A-Nature jumps (GitHub fix from wgetJane) Increased PLAYER_FLAG_BITS to 32 Removed temporary player jingle files if tf_delete_temp_files (GitHub fix from AndrewBetson) Removed MFC dependency in the launcher exe (GitHub fix from Slartibarty) Updated the ConTracker 'Back' button to accommodate longer localization strings Updated plr_hacksaw_event Fixed erroneous and asymmetric clipping across the map Fixed pumpkin bomb quota being too low

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include: Added missing files for Taunt: The Travel Agent Added No Hat styles for the Cozy Cover-Up Added VScript support for HIDEHUD_MATCH_STATUS flag to hide the Match Status panel Added a borderless window option to video settings Added bicubic lightmaps (from Half-Life 2: 20th Anniversary Update) Added radial fog (from Half-Life 2: 20th Anniversary Update) Added support for Steam Networking Made the default server name for listen servers include the player's name Made the game launch in native resolution by default instead of 640x480 Client-side prediction fixes (these fix 'jank'/rollback in certain situations) Fixed a prediction bug where if the player was moved on the client, their input-based movement for that tick was not taken into account in non-player actions Improved prediction for walking on props and other entities Made certain client-side entities only trigger local prediction errors e.g. If the viewmodel experiences a prediction error, the player will not experience a prediction error Fixed prediction of viewmodel sway Fixed a prediction error regarding weapon idle animations Fixed certain breakable props not gibbing correctly Fixed an issue where certain variables like position would not be updated correctly to match the server in certain situations Fixed the player's base velocity (eg. conveyors, moving items etc.) getting subtly out of sync from client/server Fixed players being able to spam duel cancellation messages for a duel that doesn't exist Fixed not being able to join community servers via Steam invites or game info Fixed lighting position discrepancies for cosmetic items, weapons, and viewmodels (community fix from ficool2) Fixed Equipped label overlapping attribute icons in the loadout menu (community fix from Lindon) Fixed an issue with props and team colors when taunting with Australium weapons Fixed the Voices from Below effect not working when taunting with the Highland Hound set equipped Fixed player voice commands being abruptly ended when the player enters shallow water Fixed incorrect number on the Geneva Contravention achievement icon Fixed the Military Style for The Surgeon General to stay properly semi-visible at all angles Fixed some classes missing the BLU team material for That '70s Chapeau Fixed the Spanish-Latin America option being displayed as English in the Settings menu Fixed the MOTD dialog not working for Spanish-Latin America Updated attribute descriptions for The Scottish Resistance and the Stickybomb Jumper to use 'stickybomb' instead of 'pipebomb' Updated equip_region settings for The Little Bear, The Heavy-Weight Champ, The Grand Duchess Tutu, and the Combat Slacks to fix unnecessary conflicts Updated the Spooky Night and Ominous Night Unusual taunt effects to fix a visual bug (Thanks Kiffy!) Updated koth_overcast_final to improve optimization Updated ctf_applejack Added block bullets to some stores Unblocked a window at mid, allowing Snipers to shot across the middle hut Removed the missing texture in BLU spawn Gave a chicken a friend, because friendship is magic Updated cp_fortezza New radio model for spawn rooms Changed sentry shack ammo pack on last to a medium Adjusted health pickups throughout the map Changed kill volume on cap A double doors to be more consistent with visuals Improved bot support (Thanks Star Bright) Detail pass Updated pl_patagonia [Stage 1] Fixed some RED bots stuck forever trying to make an impossible jump on the stairs outside spawn Fixed the cart not capping the first point on extremely rare occasions [Stage 2] Improved optimization Fixed a nodraw floor near the first BLU spawn train bridge waterfall Fixed 3D skybox looking pitch black for players using mat_hdr_level 2 [Stage 3] Improved optimization Fixed wrap assassin baubles colliding with a solid func_brush bounding box outside BLU spawn Removed the platform above the open choke of the last point Added an additional path to the window overlooking the open choke of the last point Fixed RED bots getting stuck on a solid fence outside the RED spawn Fixed 3D skybox looking pitch black for players using mat_hdr_level 2

Foundation is Now Available on Steam and is 25% off!* Foundation is a grid-less, laidback medieval city-building game with a focus on organic development, monument construction and resource management. *Offer ends February 7 at 10AM Pacific Time

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include: Fixed the Battle Balaclava's "No Gloves" style hiding the Heavy's hands Fixed broken materials for The Westcoat's "Ugly" style Added smoke effect to The Checkered Past Update the Buck's Brim's "Bad" style Fixed broken materials Added smoke effect Updated cp_fortezza Detail improvements Improved clipping Updated koth_cachoeira Fixed players being able to get stuck in certain displacements Various clipping improvements throughout the map Various miscellaneous fixes (Thanks Midnite!) Improved bot navigation (Thanks Katsu!)

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include: Updated the Brain Cane to fix problems with the texture and phong value Updated The Battle Music Added missing Hat style Fixed the models due to clipping on Heavy's ears and misalignment on Engineer Improved and strengthen the Noise Cancellation Updated the materials to fix it not being shiny Updated the backpack icon to reflect the materials change Updated cp_gravelpit_snowy Fixed potential incompatibility with external VScript files (thanks Le Codex!) Re-implemented cubemap reflections in ice cave Fixed perch spots Updated vsh_distillery, vsh_maul, vsh_nucleus, vsh_outburst, vsh_skirmish, and vsh_tinyrock Restored Hale's resistance to knockback back to 75% Reduced bonus flame damage against Hale from 50% to 25% Hale can now do 1 extra Brave Jump before the Jump Fatigue kicks in (thanks Wendy) Weighdown is no longer blocked by the Jump Fatigue (thanks Wendy) Removed area-of-effect of Hale's normal punches (thanks Wendy) Demoman shields now absorb 70% of Saxton Punch! damage (compared to normal 50%) to make the following launch into the stratosphere survivable Fixed Hale taking mini-crits from Direct Hit and Reserve Shooter while underwater (thanks Bradasparky) Fixed airborne mini-crits of Direct Hit and Reserve Shooter applying against the wielder (thanks Bradasparky) Fixed Hale being able to stomp while underwater (thanks Bradasparky) Fixed Sweeping Charge not working against underwater opponents Fixed the bug that prevented Quick-Fix from mirroring a patient's wall climbing (thanks Bradasparky) Fixed Hale's faulty ground detection (thanks Bradasparky) Fixed Baby Face's Blaster's loss of boost not applying correctly (thanks Whurr and MilkMaster72) Fixed the voice lines refusing to play sometimes Updated pl_patagonia Stage 1 Fixed the cart going under the elevator in extremely rare occasions (Thanks Shocked) Fixed sometimes hearing outside soundscapes inside blue spawn Fixed being able to build in a very high rooftop after point A Fixed being able to build in blue spawn Cart elevator is no longer the glitchiest thing in the universe Fixed cart not rolling back after completing the elevator descent sequence Now, if the cart is rolling into the elevator in overtime, the round timer will be set to 5 seconds left, to avoid unfair loses for blue. Timer will resume once the cart reaches the bottom (Thanks I. C. Wiener). Stage 2 Removed rollback from the train container ramp in last point (Thanks b4nny) Gave blue more high ground for last point Added an additional dropdown for blue for last point Fixed being able to be teleported into red spawn as blue after capping point A Removed long hill rollback before point C Fixed bots getting stuck on the closed train doors after cap B Fixed being able to leave stickies inside blue last spawn Fixed being able to get stuck in the point C shortcut door for red. If you get trapped, it will kill you. Fixed a pop-in issue relating to areaportals below point B Fixed being able to enter the last blue spawn as red Birdie (Thanks Explocivo808) Stage 3 Added a fenced section for the long wood cover wall in last point (Thanks b4nny) Mirrored the window sniper spot in last point choke Fixed being able to build behind a displacement rock wall in last point Removed troll teleport spot in last point ending ramp All Stages Slightly lowered sun brightness and slightly raised skylight brightness Improved skybox transitions The cart no longer tries to defy the law of physics Ninjaneers have more freedom to be ninjas The bots have learned how to play the map Gave the cart another coronación de gloria

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include: Updated the Dapper Noel to fix an issue with the mesh Updated vsh_maul Fixed broken areaportals Changed some props in the upper area that could be mistaken for a large ammo pack

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include: Added missing No Gloves style for the Consigliere's Coverup Added missing Versus Saxton Hale kill icons Added some tournament medals Fixed Taunt: Curtain Call voice lines overlapping with other Spy voice lines Fixed the Playful Aurora and Frisky Morning Unusual effects not moving correctly Updated Aurora Skies Unusual effect to fix a timing issue Updated the Necroprancer to fix an issue with the materials Updated the Dusk Duster to fix an issue with the materials Updated the Dapper Noel Remade normal map to be compatible with OpenGL Re-baked Diffuse & updated backpack icon to reflect above changes Removed misplaced ambient occlusion Fixed problematic face flexes Fixed an issue where Engineer's beard was protruding from his goggles Fixed an issue with the jigglebones being disabled Rigged Sniper's hat to be compatible with his melee taunt Updated Scrooge McDoc Transparent lenses are rigged to the correct bone (prp_glasses instead of bip_head) so it should now work correctly with taunts that move the glasses Improved scarf rigging and positioning to allow for better compatibility with shirt cosmetics Updated the backpack icon Updated koth_overcast_final Fixed an issue with the models/materials Added back snow coverings (now using displacements) to some props that were missing them Fixed misaligned textures in various places Fixed weird lighting bug on a wall in blue spawn Fixed 'Hotel' sign not displaying properly Added back indicators under some health and ammo kits that were missing them Updated cp_fortezza Removed sniper window leading into last Fixed Engineer being able to build in some doors Fixed some props being solid Slight art pass update Updated vsh_maul Players can no longer hide from Saxton in the dark Fixed props inside other props Fixed z-fighting brushes Fixed missing particle effects for the water feature Fixed orientation of water feature particles Minor lighting changes around the cinema Adjusted LOD change distances for Cinema sign Updated VSH logic Grounded levitating props Aligned misaligned textures Fixed mis-textured walls Clipped upper metal beams Fixed clip brushes sticking out from walls that could be walked on Players will now be pushed off of the fire bell Adjusted cinema sign shadow Used spell check on Saxton's Package sign Updated how music is activated and deactivated Fixed clipping on the hanging big ornaments

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include: Happy Smissmas 2024! All players who play TF2 during the event will receive a Stuffed Stocking as a gift! Stockings contain goodies for good little Mercenaries. Featuring 6 new community maps: Overcast, Fortezza, Penguin Peak, Patagonia, Cutter, and Maul Added the Winter 2024 Cosmetic Case Contains 23 new community-contributed items The Festivizer can be found as a bonus drop when opening the case Added 3 new community-contributed taunts to the Mann Co. Store Taunt: Fore-Head Slice Taunt: Peace! Taunt: Curtain Call Added 18 new community-created Unusual effects 9 new effects for Unusual hats 9 new effects for Unusual taunts All cosmetic and taunt cases will grant Smissmas 2024 Unusual effects instead of their normal Unusual effects during the event. This does not include crates. Mann Co. Store winter sale! Smissmas runs through January 7th, 2025 General Fixed a client crash when previewing imported items in the Workshop dialog Fixed showing an error model when equipping the Scottish Resistance Fixed The Executioner not hiding the Scout's dog tags Updated the Mountebank's Masque to fix a problem with the materials Updated/Added some tournament medals Updated vsh_distillery, vsh_nucleus, vsh_outburst, vsh_skirmish, and vsh_tinyrock General Added the gamemode intro movie (made by Lacry, thanks) Improved the delivery of VSH-related voice lines for Soldier, Engineer and Sniper Updated some VSH-related voice lines for Saxton, Soldier, Engineer and Sniper (thanks The Rat Man) Added Hale's kill icons Visual improvements to Hale's Ability HUD (thanks Funicular) Added a visual cue signaling an upcoming Saxton Punch! Minor visual improvements to Saxton Hale and his particle effects Fixed the boss bar sometimes starting invisible Fixed a rare crash caused by seeing blood decals on Hale while playing on low graphics quality settings Fixed a rare bug when Hale's Ability HUD textures become missing Balance Changes - Saxton Hale Added Brave Jump Fatigue. Each consecutive jump will be less powerful, requiring a short break to restore to full strength Weightdown ability is disabled during Jump Fatigue Increased Hale's health by ~100HP per opponent Adjusted Hale's health formula against 24+ opponents - Hale now gains 2000HP for every opponent past 23 (thanks Megascatterbomb) Hale's resistance to knockback reduced from 75% to 35% Head Stomp damage now scales with Hale's downward speed, dealing between 64 and 193 damage (previously dealt flat 195 damage) Balance Changes - Mercenaries Explosives and fire now deal 50% more damage against Hale The 40% minigun damage penalty now applies to full crits only Broken Demoman shields now retain the charge ability Demoman shields now absorb only 50% of the incoming damage upon breaking (a would-be-lethal blow will leave the Demo at 1HP) Greatly decreased sticky trap damage reduction Removed Scottish Resistance's 20% damage penalty Baby Face's Blaster now loses 20% of its boost upon Wall Climbing Updated vsh_tinyrock (additional changes) Improved performance Fixed odd clipping at one of the spawns Updated vsh_distillery (additional changes) Improved performance Updated vsh_nucleus (additional changes) Fixed setup time ending five seconds too early Improved detailing in some areas Improved clipping on staircases Increased control point capture time to 15 seconds Removed collision on some lights Changed damage model and damage amount of the toxic waste pit and puddles Updated vsh_skirmish (additional changes) Fixed setup time ending five seconds too early Fixed an issue where Engineers could build in the crocodile pit Fixed not being able to wall climb certain trees in the main arena Fixed some lighting issues on stalactites and other props Parts of Hale's intro sequence no longer play while waiting for players Improved optimization and detailing in some areas Improved clipping on spiral stairs (Thanks Aar!) Updated security system Updated cp_brew The shortcut from RED spawn to the "A" point now has a nobuild trigger Added floor indicator for the health kit in the "A" point wooden shack Adjusted "A" point wooden shack to allow more breathing room Fixed getting stuck on the "A" gate's frame Fixed teletrap near "A" point ditch route Fixed being able to place buildings inside an out-of-bounds room outside "A" point Fixed some stuck spots near "B" point Fixed being able to shoot through a crack in the BLU forward spawn Fixed floating props in the diner Fixed one way door not forcing itself closed Cleaned up some collisions and clipping across the map Improved lighting on all of the archways Updated koth_krampus Fixed missing trees in skybox Improved look of waterfall texture near full health-kit Fixed minor visual errors Minor NPC clipping changes Fed krampus some oats Updated pl_emerge Switched on the cart light Fixed RED players being able to sit on the edge of an exit of BLU's starting spawn Fixed some doors showing incorrect textures Fixed the final capture point displaying an incorrect string Fixed the map occasionally playing incorrect ambient sounds Minor visual and performance tweaks Updated cp_carrier The Carrier now has full crits rather than mini-crits The Carrier now uses the robot voice lines Improved hearability of the Carrier's voice lines and footsteps Fixed visual bugs with the boss bar Fixed the Carrier sometimes becoming invisible while taunting Fixed animation glitches when a Demoman Carrier holds a Stickybomb Launcher Fixed occasional phasing through the elevator platform at BLU spawn Decreased size of the frog

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include: Improved matchmaking performance Improved matchmaker behavior for users with less-than-ideal ping levels. The matchmaker should now be quicker to put you in the best available region. Improved matchmaker decision making for cross-region parties Added error messages when being ejected from the matchmaking queue due to connectivity or authentication failures, rather than the queue simply silently vanishing Fixed the matchmaking settings dialog frequently failing to display any datacenters Fixed multiple cases of in-progress casual matches abruptly terminating or failing to be assigned any new players if the game server ever loses connection to Steam Updated the Mountebank's Masque, Courtier's Collar, and Harlequin's Hooves cosmetic items to fix issues with their paint regions Updated cp_gravelpit_snowy Fixed a script issue Improved performance Improved clipping

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include: Fixed the Guano and Batbelt cosmetic items hiding the Scout's dog tags Fixed The Beacon from Beyond incorrectly hiding a bunch of bodygroups Fixed the Quoth cosmetic item hiding the Scout's headphones Fixed some broken materials for some props_farm gib models Adding "Hat" style for the Fuel Injector Updated the Clue Hairdo to fix broken smoke effect Updated koth_synthetic_event Edited nav mesh to minimize the Toastmaster running diving into the grinder/death pit Updated pd_farmageddon Revoked scarecrow gym membership which lowered their health from 500 to 350 Updated zi_atoll, zi_blazehattan, zi_devastation_final1, zi_murky, zi_sanitarium, and zi_woods Fixed an exploit allowing some players to respawn as a human or play as a human on the Zombie team

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include: Reverted BLU Scout pants fix because it conflicts with too many existing cosmetics Updated the Fleet Commander again to fix import problems from the previous update Updated the Phantom Plague and Haunting Haze Unusual effects to fix sometimes spawning away from the player Updated cp_freaky_fair Fixed issues related to the gamemode logic Reapplied check that was mistakenly removed to check if the player is actively buying upgrades in a station or not Implemented new custom system to refund upgrades to hopefully address inconsistencies both in-round and across rounds Implemented logic to handle mismatches in recorded vs actual currency values when leaving the upgrade trigger and having not accepted de-bought upgrades Reverted code to do with Ghosts and Sentry busters to fix bugs related to their effects not de-applying Implemented a way to force kill players to address edge cases where you could survive as the sentry buster past their explosion (Thanks MilkMaster!) Improved the logic which checks if you can apply a new potion effect to yourself to address bugs where effects can overlap Fixed sniper and demo shields not having their upgrades cleared Fixed canteens not having their values cleared when refunding whilst not equipped Increased the height of the skybox Increased last point capture time from 6s to 7s Changed some clipping to stop giants from building on roofs Smoothed out a divot (Thanks Midnite!) Updated zi_atoll, zi_blazehattan, zi_devastation_final1, zi_murky, zi_sanitarium, and zi_woods General Re-encoded all Zombie Infection sound effects as .WAV This fixes issues with sound effects not playing correctly and spewing errors in the console Bug fixes Fixed a bug that caused Sniper's Spit Pool to deal much more damage than intended Fixed a bug that caused team names to not display correctly when playing on mp_tournament mode Fixed a bug where Engineer would sometimes scream like a charging Demoman while throwing an EMP Grenade Zombie Changes Sniper's Spit Pool damage vs Survivors no longer stacks when standing in multiple zones Zombie Heavy is no longer immune to Critical Hits Zombie Heavy's max health raised to 525 (from 450) Zombie Pyro's max health raised to 250 (from 175) Zombie Pyro now drops a medium health kit on death Survivor Changes Crossbow weapons no longer have a flat damage multiplier against Zombies The B.A.S.E Jumper can no longer be deployed if you are one of the last three survivors Jumper Weapons can no longer store reserve ammunition Updated zi_murky (additional changes) Added more respawn room triggers around the new spawn zones

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include: Added missing list of authors for arena_lumberyard_event Fixed the Crook Combatant hiding the Scout's dog tags Fixed some sound script entries not playing because they were looking for .wav instead of .mp3 Fixed BLU Scout using the incorrect team color pants Fixed some props_farm models using an incorrect surfaceprop setting Updated the large version of the backpack image for The Fast Learner to be consistent with the small version Updated the schema entries for The Hound's Hood and the Thrilling Tracksuit to remove unused settings Updated a couple of the community console images to fix missing nomip/nolod settings Updated Freaky Fair's expert contract to be "Win a round on Freaky Fair" Updated the Fleet Commander and Delldozer to fix import problems from the previous update Updated arena_lumberyard_event Fixed mini-crits being removed from the last player standing if they used the Crit-a-Cola Added missing navigation mesh Fixed areaportal windows in spawn fading in too early Fixed cases where players would get stuck on the setup doors Adjusted prop fades Updated cp_darkmarsh Lowered spell spawn timer (from 180 seconds to 120 seconds) Spells that spawn outside respawn rooms will disappear after 30 seconds of not being picked up Added several more pumpkin bomb spawn points Fixed portcullis doors turning pitch black when opening Lowered RED respawn wave time for the last point (from 10 to 8) Updated tow_dynamite Fixed an ammo pick-up differ on BLU side Added a missing wagon wheel on BLU side Added Tug of War objective strings Made the jump pad's deathpits deeper A new critter has arrived Updated pd_circus Fixed spell books being prompted despite none spawning in the map Reduced points per player from 6 to 5 Reduced distracting lighting and details around the inaccessible areas of the circus Fixed being able to place teleporters too close to spawn doors Fixed erroneous collisions Fixed small displacements cutting through walls Fixed some gaps in geometry

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include: Fixed an issue with Blazehattan contracts Fixed an issue with Outburst contracts Fixed an invalid Soul Gargoyle location on Mann Manor Fixed players not being able to select a class and spawn after watching an intro video Recompiled props_farm\box_cluster03.mdl to fix a problem with the material Updated the Dusk Duster to adjust the rigging a bit to reduce distortion Updated the Triboniophorus Gentlemannus Fixed clipping Updated texture to fix mipmapping Added jigglebone Added attachment for genteel smoke effect Updated the Clue Hairdo to fix a rim mask problem with the 'Case Open' style Updated the Fleet Commander Fixed white seams when moving camera away from character Improved position of Style Selection camera by deleting unused bones Updated the Delldozer to fix a problem with the specular map for the Re-Mastered and Re-Engineered styles Updated The Witch Doctor to fix a problem with the diffuse textures and normal maps Updated Taunt: Commending Clap to fix some issues with sounds and timing Updated zi_atoll, zi_blazehattan, zi_devastation_final1, zi_murky, zi_sanitarium, and zi_woods Reduced Zombie Engineer's EMP Grenade Cooldown from 10 seconds to 9 seconds Adjusted Zombie Pyro's death explosion to briefly ignite players hit by the blast Fixed a bug that allowed Zombie Medic to spawn infinite dispenser entities (Thanks Psychicpie!) Fixed Zombie Heavy's ability appearing as an active instead of a passive on the HUD (Thanks NeoDement!) Fixed a bug that caused Zombie Heavy's knockback effect to trigger on afterburn damage when quickly swapping from Pyro to Heavy Updated zi_blazehattan (additional changes) Fixed top roof having no collisions, causing players to 'sink in' Made the brick decoration near the wooden ramp slightly lower to make jumping to the top roof easier Removed some redundant clip brushes Changed the round timer from 6 minutes to 3 minutes 30 seconds Fixed missing textures behind the windows of the warehouse building Fixed rendering issue in the A Gate zombie spawn (Thanks Midnite!) Fixed several instances where players could stand on top of clip brushes and in high places (Thanks Midnite!) Fixed floodlight stuck spot near B Gate (Thanks Midnite!) Fixed troll teleporter spots (Thanks Midnite!) Fixed telephone pole collision (Thanks Midnite!) Added no-build triggers on top of barrel clusters at the top of the containers for consistency Added barrel clusters and wood debri on top of the red container with the floodlight to make it more apparent engineers can't build there, as well as to provide cover for zombies Various small changes Updated tow_dynamite Doubled the chances of a Jump Spell drop Fixed the main gates killing players when touched on the side Fixed the main gates killing you prematurely before they are fully closed Fixed HUD textures going missing on occasion (Thanks Aar) Fixed the rooftop fire being too strong Fixed multiple locations that allowed players to build out of bounds Fixed an overly aggressive propfade in front of spawn Fixed edge bugs on multiple roofs that allowed players to remain alive Updated vsh_outburst Improved performance Fixed menu images Fixed a minor visual issue Fixed being able to stick to the invisible walls Updated koth_sawmill_event Reduced the amount of skeletons that spawn Added a new pathway to the secret underworld exit Redid some detailing near Reds base Improved lighting near some shacks near mid Fixed clipping for a shack Reworked where Soul Gargoyles spawn, now favoring Mid more often Made some new greener water for Mids lumber place New spectator cams Updated cp_freaky_fair Fixed issues related to the gamemode logic Fixed players being able to retain upgrades on their weapons by putting them in their loadout before the round changes and then switching back to them Fixed some currency bugs related to players having upgrades pending but not accepted, and then leaving the upgrade trigger Fixed players being able to retain their upgrades when switching classes inside the upgrade trigger after having refunded Fixed character upgrades being occasionally set to incorrect quantities Changed uber and kritz potions so they use the equivalent lakeside conditions to allow Medics to switch weapons and maintain their effects Fixed players being able to put a class into a massive debt Several minor fixes Merasmus is very talkative, so we asked him to talk a bit differently Merasmus will only sometimes say something after he already talked about his financial problems during the first seconds of setup time Merasmus will no longer say something that is too long to say before he needs to announce something else, he will say something different now Merasmus now has more things to say Merasmus will now announce overtime, stalemate and last control point being captured instead of the Administrator Made changes to the upgrades Ghost Potion: ghost spooking radius reduced from 512 hu to 384 hu Ghost Potion: ghost spooking frequency increased from 5 to 7 secs (this is a nerf) Sentry Firing Speed: removed redundant 3rd level Disposable sentry: Maximum amount reduced from 4 to 3 Crit boost on kill: Now disabled Shield Recharge Rate bonus: Maximum level reduced from 4 to 2 Shield Recharge Rate bonus: Price increased from $150 to $250 Rocket Specialist: Price increased from $300 to $450 Rocket Specialist: Maximum level reduced from 4 to 3 Crit damage resistance: Resist reduced from 30% to 25% per level (this is a nerf) Crit damage resistance: Maximum Resist reduced from 90% to 75% (this is a nerf) Thermal Thruster impact stun: Price increased from $600 to $750 Explosive Headshot: Price increased from $350 to $450 Mad Milk and Jarate speed on target debuff: Debuff reduced from 35% to 25% Mark For Death: Price reduced from $500 to $300 Fixed several roof spots players were able to stand on (Thanks Midnite!) Fixed several teleporter stuck spots (Thanks Midnite!) Fixed floating pumpkins and planks (Thanks Midnite!) Fixed several spots that could be abused to spawncamp enemy team (Thanks Midnite!) Removed some visible dev textures (Thanks Midnite!) Removed stool from the arcade that was blocking the path previously Fixed being able to deal splash damage through metal grates Clipped the attic in respawn room to prevent players from getting and building there Clipped several beams in the lobby room Fixed missing wooden board near Red respawn room door Moved Merry-Go-Round sound source closer to make it louder Brightened several dark spots Closed the tree gap

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include: Fixed broken path for community_maps_5 in the ConTracker Renamed Team Blackout war paint to Blackout Fixed the names of the Delightful Doves, Ravenous Ravens, and Vicious Vampires Unusual effects Updated Toxic's second objective to be 'Collect a Halloween Pumpkin on Toxic' Updated the School Nuisance to update the backpack icon and fix some clipping issues on the LODs Updated the Sear Seer to fix a paintability problem with the 'Dusk - No Lenses' style Updated the Heavy Rain Unusual taunt effect to improve visual quality of the effect in dark environments Updated cp_darkmarsh to reduce fog intensity Updated zi_atoll, zi_blazehattan, zi_devastation_final1, zi_murky, zi_sanitarium, and zi_woods Fixed missing overlay material for Sniper's Spit ability Fixed missing particle effects for Pyro's Dragon's Breath ability Fixed a bug that would cause players to get stuck in spectate mode when attempting to join a game in progress

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include: Updated vsh_outburst to fix a problem with sounds not playing correctly Added missing strings for the new Strange Filters

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include: Scream Fortress XVI has arrived! Featuring 7 new community maps: Toxic, Darkmarsh, Freaky Fair, Dynamite, Circus, Outburst, and Blazehattan Added the Terrifying Trove Case Contains 21 new community-created cosmetic items that make up the Terrifying Trove Collection Has a chance to give a taunt Unusualifier as a bonus item Added 4 new community-contributed taunts to the Mann Co. Store Taunt: Crushing Defeat Taunt: Peace Out Taunt: Commending Clap Taunt: The Punchline Added 22 new community-created Unusual effects 12 new effects for Unusual hats 10 new effects for Unusual taunts Added the Scream Fortress XVI War Paint Case Contains 12 new community-created War Paints that make-up the Scream Fortress XVI War Paint Collection Has a chance to give a taunt Unusualifier as a bonus item All players who launch the game will receive a Soul Gargoyle if they don't already have one Grants access to Merasmissions and Halloween item transmutations Tracks Merasmissions completed and souls collected All Halloween Contracts have been reset, allowing them to be completed again Added new Contracts for this year's featured community maps Completing a Halloween Contract will give players a classic Halloween item and the chance for a Terrifying Trove Case Continue last year's event by collecting the souls of dead players for your Soul Gargoyle by killing enemies, doing map objectives, or collecting the Soul Gargoyles that spawn in the maps All cosmetic and taunt Cases will grant Halloween 2024 Unusual effects instead of their normal Unusual effects during the event. This does not include Crates. Join Halloween matches by using the Special Events category in Casual Scream Fortress XVI runs through November 7th, 2024 General Added UI scaling based on resolution for better HiDPI support Fixed the reload speed attribute in Mann vs. Machine not scaling projectile speed and gravity correctly for the Huntsman (community fix from Marxvee) Fixed the damage bonus attribute in Mann vs. Machine not scaling correctly for the Huntsman (community fix from Marxvee) Fixed not being able to pickup currency in MvM if it's on a teleporter Fixed Keyless Winter 2016 Case not playing the special winter case sound Recompiled some skybox models to fix UV issues Updated the Scariest Mask EVER to fix some issues with clipping Updated Sapped Unusual effect to fix the animation playing at the wrong speed Added check to prevent copying a disguise target's action slot item when disguised as them Exposed CTFBaseBoss::SetResolvePlayerCollisions() for VScript users Updated/Added some tournament medals Updated Sapped Unusual effect to fix the animation playing at the wrong speed Updated several maps to fix localization issues Updated zi_murky, zi_devastation_final1, zi_atoll, zi_woods, zi_sanitarium General Changes Zombies no longer spawn instantly- their respawn timer is now dependant on the map Changed team names to "Survivors" and "Zombies" (Instead of "RED" and "BLU") Note: this change is only visible in casual mode or servers with mp_tournament set to 1 Survivor Spy can now disguise as a Zombie and will be seen as a Zombie by the enemy team (Thanks Sprinkles!) Note: disguised Survivor Spies will still be highlighted by Zombie Spy’s “Reveal” ability The Pomson 6000 now puts Zombie abilities on cooldown on hit Survivor Pyro can now destroy Zombie Engineer's EMP Grenade by hitting it with the Homewrecker Walking in to Zombie Sniper's Spit now consumes the Spycicle and prevents initial damage Standing in Zombie Sniper's Spit now emits additional sound effects and a burning green HUD overlay Added new kill icons for every zombie attack Zombie Changes Removed the out-of-combat speed buff from all Zombies Zombie Pyro Zombie Pyro has a new ability - "Dragon's Breath" Fires a Dragon's Fury fireball The initial cast of the fireball can reflect projectiles and airblast enemies Zombie Pyro now deals mini-crits to burning players on melee hit Zombie Pyro now creates a small explosion on death, knocking back enemies in a 125 hu radius Zombie Pyro no longer emits a Gas Passer cloud on death Zombie Demoman Added new sound effects to telegraph Zombie Demoman's Blast Charge ability Zombie Heavy Zombie Heavy's health reduced to 450 (from 600) Zombie Heavy now drops a Medium Health Kit on death Zombie Sniper Zombie Sniper's Spit damage vs buildables is now reduced by half Zombie Sniper's Spit now applies a screen overlay to players standing in the pool Zombie Medic Zombie Medic now emits health like a dispenser to nearby Zombies Zombie Medic can no longer attack while using Heal Added a new sound effect for Zombie Medic's Heal ability Zombie Spy Zombie Spy no longer emits particle effects while cloaked, making him fully invisible when not attacking. Jumpscare warning! Zombie Scout With other zombies getting slower, Zombie Scout's speed stands out more than ever before Bug Fixes Fixed a bug that allowed Zombie Demoman to survive his own Blast Charge (Thanks gasous nebule!) Fixed a bug that caused Zombie Demoman to not receive kill credit when killing players with Blast Charge Fixed a bug that caused Zombies to not gib correctly Fixed a bug that caused Zombie cosmetics to persist on RED players after the round restarts Fixed a bug that caused Zombie Sniper's Spit Pool to nudge players slightly in certain circumstances Fixed a bug that caused players to have the incorrect player skin when respawning at round start Fixed a bug that would cause players to become stuck in spectate mode when attempting to join a game in progress Fixed an issue with "game_text" entities not being correctly cleared after round reset Updated zi_murky (additional changes) Survivors now spawn across the map in multiple small groups instead of all at the sewage plant Added a life preserver shop to connect to the lonely shack in the southern end of the map Added a new dock network with a series of platforms leading to the roof of the central boathouse Added a small ramp to the left-most sewer pipes Removed some awkward ladder-ramps and replaced them with proper docks De-cluttered the roofs across the map Removed the floating large medkit Removed expensive reflections from the water Reduced color correction intensity Clipping improvements Updated zi_atoll (additional changes) Set a culling distance to most props Added occluders on the lighthouse to improve performance Updated zi_woods (additional changes) Fixed the announcer not being silenced when time is added Updated zi_sanitarium (additional changes) The roof is now accessible Added several routes to the roof Slightly reduced the intensity of the fog Added more pumpkin bombs Raised the skybox height Updated cp_gravelpit_snowy Improved performance by combining props Improved clipping Increased volume of laser gun finale Miscellaneous improvements Updated koth_sawmill_event Fixed an overlay Updated koth_undergrove_event Fixed several out-of-bounds exploits in the Underworld (thanks MN!) Adjusted overworld pumpkin bomb placement and increased maximum bomb count to 6 Fixed an incorrect texture on RED's side Updated koth_synthetic_event Moved spells away from mid Detail adjustments Clipping fixes Very minor lighting changes Updated pd_mannsylvania Added even more Bats! Added more spawnpoints for pumpkin-bombs Added new nag voiceline for if Dracula does not receive any blood donations Removed setup time, replaced it with a normal countdown instead Increased duration of the Vampire Powerup after leaving Dracula's Castle from 15 -> 20 seconds Decrease dropped blood bag timer from 15 -> 10 seconds Decreased respawn wave times for the losing team from 4 -> 2 seconds Decreased respawn wave times during a neutral gamestate from 4 -> 2 seconds Changed the main spawn doors to have windows Removed Rare Spell spawn by the graveyard area, replaced with Common Spell Health and ammo pickup adjustments Clipped stairs by the Castle's exit portal Minor visual updates Updated ctf_applejack Fixed the projectile weapons from not working inside the buildings Removed bullet collision from the intelligence room handrails Removed the prop jump up to the sniper balcony, to help snipers feel more comfortable there Removed the vents with missing textures Fixed the bug with being able to get stuck in the blue shed Fixed a stuck spot in mid shed (ty Midnite!) Fixed a texture being weird in the intel rooms Fixed a black displacement in the red intel yard Removed the collision from the food in the red spawn table Updated cp_ambush_event Fixed exploit where players were able to build into RED 1st base (Thanks MN!) Improved lighting at RED base in stage3 Fixed lantern being clipped into cliff wall in cavern at stage1 Fixed odd shadows cast by some props Fixed coffin from being non-solid in stage2 Fixed spawncamping spot in stage2 at RED indoor exit Fixed few hovering lamp props Fixed some prop fading too soon Fixed rare issue where players fell of directly to lava on underworld teleportation Clipped few crates to make it easier to jump on them Updated arena_lumberyard_event Recreated the game mode in VScript Significantly increased server performance Instead of using the best-of-seven round system on top of casual's best-of-three system, the map will simply run 15 traditional game rounds like ZI and VSH Updated the healing ghost appearance for RED team Text pop-ups are now drawn in chat instead of in the middle of your screen Reduced volume of the incoming spell Removed the random Skeleton King and the Horseless Headless Horseman Removed the rare spell given to the last player standing Converted some medium health kits into small health kits Removed small health kits from the second story of both churches Fixed a pumpkin bomb that was stuck in the terrain Updated pl_embargo Fixed an exploit that allowed BLU to teleport to RED spawn (thanks Jameson) Fixed the lack of countdown at the end of the round

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include: Fixed regression with some .mp3 files not playing Updated description for the Backpack Expander Updated some tournament medals Updated the Desk Engineer cosmetic item Fixed clipping with the Gunslinger Fixed clipping with Engineer's buckle Fixed rotation in the paint preview Fixed skin parts being tinted green from texture compression Updated the Daring Dell cosmetic item Fixed rotation in the paint preview Fixed shading artifacts on the helmet Updated The Big Star cosmetic item Fixed rotation in the paint preview Fixed various instances of clipping with the player model Updated mismatched backpack icon Fixed parts of the textures Updated koth_cachoeira Players can no longer shoot through the metal fence

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include: Increased the maximum number of backpack slots to 4000 (from 3000) Fixed record/stop .dem file exploit that was used to reveal cloaked Spies Fixed Robot Destruction death notice events not properly highlighting when the local player kills a robot Fixed regressed self-illum setting for the Earbuds Fixed hearing the deflection sound when deflecting arrows that are already stuck in something (community fix from Marxvee) Fixed a problem with .mp3 sounds not playing if they were very short Fixed arrows instantly breaking when being fired by an invulnerable player with the projectile penetration upgrade in Mann vs. Machine (community fix from Marxvee) Updated tf_zombie_spawner entity to support setting team numbers for the zombies (defaults to the original behavior if no team is set) Updated Taunt: Unleashed Rage to fix incorrect outro timing Updated Taunt: Can It! to fix MvM bone Updated koth_sawmill_event Removed stray spell Updated koth_megaton Fixed rockets being able to quite literally crash the beach party (Thanks again, ficool2!) Updated pl_cashworks Updated menu photo to match map changes Removed strange texture glitch at RED spawn 1 Added shutter for drop exit at RED spawn 1 RED spawn 2 big door can't be stickied anymore Removed collision on some lamps Added minor visual changes in BLU spawn and final cap side route Fixed minor clipping issues Updated koth_cachoeira The sightline from the helicopter has been blocked off Fixed missing door texture (Thanks Hoppkins!) Various miscellaneous fixes (Thanks Midnite!)

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include: Updated Taunt: Can It! to fix missing flies particle effect Updated the backpack image for the Impact Impaler Updated Violent Viridian Unusual effect to fix a visual bug Updated/Added some tournament medals Updated cp_hadal Fixed control point capture messages Fixed door locking in RED spawn after C capture Removed unintended buildable areas Increased capture time on final point Improved directions around the map Updated pl_embargo Reduced respawn time on Last for RED from 34 to 22 seconds Asked Botlers to speak and explode more quietly Minor visual fixes Updated koth_megaton Improved performance by up to 20%, with more significant improvements possible depending on system specs (Thanks ficool2!) Fixed the grates around the capture zone allowing blast damage to pass through Fixed a few cases of alpha painted displacement seams Improved lighting on several models, especially on the rocks throughout the map Fixed surfaceprop on BLU's metal plates Fixed several pixelwalks along thatch roofing and exteriors of the team buildings Improved clipping throughout Fixed a support beam intersecting with spawn doors Fixed a few instances of visible displacement holes in the perimeter dropoff Added a unique kill icon for the end of the round Fixed floating spawndoor motors Plus... all you need for a beach party! Updated pd_atom_smash Fixed the Casual Administrator overriding the Scientist Fixed some floating lights Updated koth_sawmill_event Removed the spells in the underworld since players could spawn camp with them too easily Increased the time players get crits and health from the underworld after leaving Added some additional effects to the secret exit from the underworld

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include: Updated pl_embargo to fix visual glitches

The Game Manufacturers Association is moving the GAMA Expo from Kentucky to Baltimore to accommodate surging attendance to the tabletop convention.
Read this article on TechRaptor

The Game Manufacturers Association is moving the GAMA Expo from Kentucky to Baltimore to accommodate surging attendance to the tabletop convention. Read this article on TechRaptor

Could Paradox be about to reveal Europa Universalis V? A new trailer-for-a-trailer might indicate the next installment in the grand strategy series.
Read this article on TechRaptor

Could Paradox be about to reveal Europa Universalis V? A new trailer-for-a-trailer might indicate the next installment in the grand strategy series. Read this article on TechRaptor

The Samsung Odyssey 3D monitor works better than you'd expect, making certain games literally pop. But is it worth the high price tag?
Read this article on TechRaptor

The Samsung Odyssey 3D monitor works better than you'd expect, making certain games literally pop. But is it worth the high price tag? Read this article on TechRaptor

Epic has announced that its Epic Games Store will hand developers 100% of their revenue for their first $1m, and that's on a per-year, per-app basis.
Read this article on TechRaptor

Epic has announced that its Epic Games Store will hand developers 100% of their revenue for their first $1m, and that's on a per-year, per-app basis. Read this article on TechRaptor

Straight from the Pathfinder Monster Core the Adult Adamantine Dragon by Wizkids shows off why they're the best in the business with incredible action, coloring, and texture.
Read this article on TechRaptor

Straight from the Pathfinder Monster Core the Adult Adamantine Dragon by Wizkids shows off why they're the best in the business with incredible action, coloring, and texture. Read this article on TechRaptor

Rockstar has revealed the Grand Theft Auto VI release date at last, but it won't be releasing this year, so publishers can breathe a sigh of relief.
Read this article on TechRaptor

Rockstar has revealed the Grand Theft Auto VI release date at last, but it won't be releasing this year, so publishers can breathe a sigh of relief. Read this article on TechRaptor

The Kickstarter campaign for the fantasy TTRPG Defy The Gods has gone live. It is set in ancient Mesopotamia and involves jealous, conspiring gods.
Read this article on TechRaptor

The Kickstarter campaign for the fantasy TTRPG Defy The Gods has gone live. It is set in ancient Mesopotamia and involves jealous, conspiring gods. Read this article on TechRaptor

The Horror at Highrook offers an unique board game inspired Eldritch experience you won't want to miss. Learn more in our The Horror of Highrook review.
Read this article on TechRaptor

The Horror at Highrook offers an unique board game inspired Eldritch experience you won't want to miss. Learn more in our The Horror of Highrook review. Read this article on TechRaptor

EA has announced it's pausing development on future rally titles, and it's not looking great for subsidiary Codemasters either.
Read this article on TechRaptor

EA has announced it's pausing development on future rally titles, and it's not looking great for subsidiary Codemasters either. Read this article on TechRaptor

A new Fortnite Star Wars crossover is coming tomorrow, and it'll bring the likes of the terrifying Darth Jar Jar, plus lots more.
Read this article on TechRaptor

A new Fortnite Star Wars crossover is coming tomorrow, and it'll bring the likes of the terrifying Darth Jar Jar, plus lots more. Read this article on TechRaptor

Xbox has announced that it's raising the prices of its hardware and software due to "market conditions" and rising development costs.
Read this article on TechRaptor

Xbox has announced that it's raising the prices of its hardware and software due to "market conditions" and rising development costs. Read this article on TechRaptor

Dynasty Warriors and Atelier studio Koei Tecmo has released its financial statement for the 2024-25 fiscal year, and happily, profits are up.
Read this article on TechRaptor

Dynasty Warriors and Atelier studio Koei Tecmo has released its financial statement for the 2024-25 fiscal year, and happily, profits are up. Read this article on TechRaptor

The official Roll20 Demiplane integration features are now in beta, granting users the benefits of both virtual tabletop platforms.
Read this article on TechRaptor

The official Roll20 Demiplane integration features are now in beta, granting users the benefits of both virtual tabletop platforms. Read this article on TechRaptor

Sega has announced that free-to-play battle royale game Sonic Rumble has been delayed, and no new release date has been revealed.
Read this article on TechRaptor

Sega has announced that free-to-play battle royale game Sonic Rumble has been delayed, and no new release date has been revealed. Read this article on TechRaptor

Sabotage Studio has announced that the Sea of Stars Throes of the Watchmaker DLC will be launching in May, and as a reminder, it's totally free.
Read this article on TechRaptor

Sabotage Studio has announced that the Sea of Stars Throes of the Watchmaker DLC will be launching in May, and as a reminder, it's totally free. Read this article on TechRaptor

Recent layoffs at Respawn were part of a wider staff cut wave at EA, and one of the studio's canceled projects was Titanfall-related, per a new report.
Read this article on TechRaptor

Recent layoffs at Respawn were part of a wider staff cut wave at EA, and one of the studio's canceled projects was Titanfall-related, per a new report. Read this article on TechRaptor

China Hero Project game Lost Soul Aside has been delayed in order to allow developer Ultizero Games more time to deliver "a high-quality game experience".
Read this article on TechRaptor

China Hero Project game Lost Soul Aside has been delayed in order to allow developer Ultizero Games more time to deliver "a high-quality game experience". Read this article on TechRaptor

A Kickstarter Tariff Manager has been introduced. This will allow creators to manage better fees caused by the volatile global trade environment.
Read this article on TechRaptor

A Kickstarter Tariff Manager has been introduced. This will allow creators to manage better fees caused by the volatile global trade environment. Read this article on TechRaptor

Titanfall and Star Wars Jedi developer Respawn has been hit by more layoffs, and two unannounced projects have been canceled as well.
Read this article on TechRaptor

Titanfall and Star Wars Jedi developer Respawn has been hit by more layoffs, and two unannounced projects have been canceled as well. Read this article on TechRaptor

Evil Dead: The Game might be about to get shut down, if its delisting from the PlayStation Store and the Epic Games Store is any indication.
Read this article on TechRaptor

Evil Dead: The Game might be about to get shut down, if its delisting from the PlayStation Store and the Epic Games Store is any indication. Read this article on TechRaptor

The Splitgate 2 open beta release date has been revealed, and you'll be able to play the portal-based multiplayer shooter in May.
Read this article on TechRaptor

The Splitgate 2 open beta release date has been revealed, and you'll be able to play the portal-based multiplayer shooter in May. Read this article on TechRaptor

A now-deleted Randy Pitchford X post appears to confirm that the release date for Borderlands 4 will be moved forward by several days.
Read this article on TechRaptor

A now-deleted Randy Pitchford X post appears to confirm that the release date for Borderlands 4 will be moved forward by several days. Read this article on TechRaptor

With a new expansion on the horizon, we check out the core game in the 1 vs many hidden movement game, Sniper Elite the Board Game.
Read this article on TechRaptor

With a new expansion on the horizon, we check out the core game in the 1 vs many hidden movement game, Sniper Elite the Board Game. Read this article on TechRaptor

Publisher Slitherine and developer Steel Balalaika have revealed the Broken Arrow release date, four years after the RTS was originally announced.
Read this article on TechRaptor

Publisher Slitherine and developer Steel Balalaika have revealed the Broken Arrow release date, four years after the RTS was originally announced. Read this article on TechRaptor

505 Games and developer Leenzee have announced the Wuchang: Fallen Feathers release date, so prepare to make some more space in July.
Read this article on TechRaptor

505 Games and developer Leenzee have announced the Wuchang: Fallen Feathers release date, so prepare to make some more space in July. Read this article on TechRaptor

We got to check out the starter set for Fallout Factions, a skirmish game set in the futuristic wasteland of the Fallout franchise
Read this article on TechRaptor

We got to check out the starter set for Fallout Factions, a skirmish game set in the futuristic wasteland of the Fallout franchise Read this article on TechRaptor

Wizards of the Coast has announced the Secret Lair: The Ultimate Pencil Superdrop. The superdrop includes several drops, a Commander deck, and a pencil.
Read this article on TechRaptor

Wizards of the Coast has announced the Secret Lair: The Ultimate Pencil Superdrop. The superdrop includes several drops, a Commander deck, and a pencil. Read this article on TechRaptor

Bandai Namco and FromSoftware have announced that Elden Ring sales have topped another major milestone, cementing the action RPG's success.
Read this article on TechRaptor

Bandai Namco and FromSoftware have announced that Elden Ring sales have topped another major milestone, cementing the action RPG's success. Read this article on TechRaptor

The developers of the Wii Homebrew Channel have shut down the project, claiming the community is built on "lies and copyright infringement".
Read this article on TechRaptor

The developers of the Wii Homebrew Channel have shut down the project, claiming the community is built on "lies and copyright infringement". Read this article on TechRaptor

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion remaster has reignited a wave of Elder Scrolls nostalgia, but can Bethesda carry the momentum to The Elder Scrolls 6?
Read this article on TechRaptor

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion remaster has reignited a wave of Elder Scrolls nostalgia, but can Bethesda carry the momentum to The Elder Scrolls 6? Read this article on TechRaptor

These impressions will be spoiler free After years of speculation and multiple delays, The Assassin’s Creed franchise finally made it to Japan. With the stealth gameplay and assassination combat style, it only made sense to incorporate ninjas and samurai into the Assassin’s Creed world. In Assassin’s Creed Shadows, you play as a dual protagonist, the […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/a-tale-of-two-warriors-assassins-creed-shadows-impressions/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

With the growing popularity of mobile and cloud gaming, many have been on the hunt for the perfect controller. The Backbone and Razer Kishi have done a great job making mobile gaming more portable and accessible but I always felt like something was missing. The MCon controller from Ohsnap aims to address everything that is […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/is-the-mcon-the-best-smart-phone-controller-yet/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

Every year CES comes around and every year, LG has a great booth. They may be one of the most consistent companies when it comes to showing technology at the trade show. For years they have continued to improve incrementally and this year it has really paid off. From transparent televisions and projectors to small […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/lg-at-ces-2025/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

Six Days in Fallujah was originally announced in 2009. It is a first-person shooter based on the 2004 conflict in Iraq. It was met with much opposition because it is based on modern real-world events. This may not seem like a big deal in 2024 but things were slightly different in the years following 9/11. […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/real-warfare-with-six-days-in-fallujah/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

Mad Catz, the company known for their fight sticks, is releasing a new force feedback racing wheel. The Mad Catz M.2.X. Pro force feedback racing wheel is the perfect plug-and-play solution that works with your consoles and PC. In the box you get the racing wheel, a six speed shifter, foot pedals and all the […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/level-up-you-racing-experience-with-the-mad-catz-m-2-x-pro-racing-wheel/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

When Fortnite was initially released in 2017, it was a PVE defense game that didn’t seem like it would be around for long. With the growing popularity of games in the battle royale genre, Fortnite decided to throw its hat in the ring. Soon it would become not only the most popular battle royale but […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/how-fortnite-hurt-the-gaming-industry/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

https://youtu.be/Cagxj2RchQI?si=_fFf3fs_fsh7d0Fq Many people have a gaming franchise that changed their life in some way. I have life-long friendships that have been formed while playing games like Mario Kart and Golden Eye late into the night. Halo is the franchise that shaped a good portion of my gaming life. Halo 2 strengthened my passion for the […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/what-halo-infinite-should-have-been/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

https://youtu.be/EVSbA2Yxx2k?si=G2KXmPguAB_45u5n Meta recencetly heald their Meta Connect conference and announced some excited things if you’re into VR and AR. The Meta Quest 2 was once the hottest item in their lineup be we have some new tech on the horizon. It looks like the Meta Quest 2 is no longer being sold but it may […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/should-you-buy-a-meta-quest-3s/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

https://youtu.be/a2CCRgycbLI?si=3juhSUwirUTpKWoJ There have been rumors for years about what is next for Halo. Today during the Halo World Championships, we got our answers. 343 Industries will now be known as Halo Studios. This is exciting because it let’s the fans know that Xbox/Microsoft has not given up on the franchise. The long rumored move to […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/what-is-the-future-of-halo/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

It may surprise many, but there has never been a Power Rangers arcade beat ’em up game. (I know right!?!?!) Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Rita’s Rewind is a passion project from people who felt the Power Rangers deserved their shine. You and four friends can join up to go against classic enemies from the Power […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/mighty-morphin-power-rangers-ritas-rewind-developer-interview/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

Going into PAX West 2024, I knew that I was going to enjoy ‘Jay and Silent Bob: The Chronic Blunt Punch’, but I did not know it was going to be my game of the show. Some may remember the retro style ‘Jay and Silent Bob: Mall Brawl’ game that was released in 2020. Well, The […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/jay-and-silent-bob-the-chronic-blunt-punch-pax-west-2024/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

Ash Habib has a true passion for boxing and Undisputed is his love letter to the sport. ‪@PlayUndisputed‬ aims to be both a technical and fun boxing game. The game is currently in early access and will have over 70 boxers, you can also create your character in a deep career mode. I had a […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/undisputed-at-pax-west-2024/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

Star Wars games have been around for longer than many gamers have been alive at this point. You have played as clone troopers, Jedi, fighter pilots, and now in Star Wars Outlaws, you will be playing as a scoundrel. This is a slightly more grounded story than the ones many players have experienced before and […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/is-star-wars-outlaws-any-good-review-in-progress/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

There has been some rumor and speculation that we would be getting a PS5 Pro as soon as this year. We are halfway through the year and past ‘E3’ season and there is still no word. With the lack of console price drops, is the mid-gen refresh still a thing? There are some people who […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/where-is-the-ps5-pro/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

I’ve been playing the Marvel Rivals for a couple of weeks and there are a ton of things to dissect here. The game is a ton of fun but it is definitely not perfect. If you enjoy games like Overwatch, then this will definitely be a game for you. The gameplay loop is very similiar […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/is-marvel-rivals-any-good/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

In Hive Jump 2: Survivors, try to survive as long as you can against what seems like endless waves of aliens. With many weapons and jumpers to unlock, be prepared for hours of fun. This is a smaller game that packs a big punch. Hive Jump 2 takes a lot of the weapons and enemies […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/lets-play-hive-jump-2-survivors/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

The long rumored price increase of Xbox Game Pass has finally been confirmed and we have a detailed breakdown of the pricing structure. With these new prices and a new tier, is this still the best deal in gaming? I believe that there are a couple of different ways to assess the value of Game […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/the-price-of-xbox-game-pass-is-going-up/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

If you missed it, Xbox is bringing its cloud gaming services to Amazon Fire TV devices. There have been talks about an Xbox streaming device for years now. With the partnership, will we still get streaming hardware from Microsoft? Is this the best way to get Xbox games in more homes? Let’s talk about it.The post https://thegamefanatics.com/xbox-cloud-gaming-is-coming-to-amazon-devices/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

Ubisoft just released season 1 of XDefiant and it comes with a ton of content. If you are not aware, XDefiant is a free-to-play shooter that ties in characters and abilities from various Ubisoft games. XDefiant Preseason was originally released in May of 2024 and it garnered a lot of attention. Some even went as […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/xdefiant-season-01-is-here/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

Nintendo’s most recent direct delivered a ton of games and I am sure there was something for everyone here. From HD Remakes to long awaited sequels, Nintendo made sure that there was a reason for lapsed players to dust off that Switch. Now I have to admit, I am one of those lapsed players who […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/nintendo-gave-the-people-what-they-wanted/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

During the most recent Xbox showcase, they announced three new SKUs of the Xbox Series X|S consoles. While we didn’t get an announcement of a new handheld like many were hoping there may still be a possibility in the future. Phil Spencer was questioned about this during IGN live and he seemed excited about the […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/what-is-the-future-of-xbox-hardware/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

If you are not familiar, SolForge Fusion is a CCG (Collectable Card Game) created by Richard Garfield (Magic The Gathering) and Justin Gary (Ascension). It started as a physical card game and it is now making its way over to Steam. I have been having the best time in its single-player campaign mode. It reminds […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/a-collectable-card-battler-lets-play-solforge-fusion/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

For those who are not aware, Gigantic was originally released in 2017. It is a third-person MOBA Hero hero shooter originally developed by Motiga and published by Perfect World Entertainment. I had a ton of fun with the game when it was originally released but unfortunately, the servers shut down a year late. Now, in […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/gigantic-is-back-and-you-should-be-playing-it/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

Most people who have used a PC or had some sort of laptop bag have heard of Targus. They are a well-known name in the PC peripheral space and have been around since 1983. Targus has continued to innovate when it comes to laptop bags and things like PC docking stations. We saw a ton […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/targus-targets-sustainability-and-innovation-with-their-ecosmart-line-of-products/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

Many people are most familiar with Moon Studios from their games in the Ori universe. Those games are filled with some of the best and most complex platforming mechanics and amazing art. With No Rest For The Wicked, Moon Studios is partnering with Private Division for a totally new experience. They will be applying their […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/no-rest-for-the-wicked-launch-trailer/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

People have questioned the benefit of Game Pass since its original release in 2017. Subscription services can have amazing benefits for the consumer but does it negatively impact developers? The amount of content that is available continues to grow (along with the prices of said content) but people’s time and budgets continue to stay the […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/are-subscription-services-like-xboxs-game-pass-good-for-developers/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

When we say that Shidosha has an interesting taste in games, we are not exaggerating. Are you into bullet hell shooters? How about dating sims? Well if that piques your interest, Kamikaze Lassplanes may be a game you need to check out. This may not be the style of game you expect from a Polish […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/a-plane-dating-sim-kamikaze-lassplanes-pax-east-2024/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

No Love Lost is a new extraction shooter from Ratloop Games Canada. You are dropped onto an alien world and have to compete against not only the enemy team but the environment as well. The concept of an extraction shooter is not new but the team-based competitive elements make things feel a little fresh. There […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/a-colorful-competitive-extraction-shooter-no-love-lost-pax-east-2024/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

PAX continues to deliver new and unique gaming experiences. This year, one of our favorite games was Heartworm, a PS1 style horror game with Tank controls. Inspired by games like Silent Hill, Resident Evil, and Dino Crisis, Heartworm aims to scratch that nostolgic itch that some many people have been feeling. You play as Sam, […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/a-ps1-styled-masterpiece-heartworm-pax-east-2024/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

Digital Extremes held their most recent Devstream live during PAX East 2024, celebrating 11 years of Wareframe. One of the most exciting bits of news was the deeper look into the upcoming Warframe 1999. This included a new cinematic trailer launching later this year: Jade Shadows. Here you are introduced to the 57th Wareframe, Jade […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/warframe-and-soulframe-make-an-apprearance-at-pax-east-2024/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

It’s been a while since we first got word that the great Amy Hennig was working on a new Black Panther and Captain America game. After creating something like Uncharted, many couldn’t wait to see what was next from Amy. Her highly anticipated Star Wars game was canceled so many were delighted when they got […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/get-a-closer-look-at-the-new-black-panther-and-captain-america-game-marvel-1943/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

I have been on the search for a decently priced wireless keyboard and there is no shortage these days. Our friends over at Mad Catz sent over their S.T.R.I.K.E. 11 mechanical keyboard for us to try out. The first thing you will notice is its unique design. The red and black colorway is striking (no […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/mad-catz/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

Nanoleaf has been one of the market leaders in the gaming lighting space for years now. They have a variety of products to level up not only your office space but your entertainment system. The Nanoleaf 4D kit is definitely one of the best led kits that I have tried. The camera takes the immersion […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/level-up-your-set-up-with-nanoleaf/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is the next big game set for release and the rumor mill has been set ablaze with talks of Xbox going multi-platform. We take a few minutes to talk about our past with the Final Fantasy franchise and Brandon gives us his thoughts on what he thought of the State of […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/final-fantasy-7-rebirth-and-whats-next-for-xbox-lets-chat/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

AR and VR were some of the bigger topics during this year’s CES. Last year I was able to go hands-on with the Pimax Portal but this year it was all about the Pimax Crystal. The Pimax Crystal has some of the highest quality when it comes to VR headsets on the market. Each eye […]The post https://thegamefanatics.com/the-pimax-crystal-8k-vr-headset-ces-2024/ appeared first on The Game Fanatics,.

iPhone and iPad Games

We have a sponsor for this episode! We are eternally grateful for Tursiops Studios, who you may remember as the …

Continue reading "A Two Parter! – The TouchArcade Show #613"

We have a sponsor for this episode! We are eternally grateful for Tursiops Studios, who you may remember as the creators of the awesome “wreck ’em up" The Day We Fought Space a few years ago, for sponsoring our podcast this week. Their new game is called Primrows, it’s one we’ve talked about before, and it’s available now on mobile and desktop. I give some of my early impressions about the game about halfway through this week’s show, but the game is free to play with a one-time premium unlock so there’s really no reason not to just go try it out for yourself. Head over to the game’s website using this link here to learn more and find links to all platforms. Oh, and here’s the trailer. Primrows is such a lovely little game, thanks again Tursiops Studios! As for this week’s show, well, it was a hectic one. Internet issues caused us to split the recording into two parts with the first half recorded yesterday and the second half recorded today. It all worked out in the end, though. Topics include the Nintendo Switch 2, the Mario Kart Direct from yesterday, the PlayDate Season 2 announcement, retro handheld stuff, and much more. Oh, and we finally catch up on listener emails going all the way back to January. Don’t forget to shoot us emails with any questions, feedback, or anything else relevant or irrelevant to podcast@toucharcade.com. We read ’em all, and love decoding messages written entirely in emoji. As always, you can listen to us with the links below… And if you like what you hear, please subscribe and/or drop us a review in iTunes. Much appreciated! As a companion to this audio podcast, we also do a video version of the same show that is exclusive to Patreon which allows you to see us playing the games we’re talking about. Backers can view the most recent video episodes of the TouchArcade show by clicking here. Be sure you’re logged in to see the latest content. For everyone else who is curious, you can check out our public patreon posts to see older episodes of the video podcast. If you like what you see, consider becoming a TouchArcade Patreon backer. Stitcher: The TouchArcade Show via Stitcher Radio for Podcasts RSS Feed: The TouchArcade Show Direct Link: TouchArcadeShow-613.mp3

Hark, a new podcast is afoot? ‘Tis true, and it has been A WHILE, friends. Ten weeks to be exact. …

Continue reading "The Reports of Our Death Have Been Mildly Exaggerated – The TouchArcade Show #612"

Hark, a new podcast is afoot? ‘Tis true, and it has been A WHILE, friends. Ten weeks to be exact. How have you been? I love what you’ve done with your hair. How about this weather we’re having? Ok, enough small talk, let’s get into this latest episode. Eli and I discuss what the hell we’ve been up to for the past two and a half months, and spoiler alert: It’s nothing terribly exciting. Just damned busy and/or sick. We also talk about our latest retro handhelds. I personally am having a love affair with the Retroid Pocket 5, and also picked up a Miyoo A30 just as an extremely cheap and extremely pocketable option. Eli has to GBA SP-alikes, the Miyoo Flip and the Anbernic RGXSomething or another (their naming conventions are pretty terrible). Next we share our thoughts on the controversial reveal of the Switch 2 and finish things off with some good old fashioned VR discussion. Sorry for the long wait, but it feels great to be back. Don’t forget to shoot us emails with any questions, feedback, or anything else relevant or irrelevant to podcast@toucharcade.com. We read ’em all, and love decoding messages written entirely in emoji. As always, you can listen to us with the links below… And if you like what you hear, please subscribe and/or drop us a review in iTunes. Much appreciated! As a companion to this audio podcast, we also do a video version of the same show that is exclusive to Patreon which allows you to see us playing the games we’re talking about. Backers can view the most recent video episodes of the TouchArcade show by clicking here. Be sure you’re logged in to see the latest content. For everyone else who is curious, you can check out our public patreon posts to see older episodes of the video podcast. If you like what you see, consider becoming a TouchArcade Patreon backer. Stitcher: The TouchArcade Show via Stitcher Radio for Podcasts RSS Feed: The TouchArcade Show Direct Link: TouchArcadeShow-612.mp3

Welcome to the latest episode of The TouchArcade Show! We were short on time this week so it’s a bit …

Continue reading "Nintendo Switch Part Deux – The TouchArcade Show #611"

Welcome to the latest episode of The TouchArcade Show! We were short on time this week so it’s a bit of a short one, but we really wanted to discuss Nintendo announcing the Switch 2. Yes, if you haven’t seen yet they’ve officially unveiled the Switch successor’s hardware in a new video, and it looks pretty sweet. There’s also LOTS we don’t know yet so it’s fun to kind of speculate what we’ll be in store for when it launches this year. Don’t worry though if the new Switch isn’t your thing, we also talk about a handful of totally random topics just like we always do. Don’t forget to shoot us emails with any questions, feedback, or anything else relevant or irrelevant to podcast@toucharcade.com. We read ’em all, and love decoding messages written entirely in emoji. As always, you can listen to us with the links below… And if you like what you hear, please subscribe and/or drop us a review in iTunes. Much appreciated! As a companion to this audio podcast, we also do a video version of the same show that is exclusive to Patreon which allows you to see us playing the games we’re talking about. Backers can view the most recent video episodes of the TouchArcade show by clicking here. Be sure you’re logged in to see the latest content. For everyone else who is curious, you can check out our public patreon posts to see older episodes of the video podcast. If you like what you see, consider becoming a TouchArcade Patreon backer. Stitcher: The TouchArcade Show via Stitcher Radio for Podcasts RSS Feed: The TouchArcade Show Direct Link: TouchArcadeShow-611.mp3

Oh hello there. Yes, we ARE still alive, thank you for asking. We took an unintended month-long hiatus due to …

Continue reading "Where Have We Been!? – The TouchArcade Show #610"

Oh hello there. Yes, we ARE still alive, thank you for asking. We took an unintended month-long hiatus due to me starting my new job as well as the holidays being as hectic as they always are, but we’re back and with any luck we should be able to settle into a mostly regular recording schedule from here on out. I know I’ve said that before, but here’s to hoping! At any rate, this week’s show is mostly just me and Eli catching up after not really talking for an entire month, but we do keep things slightly on topic by talking about some Apple Intelligence stuff and the latest games that I’ve been playing on Steam Deck lately. It’s good to be back, enjoy the show! Don’t forget to shoot us emails with any questions, feedback, or anything else relevant or irrelevant to podcast@toucharcade.com. We read ’em all, and love decoding messages written entirely in emoji. As always, you can listen to us with the links below… And if you like what you hear, please subscribe and/or drop us a review in iTunes. Much appreciated! As a companion to this audio podcast, we also do a video version of the same show that is exclusive to Patreon which allows you to see us playing the games we’re talking about. Backers can view the most recent video episodes of the TouchArcade show by clicking here. Be sure you’re logged in to see the latest content. For everyone else who is curious, you can check out our public patreon posts to see older episodes of the video podcast. If you like what you see, consider becoming a TouchArcade Patreon backer. Stitcher: The TouchArcade Show via Stitcher Radio for Podcasts RSS Feed: The TouchArcade Show Direct Link: TouchArcadeShow-610.mp3

In this week’s TouchArcade Show we’re all over the map, as usual. We kick things off with my experience going …

Continue reading "Polar Express is SCARY – The TouchArcade Show #609"

In this week’s TouchArcade Show we’re all over the map, as usual. We kick things off with my experience going on the Polar Express train ride thing, as well as my experience rewatching the Polar Express movie for the first time in 20 years. We then dip into some Apple Vision Pro discussion, and Eli tips me off on a very cool pair of AR glasses called the Even G1. This leads into some Apple Intelligence talk, as I have only just now upgraded my Mac and signed up to enable the Apple Intelligence stuff on my Apple devices. I’m living on the cutting edge over here! We then jump into a couple of reader emails before talking about an actual video game for once; in this case it’s Mario & Luigi: Brothership on the Switch. All that and more! Don’t forget to shoot us emails with any questions, feedback, or anything else relevant or irrelevant to podcast@toucharcade.com. We read ’em all, and love decoding messages written entirely in emoji. As always, you can listen to us with the links below… And if you like what you hear, please subscribe and/or drop us a review in iTunes. Much appreciated! As a companion to this audio podcast, we also do a video version of the same show that is exclusive to Patreon which allows you to see us playing the games we’re talking about. Backers can view the most recent video episodes of the TouchArcade show by clicking here. Be sure you’re logged in to see the latest content. For everyone else who is curious, you can check out our public patreon posts to see older episodes of the video podcast. If you like what you see, consider becoming a TouchArcade Patreon backer. Stitcher: The TouchArcade Show via Stitcher Radio for Podcasts RSS Feed: The TouchArcade Show Direct Link: TouchArcadeShow-609.mp3

In this week’s exciting new episode of The TouchArcade Show we kick things off with a lengthy discussion about Eli’s …

Continue reading "Remember Payphones? – The TouchArcade Show #608"

In this week’s exciting new episode of The TouchArcade Show we kick things off with a lengthy discussion about Eli’s new toy: A fancy 3D printers. Yes, he bought one, just like I predicted he would last week! I then relay the awkward discussion I had with my young kids trying to explain what payphones were. Man, I feel old. We also hit on some recent Apple Arcade news and then finish up talking about the sad state of affairs that is the streaming industry. Is going back to buying physical DVDs the answer? All that and more in this week’s show. Don’t forget to shoot us emails with any questions, feedback, or anything else relevant or irrelevant to podcast@toucharcade.com. We read ’em all, and love decoding messages written entirely in emoji. As always, you can listen to us with the links below… And if you like what you hear, please subscribe and/or drop us a review in iTunes. Much appreciated! As a companion to this audio podcast, we also do a video version of the same show that is exclusive to Patreon which allows you to see us playing the games we’re talking about. Backers can view the most recent video episodes of the TouchArcade show by clicking here. Be sure you’re logged in to see the latest content. For everyone else who is curious, you can check out our public patreon posts to see older episodes of the video podcast. If you like what you see, consider becoming a TouchArcade Patreon backer. Stitcher: The TouchArcade Show via Stitcher Radio for Podcasts RSS Feed: The TouchArcade Show Direct Link: TouchArcadeShow-608.mp3

In this week’s episode of The TouchArcade Show I give a recap of the past 2 weeks of my life, …

Continue reading "They Put the Power Button WHERE!? – The TouchArcade Show #607"

In this week’s episode of The TouchArcade Show I give a recap of the past 2 weeks of my life, which included my 5-year old son breaking his arm and all that ensued as well as taking the first step towards becoming an instructional aide in my local school district. Hooray careers! We also talk about the latest Apple scandal, which appears to be #MacMiniPowerButtonGate. We also touch on the Arcane TV show, the poor experience of going to an Apple Store, get to some listener emails which–once again–leads to a pedophile discussion, and more. Don’t forget to shoot us emails with any questions, feedback, or anything else relevant or irrelevant to podcast@toucharcade.com. We read ’em all, and love decoding messages written entirely in emoji. As always, you can listen to us with the links below… And if you like what you hear, please subscribe and/or drop us a review in iTunes. Much appreciated! As a companion to this audio podcast, we also do a video version of the same show that is exclusive to Patreon which allows you to see us playing the games we’re talking about. Backers can view the most recent video episodes of the TouchArcade show by clicking here. Be sure you’re logged in to see the latest content. For everyone else who is curious, you can check out our public patreon posts to see older episodes of the video podcast. If you like what you see, consider becoming a TouchArcade Patreon backer. Stitcher: The TouchArcade Show via Stitcher Radio for Podcasts RSS Feed: The TouchArcade Show Direct Link: TouchArcadeShow-607.mp3

In Episode 606 of The TouchArcade Show we kick things off talking about my plans for this weekend, which has …

Continue reading "Back When AOL WAS the Internet – The TouchArcade Show #606"

In Episode 606 of The TouchArcade Show we kick things off talking about my plans for this weekend, which has resulted in this week’s show being a bit shorter than normal. We also go over some more updates on our Patreon situation, which has been trending upwards lately. Thank you for the support! We briefly touch on the latest version of iOS 18 before hopping into listener emails which leads into some interesting discussion, as always. Like, is the internet more dangerous now for kids than it was when I was growing up in the ’90s? We weigh in! Finally Eli gives us a rundown of his Dungeons & Dragons situation and the hardships between physical and digital ownership. Don’t forget to shoot us emails with any questions, feedback, or anything else relevant or irrelevant to podcast@toucharcade.com. We read ’em all, and love decoding messages written entirely in emoji. As always, you can listen to us with the links below… And if you like what you hear, please subscribe and/or drop us a review in iTunes. Much appreciated! As a companion to this audio podcast, we also do a video version of the same show that is exclusive to Patreon which allows you to see us playing the games we’re talking about. Backers can view the most recent video episodes of the TouchArcade show by clicking here. Be sure you’re logged in to see the latest content. For everyone else who is curious, you can check out our public patreon posts to see older episodes of the video podcast. If you like what you see, consider becoming a TouchArcade Patreon backer. Stitcher: The TouchArcade Show via Stitcher Radio for Podcasts RSS Feed: The TouchArcade Show Direct Link: TouchArcadeShow-606.mp3

In this week’s episode of The TouchArcade Show, it’s kind of a weird one! We kick things off talking about …

Continue reading "Just Don’t Huff Anything! – The TouchArcade Show #605"

In this week’s episode of The TouchArcade Show, it’s kind of a weird one! We kick things off talking about whip-its and huffing duster. Yeah. We then switch to an update on what’s going on with our Patreon and some of the new stuff we’ve posted there this past week. What do YOU think about it? Let us know! We also talk about Eli’s home audio woes, read a listener email with some key insight into the whole Roblox situation, and much more. Don’t forget to shoot us emails with any questions, feedback, or anything else relevant or irrelevant to podcast@toucharcade.com. We read ’em all, and love decoding messages written entirely in emoji. As always, you can listen to us with the links below… And if you like what you hear, please subscribe and/or drop us a review in iTunes. Much appreciated! As a companion to this audio podcast, we also do a video version of the same show that is exclusive to Patreon which allows you to see us playing the games we’re talking about. Backers can view the most recent video episodes of the TouchArcade show by clicking here. Be sure you’re logged in to see the latest content. For everyone else who is curious, you can check out our public patreon posts to see older episodes of the video podcast. If you like what you see, consider becoming a TouchArcade Patreon backer. Show Notes: VERY disturbing video of the guy addicted to computer duster, watch at your own risk! Matthew Struggles With Addiction to Inhaling Air Duster | Intervention | A&E [YouTube] Stitcher: The TouchArcade Show via Stitcher Radio for Podcasts RSS Feed: The TouchArcade Show Direct Link: TouchArcadeShow-605.mp3

In this week’s episode of The TouchArcade Show we kick things off with some discussion about AR/VR devices like Apple’s …

Continue reading "Terrorizing Pasadena – The TouchArcade Show #604"

In this week’s episode of The TouchArcade Show we kick things off with some discussion about AR/VR devices like Apple’s Vision Pro and Meta’s recently revealed Orion AR glasses. Also, whatever did happen to that whole Metaverse thing Zuck was so obsessed with? We then take a wild turn and talk about the “Piss Bandit" that has been (allegedly) terrorizing folks in Pasadena, and hit on other current events like the Epic vs. Google ruling and the insane stuff happening with Roblox. We wrap things up with some listener emails and an update on how things are going with our new Patreon content strategy. Don’t forget to shoot us emails with any questions, feedback, or anything else relevant or irrelevant to podcast@toucharcade.com. We read ’em all, and love decoding messages written entirely in emoji. As always, you can listen to us with the links below… And if you like what you hear, please subscribe and/or drop us a review in iTunes. Much appreciated! As a companion to this audio podcast, we also do a video version of the same show that is exclusive to Patreon. Backers can view the most recent video episodes of the TouchArcade show by clicking here. Be sure you’re logged in to see the latest content. For everyone else who is curious, you can check out our public patreon posts to see older episodes of the video podcast. If you like what you see, consider becoming a TouchArcade Patreon backer. Show Notes: Introducing Orion, Our First True Augmented Reality Glasses [Meta] Amazon Echo Frames Store Page [Amazon] ‘Piss Bandit’ Keeps Leaving Big Bottles of Piss Around Pasadena [Vice] Google must crack open Android for third-party stores, rules Epic judge [The Verge] Roblox: Inflated Key Metrics For Wall Street And A Pedophile Hellscape For Kids [Hindenburg Research] Stitcher: The TouchArcade Show via Stitcher Radio for Podcasts RSS Feed: The TouchArcade Show Direct Link: TouchArcadeShow-604.mp3

Hello! We are still in a transitional phase of moving the podcast entirely to our Patreon, but in the meantime …

Continue reading "A Phoenix from the Ashes – The TouchArcade Show #603"

Hello! We are still in a transitional phase of moving the podcast entirely to our Patreon, but in the meantime the only way we can get the show’s feed pushed out to where it needs to go is to post it to the website. However, the wheels are in motion for transitioning not just the podcast but some of the content we’d normally post to TouchArcade onto Patreon. That kicks off today with a Game of the Week post. Spoiler: It’s Balatro. We plan on having a mixture of content available to both free and paid Patreon supporters, as well as some stuff that will be exclusive to paid supporters only. The Game of the Week will likely be one of those paid-only articles, but for this first one it is available to everyone for free. Check it out to get a taste of what the “new" incarnation of TouchArcade might end up looking like. Oh yeah, and the podcast. This week’s show is episode 603 and we talk about Hurricane Helene, Eli’s Homekit woes (and resolution!), the new iPhone 16 Pro which is now in Eli’s hot little hands, the usefulness of the weird new side button, new phone cases, listener emails, and more. It’s a jam-packed XL episode clocking in at almost 90 minutes, enjoy! Don’t forget to shoot us emails with any questions, feedback, or anything else relevant or irrelevant to podcast@toucharcade.com. We read ’em all, and love decoding messages written entirely in emoji. As always, you can listen to us with the links below… And if you like what you hear, please subscribe and/or drop us a review in iTunes. Much appreciated! As a companion to this audio podcast, we also do a video version of the same show that is exclusive to Patreon which allows you to see us playing the games we’re talking about. Backers can view the most recent video episodes of the TouchArcade show by clicking here. Be sure you’re logged in to see the latest content. For everyone else who is curious, you can check out our public patreon posts to see older episodes of the video podcast. If you like what you see, consider becoming a TouchArcade Patreon backer. Stitcher: The TouchArcade Show via Stitcher Radio for Podcasts RSS Feed: The TouchArcade Show Direct Link: TouchArcadeShow-603.mp3

This is a post that I’ve known was coming for quite some time, but that doesn’t make it any easier …

Continue reading "TouchArcade is Shutting Down"

This is a post that I’ve known was coming for quite some time, but that doesn’t make it any easier to write. After more than 16 years TouchArcade will be closing its doors and shutting down operations. There may be an additional post here or there in the coming weeks as we try to honor any previously agreed to obligations, and a proper farewell post is in the works too, but as of now our normal daily operations have ceased. The reason we’re shutting down probably isn’t a surprising one: Money. Many of you who have followed TouchArcade for a long time are well aware that we’ve had financial troubles for many years now, and to be frank I think it’s a miracle that we’ve been able to last as long as we have. The truth of the matter is that a website like ours just doesn’t make money anymore. To our own detriment we’ve resisted things like obnoxious in-your-face advertising, egregious clickbait headlines, or ethically questionable sponsorships, which sadly are the types of things that actually still make money in the internet of today. There are a number of other reasons that have contributed to us reaching this point, but I’d rather not get into all that right now. TouchArcade was an institution for many millions of people over the past 16 years, and it was my full-time job for the last 14+ years. A solid third of my life. In many ways it is like one of my children, and having to say goodbye to it is very difficult to do. I’d really rather focus on all the great times we had than dwell on the things which we cannot change. Also, as a man with a wife and two young children, and a mortgage, and all that other fun adult stuff, this is the end of my livelihood, and despite them being “freelancers" in a technical sense that is true for the other two people who have been the beating heart of TouchArcade, Shaun Musgrave and Mikhail Madnani. Which brings me to my next point… PLEASE HIRE US! The job market is not great anywhere, and finding new work is tough, especially in the games industry. If you are reading this and you have a need for very capable game industry veterans such as ourselves, please reach out. Jared Nelson – That’s me! Obviously I have more than 14 years of experience working right in the very thick of the mobile gaming boom here at TouchArcade. Writing, editing, managing staff, traveling to conventions. I’ve pretty much done it all. I also have a pretty varied work history previous to TouchArcade, including in management roles, that I think gives me a really well-rounded set of skills. You can contact me on LinkedIn or by email at jared [at] toucharcade [dot] com. Shaun Musgrave – Shaun has been with TouchArcade for a bit over 11 years, but has been in professional games media for more than 25 years overall. He is hands down one of the most gifted writers I have ever encountered, and if we needed a review for a big, important game and needed it by a very tight deadline Shaun was always dependable. He also uses his vast, almost uncanny knowledge of video game history to find interesting angles to write about games that only he could find. Shaun lives in Japan and is fluent in both Japanese and English, making him a great candidate for localization work as well. Please reach out to him at muzkind [at] hotmail [dot] com. Mikhail Madnani – As part of TouchArcade for more than 7 years, Mikhail has been the workhorse of our staff. Posting the bulk of what you would see on a day to day basis, there is no possible way our website could have kept running for so long without Mikhail’s contributions. An expert at sniffing out interesting news stories and then posting them in a timely fashion, but also able to put together huge features like in-depth interviews and multi-platform reviews. His coffee-laden header images are legendary as well. If you need someone who can reliably and consistently post video game-related content, then I cannot recommend Mikhail highly enough. Reach out to him at hello [at] failgunner [dot] com. So What Happens Now? If there is some sort of silver lining to all of this, it’s that for the foreseeable future all of the content that has ever been posted to TouchArcade will remain online and accessible to all. More than 33,000 published articles, including more than 4,000 game reviews, not to mention all of our yearly Best Of content and Game of the Year picks. These should hopefully all continue living on into the future for reference purposes and just to look back and see how drastically the mobile gaming landscape changed over the last decade and a half. We are also hoping to continue with our Podcast, The TouchArcade Show, which very recently just celebrated its 600th(!) episode. There are a couple co-hosts who have come and gone during the course of the podcast (shout out to Brand and Mike!) but myself and Eli Hodapp have been a constant presence on the show since the very beginning, and it’s really crazy that we’ve both spent 13+ years of our lives putting out hour-long podcasts on a (nearly) weekly basis. Related to that, you may be wondering about our Patreon. The support from our Patreon has far and away been the biggest contributor to TouchArcade continuing to exist since we launched it in June of 2015, almost a decade ago. Our thoughts are to pivot the Patreon contributions towards keeping the podcast going, and perhaps occasional posts or special features written by the staff here. Perhaps a random “SwitchArcade" or a review about a particularly high-profile mobile game launch. Maybe we could even squeeze in a Game of the Year for this year? It’s just a nugget of an idea right now, but it would be pretty cool to see TouchArcade be able to live on even in that small way. Whatever the case ends up being, I will explicitly change the verbiage of our Patreon to state that it’s no longer about supporting the website, and if people choose to stop contributing then that is totally understandable. If people are giving us money monthly I want to be absolutely transparent about what it’s going towards. Anyway, look for more news about this in the coming weeks, and at the very least be sure to follow along as a free member on our Patreon to stay in the loop. Also if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to me at tips [at] toucharcade [dot] com or leave a comment below. Well, that about does it, I think. I speak for all of us who have contributed to running TouchArcade over the past 16 years–from the co-founders Arnold Kim and Blake Patterson, to the first full-time hire and future Editor in Chief Eli Hodapp, and to the dozens of other writers and freelancers who have helped make TouchArcade what it is–we just want to give a sincere thank you for ever reading our site, listening to our podcast, or attending one of our events. It has been an absolute pleasure to have such a wonderful audience who appreciated what we did so much and we will all forever be grateful for the time that we were able to spend together.

For our last full controller review on TouchArcade, I’ve been using the Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition …

Continue reading "Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition Controller Review – Customizable, Comfortable, but Lacking in Ways"

For our last full controller review on TouchArcade, I’ve been using the Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition for PC and PlayStation across my Steam Deck, PS5, and PS4 Pro for over a month now. Before I interviewed PDP Victrix about the controller and arcade sticks, I was very curious about the controller for its modular nature and also because I’ve wanted to try out another “Pro" controller after adoring the Xbox Elite (1st generation) and DualSense Edge over the years. Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition Controller – what’s in the box Usually, controllers just ship with a cable and sometimes a charging stand. In the case of the Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition, you get the controller, a braided cable, a high quality protective case to house the controller and everything else it ships with, a replacement fightpad module with a six button layout for fighting games, two gates, two replacement analog stick caps, two d-pad caps, a screwdriver for use with the controller, and a blue wireless USB dongle. The items are all neatly placed within the case which is very good quality on its own. Unlike the normal Victrix Pro BFG controller, some of the items with this one are themed to match the new Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition aesthetic. Keep this in mind as I don’t see replacements available officially for this, but I hope they start selling them soon. Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition Controller compatibility On paper, the Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition Controller supports PS5, PS4, and PC. I don’t use Windows anymore, so I was curious if this would work on Steam Deck out of the box. Since I prefer the PlayStation button prompts in games, I set it to PS5 and plugged in the dongle into my Steam Deck Docking Station. It worked without issue and without needing any update. On the console side, if you want to play wirelessly, you need the same dongle and to set the toggle to PS4 or PS5. I had no issues playing with it on my PS4 Pro in PS4 mode and on my PS5 in PS5 mode. In fact, since I don’t have any PS4 controller that works outside of arcade sticks with PS4 support, this is a very good bonus to have for when I want to test something on PS4 to compare with PS5. Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition Controller features The big draw of the Victrix Pro BFG controller is the modular nature letting you work with a symmetric stick layout, asymmetric stick layout, change things up for fighting games with the fightpad, adjust the triggers, thumbsticks, and also the d-pads. The aim with this design was to allow you to adjust the controller depending on the game you’re playing. As an example, I’d use the symmetric stick layout when playing Katamari Damacy Reroll, but I might swap to the Xbox-style asymmetric layout while playing DOOM Eternal. Being able to adjust the trigger stop is also great as I can change that when playing a racing game with analog trigger support and also go for the shortest stop when playing a game with digital trigger support. Beyond that, the multiple d-pad options are very nice, but I’ve been trying to stick to the default diamond shape one to get used to it, and I like it a lot. I wouldn’t use it for platformers though, but the other d-pad options work well here. Since this is an official PS5 and PS4 licensed controller, it is worth noting that this has no rumble, no haptic feedback, no adaptive trigger support, and no gyro/motion control support. I don’t care about gyro much, but no rumble at all is disappointing since you have sub $30 controllers now offering decent rumble, though they aren’t PS5 compatible. I’ve been informed that third party wireless controllers for PS5 might have restrictions for rumble as well, and I’ve seen more reports from folks using other third party controllers here. Either way, this is disappointing. The Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition ships with 4 paddles or well paddle-like buttons. I wish there were proper paddles you could remove though. I mapped two of them to L3 and R3 and the ones above to L1 and R1 since I use those the most in games like Monster Hunter World and also hate pressing the sticks. Having four buttons here is very good though. Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition Controller look and feel Visually, I love the gorgeous and bright highlights and colors used on the Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition. It isn’t as elegant as the default black model with purple highlights, but for a themed controller it looks very good with its light blue, pink, purple, and Tekken 8 branding. The Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition feels very comfortable, but it is a bit too light for my liking. The material on the main controller body ranges from feeling premium to just fine. It is a far cry from the premium feeling DualSense Edge, but that controller has that ugly glossy front plate that ruins things. The grip on this controller makes a big difference, and I’ve had 8 hour sessions with the controller wired without getting tired of holding it. It being light pays off here. Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition Controller on PS5 On PS5, there are a few things to keep in mind. This is an officially licensed controller, but you can’t turn on your PS5 with it. This seems like a limitation for 3rd party controllers on PS5, but is an annoyance to keep in mind. Beyond that, haptic feedback, adaptive triggers, and gyro are not available here. Aside from that, it has touchpad support and all the buttons I use on a DualSense controller including the share button. Victrix Pro BFG on Steam Deck Like I mentioned above, the Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition works out of the box on Steam Deck with the dongle plugged into the official Docking Station I use. It even correctly is recognized as a PS5 Victrix controller with the share button working for capturing screenshots and the touchpad working as it should in PC games that have PlayStation controller support. This was great to see as some games don’t even recognize my DualSense correctly. Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition Controller battery life The huge advantage the Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition Controller or the normal one has over the DualSense and DualSense Edge is the battery life. It lasts multiple times longer than the DualSense and the DualSense Edge on a single charge. It also helps that the logo on the touchpad indicates when the battery is low. This is good for playing on Steam Deck as other controllers don’t really visually indicate when the battery is low. Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition Controller software The software is something I couldn’t test as it is only available on the Microsoft Store and I don’t use Windows anymore. Thankfully, it works out of the box with Steam Deck, PS5, and PS4. The one thing I was hoping to see is if the controller would work on iOS. I tested wirelessly with the dongle on my iPad, wired on my iPhone 15 Pro, and also wired on my iPad Pro with no luck. Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition Controller negatives Right now, it has a few big negatives. These include no rumble, the low polling rate, not shipping with the Hall Effect sensors, and it requires a dongle for wireless, at least for the model I have. The lack of rumble might not be an issue for some, but for a “Pro" controller, the polling rate is disappointing. There are multiple videos on YouTube showcasing this and why it is a problem as well. Comparatively, the DualSense Edge wired is massively better with its response. As for the Hall Effect sensors, I’m glad Victrix now sells the new modules, but why do new purchases of the controller not just ship with those in the first place? Also if I were to buy either of the module color options available for my Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition Controller, it wouldn’t fit with the aesthetic and will not have PS5 face buttons. Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition Controller Review Having gotten well over a hundred hours of use out of the controller per platform across games like UFO 50, Street Fighter 6, Tekken 8, Persona 3 Reload, and many more, I can safely say that I love using the controller, but the few issues are annoying to see given its price point. In a lot of ways, the Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition has the potential to be one of the best controllers in years if it sees some fixes and changes for a potential successor. Right now, there are a few too many caveats involved for its high asking price that make sure it is very good, but not amazing. The big issues holding it back right now are the lack of rumble (which seems like a restriction from Sony), dongle requirement, additional cost involved for Hall Effect sticks, and the polling rate. These might not matter to some folks, but for a “Pro" controller priced at $200, I expected a bit more. Victrix Pro BFG Tekken 8 Rage Art Edition Review Score: 4/5 Update: Added more information for the lack of a rumble feature.

In this week’s episode of The TouchArcade Show, we talk about the site’s closure and what that will mean moving …

Continue reading "Is This Goodbye? – The TouchArcade Show #602"

In this week’s episode of The TouchArcade Show, we talk about the site’s closure and what that will mean moving forward. We plan to still do this here podcast, but there are a few logistical things to figure out first. Most likely we will be pivoting to have our Patreon be the new home of the podcast, so be sure to at least join up as a free member over on our Patreon so that you’ll be sure to get any news or updates regarding the future of the show. And, just because it wouldn’t be a TouchArcade Show without off-topic banter, we weigh in on the hock tua girl’s new gig and give you our thoughts about all of Apple’s new gadgets that were launched this month. And we read emails! Don’t forget to shoot us emails with any questions, feedback, or anything else relevant or irrelevant to podcast@toucharcade.com. We read ’em all, and love decoding messages written entirely in emoji. As always, you can listen to us with the links below… And if you like what you hear, please subscribe and/or drop us a review in iTunes. Much appreciated! As a companion to this audio podcast, we also do a video version of the same show that is exclusive to Patreon which allows you to see us playing the games we’re talking about. Backers can view the most recent video episodes of the TouchArcade show by clicking here. Be sure you’re logged in to see the latest content. For everyone else who is curious, you can check out our public patreon posts to see older episodes of the video podcast. If you like what you see, consider becoming a TouchArcade Patreon backer. Stitcher: The TouchArcade Show via Stitcher Radio for Podcasts RSS Feed: The TouchArcade Show Direct Link: TouchArcadeShow-602.mp3

A lot of folks got into the SaGa series a long time ago through its many releases on prior console …

Continue reading "Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven Interview With Game Producer Shinichi Tatsuke and Steam Deck Hands-On Preview"

A lot of folks got into the SaGa series a long time ago through its many releases on prior console generations. For me, Romancing Saga 2 on iOS was actually my gateway into the series nearly a decade ago, and I remember struggling with it quite a bit initially because I kept playing it like a normal JRPG. Fast forward to today, I adore the SaGa series as you can see in the photograph at the bottom of this article, and I was surprised to see Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven, a full remake of Romancing SaGa 2, announced for Switch, PC, and PlayStation a little while ago. For today’s double feature, I’ve been playing Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven on Steam Deck through an early demo code and I’ve also had a chance to interview Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven Game Producer Shinichi Tatsuke who was behind Trials of Mana’s remake. We discussed Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven, learnings from Trials of Mana, accessibility, potential ports to Xbox and mobile, coffee, and more. This interview was conducted on a video call. It was then transcribed and edited for brevity in the case of some portions. TouchArcade (TA): How does it feel having worked on a remake of Trials of Mana, a beloved game, and now working on Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven, a remake of another classic and beloved game? Shinichi Tatsuke (ST): Yeah, so both trials of manna and the romancing SaGa series are entries from the pre-square enix merger. It was when Square Enix was Squaresoft. These are both considered legendary titles from square. I do feel that it’s an incredible honor for me to handle the remakes of these two incredible titles. Both romancing SaGa 2 and trials of manna, when we remade these titles, it’s been 30 or almost 30 years since the original release. There was a lot of opportunity for us to kind of improve with the remake. So it was very fun to work on. So romancing SaGa 2, as you may know already, it’s a very unique game that has a lot of unique systems. So these systems are not only considered unique back then, we felt that these are still considered unique today too. So we felt that even remaking this title, even though it’s been more than 30 years, we felt that it would still be a great title to remake because of its uniqueness. It would still be considered unique for the modern players. TA: Romancing SaGa 2, the original game, was very challenging. When I played it, I think I got a game over in the first 10 minutes, and that was a nice wake up call for me with it being my first SaGa game. The remake, Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven, has multiple difficulty options. I wanted to know what were the challenges for you to stay true to the original while still making it accessible? This is likely going to be the first SaGa game for a lot of people with its modern graphics. ST: I think you bring up a great point because as you mentioned, the difficulty of the SaGa series is very well known throughout the fanbase and again, this is something that you probably already know, but the SaGa series has a lot of hardcore fans in Japan and outside of Japan as well. And there are a lot of people that would claim that the difficulty of SaGa is what makes the game, that’s what it’s essential for the SaGa title, for the SaGa series. But on the other hand, we have a lot of people that also feel that there’s a very, I guess, high barrier to start playing the SaGa title, because they feel that the SaGa titles are too difficult for them. So there are a lot of people that say they know about the SaGa series, but have never tried it out before. And when you ask them why, usually the answer is, oh, because it sounds like it’s too difficult. So because of that, we wanted to cater to both of these groups of fans. So the newcomers that haven’t yet to try the SaGa title, the SaGa series, but also for the hardcore fans. And one of our solutions that we thought was going to be a solution was to present the new newly added difficulty system. So we have the normal mode and the casual mode. So the normal mode is more catered for the standard RPG fans, but we also have the casual mode for people who just want to experience the narrative or the story of the game. So in the development team, we also had the core SaGa fans as well so that was our collective decision and solution to come up, solution to kind of resolve this situation where we have a lot of newcomers or people who haven’t played the SaGa title yet, trying to try, we wanted to try to hook them in by adding this difficulty, adding these new difficulty settings. So this is kind of a metaphor, but when you add, when you have spicy food, so in Japan, the curry is typically very spicy. So what you would do to kind of alleviate that ease to spice is that you would add honey sometimes. So the very spicy curry would be the original Romancing SaGa 2, where it’s just really, really difficult for a lot of players. So we kind of added the honey and the honey being the difficulty option. So like the casual mode. So to make that, to make it easier for our players. TA: One more question about the difficulty here. How was it like trying to deliver the original experience for veteran fans, but also offering some quality of life improvements into the gameplay and just the game in general? How did you decide which features to bring in to modernize the game, but also keep it very challenging for long time fans? ST: Our belief is that the SaGa series is not just all about the difficulty. it’s not just all about how difficult the games are. It’s more so how difficult it was to understand the game. For example, in the original release, there were a lot of elements or a lot of data that weren’t visible for the players. One of the examples being the weaknesses of enemies. The weaknesses did exist in the game, but it wasn’t really presented to the players, so players had to figure that out. This also applies to other stats like defenses. Again, it exists in the game, but it’s not displayed for the players. Players had to figure it out on their own to get an understanding of these aspects of the game. We thought that this wasn’t necessarily really difficult, it was just really unfair to the players. That’s something that we wanted to really improve on, because this is going to be a remake for the modern audiences, so we wanted to get rid of those unfair elements and make it fair and enjoyable for the players. That’s why in this remake, the weaknesses are going to be actually displayed for the players, unlike the original. There are, again, player areas that we’ve adjusted that just made it too difficult in the original. In order to make it fair and more enjoyable for the modern audiences, we made improvements and focused on that area. TA: When I started playing Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven on Steam Deck, because I’m playing it on PC right now, it is really good and it impressed me quite a bit with how well it runs. That got me thinking about Trials of Mana, because I played that on PlayStation 4 and Switch, and then I eventually played that on mobile also. I wanted to know, has the team been working to optimize the game specifically for Steam Deck? Editor’s Note: This was asked before the game had an official Valve rating of Steam Deck Playable. ST: Yes, so as you have already experienced the demo of the game on your Steam Deck, the full game, the full release, is going to be compatible with the Steam Deck as well, and it will be playable on the Steam Deck. TA: Can you comment on how long the development was for Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven? ST: I can’t really provide the details of that, but I can say that we started the main development towards the end of 2021. TA: What learnings from Trials of Mana remake did you take into Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven to make sure that this is also a remake which fans love? ST: Because of our experience working on Trials of Mana remake, we felt like we did develop a good understanding of what the players want and what players would enjoy out of remake titles. One of the examples being the soundtrack of the game. We learned that players generally prefer arrangements that are not too different from the original tracks. They would rather prefer something that’s more faithful to the original arrangement. Something not too different to the original. But that being said, back then, the original tracks were released, or the original title was released on older platforms like the Super Famicom, but then we’re releasing the remake on the modern platforms like the PlayStation 5 and whatnot. The technical limitations are very different between these two eras, so we were able to utilize that and then make the quality of the arrangements higher. The general direction of the tracks are going to stay the same, however, the overall quality has been refined for these remakes. That’s the area that we learned and we adapted into the Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven. Another thing that we learned was that players generally would prefer to, or there are a lot of players that also just prefer the original soundtrack and not the newly arranged tracks. We added an option in Trials of Mana remake that players can switch from two different arrangements of tracks. They can either choose the original tracks as is, or they can choose the newly composed or newly arranged tracks for the remakes. We added that system in Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven as well because we learned that players really loved that choice. Having that choice offered to them for the music was really well regarded, so we added that in Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven as well. There’s also a couple of different areas that we worked on newly that’s not something that we did on Trials of Mana remake. One of the examples is the graphics. The characters are typically a bit shorter on the Mana series because the graphic style is a bit more on the adorable side. In SaGa, we can’t really keep the same aesthetics in the graphics. The characters are going to be a bit taller in this remake compared to the others. Even when you look at the backgrounds as well, for the Mana series, we added shadow effects into the textures of the backgrounds. Again, SaGa is going to have a different worldview. We wanted to keep it a bit more serious. In order to do that, in order to keep things realistic, like that’s more suitable for the SaGa franchise, we utilized the lighting effects to add these shadows and not the textures like we did for Mana. Even though there were a lot of areas that we were able to utilize and bring in as is for the SaGa remake, there were a lot of areas that we worked on newly as well. A lot of different knowledge experiences, know-hows that we were able to use, but also new stuff that we figured out on our own with this remake. At this point, I thanked him and the team for making the “Romancing SaGa 2 Primer" video where he introduced the game in English. I was very happy with that video and I’ve shared it with a lot of my friends who haven’t played a SaGa game before. TA: Trials of Mana remake eventually came to mobile. I wanted to know if there are any plans to bring Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven to mobile or Xbox in the future. ST: We do not have any plans to release on those platforms at the moment. TA: My final question is how do you like your coffee? ST: I don’t drink coffee because I’m not a fan of bitter drinks. I can’t drink beer either. I’d like to thank Shinichi Tatsuke, Jordan Aslett, Sara Green, and Rachel Mascetti for their time and help with this interview and preview access over the last few weeks. Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven Steam Deck Impressions When I was offered a Steam key for Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven to try out the demo beforehand, I was equal parts excited and worried. I was excited because the reveal trailer looked excellent, but a bit worried because I had no idea if it would be a good experience on Steam Deck pre-release. Thankfully, Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven is not only great on Steam Deck OLED out of the box, but the few hours I spent with the demo made me not even want to bother getting the game on PS5 or Switch to play. It is that good on Valve’s handheld. But what about the remake and how it feels to play? I’m going to cover my early thoughts here. Right off the bat, Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven looks great and sounds fantastic on Steam Deck. This remake also properly introduces the basics of battle, stats, and more gradually. If you’ve played Romancing SaGa 2 before, there are some changes through quality of life improvements with information, how combat flows despite being turn-based, and also the new audio options. If you never played the original, Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven is shaping up to be a lovely modern entry point into SaGa in general for newcomers. The visuals definitely make it more approachable, but this is very much Romancing SaGa 2 with a fresh coat of paint and some new features. Playing on the difficulty meant to be like the original still is challenging. As for the remake’s visuals and feel, it is a lot better than I expected. I loved Trials of Mana’s remake, but I think Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven will end up the better remake overall. This may be because I love the original game a lot more than Trials of Mana, but only time will tell on that when I get access to the full release. It also helps that at least on Steam Deck, the PC port is quite a bit better than I expected. When it comes to sound and language options, you can toggle between the new remake soundtrack or the original, English or Japanese audio, and also various graphics options. The PC port of Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven lets you adjust screen mode (windowed, borderless, exclusive fullscreen), screen resolution (800×450 and more with 720p support on Steam Deck), frame rate (30 to unlimited), toggle v-sync, toggle on dynamic resolution, use graphics presets, toggle anti-aliasing, adjust texture filtering quality, adjust shadow quality, and adjust 3D model rendering resolution. I set most things to maximum or high with shadows on medium and still got a near-locked 90fps on my Steam Deck OLED at 720p. On the audio side, I stuck to English for my first playthrough. The voice acting is good, but I will likely play the full game with Japanese first to see how I feel when I get it. I might even do English on console and Japanese on Steam Deck. Either way, a lot of care and effort has gone into not only making Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven feel modern, but also retain its SaGa-ness. I’m looking forward to digging into the full game when I can, and also seeing how the demo feels on consoles. Right now, Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven is a game you should have on your radar if you enjoy RPGs. I hope this leads to more folks trying out other SaGa games as well, but Square Enix needs to give us SaGa Frontier 2 next. Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven launches on October 24th for Steam, Nintendo Switch, PS5, and PS4 worldwide. A free demo will be available on all platforms today and I recommend trying it out. You can keep up with all our interviews here including our recent ones with Sukeban Games here, FuturLab here, Shuhei Matsumoto from Capcom about Marvel Vs Capcom here, Santa Ragione here, Peter ‘Durante’ Thoman about PH3 and Falcom here, M2 discussing shmups and more here, Digital Extremes for Warframe mobile, Team NINJA, Sonic Dream Team, Hi-Fi Rush, Pentiment, and more. As usual, thanks for reading.

When I first wrote about boomer shooters last year on Steam Deck and also on Switch, aside from New Blood …

Continue reading "Andrew Hulshult 2024 Interview: DOOM IDKFA, Blood Swamps, DUSK, Iron Lung, AMID EVIL, Music, Guitars, Cold Brew Coffee, and More"

When I first wrote about boomer shooters last year on Steam Deck and also on Switch, aside from New Blood and Nightdive, the most common name was Andrew Hulshult who has done some amazing music over the years. He recently was involved with the DOOM + DOOM II re-release that included his IDKFA soundtrack with new music for DOOM II, and having wanted to interview him for a while now, I finally had a chance to chat with him on call for a few hours to discuss game soundtracks, composition, bands he likes, guitar strings, pickups, cold brew coffee, his first film soundtrack, games he’s playing, and a lot more. This interview was done on video call and then it was transcribed and edited for brevity. Just like my interview with Dave Oshry from New Blood, this one was more casual than usual, and this is likely the longest interview on TouchArcade so strap in and grab a cold brew. TouchArcade (TA): So for those unaware, tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do. Andrew Hulshult (AH): Yeah, my name’s Andrew Hulshult. I’m a composer and sound designer for mainly video games, but I’m starting to move over into film as well. I like to just write music by myself sometimes when it’s not for a game or film. But that’s primarily what I do. I work in the game and film industry doing sound design, soundtracks, and sometimes voice acting. TA: How did you end up working on the canceled Duke Nukem project and also Rise of the Triad 2013? AH: Duke Nukem 3D Reloaded was actually just kind of like, I think that was 2010. That’s, I’m reaching back here a little bit. So I think Frederik at the time, Frederik Schreiber, the guy who runs 3D Realms now, or I think he still does, basically he was remaking maps in the middle of Unreal Engine 3 of like some of the original Duke 3D maps and posting them on Gearbox forums, which I think one of them that got a lot of hits was like all of the 3D renders of like Hollywood Holocaust, which is like E1M1 for Duke 3D. That caught my attention as well. I was like, wow, that looks really neat. You know, like I reached out on the forums, I was like, hey, do you need any music? Maybe this would be fun. Like, I really liked Duke 3D back in the day. And he said, yeah, sure. You know, like if you want to remake some of the stuff and hand it off to me. So I just did some of that. I just had gear laying around and I wanted to kind of learn how to do this anyway. So I just dove in head first and started kind of remaking some of the old Duke 3D tracks. That kind of spawned into, you know, not a lot, not a lot was done in Duke 3D Reloaded. It was just like, you know, like some odds and ends stuff. Somehow that turned into Apogee, Terry Nagy, head hunting us and saying, hey, I have an IP that I’d really like you to work on called Rise of the Triad if you guys want to give it a try. And he had an investor with him at the time who was interested named Dave Oshry And this was a very long time ago. And it’s crazy. Like all those people now are like, you know, on the, we were all on the forefront of like the retro FPS revival stuff. But basically after Duke 3D Reloaded, yeah, Apogee came, said, hey, we’re interested. And Fred said yes on our side. And we started making Rise of the Triad 2013. TA: It was funny you mentioned Dave Oshry because when I finally got an interview with him, I think it was easier for me to meet Iron Maiden than get that interview, but after getting that done, I had New Blood covered. I recently also interviewed Nightdive about The Thing, but I needed to complete the trifecta for boomer shooters: Andrew Hulshult. Now that’s finally happening. We both laugh. TA: I remember in a prior interview you did, you mentioned how when you were doing the 3D realm stuff, you weren’t aware of how much you were in demand in the industry. So when that door closed, suddenly you had like a, like thousands of opportunities and stuff like that. But, and obviously you’ve gone on to do some of like some huge titles since then. Obviously Doom Eternal DLC is the one which a lot of people think about you. For me, it’s like other titles like Nightmare Reaper and Dusk and stuff like that. I want to know how you’ve changed as a musician and as a professional from back then to now. AH: Oh, that’s a great question. Man, starting off in the industry with, you know, doing the whole stuff with Interceptor, like where we were, what we were just talking about, it was a completely fresh experience as a musician. So you don’t know what you’re getting into. And then a lot of times you’re like, I don’t even know what I should be getting paid, you know, like you have an idea, but you’re not, you don’t know. And so like wading through those waters is interesting and also dangerous territory. But the stuff that I have learned has been all from, you know, tripping on agreements as you go forward. You sign an agreement, you go for it, you make the money, and on the back end you’re either like, this didn’t really work out, or you’re like, hey, this worked out, we need to make sure that we do this again, you know. It’s learning the entire time. Because this is the thing that I feel like musicians get hung up on a lot, which is, you know, they just, they want to make really, really awesome, beautiful art for games. And like, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. You should, that should be the core principle that you do. But you have to make sure that you get paid so that you can continue to do it. Because otherwise you burn yourself out and you don’t want to work in the industry anymore. And that, to go back to what you were talking about with, I didn’t know how much, like how in demand I was. I was right at that point. I was about to walk away from everything right after the whole stuff with 3D Realms. I was done with games. I was like, you know what, like there’s not a lot of avenues here and I’m just getting more bitter as time goes on. And the last handful of things I’ve worked on have just bombed so why am I putting all this effort into this? I should try and do something else. And I didn’t realize until I stepped out from 3D Realms how many people wanted to hire me. And like, it’s one of those weird things where like, I’m sure you can probably relate. When you have a job, like a day job, if you’ve ever just held like a simple, simple day job, you can get sucked into that entire cycle of that job and nothing else matters around. So an example of this would be, I worked for a music retailer for about 15 years, okay. I was doing well for them. They wanted to give me my own stores. I was working on management. And the cycle that comes with that where you get so wrapped up in the business of that makes you lose focus of lots of other things in life. And that’s kind of what happened to me while I was working with 3D Realms. That’s nothing bad about them. It’s just when you’re working for a company rather than working for yourself, it turns into that. From the start to now has been like just a crazy learning process. You do have to walk on landmines. You do have to get blown up a couple of times until you figure out what works and what doesn’t. Stepping out from 3D Realms after they said, hey, we don’t have the cash to pay you. It’s like, oh, okay, I guess I’ll go figure this out now. And then all of a sudden, DUSK, you know, like that’s literally the next thing that and AMID EVIL were the very next things that I worked on. It was crazy. TA: Obviously you get a lot of questions about game music, but what is like, since you brought up this whole thing about how you’ve changed, what is the biggest misconception that people both in the industry and like the players have about video games music right now? AH: The biggest misconception. Oh, that anybody can do it and it’s a small part. laughs It’s like, you can’t just throw anything in there. Like, man, it’s I’d say that from a public like standpoint of I don’t play games that much and I’m casual kind of thing, some of my friends and some of my family are like, you have the easiest job. I’m like, you have no f***ing idea. You know, walk in my shoes for a day and let’s talk again. Yeah, it’s really difficult because you, you really have to trick yourself into getting into whatever atmosphere or whatever world someone else has painted already. Right. Like they’ve already built everything out. This is their vision. You have to step into it and you have to step into it with respect to their design philosophies. And you also have to have the confidence to say, well, this is what I think we should do and why we should do it. And there’s a lot of, there’s a lot of social confidence that’s needed to do a gig like this. It’s complex in a lot of different ways. The art side of it is hard enough, like pulling shit out of thin air, is difficult already, but then, um, explaining to people why you want to go this direction and sometimes even arguing to get that direction can be a hassle in and of itself. So yeah, I’d say the biggest misconception is that it’s easy and that it’s not easy. I swear to God, so many times my friends are like, ah, you’ve got the easiest job. I’m like, no, man, I live, I, I threw a hundred pound boxes from 6 AM to 4 PM. And sometimes I miss that. Whiskey and coffee fueled half of the @RiseoftheTriad OST. Most songs were composed between 9pm and 3am. The more you know — Andrew Hulshult (@AndrewHulshult) September 30, 2015 TA: So I also want to talk a lot about your gear, but before that, I think we should discuss some of the game specific things. So let’s start with ROTT 2013. I’ve just sent you a tweet right now, which I wanted to reference. This is quite an old one (linked above). Well, I actually didn’t know much about this soundtrack until recently. I had heard about it and I had heard that a lot of my friends bought that release. They said that it wasn’t that great. I played the original on DOS but not the 2013 version, so I didn’t really hear it all in-game until the Ludicrous Edition and when folks made a big deal about it having Andrew Hulshult’s music. I decided I wanted to properly try it then. I wanted to talk about your thought process between like, you know, redoing those tracks and coming up with your own flare on them, because anyone who, at least any fan of yours, if they listen to that, they know it’s your music. It’s not like, oh, this is just like him doing a cover of someone else. It still feels like it’s you. AH: The first and foremost thing was to make sure you respect your elders. I wanted to make sure that whatever I did obviously served the fanbase and by proxy served everything that Lee Jackson had written. Lee Jackson and Bobby Prince, as far as I’m concerned, that’s the de facto composers for FPS. The originators. You’re already stepping into something well established back in the day. People are very familiar with this. If you f*** it up, you are toast. That was my first professional gig. Stepping into that kind of pressure. Just really what it came to, it was all really natural. I heard these songs and I saw the game and what they’re making and I’m like it is kinda jank, but it is fun. It is ridiculous. ROTT is so ridiculous. I was like man, I was talking to Dave and Fred about it. What if we did like rock and metal stuff predominantly? That’s the kind of music I listen to all the time. They said let’s try it. Even Terry was like you should do it. Really they just kinda gave me free reign to give it a try on some of these things. The first one I did as a demo to work on it was “Goin Down the Fast Way" and I remember I handed that to Terry. Terry is awesome and he has been great to me for my entire career. Never had a bad piece of advice from him. He is the CCO for Apogee by the way. I remember handing him the very first demo of “Goin Down the Fast Way". His comment coming back to me was “It is in the right direction but it sounds like a diarrhea of sound" Because it wasn’t mixed correctly. I was just excited to hand him something. I was like ok this is one of those moments where I’m going to have to learn how to accept feedback even if it is not from a musician and I know that they mean well. I remixed a couple of things and I think this is what he was talking about and I sent it back to him and he said it was way better and it was awesome. Ok cool, this guy doesn’t just hate me. It kind of just came from the heart. All the soundtracks I work on, it’s me. Even if it is stepping into someone else’s shoes, I have to remember that the source material comes first, then you put your influences on. So the source material is the structure of the house but you can put up whatever walls you want and paint on it, and hang and decorate, but just make sure that the house is still the same house that people remember. Now to address the Tweet above, Whiskey and coffee fueled half of the Rise of the Triad soundtrack. Most songs were composed between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m. That’s true. Here’s one little tidbit with it too. Terry Nagy, the guy I was talking about, the CCO from Apogee, he would regularly take me down to a bar called Hula Hands. And he would buy the drinks and then he would just take me home and be like, “Alright, now go write some more songs." It was awesome. I miss those days. TA: This reminds me of that one track in IDKFA where you used a tremolo to replicate a specific sound and it was the perfect way to do it. AH: That was Dark Halls in DOOM. It has the tremolo guitar that’s supposed to be the rolling bass synth from that sound. I love that song. TA: After ROTT 2013, another game I didn’t really play until recently was Bombshell and I literally only bought that game because of your soundtrack. I got it when I was researching boomer shooters for an article and was looking at the games I don’t own. I bought it and didn’t really care for much of it, but the music was great. I kind of think of that soundtrack with Nightmare Reaper where they feel like just metal albums from Andrew Hulshult rather than dedicated game soundtracks. Was this the point in your career where you realized you’re really good at bringing metal into these kinds of games? It felt like a turning point. AH: That’s that’s a great question too like actually yeah like right around that time I was experimenting a lot with just you know making big atmospheric like synth stuff and like orchestral as you can hear on that soundtrack if you got far enough, laughs, but also like for the for the bigger fights and stuff, I really wanted to start dialing up you know my own sound and my own writing and you know I’d already done the cover stuff I wanted to want to show people what what I could do and so yeah that is kind of really where my introduction to like my own original pieces started coming into place, so yeah that is actually right. I never even thought about that that is where that started and also like I mean I gosh that’s if I think about it, that was 2013 is the end of 2013 is when development started on that, and it originally started as a Duke Nukem game before the lawsuit, and I had an eight string by that time. I was tuning down big time at that point, and there’s a lot of stuff that never made it maybe I’ll put that up on Twitter at some point but there’s a lot of stuff that never never showed up on it because it was a little too aggressive you know but that stuff would later show up in DOOM you know. laughs TA: When just discovering your music many years ago, everything was really good metal, and this was probably around the time I was mainly listening to metal before I started broadening my horizons. I went through this phase when I was learning guitar and I started listening to more Dream Theater and then got a seven string guitar, and eventually got into Meshuggah. It got me thinking about how when I listen to your music now, you manage doing unique things for each game and make the songs fit the game properly. It isn’t just metal anymore so there’s no worry about being typecast. Did you have that fear that everyone is just going to expect metal from you when you’re behind a specific soundtrack? AH: Oh man. You just saying that just out loud makes me wow. I still worry about that sometimes. There are moments where I’m like am I getting typecast at this point, and you saying, yeah I don’t have to worry about that anymore, I’m like oh thank god I heard it from someone else where they were you know like, because I don’t want to be like I don’t want to be like straight up known as metal guy you know like I love metal I love playing it I’ll make those records all day long as people as long as people will listen to it and even if they won’t I’ll probably make them, but yeah I like to paint with different brushes like especially when I get older, like I really enjoy mixing sound design with guitars. I like mixing sound design with orchestral instruments, I like just going full hand on my Eurorack synth stuff over here and just getting lost. As a musician I’m fortunate enough at this point where I can just experiment, and I know I can find, I have the confidence now after working on all these games and having some success with it where I know if I get lost I can find a way out because I’ll find something that I like, and chances are if I like it, I can probably show it to some people who will dig it as well. I’m so glad to hear that you’re like I know that I can get some variety. laughs TA: I mean if someone just heard DUSK and I’d say if they heard DUSK even that is pretty different. I mean if someone’s not into metal maybe they think dusk sounds the same as bombshell but you can totally tell that DUSK was trying to be like this middle ground of what you like and Nine Inch Nails’ Quake. I think it has one of my favorite guitar tones in gaming right now, and it’s still pretty timeless. I want to move to AMID EVIL. I love the soundtrack to the main game, but I want to ask about the DLC for two reasons. Now the first thing is kind of like a personal topic because I believe you were going through a family emergency during the time when you were recording the soundtrack, right? When I was playing Dragon Quest VIII on the 3DS and my grandfather was in the hospital before he passed away, whenever I think about Dragon Quest VIII now it reminds me of that. So do you go through the same thing with the AMID EVIL DLC music? AH: I don’t think I’ve been able to sit down and digest it that way yet. But I know exactly what you’re talking about and I’m sure that is what I will absolutely go through. Yeah, to harp back to what you’re talking about, to what you’re referencing, my father had a heart attack. And it was just out of nowhere. And it was on, gosh, I think it was on New Year’s Eve. It was like 9 PM on New Year’s Eve. It was the year before it was released And I was halfway, I was like midway through working on that soundtrack. And it just scared the shit out of me. As anybody would. Your father’s dying And he ended up having like a, all four valves around his heart were like 90-95% clogged. So yeah, he had to have a quadruple bypass. And thankfully, We have a really, really good heart hospital right next to us. And they’re at an age now where they’re on Medicare. I think it’s Medicare. I can’t remember. It’s like once you’re past 64 at a certain age in this country, you can get on Medicare. And you know, like health stuff isn’t as much of a nightmare as it normally is. But they got great care, got taken care of. But it was months. It took months for all that stuff to happen. And there’s like so many things that happened in between that. Like this was right in the middle of COVID. So like whenever he got, it was right in the middle of the big Omicron spike for the world. So as soon as he got admitted, he couldn’t get to an actual emergency room. He had to sit in another room for like two or three days and they actually had to sedate him for a few days before they could transfer him to another hospital to get looked at. Like it was just crazy. And I was out of my mind. I was crazy at that point. And so once they got to a point where they said we’re going to do surgery and he came out of surgery, I just needed something to occupy myself. Otherwise, I was going to self-destruct. So I started writing a lot on the AMID EVIL stuff and started really finding that old like playing with a band and writing songs for you kind of vibe going in. And a lot of that stuff in a AMID EVIL, the stuff that’s like got a lot of energy behind it, that is pretty personal for me. There’s a lot of emotions on that soundtrack. There’s also something else that I haven’t talked about in public yet and I’m not going to talk about it here that I started working on that has a lot of that as well. And that’ll still be a while before that pops up. But I’d say that that was my main outlet for a while. You have something to look forward to. But yeah, like that soundtrack let’s wrap it up. That soundtrack did have a lot of tension and a lot of emotions tied to my father almost passing away and me trying to wrap my head around that. You’re right. I hadn’t thought about that. TA: The other thing about the AMID EVIL DLC is this specific song I want to touch on: Splitting Time. This song is interesting for a few reasons. It reminds me of some of my favorite game trailers like the song used in the Nioh 2 launch trailer, I’m not sure if you’ve seen it. But more interesting than that is I was playing Street Fighter 6 with a friend of mine and listening to this in the background and he asked me if I was listening to Killer Instinct music? I said it was the AMID EVIL DLC and he wanted to know who made it. It reminded me quite a bit of Mick Gordon’s non DOOM music. We spoke about Killer Instinct and my friend said “they should get Andrew for a new Killer Instinct album" and I wanted to ask if Killer Instinct influenced that song? AH: No I didn’t actually. But there might be little hints of that back and forth because gosh, there are moments when I went back to that Killer Instinct reboot because I thought Mick did such a great job on it. Where I’m like, man, the production here is exactly what I have been trying to do for like a handful of years, And like that soundtrack was just really inspiring to listen to. I think he’s just, he’s a brilliant composer. TA: That’s another game I bought because of the soundtrack because when I played DOOM 2016, I was like I need to play more games with this guy’s done the music for and everyone was like Killer Instinct. I was like I’ve never heard this. I didn’t own an N64. What the hell is this game? I bought it and liked the music a lot more than the game. AH: That whole soundtrack slaps, man. He did a fantastic job on that. When you realize @AndrewHulshult put his whole bussy into the Nightmare Reaper OST instead of saving it for DUSK 2 pic.twitter.com/tU1AsySok0 — Dave @ Home (@DaveOshry) October 11, 2023 TA: OK, so now let’s go to Nightmare Reaper a bit. I already mentioned how this could be your own metal album. I don’t even think it needs to be related to this game. And this is another game I just bought because the music was so good. And I was like there’s kind of like this disconnect between what I expected in the game and after I heard the music, because I heard the music before playing the game and I was like, OK, I need to get used to this. But so before I ask you about your thought process between doing the music, I want to just bring up this other tweet (linked above) from New Blood’s Dave Oshry, which is interesting for Nightmare Reaper. When I saw that Tweet, I knew I had to bring it up whenever I interviewed you in the future and here we are. Laughs AH: Whenever Bruno reached out to me, Bruno is the developer of Nightmare Reaper. Whenever he reached out to me, we just literally started talking about some of our favorite bands and we would just go off back and forth because he showed me a game that he was making. I was like, “That looks cool." I was like, “Well, let me know if you’re ever interested." And then we just started talking about music. He’s like, “Would you be interested in working with me on this?" And I said, “Yeah, I think that would be cool." And he literally was like, “I just want this to be like a metal record from you." I was like, “Really?" He was like, “Yeah." He’s like, “You’ve got good influences." He’s like, “I just want it to sound like you just made a straight metal record." I was like, “Well, it can’t be just that." I was like, “But it’ll be mostly that." You still need to like, we need to, it needs to still be for a game. Because otherwise you’d have me, you know, screaming over top of everything as well. But yeah, it is pretty close to something I would have written at that time. You know, as you go with a, as time moves on, tastes change. And you know, but like at that time, for sure, that’s what you would have gotten for a metal record. I think that’s pretty close, yeah. TA: How do you manage doing that and also keeping the soundtrack dynamic for a game then? AH: Um, play through it a lot of times where you can figure out where you can have rests and lulls. And where somebody’s gonna possibly just walk around and look for things. And then try to write something that you yourself would not get bored of. And that’s still interesting in terms of like, you know, like an ambient track or like a low energy track that still moves a little bit. Just music to explore to, right? And then try and make a piece that complements what that is, but is super high energy or, uh, just higher energy for it. So like, so that those two can work together. You really have to think of it as like, you’re gluing two or three different pieces together. Because like Prodeus has like three pieces. It has an ambient, it has a light combat, and it has a heavy combat. And they’re structured in triggers throughout that game. So I have to think of how this ambient works with this low combat song and then work with this high combat song. Or this heavy combat song. And do they all move well between each other, um, if you were to just crossfade them at random times, you know? Because that’s what the engine is going to do. So yeah, it’s like, I don’t know, you just, you gotta take one of those pieces of music, build it out first, and then think about the other piece. TA: Since you brought up Prodeus, that was the next game I was going to ask about. I don’t even remember what happened with Prodeus when it launched on Steam, because I remember being sent a code for it and just tried it out for review, but was blown away by the music. I remember I even joked about that when I wrote about boomer shooters. At the time, it felt like everything boomer shooters was all about New Blood, Nightdive, and Andrew Hulshult. So Prodeus feels like metal, industrial, bass heavy, and punchier in general. It works well with the aesthetic but I think Cables and Chaos is my favorite. You’ve spoken a lot about Prodeus, but I wanted to know what your favorite track is from that and whether you can give us an interesting anecdote from composing which people might not know about? AH: Cables and Chaos is definitely my favorite one. Like, for sure. Like, that was the moment. Um, so, like, they originally only wanted me to work on, like, the music that first shipped. Not a lot of people know that I went through, like, this whole nightmare where I had to pull the entire soundtrack down across the entire, like, all this digital distribution and put it back up with all the songs because originally there was only, like, ten pieces of music with Prodeus. And then when they were getting closer to release they were like, “Hey, we want to… we want to… we want, like, ten more." And I was like, “Oh, uh, okay. Well, I’ve already put out the soundtrack. We already agreed on this, so this is weird." So, um, they showed me what else they were working on in terms of, like, the levels and everything that I hadn’t seen and I was like, “Good lord, these look incredible!" So I got really inspired with that and made a ton of really just more aggressive pieces of music which turned into things like Chaoscaster, Cables and Chaos, uh…I’m just trying to think of the other ones. Dystopian Dimension. That whole soundtrack is awesome. Like, that whole soundtrack, like, it was built in an interesting time where it’s…it was… half of it was pre-pandemic and the other half was during isolation during pandemic. So, it’s got these really interesting tangents of, uh, the second half of the record’s way more aggressive than the first half. Just because, like, I don’t know, I was at home and I’m like, I can’t get anything out. Like, in terms of my outlet, I can’t go out. I can’t do this. So, like, all of my energy was focused on how aggressive can I make the rest of this, you know? Like, and then we finally get to put it out. I think that was 2022. Here’s one thing from Prodeus that I thought was super neat. So, Spent Fuel is one of the only times that I’ve been…Well, it was one of the first times I’d done it at the moment. Where I’d taken an idea and I was like, how do I write a concept around this? And really, like, the map they showed me was just, you know, green sludge and radiated bullshit everywhere. It looked like Chernobyl. And, um…I was like, man, I really want to find ways to take things like Geiger counters, uh, and, uh, pulses from, from, uh, from fission reactions and, like, maybe even the sound of the, uh, the flash that happens in the video whenever they’re testing the atomic bomb stuff. Like, anything that’s gamma or uh, radiation that is audible, I want to take that and make a piece of music with it. So, there literally are all of those things in that piece of…that piece of music. So, there is the sound of a nuclear reactor turning on, doing what’s called a pulse, uh, for the first time. And that’s actually used in part of the beat. The Geiger counters used as portions of the beat that kind of sounds like a drum machine a little bit. I reversed the sound of, uh, the atomic bomb, the initial flash hitting the camera, making this “bzzz" sound. I reversed that and made it pulse back and forth through the beat. And then, you know, later on the music is like a lot of guitar stuff to go with it and everything, but all that stuff that’s going on with the synthesizer is all based around, you know, like radiation. And I was like, “Ah, this is cool!" Whenever I got done with it, I was like, “Finally!" I had an idea, like a concept idea for a piece of music that stems from like a real life thing and put it all together. So that was like, that’s one of the standout moments for me on that soundtrack. I was really proud of that. TA: Can you say anything about the DLC music or is that just up to the devs for them to release? AH: Uh, that’s up to the devs for them. TA: Anything that’s different or interesting or should we just expect another banger soundtrack? AH: I’m not sure if they’re going to use the base game stuff or if they want me to work on anything new. I have my suspicions that they’ll give me a shout probably somewhere in the near future, but I haven’t heard from them yet. TA: I think in a recent interview where you spoke about the Iron Lung soundtrack, which you’re doing, obviously you can’t talk much about it, but I, don’t want to know about the soundtrack specifically, I’ll wait for the movie to come out, but I want to know three things: How is it working on a movie soundtrack? How is it working with Markiplier? How has the budget available for the soundtrack changed how you’re able to approach music composition? AH: So the first one was, how’s it working on a movie soundtrack? Completely different. Like, I thought that, I thought that I’d be able to walk in and just be like, “Eh, this won’t, this’ll be simple." Oh. Like, it’s just as challenging as the game stuff, but in a completely different direction. Where I would know exactly to talk to a developer about “Let’s put a piece of music here, let’s put a piece of music here, let’s do that." I can do that with Mark, but they’re completely different conversations. One is, you know, I know exactly what’s supposed to be happening in the game here, this is, you know, you’re picking up this weapon, or you’re, this adventure is happening in front of you, this is the tone. The other is a film that I may get something out of, but Mark may be intending for a different emotion. So we have to talk about those things back and forth before I make a piece of music. So it’s really interesting. It’s a fun challenge, to be honest with you. The second one was working with Mark? Mark is awesome. He is so much fun to work with. He hears things that I don’t hear, uh, brings things up in, in my own music, where I’m like, “Oh, I didn’t even think about that." And he’s very much, um, a musician without, like, being a musician. Like, he doesn’t, he doesn’t write, like, as far as I know, he doesn’t write a bunch of music, like, on the regular, but he understands it very, very well. And will, uh, regularly make decisions when I hand him a piece of music, and he’s like, “Okay, this is, you know, sometimes we will have to cut these back and forth, but I promise you, like, like, to make it work for a scene." He’s like, “But I promise you, we’ll do it as best as we can, or I’ll do it as best as I can." I’m like, “Uh, you know, like, maybe I should just recompose the scene." And every time he cuts something to, like, possibly make it, like, a tiny bit shorter, I’m like, “No, that’s exactly what I would have done. Like, how are you this good at editing this stuff?" Like, it’s, it blows my mind. Um, so he’s been fantastic to work with. The third is about the budget for the movie soundtrack and how it changes how it affects composition? Budgets were a lot bigger. I’ll just, I’ll just keep it at that. They were, they were, they were much bigger. Um, just because of how much, it wasn’t, like, due to, um, you know, like, “Oh, you’re working on a film now." It was, it was because of how much music we went through. Um, I wrote demos with them on the set. So, like, they flew me down to Austin and Mark said, “Hey, you know, why don’t you just write music while I’m doing scenes?" I’m like, “Wow, that sounds actually really, really f***ing cool, yeah." So, I would go down there about once every two weeks and spend about two or three days there, just sitting at, uh, sitting out front while they’re, they’re doing scenes, and I’d be writing music with my headphones, just watching on a monitor, you know, what’s going on in front of me, like, 50 feet in front of me. And so, there was a ton of music from that, and there’s a lot more music that came afterwards that we wrote, and in fact, um, I’m actually about to jump on a call because I think they need one more, one more piece of music. I’m gonna jump on a call in like two hours, ’cause I think they need one more piece of music. Um, but it’s, it’s just been a lot. There’s a lot there. And it’s picking the emotions that go where. So, like, there would be, I wrote all these songs for, you know, um, catching a vibe of depression, and these songs for catching a vibe of anger, and these vibes for tension, and this, and this, and we have this giant palette to just choose from and pick where we want things to go, and that’s what, that’s what Mark’s been doing. So, yeah, it’s, it’s pretty much, I mean, financially, the exact same thing as, that I would agree on with games, but it’s just, there’s the volume that, like, we’ve done with stuff is like, whoa, that’s a lot! So, yeah. So, yeah, it’s been great. It’s helped me out a ton. I’d love to work with Mark again after this. TA: Going from your first movie soundtrack, let’s talk about your first chiptune album, which was Dusk 82. So, was that actually the first time you did any sort of chiptune remixing or composition or arrangement, I should say? AH: Yeah, the first real one, like, I mean, like, you could, you could argue that, like, the Rad Rodgers stuff has some of that on there, but that’s, like, closer to synth wave more than anything else, I feel like. And, like, that kind of retro feel. So, yeah, this was the first real time that I, like, approached, like, a chiptune. Like, this is, you have to stay within these boundaries of limited technology. And it was literally, like, you know, choose your, choose your sine wave. Do you want, you want sine, or choose your audio wave. Do you want sine, square, or, you know, triangle? So, it’s one of the three. Just building, like, drum kits based off of that and, like, white noise and everything. And, yeah, that was, that was interesting. Like, when David approached me about that, I was like, “You wanna do what?" You know, like, completely make, like, the Dusk soundtrack and chiptunes of, like, why don’t we just, like, choose a handful of, like, the hits and go from there. Like, the ones that people remember the most, you know? And that was fun. Uh, that was super cool. Just bouncing those back and forth off Dave and David. But, yeah, that was, that was the first time I ever did that. And it was, it was pretty cool. I’m glad people like it. TA: I think, uh, Dusk 82 was, like, this free pre-order bonus with the Nintendo Switch release. So when I started playing that, I was like, “Wait, did they actually do this for the soundtrack?" And then I looked it up and I’m like, “Of course they did!" I know obviously you’re, like, super busy with, like, a ton of projects, but if you had, like, unlimited time and resources, would you do a chiptune demake of any of your other albums? And if you would, which one would you pick? AH: Gosh. Which one would be the most interesting is really the, uh, the question there. I think the one that would be the most interesting if I were to do that would be probably AMID EVIL. Because there’s so much going on in some of those, it would be, it would be a lot of fun to go back and, like, hear some of those melodies that are, like, on, like, all string sections and stuff, and here I’m taking all the way down to, like, 8-bit, you know? I think that that would fit really well too. But yeah, if money wasn’t an issue. Yeah, and time. Time’s the biggest one there. TA: Speaking of time and money, I was going to ask you about remastering one of your old soundtracks, like bringing it to the modern Andrew Hulshult sound. You mentioned that you’d do ROTT 2013 if they paid you to remaster it. AH: There’s a ton of work involved in that. Doing that just for IDKFA was a ton of work. Like, that was months of getting that together. Um, yeah, I’d love to do that for ROTT if Apogee would be interested in it, but, like, it’s a time thing more than anything else. I think it’s a time thing for them, and it’s a time thing for me. I mean, they’re literally down the street, so, like, they can open up that conversation anytime they want, and it’s just a matter of when, you know? When’s the right time. TA: WRATH: Aeon of Ruin, I think is a game you composed a long time ago, at least in gaming, like, a few years ago, and it finally released this year. That’s a soundtrack where if anyone hears it, I think they probably wouldn’t expect it to be you when they listen to the soundtrack, and that’s one of the things I love about it, because here, like, he does more than just metal, like, you need to get that into your head, like, that feels like one of those things. How was it working on that soundtrack? AH: It was interesting back and forth. Jeremiah, the developer on that, the original developer, at first, I think he’ll be okay with me saying this, at first we did not, we didn’t see eye to eye on things, because I wanted straight up, like, almost no guitar at all, Quake, Like, this is what you’re going for, this is the audience, we need to harp even further into this, and he wanted some guitar mixed in there, and like, we would butt heads back and forth on it quite a bit, until we finally came to like a mutual understanding, and I started hearing him out a little bit more, and he started hearing me out, and I was like, okay, okay, I think we’re all good on this. But yeah, it was, that one was a little, a little more tough, just because the, like, the development cycle was, wasn’t, you know, as people know, like, didn’t, it didn’t go as great, like, towards about halfway through, maybe a little, even a little earlier than that, and I could see some of that happening in real time, just because I know all those guys, so like, it was unavoidable. So that’s, that’s hard to make art for when you know that the product itself is having some problems. But I think Christalynne Pyle did a good job with wrapping everything up towards the end of it, which was a task in and of itself, for sure. But, I don’t know, there were some weird ideas pitched out there at one point, where like, I think Fred wanted like, like straight up, like really over the top metal tracks at one point. I think they even had a trailer at one point where I was like, this is not the tone of this game. I don’t know where you guys found that music, but like, this is, this is not that. But I’m glad that everything in the end was able to have some cohesiveness and, and meld together. I really wish that we had time to do some action tracks, like, for that game. Like, I feel like there are moments where that could have, that could have been helpful, but also at the same time, that’s a big what if. You know, like, because there’s two things that you have to take into consideration. Which is, that’s the Quake engine. It’s like the OG Quake engine. You know, what are the limitations that we’re working with here? Can we dynamically swap music, and is it going to work well, just as well as you’ve heard in other titles? And number two, um, would that take people out of it? Because everybody remembers like the OG Quake having like, you know, every map had its song. Well, I say that. It was a disc running that just played a bunch of music. But basically, every map had a song for it. So, yeah, there’s, there’s a handful of things there. But I like the soundtrack. I think it’s cool. I think it’s, it’s, it’s got some really interesting moments in it where like, one of them where I was, I just said, “F*** it, whatever. We’re gonna, we’re gonna bow a guitar through a bunch of pedals and see what that comes out like." That’s one of my favorite pieces from that. I think that’s towards the end. But, um, yeah, it was a little bit of a struggle, but I’m glad I still went through it. I had fun, and I think that everybody that worked on it was pretty proud of it by the end. TA: Now, DOOM Eternal’s DLC. How did it feel for you doing IDKFA and now doing official DOOM music? Like, it’s your soundtrack with David Levy? Did id Software actually talk to you about IDKFA beforehand? AH: I know that IDKFA was, was passed around that studio a whole bunch, cause I, I’d get, um, DMs from people that work there that are now, like, I consider great friends, where they would reach out in, like, 2015, and 2016, and, like, all the way back as 2014, where they would be saying, you know, hey, I’m working at id right now, I just want you to know that I’m listening to your, to your music while I work, and I was always just like, oh, holy cow, that’s crazy, you know? Um, and I, you know, as far back as that, I was just like, hey, if you ever, you know, if you ever, if you ever need music, let me know, you know? So, but, like, never, never, you know, like, pushing like, the button or the boundaries, cause like, I think it was announced that Mick was working on there in, like, 2015? Like, it was like the year before, or something like that, when they really started showing some of the music, and I was like, oh, they’ve, they’ve, they’ve got that handled, okay, cool. So, um, but I was always interested in, in finding a, a way to work with that studio, cause I love DOOM, and, like, it’s really is, like, the core of my DNA wanting to work in games, is DOOM, and like, Duke 3D, um, so, yeah, I always wanted to work with them, and IDKFA, I kinda looked at almost as a resume, like, I was like, I’m gonna put this out there, if it gets popular enough, it’ll speak for itself, and it did exactly that, because, uh, in, gosh, that was, that was right at, like, quarter one, quarter two of 2020, when, when they approached me, I think it was, actually it was, I think it was quarter two of 2020, and said, hey, we, uh, we are in a position where we need, we need music, where we need music, and, uh, we need it quickly, and would you be up to the task for this? They fully were, they knew what they were asking was, was a tall order, in a short period of time, and they said, you know, we can absolutely use the base game stuff, but we wanted to at least reach out and, and ask you, because we, we feel like we can trust you, cause I, I’d made relationships with, with, uh, with Marty, some light ones with Hugo, with Chad Mossholder, their sound guy, I knew all of those people by then, and, um, I was like, hey, you know what, it’s, it’s like 35 or 40 days, f*** it, we, let’s do it, it was like, this sounds like a challenge, I’m totally up for it, and, you know, I had to keep my composure the entire time, but in the inside I’m like, oh my god, you know, like, I’m working on an official DOOM game, uh, and when, but when we got done with that, like, I don’t know, it’s one of those weird moments where you go, holy cow, we went from, uh, you know, a mod project, uh, all the way to the official thing, and it’s just, it’s insane, it’s, it’s crazy, I keep running into those portions of my career, I hope they never stop, there are, something always surprises me like that. TA: I think it’s safe to assume that a lot of people who tell you they love your music bring up Blood Swamps from DOOM Eternal’s DLC. Because I think every person I see on YouTube is like, everyone’s just doing Blood Swamps, it seems like the most popular thing and all, and for you that’s probably a weird feeling because you have this song which a lot of people love or something which you’re really proud of, but you can’t stream it or buy it legally. Can you comment on that in any form? What do you tell people who ask about buying your music from DOOM Eternal’s DLC? laughs AH: Well, Bethesda and id own all that stuff, they paid me well for it, so like I was happy to do all that, um, that’s not like a bullshit PR thing, like, for real, they took care of me. They own all that, so you know, if they, if they ever choose to put that stuff out, that would be awesome, I’d totally embrace it and get behind it with that, but sometimes studios do that, sometimes they don’t, and it’s just completely up to their call, but I will tell you that they have no problem with you, you know, grabbing it off YouTube or anything like that, so do that to your heart’s content, throw it on your phone, whatever you want to do, they just, they’re just glad that you like the stuff, and so am I, to be honest, but hey, hopefully one day we can get an official release, like, that would be cool. TA: Yeah, because I have the DOOM 2016 vinyl soundtrack, and I’d love to have DOOM Eternal music on vinyl as well. Anyway that’s something I’ve been thinking about because it’s probably a difficult situation for you to be in, because people would who want to support you, like, obviously they can buy DOOM Eternal and buy the DLC and stuff like that, but it’s an unfortunate situation for fans, is all, like, I’ll leave it at that. AH: It’s not really like a weird situation at all. I’m totally okay with whatever, Bethesda and id want to do with that, because they were completely up front, they’re like, we’re gonna own this, what we choose to do with that is…Yeah, yeah, and I was like, yeah, that’s fine, I just want to help, I want to make like, a cool DLC for everybody that’s stuck at home, and I want to write like, some kick-ass music for it. And, so there’s no feelings of like, you know, oh, this is weird because this isn’t out, or anything like that. I know people are gonna rip it out of the game, I know, like, so do they, and like, that’s fine. But, you know, hopefully, I would like to see an official release one day, but that is completely up to them, and I will respect whatever they want to do, because they’ve been nothing but awesome. TA: Now let’s just talk about Blood Swamps for a bit, because like, everyone loves the riffs and stuff like that, so, what was your thought process in creating that song? Did they ask you to make something that fit with the base game or tell you to just go wild and be Andrew with the music? AH: They told me to go wild and just be me, which I was like, that felt pretty dangerous to me, because I was like, man, the, you know, what’s established here from Mick? I’m like, that’s pretty strong. Like, that’d be like somebody walking into another DUSK soundtrack, you know, like, for the Indie Shooter, and then being like, we’re gonna do all synthwave, you know, like, no, that’s not how that works. You have to serve what came before you. You have to show respect to what came before you. And that’s really important for the fans before anybody else. Doesn’t matter with an executive producer, doesn’t matter with the musician, doesn’t matter with the artist. It’s for the fans. Like, you have to make sure that whatever you’re going to do is going to, they’re gonna go, okay, cool, yeah, I understand, you know, why you chose this. So really, for me, looking at it when they were like, hey, you just be you, do whatever you want, what you think serves Doom the best. I was like, well, that’s a no-brainer. I’m gonna, I’m gonna, you know, I’m gonna source some inspiration from 2016 and Eternal, and then write what I would want to write. So, the colors that I’m painting with are familiar, but the writing that I’m using, what I’m using to paint, or the picture I’m painting is different. So there’s some familiarity there. Because, you know, like, Blood Swamps is quite a bit different than stuff that you would hear on 2016 or Eternal. It’s a little bit more, this is, uh, this is like almost like a traditional metal song. And like, in fact, uh, I remember handing that over to Chad the first time and him being like, “Oh, metal. Alright." And I was like, “Really? That’s like, you’re surprised. But, um, the, uh, it’s just a little bit more almost traditional. But, um, yeah, there’s, like, it was nice having David and Chad to bounce stuff off of. Because where I would hand them something, like Blood Swamps was originally like just guitar, just, just bass, and just drums. And it started, I started adding things in at, uh, after talking to, um, to Chad and David quite a bit. Where they would be like, you know, “Have you thought about any sound design stuff?" I’m like, “Well, what did you, you know, what are you thinking? Show me the instruments that you’re working with and, you know, like, let’s just talk stuff out." We’d have like hour long conversations every single day. And we would all just learn from each other. It was, it was so cool. But, yeah, like Blood Swamps comes from a point, I just remember, I have to write something that if this is the only DOOM game I work on, it has to be just, like, way out there. Like, I have to, I have to, I have to just take my shot. And it has, I have to rip out all of the barriers that are like, “Hey, should I do this? Shouldn’t I do this? Who gives a f***?" Just, just just write the fastest, most aggressive thing that you can think of at this point in time, and we’ll go from there. And that’s what, that’s what Blood Swamps was. And then everything else came after it, I was like, “Okay." It was like, “We can do different things now." You know? TA: I think you mentioned how you had a few weeks to do the DLC soundtrack, but because you had the support system of those two, it was all possible in the end. I think you mentioned that in one of the other interviews. AH: Yeah, because David was handling, like, on the first DLC, he was handling the cutscene work, and he had his own, like, stuff where he was working on a boss, and a level, and then I got these two levels, so they split up the work evenly between us on both DLCs. And there’d be so many times where I’d call David or Chad and just be like, “Hey, how are you doing today?" You know? And one of us would be like, “Oh my God, I don’t know where to go." You know? And we would just talk back and forth, and somehow we would give each other ideas. It was magical. Like, it was crazy. Just after talking to David, if I had nothing in my head on what I should write, after talking to David or to Chad, I’d be like, “I know what I need to do now." It was cool. TA: Going back to IDKFA a bit, you mentioned how much work you had to put into revisit and, like, Remaster the original soundtrack. What did you think about revisiting those songs? Like, did you feel like, you know, maybe I should have done something differently? Or were you like, “No, I’m happy with this. I just want to preserve it for fans of IDKFA." AH: Yeah, it was more of a, it was a little tiny bit of, “I want to do things a little differently." But, like, I’m talking to really, really small degrees. It was more about preservation than anything else. And if something was being destructive while trying to preserve it, those were the things that I would try to eliminate. An example of that is there was a lot of compression on the original IDKFA. Just because I was still in my early 20s at that point, early to mid 20s at that point, mixing in an apartment that isn’t, like, acoustically sound or anything like that. So I’m making mix decisions that aren’t the greatest, but still hold up. Like, that album still sounds great, but just some of the compression side, like, on the master of it, is a little aggressive. So when I went back this time around, I actually went through every single one of those songs one by one and just gave it a little bit more head room, a little bit more breathing room, so that if you listen to it enough times, you’re not going to get, like, ear fatigue or something like that. That’s really what I was concerned about. And that’s all of the Doom 1 stuff from the original IDKFA all got that treatment where the threshold has been raised just a little bit so that it sounds a little bit more open and natural. And I replaced a couple snares here and there, and maybe like a kick drum and a bass, but they’re so small I still haven’t seen anybody notice them. TA: You should revisit Metallica’s St. Anger and do this for all the fans. AH: It is impossible to fix that! laughs There’s been bands that have done that. I’ve re-recorded that entire record and I see it on YouTube every now and then. I’m like this is… this would have been a cool record if it would have sounded okay, and maybe some structure changes were different, but yeah, it’s whatever. TA: I think when Metallica did Death Magnetic, they had the Guitar Hero Metallica stems which people used to mix it better than the actual album. How does this keep happening? AH: James attests to it. Those guys are so big that they legitimately have final say on everything that they do. So whenever they’re touring and you already have Tinnitus and you’re mixing in a tent, I remember them talking about “Yeah, no shit, the guitars are bright." I was listening to mixes in a tent and making mix decisions on the road. I’m like, “Oh, that makes a lot more sense now." Like, oh my god. Because the Guitar Hero mixes do sound way better. TA: This reminds me of when I watched Deafheaven and how amazing they sounded live. You have so many bands that release albums with brickwall mastering ruining the sound of an otherwise good album. It is a shame that some bands don’t get outside help for things like mastering. AH: Yeah, it’s…I mean I still do my own mastering stuff so I’m the start and finish with all my stuff but I totally get it whenever I see a band that has a record that’s just completely smashed. I’m like, “Yeah." If I was just a musician who really knew how to play guitar and that’s about it or really knew how to play drums and that’s about it, I understand how this happens. It’s just a bunch of guys in the room going, “Louder! This needs to be louder." laughs TA: So you revisited IDKFA’s original DOOM 1 music, but you also did almost a complete Doom II soundtrack. I think there was one track which was on YouTube or two tracks. When you were doing these new songs, how did it feel for you because now you’ve come so far ahead as a musician and did you feel tempted to make it a modern Andrew Hulshult album versus trying to be Doom II? How did you approach that? AH: Man. This whole IDKFA thing with id’s blessing has been an incredible experience. It feels like I’m closing a chapter of my career with the fans because IDKFA is what got me so many jobs and so much recognition beforehand. Well, IDKFA and Rise of the Triad, but IDKFA was a big one and I still get people that are like devs that reach out that are like, “I know you from the DOOM stuff." And I’m like, “What? DOOM Eternal?" They’re like, “No, IDKFA. I played that DOOM WAD." And I’m like, “Oh my god." So I still get jobs because of that. So whenever I sat down… Whenever Marty Stratton sent me an email about a year and a half ago to ask if I had time to sit down at QuakeCon last year and talk about some things, I was like, “Uh oh. Something’s either gone terribly wrong or he just wants to hang out." So we sat down and he was like, “Hey." He’s like, “I have an idea." And I was like, “What’s that?" He’s like, “What if we give you a license for the DOOM soundtrack for IDKFA so that you can put that out on all of the streaming platforms yourself and do whatever you want and you give us a license to do with what we’re working on, which was the DOOM and DOOM II remasters." And I was like, “That sounds cool." I was like, “I’d love to finally get that out on official sites and everything." And he was like, “Oh, it’s awesome." He’s like, “I was hoping you’d say that because this would just be so cool to have this as a selectable thing. Like to go from the Bobby Prince to this if people wanted to." And I was like, “Yeah." And I’ve been doing that with soundtracks recently anyways. About halfway through that whole thing, we were just trading war stories about the industry and just getting along. And I was having a blast. I was thinking, “Man, this is really going to be closing a chapter in my career." I was getting a little emotional. I was like, “I’ll tell you what." I was like, “I’ll do you one better." I was like, “Why don’t we finish DOOM II and make it the real deal?" People have asked for it forever. I’m like, “That would really poke my audience." They’d be like, “Holy shit! Doom 2 is finally finished!" And he was like, “If you’re up for it, yeah, absolutely." He’s like, “We’ll get you a license for anything that you do on that as well so that you can put that out as well." So, yeah. It was…walking into doing DOOM II was so much fun. Every step of the way. Adam Pyle, the guy that worked with me on Quake Champions, was the guy that I bounced all my mixes off of. He told me at the beginning, he said, “Hey, you know, do whatever you want." He’s like, “It’s you. It’s the reason people want to listen to it, so I don’t really have much of a say." I was like, “Bullshit!" I was like, “You worked with me on Quake Champions. I’m going to bounce every mix that I do off of you, and I want to hear feedback from you." It’s like, “I respect your opinion because we got stuff like we did on Quake Champions because we talked back and forth." So we did. I’d send him… I’d finish Running from Evil and send it to him, and he’d go, “This sounds great, or, you know, like, what if you did this?" It was only a couple times where he was like, “What if you did this?" I was like, “Oh!" They were always cool ideas. But I really respect Adam’s ability to throw out things every now and then. He’s just a great person to bounce mixes off of. So, just doing those one after another and getting to the end of it. Once it was all wrapped up, I’m not going to lie, once it was all together, I was just in my office and I was like, “Oh my god!" Having a moment where I had a grown man cry where I was like, “I can’t believe that this is happening. I can’t believe that, number one, I’m going to be part of the original DOOM in an official capacity. Number two, they’re going to ask me to talk at QuakeCon, like, live on stage and announce everything. And number three, they gave me a license for all this stuff so that I can put it out and I can actually make some money off of it. That doesn’t happen with a big studio. They don’t just go, “Here’s the soundtrack. Have fun." I don’t know. It’s just still so crazy. It hasn’t really sunk in for me still. I’m still in that weird spot where I’m like, “Yeah, this is out there. We’re promoting it." And once that’s over, I’m sure I’ll be like, “Oh my god." You know, like, “Holy cow." But it’s been fun. The DOOM II stuff, I wanted it to be something a little bit more fresh on where I’m at as an artist. I didn’t want it to be exactly like IDKFA, like the original DOOM I stuff. Because if I were to do that, I’d have to go back and completely remix all of DOOM I stuff, which I was like, “No, that has to be preserved. People know what that is." So you can’t touch that. That’s already done. So I thought, “Okay, well what if I just gave them how I would do DOOM II right now?" Which is exactly what it is. All that stuff is like, “Yeah, f*** yeah." Those are the exact decisions that I would make with synths, with guitars, with drums. I think everything slams. I think it sounds great. So it’s just a picture from 2011, 2012 with the original IDKFA. It got officially released in 2016, but it started working on it as far back as back. So it’s a picture of where I was as a musician, that far back. And then this one is a picture of 2024. So you get it’s kind of like a time capsule. TA: Was The Healer Stalks one of the new songs because it definitely feels like modern Andrew Hulshult? AH: Yeah, that was the second one written. I think I almost went in chronological order doing that entire soundtrack. TA: You and I have both been playing DOOM since the 90s. When I started learning guitar and playing a lot, I started thinking about the DOOM soundtrack and some of the songs definitely have bits that remind me of other band music like Pantera. When you did IDKFA and just heard the music in general, what did you think of that and how does it feel revisiting some of those songs now? Stuff like A New Level and This Love from Pantera instantly spring to mind. laughs AH: Yeah. Some of that stuff’s pretty close. Like sometimes, right? But it’s different enough where you’re like, oh, okay. Yeah. But yeah, there’s definitely some inspirations that were taken from like thrash metal for sure. Because I mean, like they always talked about Romero having on like Slayer and Metallica and all that stuff like playing while they were making the game. So it only makes sense that they’re like, you know, hey, make something similar around this. I don’t know exactly how that story went. I wasn’t there. I was like, you know, I was like four. But that makes complete sense in my head. And yeah, going back and listening to them like, yeah, it’s there somewhere in the ballpark of it for sure. Like TA: So after DOOM II, have you gotten people saying, when are we getting an IDKFA version of Quake and stuff? Because you did one song, right? AH: Yeah, yeah, yeah. I did the theme. I think I did that just for fun. And I think I honestly did that as people were, I saw a bunch of forum posts. It was either forum posts or Discord about people not sure like about me on DUSK of all things. Like it wasn’t even like a fully announced game, but they were like, “I’m not sure Andrew". And I was like, OK, you know what? I was like, f*** you. I’ll just remake the Quake theme. And then you’ll see if I’m the right person for the f***ing job. laughs And so I put that out and people were like, oh, and I remember like a bunch of the comments were like, oh yeah, okay, he can work on DUSK. TA: Do you listen to that soundtrack often? The original Quake? AH: Oh, man. I don’t listen to it. Listen to it. But like every time I go fire up Quake, which is about like once twice a year. A little more than that if I’m playing multiplayer with friends. That’s the thing I look forward to the most besides like the level design is the soundtrack just because it’s so out there. Reznor did such a good job on that. It’s incredible. God, I wish it’s a pipe dream, but I’d love to work with him on something and Atticus Ross on something at some point. That would be crazy. But they’re like way up there, you know. TA: Their movie soundtracks are amazing. I’ve actually been watching some of the movies just because they’ve done the music because I think the audio design in The Social Network is incredible. I think they did like the recent Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles thing, which I still need to watch. AH: It’s so cool when artists step out of their comfort zone like that, where it’s like you’re known for like you’re angry and depressing music and then it’s like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. It’s like now I’m interested. Yeah. TA: Going back to your music, we covered Blood Swamps being the most popular song which people bring up when they meet you and stuff. I saw this interview with Final Fantasy 14’s composer Masayoshi Soken who was asked about a song which he really liked, but no one actually brings up, and that he thinks deserves more attention. He said Game Theory. I want to know what’s that for Andrew Hulshult. AH: Splitting Time. Like whenever you brought that up, I was like, oh yeah, from the AMID EVIL DLC. I mean like it’s well it’s DLC. So like by nature, DLC doesn’t get as much attention, you know. But like the AMID EVIL DLC altogether before I talk about the music, the DLC is incredible. Like that’s my that’s one of my favorite things I’ve worked on like in recent memory. Like all the music’s great. Like it was , it was a joy to put it all together. All the sound design, all the traps and everything. It’s just an incredible DLC. If you don’t have it, you should go get it. That’s not me shilling and just oh go buy the game. Like it’s f***ing awesome. They did an incredible job. TA: Everyone should buy that game and DLC. AH: Well, I don’t want to look like a shill. If you like it, you like it. Like if you don’t, if you don’t dig it, don’t buy it. You know we’re not not here to like, you know try and sell a bunch of stuff. But like splitting time finishing up that piece of music. It felt like a real moment where I don’t know. I felt like kind of a shift as an artist where I was. I was way more comfortable with a lot of the more aggressive sound design elements being mixed in with compositions and finding ways to make them gel better. And everything really came together on that track and out whenever halfway through I was like, this is the final boss track. I was like I don’t care what you’re designing. I’m like, this is the final boss track. And you know, two seconds after they started listening to it, they’re like, oh yeah, this is the final boss track. We hadn’t even made the character yet. I was just like, here it is. That one hung around for a long time. And yeah, that’s I feel like that song is very much a good indicator of where I am musically right now. TA: Now let’s get a bit into the weeds. Let’s talk about your current guitar setup, your pedals, your amps, string gauge, pickups, I want to know whatever you’re using. AH: So the guitar I’m using the most is a Caparison Dellinger 7. I actually just had a pickup swap on it where I put some Seymour Duncans. I think I put an SH5 in the bridge and an SH2 in the neck on this one. Specifically because the SH5 on it has a really interesting thing where it doesn’t emphasize the low mids a whole bunch but they still cut through really well. So whenever you’re sitting there and like, you know, like chugging on stuff and you have to track that four times, it just sits a lot better in the mix than if you were to just use like stock pickups. There’s nothing wrong with Caparison stock pickups. They’re great. They’re super, super punchy. But for my mixing style I just, I know what I want in terms of pickups so I just, I swap those out. I also did the same thing actually last week with the 8 string. This is a Caparison Brocken 8 string. I don’t think they make this anymore. I swapped out the pickups on this one as well to a gosh, what is it? It’s Duncan. They’re really, really famous 8 string pickups by Duncan. And I can’t remember what they’re called now. TA: I didn’t know Seymour Duncan even had 8 string pickups. AH: They do 8 and like, I was originally going to get some Fishman Fluences for it because they seem like they would hold the top end in the midrange a little bit better but after I don’t know, I’ve just always been a Seymour Duncan guy. And after finding a couple that I really liked at a shop called Tone Shop up the street from me. I was like, man, I really want to put these in my 8 string and they have a tech there that’s just incredible at what he does with all my guitars. So I was just like, hey, order those and I’ll just leave the guitar with you and like a week later they came back and I was like, yeah, that’s exactly what I wanted, sounds incredible. I’ve got my Caparison 7 and 8, and I still have all the guitars that I’ve had over the years for the most part. I’ve got another Schecter 8 string here that is a really cool color. It’s super neat, like, it actually changes from blue to purple. TA: I think it is called Prism or something like that. John Petrucci has something like that on one of his guitars. AH: But yeah, this one has like the EMGs in it and it’s a cool guitar. It still plays great. Like, I still like it. But let me show you something that’s actually pretty sweet. So I still have, I bought this in like 2004. And I still have it. This is the guitar that I actually wrote all of IDKFA or most of it on and I wrote all of, I tracked all of Rides of the Triad with. It’s just a Schecter C6. It’s like just stock. It even still has the plastic in the back which is crazy. But yeah, this is like, I still have this guitar. I was like I was so close to going up to id, like which is just on the street for me and being like after IDKFA was finished, I almost was just like, here, you guys, you need this. You know, like, hold on to this or something. Like this is the one. But like, I don’t know. It’s not like a mainline DOOM game, you know? Like, it has to be something like a mainline game where I’d be like, I wrote this on this guitar here. You know, if you want this, it feels like it belongs to you. And also, part of me is like, no, don’t do that. Like, hang on to it. TA: Ok now string gauges. AH: For string gauges, 10 to 59 on 7 strings. And on 8 strings, I think it’s 10 to 65. And then typically on 6 strings, I just like 10 to 46. TA: Do you use D’Addario strings? I use them mostly. AH: I use D’Addario for the most part, but I bounce back and forth sometimes to Ernie Ball. TA: What about your amp setup and your pedals and stuff like that? AH: So amps, I’ve sold almost every amp I’ve ever owned. I had a JC-120. I had a couple of those Crate Blue Voodoos way back in the day. The ones that were like, yeah, the ones that were, were basically copies of those Ampeg tube amps that they made a long time ago. I had a Valve State 8100. I had a bunch of amps and a bunch of VHT cabinets as well too. And I sold all of them years ago. I’ve really just been like working inside the box for the most part with like neural DSP plugins into an RME interface and I also went as far as getting one of these recently, which is a Neural DSP Quad Cortex. So basically this is all of their plugins built into like a really nice processor. But for a project I’m working on recently they were like, hey you need an amp. And I was like, yeah, you’re probably right. I do need an amp. So I went and bought this and I plug it into two 100 watt Seymour Duncan power stages. Okay. They’re like, they’re these little tiny like 100 watt power amplifiers. They’re solid state power amplifiers. And I run the stereo out from that thing into the left and right side of those and those go into two Engel 2×12 cabinets. Which, okay, Engel 2×12 cabinets are awesome. Ever since I heard a Rammstein record that used them I always wanted to grab one because I was like, god, those things sound huge. TA: I wasn’t sure about this because a friend of mine said he was sure AMID EVIL was recorded on an Axe FX Ultra. AH: Any guitar stuff I’ve done has used either Native Instruments Guitar Rig from way back in the day. Like IDKFA used a ton of Native Instruments Guitar Rig 5 and Guitar Rig 4. But pretty much everything since DUSK has used Neural DSP for guitar work. It’s just me plugging directly into my RME UFX and sometimes I’ll use pedals going into it like the Exotic BB Preamp but most of the time it’s just a dry DI signal getting manipulated inside the box. So, the ones that got the most use on DUSK were the Moogerfooger low pass filter. Believe it or not, like anytime you hear the sound of something becoming kind of lo-fi or anything. It was always run through this filter. It was pretty cool. But the thing I like about it the most is the drive circuit on it. Like I don’t even like it that much as like a filter filter. The drive section on it is just so aggressive that it’s a really interesting sound and like that sound that you hear on the DUSK soundtrack which is like all of the really high high end that’s like really high energy. It’s almost like the Nine Inch Nails stuff. A ton of that comes just from driving the front end of this thing. And same way with the Fulltone Catalyst. But yeah, it’s just a few of them. I think there’s one more that I use a lot. I don’t think I have it here. It’s the ZVEX Fuzz Factory which is just an insane sounding pedal. It just sounds like garbage. And that’s why I like it. It just sounds like you are destroying a signal which is perfect. I’m cool. That sounds cool. That’s a great effect. I like that. TA: You’ve accomplished a lot in your career so far with recognizable music. As a musician, how have you been learning to improve your own skills like programming drums, software, and how do you balance doing that while you have a lot of folks who want to work with you on new projects? AH: Every day is just like I don’t know. If you’re not teaching yourself something every day, this is my train of thought. If I’m not trying to sound better in my own head, whatever I think is better, I’m wasting my time. So if I feel like the drum kit I’ve used like two or three times on two to three different records, if I’m like that feels stale. If I then go if it feels stale and I know the ends and outs of it and how to make it sound good then I need to change that drum kit. I need to find something different and work with it and see if I can get some different sounds out of it. So I’ll change instruments and just purposefully put myself in positions where I don’t know where I’m at or what sounds good with it just so that I can find my way out of it. It’s kind of like limiting yourself, like putting yourself in a box that’s really important as an artist to make sure that you are working within a certain scope of things and going hey, you know, here’s something that’s completely unfamiliar, get used to it and this is what you have to work with. So, yeah, like I don’t know, just constantly challenging myself is part of who I am for the most part. So, it’s just how it always goes. TA: I’m glad you brought that specific bit up because in another interview of yours you mentioned how once you got to your thirties the most important thing became getting good sleep which a lot of people take for granted in their twenties. So my question is that trying to have a routine is very important even if you can’t stick to it 100%. What does a day in your life look like right now? AH: A day right now looks like about, a typical day is about anywhere between 6 to 7 hours of sleep which is about what I need I’ve found out, like it’s like somewhere around there, sometimes 8 and then randomly I’ll have days where it’s like, oh you need like 11 hours I don’t know why, but I feel fine waking up completely recharged with like 6 and a half to 7 and a half hours of sleep. So what I’ll do every morning is I’ll wake up, I’ll go take a shower immediately, like that’s the only way I can start my day is like I feel like I’ve got to it feels like I’m washing off yesterday I don’t know how else to explain that and then I gotta have a coffee and then I gotta start writing things on a whiteboard that’s right over beside me to the left because otherwise I’m just gonna spin my wheels all day long and think, oh I should do this, I should do that, I’ll be thinking about everything I need to do and then never actually do anything. I don’t know if that’s ADD, ADHD or whatever that’s undiagnosed, I’m sure it is to some degree which I’ll get to that at some point but until then I have the whiteboard and as long as I write stuff down on it on what I want to do that day, I’ll knock it all out, every single piece of it. But what’s super important for me to do is just plan out the day early on and then everything just comes to it afterwards. The other thing that’s kind of new for me too is around like 4 o’clock typically I’ll now try and do, this has been within the last 3.5 months, I’ll try and do about 20 to 30 minutes of cardio. Just because I feel like for some reason elevating my heart rate really takes me from hey I could focus before to now I’m super laser focused and can get through whatever I need to and it also puts me in a much better mood if I’m having a shit day. TA: You’ve previously mentioned that you love playing Cities Skylines. Did you play Cities Skylines 2? laughs AH: Yeah, but you know like I haven’t gone back to it yet. I need to try it again at some point. But oh boy like it needed some more time in the oven whenever I tried it. Like no offense to them. I was just like wow. TA: I mean you probably tried it on like your proper gaming PC. I just like to play Steam games on a Steam Deck and I could get it at 5 fps or something after a bit of playing. AH: Even with the 3080 I think I was at points I was sitting there at like 35 frames a second. I’m like really? With the 3080? This is where we’re at huh? Okay. TA: Do you still play Hunt: Showdown and did you try the new Hunt: Showdown 1896 update? AH: Yeah. They had some really interesting choices with their UI that they just pushed with this one that a lot of people aren’t in favor of. I’m getting a little more used to it as time goes on. But man there are some things they need to hammer out with it. But yeah I still play that like a couple times a week with my buddies in New Blood. Like with Dylan who’s working on Gloomwood. I’ll play it with David every now and then. I’ll play it with Mason who’s the developer on Faith. Like we’re all, just like we all just hang out. We’re all just friends. So Leon, me and Leon play it I think the most. Leon’s the lead on AMID EVIL. But yeah like New Zealand and America playing an online fps game is a wild thing but we have a great time doing it. TA: Before we wrap up, I want to know your favorite bands and artists right now in and out of video games. AH: I’m pretty boring on this one to be honest with you. I need to branch out a little more. Favorite bands outside of video games right now like for sure and they’ve sat there for a while is Gojira. I really like their mixing. I like how tight they are live. I like their choices on composition. I don’t feel like they write a bad song. I could throw out the obvious ones. Metallica is another one just because James Hetfield’s right hand is like what inspired me to play guitar. Like how fast you can do those things is crazy. Outside of or in video games I’d still say I still think and it’s going to be a weird choice because you’re like well you write all this aggressive music. What is Jesper Kyd? That guy is just like great on everything he touches and everything he touches is always unique. But I always go back to his early stuff like the Hitman franchise because it’s just so strange and like it really suits those early games really well. If you listen to it outside of it, it feels like a really weird cold kind of soundtrack. Even from the very first game which has a lot of interesting things like almost drum and bass choices. It still feels like a cold front. You know, like a Hitman. And I always just find that stuff fascinating. How he was able to take so many different genres of music between all those games and still make them fit correctly for that character. So yeah and I think he worked on the Darktide stuff more recently which I need to give a listen to. Everybody’s told me that’s incredible but I don’t know I was knee deep in like four active developments whenever that game came out. So I just haven’t given it a chance. TA: Hypothetical situation, if you had no time or budget constraints, if you could compose for any single game and any single movie which would you pick? AH: So let’s see for any game if it had the right direction I’d really like to take a shot at like a Duke game. Because I feel like that is an IP that could be brought back if it’s brought back in the right way. And you have to think that’s really going to be dictated by whoever the creative production is at the time. So if it was done in the right way I’d love to step into that. Either that or I’m going to throw another one out to you. I’d love to work on Minecraft. Just like chill out you know. Like just make something that’s completely chill. So those are completely two opposite sides of the spectrum. But as far as a movie, man, that’s a great question. Let me think about it for just a second. Man on Fire. Like I love Denzel Washington’s work as number one: as an action hero I think he’s great. But number two whenever he is able to have enough time to put drama into things. And like either I don’t know how else to explain it other than he does a f***ing crazy fantastic job. Either Man on Fire or American Gangster. One of those two soundtracks I think I could do would be great to work on. Because there’s so many different emotions between both of those films. It’s a big roller coaster that doesn’t go up and down once. It goes up and down and does like a loop. And like you know, it takes you side to side. Like both of those films do that really well. 01:48:40.760 –> 01:48:42.760 TA: You have a lot of bands you’ve been listening to for a long time like Metallica. What are your thoughts on their recent or new albums? AH: I can find things I like on like the records that they put out because like I’m a die hard. Even with this last Megadeth record. I could still find stuff that I like I can chew on. No problem. Absolutely. But you know these guys aren’t going to write like another Master of Puppets. That comes around once in a lifetime. You know what I mean? And they struck it four times. Like with Kill ‘Em All, Ride the Lightning, Master of Puppets and …And Justice for All. So like to even just get that is crazy. But I do find things that I like on all their newer stuff. Like I think What was the 2016 record that they had? Hardwired to Self Destruct. Yeah I think that that actually had some real moments of really really good writing on it. Specifically the last track. I felt like Hardwired was a great track. But I also thought Moth into the Flame was written super well. There’s a handful of just really really really good writing on that record. On 72 Seasons, there’s still a handful that I really like. But they don’t sync as much for me. And I’m not sure if it’s because I’m looking for something faster or not. Which that’s just not where they’re at at the moment. That’s not what they’re writing. And that’s okay. I will say the last track on that record I feel like is perfect. It’s so good. I can’t remember what it’s called off the top of my head at the moment. I’m terrible with song names sometimes. It’s crazy. It’s like 11 minutes and it feels like a 5 minute and 30 second song. I remember listening to it the first time. I was like gosh. There’s so much emotion thrown into this song that it’s just a joy to listen to. I love it when I can tell that someone really dumped all their emotions onto something. That’s when it really strikes a chord for me. But yeah even the last stuff from Slayer, there’s things that I can find that I enjoy. but I know I’m not going to get the revolutionary record that we had growing up. That’s okay. I’m just glad they’re still making music. And it’s still pretty sick. TA: What’s the most random piece of music memorabilia that you’ve held onto for a long time? AH: I had a friend that I worked with a long time ago who fell on hard times at one point and he was friends and and like worked with Pantera for a long time. And he was like man he’s like I’m trying to get rid of this stuff I’m like why don’t you just hold on to it and like like here’s here’s you know here’s some cash if you need some cash to get by. He’s like no no no he’s like you hold on to it just pay me for it. I was like okay so I’ve got this vinyl of the Great Southern Trendkill that’s one of the original vinyl releases, but I also have a plaque that came like it was given to one of their either their sound or their lighting crew at one point and it’s like for the tour in Japan for the Great Southern Trendkill that same time. And I was like where did you get this you know like what the hell. And he’s like yeah we just you know had him and I knew the guy and he had like five or six of them that they gave him by accident so he gave me one. I was like oh okay all right. So I have both of those things in my closet they’ve hung out with me for like gosh I want to say 15 16 17 years now but those old ones will never go away. Some people keep expensive booze in a decanter. Teah and I keep home made cold brew coffee. pic.twitter.com/7DJlgWcjaB — Andrew Hulshult (@AndrewHulshult) October 10, 2020 TA: Ok for my last question, how do you like your coffee? I usually ask this at the end, but I remember an old Tweet of yours (linked above) made me even more curious about your answer. AH: Yeah man I like the cold brew stuff. I loved hot coffee forever but like cold brew I don’t know the longer I go the easier it is to just sit on a desk and sip on. I don’t have to be like that’s hot. I can just be like no we’re just getting all of the caffeine all at once if I want to. So cold brew coffee. Cold brew black. I’d like to thank Andrew Hulshult for his time and help with this interview over the last few weeks. You can keep up with all our interviews here including our recent ones with FuturLab here, Shuhei Matsumoto from Capcom about Marvel Vs Capcom here, Santa Ragione here, Peter ‘Durante’ Thoman about PH3 and Falcom here, M2 discussing shmups and more here, Digital Extremes for Warframe mobile, Team NINJA, Sonic Dream Team, Hi-Fi Rush, Pentiment, and more. As usual, thanks for reading.

Back in December, I reviewed Square Enix’s monster collecting RPG Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince on Switch. I loved …

Continue reading "‘Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince’ iOS Review – Much Better Than Switch, but Lacking in Two Ways"

Back in December, I reviewed Square Enix’s monster collecting RPG Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince on Switch. I loved my time with it despite its many technical issues. I expected it to hit PC like Dragon Quest Treasures, another Nintendo Switch exclusive, but I didn’t expect a mobile release. Square Enix’s newest release of Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince on iOS, Android, and Steam brings all prior paid DLC into the game at a lower entry point, but removes one feature. This is the online real-time multiplayer battles. Beyond that, Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince on Steam and mobile is already a massively better experience just on value with its lower price point and the content included, but is the game worth your time in this crowded release period and with its premium price? That’s what I aim to answer with my Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince mobile review also covering the game on Steam Deck. If you aren’t familiar with Dragon Quest Monsters itself, it is a spin-off series of the main Dragon Quest games featuring turn-based combat, but instead of the main player fighting, you capture, breed, and raise monsters to fight for you. When I played Dragon Quest Treasures, I enjoyed it, but was told that it is a “Monsters-lite" game so when Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince was announced for Switch, I was excited to play it. I ended up loving it as you can see from my review linked above, but I think it is a very strong monster collecting RPG with turn-based combat regardless of if you like Dragon Quest or not. What made Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince more interesting, is in how it feels like a side story and prequel to Dragon Quest IV. Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince also had a seasonal feature where the monsters changed depending on the season and area you’re in. When it comes to the story, Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince, the bits from IV already made it more interesting than the usual spin-off, but I found myself focusing more on getting my own dream monster party rather than worrying about the narrative. I’m super pleased with how well thought out the mechanics are and how the large zones, hundreds of monsters, and combat made me want to keep playing it more even on Switch when I first beat it let alone now on iPhone, iPad, and Steam Deck. Beyond the normal turn-based battles and recruiting new monsters, Synthesis in Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince is like Shin Megami Tensei’s fusion, and there is just so much you can do with skills here. The seasons here don’t just change monsters, but also areas you can explore with map changes. This means a water body that you can’t cross will be frozen in one season letting you access a new secret. Combat in games like this can get monotonous so I’m glad to see the many quality of life features here like the tactics menu that plays out similar to the original Persona 3, direct commands, and more. You aren’t here to just defeat enemies, but also scout them to bring to your party and become stronger. I didn’t end up testing the online multiplayer on Switch much, so I can’t comment on how big a loss that is here, but it is a game mode being cut nonetheless. If you did play it on Switch, keep that in mind as it is the only area the mobile and Steam versions are lacking compared to Switch. Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince already shipped with a lot of content, but the DLC only elevated the experience. This DLC was sold in the Digital Deluxe Edition or as standalone DLC for the base game. Just the DLC was over $25 on Switch, so having the full base game with all DLC included for $24 on mobile makes it an amazing deal, but I’ll get to that in a bit. This DLC included The Mole Hole, Coach Joe’s Dungeon Gym, and Treasure Trunks. The Mole Hole was a dungeon that lets you scout (recruit) monsters you’ve fought before and it made min-maxing a lot easier during the game. The DLC was also good to speed things up since you could also easily scout monsters who only appear during a specific season or through synthesis. The Coach Joe’s Dungeon Gym DLC has randomly generated maps and they are meant to be postgame challenges rather than experienced while playing the game. The final DLC is just a chest that can be opened once an hour with 10 items in total. This is like a cheat DLC if you may. I didn’t think it was good to have useful game modes or content in paid DLC, but that isn’t a problem anymore with all of it included on iOS, Androidl, and Steam in the base asking price. Now let’s get to the mobile port features. With Square Enix, you can never be sure what features will make it into the final game. Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince does not have controller support. This is beyond disappointing since the game is literally a console title ported to mobile. I tried 6 different controllers without any luck to be sure. Aside from controller support, Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince on iOS has cloud saves and a few graphics options. The cloud saves work well. When it comes to controls, I was surprised at how well Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince felt with touch controls. It uses a floating joystick on the left for movement and a jump button mainly while exploring. The one minor issue you might run into is some touch targets being a bit small on the non Plus/Max phones. These aren’t an issue on iPads at all though. The controls feel good, but Square Enix should’ve left full controller support in since this is a console game ported to mobile after all. One of my only real issues with Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince on Switch was on the technical side. The frame rate was rough at launch with visuals not being great either. The former got addressed to some degree unlike Pokemon Scarlet & Violet, but the latter never got fixed. On iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 12, and even iPad Pro, I had no major issues with the visuals or performance. There are some hiccups on iPhone 15 Pro when running at the highest graphics quality setting and moving through some locations, but it isn’t remotely as bad as on Switch. The game feels massively better to play on iOS. Check out the comparison below for the low and high graphics options on iPhone 15 Pro: There aren’t specific visual or frame rate settings on mobile outside of the resolution option in display settings. This lets you play at low, medium, or high graphical quality options. These presets also affect other settings like the frame rate limit and post-processing. This setting can only be changed from the title screen on mobile while you can adjust it on the fly on PC. I stuck to the high setting on all my iPhones. Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince sadly has some minor performance issues even on iPhone 15 Pro as I mentioned above. The low setting seems unusable with how blurry it gets. On my 2020 iPad Pro, the high preset has more regular frame drops than iPhone, and it also seems to be running with some tweaked settings. Overall, even the older iPad Pro runs it well, but not as good as iPhone 15 Pro as expected. Every device I tested on including the iPhone 12 ran it a lot better than Nintendo Switch. Visually, it looks a lot cleaner than Switch even on older iOS devices when played at high. Square Enix didn’t just do a bare-bones port here. It has fullscreen support during gameplay on my iPhone 15 Pro, and even has a pattern or artwork to fill the screen during areas with pre-rendered or static 16:9 elements. This pattern or artwork is mainly used on my iPad Pro since it doesn’t support fullscreen there for gameplay. This also applies to Steam Deck to make up for that aspect ratio in parts. I’m glad to see Square Enix put in the work here to make sure it still looks good regardless of aspect ratio. Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince Steam Deck impressions On Steam Deck, regardless of my settings, I couldn’t get Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince to run at a locked 90fps even at the low preset when played at 800p. I decided to opt for a 60fps target, and that was a lot easier to achieve. One oddity is the game not letting you adjust resolution when playing on Steam Deck normally. You can do this by forcing the resolution from the game’s properties before launching it. Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince on PC lets you adjust graphical quality (low, medium, high), anti-aliasing (off, low, medium, high), maximum frame rate (30 to uncapped), toggle v-sync, and adjust display mode (windowed, fullscreen, borderless). If you play at 60fps, I recommend setting your Steam Deck OLED refresh rate to 60 to avoid jitter as well. Having now played Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince on iOS, iPadOS, Steam Deck, Switch OLED, and Switch Lite, there’s no doubt that the Switch version is the worst of the lot despite the online mode being removed from mobile and Steam. The massive increase in performance and better visuals with all DLC included at a much lower asking price only makes it better. One thing to note is that the game is marked as Steam Deck Playable and not Verified because Valve says some in-game text is small and may be difficult to read. I didn’t have any issues with this, and I feel like Valve has marked games with smaller text as Verified before. Either way, you can safely buy this one to play on Steam Deck. If you skipped Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince on Switch, the new mobile and Steam ports are the way to go. While the mobile version lacking controller support is disappointing, it is still a game I see myself playing regularly with its improvements over switch and fantastic core gameplay loop. Having all the DLC included means you will have enough content to last you even longer. If you do value controller support in a game like this, the Steam Deck is the way to go. Hopefully we see Square Enix keep bringing more Dragon Quest games to mobile in the future. Right now, the iOS version of Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince is easily one of the best mobile releases of the year.

Over the years, I’ve been able to interview some of my favorite developers ever including a few I never though …

Continue reading "Sukeban Games 2024 Interview: Christopher Ortiz AKA kiririn51 Talks .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND, Inspirations, Fan Reactions, VA-11 Hall-A, The Silver Case, and Much More"

Over the years, I’ve been able to interview some of my favorite developers ever including a few I never though would be possible, but it isn’t often I get to talk to one of the few people responsible for what is likely my favorite game of all time. That’s where Christopher Ortiz AKA kiririn51 of Sukeban Games comes into the picture. We’ve covered their titles on TouchArcade for years because at one point VA-11 Hall-A was even supposed to come to iPad (and I asked about that later in this interview). With Sukeban Games’ newest project, .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND, officially announced, I had a chance to have a long chat with Christopher Ortiz about the game, fan reactions, VA-11 Hall-A, inspirations, Suda51, The Silver Case, and also coffee of course. TouchArcade (TA): Tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do at Sukeban Games. Christopher Ortiz (CO): I’m Chris, I’m a game creator and I do way too much in this company. I like to hang out with friends and eat delicious food when I’m not locked in. TA: I last spoke to you in 2019 around the time VA-11 Hall-A hit PS4 and Switch following its prior release on PS Vita and its debut on PC. Even back then, as a fan of the game, it was wild seeing so much merchandise and promotion in Japan. You recently visited Japan for Bitsummit. How has it been for you visiting Japan and seeing the reception to VA-11 Hall-A and now your new project, .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND? CO: Japan is like my home away from home even if its government doesn’t like it, so that’s a homecoming for me. Very emotionally charged. I also haven’t been at a game event as an exhibitor since Tokyo Game Show 2017; that was 7 years ago. That’s 7 years of roaming game events and being like “I want that” “I want some of this energy”. Now I feel like a pro-wrestler that’s coming out of retirement to a brand new world and industry; I’m lost, confused, not knowing if I still have it… but I was worried about nothing. People didn’t forget about us and still support the studio no matter what, so I’m never taking shit for granted, or letting these memories slip away. This will be my fuel to move forward. TA: I consider VA-11 Hall-A one of my favorite games of all time, and I replay it each holiday season. When you worked on it many years ago, did you ever expect to see it grow this big and even get multiple figures with a new one coming for Jill soon? CO: I didn’t expect the game to sell more than 10-15k copies, but we definitely knew we had something special brewing, or else we wouldn’t have pushed through with it. It’s just that the scale of said success was a little overwhelming and I think we’re still recovering from some of its unexpected side-effects. TA: VA-11 Hall-A is now playable on PC, Switch, PS Vita, PS4, PS5 (through back compatibility). Whatever happened to that iPad version that was announced years ago? Are ports like that up to Ysbryd or do you also have some involvement? I’d love to see it hit Xbox as well if that’s possible. CO: I actually playtested a build for iPad but it didn’t go anywhere for whatever reason. Maybe I failed to respond to an email. You’d have to ask the publisher. TA: Many years ago, Sukeban Games were just Kiririn51 (yourself) and IronincLark (Fer). How has the team changed since then? CO: We’re currently six people. Some have come and go, but overall we want to keep a small and tight operation. TA: Leading into this question -> How has it been working with MerengeDoll? CO: Merenge’s a trooper. She has this supernatural ability to pull ideas directly out of my brain and give them visual shape, so it’s always been a pleasure to work with her. It sucks that some of the projects she was working on as main artist got canned for reasons beyond our power, but it is what it is. The day will come when people will get to see Merenge’s true power. There’s still a lot of Merengedoll in 45pb so that’s cool as hell. TA: Can you talk about how it was working with Garoad on the music on VA-11 Hall-A? Just like the game, the soundtrack is one of my favorites ever. CO: Michael and I always had similar music tastes and influences, so the process was very free-form. He’d make a track, and I’d love the shit out. Repeat the process until the soundtrack is ready to go. Sometimes I would send him a song I liked as a reference, sometimes he’d create a completely original song that would inspire images in the game, then the images would inspire more music. This synergy gave the game a firm identity that stands the test of time in my opinion. TA: I didn’t realize it until recently, but VA-11 Hall-A kind of became one of those indie games that had a very vocal fanbase and got a good amount of merch that keeps selling out. I think the vinyl box sets are also on multiple pressings now and that SLUT shirt keeps selling out. A good friend of mine recently bought it as well. How much input do you have in the merchandise? Is there anything you want to see made that hasn’t happened yet? CO: I don’t have much input on merch creation. I mostly give the thumbs up or down once a whole chain of people already made the hard choices beforehand. Would like to be a little more involved for 45pb now that I know what I’m dealing with. TA: I still have a few more questions before getting to your new game. Let’s go back to 2019 for a second. Playism’s JP release of VA-11 Hall-A included a fantastic art book cover. I really wish I could get that piece of art signed by you and framed. Can you talk about the inspiration for it and how you pay homage to your favorites like that in your work? CO: Back when I drew that cover I was going through really tough times; even though I hadn’t fully realized yet. We were very focused on surviving the collapse of our country and many other things. During this time, at our old office, we’d listen to a lot of Gustavo Cerati; his album Bocanada to be more precise and its tunes managed to keep us going in the face of uncertainty. So when I was asked to draw a new piece for the artbook I couldn’t help but pay homage to it. I admit now that it’s a little too overt and I would do it differently now, but I’m still proud of it. In fact, I’ve been reconsidering my approach to inspirations a lot in the past few years, and this will be obvious once people play 45pb. TA: You and Fer have spoken a lot about VA-11 Hall-A over the years, but I cannot pass up a chance to talk about how amazingly written and designed the characters are. Looking back at the work you put into it, did you expect certain characters to become as popular as they did? CO: I expected Stella to be the most popular one since her gifs would often go viral before release, but you can never predict this sort of thing. And it’s like I said before; I sort of knew certain things were gonna be a hit, I’m just unable to properly articulate why I thought that way or why it worked, and at this point I rather not know. The moment a hunch becomes a science the magic disappears. Formulas are terrible in this line of work. You gotta let things flow; Let them become their own beautiful thing. TA: I’ve joked with friends about how N1RV Ann-A is my “Silksong", but I have no problem waiting as long as it takes. I still enjoy revisiting VA-11 Hall-A often. Do you go back and try out whatever you had done for N1RV Ann-A or VA-11 Hall-A while working on unrelated projects? CO: I like jotting down lore and characterization stuff for a rainy day. I love to draw Sam, I love coming up with new designs, characters; playing around with the general looks of the game, ideas for shots during cinematics; one liners, environments, atmosphere. I even like to imagine “what if this didn’t have to be a bartending game?” and other extreme musings, but that’s about the extent of the mindspace I dedicate to it currently. Once we’re done with 45pb Nirvana’s development will pick up dramatically, though that really depends on if the spark is still there by then. So far it has no signs of extinguishing. TA: As a huge Suda fan myself, I’m curious what you thought of No More Heroes 3 and Travis Strikes Again? As much as I love No More Heroes 3 (more than 11 playthroughs), I think Travis Strikes Again might just be Suda’s most “Suda" game yet. CO: I REALLY like No More Heroes 3’s combat, but I wasn’t a fan of its writing. Maybe it was COVID, and game development is really tough; especially with the hardcore deadlines they had. But in general I think it wanted to be one thing at the start and then had to become another in order to be shipped. It’s a shame, and it is what it is. I just hope they only make new original games from now on and forget about sequels and reboots. Re-releases are OK; especially of the lost media kind, like Frog Minutes or the 25th Ward back in the day. As for Travis Strikes Again, I agree it’s the best of the newer games. Feels like reading someone’s diary sometimes and that’s the kinda art I enjoy. I guess I didn’t see much of that in 3 outside of continuing some plot threads from TSA. TA: What are your thoughts on Grasshopper Manufacture under Netease and the remasters announced? Suda even mentioned today that he’d love to bring Flower Sun and Rain to Steam. CO: Netease is a big corporation so my hope would be that Grasshopper gets all the money and time they need to cook. TA: VA-11 Hall-A’s journey from PC to PS Vita was quite something, and it involved many parties across regions. I remember buying the Japanese release just for the box art with no English included for publisher reasons. When it came to Switch and PS4, I think you wanted the JP release to have English so anyone could import it. How has it been for you now in Argentina trying to get your own game’s merchandise and merchandise in general? It is a pain over here with delays and extra import fees. CO: I simply don’t import anything these days. I don’t wanna bother with Argentinian customs. Protectionist policies are stupid. Sure, make all electronics more expensive to import so the local market has a chance to compete, but there’s no Argentinian PlayStation to compete with, is there? There’s no Argentinian Steam, and so on. Only idiots come up with this sorta policy. Brazil does the same shit as well. Would be cool if they stopped. TA: You’ve worked in PC-98 and PSX aesthetics a few times. When .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND was announced, I was floored by how it looked like the perfect game I’d want from you. The reception has been largely positive, but I can’t imagine what you and the team went through leading into its reveal with N1RV Ann-A and such. Can you talk about how the last few months have been for yourself? CO: We’ve been locked in and doing our thing. No crunch, all fun. We party, we feast, we travel. We touch that proverbial grass. Lots of insecurities and self-doubt for sure. We even tried to downplay things and manage expectations before the reveal, bracing ourselves for possible apathy from the crowd because it’s not Nirvana. But when it came to actually putting in the work there was no hesitation. I’m happy the announcement worked out, but now we gotta buckle up and finish the story. TA: .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND has been revealed, people can wishlist it on Steam, and I immediately thought of Vagrant Story x Sukeban Games’ Vibe when I saw the trailer. How has it been interacting with fans discussing it online and offline? CO: It’s been incredibly fun, even though there’s so many comparisons with old games. Not that I mind but there’s been some ridiculous comments out there that boggle the mind. One thing that surprised me was the amount of fanart right after the reveal. That shit was great. A fan even brought us a drawing that we proudly displayed on our table at Bitsummit for everybody to see. Our crown jewel By @TumugiV !!! Thank you as always!!!!! pic.twitter.com/N1hbLMY25Q — Sukeban Games (@SukebanGames) July 21, 2024 TA: Probably too soon but when can I buy the key art as a poster and get it signed? CO: Maybe on release. TA: What were your main inspirations for .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND from a visual and gameplay perspective? CO: When coming up with the actual gameplay for 45PB there was a unique concern. People know Sukeban as a Visual Novel/ADV developer because of Va11halla, and I wanted a sort of bridge between that audience and something more action-focused. I saw Parasite Eve’s battle system, but instead of saying “I want more of that” I thought “This is a good solution to my predicament” thanks to the hybrid of real time and turn-based gameplay. And that’s pretty much the way we work. Rather than wanting to imitate something, or wanting more of it, I look to games of the past in order to solve modern problems. We don’t need to reinvent the wheel every time. For the visuals, I remember roaming the streets of Milan in 2019. I was ultra depressed, and didn’t actually have a country to live in at the time so I was also in a state of limbo. The mix of modern structures and old buildings, then juxtaposed to all the neon lights and LED screens along the river had my imagination running wild. For me that was the genesis for the game’s look. This marriage between the old, the new and the decadent. The cherry on top was when I moved to Buenos Aires and found a similar atmosphere, except it included that South American roughness and texture that’s absent in Cyberpunk worlds (which tend to be mostly inspired by east asian aesthetics), so I decided to lean on that to create something unique. TA: Tell us a little bit about the team working on it including the composer, and how long it has been in the works. CO: We’re two people working on it day-to-day (me and the programmer), plus Merenge helping with additional character and production design. The composer this time around is Juneji, who has been doing a LOT of work with us over the years. We have this massive stash of incredible music that he’s made, but it remains unfortunately private due to circumstances with failed projects. Same with Merenge’s art. There’s been some hella demoralizing moments since it’s hard to work on things for so long, pouring your soul into them only to see them crumble in front of you, but we’ve remained a tight group over the years and one of my goals is that the world can finally witness their talents on a large stage. I owe them that much. We also added an old friend in a producer/babysitting role and it’s helped us to not neglect important non-game stuff. As for how long it’s been in development: Technically since 2019 but the current iteration is roughly 2 years old. Before that it was all experiments until we arrived at the right “moment to moment” gameplay. TA: .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND had a teaser, gameplay, and now has a steam page. Are there any plans to offer a demo on PC in any of Valve’s demo fests on Steam in the near future? CO: It’d be a pain in the ass to maintain a demo for this particular game so we rather keep those for offline events. Never say never though. TA: A lot of my friends who love VA-11 Hall-A are excited for .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND. Will it be accessible for everyone or is it too soon to say how the difficulty will be handled? CO: It’s too soon to explain, but as I’ve mentioned before, the battle system itself is meant to be a bridge between vibes-based players and action-oriented players. Not that I’m trying to satisfy both, but rather ease one type of player into a new system. TA: What is your favorite aspect of .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND right now? CO: As a game? definitely the atmosphere and the script. I sometimes play it for leisure on my Steam Deck while tryna sleep and wonder “Damn, what’s gonna happen next?” only to be like “you wrote this shit! you know where it goes!”. Also the combat is fun as hell once it opens up after the first chapter. Chaining skills and upping the tempo of combat after pulling off sick tricks makes for addictive gameplay. This will make sense later unless we fumble it. TA: Can you give us an interesting development / design anecdote for .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND and VA-11 Hall-A? CO: So I mentioned the influences of cities like Milan and Buenos Aires in the creation 45PB’s world, but one thing that people might have noticed by looking at very early screenshots was that it used to feature some locales reminiscent of Hong Kong. I actually scrapped a lot, if not all of it, in favor of the “South American Cyberpunk” I’m aiming for after a conversation I had with a friend from China. I was consulting with him about getting the fonts and the text of the billboards just right so it felt authentic, but then my mind broke and I began asking to myself “Why go through all this effort trying to be authentic when I can just leverage my own culture?” and it’s a sort of mantra I’ve been following ever since. I find terms like “cultural appropriation” silly, but the word “appropriation” by itself is something I’ve been contending with a lot. “Is it my place to tell this type of story?” “Is it okay if these characters speak this or that way?” and so on. Not that it limits my creativity or that I’m afraid of hurting sensibilities; I frankly don’t give a shit. I just think that more original works can be born if we leverage what makes us unique instead of trying to make more of what we like. It’s all about balance. TA: Since the announcement, you’ve no doubt had folks asking for a console version when we don’t even have a release year for .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND, but I wanted to know if there was any thought into working with a publisher or will this be self-published? CO: We want to self-publish on PC and let other companies handle consoles. We’re in the process of finding the right partner for this. TA: What were the inspirations behind Reila Mikazuchi’s design and character? CO: I don’t know if I’ll get in trouble for this but I admire actor and singer Meiko Kaji a lot. I love her movies, you name them: Prisoner Scorpion, Stray Cat Rock, Lady Snowblood, Jeans Blues. Something in her look is so captivating and I wanted my own Meiko Kaji for 45PB. I needed a character design that can say a lot with just the eyes. Someone who can project that inner pain and tragedy effortlessly, so using Meiko Kaji as a point of reference was a must. As for the writing, every time I come up with characters they’re always a composite of several people I know and myself. So as to not ruin your impressions of her, I shall keep these inspirations a secret. TA: How many iterations did you go through for her final design which rules by the way? CO: I always had in mind the main look of long, black hair and pale skin. Plus the third eye. The thing that took me the most work was coming up with the outfit. She was wearing a suit at first actually! Then I wanted her to have a jacket, but finding the right type of jacket was a challenge. I gave her a biker jacket but it looked weird and I had to experiment a lot until I stumbled upon the current design. Merenge helped me with some accessories, such as the shoes, gloves and the logo on the back of the jacket. TA: VA-11 Hall-A saw VA-11 Hall-A Kids and Sapphic Pussy Rhapsody released following the game. Ahead of .45 PARABELLUM BLOODHOUND, should we expect any smaller projects like that? CO: Never say never but our plan with this game is to release it, let it be and move on to something new. No DLC or anything like that. Ports to future platforms are always on the table but that’s the extent of it. If A24 or someone else wants to make a movie about it I’ll listen. TA: What does a day in your life look like right now? CO: Right now I’m a little f***ed up. I’m usually a good boy who works from 9am, takes a little lunch break then locks in again until 4 or 5pm, but sleep escapes me lately so I’m just trying to contend with that in whatever way I can. The key is to not stress over not having much sleep. As long as shit gets done it’s all good. When I’m not working I try to catch a movie at one of the many small cinemas in my neck of the woods, or go outside and take a walk and buy books I’ll take forever to read. Buenos Aires has this magic that inspires me to go outside and have low key adventures. Can’t get too crazy because this is still latin america and we don’t f*** around, but I love it here and being surrounded by so much culture, great food, and a crazy clubbing scene keeps me sane. Especially when there’s friends around. I owe them a lot for my mental health even if I’m a huge recluse sometimes. I’m the type to uninstall messaging apps for a minute when I really need to be alone. TA: What have you been playing lately that you’ve enjoyed a lot? CO: There’s so many video games. This year I really loved Children of the Sun and Arctic Eggs. Late last year I was really into The Citadel, Lethal Company and RoboCop: Rogue City. I’m now in the process of going through The Evil Within, which feels like a lost Grasshopper game sometimes. There’s the Elden Ring expansion, and I also recently replayed Kane and Lynch 2 with a friend and had a blast as always. That game is so f***ed up in the right ways. We need more grit like that. TA: What do you think of the current state of indie games? CO: Every time I go to a game event I’m always madly inspired by all the unique games I see at the indie spaces and that energy is partly what kept me going despite all our production hiccups. That sense of community. That we all have this burning desire to create for the sake of creation. That shit is great. I f***ing love indie games and I think they’re better now more than ever. BUT… I worry that we are trying to lean too much on familiar concepts and inspirations. Games like Arctic Eggs do it right in that it’s trying to look like an old PSX game, but there were no PSX games like Arctic Eggs. Then there’s games that feel so blatant in their desire to be like one of the classics that I’m like “weren’t we supposed to be the creative ones?” not to mention the over reliance on “Roguelike” mechanics and such. But it’s not all bad. There’s some really cool shit all the time; especially on places like itch.io. It’s just that humans in general can be creatively bankrupt regardless of production scale. There’s triple A slop, there’s indie slop. There’s no escaping the slop. Being indie doesn’t make you inherently more creative and that’s okay. There’s always room for growth as long as we’re cognizant about our shortcomings. TA: Are you looking forward to playing any specific game this year? CO: I’m really looking forward to Slitterhead. Dunno if they’ll be out this year but there’s also Sonokuni, Elation For The Wonder Box 6000, Studio System: Guardian Angel, Eating Nature (from the Arctic Eggs dev)… There’s a lot I’m excited about. My Twitter feed is an endless stream of cool indie games I doubt will ever see the light of day but the attempt is appreciated nonetheless. TA: Obviously scheduling and such, but if we managed doing this interview on a call, I’d have taken this chance to nerd out about The Silver Case with you. I’m glad I listened to my friend and powered through it because that typewriter sound was too much for me. I adore The Silver Case and I know you love it as well. What elements from it inspired you the most and what’s your favorite track from the soundtrack? CO: The Silver Case has always been one of those games that felt like a white whale to me. It was so utterly inaccessible that my mind pretty much created its own Silver Case by trying to fill the gaps. I used to browse this creepy Suda51 fansite way back in the day and I was always searching for every bit of info on this inscrutable-ass game, so when it actually released in a language I can understand I was afraid I wasn’t gonna like it but I think it was much more than I could ever have imagined. In that sense, the way Silver Case inspires me is tightly related to this need to fill gaps. The space between the real Silver Case and what I was imagining it to be is where a lot of the ideas for the presentation in games like Va11halla or The Radio Wave Bureau were born. I can’t choose a single favorite song if I’m being honest. The whole soundtrack has such a vibe. Could be the Sayaka Baian theme that plays in Kamuidrome, but tomorrow it could be the opening theme, then the next day another one. TA: Did you end up trying it out on console or just playing it on PC? CO: I bought and played the game on every platform. TA: The Silver Case’s original box art and aesthetic is probably the only thing I love as much as that in VA-11 Hall-A. What elements from its visual style had you curious back then? CO: Definitely the stoic look of every character. Takashi Miyamoto is my goat along with Yoshitoshi Abe. For Va11halla I had to be very expressive with the characters because that’s what the story commanded, but ever since I was a kid I always had an affinity towards designs that say a lot with minimal facial expressions. Two of my favorite films are Patlabor 2 and Ghost in the Shell, and Serial Experiments Lain is also one of my favorites, so you can probably tell where I’m coming from with this. I was also so transfixed by the UI. I could go on and on about this subject, but I’ll always lament that The Silver Case didn’t create a movement after its release. Visual Novels could look so much better if we had 1% the imagination of that original Grasshopper team. I’m not sure, but I think the look was done by Akihiko Ishizaka who would go on to work on Killer7 and Danganronpa. I wish he was still working with GhM. Or maybe he still does and I’m talking out of my ass. TA: I think you’ve met Suda more than once now. How has that been for you and has he played VA-11 Hall-A? I know Travis Strikes Again has a VA-11 Hall-A tshirt that is the objectively best and only one everyone should use. CO: I’ve met the guy twice and I’ll always lament not knowing enough japanese to just talk and talk all day with him. We share a lot of common interests, though the generational gap can be felt when he starts yapping about Japanese media from the 70s. I do know he played my game but I’ve no clue if he actually enjoyed it. Will have to ask if I ever see him again. TA: Are you still up for this if the opportunity arises? CO: There’s a story behind this that I’ll have to sit on for a while longer. TA: My current game of the year for 2024 is Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth. I know you loved Yakuza: Like a Dragon, but did you end up trying Infinite Wealth/8 or Gaiden last year? CO: I love Like a Dragon so much but I didn’t play Gaiden, and Infinite Wealth seemed like too much of a commitment when I played at launch. The game was throwing mechanic after mechanic at me in a way that made me feel overwhelmed. Like there was too much game ahead of me, so I put it off for the time being. Maybe once I’m in the mood again I’ll give it a honest shot. TA: VA-11 Hall-A has always been perfect to play on a portable. I loved it on Switch and recently found a mod that adds full controller support to the PC version. I’ve been revisiting it on Steam Deck. Have you had a chance to try it on Steam Deck yet? CO: I did and saw it sort of works but not quite. I wish I could go back and tweak it but it’s not technically feasible. The Game Maker version we used doesn’t even work properly on modern Windows and it’s the reason we haven’t been able to do any sort of fix or update to it. Aside from simply not having the time to deal with all that mess we made (at a technical level). TA: Honestly I still have a lot more I want to discuss with you, but I think I should save that for part 2 or a future interview. Let me end this with one final question. How do you like your coffee? Go into as much detail as you can. If not coffee, talk about your favorite beverage. CO: I like my coffee black like a moonless night. Even better if it’s accompanied by cheesecake on a beautiful afternoon. TA: Probably not smart, but it is nearly 2 AM and sending these questions over made me want to replay The Silver Case. Next time we talk, let’s do a dedicated discussion on The Silver Case. CO: Absolutely! I’d like to thank Christopher Ortiz for their time and help with this interview over the last few weeks. You can keep up with all our interviews here including our recent ones with FuturLab here, Shuhei Matsumoto from Capcom about Marvel Vs Capcom here, Santa Ragione here, Peter ‘Durante’ Thoman about PH3 and Falcom here, M2 discussing shmups and more here, Digital Extremes for Warframe mobile, Team NINJA, Sonic Dream Team, Hi-Fi Rush, Pentiment, and more. As usual, thanks for reading.

Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics ($49.99) As a fan of Marvel, Capcom, and fighting games back in the …

Continue reading "SwitchArcade Review Round-Up: ‘Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection’, ‘Yars Rising’, & ‘Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland’"

Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics ($49.99) As a fan of Marvel, Capcom, and fighting games back in the 1990s, Capcom’s line of fighters based on Marvel’s characters were like a dream come true. Starting off with the excellent X-Men: Children of the Atom, these games just kept getting bigger and better. Moving on to the wider Marvel Universe with Marvel Super Heroes, then the at-the-time unbelievable crossovers between Marvel and Street Fighter, on to the over the top Marvel vs. Capcom, and then the wildly over-the-top in all the right ways Marvel vs. Capcom 2, Capcom kept raising the stakes. That wasn’t the end of the series, but it takes us up to the end of what is covered in Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics. Oh, and you get Capcom’s excellent Punisher belt scrolling beat ’em up as some extra mustard. A fantastic set of great games. This collection appears to have been handled by whoever did the Capcom Fighting Collection, and in most respects it has similar features and extras. That unfortunately extends to only having a single save state across the entire collection, shared by all seven games. That was annoying enough in a collection full of fighting games, but it’s even worse with a beat ’em up in here where you might want to, you know, save your progress independently of whatever you’re up to in the fighters. Oh well. Everything else here is as you would want it. Lots of options like visual filters and gameplay options, great extras including an extensive array of art and a music player, and rollback online multiplayer. New to this set is NAOMI hardware emulation, and whoever Capcom had on the job did it well. Marvel vs. Capcom 2 looks and plays great. I’m not going to knock it for this, but I do want to say that I wish some of the home versions were included. The PlayStation EX versions of the tag-team based games are different enough that it would be neat to have them in here, and the Dreamcast version of Marvel vs. Capcom 2 has a lot of fun extras that make it a superior choice for home play for the solo player. I also wouldn’t have minded if Capcom had tucked its two Super NES Marvel games in here, even if they aren’t the greatest of games. Well, the collection’s name says Arcade Classics, and unlike with Blizzard it seems the word is being properly applied here. Marvel fans and fighting fans alike have a reason to rejoice with this fine collection. The games are superb, they’ve been treated with care, and you get a good suite of extras and options. Only having a single save state shared between the games is a serious bummer, but otherwise I can’t find much to pick on here. Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics is another must-have compilation from the folks at Capcom, and it plays great on the Switch. SwitchArcade Score: 4.5/5 Yars Rising ($29.99) I’ll admit that I was pretty skeptical of this game from its announcement. I like Yars’ Revenge a lot. One of my favorite 2600 games. So when I read that WayForward had been tapped to make a Metroidvania-style Yars game starring a young hacker with a bare midriff code-named Yar, I felt like I had accidentally surfed over to a parody site. Just the perfect storm of “why", you know? So do I have to eat those words? Yes and no. First and foremost, this is a good game. WayForward does a solid job with this kind of thing, and so it did here. Looks and sounds good, plays well, and the map layouts are fine enough. In true WayForward fashion, the bosses tend to drag on too long, but it’s not a deal-breaker. Commendations must also be given to WayForward for doing its best to handle a bit of a tough ask in trying to connect this game to an ancient single-screen shooter. You get to play Yars’ Revenge-style sequences fairly often, the abilities you earn are evocative of the original game, and it connects to the relatively fleshed-out lore as well as it can. It still feels like a massive stretch, but I suppose Atari has little choice but to try to make long passes like this one. Its classic library can only be Recharged so much, after all. It just feels like a game that is torn between two audiences with very little overlap, and I’m not sure if that was the right call versus doing something wholly original. Still, while the argument can rage on about whether or not this made sense conceptually, there’s no doubt the game itself is enjoyable. I don’t think the finest in the genre have much to worry about, but if you’re looking for a Metroidvania game to sink your teeth into over the course of a weekend or so, you won’t have a bad time with Yars Rising. And who knows? Maybe they follow up on this once or twice and it all feels natural. SwitchArcade Score: 4/5 Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland ($24.99) I’m a few years too old to have much nostalgia for Rugrats, though not so old that I didn’t watch it with my younger siblings from time to time. Like, I know the names of the main characters and the theme song. Don’t ask me about the movies or the grown-up versions, and certainly don’t ask me to recall any specific episodes. I know the Rugrats, but I have no special warm and fuzzies for the brand. With that in mind, I didn’t really know what to expect from Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland. I heard someone say it was like Bonk, and that does fit Tommy’s physical build if nothing else. Well, only one way to know for sure. I started up the game, picked Tommy, and went into the tutorial stage. First thing to hit me was the crisp visuals. Crisper than the show, if my memory serves. The next thing to hit me was the awkward placement of the controls. Luckily, there’s an option for that. The music was the Rugrats theme, so that all checks out. There were some Reptar coins to collect, and some simple puzzles and enemies to deal with. Alright, no problem. Platformer with some exploration in the levels, a tried and tested formula. Not very Bonk-ish, but that was never promised. At a certain point Tommy had taken a few hits, so I decided to swap over to Chuckie to enjoy his full life meter. I then noticed that he had a very familiar jump. A very high but somewhat hard to control jump. Surely they didn’t? I swapped over to Phil, who had a low jump, then to Lil who could… float. They did. They really did! Folks, this is a Super Mario Bros. 2 (USA)-inspired game! Sure enough, the enemies I had just been stomping on could also be picked up and thrown. There were also blocks I sometimes had to pick up and pile up to reach higher places. Slightly non-linear stages with lots of verticality! Stages where you have to dig in sand, and you know Phil is the expert digger of the bunch. Awesome. I mean, there are some homages to other platformers in here, but the main gameplay evokes what is probably one of the higher-selling classic games that never gets riffed on. Not bad, not bad at all. The boss battles are even interesting and enjoyable. After playing for a while, I even noticed I could swap the visuals and soundtrack between the spiffy modern versions and NES-level 8-bit renditions. It plays well either way, and both styles have their merits. Oh, and you can use a filter. There if you want it. But yes, creative and fun. Inspired by a game I love quite a lot. Uses its license well. You can play multiplayer! Aside from the control issue, the only gripe I have is that it’s a bit too short and simple. Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland is a better game than I expected it to be. It’s a quality platformer in the style of the Western Super Mario Bros. 2, with some extra elements and features to keep it from being too close to its source. The Rugrats license has been implemented well, though I did find myself wishing it had voice acting for the cut scenes. A little on the short and breezy side to be sure, but worth a play for fans of platformers and the Rugrats alike. SwitchArcade Score: 4/5

For a lot of folks who have been following Capcom’s fighting games over the years, the Marvel vs Capcom Fighting …

Continue reading "Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics Review – Switch, Steam Deck, and PS5 Covered"

For a lot of folks who have been following Capcom’s fighting games over the years, the Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics announcement was unbelievable given recent events and the reception of the last Marvel vs Capcom game. As someone who has only played Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 and Marvel vs Capcom Infinite, I had always wanted to play the earlier games given the praise a few of them got from competitive and casual players. I’d be lying if I said I also wasn’t just excited to hear the Marvel vs Capcom 2 music officially because it is that good. So here we are months after its announcement, and Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics is available on Steam, Switch, and PlayStation with Xbox coming in 2025. Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics games included Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics ships with seven games included. They are: X-MEN CHILDREN OF THE ATOM, MARVEL SUPER HEROES, X-MEN VS. STREET FIGHTER, MARVEL SUPER HEROES vs. STREET FIGHTER, MARVEL vs. CAPCOM CLASH OF SUPER HEROES, MARVEL vs. CAPCOM 2 New Age of Heroes, and THE PUNISHER which isn’t a fighting game, but a beat ’em up. These are based on the arcade versions so you don’t need to worry about missing features like some older console ports here. These include the English and Japanese versions so yes, Marvel Super Heroes vs Street Fighter does include Norimaro in this collection when you choose the Japanese version for that game. This review is based on me having played Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics for about 15 hours on Steam Deck (both LCD and OLED), 13 hours on PS5 (via backward compatibility), and about 4 hours on Nintendo Switch. I’m not qualified enough to talk about the ins and outs of the games included here because this collection was my first time playing them, but I will say that the fun I’ve had with Marvel vs Capcom 2 pre-release has more than justified the asking price to the point where I want to buy both console physical releases just to own a physical version of it. Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics new features If you played Capcom Fighting Collection, the interface and front-end of Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics will feel familiar. In fact, it even has the same issues that collection has, but I’ll get to that a bit later. Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics includes online and local multiplayer support, local wireless support on Switch, rollback netcode for online play, a training mode, customizable options for games, an important option to reduce white flashes or light flickering per game, various display options, and a few wallpaper options. Outside the games, the training mode included (you can access this per game), includes hitboxes, inputs displayed, and other options making it even better for newcomers. Speaking of newcomers, Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics has a new one button super option that you can enable or disable when you play online and search for other players. Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics museum and gallery Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics also includes a robust museum and gallery with all the game soundtracks (more than 200 tracks) and more than 500 pieces of artwork. Having played Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics online with a friend who is also covering it, he let me know how a lot of the artwork in this collection has never been public before. For me, it is all new, but I thought that was notable for longtime fans. It is worth noting that things like sketches or design documents don’t have translations on them for any Japanese text. As for the music, I’m glad we finally have an official way to listen to these soundtracks in 2024, but I hope this is the first step to getting a vinyl release or streaming releases for them. How is the Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics online multiplayer experience with rollback netcode? Before getting into the online experience, the options menu features its own network settings letting you enable or disable microphone, voice chat volume, input delay, and connection strength on PC. On Switch, you can only adjust input delay. The PS4 version lets you adjust input delay and connection strength with no voice chat options. I assume folks will use the PS5 and PS4 native voice chat options here instead of an in-game one. It is disappointing to see the Switch version lack a connection strength option as of the build I have. Pre-release, I only managed testing the online on Steam Deck wired and wirelessly with another player who was also on Steam. In our experience, Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics online is similar to Capcom Fighting Collection on Steam, but massively improved over Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection. You can adjust input delay and cross region matchmaking as well. We tested most of the games and also did a bit of co-op in The Punisher. It just works despite the distance between us. Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics ships with matchmaking support for casual matches, ranked matches, and also leaderboards including a High Score Challenge mode. I also want to note that when you rematch when playing online, the cursors remain correct so you can pick whoever you were playing as before in games like Marvel vs Capcom 2 instead of having to manually move the cursor each time to select your team. Little things like this add up to make the collection feel like a lot of love went into ensuring the best possible experience for players including ones learning the games for the first time. Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics issues My biggest complaints with Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics are with how it has just a single save state (quick save) for the entire collection. This isn’t one single save state per game, but one for the entire collection. I was hoping this issue from Capcom Fighting Collection wouldn’t carry over but here we are. Another minor complaint and settings not being universal or an easy apply or toggle the light reduction or adjust visual filters at once. Having options per game is good, but I would’ve liked to just enable light reduction and turn off the filter for every game at once. Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics on Steam Deck – Verified already I first tried Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics on Steam Deck and it works perfectly out of the box. Given it is Steam Deck Verified I shouldn’t be surprised, but you can never tell with new games until you try them yourself. When played on the Deck itself, Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics runs at 720p and it supports 4K when docked. I played at 1440p for the most part docked and then 800p handheld. It is still 16:9 though with no 16:10 support. The Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics PC graphics options are under the PC Settings menu in options. These let you adjust resolution, display mode (fullscreen, borderless, windowed), and toggle v-sync. Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics on Nintendo Switch While Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics looks fine on Switch, the biggest downgrade from other platforms is the load times. Going in and out of games on Steam and PS5 is almost instant while the Switch version has loading for basically everything. This adds up and since I’ve been playing it on all three platforms at once, it was very noticeable. I hope the connection strength option is added eventually as well since PlayStation and PC have it. The Switch version does support local wireless while the others do not though. Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics on PS5 I wish Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics was native on PS5 rather than played via backward compatibility because PS5 Activity Card support would’ve been amazing to get in and out of different games from the dashboard. Barring that, it looks excellent on my 1440p monitor and loads quickly even when played off an external hard drive. You can move it to the SSD for even faster loading. I have no complaints with the PS4 version on PS5. Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics is one of Capcom’s best collections yet across everything and not just fighting games or arcade games. It offers superb extras, fantastic online play on Steam, and it has been a joy to experience these games for the first time. I just wish there was more than one save slot for the entire collection for save states. Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics Steam Deck Review Score: 4.5/5

Later this month on September 27th, NIS America will release FuRyu’s action RPG Reynatis for Switch, Steam, PS5, and PS4 …

Continue reading "Reynatis Interview: Creative Producer TAKUMI, Scenario Writer Kazushige Nojima, and Composer Yoko Shimomura discuss the game, coffee, and more"

Later this month on September 27th, NIS America will release FuRyu’s action RPG Reynatis for Switch, Steam, PS5, and PS4 in the West. Ahead of the launch, I had a chance to talk to Creative Producer TAKUMI, Scenario Writer Kazushige Nojima, and Composer Yoko Shimomura about the game, inspirations, collaborations, how the project came into being, Final Fantasy Versus XIII, coffee, a potential Xbox release, and much more. This interview was conducted in parts with TAKUMI’s portion being done on video call with Alan from NIS America translating and then it being transcribed and edited for brevity. The portion with Kazushige Nojima and Yoko Shimomura was done over email and is towards the end of this interview. TouchArcade (TA): Tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do at Furyu right now. TAKUMI: I’m a director and producer at Furyu. A lot of my work involves creating new games and working on brand new projects. For Reynatis specifically, I’m the person who came up with the main idea for the game. I produced it, I directed it, and I saw pretty much everything through from the beginning to the end so anything and everything related to Reynatis, I handled everything. TA: I’ve been playing FuRyu’s games through many publishers in the West from the 3DS days, leading into PS Vita, PS4, PS5, PC, and mostly on Nintendo Switch. It feels like Reynatis has the most hype around it from any game which I’ve seen from FuRyu. How does that make you feel as a creative producer? TAKUMI: First of all, I’m very happy. I take it very positively. I’m just simply pleased that people like it so much. About the buzz and attention it is getting, it feels like it’s actually more from abroad than inside Japan. I’ve been checking things out on Twitter and I noticed that a lot of times whenever they post information about the game, when they post trailers, when they post things like that, a lot of the comments that they’re receiving are from people outside of Japan. And so he says it seems like the fan base for this game abroad is large, or will be large. And it also seems like, as you mentioned, up till now, this game has been receiving more feedback and more positive user interaction than any other FuRyu game in the past. So I’m really pleased to see how it seems to be being received in the West so far. TA: Okay, so the game is obviously available now in Japan for people who live there to buy on console. How has the response been from players in Japan for the game? TAKUMI: As someone who’s liked Final Fantasy Kingdom Hearts and things like that, I feel that the fans of those works, basically the works of Tetsuya Nomura in particular, seem to have really latched onto the game. They really appreciate what I’m doing and I really get the sense that they kind of understand everything. I’ve seen that as they’ve been playing the game, they’ve been noticing things and seeing how the story progresses and being like, “Oh, yeah, that’s how it should be," or, “Yeah, I kind of expected that to happen." And so they’ve gotten really excited and really delved into the world of Reynatis. They’ve also, kind of without really even being prompted, have kind of taken things farther to the next level, like, “I wonder where he’s going to take the story from here. I wonder what’s going to come next. I wonder…" All these little sub things that he hadn’t really had a chance to maybe flesh out or think about yet are things that the fan base has already decided to move forward with and already decided to start thinking about what’s going to come in the future. Of course a creator, that makes me feel incredibly pleased and also kind of gets my creative juices flowing as it were, too, to think about what I want to do next. On the gameplay side of things, FuRyu games always kind of have areas that stand out a little bit more than others or have things about them that make them kind of unique and very FuRyu you could say. A lot of players have come to appreciate those things, too, and really enjoy those things as well. So for the people who really have always appreciated FuRyu games and have played them up until now and enjoyed them, they seem to be liking and enjoying the game as well. So far on both of those fronts, it seems that user reaction has been positive and people have really been enjoying it. TA: I’m glad you mentioned Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy because from when the game was revealed, a lot of my friends who are hardcore Kingdom Hearts fans and who have been following Final Fantasy for a long time, everyone brought up Final Fantasy Versus XIII’s trailer and everyone’s trying to draw parallels with that and talking about how is this connected here, is that connected there? Can you comment on whether Final Fantasy Versus XIII’s trailer and that whole hype cycle over there had any influence on the project. TAKUMI: So that question is a sensitive question, it’s a sensitive topic. There’s things that I can and cannot say in regards to it, but one thing I want to point it specifically is that as a fan of Nomura-san’s work and as someone who saw that original trailer for Versus XIII, and purely wondered what would this game have been like, what kind of game would this have been, how would it have played, and all these things like that running through my head, as a fan, I wanted to put myself on the same level as other fans. And as a representative of that fan base, I wanted to create my own take on it. If this game would have come out, maybe it would have turned out like this. So that feeling in terms of how Reynatis is related to Final Fantasy Versus XIII, you could say it’s something like that. I can’t speak too much beyond this little window of speaking, but I have talked to Nomura-san. They’ve talked about several things about this,and the idea is that Nomura-san knows what he’s thinking and the things that they’ve talked about. As a fan and as somebody who really loves these works, I really wanted it to be from one fan to all the other fans out there. I feel like that group of fans who did love those games, that’s who Reynatis is for. At the end of the day, all that really comes from that specific title is the inspiration. So seeing that initial trailer and that initial thought of “I wonder what this would be like" was an inspiration, certainly, for Reynatis. Reynatis is something that is wholly his own. It’s something that totally came from me as a creator. It is dyed in my own color as a creator. Everything that I wanted to express as a creator is what’s in this game. It’s not a copy or a rip-off of something else that’s come before, something that might have existed. It’s completely wholly my own. This was simply an initial spark of inspiration to make me think about what this world would be. Everything else about this world that is Reynatis is something that I made myself and created myself. TA: So out of the many FuRyu games I’ve played over the years since Lost Dimension and stuff like that, my favorites are The Caligula Effect 2, Crymachina, and The Alliance Alive. Every single game usually has I’d say 75% of it is really good with memorable story, music, and stuff like that. But there are some aspects which fall short, and we usually see either technical shortcomings or some people might not like the gameplay or something like that. So I wanted to know if you’re happy with the current state of the game because I know there are updates planned. TAKUMI: The game originally came out on July 25th in Japan, and from there, we had an actual play session where we streamed it, and there were people watching on Twitter, commenting, and since then, people have had a chance to play the game and receive their comments. Obviously, to recreate the game, or to do things on a fundamental level, that’s impossible, but obviously, small things that we can brush up, as we are going through, for example, boss balancing, the amount of time that enemies come out, little quality of life features that kind of have to do with those things, all of those things will be addressed in the updates that are coming out. There’s an update coming out on September 1st in Japan, and then either with that, or a little bit before that, we plan to, again, start addressing some of those issues Beyond that, obviously, if there’s any bugs or any kind of technical flaws or things like that, those are all intended to be addressed to over the coming months, because the last DLC is scheduled to come out in May, and so up until that time point, we are going to continue to work on the feedback that we’ve received, and implement as much as we can, as is reasonable and possible, into the game. One thing I also want to point out is that specifically for players in the West, the version of the game that you be getting, essentially, will be a version that’s been refined and brushed up, compared to everything that’s come out in Japan, so please look forward to the best version of the game when it does come out here in the West. TA: So I read the NIS America translated Famitsu interview with Takumi-san, Yoko Shimomura, and Kazushige Nojima in two parts (here and here). It was the two-part long interview and was really nice. So first, thank you to NIS America for translating that officially for us. Secondly, I wanted to touch on the part about how you approached both of them because it was very interesting and funny. I wanted to just ask you about that. How did you approach them directly? Is it just something like you messaged them or do you approach their representatives or the companies at all? TAKUMI: It was pretty much what I said in the interview. Most of this was direct. I reached out to them directly. I didn’t contact them through a company. I didn’t do super formal emails or uptight things. The thing about Shimomura-san specifically is that Furuyo had actually done some work with her in the past on some other titles, so I kind of had an in there, but even still I ended up reaching out to her through X / Twitter. For Naora-san, who was the illustrator for the game, it was a PM to him on X / Twitter. Kaburagi-san, who also did the illustrations, I spoke with him on X. Nojima-san, they did a lot of LINE. Even once the project had begun, a lot of the communication was still done via PMs and via private messaging and things like that. At no point was it ever really a very formal thing. I would just kind of reach out to people as necessary and say, “hey, what do you want to do about the music?" or something like that. It’s a lot rougher than you might have imagined in terms of how a company normally performs its business. TA: That’s hilarious. It makes sense why you contacted them because they are very talented folks, and while the premise and game seem interesting, I wanted to know what prior works of theirs made you reach out to them individually? What are your favorite works by them? TAKUMI: Well, basically, I’ve been playing Kingdom Hearts since I was a kid. I think the big part is that my personality and values were formed by Kingdom Hearts. So, when it comes to Shimomura-san’s music, I have a strong image of Kingdom Hearts. And then, in connection with that, I’ve been playing titles like Final Fantasy VII and Final Fantasy X. I think Nojima-san’s scenario has a strong feeling from that. I think I’ll just say that I wanted to do Nojima-san’s scenario with Shimomura-san’s music. for Shimomura-san, obviously, most people think of Kingdom Hearts. It’s a really, really special game. It’s a series that I started playing when I was little. It influenced my values and who I am as a person. So, that was someone that I really wanted to work with specifically. In terms of Nojima-san, obviously, I’m a big fan of Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy X, and works like that. I wanted to work with them because I just wanted to work with them. I liked their work and he wanted to work with them. TA: I wanted to know, before the game started production, what games did you play that maybe inspired some aspects of this thing? Did you start doing research and playing more action games from other developers to see how they are? TAKUMI: I’m honestly an action game fan to begin with. So, whether it be older titles, whether it be more recent titles, I feel like I’ve played them all. Whether you’d want to call that research or not is kind of something different, but I have played them and I have enjoyed them and obviously, there’s a lot of things that I’ve taken inspiration from, you could say, from within that. However, one thing I want to point out really specifically is that, and this is something you know as someone who’s played many FuRyu titles, is that FuRyu size-wise and scale-wise doesn’t have the budget to do something like a Final Fantasy VII Remake or a Rebirth. That’s just on another level. When I was creating the game and thinking about what I wanted to do, I thought carefully about what would be fun for the players. What will the players enjoy? Let’s make that and then let’s also try to make everything within the game something that’s fun. So for example, even beyond the gameplay, you have the scenario, you have the story, you have all of these things that individually are disparate, but all of them together are what makes Reynatis the experience that it is. I want players to experience it as a whole and not so much as an action game solely, for example. If you compare Reynatis to something like Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, it’s obviously not going to compete on that level. Where it can compete is on this level as an entire package, as a game experience that is the sum of its parts beyond being some specifically one thing. TA: Can you talk about how long Reynatis has been in production? TAKUMI: About three years, give or take. TA: So how was it working for the team during the pandemic? TAKUMI: The pandemic was just at its peak. I think it was a time when we couldn’t meet face to face and talk about it. But I don’t think I was in that much trouble. The development company that was actually developing it was basically all-in-one, and we were able to work with the top development team. If we had been able to communicate with them, I think we could have made the game without any problems. After the pandemic actually settled down, we were able to meet face to face. We were able to communicate while eating together. I don’t think there was a big problem in terms of development because we couldn’t meet face to face because of the coronavirus. Things kind of kicked off right at the beginning of the pandemic, specifically when it was really difficult to go out and actually meet people. Truthfully, at the very beginning, we didn’t have a lot of opportunity to actually meet face to face and talk about things.However, A, as time went on, and B, because we were having lots of meetings and things like that, the people that we were working with to develop it, all of them actually were in the office. Because we had a good direct line of communication with the development staff, the head of the development staff, we felt like there were no issues there. Also, as the project continued, things loosened up, and so I was able to meet people face to face. We were able to go out to eat and talk and have meetings and things like that. So things proceeded smoothly. Even in the midst of the beginning of the pandemic, when it was more difficult to meet people, I don’t feel that it really impacted the work negatively. We were able, and I specifically was able to do my work without any problem, and things proceeded well. So there were really no issues from that sense in regards to the pandemic situation. TA: So one of the things I noticed is, before the game was officially revealed for localization, there was a lot of hype around “NEO: The world ends with you. Everyone was speculating if this is part of the same universe or what’s happening And now we have an official collaboration, which is officially licensed and stuff like that. So I wanted to know two things: As a fan, play NEO :The World Ends with you and how did you approach Square Enix for the collaboration? TAKUMI: I played the original on DS in the beginning. I played the smartphone game that only lived for a brief period. I played Final Remix when it came out on Switch and then of course NEO: The World Ends With You as well. I’m a simple fan just like everyone else when it comes to the series. I have played them all. For the collaboration, I did go directly to Square Enix as a company and approached them from an official capacity as a company. Thinking in the console game space, looking at collaborations between companies it’s very rare. All I can think of is that there was a collaboration between Capcom and Konami using Metal Gear Peace Walker and Monster Hunter 2G. Aside from that, I can’t really think of anything else in terms of console creators coming together to make it. Because this is something that hasn’t really happened before, it had to be a bit more official. On the flip side, because it hasn’t happened before, there was really nobody I could talk to internally to be like, “Hey, so how do I go about approaching this? How do I go about making it happen?" I got a lot of feedback like “Oh, that’s impossible. You can’t do that." However, I have the kind of personality where I’m very strong and straightforward with things. I said “No, no, no, look, if it’s not impossible, there’s a way to do this. I’m going to find a way to do this." The simplest thing in that case was to drop the plan, to go to Square Enix directly and say, “Hey, look, I’m making this game. I really like The World Ends With You. The setting for my game is also Shibuya. Is there anything we can do together?" That’s basically how the collaboration came about. TA: Can you comment on what platforms Reynatis was always planned for? What was the lead platform? TAKUMI: All of the platforms were decided from the beginning, but as you mentioned, you have to come up with a lead platform. In this case, it would have been the Switch and so the Switch was the main, and then the others came out from there. TA: In the past, whenever I played FuRyu games, regardless of how much I liked them, the lead platform usually has some technical issues. I remember playing The Legend of Legacy on 3DS, which had a lot of technical issues, but now it’s perfect when you play it on modern platforms. Reynatis is a very visually striking and good-looking game from its trailers. So I was just wondering how it would run on Switch. TAKUMI: I understand where you’re coming from. Even though the Switch is the lead platform, honestly speaking, this game pushes the Switch to its limits. Within me, there’s two rules I have to fulfill for this game. One is the producer, and the other is the director. As the producer, I have to be more mindful of things like unit sales. How many players are going to purchase and play the game? So within that, obviously, it makes the most sense that you release a game on as many platforms as you possibly can to maximize those elements. On the flip side, as the director and as a player myself, it would have been great to focus on maybe one platform like PS5 or something to really push things to the next level. But at the same time, that’s a balance that I have to maintain within all things. There was a lot of internal struggle within how to handle that. But at the end of the day, the balance was essentially taken within those two elements of myself that I had to do. I’m happy with what came out. TA: So far, FuRyu games release on consoles in Japan and get ported to PC for the Western releases. Has Furyu ever considered doing PC internally in Japan for these games? TAKUMI: Actually, there was a title that came out recently that we did internally on PC. So it is something that we have been thinking about and working internally on. So yes, games are coming out made by us specifically for PC platforms. At this point, Mr. Sonobe, FuRyu Localization Coordinator, added that FuRyu has established a partnership with NIS (America) to sell full-priced console RPGs due to their expertise in translation, promotion, and sales capabilities. TA: The reason I ask is because we’ve seen a lot of promotions in Japan for Steam versions from publishers there. Like SEGA does with competitions for Like a Dragon and Steam Deck. Obviously you need to release on Switch, but you now also have a high end handheld PC. I see a lot of interest for Steam versions. Do you see more people recently asking for PC versions in Japan? TAKUMI: Please take this as my opinion specifically and not a representative of the industry. For me and the people around me, the two worlds are very different. There’s the world of console gaming, as we call it, and then there’s the world of PC gaming. Those worlds don’t necessarily meet, and it seems like the players of one specific place, like console or PC, generally want to keep their play experiences limited to that space specifically. If you were to divide it up into three things, you would have consoles, you would have PCs, and then you would have smartphones. And so these are kind of the three arenas that exist. And these are kind of the three arenas that people generally tend to stay in when they’re developing and releasing games. I don’t even necessarily know people who play on PC who have a Steam Deck or who want to play specifically on it. If they want to play a console game, they would play it on console if they had the desire to do so. That’s kind of where I feel the industry is specifically in Japan. TA: Because you mentioned smartphones, I think FuRyu has one title which is available in the West on smartphones through another partner, Arc System Works, which is The Alliance Alive Remastered. I believe it uses NIS America’s translation for English. Do you have plans as FuRyu to do more smartphone ports of premium games? TAKUMI: As a company we don’t have a plan to make games specifically for smartphones. It is more that our division specifically is focused on making console games and we believe that consoles are a place that can provide specific experiences that can only be provided by console games. The reason you saw something like The Alliance Alive Remastered come out on smartphones, was because we felt that it would be appropriate and because we thought it would still play well on the smartphone. For something like a super hardcore action game or something that would require more intricate controls, that wouldn’t really be suitable to be on smartphones so it wouldn’t happen. Our plan and goal going forward is to develop first for console and to bring out the best we can do in the console gaming space. IF that work is suitable enough to be brought to a smartphone, and still be able to be played well, and it doesn’t lose any of its intrinsic fun that you have from playing on console, then we will think about it in the future, but it kind of is on a case by case basis. TA: So I play FuRyu games on multiple platforms, but there’s one platform that hasn’t seen FuRyu support much. This question isn’t just from myself, but also from readers who usually want to know why some games aren’t coming to Xbox. only myself, but a lot of our readers also usually ask us to check in on the possibility? I know there could be many reasons for why, but I still wanted to ask you directly about this if there are plans to do Xbox Series X versions of these games from FuRyu? TAKUMI: Personally, I would like to do Xbox versions of the games but the reality is that in Japan there’s not enough demand from consumers. There’s not enough recognition from consumers for the platform itself to be able to justify being able to make an Xbox version. To talk about things from a development standpoint, you have to understand that adding another platform to the development cycle means you have to account for that within the schedule. Within that as well, the development team has to have the experience to be able, having worked on that platform, to be able to develop it appropriately for that platform. Because the team doesn’t have that experience, it suddenly becomes a very high hurdle to clear and be able to make this game. I would definitely like for us to be able to do it. I find it would be something that would be interesting. It’s just the reality of it that it’s a difficult thing to do for the reasons I mentioned. TA: Reynatis is coming out in the West in a few weeks. I wanted to know what you’re most excited to see when players get their hands on the game in the West? TAKUMI: I really want players to enjoy playing the game for a long time. Nowadays, you kind of have an issue that when a game comes out, it’s not uncommon for spoilers to get posted, whether that be videos or things like that. We’ve worked really hard to make sure that those spoilers don’t get out there. One of the ways that they’ve avoided having things spoiled is by having this– we talked about it a bit earlier–but by having this free DLC release schedule going forward that will bring up new story content and secret story content. There’s going to be one that comes out October 1 that will be global. NIS America will release the game in the West in September. So players will kind of have to catch up first, but after that, they get to experience everything in real time with the Japanese player base as well as the updates come out. I hope that this is something that encourages people to keep playing the game and to play it for a long time to come and to really enjoy what they’re playing and seeing all the secrets and things that they have, because these are things that, again, are going to be not spoiled because it’s all coming out at the same time once the game gets released in the West. TA: One of my favorite aspects of FuRyu games is always the art and music. That’s usually consistently very good. I wanted to know, are there any plans after all the DLC is out to have a Japanese release of the full art book covering everything and a full soundtrack? TAKUMI: At the moment there are no plans specifically to do either of the things that you mentioned, but in regards to the music I really think Shimomura-san made a fantastic soundtrack and I would love to be able to get that out there to people in some fashion. So, hopefully we can do it, but there are currently no plans. TA: Unrelated to Reynatis which we’ve covered a lot, I wanted to know what you’ve been playing outside of work in the last year, like in 2024, which you’ve enjoyed a lot, and what platforms you’ve been playing on? TAKUMI: So for this year, I played Tears of the Kingdom and I played Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. Generally speaking, due to everything going on with Reynatis, I have a feeling that I didn’t get to play as much as I would have liked for everything else, but those are the two ones that I remember playing the most. Platform-wise, I probably played most on PS5. As an addition, I’m a huge Disney fan and I’m also a big fan of Star Wars. All the information coming out about the new Star Wars materials has gotten, like, kind of reawakened that fire that I have, for the Star Wars property, so I’ve really been enjoying Jedi Survivor. TA: What project that you’ve worked on so far is your favorite. If it is Reynatis, talk about another one as well. TAKUMI: So I’ve only worked on two games: Trinity Trigger and Reynatis. To talk about Trinity Trigger, I was only the director on that game so I didn’t have the opportunity to do anything on the Producer’s role so thinking about the broader scope of things and how to reach out to customers on that. That’s something I felt was an area missing for me. I really wanted to do it. As a result of having that feeling on Trinity Trigger, I was able to, when the time came to Reynatis, I was able to take on the role of Producer, Creative Producer, and Director and therefore I was able to do everything that I wanted to do in this game. To oversee every single aspect of it. By the same token, because Trinity Trigger was the first game I had worked on and I directed, I was able to do a lot of what I wanted to do with it. It is of course a title to him that remains really deep in his memory, but the game that I have the most affection for is Reynatis. TA: For a lot of people, when they see FuRyu’s games, there are quite a few available on current platforms. Reynatis has the most hype. What would you like to say to folks who are excited for this who have not played a FuRyu game before? TAKUMI: One of the things that I feel is most representative of FuRyu titles in general, is that they all have a very strong theme. If you look at each and every one of these games, the theme is very strong. The message reaching out to people is very strong. Reyantis is no different. This might be a rough or harsh way to put it, but if there are people who feel that they are weak, if there are people out there who feel like they are being put down by society, they can’t live and carry out their lives like they want to, I want you to play Reynatis. One of the big themes in the game is that within Japanese society itself, there’s a very famous expression that you’ve probably heard many times before: “The nail that sticks out gets hammered down" People in Japan have a tendency to go with the flow, and supplement themselves into what the rest of society wants them to do or say, and as a result of that, many people kind of feel really pressured and they’re stifled within what they actually want to do. Whether it be in Japan or outside, if you feel that way, this is absolutely the game for you. The message within this is very strong and I feel like it will resonate with people who feel like they maybe are put down by society or that they are not a place they want to be in society. Going back to what we spoke about before, while the game might not be able to compete in the arena of graphics or richness in setting, the game does have a message that resonates just as strongly as for Final Fantasy VII if not more. I believe it can compete and beat it in that. I think that because the message in the game is so strong, it will remain in people’s hearts and minds and it will be something that will be a really positive and memorable experience for them. I hope people pick up the game for those reasons. This part of the interview with Yoko Shimomura and Kazushige Nojima was conducted over email. TA: How did you get involved in the Reynatis project? Yoko Shimomura: Via a sudden attack from TAKUMI. (laughs) TA: What have you learned composing for games for many years now and how do you implement these learnings in your future compositions and recent ones like Reynatis? Yoko Shimomura: It’s difficult to put into words. I think that experience does become a new power, but I mainly compose via feeling, so turning that into words is difficult. TA: My favorite soundtracks done by you are definitely LIVE A LIVE, Radiant Historia, and Street Fighter II. I’m very curious about the Reynatis soundtrack. What has been your favorite part of working on it so far? Yoko Shimomura: Thank you! The night before recording, even though I was totally worn out mentally and physically, I just had more and more compositions flowing out of me, which was fun. (laughs) I was really ablaze with the idea, “I’m definitely going to finish this!" TA: As a composer you have a very distinct style that when someone hears a work by you, they know you composed it. How do you feel that your style is recognizable through multiple iterations of technology? Yoko Shimomura: I wonder! I get told that a lot, but I don’t really understand it myself. People have said that in the past, my compositions tended to be different based on the work, so there isn’t really a feel that they were all composed by me. I think maybe my style hadn’t quite come out yet. TA: Were you inspired by any other games when working on the Reynatis soundtrack? Yoko Shimomura: I wasn’t influenced by any other work in particular. TA: You’ve worked on the scenarios of many of my favorite games of all time. How do you approach different games today compared to how you worked in the 90s? Kazushige Nojima: It depends on the game genre. For games where the narrative comes first, players today want a character who is a convincing portryal of a fully-fledged person, rather than a character that is an avatar for the player, as was common in the past. In that case, it then becomes important to give the world the character inhabits a sense of presence. I do like those old games that were more akin to a fairytale, though. I’d like to work on one again in the future. TA: How did you get involved with this project? Kazushige Nojima: I received a call from my old acquaintance, the composer Ms. Shimomura. She asked if it was OK to share my contact info with TAKUMI. Things started from there. TA: Is it influenced by Versus XIII in any way? Kazushige Nojima: I didn’t think it was when I was writing it, but I can’t say for certain. TA: Having now seen the game’s scenario all the way, what is your favorite aspect of it, and what do you think fans of your other work should pay attention to here? Kazushige Nojima: It’s difficult to answer this while avoiding spoilers. I think that Marin’s change in mannerisms [throughout the course of the game] is well-depicted. TA: What have you enjoyed playing this year and have you played Reynatis yet? Kazushige Nojima: I’ve been doing nothing but dying in it, but I’ve enjoyed ELDEN RING. I’ve also enjoyed Dragon’s Dogma 2. Embarassingly enough, I’m only partway through REYNATIS. Sure enough, I’m just not good at action games, so for the games I mentioned, I’m enjoying the atmosphere of their worlds. I think the game I’ve played the most of is Euro Truck Simulator. TA: So now the last question is for everyone here. How do you like your coffee? TAKUMI: I don’t actually like coffee. *laughs* I don’t like things that are really bitter. I generally go for iced tea or black tea. If I’m going to drink coffee, I’m going to put a ton of cream, milk, or sugar to drink it. It is kind of funny that in university, I worked at Starbucks so I had to know a lot about coffee, so it is kind of funny that way. Alan Costa: I like coffee with milk or soy milk. If I’m drinking iced coffee, I like just an americano with just ice and no sugar. The two responses below were via email. Yoko Shimomura: I like iced tea. I drink it all the time. I like doubling up [on the bags] to make it strong. Kazushige Nojima: Black. And strong. I’d like to thank TAKUMI, Alan Costa, Chihiro MacLeese, Mr Sonobe, Anna Lee, and Lottie Diao for their time and help with this interview. Editor’s note: I unfortunately lost the recording I took myself where the other attendees from NIS America and FuRyu mentioned how they had their coffee and could only include these two. You can keep up with all our interviews here including our recent ones with FuturLab here, Shuhei Matsumoto from Capcom about Marvel Vs Capcom here, Santa Ragione here, Peter ‘Durante’ Thoman about PH3 and Falcom here, M2 discussing shmups and more here, Digital Extremes for Warframe mobile, Team NINJA, Sonic Dream Team, Hi-Fi Rush, Pentiment, and more. As usual, thanks for reading.

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for September 6th, 2024. Well, this is the last one. You’ll …

Continue reading "SwitchArcade Round-Up: Reviews Featuring ‘Fitness Boxing feat. Hatsune Miku’, Plus New Releases, Sales, and Good-Byes"

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for September 6th, 2024. Well, this is the last one. You’ll see one more special from me next week with a few reviews that have specific embargo dates, but this is the final regular SwitchArcade Round-Up for TouchArcade by yours truly. We’ve been at this for several years and I wish I could have seen the Switch through to its end with these articles, but circumstances dictate another course. We’re going out with another chunky one, with a pair of reviews from our pal Mikhail, a pair of Shaun reviews, a handful of new release summaries, and the usual lists of new and expiring sales. Let’s ride one last time! Reviews & Mini-Views Fitness Boxing feat. HATSUNE MIKU ($49.99) After Imagineer’s success with the Fitness Boxing games that led to the hilarious but good Fitness Boxing Fist of the North Star, I didn’t know what IP the team would work with for a new fitness game. When Fitness Boxing feat. HATSUNE MIKU was announced, I thought it was a smart collaboration, but was curious to see how the game felt after Fist of the North Star. I’ve been playing it over the last few weeks alongside Ring Fit Adventure and I’m impressed with Fitness Boxing feat. HATSUNE MIKU in many ways. If you’re new to the Fitness Boxing series, these games, as the name suggests, use boxing and rhythm game movements to get you into shape through daily exercises, mini-games that also get you sweating, and more. With Fitness Boxing feat. HATSUNE MIKU, everyone’s favorite vocaloid gets in on the action and there’s even a separate dedicated mode for her songs in addition to the normal songs included in this release. Keep in mind that this is a Joy-Con only game so you can’t play it with a Pro Controller or any third party accessories as far as I’m aware. As with other games in the series, there are difficulty options, a free training mode to do as you please, warmups, and tracking with reminders and the systemwide alarm that can remind you even if your Switch is in sleep mode. There are cosmetics you can unlock through the points you earn by playing as well. I can’t comment on the DLC yet, but as for the base release, I liked Fitness Boxing feat. HATSUNE MIKU more than Fist of the North Star aside from one issue. The audio in Fitness Boxing feat. HATSUNE MIKU is great, but the main instructor’s voice isn’t great. I ended up turning this voice down because it felt out of place with the rest of the game, and just sounded a bit weirdly directed. Just like the Fitness Boxing Fist of the North Star release from Imagineer, Fitness Boxing feat. HATSUNE MIKU is a solid fitness-focused game that does a great job of bringing Miku to the world of Fitness Boxing to try and appeal to her fans. While it is a competent fitness game with its daily workout, customization, and tracking, I feel like it would be better as a complement to something like Ring Fit Adventure or your own other exercise routine rather than being the sole exercise you do during the week. -Mikhail Madnani SwitchArcade Score: 4/5 Magical Delicacy ($24.99) Magical Delicacy from sKaule and Whitethorn Games is one I hadn’t paid much attention to until a friend of mine linked me to an Xbox Game Pass announcement for it. Since then, I’ve played it on Switch as well, but feel like it needs a bit more time in the oven. I adore Metroidvania-style platformers and cooking games, but it feels like Magical Delicacy takes the good bits of both genres while not putting them together in the best way possible. This results in a game I adore in parts, but one where the flaws hurt a bit more. You play as Flora who is a young witch in a story that’s equal parts mysterious, magical, and wholesome. Your aim is to cook meals and craft for various folks, and I was surprised at how well the exploration was implemented aside from the backtracking that annoyed me sometimes. I expected it to be lacking compared to the cooking and crafting, but the team nailed the Metroidvania elements. There are some issues with ingredients in the crafting and in how inventory is managed. This is made a bit worse by the UI that I took a while to get used to with interaction. Magical Delicacy makes a great first impression with its gorgeous pixel art visuals, lovely music, and tons of settings. The latter includes UI scale and text options that are both very useful when playing on Switch in handheld mode. I feel like Magical Delicacy would have benefited a lot from an early access release or will from potential updates. When it comes to the Switch version, it plays very well aside from some seemingly frame pacing-related hiccups. It has good rumble as well. Having played it on Xbox Series X, this is definitely a game I’d play more on a portable so a Switch or Steam Deck version would be best. I just play the genre more on handhelds. Magical Delicacy is a game I should’ve loved given it is basically a blend of a Metroidvania and a crooking/crafting game, but it feels a little undercooked (I couldn’t resist) in parts thanks to some inventory and backtracking issues. While it is a very good game right now that feels at home on Switch, a few quality of life updates and polishing will make it an essential. -Mikhail Madnani SwitchArcade Score: 4/5 Aero The Acro-Bat 2 ($5.99) A lot of companies tried their hand at the whole mascot platformer thing in the 16-bit era in the wake of Sonic the Hedgehog‘s explosive success. Like, the sheer number of them is just baffling. Even more than I remembered. Not many of them managed to see sequels, but Aero The Acro-Bat is part of that elite few. How each member of that club got there is its own story, but in Aero’s case it seems to have been a combination of the first game going over well enough, and sheer force of will to try and make fetch happen. Sadly, fetch did not happen. Aero spin-off Zero the Kamikaze Squirrel launched several months after Aero 2, but outside of that Aero was never seen in another original title again. Does that make Aero The Acro-Bat 2 a bad game? I don’t think so. It doesn’t seem like it was a big enough success to merit another follow-up, at the very least. But then again, Sunsoft’s parent company had recently lost a ton of money on a bad investment involving golf courses, and that certainly put it in a fiscally conservative mood for a while. Either way, I don’t think the fault can be placed on the quality of the game. It’s as good as the first game was, with all that implies. A more polished experience that in shedding some of those rough edges loses some of its character, but a decent enough platforming romp. I was fully expecting this release to be in Ratalaika’s usual emulation wrapper, but much to my surprise there’s been an upgrade in the presentation. This feels a lot more tailor-made for the game, and in terms of both options and extras I think this is a far better experience overall. Box and manual scans, achievements, a gallery of sprite sheets, a jukebox, a bunch of cheats, and more. I frankly have no complaints at all about how the game plays and the suite of features here. The only nit I will pick is that you only get the Super NES version of the game here. I feel like the SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive version should have been included too, just to keep everyone happy. Those who enjoyed Aero The Acro-Bat should naturally give Aero The Acro-Bat 2 a shot. I even think those who were slightly put off by the first game’s quirks might have a better time here. I really have to commend Ratalaika for stepping up its game with the emulation wrapper for this release. Perhaps I’m being greedy, but I’d love to see the first game updated with a similar interface just for consistency. A fine release for Aero fans and those on the look out for 16-bit platformers to play, and one that makes me optimistic for the remaining reissues of this series. SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5 Metro Quester | Osaka ($19.99) I got quite a bit of enjoyment out of the original Metro Quester when it released a while back. It’s a bit of a bear to get into, but once you understand its rules and what you have to do, it’s an immensely satisfying dungeon-crawling turn-based RPG. Experimenting with party builds to try to find the optimal team was a task I truly enjoyed taking on. With that in mind, I was very happy to see that there was another game in the series coming. Metro Quester | Osaka feels a little more like an expansion pack than a proper sequel, but I’m more than happy with that given how much I got out of the original. The story here is a prequel to the original game, and we’ve moved to Osaka as a setting. You get a whole new dungeon to explore, and some new character types to do that exploring with. Osaka is a much wetter location, so you’ll need to use your canoe to travel over the water in places. With the new dungeon comes new weapons, skills, and enemies to deal with. Definitely more to chew on here for those who have wrung out the original game, and if you had a good time there then you will enjoy this one, too. That said, this game shares much of its broader mechanics with the original Metro Quester. If you need an explanation, please check out my review of that game for more details. Short version: turn-based combat, top-down dungeon exploration, and a whole lot of inching your way outward a little further each time before having to head back to camp. You know, the good stuff. Those who are careless will find themselves in hot water very quickly, as planning and cautious play is practically a necessity in this game. Those who found themselves fully absorbed in Metro Quester will find plenty to enjoy in Metro Quester | Osaka, and new players should probably just skip right to this game. It’s more of an expansion pack than a sequel, but that in no way should be taken as a bad thing. Rather, it just seems like the designer wanted to send players on another adventure that pushes out the existing systems in some fascinating ways. It’s certainly a game you’ll have to be patient with to get the most out of, but those willing to invest the time will enjoy the dividends. SwitchArcade Score: 4/5 Select New Releases NBA 2K25 ($59.99) NBA 2K is back… in 25 form! You know, I find myself wondering something. What happens to the name of this series when we hit the year 2100? NBA 2K100? Just feels weird. We’ll have to talk about that when the situation arises, I suppose. Apparently this year’s version has improved gameplay, a new feature called Neighborhood, and some nonsense about MyTEAM. I’m not going to pretend to know what’s going on here, so instead I will just toss out the amount of space you’ll need on your memory card for this game and then move on. Here we go. 53.3 GB! Shogun Showdown ($14.99) Got room in your heart for another riff on Darkest Dungeon? This one has a Japanese-inspired setting, and there are a few bits in here that change things up a little. Setting all of that aside, this is very much a familiar style of game and I think it’s a decent enough example of such to be of interest to those on the hunt for another one. Aero The Acro-Bat 2 ($5.99) Well, there’s a review up above this section, but in case you’re in the habit of skipping down the page, let me fill you in. This is the somewhat more polished sequel to the successful Aero The Acro-Bat, all done up in Ratalaika’s emulator wrapper. Said wrapper was given additional effort for this release, and it looks good! The version of the game included is the Super NES one, and you can play the North American release or the Japanese one. I wish the Genesis/Mega Drive version was in here, but I can’t imagine Aero fans being unhappy with this overall outside of that. Sunsoft is Back! Retro Game Selection ($9.99) Sunsoft is back! Okay, Sunsoft has been back for a while now, and you probably don’t need a trio of heretofore non-localized Famicom games to sell you on that. So instead let the games sell you on themselves, as you get a trio of unique and varied titles in this bunch. A side-scrolling action platformer, an adventure game, and an action-RPG of sorts. I reviewed this set a couple of days ago, so I advise checking that out if you need more details. Short version: if you like weird old games, this is a good pick-up. Sales (North American eShop, US Prices) Some fun stuff in the inbox today, including a really good price on the Cosmic Fantasy Collection. A little dear at its normal price, but at 40% off I think it is worth considering for retro RPG fans. I’ll also call out the enjoyable platformer Tinykin, which is at its lowest price yet. Have a good look through those lists and see what catches your eye. Select New Sales Zombie Army Trilogy ($8.74 from $34.99 until 9/12) Zombie Army 4: Dead War ($14.99 from $49.99 until 9/12) Wild Seas ($2.49 from $4.99 until 9/12) Chants of Sennaar ($14.99 from $19.99 until 9/13) The House of Da Vinci 3 ($4.99 from $9.99 until 9/13) Warhammer 40k: Boltgun ($15.39 from $21.99 until 9/13) Toziuha Night: Dracula’s Revenge ($1.99 from $4.99 until 9/16) Monkey Barrels ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/19) Banchou Tactics ($15.99 from $19.99 until 9/19) Transiruby ($10.49 from $14.99 until 9/19) Picontier ($19.99 from $24.99 until 9/19) Kamiko ($1.99 from $4.99 until 9/19) Fairune Collection ($3.99 from $9.99 until 9/19) Alchemic Dungeons DX ($3.19 from $7.99 until 9/19) Ninja Smasher! ($6.39 from $7.99 until 9/19) Ninja Striker! ($1.99 from $3.99 until 9/19) Great Ambition of the Slimes ($9.59 from $11.99 until 9/19) Shinobi Non Grata ($11.99 from $14.99 until 9/19) Let’s Build a Zoo ($7.99 from $19.99 until 9/20) Owlboy ($8.74 from $24.99 until 9/20) Hakuoki: Wind & Blossom ($44.99 from $49.99 until 9/20) Omen of Sorrow ($7.99 from $19.99 until 9/20) Dungeonoid 2 Awakening ($4.49 from $8.99 until 9/20) The Witcher 3 Wild Hunt CE ($23.99 from $59.99 until 9/22) Knights of Grayfang ($10.49 from $14.99 until 9/26) Gale of Windoria ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/26) Justice Chronicles ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/26) Armed Emeth ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/26) Jinshin ($10.49 from $14.99 until 9/26) Alphadia Genesis ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/26) Grace of Letoile ($10.49 from $14.99 until 9/26) Tinykin ($6.24 from $24.99 until 9/26) Despot’s Game ($4.99 from $19.99 until 9/26) Cosmic Fantasy Collection ($29.99 from $49.99 until 9/26) Cosmic Fantasy ($15.90 from $26.50 until 9/26) Cosmic Fantasy 2 ($15.90 from $26.50 until 9/26) Spirittea ($15.99 from $19.99 until 9/26) Punch Club 2: Fast Forward ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/26) Railway Empire 2 ($37.49 from $49.99 until 9/26) Lil’ Guardsman ($11.99 from $19.99 until 9/26) Potion Craft Alchemist Simulator ($11.99 from $19.99 until 9/26) Euphoria ($1.99 from $14.99 until 9/26) Of The Red, the Light, & Ayakashi ($25.06 from $50.13 until 9/26) Modern Combat Blackout ($1.99 from $7.99 until 9/26) The Friends of Ringo Ishikawa ($8.99 from $14.99 until 9/26) Arrest of a Stone Buddha ($8.99 from $14.99 until 9/26) Fading Afternoon ($16.99 from $19.99 until 9/26) Astor: Blade of the Monolith ($14.99 from $24.99 until 9/26) Tamarak Trail ($8.99 from $14.99 until 9/26) Rigid Force Redux ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/26) Yaga ($6.24 from $24.99 until 9/26) Rabi-Ribi ($13.99 from $19.99 until 9/26) Sales Ending This Weekend Dead in Vinland: True Viking ($2.79 from $27.99 until 9/7) Gunslugs ($4.79 from $7.99 until 9/7) Gunslugs 2 ($4.79 from $7.99 until 9/7) Heroes of Loot ($4.79 from $7.99 until 9/7) Heroes of Loot 2 ($5.99 from $9.99 until 9/7) Meganoid ($5.39 from $8.99 until 9/7) NOISZ re:||COLLECTION G ($19.99 from $24.99 until 9/7) Phoenotopia: Awakening ($6.99 from $19.99 until 9/7) Space Grunts ($8.39 from $13.99 until 9/7) Stardash ($5.99 from $9.99 until 9/7) Superhot ($9.99 from $24.99 until 9/7) Dormitory Love ($24.49 from $34.99 until 9/8) Dying Light: Definitive Edition ($9.99 from $49.99 until 9/8) Fur Squadron ($2.79 from $6.99 until 9/8) Tchia: Oleti Edition ($23.44 from $34.99 until 9/8) That’s all for today, this week, this month, this year, and forever, friends. I haven’t been very loud about this, but this is not only the end of the SwitchArcade Round-Up, but also of my eleven and a half years at TouchArcade. I’ll still be writing here and there at my blog at Post Game Content as well as putting up exclusive articles on my Patreon, but other than that I think I’m hanging up the ol’ webs on this specific kind of work. Twenty-six years in this end of the business is a good run, and I’m ready for new challenges. Do look for me at one of the aforementioned places, hit me up on BlueSky and say hi, and if you’re a fancy executive looking to hire a very seasoned writer, I’m your guy. With that said, I will extend the highest possible gratitude to all of TouchArcade’s readers for being with me on this leg of my life’s journey. I treasure all of you more than you can know. I wish you all the sincerest happiness in your lives, and forever and always – thanks for reading.

Welcome to this week’s edition of the Steam Deck Weekly. If you missed my Warhammer 40000: Space Marine 2 Steam …

Continue reading "Steam Deck Weekly: NBA 2K25, ARCO, ODDADA, DATE a LIVE Ren Dystopia, Star Trucker, Skull and Bones, & More Reviews With New Verified Games"

Welcome to this week’s edition of the Steam Deck Weekly. If you missed my Warhammer 40000: Space Marine 2 Steam Deck review, read it here. Today’s article focuses on Steam Deck impressions and reviews for many games I’ve been playing over the last few weeks with the Steam Deck Verified games and one notable set of discounts on right now. Steam Deck Game Reviews & Impressions NBA 2K25 Steam Deck Review While many scoff at yearly sports releases, I’ve always been a fan of 2K’s NBA games despite the issues. NBA 2K25 is notable for a few reasons. The first is that this is the first time since the PS5 generation began that the PC version of NBA 2K25 is actually the “Next Gen" version rather than being based on the older consoles. The second reason is that the official PC FAQ confirmed that NBA 2K25 is optimized for Steam Deck. While it doesn’t have an official rating from Valve yet, this was great to see. Now that I’ve played NBA 2K25 on Steam Deck and also both consoles thanks to review codes and buying a disc, I’m more than pleased with the game, but it has some of the usual issues you’d expect. If you’ve been playing NBA 2K on PC for a few years, the standout features of this year’s entry are the ProPLAY technology for improved gameplay which has only been on PS5 and Xbox Series X prior to NBA 2K25. WNBA also makes its PC debut with NBA 2K25 alongside the MyNBA mode. If you ended up skipping the last few years of NBA 2K games on PC in the hope of getting the full experience, NBA 2K25 is it for sure, and I hope it does well enough se we keep seeing not only the Next Gen version on PC, but also 2K doing good work on Steam Deck. On PC and Steam Deck, NBA 2K25 has 16:10 and 800p support which is already a good sign. Beyond that, it has AMD FSR 2, DLSS, and XeSS support, but I disabled this. I’ll get into why a bit later. You can also adjust v-sync, dynamic v-sync that targets 90fps during gameplay and 45fps outside that (including The City), toggle HDR (yes it works on Steam Deck), texture detail, overall quality, and two shader options. I recommend letting the game cache all the shaders on initial boot for the best possible experience during gameplay. For some reason, NBA 2K25 on Steam Deck does a quick shader cache on each boot. It isn’t too long but is notable. The NBA 2K25 PC graphics options have an advanced menu with many options including shader detail, shadow detail, player detail, crowd detail, NPC density, volumetric effects, reflections, era filters, global illumination, ambient occlusion, TAA, motion blur, depth of field, bloom, and max anisotropy. This is quite a feature packed PC port when it comes to settings. I left most on low or medium with turning off the upscaling since it made gameplay look a bit too blurry. The main settings I left at medium were player level and shader detail. I also capped the game to 60fps at 60hz using the Steam Deck quick access menu. This provided the best and most stable experience with better clarity than the defaults. Speaking of the default, if you don’t care about adjusting any settings, the game has a Steam Deck visual preset which works fine out of the box, but it looked a bit too blurry for my liking. This is what made me play around with the settings over the last few days. I was curious if NBA 2K25 is playable offline. I know many of the modes require an internet connection but what happens if you try booting up the game when not online? When trying this on my Steam Deck OLED in airplane mode with wifi turned off, the game booted up but didn’t let me load MyCAREER or MyTEAM. There’s a Connect option in the menu to retry connection, but I could get into quick play and eras fine while offline. I noticed some load times were quicker when offline as well. When looking at the console versions, NBA 2K25 is a much better experience than Steam Deck technically, but I find myself playing it more on Valve’s handheld after years of enjoying these games on Switch and more-recently on Steam Deck. The biggest differentiator is the load times. Even on my Steam Deck OLED’s internal SSD, NBA 2K25 doesn’t load as fast as PS5 or Xbox Series X. It isn’t as bad as older systems, but this was a notable difference. Beyond that, keep in mind that there is no crossplay for the PC version with both consoles. As with every recent NBA 2K, the microtransactions are still a problem. This is important if you want to play some of the modes that have a focus on them. If you just want to get this to have a great looking and playing basketball game, they might as well not exist, but keep that in mind when you make your purchase since NBA 2K25 is a $69.99 game on PC as opposed to being priced lower for the last few years. With NBA 2K25, the Steam Deck now delivers a fantastic portable basketball experience at feature parity with PS5 and Xbox Series X. With a bit of tweaking, it looks and runs great, and I’m glad to see 2K finally bring all the features to PC after many years. If you own a Steam Deck and were hoping for a good experience with NBA 2K25, 2K and Visual Concepts have delivered. Just be aware of the microtransactions in some of the game modes though. NBA 2K25 Steam Deck review score: 4/5 Gimmick! 2 Steam Deck Impressions If you’re not familiar with Gimmick! 2 yet, read Shaun’s review of the Switch version here. I was curious to see how it felt on Steam Deck. As of this writing, Gimmick! 2 hasn’t been tested by Valve, but it runs fine out of the box. In fact, it even has a mention of Steam Deck and Linux fixes in its newest patch. Gimmick! 2 is currently capped at 60fps on Steam Deck, and I even recommend forcing your Steam Deck screen to 60hz if you play on an OLED to avoid any jitter issues. There are no graphics options at all, but it does seem to support 16:10 display by default for the menus at least. When I forced the game to run at 1080p on the Steam Deck’s own screen, I wanted to make sure the game wasn’t stretching the visuals like some others do. I can confirm it indeed supports 16:10 properly after making sure of the aspect ratio of the UI and other elements. This only applies to menus though as the actual gameplay runs at 16:9. While I was hoping to see Gimmick! 2 support above 60fps, it isn’t a deal breaker or even close. I wouldn’t be surprised if this gets Steam Deck Verified soon because it runs perfectly out of the box. As for the game itself, I definitely agree with Shaun’s review linked above. I’m just glad to see Gimmick! 2 run so well out of the box on Steam Deck. Arco Steam Deck Mini Review Arco is a game I adored from the get go, but it felt like it was a few updates away from greatness. The dynamic turn-based RPG with pixel art visuals and a lovely story hit PC and Switch a few weeks ago, and it has gotten a major update on Steam already fixing most of my issues. As of this writing, the update isn’t live on Switch and I decided to review the Steam Deck version since that is the most up to date right now. When looking at Arco trailers, you might think it is just a nice looking tactical game. Well, it is a lot more than that, and the combat system is very interesting. In fact, the audio and story surprised me the most. Arco has you experiencing different stories with characters that have unique gameplay styles (in a way). While it is a turn-based affair, there are real-time elements. I saw someone call it Superhot meets a pixel art tactical RPG and I feel like that isn’t giving you the full picture, but it is a glimpse into the kind of blend of gameplay you can expect here. On Steam Deck, Arco ships Verified from the get go, and I had no issues playing it on both my Steam Decks. It is capped to 60fps as far as I can tell and has 16:9 support only. The current build on Steam Deck includes an assist mode (beta) letting you skip combat, get infinite dynamite, and more. These are good to have if you want to skip the combat, but I’m happiest about the option to skip the first act when replaying the game. On paper, Arco seemed like it would be very good, but I didn’t expect to love it as much as I do now. It feels dynamic across the board with superb visuals, music, and a lovely story. If you want an interesting tactical RPG with a memorable story, get Arco right now. There’s even a free demo you can try on Steam right now. Arco Steam Deck review score: 5/5 Skull and Bones Steam Deck Steam Deck Mini Review Skull and Bones is an interesting release to cover. It launched on PS5, Xbox Series X, and PC earlier this year, but wasn’t on Steam until just over a week ago. Having never played it before, I wasn’t sure what to expect aside from a friend of mine telling me he enjoyed it despite its many flaws on Xbox. I was also curious to see how it felt on Steam Deck as a current generation console title, but Ubisoft posting about it being playable gave me some hope. For this review, I’m focusing on the Steam Deck port more than the game. On Steam Deck, Skull and Bones has an official Valve rating of being Playable. On booting it up for the first time, you have to login to your Ubisoft Connect account and this process isn’t smooth because the interface feels sluggish. I was hoping it would just pick up my details since I logged into Ubisoft Connect for Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, but I had to do it again for Skull and Bones. Beyond that, the tutorial runs fine, but I wanted to get more stable performance. I set it to a 30fps frame rate limit and it runs at 16:10 and 800p. I opted for FSR 2 quality upscaling as well, though performance is more stable with the performance upscaling preset. I left everything else on low aside from textures which I set to high. I found this delivered a good experience overall. As for Skull and Bones as a game itself, I’m still early on since I’ve only played it for just over a week now, but I see the potential here. If Ubisoft keeps supporting it, it will be an easier recommendation. It is already a better experience than before looking at what was added in recent updates. Skull and Bones is a hard game to recommend at full price, but I do recommend checking out the free trial. I enjoy naval combat and open world Ubisoft games, and Skull and Bones with all its updates so far is good, but it has potential to be better. If you do plan on playing Skull and Bones on Steam Deck, keep in mind that it is an online only experience. I will likely grab it on console to also play there with cross progression. Skull and Bones Steam Deck review score: TBA ODDADA Steam Deck Review I love interactive toys like Townscaper because they are excellent at letting me spend a few minutes trying to create something cool. When ODDADA was announced, it felt like the next great interactive toy for me, and that’s exactly what it ended up being with a small caveat in its controls. ODDADA is not technically a game, but a music maker hybrid that feels like a game. The aesthetic reminds me of Windosill in a way, but it really is a gorgeous and elegant little toolbox with a plethora of ways for you to create something special. You interact with it using a mouse or touch controls on Steam Deck, and slowly progress through the different levels and instruments working your way to the end. The randomness element makes it so every creation sounds and feels different. On Steam Deck, I mentioned ODDADA has no controller support yet, but it runs perfectly at 90fps out of the box. There are a few graphics options like resolution, v-sync, and anti-aliasing toggles. You don’t need to worry much about settings in this one, but the text in the menu is a bit small for Steam Deck. Aside from the lack of controller support, I have nothing bad to say about ODDADA. I would argue that even with full controller support, it will play best with touch or mouse controls, but I know some folks prefer a controller across the board. If you enjoy music, art, or just want to make your own music with a lovely little game, ODDADA is for you. In its current state, ODDADA doesn’t have controller support, but it plays perfectly with touch controls on Steam Deck. The team is working on getting it Steam Deck Verified so keep that in mind if you plan on purchasing it now or later. ODDADA Steam Deck review score: 4.5/5 Star Trucker Steam Deck Mini Review Sometimes, a game is released blending two genres together in a way that might not satiate either fanbase. These situations can result in a game that doesn’t hit as hard for anyone, but there’s also a chance that it manages to capture a new audience. I feel like Star Trucker is one of those with how it tries to do automobile simulation and space exploration at once, but without going too deep into either of those genres. This one hasn’t been rated by Valve, but I didn’t have any issues playing it on Proton Experimental right now. Your aim in Star Trucker is to explore space, take on jobs, earn money, and unlock more to do on the massive galactic map. It includes many difficulty options and the ability to tweak things as you like before starting a new game. While I love the gameplay loop, the real highlights are the visuals, writing, and voiced banter on the radio. On PC and Steam Deck, Star Trucker lets you adjust video mode, resolution (16:10 support included), refresh rate, v-sync, graphics quality, render scale, shadow quality, temporal anti-aliasing, ambient occlusion, mesh detail, and light shafts. I opted to use a custom preset with low shadows but left everything else at normal. I also turned off temporal anti-aliasing. This was good enough for a 40fps or so target. I’m sure someone will find a better compromise in visuals for improved performance, but I was happy with this while playing. The major issues holding Star Trucker back are the controls that took me a good while to get used to. I hope these see some improvements in updates. Star Trucker surprised me with its blend of truck simulation and its setting in a way I didn’t think was possible. This feels like a game catering to what I enjoy a lot in automobile simulation and exploration games. While it might not be for everyone, I’ve enjoyed playing Star Trucker quite a bit ever since I got review code on Steam Deck. I hope the developers optimize it a bit more for Valve’s handheld though. Star Trucker Steam Deck review score: 4/5 DATE A LIVE: Ren Dystopia Steam Deck Mini Review Originally released in Japan on PS4 only back in 2020, Sting and Idea Factory’s DATE A LIVE: Ren Dystopia has made its way to the West only on Steam, and it is a great follow up to DATE A LIVE: Rio Reincarnation. If you’re not familiar with it, Date A Live is a light novels series from Koshi Tachibana with illustrations by Tsunako. DATE A LIVE: Rio Reincarnation was a great introduction to that world, and every fan of that release needs to play DATE A LIVE: Ren Dystopia. DATE A LIVE: Ren Dystopia has you playing as Shido who has a dream about a girl named Ren, and this is where the narrative begins with multiple paths and returning characters. There are many choices to make as you’d expect, and it is all accompanied by very good art from Tsunako. DATE A LIVE: Ren Dystopia feels more lighthearted across the board, and it serves as a perfect compliment and follow-up to DATE A LIVE: Rio Reincarnation. I’m just surprised it took this long to see it released in English. DATE A LIVE: Ren Dystopia runs perfectly on Stema Deck out of the box. I didn’t need to change anything. It has 16:9 support at 720p and plays all cut-scenes without issues out of the box. I recommend checking the system settings to ensure the confirm button is set to A and not B. Also make sure it isn’t stretching the 16:9 image to 16:10 in fullscreen mode. DATE A LIVE: Ren Dystopia is an easy recommendation for fans of DATE A LIVE: Rio Reincarnation with its lovely art, music, and memorable characters. I don’t recommend playing it before Rio Reincarnation though. DATE A LIVE: Ren Dystopia Steam Deck Review Score: 4/5 Total War: PHARAOH DYNASTIES Steam Deck Review Impressions I can’t recall the last time I’ve seen a free game update or re-launch get a new store page on Steam, but that’s what happened with Total War: PHARAOH DYNASTIES. When SEGA reached out asking if I wanted to try the update early, I figured it would just be early access to the update, but not a brand new app on Steam. I always thought Total War: PHARAOH was good and had potential, but it clearly wasn’t ready for a full price launch when it debuted. Fast forward to today, Total War: PHARAOH DYNASTIES is exactly what the original should’ve been, and it is an easy recommendation on PC, but the Steam Deck version has some caveats. Total War: PHARAOH DYNASTIES builds on the original by nearly doubling the main campaign content, adding in four new factions, the Dynasty system, and tons of improvements to existing areas of the game. If you already own Total War: PHARAOH, Total War: PHARAOH DYNASTIES will feel like a sequel in some ways, but also an enhanced re-release in others. It is a great game right now. On Steam Deck, Total War: PHARAOH DYNASTIES still doesn’t have controller support, but it is playable with the trackpad and touch controls. I’m still playing it on and off to see how it feels, but my initial impressions are very positive as someone who enjoyed the original Total War: PHARAOH but thought it needed more work. Pinball FX Steam Deck Impressions Shaun has been talking about Zen Studios’ Pinball FX series so much over the years, that I’ve always wanted to check it out on a handheld. I ended up getting some of the tables for older games on Switch before, but with the new digital version of the game simply titled Pinball FX out on Steam since last year, I was curious how it would play on Steam Deck. When the two new DLC tables were released, I downloaded the game on Steam Deck to see how it and the DLC tables felt. What surprised me the most is the PC port features, and how it plays on Steam Deck. I’ve not played every single DLC table so I can’t comment on how the game will run there, but having access to a lot of PC graphics options including proper HDR support on Steam Deck makes it hard to not recommend at least downloading the free client to see how you find it. As for the gameplay, I’ve played about 7 tables since getting the game, and I love this release. I’m looking forward to covering more of these tables in the future, but Pinball FX feels like a love letter to the world of pinball. While not a review, Pinball FX is absolutely worth your time on Steam Deck. Even if you don’t want to buy anything, I recommend grabbing the free to play version on Steam to access a few of the tables at no additional cost. This will let you see how the game looks and runs on Steam Deck as well as sampling a bit of the many tables available as paid DLC. New Steam Deck Verified & Playable games for the week I’m surprised Black Myth: Wukong is marked Unsupported and not Playable given it performs better than a lot of Verified games. I’m glad to see Hookah Haze and OneShot: World Machine Edition Verified this week. I’m looking forward to playing them both. Black Myth: Wukong – Unsupported (Read my review here showing it is playable) F1 Manager 2024 – Playable Hidden Through Time 2: Discovery – Playable Hookah Haze – Verified METAL SLUG ATTACK RELOADED – Verified OneShot: World Machine Edition – Verified Slash Quest – Verified Syberia – Verified Toree’s Panic Pack – Verified Volgarr the Viking II – Playable Steam Deck Game Sales, Discounts, and Specials Check out the Games from Croatia sale with discounts on the amazing Talos Principle series and much more this week. This sale is on until Monday morning. That’s all for this edition of the Steam Deck Weekly. As usual, you can read all our past and future Steam Deck coverage here. If you have any feedback for this feature or what else you’d like to see us do around the Steam Deck, let us know in the comments below. I hope you all have a great day, and thanks for reading.

Apple just announced October 2024’s new Apple Arcade games with NBA 2K25 Arcade Edition () as the headliner. Following yesterday’s …

Continue reading "‘NBA 2K25 Arcade Edition’ Headlines October 2024’s New Apple Arcade Releases With Three App Store Greats"

Apple just announced October 2024’s new Apple Arcade games with NBA 2K25 Arcade Edition () as the headliner. Following yesterday’s news about Balatro, Apple confirmed that NBA 2K25 Arcade Edition will release on October 3rd with three App Store Greats. NBA 2K25 Arcade Edition is notable because it marks the debut of The Neighborhood on iOS letting you explore the immersive world, outdoor streetball courts, NBA legends recruiting, a new badge system, and more with limited-time quests planned. Check out the NBA 2K25 Arcade Edition gameplay screenshot below: Alongside NBA 2K25 Arcade Edition, we have Smash Hit+, Furistas Cat Cafe+, and Food Truck Pup+ joining Apple Arcade as App Store Greats. I’ve only played the first of those before so I will be checking out the others assuming I can stop playing Balatro+. If you’d like to sign up to get the new games, check out NBA 2K25 Arcade Edition here on Apple Arcade. With Balatro+ and NBA 2K25 Arcade Edition this is definitely the best month in a while for the service. What do you think of the newly revealed Apple Arcade games?

Well here it is, friends. This will be the last of my retro game eShop lists, mostly because I am …

Continue reading "The 10 Best PlayStation 1 Games on Nintendo Switch – SwitchArcade Special"

Well here it is, friends. This will be the last of my retro game eShop lists, mostly because I am running out of retro consoles with a good variety of games to choose from. I’ve left one of the best for last, though: the PlayStation. Sony’s first whack at the ol’ console market succeeded beyond any expectations, and it’s little wonder it built a library so full of great games that we still see re-releases to this day. Sure, these games gave Nintendo a black eye a quarter of a century ago, but it’s all smiles now for everyone who can enjoy them on their platforms of choice. We’ve got ten of our favorites here, in no particular order of course. On with the PlaySta-Show! Klonoa: The Door to Phantomile – Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series ($39.99) Klonoa is a really great game that probably didn’t get as much attention as it deserved, but got enough that it didn’t go totally unnoticed. Probably one of the more successful 2.5D platformers on the console, even. You play as a little floppy-eared cat-creature who is navigating the world of dreams to stop a dangerous threat. Vibrant visuals, snappy gameplay, interesting bosses, and a surprisingly impactful story for what it is. The second game, originally released on PlayStation 2, isn’t quite as good as the first, but you have to get them as a set anyway. Final Fantasy VII ($15.99) This is one of the big ones, isn’t it? The Japanese RPG that finally woke the wider Western market up to the genre, Square Enix’s biggest success ever, and one of the main instruments of the PlayStation’s rocket to the top of the business. Sure, there is that remake of Final Fantasy VII out there, but I hope by now that people realize what that really is. If you want to play the original Final Fantasy VII story, you’ll have to risk getting your eye poked out on some sharp polygons. Still a very good game, and it’s not hard to see why so many people took to it the way they did. Metal Gear Solid – Master Collection Version ($19.99) Another very big name from the PlayStation, Metal Gear Solid dragged a franchise that was more or less dormant into the spotlight of a much bigger stage. The Metal Gear Solid series got a lot sillier over time, and perhaps started gazing into its own belly button a little too deeply. But it’s hard to argue with this first game, which feels less like a bizarre trip through Kojima’s philosophical musings and more like an episode of GI Joe. It doesn’t hurt that it’s a very fun game to play, either. And hey, if you enjoy it enough, both of the PlayStation 2 follow-ups are available on Switch too. G-Darius HD ($29.99) Alright, let’s venture into the weeds again just a little bit. G-Darius took Taito’s classic shoot ’em up series into 3D, and it’s amazing just how well it made that transition. Sure, those chunky rough-textured polygons haven’t aged as well as the sprites in the 2D games, but there’s a real charm to them. The vivid colors, enjoyable enemy-catching mechanic, and creative bosses make for one heck of a solid shooter. Chrono Cross: The Radical Dreamers Edition ($19.99) I could almost fill this entire list with Square Enix games, but I’m going to leave it with this one and Final Fantasy VII just to give other games a chance. Chrono Cross had an impossible job: follow up one of the most well-liked Japanese RPGs ever made. And no, it couldn’t quite manage that task. People today do not speak of Chrono Cross the way they do Chrono Trigger, and that’s fair. But pull it away from that comparison and you’ll find a really clever and gorgeous RPG with a huge cast of (admittedly poorly developed in the main) characters to recruit and play with. Also, one of the best video game soundtracks of all time. Feel free to @ me, I’m right. Mega Man X4 – Mega Man X Legacy Collection ($19.99) I love just about every Mega Man game to some extent, but I am well aware that my vision is clouded by bias stemming from a severe case of childhood nostalgia. As such, when it comes to recommending games in the series with clearer eyes, there are only a few games in each series I feel good about putting in the hands of non-fans. With the Mega Man X series, it’s just two games: Mega Man X and Mega Man X4. While I enjoyed the games between them, X4 just feels like it has itself put together better than most of its siblings. This was a short-lived slice of balance, because things went off the rails again with the next game. But hey, don’t take my word for it – buy the Legacy Collections and see for yourself! Tomba! Special Edition ($19.99) You know, there were a lot of games published by Sony as first-party releases that it ended up not owning. I always assumed Tomba was as much a first-party property as Crash Bandicoot was, but… oh wait, I guess it was. Anyway, Tomba! is a really interesting platformer. It incorporates a lot of adventure game elements, but the action is on point too. Just don’t forget that that creator of Tomba! is the same guy behind Ghosts ‘n Goblins. It might seem breezy at first, but it’s going to challenge you as it goes on. Very neat game, and I’m glad it’s available again. Grandia – Grandia HD Collection ($39.99) Okay, technically Grandia was a SEGA Saturn game first, but the PlayStation port was clearly used as the basis of this HD release so I’m putting it here. Grandia comes from many of the same people who made Lunar, and it channels much of its spirit. In a time period where many RPGs were taking heavy cues from Evangelion, Grandia dared to be a bright and cheerful adventure. It also has a very satisfying combat system that builds on what Game Arts was doing with the Lunar games in strong ways. The other game in this set isn’t too shabby either. Tomb Raider – Tomb Raider I-III Remastered Starring Lara Croft ($29.99) Another true icon of the PlayStation era, Lara Croft had five adventures on the PlayStation by the time the console reached its end. The quality varied from game to game, and some of them were stronger at some things and weaker at others. If you asked me to pick the best one, I think I’d have to go with the original. It was more focused on actual raiding of tombs and less on action, and I think that was putting the best foot forward as far as the Core Design period of the franchise went. But this is another chance to make up your own mind, because you get the first three games here whether you like it or not. moon ($18.99) Let’s finish up with a deeper cut. Originally only released in Japan, moon was something of a deconstruction of the contemporary RPG. Indeed, its creators refer to it as an anti-RPG. In practice, it’s more of an adventure game than anything else, and it is very… punk? Can I call it punk? There are parts of the game that aren’t very fun at all, but it’s also not trying to be fun all the time. There’s an interesting message to this game if you see it through, and I’m glad we finally got to see this come out in English. And that’s the list, friends. Are there any PlayStation 1 games you enjoy on the Switch? Feel free to sound off down in the comments and let us know what you’re thinking! It’s always interesting to hear the opinions of others on this kind of thing. I hope everyone has enjoyed this series of articles as much as I’ve enjoyed writing them. As always, thanks for reading!

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for September 5th, 2024. Thursday already, eh? Where does the time …

Continue reading "SwitchArcade Round-Up: Reviews Featuring ‘Emio – The Smiling Man’, Plus Today’s New Releases and Sales"

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for September 5th, 2024. Thursday already, eh? Where does the time go? We’re going in hard on the reviews again today. I have two for you, covering Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate. Our pal Mikhail chimes in today too, with his looks at Nour: Play With Your Food, Fate/stay night REMASTERED, and TOKYO CHRONOS & ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos TWIN PACK. We then move into the finest new releases of the day, then sweep up with the lists of new and expiring sales. Ah, Thursday. I shall miss you when it is Friday. Let’s go! Reviews & Mini-Views Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club ($49.99) It seems like the latest trend is making sequels to decades-dormant franchises. Video games, always trying to be like Hollywood. Nintendo has rather unpredictably decided to resurrect Famicom Detective Club, a series mainly known in the West through the “blink and you’ll miss it" remake of the first two games that came out on Switch a couple of years back. I feel like there may be a connection here. At any rate, for the first time this millennium we have a brand new Famicom Detective Club adventure! That’s nifty. The challenge with bringing back an old brand is in deciding how faithful to the original the new game should be. The risk of being too faithful is that the game could be seen as old-fashioned or out of date, but change too much and there’s a chance fans could be completely turned off. Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club leans more toward maintaining the style of the recent remakes, themselves hewing quite closely to the originals. It’s an odd blend, to be sure. The visuals are as good as anything you would see in similar games from modern times, and the story certainly pushes a little further than what the Nintendo of the 90s would have done even in Japan. But the gameplay feels very old-school, and I think that is a determining factor in whether or not you enjoy this game. A student is found dead with a paper bag over his head that has a smiling face on it. This digs up some old unsolved murders from eighteen years ago that featured a similar calling card, which raises all manner of questions. Then there is the urban legend about Emio, a killer who promises to give his victims an eternal smile. Has a previous killer resurfaced after all this time? Is it a copycat? Is there really any such thing as Emio? The cops are stumped, so it’s time to call in the Utsugi Detective Agency! Using the powers of going around to places and badgering people, you’ll do what the law enforcement was powerless to: find the truth! Basically, you’re searching around every scene for clues, talking to all of the people you meet (sometimes you need to press the issue and ask multiple times to get what you want), and trying to find the connections you’ll need to solve the case. Think of the sections of Ace Attorney outside of court and you’re not too far off the mark. Depending on how well you take to this kind of gameplay, you mind find parts of the game to be annoying or a slog. There are certainly bits I feel could have been handled more smoothly, and it feels like specific chains of logic needed just a little more signposting. Well, this is a Cat Hair Mustache genre, and I suppose by that standards Emio isn’t doing anything particularly egregious. And you know what? That’s where I’m going to leave it. I have some criticisms of the story, but I enjoyed it on the whole. It was engaging, twisty, and well-written. Some of the plot beats didn’t hit me the way it seems they hit others, but I can’t really talk about that in detail without ruining the story. And I really don’t want to do that, because this is a tale that is best experienced fresh. I liked more than I didn’t, and when it picks up it really picks up. Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club is not the sort of thing we typically see from Nintendo, but if there was any rust on the team it assuredly doesn’t show. It’s perhaps a little too adherent to the original games in its mechanics, and while the plot is mostly excellent there are some times where the pace falls off or things resolve in ways I didn’t find as satisfying as I would have ideally hoped for. Still, these are minor complaints for what is otherwise a thoroughly enjoyable mystery adventure. Welcome back, Detective Club. Don’t stay away so long this time. SwitchArcade Score: 4/5 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate ($29.99) We’re starting to get a nice little set of TMNT games on the Switch, aren’t we? You can enjoy the Konami classics in the Cowabunga Collection, get an incredible modern take on the arcade beat ’em up formula with Shredder’s Revenge, bring the modern arcade home in Wrath of the Mutants, and now satisfy your urge for something with a little more home console flavoring in Splintered Fate. There are a couple more on the way, too. We’re swimming in Turtles! With Turtles? Turtles, they’re everywhere. So how is this one? Not too shabby, actually. I mean, if you’ve played this on Apple Arcade then you know the deal, and if you’re reading this site then the odds are somewhat decent you have. But just in case, let’s go over the broad pitch. Basically, imagine taking a TMNT-style beat ’em up and blending it with Hades. Alright, that pretty much does it. You can go it alone in the usual roguelite style, or play with up to four players via local or online multiplayer. Mikhail and I did the online multiplayer thing together and it worked rather well, so that’s a good way to go. The game is fine when you’re on your own, but adding more people predictably improves the experience. That’s TMNT for you. Anyway, some kind of shenanigans occur with Shredder and a mysterious power. Splinter is in trouble, and the Turtles have to try to figure out how to save him. When all you have is a katana, every problem looks like a Foot Soldier. Slice, dice, and/or bludgeon whatever enemies come in front of you, dash tactically to avoid attacks, pick up some perks that you can enjoy in your current run, and collect another currency to score some permanent upgrades. If you die, it’s back to the lair to try again. Roguelite beat ’em up. But with the Turtles, so it’s automatically better than it would be without them. It isn’t particularly inspired, but it does its job well enough. I wouldn’t call Splintered Fate a must-have in general, but TMNT fans will probably enjoy this twist on the usual fare. The multiplayer is well-implemented, and it’s good to see that important TMNT element wasn’t passed over despite this being the kind of game that is usually played solo. Those without an affinity for the Turtles can find better roguelite games to play on the Switch, but with this being such an intensely competitive genre on the platform it’s to the credit of Splintered Fate that it can manage to keep pace at all. Not bad. SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5 Nour: Play With Your Food ($9.99) When Nour: Play With Your Food originally released on PC and PS5, I was a bit surprised to see it not also released on Switch and mobile. It felt like a perfect fit for touchscreens as an experimental food art experience. I played it on PC and liked it quite a bit, but this isn’t a traditional game for everyone. If you enjoy playful sandbox-like experiences and love food, you will likely find a lot to love in Nour: Play With Your Food, but the Switch version is a bit lacking. If you’re new to Nour: Play With Your Food, it has you playing with specific food types across different stages with interesting music and a lot of over the top nonsense (compliment). It feels like a combination of an interactive app made for those who love food and art equally. Initially, you only get access to the basics, but I found myself surprised at how much the developers added to let you literally play with your food as the name suggests. This is when I realized why it might not be as easy to play on a touchscreen. I am disappointed in the lack of touchscreen support on Switch though. Aside from that, Nour: Play With Your Food was a bit of a heavy game on Steam Deck as well, and you can see the cutbacks on Switch to have it run decently. The biggest issue is the load times being long both docked and handheld on Switch. Nour: Play With Your Food is worth experiencing if you love food, art, and interactive apps. While the Switch version isn’t the best way to experience it, Nour still feels best on a portable, and I hope it does well enough to get more DLC or even a physical release. We don’t see many releases like this in gaming, but games like Nour and Townscaper are the perfect compliment to more-involved RPGs and story-driven games. -Mikhail Madnani SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5 Fate/stay night REMASTERED ($29.99) Fate/stay night REMASTERED launched about a month ago on Nintendo Switch and Steam worldwide. I was hoping to have it covered sooner, but the month has been really busy and Fate/stay night itself is very long. Before covering the game itself, I want to take you on a bit of a journey. Many years ago, a close friend convinced me to watch Fate/Zero as one of the first few anime I watched from start to finish. Back then, I wanted to experience more from the universe, but there wasn’t really something interesting I could officially play in English. I ended up importing the PS Vita version of Fate/stay night Realta Nua just to own it, and since then have basically been playing whatever Fate-related release or Type Moon property we see in the West. This includes Fate/EXTELLA, Fate/Samurai Remnant, watching Fate/stay night, and even trying out Fate/Grand Order for a bit. All of that led to me being very glad that Aniplex brought over Witch on the Holy Night and Tsukihime‘s remake recently, but there was the one game I was hoping we’d see released in English somehow. I didn’t bother with fan translations, and kept hoping we’d see Fate/stay night in English. Here we are. It still feels unreal that this is in English and on Switch. But is it worth your time and money? Well I can save you some time and say absolutely on both fronts with a few caveats. Fate/stay night REMASTERED is a remaster of the 2004-released Type Moon visual novel covering the story of Emiya Shirou, the Holy Grail war, and more. This is basically the best entry point into the Fate universe, and I know there are many who have only experienced it through anime and other games so far, so this is now a chance to see the origin of the series as it was meant to be. Fate/stay night REMASTERED even with its few quality of life features is still a 55+ hour experience at least, and that makes the low asking price shocking. I get that this is a remaster of an older game, but the volume of text and work done really makes it one of the best value releases on the eShop this year. If you already played the original versions of Fate/stay night in Japanese, Fate/stay night REMASTERED does a lot to improve the experience. Obviously it adds English, but the 16:9 support is welcome. It also feels like a lot more work went into this than I initially expected. I’ve been playing a bit of the PS Vita release to compare, and the developers of this remaster have done a great job at making Fate/stay night look good on modern displays, but don’t expect the gorgeousness of Tsukihime‘s recent remake. While I love Fate/stay night itself, I’m glad that the developers actually put in touchscreen support on Nintendo Switch. I played most of Fate/stay night REMASTERED on my Switch Lite (which is sadly busted now) and then synced it to my Switch OLED to play at home and also docked. It feels perfect on Nintendo’s hybrid system. Hopefully it gets more platform releases in the future like iOS and PS5 so more can experience it. Speaking of more platforms, I also played a good amount of Fate/stay night REMASTERED on Steam Deck. It works perfectly out of the box. If you were wondering where to play Fate/stay night REMASTERED assuming you owned a Steam Deck or Switch, get it wherever you want but make sure you play it. It is that good. There’s nothing really holding Fate/stay night REMASTERED back right now aside from no physical release on Switch, and I hope it does well enough to get one in the future to go on my shelf with Witch on the Holy Night and Tsukihime. Fate/stay night REMASTERED is basically an essential for visual novel fans and I still can’t believe it is not only available in English, but also on both Switch and Steam. The low asking price makes it an even easier recommendation. While it may not look as good as Tsukihime‘s recent remake, Fate/stay night REMASTERED is still worth your time, and I’m glad I finally got to play it in English after all these years of owning the Japanese PS Vita release. -Mikhail Madnani SwitchArcade Score: 5/5 TOKYO CHRONOS & ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos TWIN PACK ($49.99) As someone who didn’t bother with VR outside of borrowing a PS VR headset on PS4 Pro years ago, I know I’ve ended up missing out on some great games. When looking at what my friends who own current VR headsets talk about, in addition to games like Thumper or Beat Saber, I used to see rumblings of TOKYO CHRONOS and ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos mentioned. Both were praised for their stories and also for being full experiences in VR. I never got to experience the stories until TOKYO CHRONOS & ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos TWIN PACK hit Switch through Izanagi Games just over a month ago. When you first boot up TOKYO CHRONOS & ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos TWIN PACK on Switch, you get to choose which game you want to play. The first game has you experiencing the story of high school friends in an alternate version of Shibuya, lost memories, killers, and more. If you’ve played many visual novels or adventure games, the narrative here will feel very predictable in parts, but it isn’t bad. It has good visuals and I feel like trying it out in VR after seeing how it feels on Switch just for the novelty of a full visual novel in VR. ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos on the other hand is a lot better with its production, music, writing, voice acting, and characters in general. It also goes beyond being a pure visual novel in parts, and I love when developers do this. Punching above your weight in a visual novel usually makes for a more memorable experience when coupled with important story beats. ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos is the standout of the two, but I think the pack is definitely worth buying if you’re ok with the controls and movement in the demo. Aside from some aspects of the stories not hitting as hard, the Switch version has some performance issues when it comes to camera movement. These aren’t a dealbreaker, but it is distracting having that happen during first person and other encounters. The rest of the Switch features more than make up for it though with touchscreen support (my favorite feature in adventure games) and good rumble. TOKYO CHRONOS & ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos TWIN PACK is a great experience on Nintendo Switch with its touch controls and rumble support added to make it even more immersive. I’m glad I got to finally experience these stories since I never owned a VR headset, and I hope to see more from this team in the future. If you enjoy sci-fi stories, I urge you to download the demo at least to see how this one feels on Switch. -Mikhail Madnani SwitchArcade Score: 4.5/5 Select New Releases Fitness Boxing feat. Hatsune Miku ($49.99) This might be the winner for the title that does the most clear and concise work in explaining a game’s content. At least for 2024, anyway. So yes, this is Fitness Boxing. Featuring Hatsune Miku. It has 24 songs from Miku and friends, plus 30 more from the Fitness Boxing series. Plenty of tunes to punch it out to, in other words. Mechanically, it looks like the other games in the series. No surprise there. Pick it up if you want a Fitness Boxing game featuring Hatsune Miku. Gimmick! 2 ($24.99) I reviewed this yesterday, but in case you missed that, allow me to bring you up to speed. This is a very faithful follow-up to the original cult favorite, building on its foundations a bit, bringing in a slick new presentation, and still as hard as that piece of a Subway pizza sub you lost under the sofa back in the 90s. If you don’t mind a challenge and enjoy clever platformers, you’ll want to check this one out. Touhou Danmaku Kagura Phantasia Lost ($29.99) Are you tired of switching between games based on whether you feel like playing a rhythm game or a bullet hell shoot ’em up? Touhou Danmaku Kagura Phantasia Lost is here to save you from the inconvenience! There are two modes in this game, and it kind of feels like peanut butter and chalk in some sense. But the Touhou theme ties them together, and for fans of the property I’m sure it will pass muster. At least you know the music will be good? EGGCONSOLE Hydlide MSX ($6.49) We’ve already seen one version of Hydlide release in EGGCONSOLE, but here’s another one for good measure. It came after the one we have, but before the NES one. It falls somewhere in between them as a result, and I suppose if you are a Hydlide super-fan then you’ll want to grab as many versions as they release. For everyone else, I’m not sure how much more you’ll get out of this MSX version if you already played the PC-8801 release. Arcade Archives Lead Angle ($7.99) Well, at least Hamster’s mixing it up a little. This is a 1988 Seibu Kaihatsu release, a follow-up to Empire City 1931. It’s one of those gallery shooters that were all the rage at the time, though I can say with some confidence that Lead Angle was not all the rage at the time. It’s a decent enough example of the genre though, so if you enjoy this sort of game you probably shouldn’t be too quick to push the plate away. Shooting gangsters! You don’t see that kind of theme all that often anymore either, come to think of it. Sales (North American eShop, US Prices) Not much excitement going on today, but No Man’s Sky is never a bad choice. The rest of the good games in the inbox are frequently on sale, so do what you will with them. Oddly, one could say the same about the outbox. I’ll leave all of that business to you today, as I don’t have any strong feelings on the matter. Select New Sales No Man’s Sky ($23.99 from $59.99 until 9/17) The Last Campfire ($1.99 from $14.99 until 9/17) XALADIA: Rise of the Space Pirates X2 ($8.09 from $17.99 until 9/18) Scars of Mars ($15.99 from $19.99 until 9/18) Die for Valhalla ($3.59 from $11.99 until 9/25) Moonlighter ($3.74 from $24.99 until 9/25) Thea: The Awakening ($5.39 from $17.99 until 9/25) Children of Morta ($5.49 from $21.99 until 9/25) Dungeon of the Endless ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/25) Yes, Your Grace ($2.99 from $19.99 until 9/25) Hypnospace Outlaw ($4.99 from $19.99 until 9/25) Nowhere Prophet ($2.49 from $24.99 until 9/25) Soccer Story ($7.99 from $19.99 until 9/25) Family Man ($1.99 from $19.99 until 9/25) South of the Circle ($6.49 from $12.99 until 9/25) Wingspan ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/25) Sales Ending Tomorrow, September 6th Ambition: A Minuet in Power ($4.99 from $9.99 until 9/6) Dance of Death: Du Lac & Fey ($2.39 from $15.99 until 9/6) Fear Effect Sedna ($1.99 from $19.99 until 9/6) Galak-Z The Void Deluxe ($2.99 from $14.99 until 9/6) Kingdom Rush ($5.49 from $9.99 until 9/6) Kingdom Rush Frontiers ($5.49 from $9.99 until 9/6) Kingdom Rush Origins ($8.24 from $14.99 until 9/6) My Time at Portia ($4.49 from $29.99 until 9/6) PowerWash Simulator ($17.49 from $24.99 until 9/6) Skulls of the Shogun ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/6) Suhoshin ($4.49 from $14.99 until 9/6) The House of Da Vinci 2 ($4.99 from $9.99 until 9/6) Ty the Tasmanian Tiger 4 ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/6) Ty the Tasmanian Tiger HD ($10.49 from $29.99 until 9/6) Violet Wisteria ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/6) What the Fork ($4.49 from $17.99 until 9/6) That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow to finish things up, with more reviews, new releases, and sales to look at. Hey, did you know? I have an at-the-moment dormant blog that is going to get active again soon. You can find it at Post Game Content. If you like reading Shaun’s thoughts on games, you’ll certainly find some there. I hope you all have a thrilling Thursday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Back in April, the Razer Nexus (Free) app on iOS and Android was updated with support added for an unannounced …

Continue reading "Razer Kishi Ultra Mobile Controller Review – The Best Mobile Controller in 2024?"

Back in April, the Razer Nexus (Free) app on iOS and Android was updated with support added for an unannounced “Razer Kishi Ultra" controller boasting features like analog stick deadzone customization and more. Since then, Razer has announced and released the Razer Kishi Ultra with support for more than just phones. The Razer Kishi Ultra is also the most expensive mobile controller as far as I’m aware, but it offers more features than expected for specific devices. Having used the Razer Kishi and the Backbone One including the new USB-C versions for years now, I didn’t think I needed a new controller, but the Razer Kishi Ultra changed my mind in a way the Hori Split Pad Pro did on Nintendo Switch a few years ago. Razer Kishi Ultra – what’s in the box The Razer Kishi Ultra box included the controller itself, a few sets of rubber cushions to use depending on your device, a sheet of stickers, and an instruction booklet. For the price point of $149.99, I expected to have a carrying case or at least a pouch included. Beyond that, the box and casing for the controller in the box are good quality as usual from Razer. The Razer Kishi Ultra rubber cushions come in pairs that are properly labeled for use with iPhone (Pair A), iPad Mini 6th generation (Pair B), and Android (Pair C). If you use a case, you don’t need to use any of these rubber cushions. Razer Kishi Ultra compatibility – iPhone, Cases, Android, and iPad Mini While most mobile controllers, especially the telescopic ones, only support iPhone and Android, the Razer Kishi Ultra also supports tablets like the iPad Mini 6th generation. We’ve also recently had some telescopic controllers ship with bluetooth support, but as for USB-C, this one seems to have some of the best compatibility. For the purpose of this review, I tested the Razer Kishi Ultra on my iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 14 Plus, and wired on my iPad Pro. I didn’t test on Android or Windows, but I did try it on my Steam Deck wired. It is detected as a generic Xbox gamepad, but it did work when I was playing NBA 2K25 on Steam Deck yesterday for review and it also supports decent rumble in games like Bakeru that I tested with. Razer Kishi Ultra buttons, d-pad, and triggers Before getting to the new features, how does the Razer Kishi Ultra actually feel and perform? I was a bit worried about the d-pad, but it ended up working great when I played games like Garou: Mark of the Wolves ACA NeoGeo or even newer ones like Hades and Hitman Blood Money Reprisal. Beyond the d-pad, the shoulder buttons and triggers work well just like Razer’s older controller. The analog sticks are comfortable and smooth to use with the face buttons being clicky albeit with more travel distance which I didn’t expect after the original Razer Kishi. Overall, I have no complaints with the Razer Kishi Ultra d-pad, buttons, or triggers after considerable use including some sessions lasting a few hours where I played Zenless Zone Zero while charging my phone through the passthrough charging here. In terms of feel, the textured finish isn’t rubbery, but it works well for a grip and remains very comfortable to hold even for a few hours. I don’t usually care for Chroma stuff on controllers, and just like the Razer Kitsune, I would’ve preferred if the lights could somehow match the gameplay on screen. Razer Kishi Ultra – new features The main draw of the Razer Kishi Ultra is the full-size form factor. Instead of feeling like a compact mobile controller as we’ve seen with Razer’s prior release or the Backbone One, the Razer Kishi Ultra is a full-size one that feels like you’re holding your phone in the middle of a good quality console controller. This may not be a plus for some looking for a compact solution, but it isn’t meant to be that. The full-size form factor makes this the comfiest mobile controller I’ve used by far. The other features are the Chroma customization through the app, haptics (for Android and Windows), and virtual controller mode (Android only). The virtual controller mode is good for Android games since we see some notable ones skip adding controller support outside iOS on mobile like Genshin Impact. Aside from the new features, the Razer Kishi Ultra has a 3.5mm headphone jack, passthrough charging (15W), and the L4 and R4 shoulder buttons. Razer Kishi Ultra features missing on iOS – haptics and virtual controller mode The haptics and virtual controller mode are only available on Android (or Windows as well for the former) and not available on iOS. I don’t really care about virtual controller mode, but I hope Razer can work on something to enable the haptics in some way for iOS devices as well. I love haptic feedback on PS5 and HD Rumble on Switch, so having something that tries to do similar things on iOS would be nice. Razer Kishi Ultra price point – is it worth it? I already think most folks are better off getting a PS5 or Xbox controller to play wirelessly on iOS as the best possible and cheaper option. If you do want a good controller that has a telescopic form factor and attaches onto your phone, the most popular options are already $99.99 so the Razer Kishi Ultra at $150 is definitely a more premium controller. Is it worth that much more? If you’re ok with the current Razer Kishi and Backbone One price point, this is definitely worth the extra price for the comfort, but the lack of the haptics makes it feel like a lesser experience on iOS compared to Android where you get the fully featured experience. It remains to be seen if the joysticks on this one don’t drift over time as well. Razer Kishi Ultra – the best mobile controller in 2024? If you’ve not read my review of Razer’s older controller, check it out here. Moving from that more compact form factor that I’ve gotten used to for years across Razer and Backbone products to this big one has been interesting. Just like the Hori Split Pad Pro for Nintendo Switch, I find myself wanting both a full-size controller and a more compact one for iPhone. The Razer Kishi Ultra is easily the comfiest mobile controller I’ve ever used, but I wish it was easier to travel with. I worry about how it might end up in my bag unless I carry it in the big box it ships with. I don’t know if the Razer Kishi Ultra will replace my normal Kishi or Backbone One when I travel, but I’m definitely only using it when I play at home. At the asking price, I was hoping for hall effect analog sticks though. I’ve had drift issues with multiple controllers over the years and while it hasn’t happened to the Razer Kishi Ultra yet (or the Razer Kishi itself), but I can’t say how things might be in a few more months. This is more of a thing to keep in mind when you buy it. Having now covered the Backbone One and Razer Kishi models, I definitely want to try out the GameSir lineup as they seem more than worth checking out. Hopefully in the near future. Razer Kishi Ultra 2 wishlist When thinking about what I’d like to see in an updated Razer Kishi Ultra, aside from hall effect sticks, I’d like some of the sharper edges like the passthrough charging port to be smoothed out a bit. Beyond that, while I love the L4 and R4 buttons as options, I vastly prefer having paddles on the bottom of the controller since they feel more natural to use. It would be good to have those as options given the premium price. Maybe even L5 and R5 as paddles on the bottom with remapping available in the Razer Nexus app. The final thing I want is a carrying case for this to come with the controller. When looking at the pro level controllers on console, they usually come with a nice hard case. Granted this one doesn’t cost as much as a DualSense Edge or Victrix Pro BFG, but it would be a nice addition to the package that wouldn’t cost too much. Razer Kishi Ultra review If you’re used to playing on traditional PS5 or Xbox Series controllers or basically any full-sized controller and don’t enjoy using the compact Joy-Con size buttons and sticks we usually see in mobile controllers, the Razer Kishi Ultra is perfect for you with its comfortable grip, great d-pad, and face buttons. The lack of full feature support on iOS is disappointing, but this is a great addition to the mobile controller space, and I hope Razer can build on this through the years while also offering a carrying case so I don’t have to worry about anything happening to this in my bag when I go out. Razer Kishi Ultra review score: 4.5/5 Amazon Link: Razer Kishi Ultra If you’re curious about the book in the header image, it is Andy Kelly’s upcoming book titled Perfect Organism: An Alien: Isolation Companion that I’m currently reading for review. You can pre-order it here. Disclaimer: TouchArcade may earn a small commission from purchases made using the affiliate links above.

In the latest look at retro game offerings on the Nintendo Switch, I’ve opted to take a different approach. You …

Continue reading "The 10 Best Game Boy Advance & Nintendo DS Games on Nintendo Switch – SwitchArcade Special"

In the latest look at retro game offerings on the Nintendo Switch, I’ve opted to take a different approach. You see, there aren’t quite so many distinct Game Boy Advance and Nintendo DS ports on the Switch as some other consoles. I know, it surprised me too! So they’re going to be sharing a list, much like how they shared a few years on retail shelves. While you can find plenty of great games from the Game Boy Advance in the Nintendo Switch Online app, we’re instead looking at those games that dare to exist in the wilds of the Switch eShop. We’ve got ten of our favorites here, four from the Game Boy Advance and six from the Nintendo DS. No particular order, of course. On with the show! Game Boy Advance Steel Empire (2004) – Over Horizon X Steel Empire ($14.99) We’ll start off with a decent little shoot ’em up, Steel Empire. While the original Genesis/Mega Drive version is the better game in my opinion, this isn’t a bad take at all. Worth playing just to compare with the other version, and it’s certainly a breezier experience in some ways. Steel Empire is a pretty cool game no matter how you play it, and it’s one that even those who don’t normally get into shooters tend to enjoy. Mega Man Zero – Mega Man Zero/ZX Legacy Collection ($29.99) While the Mega Man X series started to flounder on home consoles, the true successor to the Mega Man crown was rising up on the Game Boy Advance. Mega Man Zero is the start of an excellent series of side-scrolling action games, and one that perhaps didn’t figure out how to present what it wanted to do in the smoothest way. Those rough edges would get sanded off as the series went on, but the first game is where you want to start. Feel free to continue on from there. Mega Man Battle Network – Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection ($59.99) Yes, I’m double-dipping on Mega Man here. But I think it’s warranted here, because Mega Man Zero and Mega Man Battle Network are very different kinds of games, and both are very good at what they do. This one is an RPG with a unique battle system that manages to incorporate a bit of action to go with the more strategic elements. The core concept of this whole virtual world existing inside of electronic devices is a clever one, and the game doesn’t do things halfway with it. The returns diminished harder on this series than they did with Zero, but there’s plenty of fun to be had here. Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow – Castlevania Advance Collection ($19.99) Another collection where you’ll probably just want to run the whole board, but if I have to pick one best one it’s clearly Aria of Sorrow. When I’m in the right mood, I’d rather play this than even the amazing Symphony of the Night. The soul collecting system encourages grinding, and the gameplay is so fun that I don’t even mind that. Throw in an unusual setting and some fun secrets and you’ve got a real winner here. One of my favorite third-party Game Boy Advance games full-stop. Nintendo DS Shantae: Risky’s Revenge – Director’s Cut ($9.99) The original Shantae was something of a cult hit, but the low distribution numbers meant that relatively few people had a chance to play it. It was with the DSiWare release of Shantae: Risky’s Revenge that the Half-Genie Hero had a chance to make a bigger splash, and she certainly did that. Indeed, this established Shantae so well that she hasn’t missed a console generation since. This game kind of sits on a fuzzy line since it was sort of built from the ashes of a Game Boy Advance game that never released. Curiously, that game will be getting a release soon and might fit this list when it does. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy ($29.99) Look, if you’re really bothered about the lists being imbalanced, you could (and maybe should) count this as a Game Boy Advance game. That is the console where it originated after all, it just wasn’t localized at that time. Anyway, you probably know Ace Attorney. Fun adventure games that blend on-location investigations with overly dramatic court scenes. Goofy humor, but rather good stories. This first game completely knocks it out of the park, and while I might prefer later installments I wouldn’t be able to argue against anyone who said this was the best. Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective ($29.99) From the creator of Ace Attorney, Ghost Trick is just as well-written but has its own cool gameplay hook. You’re a ghost and need to use your abilities to save people, all with an eye to figuring out the truth behind your own untimely demise. This game is a complete wild ride and I recommend everyone play it from start to finish. It was a bit slept on in its original Nintendo DS form, and I’m glad to see Capcom hasn’t given up on it. Reward them for their tenacity. The World Ends With You: Final Remix ($49.99) The World Ends With You is, quite frankly, one of the top games on the Nintendo DS. Ideally, it’s the place where you should play the game. It’s just so tightly built around that hardware and its capabilities that none of the ports have been able to get just right. Still, time marches on. The Switch version of this game will do just fine if you don’t want to dig up a working Nintendo DS, and you really should play it somewhere. Why not here? A great game in just about every possible way. Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow – Castlevania Dominus Collection ($24.99) The Castlevania Dominus Collection just released not long ago, and it collects all of the Nintendo DS Castlevania games. This is another case where all of the games are worth playing, and I’m picking Dawn of Sorrow simply because having its gimmicky touch controls replaced with more fitting button controls makes for a significant improvement. But really, play all three of the Nintendo DS games in this collection. They’re all great in their own ways. Etrian Odyssey III HD – Etrian Odyssey Origins Collection ($79.99) This is another franchise that in some ways can’t exist easily outside of the DS/3DS ecosystem. But Atlus made a good attempt here, and I think the results are playable enough. Each of the Etrian Odyssey games stands alone, and they’re all pretty substantial RPGs. Etrian Odyssey III is the largest of the three, and while it’s more than a little wooly, it’s well-worth sinking your teeth into. And that’s the list, friends. Are there any Game Boy Advance or Nintendo DS games you enjoy on the Switch? Feel free to sound off down in the comments and let us know what you’re thinking! It’s always interesting to hear the opinions of others on this kind of thing. As always, thanks for reading!

Feral Interactive’s tease seemingly was about Total War: Empire from Creative Assembly and SEGA because the developer just announced that …

Continue reading "‘Total War: Empire’ Is Coming to iOS and Android This Fall From Feral Interactive"

Feral Interactive’s tease seemingly was about Total War: Empire from Creative Assembly and SEGA because the developer just announced that it will be coming to iOS and Android this Fall with release date and pricing to be announced shortly. Feral Interactive also confirmed that Total War: Empire will feature intuitive touch controls for phones and tablets, a redesigned UI, new quality of life improvements, and more. If you’ve not played it yet, Total War: Empire takes the franchise to the 18th century Age of Enlightenment and it is considered one of the best games in the series. Watch the Total War: Empire mobile iOS and Android announcement trailer below: Ahead of Total War: Empire hitting mobile this Fall, you can try it out on Steam right now in its definitive edition release here. Total War: Empire on mobile will also be the first time (on mobile) the series will feature real-time naval battles. I can’t wait to see how it looks and feels on modern iOS devices. I also hope we get news for all the DLC and pricing soon. Have you played Total War: Empire before and what do you think of the trailer today for its iOS and Android release?

Balatro from developer LocalThunk and publisher Playstack is finally coming to mobile later this month on iOS, Android, and also …

Continue reading "‘Balatro’ Is Coming to Apple Arcade and Also iOS as a Standalone Premium Release Beginning September 26th"

Balatro from developer LocalThunk and publisher Playstack is finally coming to mobile later this month on iOS, Android, and also directly on Apple Arcade. Yes, this will be a premium release on iOS and Android, but also one available as a “+" version on Apple Arcade from day one. The Poker-inspired roguelike Balatro has sold over 2 million units across PS5, Switch, Steam, PS4, and Xbox platforms in less than six months, and I can’t wait to see how it performs on mobile with more planned including a major free update in 2025 bringing new ideas and strategies. Balatro will be launching for $9.99 on mobile and you can watch the mobile announcement trailer ahead of its September 26th release date below: If you’ve not played Balatro yet, read my 5/5 review of it here on Switch and check out my feature on the best games of the year so far on Switch where I included it here. I also interviewed LocalThunk about the game, the mobile release, and more. Read that here. You can pre-order Balatro on the App Store for iOS here and pre-register for it on Android here. The Apple Arcade version is here. Have you played it before and will you be getting one of the best games of 2024 later this month on mobile?

It has been pointed out to me that perhaps I could be fairer to other Marvel games. I’m always covering …

Continue reading "Check Out The Latest Events In ‘Marvel Future Fight’ & ‘Marvel Contest of Champions’"

It has been pointed out to me that perhaps I could be fairer to other Marvel games. I’m always covering Marvel Snap (Free) whenever it gets any kind of update, but the others tend to get relegated to the Best Updates articles on Mondays. That… is a valid point! And thus, let us enjoy a Marvel Minute and see how other Marvel games are faring at the moment. It turns out that both Marvel Future Fight (Free) and Marvel Contest of Champions (Free) have some cool events going on at the moment. Let’s have a look-see! First up, over in Marvel Future Fight, it’s Iron Man time! You know Tony. He’s always concocting new suits, finding bigger and better guns to deal with whatever the situation presents. This particular event is inspired by Invincible Iron Man, and has some new threads for Tony and Pepper. Here’s what you can look forward to in this event, straight from the update notes: “Invincible Iron Man has joined Marvel Future Fight. Beat the enemies with upgraded suits! 1. New Uniforms Added! – Iron Man, Rescue 2. New Tier-4 Advancement! – War Machine, Hulkbuster 3. The New World Boss: Legend+ Added! – Returned the Black Order, ‘Corvus & Proxima’ 4. The New Custom Gear, ‘C.T.P. of Liberation’ Added! 5. Getting 200 Crystals Event – Obtain 200 crystals by linking your e-mail account!" Okay, now over to the ever-popular fighting game, Marvel Contest of Champions. New events for this game typically bring some new playable fighters with them, and at this point in the game’s life some of these cuts are getting very deep indeed. I don’t think we’ll ever see a Marvel fighting game again with a roster this varied. Like, Count Nefaria? Seriously? As an old-butt Marvel fan from a very long time ago, I like seeing these less common characters show up at all, let alone as playable characters. Over to the update notes to give you the full skinny on all of this: “NEW CHAMPIONS Count Nefaria Count Luchino Nefaria was the descendant of a long line of Italian noblemen, and used his wealth and connections to become a powerful leader within the Maggia crime syndicate. He furthered his rise to power by subjecting himself to scientific experiments that granted him superhuman abilities, but cost him his life. He was later resurrected as a being made entirely of Ionic energy, rendering him effectively immortal as long as he drains other Ionic beings to maintain his power. Shathra Daughter of the Elder Goddesses Oshtur and Gaea, Shathra comes from the world that would come to be known as Loomworld. Shathra was tasked with creating the Celestial Map of Humanity, however, after being outdone by her younger sister Neith, she became enraged with jealousy and spite towards her sister and the Great Web she had designed. Consumed by her vengeance and envy, Shathra gave into her feral nature to tear down everything her sister created, one Spider at a time. NEW QUESTS AND EVENTS Event Quest – Lupus In Fabula There has been an undertaking to overthrow The Collector’s ship! The Summoner is being called in to evict these evil-doers! But as they make it deeper into the ship they also find themselves deeper in trouble as each villain seems to be making their own plans for how best to make the most of The Collector’s treasures. Will The Summoner be able to manage these miscreants? Or will they go down with the ship? Find out in LUPUS IN FABULA! Side Quest – Ludum Maximus The Maestro has declared four months of celebratory games to honor his return. The festivities begin with the Circus Maximus, an onslaught of games and challenges hosted by Count Nefaria. The Count will not accept anything less than the best, the mightiest, the greatest of games. So dare to enter LUDUM MAXIMUS! Nefaria knows that a true battle is a mix of skill and luck, so 5x weekly Maps will open which present randomized Paths filled with fearsome foes! Act 9; Chapter 1 Glykhan has self-destructed but the sinister plotting of Ouroboros is far from over. However clues for where to head next seem few and far between. Luckily (depending on your definition of luck) Superior Kang has some secrets to share in the form of holo-tapes scattered around Battleworld. Mister Fantastic and Doctor Doom send The Summoner on an intel retrieval mission, but they aren’t the only ones looking for answers. Will the past come back to haunt The Battlerealm? Find out in Act 9 – Chapter 1: THE RECKONING Glorious Games Introducing our third Saga: Glorious Games! To celebrate the history of the Contest and his triumphant return, The Maestro has declared four months of celebratory games. Each month of the Saga will revolve around a different element of games, starting with September’s Circus Maximus and culminating in the celebration of December’s Grand Banquet! Featuring a classical antiquity aesthetic, an exciting Champion chase, surprise Champion reworks and brand new kinds of Events and Quests, Glorious Games is sure to usher in our 10-year anniversary celebration in style! Realm Events Get ready to work alongside every Summoner in the Battlerealm! Realm Events are a brand new type of Event in which points will be contributed on a global level. Milestone rewards can be claimed once global and individual point contribution thresholds have been reached. For those more competitively-inclined Summoners, ranked rewards will also be up for grabs, including an exclusive and unique player title." And that’s that. Let it never be said that Shaun was not interested in a level playing field. Kind of. Anyway, both of these events look very cool in their own ways, and if you haven’t played these games before or fell off a while back, this might be another good opportunity to give them both a try. I mean, I know I’m going to try out Count Nefaria. Look at him! He’s so nefarious! He cavorts with nefarious fellows! Hadouken? More like Ha-Don’t-ken! Okay, sorry. I’ll leave now. Enjoy!

Beginning today, Apple will have released one new Apple Vision Pro game, one App Store Great, and upgrading an App …

Continue reading "NFL Retro Bowl 25, Monster Train+, and Puzzle Sculpt Release Today on Apple Arcade Alongside Major Game Updates This Week"

Beginning today, Apple will have released one new Apple Vision Pro game, one App Store Great, and upgrading an App Store Great to an Apple Arcade Original (as a standalone release) alongside some notable udpates. NFL Retro Bowl 25 () (Edit: No longer an update) will let players create their own dynasty using official NFL teams and players featuring official retro art, attributes, stats, and contracts. Since this was announced, I was surprised at how much interest I saw for it online. I don’t follow the NFL much, but I didn’t expect as much of a positive reaction to the NFL Retro Bowl 25 announcement. Hopefully it ends up well when it goes live as an update later today. Alongside NFL Retro Bowl 25, App Store Great Monster Train+ has launched on Apple Arcade including The Last Divinity DLC from the get go. Check out a screenshot from NFL Retro Bowl 25 below: Puzzle Sculpt is a Vision Pro-only set to launch today on Apple Arcade letting players solve puzzles in their own living room by removing blocks to reveal a cute collectible in a cube. As for this week’s notable updates, Hello Kitty Island Adventure has the Jam Jamboree on with Petunias appearing in the Merry Meadow as a festive flower. Rabbids Multiverse has new cards, outfits, seasonal events, and quality of life improvements with this week’s update. Wylde Flowers has its Magical Creatures update now live with jewelry crafting, secrets in the lighthouse, and more. Disney Spellstruck adds Hercules with a limited time event, a high contrast event, and more. What the Car brings in yet another update with a “Meet the Developers" special, scissors, bear improvements (yes), and more. What do you think of this month’s new Apple Arcade additions? Update: It looks like they launched NFL Retro Bowl 25 as a new app and not an update.

After tackling the best party games on Switch in 2024, the recent release of Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom …

Continue reading "The Best Switch Visual Novels and Adventure Games in 2024 – From Fata Morgana and VA-11 Hall-A to Famicom Detective Club and Gnosia"

After tackling the best party games on Switch in 2024, the recent release of Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club being as amazing as it is pushed me to write about what I consider the best visual novels and adventure games on Switch to play right now. I’ve included both because some games are pure visual novels while some are adventure games (and not visual novels). This list has quite a few games from across regions and release years, and I hope you find something you end up loving here. As usual, this list is in no particular order. Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club ($49.99) + Famicom Detective Club: The Two-Case Collection When Nintendo not only remade both Famicom Detective Club games back in 2021, I couldn’t believe it. They were amazing adventure games, and my only complaint really was the lack of a physical release back then. Fast forward to 2024 and Nintendo has released Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club physically and digitally as a brand-new entry in the series, and I’ve been floored playing it. Not only does it feel like a true series entry which might be a negative to some, but this might be one of the most lavish productions I’ve seen in a game like this ever. I don’t want to get into spoilers, but the ending is shockingly good and it really justifies its M rating. I definitely didn’t expect to have a new Famicom Detective Club game in 2024 on my top games of the year list, but Nintendo managed to do that with Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club. Download the demo now. If you’d rather play the first two games before Emio, grab the Famicom Detective Club: The Two-Case Collection. If you are ok with some old school design and gameplay for adventure games, you will adore these. VA-11 Hall-A: Cyberpunk Bartender Action ($14.99) If you’ve been reading the few “best Switch games" lists I’ve been doing this year, you’ve seen me feature VA-11 Hall-A: Cyberpunk Bartender Action twice before already, but as you know, I’m not going to pass up an opportunity to write about one of my favorite games of all time. VA-11 Hall-A: Cyberpunk Bartender Action is notable for its story, music, aesthetic, and most-importantly the characters. Having played it multiple times over the years on every system, it also feels right at home on Switch, and is a game I recommend to everyone literally. I don’t care if you like point and click adventure games or not. Go ahead and mix drinks and then change some lives. The House in Fata Morgana: Dreams of the Revenants Edition ($39.99) The House in Fata Morgana: Dreams of the Revenants Edition is the definitive edition of one of my favorite stories in any medium. It includes the original game and much more to deliver a stunning version of a masterpiece in storytelling. This one is a pure visual novel, and I’m glad that after its many releases, it found a lot of success on Switch, where it plays best. If you want to play something that will stay with you for a long time, this gothic horror experience will do much more. It also happens to have some of the most incredible music ever. Coffee Talk Episode 1+2 ($12.99 + $14.99) Ok this one is cheating since the games are sold separately on the eShop and the physical releases I imported from Japan are also separate, but since there’s a bundle of both games sold in North America on Switch, I’ve included both Coffee Talk games as one entry here. I love them both, and while they didn’t hit the same highs as VA-11 Hall-A, Coffee Talk perfectly satiated what I wanted from a game set in a coffee shop, and delivered a very relaxing experience with a great story. If you enjoy coffee and listening to interesting people with great pixel art and music, this is for you. Type Moon’s visual novels: Tsukihime, Fate/stay night, and Mahoyo (Variable) This is another entry where I’m cheating. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to include just Tsukihime or Witch on the Holy Night (Mahoyo), but then the recent release of Fate/stay night Remastered made things even harder. Instead of worrying too much, I’ve included all three as essential visual novels in this article on Switch. They are all very long but very good. If you’ve wanted to sample a classic visual novel, go with Fate/stay night, but I recommend Tsukihime’s remake on Switch to everyone. Witch on the Holy Night is probably the game to play after these two in terms of quality. PARANORMASIGHT: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo ($19.99) Square Enix’s PARANORMASIGHT: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo reminds me of Nintendo’s Emio in a way that I’m surprised it even exists, let alone turned out this good. I went into it with no expectations, but was blown away by the narrative, its delivery, and even some wall breaking that I enjoyed quite a bit early on. Square Enix released one of the best mystery adventure games I’ve played with amazing characters, great art, and interesting mechanics here, and it is worth your time if you want a fantastic new horror adventure game. Gnosia ($24.99) People call Gnosia a sci-fi social deduction RPG, but it is more of an adventure and visual novel hybrid for me. Your aim here is identifying the Gnosia among a group using information you gather and then vote to put the Gnosia into cold sleep. You and your crew both improve over time, and aside from some RNG issues to get two specific outcomes, Gnosia was a fantastic experience. I liked it so much on Switch that I bought the physical release on both Switch and PS5 in addition to getting it on Steam. This one might not be for everyone, but it remains one of the nicest surprises in the genre. Steins;Gate Series (Variable) Spike Chunsoft’s Switch releases of the Steins;Gate series, especially Steins;Gate Elite, are as important as Fate/stay night when it comes to introducing newcomers to visual novels to the genre. While I still hope the publisher brings over the original version of Steins;Gate, Steins;Gate Elite is an easy recommendation for those who watch anime and want to get into a great visual novel. The Steins;Gate games are must plays only after you experience the original story in Steins;Gate Elite. I’ve cheated here as well by including multiple games, but my list my rules. AI: THE SOMNIUM FILES and nirvanA Initiative (Variable) AI: THE SOMNIUM FILES and nirvanA Initiative from Spike Chunsoft brought Zero Escape creator Kotaro Uchikoshi and No More Heroes character designer Yusuke Kozaki together for an incredible set of two adventure games that honestly feel too good to be true when it comes to the budget behind them with the quality they delivered on story, music, and characters. While a lot of folks lament the lack of Zero Escape on Switch, I think the two AI: THE SOMNIUM FILES games are absolutely worth experiencing at full price, and gems of the Switch library. Don’t make us wait too long for a new game in the series please. NEEDY STREAMER OVERLOAD ($19.99) When it comes to adventure games or visual novels, I’m often recommended games where a friend will say “trust me and just play it but don’t look up anything about it". One such game was NEEDY STREAMER OVERLOAD when I first played it on PC. It is an adventure game with multiple endings that can flip flop between disturbing horror and wholesome moments. It revolves around the daily life of a young girl trying to be the best streamer. I liked this one enough to pre-order the Switch limited edition from Japan, and I’m glad I did so. It is unforgettable. Ace Attorney Series (Variable) Capcom has now brought the entire Ace Attorney series to Switch with the Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney Trilogy (1,2,3), Apollo Justice Trilogy (4,5,6), The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles (1+2 of those), and the two Ace Attorney Investigations games in this week’s Ace Attorney Investigations Collection release. I would say there are no excuses now, but this adventure game series is beloved for a reason and it has spawned a fanbase that has lasted for years since the DS debut in the West. If you are new to the series, I recommend The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles as the best entry point even above the original trilogy which feels dated in ways. Either way, you can now play the entire series on one handheld, and I love that. Spirit Hunter: Death Mark, NG, and Death Mark II (Variable) Another series rather than a single game? Yes. Aksys Games and Experience Inc’s Spirit Hunter trilogy is now fully available on Switch, and it manages to blend horror adventure and visual novel elements with one of the most striking art styles I’ve ever seen. It is a bit harder to recommend this series given how grotesque some of the designs are, but I don’t think I’ll ever forget some of the images I’ve seen while playing the Spirit Hunter games with their excellent localizations and stories. I hope we see a new entry in the next few years. 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim ($59.99) 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim isn’t a pure adventure game, but one that has real-time strategy battles. I usually try and include a fantastic game at the end and the double whammy of not being a full adventure game and also being one of the best games I’ve played in a decade has me ending this feature on Vanillaware and Atlus’ sci-fi masterpiece 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim. I first played this on PS4 and enjoyed replaying it from start to finish on Switch thanks to the OLED screen in handheld mode. Regardless of where you play it, you need to experience 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim. If you made it this far, you’ve realized that this isn’t a top 10 but more, and the games are ones I recommend playing at full price. I didn’t want to cut out something I like a lot to hit an arbitrary number of games featured and that’s why I even included some full series here instead of just individual games. That’s my list of the best visual novels and adventure games on Switch to play in 2024. If you have a game you think I should’ve included, please let me know in the comments below. I’m always on the lookout for more amazing stories in two of my favorite genres that feel perfect on Switch. As always, thanks for reading! Note: I’m working on a separate list of otome games since there are too many good ones in that subgenre.

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for September 4th, 2024. The long summer has more or less …

Continue reading "SwitchArcade Round-Up: Reviews Featuring ‘Ace Attorney Investigations Collection’, Plus New Releases and Sales"

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for September 4th, 2024. The long summer has more or less come to an end. It was sometimes hot and uncomfortable, but we had some good times that are worth remembering. I’m a little older and a little wiser than I was at the start, and I’m grateful I got to make that journey with all of you. As we head into another new season in our lives, I just want to say that no matter what happens from here you were all the best summer pals a person could ask for. In today’s article? Tons of reviews! A few new releases! Some sales! Let’s get this done! Reviews & Mini-Views Ace Attorney Investigations Collection ($39.99) One thing I will say about the Nintendo Switch generation of gaming: it’s given us second chances at a lot of fish that got away from us in the past. Trials of Mana! Live A Live! The original Fire Emblem! And now, the one and only Ace Attorney game that remained unlocalized comes to us by way of the Ace Attorney Investigations Collection, a set including Miles Edgeworth’s two post-Trials & Tribulations adventures. One thing this series has proven good at is building on plot threads established in previous titles, and the second Ace Attorney Investigations title does this quite well. It’s one of those sequels that makes the original better in hindsight, and it’s amazing to finally have it officially in English. The Ace Attorney Investigations games, in focusing on Miles Edgeworth, show us how things look from the prosecution’s side of things. Outside of a couple of new gimmicks, things aren’t all that different mechanically. Search for clues, question witnesses, and try to crack each case. Still, the very different and rather cool presentation helps liven things up, and Edgeworth as a protagonist certainly lends the narration a particular feel. The pacing has less structure to it than the usual Ace Attorney games, and that can sometimes make some cases feel exhausting, but by and large I think anyone who enjoys the main games in the series will be happy with this sub-series. If you find the first game to be a bit of a drag, stick it through to the second. It’s a lot better, and as mentioned it makes some of the things you suffer through in the first game make more sense. In terms of bonuses, this feels more like the Apollo Justice set than it does the others. A gallery mode is on offer with art and music to enjoy, a story mode lets you chill out and let the game beat itself, and you have the option to switch between the original graphics/soundtrack and the fancy new stuff. There’s a dialog history you can access if you miss something that was said, which is something that should be a stock feature in games like this. I’m glad to see it. The two games in Ace Attorney Investigations Collection offer an interesting contrast, and taken as one whole I think it’s a great experience overall. Getting the second game localized officially is amazing, and the suite of options and extras make for an excellent package. With this, every Ace Attorney game outside of the weird crossover with Professor Layton is now available on the Switch. If you like the series enough to have picked those up, you’ll definitely want to grab this as well. SwitchArcade Score: 4.5/5 Gimmick! 2 ($24.99) It is enormously odd to see a sequel to Gimmick!. I just want to say that before moving on. One of Sunsoft’s later games for the NES, Gimmick! didn’t even manage to get a release in the West outside of Scandinavia. Here we are thirty years later, and not only is the original game more widely available than ever, we now have a follow-up. This game was developed by Bitwave Games with no involvement from the original creator, but it’s incredibly faithful to the original anyway. Maybe too faithful in ways for some tastes, but there’s nothing wrong with a first sequel hewing closer to the line than farther. Six very lengthy levels of challenging physics-based platforming await you here, and as with the original you’re going to be up against the wall pretty quickly. There’s an easier mode this time, however, so those who want a slightly less bumpy ride can opt for it. Indeed, if you want to play the normal (Gimmick) difficulty, you’ll have to pass a little test right off the hop. The way protagonist Yumetaro’s star attack works is quite familiar also, with it serving as weapon, vehicle, and all-purpose puzzle solver all at once. One new element comes in the form of collectibles, often serving as rewards for completing more difficult sections that aren’t necessary for progression. These take the form of new customization options, but simply completing the more demanding tasks feels good in and of itself. It’s not a terribly long game if you just try to bolt through the whole thing, but it’s going to be a tough one either way. In that respect, it’s also quite similar to the original. You’ll die a lot here, often in spectacularly stupid ways, but generous checkpointing keeps the aggravation from boiling over. Well, most of the time. The adorable look and lively music also try to keep the fire from burning too hot, but don’t for one second underestimate Gimmick! 2. For all of its small concessions, this game understands that part of what made the original game so memorable came from its challenge. Platforming mastery is a must, and you’ll need to make clever usage of Yumetaro’s star and the enemies to make it much farther than the first level. Gimmick! 2 defies the odds by being a very good follow-up to a decades-old game made by another team entirely. It builds on the original game in some smart ways, but it never feels like it’s paying too much homage to be its own thing. If you enjoyed the first game, you’ll be thrilled with this. Platformer fans who aren’t put off by a high level of challenge will also want to check it out. That said, if you’re looking for something easy-going, don’t be fooled by the look of Gimmick! 2. It’s just as tough of a nut to crack as its predecessor, even with an easier difficulty setting. SwitchArcade Score: 4.5/5 Valfaris: Mecha Therion ($19.99) Valfaris: Mecha Therion takes a real risk with its game design, dropping the action-platformer set-up of the original game in favor of shoot ’em up action along the lines of Lords of Thunder. The most surprising thing is that it kind of works. Indeed, the biggest problem is that it’s sometimes a bit too much for the Switch’s aging hardware to do proper justice to. I don’t think anyone can really be blamed here. This is just where we’re at in the console’s lifespan now, I think. It’s not terrible, mind you. If this is the only option you have, you’ll still get a kick out of Mecha Therion‘s intense action, rocking soundtrack, and creepy visuals. There’s a fun juggling act going on in Mecha Therion thanks to how the weapons are set up. You’ve got your usual gun, but when it runs out of energy it weakens significantly. You’ve got a melee weapon that you can use to slice bullets and enemies, which recharges your gun energy. Finally, there’s a rotating third weapon or item. You start off with a lock-on missile attack, but you’ll have access to others. You can also dash, an offensive and defensive maneuver depending on the situation, and it has its own cooldown. With how many enemies and obstacles the game throws at you, mastering the rhythm of keeping your weapons ready and fending off shots is essential and satisfying. Don’t come into Valfaris: Mecha Therion expecting a similar kind of game as the first, but you can look forward to a similar vibe. It’s a heavy metal shoot ’em up with a style all its own, and it thankfully avoids many of the traps that so many games that try something different in this genre end up falling into. You’ll get better performance on other platforms, and in this genre that’s important, but this Switch conversion will absolutely do the job should it be your console of choice. SwitchArcade Score: 4/5 Umamusume: Pretty Derby – Party Dash ($44.99) Saying a licensed game is for the fans feels like a truism. Of course it’s for the fans. Some do a better job of pleasing that bunch than others, but typically speaking fans of the property used in a licensed game will get more out of it than non-fans. Which boils all of this down to two main questions. First, just how much fan service is baked in? In Umamusume: Pretty Derby – Party Dash, I can say that there is enough to please those who enjoy the exploits of these horse-girls. Indeed, I think that is the one thing the game does best. The writing is good and fits the property, and there are lots of meta-systems built in that reward you with things for the fans. The second question pertains to whether or not there is anything here for non-fans. Regrettably, I can’t be as positive here. You get a small number of half-baked mini-games to play, and while the presentation is solid there just isn’t much to do here if you aren’t really into Umamusume. You just play the same four mini-games again and again, watching a story unfold that only fans are going to properly enjoy. One of those mini-games offers so little interaction that I hesitate to even count it. The other three are better, but they just don’t have the staying power that a party game needs. The best part of all of this is an unlockable mini-game, and even that is a meager meal. Even for fans of the property, Umamusume: Pretty Derby – Party Dash feels like it emphasizes the wrong things at great expense. I think a great job has been done here in terms of serving the look, sound, and world of Umamusume, and the wide array of unlockables might be enough to keep those dedicated to the horse-girls interested for a while. But it fades far too fast, and if you’re lacking that attachment to start with, you’re probably going get tired of this well before the final furlong. SwitchArcade Score: 3/5 Sunsoft is Back! Retro Game Selection ($9.99) I think when Western game enthusiasts think of Sunsoft, if they think of Sunsoft at all, they probably think of games like Blaster Master, Batman, or Fester’s Quest. Recently some of the publisher’s rarer treasures have gotten a new shot at fame, bringing Ufouria, Gimmick!, and Trip World into the light. Even short-term mascot Aero the Acro-Bat and his buddies are getting play again. But there is a whole other side to Sunsoft that is less well-known in the West, and what makes it amusing is that it is what the company is mainly known for in its home country of Japan: charmingly rough-around-the-edges 8-bit games. Sunsoft is Back! Retro Game Selection aims to change that, offering up three such games in one very reasonably priced package. In this collection, you get the straightforward side-scrolling platforming of Firework Thrower Kantaro’s 53 Stations of the Tokaido (just rolls off the tongue, don’t it?), the adventure game Ripple Island, and the slightly hard to categorize action game The Wing of Madoola. All three games are delivered in a wrapper with most of the basic features you would want. That includes save states, rewind, some display options, manual scans, and a little art gallery for each game. Perhaps the most amazing thing is that all three games have been fully localized, all the way down to their title screens. For Ripple Island, that was no small task! This is the first time we’ve seen these games get an official release in English, and that’s worth celebrating on its own. So how are the games? A real mix, friends. 53 Stations is a frustrating game due to how your weapon is awkward to use against the swarms of enemies that appear, but there is a real charm to it thanks to how hard it leans into its theme. Ripple Island is a good adventure game, and I would lightly recommend it to anyone who enjoys that genre. The Wing of Madoola is the most ambitious game of the three, and it sometimes feels like it misses as often as it hits, but it’s worth putting some time into. None of these will make the list of top NES games by any means, but I wouldn’t call any of them bad either. Vexing, perhaps. Sunsoft fans and those who like digging into the margins of console libraries will get a real kick out of Sunsoft is Back! Retro Game Selection‘s offerings. Each game has been handled with care, and it’s great to see some games that missed their shot at localization back in the day finally get a chance. Hopefully this is just the first of a series of such collections, but even if this is all we get, it’s nice to see another side of this once-mighty publisher’s library of classics. SwitchArcade Score: 4/5 Select New Releases Cyborg Force ($9.95) If you like run, but also gun while running, you might want to give Cyborg Force a look. It’s a very tough action game in the vein of things like Metal Slug and Contra, and you can play alone or bring a buddy along for some local multiplayer fun. This has been out for at least a few months on a number of other platforms, including the NEOGEO, so you can probably find some feedback out there if you’re in need of it. I think fans of this genre will be into it, at the very least. Billy’s Game Show ($7.99) I know, this looks like a Five Nights rip-off at a glance. Thematically, it kind of is. But this is actually more one of those games where you’re moving around trying to find stuff while a weird creep stalks you. You have to hide or run away when he shows up, because you have no way to stop him. You’ll also need to watch out for traps and keep the three generators running, because you do not want the power to go out. Not my kind of thing, but it might be yours. Mining Mechs ($4.99) A very descriptive title that doesn’t leave me with much to add. Use mechs to do some mining. Collect ores and treasures, sell them, buy upgrades or better mechs that allow you to make even further progress underground. The deeper you go, the more dangerous it gets. As you reach certain profit levels, the story will progress. Not the fanciest of dining, but for a fiver I imagine you’ll get a fair amount of enjoyment from it. Sales (North American eShop, US Prices) A tiny inbox, with very little worth getting fussed about. I know, I know. I don’t get to decide that. The outbox has some treats worth mulling over, however. I’ll let you comb through those lists. It is important to learn to find things on one’s own sometimes, I think. Select New Sales Nora: The Wannabe Alchemist ($1.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Deflector ($1.99 from $22.99 until 9/10) Sky Caravan ($1.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) The Blind Prophet ($1.99 from $24.99 until 9/10) They Know ($1.99 from $6.99 until 9/10) Conjured Through Death ($4.49 from $14.99 until 9/15) Dark Days ($1.99 from $7.99 until 9/24) Another Bar Game ($3.89 from $5.99 until 9/24) Cook Serve Delicious ($4.41 from $12.99 until 9/24) Blood Will Be Spilled ($2.99 from $14.99 until 9/24) Feudal Alloy ($3.39 from $16.99 until 9/24) Sales Ending Tomorrow, September 5th Adventure Bar Story ($15.99 from $19.99 until 9/5) Akiba’s Trip: Undead & Undressed ($14.99 from $29.99 until 9/5) Anomaly Agent ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/5) Avenging Spirit ($2.99 from $5.99 until 9/5) Bug & Seek ($11.24 from $14.99 until 9/5) Burst Hero ($5.99 from $11.99 until 9/5) Cat Quest II ($3.74 from $14.99 until 9/5) Corpse Party ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/5) Deadcraft ($5.99 from $19.99 until 9/5) Dice Make 10! ($3.59 from $3.99 until 9/5) Eldgear ($12.99 from $19.99 until 9/5) Evil God Korone ($3.35 from $3.95 until 9/5) F1 Manager 2024 ($27.99 from $34.99 until 9/5) Fairy Elements ($8.99 from $14.99 until 9/5) Freedom Planet 2 ($18.74 from $24.99 until 9/5) Genso Chronicles ($9.74 from $14.99 until 9/5) Gibbon: Beyond the Trees ($1.99 from $14.99 until 9/5) Hide & Dance! ($2.49 from $4.99 until 9/5) Magical Drop VI ($14.99 from $29.99 until 9/5) Marchen Forest ($6.99 from $34.99 until 9/5) Mom Hid My Game! ($2.49 from $4.99 until 9/5) Mom Hid My Game! 2 ($2.49 from $4.99 until 9/5) My Brother Ate My Pudding! ($2.49 from $4.99 until 9/5) Port Royale 4 ($17.49 from $49.99 until 9/5) SCHiM ($17.49 from $24.99 until 9/5) Silent Hope ($13.99 from $39.99 until 9/5) Super Toy Cars Offroad ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/5) The Sinking City ($5.99 from $49.99 until 9/5) Untitled Goose Game ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/5) Wing of Darkness ($5.99 from $29.99 until 9/5) WitchSpring R ($35.99 from $39.99 until 9/5) Yggdra Union: WNFA ($19.99 from $24.99 until 9/5) That’s all for today, friends. There are still more reviews coming this week, so do look forward to those. Plenty of new releases coming to the eShop in the next couple of days, which is about what you would expect from September. Let’s try to reconvene tomorrow, but if we get separated somehow and are trying to find me, you can always head on over to my personal blog Post Game Content. It’s rarely updated, but something tells me I’ll be back into the swing of it soon. I hope you all have an amazing Wednesday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Let’s dive in earlier this month to make up for last month’s slightly late edition. A new month and season …

Continue reading "The Best ‘Marvel Snap’ Meta Decks – September 2024 Edition"

Let’s dive in earlier this month to make up for last month’s slightly late edition. A new month and season is upon us, and I’m ready to help you out with some deck-building advice to keep you competitive in Marvel Snap (Free). Truth be told, I feel like the game got into a decently balanced zone over the course of the last month. A new season means new cards though, so it’s all about to go topsy-turvy again. Let’s do our best to figure out where things are going, shall we? Remember as ever: today’s winning deck could be tomorrow’s crunchy brown leaves. These guides are one way to keep your finger on the pulse of the scene, but they aren’t the only method you should be using. Note that most of these decks are the best of the best at this point in time. They assume you have access to a full range of cards. I’ll once again be including the five strongest Marvel Snap decks of the moment, and I’ll throw in a couple more decks that don’t need things that are too hard to get and are just sort of fun to play with. You know, a little variety and all of that. I would go as far as to say that most of the Young Avengers cards didn’t really make a big splash. Kate Bishop hit her mark, as she is wont to, and Marvel Boy definitely made a difference for fans of 1-Cost Kazoo decks, but the rest were kind of all over the place. You’ll see them here and there, but they haven’t shaken things up yet. I can’t say the same for the freshly launched Amazing Spider-Season, as it looks like it and the new Activate ability are coming in like a wrecking ball. Next month is going to look very, very different, I’m certain. Kazar and Gilgamesh Included Cards: Ant-Man, Nebula, Squirrel Girl, Dazzler, Kate Bishop, Marvel Boy, Caeira, Shanna, Kazar, Blue Marvel, Gilgamesh, Mockingbird So it has come to this, eh? Never thought I would see the day when Kazoo was among the top decks, but the Young Avengers have made it happen. At its heart, this is a very familiar deck. Get a bunch of low cost cards out there and then buff them with Kazar and Blue Marvel. The new tricks here are Marvel Boy adding more buffs and Gilgamesh benefiting big-time from all of that. Kate Bishop and her arrows can help fill spaces for Dazzler if needed, and her arrows will help bring down the cost of your other heavy hitter, Mockingbird. A very nice deck with strong performance. We’ll see if it can hang in there. Silver Surfer Still Never Dies, Part II Included Cards: Nova, Forge, Cassandra Nova, Brood, Silver Surfer, Killmonger, Hope Summers, Nocturne, Sebastian Shaw, Copycat, Absorbing Man, Gwenpool Silver Surfer is still flying high, with a few tweaks to react to balance changes and new cards. If you’ve been playing a while, you know how this goes. You’ve got the classic Nova/Killmonger pair for boosting your cards a bit once you have some out there. Forge ideally boosts Brood so that its clones will be stronger. Gwenpool boosts cards in your hand, Shaw gets beefier as he gets buffed, Hope lets you get more Energy, Cassandra Nova grabs power from your opponent, and the Surfer/Absorbing Man combo is there finish things off in style. Copycat steals Red Guardian’s spot, as she has proven an extremely useful general-purpose tool. Spectrum and Man-Thing Ongoing Included Cards: Wasp, Ant-Man, Howard the Duck, Armor, US Agent, Lizard, Captain America, Cosmo, Luke Cage, Ms. Marvel, Man-Thing, Spectrum Even the Ongoing archetype is up here at the top, which is another interesting outcome. You’ve got some generally useful cards here, all with Ongoing abilities. That means Spectrum will give them a nice final turn buff. The Luke Cage/Man-Thing combo is also a very nice one, and Luke will even protect your cards from US Agent’s powerful effect. The other good point of this deck is that it’s pretty easy to play, and I have a feeling Cosmo is going to become even more useful than he already was with things going the way they are. Discard Dracula Included Cards: Blade, Morbius, The Collector, Swarm, Colleen Wing, Moon Knight, Corvus Glaive, Lady Sif, Dracula, Proxima Midnight, MODOK, Apocalypse The classics are the order of the day right now, is the theme. Here’s the very reliable Apocalypse-flavor Discard deck, with the only real change from the standard being the presence of Moon Knight. He got better after his buff. Anyway, your big cards here are Morbius and Dracula, and if everything goes well you’ll end up with nothing more in your hand than Apocalypse on that last round. Dracula will eat him, you’ll get a Mega-Drac, and Morbius should be morbing all over the place with all that discarding you’ve been doing. Collector might even be a bit cheeky if you go to town on Swarms enough. Destroy Included Cards: Deadpool, Niko Minoru, X-23, Carnage, Wolverine, Killmonger, Deathlok, Attuma, Nimrod, Knull, Death Yes, it’s the Destroy deck. Very, very close to the traditional one even. Attuma has grabbed a spot here thanks to his recent change. A very successful buff, that one. Destroy Deadpool and Wolverine as much as possible, get extra energy with X-23, finish up with a nice Nimrod swarm or drop Knull if you’re feeling cute. Weird to see this kind of deck without Arnim Zola, but counter-measures are getting too common these days I suppose. And now, a couple of fun decks for those still climbing up the collection ladder or who simply want to try something different. Darkhawk Is Back (Did He Ever Leave?) Included Cards: The Hood, Spider-Ham, Korg, Niko Minoru, Cassandra Nova, Moon Knight, Rockslide, Viper, Proxima Midnight, Darkhawk, Blackbolt, Stature I have always liked Darkhawk, despite him being unspeakably goofy from virtually his first appearance. So I’m glad he’s a competitive card in Marvel Snap, to the point that I like to tinker around with decks using him. This one has the classic combos, with Korg and Rockslide adding cards to your opponent’s deck. It also has some spoiler cards like Spider-Ham and Cassandra Nova, plus a couple of cards that will cause your opponent to discard and make Stature cheap to play. Yay, Dorkhawk! Budget Kazar Included Cards: Ant-Man, Elektra, Ice Man, Nightcrawler, Armor, Mister Fantastic, Cosmo, Kazar, Namor, Blue Marvel, Klaw, Onslaught If that Kazar deck up there looks nice but you’re just starting out, you might as well practice with this beginner-friendly variant. No, it probably won’t win as reliably as the fancy version. But it will teach you how this kind of combo works, and that’s valuable experience. You still get that nice Kazar and Blue Marvel mix, with a flavorful Onslaught on top to spike the football. And that’s it for this month’s deck guide. With the latest season and whatever balance changes Second Dinner opts to make during the course of the month, I’m sure things will look quite different come October. That Activate ability really changes up the flow of games, and Symbiote Spider-Man is looking to be a complete beast. As ever, it’s also going to be interesting to see what cards and decks Second Dinner feels like addressing with balance changes. It’s interesting to see the classics on top again, but I can’t imagine it will stay that way. For now… happy snapping!

Mobile games don’t have to make sense, as evidenced by the enduring popularity of a franchise that sees players catapulting …

Continue reading "‘Foxy’s Football Islands’ Offers Up Something Very Different on Mobile"

Mobile games don’t have to make sense, as evidenced by the enduring popularity of a franchise that sees players catapulting birds (which can fly) at pigs (green). But even in the topsy-turvy world of mobile game concepts, Foxy’s Football Islands is gloriously out on a limb. The hypercasual gameplay spans a number of different genres, including football, building, collection, and multiplayer tit-for-tat. These genres aren’t natural bedfellows, any more than a fox is an obvious choice for a football game, but it all works like a dream. Here’s how it all works. Your first port of call is an island called Aztlan, a lush green habitat dotted with palm trees and building sites. Tap on one of these sites and you’ll begin construction on a building. Once that building is finished, you can tap again to upgrade it, and again, and again, all over the island, until every building has reached its final form. Then you move to the next island, earning stars that determine your place on the leaderboards. But hold up. It’s not that simple. Construction is an expensive business, and you’ll need to keep filling your coffers with gold coins to finance the work. And what’s the easiest way to earn coins fast? That’s right: by playing football. The soccer part of Foxy’s Football Islands sees you taking shots at a goal – or, more specifically, at targets nested within a goal. To take a shot, you slide your finger up the screen in the direction of the target. Unless, that is, there’s wind over the pitch, in which case you have to adjust for the gusts. Some targets move, too, requiring you to lead your shots. Hitting a target can have a number of different results, the most common of which is a great cascade of coins. The size of this cascade depends on the amount you stake. While a basic shot uses up one unit of energy (more on that later) it’s possible to double or treble the ante in exchange for proportionately greater rewards – as long as you don’t miss. You’ll also get to attack another player’s island, either at random or in a targeted fashion, destroying one of their buildings and setting them back in their quest to overtake you on the leaderboards. Sometimes you’ll bring up a moving target, opening the way for a major payday, and on other occasions you’ll obtain a special glove that lets you block a single attack on your own island. There are familiar elements in Foxy’s Football Islands, including an energy system that limits the number of shots you can take (unless you pay for more), gems for buying coins, a tiered upgrade system, and so on. But it’s the way the game manages to bring together a vast range of different genres that really helps Foxy’s Football Islands really stand out. One minute you’re enjoying a physics-based football game, and then next you’re expanding your territory by ploughing coins into the construction of an Aztec pyramid or an Ancient Egyptian monument. The multiplayer is equally varied, combining the extremely devious with the extremely wholesome. For instance, when you’re not taking revenge on players who have aggrieved you or targeting your friends for lols you’re trading the adorable relics that you obtain throughout the campaign. We’re not sure whether Foxy’s Football Islands is a nasty game with a nice streak or a nice game with a nasty streak. Either way, there’s nothing else quite like it. To play the game for yourself, head to the Google Play Store or the App Store and download Foxy’s Football Islands for free right now. Sponsored Content This article is sponsored content written by TouchArcade and published on behalf of Frank’s Football Studios to promote Foxy’s Football Islands. For questions or comments, please email ads@toucharcade.com

While most fans have been looking forward to Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 or basically a sequel to Warhammer 40,000: …

Continue reading "Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 Steam Deck Review (in Progress) – GOTY Contender, but Play It Elsewhere for Now"

While most fans have been looking forward to Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 or basically a sequel to Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine for many years, I wasn’t really aware of the first game until I played Total War: Warhammer and was looking into other Warhammer 40,000 games. Since then, I’ve played many of them, with my favorites being Boltgun and Rogue Trader. I did end up playing some of Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine on Steam Deck many months ago to see how it felt. Having played many of the Warhammer 40,000 games on PC and even console more recently, I was excited to see how Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 felt after that amazing reveal it had. Over the last eight days, I’ve put in about 22 hours into Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 across my Steam Deck and PS5 making use of cross progression and also testing out the online. This Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 Steam Deck review is an in progress one for two reasons. The first is I cannot score a game like this without testing out cross platform multiplayer and also the online in general with public servers. The second is because Focus and Saber have confirmed that they are working on official Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 Steam Deck support and aiming to have it out by the end of the year. Having seen how amazing Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine looks and plays on Steam Deck, and because Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 has cross progression, I was very curious to see how it plays on Steam Deck if at all. There’s good news and bad news right now, and I’m going to cover all of that in this Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 Steam Deck review in progress with the gameplay, online co-op, visuals, PC port features, PS5 features, and more included. Note that the screenshots in the article with the performance overlay or fps displayed are from my Steam Deck OLED while the 16:9 screenshots are from my PS5 playthrough. My testing has also been done on Proton GE 9-9 and Proton Experimental (bleeding edge). Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is a third person action shooter that is equal parts brutal, gorgeous, and fun, and this also applies to newcomers to the world of Warhammer 40,000. After a brief but well thought out tutorial-like intro segment that introduces you to the basics of combat and movement, you arrive at your main hub, the Battle Barge. This is where you choose your missions, game mode, adjust cosmetics, and much more. The moment to moment gameplay is superb with the controls and weapons all feeling perfect. I’m sure some will gravitate to using ranged more, but I adore the melee weapons and how visceral the combat feels up close. I never got tired of the executions and just plowing through tons of fodder enemies before the more powerful foes appear. The campaign is super fun solo and with a friend (or two) in co-op, but I hate any sort of defense missions. Thankfully I wasn’t too bothered by the implementation here. When playing with a friend of mine who lives in another country, I kept thinking how Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 felt like a big budget take on a co-op shooter from the Xbox 360 era that we don’t really see much of these days. It managed to get its hooks in me just like Earth Defense Force or the recent Gundam Breaker 4 have done, and I really hope Saber and Focus can somehow work with SEGA to give the original game’s campaign a modern facelift. Before going further, my knowledge of Warhammer 40,000 is through the Total War Warhammer, Dawn of War, Boltgun, and Rogue Trader more or less. With that said, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 has been refreshing to play and is one of my favorite co-op experiences in years. It is too soon to say if this is my favorite Warhammer 40,000 game, but I just want to save this review draft and get back to playing right now. I’m addicted to playing with a friend in Operations mode while trying out the different classes and slowly progressing through the missions and unlocks. I don’t want to definitively say this since I’ve not played Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 once the full game launches with randoms, but what I’ve experienced in Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 co-op so far is superb. I cannot wait to properly try out the online this week once the game launches with cross progression and cross platform online. Visually, I can only comment on how Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is on PS5 and Steam Deck, and it is definitely a looker in the 4K mode on PS5 when played on my 1440p monitor. While it has always looked good in trailers, I’m floored at how good the environments look and also how much work has clearly gone into making everything feel alive not only with the massive number of enemies in the swarms, but also the texture work and lighting. This is all complemented by stunning direction for the main character voice acting and all the gear and customization options included. You can tell a lot of care went into making it so that you can show off your creativity with the customization options and more. There’s also a photo mode you can access during singleplayer letting you adjust frames, expressions, characters visible, FOV, and much more. One thing to note is that if you do this on Steam Deck right now, some of the frames or effects don’t look too good when using FSR 2 and a lower resolution. On PS5 though, the Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 photo mode is amazing. On the audio side, I didn’t know what to expect from the music. Ideally, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 would have shipped with Bolt Thrower’s Realm of Chaos, but that likely wasn’t an option. I know bringing this up is like when I wished God of War (2018) had some Amon Amarth music. That tangent aside, the real star of Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2’s audio is the voice acting and general sound design. This is top tier stuff. The music is very good so far, but I’ve not heard anything (so far) that I would want to listen to a lot outside the game. It works perfectly in-game though. Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 PC graphics options So how is the Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 PC port? I’ve only played it on Steam Deck of course, but I can still cover what features it includes. When you boot up Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, it installs Epic Online Services, but there is no need to link your Epic account. I have one, but didn’t bother linking it. As for the Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 PC graphics options, you can adjust display, display mode (windowed, borderless, and fullscreen), resolution (800×600 and above), render resolution (native, dynamic to hit the fps target), quality, balanced, performance, and ultra performance), resolution upscaling type (TAA or FSR 2 on Steam Deck), dynamic resolution target, toggle v-sync, adjust brightness, motion blur intensity, fps limit (30, 60, 90, 120, unlimited), and then change many quality-related settings. The Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 visual quality settings include four presets that adjust the following: texture filtering, texture resolution, shadows, screen space ambient occlusion, screen space reflections, volumetrics, effects, details, and cloth simulation. As mentioned in the blog post linked above, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 on PC ships with DLSS and FSR 2 support. FSR 3 is planned for post-launch. I imagine the game will benefit from this on Steam Deck whenever it ships. I also hope the team adds full 16:10 support when the ultrawide update ships because the game is 16:9 only now. Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 PC control options On the control side, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 has keyboard and mouse controls in addition to full controller support. Initially, I wasn’t able to get it to display PlayStation button prompts on Steam Deck by default, but turning off Steam Input fixed this. I noticed an adaptive trigger option under control settings, and this made me try disabling Steam Input. This menu also lets you remap keyboard and mouse bindings. Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 displays PlayStation button prompts when I use my DualSense controller over Bluetooth, and it even supports Adaptive Triggers wirelessly on PC. This isn’t too common so I thought it was worth highlighting. Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 Steam Deck performance Before getting to the visuals and performance, I want to note that I had some freezing (only while booting up the game) on the default Proton or Experimental (bleeding edge), but I did not have any freezing when using Proton GE 9-9. Aside from that, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is playable (technically) on Steam Deck with no config change needed. The bad news is that it is a bit too much for Valve’s handheld right now. When playing at 1280×800 (it still is 16:9) and using the low preset with FSR 2.0 at Ultra Performance, it still cannot hold a locked 30fps. There are regular dips to the mid 20s in tense combat, and it can even go lower. Even when playing at a lower resolution, it drops below 30fps. For a game like this, that isn’t close to ideal. I hope it can eventually reach a stage where it can run at 30fps, but it isn’t possible right now as far as I can tell across the 10 hours I played on my Steam Deck OLED. When using the dynamic upscaling for a 30fps target and the low preset, it can hit the 30s, but it drops to the low 20s often. This mode does still look very good on the Deck’s own screen, but as you can tell, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is too much for Steam Deck right now. It also sometimes doesn’t exit out correctly requiring you to manually force close the game when you hit quit. Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 Steam Deck multiplayer impressions With all that aside, I wanted to make sure Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is playable online on Steam Deck. We sometimes have games where the developers add some anti cheat that blocks online play on Proton or Linux. Thankfully, I can report that Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 works perfectly online. I tested with a friend in Canada and we had a blast for a few hours playing in co-op. The only issue I had was some internet related disconnection, but since these are pre-release servers, I will be waiting to test out the game in a more public environment with randoms and friends once the game launches. Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 PS5 features – DualSense, Activity Cards, and Performance Mode Since I also played Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 on PS5, I wanted to cover how it feels on a current console for those who play on Steam Deck and consoles like I do. I’ve only tried the performance mode so far, and it feels mostly great. Don’t expect a locked 60fps though, and there seems to be some dynamic resolution or upscaling happening because I noticed it got very blurry in two big fights in the operations mode with a friend. Aside from that, I have no qualms in recommending Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 on PS5 right now based on the time I’ve put into it, but I want to make sure the online works cross platform before giving it a definite recommendation. The load times are fast and Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 also has PS5 Activity Card support for different modes and getting back into your save file saving time from the PS5 dashboard. As of this writing, there is no gyro support on PS5. If this changes, I will update this section, but sadly I didn’t see anything hinting at it in the build I’ve played pre-release. Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 cross save progression explained While this may change with the full launch, I’ve been able to take my Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 progress across Steam and PS5. There is some sort of two day cooldown period before you can sync it back or to another platform. I reached out to Focus to check if the final build will let you do it again immediately or still have the cool down. Is Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 worth it for solo play only? This is a question I cannot fully answer yet because the servers are not as populated as they will be at launch. I will be updating this once I’ve played with randoms and seen how the matchmaking works in the Operations (PvE) and Eternal War (PvP) modes. Speaking of Eternal War, I’ve not been able to test that yet. I will be doing so to update this review in the near future. Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 features I want to see in updates and patches Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is clearly going to get a ton of post-launch support through updates and DLC, and the main thing I want to see aside from improvements to Steam Deck performance is proper HDR support. Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is gorgeous and the texture work, materials, and lighting would pop even more with HDR. Aside from that, I’m pleased with the DualSense implementation of triggers and vibration, but haptic feedback would be great. The blog post mentions haptics won’t be in “at launch" and I hope that means it is planned for later. Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 is an easy game of the year contender so far. While I still need a bit of time to test the online when cross play is available from launch day, the gameplay is sublime and Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 looks and sounds superb across the board. Having played it on PS5 and Steam Deck with cross progression, I don’t recommend playing it on Valve’s handheld right now. It gets an easy recommendation on PS5 though. I will be updating this with a full score once I’ve gotten enough time with the multiplayer and some patches. Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 Steam Deck Review Score: TBA

With August in the rear-view mirror, taking the Young Avengers with it, we’re about due for another season in Marvel …

Continue reading "Swing Into ‘Marvel Snap’ With The Amazing Spider-Season"

With August in the rear-view mirror, taking the Young Avengers with it, we’re about due for another season in Marvel Snap (Free). And indeed, a new one has kicked off today! What is the theme, you might be wondering? Why it’s the best kind of Marvel theme! The deadly… the terrifying… the Amazing Spider-Season! BONESAW IS READY! Sorry, Bonesaw isn’t in this season. Maybe someday. But there are some cool new cards and locations, so let’s check them out! This season is a bit of a doozy as it is introducing a new type of card ability: Activate. With Activate, you choose when to fire off the card’s ability. It’s like an On Reveal that you can trigger at any time, while also dodging things that affect On Reveal abilities. The Season Pass card naturally takes advantage of this new feature, and so far he is looking like a real doozy. If you want to see the folks at Second Dinner introduce the new season, I’ve linked the video below. Read on for my summary. Symbiote Spider-Man is the new Season Pass card. He’s 4-Cost 6-Power, and he has an Activate ability that absorbs the lowest cost card at the location and copies the text of that card. If that includes an On Reveal ability, it will fire off again as though the card was just played. Combine with Galactus for HIJINKS. I’ll be really surprised if this card survives the season without being nerfed, but he sure is a whole lot of fun already. Now for the rest of the lot. Silver Sable is 1-Cost 1-Power, but she has an On Reveal ability that steals two power from card at the top of your opponent’s deck. Decent as a standalone, really useful in combinations with certain locations and other cards. Next, the star of the hit film Madame Web. She has an Ongoing ability that allows you to move one of the other cards at her location elsewhere once per turn. Next, Arana. Another 1-Cost 1-Power card, and she’s our next Activate ability user. Activate her to move the next card you play to the right and give it +2 Power. She’s going to be a staple of move decks, I’m sure. Rounding out our Spider-Friends is Scarlet Spider, the Ben Reilly variety. He’s a 4-Cost 5-Power card, and he has an Activate ability too! Use it to spawn an exact clone to another location. Power him up, then multiply him! Clones don’t have feelings! As for the new locations, there are two. The Brooklyn Bridge is a big part of Spider-Man lore, and it’s certainly due for an appearance in Marvel Snap. The gimmick with this location is that you can’t place cards there two turns in a row. You’re going to have to get creative to dominate this spot! The other location is Otto’s Lab, and it works a lot like Otto himself. The next card you play there will pull a card from the enemy’s hand to the location. Ooh, surprises! THE DIE IS CAST! And that’s the lot for the new season! Some very interesting cards this time around, and that new Activate ability is sure to create some fascinating possibilities. We’ll have our September deck guide up very soon, as we could all use a little help in handling this wall-crawling menace and his friends. What do you think of this season? Any cards you’ll be playing? Are you buying that Season Pass? Let us know in the comments!

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for September 3rd, 2024. In today’s article, I have a few …

Continue reading "SwitchArcade Round-Up: Reviews Featuring ‘Castlevania Dominus Collection’, Plus Today’s Releases and Sales"

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for September 3rd, 2024. In today’s article, I have a few more reviews for you. Some lengthy thoughts on Castlevania Dominus Collection, a look at Shadow of the Ninja – Reborn, and some quick critiques of a pair of Pinball FX tables that recently arrived as DLC. After that, we check out the new releases of the day including the quirky and cool Bakeru, then roll into the latest sales and expiring discounts for the day. Let’s get into it! Reviews & Mini-Views Castlevania Dominus Collection ($24.99) Say what you will about Konami in the modern era, but it has been absolutely killing it with most of its classic collections. Castlevania in particular has been enjoying a great deal of love in this regard, with Castlevania Dominus Collection being its third on modern platforms. This time around, the focus is on the Nintendo DS trilogy of games in the franchise. The development chores have again been handled by M2, with the usual excellent results. But there’s more here than meets the eye, and with everything taken into account this may well be the most essential Castlevania collection yet. I’m getting ahead of myself, though. Let’s talk about the main course first. The Nintendo DS era of Castlevania was a historical one in some ways for the franchise, and not all of them good. On the positive side, all three of the games had a unique identity and make for a surprisingly varied trio. Dawn of Sorrow is a direct sequel to Aria of Sorrow. It hit very early in the Nintendo DS’s life, and is thus cursed to some stupid touchscreen gimmicks that have thankfully been mitigated in this release. Portrait of Ruin shoves the touchscreen nonsense into a bonus mode, relying on an interesting dual-character gimmick to distinguish itself. Order of Ecclesia really mixes things up, with considerably higher difficulty than its predecessor and a design that calls back to Simon’s Quest of all games. All good games. Great even? Would recommend. On the negative side, this was the last gasp of the run of exploratory Castlevania games created by Koji Igarashi, who gave the series a kick in the pants with Symphony of the Night when it needed it most. Returns were diminishing, and Konami thought it had a better play in MercurySteam’s Lords of Shadow. Well, hindsight is 20/20 I suppose. Were these games so distinct from each other because IGA wanted to stretch his creative legs, or was it a desperate attempt to find something that would stick with an increasingly disinterested audience? We’ll never know. I do remember at the time many people were feeling exhausted with this type of Castlevania, and I will shamefully admit that despite buying them on day one every time and playing the heck out of them, I was also feeling like the series was falling into a rut. Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got ’til it’s gone? So, weird thing here is that these games don’t appear to be emulated, but are instead native ports. That allowed M2 to do neat things like replace the annoying touchscreen seals in Dawn with far more manageable button presses, and show you not only the main screen and the status screen at all times, but also the map as a third screen. What is this, a Nintendo TS? There are still some very DS-like aspects to these games, but they all had to work with a controller for docked mode, and so they all do. This actually makes Dawn of Sorrow a lot better, and I would now put it within my top five Castlevania games of all-time. In terms of options and extras, there is plenty here. For general options, you get a choice of which region of each game you’d like to play, the ability to swap confirm/cancel button mapping, and the choice of whether you want the left stick to be mapped to character movement or the touch cursor. The latter is important for one of the bonus modes in Portrait of Ruin. There is also an incredibly adorable credits sequence where one of the unsung heroes of the series achieves his dreams. Make sure you watch them. There’s a nice gallery where you can view some art, manual scans, and box art for each of the three DS games. You can also listen to the music from all of the included games, and when the music is this good you know that’s a treat. You can even make your own custom playlist of tunes. Once in-game, you can make use of save states and a rewind feature, remap the controls as you like, adjust how the three screens are laid out, choose from a handful of background colors, and adjust the levels on the different audio elements. There is also an exhaustive compendium for each game, with information on equipment, enemies, items, and other points of interest. Pretty much anything you would need to enjoy these games to the maximum. About all I could ask for is perhaps a few other screen arrangement options that allow me to make the play area bigger, but that’s a very minor nitpick. This is a great way to enjoy three very cool games, and for the price it’s an absurd value. But wait! There’s more! The absolutely dreadful arcade Castlevania game, Haunted Castle, has been included here. I’m not sure why it was left off the first collection and shunted to the otherwise shooter-heavy Konami arcade collection, but here it is. Here too you get a variety of options, including the virtually necessary option for unlimited continues. Seriously, this game is brutally unfair. Good music, a terrific opening that sees Simon in a snazzy tux, but the game itself is horrible and completely irredeemable. Or… is it? The last extra, and it feels ridiculous to call something so substantial an extra but it’s M2’s wording not mine, is a complete remake of Haunted Castle. Much like when it took on the task of remaking Castlevania: The Adventure with Castlevania: The Adventure Rebirth on the Nintendo Wii (please reissue all of the Rebirth games), M2 basically took a look at the original game and decided to make a good one instead. Haunted Castle Revisited takes a lot of cues from the arcade original, but it really does its own thing virtually from top to bottom. Yes, we have a new Castlevania game! A very good one! It’s tucked away in the Extras tab of a Nintendo DS collection, but it’s here! If you like Castlevania, you really should buy Castlevania Dominus Collection. There’s an entire new Castlevania game here and it kind of rules. You also get what you’re ostensibly buying the collection for with the three Nintendo DS IGAvanias, presented in as fine a form as you could hope for. The original Haunted Castle is also here. If, on the other hand, you don’t like Castlevania, we are not friends. And finally, if you don’t know Castlevania, you should pick up all three of the collections and get to the good times. Another absolutely stellar showing from Konami and M2. SwitchArcade Score: 5/5 Shadow of the Ninja – Reborn ($19.99) I’ve been through a bit of a roller coaster with Shadow of the Ninja – Reborn. I’ve enjoyed all of Tengo Project’s releases so far, and I believe its versions of Wild Guns and The Ninja Warriors are definitive in every way. I had a few issues with Pocky & Rocky, but overall that was also a very enjoyable romp. Shadow of the Ninja seemed like a different kettle of fish in a lot of ways, however. The Tengo Project team members didn’t have much to do with the original game, and this was an 8-bit game being updated rather than a 16-bit one. I also personally don’t think the original game is as good as Wild Guns, The Ninja Warriors, and Pocky & Rocky were. As a result, when this remake was announced I was a little hesitant. Then I had a chance to play the first little part of the game at the Tokyo Game Show last year, and I enjoyed that well enough to get excited again. Now that I’ve played through the game a few times, I’ve settled somewhere in the middle. I think relative to the other games from this developer, Shadow of the Ninja – Reborn is a bit less well-rounded. The improvements from the original game are many, from the excellent presentation to a more refined weapon and item system. You don’t get any fun new characters in this one, but the two existing playable characters have been differentiated. It is, as one would expect, better than the original game while maintaining the important aspects of its spirit. If you loved Shadow of the Ninja, you’ll really love this. If on the other hand you’re like me and only found the original to be a decent action-platformer, you probably won’t land much further from that mark with Reborn. Having access to both the chain and the sword at all times is a great improvement, and the sword on the whole is more useful than it was in the original game. The new inventory system is cool, adding a little spice to a game that needed something like that. The presentation is excellent, and you would never know it was based on an 8-bit game. There are a couple of rude difficulty spikes, and I think this is actually a more challenging game on the whole than the original. Perhaps that’s necessary, as it’s not a very lengthy affair overall. It’s the best Shadow of the Ninja you could play, but it is still Shadow of the Ninja. Shadow of the Ninja – Reborn is another solid effort from Tengo Project, and in some ways is the most substantial improvement over its predecessor of any of their releases yet. Whether or not you should pick it up is really going to depend on how you feel about that original game, because the core is still very much in line with that NES title. Those without any prior experience will find an enjoyable but not essential action game here, one that very much subscribes to an 8-bit design sensibility. SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5 Pinball FX – The Princess Bride Pinball ($5.49) Just a couple of quick Pinball FX DLC reviews, partly to celebrate the massive update Pinball FX has received that finally makes it properly playable on Switch. To go with that, two new tables were released as DLC: The Princess Bride Pinball, and Goat Simulator Pinball. The former is based on the cult classic movie, and it includes not only real voice clips but also video clips from the film. Now that’s the kind of thing I want to see in these licensed tables, Zen. Mechanically speaking, this table feels like something you could actually see a real physical version of. Relatively straightforward to learn, relatively authentic to the license, and satisfying to score attack on. Zen Studios doesn’t always hit with its licensed tables, often missing things like music, real voices, and likenesses. The Princess Bride Pinball is one of the better ones in that regard, and I think any fan of the movie who isn’t allergic to pinball would do well to check it out. It’s not the most innovative of tables, relying on a lot of well-worn design choices, but I think that too fits. A good time for newcomers or veterans alike. SwitchArcade Score: 4.5/5 Pinball FX – Goat Simulator Pinball ($5.49) Then we have Goat Simulator Pinball, and this one understands its license equally well. That means this is a very odd table in a lot of ways, and it certainly could only exist in video game form. You’ll get involved in a lot of silly goat-related incidents, adding effects to your ball to trigger various elements of the table. It’s a little bewildering at first, but stick with it and you’ll be rewarded. More of a table for the veteran players, I think. Goat Simulator fans with no pinball experience will probably have some difficulty getting a handle on it enough to see some of the funnier antics. Goat Simulator Pinball is another solid piece of DLC from the folks at Zen Studios, who have made so many tables by now that they likely relish a chance to do something off-the-wall like this. It’s a tricky table to learn, but once you do you’ll get to see some truly wacky stuff. Fans of the Goat Simulator games who can stick with the game long enough to learn the ropes will be rewarded, but it’s going to take a bit more work to get there than with some other tables. SwitchArcade Score: 4/5 Select New Releases Bakeru ($39.99) If you read my review yesterday, you’ll know I really enjoyed this breezy, charming 3D platformer from the fine folks at Good-Feel. Play as a tanuki named Bakeru who is on a mission to save Japan from an evil overlord who has trapped people in an eternal festival. Battle enemies, get interesting Japan trivia from hidden poo, collect souvenirs, and maybe even laugh here and there. The framerate in this Switch version is inconsistent, so tech heads may want to play it elsewhere. If you don’t mind that aspect, this is a nice game to play on your Switch. Holyhunt ($4.99) This is a top-down arena-based twin-stick shooter. It describes itself as a love letter to 8-bit games, but I don’t really remember seeing many games like this back then. At any rate, it looks amusing enough for what it is. Shoot, shoot, dash, dash, get new gun, repeat. Watch out for bosses. That kind of thing. Shashingo: Learn Japanese with Photography ($20.00) I don’t normally include these language-learning things since we’re more game-focused here, but this one at least seems to have some additional effort put into it. You go around, take pictures of things, and learn the Japanese names for them. Would I spend twenty on it? Probably not. But everyone learns in different ways, and this might be how you learn. Sales (North American eShop, US Prices) Some decent games in the inbox today, including OrangePixel’s selection of great pick-up-and-play titles. Alien Hominid is enjoying an extremely rare discount, and you can also scoop up Ufouria 2 at a nice price. Over in the outbox, titles from THQ and Team 17 are finishing up their latest discounts. Check out their publisher pages as I’ve only included a handful for each. Have a gander through both lists, as ever. Select New Sales Space Grunts ($8.39 from $13.99 until 9/7) Meganoid ($5.39 from $8.99 until 9/7) Stardash ($5.99 from $9.99 until 9/7) Gunslugs ($4.79 from $7.99 until 9/7) Gunslugs 2 ($4.79 from $7.99 until 9/7) Heroes of Loot ($4.79 from $7.99 until 9/7) Heroes of Loot 2 ($5.99 from $9.99 until 9/7) Warhammer 40k Dakka Squadron ($1.99 from $19.99 until 9/9) Castle Crashers Remastered ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/10) Alien Hominid HD ($9.59 from $11.99 until 9/10) Alien Hominid Invasion ($15.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Conscript ($17.59 from $21.99 until 9/15) Overdelivery ($1.99 from $7.99 until 9/15) Hero-U: Rogue to Redemption ($2.99 from $19.99 until 9/16) Agent Intercept ($7.99 form $19.99 until 9/16) Secret Files Tunguska ($2.09 from $14.99 until 9/16) Secret Files Puritas Cordis ($2.09 from $14.99 until 9/16) Secret Files Sam Peters ($2.02 from $6.99 until 9/16) Lost Horizon ($2.09 from $14.99 until 9/16) Lost Horizon 2 ($2.09 from $14.99 until 9/16) Zombo Buster Advance ($1.99 from $3.99 until 9/16) Skautfold Usurper ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/17) Nuclear Blaze ($4.99 from $9.99 until 9/17) Helvetii ($5.09 from $16.99 until 9/17) Heidelberg 1693 ($4.49 from $14.99 until 9/17) Sophstar ($6.49 from $12.99 until 9/17) Harmony’s Odyssey ($2.99 from $14.99 until 9/17) Ufouria 2: The Saga ($17.49 from $24.99 until 9/17) Promenade ($12.49 from $24.99 until 9/17) Shinorubi ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/17) Last Night of Winter ($6.99 from $9.99 until 9/17) Kamaeru: A Frog Refuge ($15.99 from $19.99 until 9/18) Nobody Saves The World ($9.99 from $24.99 until 9/23) Summer in Mara ($7.99 from $19.99 until 9/23) Guacamelee 2 ($4.99 from $19.99 until 9/23) Railbound ($2.59 from $12.99 until 9/23) Sales Ending Tomorrow, September 4th Capes ($29.99 from $39.99 until 9/4) Fates of Ort ($4.49 from $14.99 until 9/4) Floogen ($1.99 from $3.99 until 9/4) Fluffy Horde ($1.99 from $9.99 until 9/4) Gum+ ($1.99 from $7.99 until 9/4) Hopping Girl Kohane EX ($16.74 from $24.99 until 9/4) Kingdom Come Deliverance ($29.99 from $49.99 until 9/4) Kona II: Brume ($11.99 from $29.99 until 9/4) Metro 2033 Redux ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/4) Metro Last Light Redux ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/4) Outward Definitive ($23.99 from $39.99 until 9/4) Overcooked Special Edition ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/4) Rolling Car ($1.99 from $7.99 until 9/4) Stunt Paradise ($5.19 from $7.99 until 9/4) Tiny Pixels Vol 1 Ninpo Blast ($3.99 from $4.99 until 9/4) Worms WMD ($5.99 from $29.99 until 9/4) Yoku’s Island Express ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/4) That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with more new releases, more sales, and perhaps some news. Maybe a review? No promises. I think we’re officially in the season of TOO MANY GOOD GAMES, so hold on to your wallets and enjoy the fun. It’s probably the Switch’s last holiday ride, so let’s make it worth the while. I hope you all have a terrific Tuesday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home has been a very interesting game to follow pre-release. I say this not only because …

Continue reading "‘Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home’ iOS Review – A Great Start, but Needs More Work"

Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home has been a very interesting game to follow pre-release. I say this not only because it is a premium mobile-first Harvest Moon game, but also because the reactions from my friends who are longtime fans of the series have gone from apathy to interest with every bit of gameplay shown. Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home launched recently on iOS and Android as a mobile-exclusive entry in Natsume’s Harvest Moon series, and I’ve been playing it for about a week and a half now on iPhone 15 Pro and iPad Pro for review. Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home is a very good farming simulation game, but one that is held back by a few issues right now. A lot of fans of the Harvest Moon series of games from Marvelous have been around since the SNES or N64 days, but I only got into it on 3DS with Story of Season. Back then, I had no idea about the name change and that Marvelous’ releases would be called Story of Seasons while Harvest Moon would be the name used by Natsume going forward. I’m making that clear now because I don’t want people confused about what Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home is and also to give you my history with the series before getting into how I feel about Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home ($17.99). If you’re new to farming and life simulation games, Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home takes you back from the city to a calming village where you fish, farm, interact with many NPCs, partake in festivals (that need to be unlocked), and even find a companion. The village of Alba, your new home, is dense and cozy (sorry but I had to), and I’m glad it isn’t a big open location because those usually result in a lot of empty spaces when it comes to life simulation games. If you’ve played many in the genre, think of Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home as one that focuses more on the characters with a bit less depth when it comes to farming. After a short tutorial explaining the basics of movement and a bit of farming, you unlock the map and main menu letting you save just about anywhere (this is very important for a mobile game), and this is where you get into the flow of Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home where you try and finish quests for NPCs, upgrade your tools, gather, mine (this unlocks a bit later), and of course farm through the game’s main chapters. The more I played Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home, the more I realized that the developers understood what makes life and farming simulation games great, but fell short in some ways. These may or may not affect newcomers to the genre, but those who have played many recent games will find them lacking. The potential partners are likely the weakest aspect of Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home. They just aren’t as interesting as other games in the genre. If you don’t care about that aspect, Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home is quite a polished entry in the genre. Approaching Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home from a general life simulation game enthusiast’s perspective feels different though. While other platforms are spoiled for choice with tons of games from big and small developers, we don’t really see much like that on mobile, but that doesn’t make up for some of the flaws here, especially at a much higher price point. I think this is a very solid base that the developers can build on to the point where it would even be a great fit for PC and consoles. The only “mobile" aspect of Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home right now is the touch control option. Visually, aside from the performance and load times that I will cover below, Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home looks very good. Some characters look generic, but the interface, farm, building layout, and everything looks good. I also appreciate that Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home supports fullscreen on iPhone 15 Pro and iPad Pro. It really feels like a game properly tailored to mobile with its visuals and controls. While Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home does look nice visually for the most part, it is lacking when it comes to the character designs. This applies to your own character with customization options that should’ve been more detailed and also the main NPCs in the town. A lot of them feel lifeless even during cut-scenes. Barring that, I like the aesthetic a lot, and Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home looks excellent on my iPhone and iPad. The one disappointment is in performance. Right now, Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home is capped at 30fps on my iPhone 15 Pro and iPad Pro. I was expecting above 60fps let alone 60fps, but it isn’t possible to play at a higher frame rate now. The load times are also not as fast as they should be. On the audio side, I was pleased with the music and sounds in Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home. Nothing stood out to the point where I’d listen to it outside the game, but it sounded good and the music changes were appropriate to the gameplay. When Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home was announced as a mobile-exclusive game, I was curious how it would control. The developers have done a fantastic job with the touch controls here letting you play by tapping to move, dragging to move, and more. Interacting with objects or characters, farming, and navigating menus all feel good. Some text and touch targets feel a bit too small on iPhone, but they are fine on iPad. I would’ve loved some haptic feedback on iPhone though for using tools and even fishing. Maybe this can be added in a future update. If you’ve played the two best life simulation games on mobile: Stardew Valley and My Time at Portia, Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home feels closer to the former, but it isn’t as polished. I dislike bringing up other games in the same genre to compare, but I’m doing it here specifically for the mobile port. Those two games were built for PC/console and brought over to mobile while Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home was built for mobile and yet it doesn’t feel as tailored to the platform in its features. Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home is a mobile-exclusive game, and while I appreciate the touch control scheme, it has a few issues right now when it comes to features. The lack of cloud saves is beyond disappointing. When I first downloaded Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home on my iPhone, I played it for about three hours before picking up my iPad to see how it feels there. I found no way to get the save across, and still haven’t been able to move saves across devices. The lack of controller support is also disappointing for a game like this. The developers did a great job with touch controls, but it would be nice to have controller support for when I play on iPad. I would also like some quality of life features for movement, like we’ve seen in recent games in the genre. As a newcomer to Natsume’s new Harvest Moon games but a fan of all the recent Story of Seasons and other life simulation games, Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home ended up being worth playing, but it needs a few updates and features to be truly essential at full price. I have no issues with developers wanting to charge premium prices on mobile, but Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home lacking basic features like cloud saves and controller support definitely makes it harder to recommend alongside a few other design issues. If the developers continue working on this, it will be one of the best in the genre on mobile, and I’m glad to see them take a chance on a premium mobile life simulation game because that is very rare.

Summer holidays might be over, but fans of Gunship Battle: Total Warfare are still in for a treat as Joycity …

Continue reading "‘Gunship Battle: Total Warfare’ Launches Massive Sky Ace Update"

Summer holidays might be over, but fans of Gunship Battle: Total Warfare are still in for a treat as Joycity released one of the game’s most impressive updates that introduces Sky Ace alongside numerous QOL enhancements and a special event to keep things as exciting as possible this fall. Sky Ace is a classic 2D puzzle shooter that pays homage to the legendary shooters of console gaming with an unquestionably high level of polish and prestige. It also has its own storyline. With the help of a famous cast of fighter jets, players will be able to engage in aerial battle against enemy troops in Sky Ace and retrieve lost allies and locations. Players control their fighter jets left and right against a barrage of guided missiles and fast-moving enemy incursions as they shoot and strafe their way through simple calculation-based tasks. This vibrant, engaging feature combines the thrill of solving puzzles with traditional shooter action. But Sky Ace is not the only thing to look forward to and we are sure that players will enjoy the enhanced unit, the inventory navigations, rings that provide fast access to more easily control essential features at log in. Additionally, a new statistics tool has been implemented to let players confirm, use, and increase things more quickly. Together with input from both new and experienced players, these improvements significantly improve player convenience on all fronts. And to mark this special occasion, Joycity also decided to treat the GBTW with a special event that awards all players with an exclusive Jet, the ‘F-35 Sky Pro’ when they successfully complete specific Sky Ace stages. You can find out more about this major update on the official website or on the game’s Facebook page for the latest developments. Gunship Battle: Total Warfare is available for free on the Google Play Store or App Store. Sponsored Content This article is sponsored content written by TouchArcade and published on behalf of Joycity to promote the new Sky Ace update for Gunship Battle: Total Warfare. For questions or comments, please email ads@toucharcade.com

[youtube] Netflix has just showcased its full Netflix Geeked Week 2024 trailer alongside the announcement of tickets going up for …

Continue reading "Netflix Geeked Week Trailer Teases More Game News for Event on September 16th"

[youtube] Netflix has just showcased its full Netflix Geeked Week 2024 trailer alongside the announcement of tickets going up for sale on the official website. Netflix has been announcing and releasing new games at a regular pace for a while now, and the next releases will be SpongeBob: Bubble Pop and the original Monument Valley (Free). Today’s new trailer for Geeked Week 2024 includes a tease for more games news including but not limited to (as far as I can tell) Monument Valley and more. I’m curious to see what else we get at the event. Watch the full trailer below: I hope we see some more premium indie game ports get announced for Netflix because the year has been bonkers good for indie game releases, and I’d love to replay some of them on iOS. If you somehow haven’t played Monument Valley on mobile and would like to on Netflix, you can sign up here for it on iOS. Aside from games, the event will have updates on many shows and there will also be an in-person event on the 19th in Atlanta with a Games Lounge to play some of Netflix’s latest mobile games. What would you like to see at the event?

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for September 2nd, 2024. I think it’s a holiday today in …

Continue reading "SwitchArcade Round-Up: Reviews Featuring ‘Bakeru’ & ‘Peglin’, Plus Highlights From Nintendo’s Blockbuster Sale"

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for September 2nd, 2024. I think it’s a holiday today in the United States, but here in Japan it’s Monday as usual. That means I’ve got some goodies for you, and in our typical week-starting fashion that means a bunch of reviews. Three written by yours truly, and one from our pal Mikhail. I take a look at Bakeru, Star Wars: Bounty Hunter, and Mika and the Witch’s Mountain. Mikhail dives once more into Peglin, a game he can speak to better than anyone else at TouchArcade Towers. Beyond that, we’ve got a bit of news from Mikhail, and a massive list of deals from Nintendo’s Blockbuster Sale. Let’s get to it! News Guilty Gear Strive Nintendo Switch Edition Coming January 2025 Arc System Works has done it. They’re bringing Guilty Gear Strive to Nintendo Switch on January 23rd with 28 characters included and rollback netcode for online battles. It won’t be crossplay sadly, but should be good for playing offline and with other Switch owners. I adore the game on Steam Deck and PS5, and will definitely try this one out. Check out the official website here. Reviews & Mini-Views Bakeru ($39.99) Bakeru is not Goemon/Mystical Ninja. It is made by some of the people who worked on that series. There are some superficial similarities. But it is not Goemon, and coming into it expecting Goemon is both a disservice to Bakeru and yourself. Bakeru is Bakeru. Goemon is still on the milk carton, to the upper-left of the Sunset Riders. Expectations set, let’s talk about this game instead. Bakeru comes to us by way of Good-Feel, a studio that has frequently worked with Nintendo on games in the Wario, Yoshi, and Kirby franchises. Most recently, it developed Princess Peach: Showtime!. Its specialty appears to be in cute, low-friction, well-polished platformers. Guess what Bakeru is? Bad things are going down in Japan, and a little goober named Issun stumbles on some assistance in the unlikely form of a tanuki named Bakeru. With his mighty abilities to change forms and wield a taiko drum and drumsticks, Bakeru might just be the guy for the job. You’ll tour Japan prefecture by prefecture, whacking baddies, grabbing cash, talking to poop, and looking for secrets. You’ve got more than sixty levels to play here, and while I wouldn’t say they’re all super-memorable, it’s an easy-going experience that remains rather engaging throughout. I genuinely enjoyed the collectibles in this game more than those in most platformers I’ve played, just because they usually reflect the location you’re in. Lots of little nuggets about Japan, and some things that even a long-time resident like me didn’t know. Boss fights! Okay, this is one part where I’ll allow comparisons to Goemon. Or any other Good-Feel game, I suppose. This is a development team that understands the value of a good boss battle, and gosh are they fun here. Creative spectacles that nicely reward the player for winning. Indeed, Bakeru takes a lot of creative swings for what is essentially a straight-up 3D platformer, and I will admit some work out better than others. Well, that’s how this kind of thing goes. I genuinely appreciated the ones that worked out well, and I can forgive the ones that didn’t. I kind of fell in love with this game despite seeing all of its flaws as I went along. It’s that sort of game. Intensely likeable. The only real fly in the ointment here is the performance on Switch, something I believe Mikhail talked about in his look at the Steam version of the game. The framerate is quite variable here, at times climbing up to 60 fps but frequently dipping considerably when things get busy. With the full admission that I am not a person that tends to be bothered by inconsistent framerates, I will say that it wasn’t enough of an issue to dampen my enjoyment of the game. But if you are more sensitive to that than I am, I want to make it very clear that there are still problems here despite the improvements since the Japanese launch last year. Bakeru is a highly endearing little 3D platformer, one with a well-polished design and lots of fun ideas to spice things up during its relatively lengthy adventure. It really commits to its bit, and that part of it is almost infectious. Some framerate issues keep this from being all it could be on Switch, and I think people who come into this expecting Goemon are going to be disappointed by the fact that it’s not even trying to be that, but otherwise this is a highly-recommended title to close out your summer with. SwitchArcade Score: 4.5/5 Star Wars: Bounty Hunter ($19.99) There was a lot of merch put out around the releases of the films in the Star Wars prequel trilogy. Video games were a big part of that, and it’s kind of impressive how many Star Wars games we saw put out in that era after going entire generations of consoles with only a handful. And while the movies weren’t exactly critical darlings, it’s inarguable that they opened up a lot of new story-telling avenues. Remember Boba Fett? The guy with the cool armor who got knocked into a living pit by a guy who couldn’t even see? Well, here’s his dad! He also has cool armor, and is also defeated in a very undignified way. But maybe you’re wondering about how his life was before we met him in Attack of the Clones? Star Wars: Bounty Hunter fills in that story, whether you asked for it or not. This is the tale of Jango Fett, a bounty hunter so cool and awesome that an entire army ended up being cloned from him. The finest in the galaxy! Don’t ask what happened ten seconds after he had to face off against a Jedi Master. Cool armor! Besides being the number one manhunter in the business, what else made him fit to be the model for the clone army? That’s what this game is about, actually. Jango’s try-out for the job, if you will. He is sent to hunt a Dark Jedi by the totally innocent Count Dooku, and if he picks up a few extra bounties on the way, more’s the better. That’s pretty much how this one goes. You take on each level with a particular target in mind, but there are optional targets you can find, mark, and bring in dead or alive. You get access to a wide array of weapons and other toys, including the iconic jetpack. It’s pretty interesting at first, but the gameplay doesn’t really change things up enough as it goes on so it’s quite repetitive over the long haul. It has a lot of problems you would expect from a 2002 video game, an era where some of this stuff was still being figured out. Targeting is an absolute mess. Cover doesn’t work as well as you might hope. Level designs are often trying to be open but somehow end up feeling cramped and badly sign-posted. Even in its time, this was an average game at best, tied to the worst Star Wars movie. Well, at least that’s not the worst Star Wars movie anymore. In some ways age has not been kind to Bounty Hunter, but Aspyr has done what it could to improve it without changing too much. The game looks and runs better than it ever did, and the new default control scheme is a lot better. Nothing was changed in how it saves your progress mind you, so be prepared for the very real possibility of having to start the lengthy stages over if you mess up too much. Oh, but you can unlock a Boba Fett skin, so that’s neat. If you were ever going to play this game, this new version is the way to do it. There’s a certain nostalgic charm to Star Wars: Bounty Hunter. There is a particular flavor to games from the PlayStation 2/GameCube/Xbox generation of consoles, and this game is absolutely steeped in it despite the nips and tucks made by Aspyr in the porting process. And it’s really in that capacity that I can most confidently recommend it, when I think about it. Are you in the mood to time travel back to 2002 and play a thoroughly rough-edged yet genuinely earnest action game? Here you go. If on the other hand you lack that proclivity, this might be a bit too much Jank-o Fett for you. SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5 Mika and the Witch’s Mountain ($19.99) After some horrible video games based on Nausicaa, Hayao Miyazaki put his foot down in a very Miyazaki way and essentially forbade any further games based on his work. Did that extend to all of Ghibli? I’m not sure, the story isn’t clear on that. It seems likely, since we have not seen even one video game based on a Ghibli movie since then. I respect that, but it does mean I will never have my epic Porco Rosso open world flying game. It happens. Game studios Chibig and Nukefist clearly had another Ghibli movie in mind when they made Mika and the Witch’s Mountain, and I’ll trust your reasoning skills enough to sort out witch on your own. You’re a rookie witch, ready to get going on witchy things. The teacher you were sent to see decides to chuck you off the mountain top, breaking your flying broom. Get back up and she might help you out, but your broom isn’t going to bring you there in its current condition. The good news is that there is a town nearby with someone who can fix brooms and even make new ones. The bad news is nothing is free in this world, so you’ll have to take up a job delivering packages to earn some scratch. Zipping around on your broom makes that kind of a job a bit easier and a lot more fun, and the town in question has a lot of things that need delivering. That’s pretty much how it goes. There are some side jobs you can do, but most of the time you’ll be going back and forth in the world trying to get things where they need to go, when they need to go, and hopefully with a minimum of damage done in the process. It works well enough, and the vibrant world and interesting cast of characters contribute greatly to the experience. The Switch is clearly struggling with all of this at times, and the resolution and framerate both take regular hits depending on what part of the world you’re in and what’s going. I would imagine this would play better on more powerful hardware, so if you have that option you might want to take it. Otherwise, people who can forgive some technical flaws (and we’re Switch owners, I imagine most of us are getting good at that) will probably be able to roll with the punches here. Mika and the Witch’s Mountain wears its inspiration on its sleeve, and it is so dedicated to its core gameplay mechanic that it can wear a little thin before the game is up. It also suffers from some performance issues on the Switch. With all that said, I can’t say I didn’t have some fun zipping around on my broom, delivering packages to a bunch of quirky characters. This is one of those games where if you think the concept sounds good, you’ll probably like what you get well enough. SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5 Peglin ($19.99) About a year ago, I reviewed the early access version of Peglin on iOS. We also featured it as our Game of the Week when it hit mobile. Peglin, a pachinko roguelike, has always had a lot of promise, and things have only gotten before for it through major updates over time. Last week during Nintendo’s Indie World and Partner Direct combo, Peglin was announced and released for Switch. I thought the team had just brought the current game to Switch, but I didn’t realize it was actually 1.0 until a few hours later when I got the game. Peglin hit 1.0 last week on Steam and mobile as well alongside the Switch debut, and it definitely is a more complete experience now, but Peglin is a great game for a very specific kind of person. Your aim is to, well aim, your orb to target specific pegs on the board. This lets you damage enemies (above the board) and you make your way towards the end of each zone map like you would in Slay the Spire. There are events, bosses, shops, tons of battles, and more in Peglin, and it is very difficult early on. As you make your way through the zone, you can upgrade or unlock new orbs, heal, and collect relics. You don’t just need to get your orb to a specific portion of the board at the bottom though. Peglin’s strategy is aiming so you correctly use critical or bomb pegs depending on the situation with enemies. You can also refresh the board by hitting a specific peg. There’s a lot to take in at the start, but it all clicks soon and you will be humming the songs even when you aren’t playing Peglin. Having played Peglin on Steam and mobile, I was curious to see how the Switch port would feel. It is mostly great when it comes to performance. The aiming isn’t as smooth as on other platforms, but I got around this by using touch controls. Aside from that, the load times are longer than mobile and Switch. These aren’t huge issues given how some recent Switch ports ship in a miserable state, but it is worth keeping in mind if you own multiple platforms and are curious where to buy Peglin. I’d say Peglin is best on Steam Deck, but the second place is close between mobile and Switch. While the Switch has no achievements, there’s a system in place inside Peglin to track those. I like it when developers do their own achievements since the Switch lacks them on a systemwide level. You can ignore these as usual, but I liked the addition here. One feature I wished to see in 1.0 was cross save across platforms. This likely isn’t feasible for a small developer, but some way to carry over or unlock things on Switch from mobile/PC would’ve been nice. Other than that, my only issues with Peglin on Switch have to do with the load times and aiming not being smooth. Hopefully these can be improved over updates because more free updates are coming as confirmed by the developers at Red Nexus Games. I already thought Peglin was fantastic even in its early access state. While some balance issues hold it back a bit, it is an essential on Switch if “pachinko x roguelike" sounds good to you. I also love that the developers made full use of the Switch hardware features by adding good rumble, full touchscreen support, and button controls making it so that you can play however you want. Now we just need a physical release. -Mikhail Madnani SwitchArcade Score: 4.5/5 Sales (North American eShop, US Prices) Okay, wow. A lot of stuff on sale, and while I’ve got a lot of it here this is only scratching the surface. I’ve put together another article with what I think are the best picks from the sale, so keep your eyes open for that as well. Anyway, good luck with all of that. I’ll meet you at the bottom. Select New Sales Avenging Spirit ($2.99 from $5.99 until 9/5) NOISZ re:||COLLECTION G ($19.99 from $24.99 until 9/7) Fur Squadron ($2.79 from $6.99 until 9/8) Agnostiko Origins ($13.74 from $24.99 until 9/9) Sonic Mania ($7.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle ($13.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) Puyo Puyo Tetris ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap ($5.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Super Bomberman R ($19.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) The Red Strings Club ($2.99 from $14.99 until 9/10) Goat Simulator The GOATY ($5.99 from $29.99 until 9/10) Downwell ($2.00 from $2.99 until 9/10) Sayonara Wild Hearts ($7.79 from $12.99 until 9/10) Ghostbusters: The Video Game ($7.49 from $29.99 until 9/10) Hotline Miami Collection ($6.24 from $24.99 until 9/10) Torchlight II ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Huntdown ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Captain Tsubasa: Rise of New Champions ($7.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) Streets of Rage 4 ($11.24 from $24.99 until 9/10) Disc Room ($3.74 from $14.99 until 9/10) Kathy Rain: Director’s Cut ($4.94 from $14.99 until 9/10) Mayhem Brawler ($6.79 from $19.99 until 9/10) TMNT Shredder’s Revenge ($16.24 from $24.99 until 9/10) Gal*Gun Returns ($16.49 from $49.99 until 9/10) Gal*Gun Double Peace ($13.19 from $39.99 until 9/10) Assassin’s Creed: The Ezio Collection ($15.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) Infernax ($13.39 from $19.99 until 9/10) Rise of the Third Power ($11.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Astroneer ($11.99 from $29.99 until 9/10) Lair Land Story ($5.99 from $14.99 until 9/10) Return to Monkey Island ($12.49 from $24.99 until 9/10) Shiro ($2.19 from $4.99 until 9/10) Horgihugh And Friends ($14.99 from $29.99 until 9/10) Card Shark ($7.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Pac-man Museum+ ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Sonic Origins ($14.99 from $29.99 until 9/10) Sonic Frontiers ($20.99 from $59.99 until 9/10) Sonic Superstars ($29.99 from $59.99 until 9/10) Escape Academy: Complete Edition ($17.99 from $29.99 until 9/10) Gunbrella ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/10) Unicorn Overlord ($41.99 from $59.99 until 9/10) Terra Nil ($14.99 from $24.99 until 9/10) Reverie Knights Tactics ($6.24 from $24.99 until 9/10) Windjammers 2 ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Two Point Hospital: Jumbo Edition ($7.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) Blizzard Arcade Collection ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Monster Hunter Rise + Sunbreak Deluxe ($24.49 from $69.99 until 9/10) Gloomhaven: Mercenaries Edition ($7.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) Fae Farm ($41.99 from $59.99 until 9/10) Mr. Sun’s Hatbox ($8.99 from $14.99 until 9/10) Best Day Ever ($5.99 from $14.99 until 9/10) Willy Morgan & the Curse of Bone Town ($7.49 from $24.99 until 9/10) FEZ ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/10) Tales of Kenzara: ZAU ($13.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Make Way ($8.99 from $14.99 until 9/10) ARK: Ultimate Survivor Edition ($24.99 from $49.99 until 9/10) Cult of the Lamb Cultist Edition ($14.99 from $29.99 until 9/10) Life is Strange 2 ($12.79 from $31.99 until 9/10) Strayed Lights ($5.19 from $12.99 until 9/10) Rakuen: Deluxe Edition ($19.99 from $24.99 until 9/10) Valrithian Arc: Hero School Story 2 ($11.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Stones Keeper ($8.79 from $19.99 until 9/10) Bat Boy ($8.99 from $14.99 until 9/10) Jack Jeanne ($29.99 from $49.99 until 9/10) Bandle Tale: League of Legends Story ($12.49 from $24.99 until 9/10) Song of Nunu: League of Legends Story ($14.99 from $29.99 until 9/10) Convergence: League of Legends Story ($14.99 from $29.99 until 9/10) The Mageseeker: League of Legends Story ($14.99 from $29.99 until 9/10) Vanaris Tactics ($4.99 from $9.99 until 9/10) The Last Spell ($14.99 from $24.99 until 9/10) Charon’s Staircase ($2.99 from $24.99 until 9/10) The Vale: Shadow of the Crown ($14.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Dungeon Drafters ($19.99 from $24.99 until 9/10) Pentiment ($11.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Demon Slayer KnY – Sweep the Board ($41.99 from $59.99 until 9/10) Tetris Effect: Connected ($19.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) Boomerang X ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Tenderfoot Tactics ($8.99 from $14.99 until 9/10) CEIBA ($4.39 from $9.99 until 9/10) LEGO Marvel Super Heroes ($9.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) Tears of Avia ($2.99 from $14.99 until 9/10) Vengeful Guardian Moonrider ($11.04 from $16.99 until 9/10) Dorfromantik ($11.99 from $14.99 until 9/10) Undernauts: Labyrinth of Yomi ($29.99 from $59.99 until 9/10) Persona 3 Portable ($11.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Persona 4 Golden ($11.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Persona 5 Royal ($29.99 from $59.99 until 9/10) Persona 5 Strikers ($17.99 from $59.99 until 9/10) Persona 5 Tactica Digital Deluxe ($39.99 from $79.99 until 9/10) Astebros ($7.79 from $12.99 until 9/10) Super Monkey Ball: Banana Rumble ($37.49 from $49.99 until 9/10) GetsuFumaDen: Undying Moon ($14.99 from $24.99 until 9/10) Ys Origin ($5.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Archetype Arcadia ($20.09 from $29.99 until 9/10) Baten Kaitos I & II HD Remaster ($24.99 from $49.99 until 9/10) The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood ($10.79 from $17.99 until 9/10) Solar Ash ($15.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) Adore ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Prison City ($7.99 from $9.99 until 9/10) Two Point Campus ($7.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) OMNIMUS ($4.39 from $9.99 until 9/10) Ring Racer ($2.49 from $4.99 until 9/10) RWBY: Arrowfell ($14.99 from $29.99 until 9/10) The Dragoness: Command of the Flame ($11.69 from $17.99 until 9/10) Die After Sunset ($13.39 from $19.99 until 9/10) Outer Wilds ($14.99 from $24.99 until 9/10) COCOON ($14.99 from $24.99 until 9/10) The Talos Principle ($4.49 from $29.99 until 9/10) Alien: Isolation ($14.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Dicefolk ($11.24 from $14.99 until 9/10) Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown ($23.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) Heads Will Roll: Reforged ($14.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Eternal Threads ($14.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Paper Trail ($13.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Spellbearers ($10.04 from $14.99 until 9/10) Wrath: Aeon of Ruin ($20.99 from $29.99 until 9/10) Spy x Anya: Operation Memories DE ($45.49 from $69.99 until 9/10) Luxor Evolved ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) MotoGP 24 ($29.99 from $49.99 until 9/10) Reigns: Beyond ($3.24 from $4.99 until 9/10) The Mildew Children ($6.99 from $9.99 until 9/10) Class of Heroes 1 & 2: CE ($27.99 from $34.99 until 9/10) Tengoku Struggle: Strayside ($34.99 from $49.99 until 9/10) Plague Inc: Evolved ($5.09 from $14.99 until 9/10) Catherine: Full Body ($9.99 from $49.99 until 9/10) Fell Seal: Arbiter’s Mark ($7.49 from $29.99 until 9/10) Spyro Reignited Trilogy ($15.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) Wobbledogs ($8.19 from $19.99 until 9/10) Adventure Academia: TFC ($17.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) McPixel 3 ($1.99 from $9.99 until 9/10) Crypt of the NecroDancer ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Her Majesty’s Spiffing ($4.99 from $9.99 until 9/10) South Park: The Stick of Truth ($7.49 from $29.99 until 9/10) Into the Breach ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/10) Raging Loop ($10.49 from $29.99 until 9/10) Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series ($9.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) Rogue Legacy ($2.99 from $14.99 until 9/10) Rogue Legacy 2 ($13.74 from $24.99 until 9/10) Valkyria Chronicles ($4.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Valkyria Chronicles 4 ($5.99 from $29.99 until 9/10) Minit ($2.49 from $9.99 until 9/10) Contra Anniversary Collection ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Castlevania Anniversary Collection ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Castlevania Advance Collection ($11.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Arcade Classics Anniversary Collection ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Reigns Game of Thrones ($1.99 from $3.99 until 9/10) Spirit Hunter: Death Mark ($19.99 from $49.99 until 9/10) Spirit Hunter: NG ($24.99 from $49.99 until 9/10) Spirit Hunter: Death Mark II ($34.99 from $49.99 until 9/10) SEGA AGES Sonic the Hedgehog ($2.39 from $7.99 until 9/10) Darkest Dungeon ($7.49 from $24.99 until 9/10) GRIS ($3.39 from $16.99 until 9/10) The Lara Croft Collection ($19.99 from $24.99 until 9/10) Gorogoa ($4.49 from $14.99 until 9/10) Enter the Gungeon ($4.49 from $14.99 until 9/10) Exit the Gungeon ($2.49 from $9.99 until 9/10) Ion Fury ($6.24 from $24.99 until 9/10) Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid ($4.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Power Rangers: BftG Super Edition ($12.49 from $49.99 until 9/10) Minecraft Legends Deluxe Edition ($29.99 from $49.99 until 9/10) Minecraft Dungeons Ultimate Edition ($24.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) Parasite Pack ($3.19 from $7.99 until 9/12) Rider’s Spirits ($4.19 from $5.99 until 9/12) Shockman Collection Vol. 1 ($7.69 from $10.99 until 9/12) Cities Skylines ($9.99 from $39.99 until 9/12) Empire of Sin ($9.99 from $39.99 until 9/12) Demon’s Tilt ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/12) Shadowrun Trilogy ($9.99 from $39.99 until 9/12) Date Z ($13.49 from $14.99 until 9/14) Gerda: A Flame in Winter ($6.99 from $19.99 until 9/14) Cardfight! Vanguard Dear Days ($48.99 from $69.99 until 9/20) West of Loathing ($4.18 from $11.00 until 9/20) Shadows Over Loathing ($15.87 from $23.00 until 9/20) Adventure Field Remake ($2.99 from $4.99 until 9/20) MADiSON ($20.99 from $34.99 until 9/20) Frowntown ($7.79 from $12.99 until 9/20) Infantry Attack: Complete ($2.99 from $10.99 until 9/20) 100 Demon Fantasia ($5.99 from $9.99 until 9/20) Shadow Gangs ($14.39 from $23.99 until 9/22) Suicide Guy: The Lost Dreams ($3.99 from $7.99 until 9/22) Sales Ending Tomorrow, September 3rd Balatro ($13.49 from $14.99 until 9/3) Blade of Darkness ($2.75 from $14.99 until 9/3) Door Kickers ($1.99 from $11.99 until 9/3) Kamitsubaki City Ensemble ($3.59 from $3.99 until 9/3) Neodori Forever ($1.99 from $4.99 until 9/3) That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with more reviews, some new releases, more sales, and perhaps some news. The typhoon has fizzled out, giving way to hot temperatures and sunny skies. I suppose I’ll take it for a day or two. I hope you all have a magnificent Monday, and as always, thanks for reading!

It’s that time again: eShop sale time! Nintendo’s calling this one the Blockbuster Sale, so I’m sure we can expect …

Continue reading "The Best Nintendo Switch eShop Sales From The ‘Blockbuster Sale’"

It’s that time again: eShop sale time! Nintendo’s calling this one the Blockbuster Sale, so I’m sure we can expect a lot of VHS tapes and stale candy. Hm? Oh, it means big games. Alright, that does make some sense. At any rate, there are a ton of games on sale right now, too many to really deal with on your own. As ever, TouchArcade is here to help you out with a list of fifteen hot discounts you should consider. No first party games, but there are still a ton of great games to pick from. No particular order as usual, so let’s get into the deals! 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim ($14.99 from $59.99) A unique blend of side-scrolling adventure and top-down real-time strategy gameplay, 13 Sentinels tells the story of thirteen individuals from various points in time who must battle against invading kaiju in an alternate 1985. They do that through use of their Sentinels, large mechs designed for taking down giant monsters. It has a very good story and the presentation is at the level we’ve come to expect from Vanillaware. The RTS bits are… somewhat less good, but they’re not bad. A sleeper hit that is well worth checking out at this deeply discounted price. Persona Collection ($44.99 from $89.99 until 9/10) If you need to fill a few months’ worth of free time, this will be the best forty-five bucks you could spend. You get Persona 3 Portable, Persona 4 Golden, and Persona 5 Royal, all excellent RPGs and great Switch ports. That works out to fifteen bucks per game, and each of them will easily keep you busy for hours on end while also teaching you the important value of friendship as a means of defeating any evil. It totally works in real life, too! JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: All-Star Battle R ($12.49 from $49.99) I’ll start with a proviso: if you mean to seriously get into JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: All-Star Battle R, you’re probably better off heading over to one of the other platforms where it runs at 60 fps. This Switch port is solid enough to play, however, and JoJo fans will likely have a good time with it. This is a quirky fighter in a lot of ways, and it’s well-suited to the license. Something a little different if you’re tired of the usual Capcom fighters and Mortal Kombat games. Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol. 1 ($41.99 from $59.99) Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 could have been better than it is, particularly with regards to performance and game options. It has received a number of updates to improve it, however, and for what it is, it’s an easy title to recommend. You get a bunch of absolutely top-tier games to play and some really cool extra materials to dig through. Sure, there isn’t much new here for people who have played these games before. But for those craving Metal Gear on the go, or those who somehow haven’t dug into these titles in the past, Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 is a fantastic value with this tidy discount. Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown Deluxe Edition ($41.99 from $59.99) Ace Combat 7: Unknown Skies is an excellent port of a high-quality action game, and it fills a gaping hole in the Switch’s library almost perfectly. It’s more approachable than you might expect, and it’s very easy to get sucked into both its story and gameplay. It’s unfortunate that the multiplayer seems to have a handful of oversights and balance issues, but you’ll get your time and money’s worth out of the campaign and its many unlockables all on its own. Definitely one to add to the collection for those feeling the need for speed. Etrian Odyssey Origins Collection ($39.99 from $79.99) Hm, I guess this is an Atlus list now. The excellent Etrian Odyssey series came to Switch with these HD remakes of the first three games. These are awesome, challenging games that just kept upping the ante with each new installment, and trying to buy the Nintendo DS cartridges now can get very expensive indeed. The signature mapping feature doesn’t work as smoothly here as it did on the DS, especially if you’re playing docked, but it’s as good as it can be. Plus, you can use auto-mapping if you don’t want to deal with it. At half the usual price, you get a lot of game for your buck here. Darkest Dungeon II ($31.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) Embrace the fact that Darkest Dungeon II isn’t interested in building on the original game’s structure but rather in doing its own thing, and you’ll be able to enjoy the charms of this moody, chunky roguelite. Its merits are many, from its distinctive style to its combination of traditional story-telling bits and the magic of emergent, personalized stories. Roguelite fans will want to check it out, even if Darkest Dungeon fans might feel like pushing away from the table and going back to the original. Braid: Anniversary Edition ($9.99 from $19.99) One of the poster children of the indie boom that kicked off in the late 00s, Braid came back with a big splash in this fancy Anniversary Edition. You get a nicely remastered version of the original game, with one of the best developer commentary features seen in a game so far. Braid might not have the punch it once did, but only because so many games that followed were so heavily inspired by it. Even if you’ve played it before, the discounted price should be enticing enough for a replay. Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes – Definitive Edition ($11.69 from $17.99) Might & Magic – Clash of Heroes: Definitive Edition doesn’t add very much to the original, but it was already a strong game that stands for itself quite well in modern times. Dotemu did a capable job of bringing it to the Switch, and it fits the platform almost as well as it fit the Nintendo DS. If you’re looking for a cool puzzle game that offers both a substantial single-player mode and enjoyable multiplayer gameplay, you’ll likely be quite satisfied with what this game has to offer. Life is Strange: Arcadia Bay Collection ($15.99 from $39.99) While the Switch versions of the games in Life is Strange Arcadia Bay Collection suffer from a number of visual and technical flaws compared to other platforms, the games themselves still shine as brightly as ever. It’s hard to say what the future holds for this franchise, but if you’re new to it all and just want a quick and slightly dirty way to explore its origins, picking this up at its sale price is a fine enough way to do that. Loop Hero ($4.94 from $14.99) Loop Hero is as hard to put down as the finest of idle games, but with enough meat on its bones to make it feel like your input actually matters. It’s the kind of game that has something to offer no matter how much or how little time you have to throw at it, and one that will likely keep you coming back now and then to play again. While it isn’t the most challenging of affairs, it’s certainly engaging and full of enough surprises to keep your interest over the long haul. Death’s Door ($4.99 from $19.99) Death’s Door is one of those nice combinations of a superb presentation and strong gameplay. The game could coast well enough on either of those points, but it hits them both and is excellent as a result. There’s nothing overly deep about the gameplay mechanics, and its brand of action is going to be familiar to most. The most impressive bits are the bosses, which require strong pattern recognition and good reflexes. The gorgeous sights and sounds along the way add tremendously to its atmosphere, doing their part to keep the player pulled into this unusual, compelling world. Action-RPG fans will certainly want to give this a go. The Messenger ($3.99 from $19.99) This is the lowest price yet for the Switch version of this popular indie action game, and it’s so low that I can’t imagine anyone not wanting to give it a punt. What seems like a straightforward ninja action game gets bigger and more ambitious as you go, and it juggles things relatively well as it does so. It’s not a perfect game, and I feel like its star has faded a bit over time, but it’s one of those indie games that everyone with any love for 8-bit and 16-bit classics should at least try out once. Hot Wheels Unleashed 2 Turbocharged ($14.99 from $49.99) Hot Wheels Unleashed 2 – Turbocharged is just as fun of an arcade racer as the first game, and the various tweaks and improvements to the formula makes it a far smoother experience. Some players might run into some issues with the challenging post-game content, but that’s why it’s in the post-game. If you enjoyed the first game, you’ll probably like this one even more. Series newcomers should feel comfortable jumping immediately to this sequel, too. For fifteen bucks, it’s hard to go wrong if you like racing. Pepper Grinder ($9.74 from $14.99) Pepper Grinder is an enjoyable, unique platformer with a zippy pace, interesting mechanics, and some cool level designs. The boss battles are a bit clunky and only subtract from what is otherwise a very tight experience. It’s also worth noting that the game is quite brisk in its run-time, so do take that into account before buying. I personally think it ends a little too soon, but that’s not a terrible problem for a game to have, especially with a little shaved off the sticker price. And those are our picks from the Blockbuster Sale on the Nintendo Switch eShop. There are plenty more great games on sale right now besides these, so make sure to check your wishlists and dig into the pages for your favorite publishers just to be sure you aren’t missing anything. If you have any sales you’d like to share, please hit those comments below. Thanks for reading!

Following developer TRAGsoft bringing monster collecting game Coromon to mobile after it debuted on PC and Switch, we are getting …

Continue reading "Roguelite ‘Coromon: Rogue Planet’ in Development for Release on iOS, Android, Switch, and Steam in 2025"

Following developer TRAGsoft bringing monster collecting game Coromon to mobile after it debuted on PC and Switch, we are getting a roguelite spin-off in the form of Coromon: Rogue Planet (Free) due next year for not only Steam and Switch, but also iOS and Android. Coromon: Rogue Planet aims to blend in the turn-based combat of the main game with roguelite gameplay to deliver an endlessly replayable monster collecting gameplay loop. The Steam page mentions “10 ever changing biomes", 7 different playable characters, over 130 monsters, and more. Watch the Coromon: Rogue Planet official announcement trailer below: The original Coromon is a free to play game on mobile. I’m curious to see how Coromon: Rogue Planet ends up on mobile when it does arrive and also whether it hits alongside the Switch and Steam versions. As of now, you can wishlist Coromon: Rogue Planet on Steam here. I haven’t played Coromon in a while, but the gameplay in Coromon: Rogue Planet sounds more interesting. It feels like the perfect pick up and play game based on the Steam screenshots as well. Until this one is out, you can grab the original for free on iOS here. What do you think of Coromon: Rogue Planet so far and did you play Coromon?

Hello everyone, and welcome to the week! It’s time once again for our look back at the noteworthy updates of …

Continue reading "Best iPhone Game Updates: ‘Peglin’, ‘Brawl Stars’, ‘Genshin Impact’, ‘Royal Match’, and More"

Hello everyone, and welcome to the week! It’s time once again for our look back at the noteworthy updates of the last seven days. You know it’s one of those weeks when Shaun has to throw more than one free-to-play matching puzzle game update in the list. Don’t worry, we have some cool stuff in the mix too. And you get to see Shaun kick King Robert, an activity we all enjoy. Of course, you can keep an eye out for updates yourself by participating in the TouchArcade forums. This weekly summary is just here to fill you in on the things you might have missed. Let’s go for it! Peglin, Free I know it’s somewhat rare for me to do this, but I’m giving out the coveted UMMSotW award to the first game in the list this week. Peglin‘s 1.0 update allows you to challenge up to level 20 in Cruciball, battle a new Slime Hive mini-boss, and take advantage of a whole ton of tweaks, bug fixes, balance adjustments, and other improvements. This game didn’t really need much in the way of updating, but I’ll take it anyway. Brawl Stars, Free Brawl time! Stars time! Dare we say… Brawl Stars time?! Yes, we dare. SpongeBob. SpongeBob is here in a new event, and that is cool. A couple new Brawlers coming in the form of Moe (Mythic) and Kenji (Legendary), and a handful of new Hypercharges for various characters. All of this will roll out over the course of the next couple of months in the usual Brawl Stars fashion, but the SpongeBob stuff should be kicking off rather soon if it hasn’t already by the time you read this. stitch., What more would one expect from an update to the soothing and satisfying stitch but more Hoops to play? That’s just what you get here, this time with a bit of a martial arts theme. Sort of, anyway. Like with any good puzzle game, it doesn’t really matter as much what the theme of the puzzles are so long as you get more of them. So yes, update your app and go do some Hoops. You’ll feel better. Genshin Impact, Free I guess this game is called Genshin Impact: Natlan Launch now. Nothing to be done about it. You’ve got a new region, Natlan, and three new characters to go with it: Mualani, Kinich, and Kachina. New weapons as well, of course. Plenty of new events and stories to take on, and some new artifacts too. Regular players likely know by now what to expect from Genshin Impact updates, and while this one is a little bigger than the usual one, it’s very much in line with previous ones in the broad strokes. Temple Run: Puzzle Adventure, Alright, here we go. At least this one is on Apple Arcade, so it’s not completely free-to-play. It sure is a matching puzzle game update, though. There are one hundred new levels to play in this Temple Run spin-off, which is quite a lot as these things go. The tournaments have also been refreshed, as usual. That’s about all, but I’m sure it will keep many players busy for a bit. Maybe even until the next update? I’ve seen how people who play games like these chew through levels, so I’m not super-confident about that! Jetpack Joyride 2, In this very special update to the Apple Arcade sequel to Halfbrick’s mega-hit auto-runner: Barry Steakfries escapes to the one place that hasn’t been corrupted by capitalism – SPACE! It’s a shame that leaving that be would ruin the formatting for the article. Really best as a mic-drop reference, but if I do that things will look very messy, so I have to stand here and ramble a bit so that everything stays properly in its place. Tim Curry, folks. He’s a treasure. We were graced by his many performances, big and small. Much love to Mr. Curry, who I am 99% sure is reading this. Puyo Puyo Puzzle Pop, Moving right along, it’s another matching puzzle game. But to be fair, this is one the all-timer matching puzzle games. At least in it’s original form, anyway. As for this particular version, there are new character episodes for Sig, Carbuncle, and Rafisol in the Adventure Mode. Meena has been added as a playable character, minus an episode of her own. An additional seven music tracks are available in the shop, all arrangements of fan favorite tunes from previous entries. Add in some bug fixes and that’s that. Hearthstone, Free Hearthstone time! This one is usually pretty good with its update notes, so let’s open the ol’ paperwork and see what’s in front of us. Hm. Well, we’ll make do. Battlegrounds Season 8, Trinkets & Travels, is incoming. All the kinds of new stuff we’ve seen in previous seasons, which is nice. The Trinket Shop is here, with Buddies taking a hike. Two times per game you can buy Trinkets with Gold, which will affect the rest of the match. That seems troublesome for balancing, but I suppose that is where Hearthstone is at by this point. Toon Blast, Free The first of the two actual obligatory free-to-play matching puzzle game updates for this article is Toon Blast. There’s a whole new episode here, giving you fifty new levels to play. Some business involving bees, or happiness, or the combination thereof. Bees are pretty cool, even if I am a little scared of them sometimes. They’re cool little buddies that help the ecosystem, and I’d give them tiny hugs if not for the pointy ouchy bit. Hang in there, my bug friends. We’ll get through it all together. Royal Match, Free I don’t know which is more preferable to me: King Robert perishing permanently and never appearing again, or King Robert continually perishing and returning to perish again, in a perpetual and heckish cycle of pain. One hundred new levels. A new jousting arena. That seems to have some potential. I love that one ad where they have swapped King Robert in for the freezing pregnant lady and her child, like we’re supposed to care about this garishly garbed monarch who’s a little chilly. Burn your velvet robes to warm your flesh, you decadent old ogre. That about wraps it up for last week’s significant updates. I’m sure I’ve missed some, though, so please feel free to comment below and let everyone know if you think something should be mentioned. As usual, major updates will likely get their own news stories throughout this week, and I’ll be back next Monday to summarize and fill in the blanks. Have a great week!

Among Us (Free) has done loads of crossovers and collaborations over the years, but one I didn’t expect at all …

Continue reading "‘Among Us’ Is Collaborating With ‘Ace Attorney Investigations’ for Its Newest Free Cosmetic DLC Out Next Week"

Among Us (Free) has done loads of crossovers and collaborations over the years, but one I didn’t expect at all just got announced for next week. Later this week, Capcom is releasing the Ace Attorney Investigations Collection for PC and consoles bringing remasters of both games to modern platforms. Read my preview covering the Switch and PC versions here. Among Us is bringing in Miles Edgeworth from those games as a free cosmetic DLC on September 9th as a collaboration with the Ace Attorney series. Check out the promo art for Miles Edgeworth in Among Us below: Among Us x @aceattorneygame let's hope ur accusations aren't ludicrous. Miles Edgeworth is coming to Among Us as a free cosmetic drop on Sept 9th! pic.twitter.com/6XHdrD29zi — Among Us PAX West (@AmongUsGame) September 1, 2024 If you’ve not gotten Among Us yet, it is available for free on the App Store for iOS here and Google Play for Android here. Check it out on Nintendo Switch here and Steam here. Here’s our forum thread for the game. Ace Attorney Investigations Collection releases on September 6th for PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and Steam worldwide. Hopefully it comes to mobile in the near future as well. Have you been playing Among Us often on mobile and what do you think of the current state of the game?

One thing I love is when a game can successfully blend two fairly different types of gameplay into one cohesive …

Continue reading "TouchArcade Game of the Week: ‘Ocean Keeper’"

One thing I love is when a game can successfully blend two fairly different types of gameplay into one cohesive package. I’m thinking of games like the Blaster Master series with its vehicle-based side-scrolling platforming that’s coupled with cool top-down on-foot sequences. Or heck, a recent favorite like Dave the Diver with its roguelike diving portions blended with restaurant management. Well, Ocean Keeper from developer RetroStyle Games is another one of those games that successfully blends two sets of different mechanics together, and it does so with a gameplay loop and upgrade path that has you coming back over and over again. The basic gist of Ocean Keeper is that you’ve crashed onto a strange underwater planet in your big cool mech. You’ll need to dive down into underwater caves to harvest resources, but you can’t spend too long down there because waves of enemies are approaching and you’ll need to man your mech to defend against them. The mining portions play out from a side-view and involve digging out rocks to unearth various types of resources or special artifacts. Mining also earns you coins, for some reason. As mentioned you only have a short window to mine before enemies show up. Once you’re back in your mech things turn into a top-down twin-stick shooter with light tower defense elements as you attempt to fend off multiple waves of all types of crazy underwater creatures. All your resources go towards upgrading both your miner and your mech, and there is no shortage of branching skill trees to work your way through for both. This is a roguelike so if you die during the enemy encounter portion your game is over and you’ll lose any upgrades or abilities you unlocked during that particular run. However, there are also persistent upgrades and customizations you can unlock in between runs so this is the type of game you always feel like you’re making progress in even if you have a bad run or two. You can also expect the layouts of the overworld and the caves to be different each time you play. This is probably a good time to mention that Ocean Keeper starts off kind of slow, and you definitely will have some real clunker runs in the beginning. Just power your way through and before you know it the upgrades start flowing, your skills begin to improve, you start to get a better grip on the flow of the game, and before long you’ll be a whirling underwater mech of destruction. The synergies between the weapons and upgrades are really the heart of the game and it’s endlessly fun to try different builds or different tactics as you progress. I wasn’t quite sure about Ocean Keeper when I first started since things do start out so slow, but man once things pick up it’s been hard to want to play anything else.

Welcome to this week’s edition of the Steam Deck Weekly. If you missed my Gundam Breaker 4 Steam Deck review, …

Continue reading "Steam Deck Weekly: Visions of Mana and More Reviews, Reynatis Preview, Age of Mythology Retold Steam Deck Impressions, News, and More"

Welcome to this week’s edition of the Steam Deck Weekly. If you missed my Gundam Breaker 4 Steam Deck review, read it here. Today’s article has Steam Deck impressions and reviews for Umamusume: Pretty Derby – Party Dash, Visions of Mana, Gori: Cuddly Carnage, Bloons Card Storm, and more. This week also sees a few notable new Steam Deck Verified games and the usual slew of sales and discounts. Let’s get into the reviews and impressions first. Steam Deck Game Reviews & Impressions We are officially in the very busy season of the year, and I’m going to try and cover as much as I can this week through a few scored reviews and impressions of games on Steam Deck with one preview as well. Umamusume: Pretty Derby – Party Dash Steam Deck Impressions Over the years, we’ve seen Cygames try and expand its Umamusume property through indirect ways with DLC in its other games, through the anime, and more. Umamusume: Pretty Derby itself is finally getting localized this year as well on mobile, and Cygames has released a party game based on Umamusume with Umamusume: Pretty Derby – Party Dash. I need a bit more time for my full review of Umamusume: Pretty Derby – Party Dash when I’ll likely also cover the Switch version, but I’ve been playing Cygames’ first ever official Umamusume: Pretty Derby release in the West on Steam Deck ahead of its launch this week. Until then, I wanted to give you an idea of how Umamusume: Pretty Derby – Party Dash is on Steam Deck. Out of the box, Umamusume: Pretty Derby – Party Dash seems to run at full 16:10, but it is stretched. I recommend going into the settings and changing the resolution to 720p and display mode to full screen so it displays correctly. One thing to keep in mind is Umamusume: Pretty Derby – Party Dash currently has some video playback codec issues resulting in a color bar pattern for some videos. I tested 3 different Proton GE versions including 9-9 with no luck as the game wouldn’t load some modes unless I used Proton Experimental. Aside from the videos, Umamusume: Pretty Derby – Party Dash runs fine at its 60fps target. I’m looking forward to playing more of it for my full review that hopefully covers the console versions as well. As of now Umamusume: Pretty Derby – Party Dash doesn’t have a Steam Deck rating from Valve, and I imagine it will be marked unsupported until the cut-scene issue is addressed. Reynatis English Release Preview Reynatis from NIS America and Furyu is set to release on September 27th for Steam, PS5, PS4, and Switch following its Japanese debut. Ahead of its launch, I had a chance to attend a preview event for the game to check out some of the English build. Usually, I don’t bother doing hands-off previews, but I’ve been curious to see how the English localization is, and also learn more about this release. Since this was a hands-off preview, I can’t comment on how the game feels or how it is on PC, but Reynatis is shaping up to be one of Furyu’s more ambitious games with its story, setting, and seemingly smooth combat. Over the years, I usually end up clicking with Furyu game stories and soundtracks, but one or two aspects always feel lacking. With Reynatis, I’ve been interested in the narrative and combat as well. Reynatis takes place in a recreation of modern-day Tokyo and the different perspectives make it seem like it will be unique. I won’t comment on much of the gameplay until I try it out for myself, but the English localization so far seems very good. I am a bit disappointed at no English dub though. A lot of folks likely are interested in Reynatis because it has music by Yoko Shimomura and a scenario from Kazushige Nojima both of whom are well known to Square Enix fans for their work on Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts, and more. If we do get a demo in the near future, I recommend trying it out to see how you find it for yourself. I’m looking forward to playing Reynatis myself hopefully soon for review, but it definitely feels like this might end up one of Furyu’s better games in recent years. While the story and setting are definitely highlights, I’m very interested in seeing how the combat system feels. Stay tuned for more Reynatis coverage in the near future. Visions of Mana Steam Deck Review When Visions of Mana was announced, I was very happy to see the series back after we saw the superb Collection of Mana and then the remake of Trials of Mana released across multiple platforms. When I tried the demo for Visions of Mana, I was concerned because there were some aspects that didn’t work for me at all, but I was hopeful. Fast forward to today and Visions of Mana is available on PS5, Xbox Series X, and Steam. I’ve been playing it on both Steam Deck and PS5 for review, and it ended up surprising me in a good way, but I feel like it would have benefited from a few months of polish and tweaking when it comes to its general movement. I’m going to focus on the game on Steam Deck in this review, but also cover how it feels on PS5. If you’re new to the Mana series, you can still start with this one. Visions of Mana is a new game in the series covering the Mana Tree and more. If you, like me, have played prior games, this will feel great in some ways, but you might be let down in parts, especially for the story. Visions of Mana’s strength is in its gorgeous world, the combat, and general gameplay. It is a huge step up over Trials of Mana in its scope and visuals, just like Tales of Arise felt in a way when it was released. The issues I have with Visions of Mana are to do with its general feel. The movement and camera never feel good. While I managed fixing this on PS5 with the camera distance and movement speed, I wish it was snappier in general. On the PC port side, Visions of Mana is quite bare-bones. You can adjust screen mode, resolution, frame rate target (30fps to unlimited), toggle v-sync, adjust FSR 2, and just “graphics settings" presets. These presets are low, standard, and high. It doesn’t tell you what the three options change, but it does affect draw distance, post-processing, and more. While the game boots up seemingly fullscreen at 16:10, it is actually stretched. Don’t be fooled into thinking the game supports the native resolution. Changing the display mode from borderless to windowed or fullscreen will have it adjust to 16:9 where the elements and screen are not stretched. A friend of mine recommended trying out forcing a lower resolution in the demo to get better performance, but that seems to come with its own issues where the resolution options bug out even when you go back to forcing native or higher resolution on the Deck’s own display. Visions of Mana is currently rated as Steam Deck Playable by Valve, but it has notable performance issues right now. Regardless of the settings I used when it comes to frame rate target or upscaling, I couldn’t get a locked frame rate even targeting 30fps with it dropping below in crowded areas. When using the low preset and different upscaling methods for testing purposes, the game runs above 60fps in parts, but it also drops below 30fps. Some areas just stutter in general, and even playing on Ultra Performance upscaling with the really low image quality isn’t enough. Visions of Mana’s art style really doesn’t work with heavy upscaling so I would not recommend it. After spending about 5 hours just testing out different settings across my save files in Visions of Mana, I settled on playing with FSR set to quality and the high preset for a 30fps target with drops below to the high 20s. If you’re ok with around 30fps and regular drops below to the high 20s, Visions of Mana is fine on Steam Deck, and looks excellent on the handheld’s screen when playing at the high graphics preset. I would recommend downloading the free Visions of Mana demo to try out the different graphics options, but note that the final game runs a bit differently. It is still worth checking to see how the aesthetic scales on Steam Deck with different settings used. Visions of Mana needs more optimization right now on PC in general though. I’d also love for the PC port to actually see more detailed graphics options added so that players can adjust things individually rather than relying on console-like modes. On the control side, Visions of Mana has support for controller and keyboard + mouse inputs. You can also change the controller glyphs which is always a welcome option. Speaking of console, Visions of Mana on PS5 is great after some tweaking. The default camera movement and distance felt awful. Having changed it to zoomed out and the camera speed to 10 resulted in a massively better feeling experience. The default gave me motion sickness in parts. I would also recommend toggling on auto-run. If you, like me, play on both current consoles or Steam Deck, I would grab Visions of Mana on PS5 for sure over Steam Deck until it gets some patches on the latter. Visions of Mana has higher highs but also lower lows than Trials of Mana, but it is a game I’m glad I got to experience by the end. If you enjoyed Trials of Mana and games like Tales of Arise specifically on the gameplay side, Visions of Mana is worth your time. I just wish the movement and PC port were better. In its current state, it is excellent to have a modern Mana game and Visions of Mana delivered on that front. Just don’t expect it to reach the highs of Secret of Mana. While it is rated Steam Deck Playable by Valve, I recommend playing it on PS5 rather than Steam Deck with how bare-bones the PC port is in its current state. Visions of Mana Steam Deck review score: 3.5/5 Gori: Cuddly Carnage Steam Deck Review When I first saw promotional art for Gori: Cuddly Carnage, I thought it would be a short horror game. I didn’t expect it to be a blend of Ratchet & Clank, Cyril Cyberpunk, and an action game with a ton of early 2000s humor sprinkled across. If that sounds good to you, just go download the demo because it is great. Gori: Cuddly Carnage has you playing as a badass cat in an action platformer that happens to have better combat than any recent game in the genre. While the aesthetic might not work for some, I found it perfectly suits the writing and was impressed by the smooth animations and visuals throughout my time playing it. On PC, Gori: Cuddly Carnage lets you adjust graphics presets (low, medium, high, very high), resolution, display mode, FOV, frame rate target (30fps to unlimited), toggle v-sync, toggle motion blur, toggle ray tracing, upscale method (off, DLSS, XeSS), and also adjust the quality for anti-aliasing, shadows, textures, effects, and post-processing. The PC version is quite a feature packed port for a game like this, and it controls perfectly on Steam Deck with good rumble as well. On Steam Deck playing at the very high preset with no upscaling used, expect to play with a 30fps target. I didn’t want to settle for just 30fps of course. Using the medium preset with no upscaling is good for playing with 45fps at 90hz on Steam Deck OLED. If you want to aim for 60fps or higher, I recommend playing with higher visuals but XeSS. Taking things all the way down at the low preset and XeSS set to ultra performance results in 90fps with some drops. It doesn’t look bad even now, but it is definitely a visual step down from native anti-aliasing. I also had access to Gori: Cuddly Carnage on PS5, and that version is just as impressive as the PC version with multiple performance modes including a ray tracing mode, 120fps mode, and more. It also has good DualSense support. When it comes to the game itself, Gori: Cuddly Carnage has some camera issues that affect platforming sections and also a few boss battles that annoyed me. While the latter could just be certain encounters not clicking with me, I hope the former can be addressed. Overall, I’m very pleased with how Gori: Cuddly Carnage is on Steam Deck, and expect it to get Verified very soon. The game itself surprised me with its quality, and it is one I won’t forget for a while. It excels with its fun gameplay, good writing, and great combat and feels right at home on Steam Deck from start to finish. It is just held back by a few annoyances. Gori: Cuddly Carnage Steam Deck review score: 4/5 Bloons Card Storm Steam Deck Gameplay Impressions When I learned about Bloons Card Storm, a collectible card game set in the Bloons game universe, I was curious about it. I had access to a Steam preview build of the game ahead of its full launch later this year on mobile and Steam, and it has been an interesting experience. Having played the Bloons games on iOS with touch controls, I wasn’t sure what to expect with Bloons Card Storm, but it feels right at home on Steam Deck with touch controls. As of now there is no controller support in the preview build, but it plays perfectly with touch controls. As for the game itself, Bloons Card Storm feels like a nice addition to the crowded genre. I played a few levels of the PvE mode and like how the team brought over Bloons characters and abilities to this world. If you’re new to Bloons, I recommend playing the super popular Bloons TD 6 or TD Battles 2 before, but you can still play and enjoy this one. I just hope the monetization is handled well when it launches because I can’t see what the in-game store is selling right now. I can safely say that it runs and looks great on Steam Deck even in its early preview build. Hopefully it gets controller support at or around launch though. It is shaping up to be a nice and accessible card game, and the cross platform multiplayer means I’m definitely going to get a few friends to give it a shot at launch. Age of Mythology: Retold Steam Deck Gameplay Impressions I’ve been very excited for Age of Mythology: Retold because I played the original a ton back in the day. The action RTS bringing together gods and monsters was already great on PC, but this remake had me more interested because it was coming to console day one. You might be wondering why that matters for a Steam Deck review, and I need to go back a bit to Age of Empires coming to Xbox for that. When Microsoft brought Age of Empires II Definitive Edition to Xbox, it played wonderfully with full controller support and a fantastic port. The company sadly did not bring this controller support to the PC version and I’ve had to rely on using the trackpad on Steam Deck to play Age of Empires II Definitive and also Age of Empires IV. I ended up playing both of those more on Xbox because I really love the controller support. It isn’t as good as playing with a mouse and keyboard for some specific areas, but I played enough of these games with a keyboard and mouse when they first released. Age of Mythology: Retold had a beta test on Steam, and when I tried it out, I was glad to see it included controller support even on Steam. This was enough for me to pre-order the game’s Premium Edition a few days ago to play on Steam Deck. So far, Age of Mythology: Retold feels great on Steam Deck, after making one change. By default, Age of Mythology: Retold is marked as Steam Deck Playable by Valve, but I actually couldn’t get it to boot up at all on my Steam Deck OLED or LCD models. It kept freezing or crashing. Moving to GE Proton 9-9 fixed this issue for me. I haven’t played enough to do a full review yet, but I’m glad at how good Age of Mythology: Retold feels and looks on Steam Deck right now. I’m looking forward to playing it more over the coming weeks. As for the best graphics settings for Age of Mythology: Retold on Steam Deck OLED, I need a bit more time to see how it performs later on. Right now, I’ve settled for 45fps at 90hz with a combination of medium settings with FSR 2 set to quality. It is going to be interesting to see how it fares later on in the campaign. Shadow of the Ninja – Reborn Steam Deck Gameplay Impressions Shadow of the Ninja – Reborn is Tengo Project and NatsumeAtari’s newest remake of a classic, and it is a damn fine release overall. Shaun is working on a full review of this one, but I wanted to cover how it feels on Steam Deck and also Xbox briefly. Shadow of the Ninja – Reborn on PC lets you adjust resolution and screen mode (borderless, windowed, and fullscreen). It only has 16:9 support, but the aesthetic absolutely shines on Steam Deck with the particle effects and crisp animation work. As for the PC port itself, there are some control issues if you want to use a keyboard, but I played Shadow of the Ninja – Reborn on Steam Deck only and it felt right at home on Valve’s handheld with fast loading and no performance issues. While Shadow of the Ninja – Reborn’s source game isn’t as amazing as the likes of Pocky and Rocky or even The Ninja Warriors like we’ve seen from Tengo Project in the past, it has gotten an excellent release that runs and looks perfect on Steam Deck and Xbox Series X. I also enjoyed playing it online through Steam Remote Play Together with a friend of mine in another country. If you aren’t sure about this one yet, I recommend downloading the demo and trying it out for yourself. News and Trailers Let’s start this week’s section with a brand-new extended showcase for Atlus’ upcoming RPG Metaphor: ReFantazio. It continues to look amazing and I can’t believe it is only a little over a month away. Watch the trailer below: Following that, Square Enix just posted new details for the upcoming Romancing SaGa 2 remake titled Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven coming to Steam and consoles this October. Check out some new screenshots here and one showcasing Glimmer below: Now let’s shift gears to the Nintendo Indie Direct + Partner Showcase that had 99% games coming to or on Steam. I’ve included the highlights here. Marvelous USA had an impactful trailer for Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma coming to Switch and Steam in Spring 2025. Watch it below: Bandai Namco announced Tales of Graces f Remastered for January 2025 release on Steam and all consoles with visual upgrades and DLC included. Watch the trailer below: Konami and M2 have released Castlevania Dawn of Sorrow, Portrait of Ruin, and Order of Ecclesia in one collection out now on Steam and all consoles. I’ll be reviewing this one next week so stay tuned for that. Capcom announced Capcom Fighting Collection 2 featuring Capcom Vs SNK, Power Stone, and 6 other games coming in 2025 to Steam, Switch, and PlayStation. Capcom also announced that the Marvel Vs Capcom collection launches in under 2 weeks. The excellent Cuisineer from Marvelous USA is coming to Switch and other consoles early next year alongside a big update for the Steam release. I’m definitely getting the physical edition. The Ghibli-inspired action-adventure game Europa was showcased for Switch during the Nintendo Indie World showcase and will launch on October 11th for Switch and Steam. Atelier Yumia: The Alchemist of Memories & the Envisioned Land, the next mainline Atelier game is coming to Steam and all consoles including Xbox, a series first, in early 2025, and it looks incredible. Tetris Forever is the new Gold Master Series release from Digital Eclipse coming this year featuring more than 15 playable classic games from the series’ history. Some have never seen a release outside Japan before. PowerWash Simulator is going deeper into the madness with the Shrek Special Pack coming soon for Steam and all consoles. FAIRY TAIL 2 from Gust and Koei Tecmo is finally coming to Steam, Switch, and other consoles beginning December 11th. Watch the trailer below: Fantastic Games: Presented by Day of the Devs will be taking place from September 20th to 22nd, and the full list of games and developers has been revealed. I’m excited for quite a few of those, and I even have played a few of those already (but I can’t say which ones yet!). Channel: Death by Night City, Big Sir Games darkwebSTREAMER by We Have Always Lived in the Forest Fear the Spotlight by Cozy Game Pals and Blumhouse Games Five Nights at Freddy’s: Secret of the Mimic by Steel Wool Grunn by Sokpop Collective Hollowbody by Headware Games Holstin by Sonka Horses by Santa Ragione Karma: The Dark World by Pollard Studio, Wired Productions and Gamera Games Pinball M (DLC) by Zen Studios Post Trauma by Red Soul Games and Raw Fury Skate Story by Sam Eng and Devolver Digital Tom the Postgirl by Oopsie Daisies SWORD ART ONLINE Fractured Daydream got two new character trailers this week. Check out the Yui and Oberon trailers below: D3 Publisher launched the first DLC pack for Earth Defense Force 6 in the form of Earth Defense Force 6 – Lost Days DLC 1. It is out now on Steam and PS5. Super Evil Megacorp posted a roadmap for TMNT Splintered Fate following its launch on Apple Arcade and Switch revealing that it will be Steam Deck Verified and more. Taiko no Tatsujin: Rhythm Festival is coming to Steam and current consoles on November 7th with 120fps support and more. It plays amazing on Steam Deck already. Try the demo here. Panic’s newest showcase aired a few days ago and it is absolutely worth watching if you like interesting games. Ahead of Tokyo Games Show, SEGA and Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio announced the next RGG Summit for September 20th at 3 AM PT. You can watch it below when the event begins: Pinball FX brings in Goat Simulator and The Princess Bride as DLC tables this week on Steam and other platforms. Stay tuned for my coverage of both of these and the game itself in the near future: The first DLC for That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime ISEKAI Chronicles, “A Strange Fate" is now available with Hinata as a new playable character and an original story by the original author. Watch the launch trailer below: SYNDUALITY: ECHO OF ADA has a new trailer with closed network test sign ups now live. Sign up here and watch the trailer for it below: The final bit of news is The First Descendant’s Season 1: Invasion now available bringing in a new descendent: Hailey, battle pass rewards, new dungeon invasions, and much more. New Steam Deck Verified & Playable games for the week A lot of interesting additions this week with the newly released Castlevania collection and Gundam Breaker 4 being marked as playable alongside Marvel Vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics getting Verified ahead of its launch in under two weeks. I’m also glad to see the upcoming Dragon Quest Monsters release and Regency Solitaire II get tested by Valve. Age of Mythology: Retold – Playable Castlevania Dominus Collection – Playable DRAGON QUEST MONSTERS: The Dark Prince – Playable GUNDAM BREAKER 4 – Playable MARVEL vs. CAPCOM Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics – Verified Pool Panic – Verified Regency Solitaire II – Verified Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse – Verified The Elder Scrolls Online – Playable Visions of Mana – Playable Steam Deck Game Sales, Discounts, and Specials The notable sales of the week include a Tales of franchise sale where I recommend Tales of Berseria as the best game in the series on Steam followed by Tales of Arise, Kingdom Come Deliverance at 90% off, and Red Dead Redemption II at 60% off on Steam. Note that for Red Dead Redemption II, you can’t buy the Steam version outside Steam while you can for the other games I’ve mentioned here. That’s all for this edition of the Steam Deck Weekly. As usual, you can read all our past and future Steam Deck coverage here. If you have any feedback for this feature or what else you’d like to see us do around the Steam Deck, let us know in the comments below. I hope you all have a great day, and thanks for reading.

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 30th, 2024. In today’s article, we have a handful …

Continue reading "SwitchArcade Round-Up: ‘Umamusume: Pretty Derby’, ‘Super Dark Deception’, Plus Today’s Other Releases and Sales"

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 30th, 2024. In today’s article, we have a handful of new releases to look at as we bid farewell to August. A few decent ones, and a few unique ones. Outside of that, there isn’t much more than the lists of new sales and expiring discounts. This has been a busy week for me in many ways, but we should be back to the normal routine next week. Let’s get to what we’ve got! Select New Releases Umamusume: Pretty Derby – Party Dash ($44.99) I say thee neigh, Umamusume! Everyone’s favorite horse-girls arrive on Switch with this party game for up to four players via local or online multiplayer. There are four different minigames to play, and you get a full story mode with twenty-five playable characters to enjoy. It’s unbridled excitement for fans of the series, so if that’s you it’s time to start horsing around with your friends. I give you free rein to be as sore of a winner as you like, but get ready to hoof it if they get mad about it. Super Dark Deception ($17.99) Take Dark Deception, and then imagine how that would look as a sprite-based 2D game. Would it look like Super Dark Deception? Maybe not, but someone’s idea of it clearly did because here we are. Try to escape the mazes with your life intact, using anything and everything at your disposal to avoid being killed by the roaming creatures that go bump in the night. At launch, the game only includes the first chapter, consisting of four levels. More will be added over time as free DLC, but do consider that relatively low amount of content and admittedly uncertain future before purchasing. Forest, Fields and Fortresses ($4.99) A tile-placing puzzle game where you’re building a kingdom one piece at a time. There are two modes of play here. One is a puzzle mode where you have a set number and type of pieces and need to place them in such a way that you’ll earn enough gold to pass. The other mode is called Adventure Mode, where you can unlock and use a variety of starting maps and a random assortment of pieces to build with. Not bad at all if you’re looking for an affordable bit of puzzling fun today. Date Z ($14.99) A choice-based visual novel dating sim where you have to find a date by Friday or die. Well, no pressure there. There are five potential partners to woo, and naturally a bunch of different endings to uncover. I was ready to write it off as another in the big pile of games like this, but then I saw the above screenshot. How do I not include a game with that kind of screenshot on its store page? Bedrotting ($14.99) Well, this is a horror game premise I haven’t seen before. You play as a young girl who has been in a car accident. While your body is fine, your mental state isn’t. You can’t seem to get up out of your bed, basically. You need to survive for twenty days, which means eating, using a bucket as a toilet, and doing whatever you can to keep yourself together. That last bit becomes a very big problem as strange visions start to appear. Are they real? Your imagination? Does it matter? One for the enjoyers of creepy games, I’d say. Sales (North American eShop, US Prices) Not quite as interesting a list of new sales as yesterday’s, but if you’re looking to fill up on Pinball FX tables a number of them are discounted right now. Retro City Rampage DX and Shakedown: Hawaii are at their lowest prices yet, and that may be of interest to some. Over in the weekend outbox, the latest sale from Limited Run Games is wrapping up. Grab what you must. Select New Sales WitchSpring R ($35.99 from $39.99 until 9/5) Dice Make 10! ($3.59 from $3.99 until 9/5) Bug & Seek ($11.24 from $14.99 until 9/5) The House of Da Vinci 2 ($4.99 from $9.99 until 9/6) Kingdom Rush ($5.49 from $9.99 until 9/6) Kingdom Rush Origins ($8.24 from $14.99 until 9/6) Kingdom Rush Frontiers ($5.49 from $9.99 until 9/6) Dance of Death: Du Lac & Fey ($2.39 from $15.99 until 9/6) Charlie Brown Christmas Pinball DLC ($2.74 from $5.49 until 9/9) Marvel Pinball Collection 1 DLC ($11.99 from $23.99 until 9/9) Tiny Thor ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/12) Cilla ($5.59 from $6.99 until 9/12) The Legend of Dark Witch ($3.49 from $6.99 until 9/12) The Legend of Dark Witch Ep. 2 ($8.99 from $9.99 until 9/12) Brave Dungeon + Dark Witch Story ($4.49 from $8.99 until 9/12) Forward To The Sky ($9.79 from $48.99 until 9/13) Wall World ($4.99 from $9.99 until 9/13) The Oregon Trail ($17.99 from $29.99 until 9/19) Sherlock Holmes The Awakened ($9.99 from $39.99 until 9/19) Mercenaries Saga Chronicles ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/19) Shadows of Adam ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/19) Retro City Rampage DX ($3.49 from $14.99 until 9/19) Shakedown Hawaii ($3.49 from $19.99 until 9/19) Rise: Race the Future ($6.59 from $16.49 until 9/19) Speed Overflow ($7.79 from $12.99 until 9/19) Path to Purge ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/19) Sales Ending This Weekend Another Crab’s Treasure ($23.99 from $29.99 until 8/31) Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore ($11.99 from $19.99 until 8/31) Cosmic Star Heroine ($3.74 from $14.99 until 8/31) Dark Quest 3 ($7.59 from $18.99 until 8/31) Geometry Survivor ($1.99 from $4.99 until 8/31) Hot Wheels Unleashed ($5.99 from $39.99 until 8/31) Hot Wheels Unleashed GotY Edition ($11.99 from $79.99 until 8/31) Jurassic Park Games Collection ($17.99 from $29.99 until 8/31) Night Trap ($3.74 from $14.99 until 8/31) Oddworld Soulstorm ($17.49 from $49.99 until 8/31) Operation Wolf Returns ($10.49 from $29.99 until 8/31) The House in Fata Morgana ($19.99 from $39.99 until 8/31) Frog Detective: The Entire Mystery ($13.96 from $19.95 until 9/1) That’s all for today, this week, and this month, friends. As mentioned in the opening paragraph, this was an unusually busy week for me beyond my work here on the site. I apologize if things have seemed a bit light as a result. We’ll be back to the normal schedule next week, and that means plenty of reviews, new releases, sales, and some news. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend, and as always, thanks for reading!

In our tour through retro games available to buy on Switch, we’ve worked our way through the NES, Game Boy, …

Continue reading "The 10 Best Super NES Games on Nintendo Switch, Plus 5 We’d Like to See – SwitchArcade Special"

In our tour through retro games available to buy on Switch, we’ve worked our way through the NES, Game Boy, and SEGA Genesis selections among other more recent console libraries. This time we’re taking a look at the games that originated with Nintendo’s 16-bit console, the Super NES. While you can find plenty of great games from the console in the Nintendo Switch Online app, we’re instead looking at those games that dare to exist in the wilds of the Switch eShop. We’ve got ten of our favorites here, plus five more games that we’d like to see. No particular order, of course. Oh, and to cut off potential comments at the pass: Mega Man X isn’t here because I feel the input lag in the Legacy Collection hurts it too badly. Stone-cold classic, just not a great play experience on Switch. On with the show! Sparkster – Rocket Knight Adventures: Re-Sparked ($29.99) A very rare case of a Konami franchise born on a SEGA platform, Rocket Knight Adventures was a game Super NES owners could easily envy. While that game never came to Nintendo’s console, a version of the sequel did. Sparkster is the name of two distinct games, and the Super NES offering bearing that title is probably the better of the two. Not quite up to the original game, but plenty of fun. Rock ‘n Roll Racing – Blizzard Arcade Collection ($19.99) Before Blizzard became a household name for joking about phone ownership, it was making some very good console games. Also a pretty iffy Justice League fighting game, but we’re not here to talk about that. Instead, we’re talking about the highly enjoyable isometric racer that fused exciting gameplay with a fantastic licensed soundtrack. This game alone is worth the price of admission for this collection, but you get a handful of other cool Super NES games with it. Top Racer – Top Racer Collection ($19.99) More popularly known under the title Top Gear, Top Racer is one of the better choices in the racing genre on the Super NES. It rides the line between arcade and sim very well, and the soundtrack is absolutely outstanding. You get all three of the games in this set, and I’d argue the second game goes toe-to-toe with the first. The third game… well, how about those first two games, eh? Secret of Mana – Collection of Mana ($39.99) Square Enix seems to favor remakes with its Switch takes on its Super NES classics, and while those aren’t technically against my rules for these lists I think I’ll go with a purer choice. Secret of Mana can be found in the excellent Collection of Mana alongside the Game Boy original and the Super NES third game in the series. The emulation was handled by M2, so it’s working just as it did back in the day, bugs and all. Secret of Mana is a thoroughly enjoyable action-RPG, despite its many rough edges. You get to save Christmas at the behest of Rudolph! What more do you need? A fluffy dragon you can ride in a Mode 7 overworld map? Well, you get that too! TMNT IV: Turtles in Time – TMNT: The Cowabunga Collection ($39.99) The 16-bit generation was the era of beat ’em ups, and Turtles in Time jostles with Streets of Rage 2 for the title of king among the many challengers. It looks almost as good as the arcade game, plays even better, and leans into its time-traveling gimmick in a lot of fun ways. One of the best games on the Super NES full-stop, and I’m glad we’re able to buy it on modern consoles for the time being. Contra III: The Alien Wars – Contra Anniversary Collection ($19.99) Lots of Konami here again. It occupies a lot of spots in these lists, but it has earned it. Here’s the third Contra game, and the first to have no roots in the arcades whatsoever. It aims for a more futuristic setting and feel, and in true Konami style it pushes the hardware in a variety of fun ways. Sure, those Mode 7 overhead levels don’t play quite as well as you might like them to, but there’s no denying the style that runs through this entire game. Super Castlevania IV – Castlevania Anniversary Collection ($19.99) For some people, this is the best action-based installment in the Castlevania series. I’m not sure I’m fully on-board with that, but this is one heck of a great game. The visuals, sound effects, and music create an incredible vibe, and Simon’s overpowered whip skills make you feel like a real pro. The Super NES would see a lot of great action games, but few of them are as confidently showy as this one. A highly memorable game, and if you’re looking for a somewhat fairer entry point into the series this is one of the better choices. Zombies Ate My Neighbors – Zombies Ate My Neighbors & Ghoul Patrol ($14.99) Okay, Konami published this back in the day, but it’s really a Lucasarts title. A really unique one, at that. A stage-based top-down action game with tons of wacky enemies, locations, and tools you can find and use, Zombies Ate My Neighbors offered an experience you couldn’t find anywhere else on the console. Play alone or pull in a friend, especially if you want to make an actual go at beating this tough game. Aladdin – Disney Classic Games Collection ($29.49) The debate rages on about which 16-bit console version of Aladdin is better, but the nice thing about the Disney Classic Games Collection is that it doesn’t force you to choose. Both are here, have fun. Since this is a Super NES list, we’re talking about that version of the game. Directed by Shinji Mikami, who later got up to some zombie nonsense, this version of Aladdin can’t match the authentic presentation of the Genesis game, but makes up for it with some excellent Capcom platforming action. A bit of a breezy affair, but that’s not so bad sometimes. Puzzle Bobble/Bust-A-Move (16-Bit Console Version) ($7.99) Let’s squeeze a puzzle game in here to finish things out. Call it Bust-A-Move, call it Puzzle Bobble, either way you’re in for a good time. Shoot the bubbles, make the matches, and try to clear the field before you get squashed. A charming presentation and some devilish stage designs make this a hard one to put down. Sure, the sequels have a lot more to offer, but you can have plenty of good times with this version all on its own. And… 5 Super NES Games We’d Like to See on Switch Chrono Trigger I mean, of course. One of the best games on the console, and cited by many as the finest game in the genre. It’s a bit silly that it isn’t on Switch, even if there are probably good reasons for it. Well, this is a wishlist. I don’t care about reasons! I want results! Bring me pictures of Chrono! Er, bring me Chrono Trigger on Switch! SimCity The theme of these picks is going to be licensing issues from here on out, though I have to believe SimCity is somewhat possible. All we need is Electronic Arts and Nintendo to come together to make it happen, and it’s not like it hasn’t happened before. Why don’t we have any SimCity on Switch? Mysterious stuff. Give me this one and I’ll forget about how you parked the IP in the river, EA. For a while, anyway. Terranigma The one that got away for North American Super NES owners. Quintet’s run on the Super NES was outstanding, and I’d love to see all of them available to buy again. If I had to pick just one, it’s this one. A very enjoyable action-RPG with a story that will definitely stick with you, wrapped up in a gorgeous package that rivals what Square was doing on the console in a lot of ways. I’m hoping this can one day slip out of the vault it’s currently trapped in, even if that place isn’t on the Switch. U.N. Squadron There’s something about U.N. Squadron that tends to click with people who aren’t usually into shoot ’em ups. Maybe it’s the manga/anime-born style. Perhaps it’s the lenience afforded by the life bar. The cool jets? Maybe it’s the cool jets. Whatever the case, it would be amazing to see this game get a reissue. It’s tied up with a license which probably makes things difficult, but I’ll keep my fingers crossed that Capcom makes it happen someday. Spider-Man & Venom: Maximum Carnage The author’s bias on full display here, wow. Maximum Carnage? That iffy beat ’em up based on the comic event where Spider-Man defeats Carnage with the literal power of friendship? Yes. I love this game. It is stupid and kind of bad and I love it. I want it, even if I have to put up with it being packaged with Separation Anxiety or something. Get Green Jelly on the phone, patch Marvel into the conference call, find whoever bought the husk of LJN/Acclaim, and get it done. And that’s the list, friends. Are there any Super NES games you enjoy on the Switch? Any you would like to see? Feel free to sound off down in the comments and let us know what you’re thinking! It’s always interesting to hear the opinions of others on this kind of thing. As always, thanks for reading!

HoYoverse’s Honkai Star Rail (Free) version 2.5 update titled “Flying Aureus Shot to Lupine Rue" was just showcased during a …

Continue reading "‘Honkai Star Rail’ Version 2.5 “Flying Aureus Shot to Lupine Rue” Update Releases on September 10th, New Trailer Showcased During Livestream"

HoYoverse’s Honkai Star Rail (Free) version 2.5 update titled “Flying Aureus Shot to Lupine Rue" was just showcased during a livestream. It will release on September 10th for iOS, Android, PS5, and PC. This update’s highlights are the Wardance ceremony, many new enemies, new characters: Feixiao, Lingsha, and Moze alongside the silkpunk saga in the Shackling Prison reaching its climax, and also reruns of Black Swan and Kafka (!). Topaz will be returning for a rerun in part 2 of version 2.5. Watch the newest Honkai Star Rail version 2.5 update trailer below: If you’ve not played the game yet, you can download Honkai Star Rail on the App Store for iOS here, on Google Play for Android here, and here on the Epic Games Store in addition to its regular PC version. Check it out here on PS5. Have you been playing Honkai Star Rail recently and what do you think of 2.5 so far?

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 29th, 2024. We’ve got another big plate of new …

Continue reading "SwitchArcade Round-Up: ‘Emio: The Smiling Man’, ‘Gundam Breaker 4’, Plus Today’s Other Releases and Sales"

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 29th, 2024. We’ve got another big plate of new releases to check out today, and that’s going to be the bulk of the column as it usually is on Thursdays. We also have a relatively hefty list of new sales to delve into, and that’s really about it. We can’t have Nintendo Directs every day, after all. Let’s get to the games! Select New Releases Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club ($49.99) After a few decades without any sequels, Famicom Detective Club is back. This new case is very faithful to the original games, for better or worse. You get an entirely new mystery to unravel, and in terms of the presentation it’s relatively similar to the remake releases in Switch a little while back. Can you solve the latest serial murder case? I’ll be giving it a try in my review, coming soon. Gundam Breaker 4 ($59.99) Mikhail has already written a veritable book on this game in his review, so I’ll just direct you towards that if you want a full breakdown of the gameplay and how it performs on Switch. The short version is that you’re building and battling Gunplas, and while this Switch port is obviously going to falter behind the others in terms of performance, it does the job well enough that if it’s the option in front of you, it’s more than fine. Anyway, go read Mikhail’s review. It’s a goodie. Shadow of the Ninja – Reborn ($19.99) Tengo Project has had a very good run with its remakes/re-imaginings so far. Wild Guns Reloaded, The Ninja Saviors: Return of the Warriors, and Pocky & Rocky Reshrined brought back some 16-bit cult favorites with a lot of awesome extras. Shadow of the Ninja – Reborn sees the team applying its touch to an 8-bit game, and as you might imagine it’s quite a bit more different from its source material than the aforementioned games. Still, if you’re fixing for an action-platformer with a classic style, this will serve you. I’ll be reviewing this early next week, so watch for that. Valfaris: Mecha Therion ($19.99) This is a follow-up to Valfaris, but don’t expect more of the same kind of gameplay you saw in that game. No, this is a 2.5D side-scrolling shoot ’em up, and it’s decent enough. I think some people were caught off guard by the genre shift and were put off as a result, but embrace the change and you’ll find plenty to enjoy. Yes, this is another one I’ve got a review coming up for. Funny how that works! Nour: Play With Your Food ($9.99) I’d like to pretend I know what’s going on with this game, but I really don’t. Those sure are some nice images of food, though. And you’re meant to play with all of that? Take some pictures, I guess? Look for secrets? Maybe I’ll dispatch our pal Mikhail to investigate this further. It seems like his sort of thing. Monster Jam Showdown ($49.99) If you like monsters, or you like jam, then… I have no idea if you’ll like this game. It’s about Monster Jam, the monster truck thing. No preserves or strawberries or goblins at all. Well, what can you do? It has support for multiplayer, both local and online, and seems to have plenty of modes and such to play around with. It seems to have met with a middling reaction on other platforms, but monster truck fans don’t have a whole lot of choices in front of them, I suppose. If that’s you, do what you must. WitchSpring R ($39.99) I think this is a remake of the original WitchSpring, but I might be wrong about that. WitchSpring to me was always the mobile “we have Atelier at home" series, and in that capacity and at that price point, it served its role well enough. Now that it’s getting very near to the price of an actual Atelier game, I’m not sure if I’m quite so on board with it. But if you’re willing to give it a go, it does look like the nicest WitchSpring game so far. Depths of Sanity ($19.99) Oh, this is one of those undersea exploration games. Those always have an interesting vibe to them. This one leans into the fantastical horror side of things, as you might expect from the title. You’re trying to figure out what happened to your missing crew, and you’ll have to poke around a big, dangerous interconnected underwater world to sort it all out. Yes, there will be fighting. This one is well-regarded on other platforms by fans of exploratory action games, and I suspect it will find an eager following on the Switch as well. Voltaire: The Vegan Vampire ($19.99) Kids, am I right? Voltaire is rebelling against his vampiric daddy by taking up a vegan lifestyle to prove there are other ways to live than biting necks. Daddy doesn’t dig that, and is going to try to teach his son a lesson. What this amounts to is farming, of course. This is the Switch, after all. But also some action, because you’re going to need to fend off daddy’s attempts to mess things up for you. I’m a little bit burnt out on this genre at the moment, but if you’re more energetic about picking up a hoe than I am you might want to check this one out. Marble Abduction! Patti Hattu ($11.79) One of those marble roller games, this one with seventy stages and eighty marbles to collect. There are some secret collectibles to find, and special challenges that will score you some of the rarer marbles. The usual appeal is here of trying to go as fast as you can without flying off the track, so if that’s your thing then here is a heaping helping of it. Leo: The Firefighter Cat ($24.99) We’ve seen a few firefighting games on the Switch so far, but most of them aim for a somewhat realistic style. But you know what? Kids can often be interested in firefighting too, and there might be something in a firefighting game more geared towards their tastes. There are twenty missions here, and it seems to have the main details you would want to see in this kind of thing. I doubt it’s Fancy Feast, but it will probably do the job for the right kind of kid. Gori: Cuddly Carnage ($21.99) And on the opposite end of the cat game spectrum, here is a grotesque action game about a hoverboarding cat who slices and dices his foes with glee. Early reports seem to indicate that the game itself is decent enough, but this Switch version suffers from a lot of technical issues that drag down the overall experience to a meaningful degree. Not to the point where there isn’t any joy to be had in it, but worth thinking twice about if you’re bothered by framerate issues at the very least. Arcade Archives Finalizer Super Transformation ($7.99) You know, I consider myself a relatively knowledgeable fellow when it comes to video games. But every once in a while, Hamster pulls out a game for Arcade Archives that I really have no memory of, and this 1985 Konami vertical shooter fits that bill. The gimmick here is that instead of a ship, you’re a transforming robot hero of some sort. Let’s call it a Blundam. Grab power-ups to change your form or activate various powers. As shooters go, this is very much a post-Xevious pre-Tiger Heli affair. There’s a charm to that, if that’s the flavor you’re after. EGGCONSOLE Xanadu Scenario II PC-8801mkIISR ($6.49) A very early example of an expansion pack for a video game, Xanadu Scenario II gives you a whole new underworld to explore. Since this was originally an expansion and not a new game, the gameplay mechanics and many other elements are identical to the first game. It’s naturally more difficult too, so you’ll likely want to finish the first game before trying this one. The most noteworthy thing about it? This game features the debut of the legendary video game composer Yuzo Koshiro, then just 18 years old. That might be reason enough alone to drop the cash for this depending on your tastes and interest in gaming history. The Backrooms: Survival ($10.99) A bit of horror, a bit of survival, a bit of roguelite, and overall a game that many players have enjoyed over on PC. You can play with up to ten players online, and that’s really the ideal experience for this game. Playing solo, it’s going to be more of a specific taste thanks to its repetitive-by-design nature. Can of Wormholes ($19.99) You are a sentient tin can, and you need to deal with worms in a variety of ways in this clever little puzzle game. You get one hundred hand-crafted puzzles to solve, and the game is really sharp about sprinkling in new ideas as you go so that it never gets stuck in a rut. Something of a whiff of Stephen’s Sausage Roll about it, and that is in no way a bad thing. A real winner for puzzle game fans, if you ask me. Ninja I & II ($9.99) A pair of modern NES games running under emulation that are essentially a ninja spin on Wario Ware-style microgames. All of them are competitive, so you’re either pulling in a friend for local multiplayer or going up against a CPU that may or may not drive you up the wall. Kind of neat to see game like these running on NES specs, if nothing else. Dice Make 10! ($3.99) Sometimes these unassuming titles can be a lot of fun, and this is one that does it for me. You have two modes of play here, one with Tetris-style falling blocks and the other where you’re just placing pieces like those wood block puzzle games. Regardless of which version you play, your goal is make rows or columns where the faces of the dice add up to ten or multiples of ten. They’ll clear out, and on you go with the next line. Yes, I like it. Very good. Sales (North American eShop, US Prices) It’s the 30th anniversary of The King of Fighters, and Hamster and SNK are celebrating with a sale on every single game in the series on Arcade Archives. Time to finish your collection if you haven’t got them already. There are also a ton of Pixel Game Maker Series games at their lowest prices yet, so if you’ve been holding off on those, perhaps now is the moment. Nothing too thrilling outside of those, but you might as well check while you’re at it. A few good indies in the outbox, so I recommend giving that a scan as well. Select New Sales Kamitsubaki City Ensemble ($3.59 from $3.99 until 9/3) Floogen ($1.99 from $3.99 until 9/4) Rolling Car ($1.99 from $7.99 until 9/4) Fluffy Horde ($1.99 from $9.99 until 9/4) Gum+ ($1.99 from $7.99 until 9/4) Stunt Paradise ($5.19 from $7.99 until 9/4) My Time at Portia ($4.49 from $29.99 until 9/6) SpongeBob Krusty Cook-Off ($4.94 from $14.99 until 9/9) PPA Pickleball Tour 2025 ($29.99 from $49.99 until 9/11) Talisman: Digital Edition ($2.99 from $5.99 until 9/12) Mystic Vale ($4.99 from $9.99 until 9/12) Baron of Blood ($4.95 from $9.90 until 9/12) Fighting Fantasy Legends ($4.99 from $9.99 until 9/12) Deathtrap Dungeon ($4.99 from $9.99 until 9/12) White Eternal ($3.24 from $6.49 until 9/12) ACA NEOGEO The King of Fighters ’94 ($3.99 from $7.99 until 9/12) ACA NEOGEO The King of Fighters ’95 ($3.99 from $7.99 until 9/12) ACA NEOGEO The King of Fighters ’96 ($3.99 from $7.99 until 9/12) ACA NEOGEO The King of Fighters ’97 ($3.99 from $7.99 until 9/12) ACA NEOGEO The King of Fighters ’98 ($3.99 from $7.99 until 9/12) ACA NEOGEO The King of Fighters ’99 ($3.99 from $7.99 until 9/12) ACA NEOGEO The King of Fighters 2000 ($3.99 from $7.99 until 9/12) ACA NEOGEO The King of Fighters 2001 ($3.99 from $7.99 until 9/12) ACA NEOGEO The King of Fighters 2002 ($3.99 from $7.99 until 9/12) ACA NEOGEO The King of Fighters 2003 ($3.99 from $7.99 until 9/12) Kittey 64 ($2.49 from $4.99 until 9/12) Last Bloody Snack ($1.99 from $9.99 until 9/12) PGMS Cat and Tower ($2.49 from $4.99 until 9/12) PGMS Cat and Castle ($3.74 from $4.99 until 9/12) PGMS Pentacore ($6.59 from $9.99 until 9/12) PGMS BombMachine Gunzohg ($3.95 from $5.99 until 9/12) PGMS Pearl Vs Grey ($3.99 from $7.99 until 9/12) PGMS Hunter of Devil ($3.74 from $4.99 until 9/12) PGMS Lunlun Superherobabys DX ($3.74 from $4.99 until 9/12) PGMS Storm Swordsman ($5.27 from $7.99 until 9/12) PGMS Project Nosferatu ($8.99 from $14.99 until 9/12) PGMS Ninja Runner ($2.50 from $5.00 until 9/12) PGMS Ninja Sneaking R ($3.59 from $5.99 until 9/12) PGMS Ninja Sneaking VS ($3.60 from $6.00 until 9/12) PGMS Angel’s Gear ($7.49 from $9.99 until 9/12) PGMS Angel’s Blood ($5.99 from $9.99 until 9/12) PGMS Ninja Otedama R ($3.59 from $5.99 until 9/12) PGMS Tentacled Terrors ($8.99 from $11.99 until 9/12) PGMS Loplight ($3.29 from $4.99 until 9/12) PGMS ClaM KNight ($2.99 from $5.99 until 9/12) PGMS Jetman ($5.99 from $9.99 until 9/12) PGMS Lab ($4.19 from $6.99 until 9/12) PGMS Steel Sword Story S ($5.99 from $9.99 until 9/12) PGMS Arcanion: Tale of Magi ($6.59 from $10.99 until 9/12) PGMS Shiba Mekuri ($2.74 from $5.49 until 9/12) PGMS Buraigun Galaxy Storm ($8.99 from $11.99 until 9/12) PGMS Block Slime Cave ($3.50 from $7.00 until 9/12) PGMS Game Battle Tycoon ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/12) PGMS MessiahEnd Refrain ($2.99 from $4.99 until 9/12) PGMS Oma2ri Adventure ($2.47 from $4.95 until 9/12) PGMS Dandan Z ($5.99 from $9.99 until 9/12) PGMS Cham The Cat Adventure ($5.49 from $10.99 until 9/12) PGMS Verzeus ($7.91 from $11.99 until 9/12) PGMS Oumuamua ($4.99 from $9.99 until 9/12) PGMS Jewelinx ($3.99 from $7.99 until 9/12) Sushi Battle Rambunctiously ($13.99 from $19.99 until 9/13) My Incubi Harem ($2.99 from $4.99 until 9/13) Hot Blood ($7.49 from $9.99 until 9/13) Jenny LeClue Detectivu ($2.99 from $24.99 until 9/18) Asterix & Obelix Slap Them All ($12.49 from $24.99 until 9/18) The Sisters 2 Road to Fame ($14.99 from $29.99 until 9/18) Noob: The Factionless ($19.99 from $39.99 until 9/18) New Joe & Mac: Caveman Ninja ($11.99 from $29.99 until 9/18) Garfield Lasagna Party ($15.99 from $39.99 until 9/18) Muv-Luv Remastered ($26.99 from $29.99 until 9/19) Muv-Luv Alternative Remastered ($35.99 from $39.99 until 9/19) Sales Ending Tomorrow, August 30th #BLUD ($19.99 from $24.99 until 8/30) 8th Millennium: WAtPG ($7.49 from $29.99 until 8/30) Alpha Particle ($3.39 from $9.99 until 8/30) Batman: The Enemy Within ($7.49 from $14.99 until 8/30) Batman: The Telltale Series ($7.49 from $14.99 until 8/30) Empire of Angels IV ($6.79 from $19.99 until 8/30) Enter Digiton: Heart of Corruption ($2.39 from $7.99 until 8/30) Forager ($6.99 from $19.99 until 8/30) Hell Well ($2.49 from $4.99 until 8/30) Midnight Fight Express ($11.99 from $19.99 until 8/30) Mineko’s Night Market ($13.99 from $19.99 until 8/30) Moonscars ($13.99 from $19.99 until 8/30) OBAKEIDORO ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/30) Puddle Knights ($2.99 from $9.99 until 8/30) Roxy Raccoon’s Pinball Panic ($6.99 from $9.99 until 8/30) Slay the Spire ($8.49 from $24.99 until 8/30) Space Mercenary Defense Force ($3.49 from $4.99 until 8/30) Super Woden GP ($5.99 from $11.99 until 8/30) Supraland ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/30) Surmount ($9.89 from $14.99 until 8/30) The Last Dragon Slayer ($3.74 from $14.99 until 8/30) The Last Worker ($3.99 from $19.99 until 8/30) Thunder Ray ($7.49 from $14.99 until 8/30) Unpacking ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/30) Void Bastards ($8.99 from $29.99 until 8/30) That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow to finish up the week, with the remaining new releases, sales, and major news items on the schedule. Maybe some reviews? Perhaps. We’ll see. There’s a huge typhoon blowing through here this week, and I should acknowledge there is a chance I won’t be able to get to my office to do tomorrow’s article. We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. I hope you all have a thrilling Thursday, and as always, thanks for reading!

This week, Apple Arcade sees a major game update for Apple Vision Pro and a few notable updates. Castle Crumble …

Continue reading "Castle Crumble for Apple Vision Pro Is Now Available on Apple Arcade Alongside Big Updates for Puyo Puyo Puzzle Pop, Crayola Adventures, and More"

This week, Apple Arcade sees a major game update for Apple Vision Pro and a few notable updates. Castle Crumble [apprice url="https://apps.apple.com/us/app/castle-crumble/id1616814625"] for Apple Arcade has been updated to be a fully universal game with support for iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, and Apple Vision Pro. Apple is treating this like a new release ahead of September’s game launches. Read about those here. As for the regular game updates, the highlights include Puyo Puyo Puzzle Pop bringing in three new character episodes, Meena as a playable character, and seven new BGM songs from the series. Crayola Adventures has a new micro story added with Video Games Day celebrations going on with Lights Camera Action and Pixel Madness. The Koala Face accessory is also available in-game. Time to Puyo-Party with even more Playable Pals! #PuyoPuyoPuzzlePop Update 1.5.0 has arrvied! Join additional playable characters and jam to 7 new BGM selections! #PuyoPuyoPuzzlePop is available now on @AppleArcade!https://t.co/PFEStkKxeO pic.twitter.com/e29H0op4k9 — Puyo Puyo Official (@PuyoOfficial) August 28, 2024 SpongeBob: Patty Pursuit brings in its next Tale of the deep with Karate Island where you can play as Sandy. Jetpack Joyride 2 brings in a new event taking Barry to outer space looking for a new signal. stitch. brings in new hoops featuring Taekwondo. The final notable update is Zookeeper World bringing 12 new puzzle stages. With the updates done, head over to our forum threads for Puyo Puyo Puzzle Pop here, Castle Crumble here, Crayola Adventures here, SpongeBob: Patty Pursuit here, and Zookeeper World here. For all other Apple Arcade related things, check out our dedicated Apple Arcade forum for discussion on the service and every game included here. What do you think of Apple’s newly released games and updates recently?

Last month, GungHo announced a new casual RPG for mobile in the form of Disney Pixel RPG (Free), due later …

Continue reading "Casual RPG ‘Disney Pixel RPG’ From GungHo for iOS and Android Gets New Gameplay Trailer, Listed for October 7th"

Last month, GungHo announced a new casual RPG for mobile in the form of Disney Pixel RPG (Free), due later this year. Today, Gungho has released (via Gematsu) the first trailer for Disney Pixel RPG. Disney Pixel RPG aims to let players explore with pixel versions of Disney characters across multiple worlds with battles, action, rhythm, and more challenges. It features an original story taking you on a journey with Mickey Mouse and other characters with many customization options. Watch the first gameplay trailer for Disney Pixel RPG below: Disney Pixel RPG is currently listed for October 7th on the App Store, but this should be treated as a placeholder date since it was originally listed for early September as a placeholder and that has already changed. Disney Pixel RPG is set for release this year on iOS and Android as a free to play game with in app purchases. Check out the official English website for Disney Pixel RPG here. If you’d like to play Disney Pixel RPG, you can pre-order it on the App Store for iOS here and pre-register for it on Google Play for Android here. What do you think of Disney Pixel RPG so far based on its debut trailer? Update: Added new English trailer.

Earlier this month, Bandai Namco Entertainment and developer Ganbarion revealed Dragon Ball Project:Multi, the franchise’s first 4v4 team based battle …

Continue reading "‘Dragon Ball Project:Multi’ Gets New Character Trailers Showcasing Super Saiyan Goku, Krillin, and Piccolo"

Earlier this month, Bandai Namco Entertainment and developer Ganbarion revealed Dragon Ball Project:Multi, the franchise’s first 4v4 team based battle game, with a regional closed beta planned. Today, Dragon Ball Project:Multi has gotten three new character trailers with the closed beta now available in select regions. The new trailers focus on three characters focusing on their gameplay. Watch the Dragon Ball Project:Multi Piccolo trailer below: Watch the Dragon Ball Project:Multi Super Saiyan Goku trailer below: Watch the Dragon Ball Project:Multi Krillin trailer below: Dragon Ball Project:Multi still doesn’t have a release date or window yet, but the closed beta is available now until September 3rd at 5:59 AM UTC on iOS, Android, and Steam. You can currently wishlist Dragon Ball Project:Multi on Steam here. The Dragon Ball Project:Multi regional closed beta is available in Canada, France, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, United Kingdom, and the United States. Check out the official Dragon Ball Project:Multi English website here. What do you think of Dragon Ball Project:Multi and the new character trailers?

Square Enix just announced that Final Fantasy Brave Exvius (Free) is shutting down on October 30th (this year) following its …

Continue reading "‘Final Fantasy Brave Exvius’ Is Shutting Down on October 30th"

Square Enix just announced that Final Fantasy Brave Exvius (Free) is shutting down on October 30th (this year) following its debut back in June 2016. Since launching on mobile, Final Fantasy Brave Exvius has seen many collaborations including ones with some of Square Enix’s best games like NieR: Automata and also its other titles like Final Fantasy XV. It is being shut down because Square Enix says that it will be “difficult to maintain the app experience." Following this announcement, in app purchases will no longer be offered but you will be able to use anything you’ve bought until service ends. Bundles will no longer be sold as well. [Important Notice] Thank you for playing FINAL FANTASY BRAVE EXVIUS. We regret to announce we have made the difficult decision to discontinue the FINAL FANTASY BRAVE EXVIUS app service as of October 30, 2024 23:59 (PDT). Please see details here: https://t.co/vcL5Dn8xe4 pic.twitter.com/W6U9QArq5O — FINAL FANTASY BRAVE EXVIUS (@FFBE_EN) August 29, 2024 On October 30th at 23:59 PDT, service will end and accounts will be deleted. If you’d like to play Final Fantasy Brave Exvius until then, you can grab it on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here. Read our review of the original game launch here. If you’d like to check out discussions from the game’s launch until now, check out our very old forum thread here. Have you played Final Fantasy Brave Exvius before and what do you think of today’s announcement?

Each and every day new mobile games are hitting the App Store, and so each week we put together a …

Continue reading "Out Now: ‘Harvest Moon Home Sweet Home’, ‘Ocean Keeper Mobile’, ‘Ogu and the Secret Forest’, ‘Death Travelers’, ‘Snake.io’, ‘RWBY: Arrowfell’ and More"

Each and every day new mobile games are hitting the App Store, and so each week we put together a big old list of all the best new releases of the past seven days. Back in the day the App Store would showcase the same games for a week, and then refresh those features each Thursday. Because of that developers got into the habit of releasing their games throughout Wednesday or very early Thursday in order to hopefully get one of those coveted features spots. Nowadays the App Store refreshes constantly, so the need for everyone to release all on the same day has diminished. Still, we’ve kept our weekly Wednesday night format as for years that’s the time people knew to check TouchArcade for the list of new games. And so without further ado please check out the full list of this week’s new games below, and let us know in the comments section which games you’ll be picking up! Death Travelers (Free) iTunes Description The Afterworld needs your help to stop it from collapsing! Travel the Afterworld’s various realms to save lost souls. Dodge and destroy obstacles along the way while stabilizing it with the resonance of music. Build your base, upgrade your car, unlock various abilities, play new music, and above all have some fun! Can you save the lost souls and stabilize the Afterworld? Forum Thread: Death Travelers (by Death Travelers LLC) Dusk of Dragons: Survivors (Free) iTunes Description Survive in a Medieval Fantasy World with Dusk of Dragons: Survivors! Immerse yourself in a thrilling survival sandbox where you’ll face extreme weather, hunger, traps, and hordes of zombies. As a true survivor, you’ll need to master the wilderness and outwit the undead. Forum Thread: Dusk of Dragons: Survivors (by COREGAMES) Harvest Moon Home Sweet Home ($17.99) iTunes Description Head back to your roots and leave the city life for your childhood village of Alba in Harvest Moon: Home Sweet Home, where the freshest fish and tastiest veggies are grown and caught by the local farmers and anglers! However, with its population getting older and younger villagers leaving for the big city, Alba Village has seen better days, so can you help turn it from a village on the decline to one of prosperity? With its beautiful surroundings, Alba definitely has the potential, so work hard to bring tourists and even new residents to this sprawling green village! Reunite with your childhood friend and other familiar faces to help put Alba on the map! Forum Thread: Harvest Moon Home Sweet Home (by Natsume Inc) MMC KENKEN Math (Free) iTunes Description Stretching the ability to make fun becomes academic ability – Solving puzzles in a fun way improves academic ability The hit teaching material that has sold over 2.5 million copies has been turned into game software as “Daizen"! A total of 3,000 math puzzles for children and adults to learn while having fun. Forum Thread: MMC KENKEN Math (by Tetsuya Miyamoto / KenKen Puzzle LLC / Gakken / MAGES.) Ocean Keeper Mobile (Free) iTunes Description A roguelike shooter with a top-down view where you play as a Miner whose spaceship has crashed on a planet, filled with underwater monsters! Use the time between each attack to power up your diver, mech, or weapon. Build automatic turrets, use drones to gather resources and improve your skills to increase your chances of survival. Discover mysterious locations and fantastic undersea deep biomes. EACH time you explore the underwater worlds, the layout changes, making every journey unique. You never play the same scenario twice in this drill dungeon core roguelite. Forum Thread: Ocean Keeper Mobile (by RetroStyle Games) Ogu and the Secret Forest (Free) iTunes Description Explore the wonderful world with baby Ogu! ‘Ogu and the Secret Forest’ is a 2D adventure game with hand-drawn characters and various types of puzzles. Befriend bouncy characters and defeat strange creatures to unravel the mystery of the charming world. Forum Thread: Ogu and the Secret Forest (by Sinkhole Studio Inc.) RWBY: Arrowfell (Free) iTunes Description Dive into an explosive new RWBY action-adventure! Instantly switch between all four members of Team RWBY — Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna, and Yang Xiao Long — and use their signature weapons and Semblances to battle the Creatures of Grimm and other foes in this in-canon story set during RWBY Volume 7. Featuring voiceovers from RWBY’s original cast, all-new cutscenes from the team behind the show, and a brand-new theme song by Jeff Williams and Casey Lee Williams, RWBY: Arrowfell lets you explore Atlas and the surrounding areas to solve environmental puzzles, slay massive bosses, power up with Skill Points, and interact with characters such as Penny, Winter, and General Ironwood, as well as the enigmatic new team of Huntresses, Team BRIR! Only Team RWBY can protect Remnant from a mysterious new threat in RWBY: Arrowfell! Forum Thread: RWBY: Arrowfell (by Crunchyroll) SlidewayZ: A Musical Journey (Free) iTunes Description Welcome to SlidewayZ, a new kind of sliding block puzzle! Slide adorable character pieces through fun worlds to collect soothing classical music. Easy to learn and fun to play, SlidewayZ adds a new twist to sliding block puzzles with moves from games like chess and other classic board games. A gentle soundtrack of Classical music helps you unwind from the stresses of the day. Perfect for commuting or a quick brain break, no internet connection required! Filled with collectables, beautiful art and engaging gameplay, SlidewayZ will provide hours of low-key puzzling fun! Forum Thread: SlidewayZ: A Musical Journey (by DiG-iT Games) Snake.io (Free) iTunes Description It’s a snake-eat-snake world: Slither around the screen to collect energy, grow bigger and devour your competition in this fast-paced arcade game. You’ll start out as a small snake in each round. Eat energy pellets to expand your size, and surround or cut in front of other snakes to explode them into (edible) segments. But watch out — because they’ll be trying to do the same to you. In this reptilian battle royale, how long can you stay in one piece? Forum Thread: Snake.io (by Kooapps) Spidersaurs (Free) iTunes Description Alert! Alert! The nightmarish dinosaur-spider hybrids known as Spidersaurs have run amok and only you (and a friend in co-op mode) can stop them! Created by InGest Corp to provide the meat and muscle that humanity needs to end world hunger, the Spidersaurs are now on the loose, leaving it to two former taste-testers – officer-in-training Adrian and punk-rocker Victoria – to use their awesome firepower to overcome six stages of ferocious run-‘n’-gun action. Blast through a sweltering jungle, an infested laboratory, the heart of a live volcano, and more! The tangy food source with a bite is biting back, but by grabbing power-ups, gaining new abilities, and obliterating everything in sight, you can send these mutant monstrosities back to the stone age. Forum Thread: Spidersaurs (by WayForward)

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 28th, 2024. Gosh, that presentation yesterday sure had a …

Continue reading "SwitchArcade Round-Up: ‘Pizza Tower’, ‘Castlevania Dominus Collection’, Plus Today’s Other Releases and Sales"

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 28th, 2024. Gosh, that presentation yesterday sure had a lot of good stuff in it, didn’t it? A bunch of shadow dropped games, too. That means our usually quiet Wednesday is anything but, and that’s not a bad thing. We’ve got a bit of news, a look at all the new games on the eShop today, plus the usual lists of new and expiring sales for the day. Lots to see, so let’s get going! News The Partner/Indie World Showcase Had Plenty to Offer Sandwiching together two slightly smaller versions of the usual types of Directs was an interesting choice, and it means we got a bunch of announcements. I can’t go through all of them here, but highlights included some shadow drops we’ll talk about in the New Releases section, Capcom Fighting Collection 2, the Suikoden I & II remakes, Yakuza Kiwami, Tetris Forever, MySims, Worms Armageddon: Anniversary Edition, new Atelier and Rune Factory games, and many, many more. I’d advise just setting aside some time and watching the video. Skim if you must. Plenty of great games there for a variety of tastes. Select New Releases Castlevania Dominus Collection ($24.99) One of the many cool shadow drops from the Direct was a third Castlevania collection. This one includes the three Nintendo DS games: Dawn of Sorrow, Portrait of Ruin, and Order of Ecclesia. It also includes the absolutely rancid arcade game, Haunted Castle, and as an extra, a remake of Haunted Castle by the folks at M2. It’s a lot better. As you would expect from this developer, this is a top-notch treatment that features great emulation and pretty much all of the features you’d want. An absurd value for the price. Pizza Tower ($19.99) The Wario Land-inspired frenetic platformer dashes on to the Switch with this Direct shadow drop. Make your way through the five massive floors of the Pizza Tower in order to destroy it and save your restaurant. If you miss Wario’s handheld adventures, you’ll really want to grab this. If you have no strong Wario feelings but like platforming, you should also give this a look. We’re hoping to review this one, but we’ll have to see how things go. Goat Simulator 3 ($29.99) The shadow drops continue. Look, it’s a Wednesday. If it weren’t for these, we wouldn’t have much at all. Anyway, Goat Simulator 3. You know how Goat Simulator works by now. I can’t verify how this game runs on Switch, but I know more powerful consoles struggle with it in places. So, you know, proceed with caution. Though I suppose even if it does run badly, it might just play into the whole sh**post nature of the game. Well, I leave it to you to decide. Silly goats doing silly things in an open world, may or may not make your Switch vomit blood. Peglin ($19.99) I know it’s cliche to armchair quarterback and talk about companies leaving money on the proverbial table, but I genuinely think Electronic Arts made a giant mistake by not putting Popcap’s games on the Switch in some form or another. Maybe even a collection? Well, they didn’t. They aren’t going to. And so we must scratch that itch in other ways, and for my fellow Peggle fans I can’t recommend Peglin enough. This one has been available on mobile for a while, and it’s just as good here on Switch. It’s basically Peggle blended into a turn-based RPG roguelite. We’ll have a review of this soon in case you need more details. Doraemon Dorayaki Shop Story ($20.00) How can Kairosoft spice up its now incredibly well-worn formula for simulation games? Well, I suppose one way is to add a license to the mix. That’s what we’ve got here with Doraemon Dorayaki Shop Story, a standard Kairosoft shop sim featuring the characters from the popular Doraemon manga and anime series. A decent effort has been made to do the license justice, and you might even spot some characters from the manga artist’s other works popping in as customers. Cute. Pico Park 2 ($8.99) More Pico Park for the Pico Park fans out there. Up to eight players can join in via local or online multiplayer, and this is one game where the rule of the more, the merrier is in full effect. Play through a bunch of puzzle stages that require some sharp thinking and cooperation to solve. One for those who didn’t get their fill with the first game, but not really different enough to be likely to pull in anyone new. And that’s fine. Kamitsubaki City Ensemble ($3.99) An affordable little rhythm game featuring music from Kamitsubaki Studio. Hit the notes, follow the story, enjoy the tunes. Not the fanciest dining, but for that price it doesn’t have to be. SokoPenguin ($4.99) Yes, that’s a Sokoban-style crate-pushing puzzler starring a penguin, alright. One hundred levels. You know if you want it or not. Q2 Humanity ($6.80) More quirky physics-based puzzles, over three hundred this time around. You’ll have to make use of your character’s abilities in addition to drawing to solve the problems now. Up to four players can get in on the fun, either via local or online multiplayer. Sales (North American eShop, US Prices) Mostly NIS America games in the inbox today, but you can also score some deals on Balatro, Frogun, and The King of Fighters XIII Global Match if you want. The outbox has a fair bit in it, so you’ll probably want to have a careful look through there and see if there’s anything you want. Select New Sales Bilkins Folly ($12.59 from $19.99 until 9/2) Balatro ($13.49 from $14.99 until 9/3) MLB The Show 24 ($19.79 from $59.99 until 9/10) Frogun ($8.99 from $14.99 until 9/11) Frogun Encore ($11.04 from $12.99 until 9/11) Death Road to Canada ($4.49 from $14.99 until 9/11) Demon Gaze Extra ($17.99 from $59.99 until 9/12) The King of Fighters XIII GM ($15.99 from $19.99 until 9/12) Lapis x Labyrinth ($7.79 from $29.99 until 9/16) Raiden III Mikado Maniax ($14.99 from $29.99 until 9/16) GrimGrimoire OnceMore ($24.99 from $49.99 until 9/16) Void Terrarium 2 ($19.99 from $39.99 until 9/16) Legend of Nayuta: Boundless Trails ($24.99 from $39.99 until 9/16) Rhapsody: Marl Kingdom Chronicles ($24.99 from $49.99 until 9/16) Saviors of Sapphire Wings/Sword City ($17.49 from $49.99 until 9/16) Disaster Report 4 ($17.99 from $59.99 until 9/16) Labyrinth of Galleria: TMC ($24.99 from $49.99 until 9/16) The Cruel King & the Great Hero ($13.49 from $29.99 until 9/16) R-Type Final 2 ($19.99 from $39.99 until 9/16) The Legend of Legacy HD ($34.99 from $49.99 until 9/16) Poison Control ($3.99 from $39.99 until 9/16) Labyrinth Legend ($5.99 from $14.99 until 9/16) Giraffe and Annika ($9.99 from $29.99 until 9/16) LA-MULANA ($4.99 from $14.99 until 9/16) LA-MULANA 2 ($9.99 from $24.99 until 9/16) The Princess Guide ($3.99 from $39.99 until 9/16) Ys VIII Lacrimosa of DANA ($19.99 from $39.99 until 9/16) Fallen Legion: Rise to Glory ($4.99 from $39.99 until 9/16) Fallen Legion: Revenants ($9.99 from $39.99 until 9/16) RPG Maker MV ($14.99 from $49.99 until 9/16) Happy Birthdays ($7.99 from $39.99 until 9/16) Penny-Punching Princess ($3.99 from $39.99 until 9/16) The Longest Five Minutes ($3.99 from $39.99 until 9/16) Disgaea 4 Complete+ ($17.49 from $49.99 until 9/16) Sales Ending Tomorrow, August 29th A Cat & His Boy ($1.99 from $2.99 until 8/29) Alan Wake Remastered ($14.99 from $29.99 until 8/29) April’s Diary ($3.74 from $14.99 until 8/29) Astebreed ($3.99 from $19.99 until 8/29) Bio Inc. Redemption ($10.49 from $14.99 until 8/29) Botany Manor ($22.49 from $24.99 until 8/29) Crashout Xtreme ($2.49 from $9.99 until 8/29) Cyber Citizen Shockman ($4.19 from $5.99 until 8/29) Dead Cells Castlevania Bundle ($18.89 from $31.49 until 8/29) DoDonPachi Resurrection ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/29) Double Dragon & Kunio-kun Bundle ($19.99 from $39.99 until 8/29) DRAINUS ($13.99 from $19.99 until 8/29) Ebenezer & the Invisible World ($13.99 from $19.99 until 8/29) Escaping a Fireworks Factory ($2.00 from $4.90 until 8/29) Espgaluda II ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/29) Gematombe ($4.49 from $14.99 until 8/29) Gnosia ($17.49 from $24.99 until 8/29) Gunman Tales ($2.09 from $6.99 until 8/29) Gynoug ($3.49 from $6.99 until 8/29) Hero of Fate ($7.49 from $14.99 until 8/29) Kero Blaster ($2.99 from $9.99 until 8/29) Kowloon High-School Chronicle ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/29) Matchpoint: Tennis Championships ($31.99 from $49.99 until 8/29) Mighty Goose ($7.99 from $19.99 until 8/29) Moonshine Inc ($15.99 from $19.99 until 8/29) My Little Universe ($6.74 from $14.99 until 8/29) Noel the Mortal Fate ($9.99 from $24.99 until 8/29) OnlyUP! ($5.27 from $7.13 until 8/29) Operation Steel ($5.99 from $9.99 until 8/29) Overboss ($13.49 from $14.99 until 8/29) Pogo Joins the Circus ($2.49 from $9.99 until 8/29) Radiant Silvergun ($7.99 from $19.99 until 8/29) Red Colony ($2.99 from $6.99 until 8/29) Red Colony 2 ($2.99 from $6.99 until 8/29) Red Colony 3 ($2.99 from $6.99 until 8/29) Remote Life ($9.49 from $18.99 until 8/29) Retro Mystery Club Vol.1 ($7.90 from $9.90 until 8/29) Retro Mystery Club Vol.2 ($7.90 from $9.90 until 8/29) Retro Revengers ($7.90 from $9.90 until 8/29) River City Saga: Three Kingdoms ($20.99 from $29.99 until 8/29) Satay Shop Tycoon ($3.74 from $14.99 until 8/29) Smashing the Battle ($2.49 from $4.99 until 8/29) Smashing the Battle Ghost Soul ($7.49 from $14.99 until 8/29) Spy Bros. ($4.79 from $7.99 until 8/29) Super Sean 007 ($2.49 from $9.99 until 8/29) Taboo Trial ($13.99 from $19.99 until 8/29) The Good Life ($15.99 from $39.99 until 8/29) The Ouroboros King ($6.99 from $9.99 until 8/29) The Sokoban ($8.99 from $17.99 until 8/29) UNO Ultimate Edition ($7.99 from $19.99 until 8/29) Vera Blanc: Supernatural Mysteries ($5.59 from $7.99 until 8/29) Within the Blade ($3.29 from $10.99 until 8/29) That’s all for today, friends. Tomorrow is Thursday, and that means we’ll have another pretty big day for new games. The new Famicom Detective Club is among them, but there are other big names in there too. We’ll have summaries of the games worth summarizing, plus whatever sales and major news items roll in over the course of the day. I hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Fans of Jujutsu Kaisen and beautiful, anime-inspired JRPGs received a special reason to rejoice this week following the announcement that …

Continue reading "BILIBILI GAME Will Launch ‘Jujutsu Kaisen Mobile’ Worldwide Before the End of 2024"

Fans of Jujutsu Kaisen and beautiful, anime-inspired JRPGs received a special reason to rejoice this week following the announcement that Jujutsu Kaisen Phantom Parade, the mobile game adaption of the acclaimed manga series, will finally receive its global release before the end of 2024. This announcement was part of Juju Fest 2024, which featured several notable reveals for fans of Jujutsu Kaisen, including a Hidden Inventory movie slated for 2025 and a Season 2 Guide Book set to be released for Japanese audiences in October. However, the most significant revelation was that publisher BILIBILI GAMES would be bringing Jujutsu Kaisen Phantom Parade to players across all regions this year, with pre-registration already underway. Jujutsu Kaisen Phantom Parade is free-to-play and you can pre-register right now via the game’s official website as well as stay up to date with the game’s latest developments via Discord, Twitter/X, and Facebook. But, if you’re only just now hearing of Jujutsu Kaisen Phantom Parade and would like to know what it’s all about then here’s a quick breakdown of what lies in store. Gameplay Overview Developed by Sumzap, Inc. and initially launched in Japan by TOHO Games in 2023, Jujutsu Kaisen Phantom Parade gives players the chance to immerse themselves in a dark and mystical world where gifted sorcerer’s battle cursed spirits to keep humanity from being destroyed. The core gameplay involves players forming teams of four sorcerers from various classes, such as tank, support, and damage dealers, and engaging in turn-based battles against cursed spirits. Players will have the opportunity to utilize the abilities of beloved characters like Yuji Itadori, Megumi Fushiguro, Nobara Kugisaki, and Satoru Gojo, all of which faithfully capture the character traits that fans have grown to love through the manga and anime series. Jujutsu Kaisen Phantom Parade allows players to revisit several pivotal moments from the first season of the tv anime, while also introducing an entirely new storyline set in the Fukuoka Branch Campus, offering a fresh and unique narrative experience. Pre-registration Rewards Pre-registration for Jujutsu Kaisen Phantom Parade is currently in progress, and participants will be rewarded with exclusive bonuses upon the game’s release. The exact rewards they receive will depend on the game hitting the following key milestones: 1 million pre-registrations: Cube x500 2 million pre-registrations: Cube x1000 3 million pre-registrations: Cube x1000 5 million pre-registrations: Cube x2000 8 million pre-registrations: Cube x3000 10 million pre-registrations: [Redrawable!] SSR-Character-Guaranteed Gacha Ticket x1 There’s little doubt that the game will hit the 10 million mark, but just to ensure it gets there, pre-registered players will also receive Cubes worth 25 draws to go alongside their re-drawable SSR-Character Guaranteed Gacha Ticket. Sponsored Content This article is sponsored content written by TouchArcade and published on behalf of BILIBILI GAMES to promote the global launch date for Jujutsu Kaisen Phantom Parade. For questions or comments, please email ads@toucharcade.com

Yesterday during the Nintendo Indie World Partner Direct whatever it is called for the double feature, Red Nexus Games’ pachinko …

Continue reading "The Huge ‘Peglin’ 1.0 Update Is Now Live on iOS, Android, and Steam Following Switch Launch Yesterday"

Yesterday during the Nintendo Indie World Partner Direct whatever it is called for the double feature, Red Nexus Games’ pachinko roguelike Peglin (Free) got announced and released on Switch. I didn’t realize it was then that it hit 1.0 on Steam as well. I got it on Switch and while we need a bit more time for our review, Peglin has also finally hit 1.0 on iOS and Android following its Switch launch yesterday and Steam update a few hours later. The highlights of this include the final Cruciball levels (17-20), a new forest miniboss, a new rare roundrel relic, tons of balance adjustments, gameplay changes to how dull pegs work, bestiary research rate changes, and much more. Read the full patch notes from the game’s Steam news story here. Watch the gameplay trailer for Peglin below if you’ve not played it yet: With Peglin hitting 1.0 today, it is still planned to get more updates, and I can’t wait to see what else the team does with over time. If you’re interested in playing it right now, read my review of Peglin on iOS here from its launch last year. You can also read my interview with Red Nexus Games here covering the game, pricing, and a lot more. Peglin on mobile is a free to try game, and you can grab it on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here. We featured it as our Game of the Week when it launched. Check it out on Steam here and Switch here. Head over to our forum thread for more impressions and discussion around the iOS version. Have you played Peglin before on mobile or PC, and what do you think of this huge update?

It looks like SNK is celebrating the 30th anniversary of the superb The King of Fighters series with a big …

Continue reading "All of SNK’s The King of Fighters ACA NeoGeo Games Are Discounted on iOS and Android, Switch Later Today"

It looks like SNK is celebrating the 30th anniversary of the superb The King of Fighters series with a big discount on the complete set of ACA NeoGeo games on mobile and Switch (coming later today). Many years ago, Hamster started releasing SNK’s older games through its ACA NeoGeo lineup. These saw a few useful emulation features arrive for classic games on consoles over the years. We started seeing these hit mobile at half the price ($3.99 compared to $7.99 on console) published by SNK as well. While the pricing was already great, you can now buy all the games in The King of Fighters ACA NeoGeo series of releases on mobile at just $1.99 each. ACA NeoGeo The King of Fighters game discounts list on mobile: The King of Fighters 94 ACA NeoGeo ($3.99) The King of Fighters 95 ACA NeoGeo ($3.99) The King of Fighters 96 ACA NeoGeo ($3.99) The King of Fighters 97 ACA NeoGeo ($3.99) The King of Fighters 98 ACA NeoGeo ($3.99) The King of Fighters 99 ACA NeoGeo ($3.99) The King of Fighters 2000 ACA NeoGeo ($3.99) The King of Fighters 2001 ACA NeoGeo ($3.99) The King of Fighters 2002 ACA NeoGeo ($3.99) The King of Fighters 2003 ACA NeoGeo ($3.99) Check out the games on Android here. I own a few of these on iOS, but all of them barring 96 on Nintendo Switch. The Switch eShop deals should go live in a few hours today in North America with the deals already being up in other parts of the World on Switch and PS4. Check out the official website for the series on mobile here. What’s your favorite recent ACA NeoGeo release and are you grabbing any of the KOF games today with this sale?

Following pre-installation going live earlier in the week, HoYoverse has just released the major Genshin Impact (Free) version 5.0 “Flowers …

Continue reading "‘Genshin Impact’ Version 5.0 Update Is Now Available Worldwide on iOS, Android, PC, PS5, and More"

Following pre-installation going live earlier in the week, HoYoverse has just released the major Genshin Impact (Free) version 5.0 “Flowers Resplendent on the Sun-Scorched Sojourn" update on mobile, PC, and PlayStation worldwide. The highlights of this update include the new nation: Natlan which is open to early and mid-game players, new characters like Mualani, reruns for Raiden Shogun, and much more. The first Genshin Impact 5.0 banner features: Mualani, Kachina and Kaedehara Kazuha while banner 2 has Kinich and Raiden Shogun. Read about the improved visuals in Genshin Impact 5.0 here and the full patch notes for the update here. Watch the new Genshin Impact trailers for Mualani and more below: If you pre-installed the update on iOS, you should be able to play without downloading much, but the game will take a bit of time to split up old resources once you login. If you’d like to play Genshin Impact and don’t own it yet, you can download it for free on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here. The PC version is available on the official website here and the Epic Games Store. If you play on iOS, with iOS 14.5 or iPadOS 14.5 and later, you can use PS5 and Xbox Series X|S controllers to play Genshin Impact. We featured Genshin Impact as our Game of the Week when it released and awarded it our 2020 Game of the Year. I also featured it as one of the best iOS games to play with a controller. What do you think of Genshin Impact 5.0 so far?

When Square Enix released the monster collecting RPG Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince on Switch last year, I loved …

Continue reading "‘Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince’ Is Coming to iOS, Android, and Steam on September 11th With All DLC Included From the Switch Release"

When Square Enix released the monster collecting RPG Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince on Switch last year, I loved my time with it. It had technical issues, but the charm and gameplay loop elevated it well beyond other Dragon Quest spinoffs on the platform bringing up to the same level as the superb Dragon Quest Builders 2. I always expected Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince to be ported to PC soon after just like Dragon Quest Treasures, but I didn’t even consider it hitting mobile anytime soon. Today, Square Enix announced that the Switch-exclusive Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince ($29.99) is coming to iOS, Android, and Steam on September 11th with all prior DLC included. This means the Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince Digital Deluxe Edition content will also be included. Watch the trailer for Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince below: Square Enix has also posted comparison images of the game on mobile, Switch, and Steam on the official Japanese website. Check out one of them below: The store pages also confirm that the network mode for Online Battles from the Switch version where players battle one another in real time will not be included in the Steam and mobile versions. Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince is currently available on Nintendo Switch priced at $59.99 for the standard edition and $84.99 for the Digital Deluxe Edition. Having loved this on Switch, I’m looking forward to replaying it for review on iPhone, iPad, and Steam Deck for the new platforms launch on September 11th. It is great to see Square Enix bring more Dragon Quest to mobile soon after the original platform launch. I expected we might see this one by 2027 on mobile given delays between console and mobile these days for the series like we saw with Dragon Quest Builders. It is priced at $29.99 on mobile and $39.99 on Steam. Check it out on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here where you can pre-register for it. Have you played Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince before on Switch or will you try it out on mobile and Steam in two weeks when it releases? Update: Added comparison image and website information.

About two and a half years ago we were treated to a lovely gaming experience titled Dungeons of Dreadrock from …

Continue reading "‘Dungeons of Dreadrock 2’ Announced, Launching on Nintendo Switch in November with Mobile and PC Versions to Follow"

About two and a half years ago we were treated to a lovely gaming experience titled Dungeons of Dreadrock from developer Christoph Minnameier. The game was a dungeon crawler inspired by the likes of classics such as Dungeon Master and Eye of the Beholder, but played from a top-down perspective rather than a first-person one. It also had a more puzzle-like focus in the designs of its 100 different levels, each one a different floor in the dungeon you were descending in order to rescue your brother. Dungeons of Dreadrock was quite challenging, with some levels almost feeling like logic puzzles as you sussed out when exactly to activate a trap or how to approach a certain batch of enemies. We loved the game in our review, and Dungeons of Dreadrock went on to release on basically every other gaming platform where it was similarly well-received. And now we’ve got a sequel to look forward to. Say hello to Dungeons of Dreadrock 2 – The Dead King’s Secret. That red background and big ‘ol Switch logo with the familiar finger snapping sound is an indication that this time around this new Dungeons of Dreadrock game is targeting Nintendo’s platform first, and according to the game’s website it’ll be launching on the Switch’s eShop on November 28th of this year. Fear not though! A PC version is also planned, and in fact can be wishlisted on Steam as we speak, and iOS and Android versions are also in the cards. It’s not super clear exactly when we’ll be getting Dungeons of Dreadrock 2 on mobile, but it makes me happy just knowing that it’s coming. Once more news on release dates for other platforms materializes we’ll be sure to update you.

Back in April we took a look at the trailer for Super Farming Boy from developer LemonChili. It took the …

Continue reading "‘Super Farming Boy’ Available for Pre-Order on iOS with 20% Discount, Launch Planned for Next Year"

Back in April we took a look at the trailer for Super Farming Boy from developer LemonChili. It took the basic idea of a cozy farming game–planting crops, harvesting, building out your own little dream property–and amped it up with lighting fast arcade-style gameplay mechanics and a devious antagonist to fight against. They dubbed it “Harvest Moon on steroids" and I got that same sort of vibe from watching the trailer. You play as a boy with super powers (your name is literally Super) so you’re able to zip around your farm harvesting crops, and the act of harvesting can trigger cool combos and chain reactions. Check out the trailer if you missed it before. Anyway, I love the idea of a farming sim turned up to 11, and this week LemonChili has announced a more specific roadmap for the release of Super Farming Boy and have even put the iOS version up for pre-order on the App Store. The launch isn’t exactly close, and the plan as of now is to release in Early Access in Q2 of next year with a full launch to follow afterwards. That’s definitely a while away, but if you’re really sure this is the type of game that’s up your alley then pre-ordering the mobile version now will net you a 20% discount off the price, so there’s some incentive. You can also check out how the game is shaping up thanks to a playable Windows demo on both Steam and Itch.io. Whether you feel like taking the plunge on the pre-order or not, Super Farming Boy is definitely one you’ll want to keep your eye out for next year.

JOYCITY has launched an exciting new update for Pirates of the Caribbean: Tides of War, inviting everyone to join in …

Continue reading "‘Pirates of the Caribbean: Tides of War’ Adds Cross-Server Battles in Latest Empire Invasion Update"

JOYCITY has launched an exciting new update for Pirates of the Caribbean: Tides of War, inviting everyone to join in on thrilling conquests against other Captains all over the world. In particular, the Empire Invasion event offers server-versus-server competitions that will have you vying for first place in exchange for valuable pirate treasure. Gear up for an all-out sea brawl – can you fight to stay afloat and sink those enemy ships across servers? After the matchmaking phase, you’ll need to clear missions in the Eve Festival preliminary round to enjoy some handy buffs for the final battle. This includes server-wide perks and the ability to switch between servers – a handy trick to have up your sleeve when you’re conquering the opposing Empire’s territories. During the Invasion Conquest, victorious Captains can switch to the opposing server and wreak havoc in Port Royal, while defenders need to hold their ground and remain in their Empire to see if they can survive the attack. Whoever wins the Empire Invasion Port Royal Conquest will not only grab bragging rights but will also nab awesome in-game goodies such as special base skins to boot. If all that sounds absolutely fabulous to you, you can head on over to Pirates of the Caribbean: Tides of War’s official website and start your naval dominance today. Sponsored Content This article is sponsored content written by TouchArcade and published on behalf of JOYCITY to promote the latest update to Pirates of the Caribbean: Tides of War. For questions or comments, please email ads@toucharcade.com

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 27th, 2024. In today’s article, we kick things off …

Continue reading "SwitchArcade Round-Up: Today’s Nintendo Direct, Full Review of ‘EGGCONSOLE Star Trader’, Plus New Releases and Sales"

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 27th, 2024. In today’s article, we kick things off with a bit of news. After that, we’ve got one review for you to snack on. Just my look at the latest EGGCONSOLE release from last week, and the regulars probably know how that’s going to play out. After that, we have just one new release to take a gander at. Luckily, it’s a good one. We finish things up with the usual lists of new and expiring sales, and they’re okay as well. I have no idea what’s in that Direct tonight, so maybe it will make for a more exciting Tuesday? That is a mystery I cannot solve as I write, but you already know the answer to as you read. Let’s get into it! News Check Out Today’s Nintendo Direct/Indie World Showcase As recently prophesized by the once-in-a-while-correct insiders, Nintendo has scheduled a Nintendo Direct for August at nearly the last minute. We’re getting 40 minutes in total, split between a Partner Showcase and Indie World Showcase. Don’t expect any first-party stuff, and definitely do not expect anything about the Switch’s successor console. As you read this, the presentation should be long since finished. You can watch it above, and I’ll summarize the most important points tomorrow. Reviews & Mini-Views EGGCONSOLE Star Trader PC-8801mkIIsr ($6.49) It always comes down to two questions with these non-translated EGGCONSOLE releases. First, how is the game itself? Second, can it be enjoyed without understanding Japanese? Star Trader is an interesting game, though not what I would call a great one. Falcom fused a Japanese-style adventure game format with some side-scrolling shoot ’em up stages, and it doesn’t do either of those things amazingly well. The adventure game side at least has some nice art, and it’s interesting to see a shoot ’em up try to tell a story in this way. You’re mostly talking to people and picking up quests, the successful completion of which will earn you money you can use to upgrade your ship. This is important, because you’ll need to keep that cash coming in to stay on top of the action segments. As for the shoot ’em up parts… well, the PC-8801 wasn’t very good at scrolling the screen smoothly. So what you get here is a very choppy experience, and one that I’m not sure would even be all that great if things were moving at a normal clip. I’m not sure which part of the game is meant to serve the other, but in the end Star Trader is more interesting than it is good. Which naturally brings us to the second question. As you might expect, the adventure game segments are text-heavy and require some informed input from the player to achieve the best outcomes. If you can’t understand them, you’re not only missing out on half of the game, but you’re likely hobbling yourself for the other half because you’ll fail to earn enough credits to keep your ship up to date. You can brute force this one better than some EGGCONSOLE releases, but it’s not going to be a good time. Star Trader is an interesting piece of gaming history, showing a developer working outside of the lane we usually associate them with. Unfortunately, what joy could be had from poking at this curio is severely dampened by the fact that there is a ton of Japanese text in here that most Western players won’t be able to read. You might still get something out of messing around with it, but it’s hard to recommend it with much vigor. SwitchArcade Score: 3/5 Select New Releases Crypt Custodian ($19.99) A top-down action-adventure game about a recently-deceased cat named Pluto who, after a bad meeting with the Afterlife Guardian, is banished from the palace of the afterlife and sentenced to eternally clean. Dang. Explore, fight enemies with your broom, meet weird characters, battle bosses, expand your abilities, and so on. You know how this kind of game works. You know what? This is pretty good. If you enjoy this genre, I’d say you should give it a go. Sales (North American eShop, US Prices) If you like colorful shoot ’em ups with some quirky mechanics, I recommend checking out the Dreamer games and Harpoon Shooter Nozomi. I’ve enjoyed all three of them. Over in the outbox, buy 1000xRESIST. Do it. Other things to consider: Star Wars games, Citizen Sleeper, Paradise Killer, and Haiku, the Robot. Maybe some Tomb Raider, as a treat. Check those lists! Select New Sales Return ($10.49 from $13.99 until 9/2) Summer Daze: Tilly’s Tale ($2.99 from $14.99 until 9/9) Please Fix the Road ($5.99 from $9.99 until 9/9) Ticket to Ride ($26.99 from $29.99 until 9/9) King ‘n Knight ($9.59 from $11.99 until 9/9) Spiritfarer ($7.49 from $29.99 until 9/9) Harpoon Shooter Nozomi ($6.98 from $9.98 until 9/16) Like Dreamer ($5.99 from $11.99 until 9/16) Cosmo Dreamer ($4.10 from $8.20 until 9/16) Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate ($8.99 from $59.99 until 9/16) Gluck ($5.59 from $6.99 until 9/16) Love Love School Days ($4.19 from $10.49 until 9/16) Ugly ($6.79 from $19.99 until 9/16) Replik Survivors ($3.44 from $4.99 until 9/16) Sales Ending Tomorrow, August 28th 1000xRESIST ($15.99 from $19.99 until 8/28) Citizen Sleeper ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/28) Genesis Noir ($4.49 from $14.99 until 8/28) Haiku, The Robot ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/28) Heads Up! Phones Down Edition ($1.99 from $39.99 until 8/28) Legend Bowl ($18.74 from $24.99 until 8/28) MythForce ($14.99 from $29.99 until 8/28) Paradise Killer ($5.99 from $19.99 until 8/28) Star Wars Battlefront Collection ($28.00 from $35.01 until 8/28) Star Wars Bounty Hunter ($14.99 from $19.99 until 8/28) Star Wars Episode I Racer ($7.49 from $14.99 until 8/28) Star Wars Jedi Academy ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/28) Star Wars Jedi Outcast ($4.99 from $9.99 until 8/28) Star Wars KotOR ($7.49 from $14.99 until 8/28) Star Wars KotOR II: Sith Lords ($7.49 from $14.99 until 8/28) Star Wars Republic Commando ($7.49 from $14.99 until 8/28) Star Wars The Force Unleashed ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/28) Super Mutant Alien Assault ($1.99 from $9.99 until 8/28) Suzerain ($4.49 from $17.99 until 8/28) The Pale Beyond ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/28) Times & Galaxy ($17.99 from $19.99 until 8/28) Tomb Raider I-III Remastered ($22.49 from $29.99 until 8/28) That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow to talk a bit about whatever was in that Direct, plus have some new games, sales, and perhaps a review or two on top. I hope you all have a terrific Tuesday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Action adventure game RWBY: Arrowfell from WayForward is now available on mobile through the Crunchyroll Game Vault. RWBY: Arrowfell, developed …

Continue reading "‘RWBY: Arrowfell’ Now Available on Mobile Through Crunchyroll Game Vault"

Action adventure game RWBY: Arrowfell from WayForward is now available on mobile through the Crunchyroll Game Vault. RWBY: Arrowfell, developed by WayForward, is an action adventure game featuring Ruby Rose, Weiss, Blake, and Yang using their signature weapons and Semblances to take on Grimm and more enemies. It has the original cast included, new cut-scenes from the show creators, and more. Shaun wasn’t too hot on RWBY: Arrowfell when it hit Switch, but he did say it is worth playing if you like the show. Read his review here. Watch the RWBY: Arrowfell Crunchyroll Game Vault trailer below: Check out RWBY: Arrowfell on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here. If you have an active Crunchyroll Mega or Ultimate membership right now, you can play RWBY: Arrowfell at no additional cost today. While it didn’t have the best reviews on PC and console, I’m happy to see more WayForward titles hit mobile. I’m excited to try it out today since I skipped the original release. What do you think of today’s new Crunchyroll Game Vault release and have you played RWBY: Arrowfell before?

Usually, updates for premium priced ports on mobile are good to have for optimization or compatibility reasons, but Capcom’s newest …

Continue reading "Capcom Updates ‘Resident Evil 4′, ‘Resident Evil Village’, and ‘Resident Evil 7’ on iOS With Online DRM"

Usually, updates for premium priced ports on mobile are good to have for optimization or compatibility reasons, but Capcom’s newest update pushed out an hour ago for Resident Evil 7 biohazard (Free), Resident Evil 4 Remake (Free), and Resident Evil Village (Free) on iOS and iPadOS adds an online DRM that checks purchase history when you launch the games. This checks to see if you own the game or DLC and then proceeds to the title screen. If you click no, the game will close. If you’re connected to the internet, this takes a few seconds before you can get back to your save, but you cannot boot up any of these three games and play it offline. You will need to be online for the purchase check on launching the game. This is unfortunate, and frankly is awful because the games are all now worse off with online DRM as opposed to being playable and launchable offline before. I tested this with all three games before updating them and verified that they did launch and work offline as of the update prior to today. With today’s update, you see the alert above or a similar one and clicking no closes the game. If this doesn’t matter to you, that’s fine, but I’m not a fan of online DRM like this being patched into a game people have already paid for before. Hopefully Capcom can find a better solution for checking purchases or do it once in a while and not on every launch. Stuff like this makes it harder to recommend Capcom’s premium priced ports. If you’ve not gotten the games yet, they are free to try, and you can grab Resident Evil 7 biohazard on iOS, iPadOS, and macOS, here. Check out Resident Evil 4 Remake here on the App Store and Resident Evil Village here. Read my reviews of them here, here, and here. Do you own the three modern Resident Evil games on iOS and what do you think of this update for all three?

Back in early 2016 when I was looking for import-friendly games on PS Vita, I used to often see Gundam …

Continue reading "Gundam Breaker 4 Review – Steam Deck, Switch, and PS5 Tested"

Back in early 2016 when I was looking for import-friendly games on PS Vita, I used to often see Gundam Breaker mentioned. If you’ve never heard of the series before, think of them as hack and slash action games with RPG elements, deep customization, and a pure unadulterated love of Gunpla. Around the time I was looking into the series, Bandai Namco announced an Asia English release for Gundam Breaker 3 on PS4 and PS Vita, and I decided to buy both versions. I ended up loving it as my first Gundam game. Since then, I’ve imported and played Gundam Breaker 1 and 2 on PS Vita, and also gotten basically every Gundam game released in English across platforms. To see Gundam Breaker 4 announced earlier this year and confirmed for a global multi-platform simultaneous release remains one of 2024’s biggest surprises. Fast forward to today and Gundam Breaker 4 is finally here on Steam, Switch, PS4, and PS5. Having put in about 60 hours across platforms, I adore Gundam Breaker 4, but it has a few issues right now. Gundam Breaker 4 is a very important release not only because of the game itself, but because of how far we’ve come with the series in the West. So what makes Gundam Breaker 4 a big deal? Gone are the days of waiting for an Asia English release to import. Gundam Breaker 3 was an Asia English release not released in the West, and just on PlayStation. I can’t recall the last Gundam game that had an English dub option, but here we are with a dual audio option and multiple subtitle options (EFIGS and many more). But what about the game itself and the different platform versions? I’m going to cover all of that in this extended review that will also take you on a journey of me starting my first Master Grade Gunpla (Gundam Plastic Kit if you’re new to this) after building some High Grade (easier and smaller kits) before. Gundam Breaker 4’s story ranges from getting the job done to some highs and lows. The lows are when I felt like certain pre-mission dialog was going on a bit too long, and the highs were in the latter half of the game when there are interesting character reveals and also more interesting dialog. If you’ve not played a single game in the series before, Gundam Breaker 4 still does a good job of bringing you up to speed, but you might wonder why the appearance of certain characters is a big deal later on. The embargo only allows me to talk about the first two chapters of the story, and it feels like a straightforward affair during those two. I ended up liking the main characters quite a bit by the end, but my two favorite characters appear much later in the story. The real draw of Gundam Breaker 4 is not the story though. It is building your own perfect Gunpla, improving it over time, getting better gear, and becoming stronger to tackle higher difficulties and more quests. When you begin, you get the basics, but what the team really underold in the promotion is the customization aspect. It is incredible. Not only can you adjust individual parts like left and right arms, but you can also adjust ranged weapons for each arm, melee with dual wielding, and adjust the individual part size and scale. This means you can even use SD (super deformed) parts on your normal Gunpla and either have it look like this weird frankenstein suit or scale things to your liking. Beyond the actual parts for each main category in assembly, the customization in Gundam Breaker 4 takes things further with builder parts that let you add even more things to your Gunpla. Some of these even have their own skills. Speaking of skills, you have EX and OP skills to use in combat. These depend on your parts and weapons. Later on, you also unlock ability cartridges that have their own specs that give you buffs or debuffs. As you go through the missions breaking parts and earning S-rank reward parts, you also get materials. These can be used to level up your parts. Each mission in Gundam Breaker 4 usually has a recommended parts level indicating how suitable it is for your current gear. In addition to materials you earn to upgrade parts, you start earning materials to increase part rarity later on. This lets you upgrade for more skills as well, and you can use older or lesser part skills when you upgrade and cannibalize those older parts. During the main story, I spent a bit of time on the optional quests to earn money or parts, but feel like the game is balanced enough where you won’t really need to grind during the main story on the standard difficulty at least. Speaking of the difficulty, you unlock three higher difficulties as the main story progresses, and these up the challenge and part level recommendation quite a bit. If you do plan on skipping most of the optional quests during the main story, make sure to keep an eye on the new unlocks because some of the optional quest types are a lot of fun, especially the survival mode. Outside of all of this, you can also adjust the paint of your suit which lets you color schemes you’ve unlocked through progression or from DLC. If you put time into Gundam Breaker 4, there’s a ton of stuff for you to get out of it, and I’m floored by how much has gone into this. When you’re done with paint, you can work with decals and weathering effects as well. Gundam Breaker 4 is the real deal for Gunpla enthusiasts, but does it play well? Having enjoyed everything Gundam Breaker 4 has to offer in its gameplay through story missions, side content, and boss fights aside from one specific mission type, I think the team nailed it. I never got bored of combat even though the normal difficulty is on the easier side. I kept swapping out weapons and trying the various types before settling on a greatsword style weapon for the rest of my playthrough. Everything feels varied enough, and the individual skills and stats make for a fresh experience throughout. When it comes to the bosses and minibosses, I love having them appear on the stage in the Gunpla boxes and then breaking out before fighting you. This never gets old, and seeing one of the Gunpla kits I built appear as a boss later on was awesome. Most boss fights involve targeting weak points, damaging the many health bars, destroying shields, and the usual. I did have trouble with one particular boss’ weak points using specific weapons, but I changed to a whip and sorted it immediately. The only real hard boss fight in the story was dealing with two of a specific boss at once. I won’t get into details for spoiler reasons, but I did struggle with the AI in one specific fight. Visually, Gundam Breaker 4 ranges from great to fine. The environments look lacking early on, but I found the variety good overall. Most of the work went into making sure the Gunpla kits and animations look the best, and it shows. The developers clearly weren’t trying to go for a realistic art style here, so don’t expect something like Gundam Evolution or even how some bits of Gundam Breaker 3 looked. The aesthetic in Gundam Breaker 4 works well and it scales as it should on lower end hardware. The effects look great, and the scale of many boss fights is awesome. The music in Gundam Breaker 4 ranges from forgettable tunes you won’t think of outside the game to a few really great songs in specific story missions. I am disappointed in no way to set music from the various anime and movies here. Usually we’d see some anime music pack DLC or a premium bundle for Asia and Japan, but I’ve not seen any of that yet in the game or announced. I also don’t see a way to load custom music like in Mobile Suit Gundam Extreme Vs Maxiboost ON on PS4. The voice acting has been a pleasant surprise. I played through the game completely with English on one save, and also spent about a dozen hours with the Japanese voice option on another platform save. Both were very good and I found myself liking the English more during missions because I hate reading small subtitles during action battles when I’m focusing on fighting enemies. So far, aside from one mission type really annoying me (thankfully not too prevalent) and a few bugs, I’ve had no real issues with Gundam Breaker 4. If you are new to this series and aren’t a fan of replaying missions to grind out better gear and drops, you may find things repetitive. I’ve always viewed Gundam Breaker like Earth Defense Force and Monster Hunter where after finishing the story, I spend time building my perfect Gunpla. As for bugs, I ran into one where certain names wouldn’t save or two I think are Steam Deck-specific. The first is that returning to the title screen from in-game takes way too long. The second is one specific mission that crashed for me only when playing on my monitor. I replayed it on the Deck itself and it was fine. It might just have been relating to the performance penalty I see in some games docked, but I can’t say for sure. The one aspect I’ve not touched on so far is the online. Pre-release I managed to play a good amount of the network test on PS5 and Switch, but I only managed to test a bit of the retail release on PS5 with a friend who is reviewing that version. The PC version’s servers have not been online pre-launch at all, so I cannot test if the online works fine on Steam Deck yet. I will be updating this once servers go online and I’ve managed testing the PC version on Steam Deck with friends online. At this point, you’re probably wondering about the Gunpla I was building. I made some progress and got through 5 sets of runners, but made a mistake with one small part. I panicked and almost broke it while trying to separate things. This is where my guitar pick came into the picture and saved me. I ended up stopping with my RG 78-2 MG 3.0 about halfway done. Once the review embargoes of this week are over, I’ll get back to it and finish it. Now let’s get to the platform differences and features. Gundam Breaker 4 PC port controls – keyboard, mouse, and controller support Gundam Breaker 4’s on PC is the only version of the game that supports above 60fps. The PS5 version is capped at 60fps and the Switch version hovers around the 30fps mark. The Gundam Breaker 4 PC release also has mouse and keyboard support in addition to controller support with multiple button prompt options. When playing on the Deck itself, it displayed Xbox button prompts. When using my DualSense controller over the Dock on my monitor, Gundam Breaker 4 showed PlayStation prompts correctly. It also auto switches between keyboard mouse and controller prompts based on your input. The only controller-related issue I ran into is the game not correctly detecting when I’ve reconnected a controller. I tested this on my DualSense and 8BitDo Ultimate controllers wirelessly. Gundam Breaker 4 ships with three controller presets and a custom option. You can adjust the keyboard mouse and controller settings independently. One setting I recommend changing immediately or after you try out the first few missions is camera sensitivity and distance. You can do this in Player Mode from the game settings. I found the default too slow and close. Gundam Breaker 4 PC graphics settings and display options Gundam Breaker 4 supports multiple resolutions and frame rate caps. On the Steam Deck itself, it sadly doesn’t support a full 800p and runs at 720p and 16:9. On the frame rate side, it can go from 30fps to 360fps and unlimited on PC. I set it to 120fps when playing on Steam Deck since I played it almost exclusively on my Steam Deck OLED. You can also toggle v-sync. On the graphics side, you can adjust the quality of textures, anti-aliasing, post-processing, shadows, effects, and also adjust brightness and toggle motion blur. Gundam Breaker 4 Steam Deck performance – does it work out of the box? I played Gundam Breaker 4 with Proton Experimental (bleeding edge) as I normally do for untested games, but I also tested it on the default Proton. It works perfectly out of the box and even invokes the on-screen keyboard for text input. I have confidence in this being Steam Deck Verified pre-launch or soon after. The 35 hours I put into it on just my Steam Deck OLED prove that. When playing with all settings at High aside from shadows, Gundam Breaker 4 easily hit 60fps, but I wanted more. For this, I turned things to medium and played at 80-90fps almost across the board. A few late-game missions saw drops to the high 60s during gameplay, but otherwise I had no issues in actual gameplay. In-engine cut-scenes do take a hit to performance and run in the 50-70fps range for me on Steam Deck. I did run into one issue where the assembly section suddenly dropped to 1-3fps for a few seconds before shooting back up to 90fps. This didn’t happen more than three times total, but I couldn’t figure out what caused it. If this is a Proton related issue, I hope Valve can fix it. The only visual issue I had when playing on the Deck itself is some of the icon glyphs and menus had either smaller than expected fonts, or they weren’t as crisp as they should’ve been. I noticed this even on Switch so it likely is an issue with the game being designed for a higher res and bigger screen. Not a dealbreaker, but worth pointing out. Gundam Breaker 4 Switch vs PS5 – what to buy? On the console side, I didn’t have time to test Gundam Breaker 4 on my PS4, so I focused on the Switch (Lite and OLED) and PS5 versions. Gundam Breaker 4 on PS5 looks amazing and runs basically perfectly at 60fps in the time I put into it, but I didn’t reach the few missions in the story towards the end that were more visually demanding. I also didn’t reach here on Switch, but I put nearly two dozen hours into the Switch version to see enough of how it runs there. Check out a comparison of the opening tutorial mission on PS5 and Switch in the screenshot comparison below: The biggest downgrades on Switch aside from the performance are with resolution, detail, and reflections. This applies not only to the stages, but also the Gunpla parts. During the network tests, a friend of mine pointed out how the Switch version looked like an HG Gunpla while the PS5 version looked like an RG in some scenes. If you built Gunpla you will understand this, but for everyone else, it just means Gunpla in the Switch version ends up lacking in many details like decals, lining, and even weathering effects in specific situations. They do appear, but I think the lower resolution and draw distance makes it so that they are invisible sometimes. This is one of those changes you won’t realize until you see the game outside Switch. I honestly expected this to run at 120fps on PS5 given the visuals. Playing Megaton Musashi at 120fps was good as a recent release. Maybe the developers capped this to 60fps for multiplayer reasons with the PS4 version, but I’m not sure. Aside from the 60fps cap, Gundam Breaker 4 has decent rumble support and even has PS5 Activity Card support to load into your save quicker. Since the review embargo prevents me from showing anything beyond chapter two in the story, the screenshot below is from when I just began playing showing the Activity Card implementation for story mode. I hope this supports online play and lobbies in the future as well. Speaking of loading, the Switch load times are really long compared to PS5 and Steam Deck. Even running the game off the SD card on my old Steam Deck LCD had much faster load times than Switch. If you only care about portability, you obviously won’t bother with the PS5 version, but the Switch port currently has one major issue that makes me hesitate to recommend it. The assembly section and diorama mode feel very sluggish. While the main lobby or hub is also sluggish, the performance in missions is better albeit still not a perfect 30fps. I saw drops even in early missions from 30fps, but again, this is a lot better than I expected given some recent Switch ports. I would be ok with this given the hardware if the assembly section ran better considering you will be spending a lot of time there after each mission. Diorama mode also needs more optimization on Switch with how sluggish it feels. If you played Gundam Breaker 3 on PS Vita, you will be more than fine with the Switch version, but I was hoping for a better port all things considered. Since there are more content updates planned, I hope we see some optimization on this front. For those who own multiple platforms, I only recommend the Switch version if you exclusively want to play portably and don’t own a Steam Deck. Speaking of portable play, I enjoyed Gundam Breaker 4 on my Switch Lite aside from the text size in some menus. Gundam Breaker 4 is also sadly the final game I reviewed on it before the screen developed some LCD-related issues. Is the Gundam Breaker 4 Ultimate Edition worth it? I had access to some of the DLC included in the Gundam Breaker 4 Deluxe Edition and Gundam Breaker 4 Ultimate Edition. I can’t comment on the story DLC yet since it isn’t available, but the early unlocks aren’t game changing. You get level 1 parts for the suits listed on the store page, but I found the builders parts to be better as early DLC to help you get started. Beyond that, the Diorama content doesn’t seem to be fully available right now, but there is some content from the DLC I had access to, and it was really good for posing Gunpla and using the cel-shaded filter as well. Having tried the Diorama mode a lot across my playthroughs on all platforms, photo mode enthusiasts and those who enjoy those kinds of modes in games will find a lot to love here. Having more items and accessories in this mode will be good, but you could get those separately I assume. I love how Gunbarrel Strike Gundam – Gundam Breaker Ver looks, so having those parts was nice. I liked the design enough to order the collector’s edition the moment pre-orders went up as well. Is Gundam Breaker 4 worth it for the story? I’ve seen some folks excited to play Gundam Breaker 4 for its story, and while it is a fine story, you really are here for customization, battles, and building your ideal Gunpla. If you want a story-focused game instead, look at Megaton Musashi. Both games have their strengths and weaknesses, but I ended up clicking with the gameplay in Gundam Breaker 4 more as a fan of the older games. When I got my review codes for Gundam Breaker 4, I had a fun idea of starting the MG 78-2 Version 3.0 kit and building it alongside the game to finish both at the same time, but sadly there are too many other games releasing for me to be able to do that. Not only was it great to play a new Gundam Breaker alongside building my newest Gunpla kit, but there’s a new found appreciation I have for the work that goes into designing these kits now after moving to an MG and also an RG from HG kits. I’ve also been lucky enough to have some friends who are super helpful with Gunpla tips for decals, panel lining, and also what to do when stuck. I look forward to finishing this kit and then working on my RG next. The wait for Gundam Breaker 4 has been super long, and I didn’t even think we’d see a new game in the series after New Gundam Breaker, but here we are. Gundam Breaker 4 is real and it is spectacular in almost every way. It is my favorite Steam Deck game this year since Shin Megami Tensei V Vengeance, and one I look forward to playing online and offline over the coming months with all the DLC planned. Gundam Breaker 4 Steam Deck review: 4.5/5

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 26th, 2024. In today’s article, we get the week …

Continue reading "SwitchArcade Round-Up: ‘Fragrant Story & Papaya’s Path’, Plus Today’s Other Releases and Sales"

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 26th, 2024. In today’s article, we get the week started with a somewhat lighter edition than we usually go with. No reviews today as I’m a bit busy on other projects, which means we just have a few new releases to go through plus the usual lists of new and expiring sales. Well, at least one of the new releases is interesting. The sales lists aren’t too shabby either. I’ll have some reviews tomorrow, hopefully. Let’s head on in and check out what we’ve got! Select New Releases Fragrant Story and Papaya’s Path ($7.99) Ah, the sordid tale of Fragrant Story, one of the would-be final Nintendo 3DS releases. There’s a lot of confusion out there around this game, so let me sort it out. Despite being a seemingly star-studded tactical role-playing game, those who bought the game on its release were surprised to get a game that lasted all of twenty minutes. The real story? Nintendo’s deadline for 3DS releases was coming quickly, so the developer pushed an unfinished game to the eShop. It was later updated into its intended from, a far more substantial game that lasts more than ten hours. So don’t worry if you see anything about this game being ridiculously short. It’s not. This version has the updates already packed in, and is a pretty solid pick-up for eight bucks if you’re into the genre. Quack Jump ($3.99) A simple platformer, but a functional one. It tries to keep things fresh through its 40-level run by sprinkling in new gimmicks as you go. For four dollars, it’s amusing enough. Underground Station ($7.90) Something of an idle game where you’re trying to repay your debts by working in a dungeon. It doesn’t look very fancy, but on a day where we have to wade through Moist Editions of AI-generated bikini anime girls, we take what we can get. Sales (North American eShop, US Prices) Okay, let’s check that inbox first. Another sale from Limited Run Games, which is nice if you’re missing any of their quirky releases. Most of TROOOZE’s junk is on sale, of which I’ve listed only a few. Some Team 17 sales, too. Over in the outbox, the recent somewhat rare sale on the Front Mission remakes is drawing to a close. You might want to add them to your collection if you’re interested, because it seems like they’re discounted far less frequently than Forever’s other games. Select New Sales Jurassic Park Games Collection ($17.99 from $29.99 until 8/31) The House in Fata Morgana ($19.99 from $39.99 until 8/31) Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore ($11.99 from $19.99 until 8/31) Night Trap ($3.74 from $14.99 until 8/31) Cosmic Star Heroine ($3.74 from $14.99 until 8/31) Phoenotopia: Awakening ($6.99 from $19.99 until 9/7) Enoh ($5.49 from $19.99 until 9/13) CosmoPlayerZ ($5.49 from $10.99 until 9/13) Knowledge Keeper ($2.49 from $4.99 until 9/13) Three Minutes to Eight ($2.99 from $14.99 until 9/13) Fall of Porcupine ($7.99 from $19.99 until 9/13) Star Gagnant ($22.80 from $38.00 until 9/13) Moon Dancer ($13.29 from $18.99 until 9/13) Re:Touring ($4.99 from $9.99 until 9/13) Life of Slime ($2.49 from $4.99 until 9/13) Cybertrash STATYX ($4.99 from $9.99 until 9/13) Awesome Pea 3 ($2.49 from $4.99 until 9/13) Itorah ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/13) Pizza Tycoon ($2.09 from $14.99 until 9/13) Lacuna ($1.99 from $19.99 until 9/13) Alien Survivors: Starship Resurrection ($10.49 from $14.99 until 9/13) World War: Battle of the Bulge ($10.49 from $14.99 until 9/13) World War: D-Day Part One ($8.99 from $14.99 until 9/13) World War: D-Day Part Two ($8.99 from $14.99 until 9/13) Out Racing: Arcade Memory ($10.49 from $14.99 until 9/13) Last 4 Survive: The Outbreak ($8.99 from $14.99 until 9/13) Modern War: Tank Battle ($1.99 from $14.99 until 9/13) Counter Delta: The Bullet Rain ($1.99 from $14.99 until 9/13) Haunted Dawn: Zombie Apocalypse ($1.99 from $14.99 until 9/13) Urban Warfare: Assault ($11.99 from $14.99 until 9/13) Operation Scorpion: Takedown ($11.99 from $14.99 until 9/13) Hamster on Rails ($5.99 from $14.99 until 9/14) Ultimate Chicken Horse ($6.74 from $14.99 until 9/14) Our Field Trip Adventure ($3.99 from $14.50 until 9/15) Overcooked! All You Can Eat ($15.99 from $39.99 until 9/15) Worms Rumble ($2.99 from $14.99 until 9/15) The Survivalists ($2.49 from $24.99 until 9/15) Blasphemous 2 ($14.99 from $29.99 until 9/15) Moving Out ($7.49 from $24.99 until 9/15) Sales Ending Tomorrow, August 27th Aeterna Noctis ($8.99 from $29.99 until 8/27) Arise: A Simple Story ($2.99 from $19.99 until 8/27) ATONE: Heart of the Elder Tree ($1.99 from $14.99 until 8/27) Badland: GotY Edition ($1.99 from $5.99 until 8/27) Bang-On Balls: Chronicles ($9.99 from $24.99 until 8/27) Blazing Beaks ($1.99 from $14.99 until 8/27) Bus Driving Simulator 22 ($2.99 from $27.99 until 8/27) Chippy & Noppo ($13.99 from $19.99 until 8/27) Cult of the Lamb ($12.49 from $24.99 until 8/27) Descenders ($4.99 from $24.99 until 8/27) Everdream Valley ($9.99 from $24.99 until 8/27) Flame Keeper ($3.99 from $11.99 until 8/27) Front Mission 1st: Remake ($17.49 from $34.99 until 8/27) Front Mission 2: Remake ($23.44 from $34.99 until 8/27) Gamedec: Definitive ($2.99 from $29.99 until 8/27) LOUD: My Road to Fame ($1.99 from $7.99 until 8/27) Nine Parchments ($4.39 from $19.99 until 8/27) Ready, Steady, Ship! ($8.99 from $14.99 until 8/27) Red Wings: American Aces ($1.99 from $11.99 until 8/27) Soundfall ($4.49 from $29.99 until 8/27) Summum Aeterna ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/27) SuperEpic: The Entertainment War ($1.99 from $17.99 until 8/27) Terra Flame ($15.99 from $19.99 until 8/27) Tools Up ($1.99 from $19.99 until 8/27) Trine 2: Complete Story ($3.73 from $16.99 until 8/27) Trine 3: Artifacts of Power ($4.39 from $19.99 until 8/27) Trine Enchanted Edition ($3.29 from $14.99 until 8/27) War Titans ($1.99 from $14.99 until 8/27) Xiaomei & the Flame Dragon’s Fist ($8.99 from $14.99 until 8/27) That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with more new releases, more sales, and perhaps some reviews and news. It really depends on what else I’ve got to deal with. Wish me luck in getting things done in a timely manner. I hope you all have a magnificent Monday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Hello everyone, and welcome to the week! It’s time once again for our look back at the noteworthy updates of …

Continue reading "Best iPhone Game Updates: ‘TMNT Splintered Fate’, ‘Subway Surfers’, ‘Another Eden’, and More"

Hello everyone, and welcome to the week! It’s time once again for our look back at the noteworthy updates of the last seven days. Lots of big names in the list this week, though one heavily skewed towards free-to-play stuff. Some Apple Arcade games as well, naturally. Still, it’s a good mix of games with some interesting updates to consider. Of course, you can keep an eye out for updates yourself by participating in the TouchArcade forums. This weekly summary is just here to fill you in on the things you might have missed. Let’s go for it! Subway Surfers, Free Sydney is a city, and Sydney is the center of a couple of updates this week. Apparently in the world of Subway Surfers, there is a veggie revolution happening. Veggie, not Vegimite. Collect Veggie tokens, build a bean burger, and unlock Billy Bean. On top of this, you can look forward to a bunch of green-themed characters, boards, and bundles. Oh, I see. It’s a whole “green" thing. Okay, that’s fun. Save the planet, kids. It’s the only one we’ve got. Mars isn’t happening anytime soon. Tiny Tower: Tap Idle Evolution, Free Out with the Olympics event, in with the summer event. It’s still summer! So says the calendar, so says the temperature. Anyway, the gist of this event is that you serve up VIPs and roll the dice to earn event points, and at certain thresholds you get rewards. Each week is its own thing, and at the end you’ll get rewards based on your overall progress across all weeks. Different VIPs are worth different amounts of points, and you know the pay to win option is real here. But hey, free stuff. MARVEL Puzzle Quest: Hero RPG, Free I don’t talk enough about Marvel Puzzle Quest, but that’s more because it trucks along consistently and quietly. As with other Marvel games, this one was doing an event tied in with Deadpool and Wolverine. It’s over now, and all the sweeping up has been done. That includes a rebalance for Old Man Logan, complete with a new costume. The latest PVP Season of Mind has come to a close, so keep your eyes out for the next one. Hm. I’m now realizing this update is mostly clean-up, but at least you’re thinking about Marvel Puzzle Quest now. ANOTHER EDEN, Free The King of Fighters! In addition to being a pretty good little RPG in its own right, Another Eden has been home to some truly strange collaboration events. Is The King of Fighters the strangest? Probably not, but it’s up there. On top of that cross-over, this update adds a new Parallel Time Layer Ally, the Thornbound Witch Shanie. Is Mai here? Let me check the paperwork. Yes, she is. Good. Terry, Kyo, Mai, and Kula. Good enough. I’ll give this the UMMSotW award for this week because Mai is cool. Temple Run: Legends, The relatively recently-launched stage-based Temple Run game already has a nice little update to enjoy. The new Outfit System does pretty much what you would think it does. Unlock new Outfits to equip to the characters to change their looks. But wait, there’s more! Those Outfits have some useful new traits to give you a variety of advantages during your runs. Wacky looks that work for you? If only real life was like that! Instead people just point and laugh, which is not an advantage at all. TMNT Splintered Fate, Those Toitles are at it again! Splintered Fate launched on other platforms recently, and it seems the developers have decided to bring over some of the improvements for those versions over to the mobile release. Couch co-op! Cross-platform online multiplayer! Improved controller interfaces! All that, plus some nice upgrades to the graphics, audio, and more. It’s like getting extra cheese on your pizza without asking for it! Disney Dreamlight Valley, The Princess and the Frog is in the spotlight in the latest version of Disney Dreamlight Valley. Tiana is here to set up a restaurant and a new Stall, and apparently Remy is somewhere around too. Makes sense. Cooking is kind of his thing. You can also get a New Orleans style parade going on. That’s fun. I always like seeing Disney movies outside of the biggest hits get some representation in games like these. Outlanders, Okay, let’s try to parse the update notes for Outlanders. Always a challenge. Volume VI of Outlanders Chronicles is here, giving you six new playable leaders and following the rise and subsequent fall of a community. Something to do with a comet not appearing when it should have. Maybe they’re one of those weird cults? Well, I’m not about to bother them to find out. They seem sad about it. You, however, can feel free to bother them by checking out this latest version of the game. SimCity BuildIt, Free Here’s our other Sydney-themed update today, and it’s also somewhat focused on the whole green angle. Okay, that’s fine. Captain Planet would certainly approve, and I never mess with someone with a green mullet. Add buildings like the Beam Wireless, Green Exchange, and Flower Bud to your city. There are also some limited-time structures like the Sydney Zoo and Paper Bag. Jump in on this Mayor’s Pass Season and liven up your city with these new sites. Sights? Sites and sights. Merge Mansion: Mystery & Story, Free The obligatory free-to-play matching puzzle game update of the week is our closer this time, and I’ve picked Merge Mansion. A new area is available in the form of the Speakeasy. Wait, are those legal? Like Grandma would care. Some improvements have been made to the Landing Room and Lounge, a new Mystery Pass offers an intriguing new pet, some balance adjustments have been made, and a whole mess of events have been seeded in that you’ll see pop up in the coming weeks. Add in some bug fixes, and that’s about it for this one. That about wraps it up for last week’s significant updates. I’m sure I’ve missed some, though, so please feel free to comment below and let everyone know if you think something should be mentioned. As usual, major updates will likely get their own news stories throughout this week, and I’ll be back next Monday to summarize and fill in the blanks. Have a great week!

Niantic and Capcom just detailed the next major update coming to Monster Hunter Now (Free). Monster Hunter Now Season 3 …

Continue reading "‘Monster Hunter Now’ Season 3 To Add Magnamalo, Heavy Bowgun Weapon, Cooking, and More on September 11th"

Niantic and Capcom just detailed the next major update coming to Monster Hunter Now (Free). Monster Hunter Now Season 3 “Curse of the Wandering Flames" sees Magnamalo arrive as the first Monster Hunter Rise original monster joining the Monster Hunter Now roster. Alongside Magnamalo, two other monsters join in the action including my favorite: Rajang. The final monster addition is Aknosom. Monster Hunter Now’s Season 3 update also brings in a new weapon, the Heavy Bowgun, cooking as a feature, and more. I’m curious to see how Magnamalo and Rajang are in-game as I adore hunting both of them in Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak and Monster Hunter World: Iceborne for Rajang. Check out Magnamalo’s artwork for Monster Hunter Now below: Check out some of the new gear from the update below: If you’ve not played Monster Hunter Now recently or are planning to just start playing, I put together tips and tricks for the game, details on the weapons, special skills, the current monsters list, my wishlist for future update monsters, and more. You can grab Monster Hunter Now on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here. The in app purchases include different sets of gems and upgrades. Check out the official website here. What do you think of the current state of the game and are you looking forward to Teostra next month?

At Anime NYC this weekend, Aniplex USA shared more details for its upcoming 3D action RPG Alterna Vvelt: Blue Exorcist …

Continue reading "3D Action RPG ‘Alterna Vvelt: Blue Exorcist Another Story’ From Aniplex Gets a New Trailer Ahead of Its Launch on Mobile and PC"

At Anime NYC this weekend, Aniplex USA shared more details for its upcoming 3D action RPG Alterna Vvelt: Blue Exorcist Another Story (). Alterna Vvelt: Blue Exorcist Another Story is in development for iOS, Android, and Windows release this year. Alterna Vvelt: Blue Exorcist Another Story is based on the Blue Exorcist IP, and the story of the game features new original characters showcased in the game’s new trailer. In addition to this new trailer, pre-orders and pre-registrations have gone live for the game. Alterna Vvelt: Blue Exorcist Another Story sees you taking on the role of an exorcist assigned to the Special Investigations Unit in the Japanese branch of the Knights of the True Cross. Watch the new trailer below: Alterna Vvelt: Blue Exorcist Another Story doesn’t have a confirmed release date yet, and the App Store page also confirms that the date listed there is a placeholder. If you’d like to try Alterna Vvelt: Blue Exorcist Another Story, you can pre-order it on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here. Check out the official website here where a lot of the pre-registration reward tiers are detailed. Alterna Vvelt: Blue Exorcist Another Story is due this summer on iOS, Android, and Windows. What do you think of Alterna Vvelt: Blue Exorcist Another Story so far?

Netflix recently announced more games coming to its service in the coming months, but an unannounced (as far as I’m …

Continue reading "‘SpongeBob: Bubble Pop’ Is a New Bust-a-Move-Like Coming to iOS and Android Through Tic Toc Games, Nickelodeon, and Netflix"

Netflix recently announced more games coming to its service in the coming months, but an unannounced (as far as I’m aware) casual Bust-a-Move-like game in the form of SpongeBob: Bubble Pop has gone up for pre-order on the App Store and pre-registration on Android. SpongeBob: Bubble Pop (Free) from Tic Toc Games and Nickelodeon is due on September 17th going by the App Store listing, and it aims to offer players hundreds of puzzles where you match colors and free sea snails to save Bikini Bottom. It will include boosters, various unlocks, SpongeBob cosmetics, a skill crane to earn even more costumes, and more. Check out some screenshots from it below: If you’d like to play SpongeBob: Bubble Pop at launch, you can pre-order it on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here. If we get a gameplay trailer, Ill post about it, but I think everyone knows what to expect from a game like this. I’m curious if we see more games announced at Netflix Geeked week in the near future. What do you think of SpongeBob: Bubble Pop and Netflix bringing more casual games like this to its service?

HoYoverse has begun pre-installation for the major Genshin Impact (Free) version 5.0 “Flowers Resplendent on the Sun-Scorched Sojourn" update for …

Continue reading "‘Genshin Impact’ Version 5.0 Update Pre-Installation Now Live, New Trailer Released"

HoYoverse has begun pre-installation for the major Genshin Impact (Free) version 5.0 “Flowers Resplendent on the Sun-Scorched Sojourn" update for on supported platforms. If you’ve not followed the game recently, Genshin Impact 5.0 brings in the sixth nation: Natlan, new characters like Mualani, reruns for Raiden Shogun, and much more. The update will launch beginning August 28th for mobile, PC, PS5, and PS4 with the game launching on Xbox Series X this November. The first Genshin Impact 5.0 banner features: Mualani, Kachina and Kaedehara Kazuha while banner 2 has Kinich and Raiden Shogun. This update is also supposed to bring in updated visuals. Read about that here. Watch the new Genshin Impact trailer for Kachina below: You can pre-install it by tapping the pre-install resource package button. The download size is 2.67GB on iOS and about 16GB on PC. If you’d like to play Genshin Impact and don’t own it yet, you can download it for free on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here. The PC version is available on the official website here and the Epic Games Store. If you play on iOS, with iOS 14.5 or iPadOS 14.5 and later, you can use PS5 and Xbox Series X|S controllers to play Genshin Impact. We featured Genshin Impact as our Game of the Week when it released and awarded it our 2020 Game of the Year. I also featured it as one of the best iOS games to play with a controller. What do you think of Genshin Impact 5.0 so far?

In this week’s episode of The TouchArcade Show I talk about how I finally ended up getting sick after weeks …

Continue reading "Ok I’m Actually Sick Now – The TouchArcade Show #601"

In this week’s episode of The TouchArcade Show I talk about how I finally ended up getting sick after weeks of being teased with it, and then I really bum out the vibe of the show sharing my horrible cat-sitting story. We then go into the fiasco that is the latest Overcast update which really screwed the pooch for Eli’s podcast listening lifestyle, and touch on some of Apple’s latest upcoming changes in the EU region. We also hit on some more iOS 18 beta talk and finish things off by going through some listener emails, which is always a blast. Don’t forget to shoot us emails with any questions, feedback, or anything else relevant or irrelevant to podcast@toucharcade.com. We read ’em all, and love decoding messages written entirely in emoji. As always, you can listen to us with the links below… And if you like what you hear, please subscribe and/or drop us a review in iTunes. Much appreciated! As a companion to this audio podcast, we also do a video version of the same show that is exclusive to Patreon which allows you to see us playing the games we’re talking about. Backers can view the most recent video episodes of the TouchArcade show by clicking here. Be sure you’re logged in to see the latest content. For everyone else who is curious, you can check out our public patreon posts to see older episodes of the video podcast. If you like what you see, consider becoming a TouchArcade Patreon backer. Stitcher: The TouchArcade Show via Stitcher Radio for Podcasts RSS Feed: The TouchArcade Show Direct Link: TouchArcadeShow-601.mp3

I’m a simple man. Give me an old-school first-person dungeon crawler and I’m a pretty happy guy. Make one centered …

Continue reading "TouchArcade Game of the Week: ‘Labyrinth: The Wizard’s Cat’"

I’m a simple man. Give me an old-school first-person dungeon crawler and I’m a pretty happy guy. Make one centered around rescuing a cat and, oh boy, now you’re really speaking my language. Throw in a really unique touchscreen control scheme that I’ve never seen in a game of this type before and we’ve got a winner winner chicken-that-you-found-in-a-barrel dinner. That accurately describes Labyrinth: The Wizard’s Cat from developer ZombiSoft, who appears to be just a single person named Anders Gustavsson. There are some rough edges here, and some negative things to note, but by and large I’m just having a super good time with Labyrinth: The Wizard’s Cat and I’m excited to see where it takes me. So as the story goes, you’re an apprentice wizard who is tasked with finding the runaway cat of your mentor wizard, and you graduating to become a full-blown wizard hinges on you completing this mission. Just when you think you’ve cornered the adorable little feline you find yourself transported to a dungeon labyrinth filled with traps and enemies. You also spot the kitty roaming around and so your mission now becomes more difficult as you try to make your way through this dungeon alive as well as rescue your boss’s pesky little cat. Now, Labyrinth: The Wizard’s Cat isn’t a highly complex game by any means. There’s some light RPG elements in the form of leveling up and finding cool new weapons and gear, but there’s no party system or any extensive character progression. It reminds me a lot of Questlord in that it’s a pretty simple affair mechanically but the story, the visuals, and the personality of the game compel you to keep moving forward. Also, just because this game is bright and colorful and has a fairly straightforward design don’t think it’s some pushover. The game actually gets rather difficult rather quickly, but thankfully you can save anytime and anywhere, which is something you should practice doing often. The really neat feature here is the control scheme. You can choose between virtual arrows or swipe gestures for directional movement, which is pretty par for the course. But if you lay a second thumb down on the screen you can free look in any direction. It takes a little getting used to but the swipe gesture movement coupled with the free look gesture combines to make for a very satisfying touchscreen control scheme. It almost feels like you’re playing a first-person shooter at times, once you get comfortable and start zipping around to and fro, but you’re actually still playing a game with grid-based movement. My small nitpicks are that I really wish this game had an option to play in portrait, and the swipe detection for movement is a bit finicky. It recognizes short, fast swipes as opposed to longer ones, and before I figured that out I was having a really frustrating time thinking the game wasn’t detecting my inputs. Probably something that can be smoothed out in an update. Overall though, despite being a bit basic overall and having some rough edges, Labyrinth: The Wizard’s Cat is a very enjoyable retro dungeon crawler, which is something we don’t get too many of nowadays. If that’s not worth a couple of bucks then I’m not sure what is.

Welcome to this week’s edition of the Steam Deck Weekly. I delayed publishing this because Gamescom 2024 is on right …

Continue reading "Steam Deck Weekly: Gamescom 2024 Steam Deck News, Reviews Including Bakeru and SCHiM, New Verified Games, Discounts, and More"

Welcome to this week’s edition of the Steam Deck Weekly. I delayed publishing this because Gamescom 2024 is on right now with news from Geoff Keighley’s Opening Night Live, game announcements, show floor information, and more. If you missed my Black Myth: Wukong Steam Deck review, read it here. Today’s article has Steam Deck impressions for Bakeru and Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse, reviews of a few notable indies, Shaun’s take on the Warhammer 40K: Boltgun DLC, bundles, new Steam Deck Verified games, and more. Let’s get into the reviews and impressions first. Steam Deck Game Reviews & Impressions Bakeru Steam Deck Review When Bakeru was released in Japan, a friend of mine imported it and praised it quite a bit. I tried the demo and was turned off by the technical issues. It was charming, but not enough to put up with no localization and performance issues on Switch. When it leaked on the eShop, I was hoping we’d see performance improvements or a port to PC. We ended up getting both more or less. Bakeru’s Switch release in the West is improved over the Japanese launch version, and it is also now on PC with an excellent port. Bakeru is an action platformer from Good-Feel who are most known for the Yoshi games and also more-recently Princess Peach Showtime from Nintendo. The studio has done some games outside Nintendo brands, and the newest in this line of non Nintendo games from Good-Feel is Bakeru. Shaun will be doing a full review for this one, but so far Bakeru feels and plays great on Steam Deck. On Steam Deck and PC, Bakeru lets you adjust display mode (windowed and borderless only), resolution (with full 16:10 support), toggle v-sync, adjust frame rate cap (Note that v-sync off means the game runs at 60fps. Turn it on if you would like to play at your monitor’s refresh rate or at 90fps on Steam Deck OLED), anti-aliasing (off, FXAA, SMAA), adjust filtering quality (trilinear, 2x, 4x, 8x, and 16x), and draw distance (low, medium, high). I played Bakeru on both my Steam Decks. My LCD is running the newest SteamOS beta. On that, I had zero issues with the game and it ran at a locked 60fps at maximum settings. On Steam Deck OLED running the public build of the OS, I only had some issues at 90fps. This seemingly wasn’t related to the settings, but something in the game because I had some shader-related or traversal stuttering in parts, but they only happened initially. I imagine Bakeru will be Steam Deck Verified soon as it runs perfectly if you play at 60fps and near-perfectly at 90fps. The one issue I ran into pre-release that Spike Chunsoft and the developers already fixed is button prompts being incorrectly displayed. This had the game showing Switch positions instead of Xbox ones when using my 8BitDo Xbox controller or the Steam Deck itself. I’m glad this was resolved pre-release as the game has no port issues, and it is dramatically better than the Switch version. When using a DualSense, it correctly showed PlayStation prompts with the proper labels and positions as well. Bakeru is a good platformer that I recommend playing on PC over Switch right now. The Switch version, despite performance improvements over the Japanese demo, still has too much variance in its performance to be an easy recommendation. The HD Rumble there is nice, but everything else holds it back. On PC, you miss out on the HD Rumble, but Bakeru runs a lot better across the board, and I’ve been enjoying digging into it over the last week. Stay tuned for Shaun’s full review of the Switch version in the near future. Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse Steam Deck Review There have been many game franchises that I completely missed out on over the years. The Sam & Max series of games is one of those. When I was offered a code to play Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse, I figured now was the time to finally play these games with the new remasters. If you’re just here for the game itself, I urge you to read Shaun’s Switch review here. I’m going to focus on how it plays on Steam Deck. Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse is the final game in the episodic Sam & Max main trilogy. This new remaster is amazing in basically every way. This includes how it controls, looks, sounds, and feels. It even has many accessibility options to make things go smoothly if you’re new to this kind of adventure game. You can toggle different hint levels and disable flashing in the accessibility settings. On the graphics and display side, you can play Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse at higher resolutions when docked on Steam Deck, but performance doesn’t hold close to 60fps if you play at 4K. I recommend sticking to it in handheld mode for a 60 or higher experience. You can adjust the graphics quality, texture quality, anti-aliasing, toggle v-sync, and adjust display mode and resolution in the graphics settings. With Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse, I’m glad I finally got around to playing these games. Not only are they all absolutely worth your time and money, but they play superbly on Steam Deck. I’d love for the remasters to hit iPad, but until then the Steam Deck is my favorite way to play Skunkape Games’ remasters. SCHiM Steam Deck Review Given the sheer amount of releases lately, I didn’t get around to playing SCHiM much at launch. I’m glad I finally rectified that because it is equal parts charming and gorgeous, and it has been the perfect game to relax with as a break from the longer upcoming games I’m playing for review right now. Developers Ewoud van der Werf and Nils Slijkerman have released a brilliant take on a 3D platformer using light, shadow, and more for puzzles, and it is all elevated by excellent audio. Aside from the striking aesthetic, what really carries SCHiM through its four or so hours long runtime is the animation work and sound design. As you work towards solving the various puzzles in the game, every interaction has a lovely little animation, and it all feels beyond polished when played at a rock solid 90fps on Steam Deck OLED. The blend of the shadows and lights for puzzles also are enhanced by the screen in handheld mode. So SCHiM runs perfectly out of the box on Steam Deck at 90fps, but how about docked? When played at 720p docked, it nearly does a locked 144fps. Playing at 1080p results in well over 100fps at all times. SCHiM supports 16:10 as well which is great to see on Steam Deck. I have no complaints with it aside from the fact that it might seem short for its price to some, and that there really is no evolution of the mechanics over the course of the game. While this isn’t a dealbreaker, it does hold SCHiM down from perfection. SCHiM is a lovely abstract take on games like Frogger for the modern era. Come into this expecting a work of art with excellent audio design more than a complex puzzle game. I enjoyed just about every level despite the mechanics not really evolving. I enjoyed it enough on Steam Deck to order a physical copy of the Switch version from Japan already. This is definitely worth your time if you enjoy delightful, gorgeous, and relaxing puzzle games. SCHiM Steam Deck review score: 4.5/5 Gestalt: Steam and Cinder Steam Deck Review Gestalt: Steam and Cinder is another game I wish I got around to playing sooner like SCHiM above. It has been on the review backlog for a bit now, but having played it, this action platformer is fantastic. Not only does it nail the aesthetic with its blend of 16 and 32-bit visuals, but the sound design, story, and gameplay are sublime. What initially drew me to Gestalt: Steam and Cinder, is the steampunk visual style in pixel art. I adore the character designs, but wasn’t sure another action platformer would be able to hit hard enough for me in recent years. Having played it, the story is very good, but without getting into spoilers, I feel like there’s more to this tale. Hopefully we see some story DLC in the future. On the gameplay side, Gestalt: Steam and Cinder felt a bit easier than I expected outside of two bosses I had trouble with. Nothing major though, and the responsive controls help across the board. Gestalt: Steam and Cinder ships Steam Deck Verified, and it is perfect on Valve’s handheld. The only thing I’d like to see, if feasible, is support for 90fps. Right now, the game is capped at 60fps and 16:9. I tested this on both my Steam Decks docked and in handheld mode. Given how crowded the genre is, I know most people roll their eyes when they see another action platformer, but Gestalt: Steam and Cinder is one you cannot afford to miss. It is one of the best in the genre with its excellent gameplay, narrative, music, and slick visuals. Gestalt: Steam and Cinder is also perfect on Steam Deck from start to finish. Gestalt: Steam and Cinder Steam Deck review score: 4.5/5 Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun – Forges of Corruption Expansion Steam Deck Review The original Boltgun was a refreshing surprise for me when it was released last year. While I’m not as into first-person shooters as deeply as some, I can certainly enjoy a good boomer shooter. Give me fast, furious action with some interest levels to explore, a satisfying selection of weapons, and challenging enemy encounters and I’m there. Boltgun had all of that, all dressed up in a Warhammer theme that if nothing else helps the world feel like it extends outside of the borders of the game. A thoroughly enjoying game to play through, and one that left me properly sated… or did it? While I thought I had had my fill of Boltgun, I was actually quite happy when Forges of Corruption was released. I guess I was still hungry. This expansion gives you five more levels of carnage to engage in, and they run on the larger side. You get two new guns to play with, one being an enhanced flamethrower and the other a rocket launcher. Sure, can’t argue with that. You also get some new enemies to try those toys out on, and you’ll need every edge you can get to deal with them. When compared to the original game’s levels, Forges of Corruption‘s stages favor more wide open spaces. This puts your mobility skills to the test, as you’ll have to keep on moving to avoid getting surrounded or cornered. If you haven’t mastered the dash already from playing the main campaign, you’ll need to get up to speed fast here. It’s an interesting change-up from the more compact design that the base game relied on so much. The enhanced flamethrower’s spread can really help you out here, and rockets always prefer open spaces. Difficulty-wise, these levels are mostly going to be a relative breeze for those who played through the first game. The last one is a real beast though, and you’re going to have to use everything you’ve learned to overcome it. Which is to say that while you can play this expansion without finishing the main game, you really should leave it for after. All-up, it takes a few hours to get through it all. Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun – Forges of Corruption keep the party rolling with a set of new stages that show off a slightly different design intent than those of the original. The new weapons and enemies are appreciated, and the level design makes the most of both. I do wish there was something more interesting going on visually here, and the difficulty curve isn’t as smooth as it was in the base game. Still, those looking for more Boltgun challenges to tackle will find them here.-Shaun Musgrave Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun – Forges of Corruption Expansion Steam Deck review score: 4/5 News and Trailers Let’s begin the massive (and fast-paced) news section of this week with a brand-new trailer for my most anticipated game of 2025: Monster Hunter Wilds. The trailer has the game looking better than before, and I’m getting more excited reading all the details from hands-on gameplay sessions people have at Gamescom. Watch the third Monster Hunter Wilds trailer below: The next bit of news I’m excited for is Final Fantasy XVI, the best singleplayer Final Fantasy game since XII, is coming to Steam in a few weeks with pre-orders and a demo now live. It is sadly pretty rough on Steam Deck, but I hope things improve. Terry Bogard launches on September 24th in Street Fighter 6 as the second DLC for the Year 2 Pass. His gameplay trailer looks incredible. While not directly Steam-related, Capcom is also bringing Resident Evil 2 to GOG on August 27th. I couldn’t get Resident Evil 1’s GOG release to work on Deck, but I hope this one works. Capcom also released a demo for the Ace Attorney Investigations Collection on Steam and consoles. Check it out here. Read my preview of the full game here. Silent Hill 2 from Konami got a new story trailer, and this is the first trailer that’s been liked by a friend of mine who is a huge fan of the series. This will be my first Silent Hill game, so I’m excited to try it. Square Enix released a new “Final" trailer for Visions of Mana ahead of its launch next week. I can’t wait to talk about the full game soon. A few days ago, Cygames released the big Version 1.50 update for Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising on Steam and consoles bringing in big balance adjustments, the new DLC character Versusia, and in-game content included with Battle Pass Round 5. Watch the trailer below: Persona 3 Reload’s expansion Episode Aigis is adding Joker as a boss fight. I didn’t expect that one, but I’m looking forward to playing the DLC very soon. Atlus will host a new ATLUS Exclusive showcase for Metaphor: ReFantazio on August 28th at 8 PM. It will be on YouTube. I’m looking forward to playing this hopefully soon for review. Atlus also revealed the English voice cast for the game. Check it out below: Protagonist – Caleb Yen Strohl – Stewart Clarke Hulkenberg – Kristin Atherton Gallica – Alejandra Reynoso Heismay – Phillipe Spall Junah – Emma Ballantine Eupha – Emily Burnett Neuras – David Monteith Louis – Joseph Tweedale More – Greg Chun Grius – Gordon Cooper A new trailer for Metaphor has also gone live, and it is the best one yet for the game ahead of its launch in October. Watch it below: SEGA released a new trailer for Sonic X Shadow Generations that makes me wish the game was out sooner. We need anime music videos based on this for sure. Tempest Rising from 3D Realms got a new PvP teaser trailer this week at Gamescom 2024. It looks superb. Check out the footage below: A game I’m excited to play later this year, Slitterhead from Bokeh Game Studio, got a new story trailer this week. Watch it below: A game most thought wouldn’t release this year, The Plucky Squire from Devolver Digital, launches on September 17th with a lovely new trailer you can watch below. I’m excited to try this out on Steam Deck and Switch. Devolver Digital is also launching Sumerian Six, the real time tactical stealth game via Steam, on September 2nd. Raw Fury is releasing the horror survival game Post Trauma on October 29th. Check out its release date trailer below: Blizzard is celebrating Warcraft’s 30th anniversary in Overwatch 2 with a new skin for Widowmaker as Sylvanas next month. Check it out below: Action adventure game Unknown 9: Awakening from Bandai Namco launches on October 18th for Steam and consoles. Pre-orders are now live with a new gameplay trailer you can watch below: Eternal Strands, set to launch in 2025, got a new gameplay trailer at Gamescom 2024 from Yellow Brick Games. Watch it below: Superhero-themed visual novel Sacrifice Villains from Shiravune is set to release on Steam this year. It will be priced at $19.99. Check out the Steam page here. Little Nightmares III also had a new trailer during Gamescom Opening Night Live 2024. It releases on Steam and all consoles next year. Diablo IV’s Vessel of Hatred expansion got a new trailer showcasing the Mercenary companions ahead of the expansion’s launch this October. Inti Creates is releasing a demo for Card-en-Ciel on September 4th for Steam. Alongside this news, a new gameplay trailer has been released. Watch it below: A sequel to Wilmot’s Warehouse is set to release on Steam on October 23rd in the form of Wilmot Works It Out. I loved the original and cannot wait to play this. Risk of Rain 2’s Seekers of the Storm DLC launches on August 27th for PC and consoles. I’ll be checking this one out on Steam Deck. Kingdom Come: Deliverance II launches on February 11th, 2025 and a new gameplay showcase this week makes me wonder if this will even run on Steam Deck with how good it looks. I’ll definitely try it. Watch the showcase below: Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves from SNK launches on April 24th, 2025 for Steam, PS5, PS4, and Xbox Series X. The launch price is a special edition with the first pass. Watch the new trailer showing off the amazing Mai Shiranui and the release date showcase below: Level Infinite streamed its recent “Into the Infinite" showcase featuring updates from its partners covering games like Soulframe, Warframe, and much more. Watch it below: https://www.youtube.com/live/KAIFQ8TZCp8 Sharkmob’s Exoborne had a new trailer released during the showcase above as well. Watch it below: Civilization VII from Firaxis and 2K launches for Steam and all consoles on February 11th, 2025 with pre-orders now live. Check out the gameplay trailer below: 2K also revealed two other games for 2025, and they’re big ones. Borderlands 4 and Mafia The Old Country are in development for Steam and consoles for 2025 release. Watch the trailers below: Arc System Works has revealed new details for Double Dragon Revive including the composers and story details. The composers include Raito and many more. Check out the website here. Indiana Jones and the Great Circle launches on Steam and Xbox on December 9th with pre-orders now live on Steam. I’m looking forward to playing this. The newest Sword Art Online Fractured Daydream trailers focus on Leafa and Sinon. Watch them below: Delta Force, the first person multiplayer shooter, previously known as Delta Force: Hawk Ops launches later this year for PC via Early Access on Steam from Level Infinite. It is also set to come to iOS and Android and consoles. Amazon Prime is doing a series on video games titled Secret Level with a focus on specific games over 15 episodes. These include Armored Core, Spelunky, New World: Aeternum, and more. It is set to begin streaming this December. Speaking of New World: Aeterum, a new video series based on the game can now be watched ahead of the game’s launch on October 15th: Marvel Rivals from NetEase Games launches as a free to play game on December 6th for Steam and consoles with all heroes included for free. Starfield’s Shattered Space DLC launches on September 30th for Steam and Xbox. A new update is also available now on all platforms. Akatsuki Games released a new trailer for the extreme action game Tribe Nine ahead of its launch on Steam and mobile. Free to play third person MOBA Predecessor is now available on Steam and consoles from Omeda Studios. Watch the trailer for it below: Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO gets another trailer showing off more of the game in its “50 days from now" trailer. Watch it below: Path of Exile 2 launches on Steam and consoles via Early Access on November 15th. Watch the new trailer from Grinding Gear Games below: Dying Light: The Beast is a standalone open world game that’s free for owners of Dying Light 2 Ultimate Edition. It is set to release in the future. Idea Factory International announced that Date A Live: Ren Dystopia releases on September 5th for Steam. I’ll be reviewing this one. Check it out on Steam here. Torn Banner Studios (Chivalry 2) announced that the UE5-powered shooter No More Room in Hell 2 will launch in Steam early access this Halloween. Watch the trailer below from Gamescom Opening Night Live 2024: Warner Bros Games also showcased a new Mortal Kombat 1: Khaos Reigns gameplay trailer focussing on Cyrax who is a part of the new DLC. Tokyo Xtreme Racer from Genki is a new entry in the long-running series coming to Steam in 2025. I’m glad to see this because a friend of mine is a huge fan. Watch the trailer below: Square Enix released a new trailer for Life is Strange: Double Exposure showcasing Max’s powers. Watch it below: New Steam Deck Verified & Playable games for the week This week, Yakuza 4 and Devil Blade Reboot are the highlights for new Verified games, and EA’s anti-cheat issues continue to make more games unplayable on Steam Deck. Check out every notable game tested by Valve since the last article below: #BLUD – Verified Atlas Fallen – Unsupported Battlefield 1 – Unsupported (new anti-cheat issues) DEVIL BLADE REBOOT – Verified EA SPORTS Madden NFL 25 – Unsupported (new anti-cheat issues) Eastward – Playable Flatout 3 – Playable hololive treasure mountain – Verified Isles of Sea and Sky – Verified LISA: The First – Unsupported Metropolis: Lux Obscura – Playable Mika and The Witch’s Mountain – Verified Plants vs. Zombies Garden Warfare 2: Deluxe Edition – Unsupported (new anti-cheat issues) Pocket Bravery – Playable shapez 2 – Playable Skull and Bones – Playable SNK VS. CAPCOM SVC CHAOS – Playable SPY×ANYA: Operation Memories – Playable Squirrel with a Gun – Verified Sword of Convallaria – Unsupported Teeny Tiny Trains – Playable The Infectious Madness of Doctor Dekker – Playable THE LAST BLADE – Playable Tomba! Special Edition – Playable Wild Bastards – Verified Yakuza 4 Remastered – Verified Steam Deck Game Sales, Discounts, and Specials The highlights of the week when it comes to sales and discounts are the Steam Rhythm Fest until August 26th with discounts on games like Crypt of the Necrodancer, Trombone Champ, and DJ MAX RESPECT V, and also the new Capcom Resident Evil Humble Bundle. Next week, following the Rhythm Fest, the Isometric Games Sale begins with many discounts from publishers and developers including Owlcat Games. Check out a trailer for the event below: That’s all for this edition of the Steam Deck Weekly. As usual, you can read all our past and future Steam Deck coverage here. If you have any feedback for this feature or what else you’d like to see us do around the Steam Deck, let us know in the comments below. I hope you all have a great day, and thanks for reading.

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 23rd, 2024. It’s the end of another week, and …

Continue reading "SwitchArcade Round-Up: ‘Thermonuclear’, ‘Magnus Trilogy’, Plus Today’s Other New Releases and Sales"

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 23rd, 2024. It’s the end of another week, and we’re creeping ever closer to the end of the month and the season. In the world of Switch, sometimes a slow Thursday means a big Friday. Well, not this time. We’ve got a few new releases to look at amidst the junk, plus the usual lists of new sales and expiring discounts for you to consider. Things will be busier next week, but only a little. September can’t come soon enough. Let’s finish up the week! Select New Releases Operation: Polygon Storm ($14.99) A relatively basic real-time base defense game, just from a slightly different point of view than the one we usually see in this genre. I wouldn’t exactly call it visually impressive, but the destructible environments do add a little spice to an otherwise straightforward take. Not my genre of choice, but if it’s yours then you might want to give it a closer look. Thermonuclear ($7.99) Set in a distant future where a third World War has broken out, Thermonuclear casts you as a member of a megacorporation out to claim victory. You have access to a powerful new technology called Thermonuclear, an advanced combat cyborg. Guide your cyborg through procedurally-generated stages, engaging in turn-based strategic combat with the enemies found within. You’ll upgrade your cyborg as you go, and if you’re lucky you might just be able to take down the Allfather AI and save the world. If not? Well, you can always try again. Seems decent from what I’ve seen so far. Magnus Trilogy ($8.99) A series of visual novels in the Magnus series, bundled together in one simple package. These lean more towards the bizarre and psychological end of the curve. At the very least, you can’t argue with the price per title here. Not for everyone, but some will get a lot out of this. Sales (North American eShop, US Prices) An intriguing assortment of new sales, but a short enough list that I’ll mainly leave it to you. What I will mention is that PowerWash Simulator is not only featuring a discount on the main game, but also all of its paid DLC packs. Now is the time to stock up if you don’t already own them. In the weekend outbox, Team 17’s got a round of titles finishing up their sales. They’ll certainly be back on sale again soon, but maybe you want them now? Choices to make. Select New Sales Botany Manor ($22.49 from $24.99 until 8/29) Puddle Knights ($2.99 from $9.99 until 8/30) Batman: The Telltale Series ($7.49 from $14.99 until 8/30) Batman: The Enemy Within ($7.49 from $14.99 until 8/30) Fuga: Melodies of Steel ($19.99 from $39.99 until 9/2) Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 ($23.99 from $39.99 until 9/2) Kingdom Come Deliverance ($29.99 from $49.99 until 9/4) Outward Definitive ($23.99 from $39.99 until 9/4) Metro 2033 Redux ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/4) Metro Last Light Redux ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/4) Kona II: Brume ($11.99 from $29.99 until 9/4) F1 Manager 2024 ($27.99 from $34.99 until 9/5) Adventure Bar Story ($15.99 from $19.99 until 9/5) Anomaly Agent ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/5) Ambition: A Minuet in Power ($4.99 from $9.99 until 9/6) Skulls of the Shogun ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/6) Galak-Z The Void Deluxe ($2.99 from $14.99 until 9/6) PowerWash Simulator ($17.49 from $24.99 until 9/6) Fear Effect Sedna ($1.99 from $19.99 until 9/6) Suhoshin ($4.49 from $14.99 until 9/6) Ty the Tasmanian Tiger HD ($10.49 from $29.99 until 9/6) Ty the Tasmanian Tiger 4 ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/6) Hampuzz ($3.49 from $6.99 until 9/11) Yeah! You Want Those Games, Right? ($7.99 from $9.99 until 9/12) Carry Onward ($2.99 from $4.99 until 9/12) Abyss of the Sacrifice ($11.99 from $39.99 until 9/12) Starward Rogue ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/12) Commandos 2: HD Remaster ($14.99 from $19.99 until 9/12) Commandos 3: HD Remaster ($20.99 from $29.99 until 9/12) Incredible Mandy ($5.99 from $14.99 until 9/12) 4 The Elements ($7.19 from $8.99 until 9/12) Lunar Axe ($3.99 from $4.99 until 9/12) TMNT Wrath of the Mutants ($17.99 from $29.99 until 9/12) Frogue ($3.99 from $4.99 until 9/12) Toridama2: Brave Challenge ($3.99 from $7.99 until 9/12) The Fall of Elena Temple ($2.39 from $2.99 until 9/12) Omega Labyrinth Life ($17.99 from $59.99 until 9/12) Funghi Explosion ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/12) A Dark Room ($2.79 from $6.99 until 9/12) Samurai Maiden ($29.99 from $59.99 until 9/12) Beholgar ($2.99 from $9.99 until 9/12) Raccoo Venture ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/12) Time Rift ($2.99 from $9.99 until 9/12) Doomsday Hunter ($8.99 from $17.99 until 9/12) Super Trunko Go ($2.99 from $9.99 until 9/12) WorldNeverland: Elnea Kingdom ($8.99 from $29.99 until 9/12) Zero Tolerance Collection ($4.99 from $9.99 until 9/12) The Tale of Clouds & Wind ($2.49 from $4.99 until 9/12) Sales Ending This Weekend All Noobs Must Die ($1.99 from $12.99 until 8/24) Demon Turf ($12.49 from $24.99 until 8/24) Full Metal Sergeant ($7.99 from $9.99 until 8/24) Mystic Academy: Escape Room ($5.49 from $10.99 until 8/24) Right and Down and Dice ($5.99 from $11.99 until 8/24) Venari Escape Room Adventure ($4.19 from $5.99 until 8/24) Blasphemous ($6.24 from $24.99 until 8/25) Blast Brigade vs. The Evil Legion ($11.99 from $19.99 until 8/25) DREDGE ($16.24 from $24.99 until 8/25) Overcooked 2 ($6.24 from $24.99 until 8/25) Rack and Slay ($5.09 from $5.99 until 8/25) That’s all for today and this week, friends. We’ll be back next week with more new games, more sales, more reviews, and some news. I have a lot of things I need to get done this weekend, so wish me luck in doing them. I hope you all have a fantastic Friday, and as always, thanks for reading!

For our next dive into the retro games available on Switch, we’re going all the way back to 1989. Er, …

Continue reading "The 10 Best Game Boy and Game Boy Color Games on Nintendo Switch, Plus 5 We’d Like to See – SwitchArcade Special"

For our next dive into the retro games available on Switch, we’re going all the way back to 1989. Er, and then to 1998. We’re heading back to the old monochrome beast and its colorful successor: the Game Boy and Game Boy Color. While there is a robust selection of games from these handhelds in the Nintendo Switch Online app, we’re instead looking at those games that dare to exist in the wilds of the Switch eShop. We’ve got ten of our favorites here, plus five more games that we’d like to see. No particular order, of course. Time to Play It Loud! Shantae ($9.99) Once a genuine scarcity that would cost you hundreds of dollars to get your hands on in any legal capacity, Shantae is now quite readily available in digital form. This game is considerably rougher than its sequels, but it pushes the Game Boy Color hardware in a lot of interesting ways, providing a platformer with a bit more to it than the average Game Boy hop-and-bop. Wow, I haven’t seen the term “hop-and-bop" in something like twenty-five years. Well, there you go. Shantae: it’s pretty good fun. Trip World DX ($19.99) Here’s another game that would have cost you a pretty penny to play officially until very recently. Trip World is an interesting platformer from Sunsoft that offers up a short but sweet experience. This release of the game does a full-on colorization job while also including a number of extras to dig into. It’s an excellent way to play this quirky, charming tale. Final Fantasy Legend II – Collection of SaGa Final Fantasy Legend ($19.99) Time to wade into the compilations, and we’ll start with one that is all Game Boy games: Collection of SaGa. You get all three games in the Final Fantasy Legend series here, and they’re all really good handheld RPGs. I’m picking out Final Fantasy Legend II to highlight here, simply because I think it’s the best of the three. It has plenty of the weird mechanics that make SaGa games so interesting, but feels more well-rounded and approachable than the first game. Probably the best turn-based RPG on the system pre-Pokemon. Final Fantasy Adventure – Collection of Mana ($39.99) Going hand in hand with the Final Fantasy Legend games, Final Fantasy Adventure is the game that kicked off the long-running Mana series. As such, you’ll find it in the Collection of Mana with the two Super NES follow-ups. Again, all games worth playing. This action-RPG provided an excellent alternative to the superb Link’s Awakening on the system, with a snappy pace and some surprisingly ambitious storytelling. It’s been remade a couple of times, but there’s nothing quite like the original. TMNT III: Radical Rescue – TMNT: The Cowabunga Collection ($39.99) Konami did some great Game Boy games, and it has made a handful of them available through its various collections. The Cowabunga Collection has all three of its original Game Boy TMNT games included, and I think they all have their merits. The open-ended, pseudo-Metroidvania TMNT III: Radical Rescue is the pick of the bunch, though. Plenty of action as you would expect, but the additional layers from exploring the world, rescuing your brothers, and finding all the upgrades makes this one you can really sink your teeth into. Operation C – Contra Anniversary Collection ($19.99) After the somewhat tepid attempt to bring Castlevania to the Game Boy via Castlevania: The Adventure, one would be forgiven for thinking there was little hope the tense run-and-gun action of Contra would survive the transition. Surprisingly, Operation C turned out to be really awesome. Sure, you can’t play with another player. Strictly a solo affair. But it’s fast, fun, and challenging in the way you want a Contra game to be. Perhaps there was hope for Konami action-platformers on the handheld after all! Castlevania II: Belmont’s Revenge – Castlevania Anniversary Collection ($19.99) How’s that for foreshadowing? Yes, after mostly biffing the first Game Boy Castlevania game, Konami turned things around in a big way with Belmont’s Revenge. This is an excellent Castlevania game, one that easily hangs with the home console entries even if it can’t quite surpass them. Given it was sandwiched by some less-than-great games, it’s possible many players skipped out on this one thinking it would be the same. If you haven’t played it yet, here’s a handy way to do that. Ninja JaJaMaru: The Great World Adventure – Ninja JaJaMaru: Retro Collection ($14.99) Ninja JaJaMaru: The Great World Adventure isn’t the best game in this bunch by any means, but I think it’s an important representation of some of the more off-beat titles that filled out the library around the releases from huge publishers. Some proper work was put into this reissue, too. It has a new localization and has been colorized, giving a nice spit-shine to a game that might not have topped anyone’s lists for such an effort. While The Great World Adventure is the only Game Boy game in the lot, this collection is an interesting one to poke at in general. Xtreme Sports ($9.99) WayForward’s most famous wholly-original property on the Game Boy Color is obviously Shantae, but Xtreme Sports is no slouch either. Essentially a collection of sports mini-games tied together with an open world, Xtreme Sports is a lot better than it has any right to be. The graphics are good, the gameplay is great for pick-up-and-play grazing, and those looking to completely finish everything will find a stiff challenge ahead of them. The Rescue of Princess Blobette – A Boy and His Blob Retro Collection ($9.99) Another game that is here more for its unique feel than anything, The Rescue of Princess Blobette brings the home computer-esque puzzle-adventure gameplay of the NES original to the small screen quite well. In some ways it’s a more polished game than its predecessor, delivered in a more compact and well-paced form. If you like games that take some figuring out due to occasional bits of opacity, you’ll love this one. And… 5 Game Boy and Game Boy Color Games We’d Like to See on Switch Batman: The Video Game Yes, it’s kind of weird that Batman is using a gun the whole way through this early Game Boy action game. But it’s also weird that Keaton’s Batman gleefully murders bad guys, so let’s just call it a sign of the times. The important thing is that this is another really great Sunsoft Batman game, and while I know the odds of any of these movie-based Batman games ever resurfacing are next to nil, I will never stop asking. Pokemon Gold/Silver/Crystal I’m generally avoiding games that I think might show up on Nintendo Switch Online at some point, which means most first-party Nintendo stuff is out. I really hope I’m wrong about this, but something tells me that while the Pokemon spin-offs will probably keep appearing in the subscription service, the mainline games won’t. Thus, I formally request the ability to purchase and play these fine Game Boy RPGs on my Switch. Gradius: The Interstellar Assault I waffled between including this or the excellent R-Type DX, but ultimately we have R-Type Dimensions on Switch to scratch that itch, whereas Gradius: The Interstellar Assault only exists in Game Boy form. For a platform whose display should have made it terrible for shooting games, the Game Boy had a good handful of excellent ones. This was Konami’s second kick at the Gradius can on the platform, and while that first one was fine this one really kicked things into gear. Honestly, I just kind of want a Gradius collection in the vein of Konami’s Contra, Castlevania, and TMNT ones. If that happens, this game ought to be in there. Metal Gear Solid Lots of Konami in this article, I’m coming to realize. Anyway, this is arguably the best third-party Game Boy Color exclusive. Just about everything that was great about the PlayStation Metal Gear Solid was somehow squeezed into this completely original adventure. This game completely blew me away at the time thanks to that fidelity, and it still impresses me today. Yes, much of the template was laid down in the MSX2 Metal Gear 2, but it’s cool to see something like this on a Game Boy Color. Maybe this will show up in the next Metal Gear collection? Dragon Warrior Monsters Pokemon spawned a lot of imitators, but to be fair to Dragon Quest it had monster-catching elements in the main games before Pokemon arrived. So, you know. We forgive you, King. Dragon Warrior Monsters is one of the better Game Boy games inspired by Pokemon‘s success, and I think it would be terrific to see it available on Switch. And you know what? It is available on Switch, but only in Japan. Come on, Square Enix. Just drop the Western ROM in the wrapper and help some Dragon Quest fans out! And that’s the list, friends. Are there any Game Boy or Game Boy Color games you enjoy on the Switch? Any you would like to see? Feel free to sound off down in the comments and let us know what you’re thinking! It’s always interesting to hear the opinions of others on this kind of thing. As always, thanks for reading!

Playtonic Friends just announced that Victory Heat Rally from developer Skydevilpalm is coming to mobile through Crunchyroll and also on …

Continue reading "‘Victory Heat Rally’ From Skydevilpalm and Playtonic Friends Is Coming to PC and Crunchyroll for Mobile on October 3rd"

Playtonic Friends just announced that Victory Heat Rally from developer Skydevilpalm is coming to mobile through Crunchyroll and also on Steam this October. Victory Heat Rally is an arcade racer with stylish visuals. I aims ot be a 2.5D pixel perfect racer featuring 12 drivers, solo play, multiplayer, a world tour mode, and more. It also features tons of customization across paint jobs, parts, and more. Playtonic Friends also confirms that Victory Heat Rally will be playable on Switch at Gamescom. Watch the Victory Heat Rally release date announcement trailer for mobile through Crunchyroll and Steam below: While the mobile page isn’t up yet, you can wishlist Victory Heat Rally on Steam here. Victory Heat Rally is confirmed to have 4 player splitscreen, but I’m unsure if this is just Steam or also on mobile. If you have an active Crunchyroll Mega or Ultimate membership right now, you will be able to play Victory Heat Rally when it releases at no additional cost on October 3rd. This is definitely one of the better Crunchyroll Game Vault announcements as it is a day one release alongside PC. I’m excited to check it out. What do you think of today’s announcement and the Crunchyroll Game Vault releases so far?

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 22nd, 2024. In today’s article, we continue to bear …

Continue reading "SwitchArcade Round-Up: ‘Rise Eterna War’, ‘As Per My Last Email’, Plus Today’s Other Releases and Sales"

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 22nd, 2024. In today’s article, we continue to bear witness to the slow yet clear decline of Switch releases in this eighth year. It’s Thursday, but we don’t even have a dozen games worth mentioning today. Even among the ones we have, there isn’t anything that is jumping out. Sure, it’s August. Things are going to pick up soon. But it’s still odd to see such dry Thursdays, even at this time of the year. At least the sales are healthy. Let’s have a look at all of that! Select New Releases Verne – The Shape of Fantasy ($14.99) Play as Jules Verne, who has been brought into a world sprung from his own imagination, in this adventure game. He’ll join forces with Captain Nemo as they try to fend off an evil force determined to destroy all imagination, which I reckon would be pretty bad. Solve puzzles, engage in dialogue, and enjoy the story. An interesting premise, and that’s a big part of the battle when it comes to this genre. Rise Eterna War ($9.99) A prequel story to Rise Eterna, this looks to be a base defense-style game to me. Build your team and use your limited resources to deploy them against the enemy. Seems fine for what it is, even if what it is isn’t terribly novel. With more than forty stages to play, it will keep you busy for a few days at least. As Per My Last Email ($6.29) One of those stress relief games. You’re an office worker and you have a sledgehammer. You can break pretty much everything in the office. Go for it. Play the ten-level campaign mode, or enjoy the infinite Mayhem Mode as you like. The affordable price is about right for the experience on offer. Ring Sculptors ($14.99) A choice-based narrative adventure where you pick from nine different characters and try to survive a trip to the Ring Sculptors’ base. On top of making choices at various points, there are also stats to manage, dice rolls to try to luck out on, and plenty of endings to uncover as a result. Argol – Kronoss’ Castle ($8.99) This is a side-scrolling action-platformer in the vein of games like Castlevania or Valis. You play as a sword-wielding warrior on a quest to vanquish evil. Or at least I presume that’s the story, anyway. All I know is that there is a fellow named Kronoss and his castle must be stormed. A decent game with a pretty lively soundtrack backing it. Nothing I’d run down the street yelling about, but it might scratch an itch. Ataraxie ($4.99) An affordable Metroidvania-style game starring a mummy. It’s really rough around the edges, but for the price you might not mind. I at least appreciate the novel protagonist. Shame about the ropey collision detection, though. Arcade Archives The Ninja Kids ($7.99) Taito’s 1990 beat ’em up featuring puppet ninjas is the latest Arcade Archives release. Up to four players can join in on the fun via local multiplayer, and that’s probably the best way to enjoy this one. Even going alone, the wacky tone makes this an enjoyable game to play through. The mechanics aren’t as tight as in the better titles in this genre from Capcom or Konami, but there’s some charm in the janky nature of it all. Tales from Toyotoki: Arrival of the Witch ($29.99) Here’s a visual novel with some simulation elements. Maybe it isn’t right to call it a visual novel because of those elements? Forgive me if my choice of words isn’t on point. Your character ends up homeless on a mysterious island, and soon runs into a witch that is having some problems of her own. They decide to work together, and they’re eventually joined by several others. Can this rag-tag group survive Toyotoki Island and grow along the way? Play to find out! I should write box copy, I swear. EGGCONSOLE Star Trader PC-8801mkIISR ($6.49) When you think of Nihon Falcom, you definitely think of… shoot ’em ups? Okay, maybe not. But this one did happen back in the day, and as you might expect it’s not an orthodox take by any means. There are adventure game scenes mashed in with the shooting action here, and your skill at handling trading will determine your available funds for upgrades. Naturally, this is all in Japanese. EGGCONSOLE and all that. If I think it’s even remotely playable for someone who can’t understand the language, I’ll do a review soon. Sales (North American eShop, US Prices) Another sale for 1000xRESIST. Buy 1000xRESIST. Maybe Freedom Planet 2 and Haiku, the Robot too, depending on your tastes. The latest sales from id Software and Inti-Creates are finishing up today, so fill your boots while you can. Check those lists! Select New Sales 1000xRESIST ($15.99 from $19.99 until 8/28) Times & Galaxy ($17.99 from $19.99 until 8/28) Super Mutant Alien Assault ($1.99 from $9.99 until 8/28) The Pale Beyond ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/28) Suzerain ($4.49 from $17.99 until 8/28) Paradise Killer ($5.99 from $19.99 until 8/28) Genesis Noir ($4.49 from $14.99 until 8/28) Citizen Sleeper ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/28) Haiku, The Robot ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/28) Ebenezer & the Invisible World ($13.99 from $19.99 until 8/29) Freedom Planet 2 ($18.74 from $24.99 until 9/5) Deadcraft ($5.99 from $19.99 until 9/5) Silent Hope ($13.99 from $39.99 until 9/5) Untitled Goose Game ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/5) Corpse Party ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/5) Akiba’s Trip: Undead & Undressed ($14.99 from $29.99 until 9/5) Wing of Darkness ($5.99 from $29.99 until 9/5) SCHiM ($17.49 from $24.99 until 9/5) Marchen Forest ($6.99 from $34.99 until 9/5) Violet Wisteria ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/6) Oops, I Said Yes?! ($20.99 from $29.99 until 9/9) even if TEMPEST Dawning Connections ($34.99 from $49.99 until 9/9) Pirate Bloopers ($1.99 from $9.99 until 9/11) Sales Ending Tomorrow, August 23rd Azure Striker Gunvolt 3 ($14.99 from $29.99 until 8/23) Berserk Boy ($14.00 from $20.00 until 8/23) Blaster Master Zero 3 ($7.49 from $14.99 until 8/23) Bloodstained Curse of the Moon 2 ($5.99 from $14.99 until 8/23) CounterAttack: Uprising ($4.49 from $14.99 until 8/23) Dead End City ($9.89 from $14.99 until 8/23) DOOM ($7.99 from $39.99 until 8/23) DOOM 3 ($3.99 from $9.99 until 8/23) DOOM 64 ($1.99 from $4.99 until 8/23) DOOM Eternal ($9.99 from $39.99 until 8/23) Dragon Marked for Death ($7.49 from $14.99 until 8/23) Fireside ($11.99 from $14.99 until 8/23) For The Warp ($1.99 from $17.99 until 8/23) Froggie ($2.99 from $4.99 until 8/23) Gal Guardians: Demon Purge ($13.74 from $24.99 until 8/23) Gunvolt Records: Cychronicle ($10.49 from $14.99 until 8/23) Little Kitty, Big City ($19.99 from $24.99 until 8/23) Luminous Avenger iX 2 ($12.49 from $24.99 until 8/23) PuzzMiX ($2.99 from $3.99 until 8/23) QUAKE ($3.99 from $9.99 until 8/23) Quake II ($3.99 from $9.99 until 8/23) Sally Face ($8.99 from $14.99 until 8/23) TES V: Skyrim ($29.99 from $59.99 until 8/23) TES V: Skyrim Anniversary Edition ($34.99 from $69.99 until 8/23) Umbraclaw ($17.49 from $24.99 until 8/23) Wolfenstein II: TNC ($5.99 from $39.99 until 8/23) Yohane the Parhelion: Blaze in the Deepblue ($20.39 from $29.99 until 8/23) That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with the remaining releases for the week, plus whatever sales and major news items roll in during the course of the day. We’ve been getting so many thunderstorms lately around here. Hot and sunny during the day, stormy in the evening. Very odd, and not conducive to the laundry schedule. Oh well. I hope you all have a thrilling Thursday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Each and every day new mobile games are hitting the App Store, and so each week we put together a …

Continue reading "Out Now: ‘Punch Club 2: Fast Forward’, ‘Labyrinth: The Wizard’s Cat’, ‘TENSEI’, ‘Vampire: The Masquerade – Shadows of New York’, ‘Auto Pirates: Captains Cup’, ‘Jenny LeClue – Detectivu’ and More"

Each and every day new mobile games are hitting the App Store, and so each week we put together a big old list of all the best new releases of the past seven days. Back in the day the App Store would showcase the same games for a week, and then refresh those features each Thursday. Because of that developers got into the habit of releasing their games throughout Wednesday or very early Thursday in order to hopefully get one of those coveted features spots. Nowadays the App Store refreshes constantly, so the need for everyone to release all on the same day has diminished. Still, we’ve kept our weekly Wednesday night format as for years that’s the time people knew to check TouchArcade for the list of new games. And so without further ado please check out the full list of this week’s new games below, and let us know in the comments section which games you’ll be picking up! Auto Pirates: Captains Cup (Free) iTunes Description Auto Pirates is a competitive player vs world strategy game where you choose your crew, equip your ship and battle, earning plunder based on your global rank. Earn plunder and collect trophies for your exploits on the seas and create the perfect pirate hideout for your crew. Combine pirates from four fantasy factions with magical relics and a multitude of ships to optimize your strategy or create crazy hijinks. You can shoot, board, blast, burn, sink or push your opponents to get the upper hand and go for the top 1% prize. Forum Thread: Auto Pirates: Captains Cup (by Featherweight Games) Baron of Blood (Free) iTunes Description Baron of Blood is a 2D pixelart platformer game in which you have to fight your way through numerous levels and defeat different monsters. Collect coins to buy powerful items. 24 different levels in 5 different zones and boss fights await you and offer an exciting and varied gameplay. Hidden diamonds and various achievements will keep you busy even longer after you finish the game. Forum Thread: Baron of Blood (by Castle Village Games) Cube Farm (Free) iTunes Description -no ads or pay-to-win mechanics -quick sessions, break from scrolling -endless progression with prestige bonuses -time slows at higher layers, with larger harvests -dynamic produce market with supply and demand -pets to collect, feed, train, and battle Forum Thread: Cube Farm (by Tarot Focus) Dadish Collection ($8.99) iTunes Description Three great games in one! He’s a dad AND a radish! Join Dadish on his quest to rescue his missing kids in three classic platforming adventures. Dadish Collection combines Dadish, Dadish 2 and Dadish 3 in one rad package. Forum Thread: Dadish Collection (by Tomas Young) Demon Squad (Free) iTunes Description A long time ago, the demons had lost the war and scattered away. “Now, they shall gather for the revival of the Demon Lord and the demon race" 1. Team idle RPG that takes strategy to new levels Train 3 demons to form the ultimate squad! Auto or manual control. Utilize both options to conquer the battlefield! Forum Thread: Demon Squad (by SuperPlanet) Fish Hero! (Free) iTunes Description Discover a world as a fish outta water! A physics, parkour adventure! Launch yourself up a collection of biomes as a lonely fish to become Fish Hero! Explore a unique world as a fish out of water. Good Luck! Forum Thread: Fish Hero! (by Henry Mead) Going Up ($1.99) iTunes Description Going Up is a strategy game where you control groups of lifts in a skyscraper to deliver passengers before they lose their patience. Optimise elevator movement as you deal with a fussy cast of passengers—impatient CEOs, mean soldiers and confused tourists. There is no one solution to elevator optimisation: every stage will have its unique bottlenecks, passengers and problems. Forum Thread: Going Up (by Dylan Kwok) Jenny LeClue – Detectivu ($2.99) iTunes Description Jenny LeClue is a thrilling story of mystery, adventure and growing up. Set in the sleepy town of Arthurton, the game is filled with memorable, complex characters and rendered in a unique aesthetic. Embrace the choosiness and shape the metanarrative. You are not the only guiding hand shaping Jenny’s destiny, but your choices will help her unravel the tangled mystery and become the detective she was born to be. Forum Thread: Jenny LeClue (by Mografi) Labyrinth: The Wizard’s Cat ($1.99) iTunes Description Enter the dungeon and help the master wizard to find his missing cat in this oldschool dungeon crawler game with nice retro pixel art graphics. Make your way deep into the dungeon. You will explore levels filled with challenging enemies and various traps & puzzles. Discover powerful magical items and weapons and fight your way through hordes of enemies in this real time combat dungeon crawler. Forum Thread: Labyrinth: The Wizard’s Cat (by Anders Gustavsson) LEVELS II (Free) iTunes Description This is a dungeon where treasures slumber. Level up and strengthen adventurers, defeat monsters blocking your path, and gather treasures. # New Feature: Tile Appearance Rules In previous LEVELS, the color and level of appearing tiles were determined randomly. However, in this game, the next appearing tile is determined based on how the player moves the tiles. Forum Thread: LEVELS II (by flow Incorporated) Lyra 2 (Free) iTunes Description Lyra 2 is the sequel to a simple, relaxing, minimalist puzzle game that offers endless levels. The only goal is to clear the level, there are no timers, no achievements, no distractions, just the number of cleared levels going up. Are you looking for a game that you can just relax and play without thinking too much, a game that you can play anytime, anywhere? Lyra 2 is here for you. Forum Thread: Lyra 2 (by Cold Hours) Overboss ($3.99) iTunes Description Become a villain in this retro-inspired board game. Draft terrain tiles, recruit monsters, build your dungeon, and become the OVERBOSS! Forum Thread: Overboss (by Goblinz Studio) Phantom Rose 2 Sapphire (Free) iTunes Description Unique roguelike deckbuilding adventure. Explore, fight, and collect powerful cards. ◆ A Special Card Adventure Phantom Rose is an indie game by solo developer & artist makaroll. Craft your deck with cards obtained by defeating Phantoms. There’s no random card draw during battle. Instead, manage your card’s cooldown to defeat your foe swiftly and efficiently. Forum Thread: Phantom Rose 2 Sapphire (by Studio Maka) Punch Club 2: Fast Forward (Free) iTunes Description You’ve spent your whole life living in the confines of your overbearing mothers garage, your father mysteriously vanished before you were born. But hey, you had plenty of time to work out and dream about the wonders of the world. Sucks to be you though, people eat slime, corruption is rife and everyone wants to fight you… But maybe you can find your father and become the ‘dark fist’ people whisper about, somehow you could actually be humanity’s savior, the one who uncovers the super secret secrets of the Goodness Corporation… Or not. It’s a choose your own adventure, stay in the garage if you want. Forum Thread: Punch Club 2: Fast Forward (by TinyBuild) TENSEI ($2.99) iTunes Description An experience of self-discovery set in soothing Zen landscapes. “Tensei" is an ultra-casual endless action game. Leap and fall over and over in the style of a brush flowing across paper, and go on a relaxed journey into the sky. Leave the hectic routine of life behind for a chance to enjoy this deeply immersive experience. Forum Thread: TENSEI (by NEURON AGE) Vampire: The Masquerade – Shadows of New York ($4.99) iTunes Description **Vampire: The Masquerade – Shadows of New York** is a visual novel set in the rich universe of Vampire: The Masquerade, and is the continuation of the story started in **Coteries of New York.** You don’t need to have played **Coteries** to appreciate and understand the story behind **Shadows of New York.** While Coteries was a general introduction to the world depicted in the 5th Edition of the hit tabletop role-playing game, Shadows presents a more personal and unique tale. Forum Thread: Vampire: The Masquerade – Shadows of New York (by Plug In Digital)

Back in October last year, Feral Interactive announced that cross platform multiplayer was in the works for Company of Heroes …

Continue reading "‘Company of Heroes’ Mobile Multiplayer Beta Announced for Next Week on Android, Full Update Coming to iOS and Switch As Well"

Back in October last year, Feral Interactive announced that cross platform multiplayer was in the works for Company of Heroes ($14.99) on iOS, Android, and Switch. If you’ve not played it yet on mobile or Switch, read my iOS here and Switch review here. Today, Feral Interactive confirmed that the first Company of Heroes mobile multiplayer beta will take place only on Android from August 29th until September 3rd. A full FAQ is here covering what you need to know about the test. Watch the Company of Heroes Collection Switch trailer below: The FAQ also confirms that the update with full multiplayer will be shipping simultaneously on Switch, iOS, and Android using learnings from the Android test. The test is only on Android since the Google Play Store has a better functionality for opt-in betas. As of now, the multiplayer update has no release date. If you’ve not kept up with the game on Switch and mobile, read my interview with Feral Interactive here. If you’ve not bought the base game yet on mobile, Company of Heroes is available on the App Store for here and on Google Play here. Check out our forum thread for it here and the official website for the mobile conversion here. Have you played Company of Heroes on mobile or Switch yet and will you be checking out the Android beta next week?

Following yesterday’s big Disney Dreamlight Valley update on Apple Arcade and other platforms, a few more notable games on Apple’s …

Continue reading "Apple Arcade Weekly Round-Up: New Content and Feature Updates Are Now Live for TMNT Splintered Fate, Temple Run: Legends, Vampire Survivors, Simon’s Cat, and More"

Following yesterday’s big Disney Dreamlight Valley update on Apple Arcade and other platforms, a few more notable games on Apple’s gaming service have gotten big updates. Alongside its standalone release, Vampire Survivors+ got a new stage, secrets, character skins, and more. Read about this update here. TMNT Splintered Fate on Apple Arcade now supports couch co-op on the save device and also online co-op with cross platform support. This is great since it is also coming to Steam following its Switch release. Temple Run: Legends adds support for a new Outfit system with the ability to unlock new cosmetics, powerful traits, and more. Outlanders’ Volume VI of the Outlanders Chronicles: Wandering Stars is now live with six new playable leaders and more. Simon’s Cat – Story Time has a Summer Search Party on for daily rewards when you find beach balls in the gardens. SpongeBob: Patty Pursuit concludes the latest Tales of the Deep in this week’s update. The final notable update of the week is Disney Coloring World+ bringing in the Muppets in a new coloring pack featuring Kermit, Fozzie, and more. With the updates done, check out our forum threads for Outlanders here, SpongeBob: Patty Pursuit here, Simon’s Cat – Story Time here, Disney Coloring World+ here, and TMNT Splintered Fate here. Head over to our dedicated Apple Arcade forum for discussions on the new and older releases on the service. What do you think of the state of Apple Arcade right now and this week’s updates?

Nintendo just announced that Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp (Free) is shutting down on November 28th at 3 PM UTC. Animal …

Continue reading "‘Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp’ Shutting Down This November, New Paid Game Set To Release With Save Transfer"

Nintendo just announced that Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp (Free) is shutting down on November 28th at 3 PM UTC. Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp debuted on iOS and Android nearly seven years ago, and it has since received multiple content and feature updates. From November 28th, you will no longer be able to play this version of Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp, but the team is developing a version of Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp for mobile with save carrying over. This will be a flat-fee paid version of Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp. Social aspects from the original game will not be available here. Details for the new paid app are here. A full release date announcement for the paid app will be made around October. Check out the full announcement below: We have an important announcement for everyone playing the Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp app. Please see the following page for details as well.https://t.co/JGacPgXFyo pic.twitter.com/RHZt5u7SPU — Pocket_camp (@Pocket_Camp) August 22, 2024 While this is good news for those playing Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp since we rarely see games like this get paid standalone releases, I can’t help but be annoyed that Nintendo didn’t do something like this for Dragalia Lost. That game deserved so much better. At least I still have the music from it. Either way, you can play Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp on iOS and Android right now ahead of it shutting down in November. I’m curious to see how the paid version feels when it launches. Check out our forum thread for Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp here. Do you still play Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp regularly and what do you think of today’s news?

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 22nd, 2024. In today’s article, we’ve got a handful …

Continue reading "SwitchArcade Round-Up: ‘Mika and the Witch’s Mountain’, Plus Today’s Other Releases and Sales"

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 22nd, 2024. In today’s article, we’ve got a handful of new releases to check out. That’s unusual for a Wednesday, but I suppose it makes up for the slowness of the last couple of days. After summarizing those, it’s time for the lists of the latest sales and expiring discounts. Star Wars and Capcom, if one must make long stories short. Let’s get to those games! Select New Releases Mika and the Witch’s Mountain ($19.99) If you’ve ever been watching Ghibli’s classic Kiki’s Delivery Service and felt like playing a video game version, you might be into what Mika and the Witch’s Mountain is offering. I mean, it isn’t Kiki, but it’s clearly inspired by it. You play as an apprentice witch who has to fly around on her broom to deliver all kinds of packages to the various residents of a mountain town. The game has a nice, colorful vibe and I’m certainly going to be investigating it further to see if it lives up to its initial potential. My Lovely Empress ($19.99) A lovely wife, a lovely daughter, and now a lovely empress? Phew. In this game you play as an Emperor who reigns over a massive empire. Seems like you’ve got it all, but your wife passes away and suddenly none of it matters anymore. Still, you’ve got to keep things running. This is a simulation game of sorts, but one with a heavy narrative bent that will eventually lead to you having to make a critical choice. The previous games in the series have been fascinating despite their rough edges, and I expect this will deliver in the same way. Cyber Mission ($9.99) I’d call this a run-and-gun action game, but it’s probably better classified as a fly-and-gun action game. You play as a cyber trooper who is on a mission to destroy hostile alien forces. If you don’t feel like being a one-trooper army, you can grab a friend or family member for some local co-op multiplayer. Looks like a pretty good time for those enjoy things like S.C.A.T. or Contra, and reasonably priced to boot. Mangavania 2 ($4.99) More Mangavania for those who want it. A gentle reminder that these games are not Metroidvanias, just linear stage-based platformers with very light exploratory elements. If that’s your thing, this does that. Not terribly well, mind you. But it does it. That’s all I’ve got to say about that. White Eternal ($6.49) After his friend goes missing during the harsh winter, Simon sets out from his mountain town to try to find out what happened to them. This is a turn-based RPG where you explore a land cursed to harsh winters (Winnipeg?), seeking out allies and battle monsters as you go. You can actually get in battles where you have as many as sixteen party members. Neat! The description promises over twenty hours of gameplay, which would be quite a lot of game for the price. Sales (North American eShop, US Prices) Bounty Hunter is already on sale? Wow. Well, that’s good news for Star Wars fans, who likely already own everything else in that sale. We also have a good selection of the usual Capcom stuff, a sale on the Tomb Raider remasters, and a very deep discount on the Switch version of Heads Up!. Over in the outbox, don’t forget to stock up on Picross. Everyone needs more Picross! Have a look through both lists. Select New Sales Star Wars Bounty Hunter ($14.99 from $19.99 until 8/28) Star Wars Battlefront Collection ($28.00 from $35.01 until 8/28) Star Wars The Force Unleashed ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/28) Star Wars Republic Commando ($7.49 from $14.99 until 8/28) Star Wars Episode I Racer ($7.49 from $14.99 until 8/28) Star Wars Jedi Academy ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/28) Star Wars Jedi Outcast ($4.99 from $9.99 until 8/28) Star Wars KotOR ($7.49 from $14.99 until 8/28) Star Wars KotOR II: Sith Lords ($7.49 from $14.99 until 8/28) Tomb Raider I-III Remastered ($22.49 from $29.99 until 8/28) MythForce ($14.99 from $29.99 until 8/28) Heads Up! Phones Down Edition ($1.99 from $39.99 until 8/28) Street Fighter 30th Anniversary ($9.99 from $29.99 until 9/10) Ultra Street Fighter II TFC ($19.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) Capcom Fighting Collection ($15.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) Capcom Fighting Bundle ($19.99 from $59.99 until 9/10) Monster Hunter Generations Ult. ($9.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) Monster Hunter Rise + Sunbreak ($19.99 from $59.99 until 9/10) Resident Evil Revelations ($7.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Resident Evil Revelations 2 ($7.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Resident Evil 0 ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Resident Evil ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Resident Evil 4 ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Resident Evil 5 ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Resident Evil 6 ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Mega Man Legacy Collection ($7.99 from $14.99 until 9/10) Mega Man Legacy Collection 2 ($7.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Mega Man X Legacy Collection ($7.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Mega Man X Legacy Collection 2 ($7.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Mega Man Zero/ZX Collection ($9.99 from $29.99 until 9/10) Mega Man Battle Network Collection ($29.99 from $59.99 until 9/10) Mega Man 11 ($9.99 from $29.99 until 9/10) Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective ($19.99 from $29.99 until 9/10) Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Shinsekai Into the Depths ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Okami HD ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Ghosts n Goblins Resurrection ($9.99 from $29.99 until 9/10) Capcom Beat ‘Em Up Bundle ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/10) Capcom Arcade Stadium Bundle ($15.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) Capcom Arcade 2nd Stadium Bundle ($15.99 from $39.99 until 9/10) Disney Dreamlight Valley Gold ($45.49 from $69.99 until 9/10) Sales Ending Tomorrow, August 22nd A Fragile Mind ($2.99 from $5.99 until 8/22) Bunny Garden ($19.54 from $22.99 until 8/22) Conjured Through Death ($2.24 from $14.99 until 8/22) Dead Cells: Return to Castlevania ($6.99 from $9.99 until 8/22) Football Manager 2024 Touch ($19.99 from $49.99 until 8/22) Hard Racing Stunt Car Driving ($1.99 from $4.99 until 8/22) Hero’s Hour ($8.99 from $17.99 until 8/22) Inkulinati ($17.49 from $24.99 until 8/22) Insurmountable ($18.74 from $24.99 until 8/22) Life of Delta ($6.99 from $19.99 until 8/22) Love on Leave ($12.49 from $24.99 until 8/22) Maid of the Dead ($15.99 from $19.99 until 8/22) Pickleball Smash ($7.99 from $39.99 until 8/22) Picross LogiartGrimoire ($15.99 from $19.99 until 8/22) Picross S Genesis & Master System ($7.99 from $9.99 until 8/22) Picross S8 ($7.99 from $9.99 until 8/22) Picross S9 ($7.99 from $9.99 until 8/22) Plantabi Little Garden ($4.54 from $6.99 until 8/22) Sentimental Death Loop ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/22) Smurfs Kart ($13.99 from $39.99 until 8/22) Starward Rogue Complete ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/22) Survivor Castaway Island ($11.99 from $29.99 until 8/22) The Night of the Rabbit ($14.99 from $19.99 until 8/22) Trinity Fusion ($14.99 from $19.99 until 8/22) Ultimate Racing 2D 2 ($6.69 from $9.99 until 8/22) You Suck at Parking ($6.79 from $19.99 until 8/22) That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with the big Thursday new releases. Should be some goodies in there. I hope, anyway. August. It’s rough. We’ll also have whatever sales and major news items that arrive during the course of the day. I hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Digital Extremes has released the next big update for Warframe in the form of The Lotus Eaters update. This update …

Continue reading "‘Warframe’ Prologue Quest for Warframe 1999 The Lotus Eaters and Sevagoth Prime Now Available"

Digital Extremes has released the next big update for Warframe in the form of The Lotus Eaters update. This update brings in a prologue quest for Warframe 1999 which is due this Winter. Alongside that update, Warframe also adds in Sevagoth Prime access from today. If you’ve not played Warframe in a while, The Lotus Eaters is the game’s next story beat available a free narrative chapter. As for Sevagoth Prime access, this includes cosmetics, the Epitaph Prime weapon, and much more. You can collect the required blueprints to craft Sevagoth Prime for free or buy it from the Warframe Marketplace. Digital Extremes also confirms new Jade Shadows TennoGen with a deluxe Ares Skin for Warframe Styanax, the Rhodora Syadana backpiece, and more. Check out the Warframe patch notes here and key art for the update below: Check out Sevagoth Prime art below: Watch the newest game trailer below: If you’ve not played Warframe in a while, read my interview with Creative Director Rebecca Ford about Warframe Jade Shadows and more here. If you’d like to play Warframe on iOS now, you can get it on the App Store for iOS here. Check out the official Warframe Mobile iOS website here. You can pre-register or check out the Android website for the game here. You can also read my interview with Warframe Creative Director Rebecca Ford & Mobile Product Lead Jussi Elonen about the game, cross platform support, controls, and a lot more from launch here. I featured Warframe Mobile as one of the best mobile games of 2024 so far as well. What do you think of Warframe so far if you’ve played it on iOS and what would you like to see added in the next update?

Last week, Gameloft announced the next major and free Disney Dreamlight Valley update for PC and consoles alongside Disney Dreamlight …

Continue reading "‘Disney Dreamlight Valley’ Dapper Delights Update Now Available for Apple Arcade, Consoles, and PC"

Last week, Gameloft announced the next major and free Disney Dreamlight Valley update for PC and consoles alongside Disney Dreamlight Valley Arcade Edition () for Apple Arcade in the forming of the Dapper Delights update. This update has now gone live alongside Act III of A Rift in Time. A Rift in Time is the paid expansion for PC and consoles, but it is included in the Apple Arcade release. Today’s update brings in Tiana from Disney’s The Princess with you trying to help set up her own restaurant: Tiana’s Palace. A Rift in Time Act III brings in Rapunzel, EVE, Gaston, and Oswald joining in for a final confrontation with Jafar. Watch the new Disney Dreamlight Valley Dapper Delights update launch trailer below: If you’ve not gotten it yet, you can download Disney Dreamlight Valley Arcade Edition on Apple Arcade here. Read my review of Disney Dreamlight Valley Arcade Edition here. It is also available as a paid game with the expansion pass sold separately or in a bundle on all other platforms including Switch and Steam. It plays great on Steam Deck if you’re curious about that version. Check out the official website here for details on the expansion pass and more. Head over to our forum thread for Disney Dreamlight Valley Arcade Edition here. We also have a dedicated Apple Arcade forum for discussion on the service and every game included here. What do you think of Disney Dreamlight Valley if you’ve been playing it recently and will you be getting back for this update today?

Another mobile reveal from Gamescom Opening Night Live 2024 was the latest trailer for the open world dress up game …

Continue reading "Open World Dress Up Game ‘Infinity Nikki’ Gets New Trailer With Closed Beta Sign Ups Now Live, Pre-Registrations Also Available"

Another mobile reveal from Gamescom Opening Night Live 2024 was the latest trailer for the open world dress up game Infinity Nikki (Free) from developer Papergames. This was announced for mobile and PC a little while ago, and was also confirmed for PS5 which seems like the home for free to play games these days on the console side. The newest reveal for Infinity Nikki includes a trailer and also pre-registrations going live. The full game for Infinity Nikki will also have English voice over and the German localization is available for those to try out at the Gamescom showfloor. Sign-ups for the global Closed Beta Test are also now live. Watch the newest trailer for Infinity Nikki below: Infinity Nikki will launch with text support for English, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Japanese, Korean, German, French, Thai, Spanish (Latin America), Portuguese (Brazil), Italian, and Indonesian. Audio support will be available for English, Chinese (Simplified), and Japanese. If you’d like to sign up for the closed beta, you can do so here. A release date has not been announced so treat the date listed on the App Store page as a placeholder for now. You can pre-order Infinity Nikki on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here. Pre-registration for console is not live yet. As a different premise than usual for an open world game, I’m curious to try this one on iOS and PS5. What do you think of Infinity Nikki so far?

Following its announcement recently, Netflix’s upcoming multiplayer game based on Squid Game, Squid Game: Unleashed, has gotten its first reveal …

Continue reading "‘Squid Game: Unleashed’ Gets Full Trailer at Gamescom 2024, More Games Announced for Netflix"

Following its announcement recently, Netflix’s upcoming multiplayer game based on Squid Game, Squid Game: Unleashed, has gotten its first reveal gameplay trailer during Gamescom Opening Night Live 2024. Squid Game: Unleashed is a 32 player showdown featuring challenges from the show in addition to new ones for the game. There will be daily missions and events inspired by the brand’s universe. Squid Game: Unleashed is in development at Boss Fight (a Netflix Game Studio) and Season 2 of the show arrives this December. Watch the first Squid Game: Unleashed gameplay trailer below: Alongside that, Netflix also revealed other games coming to the service in the near future including the Monument Valley series. These include recently-released games like Diner Out and Ludo King: Netflix with more coming soon like Battleship, Roller Coaster Tycoon, and Snake.io. So far, Netflix has been killing it with quality releases on mobile. I hope the service continues to bring premium quality titles and also older games to the service while not just adding engagement focused releases like other gaming services have been doing these past months on other platforms. What do you think of the current slate of Netflix Games titles arriving this year and will you be trying any of the new games?

During Gamescom Opening Night Live 2024, HoYoverse had reveals and new information for each of its main games. Genshin Impact …

Continue reading "Gamescom 2024: Zenless Zone Zero, Honkai Star Rail, and Genshin Impact See New Announcements and Trailers"

During Gamescom Opening Night Live 2024, HoYoverse had reveals and new information for each of its main games. Genshin Impact (Free) will see its major 5.0 update release next week bringing in the brand new region and much more. For Genshin Impact, HoYoverse’s big reveal was that it is coming to Xbox Series X on November 20th. Alongside this news, a new look at Natlan was also revealed in the Gamescom 2024 trailer for Genshin Impact. Watch it below: Zenless Zone Zero (Free) just had its major 1.1 update launch, the first big one for the game since launch, and Gamescom 2024’s trailer had a tease of the new region coming in version 1.2. This will be the base for the next chapter of the Zenless Zone Zero story. The trailer also highlighted some of the Zenless Zone Zero 1.1 characters. Watch it below: Honkai Star Rail (Free) had a trailer showcasing Feixiao, who is joining the game in the near future. Feixiao is a female warrior from the Xianzhou Yaoqing who will be added to Honkai Star Rail in version 2.5. The trailer also had new information about the upcoming Honkai Star Rail Fate/stay night [Unlimited Blade Works] collaboration. Watch it below: You can grab Genshin Impact on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here. The PC version is available on the official website here and the Epic Games Store. It is coming to Xbox Series X on November 20th. Grab Honkai Star Rail yet for iOS here, on Google Play for Android here, and here on the Epic Games Store in addition to its regular PC version. Check it out here on PS5. You can download Zenless Zone Zero on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here. Check out the links to the PS5 and PC versions here. What do you think of HoYoverse’s reveals?

I did not have Another Eden, beloved mobile role-playing game, having a crossover event with The King of Fighters, legendary …

Continue reading "Legendary Fighting Series ‘The King of Fighters’ Crosses Over into ‘Another Eden’ with the “Another Bout” Event that Kicks Off August 22nd"

I did not have Another Eden, beloved mobile role-playing game, having a crossover event with The King of Fighters, legendary fighting game series from SNK, on my Bingo card, but here we are! Actually I shouldn’t be surprised, as Another Eden crossing over with popular IPs from all walks of the universe is nothing new, and they always do a fantastic job with it. This latest crossover, which is titled Another Bout, is no exception. Aldo gets a mysterious invite to a fighting tournament, and before he knows it him and his party are transported into the world of The King of Fighters, where they get to fight alongside some of the series’ most recognizable and beloved characters: Terry Bogard, Kyo Kusanagi, Mai Shiranui, and Kula Diamond. Together you’ll play through a brand new branching story with the ability to unlock the King of Fighters characters for use throughout the rest of Another Eden. The Another Bout event really leans into its fighting game crossover by providing a new battle arena where you can pick a team of 3 fighters and fight against another team of 3. Skills have been replaced with actual fighting game-style input combos, and you’ll need to learn to chain your moves together in order to unleash your Special Moves. At the end of it all you’ll face off against Rugal, longtime King of Fighters boss and tournament mastermind. The Another Bout crossover event in Another Eden officially kicks off this Thursday, August 22nd across PC, iOS, and Android, so be sure to check it out.

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 20th, 2024. In today’s article, I’ve got a couple …

Continue reading "SwitchArcade Round-Up: Reviews Featuring ‘Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse’, Plus the Latest Releases and Sales"

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 20th, 2024. In today’s article, I’ve got a couple more reviews for you. I’ve got my take on the lovely remaster of Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse, plus my thoughts on the rather messy Elrentaros Wanderings. Then there’s one new release to check out, plus the usual lists of new and expiring sales. Not a very busy day today, but that works out well for my schedule. Let’s go! Reviews & Mini-Views Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse Remastered ($19.99) Ten years ago, you would never have expected things to end up the way they did for Telltale Games. Having just wrapped up The Wolf Among Us and The Walking Dead: Season Two, the adventure game publisher seemed like it was nigh unstoppable. Just a few years later, everything fell apart. And here we are in 2024, happy to see any of those pieces picked up and made available again. For all of Telltale’s problems, there was really something to the games it released. Adventure games were finally part of the popular conversation again, and it was in no small part thanks to Telltale’s work. That’s why I’m happy to see what I feel is the heart and soul of Telltale Games fully available on Switch via this release. To a great extent, Sam & Max Save the World brought Telltale into the eyes of many players. The follow-up, Sam & Max: Beyond Time and Space kept the ball rolling. The last of the trilogy, Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse feels in some ways like the end of a particular era. Scant months later, Back to the Future: The Game would launch its first episode, and it laid down the track that Telltale would drive on for the next several years. Big licenses, a focus on character relationships, and less of a focus on traditional puzzle-solving. Nothing wrong with that, of course. I just happen to like what Telltale was up to before that. So, Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse. The first two Sam & Max seasons from Telltale came off like the developer was trying to find its feet. Good, to be sure. But sometimes lacking in confidence, and the games seemed to be put together on a shoestring budget. The Devil’s Playhouse was different. The writers were clearly comfortable with these characters enough to take them places. Telltale had sharpened its skills significantly and had more money to put into projects. It shows. The story here is excellent. Irreverent, funny, and smart the way you would hope a Sam & Max game would be, but with a slightly darker tone that adds a bit of spice. The puzzle design is refined without being toothless. The locations you visit are well-realized. The last episode (remember episodic games?) doesn’t quite stick the landing, but it’s hard to be too upset about it given the quality of the rest. This Remastered version follows in the footsteps of the last two. In cooperation with members of the original team, the visuals have been enhanced in a number of ways. The lighting is more interesting, the lip-flap is better, and there have even been some adjustments to the cinematography. It’s not too strong by any means, maintaining the feel of the original release. It’s Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse as you perhaps remember it, not how it actually was. I’ve been quite pleased with how these remasters have been handled thus far, and I didn’t expect the team to drop the ball here. A fine job all-around, one the whole team can be proud of. Out of all the things that could be salvaged from the defunct original form of Telltale Games, the Sam & Max trilogy was just about the highest on my list. Now, with this excellent remaster of The Devil’s Playhouse, that job is complete. If you’ve never played a Sam & Max game before, feel free to slide on in with Sam & Max Save the World and see it through to the end of The Devil’s Playhouse. It’s quite the wild ride. If you have played these games before, the enhanced presentation might just convince you to go for a replay. They quite literally don’t make them like this anymore. SwitchArcade Score: 4.5/5 Elrentaros Wanderings ($39.99) Sometimes it feels like a game is just a few smart tweaks away from greatness. And then there are games like Elrentaros Wanderings. The basic premise is solid enough, and one that gets the engine running when you find out this game is from Rune Factory’s creator. You’re an amnesiac wanderer who comes across the town of Elrentaros. The people there are friendly, if a little one-note, and they have all kinds of work for an adventurer like yourself. Dungeon work, mainly. As time progresses you can get closer with the townspeople and deepen your bonds with them. So far, not so unusual. But then you beat a boss, and suddenly you’re in a school setting in modern Japan. All the townspeople of Elrentaros are there, but they’re acting differently and don’t seem to know you. What is going on? That’s a good hook. Good enough to keep me happily playing despite how tired I was getting of running the uninteresting dungeons again and again, trying to complete objectives and get my gear in shape. Bored of seeing the same enemies, just in a new color palette. If I beat that next boss, I can move towards resolving this mystery. If I keep talking to these uninteresting townspeople, maybe I can see where this all goes. I wish I could say it was worth it in the end, but it wasn’t. A decent story, but not one worth the slog of playing through this game. Anyway, the basic loop here follows a fairly standard looter dungeon crawler template. Dive into the dungeon, battle enemies, get some new gear, dive in again, and so on. There are multiple dungeons to tackle here that each culminate in a boss battle. What’s different here is that powering up your character is more a matter of completing particular tasks in each dungeon and reaping the rewards. You won’t know what those tasks are on your first run, and you really do need to check off those lists to keep your character strong enough to push forward. At a bare minimum, you’ll be doing each dungeon twice. Beyond gear and more direct power-ups, you’ll also get your hands on gifts that you can offer up to the townspeople to win their favor. That pursuit has its own rewards, so you don’t want to neglect it either. The problem is that just about none of this is very interesting. The townspeople aren’t very deep or well-written. The dungeon layouts are bland and certainly aren’t better on subsequent runs. The enemies are cool the first time you see them, but you’ll be seeing them again and again in slightly different colors. The battle system offers little to sink your teeth into, and the loot fails to hit the spot the way it ought to in a game like this. The story is spread far too thin across the gameplay, a meager oasis in a vast, exhausting desert of repetition. I was enjoying this game early on, patient to see how things unfolded as it went on, but the reward never came. I think if you are okay with a pure grind, Elrentaros Wanderings might not turn you off the way it did me. But if you have even the slightest allergy to excessive banality, then this game is likely to have you heading for the hills. Its few good ideas are squandered by watering down the broth too much, stretching far too little content far too far. Not without any merit, but thoroughly disappointing. SwitchArcade Score: 2.5/5 Select New Releases Stumble Guys (Free) Here’s a Switch version of Stumble Guys, the game that seems to have wrested the ball away from Fall Guys and ran with it. Up to thirty-two players compete online in a variety of events and modes. The game is free to start, just like on other platforms. But there are a wide range of ways to spend your real cash, so don’t you worry about that. Anyway, it’s free, it’s here, try it if you want or walk on past if you don’t. Sales (North American eShop, US Prices) Not a whole lot to get excited about today, beyond Dadish and company being on sale. All good games, from Dadish on down. Buy and enjoy. Over in the outbox, the main thing of note is Kairosoft’s latest sale wrapping up. It won’t take but a minute to check those lists, so you might as well do just that. Select New Sales Rack and Slay ($5.09 from $5.99 until 8/25) Sagres ($13.99 from $19.99 until 8/26) Gravity Oddity ($1.99 from $14.99 until 8/26) Warhammer 40k Dakka Squadron ($1.99 from $19.99 until 8/26) Guilt Battle Arena ($1.99 from $9.99 until 8/26) Chippy & Noppo ($13.99 from $19.99 until 8/27) Soundfall ($4.49 from $29.99 until 8/27) Last Encounter ($1.99 from $14.99 until 9/2) Ultra Foodmess ($1.99 from $3.99 until 9/2) Dadish ($1.99 from $9.99 until 9/10) Dadish 2 ($1.99 from $9.99 until 9/10) Dadish 3 ($1.99 from $9.99 until 9/10) Dadish 3D ($2.99 from $14.99 until 9/10) Daily Dadish ($1.99 from $9.99 until 9/10) Super Fowlst ($1.99 from $9.99 until 9/10) Super Fowlst 2 ($2.00 from $10.00 until 9/10) Molecano ($1.99 from $8.00 until 9/10) Sales Ending Tomorrow, August 21st 50 Pinch Barrage ($4.29 from $4.99 until 8/21) 8-Colors Star Guardians + ($2.49 from $4.99 until 8/21) Attack of the Karens ($2.49 from $4.99 until 8/21) Cafe Master Story ($6.00 from $12.00 until 8/21) Children of Morta Complete ($7.99 from $26.99 until 8/21) Claire: Extended Cut ($2.99 from $14.99 until 8/21) Goliath Depot ($3.49 from $6.99 until 8/21) High Seas Saga DX ($6.00 from $12.00 until 8/21) Oh!Edo Towns ($4.62 from $14.00 until 8/21) Pocket Stables ($3.96 from $12.00 until 8/21) Whitestone ($3.99 from $19.99 until 8/21) That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with more new games, more sales, perhaps some news, and maybe even a review? I wouldn’t bet too much money on that last one, but who knows? I have a family thing tonight, and so I’m cutting out a little early today. Don’t tell the boss! I hope you all have a terrific Tuesday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Gamescom is kicking off in Cologne, Germany as we speak, and during their Opening Night Live event they’ve already revealed …

Continue reading "‘Monument Valley 3’ Coming to Netflix Games in December, ‘Monument Valley 1 & 2’ Heading to the Service in the Coming Months As Well"

Gamescom is kicking off in Cologne, Germany as we speak, and during their Opening Night Live event they’ve already revealed some major news across all of gaming. One of the big announcements that pertains to us in the mobile gaming world is the official unveiling of Monument Valley 3 from developer ustwo, which will be arriving as part of the Netflix Games library on December 10th. We’ve known that Monument Valley 3 was in the works since at least July of 2019 so it’s very satisfying to see some real news about when we’ll be able to get our hands on this latest entry in the legendary puzzle game series. Here’s the announcement teaser. As you can see, it’s not just Monument Valley 3 that’s heading to Netflix Game, but the previous two entries will also be making their way to the service. The original Monument Valley will hit Netflix next month on September 19th with the sequel Monument Valley 2 making its way to Netflix on October 29th. It’s been clear for a while now that Netflix Games is not messing around when it comes to bringing high profile titles to their mobile library, and Monument Valley 3 is certainly another one to add to the list. The trailer also says to expect more news about the game during the Netflix Geeked Week which is set to take place from September 16-19th, so look for some more about Monument Valley 3 then.

When thinking about the classics or games I’d recommend people play on mobile, Mini Metro is one of the best …

Continue reading "Exclusive: Dinosaur Polo Club Interview – CEO Amie Wolken on Mini Metro, Mini Motorways, the Team, Free DLC, Working With Apple, Ports, and More"

When thinking about the classics or games I’d recommend people play on mobile, Mini Metro is one of the best by far. Sure, it is on other platforms, but having played it just about everywhere, the iOS version is my favorite. When Dinosaur Polo Club announced and released Mini Motorways, I was curious if it would manage to deliver something amazing again. The team did. Since then, we’ve seen both games get multiple updates including a collaboration between them. A few weeks ago, I had a chance to talk to Dinosaur Polo Club’s new CEO Amie Wolken about the studio, the Mini series, canceled projects, coffee, expanding the studio, working with Apple, Nintendo, the future, and more for an exclusive interview. This was conducted on a video call. It was then transcribed and edited for brevity in the case of some portions. TouchArcade (TA): Before getting to the things you’ve been doing recently, can you tell me a little bit about what you’re doing right now at Dinosaur Polo Club. Amie Wolken (AW): I’ve come on board as the new CEO and it means working with the team to set strategy and vision for the next few years, and to really get them humming on the next project that they’re working on. TA: You previously were the Studio Director at Weta Workshop’s games studio and you worked on Tales of the Shire as Lead Game Programmer. How was it working at the game studio and also how was it working on Tales of the Shire which is supposed to finally be coming out later this year? AW: It was amazing. I was the Lead Game programmer on Tales of the Shire and before that, I had been working closely with the Magic Leap and Weta Workshop collaboration working in the augmented reality space. I’d been focused on the technical side of things and after Weta Workshop went on its own journey of game development after the Magic Leap collaboration, we decided to pursue Tales of the Shire as our first game as an independent game studio and it was amazing to be there from the ground up working on the Prototype. TA: Since you joined earlier this year, I think it was April, how involved have you been with the two current live game projects: Mini Metro and Mini Motorways. I ask because both of them still get updates despite Mini Metro being really old now. It is getting a lot of great support. AW: I try to stay involved over only in the periphery. The game teams know best what their games need, and so my role is more to support them to make sure that they have what they need to make the games great, and to work closely with them on long-term strategies for those games. What does the studio need out of those games and then really enable the teams to just do their good work on the games itself. TA: How did you end up getting in touch with Dinosaur Polo Club to basically take over as CEO? When I was looking at when you took over, everyone was very positive from the start looking at reactions from developers around. AW: So I saw the role advertised, and I’ve also known quite a few people who worked at dinosaur Polo Club over the years. So a couple of people let me know that they were looking for a new CEO and so I applied. So I just went through their application process. Yeah. TA: Did you play a lot of Mini Metro and Motorways before taking over? AW: I did not. In fact, I think I played Mini Metro when I applied for the job. I thought I better play the games. *laughs* TA: What does the day in your life look like right now as CEO of Dinosaur Polo Club? AW: That’s a good question and honestly it changes all the time. Recently and after a few months of being in the job, I thought that the studio could benefit from sort of a few weeks of tools down and coming together as a team, and working on sort of high level studio goals. So actually a lot of my time over the past couple of months has been working on that. We called it a studio pause, and we put tools down on the games, and we really focused on coming together as a team and trying to envision the future that we wanted as a studio. So a lot of work was done around that and then there’s a lot of work around budgeting and finance, making sure that we’re compliant, and making sure that we have good practices and processes in the team. So policies, making sure that leadership development is well supported and it really kind of depends on what the team needs at the moment. Working with the teams on pitching upcoming products and projects. TA: So when you joined Dinosaur Polo Club, I saw “Foster great culture and games" mentioned a few times. Obviously the studio pause seems like one of the major steps to having great culture to get everyone together and stuff. But I was curious what other things are planned for this year on that front to help grow the team? AW: I mean, we always take growing the team and onboarding quite seriously. So having good recruitment processes and practices to make sure that you’re finding people who want to come on the same journey as the studio is on, and part of that means having a clear idea of where you’re kind of going as a studio, and exactly like you said, the pause was really designed to make sure that everyone in the studio, because we’re a small studio at 30 people, so everyone is on the same page with the way we’re going, which means that everybody can be ambassadors for who we are, and what we’re creating together, and it also helps to speed up decision making processes because everybody is on the same page about where we are going and we’re going there together. Now we’ve actually got a lot of really great information and the pause as well. So we generated a lot of really good ideas for what we could do going forward, and part of what I’ll be doing is looking at that and carrying forward some of the ideas that came out of that around how we sort of live our values and what it means to be part of Dinosaur Polo Club, and what it means for us to create an impact in the world in the way that we want to do it sustainably and looking after our people while we make games. The future and for the rest of this year I suppose, a significant portion of that will be taking what we’ve learned in the pause and applying that in practice going forward. TA: So you’ve been there since April till right now. That’s less than six months. How have you grown with the team? How does it feel for you and have you accomplished what you wanted to in a few months? I know it is a very short time for this kind of question, but given the positive sentiment around the studio and announcements, I was curious how it has been for you over the course of this period. AW: It has been great. I do feel like I have grown with the team over the last few months. A lot of my time, especially in the first couple of months, was just listening to the team trying to figure out where everyone was at, trying to figure out where the pain points were. Everything that you put out you try to look at the positives. Every team has things that they can work on and Dinosaur Polo Club is no different. The first few months were listening to the team, figuring out where I could have the biggest impact, and then the pause was sort of what came out of that. TA: Before asking specific questions about the games, since you’ve been the CEO for a few months, have you been involved with any of the teams working with Apple and other platform holders? Dinosaur Polo Club has Mini Motorways which is one of the best Apple Arcade games right now even though it is also on other platforms. Have you been working with Apple in any way or is that another team at the studio? AW: I have been involved in conversations with Apple on a regular basis. TA: I first played Mini Metro on iOS many years ago. Since then the game has been ported to a lot of platforms. Mini Motorways launched directly as an Apple Arcade exclusive and that made its way to Nintendo Switch and Steam. I still feel like the games are best on a nice big touch screen like an iPad because you get the gorgeous visuals and you have direct interaction with them. I wanted to know if you could comment on how the games have been doing outside mobile because it feels like these are very much designed for touch screens? I know some folks play them with a controller or a mouse as well on Switch or Steam. AW: It’s not something I’m really super close to. I don’t think it’s any surprise that the games do play really well on the touchscreens, but there is a wide audience that are enjoying the games, and we try and make sure that we’re designing the games to support those audiences too, and all of the controls that we support. But I agree, I think that there is some nice synergy there with the touch screen in there and iPads and iPhones. TA: A few weeks ago, Dinosaur Polo Club announced that it was working on a game which has now been canceled called Magic School. This announcement was interesting for a few reasons. Obviously having a game canceled is never a good thing, but the phrasing of the announcement and the response has been very positive with how you all are trying to take the best from the situation and move forward. How was it working towards that announcement for you and the team? AW: I wasn’t actually involved in making the decision to cancel. I was there for the tail end of it, but that decision had already been made as I was onboarding. So I don’t want to speak closely to it. I think there are other team members who are much closer to that decision and that project then been, but I have been there to talk to the team as they sort of process the impact of canceling a project that had been worked on for years, and that is significant. It was a piece of work that many people care deeply about and had poured their creative hearts and souls into, so we’re always very conscious of that, and I think that’s a big part of why you want to share as well the efforts that have gone into a project that doesn’t necessarily make it to launch, but had a huge potential, a huge amount of talent, and effort that went into it, so it is a pleasure to be able to share those when you can. I’m really glad that we were able to do that for the team who worked on it and for the studio as a whole as well. TA: Getting back to Apple Arcade. Can you comment on whether anything has changed in the last few months for how your work with Apple or things still going smoothly and is everyone happy with the arrangement you have with them? Mini Motorways still gets updates so it is still ongoing. I also wanted to know if there are any plans to do any more projects with Apple? AW: Yeah, that’s probably not something that I can comment on right now, but I can say that we’ve got an incredible relationship with Apple and we really enjoy working with them. TA: You said you played Mini Metro when you were working on getting this role and stuff, but since joining, have you started playing them and giving any feedback to the team directly? AW: No. Even though I have been a game developer, and because I’ve not been a game developer of this style of games, or involved in developing the Mini games, I’m super tentative to have creative opinions unless they are looking for creative opinions from lay people who are under NDA. That is where I really try to power the team who are the creative masterminds behind the Mini series, and sometimes the weight that your opinion can carry as a CEO, certainly in my situation would far outweigh any actual practical relevance of my opinion. TA: You mentioned since taking over that Dinosaur Polo Club is a small studio. Is there any need to grow the studio? AW: We’re pretty good. We do have a small plan for bringing on new people as we start developing more products as well. We have an ambition to remain a small studio. So, in terms of studio size, we would love to not grow Beyond say 40 to 45 people. That is kind where we want to go in terms of the kinds of games that we make. We want to make sure that we stay small. We want to make sure that we can still know everybody’s names. We know everybody that we work with and focus on making games within that capacity and excelling at that rather than expanding and expanding. TA: Mini Metro is on iOS, Android, Apple Arcade, PC, Switch and PS4. Mini Motorways is on Apple Arcade, Switch, and Steam. Are there any plans to bring them to Xbox and also to bring Mini Motorways to PlayStation and have you noticed any demand to bring your games to more platforms? AW: It hasn’t featured highly in the conversations that I’ve had in the studio. That’s not to say that there isn’t demand or there hasn’t been conversations, but it’s just that they haven’t been conversations that have been a high enough priority in the last few months for it to be raised with me. TA: You said that you were happy with how the team has been handling Mini Metro and Mini Motorways. Has anything changed since you took over where the team now feels like it can do more with the games? Both games are pretty great as it is. AW: I think everybody can expect that Mini Motorways will continue to have some exciting updates. The team is working on an update plan and the strategy is fully behind supporting Motorways to continue to be supported and content updates. So I think people can expect to see cool things coming out of Motorways. TA: That leads into my next question well. Both games are successful critically and they’ve gotten a ton of post-launch support through free content updates. Has there been any consideration to doing a paid expansion for any of them? AW: No, we’re pretty set on the free content update strategy. TA: So basically have a premium game and support it for years and build your audience who wants to keep supporting you as a publisher? AW: That’s right. TA: How do you like your coffee? AW: I drink oat flat white. I’d like to thank Amie Wolken from Dinosaur Polo Club and also Noah Vaca and Yunah Smirnov from Stride PR for their time and help here. You can keep up with all our interviews here including our recent ones with FuturLab here, Shuhei Matsumoto from Capcom about Marvel Vs Capcom here, Santa Ragione here, Peter ‘Durante’ Thoman about PH3 and Falcom here, M2 discussing shmups and more here, Digital Extremes for Warframe mobile, Team NINJA, Sonic Dream Team, Hi-Fi Rush, Pentiment, and more. As usual, thanks for reading.

Earlier this year, Feral Interactive’s superb iOS version of Alien: Isolation (Free) was updated to change the game’s business model …

Continue reading "‘Alien: Isolation’ for Android Is Now a Free To Start Release Just Like iOS Letting Everyone Try Two Missions for Free"

Earlier this year, Feral Interactive’s superb iOS version of Alien: Isolation (Free) was updated to change the game’s business model to be free to try with a single in app purchase for the full game unlock. Today, Alien: Isolation on Android has been updated to be a free to try game just like the iOS version. With this, Android players can sample the first two missions. After that, a single in app purchase will be required to unlock the full game for $13.49. Those who own the game already should see no change. For new customers, the saves from the first two free missions will carry over to the full game once the full game unlock purchase is complete. Watch the new trailer for Alien: Isolation on iOS and Android below: I featured Alien: Isolation as one of the best games to play with keyboard and mouse on iPad, and I assume it plays well on Android tablets as well. If you’ve not gotten it yet on iOS, read my glowing review of the game here covering the game at launch. We featured it as our Game of the Week as well when it launched. The full version of Alien: Isolation on mobile includes all seven DLC packs in its unlock price of $14.99. You can grab Alien: Isolation for free on the App Store here and on Google Play here. Check out our forum thread here. Have you played Alien: Isolation on mobile yet or will you be trying it today for free?

I’ve been a big fan of SIGONO’s OPUS series of narrative adventure games for a long time. If you’ve not …

Continue reading "‘OPUS: Prism Peak’, the Newest Entry in the Amazing ‘OPUS’ Series, Gets New Gameplay Screenshots"

I’ve been a big fan of SIGONO’s OPUS series of narrative adventure games for a long time. If you’ve not checked it out yet, OPUS: The Day We Found Earth (Free) is a great place to start but OPUS: Echo of Starsong, the newest release, is brilliant as well if you want to try a newer game. Read my review of the mobile version of that release here. Following its reveal back in January last year, SIGONO’s latest project, OPUS: Prism Peak, is shaping up to be another excellent narrative adventure game. With Gamescom 2024 beginning today, SIGONO has shared new screenshots for OPUS: Prism Peak in addition to a gameplay trailer that I missed from a few weeks ago. Watch the newest OPUS: Prism Peak gameplay trailer below: Check out a new screenshot from OPUS: Prism Peak below: OPUS: Prism Peak will feature multiple endings and it has you playing as a photographer using your camera to find your way back home from an ethereal realm. The music in OPUS: Prism Peak will be from Triodust and Audio Textural with a story from Brian Lee who wrote OPUS: Echo of Starsong. While OPUS: Prism Peak hasn’t been announced for mobile yet, my interview with Scott Chen, co-founder of SIGONO and executive producer of the OPUS series, mentioning Echo of Starsong on iOS being like returning home gives me hope to see this one on mobile as well at some point. You can wishlist OPUS: Prism Peak here as of now. It hasn’t been officially announced for more platforms yet. Have you played the OPUS games and what do you think of OPUS: Prism Peak so far?

Reviewing all the coolest, newest games for Xbox, Playstation, Switch & PC!

Rockstar has officially delayed Grand Theft Auto VI to May 26, 2026, causing frustration among publishers who had postponed their games to avoid competition. The decision reflects internal concerns about workload and quality.

Microsoft is raising Xbox console and accessory prices, effective May 1, 2025, similar to PlayStation's recent price hikes. First-party game prices will also increase to $80 this summer, aligning with Nintendo's pricing strategy.

EA has halted the development of new rally titles by Codemasters, marking a significant change in the franchise's history. The company will continue supporting existing players with EA Sports WRC.

In May, Sony announces free PlayStation Plus Essential games: ARK: Survival Ascended, Balatro, and Warhammer 40K: Boltgun. Available from May 6 to June 2 for active subscribers.

Oblivion Remastered revamps the classic RPG with an upgraded engine, improved graphics, refined gameplay mechanics, streamlined UI, enhanced voice acting, flexible leveling, and integrated DLCs, ensuring a modern adventure experience.

Ubisoft has added 60fps support for Far Cry 4 on PS5, following similar updates for other titles. Microsoft had previously enhanced the game on Xbox Series X in 2021.

The Until Dawn remake may be available as a free PS Plus Essential game in May, following poor reviews and minimal player engagement shortly after its release in October 2024.

The week saw the launch of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered and the success of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, which has become the highest-rated game with 500,000 copies sold in 24 hours.

Sony has announced the release date for Ghost of Yotei, launching on October 2nd. The sequel features protagonist Atsu seeking revenge and includes various editions with exclusive content.

Bethesda announced the remaster of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, achieving a peak of 182,298 concurrent players shortly after its surprise release, showcasing impressive graphics and nostalgic features.

Free Video Game Alpha & Beta Tests. The Worlds Biggest Beta Testing Site

Besmirch is a FAITH inspired pixel art farming survival horror game where the apocalypse comes to a strange little town on the brink of starvation.

In Besmirch you have recently been employed to work the farm for the greedy owner in a small starving town. The farmland is in disrepair so you’ll need to clear any debris, hoe the land, plant seeds, water them and … Read More

The post Besmirch – Alpha Demo first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

Dreadway is a co-op horror game where players face the harsh realities of a nuclear apocalypse from the relative safety of a constantly moving train.

In Dreadway teams must work together to scavenge materials, craft tools, and maintain their mobile sanctuary. The train’s constant need for fuel creates a compelling risk-reward dynamic – every item found could either be used for crafting or burned to … Read More

The post Dreadway – Open Beta first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

Marble Champions is a marble racing game where players guide their spherical competitors through intricate tracks in a quest for marble supremacy.

In Marble Champions players can test their skills in various challenges, including Obstacle Run, Balance Run, and Downhill Dash, while collecting an array of unique marbles with distinct characteristics and stats. The progression system takes racers from Rookie to Champion status through increasingly … Read More

The post Marble Champions – Open Beta first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

Siegecaster is a skill-based siege defense game that puts players in command of a magical citadel under relentless attack from hordes of enemies.

In Siegecaster players will need to think strategically while defending their base with an arsenal of arcane weapons. The game’s core mechanics revolve around building outward to capture powerful runespires, which provide crucial upgrades to your defensive capabilities. Players must carefully choose … Read More

The post Siegecaster – Beta Sign Up first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

KuloNiku: Bowl Up! blends cooking simulation and comedy as players step into the role of a budding restaurateur inheriting their grandmother’s beloved meatball restaurant.

Set in the charming town of KuloNiku, KuloNiku: Bowl Up! challenges players to restore their family’s legacy while facing off against fierce competition, including the flamboyant Stella of Starstruck Diner. The game features intuitive, hands-on cooking mechanics where players chop, fry, … Read More

The post KuloNiku: Bowl Up! – Open Beta first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

Caput Mortum is a QWOP-like first person survival horror dungeon crawler where you investigate an alchemist’s tower in 16th century France.

In Caput Mortum you are a traveller who has arrived at a long-abandoned village that was plagued with disappearances and ruined crops. The source of the village’s misfortunes is rumored to be an alchemist’s tower high upon a hill. It’s said to be a … Read More

The post Caput Mortem – Beta Demo first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

TROLEU is a chaotic and lighthearted simulation game where you take on the role of a trolleybus conductor who has to deal with unruly passengers.

Set in 2021 France, TROLEU puts you in the shoes of an overworked trolleybus conductor who is tasked with giving paying customers tickets and dealing with rule-breakers. There are three forms of payment that you can accept (credit card, cash … Read More

The post TROLEU – Open Beta first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

Hobby Horse is a charming game that lets players create, customize and ride their own hobby horse companion.

In Hobby Horse you will design your perfect stick-mounted steed and embark on exciting adventures across diverse landscapes. From indoor gymnasiums to challenging forest trails, players can explore various obstacle courses throughout the city. The game combines skill-based gameplay with creative customization, allowing riders to jump, sprint, … Read More

The post Hobby Horse – Beta Sign Up first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

Void Martyrs is a Sci-Fi roguelite survival horror game where players don the space suit of a holy sister who ventures into the dark reaches of space where faith and terror intertwine.

Set in an alternative history where the Church Space Program won the space race, Void Martyrs presents a unique grimdark vision of cosmic horror. Players navigate through procedurally generated space cathedrals, searching for … Read More

The post Void Martyrs – Beta Sign Up first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

Astrumis: Survive Together is an innovative asymmetric co-op horror game designed exclusively for two players, where one player guides another via security cameras.

In Astrumis: Survive Together one player takes on the role of John Kowalski – a survivor trapped on an abandoned spaceship, while the other becomes Mission Control (Yang Sungbin), guiding them via security cameras. The survivor must navigate the ship, solving puzzles … Read More

The post Astrumis: Survive Together – Beta Sign Up first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

Ancestral Harvest is an action-adventure where players take on the role of a wounded shaman-child navigating a world ravaged by humanity’s destructive path.

Unlike traditional combat-focused games, Ancestral Harvest emphasizes healing over violence. Armed with a mystical drum, players must master rhythmic combinations to cleanse corrupted souls and restore balance to a dying world. The game blends musical elements with tactical gameplay, as players craft … Read More

The post Ancestral Harvest – Open Beta first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

Become the Moon is an auto-battler that combines deck-building mechanics with roguelike elements as you begin a journey into the stratosphere.

In Become the Moon players embark on an otherworldly journey, assembling teams of peculiar characters while collecting powerful relics and spells. The game’s core mechanics revolve around strategic deck building and automated combat. Each round presents opportunities to draft new cards and develop powerful … Read More

The post Become the Moon – Beta Sign Up first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

Easy Delivery Co. is a PS1 styled lo-fi delivery game where you make deliveries, meet mysterious residents and discover strange secrets.

Due to the aesthetic of Easy Delivery Co. you’d be forgiven for thinking it was a horror game, but it’s not. It’s a chilled out (though occasionally perilous) delivery game set in a small frostbitten mountain community.

In the game you are a new … Read More

The post Easy Delivery Co – Beta Demo first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

One Way Home is an INSIDE/Little Nightmares-esque cinematic horror puzzle platforming game where a young boy has a nightmarish trip home following a bus crash.

Previously featured on Alpha Beta Gamer during the closed Beta sign up, in One Way Home a young boy called Jimmy is returning from school one evening when the school bus is involved in a crash. When Jimmy … Read More

The post One Way Home – Beta Demo first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

L.A.P.D. 2195 is a fan made re-imagining of the classic Future Cop L.A.P.D., which puts you in the shoes of a rookie cop in a 2195 Los Angeles Police Department.

Featuring online co-op gameplay, L.A.P.D. 2195 is a modern re-imagining of the classic 1998 Future Cop L.A.P.D. game. It’s not associated with EA or the original dev team in any way, but is a … Read More

The post L.A.P.D. 2195 – Alpha Sign Up first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

The Doorway Effect is a 1-4 player cooperative roguelite horror game set in the labyrinthine subconscious of a dying mind.

In The Doorway Effect players are thrust into a nightmarish landscape that blends psychological horror with roguelike mechanics, where each door represents a potential gateway to unresolved trauma and terrifying encounters. Players must strategically explore a constantly shifting environment, collecting keys, solving intricate puzzles, and … Read More

The post The Doorway Effect – Beta Sign Up first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

The Button Effect offers a meditative puzzle experience in a button museum where every button has a purpose.

A chilled out first-person adventure, The Button Effect challenges players to uncover the subtle connections between seemingly simple button presses and their far-reaching consequences throughout the environment. The game’s minimalist design belies its complex puzzle mechanics, where each exhibit teaches new concepts that build upon previous discoveries.… Read More

The post The Button Effect – Beta Sign Up first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

ChainStaff is a brutal and beautiful Contra-esque heavy metal run ‘n gun action platformer where you’ve been infected by an alien bug that’s attached itself to your head.

With an art style reminiscent of the cult classic Heavy Metal movie, ChainStaff is a 2D action platformer that sees you fighting back against alien spores that have transformed the creatures of Earth into deadly uber-bugs. … Read More

The post ChainStaff – Beta Demo first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

Trench Tales is a narrative-driven third person military shooter set in an alternate reality between WWI and WWII.

In Trench Tales players enter a haunting alternate reality where supernatural forces collide with military might. This third-person shooter combines tactical combat with mystical abilities, creating a unique blend of historical warfare and dark fantasy.

Players navigate through diverse environments, from claustrophobic trenches to imposing Gothic castles, … Read More

The post Trench Tales – Open Alpha first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

Rollick N’ Roll is a fun little physics-based button-fiddling puzzle game where you attempt to guide toys through various Screwball Scramble-esque marble runs.

In Rollick N’ Roll your goal is to guide various toy cars/boats/trains/etc through the various obstacles in each level to the goal. You don’t control the vehicles directly, but you can press various buttons that can cause different parts of the level … Read More

The post Rollick N’ Roll – Beta Demo first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

AGRONOM blends Eastern European traditions with sci-fi farming as a robot is tasked with fulfilling Gramps Makar’s dream of creating a cozy Mars homestead in memory of his late wife Sofia.

Set in the 22nd-century, in AGRONOM players must build and maintain a thriving agricultural settlement while working against corporate pressure from AgroNova. A team of specialized AI robots assists in various tasks, from construction … Read More

The post AGRONOM – Beta Sign Up first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

Egging On, the Foddian physics-based egg platformer, is having a special open Beta Easter weekend, so you can take your egg to the heavens (and probably fall all the way back down again!)

Previously featured on Alpha Beta Gamer during the closed Beta, Egging On is a Getting Over it with Bennet Foddy style high stakes physics-based platformer. In the game you take … Read More

The post Egging On – Open Beta first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

Atlas Hands is a Sci-Fi survival horror FPS set in an eerie abandoned moon complex that’s been subject to an unexplained catastrophe.

In Atlas Hands you investigate a mysterious distress call from Red, the sole survivor of an unexplained catastrophe on a moon facility. Players must navigate through the facility’s labyrinthine corridors armed with a unique tool called the MindGun, which manipulates objects through rotation … Read More

The post Atlas Hands – Open Beta first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

Ironsand is a Sci-Fi rogue-lite FPS that throws players into an intense battle for survival on an alien desert planet.

Playable in single-player or co-op with up to four players, in Ironsand you join the elite members of the Galactic Union’s special forces as you protect the Long-eared inhabitants from the menacing Cult of the Iron God. The game features unique class-based gameplay, with players … Read More

The post Ironsand – Open Beta first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

Mo The Moai is a chaotic 2D platformer where you embody a pair of ever-running shoes on a divine mission that you must complete before reality resets.

In Mo The Moai you take control of a pair of shoes that never stops running, who must travel with a stoic Moai companion on a very important mission. Your goal is to scale the heights of Moai … Read More

The post Mo The Moai – Open Beta first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.

You can now sign up to Beta test a secret new co-op horror game that’s due to be published by Blumhouse Games.

Barely anything is known about the game, except for that Blumhouse Games are publishing it and it’s a co-op horror game. It’s coming to Steam only and one of the questions in the Beta sign up form mentions Irish folklore, so it’s likely … Read More

The post Secret Blumhouse Games Co-op Horror Game – Beta Sign Up first appeared on Alpha Beta Gamer.